Life magazine - April 2024

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Harvey Keitel

The Jewish role he had to play

Back to Black Eddie Marsan on being Mr Winehouse

Claudia Roden

A lifetime of recipes

WE WILL SING AGAIN

Eden Golan’s hopes for Eurovision

of Pesach it will be 198 days since Hamas attacked Israel. Ingrained in our collective memory, the horror, loss of life and uncertain fate of the hostages and of Israel will cast a dark shadow over every seder. For many, if not most, this will be the first seder held within a time of intense antisemitism in this country. It’s so sad, and we are bruised by relentless online hate and the absence of empathy for the victims on what Israelis call Black Shabbat.

Israel

, and her positivity is a revelation in the face of calls for the country to be barred. The song, Hurricane, is excellent, even with its revised lyrics as demanded by the organisers, but ‘Don’t need big words / Just prayers even if it’s hard to see / You always leave me one small light’ clearly alludes to October 7. We are thrilled Eden spoke to Life, as did Henry Winkler, Claudia Roden, The Tattooist of Auschwitz star Harvey Keitel with series director Tali Shalom Ezer, and Eddie Marsan who, in the Amy Winehouse biopic, plays her father Mitch.

Back in December 2020, when London

was silenced by Covid lockdown, I walked with Mitch in Camden talking about Amy and the film. He wept that day, as will fans when they see Back to Black.

With age comes more tears, as I’ve realised since turning 60. I have shared that life experience and thank Ashley Blaker for sharing his own story with us within these pages.

We have all cried during the past six months and, with family at Pesach, will think about Israel and the seder tables with empty chairs where family should be sitting.

IT’S ALL NEW COMING TO YOU

NOW THE DAYS ARE GETTING LONGER, HERE ARE SOME INTERESTING WAYS TO FILL THEM IN THE COMING MONTHS

A new Marvel Comics exhibition opens on 25 April at the London Cartoon Museum and it’s all about Jews. Well, the Jews who fly under the banner

The British Invasion of American Comics which is the name of the exhibition that features the Superheroes Spiderman, Fantastic Four and The Hulk, created by Stan Lee (Stan Lieber), and Superman, who was the work of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, as well as Batman, the creation of Bob Kane (Robert Kahn). There will probably be a queue around the block as these brilliant cartoonists are adored by their fans, as shown by this farewell to Stan Lee who died in 2018. It runs until 19 October. cartoonmuseum.org

Heaven Scent

LIFE was at the so chic launch of Vanille des Afriques Intensivo, a new fragrance by perfumer Ormonde Jayne in Mayfair’s Royal Arcade. For this scent, founder Linda Pilkington drew on three years of travelling in Africa and studied raw materials in pursuit of the perfect vanilla. Bingo! Her fragrance of pink pepper, osmanthus and Sicilian bergamot combined with bourbon and Madagascan vanilla is so good you want it as your signature scent. One of the genuine experts at the launch described it as having a “delicate e ect almost akin to the wa s of a baked flan”, which beats us calling it fab. Linda, the daughter of a Kindertransport child, is a perfectionist, which is reflected in her beautiful store and every strident statement bottle that holds ingredients sourced from across the globe. ormondejayne.com & Selfridges

Larry left the building

LOOK OUT FOR LENNY

The most handsome Jewish musician releases his 12th studio album on 24 May. Prepare those AirPods for Blue Electric Light by Lenny Kravitz.

When so many in entertainment are worried about or hiding their Jewishness, Larry David deserves praise for having the guts to publicly showcase his faith in Curb Your Enthusiam on Sky. Over a 20-plus year run, writer and star Larry has hilariously tackled the Holocaust, High Holy Days, Passover and even the Palestinian conflict without worrying about who was upset. In Season 12 – the last! – Sienna Miller converts to Judaism (below) and, in another episode, Larry advises his gay lawyer, Christopher Mantle, to not give his baby the surname of boyfriend Abe Zeckelman. “I mean, ‘Zeckelman’?” asks Larry, raising his brows. Larry and Curb may not appeal to all, but in this time of intense antisemitism it’s been a comfort to see a tribe member unashamedly beating his chest. It was a sad farewell to comedian Richard Lewis, who died in February and would be missed as a show regular, were it not for the end of the show. Touchingly, Jerry Seinfeld appears in the finale as a reminder of the show Larry created first. The question is: what comes next?

Heroes: ,

Gym and more

The painting of Amy Winehouse on page 42 is by Dganit Blechner. Created before the biopic, the Tel Aviv-born and based artist wanted to capture Amy’s charm. “Her tragic story blew me away and I discovered how much Amy was loved in Israel, so I had to paint her,” she explains.

Inspired by Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, this painting is more typical of Dganit’s luminous and cheerful palate used in her paintings of Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn and Paul Newman. But the subdued colours used in the image of Amy with wings are intentional. “They are there to describe Amy’s talent and her ability to fly on the wings of what she created. She is also the angel who departed this world too soon at the age of 27.”

Dganit Blechner’s work and that by other Israeli artists is available at Tel Aviv’s Miss D Gallery (miss-d-gallery.com)

Having a goal to aim for can really motivate us to embrace new habits and focus on bettering our lives – and summer incoming is as good a goal as any. Kickstart your wellness journey at The Laboratory Spa and Health Club in Mill Hill. It’s more than just a place to work out; it’s a sanctuary for luxury and wellbeing. The gym is equipped with cutting-edge fitness equipment and is led by experienced trainers, with classes and personal training options. You can unwind and get pampered in the spa with a range of treatments, from soothing massages to rejuvenating facials. Whether your goal is weight loss, strength gain or a holistic enhancement of your overall wellbeing, the team at The Lab has the expertise and resources to ensure your success.

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Football Crazy

That there isn’t much noise about a new eight-part Hebrew language dramedy on Netflix is not a surprise. Bros was originally scheduled for release in more than 190 countries, but it’s more likely to slink out now, which is a real shame.

Titled Through Fire and Water in Hebrew, Bros is written and directed by Hanan Savyon and Guy Amir, who also star in it. They tell the story of inseparable childhood friends Pini and Nisso, co-owners of a Jerusalem bar and die-hard Beitar Jerusalem soccer fans. Their friendship is tested when the bar faces closure, just as their favourite team is set to play the most important match in its history. Available from 18 April, this is football we should all support.

Remember it with flowers

We are heading into wedding season and the build-up will be in full swing if you’re getting married this summer. Of course, it’ll be over too quickly, but the video, photos and memories are there for always and so, too, is the bridal bouquet if you get it preserved. Danielle at The Framed Flower has built up a business doing just this in many styles. You simply package the bouquet and post it o the next day (or get someone to do it for you) and Danielle dries it out, colour-enhances the flowers and preserves them by hand, and puts them in a custom-made frame that is the right size and shape for the bouquet. The results are simply spectacular and make for a very special keepsake. theframedflower.co.uk

The main event

Avenue at Henlys Corner is a refreshingly ‘blank’ canvas, giving you endless possibilities for a tailor-made event. In the heart of north London, it is perfectly placed to cater for the community. Standing behind a bank of olives trees, which are a statement of Avenue’s modus operandi of promoting peace and cementing families, it o ers a highly flexible function space, with parking onsite and state-of-the-art lighting and technology. Avenue has developed great working relationships with kosher caterers and well-known event suppliers and is in the process of applying for a wedding licence, so you’ll soon be able to have a chuppah onsite too avenue.uk.com

WHAT’S NOT TO LIKE?

Life has spoken to Phil Rosenthal a lot over the years. We’re big fans of his TV food travelogue Somebody Feed Phil, one of Netflix’s longestrunning non-fiction shows. It is now in its seventh season following Phil to Mumbai and beyond, and the host is as warm and Jewish as ever and still eating anything presented on a plate/pita/ palm leaf, which is not true of the little girl in Just Try It, the children’s book he has written with daughter Lily. Together, they came up with the idea of a dad who eats everything and his daughter who doesn’t. “It’s aimed at kids from four to eight, but has a universal lesson for all that applies to everything,” says Phil. “Just try eating something, maybe a cuisine you didn’t know anything about. Maybe you’ll like it, maybe your world will open up.” Phil’s advice is that instead of passing that restaurant of no interest, go in. “If you try it you might like it.” So we will.

I learnt it from a book

Turkish-Jewish actor Hemi Yeroham has made a career out of playing low-lifes, which he freely acknowledges. “Yes, foreign villains, asylum seekers, drug dealers..!” he says, noting that coincidentally one of these parts was the aptlynamed Shi y in ITV’s Benidorm

The coincidence is more of a link because, once again, Yeroham is playing someone from Spain – iconic waiter Manuel in Fawlty Towers, which is due to hit the West End stage in early May. And, for once, Yeroham says, he is playing someone almost universally beloved – even by irascible hotel owner Basil.

eating interest,

Little nuggets

When Juliet Solomon lost her mum, Lady Judith Solomon, in 2021 from end-stage kidney failure, she wanted to do something to honour her memory. The Book of Nuggets comprises shared wisdoms from 350 contributors, including Dame Judi Dench, Dame Maureen Lipman, Sir Michael Palin, Stephen Fry, Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and many more, alongside those from Holocaust survivor Lily Ebert and kidney patients. “People gave so generously, selflessly and warm-heartedly,” says Juliet, who sent out almost 1,500 requests for contributions. “They o ered hard-won wise words mined from their own experience.” Juliet – who is also the author of The Book of Regrets – chose ‘Nuggets’ for the theme of this collection in tribute to her mother who, she says, was “always ready and glad to share the wisdom she had gleaned in her life”.

Juliet, together with her father Sir Harry Solomon and siblings Louise Jacobs (outgoing chair of UJIA) and Daniel Solomon, have given a grant to Kidney Research UK.

The Book of Nuggets, £19, is published by Goodkind Publishing and is available from Amazon and Kidney Research UK, with all proceeds going to the charity.

Yeroham, 44, was born in Istanbul, where, he says, he was deeply involved in the Jewish community and its lively amateur theatre. “We did a lot of musicals and had these recurring characters, a Jewish family who had lots of adventures, something new every year. That was where my love of theatre began, and I remember thinking, ‘Oh, I wish I could do this all the time and not go to school’.”

and had these recurring characters, a Jewish family who had lots of adventures, recalls with amusement his mother playing the lead in one of the Jewish theatre

Although there was no real theatrical background in his family, he recalls with amusement his mother playing the lead in one of the Jewish theatre productions. “I was only a chorus boy,” he says, but his father was also “a very funny man”, who held court with his stories and jokes.

were less than thrilled. “In those days, if you were a theatre actor, you would

an actor in the Jewish state. “But your Hebrew has to be really good. We did go to

But when Yeroham announced he wanted to be a professional actor, his parents were less than thrilled. “In those days, if you were a theatre actor, you would be starving, basically,” he said. So instead he studied business management in Istanbul for a year and gave it his best shot, but then went to Israel to work on a kibbutz for six months. There, learning Hebrew, he wondered if he could make it as an actor in the Jewish state. “But your Hebrew has to be really good. We did go to Israel with our Jewish community theatre for two consecutive summers to perform for the Turkish community, but they didn’t have their own theatre,” he recalls.

Eventually do an acting degree but, like most actors, on graduating realised he could not rely on

Eventually Yeroham came to London, aged 20, and was accepted at Guildford to do an acting degree but, like most actors, on graduating realised he could not rely on stage or TV work and is well known for his radio work and voiceovers.

He is hugely amused by his mother’s reaction to one of his jobs – the Turkish-language flight announcements on easyJet. “When my parents came to visit, she got o the plane and started giving me notes – “‘You said that too fast or too slow’”.

In 2022, Yeroham played someone Jewish for the first time, in Jonathan Freedland’s Royal Court production Jews. In Their Own Words. “A true mensch. Kind, sweet, gentle – and also very creative,” is how Freedland describes the actor who, wanting to leave stereotype villains behind, told his agent he would love to do comedy. Yeroham had not seen Fawlty Towers when he auditioned for the part of Manuel, and only watched the box set – a gi from his boyfriend – once he got the part.

“It’s so nice to finally play someone lovely”, the new Manuel says. He hadn’t known that Andrew Sachs, who originated the TV role, was Jewish, but was happy to learn what a kind and gentle man he had been.

Manuel, of course, was forever being physically berated by an incandescent Basil, and Sachs was apparently bruised and beaten as some of the stunts went wrong. “I feel very safe – we haven’t done much of that in rehearsals yet. John Cleese has done a brilliant job combining three of the TV episodes and has written a new finale,” says Yeroham, who will sprinkle a bit of Spanish into his part and reveals that his parents spoke Ladino (the Sephardi equivalent of Yiddish) at home when they didn’t want Yeroham or his younger sister to know what they were discussing.

The actor has triple nationality – Turkish, British and Portuguese, acquiring the latter a er Brexit when Spain and Portugal were o ering citizenship to Sephardi Jews whose descendants were expelled in 1492. But it is Italian the actor is learning outside of work, when he also hosts friends for in-depth wining and dining. “That gives me the sense of community that I love” says the actor, who recognises much of himself in Manuel. “He’s a people-pleaser,” he says, “and so am I.” By Jenni Frazer fawltytowerswestend.com

Power running

So often, famous couples – Barak and Michelle, Becks and Victoria – are media darlings, while lesser-known dynamic duos go unsung. That’s why we’re flagging Minkie Spiro and Doron Atzmon. London-born Minkie, a prolific director whose CV boasts some of TV’s finest shows – Downton Abbey, Pieces of Her, Barry, The Plot Against America – has caused such a stir on Netflix with her episodes of sci-fi drama 3 Body Problem that she has been invited to join commercials behemoth Knucklehead to direct adverts. Minkie (below) is excited to bring her skills to the medium, saying: “I love the art of capturing a story in bite-sized form.” Meanwhile, her Israeli husband Atzmon is running the Ultra Marathon De Sables in Morocco. Doron is taking part in the gruelling Sahara Desert run to honour family members Ilay Nachman, who was murdered at Nova on October 7, and Rani Tachan, who rejoined the Israel Defence Forces to help free the hostages and was then killed in Gaza. Raising money for organisations NATAL.org.il and HELPTSD.org, which are helping traumatised victims of the attack, is where the couple are focusing their power. gofundme.com/f/letshelp-survivors-suffering-with-ptsd

The Big Event

If you’re even thinking about making a function, you need to be at the Jewish News Big Event at the Hilton Doubletree London Elstree on Sunday 12 May. With more than 60 event suppliers under one roof, including caterers, bands, production companies, invitation designers, florists, photographers, entertainers and so much more, you’ll get inspiration for every aspect of your next simcha. Most excitingly of all, you will have the chance to WIN £10,000 towards your function, to spend with Hilton Doubletree and WA Carr & Son Production. Head over to the Hilton Doubletree stand to enter. The Big Event is at Hilton Doubletree London Elstree on Sunday 12 May 11am – 4pm. Entry and parking are free. For more information visit jewishnews.co.uk event

House with a history

Did you know that there is a Grade II-listed manor house in Elstree where you can hold a simcha? Allum Manor House and Hall can accommodate as many as 470 guests for weddings, bar/batmitzvahs, and eight different-sized event spaces mean that it’s ideal for smaller parties too. There is plenty of parking on-site and four acres of beautiful gardens. Built in the 17th century, Allum Manor House was formerly the home of author and artist Euphrasia Haworth and was later owned by gin distiller Charles Gordon of Gordon’s gin. It is said that Baroness Orczy was living in there in the early 20th century when she wrote The Scarlet Pimpernel In a search for a property to convert into a community centre and war memorial hall, actress Anna Neagle, then president of the Elstree, Borehamwood and District Public Hall Association, convinced lots of actors, including Richard Attenborough, Norman Wisdom and Audrey Hepburn to donate funds to purchase the derelict house in 1951. In 1994, Hertsmere Borough Council approved a spend of £2.5million to refurbish the house and to construct a new Allum Hall. allummanor.co.uk

The play that Kay wrote

It’s too late for the Richmond Theatre, but The Syndicate, the final stage play by legendary Jewish screenwriter Kay Mellor, is touring the country. Based on her hit BBC TV show that ran over four series, The Syndicate follows five supermarket employees whose lottery syndicate numbers come in, just as their jobs and livelihoods are under threat. The play is directed by Kay’s daughter, actress Gaynor Faye, who has made the play as moving as her mother would have hoped. syndicateplay.co.uk

A life in pictures

Michael Italiaander was one of the youngest war artists in the Second World War and went on to have a career in advertising as creative director of many prominent agencies as well as continuing as a fine artist, illustrator, cartoonist and satirical artist. He died in 2021 at the age of 98, and his son Gary has written two books to commemorate his life and his work. The latest, The Amazing Work of Michael Italiaander, is a coffee-table book being released tomorrow (19 April) to coincide with an auction in London at which 11 of Michael’s paintings are going under the hammer to raise money for the Dame Vera Lynn Memorial Fund. Gyles Brandreth will MC the star-studded event, for which Lord Archer is the auctioneer and the D-Day Darlings, together with former Britain’s Got Talent winner Chelsea Pensioner Colin Thackery, will perform iconic wartime songs. The Amazing Work of Michael Italiaander is available from gary@italiaander.co.uk, £45.99

WIN

A £10,000 EVENT PACKAGE at DoubleTree by Hilton London Elstree with production by WA Carr & Son

LOCATED IN THE HEART OF THE MEDIA QUARTER, the stylish, film-themed DoubleTree by Hilton London Elstree has 135 bedrooms (including two junior suites) and three large event spaces, making it the perfect venue to host your barmitzvah, batmitzvah, special birthday, special anniversary or wedding.

