Rebecca Minkoff Jewish, Scientologist, Real Housewife
London calling Israel’s brave defenders come to town Zoom Rockman’s Passover remix
PLUS
100 years of Hebrew Uni
Films they don’t want you to see
Discover Immanuel College – where personalised learning meets limitless potential!
Seeking the ideal school for Year 7 (11+) or other entry points?
We believe in the power of small class sizes, inspiring Jewish education, outstanding pastoral care, and a personalised approach – ensuring every child flourishes.
Register for our Open Evening and start your child’s journey with the Immanuel family.
‘REINTERPRET THE SEDER PLATE FOR 2025’ was our request to award-winning political cartoonist, illustrator and film-maker Zoom Rockman. He agreed at once.
The Shoreditch-based 24-year-old has spent the past 18 months working on his first fully-animated feature film, SURVIVOR, which is about the true story of Ivor Perl, (born Yitzchak Perlmutter), who, in 1944 at the age of 12 was sent to Auschwitz, where he was separated from his parents and seven siblings, all of whom were murdered.
SURVIVOR is being talked about as a game-changer in Holocaust education, with plans for it to be screened at cinemas, synagogues, schools and universities all over
Australia
the world. Premiering at MIPCOM Cannes in 2024, it was recently broadcast on ABC in Australia as part of its Holocaust Memorial Day schedule.
Rockman is currently working on an animated TV series featuring Skanky Pigeon, a cartoon character he created aged 12 who starred monthly in iconic British comic The Beano from 2012 to 2016.
Welcoming the invitation to reimagine the Pesach plate in a time of heightened anxiety, Rockman said: “I found it quite easy to think of things that stood out for me about Jewish life in 2025 that relate to each of the objects on a seder plate.
“I wanted to make it a summary of where things are
at right now for our community: the challenges we face and the many ways we’ve stood up to meet them. Once it was finished it was quite overwhelming to look at.”
at right now for our community: the challenges
Perlman, who is depicted as his younger self in Rockman’s film, has dedicated much of his life to educating others about the atrocities of the Holocaust.
Rockman’s seder plate will educate others about what Jews are facing now.
Jews
For information on SURVIVOR screenings, visit: survivorfilm.com/screening
Lighter evenings, daffodils and slithers of sun signal spring, but not the one we had in 2020 which set meteorological records.
Five years ago, we had the sunniest spring since records began in 1929, but also spent Passover in global lockdown. Families were separated, communal seders cancelled and Zoom – once the name of an ice lolly – became the way we gathered. By 2021, vaccines were rolling out and restrictions eased, but seders were kept small and cautious. The impact of lockdown is still felt by many who lost
loved ones, lost businesses and the young who lost out on education in their formative years or struggled to study in isolation. Education (p41) looks at thriving places of learning that softened the return to lessons and socialising post-Covid. As my own daughter’s batmitzvah was reduced to a Zoom event and the party marquee used for my mother’s shiva, I understand the need for ongoing support. Embracing life is the only way to recover, they say, and this is certainly true for the injured Israeli veterans who recently came to London with Beit Halochem. That they survived is reason enough for them to smile, is what they also say, and to witness their courage is humbling, particularly as some now see
their own children going into the army. For one year, five months and 27 days, Israel has filled our heads. We have mourned and stood up for it, always searching for those who felt the same way. Someone like Erin Molan, our cover star who is a vocal advocate for Israel and uses her platform to combat antisemitism, for which I salute her.
Cool and variable is the weather prediction for Pesach 2025, but there is warmth in seders spent together. If you’re lucky enough to do so, count your blessings.
Chag sameach. Chag sameach.
O p in g E a s t e r 2 02 5
Hertfordshire Zoo
Many women in Israel grapple with loss, fear and profound uncertainty. Artist Tal Bracha has attempted to capture this with When Words Fail You, an exhibition in which the female body serves as a living canvas showing the strength of Israeli women who, now more than ever, are an emotional anchor for those around them.
The powerful artwork connects nine women through bereavement. Women who share the same fate, physically bearing the weight of grief – mourning a son, a daughter or a partner. This commemoration of their loved ones is not just a visual representation but a means of creating dialogue and preserving emotional and historical memory.
Sigalit Zilkha Niewodoswki, who curated
A blink of an eye ago, Israel’s creative content was circling the globe. Outside-the-box thinking and original concepts from gifted writers, directors and actors saw Israeli productions in their original language become as popular as their international remakes. It is incredible that the horror and tragedy of that October day would impact on the victim country. All the more reason to circle Seret International Israeli Film Festival on your calendar (8-15 May) so you see the compelling cinema that the misguided and misinformed won’t. Top of the list is Roy Assaf’s Cabaret Total, in which Israel’s most sought-after choreographer directs and stars, playing Assi, a combat soldier returning home from war with post-traumatic stress disorder. A drama teacher at a high school, Assi also does cabaret at the community centre, but it is his performance in the classroom decrying army service that goes viral, prompting his dismissal, cancellation
the exhibition, was also responsible for 365 Days, an exhibition in Tel Aviv last Succot that commemorated the first anniversary of the Hamas attacks. “My aim is always to create art that brings comfort and a message,” she says.
Sigalit and Tal visited each of the women in their homes to talk to them about the message they wanted to convey. Once each project was completed, Tal took the photos. One of the women, who had lost her son, says: “This was more than therapy. I felt like I had him in my head – like he had been reborn.”
Proceeds from artwork sales will be donated to organisations supporting the recovery and resilience of war victims. Sigalit hopes to take the exhibit to Jewish communities around the world.
and a political fray.
Choreographers bring a distinctive vision to directing as Bob Fosse’s Cabaret proved and Assaf echoes his style in this anti-establishment film that took seven years to make and premieres when his country, like his character, is worn down by war. Using garish clowns as Fellini did in 8½, the dancer who has seamlessly graduated to actor/director has made a critical masterpiece that dares to criticise.
Seret’s Odelia Haroush is very excited about Cabaret Total and has equally high hopes for Halisa, Sophie Artus’ unusual take on the desire to be a mother, and Erez Tadmor’s Soda, which takes place in 1956 in a Holocaust survivor community, where a seamstress arrives and is revealed as a Kapo, which presents a dilemma for the resistance fighter torn between attraction and exposing her history. Fauda’s Lior Raz plays the fighter, which is yet another reason to circle Seret.
From 8 –15 May. seret-international.org
Do you know about the Haim sisters? No, not the LA siblings Este, Danielle and Alana, who have just released their first single, Relationships, in three years, but the other Haim trio: Tair, Liron and Tagel of A-WA (Ay-Wah, the Arabic for yes) the group whose debut album, Habib Galbi (Love of my Heart), took Yemenite Jewish music to the top of the Israeli charts for the first time since the late Ofra Haza did in the 1980s.
Now, almost a decade after Habib Galbi, Tair, oldest of the sisters, is releasing her own album fusing Yemenite history with the band’s electronic sound. The first single sung in Arabic and English is YemeNight. Smart!
Tel Aviv Pride has become one of the biggest, most colourful and joyous celebrations of the LGBTQ+ community on the planet, a crucial date in the calendar for many people.
Last year, that was all put on hold with Mayor Ron Huldai announcing that the usual parade would not take place, as a mark of respect. Instead, a rally was held calling for the release of the hostages. Pride events have taken place in Tel Aviv since 1998, making that shift in tone all the more poignant.
But this year (fingers crossed), Tel Aviv is bringing back the Pride parade on 13 June, so you can book in advance. The parade, which begins along the stunning coastline promenade and ends with an event at Charles Clore Park, gives the community a chance to demonstrate both hope for the future and resilience amid current circumstances.
Alongside the parade, there will be various parties. At Crush Tel Aviv from Thursday 12 June until the Friday and at Yarkon Park on the Saturday, DJ Offer Nissim will perform a Pride concert. Forever Tel Aviv Pride Festival is on from 12-15 June, too, and as well as the parties, other events will tackle topics such as diversity and LGBTQ+ families.
Across Pride week, there will be a determination to focus on unity, visibility and inclusivity. The city wants to highlight its values of openness and support for all, as both the LGBTQ+ community and the country await the release of the remaining hostages.
Given the situation right now, things are subject to change and some details will be confirmed nearer the time, but the plans serve as a reminder that, whatever the circumstances, Tel Aviv remains an open city where the LGBTQ+ community can come to celebrate and thrive. visit.tel-aviv.gov.il
Thai rapper and singer Lisa of K-pop group Blackpink made her acting debut as a health mentor in series 3 of The White Lotus, but it’s her new single Born Again we’re interested in because it’s a collaboration with Raye and American rapper Doja Cat, who is of the faith. Reaching the top five in both the US and the UK with her album Scarlet in 2023, Doja, who has a Jewish mother and South African performer father of Zulu descent, is known for her viral TikTok videos and flamboyant stage presence. One of the biggest commercial artists of the decade according to Billboard, she has a Grammy and five MTV Video Music Awards. Doja Cat performed the James Bond tribute at the Oscars in March with Lisa and Raye. Born Again, their post-break-up empowerment anthem, is of huge interest, and we want more of Doja in Life
Maybe it’s a nice coincidence that there was both British input and tea in the early years of the Technion, the university that is the pride and joy of Haifa and, indeed, the whole of Israel. Celebrating its centennial this year, the Technion is a unique academic institution, graduates of which have put their footprint on almost every aspect of Israeli life — from engineering, defence and innovative start-ups to success in business and agriculture.
Its sometime visionary faculty and graduates –Technion has, to date, produced three Nobel prizewinners – have captured the nation’s imagination with their constant ability to pose the question, “What if?” Technion, with its can-do attitude, not only asks the question, but does its utmost to supply the answers.
Among those who believed in the idea of Technion at the start of the 20th century was David Wissotsky, son of the founder of the Wissotsky Tea Company, a brand familiar to everyone in Israel up to the present day. David donated 100,000 rubles from a special fund he established to create an educational institution in memory of his father, Kalonymus. This fund was then used for the establishment of the Technion. And the British connections? Apart from the highly active modern-day Technion UK, which runs extremely popular missions to Israel so people can discover the ingenuity of the university for themselves, an early name who gave the Technion his blessing was the former British prime minister Lord Balfour, who visited the first campus in 1925.
Technicum, as it was then known. With his wife, he planted two palm trees at the front of the main building. On his return to Germany, he established the first Friends of the Technicum Association.
British-Jewish electrical engineer Arthur Blok was the Technion’s first president, from 1924-25. During Professor Albert Einstein’s only visit to the land of Israel, on 11 February 1923, he toured the workshops of the
Today, Technion is the home of world-changing discoveries, ranging from the admired Beresheet spacecra and (kosher) animalfree steak, to flying cars and a baseball hat attachment to ward o Covid. Technion’s first group of students comprised 16 men and one woman. Students today at the university’s 18 faculties include Jews, Muslims, Christians and Druze, with gender equality well to the fore. And all because, 100 years ago, some people were inspired to ask: “What if?”
Dust down the flags for 13 May when Eurovision starts in Basel, Switzerland, and Yuval Raphael, 24, represents Israel with the song New Day Will Rise. Yuval, who won the final of Israeli talent show Rising Star, still has shrapnel in her head and leg from the Nova Festival attack, which makes her the favourite for us, closely followed by the Jewish front man of Mamagama, Asaf Safael Mishiev, who will sing Run With U, representing Azerbaijan. Mishiev visited Israel on a Birthright trip and then for a global Jewish music competition, so at least this year there will be a friend for Yuval, which there wasn’t last year for Hurricane’s Eden Golan.
by Dr Harris Sidelsky
As a single, 30-year-old specialist London dentist, Harris Sidelsky’s life should have turned out to be rather straightforward. But join him on his soul-searching journey as he adds his soulmate en-route and travels the world in Rabbi, What Should I Do? Share his ethical dilemmas as he tries to navigate the modern world through the lens of timeless Jewish principles. Each chapter of his book brings a new adventure and an opportunity for the reader to consider what he or she would have done. The Rabbi then clarifies the matter and provides the opportunity to acknowledge, alas, the difference between the ideal response (had the rabbi been there) and what Dr Sidelsky actually did when left to his own devices. A natural storyteller, Dr Sidelsky evokes both sympathy and admiration as he amuses, educates and inspires you to keep guessing till the end. Available at Jewish bookshops or on Amazon, £10.50
by
S Khubiar
Joseph Nissan’s barmitzvah kicks off a turbulent school year in 1979, the year Americans were taken hostage in revolutionary Iran. Joseph’s Iranian parents immigrated to America and the mystery of why is a problem for the boy to solve in their small Texas town. What it means to be an Iranian Jew born in America, and that people are not always what they seem, are the lessons learned by the 13-year-old in the action-packed, humorous and a little sad Just a Hat by S Khubiar, which is an essential read for second-generation children who find themselves cast as translators for their elders.
Published by Blackstone Publishing, £14.99
A Mother’s Promise
by Renee Salt
Holocaust survivor Renee Salt and her mother Sala never left each other’s side and, from September 1939 to April 1945, from ghetto to camp to liberation, they managed to remain together. Renee says that she is only alive today because of her mother, who hid her, lied to the SS and went right when she was directed left. Journalist and author Kate Thompson has helped Renee to tell her story in A Mother’s Promise, which is a love letter to her mother. Born Rywka Ruchla Berkowicz in Poland in 1929, Renee was just 10 years old when the Second World War broke out. After surviving AuschwitzBirkenau, she was liberated from Bergen-Belsen in 1945. She moved to Paris, where she met her husband Charles, a member of the British Army and part of the liberating forces at Bergen-Belsen. They married in 1949 and lived in north London, having two children and five grandchildren. Published by Seven Dials, £9.99
Micro Meditations
by Nicci Roscoe
Hertfordshire-based Reiki teacher, life coach and meditation master Nicci Roscoe helps people enhance their wellbeing and her new book Micro Meditation promises to help you discover how to calm yourself, lift your mood and improve your mindset in two minutes or less. Each micro meditation is quick and simple to follow, with step-by-step instructions on techniques that can easily be incorporated into your daily routine, such as taking a two-minute power walk to manage frustration or counting in time with your breath when panic starts to take over. The book is packed with ideas to make it easy to find the micro meditations that work for you, so you can release stress and anxiety, improve your relationships and allow the best version of yourself to flourish. Published by CICO books, £14.99
Colour In Jewish UK is the latest addition to the Colour Your Streets colouring book series. Entrepreneur Jeremy Weil and broadcaster Emma Barnett founded publishing company Colour Your Streets in 2023 after their then-fiveyear-old son had shown interest in their local area and they couldn’t find any books suitable for him. So they made one and Colour In Herne Hill was born. There are now 150 books in the series, mapping the whole of the UK’s neighbourhoods, cities and towns. The new book celebrates sights and landmarks that define UK Jewish culture, history, heritage, religion and community. It features 16 landmarks and sights all over the country, including Bevis Marks, the Kindertransport arrival statue at Liverpool Street Station, JW3 in London, Bradford Synagogue, Jaffe Fountain in Belfast, Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire and Princes Road Synagogue in Canterbury. Plus, in a nod to where Emma grew up, the Manchester Jewish Museum.
“After a joyful and unexpected conversation with Claudia Rubenstein, the director of the Jewish Literary Foundation, the idea for a colouring book of Jewish landmarks across the UK was unexpectedly born,” says Emma. The couple consulted with professional heritage consultant Marcus Roberts, chief executive of JW3 Raymond Simonson and Rabbi Sylvia Rothschild.
“The result is something beautiful and a product which inspires
“The result is something beautiful and a product which inspires a feeling of Jewish pride. In our experience of mapping the UK’s towns, cities and neighbourhoods through our Colour Your Streets books, colouring in allows adults and children alike to experience the world in a different way, share stories and appreciate details they haven’t noticed before. And then comes the best part – sharing memories and stories prompted by the images.” colouryourstreets.co.uk
He has played many Jewish roles – Marty Baron, the real-life Jewish editor of The Boston Globe in Spotlight, a member of the shomrim in John Turturro’s Fading Gigolo and Otto Frank, father of Anne in A Small Light – but it was as the real father of 16-year-old trans daughter Kai that actor Liev Schreiber was at Paris Fashion Week. This was Kai’s debut on the runway since being signed with IMG Models, the agency that signed transgender Jewish model Hari Nef in 2015. Schreiber, who co-parents Kai and her brother Sasha (pictured below) with former partner actor Naomi Watts, has been very supportive of his daughter, as he has of Israel, participating in events post-October 7, including American Friends of Magen David Adom Miami gala, where he gave a speech honouring Israel’s emergency services. Next to be seen in Darren Aronofsky’s Caught Stealing, Schreiber posted about his daughter in Paris, writing: “Beyond, beyond Kai”. The proud father got love back from LGBTQ+ advocates and a few Ray Donovan fans.
Matan Sacofsky is a tank commander in the Harel Brigade who has spent more than 250 days in reserve duty, engaging in fierce combat. Amid the turmoil, a different battle waged within him: the fight to create and preserve art in a world that seems to be unravelling.
Following its sold-out run at the Kiln Theatre, Ryan Calais Cameron’s “electrifying” (Evening Standard) Retrograde is now playing at the Apollo Theatre for a strictly limited run.
Inspired by real events, 10 years before Sidney Poitier becomes the first Black man to win the Oscar for Best Actor, this gripping drama captures the moment the young actor (Ivanno Jeremiah – Constellations) prepares to sign a career-defining Hollywood contract that could make him a star. But there’s a catch. Will he put his career before his principles? In a time of betrayals, will he name names? Will he sign his life away?
Sacofsky’s new gallery in Jerusalem is his win. A graduate of the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School and student of renowned artist Ilya Gefter, Sacofsky has exhibited solo in Israel and abroad and his paintings using the alla prima technique – where layers of paint are applied wet-on-wet – are reminiscent of Monet. But the Sacofsky Gallery is more than a showcase, it’s a hub for artists where the soldier mentors emerging talents from sculpture to performance and, throughout the year, it will host rotating exhibitions, discussion evenings, lectures, concept nights, artist residencies and fundraising events, benefiting the community and bringing vibrant creativity to the present. sacofsky.com
There are communal services and meals happening all over the UK as Googling ‘seders for all 2025’ reveals. Here are just a few.
