In Brief
This issue’s cover photo features Kris Patel, owner of Diamond Newsagents. We tried to include his cat in the picture but it refused to co-operate. Kris has been on Church Street since time immemorial and, as well as stocking a huge range of newspapers and magazines, he sells the best samosas – meat and vegetarian – in North London. Sample them at 39 Church Street.
There was a lot of police activity on Church Street on a Saturday morning, towards the end of May. We counted at least 30 squad cars from the Met and City of London Police, with heavily armed officers, and a helicopter circling overhead. They also shut down the street for a couple of hours between Booth’s and the Daniel Defoe. The reason – an officer was stabbed in the thigh outside Safedale Chemist, and the hunt was on for the perpetrator, who was caught soon after the incident. The good news is that the officer concerned is apparently OK. However, given the size of the operation, you’d have been forgiven for assuming that Arsenal fan and international terrorist Osama Bin Laden and his trusted lieutenants were holed up in Abney Park. Would a civilian involved in a similar stabbing have received this amount of attention? Don’t think so. But one good thing to come out of this Old Bill invasion is that house prices in Church Street could come down, as potential purchasers may be frightened off by all the sub-machine guns. Berkshire? No.
Are you fed up with working from home? Do you need your own workspace? We are in the process of expanding and refurbishing the N16 Magazine office just off the High Street and creating another room, which we intend to let out to people who require space and a desk. The deal includes use of a computer, if required, broadband internet access, heating, lighting, electricity and personalised, secure storage space, and all for only £75 per week. The spaces will be ready by early August. We are about five minutes from Church Street (if you find that important) and two minutes away from the buses that hurtle up and down the Kingsland Road, whisking you away from this parish to the real world. If you’re interested, phone N16 Publisher Rab MacWilliam on 07956 357469 or contact us on info@n16mag.com. Stop irritating your partner. Come and irritate us instead.
Local resident Wendy Mitchell, who is starring in the BBC reality TV programme Castaway, has been proudly showing off her ‘I love Stokey’ mug every time she quenches her thirst. Her daughter even popped into the Earlybird card and gift shop on Church Street, which produces and sells the mugs, to tell them how far afield their mugs have travelled – the current series was filmed in New Zealand. Earlybird owner Dominic Early said he was ‘gobsmacked’ to see one of his designs on prime time TV. ‘The mugs have been selling well since Christmas but we had no idea one would end up on the other side of the world’. Earlybird has also negotiated an exclusive deal to stock the 1994, 1995 and 1998 vintage editions of the posters of shop fronts in Stoke Newington. Plus, due to popular demand, a 2007 edition is hot off the press too – many of you might have seen it at Stokefest where photographer Jan Leybourne was selling them.
The Hackney Youth Orchestra’s Saturday Morning School presents its summer concert at the Round Chapel, Lower Clapton Road, on Saturday 7 July at 11am. Entry is free (but donations are encouraged) to see some of Hackney’s finest young classical musicians perform. Having delivered high quality, low cost classical music education to Hackney school students since 1994, and based at Stoke Newington Media Arts College, more information on the concert and classes from: 07913 850889 or email hyot@hotmail.co.uk
Local bookshop met local author on 14 April, with an evening event held at the Stoke Newington Bookshop with local-based author Jae Watson, author of Journey, published by Legend Press and reviewed in the last issue of N16. The novel, which is Jae’s first, is set predominantly in Varanasi, India, and is currently being promoted by Borders as well as receiving worldwide and film interest. As a result, a large number of people crowded into the shop from off the sunny High Street and, following drinks and a short talk and reading from Jae, questioned her on a range of topics from the novel, writing, to the current social climate and travelling. Before everyone went back out into the sun, the author signed copies for guests as well as signing copies, which are currently available at the bookshop.
The High Street continues to show promising signs of regeneration. Rouge, importers and retailers of Chinese gifts and furniture, are expanding their shop area into the basement, where they will be displaying larger items of furniture. Across the road, Parker’s pet shop, a feature of the area for over thirty years, has been completely refurbished and will continue to supply everything from tropical fish, aquariums and pet toys to cat and dog food. While N16 was in there a customer came in to ask if they sold food for his pet chameleons. Unfortunately, they didn’t but they could order some. What do chameleons eat? And, how do they recognise other chameleons, as they keep changing colour? That’s probably enough on chameleons.
Michael Sinclair of Sunstone Women and Chair of Stoke Newington Business Association has just launched an enterprising new venture ‘chinaONEcall’ in partnership with his son Greg who now lives in China. Michael was inspired by his experiences travelling through the country and came up with this innovative idea designed to enhance any trip to China. chinaONEcall is the ‘interpreter in your pocket’, providing a 24/7 telephone link to English and Mandarin speaking Chinese staff who can communicate and translate direct to taxi drivers, new business contacts or shop assistants, for example. All you need is simply your mobile phone. chinaONEcall is for the business traveller, tourist or student. Find out more on www.chinaONEcall.com/freetrial or ring Michael on 0845 500 41 42.
There will be a public meeting in Stamford Hill Public Library on Tuesday June 26 at 7.30pm. This will be a chance for residents to voice their concerns about new planning proposals to the councillors involved. It may also be a chance for them to discover why the scheme was heralded in a local press article as 'a Great Planning Victory in N16' before it had even been put forward as a proposal. Turn up to find out more.
Our Spurs-supporting regular columnist Nick Griffiths – The View from the Lane – has outed himself as a Doctor Who obsessive in his new book Dalek I Loved You. The book is selling well and has received great reviews, such as the following: ‘conjures up just how mind-blowing it was for an ordinary suburban kid to be transported to a realm of danger and rampant sci-fi imaginings ... frank and funny’, Financial Times; ‘funny and warm confessional, with the message of hope that you can be a functioning Doctor Who fan and still manage to find a partner and a life – and a renewed interest in Dalek toys’, Books Quarterly; ‘he writes with such wit and warmth, and a strong line in observational humour’, Daily Mail. Buy a copy now (Gollancz, £12.99) at the Stoke Newington Bookshop. Congratulations, Nick.
Bored kids this summer? Keep ‘em off the streets and send them to the library! All of Hackney’s libraries offer a wide range of free activities for kids of all ages during the holiday, with Stoke Newington Library hosting activities such as T-shirt painting, book making, henna hand painting, face painting, badge making, a magician and more. Plus, the national reading challenge – this year, themed as The Big Wild Read – encouraging children to read up to six books during their break, with participants earning prizes as they progress, to be awarded at a party on 30 August from 2pm, hosted by recently appointed Children’s Laureate Michael Rosen. For a complete list of activities at all libraries visit one to collect a leaflet, or www.hackney.gov.uk/libraries.
The Stoke Newington Business Association has organised for the business community an evening of crime prevention on 25 June, guided by the Stoke Newington Police Crime Prevention Team and other experts at Abney Hall, Church Street at 6.30pm. It will also be a business networking opportunity for all (non-members welcome). For more info ring 0870 777 SNBA (7622) |