The Dupont Suite is a beautifully lit space with high ceilings and caters for up to 220 guests seated with a dancefloor or 250 guests with casual seating. Together with the Dupont Suite, the hotel offers the Gate Suite, which is ideal for reception drinks, food stations, a games area or a wedding ceremony.

The event spaces are a blank canvas – and this is where production comes in. WA Carr & Son is a leading provider of production and hire equipment. Completing and supplying over 1,000 events a year, from bar/bat mitzvahs to weddings and everything inbetween, it offers a huge range of items available for hire and full event planning packages.

THE PRIZE COMPRISES:

• Dry hire of the Dupont Suite and the Gate Suite

• Access to DoubleTree Elstree’s external catering kitchen

• Banqueting tables, banqueting chairs, and black & white dancefloor (maximum size and configuration 18ft)

• Dedicated DoubleTree event coordinator for planning

PLUS planning and production services from WA Carr & Son including:

• Up to 150 chairs

• A stage suitable for a band, DJ or wedding ceremony measuring up to 5 meters by 3 meters

• Complimentary standard guest bedroom for night of function

• A backdrop in white or black, with a length of up to 9 meters

• Venue uplighting consisting of 16 lights

• 6 poseur tables

• 12 bar stools

• Delivery, collection, installation, and set down services

• Up to 3 meters of bar in black or white

• A back bar

• 2 x 50-inch TV screens

• Choice of evening entertainment limited to air hockey table hire or Neuron Race

conditions can be found at jewishnews.co.uk/event FOR CHANCEYOUR TO WIN a £10,000 event package visit the DoubleTree stand at the Jewish News Big Event at DoubleTree by Hilton London Elstree on Sunday 12 May 11am – 4pm. For more info jewishnews.co.ukvisit /event

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From PAST to PRESENT

From DARKNESS to LIGHT

From DESPAIR to HOPE

From PRESENT to FUTURE

From CRISIS to CONNECTION

Making HIS MARK

HARVEY KEITEL NEVER READ THE TATTOOIST OF AUSCHWITZ, BUT HE KNEW THE STORY WAS HIS. BY JENNI FRAZER & BRIGIT GRANT

Harvey Keitel’s face is lined and craggy, as befits a Hollywood grandee of 84.

But when Keitel –renowned for being the good cop in Thelma and Louise and Abel Ferrara’s Bad Lieutenant – smiles, the years fall away.

It’s 1967. Keitel is making his debut alongside newbie Robert De Niro in Martin Scorsese’s first feature, Who’s That Knocking At My Door.

In her review, the late Pauline Kael wrote: “De Niro is so intensely appealing it might be easy to overlook Harvey Keitel’s work. But Keitel makes De Niro’s triumph possible.”

Revered as one of the greats, De Niro did triumph, but Keitel held his own. He has the accolades, the trophies and an

Oscar nomination for Bugsy (1991), but most impressively he convinced New York’s Italians that he was one of them, when he was really the son of Eastern European Jews. Raised in Brighton Beach where his parents, Romanianborn Miriam Klein and Polish Harry Keitel, ran diners, as a kid, Keitel helped serve knishes and sodas.

Not the childhood one pictures for the actor who cleaned up bloody crimes as The Wolf in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, but it’s the perfect fit for his latest role – Lali Sokolov, the tattooist of Auschwitz.

Keitel had not read Heather Morris’s bestselling book of the same name before he was approached to star in the

forthcoming TV adaptation. “But then something odd happened,” he says. “As strange as it might sound, I felt it was in the wind that Heather Morris’s book and I were meant to come together”. And he was right.

“The commitment and authenticity with which he approached the portrayal were breathtaking to watch,” enthuses series executive

Below: Karvey (inset) and scenes from The Tattoist of Auschwitz

producer Claire Mundell.

Keitel, who famously bared body and soul in critically acclaimed The Piano (1993), brings the same strength and silence to survivor Sokolov. Consumed by guilt, every thought and fear is etched across Keitel’s face.

From 2003 to his death in 2006, aged 90, while living in Melbourne, Lali Sokolov shared his survivor’s story with Heather Morris.

New Zealand-born Morris, then a social worker, learned that while in Auschwitz, Sokolov was given the job of tattooing numbers on prisoners selected to work, and one of them was 18-year-old Gita Furman, with whom he fell in love. They eventually spent 60 years together and The Tattooist of Auschwitz is their story of hope, courage and survival against the odds. Despite criticism by Holocaust experts for certain inaccuracies, the book has sold 12 million copies to date.

Keitel had his own reasons for accepting the role. “My initial reaction was to bear witness. It’s our duty to condemn the barbarism and inhumanity inflicted on Jews, Roma and Sinti, political dissidents and any of the communities that were persecuted by the Nazis during the Holocaust,” he says.

Watching testimonies by former camp prisoners was an integral part of the actor’s preparation for the role.

“I read texts by Elie Wiesel and Viktor Frankl. There are so many important and valuable books. There are video interviews of Lali online... I watched everything I could get my hands on. I also met a wonderfully spirited woman – not unlike Lali and Gita –named Celina Karp Biniaz, a

truth is in one’s research of a story like this, it’s overwhelming and it doesn’t let go of you”.

The actor has many ties with Israel – he married his wife, Canadian actress Daphna Kastner, in Jerusalem in 2001, and the couple’s son was barmitzvah at the Kotel.

Beyond what any reader CAN IMAGINE

No one is better placed to talk about Harvey Keitel’s veritable portrayal of The Tattooist of Auschwitz than Tali Shalom Ezer. The Israeli director from Kfar Saba has been focused on the series for the past two years and only a few weeks ago was still between the mixing suite and special effects as she completed the epic Shoah drama.

‘Schindler’s List’ survivor, who was at a friend’s gathering to share her experiences with younger generations.”

Throughout his long and storied career, Keitel – a Method actor who was trained by the legendary Lee Strasberg – has dipped in and out of his Jewish background to bring an authentic note to his roles, notably as Meyer Lansky in Lansky (2021).

Unusually for the Jewish son of immigrants, Keitel joined the Marines aged 17 and served in Lebanon, where he earned a medal as a fire team leader. He has said the experience taught him to look after himself physically and helped him overcome his fear of the dark. And after the Marines, Keitel did something else unexpected – he became a court reporter for 12 years, enjoying the silence and anonymity of observing. At the same time, he began acting classes and fell in love with the possibility of becoming other people. It is that study of human nature and his experience of war that he brings to The Tattooist, a role Keitel never considered a challenge, but an honour.

“The hope was to bring to light, through our dramatisation of Lali’s story, the horror of the Holocaust and keep this history relevant as there are fewer Holocaust survivors alive to tell their own stories,” he says. “The

In 2001 he was also guest of honour at the Haifa Film Festival, which was showing his film, The Grey Zone, in which he played a Nazi officer in charge of a unit in a Second World War concentration camp. He combined his son’s barmitzvah trip with the (so far) only film he has made in Israel, Esau, in which he played the patriarch of a family of bakers.

During shooting he told Haaretz: “I’m working on a project I really love, with a director I love. The people of Israel, I’ve worked with before, but never in this country itself. The vibe of the people here is something very...” He searched for the right word, before opting for ‘other’.

He added: “To stand by the Kotel was an experience I haven’t got the words to describe. The history of it, the image of it, the wonderful religious men I met there, gave me a deeper knowledge than I possessed about the meaning of Israel.The rabbis referred to Israel as ‘a house of study’. What a wonderful way to think of your country.”

That visit to the Holy Land 23 years ago made a bigger impact on Keitel than even he realised as he is “not letting age dictate future career choices”. But he jokes: “I’ll let the Divine decide when I retire. The human race can be ridiculous about religion. That idea that my religion has the connection to God and your religion does not seems absurd. I remember feeling that way growing up, that my religion was special and every other religion was not.

“Having grown up, I know what I know. I can say that there is only one Divine and that is the Divine. I grew up Jewish. Now, my religion is to do what is right”.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz begins on Sky TV on 2 May

A strictly-timed break allowed her to discuss the production, cast and, of course, Mr Keitel. “You know, working with someone like Harvey, I didn't know what to expect. I thought he was going to be too busy for me, but it was completely the opposite,” Tali smiles with relief. “He has the hunger of a young actor who just finished acting school and wants to be out in the world expressing his amazing creativity. That's how it felt. Every scene was important to him, to really understand the story. What I got from him was quite incredible as I always had admired his devotion and commitment.”

Tali was committed to staying true to Sokolov’s story and her own dedication is visible in every scene of this heart-wrenching adaptation of Heather Morris’ book, which goes graphically beyond what any reader can imagine. Tali and cinematographer David Katznelson have spared no factual punches, which is understandable as the Holocaust is a shadow in both their lives. David’s father is a survivor and Tali’s grandfather survived Auschwitz, but his wife and daughter were murdered. So did she do this series for him?

“My grandfather never spoke about his experiences,” says the director, who knows her mother’s regret is never hearing his stories. “I have such admiration for Lali, who was able to share his story, even though some of his memories don't show him in a positive light. He feels guilty about so many things.” Tali pauses. “Am I doing this for my grandfather? I cannot tell you that. I did it because I feel this is a unique, universal incredible story that I want to tell.”

In order to stay true to Sokolov, Tali chose to show “the crucial point when he learns the truth”, explaining: “After two months In Auschwitz, he realises it is not a work camp. It is a death factory.”

The challenge for the viewer is to see this evidence and scale of the horror depicted on screen as The Tattooist is even darker in places than is Schindler’s List. Making the 1993 film was so traumatic for director Steven Spielberg that he asked late comedian Robin Williams to do stand-up over the phone to lighten his mood. Tali understands why.

“It wasn’t easy. The work was so intense and literally the only thing we did was go through survivor testimonies, research, watch documentaries about Auschwitz, look at archived pictures from Auschwitz and sometimes it was very triggering.”

Isolated and away from loved ones while shooting in Slovakia was also difficult. “But at the same time, it made us very close and we supported each other. Also, for many of us, it was a personal connection to our history.”

Tali’s own history as a film-maker, which began in 2014 with her debut feature Princess, starring Shira Haas, already bears the bruises of an attempted boycott of her film Surrogate back in 2009, which was led by director Ken Loach and a Palestinian campaign group. Tali stood her ground and still attended the Edinburgh International Film Festival in defiance, but does she have concerns about releasing the Holocaust series in a mire of increased antisemitism and at such a contentious time for Israel?

“We've been developing this project for a few years now and that's what I have done. Day and night,” Tali sighs. “Two years ago, we could never imagine that it would be like this. But this story is relevant. Always. It is always important to tell stories from this time in history. Now it feels even more so.”

Harvey as Lali Sokolov

Harvey with director Tali Shalom Ezer

Gita and Lali Sokolov married and spent 60 years together

Who We Are:

Since its founding in 2004, Masa has served more than 200,000 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.

What We Do:

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.

Masa offers life-changing, long-term opportunities, 2-10 months for fellows between the ages of 16 - 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.

For more information visit www.masaisrael.org masa@ujia.org

There were 6 million Jewish victims of the Holocaust, murdered by shootings, starvation, slave labour and industrialised killings in death camps. Of these victims, 1.5 million were children, cruelly denied a future, and innocent of any crimes, apart from the perceived one of being born Jewish.

It is Yad Vashem UK’s aim to ensure that each named Jewish victim has a memorial candle lit in their honour on every HMD and Yom HaShoah.

Guardian of the Memory aims to ensure that the victims’ life stories are never forgotten, becoming part of our own treasured family histories.

Please visit:

www.guardianofthememory.org

to become a Guardian of the Memory of one victim and ensure they will NEVER be FORGOTTEN nor their EXISTENCE DENIED. Yizkor,

Had Henry Winkler’s parents not emigrated from Berlin in 1939 – pretending they were taking a business trip – we would never have had the Fonz. Or the series of compelling characters he would go on to play in later life, from the hapless lawyer in Arrested Development to the lousy acting tutor in Bill Hader’s Barry, plus much else besides. Within a few years of Ilse and Harry Winkler making a new life in Manhattan, most of their family back home had been murdered by the Nazis.

The Happy Days star didn’t have an easy relationship with his parents, as he describes in his candid and entertaining memoir, Being Henry: The Fonz… and Beyond, with which he’s touring the UK this summer. Not understanding Henry’s severe dyslexia (which was only diagnosed many decades later), his father o en dismissed him as a “dummer hund” – a dumb dog.

The older man, who o en struggled with debt, had wanted his son to go into the family business, the wood trade, and never appreciated Henry until he became famous. And it wasn’t until much later in his own life that Henry appreciated the impact of his parents’ experiences on their behaviour. That, of course, could warrant a whole other book.

Despite really struggling to read, Winkler studied acting at Yale and, a er a spell on the New York theatre scene, got a small part in The Mary Tyler Moore Show. He moved to Los Angeles, sleeping on friends’ sofas, and success came fast.

Speaking to me over Zoom from his LA home, with his cherished dogs Sadie and Maisie snu ling about, the avuncular Winkler recalls how dramatically Arthur Fonzarelli changed his life.