West London Synagogue is hosting a 20+/30+ seder in the Goldsmid Hall with the enigmatic Rabbi Emily, who will be overseeing the building of new connections, sharing stories of freedom, family and the fundamental rights of every human being. Non-members are welcome. For tickets, see wls.org.uk
Chabad Islington is really going for it with its firstnight seder at the Truman Brewery on Brick Lane. The evening will bring together community to celebrate and relive the story of our heritage – leaving Egypt for freedom – and the organisers think this message resonates more than ever now as the Jewish nation has “stood together through thick and thin, bound by faith and united by purpose”. Rabbi Mendy Korer will lead the evening with melody, humour and contemporary messaging and Hebrew/English Haggadahs will be provided. With ticket types ranging from in price from London Resident (£45) to Sponsorship: Be a Mensch (£120), there’s also a special rate for students. jewishislington.co.uk
Interestingly, actor, director and civil rights activist Poitier, who died in 2022 at the age of 94, credited an old Jewish waiter for his success. Poitier was a newly-arrived uneducated Bahamian washing dishes in a New York restaurant when he met the waiter who helped him improve his literacy by reading with him.
“Every night he would come over and sit with me,” Poitier said. “He taught me what a comma is, what periods [full stops] are, what
colons and dashes do. He explained syllables and how to pronounce words.”
This nightly tutoring shaped Poitier’s confidence and communication skills, crucial for his success. But he carried a lifelong regret –never getting the chance to thank the waiter.
Fascinating though this is, Retrograde is about the moral and professional dilemma Poitier faces due to the racial tensions of 1950s Hollywood. Directed by the Kiln Theatre’s artistic director Amit Sharma, we have three pairs of tickets up for grabs to see Retrograde at the Apollo Theatre in the West End.
To enter, visit jewishnews.co.uk/retrograde
TERMS AND CONDITIONS: Three readers will each win a pair of tickets to see Retrograde at the Apollo Theatre valid for all Monday to Friday performances until 30 May 2025, subject to availability. Exclusions may apply. No cash alternative.
Edgware & Hendon Reform Synagogue is hosting and encouraging guests to bring children to the special intergenerational communal seder. There will be activities for children of all ages in a breakout area with books, toys and snacks to keep little ones going before dinner. Tickets are £55 for non-members and £20 for 10-16-year-olds, and the shul’s rabbis – Mark, Debbie and Tanya – are the kind of clergy you want to be with for the Haggadah reading. ehrs.uk
Back in the day, Jewish work experience was learning the family trade from your father. Diverting to a radically different profession was questionable, unless, of course, it was medical, and to turn down or leave a steady job to travel was nonsense. Not any more. Today, employment is almost unrecognisable, with remote work, layoffs and a growing demand for flexibility becoming the new normal. One rising trend is fractional work, where professionals dedicate their time and skills across multiple organisations in part-time roles. Already popular in the US and tech and finance industries, this approach enables companies to access specialised expertise without the commitment of a full-time hire. For professionals, it provides autonomy, along with increased earning potential and diversified income streams. Start-ups and small businesses are starting to embrace fractional roles as a cost-effective way to access high-calibre talent on a budget. To support this shift, The Fractional Hub, founded in March 2025 by north London-born entrepreneur Michael Gold, offers resources, training and coaching for professionals looking to get started with fractional work as they travel. For businesses, it serves as a trusted gateway to skilled experts ready to deliver results.
Fractional work represents a compelling alternative to traditional employment and to help more professionals take their first steps The Fractional Hub is offering Jewish News readers an exclusive 10 percent discount on paid membership (with code JN10), which also provides a 50 percent discount on its course for the first year. thefractionalhub.com/Jewish-News
For Deena, freedom means independence. From a joyful toddler at our nursery, to further education and now thriving in Supported Living, Kisharon Langdon has been with her every step of the way. With our support, she’s built a life filled with confidence, friendships and fulfilment.
But we need your help to raise £4.5 million each year, just to keep our services running.
Donate today to help others like Deena on their journey of a lifetime. Scan the QR code below, visit kisharonlangdon.org.uk/pesach or call 020 3209 1187
Scan the QR code to donate
In 1939, Henry fled Germany and found safety in England, where he met the love of his life, Bobby. Together, they loved going to the Brenner Stepney Jewish Community Centre. After Bobby died, Henry continued to find comfort, connection, and a warm and caring Jewish community who understand his past.
“MY BAR MITZVAH IN 1937 IN NAZI GERMANY WAS NOT A HAPPY ONE. BUT MY SECOND BAR MITZVAH HERE AT THE CENTRE, 85 YEARS LATER, WAS ONE OF THE BEST DAYS OF MY LIFE.”
To help more people like Henry scan here, visit jewishcare.org/pesach or call us on 020 8922 2600
Every day, Yad Sarah helps:
-Families caring for loved ones with chronic illness
-Elderly individuals striving to live independently
-Children with disabilities accessing essential support
-Patients recovering from injury or surgery
YOUR GENEROSITY HELPS US UNLOCK COMFORT, HOPE, AND DIGNITY FOR THOUSANDS
Yad Sarah is Israel’s largest volunteer social welfare charity with over 700 volunteers and 126 branches. Each year Yad Sarah saves the Israeli economy more than £1.5 billion in social welfare costs. www.yadsarah.org.uk || michael@yadsarah.org.uk || Reg. Charity No. 294801
SCAN HERE TO DONATE
Who didn’t adore the Israeli series Shtisel? So the spin-off series should not be missed, its star tells Brigit Grant
The first episode of Shtisel premiered on Netflix in December 2018 and became a global hit. Even those who avoid subtitles were hooked on the show about the titular Charedi family who spoke only Hebrew and Yiddish.
Created by Ori Elon and Yehonatan Indursky the drama wasn’t an instant hit at home, then in 2014 i won 11 Israeli Television Academy Awards and one of its stars, Michael Aloni (Akiva Shtisel), received marriage proposals from both Orthodox and secular mothers on behalf of their daughters.
Here in Blighty, there was a similar response, with women clamouring to see Aloni at charity events and they were at Richmond’s Orange Tree Theatre when he appeared in David Edgar’s Here in America. Aloni as Akiva introduced us to the artistry and gentle humour of Shtisel in the first episode, which began with a dream. Struggling with the death of his mother, Dvora, the handsome yeshiva teacher sees her in his sleeps in Anshel’s diner, at a table surrounded by eskimos. As snowflakes fall indoors, Akiva is surprised by her presence. “I missed the kugel,” she responds.
And it is that dish of grated potatoes, eggs, onions and sometimes schmaltz that one can only assume is the reason Indursky has called the Shtisel prequel Kugel. It’s unspoken code for fans of the original series, and suggests that the spin-off will be as smart, nuanced and memorable as the original. Having seen it, I can confirm it is and the misfortune is that this exceptional piece of television will struggle to reach networks in countries that adored Shtisel but have a problem with Israel.
More fool them, as the performances are award-worthy in Kugel, which delves into the Antwerp-set backstory of Nuchem and Libbi Shtisel. Hadas Yaron plays Libbi, Akiva’s strong-
willed wife, who was shockingly deceased at the start of the third season, yet it is only in Kugel that we discover how perfect she was for her artist spouse. A passionate but secret writer who longs to be published, to pursue such a course in the Orthodox community is forbidden - but it’s her father’s reaction we are waiting for.
Enter Nuchem Shtisel – jeweller, opportunist and dubious deal-maker as portrayed by Sasson Gabai, who mastered the role in Shtisel as the cantankerous brother of Shulem (Dov Glickman) with poetic interludes, such as his scene conducting an imaginary orchestra playing Mahler. Interestingly, Nuchem is more forgiving in Kugel as he tries to reconcile personal ambition with respect.
Sasson Gabai and I spent time together in Israel in July 2023, just after filming on the series Tehran was brought to a halt by the writers’ strike. He was confident that production would resume once matters were resolved, but neither of us could have anticipated what happened three months later. Sasson and I have only texted since the Hamas attacks on October 7, and it is always about his welfare and that of his countrymen. But the launch of Kugel in Israel required a bigger chat.
One of the challenges for Sasson in Kugel was the increased use of Yiddish, which features enough in the original series that some viewers took up lessons. “I have to speak much more Yiddish in Kugel than I did in Shtisel, so had to put a lot of work into it. I had an excellent instructor, a dialogue coach named Shalom Eisenbach, who also introduced me more broadly to the Mea Shearim neighborhood and the entire Charedi world we inhabited in Shtisel It was a challenge I really enjoyed overcoming and mastering the Yiddish text felt like an achievement. Unfortunately, I don’t speak it, but I know each nuance in my Yiddish text.”
and become an integral part of global entertainment, as was the case before unfathomable bias took hold.
The actor who won the European Film Award for Best Actor for The Band’s Visit says that his work has remained steady despite changes in the industry. “The current situation has not affected my job opportunities because most of my work is in Israel and I am quite busy. I did the play Antigone at the Beit Lessin Theater, where I played Creon and Tehran is currently airing.”
“How has Kugel been received in Israel?” I ask. “Very warmly,” he replies with a smile we don’t associate with grumpy Nuchem. “Many were waiting for this series because they were so enthusiastic about the story and characters. I see the positive reactions on the street as it really is a very charming series that draws on the sources of Shtisel, but it has other qualities and a different cinematic tone.”
“How has Kugel been received in Israel?” I a smile we don’t associate with other qualities cinematic
presence on the Izzy platform ensures it
We cannot avoid the shift in the landscape for Israeli content, but, for now, Kugel’s presence on the Izzy platform ensures it reaches an international audience.
In Tehran, the espionage thriller series that has yet to be aired outside of Israel (Apple’s decision) Sasson plays Nissan, a seasoned Mossad agent with more than four decades of experience, which is equally true of his acting career but minus the spying. Ever in demand, he is currently filming a new series, Homemade “In Hebrew, it’s Totseret Bait,” he says. “It’s being filmed in Arad in the Judean Desert and I play the grandfather of a young man who lives in Tel Aviv and is trying to convince me to sell my apartment. In the meantime, we’re getting into trouble with Bedouins from the area, and to save ourselves we’re making and selling homemade arak, which I know how to make. Basically, it’s a story about a young man, his relationships with his environment, and his grandfather, who is me.”
“I am very happy about this other opportunity as it gives the world’s audience a chance to see it as well as all three seasons of Shtisel. I’m sure that people who do see it –both in the Jewish world and those outside of it who are not necessarily connected to the political issues – will have a very special experience.”
“I am very happy about this other audience a chance to see it as well sure that people who do see it –it connected to the political issues experience.”
only pray that Israel’s searing
I tell him we can only pray that Israel’s searing and original productions, once highly respected and sought after, will eventually be welcomed again by international broadcasters
I ask when he’s coming to visit. “I don’t know what my plans are for getting to London,” he says. “I know Seret [the Israeli film festival] is in May and I’d love to visit then as I know they intend to screen Shemi Zarhin’s film Hemda Bliss and also episodes from Kugel, so I hope I’ll have the opportunity to get there.”
Before we say goodbye I have to ask about his brother. Sasson looks confused. “Shulem,” I clarify. “Didn’t you miss him on Kugel?” And obviously we are both thinking of Glickman, who twice won Best Actor in a Drama Series at the Israeli Academy of Television Awards for Shtisel, but sadly Shulem is never spotted in Antwerp. There’s is a tricky fraternal relationship, but “Of course I missed him,” Sasson exclaims. “Luckily, we’re meeting and keeping in touch.” Perhaps over a plate of kugel?
• Kugel available on izzy.streamisrael.tv Use our discount code JN50 to sign up
A portion of the stacks in the YIVO Archives. Max Weinreich teaches Yiddish at seminar at CCNY
The nave of the book chamber, formerly St George Church, where YIVO Archives material was hidden by Lithuanian librarian Antanas Ulpis. Vilnius, Lithuania. Credit: YIVO Institute for Jewish Research
Pavilion Theater information
Masikhta Baba Kama – handcopied by Anshel Rothschild
Notebook of Musar shmuesn (Lectures on Morality) by head of Telz Yeshiva, Yosef Leib Bloch (d. 1930), delivered between 1916 and 1918. Part of the discovery of lost Jewish materials thought to have been destroyed during the Holocaust.
Manuscript on Astronomy, 1751, by Issachar Ber Carmoly (also known as Behr Lehmann). Rabbi of Soultz, Alsace, North Eastern France. Carmoly was head of the yeshiva in Jungholtz. The manuscript contains descriptions and drawings of the solar system, as well as calendrical charts. Part of the discovery of lost Jewish materials thought to have been destroyed during the Holocaust.
Leaders of the New York-based YIVO open crates of salvaged YIVO treasures from Europe. New Jersey, 1947. Credit: YIVO Institute for Jewish Research
Nokhem Shtif
Struggling to decipher the Yiddish slang above? Jenni Frazer ’s fascinating trawl through the YIVO archive will help
Aman visited the home of a friend who had just got married. When he saw his new wife, he whispered to him: “I have to tell you, as a friend, I really don’t like the look of your wife. If you didn’t marry her for the money, I’m not sure what you see in her. She’s got a hunchback and a bad eye.”
“Don’t worry about it,” the newlywed replied: “You can speak normally – she’s deaf, too”.
And that, dear readers, is an example of one of the hundreds of Yiddish jokes, salty and no respecter of persons, to be found in the archives of YIVO, the unique institution dedicated to the lives and culture of East European Jews, which is celebrating its centenary this year.
On 25 March 1925, a group of around 30 Jewish scholars – mostly in their mid-20s or early 30s – gathered in a public building in Vilnius, a city then in Poland, home to a huge Jewish community. The building, YIVO specialists believe, may have been one of the Yiddish-language schools then flourishing in the city.
They were there to respond to a proposal by Nokhem Shtif, a colleague in Berlin. Shtif, according to Professor Cecile Kuznitz of Bard College in New York, was a somewhat obsessed figure, a description echoed by YIVO academic adviser Eddie Portnoy.
“Shtif was born in Rovno, now in Ukraine, but he wrote from Berlin proposing a Yiddish Academic Institute. In this five-page memorandum, it set out what such an institute should be,” says Portnoy.
Both Portnoy and Kuznitz agree that Shtif was desperately poor, unable to support his family and relying on his valiant wife, Devorah, as they moved around Europe in search of employment. By the time Shtif wrote his seminal memorandum, he couldn’t even afford the stamps to send his proposal to Jewish intellectual colleagues in Warsaw, Berlin and New York, as well as Vilnius (which became Vilna in Lithuania.)
But he scraped up the money to post his suggestion, born of a “vision” gripping him in his early life. Yiddish, believed Shtif, was the
language in which ordinary Ashkenazi Jews lived and breathed – and was worthy of study.
Most receptive of the places to which Shtif wrote was Vilna, and among that first group of men accepting his challenge was the scholar Max Weinreich, who had written a dissertation on “dialect distribution in Yiddish” and who became YIVO’s first – and legendary – director.
The early years of YIVO, from 1925 up until 1940, had a number of focuses in building up the academic ‘heft’ of the Institute. Its founders wanted it to be akin to a university that studied Yiddish. But it needed on-theground material – and so Weinreich and his deputy, Zalman Reizin, set up a system of zamlers, or collectors, whose job was to go to every town and village where Jews lived and bring in examples of spoken and lived Yiddish.
And so the YIVO archives are stuffed with such unexpected gems as a lexicon of thieves’ slang. Portnoy says academics even brought in a former criminal to check the expressions, to ensure they were getting it right.
Some examples: Er ganevt aroys s’shvarts apel fun oyg – He’ll steal the pupil out of your eye; Er iz a ba’al-sliche – He is a master of slicḥot prayer (slicḥot prayers are said before sunrise, the same time that a thief’s work takes place); Me’ hot im oysbadeknt - He was identified (literally, they took off his wedding veil); Me’ hot bay im gemakht a biyer-khomets – He was investigated (literally, they searched for his bread before Passover).
The zamlers collected jokes, folktales, insults and even erotica, restaurant menus, theatre playbills, slang used by card-players, athletes, street-fighting expressions, even Yiddish puppets – anything you can think of pertaining to daily life. Schoolchildren were encouraged to contribute and to write about their Yiddish literary heroes.
And, despite its male-dominated origins, there were some women involved in early YIVO, including graphic designer Fruma Olkenitski, who created the YIVO logo in 1928 that is still in use today.
There were some big names, too – Marc Chagall said YIVO should create an art department, while both Albert Einstein and Sigmund Freud sat on the YIVO board.
In 1940, disaster struck as the Nazis invaded and took over most of eastern and central Europe. Weinreich, in whose apartment was a room that became YIVO’s first office, was, with his wife Regina, at a conference in Denmark when war broke out in 1939. Max and his elder son, Uriel, did not go back to Vilna with Regina, but moved to New York in March 1940.
A branch of YIVO already existed in New York – the one in London launched in 1937 –and Weinreich decided that New York should become the headquarters of the organisation.
Meanwhile, there was drama taking place in Vilna, as groups of Jews from what had become the Vilna Ghetto understood that they had to save the cultural treasures collected by YIVO. Styling themselves as the Paper Brigade, men and women led by Abraham Sutzkever and Shmerke Kaczerginski smuggled books, paintings, papers and sculptures past Nazi guards, and hid them around the Ghetto.
Once the Ghetto was liberated by Soviet forces, those Paper Brigade Jews who survived, found and recovered material to establish the Vilna Jewish Museum. But when it became clear that the Soviet authorities were just as implacable in their opposition to Jewish culture, much of the material was smuggled to New York.
It’s estimated that the Paper Brigade saved about 30 to 40 percent of YIVO’s archives. Some of their documents ended up in Frankfurt and were salvaged by the American army-led Monument Men immediately after the war, and sent to New York.
But there were other surprises. In 1948, Antanas Ulpis, a Lithuanian librarian, saw “an enormous cache of YIVO’s collections in the yard of the Vilna recycling plant”, says Portnoy. “The Soviets had sent it there to be pulped. He wasn’t Jewish, didn’t know Yiddish or Hebrew but he understood this was valuable material, and he arranged for it to be hidden”.