“I went from walking down the street to buy a loaf of bread to not being able to walk down the street and having to have someone else buy it for me,” he says. “It happened so fast, and I really had to adjust to that, not allowingit to overtake me.”

Becoming the object of widespread adulation was thrilling but odd. His book contains a very funny self-e acing anecdote about negative feedback he received a er a one-night stand, and he describes his

LOOK WHO’S BACK! ‘AAAAY’

Being the Fonz is how Henry Winkler found fame. What happened a erwards will drive his upcoming tour, he tells Ashley Davies

discomfort about how much better the ABC network was treating him than his co-stars. These, of course, included Ron Howard, now a big-name director, who later helped kickstart Winkler’s acting career, as well as making him godfather to his daughter, Bryce Dallas Howard.

Fearing typecasting, Winkler turned down the role of Danny Zuko – later given to John Travolta – in Grease but, a er Happy Days ended, and “jumping the shark” became a widespread euphemism for a creative project outlasting its quality, acting work dried up. To too many, he was the Fonz.

Throughout this time, he has remained married to Stacey – a refreshingly loyal relationship by Hollywood standards.

He did a lot of producing and directing, helping to create the successful MacGyver series, and a few smaller parts. There was an upturn in his acting career the greyer his hair got and the less he looked like Fonzy. He jokes that he now does a good line in playing “authority figures who lack authority”.

With writer Lin Oliver, he developed the Hank Zipzer children’s books, about a charismatic dyslexic boy, and later starred in the CBBC adaptation.

A proud Jew, he’s conscious of the rise of antisemitism and suggests it’s down to a human instinct to always find a scapegoat. “It is shocking that there has to be a bogeyman on which to place all of your personal hate and inability to enjoy life,” he says. “It’s amazing to me.”

Asked whether he feels a need to speak out, he says: “I speak out on being a human being. My metaphor is this: if there is a disaster, a war, a storm, a flood, you’re on your roof, and you

in tatters surrounding you and a truck or a boat is skin?

have a bottle of water. You have your loved ones in tatters surrounding you and a truck or a boat is approaching the roof. Do you say, ‘Hold it, what is the colour of your skin? What’s your religious a iliation? Oh, you know what? I’m fine with my bottle of water, turn around and get lost.’

bottle of water, turn around and get lost.’ there is a disaster, I promise you

“We all need each other. When there is a disaster, I promise you no one cares about anything except the rescue, and that simple concept has to be in the mix.”

He’s not particularly keen on being drawn further into a discussion about Israel, but has fond memories of visiting for the first time while appearing in Chanshi, the comedy series about a young New Yorker who moves to Israel.

“We had the best time, and I will say the delicious countries I have been to. We and people were lovely,” he says.

Hank Zipzer,’ but

where their self-preservation is more

“We had the best time, and I will say that Israel might be one of the most delicious countries I have been to. We had some of the greatest meals there, and people were lovely,” he says. “Soldiers stopped me and said, ‘When I was a little boy I read Hank Zipzer,’ but now there is this type of human being where their self-preservation is more important than a country’s survival.”

Henry Winkler never felt seen as a been behind his desire to become an of believing the hype about oneself

Henry Winkler never felt seen as a child, acknowledging this might have been behind his desire to become an actor. But he also warns of the dangers of believing the hype about oneself when enveloped by celebrity.

“You want so badly to believe that you

an inch: I am still short,” says this sweet 78-year-old. “I did not get any smarter.

“You want so badly to believe that you are more than you are, but I did not grow an inch: I am still short,” says this sweet 78-year-old. “I did not get any smarter. I still can’t spell. If those things aren’t true, this other stu cannot be true. So, you let other people believe it and you just say thank you.”

Barbican Centre, London, on 21 June

Henry Winkler is on tour from 12 June – 3 July. He is appearing at the Barbican Centre, London, on 21 June fane.co.uk/henry-winkler

Henry Winkler

Bill Hader with Winkler (right) as Gene Cousineau in Barry

Henry Winkler as The Fonz in Happy Days

‘PURPOSE’

A RISQUÉ COMEDY MUSICAL IS HELPING CAMP SIMCHA WITH CARE NECESSITIES

Finchley Bowling Club has never seen so much action.

Past the green, in the darkness on a Wednesday night, music was heard from the clubhouse. A closer look through the window revealed a puppet unashamedly in flagrante with... another puppet.While others watched. It was enough to turn a bowler grey – or greyer, though fortunately none were present at Impact’s rehearsal for Avenue Q.

Back in 2004, Avenue Q, a musical featuring puppets and human actors, was the talk of New York, winning Best Musical, Book and Score for Robert Lopez, Jeff Marx and Jeff Whitty at the 2004 Tony Awards. A parody of children’s favourite Sesame Street, its adult-oriented themes come with a parental advisory warning, although praise has been heaped on the way it handles racism, homosexuality and internet pornography in racy, upbeat songs.

There wasn’t much singing as puppet protagonist Princeton (Adam Isaac) got down to business with love interest Kate Monster (Deborah Benjamin), but it’s

unusual for a cast to be in stitches during a rehearsal. Renowned for her good nature and 20 years of exemplary productions, director Amanda Noar leads Impact with a firm hand. But even she is giggling when raunchy puppet Lucy the Slut, held by Katie Commissar Icklow (inset below) struts suggestively in front of her. “Learning to work with the puppets hasn’t been easy for them,” admits Amanda, who has been invited to take her previous hit – You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown – to Shanghai. “The difficulty is remembering that they are the puppets, so heads

must move in unison, but...”

On cue, theatrical agent by day Neil Varu, who has otherwise mastered his felt alter ego, turns his head, but not Rod the gay puppet as they sashay stage left. “Any chance to camp it up where I can,” laughs Neil.

“It has been such an enjoyable challenge working with the puppets and learning how to live and breathe through Princeton,” says Adam earnestly about the wideeyed graduate seeking ‘A Purpose’ who sits on his arm (inset, below).

This is Adam’s fifth Impact show and all of the cast are repeat offenders, who love how Amanda put her own spin on Made in Dagenham, Working and A Slice of Saturday Night, but they also appreciate being part of the production she does once a year that is purely for charity.

“It’s our way of being able to bring a great show to the audience, doing something we love and at the same time helping charities,” says Katie.This year, the beneficiary of Avenue Q’s run is The Care Necessities ‘Hug from Home’ project, which was inspired by the

experience of one of Camp Simcha’s families following their son’s leukaemia diagnosis.

Samuel Van Emden was only four when he complained of excruciating back pain while on holiday in Spain. Back at home, Samuel (inset, below) was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia and hospitalised immediately.

“The world fell apart. We were devastated,” recalls his mother, Charlie, together with husband Oliver. “There was so much to take in and, at the hospital, all I had for Samuel was a Kindle and a couple of other bits. My mum, who was looking after our daughter Ella while we went for blood tests, was going through my cupboards trying to work out what we would all need to stay at hospital.”

The Van Emdens (pictured left, below) were supported by Camp Simcha throughout Samuel’s illness, with a range of practical and emotional services, including a family liaison officer, therapeutic art sessions, outings and retreats. He finished treatment in early 2018.

“Samuel is doing brilliantly

wanted to work with Camp Simcha to find a way to use our experience to help others,” adds Charlie. This resulted in The Care Necessities, which provides parents of all denominations with a case full of essentials and some bespoke home comforts at initial admission, to see them through the first few weeks in hospital, “in the hope of making a very difficult time slightly easier,” explains Charlie. “Nice cosy pyjamas and fluffy slippers – not disposable ones – toiletries that should last for a few weeks, healthy snacks and other provisions. I particularly wanted to include a fleece blanket – Samuel and I were both given them and they were so comforting. Every time he came out of an anaesthetic for a lumbar puncture, I would make sure it was there waiting for him.”

The initiative has been widely praised by paediatric oncology nurses, who see first-hand how The Care Necessities package is welcomed by parents struggling with a new reality. The absence of laughter for those families is not lost on the cast of Avenue Q, but they are glad their comedy will raise

now and, as a family, we much-needed funds.

campsimcha.org.uk/ carenecessities.

Avenue Q

runs from 15 to 18 May at artsdepot, North Finchley. artsdepot.co.uk

Impact director Amanda Noar

ISECRET?

’m really bad at keeping secrets,” admits Andrew Gold as we chat about his book, The Psychology of Secrets: My Adventures with Murderers, Cults and Influencers.

“My brother was coming to my dad’s surprise birthday and I had to keep it quiet, but I slipped up. Luckily my dad didn’t seem to twig, but it was such a relief when my brother turned up.”

This type of “prosocial” lie or secret is a very different proposition to a “negative” one, Andrew says, “because it wasn’t based on guilt or shame – just a concern about spoiling something.” Those involving humiliation or criminality can eat away at a person – and he should know, because people have confided hundreds of secrets to him, and those he does not share.

“People keep secrets all their lives, while some people confess just before going to their grave,” says Andrew, who is an investigative journalist, podcaster and film-maker. “The secrets can be related to financial impropriety or cheating or even, what a lot of people have, romantic desire for others they’re not telling their spouse about.

“The more secrets you have – and we are each said to hold around 13 secrets at any one time – and the more they directly relate to your identity in particular, the more difficult it becomes. So you can [keep the secrets], but become extremely stressed. And it can affect not just your mental health, but your physical health too.”

Andrew, who describes himself as an “atheist Jew” and speaks five languages, examines the world of cults and religions that are usually closed to outsiders. These include the strictly-Orthodox Jewish world as well as Mormonism and Scientology. He speaks to Chasidic Jew turned Netflix reality star and fashion mogul, Julia Haart (of My Unorthodox Life fame), who had what could be considered an abusive childhood.

Growing up in Monsey, New York, Julia’s parents treated her almost like a Cinderella and she had to look after her seven siblings with no emotional support. “Everything she does appears to be in defiance of her

Author and podcaster Andrew Gold shares a few with Alex Galbinski

authoritarian upbringing,” he writes. “In escaping the extreme secretive collectivism of the Charedi community, she has embraced the expressive individualism of modern America.”

Andrew believes the Chasidic community is interesting because it’s so closed. “It thrives on secrets and they’re used to keep the outside world at bay, so that few of their members feel an urge to leave,” he explains. “Like most high-control groups, they teach from a young age that curiosity is a bad thing. God told Adam and Eve not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge… all these years later, the Chasidim teach their members not to own or watch a TV. In that sense, they’re not all that different from other high-control religions, such as Jehovah’s Witnesses, Scientologists or Mormons.”

But he emphasises that Julia’s anger is only one side of the coin. “A lot of the Chasidic people I spoke with told me of the joys of community, tradition and storytelling. Many of the women seem genuinely happy in their roles and it gave me food for thought. Julia said that many women in the States didn’t want the vote. And that’s fine – they don’t have to vote. But they do need to have the choice. And that’s how she feels about the Chasidic women. It can be a fulfilling life for many women – but they need to have the choice; and many don’t.”

His YouTube podcasts, Andrew Gold (293,000 subscribers) and Heretics (more than 92,000 subscribers) brought him into the orbit of a host of extraordinary characters. These include exorcists, cult members, Guantanamo Bay prisoners and those charged with heinous crimes; many of whom shared some weird – and downright horrendous – secrets.

He tells me about the ‘fever model’ regarding the keeping of secrets. “It’s thought that the secret infests your mind in much the same way as a fever; it makes your body difficult to inhabit and it becomes really hard to live with that secret.

“A lot of it comes down to shame from the discrepancy between the identity you present to the world and the secret one inside. There’s also some stress from not wanting to give something away, not being able to talk about it and reframe what happened.”

As to why he wrote his book, which was published last week, Andrew says: “I came to realise they were all keeping secrets of some kind and were all suffering in different ways. It made sense to investigate why people were revealing

their secrets to me, but also to others, such as hairdressers and psychologists.”

A surprising thing Andrew, 34, discovered when researching the book was that psychopaths are not better at cheating lie detectors than regular people and that most people do, in fact, tell the truth (although we lie to ourselves). “We think everyone’s lying a lot. You think about politicians and things, but the reason those stories are so big is because they’re the exception. Evolutionarily, it doesn’t make sense for us to lie often because we will eventually be found out and kicked out the tribe. And I think a very small percentage of people are actually doing most of the lying.”

He has also tackles thorny subjects, including radical Islam and trans ideology, and has spoken to paedophiles and psychopaths. He has been ‘cancelled’ and uninvited to events and I ask if he’s ever scared he’s putting himself in danger.

“Always! I live in a state of perpetual fear,” Andrew says, laughing. But he is fascinated by people and loves what he does. A fan of Louis Theroux and Jon Ronson, Andrew has made and presented documentaries for the BBC and HBO –but the impetus for Heretics came after 50 production companies gave him short shrift, telling him that, although they loved his ideas for shows, they wanted someone from an ethnic minority to present them.

Andrew’s ideas include a programme about a region in Bolivia where adulterers are made to stand in anthills as punishment, a blind football team in Argentina and a competition for fat women in Paraguay. Luckily for us, his commitment to delving into fascinating worlds continues.

The Psychology of Secrets by Andrew Gold is published by Macmillan, £20 (hardback)

Andrew Gold has been ‘cancelled’ for tackling subjects considered controversial

Help us respond to this unprecedented mental health challenge.

As we gather together at Pesach, over a quarter of our community – thousands of Jewish people of all ages – will be struggling with their mental health.*

Jewish Care and Jami have recently joined forces and become one organisation, to tackle this immense challenge.

Your support will enable us to provide vital mental health services to those in the community who need it most.

*26% of respondents to the 2023 JPR Research Panel reported personally experiencing some degree of mental distress, including mental illness or trauma, currently or within the last three months. Please donate at jewishcare.org/pesach

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Secure your future in Israel with a team that will hold your hand

Since October 7, there has been a 40 percent increase in aliyah applications from the UK. We caught up with Julian Nathan, managing director of Hold Real Estate in Israel, to find out how to go about buying property in the country

What is the first step for someone considering a property purchase in Israel?

Those looking to buy today should first clarify how much they want to invest and for what purpose. Is it purely for investment or holidays, or will they be living on the property?

The next step would be to find a partner who can assist them in finding the right opportunity at the right price. They should not procrastinate for too long, as deals aren’t on the table for long and demand is growing. If they find a good deal and trust their partner, don’t wait!

How have recent events in Israel impacted Israel’s property market?

Naturally, recent events have stirred uncertainty and volatility in the property market, impacting both buyers and sellers. However, the Israeli real estate market remains stable despite global economic turbulence. The resilience of the Israeli economy, along with a thriving property market, underscores its appeal for long-term capital growth. Israel’s real estate sector continues to display remarkable strength, driven by a significant shortfall of housing units amid overwhelming demand.

Challenges such as land

opportune time to explore real estate investment in Israel.

What is the minimum deposit for foreign buyers?

allocation for development and labour shortages exacerbate supply shortages. Additionally, rising aliyah numbers and foreign investment in Israel further drive property prices upwards.

Why should investors consider investing in Israeli real estate now?

It’s a great time to invest! First and foremost, the demand for property in Israel exceeds the supply, and even more so since October 7 and the slowdown in construction. Over the past few months, there has been increased demand for property from foreign buyers. Additionally, major developers are now o ering incentives to buyers who can structure excellent payment terms.

With the market’s steady growth and stability, now is an

For an existing property, a foreigner would need to fund 50 percent of the purchase price and a mortgage of 50 percent. However, if buying a property that is part of a new development or a preconstruction project, 10-20 percent will secure the deal, with linear payments payable during the development cycle. Once 50 percent has been paid, the balance of 50 percent can be funded with a mortgage, which is due on completion. This is how many investors get a foot in the door without having to come up with all the cash at once.

What are additional costs associated with purchasing property in Israel?

There are additional costs, often referred to as ‘closing costs’, which are due upon purchasing property, whether it’s a new project or an existing property. The purchase tax for foreigners is typically set at eight percent of the property value and scales up according to the purchase price. A reduction is available for Israeli citizens living in Israel and new immigrants buying their first homes. Other costs include legal fees (1 percent to 1.5 percent + VAT) and realtor/ promoter fees (2 percent to 5 percent + VAT).

What is a building index?

This cost only applies to buying a property that is still

in the development phase. The building index is governmentpublished; it’s an additional amount the government allows developers to charge on any outstanding funds to protect developers and buyers from fluctuations in building costs over the period of development.

What are the advantages of purchasing in a new development?

Purchasing in a new development o ers financial breathing space as payments can be staggered until the project is developed (three to five years typically). Historically, this has been very good for capital appreciation. Buyers have more time to arrange the necessary funds, and developers may o er attractive incentives. If you’re considering property investment and don’t require immediate occupancy, opting for a new development provides the flexibility of additional time to gather the required 50 percent equity needed. Moreover, many buyers appreciate the opportunity to customise layouts and select finishes according to their preferences. However, it’s crucial to ensure you’re dealing with reputable developers whose projects are backed by guarantees from financing banks.

Can buyers purchase property remotely?

Absolutely. The purchasing process, including opening bank accounts and completing mortgage applications, can

be completed remotely. Legal representation and power of attorney facilitate transactions.

How do you select the projects that you market and sell?

For close to 30 years, our team has been locating attractive real estate opportunities in Israel, focusing on highdemand and urban renewal areas where we believe longterm capital appreciation will occur.

What income can a buyer expect from renting out the property?

The average rental yield for apartments in Israel typically ranges from 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent. This can vary based on location, property type and market conditions. Some investors may achieve higher yields, especially in high-demand areas or through short-term rentals like Airbnb.

To set up a consultation with Hold Real Estate, email info@hold.co.il or visit hold.co.il/futureinisrael

 The contents of this article are designed to provide the reader with general information and not to serve as legal or professional advice for a particular transaction. Readers are advised to obtain advice from qualified professionals before entering into any transaction.

Daniel

Sis about to be the new face of real estate on Netflix. He spoke

elling Sunset fans are due to get a fix of real estate reality from this side of the Atlantic with the launch of a new Netflix show. Buying London, the UK’s answer to the hit US show Selling Sunset, will feature property entrepreneur Daniel Daggers and a team of agents at his DDRE Global company as they take on the glitz and glam of London’s luxury property market.

Netflix says we can expect to watch Daggers, nicknamed ‘Mr Super Prime’ for his proficiency in selling properties costing more

than £10 million, and his team “navigate the intricacies of their personal lives while striving to make their mark in the glamorous world of super prime real estate”. The show, which airs next month, is also rumoured to feature Made in Chelsea star Rosi Walden, who is a DDRE adviser, but this is unconfirmed.

Daggers, 44, has worked in real estate for nearly 30 years. He has sold more than $5bn (£4bn) worth of property, and advised royal families, successful entrepreneurs and highprofile individuals from the world of sport and entertainment (although he can’t disclose names). In 2019, Daggers sold one of London’s most expensive homes for a reported £95m.

The following year, he founded DDRE Global – a high-end agency with online content creation at its core. While 85 per cent of transactions are UK-based, the company also has a number of luxury international properties on its books.

Over the past four years, DDRE Global has sold more than £600m worth of property. Sixty per cent of DDRE transactions are done ‘o -market’ with an average listing of £23m. The DDRE model is akin to the US, where agents are independent but can tap into each other’s networks.

The former JFS boy, who now lives in west London, grew up in local authority housing until he was 11, where he lived with his Israeli mum and British dad. “I always wanted to learn from people around me. I would go to a local boys’ club and I remember being bullied for being Jewish. But I also made great friends and learnt a lot.”

Daggers le school at 17 to pursue a career as a professional footballer, but an injury led him to enter the real estate world. In 1997, he started out with Vickers and Company, where he spent a decade before joining Knight Frank in 2007. He was quickly promoted from associate to partner and ‘head of the private o ice’ and US ambassador.

In 2019, Daggers made headlines when he le Knight Frank a er allegedly posting photos of a client’s multimillion-pound property without permission. He says: “There are two sides to every story and sometimes life isn’t fair,” but it propelled him to launch DDRE.

Today, a team of 33 operate from the Marylebone o ices. The firm prides itself on its digital footprint and Daggers has long been harnessing social media to revolutionise how properties are marketed and sold. “Over the next few years, the use of social media within the industry will become paramount, as will the value of personal relationships between agents and clients,” he says. “The internet has made real estate a global business. Today, it’s content that captures people’s attention. If it’s good enough they will follow up.”

A Spear’s UK property adviser of the year, Daggers is one of the industry’s original ‘propfluencers’, using his online presence to showcase properties and transform the property market. Daggers says that only now are traditional media sources paying attention to the value of digital marketing.

“Eight years ago, I asked if my Instagram handle could be inserted in an article about me and they sco ed.” Fast forward and a new wave of agents has emerged – sales made via social media are soaring.

Daggers is passionate about mentorship and the importance of experience over academic qualifications. He runs DDRE Academy, set up to teach budding agents “skills that aren’t taught at university or in any corporate/independent business”.

He recalls: “I was never that engaged at school. My dad was a kitchen designer and I would hear him talking about business but I never connected it with doing well at school. It wasn’t until I did a GNVQ in business that a lightbulb went o in my brain. Life skills need to be taught and you need good mentors.”

Daggers supports several members of the BAME community, which he says remain an underrepresented demographic within the upper echelons of property in central London, along with the Jewish community, and women – something he has been championing to change via his social media.

Outside of work, Daggers enjoys playing football and watching Arsenal. He participates in charitable events and donates a percentage of DDRE profits to Rays of Sunshine and

Daggers does a lot of work in the Middle East, clocking up $150m worth of deals in the region, including in Tel Aviv and Dubai. A proud Jew, he says he hasn’t experienced any antisemitism in business. “I have always been greeted wonderfully [in Dubai] and have Sheikhs who are great friends, who have supported me.”

He also has close ties with Israel and believes Israeli real estate will “go up” postwar as Jewish people who feel insecure about where they live will relocate there.

Norwood. While he has worked with some of the world’s top agents, including Josh Altman and Ryan Serhant, he hasn’t yet met Jason Oppenheim, star of the hit Netflix shows Selling Sunset and Selling the OC, which feature his LA-based Oppenheim Group and agents as they sell luxury homes.

Given what each has achieved, imagine what the property world could look forward to if these two super prime giants did ever meet.

Buying London launches on Netflix in May

Daggers

to Candice Krieger

A luxury home in Argyll Road, Kensington

A property in De Vere Gardens, Kensington

A home swimming pool in Holland Park Gate

RUSTIC, BEAUTIFUL, BESPOKE

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A diverse range of delicious menus with seasonal home-grown, locally sourced food Wildower meadows and orchards create the perfect wedding backdrop and a haven for wildlife Impeccable service from our friendly, professional and experienced team www.south-farm.co.uk | info@south-farm.co.uk | @south-farm1 | 01223 207581

WHY IS THIS YEAR’S PASSOVER DIFFERENT FROM ALL OTHERS?

Summary of Activities

2023

As we prepare for Passover, Israel's reality is starkly different this year.

Since the October 7th Massacre, we have been at war. Many have been displaced, their lives disrupted, and thousands are injured with many permanently disabled.

Yad Sarah has been a vital lifeline bridging gaps in the healthcare system, preventing hospital overload, and supporting the rehabilitation of Israel’s citizens through our 21 aid departments.

Our services touch nearly every home in Israel, but we can't continue this crucial work without your support.

Please consider making a donation to Yad Sarah today to ensure our continued assistance for all Israelis.

Through our medical equipment lending and home delivery pograms, Yad Sarah saved the State of Israel an estimated £1.5 billion.

From funny girl to funny lady, fringe comedian Carole Shaw has spent years honing a craft that keeps audiences laughing. Here’s what you need to know about the performer, who was born in Stoke Newington and now plays our late Queen

When did you know you were meant to be on stage?

Interesting question. Was I meant to be on the stage? When I was six or seven, I put on shows with my older sister and a friend for local kids in the summer holidays on our estate in Clapton. The kids would sit on a pedestrian circle –there were no cars or yellow lines unlike today – and we would entertain them. I did want to be a ballerina as a child, but realised quickly I wasn’t going to make the grade. So I became studious and had a sensible career but always hankered to perform. I was able to go back to it much later in life – possibly better than trying to pull it off aged 18.

How would you describe an evening with Carole Shaw?

A fun, entertaining experience with audience participation and some unexpected lessons on the way.

Is there only one Carole or many in your repertoire?

I have been doing one character for most of the time – the late Queen Elizabeth II or Di Malke Basheve di Tsveyte, if I do the Jewish/Yiddish version.

Do you sing too?

Yes, there’s comedic and serious singing. I take some well-known songs from musical theatre and change the words. So there’s “I got plenty o’nuttin; with a marriage in a carriage with the crown on the top; can’t help lovin’ dem dogs of mine”. There’s a quiz for guests to guess where the songs are from (as in Name That Tune).There’s also a singalong and a rap.

Are audiences guaranteed a night of laughter?

Absolutely. Spontaneous combustion guaranteed.

Who does your costumes?

Me. There’s only one costume at present.

Any props in the act?

Minimal props. Table and chairs but I have a corgi or two, a handbag, a photo of Prince Philip (Feivel if it’s the Jewish act) and a Union Jack.

Where do you live?

East Ham (what’s a nice Jewish gal doing living in a place called Ham?).

How far will you travel to perform?

As far as the Antipodes and USA, but usually to Brighton or Edinburgh.

Do you perform at simchas?

Yes, if people engage me. I’m available for birthdays, brises, bar/batmitzvahs, weddings, funerals and all stations in between.

Worst performance tale?

When I was starting out and the singing was all off-key. I tried singing the song Can’t Help Lovin’ Dem Dogs of Mine as a serious ballad. My friend in the audience reassured me they were wetting themselves laughing, but I thought I was ‘proper singing’. So I changed it to a comedic rendition, accompanied with exercises, and have never looked back.

And the best moment?

When the elastic in my skirt broke during the act, the skirt fell down and the audience erupted. Hard to keep a straight face afterwards. Luckily, I had on a long Superwoman T-shirt as part of the costume and that preserved Her Majesty’s modesty.

Biggest Inspiration?

The late Queen continues to be a huge inspiration. She was a real mensch, despite all around her. But other inspirations include other comics/ shows, such as Morecambe & Wise, Dad’s Army, Victoria Wood, Ben Elton and Dawn French.

Who are your Jewish heroes?

Golda Meir, Rosalind Franklin (codiscoverer of DNA, though she died before she achieved recognition and the Nobel Prize) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

What is your career dream?

Ah, now you’ve asked! I have two big dreams – I aim high. To take a show entitled Carole at the Carnegie to Carnegie Hall, New York, break the record set by Liza Minelli of 17 sell-out performances, and take Broadway by storm. And to become the first lady leader of the Labour Party, lead it to victory in the 2028/9 election and then become the first lady Labour and Jewish prime minister. About time, too.

Where can we see you ?

At Brighton Fringe on 7-10 & 13-15 May brightonfringe.org

At Wandsworth Fringe 8-10 & 13 June wandsworthfringe.com (tickets on sale from 24/4/24)

At Scarborough-Fringe 21-23 June scarborough.co.uk

A game of two paths

Shacharit or Spurs? Amidah or Arsenal?

Kiddush or QPR? Joshua Korber Ho man kicks around the Jewish football fan’s struggle

Albert Camus, the French existentialist philosopher, said he had two universities: the theatre and the football. Through playing in his local football team, he learned “what I most surely know in the long run about morality and the obligations of men”. It’s the same for us. In shul on Saturday we learn the morality of the Torah, and on Sunday on the pitch we learn the morality of the team.

Like many Jews, I have two religions: Judaism and football. As long as football is played on a Saturday, they will forever be in direct competition. There have always been compromises: the Jews who run straight from the sermon to the ground; the Jews who hide their iPhones inside their prayer books; and my shomer Shabbat great-uncle, who would muse aloud on Saturday afternoons: “I wonder what time the football is?” Cue turning on the TV for kick-off by a less religious family member. There was no day when this Shabbat charade was more important than Cup Final day.

As someone forced to make the choice between Judaism and football, for me it’s “one-nil to the Arsenal” every time.

choice is required in the

However, no such choice is required in the Cup this year. Instead, it’s City and Chelsea fans who have the privilege – they play in the semi-final of the FA Cup on Saturday 20 April. They will face the winners of Manchester United vs Coventry, which takes place on 21 April.

set of stresses. What I will

kvetching sessions in the pub afterwards, complaining joyfully with friends about how Kai Havertz missed another sitter. While I do love the opportunity to vent my frustrations in a socially acceptable way, projecting them onto players who are better than I could ever hope to be at anything, it comes with its own set of stresses. What I will really miss is that feeling of togetherness; one that British Jews are lucky enough to get both in the stadium and in the synagogue.

Not being able to watch Arsenal in the FA Cup semi-finals is both a blessing and a curse. As an Arsenal fan, and a Jewish one at that, I have kvetching down to a fine art. Matchdays are experiences of the head and the heart – the soaring emotions of a crowded stadium and the cerebral

“It’s being a part of something bigger than you,” says Jon Freedman, a lifelong Liverpool fan. “A shared experience. It’s knowing the crowd that you arrive into the stadium is the crowd you’re leaving with – we shared a moment. I think that’s quite a big deal for me.”

you arrive into the stadium leaving with – we shared quite a big deal for me.”

Jon, who grew up in a small Jewish community in Southport, Merseyside, applied for a Liverpool season ticket when he was at university. After 20 years, only half as long as Moses had to wait for entry to his promised land, Jon was duly rewarded for his patience. By that time, he was living in London.

small Jewish community ticket when he was 20 years, only half as to wait for entry to

“I used to go to watch Southport regularly. About a dozen of us would go to shul in the morning and meet up again at the ground afterwards. When I moved to London, there was a group of Barnet supporters who had their minyan who would go down there after shul.

“It can often feel like a bit of an extension of your family gathering and your community gathering on Shabbat.

It’s the roast chicken sandwich on your to game. It’s all part of it.”

Annabel Weber, a Spurs fan, also sees the link. “I’m a football nerd. Athleticlistening, tactics head. I guess it is parallel [to] the way I sometimes approach Jewish text learning and the sit-down discussion.”

It’s just the next thing you do after shul. It’s the roast chicken sandwich on your leftover sliced challah that you take to the game. It’s all part of it.”