Ulpis squirrelled away the books and documents into the basement of the Church of St George in Vilna, even hiding some
material in its organ. These documents lay undisturbed until 1989; a further cache of YIVO material, including rare and unpublished works, was discovered in the Lithuanian National Library in 2017.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, YIVO negotiated with the Lithuanian government to produce copies of approximately 100,000 pages of this material. Additional works –those confiscated – were discovered in 1954 in the building of a former bank in Vienna and returned to YIVO.
The institution today is in some respects a different creature from its founding principles – because of the massive destruction of Yiddish-speaking Jews during the Holocaust – but in other respects, says YIVO chief executive Jonathan Brent, very much fulfilling the aims of 100 years ago.
He says: “We do feel we are carrying out the founding vision, which was to preserve and disseminate and to conserve. It has continuously evolved because of changing circumstances – people don’t learn today in the same way as they did in 1925. There is a host of new technologies which enable us, for the first time, to reach a global audience”.
Now that YIVO has the Vilna collections online, in 2024 there were 700,000 individuals around the world using that material, a figure that so startled Brent he asked for it to be checked three times. And these were people using “primary source material, not translated from Yiddish”.
So there is clearly a present-day appetite for Yiddish, as we can see with the klezmer music revival and ventures such as Joel Grey’s Yiddish version of Fiddler on the Roof and actor-singer Mandy Patinkin’s Yiddish song albums.
And Brent reveals that, this autumn, YIVO, in conjunction with a leading American university, will offer the world’s first master’s degree programme in Yiddish language and civilisation. Now that, as they say, should bring us all naches
Jeremy Neumark Jones tells Etan Smallman why he had to play the concentration camp escapee who tried to reveal the Holocaust
The role of Mordechai Podchlebnik was never going to be just another part for Jeremy Neumark Jones.
The actor recognised the name as soon as he opened the script, even though the Holocaust survivor’s story is largely unknown (his Wikipedia page is a mere two paragraphs).
A decade earlier, a year out of university, Neumark Jones had sat down with a friend to watch Claude Lanzmann’s Shoah. In the nine-hour documentary epic, Podchlebnik recounted how he had escaped Che mno to share the depraved truth about the first Nazi extermination camp with a disbelieving world.
Then there is the 35-year-old’s own lineage. His Jewish maternal grandfather fled Germany in the early 1930s, only to find himself interned as an enemy alien in Britain. He says he was “so moved by the script that I attached a note at the end of the
audition tape telling Lior [Geller, the Israeli-American writer-director] a little bit about my family’s personal story”.
It is difficult to believe that Podchlebnik and fellow escapee Szlama Ber Winer – who is played by Oliver Jackson-Cohen and was responsible for the first eyewitness account of the mass murder of Europe’s Jews – have not been immortalised on film until now.
In The World Will Tremble, we meet them in Che mno in Poland as Sonderkommandos, prisoners forced to dig the graves in which to bury both their communities and the Nazis’ crimes. Meanwhile, the waves of new arrivals are told to carefully label their belongings so they can reclaim them after being taken to Leipzig factories to work. It is all part of an industrial deceit designed to transfer the human cargo most efficiently into the back of the Nazis’ experimental gas vans. Filming the agonising scene in
which Podchlebnik recognises his wife and children while unloading bodies into a pit – before begging to be put to death himself – took its toll on Neumark Jones. “I was so worked up that when we moved on to take a different shot, I actually bust my head open with a shovel by accident,” he says on a video call from his home in Highbury. “I’d spent time with the people playing my family, so I could generate a bond with them. Sometimes Lior would yell ‘cut’, and we wouldn’t be able to look at each other in the face. We would pace around and feel completely bereft.”
Neumark Jones grew up as a member of Southgate and District Reform Synagogue, his life shaped by the “weekly rhythm” of synagogue and Sunday school. He still celebrates the festivals and was “at Purim with Lior just the other day. I think about my Judaism as being a part of my modern, very blended identity in a city that includes lots of blended identities,” he says. “I’m very happy to share it with
people.” The Londoner, who speaks four languages, is also proud to have recently reclaimed the German citizenship stolen from his granddad.
Many recent films have garnered headlines for casting non-Jews in Jewish roles. Not this one. The shared heritage allowed the actors to commune over their inheritance. Neumark Jones says his co-star Charlie MacGechan, who plays Wolf, “had a whole installation of pictures in his room” – references to his great-uncle, Wolf Chevinsky, who died fighting for Britain in the war. “And then Oli, his father, was a Tunisian Jew. Danny [Scheinmann], who plays Goldman, his mother was a refugee from Hungary.”
The director kept his Jewish cast away from the Germans playing the Nazis for much of the 18-day shoot, says Neumark Jones, “to allow for the distance to show on screen”. Once they were allowed to mingle: “Their perspective was just as enlightening as some of ours. They were saying, ‘A lot of the time as a German actor, the only thing you can play internationally is a Nazi. Yet we have grown up hating that legacy.’”
Podchlebnik – who rebuilt his life in Israel, gave testimony at the Eichmann trial and faced his guards again as a witness in their prosecutions – was one of only four out of at least 172,000 people sent to Che mno to survive. It
is where, I only discovered last year, my grandfather’s first wife, Zila Balsam, was dispatched on the 59th deportation from the Lodz ghetto to her death, aged 38, in May 1942. Just a month later, what became known as the Grojanowski Report (after one of Winer’s many pseudonyms) made it, via the underground resistance movements, to London, where it was broadcast by the BBC – the first news report of the Holocaust.
The acrid irony of the film’s title is that the two Jews from central Poland did manage to escape and disseminate the facts. However, tremble the world did not. Far from it.
The Daily Telegraph broke the “greatest massacre in the world’s history” on page five of a six-page newspaper. Millions more would go on to be murdered.
“I think my initial pessimistic reaction is it did very little,” sighs Neumark Jones. “The war went on for a lot longer. It’s an early example of the way that disinformation and information can be conflated.” Speaking of the denial that met the revenants, and that still flourishes today, he adds: “I cannot believe that there is anyone who would deny that something like this happened on the scale it happened.
“But it’s obviously a terrible tragedy that they did so much and it made such a limited impact at the time.”
• The World Will Tremble is out now
We are living in very difficult times. The Jewish world is changing and our sense of security and unity in recent years continues to be challenging. Our community is fractured and the strength in family isn’t what it once was.
Families shrink as we lose loved ones and time pulls people apart. Work, life, distance –before we know it, cousins we grew up with are people we might see at a wedding, aunts and uncles become names on a WhatsApp thread, and those who move overseas are just faces popping up on Facebook if you’re lucky. How we miss those family tables that once overflowed with voices and arguments.
Fortunately, my table is still full and, a er losing my brother, the seats are filled by his children, his wife, my sister and her family. We also welcome lots of friends to our home on Shabbat as I realise that even those who aren’t religious now feel the pull of tradition.
In a world that has turned cold, we crave the warmth of family – not just in sentiment, but in numbers. Because in the face of erasure, in the face of those who wish us gone, there is only one real response: to gather and hold on to each other. To connect.
Turning 60 felt like the perfect moment for a grand project –one that would connect me with family far beyond my immediate circle. I’ve always been deeply connected to my wife, my daughter, my son (even though he now lives in Israel), my son-inlaw and my two grandchildren. I know where they are most of the time – not out of helicopter parenting, but simply because life keeps us close. But the further branches of my family tree? That was a mystery I was determined to solve and this was pre-October 7, so although it
wasn’t a catalyst, finding family felt relevant.
I decided to trace each of my four grandparents, mapping out their siblings – many of whom I still remembered from childhood – and uncovering what had become of them. Luckily, I had a head start. More than 30 years ago, I interviewed my parents for an educational project and had already recorded many names. Now, I wanted to go deeper. Who were the children of my great-uncles and aunts? Where had they gone? What were their stories? The more I dug, the more fascinating it became. What started as a personal exploration soon turned into
never met but who shared my ancestry. The conversations were full of fascinating stories, unexpected connections and an overwhelming enthusiasm from relatives who were just as
together? The descendants of Abraham and Fanny Hoffman scattered across continents, could reunite. It was ambitious, but I started inviting everyone I could find. The most far-flung relative? Daniel, grandson of great-aunt Beckie, who had fallen in love with an American GI during the First World War.
She le Stoke Newington for Minneapolis, Minnesota, to start a new life. Through LinkedIn, I tracked Daniel to a carpet store in Florida where he had once worked. I called the store, got his contact details and, a er a few Zoom calls (and a few tears), he and his wife Terry agreed to come to the gathering at our home.
an all-consuming mission that continues to grow today.
Using MyHeritage, I started building my family tree, discovering distant relatives through its global research network. Suddenly I was a genealogy junkie, fuelled by the thrill of making connections through public records, Facebook, LinkedIn, and any digital breadcrumbs le behind. Evenings were spent piecing together relationships, finding missing links and unearthing long-lost relatives.
As the tree expanded, I reached out to second cousins, arranging Zoom calls with people I had
eager to link back to the Ho man family through the maternal line of my grandmother, Lily
And that’s when the idea struck me: why not bring everyone
worked. I called the store, got his grandfather for the first time.
What made this project even more poignant was its timing.
Just as I was discovering my family’s past, I was stepping into the future – becoming a
grandfather for the first time. Seeing the generations before me laid out on a five-metre-wide family tree, and then adding my granddaughter’s name to it, was a profound moment. It made me reflect on what our ancestors gave us and what we, in turn, will pass on to future generations.
This journey has reshaped how I see my own legacy. If Abraham and Fanny Ho man could build a better future for their family, it’s up to us to do the same. For our children, our grandchildren and generations to come.
Reconnecting rea irmed my belief and made a cold world feel a lot warmer.
Securing Israel’s Future Through Science and Innovation
Please Consider Leaving a Legacy to the Technion
At the heart of Israel’s progress and resilience lies a powerful force: Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. For more than a century, Technion has been a beacon of scientific discovery, groundbreaking research, and world-class education, building the foundation for Israel’s future and its role in the global arena.
From pioneering advancements in healthcare and environmental sustainability to cutting-edge technology and defense, Technion’s impact reaches beyond borders, enriching lives worldwide. By supporting Technion UK, you are investing in Israel’s future leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs—those who will ensure Israel’s place at the forefront of global innovation.
Please support the Technion, secure Israel’s future and help shape the world.
If you are writing or changing your will, we can arrange a suitable legal advisor for you.
Contact the CEO in strict confidence:
Alan Aziz: CEO@technionuk.org 020 7495 6824
After five days in London with Beit Halochem veterans, Debbie Collins sees first-hand how true courage is about embracing life
Think of it as their ‘Israeli way’. And a er spending a week in the company of these veterans, I can see why this group don’t want your tears. From touchdown at Heathrow, hosts Beit Halochem treated the delegate like royalty, aptly kicking o the fun-filled week with a sightseeing trip around London, a first for many of the 32 veterans and sta , including protection by SQR Security Solutions. The warm weather prompted a picnic lunch in St James’s Park, where o ice workers were playing rugby. Spencer Gelding, chief executive of Beit Halochem, said it was a trip highlight: “One of our guys in a wheelchair went over to ask for a game and within minutes they were all playing rugby together.”
Beit Halochem has four state-of-theart rehabilitation sites in Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem and Beer Sheva, supporting 62,500 veterans and their families, including 11,500 since October 7.
The new centre at Ashdod opening this month cannot be completed quickly enough, allowing, as it does, members to lead as normal a life as possible through mental and physical rehabilitation, many going on to achieve Paralympic success in
tennis, basketball and swimming.
“Of course, every single veteran is deserving of such a fantastic week in London,” Spencer explained, “But spaces were given across all of our centres for those most in need of a respite trip.”
After a day touring historic London and lunch in Covent Garden, it was time for Shabbat wind down, where groups of veterans were hosted by families for Friday night dinner. Softly-spoken veteran
Nov, who served in the Home Front Command’s rescue and evacuation brigade, said: “The atmosphere and bonding with a family I never met – wow. They were so respectful, not asking too many questions, just when we felt ready to talk.” Nov was injured by a stone thrown at her by a Palestinian during a protest in 2014 and left unable to speak or eat.
After months of rehabilitation, she returned to her unit but had to give up due to severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Tel Aviv Beit Halochem is about the only place she leaves her home for, to play wheelchair basketball. Joining the London delegation was a huge deal. “I’ve made new friends from other centres and did some shopping with my sister, Shahaf, who lives in London – Primark, of course, and Sephora, which we don’t have in Israel. So I stocked up!”
Spencer tells me: “When someone gets injured and loses that ability to fight, they lose their community, their unit. Beit Halochem puts them into a new community with opportunities to meet like-minded individuals and form lasting bonds.”
Veterans also visited JCoSS, where Sergeant Major Mishel Rukavitsin, 24, spoke emotionally to Year 12 students. “I was an intelligence systems technician and on October 6 at Kissufim base we were fixing a camera. I woke on the 7th from the alarm and ran to the (doorless) shelter. The shooting got closer, the first grenade was thrown in and terrorists shot me seven times.”
Left for dead for 14 hours, she was miraculously found and taken to hospital, her body paralysed in a coma for three months. “My boyfriend Rinat came every day to hold my hand and played me
songs I hate, to hope that I woke up.” She laughs, but sounds serious. “When I finally awoke, I didn’t remember anything. I did a year of rehab, my speech came back and Rinat proposed to me. I’m still in rehab, but can go home each day and I’m positive that for my wedding I want to go on my two legs. I will be OK. It will be OK,” she emphasises.
Spencer adds: “Since we started the charity, we’ve brought veterans over. Why? Because not everyone can get to the centres in Israel. And also because you understand who they are and who we are when you hear first-hand. It shows that disability is not a deterrent or negative and that people go on to achieve the most incredible things.”
I overheard visibly moved students trying to comprehend that many veterans are just a few years older than them. “This was definitely a highlight of my time at JCoSS,” said pupil Bessie Teper. “I was so grateful to be there to hear their stories, especially Mishal – she was so beautiful, so strong – her story really stuck with me. I
have family in Israel and hope to visit one of the centres when I’m there next.”
As the pupils filed out, veterans handed out Beit Halochem ‘Stronger Together’ dog tags, plus a friendly warning from veteran Omri Rozenblit, from the Tel Aviv centre, that he would ‘whoop their tuchus’ (roughly translated) at wheelchair basketball next time they come to Israel.
After a coastal day at the football watching Brighton whoop Fulham’s tuchus, I sat with Omri when the delegation visited Fairgame in Canary Wharf. I was concerned he would be uncomfortable sat at a high table, having lost his left leg from an explosion in a booby-trapped house in Khan Younis. But his only concern was getting an espresso and, between sips, he recounted his story like it was a Hollywood movie. “I was a team commander in Gaza for 21 days. We entered this three-storey house and suddenly... boom! A huge IED was blown up and I lost consciousness, buried under the rubble. I remember ‘nothing’.” (Omri may have used another unprintable word.) “Forces came and I
managed to move my hand – I couldn’t speak because my face was badly burned. A medic ran over and I pulled him close, whispering, ‘I can’t feel my leg – you need to tourniquet.’ In this moment, I am still a
commander, giving orders. My soldiers, my brothers – they dropped their helmets and weapons, digging with their bare hands to try to move the pillar off me.
“After 20 minutes I was on a stretcher. I lost 100 percent of my blood and kept repeating to the doctor on the chopper, ‘Keep me awake – keep me awake!’ After eight hours of life-saving surgery I lost my left leg, but they managed to save my right. I feel lucky. Others would feel sorry for me, but Beit Halochem helped me.
“Wozi, a veteran paralysed waist down and in a wheelchair, visited me. And he’s looking at me and counting saying, ‘You have three limbs. You can play basketball.’ And I’m like, no way, I’m in a wheelchair. But he makes me try and I’m so frustrated and angry because I just can’t control my body that I used to know. Wozi won’t let me
quit, saying, ‘I am wishing so much to have my left leg back to be able to play.’ Wozi is my good friend now and Beit Halochem is the most important organisation for my future. I’m going to learn to run and climb mountains.”
An Arsenal stadium tour and lunch at Tony Page’s new restaurant – Beit Halochem were making true north-west Londoners out of the veterans, whose week also included the theatre to see The Lion
King, a Shoreditch street art tour and a bold move of offering a group of Israelis lunch at Hummus Bar (clean plates all round).
The final farewell was a fitting celebration at function venue The Sorting Office, where veterans mingled and told their stories to a packed house of guests, many with a personal connection.
Londoner Rafi Saville had the joy of hanging out with his relative, veteran Matan Saville from the Jerusalem centre, who was injured during an attack on the Shifa hospital and sustained a head injury, nerve damage and post-trauma from his time in Gaza but, through rehab, aspires to study medicine.
Veteran Uriel Daniel spoke of his time in Jabaliya, leaving him with shrapnel in his
face and eyes and a crushed right hand. He said poignantly of the war against Hamas: “I won. They didn’t manage to kill me.”
As the music started playing, Omer Adam’s Tel Aviv group of veterans commandeered the dancefloor, rocking out in wheelchairs and jubilantly punching the air with their crutches.
As the saying goes, dance like nobody is watching, but best believe the world is watching their zest for life. They were all dancing again.
Throughout the week, generous donors gave up their time and facilities, including Elliot Spencer (DJ), Sam Kingsley (Sorting Office) and Richard Hilton (Fairgame).
Through Beit Halochem’s generous foundation sponsors the Charles Wolfson charitable trust and the Rachel Charitable trust, plus anonymous sponsors, future trips like this one can be planned
85,000
55,000
330,000
7,000
200,000
Since its founding in 2004, Masa has served more than young professionals from over 60 countries, and its network continues to grow. Make this year stand out and see where your Masa can take you.
Masa Israel Journey is more than just a physical journey to Israel. It’s an opportunity to explore oneself in new surroundings while gaining a transformative experience.
4 - 10 months for fellows between the ages of 18 - 40 in Israel, that allows fellows to shape their own futures.
Masa fosters an environment where fellows are encouraged to strive towards their personal and professional destinations both during and after their programme in Israel.