Aaron Drapkin grew up as an Arsenal fan in Birmingham. His trips down to London would mean a connection with a bigger Jewish community, and a bigger Arsenal one, too. “[Football] is another way to express your love for your local area in your local community, which is something that is right at the heart of Judaism as well.”

up as an Arsenal fan in down to London would

And then, Annabel says, there’s the family connection. “I’m a Spurs fan because my dad’s a Spurs fan and his dad’s a Spurs fan, in the same way that I’m Jewish because my parents are Jewish. There’s no choice in it. If there was a choice, I wouldn’t be a Spurs fan.”

In the absence of football-loving parents, and the first generation to be born in the UK, I had to choose my team. To me, Judaism is the family I didn’t choose and Arsenal is the family I did. Ultimately, however, they are both families – cultures that I care about deeply and that have made me who I am.

Unfortunately for the local rabbi, my Saturdays are spent with my football family.

The discussion element of fan culture is also a big part of the football experience. Aaron also feels a connection between the way Jews talk about Judaism and the way football fans talk about football. “There’s a joy in discussion and debate, and the perpetuity of the debate, that I really see in the way Jewish people talk about things and the way football fans talk. The debating and discussing for debating and discussing’s sake.

Annabel sums it up: “It’s the goosebumps. Every time I walk up and I see the grass, there’s a moment of, well, awe I guess would be the religious term for it. I don’t get [that feeling] when I walk

discussing’s sake. for it. I don’t get [that feeling] when I walk

getting to the bottom of things, is a thing I see in Jewish communities… I resonate with that kind of older Jew

the family gathering and can’t say goodbye until he makes his last point. I see that with

“That deep interest in not just getting to the bottom of things, but also arguing your point is a thing I see in Jewish communities… I resonate with that kind of older Jew who is constantly talking at the family gathering and can’t say goodbye until he makes his last point. I see that with football in the pub as well – that similar thing of we’re never going to agree, but we’re going to keep on talking.”

well – that similar thing of we’re to agree, but to keep on into shul.”

For Jon Freedman, the buzz of the crowd, “that sense of when a particular song takes hold of the it going round, and the energy… I’ll get from singing in shul”.

For Jon Freedman, the buzz of the crowd, “that sense of when a particular song takes hold of the whole stadium, and you can see it going round, and the energy… it’s a similar feeling to the uplift I’ll get from singing in shul”.

Saturday April 20, I will singing my lungs out in the stands at Wembley.

When City face Chelsea on Saturday April 20, I will miss the experience of singing my lungs out in the stands at Wembley.

So this time, I’ll have to save it for shul.

So this time, I’ll have to save it for shul.

Aaron Drapkin

Jon Freedman

Joshua Korber Ho man

Annabel Weber

HAIL THIS

Eurovision Song Contest and Eden Golan is ready to take the stage.

She talks exclusively to Brigit Grant

and indubitably confident, from the moment she says “hello, nice to meet you”, it’s clear Eden Golan is ready to represent her country at Eurovision

And why shouldn’t she be? It’s just a song contest, and a laughable one for those who dismiss it as such, while forgetting it ranks among the world’s most-watched nonsporting events every year, with hundreds of millions of viewers globally. Performing at the contest provides artists with a career boost and, in some cases, long-lasting international success.

The sort of success that will be

The sort of success that will be brandished on 7 May, when Sweden’s Malmö Arena is festooned with Golden Anniversary bunting to mark Abba’s Eurovision victory in 1974.

Of course, few make the instant boom of Benny, Björn, Agnetha and Anni-Frid or sustain that position, building a fortune with hit a er brilliant hit. But Eurovision is the platform that opens the door. A door that many want slammed shut on Israel.

Of course, few make the instant boom changed vitriol sealed with watermelon emojis and for Palestine, writers and activists who boycott the competition. This was a er the

unifying

called October Rain until it was disqualified by the EBU for violating contest rules about remaining non-political. Now with the lyrics changed to reflect a young woman surviving a personal crisis, in place of such lines as: “There is no air le to breathe/No place, no me from day to day/They were all good kids”, Eden Golan will take the stage with Hurricane Performing in such a politically charged space against the incessant hum of hate would challenge a seasoned performer and Eden is only 20. But she is ready –and her voice, with its impressive range, commands attention. Complimenting her on this results in a squeal. Just a small one though, as she is protecting her sound, which she discovered aged nine.

“I started singing then, but not seriously until I was 10 or 11 when I thought ‘Yeah, I’m fully into this’,” she laughs. “Over the years, my voice got better, and I kept practising, but I still have places to go. I feel until the day I die, I will have a vocal coach and try to get better.”

Eden’s parents – her father is from Latvia and her mother from Ukraine – don’t sing. “No, only my dad’s sister is musical, a classical pianist. I guess God just gave me a gi and I’m here to use it to make people happy”.

Driven by Pro-Palestinian rhetoric on social media, supporters have infiltrated the most innocuous Facebook fan groups and changed the narrative from preEurovision excitement to vicious antiZionist hate. Yelling from their keyboards, vitriol sealed with watermelon emojis and misspellings of ‘genocide’ are shared on X... and y and z, and then came an open letter from LGBTQ+ artists, among them Queers for Palestine, writers and activists who called on British entrant Olly Alexander to boycott the competition. This was a er the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which runs the event, agreed that Israel could participate. But, rather than opt out and forgo singing Dizzy for the UK, Alexander and eight other Eurovision contestants refused to boycott the competition and instead issued a statement calling for the release of the hostages and a ceasefire. They added: “We firmly believe in the unifying power of music, enabling people to transcend di erences and foster meaningful conversations and connections.”

and connections.”

Born in Israel, Eden lived there until she was six. “Then we moved to Moscow because of dad’s work for an Israeli company. At first it was for three years, then the contract got extended, so we ended up staying 13.”

who is singing for Israel at written by Keren Peles, Avi Ohayon

This statement matters to the woman who is singing for Israel at Eurovision Competing with the song Hurricane, written by Keren Peles, Avi Ohayon and Stav Beger, it was originally

But it was in Moscow that Eden found her voice, qualifying first as a finalist on The Voice Kids, before joining a girls’ pop group managed by one of Russia’s biggest music producers.

Photo: Shay Franco

“Everything started there,” she says. “But we waited for the moment when we would move back to Israel. Our family is here and every time we visited we craved that feeling.” The Golan family returned two years ago and, she says: “We were finally home. There’s no other place in the world where we truly feel at home and it was very easy to get used to being in Israel again because the people are friendly and warm.”

As warm and friendly as Israelis are, Eden was back to square one as a singer. “No one knew me here, I had left everything behind. So, realising I had nothing to lose, I uploaded a demo I’d written on TikTok and it blew up.”

That producers spotted Eden’s potential is not a surprise and, after meeting a few, she signed with Session 42 and, not long after, entered Israel’s biggest talent show HaKokhav HaBa (The Next Star).

“It was a very intense season because of the situation in the country,” she says, aware that her answers require sensitivity. “At one point, there was a big question mark as to whether the season would happen at all, but it did and I ended up winning and here I am representing Israel after being back in the country for only two years. It’s crazy.”

Eden’s birthday is October 5 and there were no celebrations, as the war started two days later. “October 7, the Black Saturday as we call it,” she says, dropping her head. “Our entire country is traumatised. We have people – girls, teenagers, the elderly – held as hostages. I can’t imagine what they’re going through. At the Nova festival, people came to celebrate life and then ended up in the worst horror movie you could imagine.”

Although none of Eden’s immediate family were directly affected by the Hamas attacks, like most Israeli citizens she knows people who were.

“I have a friend who didn’t go to the party, but her boyfriend, Ben Shimoni, did. He left the festival, but went back three times to rescue people – nine of them. The

fourth time he returned he was murdered. He was an absolute hero, what a soul to go back to save people. My neighbour’s best friend also went to the festival and is not here any more.

“Israel is such a small country; anyone you talk to has lost someone or knows someone who was killed or kidnapped.”

That she has been chosen to represent her country is tainted by the loss of lives, but is cushioned by the support of a huge family. “That’s what it is. When all this horrible stuff happened, everything was amplified and we all came together to help each other, donating, because we are one. I don’t know many countries where people are so there for each other. That’s what keeps us going and gives us the strength and power to continue.”

Few 20-year-olds speak with pride and determination – a winning combination for a contestant about to sing for a potentially

combative crowd. “It was shocking to hear they wanted to disqualify us because of the song,” says Eden, who used to watch the contest with best friend Tanya in Moscow. “Everything was done in order that we could participate. So honestly, I’m not looking back. I’m just happy we’re here to show our voice.”

Despite the “unifying power of music” statement, how this translates in the contest lies with the UK’s Olly Alexander and the other Euro signatories who want to “foster meaningful connections” and will do, if Eden and Israel make it through the semi-finals.

Malmö is preparing for protests and the city itself has had problems with antisemitism, which was being controlled, but October 7 and the war have reignited tensions.

As Abba sang 50 years ago in their winning song Waterloo: “The history book

on the shelf is always repeating itself”, which is true for Israel and the repeated cultural boycotts it faces. Even on home turf when the country hosted Eurovision in 2019, artists bellowed about not attending and Icelandic group Hatari wore Palestinian flags.

Aged 18 on her return to her homeland, Eden has since received her call up to the Israeli Defence Forces and will enter the army after Eurovision

She is ready to serve her country, but singing will remain a priority and, if it weren’t for rehearsals, she would be composing and producing in her home studio now.

“I will never stop,” she says. “Music is the reason I’m on this earth. I was born for this and it’s all I want to do.” With such a sense of purpose, Eurovision might just be an Abba stepping stone for Eden, who takes comfort in the fact that Israel’s detractors have failed to stop Hurricane ranking high with Eurovision fans, many of whom have placed it in their top three.

“Of course, I know what’s going on,” she smiles. “It warms my heart to see the amount of good and supportive messages we are getting because they truly like the song. Music has its own language and it connects people on a different frequency. And any person from any country or any race can feel something together. And I feel like that’s what’s happening.”

Changing the song October Rain has given Eden the lyrics “Take it all and leave the world behind”. Here’s hoping.

The Eurovision Song Contest takes place in Malmö, Sweden, from 7 to 11 May

Eden Golan after being selected to represent Israel

A still from the official video of Hurricane

Eden Golan, pictured with her brother Sean and parents Olga and Eddie

Eden, radiant and positive on Zoom

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The testimonies of Ukraine’s Jews, many of them Holocaust survivors, have been preserved. Etan Smallman reveals the horror of

Project Exodus

At 5am on the day Russia invaded Ukraine, Irina Zhivolup received a phone call from her only child, 33-year-old Oleksandr, in Kharkiv in the north-east of the country. He was being bombed.

“I jumped up, started yelling to quickly get down to the basement, and then to get out,” she says. However, he was to be no safer with her in Izium, on the Donets River in eastern Ukraine.

A week and a half later, on March 6 2022, a Grad rocket hit the home of Irina’s 82-year-old mother Tamara, where she and Irina, Irina’s son and Irina’s husband and the family dog were all standing.

“I dug them out,” Irina says. “I don’t know where I got the strength – head cracked open, all covered in blood, both legs broken. But I managed to pull the beams away. My son died in my arms.”

Irina was the only survivor. The 60-yearold notary crawled back into the house –which no longer had a roof or any windows – climbed into bed and put on Oleksandr’s jacket. She stayed there for eight days, in temperatures of -10C, as rockets dropped around the clock and the bodies of her loved ones lay on the doorstep.

The harrowing testimony is just one of 150 stories of Jewish refugees in the days following the Russian invasion of Ukraine that have been preserved so far by the Association of Jewish Organizations and Communities (VAAD) of Ukraine.

The natives of Mariupol, Kharkiv, Bucha, Irpin and Chernihiv survived artillery shelling, bombing,

bereavement, evacuation through Russian checkpoints and even Federal Security Service interrogation.

The project is aptly titled Exodus-2022 and, as we celebrate the Pesach story, the thumping echoes of history – ancient and more modern – are impossible to avoid.

“One woman recalled how, on the eve of Passover, she baked matzah with an old Soviet stove and felt she was ‘coming out of Egypt’ for the first time,” says Michael Gold, founder and editor-in-chief of the project.

Another, when the electricity was cut off, used her chanukiah as a lamp to provide enough light for her to give her paralysed mother an insulin shot.

A third tells how, after the occupation of Mariupol by the Russians, she had to conceal her Magen David under her blouse for the first time in her life.

“Why didn’t people run away immediately?” says Irina, echoing a question she has been asked many times.

“Nobody believed they would level the town like that,” she explains. “They destroyed schools, churches, buildings that had survived both world wars.”

Irina was finally rescued by her neighbours. She urgently needed a

doctor, but the hospital had already been attacked. They found a surgeon and a nurse who administered stitches to her leg, with no anaesthetic. She says: “I remember them screaming, ‘Don’t even think about fainting, we have nothing to resuscitate you with.’”

At the end of March, the Russians occupied the city. She says the soldiers from the Donetsk People’s Republic [a Moscow-backed separatist region] –wearing helmets from the Second World War – were “a nightmare”.

“I was lying in bed and one of them came over with a machine gun, his hand on the trigger, and lifted the blanket. He poked my leg, which was in a cast. I thought, ‘Oh my God, he’s going to shoot.’ They proposed to take me to Russia, to Belgorod. The doctor told them, ‘This patient cannot be moved’. He scared them off.”

Communities set up food banks. Provisions were “even shared with pets”. Meanwhile, the Russians appointed their own mayor, a collaborator from Irina’s apartment complex whom she has known since childhood. He was a former police officer, who got sacked from the narcotics department.

“It looks like the person who was supposed to fight against drugs was distributing them himself,” said Irina before the liberation of Izium in September 2022. “They promised to build a garden city”, she added, “but can’t even keep the lights on.”

The stories of the ‘double survivors’ –those who lived through the Holocaust before having to flee the Russians 80 years later – are achingly poignant.

The lives of the elderly parents of

She describes the soldiers as “a collection of thieves and a gang of beggars”, who looted her bomb-ravaged apartment, taking “even my underpants”. As locals started digging the frozen earth to bury her family, the invaders “started firing on the cemetery from a helicopter”.

At the same time, Irina is able to remember how “the best human qualities were manifested”.

best human qualities

Irina Zhivolup’s son and husband with her 82-year-old mother

Ukrainian actor Yevhen Chepurniak have been bookended by evacuations. Mila and Samuel – who have a combined age of 187 – had barely left their apartment in Dnipro for years. He has one prosthetic limb and she uses a walking frame.

But in March 2022, they had no choice when a 5am explosion blew out their windows. Yevhen gave his parents sleeping pills for the journey to Lviv, but they still stayed awake throughout the night.

“Recording the distinctive accounts of Jewish refugees amid one of the most poignant episodes in the recent narrative of Ukraine’s Jewish community holds profound significance. In the years to come, these testimonies will endure as invaluable relics of the period,” says Victoria Godik, a VAAD board member who is involved in the project.

“a watershed moment in the modern history of Russian-speaking Jewry”.

“For the first time since World War II and the establishment of the State of Israel, tens of thousands of Jewish refugees emerged in the heart of Europe,” he says. “The blood of Jewish refugees is not redder than that of others. However, the official objective of the Russian ‘special operation’ was declared to be denazification and protection of the Russian-speaking population.

“The vast majority were not anticipating war. And sacredly believed in ‘Never Again’”

“That is why the stories of Russianspeaking Jewish refugees, whose lives were destroyed by the ‘liberators of Nazism’, are especially indicative. These people represented an object of double ‘care’ –both as Jews, for whom Nazism is the equivalent of absolute evil, and as Russian-speakers.”

screaming and crying and you watched it.”