Journalist Charles Golding always planned to make aliyah one day. Then that day came
Istill can’t believe we have been living in Israel for more than eight years. What an emotional rollercoaster it’s been. Impossible to write in a thousand words, yet Israelis have a way of making the impossible possible. So I will try, or as they say here, Azt’nasee!
We didn’t plan our aliyah. My wife and I agreed that, at some point in our lives, we’d end up in Israel. Sometime. Like many British Jews, we sent our kids to Jewish schools and they spent gap years in Israel. Then one day in the summer of 2016, we decided it was that time. The right time to make aliyah.
Our oldest son had just got married, our daughter was a lone soldier already in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), our middle son was on his gap year in Israel and our youngest son had just started ‘big’ school. We put our house on the market and, six months later, made our own exodus from the UK to Israel.
Personally, professionally and even warwise, we have not regretted our decision. I miss my mother, our son, daughter-in-law and our grandson, of course, plus others who are still there. But it’s people not places we miss, and the pros of aliyah definitely outweigh the cons.
No big party or fanfare to say goodbye, just family and friends for tea and tears. Our container had left the month previously, so we departed for Heathrow with nine suitcases, six pieces of hand luggage and a thick file of official documents.
But it wasn’t until a few days later, when I saw all our worldly possessions being unloaded on the docks of Ashdod,
The
that I realised this was really happening. We were home.
So many things to learn and do – who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? I now speak Hebrew that would make an Israeli proud – an eight-year-old Israeli, but our children took to Ivrit and while my wife and I battle on le’at, le’at (slowly, slowly), we love being here. With Tel Aviv just round the corner, and less than an hour to Jerusalem on the train, what’s not to love? The rockets were falling from Gaza now and again, but it wasn’t big news at the time. Soon the world was struck with Covid. Aeroplanes stopped flying, as the UK and Israel closed their gates. During that time my lovely older brother passed away, and I couldn’t be there for anything or anyone. That was a hard time.
What do Israelis think about the UK demonstrations, the BBC documentary, the selective, biased, anti-Israel editorials and headlines? Of course we sympathise. But the BBC isn’t top of our priorities right now. As a journalist, I know the importance of getting the truth out there but now I understand why, for Israel, anti-Jewish propaganda is lower down the urgencies list. That’s because those of us who live here are fighting an existential war and have skin in the game.
– it’s forever seared in our memory. Almost everyone knows someone who was killed, injured or taken hostage. Our collective wound is still open until our last people alive and dead are returned. But to be Israeli means we mourn our dead, we support their families and the soldiers, and carry on. You may read of the splits between religious and non-religious, gay, straight, left and right, black and white, Sephardi and Ashkenazi, but in crises we are as one and stronger for it.
black and white, Sephardi and as one and stronger for it.
Our youngest son was conscripted into the IDF six months ago and I’m proud to say has become a two-stripe commander. Like any parents, we worry for him. Our soldiers are in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, the Shomron (Samaria) and Judea. We live daily with sirens, alerts, stabbings, bombs, rockets and rammings. So, after all that, you may be wondering why on anyone would choose to come here? It’s because Israel is such a wonderful country. Its places and people are a mass of contradictions, with the sun of the south, the snow of the north, and everywhere no more than 40 minutes from the sea.
have 90 seconds to get in the room and We
Hamas’ rockets increased, as did our time in the mamad (safe room). When you hear the Tzeva Adom (red alert siren), you have 90 seconds to get in the room and bolt the iron window. We were lucky to have one inside our home and to live in central Israel. For me, it felt unreal, until we started hearing explosions above us and realised that, Baruch Hashem, the Iron Dome had come to our rescue. This is not a piece about October 7, the worst massacre of Jews since the Shoah. The butchery, the rapes, the tortures, the brutal barbarity of the assault on unarmed civilians, of babies
And it is the people here who I appreciate. So many inspirational stories of selfless acts of kindness. We have joined thousands who have volunteered to help farmers pick crops, take soldiers to army bases, collect boxes full of food, toys, clothes and toiletries for the tens of thousands evacuated, and we have cooked for the young men and women on the front line.
inspirational stories of selfless
joined thousands who have
Since October 7, we’ve coped with rockets, missiles and live drones from Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and far-away Yemen, and we won’t forget Iran firing more than 330 rockets and intercontinental ballistic missiles at Israel’s civilian population in the early hours of the morning. As civilians we are under constant threat of attack.
When you hear someone screaming or the pop-popping of a gun, only to find out it’s children playing and a building site hammer, that’s the anxious reality you get used to.
But as Jews I think we are hard-wired to live in this land. It’s nice we can go to supermarkets the size of mega-warehouses for a one-stop Pesach shop. But what’s special is you don’t just exist here, you really do live. So much goodness, resilience and unity pervade this country. Living here gives you perspective you don’t appreciate as a tourist. We made aliyah because we wanted to be part of Israel, part of the future of the Jewish people. So as we enjoy another Passover, why not come home yourself?
Don’t just say: “Next year in Jerusalem!” Make it happen this year. Am Yisrael Chai!
Charles Golding is former editor-inchief of Jewish News (UK); Boston Jewish Advocate (USA), Sunday Express deputy editor; Sunday Mirror features editor; TV producer and presenter on BBC Daytime and ITV’s Good Morning Britain; LBC controller of programmes and one of its presenters. He now runs a media and presentation service in Israel. bowtie.co.uk
Opened by the British mandate version of Hollywood and the nachas of Einstein, Jenni Frazer celebrates a century of the Hebrew University
Welcome to our graduation: I’m from Malawi”. “Welcome, I’m from Ghana… I’m from Uganda…” A group of fresh-faced postgraduates throw their mortar boards in the air as they celebrate their degrees, just some of the thousands of young people who are part of the incredible institution that is the Hebrew University.
HUJI, to give it its short form, is this year marking its centenary, the oldest university in Israel, which formally opened its doors in 1925 with a glamorous gathering of academics and political figures from around the world.
Its opening ceremony took place on Jerusalem’s Mount Scopus, more than two decades before the state of Israel was declared, and while the region was still under the authority of the British Mandate.
So the concept of the Hebrew University was ambitious and visionary, says the chair of its British Friends, Alan Jacobs.
“It was the vision of some amazing people – and I am always astonished at the fact that a century ago, people were really thinking about establishing a university and all that entailed.”
Jacobs adds: “Obviously, there has been
a huge British connection over the years. A lot of the big, wealthy British families – over several generations – have supported it. And when you look at some of the darkness that surrounds Israel these days, I think universities represent all that is good about the country. They represent opportunity, and it is still true today.”
One hundred years ago, on 1 April 1925, the Hebrew University was established. On a simple wooden stage, without a microphone or amplification, speeches were delivered by Dr Chaim Weizmann, who would later become Israel’s first president, the Chief Rabbi of Palestine Abraham Isaac Kook, the former British Foreign Secretary Lord Balfour, the British High Commissioner Sir Herbert Samuel and poet Chaim Nachman Bialik.
Among the thousands in attendance were residents of the land of Israel and international guests, including leaders, clergy and British military, as well as government representatives and academic delegations from the UK, Ireland, United States, Netherlands, Egypt, Switzerland, France, Canada, Poland and Austria.
Notable attendees included Zionist leaders such as Meir Dizengoff, Judah Leib Magnes, Norman Bentwich, Nahum Sokolow
and many others. Today they are sometimes only recognised as street signs, but in their day they were the British Mandate version of Hollywood: intellectual heavy hitters, who were united in their belief that the state they hoped would come into being would need the heft of a strong academic institution.
Now, as HUJI embarks on its second century, the vision of its founders has been profoundly realised, as it has become a pioneering academic institution that has significantly shaped Israel’s intellectual, scientific and cultural landscape.
HUJI has become a hub for groundbreaking research, producing leaders in a wide variety of fields and
fostering global academic collaborations. It continues to excel in innovation, diversity and industry partnerships, grounded in its commitment to education, scientific advancement and societal impact.
Alan Jacobs notes that “societal impact” plays a big part in the university’s view of itself as an independent institute of higher learning. “If you want to be respected, you have to call out issues where they deserve to be called out, in a way that recognises the relationship with the government but is not subservient to it. That is what the Hebrew University and other Israeli universities have tried to do, particularly true in the issue of judicial reform”. The university’s prestigious Law School, he says, was “quite vociferous” in defending the institutions that underpin the democratic state.
But let us return to the founding fathers of the University, among whom was the pioneering scientist Albert Einstein, who was unable to attend the glittering opening ceremony in April 1925, because he was committed to a series of lectures in Argentina.
Instead, Einstein sent a handwritten manuscript of his General Theory of Relativity to the university as a token of his appreciation for the realisation of his vision. This manuscript has been preserved ever since in the in the Albert Einstein Archives, located at the Safra campus in Givat Ram.
Even before the university opened its doors, Einstein told The New York Times in a 1921 interview: “There has been no event in my life that gave me greater satisfaction than the initiative to establish the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.”
The link between Einstein and the
university still flourishes today. Attentive viewers of British TV commercials for electric smart meters can see a brief credit to HUJI for the use of Einstein’s image.
The Hebrew University’s first board of governors, which convened shortly after the formal opening ceremony, included illustrious names such as Sigmund Freud, Martin Buber, James de Rothschild, Harry Sacher and many more.
A glance at the full list of board members reveals that about a third were British, highlighting the profound connection between Britain’s Jewish community, the Zionist movement and the establishment of the university.
One thing is sure: neither Einstein nor his fellow founders (all men, naturally) had any idea what their idea would grow into. Apart from the fact that the Hebrew University ranks 81st in the Shanghai university rankings (that is, in the top half percent in the world), it boasts seven Nobel prizewinners, plus Einstein, one of whom, Robert Aumann, is still at the university as an emeritus professor.
The university now operates on six campuses. Three are in Jerusalem – Mount Scopus, where it all began, Givat Ram, and the Hadassah/Ein Kerem complex, where the university’s faculty of medicine is located,
Then there are campuses in Rehovot, Rishon le Zion where the veterinary school is based, and Eilat, where marine studies are shared with other Israeli universities.
The multi-campus situation is a legacy of the wars between Israel and its neighbours, beginning in 1948 when Mount Scopus was essentially cut off from the rest of Jerusalem. The Jordanian government of the day denied Israel access to Scopus and so a new campus was built at Givat Ram, in the west of the city, completed in 1958. After the 1967 Six-Day War and the reunification of Jerusalem, the Mount Scopus campus was restored and a decision taken to rebuild it.
Jacobs. “The British Friends of the Hebrew University (BFHU) has been building on the enormous contribution that Britain made towards the establishment of the university for nearly a century. Founded as a UK-based charity in 1926, its mission in raising funds was to strengthen the bond between the United Kingdom and what was then Mandate Palestine. Today, these connections remain stronger than ever, upheld by the generosity of countless families, individuals, and trusts – many of them descendants of the earliest supporters – who continue their dedication to the university and the Zionist vision.”
A productive and dynamic relationship exists between the university’s pioneering research and entrepreneurs, investors and industry leaders, facilitated by Yissum, the university’s technology transfer company.
Today, across the campuses, there is a startling number of students: around 23,500, about half of whom are undergraduates while the rest are postgrads, doctoral students and international students, such as the cheerful group from various African countries studying at the agriculture faculty.
There are seven main faculties: law, social science, humanities, science and computer science, medicine, dentistry, agriculture (which includes environment, nutrition, veterinary science, and a veterinary teaching hospital), plus two more recent schools teaching social work, social welfare, and business management.
The entire student body is both gender and ethnically mixed, ranging from Israeli Jews, including strictly Orthodox students to Israeli Arabs, Druze and Christians who altogether make up about 15 per cent of the student population. Anecdotally, the university believes that in vocational courses such as nursing, pharmacy, education and social work, the Arab student population can be as high as 40 per cent enrolment.
In its most recently published accounts, the British Friends raised an astonishing £7.7 million for the years 2022-23. “We are definitely punching above our weight,” says
To date, Yissum has registered over 260 startup companies based on technologies developed at the Hebrew University, 18 of which have gone public, including Mobileye.
Alan Jacobs believes in “a critical mass of genders” and as a member of the search committee for the successor to outgoing president Asher Cohen, would love the next president of the Hebrew University to be a female academic.
Whoever takes the helm, one thing is for sure: the vision that has sustained the university for the past 100 years will continue. Faculty and students will continue to develop groundbreaking ideas aimed at strengthening Israeli society and the Jewish world at large.
Just moments from the beach and a short trip from London, our Holiday Homes offer a cosy seaside retreat.
Enjoy secure parking, on-site gym, and daily synagogue services, all just steps away. Enjoy delicious Kosher dining, from Israeli-style brunches to classic fish & chips.
ERIN MOLAN WAS THE QUINTESSENTIAL AUSTRALIAN MEDIA DARLING — UNTIL SHE SPOKE UP FOR ISRAEL. SINCE THEN, EVERYTHING HAS CHANGED, BUT SHE TELLS BRIGIT GRANT SHE HAS NO INTENTION OF BACKING DOWN
Taylor Swift might be an international icon, but in Israel she’s got competition – not in record sales but reverence.
Most find their spotlight dims when Erin Molan gets mentioned in the Holy Land. Now fronting Elon Musk’s 69X Minutes news show, on the platform formerly known as Twitter, Erin arrived in Israel for the first time last December, knowing she had out-Swifted Swifty.
“A few people had told me and I said, ‘Gosh, that’s amazing.’ But when I got there, I thought, ‘Wait, I’m bigger,’” Erin laughs.“That’s a joke by the way.”
Only it wasn’t a joke. Erin, 41, got a welcome befitting of a modernday Boadicea as social media warrior defending a threatened people against the anti-Israel cultural tide. This stance, held since October 7, has both elevated and disrupted her career, but the beautiful Australian journalist stands firm. “If you had told me 18
Supporting Israel is the most obvious thing in the world’
months ago that a terrorist attack would happen that saw 1,200 people slaughtered, hundreds more taken hostage, women and babies burnt alive – and that opposing the perpetrators would put you in the minority, make you controversial – I would’ve said, ‘Not a chance in hell.’ Not even in the most woke, ridiculous fantasy land could that happen …. Fast forward and here we are.”
Erin is never deflated, but her arms drop to her sides. “There’s no grey,” she sighs. “Supporting Israel is the most obvious thing in the world. How others don’t see it the way I do, I will never understand.”
The confusion – the head scratch –about Erin’s conviction is that she isn’t Jewish. So why, begs the inexplicable question, would she sign up with the team most likely to expose her to hate?
““In terms of choices I’ve made in my life, there were none easier,” she clarifies.” It wasn’t even a choice. It’s a privilege to stand up for and with your people, and I’ll do it for the rest of my life.”
sincerity. “They had me sitting beside the President on what looked like a throne – but probably wasn’t. What really hit home for me was when the President started quoting me. Things I said about the three elements that are required for terrorism to not only survive, but to thrive. He was quoting me back to me. It was insane.”
A proud moment of many in Israel for Erin, where everyone wanted to thank her personally, which she found humbling, or to see if their cheerleader looked as good in person as she does on screen. No doubt about that.
Erin frequently graces the pages of Australia’s magazines, often in designs by label Honey & Beau and, for our shoot at her Sydney home, she looked good enough for a close-up before make-up was applied.
Sky Australia has never formally clarified why Erin left the network, which left everyone guessing and employees refuting suggestions of antisemitism. But does it really matter when, as Erin says: “People talk about how powerful my voice is in this space, because I’m not Jewish.”
That powerful voice is the reason Israel extended an invitation to visit, during which she met October 7 survivors, families of hostages and visited kibbutzim and the Nova festival site.
She also appeared on Channel 12 News with Dana Weiss, sharing her perspective on the conflict and joined President Isaac Herzog and his wife, Michal, at their residence. “It was really incredible,” she says with
Our cover theme – looking through a clear window – felt fitting for a woman offering a brave, resonant and alternative point of view. We hoped she’d wear a yellow hostage pin; photographer Giselle Haber even brought one. But it wasn’t needed as Erin has her own. She’s invited to countless Jewish events weekly and went to more in America in January, then to Canada in March. “But I had never been to a Shabbat dinner until five months ago. That was my first. And let me tell you that since then, well I don’t think I’ve got a Friday left for about 10 years.”
Separated from long-term partner Sean Ogilvy, a former police officer with whom she had daughter Eliza in 2022, the single mother’s stoicism is a legacy from her father, Major General Jim Molan. Also a senator for the Liberal party, he passed away in 2023 and Erin is still grieving. It was his work that took the family to Indonesia, where Erin, still a child, learnt the importance of democracy and press freedom when the Suharto regime fell in 1998. By then she was making homemade news bulletins to send back to the grandparents in Australia. “I’d be the anchor and made my little brother do the weather. That early love of storytelling never left me – it’s what led me to journalism in the first place.”
Right now Erin is a voice for those who feel sidelined by officialdom, abandoned by the media and disillusioned by fading national pride. Reassuringly, she wears her patriotism like armour. “My father went to Iraq, fought against ISIS and Al-Qaeda to protect our way of life. He believed in it. I believe in it. So when I saw people celebrating the October 7 slaughter in front of the Sydney Opera House I felt
deeply ashamed of my country. That was a very new emotion for me.”
It was always going to take serious emotional grit to weather the backlash of standing on the ‘wrong’ side of popular opinion. “It does, and it doesn’t. And that’s a confusing answer,” she says. “There’s always a part of me that will be deeply impacted by anyone thinking, let alone saying publicly, that I might not care about children suffering because they live somewhere specific, or are from a different place.
“I lived in Indonesia, the world’s largest Islamic-populated country and I speak the language. I did so much for charity over there, so when people come at me for my views, I won’t lie – it hurts deeply. But I understand why and who I’m fighting for. That’s every child born in Gaza, in Indonesia, every child in every country in the Middle East – just as much as every child in Israel. I don’t apologise for that as I’m just smart enough to understand that the enemy of every child, whether they are Muslim or not, is the terrorists who continually make their life hell.”
Four months ago, Erin met with government officials in Indonesia and visited the Muslim women who helped raise her. “Try telling me I’m Islamophobic! I have a deep passion and love for these people. I fight for them. And they will tell you behind closed doors that Islamic extremism hurts them more than it hurts anyone else in the world. I just wish sometimes they’d say it more publicly and louder. People talk about my powerful voice, but Muslim voices are tenfold and those who stand
up and say, ‘That is not who we are, that is not what our religion stands for’ – they are gold and we need more of them.”
Erin shares her opinions on her YouTube channel, Instagram page and on X, all of which contributed to her being as Elon’s anchor – not literally, of course, and there is no discussion about the 69X hire process. A cheeky question about whether he sent flowers was rebuffed, and the digital news show is too new for comment.
However, the X boss, who just sold
President Donald Trump a car and is the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), can’t have failed to notice Erin’s work ethic. “I’ve fought for every bloody opportunity I’ve had, and never, ever took rejection as an end point. I used it to motivate me to work harder.”
In the 20 years Erin has been in media, she had never been sacked. “But I started last year with high profile jobs at Sky and the 2Day FM Breakfast Show and by the end of the year had neither. It was utterly terrifying. I had a day of panic, and thought, ‘Holy s**t, what am I going to do now?” It was a turning point for the woman who, in 2016, made Australian history as the first female sports host on The NRL Footy Show
“So I said to myself, ‘I can do this without them.’ The fear of failure I’d lived with dissipated when I lost everything. I realised there’s nothing to fear anymore. And now everything I do is 100 percent me. I believe my superpower is the fact that I’m willing to do more than anyone else – and I love it. It’s my joy. I have no life. I’m a complete loser.”
No one believes that, particularly Israel, although support for the country has cost her friends. “And at first, I struggled with that – getting messages from people saying I disgust them now and some were a big part of my life. Then I thought, how close could we have been, if they side with terrorists? And they use the suffering of Gazan children to silence anyone who stands with Israel – as if the two things are mutually exclusive. The only way to help the people of Gaza is to fight for the end of Hamas. No one has a future there while they remain in power.”
Erin’s broader view on what allows
terrorism to flourish is silence, fear and inaction and she is mystified by the inertia of those who say nothing or, worse, the ones who don’t agree and speak up. “If we don’t fight against this propaganda machine and this ideology that wants to destroy everything that is good in the world, then life will be devastating.”
Erin is relentless; a workaholic who knows competition on social media is fierce. To be the first, to have the most followers, takes serious graft, but she always finds the time to take her daughter to and from school. It’s a joyful ritual now affected by her belief in Israel.
“The cost has been real. My day-to-day existence has changed. My daughter’s life has changed. There are threats that we receive daily. Some of them are legitimate, and it is utterly terrifying.”
So Erin is cautious, always checking for the sake of Eliza, yet continues with her work because of the bigger threat. “Every day I think to myself: my number one job in the world is being a mum to my little girl and protecting her. Protecting the world she’ll grow up in. If we do nothing, then we’re handing over everything good to people who openly say they want to destroy it.”
Erin always knew picking a team was a risk. She did it anyway. “But I’ve also gained something priceless: the chance to speak up for what’s right. And I hope that, even in a small way, my voice is making a difference. What is deeply distressing to me is that what I do is special. It should not be special. Standing with Israel should be the norm – not something that makes me stand out.”
Of all the games destined to be adopted by Jews, Pickleball was a given. It’s the name – a combination of racquet, ball and new green – that makes it so appealing as it taps into our inner Mrs Elswood while wishfully bringing out our hidden Federer or Navratilova.
The sport has been a hit in America for some time and, not surprisingly, featured in films such as the forgettable Pickled (Will Ferrell battles it out on the pickleball court to win the coveted Golden Gherkin) or the court incitement to commit violence in Brent Bentman’s The Pickleball Murders, which came out last year. And then there’s The Dink, an upcoming American comedy about the vinegar cucumber game, which is directed by Josh Greenbaum and produced by Ben Stiller, who will also star alongside Mary Steenburgen and Ed Harris as well as former tennis players Andy Roddick and John McEnroe.
This project may well have been inspired by tennis great Andre Agassi, who has been spotted playing pickle with McEnroe
and Roddick. A few former Wimbledon champs stirring up some racquet rivalry can only be a good thing, although USA Pickleball claiming pickle as the fastest-growing sport in America for four consecutive years will irk the padel fanatics. You know who you are.
According to The Association of Pickleball Professionals, over the past 12 months nearly a fifth of American adults have tried the racquet sport that is played over a net at hip-level on an area about a quarter of the size of a tennis court. In England, while it remains niche, it is expanding – it is estimated that there are as many as 35,000 active players.
the past 12 months nearly a fifth
of Lemon Pickleball. It is a widely-observed phenomenon, as noted by The Jerusalem Post, which has reported on the popularity of pickleball among Jews.
Lemon Pickleball is the UK’s largest pickleball company –providing social games, coaching, parties and corporate events across 15 venues in London.
Headquartered in north London, and combining the skills needed for squash and table tennis, there is inevitably a Jewish leaning to the demographic that attends their events.
“We’ve got a really strong Jewish community at our sessions,” says Alex Minogue-Stone, co-founder
Unlike tennis, pickleball, which was invented in 1965 by three men looking for a game for their children to play, requires limited coaching.
“It could be huge,” said Minogue-Stone, before adding a note of caution. “Squash was huge in the 80s and kind of died down, so these things can happen. But I think how easy, how small it is, does help. In cities where space is harder and harder to find, having places where you can erect a court in what is essentially the size of a garden is quite convenient.”
The appeal of the sport is clear: a low barrier to entry and an ability to learn and improve quickly, all while, in Minogue-Stone’s words, “taking itself a little bit less seriously”.
“We wanted to stray away from some tennis clubs which feel like they are for a very particular type of person,” he says. “Some sports clubs can be a little bit cliquey and unwelcoming. We are more welcoming, more relaxed.”
And, contrary to popular belief, pickleball is not just for pensioners. While Minogue-Stone says that the
demographic can veer towards middle age, Pickleball England claims that the average age of a player is falling (albeit from 64 in 2019 to 57 in 2024).
Lemon Pickleball hosts corporate events and children’s parties, as well as a summer camp for juniors, cultivating the next generation of picklers.
“There is a lot of crossover,” says Jonah Stephens, junior programmes manager at Lemon Pickleball, on the intersection between Jewish summer camp and its pickle equivalent. “I’d say pickleball is kind of similar to table tennis in the way in which it is really popular among Jews.”
Ultimately, says Stephens, “Jews love the chat. They love to talk, and
when they’ve got that sort of five to 10 minutes in between games, I think that’s the main reason some of them come. And the fact they can do that in a situation where they might be talking to people who are of different ages, when they might not usually socialise in those groups.”
The analysis is astute. Table tennis, squash, chess and now pickleball are all games played by a small number of players in proximity – the perfect conditions for a chinwag.
Lots will tell you padel tennis is the game du jour and such is the clamouring to book courts, few could argue. But pickles are the quintessential Jewish relish.
Why wouldn’t pickleball be the quintessential Jewish sport?
We all have to balance different aspects of our personalities and lives, but that is easier for some to navigate than others. Shimmy Braun had to navigate being brought up in a New York strictly-Orthodox community –“as close as you can get to Chasidim without being Chasidim” – alongside the dawning realisation that he is gay.
“I started sort of recognising within myself in my teenage years an attraction towards some of the other boys in yeshiva,” he explains. However, he never acted on this and found himself in an arranged marriage to a woman he had known for just 12 days. Some time – and four children – later, Braun ended up divorcing his wife and ultimately coming out. He was around 40 and had suffered waves of depression in the preceding years.
All of this and more serves as the backdrop to his play, Faygele, which debuts at London’s Marylebone Theatre on 30 April.
The story centres on a gay, Orthodox teenage boy. “We learn early on that he’s taken his own life and that he is now at his funeral, narrating back to the scenes in his life that took him to that point,” the playwright outlines. A key moment is the father dismissing his son with the homophobic slur “faygele” at his barmitzvah. The work also draws on the experience of a friend of Braun’s who committed suicide after “trying to balance family, faith… as well as identity”.
You might think that after having endured such difficult times Braun would be angry at the community in which he grew up. His
Shimmy Braun shares his ultrareligious past – the very story that fuels his play – with Charlotte Henry
tattoos certainly show some level of rebellion against his former life. But, as ever, things are more complex. “There are a lot of beautiful things about Orthodox Judaism,” he insists.
However, Braun also acknowledges the need to break with the community of which he was once a key part. “I was burnt many times by people within the faith… it was just too almost traumatic for me to maintain that connection.” This had practical implications too, not least when it came to business. Braun is, and remains, a successful mortgage lender.
At one point his business was centred on the strictly-Orthodox, but that fell away when he came out. He now operates a lot within the LGBTQ+ community.
Braun also recalls telling a rabbi of the trauma he felt having come out. The rabbi told him that the act of coming out had also caused trauma for others in the community. “He gave me a different perspective,” confesses Braun. Indeed, despite stepping back from the community in many ways, the playwright still has connections to some rabbis, including Rabbi Akiva Tatz of Golders Green.
FAITH AND FAMILY
There has been a reading of the play before, something Braun found very emotional to sit through. “We had all orientations. We had black, white, brown and all kinds of people – older, younger men, women… And at the end, you know, there were many people, of all those denominations, with tears coming out their eyes.”
His parents did not attend, despite being just half an hour away from where it took place.
Once more trying to negotiate these
difficulties, Braun declines to dismiss his strictly-Orthodox father outright. Instead, he describes him as “the most supportive and kind probably”. He recalls that “when I came out, the first thing he said to me was, ‘There’s nothing you could tell me that will make me love you any less.’ Those were his words. And I started crying, because you just never know.”
His father has read the script of Faygele
Things are more complicated with his siblings. For example, they did not let Braun bring a man he was dating to their father’s 70th birthday party, even though he was well known to the family. He says that “it’s like a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ situation” in which everything is based on the instructions of a rabbi.
Braun is engaged and open throughout a sometimes difficult conversation. It’s clear he understands the need to reflect on his past in order to explain his current work. However, it’s when he discusses the theatre that he shines. He confesses to sneaking out to see the musical Rent “many, many times in my 20s”, even though he was strictly Orthodox at the time.
The writing is a huge passion and a creative outlet away from mortgage lending. “When I
talk to my therapist,” Braun says, “I could be depressed, I could be crying. And then we start talking about theatre. And he always loves to just stop afterwards, and he says to me, ‘Do you realise that the second we start talking about theatre, you become alive, you’re animated?’”
Faygele has an all-Jewish cast – Ilan Galkoff (Backstairs Billy), Ben Caplan (A Sherlock Carol), Clara Francis (Leopoldstadt), Andrew Paul (The Bill) and Yiftach Mizrahi (Band of Spies). “They all are bringing a unique perspective,” says Braun, who is confident “they’re going to bring something really powerful to that stage”.
Clara Francis’ perspective is a particularly tragic one. She lost a child who was just three years old and now runs an organisation to support others in the same awful position. “She was so powerful in that audition room,” says Braun.
Director Will Nunziata is not Jewish, something the writer actually thinks is of benefit to the work. He remembers discussing the issue with Nunziata. Ultimately, Braun told his director that the fact he wasn’t Jewish meant he would approach things with “a blank canvas… it kind of felt right for him”.
The run in London is Faygele’s world premiere. Braun says that when the possibility of it arose, “I thought to myself, what a great place to start”. He was positive about the opportunity because there is “such a strong combination of Jewish and gay people, LGBTQ people within this area”, adding: “I thought it would be really nice to get my feet wet over here... And I think people over here will appreciate it.”
Jewish writer. Jewish cast. Non-Jewish director. An American play debuting in England. As has often been the case with Shimmy Braun, it’s all about finding the right balance.
Faygele is at Marylebone Theatre from 30 April 2025 to 31 May 2025. marylebonetheatre.com
On 7th October, Hamas terrorists stormed kibbutz Be’eri completely destructing the schools and playgrounds. For the kibbutz to function properly and to have a future, it needs its families to return.
Jewish Child’s Day is committed to rebuilding the Be’eri nursery garden, a vital first step in restoring this once-thriving community.
Your support this Pesach will help us to plant the seeds for Be’eri’s new nursery garden, as well as contributing to the future of the community.
Five years on from the pandemic, Sarah Miller looks at how schoolchildren were impacted
Milestones are an important part of life, but for children going into the final year of primary school in 2020 many of theirs simply didn’t happen.
While many were preparing to move onto ‘big school’ and sitting SATS – their first formal exams – others were looking forward to their residential trip away with friends, the end-ofschool prom and the hoodies they would proudly wear, emblazoned with their names.
But those things never came. Five years ago, the UK was plunged into a national lockdown because of the Covid pandemic, causing the closure of some 24,000 schools across the country. Children never saw an end to their primary school days – and they didn’t get to experience life as a Year 7 pupil at secondary school.
When restrictions were finally lifted, most of these youngsters had to go straight into Year 8 without ever knowing what it was like to be the youngest group at school. But for some, the situation caused such anxiety and stress that starting school
was no longer an option – and they simply dropped out of the formal system. Now, five years on, education experts are seeing the real impacts on children who have to this day never stepped foot inside a secondary school –and are about to embark on their GCSEs.
For Sasha Sharpe, headteacher at Gateways, an alternative education provider for young Jewish people, the impact of Covid has been all too clear. “It’s not like they started secondary school and then stopped – they never started,” she explains.
Gateways, based in Hendon, supports young people between the ages of 14 to 25 who have struggled with mainstream schools due to poor mental health, illness and social and
emotional challenges.
Since 2014, more than 700 students have been supported by the provider – with a demand for places rising by 372 percent since it opened its doors. And it’s no coincidence, says Sasha, that in the five years since the pandemic referrals to Gateways have doubled.
“For many of the young people who were transitioning to secondary school the impact has been dramatic,” she says. “They had all that hype and build-up to go into secondary school, which was replaced by anxiety and panic because the natural order of things was disturbed. By the time we get a referral two or three years later, when they are in Year 9, we can see that they have been out of education for a very long time and have become really anxious. Some still don’t know what to expect at a secondary school – because they never got through the door.
“And even for children who did go back, things were not normal because they were walking around in masks and sitting and socialising in a different way. I think that created a new problem that children and schools had not had to deal with before.
“Now we are seeing more and more young people becoming what we describe as emotionalbased school avoiders, who are simply too anxious to be in a mainstream setting.”
Sasha notes that young people affected in this way began showing symptoms during the pandemic.
“They were not leaving the house, so they began staying in their rooms, becoming more and more isolated. Some stopped connecting with their friends and were becoming withdrawn and, in some cases, were terrified that if they did leave the house, they
would get Covid.”
Part of the support Gateways provides is not only helping young people get back on track academically but also socially through ‘gentle transitions’.
“We’ve had young people who wouldn’t get out of their car, so we will go and sit in the car with them, and then gradually transition to chatting on a bench in the car park, and then coming into the reception area and so on, until they graduate into being able to stay in the classrooms.
“We also put on soft social activities to help them build up their skills in making relationships with their peers and sustaining friendships. In this way we are reintroducing these young people into the world.”
Sarah Clif, 20, experienced first-hand the pandemic’s impact on teenagers, having gone into lockdown just after starting Year 10. The former student at JCoSS, in New Barnet, never got to sit her GCSE exams because they were cancelled by the
government and she was graded instead by her teachers. For her A-levels she moved to Brampton College in Hendon – which is ranked as the highest achieving independent sixth form college in London.
Sarah credits the college’s emphasis on individual learning and small class sizes as having helped “soften” her return to education post-Covid. Five years on, Sarah is now an English tutor at the college, helping youngsters who missed out on Year 7 with their upcoming GCSEs.
Sarah, who is also studying at university, recalls how the pandemic affected her – but said she is more concerned for those now coming through the system. “I remember everyone in
my cohort being really worried about whether we would get to sit our exams. Immediately the anxiety set in, and I think it stuck with a lot of us ever since – that kind of feeling prepared enough for big tasks while being uncertain whether it would even happen. Not being with my peers in a classroom setting also impacted our teamwork and conversational skills. As restrictions didn’t lift until I had finished school, we never got to have a leavers’ party and just met up in the park instead.
“It did feel like we were ripped away from the classroom. But I have more concerns for the young people who missed out on the end of primary school. They have never had formal exams and are now doing their GCSEs – but some are lacking quite basic English-related knowledge – simple things like what an adjective is. We were able to get back into learning more easily because we had experienced
secondary school already – but I feel like they were more disadvantaged.”
It’s not just about knowledge – these students’ attitudes to learning are very different.
“We missed out on having classroom conversations – but they didn’t learn formative skills like communicating with
one another or learning the difference between speaking in person versus emailing someone. They missed out on that because they were still at such a young age when the pandemic hit – and it’s now showing up in the classroom.”
Clinical psychologist Dr Naomi Coleman, who specialises
MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP
British-born Jake Marlowe lost his life at the Nova festival on October 7, and his family lost the beautiful young man they refer to as their “greatest masterpiece”. Jake was a gi ed musician who believed in the power of music to connect hearts and upli souls. In his memory, Youth Aliyah has established The Jake Marlowe Memorial Scholarship, which will support a young EthiopianIsraeli musician in pursuing his dreams. This scholarship is more than just financial aid – it is a bridge between past and future, loss and hope. It represents resilience, unity and the unbreakable bond between communities.
The first recipient, Awaka Melisa, shares many of Jake’s qualities, including a deep passion for music. Born in Ethiopia, he made aliyah aged 15. He is one of 14 children to divorced parents. His disabled mother struggled to care for him and so, at age 16, he came to TOM Youth Village. He arrived with considerable educational,
language and social gaps, but with robust support and a determined spirit, Awaka is thriving in every respect and will soon graduate from school. This scholarship will allow him to take his first steps as he pursues a career in the music industry a er completing his service in the Israel Defence Forces. Through Awaka’s talent and dedication, Jake’s legacy will continue to inspire. youthaliyah.org.uk
JUMP AND LEARN
Designed to empower the next generation to fulfil their potential, the ORT JUMP Programmes make a huge
in young people, said the results of the ongoing Covid inquiry will hopefully shed light on the pandemic’s impact – but warned it may be some time before we have all the answers.