Gold says: “The vast majority of our interviewees were not really anticipating a war. And they sacredly believed in ‘Never Again’. That is one of the messages – to show that the world can change in a minute. And you have to be ready.”

By the time Irina was discharged from hospital after 25 days, the dressings had been used up. The doctor gave her two bandages and told her to wash them.

“For me it was the worst – to be left all alone in this world. My mum had only one child, me. And I had only one child, my son. I lay there and thought that I would never hug my grandchildren. Part of my life was taken away. I didn’t manage to take a single photo with me.”

He also notes that the largest Jewish communities in Ukraine were located in the path of the main invasion.

Exodus-2022 has become not just an educational tool but a “digital memorial, ensuring that the experiences of these individuals are not forgotten by future generations”. Time was of the essence.

The 21st century exodus inevitably evoked old traumas. Mila remembers how, in 1941, she rode a cart to the evacuation train with a cat and a dog running after them. But the Germans sent an assault force and they had to run again. They then travelled on the roof of a train and had to jump into corn fields when the shelling started. They arrived in Baku before making their way to Kokand (which today is in Uzbekistan).

She was dragged across the suspension bridge traversing the Donets River on a cart, then through the forest along goat trails. With help from friends in Israel and a Jewish cousin in Toronto, she was given a medical evacuation to Warsaw.

She now finds herself torn between overwhelming feelings of loss and defiance. “We told ourselves: we have to survive,” she says. “For those who perished – they protected us, and we must rebuild a flourishing Ukraine. I am a life-loving person, so I will fight.”

Samuel, born in 1928, recalls as a 13-year-old in 1941 falling behind a line of fellow Jews being taken by the Nazis to be shot. They made it on foot to Kizlyar, in Dagestan, sleeping in haystacks and surviving on water taken from a river with corpses flowing by. In their latest exodus, they made it from Lviv to Warsaw and on to Israel.

“People gradually displace bitter memories, making room for a new stage of life,” adds Gold, who says he often found himself being floored by the “mildest” testimonies.

“Many interviewees said that during the evacuation they felt like they were watching a World War II movie, but in 3D and with themselves in the lead role,” says Gold, who is also editor-in-chief of the Ukrainian-Jewish newspaper Hadashot He embarked on the project to document

“For example, I was impacted by a story about the evacuation train told by a lawyer from Dnipro. There were 18 people in a four-person compartment, including a nursing mum with three kids. They were asked to turn off their phones and to close the blinds, but they could still hear the explosions outside.”

The survivor recalled: “At one point we stopped at some tiny station, and they did not even open the doors because there was no space, not even enough for one more person. It was awful seeing people’s faces plastered against the windows. They were

Two months after her testimony was recorded for Exodus-2022, Irina was taken to Israel. Even six months on, hobbling down the streets of Netanya with a stick, splinters were emerging from her wounds. At the end of last year, she graduated from her Hebrew course and survived surgery to replace her aortic valve. October 7 brought war to her doorstep once more.

“We’ve been through much worse,” she says stoically. “Israel has an excellent Home Front Command, so you feel a lot more protected than in Ukraine when we woke up to explosions, not knowing where to run.”

She recalls lying wounded in her house under the Ukrainian night sky reflecting on how one’s life can be upended in an instant. “I understand my grief is a drop in the ocean of the communal grief,” she says, but adds:

She finds herself caught between her two homes, and says both the Ukrainian and the Israeli national anthem bring her to tears. “When both wars are over, I will celebrate, both here and there,” she says. “And I might cry.”

For more information, visit exodus-2022.org. To make a donation, contact Michael Gold on gold@exodus-2022.org

of fellow Jews being taken by the Nazis to in Dagestan, sleeping in haystacks and

Irina Zhivolup recovers in hospital a er having surgery

Samuel and Mila Chepurniak

Irina, now in Israel, has taken time to recover

All that remained of Irina’s mother’s house in Izium, Ukraine, a er it was hit by a rocket

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Brigit Grant gets fixated on Ashley Blaker

Due to the paucity of Orthodox Jews making jokes for a living, in a stadium filled with comedians Ashley Blaker was easy to spot. He never wore a shtreimel but, other than 6ft 8ins Greg Davies, it’s hard to think of a stand-up who stood out more than the bearded, bespectacled guy in a white shirt and black suit who looked ready to recite the Shema.

The same cannot be said of the spikyhaired peroxide blond with tattooed arms (and legs) now seated before me, but

this is Ashley Blaker after more than 12 years of immersion in the Charedi world.

The transformation from black hat to the inked rebel who got his hair dyed in New York’s West Village gets a jawdropping reaction, especially from those who saw him on stage as his frum former self. But don’t lose faith, because Ashley hasn’t; he has just come to the end of another of his “hyperfixations” that have been the story of his life.

More than just a meshuggas, over the years Ashley’s obsessions have included supporting Liverpool to the point where –“in a seven-year period, I only missed four games”. Sometimes his fixations have worked in his favour, as was the case when he went to Oxford and, instead of making comedy his intended focus, got fixated with his history degree and did a history PhD at Cambridge.

to the mikveh each morning.”

And then it stopped. Bang. Just like his zealous attendance at Liverpool games, although he still loves the team.

“It’s all or nothing,” he shrugs. “Thank God I never got into drugs because I’d be the biggest crackhead in the world. Who knows what’s next? If, in five years’ time, I was suddenly a devout Muslim, I don’t know if it would actually shock anyone.”

“I’m just not capable of doing things by halves,” he chirps, which explains why he was unable to just go to shul on the occasional Shabbat.

“No, if I’m going to get into it, I’ve got to do it to the most crazy degree – so it was payot, black hat and going

as was the case when instead of making he was unable to just the occasional Shabbat. get into it, I’ve got crazy degree – so it was hat and going

Fortunately, the hyperfixations or “weird personality quirks”, as he describes them, have now been explained by a diagnosis of ADHD and autism.

“It was like, ‘wow, this explains so much’,” he beams. “I went back through my whole life, going over all the challenging things that happened in my childhood and finally there was an explanation. I need to write a book to really process it.”

He already has a title for that book – Typical Schmypical – which will sit neatly beside his most recent offering, Normal Schmormal, which is also the name of his current tour. The whacky fusion of Yiddish and Dr Seuss belies the extraordinary content of the book, which is essentially a manual for parents of children with special needs.

“[It’s] the book I wish had been around 20 years ago for me,” says the author, who is father to Adam, Ollie, Dylan, Zoe,

The Blakers portrayed in Simpsons style by son Dylan

Edward and Bailey, who are aged 10 to 20.

Two of Ashley’s sons have autism and ADHD, and adopted daughter Zoe has Down’s syndrome, although Ashley has different nicknames for his children: ‘Coldplays’ for the nondivergent because he finds the band “perfectly good, but rather mainstream” and the special needs children ‘Zappas’, after musician Frank Zappa – “so alternative, rebellious and sometimes unspeakably s**t”.

The wild labelling also signals the warm and witty way he parents his brood alongside wife Gemma, who is also headteacher at Clore Shalom. What a gal!

“To give you an idea, in October 2007, we had a newborn, a one-year-old and a third who had just turned two. The great thing is we got through it – or at least the hardest part of it.”

It is those difficult years that provide the content for Ashley’s new show, and although he jokes the biggest challenge is now chauffeuring his Year 11 son, coping with daughter Zoe – soon to be 16 – is hard.

“Mentally she is like a three-yearold and needs so much attention. She’s bored easily and gets very destructive, so if you’re not careful…”

Ashley is alarmingly honest about Zoe’s limitations. “I have volunteered for charities Mencap and Sense, which do fantastic work, and I understand

who was a Vogue front cover, or James Martin, who won a Bafta award, but they are the proverbial black swans. We’ve got a child who can’t really get up and down the stairs. But that’s fine. We love our children exactly as they are – the way God made them.”

Ashley also points out that when they adopted Zoe, her condition was not a surprise. “We knew exactly what we were getting. It wasn’t a tragedy that befell us – this was something we chose.”

The Blaker’s trials and triumphs became a Radio 4 series which, like the book, was welcomed by the parents, grandparents and teachers of special needs children. Informing his own parents of Zoe’s adoption was done by late-night email. “You might think we’re brave people, but we bottled it,” he laughs. “We gave answers to questions I knew they would have, and there were many, but they’ve been wonderful grandparents who never viewed her as different.”

risks. I try not to think about that,” he says, and would sooner talk about the tour or his pitched new stand-up radio series, Ashley Blaker’s Hyperfixations Revealing that this might contain halfhour episodes on “Orthodox Judaism, tattoos, football or my obsession with

why it’s important to focus on the incredible stories of high-achieving special needs kids like Ellie Goldstein,

Zoe is due to have open-heart surgery in the next two years and it is her health risks and mortality that concern Ashley more than his own. “There are

whatever,” he knows he won’t really know until he sits down to write it. It changes, but you write about what you know and what interests you. Comedians do a different show every year and, notwithstanding any changes in my life, you don’t want to talk about that one thing forever.”

That one thing to which he refers was his act as a ‘black hatter’, which brought American Jews seeking a bracha with bite to his shows in the States, Canada and here.

“But even if I was still a strictlyOrthodox Jew, I could still do a show about football or politics. You don’t have to be defined by what you are. Don’t confuse style with subject.”

When Ashley told his bestie Matt Lucas that he had been diagnosed as being on the spectrum, the musical comedy star’s barbed response was, “Ashley, you are the spectrum”.

“But talking about neurodivergence and diagnosis has become standard in the comedy world,” sighs Ashley. “And it’s not that interesting”. This will never be said of Ashley Blaker.

Ashley Blaker will be at JW3 on 19 June. For details about the rest of his tour, visit ashleyblaker.com/tour

Ashley with his adopted daughter, Zoe, 15

Ashley with his blond hair

Ashley, centre, with his six children

Worried about celebrating Pesach on Campus this year?

This year Pesach falls right at the start of the university summer term. If you or a student you know would like to join a seder, are affected by exam clashes with Yom Tov, or need help in how to manage Pesach this year, don’t hesitate to reach out to your Chaplain.

For any religious, educational or pastoral issue, we’ve got you covered.

BACK TO

AMY

Back to Black, the Amy Winehouse biopic, is out now, with Eddie Marsan playing the iconic singer’s father, Mitch. In an interview with LIFE, he discusses the emotional journey of bringing Amy’s story to the screen

Did you have any doubts about playing Mitch?

No, I didn’t have any doubts about playing Mitch, but because of the public narrative about him I had concerns about how Matt Greenhalgh, the writer and Sam TaylorJohnson, the director, would portray him in the script. When I found out they were approaching me I contacted a good friend of mine who worked with Amy and experienced first-hand her relationship with her dad. He liked Mitch and described him as a loving father in an impossible position, and someone who, like all fathers, me included, make mistakes but try their

best. Thankfully that’s how Matt and Sam saw it and how they wanted me to play him. I wouldn’t have agreed to take on the role if it sanitised or demonised him – that’s not how I work.

Where did you first meet Mitch and how did that meeting go?

We met in a restaurant in London. He walked in and the first thing he said to me was ‘here we go, another Stepney boy’, and we just went from there. He was very self-aware and honest about Amy, his grief at losing a child so young, and the mistakes he made. Our similar cultural references, a love of jazz and our childhoods in the East End eased the sometimes difficult discussions.

Did you spend time with Mitch to study him and read or watch documentaries in preparation?

When preparing for a role, any actor worth their salt will read and watch everything. We met up again, alone, and had a meal together, where we discussed his life, his childhood, where he went to school, his mother taking him to Ronnie Scott’s as a teenager and igniting his love of jazz, his marriage to Janice... everything.

Real Mitch

Screen Mitch

Eddie Marsan

You have spoken about the way the Winehouse family was pilloried after Amy’s death. Did that impact on how you portrayed Mitch?

It didn’t impact at all. You can’t comment on a character at the same time as portraying them. I played him as a father and drew on my own experiences, parenting four teenagers, the feeling of love, pride and the continuous worry as to if you’re doing the right thing. The film is written through Amy’s lens as it’s all there in her lyrics and, therefore, to be authentic to that, I wanted to reflect the father-daughter dynamic and it was clear their bond and connection was incredibly loving and close.

How easy was it to build a bond with Marisa Abela that replicates the real-life relationship between Mitch and Amy? It came naturally. Acting is a collaborative art form and our job is to support each other. Marisa’s performance is amazing – I can’t wait for people to see it. But to give that kind of a performance takes incredible hard work, generosity and courage, and I was privy to all of that. Not only does Marisa sing all the songs, but every day we shot a scene, the paparazzi would take a sneaky photo – it would be online in less than an hour and the nasty comments would flood in. Marisa dug deep and carried on. Her mother, Caroline Gruber, is a brilliant actress, so the craft is in her blood. Marisa knows the job is to give an honest testimony, regardless of all the s**t that’s thrown your way. That it’s not about you, it’s about the work.

You have become the industry’s go-to Jewish father! Magnificent as Manny Rubens in the touching Sixty Six, tough and unforgiving as Bernie Monke in The Power, now Mitch Winehouse and soon Harry Epstein in the Brian Epstein biopic. How do you slip into Jewish dad mode so easily and are you comfortable there?

I feel comfortable and inspired to play anything. ‘Nothing human is alien to me’ is my motto as an actor. I don’t know why I’m cast in so many Jewish roles, but it’s predominantly Jewish film-makers who cast me, so you’ll have to ask them, and I’m sure each of them will have a different reason. I just do my best and try to avoid generalisations and caricatures.

anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim hatred and I campaign for the Windrush generation because of my upbringing in a diverse East End. That is my culture, I owe it everything and I will defend it to the last.

You received hate after playing a Jewish anti-fascist activist in the series Ridley Road. Are you concerned this will happen again, albeit from a different group, with your sympathetic portrayal of Mitch? No, it comes with the job. I’m not concerned; people have a right to their opinion, but I don’t think I give a sympathetic portrayal of Mitch. I give an honest portrayal of him. I just played him as a father whose daughter was suffering from addiction at the same time as being the most famous woman in the world, who had unlimited financial resources, with every drug dealer in London trying to ply her with drugs. The reason I received such hate and bigotry after Ridley Road was because of the brilliance of Sarah Solemani’s writing. The words and phrases used by the fascists in the early 1960s bear a remarkable similarity to those used by antisemites now. Sarah shone a light on their bigotry and it challenged their selfrighteousness, so they had to hit back.

What do you want audiences to take away from Back to Black and what have you? I want them to celebrate the brilliance of Amy, to realise how lucky we were to have her in our lives, to still hear her incredible voice every day. I also hope people gain a greater understanding of how awful, cruel and random addiction is and have more compassion for those who suffer from it.

What I’ve realised making this film is that when someone like Amy dies so young, someone who touched our lives in such a profound way, there’s a collective trauma and the natural response is to try and make sense of it. We latch onto a comfortable narrative, where there’s someone to blame; it reassures us that if my daughter doesn’t meet someone like Blake, if we don’t behave the way they claim Mitch behaved, this won’t happen to us. But addiction doesn’t work like that.

Amy by Dganit Blechner at Miss D Gallery

You have bravely stood with the Jewish community in the fight against antisemitism. Is it the Jewish roles that compels you to do this or your East End history?