“A lot of people have said Covid is done with, but that’s not the case,” says Naomi. “We are going to see the effects of
impact. The education charity works closely with secondary schools, o ering unique programmes that enhance young people’s employment prospects and, this year, the programmes are JUMP-starting the career paths of more than 1,300 young people.
The ORT JUMP Mentoring Programme provides 1:1 careers-related guidance for Year 12 students across 14 schools. This year, 400 teenagers have been matched with mentors across a range of industries to explore potential career routes. Students are also o ered webinars and insight days.
The ORT JUMP Working Skills Day is currently being delivered in five schools. Participants are o ered a selection of expert-led, interactive sessions introducing key workplace skills, such as creative thinking, influencing people and strategic planning.
Over the next few months, there will be three further ORT JUMP Employability Skills Programmes on o er:
The 3-Day Employability Skills Challenge strengthens Year 10 students’ abilities to work e ectively in teams, as they research, collate and pitch a marketing campaign.
it for a long time to come and we are still learning about its impacts. Young people who were going through transition periods would undoubtedly have been impacted and what we do know about adolescence is that being around peers is so important for the development of their self and identity.
“As soon as the schools reopened it was all about how academically they were behind – but my psychology circles were saying to let them play, rather than have catch-up sessions all the time. Their emotional needs were just as important.”
Naomi believes that however young people have been affected, talking about their anxieties remains one of the best ways to help them. “The more we talk about it, the more we can support each other – because, after all, the pandemic is something we all went through.” gateways.org.uk bramptoncollege.com
The ORT JUMP International Careers Challenge in Israel – a week-long intensive learning experience for 12 ambitious students. They’ll work with teenagers from the World ORT network to find solutions to a real-life issue, while gathering essential workplace skills. ortuk.org
The Alternative Work Experience Programme delves into an array of vital workplace skills over the course of a week, with a diverse mix of industry experts, under one o ice roof.
Launching September 2025 • Limited spaces available
Monday 21st - Friday 25th July 2025
Year 12 students London NW1 FREE
Join ORT UK for a unique work experience week, led by experts from a range of industries:
Take part in work-related challenges in a professional office setting.
Work independently and in teams.
Gain vital employability skills, including researching, IT, pitching and networkingall essential for your future career!
Courses available
Sports Leadership Development Programme
Technical Business Enterprise
Hospitality and Catering
Setting up a Beauty Business / Gel Nail Technician
Gateways is the Jewish community’s only alternative education provider in the UK, existing to support the countless young Jewish people today, between the ages of 14-25, who are or have struggled to remain in mainstream education due to social, emotional and mental health challenges.
For more information or to register your interest, please visit GATEWAYS.ORG.UK/SIXTH-FORM
overco en ship me
We have established the Jake Marlowe Memorial Scholarship to honour the memory of British born Jake, who was murdered while working in security at the Nova Festival on 7 October. Be part of the legacy SCAN TO DONATE or contact: 020 8371 1580 info@youthaliyah.org.uk www.youthaliyah.org.uk
Youth Aliyah Child Rescue cares for thousands of at-risk children in our five Youth Villages in Israel. Please help us to fully endow the Jake Marlowe Memorial Scholarship, so that it can be given to a worthy recipient every year
The first recipient, Ethiopian Israeli Awaka Melisa, has overcome profound adversity and looks forward to a brighter future. He is pictured below with Jake’s incredible parents, Lisa and Michael Marlowe.
I found out I had lymphoma on 9th February 2024. I was in shock. At 35, how could I have cancer? I didn’t know anyone my age who had been through it.
Making that first call to Chai was difficult, but everyone there was either in the same boat as me or was there to help people like me.
What an amazing place. Chai truly cares for everyone and helped me get my life back on track
Over the last 10 years, the number of young people supported by Chai has increased by more than 200%.
For more information on our extensive range of specialised services and care across the UK, please call our Freephone helpline on 0808 808 4567 or visit www.chaicancercare.org
Jewish Blind & Disabled are excited to announce our monthly Peer Support Groups for people with visual impairments.
Finchley
The second Thursday of each month 11.30am – 1.00pm
Borehamwood
The second Tuesday of each month 11.30am – 1.00pm
Sessions are designed for meeting new people and sharing experiences of living with sight loss in a safe environment. Family members, friends or carers are welcome to join.
To join a session or find out more information, please contact Toni Lewis on toni@jbd.org or 020 8371 6611 ext 620
Wishing
As the season turns, charities continue to support the community both here and abroad with events, initiatives and a huge amount of hard work. Louisa Walters finds out what they are up to
Journey to independence
Deena is one of 500 people supported by Kisharon Langdon across a range of services offered to the Jewish learning disability and autism community and her story is testament to a truly transformative journey. During her early years at Tuffkid Nursery, Deena flourished in a nurturing and inclusive environment. At Kisharon Noé School on the Wohl Campus, she grew in confidence and developed academically. Her aspirations grew at Kisharon Langdon College, where she explored her passions and took her first steps towards greater independence. Today, Deena lives with her best friends in a fullyadapted Supported Living home, embracing a life of autonomy, engagement and happiness. Her days are filled with activities she loves – bowling, arts and crafts and
community events. Her mother, Sylvia, expresses her gratitude: “It’s hard to keep up with her busy schedule! The Friday night dinners, where Deena and her friends prepare and host Shabbat, are truly heart-warming. Kisharon Langdon’s support is invaluable –we couldn’t imagine this journey without it.”
Springing into a summer of joy and respite
For families navigating the immense challenges of serious childhood illness, moments of respite and joy can be lifechanging. Camp Simcha, which annually supports 1,700 family members, is dedicated to making those moments possible, with mums’ spa days, a residential sibling retreat and family retreat,
dads’ events, spring outings and the charity’s summer day scheme. The May retreat for the brothers and sisters of seriously ill children offers a weekend away with a packed programme of activities – as well as the traditional Camp Simcha campfire circle time, which gives them an opportunity to share some of their daily challenges with other young people in similar situations. Camp Simcha chief executive Daniel Gillis explains: “When mum and dad need to spend more time with their seriously ill child, siblings can feel isolated and stressed, and emotions can run high. The sibling retreat puts them front and centre. They walk in and almost instantly forget any worries or burdens they might be carrying. It really is a game-changing three days of pure fun but also respite for the siblings.”
Jewish Blind & Disabled’s newest development, Ephraim Court in Mill Hill East, is months away from completion. Thirty new apartments – all wheelchair accessible and adaptable to meet the individual needs of Jewish people living with sight loss or physical disability – are each equipped with an accessible modern fitted kitchen and walk-in shower room. Onsite facilities include communal laundry facilities, a communal lounge, garden and roof terrace, plus parking for tenants. Sustainability has
been a driving force in the design, with an ambitious low carbon energy strategy that features air source heat pumps, solar panels, and green and brown roofs. The building has been named in memory of Menashi (Morris) and Heskel (Harry) Ephraim. Works are due to complete in the summer and once furnished it will welcome its first tenants in autumn 2025.
The Jewish Family Centre (JFC) is marking a quarter of a century of dedicated service to Jewish families in crisis. Founded by Sandy Weinbaum, JFC has grown into a vital organisation, offering comprehensive support across legal advocacy, social work, financial aid, housing assistance, therapy and emotional relief. JFC fills crucial gaps left by mainstream services, particularly as the needs of the Jewish community have expanded in recent years. Many Jewish families hesitate to seek assistance from statutory services
due to cultural sensitivities, making JFC a vital lifeline.
“People assume we are just a play centre, but we are so much more,” says Sandy. “We are a crisis support network providing therapy for parents, social work for struggling families, legal assistance for those facing eviction, and a safe space for children after divorce.”
JFC’s specialist contact centre is the only Jewish crisis contact centre in the UK. It provides a safe, accredited environment for children to maintain relationships with their non-resident parent post-separation.
More than 350 children cannot come home to Kibbitz Be’eri without a safe place to learn and play. Jewish Child’s Day is committed to raising funds to rebuild Be’eri’s nursery garden – an essential first step in restoring the community that was devastated on October 7. “We want to hear
the children laugh again. These kindergartens will be the place where they will thrive once more,” says Natali, a mother of three young children who have all been relocated.
Since October 7, Jewish Child’s Day has supported vulnerable children across Israel, funding safe rooms, medical equipment, emotional support and more. Rebuilding Bee’ri will bring together families again and ensure that the kibbutz can take its next step toward recovery and growth.
Jewish
When Eden, 24, was diagnosed with a chromosomal disorder and global developmental delay as a newborn baby, his mother Jill was told to take him home and love him. Jill o en felt isolated from her family and peers and says: “It got harder as Eden grew older and his di erences became more apparent.” When a family member suggested Norwood, which provides support to people with neurodiversity and neurodevelopmental disabilities, Jill accessed the Rainbow family support group, where she met a group of like-minded parents. For the first time, she felt confident to safely leave him for a few hours. Eden and Jill continued to receive Norwood’s support, advice and advocacy throughout his childhood and adolescence. In 2023 Eden moved into his Norwood home, where Jill has “watched him grow from a boy into a man”. With support, he has been able to thrive in a safe environment suitable for his needs and Jill no longer worries about his future.
“We are delighted to have recently welcomed members of the Sugar and Ronson families, our cornerstone donors, for a tour of our new first-class care and community campus, which will meet the needs of the community in north-east London and Essex, now and into the future,” says Jewish Care’s CEO Daniel CarmelBrown. “We are also inviting the local community on hard hat tours to begin to share in the excitement of seeing our long-held vision becoming a reality. We will be holding our first community fundraising campaign on 18-19 May, to raise the additional funds to help us complete our vision for the new, modern and fully- accessible care and community campus.”
Jewish Care’s fourth development hub is on track to open in summer 2026, and includes The Sugar Family Care Home, a 66-bed care home to replace Jewish Care’s Vi & John Rubens House care home in Gants Hill, and the new Ronson Community Centre. It also incorporates The Dennis Centre for people living with dementia,
Care’s local Social Work and Community Support Team, Meals on Wheels hub and Jami’s community hub in Redbridge, ensuring comprehensive care and support for the community. Register for a hard hat tour by emailing info@jcare.org or visit jewishcare.org/redbridge
United Hatzalah volunteer medic Yehuda Levy was heading to a concert when his communication device buzzed. It alerted him to attend a severe car accident near his home. He turned around and headed to the scene, where three people were seriously injured. Yehuda worked with other volunteers to manage bleeds, immobilise patients and identify potential internal bleeds or broken bones. Once the patients were transferred to the responding ambulance crew, his device buzzed again. This time, it was an alert for a patient with chest pains in the hotel he was standing directly outside. Yehuda responded in seconds and was the first medic on the scene, closely followed by a female paramedic staying in that same hotel. Yehuda and the paramedic identified that the patient had high blood
sugar and elevated blood pressure so, together, they initiated treatment while waiting for the ambulance to arrive. Yehuda is just one of United Hatzalah’s 8,000 dedicated volunteer medics whose goal is to provide immediate lifesaving medical intervention in Israel, for free, in the critical window between the onset of an emergency and the arrival of ambulance assistance. Average response time is under three minutes and the organisation is working to reduce this further by doubling the number of volunteer medics in its network.
will be presented with their awards at WIZOuk’s Gala Dinner on 8 September.
WIZO’s Entrepreneur Awards, sponsored by David Dangoor, recognise individuals who have demonstrated outstanding vision and skill impacting society both economically and socially though their entrepreneurship. The Apprentice’s Claude Littner and a panel of judges from the worlds of media, business and politics will pick out the best candidates and winners
Supporting vulnerable communities in Israel is at the heart of WIZO’s work and the need for support since October 7 has increased significantly. WIZO events not only o er entertainment and enrichment but also help to provide vital support for projects in Israel. Last month, the WIZO Young Patrons and Professionals network, in collaboration with S & P Sephardi Young Professionals, hosted a panel discussion on shaping the future. Littner chaired Middle East adviser Dr Efrat Sopher, VP Chief of Sta at Multiverse Libby Dangoor and social entrepreneur and mentor Charly Young. At a similar event Littner talked to Danny Sinitsky, Charly Young and Hannah Feldman about their journeys as founders and entrepreneurs.
Hope isn’t seasonal and at Paperweight the mission is the same all year round – to support those struggling with life’s most formidable challenges. The charity is a lifeline for people
For the children in our care, even a Passover meal is not guaranteed. For struggling parents, affording the basics is a daily battle. Your gift can change this. Donate now at Emunah.org.uk/pesach
Our life-saving vehicles are doing their job on the streets, at sea and even in the air. But it’s what’s happening in the cloud that is equally as important to the lifesavers of the future.
This Pesach we are raising vital funds for next generation incident management and blood technology. A cloud-based platform that uses artificial intelligence through an integrated system. These developments will enable us to track every unit of blood collected, get to patients quicker, help with tele-medical care and even provide remote CPR.
To save more lives, we need your support. To give today visit mdauk.org/cloud, call 020 8201 5900 or scan the QR code.
overwhelmed by officialdom – from navigating debt and benefits to handling social care complexities, legal issues or bureaucratic roadblocks, standing alongside those who feel lost in the system. The dedicated team provides expert guidance, with clear, compassionate support, empowering people to regain control of their lives. The year is young but, among others, the charity has already helped a single parent on low income to receive Universal Credit, and an overwhelmed young widow to find a way to live life again. An elderly person struggling with living arrangements has regained dignity, a man in his 40s struggling with mental health issues now receives benefits to which he is entitled and a family drowning in debt has taken a step forward. Paperweight doesn’t just offer paperwork support – it also provides assurance, a friendly face when things feel bleak, advocacy when someone can’t find their voice and, most of all, hope. But hope doesn’t grow in isolation, it thrives through support and this spring Paperweight continues to help people rediscover confidence, independence and peace of mind.
Daniel Burger, CEO of Magen David Adom (MDA), recently returned from Israel, leading the Magen David Adom UK Resilience Mission 2025. “Joined by donors from across the world, we saw first-hand how instrumental MDA has been in the country’s response to October 7. Our keynote speaker, President Isaac Herzog, reiterated his praise for our 37,500 medics, paramedics and volunteers. Not just for what they did on that
fateful day, but for what they do every day,” he says. MDA is preparing for the future with the development of technology that is unparalleled in medical emergency services anywhere else in the world. “On October 7, we were able to track those in danger to within a few metres of their location, provide first aid advice to bystanders and, in some cases, simply connect victims to their loved ones unable to get through on their phones,” says Daniel. “MDA now needs to take its cloudbased infrastructure to the next level, including groundbreaking incident management technology. Its capabilities are incredible and will, quite literally, save more lives.”
Spring brings a space to talk
Young people and adults living with mental health issues will be able to benefit from more one-toone mental health support this spring. Four new therapists are joining Jami’s Talking Therapies service to support young people from 11 upwards struggling with everything from anxiety and depression to self-harm and suicidal ideation. The service has
expanded to now include more children. Meanwhile, volunteer community befrienders at Jami’s Head Room café, supported by The Maurice Wohl Charitable Foundation, are welcoming more people to take advantage of some friendly company and a kind listening ear. There will be nine volunteers eager to enjoy a friendly chat with anyone in the community looking for support or some company. You can join one of Jami’s volunteer community befrienders at their table from 2pm–4pm Sunday to Thursday, and 10am–12pm Wednesday to Friday.
We are the world
World Jewish Relief (WJR) stands resolute in its mission to support those in need, both within and beyond our community. The situation in Ukraine continues to be profoundly difficult, but WJR is supporting local partners in delivering vital services to Ukrainians. Access to medical care and home repairs has never been more critical and the team is working tirelessly to ensure that it reaches those in need with lifesaving assistance. Closer to home, WJR is the UK’s largest provider of employment support for refugees. As the groundbreaking STEP Ukraine programme comes
This month there is a Zoom event with Shoham Nagar, director of Neve Landy Residential Boys Home in southern Israel. This facility provides specialist care for 50 boys who have struggled in mainstream environments owing to social, educational and psychological challenges. Many have faced neglect and trauma but, thanks to the dedication of skilled carers and therapists, they are learning to heal, grow and build independent futures. Nagar will share insights into the daily life and operations of Neve Landy, offering attendees a deeper understanding of how Emunah’s work transforms lives.
to a close – having provided specialist employment and language support to more than 13,000 Ukrainians fleeing war –the humanitarian agency is still supporting displaced people from Afghanistan, Syria and beyond in rebuilding their lives in the UK.
Emunah continues to inspire and educate with stimulating events in its mission to help Israel’s most vulnerable children and their families. The charity recently hosted solicitor, advocate and author Anthony Julius, who spoke about his latest book, Abraham: The First Jew, exploring the contradictions within Judaism throughout history. Emunah also co-hosted a challah bake for the Chigwell and Hainault community.
Over the past 10 years, the proportion of young people supported by Chai Cancer Care has increased by more than 200 percent, with one in three of its 4,500 clients now under the age of 50. Chai provides more than 70 specialised services and care to cancer sufferers and their families. Charlotte Kent, who was diagnosed with lymphoma aged just 35 years, says:
“I was in shock when I found out. At 35, how could I have cancer? I didn’t know anyone my age who had been through it. I had heard of Chai, but the thought of talking about cancer filled me with anxiety. Making that first call was difficult, but the moment I did, I felt so much lighter, almost happy. Chai was a safe place where I could be completely open about how I was feeling, where I felt totally understood. Everyone there was either in the same boat as me or was there to help people like me. What an amazing place. Chai truly cares for everyone and helped me get my life back on track.”
#NorwoodChallenges
Join us on the wild side for this exciting 5-day cycle from Nairobi across the plains of Kenya, through the Tsavo National Safari Park and on to the beaches of Mombasa. Hybrid bikes, a mix of dirt and tarmac roads and the chance to see the Big Five, this is a feast for the senses not to be missed.
We’ll support you all the way and together we can support and empower neurodiverse children, their families and people with neurodevelopmental disabilities, to live their best lives.
More information: challenges@norwood.org.uk
To book: norwood.org.uk/challenges/kenya
Patron HM King Charles III
Registered Charity No. 1059050
Rebecca Minkoff already had her brand in the bag before she went on Bravo’s reality show, but will she be going back? By Brigit Grant
“I’m very glad it’s all over. I don’t regret it by any stretch of the imagination, but now I can use my energy on exciting things, the outcome of which I can fully control.”
Rebecca Minkoff is talking about The Real Housewives of New York (RHONY), the longrunning Bravo cat fight that has chronicled the lives of the Big Apple’s affluent women since 2008. Rebecca stepped into the most recent season as a “friend of a friend”, but the fashion designer known for her signature bags, accessories and clothes is stepping back indefinitely.
regret that most recent season as a “friend fashion that that would have more fun and
“I’ll never put myself in that position again,” she says. “It was sold to me as a reboot of the show that would have more fun and less drama – that was one of the reasons I said yes initially.”
Trusting that pitch was Rebecca’s first misstep, as the franchise thrives on manufacturing feuds between so-called friends and then shaping
them to look worse in the final edit. Did she really believe they were going to ditch that winning format? “Well, I loved the fact I was with all these self-made women, but going in as a ‘friend of a friend’ meant they stop at your front door and you’re not in the main shoot. I was okay with that but thought they would tell my work story as we shot it. For whatever reason, they decided not to share it.”
It was a mistake not to because her eponymous brand, which she started with her brother Uri, is celebrating its 20th anniversary and she remains chief creative officer, even though she sold it for millions in early 2022, while pregnant with her third child. She has four children now with husband Gavin Bellour, divides her time between homes in New York and birth place
Florida, and all this all began with a dress she designed for her batmitzvah.
“I still have the dress – it’s in storage,” she says and promises to send a photo of her wearing it in 1993. It has yet to arrive, but Rebecca has a lot on her todo list, including promoting her book Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage and Success, which is out in paperback.
“I’m more relaxed about it now,” she insists, which is not surprising as it is all about “overcoming self-doubt and finding the courage to embrace ambition”. Rebecca has nailed all aspects of her DIY manual over two decades in the fashion industry and, in 2018, she co-founded the Female Founder Collective with the aim of empowering female-owned
clothes that she designed and in which she appears on her meticulously-managed Instagram page is probably what irked the Real Housewives. That and the Scientology.
It was during a helicopter flight to The Hamptons in episode two that Rebecca announced that she identifies as both Jewish and a Scientologist. Cue the gasps and a controversial debate on screen and within the audience, who questioned casting a member of what is deemed a cult. Rebecca remains unapologetic and steadfast about her Jewish faith, but alongside tactical counselling courses provided by Scientology.
when co-star Meredith Marks had a mature batmitzvah last season.
and led companies. Helping women entrepreneurs grow and scale their businesses sits neatly with her other project RM Superwomen – a social platform that encourages women worldwide to lead brave and courageous lives.
That she manages to do all this while looking effortlessly stylish in elegant but wearable
“We are members of an incredible congregation in New York at the Lab/Shul on Varick Street, which I discovered when my friend’s daughter was batmitzvah there. Do I go every week? Absolutely not, although I would love to say I do. We go for the High Holy Days and try to keep Shabbat on Fridays, but we’re definitely not perfect.”
And the Scientology? Rebecca pauses. “It’s very different from traditional faith-based religions, where there’s belief in God and prayer and rituals, but for me personally it’s been most helpful in dealing with everything that’s been happening with the Jewish people. It just gives me solace.”
Rebecca was not unique on the show with her faith-with-atwist choices. Over on The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, Lisa Barlow is a Jew to Mormon convert, so she knew the ropes
In The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Kyle Richards is a Jewish convert – although she’s heading for divorce from husband Mauricio Umansky, a trend in the franchise, as Israeli housewife Dorit Kemsley is now estranged from her spouse Paul. Back in RHONY, ex-housewife Leah McSweeney has also converted to Judaism and has been posting about it endlessly.
For all the criticism Rebecca received for her faith revelations, none were as bad as those she got for posting support for Israel after October 7. “As I no longer own my label, the brand’s management didn’t want me making comments on the company page and it got extraordinarily heated because I felt we should. But I’ve been very vocal on my personal feed and I have heard the antiIsrael protests in the triangle by my office and it’s really upsetting that that’s where we’re at.”
Despite her instinct to be protective of her family, Rebecca
continues to put up the Israel flag and images of the hostages. “It’s uncomfortable, but it’s going to get a lot more uncomfortable for everybody if we don’t speak out. I’d rather be stating my piece than crossing my fingers and being silent because that’s what got us into trouble a long time ago.”
For all Rebecca’s fashion flare, it was the humble T-shirt that launched her career, post that batmitvah dress; a simple I Love New York tee that she customised in the wake of the September 11 attacks that caught the eye of actress Jenna Elfman, who wore it on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
“That was 20 years ago and I used to think that you’d get to this spot and sit back, relax and enjoy the show. But it is harder because you have to stay interested in this thing you’ve been talking about for 20 years. ‘What’s the new twist on the story after all this time? Sometimes it can be harder to stay fresh in fashion when you’re established than someone who just launched.”
Rebecca knew that the offer to create a Wicked bag collection made sense, as creating something sleek, black and studded for Elphaba and pink and whimsical for Glinda was too tempting for this fan of the show. But when the offer came, “my last baby was 10 days old when the PR firm asked me to go to London to be the bag partner for Wicked”. You would expect the author of a book about embracing ambition to immediately pack a bag (one of her own designs) as it was “the opportunity of a lifetime”.
“And for a moment I did think ‘I’ll just bring the baby it’s fine,’ but then I realised you can’t get a passport for a baby of that age, so I decided to focus on the child and sent my second in command.”
Even Rebecca, with all her acumen, could not have predicted the success of her Elphaba and Glinda. “We sold out of the product,” she says – and that was before the film opened and there’s a sequel coming.
“Yes, we’re in planning mode,” says Rebecca. “I’m waiting for access to the portal, which will give me the new artwork iconography and graphics. Once I have that, I’ll be able to come up with the design which will be an apparel offering as well as a bag.”
Of course there will be a bag and, for the record, Rebecca’s Glinda featured in Real Housewives on a shopping spree to her store. What was she saying about being the friend of a friend? rebeccaminkoff.com
In a world where injectables and dermal fillers are the norm, Abbie Novack is that rare thing – a woman who thinks no one should have Botox. Whaaat? No neurotoxin derived from bacteria to paralyse your facial muscles? Well, that’s easy for her to say – she’s only 26.
“Age isn’t the issue, there are plenty of 26-year-olds injecting into their faces,” insists Abbie. “I just wish I could tell everyone, shout from the roo ops, that they don’t need to be doing this yet or ever.” Not that she’s expecting anyone to bin their botulinum and face the years au naturel, as Abbie has an alternative solution that’s painless. More than painless it’s pure pleasure – we’re talking 60 minutes of face massage that sends you to sleepand produces results. Abbie calls it Face Therapy and it originated in ancient China, but it isn’t just another holistic approach, it’s an emerging practice designed to tone, sculpt and eliminate lines that’s the real deal.
out our bodies but what about our faces? Even in our sleep, we hold tension in our facial muscles. Face therapy helps to release stress while enhancing skin health.”
Resembling artist implements, the tools of her trade are: the roller made of jade to enhance circulation and improve product absorption; the CryoGlobes which, when frozen, reduce inflammation and tighten skin and the ayurvedic Kansa wands, which help to detoxify the skin, balance pH levels and promote lymphatic drainage.
It sounds complicated, but in action provides the ultimate face massage (and I’ve had a lot) as the pressure is just right – a whisper in some places, a deep release in others – and you don’t want it to end.
Thank goodness Julia Haart got in when she did. Whether there would be interest now in a show about a woman leaving a strictly-Orthodox Jewish community we will never know. Thankfully, with its hot rabbi series Nobody Wants This, Netflix, which made Julia’s My Unorthodox Life, has stayed as supportive as…Julia Haart’s luxury shapewear. When we last saw Julia, she was divorcing Italian husband Silvio Scaglia, fighting to retain control over the Elite World Group talent agency and learning about her children, Batsheva, Miriam and Aron. But Julia is a fighter, as revealed in her memoir Brazen: My Unorthodox Journey from Long Sleeves to Lingerie, and she has been speaking up bravely, posting this on International Women’s Day: “We know what it is like to have our destiny be determined by our biology. We stand with every single Afghan woman and girl suffering from the oppressive hands of Jihadist extremism. Their very voices have become criminalised. We stand with every Iranian woman fighting to regain the powers they once held in their beautiful country. We stand with every single Israeli women who has been attacked by Hamas.
#MeTooUnlessYourAJew.”
Julia’s mantra has always been about every woman’s freedom of choice and she lifts females up – quite literally – with her +Body by Julia Haart shapewear line that challenges traditional notions of body im-
Don’t Passover these
age by offering sizes up to XXXL with an F cup. Without formal training, Julia became creative director of La Perla in 2016 and what she learnt about underwear she has applied to her new PowerBond Pro Collection, which she was in London to promote recently. Its technology is said to redefine shapewear with targeted compression that sculpts and supports without compromising on comfort. The collection also includes silky fabrics to “flatter every curve” and daughters Batsheva and Miriam demonstrate that in the campaign. Julia has yet to branch into boxers in the unlikely event that her still-religious son Aron could be coaxed into them.
Abbie is a university-trained make-up artist, but when work dominated her weekends, she decided to look at alternatives. “I kept reading articles about people moving away from Botox, and then my mum mentioned face yoga as something up and coming, so I did a course, but still felt I needed more.”
That was when Abbie discovered and trained with Cecily, who travels the world teaching Gua Sha – Chinese sculpting – which is targeted massage to reduce pu iness, so en fine lines, and restore that glow. Abbie thinks of it as face Pilates, telling clients: “We work
No fancy products involved either, just clean, minimal-ingredient Face Gym’s Face Coach Oil, “which helps the sculpting without causing breakouts”.
Abbie has seen dramatic transformations in clients, several of whom come weekly, “but once a month will make a di erence and, though I’m not doing it much yet, Face Therapy can be done all over the body for lymphatic drainage,” notes Abbie, whose dream is for people to realise their face needs exercise too. “I have one client whose results were so noticeable that her brow technician assumed she had had Botox!” Heaven forbid.
@Facetherapyldn / 07854 412955
We’re days away from commemorating the escape from Egypt, but it seems there were some beauty products Israelites were reluctant to leave behind. Kohl eyeliner, Cleopatra’s milk and honey skincare regime and Pharaoh’s cureall black seed oil, which, when cold-pressed, is still used on hair.
Well, enough with the ancient, it’s time to move on and try age-defying Multi Peptide Cream (£40) by Evolve Organic Beauty, which has just launched as the natural alternative to injectables with Hexapeptide 8, which relaxes facial muscles to reduce wrinkles. Perfect for dry, mature skin, the Sacha Inchi Peptides and Ceramides in it restore elasticity. The same company makes Hyaluronic Eye Serum (£19), also new this month with hyaluronic acid for deeper, longer-lasting hydration and tuberose stem cells for reducing dark circles. Finally from Evolve Organic is the new 3-in-1 Sunless Glow (£24), which uses the carob fruit to build up a tan then maintains it, while protecting skin from photoageing.
There are so many significant anniversaries this year, one of which is the 75th of Disney’s Cinderella and, although the just-released Snow White has come under fire, it’s only right we include it as Gal Gadot stars as the Evil Queen. All by madbeauty.com
New to the UK is Sensilis (sensilis.co.uk) a highend Spanish skin brand that has been helping those with sensitive skin for more than 40 years, with the scientists behind it doing enough research for dermatologists and doctors in 25 countries to recommend it. Among the range of suncare, day and night creams is Upgrade (£61) a sorbet cream that firms immediately, impacting on 43 percent of wrinkles in a month, which is not typical of sensitive skin products. It can also reduce redness in an hour.
Bubala restaurant is bringing its vibrant veggie food to Kings Cross. Louisa Walters made a reservation to speak to the owner
If my ‘meat-and-two-veg’ husband can enjoy a meal at a veggie restaurant it must be doing something right. It would seem, in fact, that Bubala is doing everything right because, just five years after opening in Spitalfields, followed by Soho three years later, it has reached the dizzy heights of a unit in Kings Cross.
“Everything just feels good here,” says owner Marc Summers, and “dizzy heights” is not a euphemism. “The new unit is a really amazing space and I fell in love with the building [Cadence Court, north of the station, near Granary Square] as well. It’s got huge arches, double-height ceiling. For a new development it felt very, very unique.”
A unique unit needs unique food and, true to form, “the plan with all with our sites is to always have unique dishes. We will be keeping the ‘big hitters’ – the hummus, the halloumi, the mushroom skewers, the confit latkes –but there’s a wood-fired oven so we can do dishes that have got different techniques.”
Expect, for example, a take on mejadra (a rice and lentil dish) – it’ll be baked in the wood fired oven so it’s crispy on top – and charred cucumber tzatziki.
The restaurant, which opens next month, will be on two storeys, with upstairs available for private hire, and a large outside terrace.
All this from a Chigwell boy who used to work in finance. “I always wanted to be a chef. When I was 25, my brother was living in Australia and I decided to get out of finance, go stay with him and figure out what I wanted to do. And that’s when I started working in restaurants.”
He fell in love with it. When he came back to London he did a cookery diploma and started working in the kitchen at Berber and Q in East London and then The Palomar in Soho. The next step was to work front of house to learn how to run a restaurant. “I knew I wanted to open a restaurant one day and I wanted to understand it from back to front.”
Next came a series of pop-ups all over London before Marc took a permanent unit on Commercial Street in Spitalfields, near where his grandma grew up.
When Marc was working at Berber and Q – Josh Katz’s grill house that is celebrating its 10th birthday this year – although it is a meat-focused restaurant, he could see that customers were really excited by the vegetable
dishes. “Their faces would light up when you talked about the cauliflower shawarma.”
He didn’t want to open “just another Middle Eastern restaurant” and it dawned on him that vegetable dishes were taking centre stage at these restaurants but no one was doing a veggie-only one.
“When I first suggested the idea to people they said I was nuts – ‘This isn’t going to work. Why would you not have meat on the menu? It’s very limiting.’ But actually it’s the complete opposite. Everyone can come and eat here – there are very few allergy issues or religious issues.”
Contrary to what you might think, Marc is not vegetarian. “I think being a meat eater helps with textures and sauces and understanding quantities as some people think you can’t fill up on veg in the same way you can with meat. We need diners to feel that this is a real feast.
“Bubala’s style is sharing plates, lots of spices and flavour bombs everywhere – because that’s the way I like to eat. Each of our dishes is a standalone great dish, the best version of itself.”
You would think, perhaps, that a veggie restaurant would be cheaper than a meat one. “The unit cost of vegetables is cheaper than meat,” says Marc, “but the work that goes into being creative with vegetables is harder. You can’t just slap them on the grill and that’s your dish. There are a lot of techniques involved and a lot of processes involved to get flavour into a vegetable.
When Marc returned from Australia he lived in Dalston in East London for 10 years. But, together with his wife, he has slowly made the journey to north London, where she’s from, first to Archway, and now they live in Whetstone with their two children aged two and one. She used to work in reservations for the restaurants, but is now very much hands full with the kids. The family is “culturally Jewish – we celebrate all the festivals and Harry goes to
a Jewish nursery.” There’s not much time for cooking at home during the week, but at the weekends Marc is trying to introduce the kids to a love of food with classics such as shepherd’s pie, burgers and lasagnes – comforting, homecooked food.
I wonder how Marc feels about restaurant critics. “We’ve had almost everyone review us. The only person who hasn’t is Giles Coren. When we opened Spitalfields six months before Covid, we got reviewed by Marina O’Loughlin, Jimmy Famurewa and Jay Rayner and that definitely gave us a name, so we were able to thrive during that time.”
It was on a rare night off for Marc that Rayner came in but “I got a message to say Jay is in the building and I watched it all on CCTV!”
Keeping on top of trends is key and Marc eats out as much as he can to see what’s going on. He makes sure that at least a third of Bubala’s dishes change every season, especially ‘main’ dishes and salads, plus the topping for the malabi dessert. Talking of dessert, the new unit will be home to Bubala’s Big Pud, a sharing dessert that includes chocolate mousse, brûléed bananas, coconut caramel, tahini and sesame snaps.
What’s next for the ambitious, affable 36-year-old? “I would love to open in New York. There are some great areas – Williamsburg is amazing and has some great restaurants.”
Bubala would fit in nicely, then.
Hélène Jawhara Piñer’s new recipe book traces the Sephardic diaspora and showcases the central role of the cracker and flour in its cuisine. By Alex Galbinski
You might think that if you spend your life writing about the food of Spanish Jews, you would have actually eaten it growing up. Not in the case of Hélène Jawhara Piñer.
Born in France, Hélène’s Spanish grandmother keeps Jewish traditions but under silence, and her grandfather was adopted and raised Catholic – so it wasn’t until an aunt did a bit of detective work that the family’s Sephardic ancestry was revealed. But, as she tells me, she always had an inexplicable connection to the Jewish people.
“Since I was about 10, I’ve been fascinated by Jewish communities. I discovered, little by little, about my Jewish background and felt really happy.”
Hélène has a PhD in medieval history and teaches the subject at two universities in France which explains why her latest book, Matzah and Flour, is not your bog-standard cookbook.
“It’s an unconventional cookbook because, for each recipe [of which there are 125], you have a paragraph that highlights it in its context – it’s like a history book but with recipes,” she explains.
History, it seems, is the missing ingredient in most people’s knowledge of Jewish cuisine.
“Almost nobody knows about what happened to the Jews of Spain before 1492 – they talk about the Inquisition, but know little about what it was like for Jews living in such a problematic time in history and even less about their food practices.”
This book sets out to change that, with recipes that are unusual and mouth-watering, and
references to breads mentioned by Moses Maimonides, hojuelas and sweet fideos – a glimpse into a world long erased.
But these recipes were once punishable by death. As Hélène tells it, we owe a lot to the Spanish Jews who risked everything just to keep Shabbat. Take, for example, poor María García from Almazán. Denounced in 1505 because “a witness saw her eating eggs the day before feasting on unleavened cakes…” . Or Maestre Bernal and his wife, whose crime was making beef sausages and baking bread for the Sabbath. This wasn’t just about food; it was about survival, identity and defiance.