No, it’s got nothing to do with the roles. To be honest, while I’ve played Bernie Monke, Bob Dylan and Shimon Peres, I’ve also played Heinrich Himmler and Martin Luther – two of the worst antisemites in history. I’m an actor, it’s what I do. I’m standing in solidarity with the people I grew up with, went to school with and work with. I joined the march against antisemitism and called out the rise in both

We all know families, good families, where one child lives a completely functional, fulfilled life and their sibling is an addict. Addiction is the villain of this film; addiction took Amy from her family, from all of us.

If there is another villain of the film it’s the paparazzi. There’s a reason why recovery programmes are called Alcoholic Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous because addiction needs to be dealt with in privacy and anonymity. Amy was never given that right; she was continually hounded, mocked and humiliated.

Finally, which Amy Winehouse song is stuck in your head?

Don’t Go to Strangers – her live duet with Paul Weller. It’s absolutely beautiful Just like Amy.

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NOT JUST A PLACE TO LIVE, BUT A LIFESTYLE

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the basis for a sociable existence. There’s a lovely swimming pool, gym and sauna, and the restaurant is wonderful.” Other facilities include landscaped outdoor courtyards, 24-hour concierge-style services, safe onsite parking and a guest suite for friends and family to stay. A bonus is the roof terrace, where you can enjoy a G&T with stunning views over London.

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Yes Studios’ MD tells Brie Bailey about a change in attitude towards great Israeli shows

We didn’t launch anything for three months. Everyone was only watching the news. And they were worried. It was only when we felt they were craving fresh air and a di erent kind of content, that we decided to launch some ‘escape’ TV.”

The small screen ‘escape’ was the second season of Erez Kavel’s Chef, a popular series about a gi ed cook struggling to stay relevant. It landed well, but knowing what a country in mourning could cope with seeing a er October 7 was a huge consideration for Sharon Levi and the team at Yes Studios.

As managing director of the company that has given us Fauda, Shtisel and The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem, working life before the atrocities of 7/10 was about sales, distribution and development. Now, as she tries to maintain a sort of businessas-usual routine, her soldier son calls to tell her that his army duty has been extended. Uneasiness crosses the mother’s face.

“Nothing is routine about what we’re living through right now,” says Sharon, “So we try to put together a strategy for this year and next, but everything planned has a little star next to it because we know nothing is for sure.”

It feels like only yesterday that Israel was revered for ground-breaking drama, WonderWoman Gal Gadot and Holy Land high-tech and medical innovation. “And now we battle for our reputation, our lives and our existence,” says New York-born Sharon, who puts a pin in projects with problematic content that are not right for now.

“We keep them moving forwards and I’m raising money for stories in development but, yes, it’s a challenge. Many clients we work with understand both sides of the story, that it’s not personal and something way above us all. But we also have to accept that shows in the Hebrew language might be di icult for some clients to swallow in these times; so we shi the focus to selling formats.”

The long list of Israeli shows that have been remade in other countries is impressive . “We’re relying on our catalogue and it’s the gi that

keeps on giving.” Johnny and the Knights of Galilee (originally Milk and Honey) is an old Yes series just remade by Amazon France.

That formats don’t have an expiration date is Sharon’s blessing, as proven by Shlomo Moshiah’s Kvodo (Your Honour), which stars Bryan Cranston in the US remake and is now in production in Asia, Eastern Europe and possibly South America.

“Formats are a healthy shortcut because they save time and money and we all know nobody’s making money out of production in the US, so it’s helpful if the script can just be sent.”

Cultural di erences withstanding, the original writers will assist, which has been the case for Shlomo Moshiah, who also wrote the script for The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem and another of his Yes projects has just wrapped.

Encouraging news for those feeling deprived of Israeli talent, but not for fans of Fauda The rumbles about its imminent, albeit questionable return, are squashed by Sharon. “It’s not as if we had a new season ready. If we did, there would have been discussions about whether or not we should launch another season now. But it’s too early to know what season five would look like or where we’re going to be in terms of the country. For any launch there’s a little bracket that says, ‘only if nothing tragic happens the same day’.”

When Kugel began shooting in Antwerp two months ago it was a good day. Baruch Hashem, the prequel to Shtisel, starring Sasson Gabai and Hadas Yaron, could reunite the global fanbase with Israeli production.

Top to bottom: Kugel, The Shtisel spin-o has

The 10-part series, which launches in Israel in June, tells the story of Louie, an Arab-Israeli psychologist struggling to raise his two children a er the suicide of his Jewish wife.

To achieve a better work-life balance, he changes his work to the evening hours, creating an alternative form of therapy for his patients. Among them, four are

“From what we’re seeing so far, it’s very exciting. I’m sure the fan base will be very happy,” reports Sharon. “We have to remain positive because, yes, the situation is very tricky, but creativity flows in times like this; people write books, music and scripts.”

began shooting in happy,” reports Sharon. “We have to by Shira Haas, and

Raanan Caspi had already written his script for Night Therapy before horror engulfed his homeland but, as soon as Sharon read it, she knew it had to be made.

recurring – a genius hacker who never leaves the house, played by Shira Haas, and Fauda’s Eli, Yaakov Zada Daniel, who plays a troubled Orthodox Jew.

But it is lead actor, Arab-Israeli Yousef Sweid as Louie, who is a timely advert for unity, as he has worked in theatre and film in Israel for years and his heritage has never held him back. “That he is Arab-Israeli is of no consequence,” says Sharon of Sweid who, like his character, also has a Jewish wife. “That’s how it is here.”

How it was on October 7 is relived in the Yes documentary #Nova. Several have been

made, and Yes is working on another, but Dan Pe’er’s film takes the viewer through the experience of the festivalgoers, from pure excitement to devastating tragedy. “We’re proud to represent it,” says Sharon. “It’s all real-life footage of the actual events that is evidence of what happened that day, which will be taught in schools in years to come. It’s like taking a front-row seat to history.”

Sharon knew that getting others with no skin in the game to take a seat beside her would be tough.

“Some clients want to keep the fact they work with us on the lowdown and I understand how it could be di icult for some streaming services to stand behind this, as maybe they’re more risk averse than ever. But eventually they are going to need these pieces of history told firsthand. Because it’s going to stay forever.”

begun filming; Yousef Sweid in Night Therapy; The Chef; Real-life footage of Nehorai Levi, Yarden Vaknin and Jonathan Cohen in #Nova; Sharon Levi, managing director of Yes

Igor Tudoran’s story is a remarkable example of bravery and resilience.

Tudoran, 27, a reservist who volunteered for duty after the 7th October attack on Israel, lost his right leg beneath the hip. With his life-changing injury, and need for rehabilitation, he is just one of an increasing number of newly wounded Israeli soldiers and victims of terror that Beit Halochem is helping.

The need to help is greater than ever. Beit Halochem is there, ensuring that every injured soldier and victim of terror gets the help they need, today, tomorrow and for the rest of their lives.

AM ISRAEL CHAI

is proud to support its students in this difficult time.

With your invaluable support, we will continue to educate, share the truth and lift their spirits.

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EXHIBITION

In 2023 the Jewish Museum le its Camden site and became a Museum without walls. For the next few years, it is curating displays across the country in a range of venues, and delivering its award-winning learning schemes for schools, families and care homes in the community and through virtual programmes.

The plan is to celebrate its centenary in 2032 by creating a new Jewish Museum of the Future. Meanwhile, Life magazine o ers a Pesach-themed glimpse of some of the treasures, many of which can be seen over the next few months in Bradford and Manchester.

This pair of teacups was made in the Czech Republic in the 1930s. One has a china moustache guard, designed to protect a gentleman’s moustache from getting wet. The teacups, decorated with flowers and gold detailing, bear the Hebrew characters chag l’Pesach, or ‘festival of Passover’. The donor and their parents came to Britain via Switzerland from Czechoslovakia in 1940, and brought the cups, which belonged to the grandparents.

Artist and potter Eric Tunstall RI (Royal Institution) illustrated this seder plate for the Royal Cauldon china and earthenware house in the1950s. The plate, part of a set with six dishes, has outer illustrations of Passover and the 10 plagues; the inner illustrations of place settings for the symbolic foods and the centre has the performing order of the ceremony.

Also dating from the 1950s is this recipe booklet from Rakusen’s, the Leeds-based matzah manufacturer whose products were in almost every Anglo-Jewish household – then and now. The booklet contains a brief introduction to Passover and the seder meal, with suggested menus and recipes for sweet and savoury dishes.

Phineas May, who died in 1995, was a communal fixture for much of his long life. Aged 15, he took a postal course at the London School of Cartoonists and later studied part-time at the Central School

of Art. Until 1991, May was custodian of the Jewish Museum in London. This is his take on the Four Questions in which he has the father of the family suggesting that the youngest son asks some new questions.

This page is from the Ihringen Haggadah, created in 1756 in Germany. A standard Ashkenazi Haggadah with instructions to the participants in German, it has Hebrew letters, and sprinklings of Yiddish, including the words Allmächtiger Gott (Almighty God).

In contrast, this is a Haggadah handwritten in Cairo in 1929, a hand-sewn manuscript with a version of The Song of Songs added to the contents, inside a blue velvet case. The seder is written in a traditional Sephardi Hebrew. The illustrations are by Hamy Bekhor, whose family was connected with the piano trade – hence the somewhat incongruous appearance of a piano in the Haggadah.

This picture, entitled ‘Seder Without Fear’ was taken in 1956 in the Jews’ Temporary Shelter, then in London’s East End before it moved to Willesden. The photograph shows a communal seder for both Hungarian and Egyptian refugees; hundreds of Jews from both countries fled in that year.

This modern image is also entitled ‘Seder Without Fear’, but for very di erent reasons. It shows a photograph taken in London during Covid lockdown in 2020 by Daniel Bratt. Because of the pandemic, Daniel was unable to celebrate Pesach with his family, but connected with them via Zoom. The image shows the importance and enjoyment of celebrating Jewish festivals no matter where you are or the circumstances in which you find yourself.

To view the Museum’s current and upcoming displays, visit: jewishmuseum.org.uk

I AM LOVING. IMPOSSIBLE

DONATE NOW

I used to get very frustrated when people didn’t hear me. When I started going to Norwood’s Unity holiday schemes, and mum went to their Rainbow group for parents, things became much calmer.

Now I feel part of the Norwood family, who accept me as I am. The team helped mum step into my world. We’ve learned to enjoy every moment together and I feel understood.

I’m Chase. And I am Norwood.

ONE PEOPLE TWO TRIBES

Alex Galbinski looks at the contrast between Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews, starting at the seder “

Watch your back and choose the largest spring onion!” was the advice given to me by my sister-in-law at her Persian-style London seder. I ducked as the massive onions were used as weapons during the singing of Dayenu. Not as lethal, but still unusual was the charoset, which was dark and rich as it was packed with dates, raisins and currants, four types of nuts, apples and pomegranate.

Queen of Jerusalem

It was at that seder, while being threatened by a spring onion, that I recalled the differences between the community from which I hail and others of Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic and Indian descent.

In bestselling novel The Beauty

Sarit Yishai-Levi doesn’t shy away from the differences and reveals the perils of a forbidden Sephardi-Ashkenazi affair in prethe

state Jerusalem. Viewers of the TV adaptation could not see a problem as Michael Aloni, portraying Sephardi Gabriel Ermoza, lusted after Ashkenazi Rochel (Yuval Scharf), but back then it was deemed as ‘marrying out’ or, worse, ‘beneath’, which thankfully is no longer as relevant.

But there are many differences –although not all are aplicable to all Sephardim (Jews with roots in Spain and Portugal) and Mizrahim (Jews from the Middle East and North Africa), and families often unique to them.

When I asked around, it was the variations, culture, liturgy, prayers and pronunciation that came up the most – and, of course, the

the likes of feshnogge (calf’s foot jelly) and gefilte fish against hilbe (Yemenite fenugreek paste) and carrot salad.

it’s the taste of home. It’s a generational thing – how do you hang on to traditions and memories of places and people who are long gone?”

Another Ashkenazi Jew, Raymond Simonson, CEO of JW3, has family members who have married Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews. “We try to incorporate different traditions on festivals and Pesach is a great one,” he says, sharing that they also whip their guests with onions in the Persian/Afghani

tradition. follow food.

In Aish’s Ashkenazi vs Sephardi – Food Fight videos, participants hilariously poke gentle fun at each other’s cuisine, pitting

They also whip their guests with onions Sephardic food seems to win the contests, but not always for my own husband, who extols the virtues of pickled herring and salt beef, while Adam Overlander-Kaye, fundraising director of Kisharon Langdon, robustly defends his Romanian and/or Lithuanian heritage.

“Growing up, one of the things I loved most was holishkes (cabbage leaves stuffed with mince) –

Gelfilte fish can be an acquired taste! Hilbe, a Yemenite fenugreek paste A

Aloni as Gabriel Ermoza in The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem with Scharf as Rochel

Raymond Simonson

Adam Overlander-Kaye

TRADITIONS

“We’ve had chefs come to JW3 to teach about the Tunisian Shabbat table and Italian Chanukah foods, for example, along with [cookery writers] Claudia Roden and Linda Dangoor, and we’ve also had Mimouna [a post-Pesach feast of crepes and other chametz food].”

Maya’s parents are Baghdadi Jews from India. “Iraqi Indians will eat rice on Pesach, but other Sephardim, like Moroccans, will not. And we won’t have chickpeas whereas they will.”

She tells me that, unlike her family, her Ashkenazi husband Stephen would never have had a curry for Shabbat. “I never had a curry at all!” Stephen interjects, to which she replies: “What kind of a life is that?!”

Maya says that neither she nor Stephen could give up on their own family’s Pesach traditions, “so our seder plate has doubles. I grew up having charoset made with date syrup – the best thing! – whereas Stephen has the grated apple with ground almonds. I have lemon juice with water for the egg, whereas he has salt water.”

and industrialised in the mid-20th century, displays of tasty dishes was a sign of hospitality, but also of being well off. It was, though, much more usual for us to have spices.”

He elaborates:

“When I go to a Sephardi party or a Kiddush, I know I’m going to be well fed – whereas if you go to an Ashkenazi Kiddush, if you’re not fast, there’s nothing left!”

Cracker alert!

The matzah is different, too. Fundraiser Adam explains: “When the Jews left Egypt, they had the pascal lamb and needed to wrap it in something, but there’s no way they had crispy crunchy matzah!”

Terminology and pronunciation are other distinctions. Michael Mocatta, a 12th generation Sephardi, is a bnei mitzvah teacher in the Sephardi Spanish and Portuguese tradition (sepharditorahteacher.com).

He tells me: “‘Shul’ isn’t a word that makes any sense to Sephardim. And ‘shekoyach’? It took me years to

realise it was a thing people were saying on purpose, not just a coughing fit!”

It is estimated that fewer than 10 percent of Jews in Britain today are Sephardi or Mizrahi, so it is perhaps inevitable that what many take to be universal Jewish traditions only appear in Ashkenazi – or ‘Ashkenormative’ –culture.

There are variations to liturgy and religious practice, with the use of different songs or alternative tunes. “Sephardim have a different Ein Keloheinu, Aleinu and Adon Olam...”

through them, you are transported back in time and you’re sitting next to your parents or grandparents. If you remove that, it can leave you feeling bereft.”