Flour, it turns out, is deeply symbolic. “People think matzah is only made with wheat flour and that it is crunchy, square and white... this is not the case for the Sephardim who, since at
least the 14th century onwards to maybe the 17th or 18th century, were using different kinds of flour, for example chickpea flour and cornflour, to celebrate Passover.”
Hélène feels the cookbook is important for a Jewish audience “because if you do not know about your history, you won’t be able to share it, and it is thanks to the fact our ancestors shared what happened to them through books, songs, different writings, food and food practices that we are who we are”.
And the reason is because most of the people originally making them were not wealthy people because they were not allowed to have a job in the higher society.” It’s peasant food, but in the best way – resourceful, resilient and rich with meaning. The research that went into Matzah and Flour was nothing short of exhaustive. Hélène trawled through digital and physical archives in Madrid, Mexico City and the Kislak Centre at the University of Pennsylvania. She combed through medieval texts, including Shulchan Aruch (yes, the same one your rabbi swears by) and Kitāb al-ṭabī , the Iberian Peninsula’s oldest known cookbook.
While writing her first book, Sephardi: Cooking the History, Hélène – who has always been interested in food thanks to her maternal relatives working in food-related industries and her paternal grandmother being a fantastic cook – found herself with
a wealth of leftover material focused on flour-based recipes and Jewish holidays. Rather than let them gather dust, she turned them into a standalone work.
Despite the historical weight, Hélène insists the recipes themselves are accessible.
“I have tried to detail the process very well, but most of them are easy to make and with ingredients that are easy to find.
What she found was harrowing and it isn’t just history; it’s a warning. Her goal is to decipher the evolution, transformation and adaptation of the Jewish food practices to understand Sephardi Jewish food heritage. To do this, she trawls through upsetting and gruesome details of the Inquisition. “The Inquisition trials tell the story of Jewish conversos, of crypto Jews who have been denounced, sentenced and sometimes burned because of their practices. It’s very hard –sometimes I’ve cried. And it’s so sad because she [often the victims are women] has been denounced by people and betrayed by people, sometimes from her own family –her daughter, father and mother and siblings – or informers and neighbours just because she is cooking this very special way.”
just because she is cooking
Food, for so many, is a political act – a way of resisting, remembering, and reclaiming and Hélène doesn’t want these women, persecuted for something as simple as kneading dough, to be forgotten.
remembering, and reclaiming these women, persecuted kneading dough, to be forgotten.
“What I try to keep in mind is that I have to share this, even if it’s hard – I try to remember that this person died and I don’t want her to fade away without trying to do my best to share her story.”
Matzah and Flour: Recipes from the History of the Sephardic Jews is published by Cherry Orchard Books, £32.05. helenejawharapiner.com
MAKES: 10 COOKING TIME: 40 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS
For the unleavened breads:
⅔ cup (200g) flour + extra if needed
1 tbsp (10g) activated
charcoal powder
1 tsp olive oil
½ cup (100ml) hot water
For the salad: 2 cups fresh rocket
1. Preheat your oven to 280°C. Line a baking tray with foil and lightly flour it.
2. In a large bowl, mix flour and charcoal together with a spoon.
3. Add olive oil and hot water, and combine with a spoon. Combine by hand for about 1 minute until the dough is homogenous.
4. Wrap the dough in plastic film and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Once chilled, divide the dough into 5 equalsized balls, each about the size of a ping-pong ball (38g each).
5. Flour the work surface, a rolling pin and your hands. Using the rolling pin, flatten the dough to obtain a 15cm disc. The thickness of the dough should be relatively thin, about 3mm.
2 radishes, finely sliced ¼ cup parsley 1 tbsp neutral oil 1 tsp salt 2 tsp vinegar
6. Place the flattened dough on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat this process with the remaining dough balls.
7. Bake the bread for 30 seconds on one side, then flip it and bake for another 30 seconds. The bread should brown.
8. Remove the bread from the oven and place it on a cooling rack to cool down.
For the salad:
9. Wash the rocket leaves and drain them. Wash the radishes, peel and slice them very thinly.
10 . Arrange a bed of leaves on individual plates and place the thinly-sliced radishes on top. Sprinkle chopped parsley over the radishes and rocket.
11. Season with olive oil, salt, and vinegar. Serve immediately
MAKES: 6 MEDIUM MATZOT COOKING TIME: 15 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS
1 cup + 4 tbsp (180g) wheat flour ½ cup (160g) honey
1. Preheat your cast iron slab, or your oven to 280°C. Line a baking tray with foil.
2. Mix together the flour and the honey, and knead the dough for 3 minutes. Add the seeds and the spices. Knead for another minute. The dough is sticky because of the honey.
3. Cut the dough into 6 pieces and roll them into balls. Each ball should fit in the palm of your hand. Put in the freezer for 2 minutes.
4. Lightly flour the work surface and a rolling pin. Spread each ball as a thick layer of dough (2mm) and 10cm in diameter. You can use a small cookie cutter if you would like a round shape. According to the liturgy, for the matzah to be kosher for Passover, the preparation should not be longer than 18 minutes from beginning to end.
5. Sprinkle with ground cinnamon and ground cardamom.
6. Put the matzah on the baking sheet and prick it with the fork.
7. Bake for 2 minutes on one side. Flip them using a wood spatula. Be careful as they stick to the tray. Bake for 1 minute 30 seconds on the other side and remove from the oven.
Because all dogs really do matter, and you may be up for expanding your canine family, why not look at alldogsmatter.co.uk, the East Finchley charity that rescues, rehabilitates and rehomes dogs. Working with local councils, vets, dog trainers and devoted foster carers, All Dogs Matter steps in when dogs are abandoned, surrendered or can’t stay with their owners. Every wagging tail through their doors is met with kindness and a promise that they will be safe, cared for and loved again. The charity also works hand in paw with the public, helping people who, due to illness, housing challenges or financial struggles, are no longer able to look after beloved pets. And when a dog goes missing, they also help to reunite them dogs with their owners. The
rehoming team carefully pairs each dog with a suitable new owner, but furry futures often start with a dog placed in a foster home where they can adjust to domestic life. Not far from the All Dogs Matter HQ is its charity shop (243 Muswell Hill Broadway), which welcomes donations that help to fund food, vet bills and training. Patron Ricky Gervais drops by and, although he doesn’t have a dog, he does love them and he still thinks about Brandy, the German Shepherd who was his co-star in the series A er Life
Jewish law prohibits deriving benefit from chametz at Pesach, so those who observe should choose grain-free food for dogs who will enjoy the chag more with a Suilung Pesach plate squeaky toy (£16 Amazon). Cats evidently like it too!
Ricky posted about Brandy (real name Antilly, known as Anti) when she died peacefully at home in Oxfordshire at the age of 13. Below are the dogs currently seeking homes with All Dogs Matter. Think hard before moving on.
Teddy, named in honour of Martin Segal, the former executive director of Israel Guide Dogs Centre, is now nine months old and goes to work with his puppy raiser who has a new job at a government legal office. “He has become quite comfortable there and acclimatised to his new surroundings, where he is a quiet and well-mannered new ‘staff member’,” says the puppy raiser. In bigger news, Teddy has conquered his fear of escalators and alights without trepidation, his puppy manager revealed. “Teddy thrives on interaction and likes people and other dogs, although he is in the teenage stage of his development and can be somewhat unpredictable at times.” Teddy is one of many dogs desperately needed to provide mobility, independence, self-confidence and companionship to Israelis, among them those injured in the war or needing emotional support for post-traumatic stress disorder. To donate to the Teddy fund and the charity, visit israelguidedog.org.uk
Fashion and paws meet at Marc Jacobs on Regent Street on the weekends of 12-27 April when the store puts pets on pedestals for portraits on your bag. First you need to buy a leather MJ bag, then reserve your slot by calling 020 7952 6991 or emailing regentst@marcjacobs.com. Your four-legged friend will make that tote your go-to bag for summer.
When Roni Sagi and her talented Border Collie Rhythm came to the UK for Crufts, we had the privilege of taking them to the iconic zebra crossing by Abbey Road Studios, where they danced to Here Comes the Sun as Beatles fans looked on. Their placing at the dog show in Birmingham was not what they hoped for or deserved but, a few days later, the Israeli duo performed in front of the Louvre in Paris and it was un instant de pure magie totale. #ronisagi
In this Passover edition of Life, we think of Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, Ariel and Kfir, who were murdered in Gaza. These images of them include husband and father Yarden who, after nearly 500 days as a hostage, was released in February. The family’s cherished dog, Tonto, was murdered by cowardly Hamas terrorists on October 7. Tonto was one of many dogs murdered that day. We mourn and pray for the humans and the animals who had their lives brutally stolen.
IT ALL STARTS WITH A FREE CONSULTATION Tap into the largest English Speaking network in Israel • Aliyah Guidance
Real Estate
Shipping OVER 15 YEARS EXPERIENCE INDEPENDENT ALIYAH CONSULTANT
From Kabbalah to Bahá’í via Montenegro –here are the hotels where you should stay
Israeli hotel chain ISROTEL is expanding in 2025 and opening five new hotels, among them the 145-room Gymnasia Hotel, which greeted guests in March on Tel Aviv’s Montefiore Street with a roo op pool and lobby restaurant. isrotel.co.il
The Dan Hotel group is also growing in the pine-scented hills of northern Israel in Safed (Tzfat), where the Ruth Safed Hotel has beautifully appointed rooms with views of the always-green Mount Meron.
Safed is one of the ‘four holy cities’ and each represents a di erent spiritual element: Jerusalem is fire, Hebron earth, Tiberias water, and Safed is air. What makes Safed so compelling for the spiritually inclined is its deep-rooted association with Kabbalah. In the 16th century, a er the Spanish Expulsion of
1492 , the city was home to Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, more famously known as the Arizal – a towering figure in Jewish mysticism. He passed away just two years a er he arrived in 1570, but his teachings transformed the city into a Kabbalistic centre.
Blending ancient architecture with modern comfort, the Ruth Safed sits within the original stone walls, has a large outdoor pool and o ers farm-to-table cuisine from local producers. Add in the well-stocked wine cellar showcasing regional vineyards and you’ve really got the makings of a spiritual experience. danhotels.com
In its commitment to enhancing Israel’s hospitality landscape, the Fattal group is in overdrive with 15 new properties in stages of development, but Hotel Botanica – an upscale, adults-only establishment is open. Located at the foot of Haifa’s renowned Bahá’í Gardens, the 163-room hotel, with roo op pool, gym, spa and restaurant, might soon
and as it’s the talk of Hollywood , perhaps some Baháʼí prayer in Haifa will help. fattalhotelgroup.com
In a world in which travel is more expensive than ever, early bird discounts are the golden
ticket for savvy globetrotters and Dukley Hotel & Resort in Montenegro is o ering a 25 percent early bird discount.
Emilfarb, the Jewish-Uzbek entrepreneur behind the resort, who wanted to make Montenegro enticing for Jewish travellers and the arrival of Israeli chef Shai Levinstein seals the deal. He is now at the helm of Shalom Kosher, Montenegro’s only certified kosher restaurant and Levinstein is stepping up its game with his bold, elevated Mediterranean/Israeli menu.
The early bird deal works for late spring, when the weather is warmer, and at night, there’s room service and Levinstein’s legendary shakshuka delivered to your suite. Travelling with kids? Dukley’s dedicated children’s club
have actor and director Justin Baldoni as a guest. Why? Because Baldoni, born to a Jewish mother and Italian father, converted to the Baháʼí faith – a monotheistic religion with its spiritual HQ in Haifa that the actor visits. Baldoni is likely to be in need of a a spiritual pilgrimage, as his film It Ends With Us has resulted in a complex legal dispute with co-star Blake Lively
Perched on the shores of the Bay of Budva, Dukley has two hotels, three private beaches and a kosher kitchen that would impress even Tel Aviv foodies, albeit in burgeoning Montenegro. Dukley Garden is a collection of high-end apartments and penthouses with panoramic sea views, ideal for short or longer stays and, for those who keep strictly kosher, there’s the Hotel Harmonia by Dukley. What truly sets Dukley apart is its Jewish soul. While most resorts shy away from niche o erings, Dukley embraces them with its onsite Jewish Community Centre and synagogue. This was a deliberate decision by Neil
has a private pool, supervised activities, and trained sta .
Located just 2.5 hours from London, Montenegro is closer than it sounds – and the Dukley early bird deal includes premium room upgrades and free cancellation up to 14 days before arrival.
Prices start from £65 per person per night (including breakfast). dukleyhotels.com
Ifelt it the minute I entered the arrivals hall at Copenhagen airport – the famous hygge*, wrapping itself around me like a hug. It was the floor that did it. In place of the stark, sterile white tiles that greet us at most airports was beautiful woodblock flooring – rich, warm and welcoming.
I felt it again when we arrived at our hotel, Grand Joanne, chosen for its location (five minutes’ walk from Tivoli Gardens), its price point (midway and manageable), its reviews (ranging from “very good” to “great” to “absolutely fabulous”) and for the décor which, like that airport flooring, radiated warmth with soft shades of peach, lots of wood, eclectic patterned fabrics – Soho House meets Firmdale. I felt that sense of contentment the whole time in Copenhagen.
It’s an ‘easy’ city – gentle in its pace, everyone seems happy, you can get into all museums without booking in advance, the food is wonderful and you can walk everywhere. Plus, despite rumours of it being very expensive, we found it to be no more so than London.
We had an eye out for Danish pastries, but it turns out they were invented in Austria, are mainly sought after in Jewish bakeries in north London, and are rarely spotted in
Copenhagen. We ate at renowned fish restaurant Kødbyen Fiskebar which, counterintuitively for a seafood hotspot, is in the meatpackers’ district. It’s very Shoreditch, very minimalist, very lively and very, very good.
Smørrebrød was a revelation – open-faced sandwiches so artfully presented that an ordinary sandwich will never again suffice.
The best selection is at the Torvehallerne food hall, which has 60 indoor food stalls and an outdoor vegetable and flower market.
At the revered Aamans, we savoured our smørrebrød alongside a crisp glass of wine.
The Samuel, our choice for Michelin-starred indulgence, is found in a stately townhouse in an elegant part of town. Dinner here was a litany of luxury. A memorable flourish was selecting our knives from an exquisite wooden box, and a tour of the wine cellar, home to such an extraordinary collection of Dom Pérignon that the master vintner himself had visited to autograph the labels. The meal began with individual brioche loaves, each large enough to feed a family of five. When we professed that one between us would do, the charming maître d’, with a feigned air of Nordic gruffness, stated: “We are a Viking nation. We like a challenge.”
A claim to fame in København (as they spell it) is Stroget, the world’s longest
pedestrianised street. My husband declared it “the longest shopping street where there’s nothing to buy”.
We spent a fascinating morning with charming Jewish tour guide Ronen Thalmay, who took us on a journey through the city’s Jewish history. We learned that Denmark employed the greatest resistance to the Nazis in any of the occupied countries. When Germany invaded in 1940, the Prime Minister made a deal enabling Jews to live there peacefully and not wear the yellow star. However, in September 1943, a tip-off that the Jews were to be sent to death camps spurred the Danish Resistance to smuggle all 7,800 of them to Sweden by boat in a single night. (We learned more about this at the Museum of Danish Resistance.) At the end of the war, 99 percent of Denmark’s Jews had survived. So too had the Torah scrolls, because the priest from the church opposite the synagogue had hidden them in the crypt.
Ronen took us to a Succot service in the synagogue (the only one in Denmark for the
6,000 Jews who live there) which was built in 1833. A week earlier, on the anniversary of October 7, all 1,100 seats were filled for a commemoration service attended by the Prime Minister. The huge number of bouquets left outside the building by non-Jews was a moving display of solidarity.
We learned that Denmark’s literary treasure Hans Christian Andersen briefly attended a Jewish school and was close to many Jewish families. He wrote some of his fairy tales in their homes, including a novel called The Jewish Girl. He claimed that “Jews are misunderstood outsiders like myself”.
We wandered along Nyhavn, famously lined with coloured houses, ending up at hippie commune Freetown Christiania, home to around 900 residents who live by their own set of rules, independent of Danish law.
Tivoli Gardens is the most astonishing thing I have ever seen in a city – an amusement park right in the centre. But it is civilised, calm and truly delightful. It transformed into a whimsical twinkling spectacle as night fell.
At Amalienborg Palace, the official residence of the Danish royal family, we joined the daily crowd gathered at noon for the changing of the guard. Opposite stands Frederik’s Church ( the Marble Church), its grand dome an architectural masterpiece. We wandered through the sunny gardens of Rosenborg Castle to admire the Danish crown jewels and a stunning collection of Venetian glass. We marched along the halls of the opulent Christiansborg Palace, to see the Royal Copenhagen Flora Danica dinner service – reputedly the most expensive crockery ever crafted.
We left the best until last – Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek. This museum houses a breathtaking collection of sculptures by, among others, Rodin and Carpeaux, which once belonged to the founder of Carlsberg, 19th-century brewing magnate Carl Jacobsen. To misquote the company’s advertising campaign, these are “probably the best sculptures in the world”. Copenhagen is certainly one of the best cities in the world, and it is unmistakably hygge
*Hygge means warmth, companionship and wellbeing Rooms at Grand Joanne start from £115. grandjoanne.dk
Jewish walking tours can be booked at jewish-copenhagen.dk
Receive the best prices for your unwanted gold today! Call Jonathan 020 8446 8538
24 ct per gram - £72.19
Platinum 950 per gram - £21.00
Silver 925 per gram - £0.56
Half Sovereigns - £264.54
Full Sovereigns -£529.09
Krugerrands - £2245.48
We also purchase sterling silver candlesticks and any other other sterling tableware www.howcashforgold.co.uk
We can supply any certificated GIA, IGI, HRD natural or diamonds of your choice.
•
•
•
• As an
Come and visit our recently refurbished Brasserie. Set menu available Monday - Friday for lunch and dinner. Offer ends 2/5/25
Cottonmill Lane, St. Albans, Hertfordshire AL1 2HQ
T: 01727 864477 E: enquiries@sopwellhouse.co.uk
sopwellhouse.co.uk