There is a view that Sephardic traditions are more inclusive and move with the times. “The biggest meta narrative about Sephardi [culture], is that we seek to find ways to include people in our community,” says Michael, although he admits women are better catered for in certain Ashkenazi synagogues.

David Dangoor agrees, saying: “We don’t have Reform, Liberal,

Ashkenazi Kiddush – if you’re not fast, there’s nothing le ! Businessman and philanthropist David Dangoor, who grew up in Iraq but came to the UK aged 12, knows that a Sephardi welcome to guests is about plentiful dishes. “Because we come from countries that were not as rich

child up to sing Yimloch. It’s entirely absent from the Ashkenazi service and it’s a vacuum I can’t ignore.”

“It’s inevitable to want to be surrounded by familiar foods and practices from our childhood,” Michael continues. “What you did growing up is the framework around which we all engage with our Judaism. The tunes at Pesach are all different – there are none of the European ones. So there’s no Day-Day-Dayenu [tune], Chad Gadya or Ehad Mi Yodea – it stops at the end of Grace After Meals.

“But the tunes really matter because,

Orthodox, Ultra-Orthodox because in our communities, you practice as you practice – you are tolerated for what you consider to be your level.”

Tallitot are di erent too

Sephardim wear a rectangular shawl that looks a bit like a scarf, while the Ashkenazi tallit is much larger. Sephardi boys will wear one from a young age, while their Ashkenazi counterparts start after their barmitzvah or marriage. Tefillin, too, have variations, from the style of writing on the parchment to the direction in which they are wound.

At weddings and other rites of passage, traditions vary depending on the families’ roots. Ashkenazi brides

Michael clarifies. “On Shabbat, the pinnacle of the Torah service is bringing the Torah back to the tevah [bimah] and inviting a

David Dangoor

David Dangoor’s family seder in 1974, celebrating his paternal grandparents’ escape from Iraq

The Dangoor family seder in 2015 was held in a hall to accommodate the 60 guests writers] Claudia Roden spices.”

Above: Karen Cinnamon at her Ashkenazi-style bedeken. Inset: My sister-in-law’s explanatory booklet

will often circle their groom three or seven times to symbolise commitment to and protection of him, but Maya was unconcerned about not circling Stephen when they wed in a Sephardi synagogue where it is not the custom. “I found it nice [that the synagogue was retaining its traditions] – it felt like something that ties back through history.”

Karen Cinnamon, who grew up with an Iraqi-born Israeli mother and a British Ashkenazi father with Polish and Romanian roots, showcases on her website, smashingtheglass.com, all types of Jewish weddings from around the world. They often feature a melding of Sephardi and Ashkenazi traditions and she says: “It’s exciting to see what’s possible within Judaism and that’s what’s so beautiful and must be celebrated.”

Some say they are drawn to Sephardic culture, because of its “warmth”. One Ashkenazi friend, whose husband is Israeli with Yemeni-Tunisian roots, says she has married into “amazing food – every colour of the rainbow – and a lot of fire”.

“Ashkenazim come from cold countries and I guess the stereotypical symptom of those places would be that the Europeans tend to be a bit more introverted,” my friend suggests. “They probably feel more strongly the weight of the Holocaust and there might be a stronger line of family trauma.

people. Jews talk with their hands, but Sephardim talk with their whole bodies.”

Karen, who also founded Your Jewish Life podcast and community to celebrate ‘living your Jewish life your way’, spent summers in Israel and formed a deep connection with her mother’s heritage.

Her Israeli family seders were large –around 50 people – and she describes them as a feast. “It’s less formal and feels more evolved, whereas there’s a sense that Ashkenazi culture holds on to what has always been done.”

“There’s more emotional connection,”

Lots of physical contact in Sephardi culture contrasts with the Anglo-Jewish tradition of being less demonstrative. “There’s more emotional connection,” says Maya. “There’s more hugging with friends and family – we’ll hug and kiss on the cheek, as do the guys at Sephardi synagogues.”

Sephardim come from hot countries, so perhaps

Ashkenazi culture is highly rated Comedy, meanwhile, is a feature of Ashkenazi culture that is highly rated, with Raymond arguing it is “better than anyone in any other culture in any other history”.

“And you can widen that in the entertainment history: the classic music of the Hollywood musicals, Gershwin and you name it…”.

speed of saying hamotzi (for the former it’s a “four-second event”, while for Sephardim it takes “exactly four and a half hours and the Ashkenazim are fainting”.

Poking fun at the differences between Ashkenazim and Sephardim is a go-to for Israeli-American

Modi rails on, comparing “a measly shekoyach” after a synagogue aliyah with the Sephardi “chazak u’baruch” (may you be strong and have courage).

But Yiddish, the Ashkenazi language of ancestors based on German and Hebrew, has been spread and adopted, with new interest in it being shown currently, according to Steve Ogin, chair of the Yiddish Café Trust. “There is nothing to beat reading a story of Sholem Aleichem in the original Yiddish. He was such a master at gently pulling everyone’s leg, including his own, and creating comic situations out of everyday life. His more serious works provide insights into an Eastern European Jewish world that was struggling to come to terms with modernity – which is our heritage.”

Of course, there have also been attempts at reviving Ladino, the language of Sephardi Jews of the Iberian Peninsula, which is now considered an endangered language but is heard on The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem.

Karen is keen to emphasise the unity of the Jewish people. “There have been debates about Sephardim being cooler and having better food, or that Ashkenazi culture is more mainstream but, and especially since October 7, we should consider and embrace what unites us, not what differentiates us,” she says. “We are one people and we must stop judging one another.”

Raymond agrees. “We, the Jewish people, are one family – am echad b’lev echad – one people, one heart.”

“amazing food – every colour of the rainbow – and a lot of fire”.

An Ashkenazi-style wedding

Comedian Modi

A Sephardi-style wedding

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There was a time not long ago when Ashkenazim and Sephardim were so far apart in their food choices that ne’er the chrayne would meet.

Claudia Roden CBE, cookbook writer and doyenne of Sephardi-Jewish cuisine, who has spent a lifetime gathering recipes from exiled and migrating families that would otherwise have disappeared forever, knows first-hand just how unreceptive Ashkenazi British Jews once were to foods deemed ‘exotic’.

Claudia was born in Cairo, Egypt, in 1936, and her family came from a richly-woven tapestry of Sephardic cultures – her father’s side were from Aleppo in Syria, some via Portugal and Italy, while her maternal grandmother’s family, of Iberian descent, came from Istanbul in Turkey and also from Iraq via India.

She came over first with her brothers Ellis and Zaki to study art in London; but within just a handful of years, her parents Cesar and Nelly Douek followed because they were exiled by Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser a er the Suez Canal crisis of 1956.

Having been uprooted from all they had ever known, the Doueks were keen to make friends and invited their Jewish neighbours over for tea to their home in Woodstock Road, Golders Green.

“We made vine leaves, cheese filo pastries, hummus – all the things that we would have had for mezze (tea) in my childhood Egypt,” Claudia delights in telling me in her Hampstead Garden Suburb home. But when the neighbours came in and saw the spread on the table, they were aghast. “Are you sure you’re Jewish?” they asked,

A Arabesque Perfect

The Egyptian queen of cooking Claudia Roden takes Francine Wolfisz through a lifetime of recipes

clearly expecting smoked salmon and chopped herring. While taken aback at the time, it was Claudia who seemingly had the last laugh. Every dish her parents served at that tea was included as a recipe in A Book of Middle Eastern Food, the bestselling seminal 1968 cookbook that launched her culinary writing career.

Moreover, the recipes later came to the attention of bosses at Marks & Spencer, who asked a Cypriot producer to turn them into their new mezze range. Those products – stu ed vine leaves and all – are still sold today in their thousands by the retailer.

So just how did British Jews go in just a few

generations from turning their noses up at anything other than salted fish and pickled vegetables to becoming a community where foods such as falafel, shakshuka and shawarma are fully embraced?

Claudia’s first book – and indeed the success of those that followed, including Mediterranean Cookery (which was accompanied by a BBC series), The Book of Jewish Food and Arabesque: A Taste of Morocco, Turkey and Lebanon – certainly had their part to play in expanding people’s curiosity and culinary horizons, in both the UK and the wider diaspora.

But the answer to how Sephardi cuisine rose in prominence in the UK also perhaps lies in why she wrote the books in the first place.

Just like her parents, others who arrived in Britain as expelled Jews from the Arab world in the post-war years found themselves longing for the life that had once been theirs. A huge part of that was to recreate the dishes they had eaten at home, lovingly made by matriarchs over generations, then passing the recipes down verbally from mother to daughter.

Claudia, now 87, looks back fondly at her childhood in Cairo, where a vibrant melting pot of Ottoman and Mediterranean cultures lived side by side.

She recalls: “As with all Sephardi communities, entertaining and hospitality were the most important thing of our culture. We entertained a lot, for mezze, for dinners, for Jewish festivals.

“We had a cook called Awad and he lived in a hut on the roof terrace. My mother spoke to him in Arabic, but at home with us she always spoke in French.

Claudia Roden loves to cook for her friends and family

out the dough like a

they were baked.”

“I was given little tasks to do, like making balls of almonds or ka’ak (small savoury rings), for which I had to roll out the dough like a little snake, make into a ring and dip it in seeds –cumin or sesame – before they were baked.”

call sensuous cuisine,”

Food, in many ways, reflected the hustle and bustle of old Cairo. “Our food was what you would call sensuous cuisine,” smiles Claudia. “It was full of fragrances, aromas and colour and plenty of herbs.”

Each family had their own way of cooking, influenced by whatever cultures had melded into the family genes.

were also no cookbooks from which they could learn.

In Egypt, recipes had been passed down and kept in families, Claudia explains. But sharing the recipes took on a new urgency once the community had dispersed.

“My mother wanted to make the Syrian food my father’s mother had made for him back in Egypt, so finding those recipes became my first and primary mission.”

The more she spoke to the newly-migrated Jews, the more it became apparent that giving her the recipes was their way of helping preserve their culture.

“I recall we didn’t have a fridge or freezer, but instead an ice box, with ice coming every day in a large block to keep the meat and fish cool.

“Our mothers didn’t work, none of the women in my family worked. We had a large family - my father was one of 10, while my mother was one of six – and I had many aunts. On special occasions, while the cook prepared the meals, the women would be in the dining room making things like stu ed vine leaves and little pastries, the kind of thing that was labour intensive. They would sit around and chat and gossip. For me, that was my experience of ‘cooking’.

She explains: “So diverse was Sephardi cuisine that it could vary not only from one country to another, but also from one city to another and even from one quarter of a city to another.”

Claudia’s immediate family mostly ate dishes of Syrian origin because of her paternal line, but one of her aunts made dishes stemming from Portugal and Livorno in Italy, from where the family had also originally descended.

These included Claudia’s now famous orange and almond cake, a Portuguese speciality.

“We also had dishes like calzones, which we always ate on a Thursday and was a kind of ravioli with cheese emanating from Livorno.”

When many of the Jewish community came to Britain as refugees in 1958, Claudia came to realise that not only did many long for the foods they were used to eating, but there

“This was more than just giving me a recipe,” she reflects. “We really needed this book; it was for all of us.”

Some were sceptical that A Book of Middle Eastern Food would be popular with culinary-minded readers. In Israel, her publishers bluntly told Claudia that they did not expect to sell many copies.

“They said the new state wanted people to leave their Arabic culture behind. But when the book came out, still it sold and it never stopped selling.”

Fi y years on, Claudia’s book has not only preserved a multitude of Sephardi recipes for generations, but has also proven to be a source of inspiration for other chefs around the world, including Yotam Ottolenghi.

As we near the end of this fascinating whirlwind tour of Jewish history and Sephardi cuisine, I come to bemoan the fact that, as a mostly Ashkenazi Jew, my culinary o erings are somewhat bland and unexciting in comparison.

Not so, argues Claudia, who reveals Ashkenazi food is actually far more interesting than many of us might know.

“Did you know fried fishballs are only in England? No other Jewish community has them,” she says. “And these actually come from the Portuguese method of deep-fried fish. Sponge cake and almond macaroons also have their roots in Portugal. Then we have challah, which is a special braided bread that originally came from medieval Germany.”

As Claudia speaks, her passion for food and where it originates from is clearly discernible. She intends her next book to delve more deeply into the stories behind the people who, over the years, have given her so many valuable recipes.

She’s also still discovering new regional dishes from the Middle East that have not yet been documented.

“The other day, I did a recipe of beans with a yoghurt and tahina sauce, with pine nuts and also a little pomegranate syrup dribbling sauce on top. Gosh, that was marvellous,” exudes Claudia.

It’s safe to say the culinary maven, mother of three and grandmother of six still loves cooking for others.

“I adore cooking actually,” corrects Claudia. “I’m 87 and it’s my way of becoming absorbed in something that brings me pleasure, by cooking for the people I love. As they say, what else do we have to give in life other than good food?”

cultures had melded into

Claudia’s famous orange and almond cake

Ka’ak are savoury biscuits rolled in cumin or seasame seeds

Top: The Douek family pictured in Cairo, Egypt. Above: Claudia and her brothers in Cairo

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Food for the

Brighter days mean sunnier dishes. Louisa Walters looks at where to eat this spring

The famous flatbreads come to Fitzrovia! Brothers Josh and Paul Katz, together with Mattia Bianchi, the trio behind Berber & Q and Shawarma Bar, have opened a second outpost of their much-loved Eastern Mediterranean Queen’s Park restaurant Carmel, this time in the West End. We’ve come to expect the small plates-sharing concept from this team but now they are in a much bigger venue as the new restaurant has 95 covers. Dishes such as lamb tartare with amba, pickled cucumber, challah and za’atar, or sea bream with honey, lemon butter and fennel play out next to unique pasta combos, such as ricotta agnolotti with confit tomato, wild oregano and lemon, plus, of course, ‘those’ flatbreads topped with lamb prosciutto, anchovy and chilli butter, or cod’s roe with potato, rosemary and bottarga. Among the desserts is a tahini and honey tart. Just wow. At weekends, there’s brunch with tasty egg dishes, wine plays a key role and there’s a semi-private dining area that seats 30.

Now that Ottolenghi has opened at Bicester Village, the shopping haven is a foodies’

paradise. The legendary salads, larger plates and those epic pastries are all there for breakfast, lunch and dinner infused with Middle Eastern flavours, plus we’ve been promised a few Bicester ‘exclusives’. This ninth opening for the much-loved chef is the largest Ottolenghi in the group, and there’s a lovely big terrace that will make summer trips to the outlet centre even more desirable. There’s wine, cookbooks, tableware and packaged goods to take home (or consume in the car!).

There’s only a week or so left (less if you’re KLP) to catch Wilde’s, the Jew(ish) deli popup that everyone has been talking about at the Rose & Crown pub in Kentish Town. Chef Ollie Gratter is serving up salt beef Reuben sandwiches, latkes, frickles (fried pickles) as well as furikake salmon bagels with a Japanese twist, turkey challah sandwiches and chocolate babka. He’s there on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, Thursday and Friday lunch and dinner, Saturday and Sunday all day until 28 April.

New York-inspired deli food is here longerterm at Freddie’s in Belsize Park. Jack and Amelia Graham have named the restaurant after their baby son and are serving up salt beef sandwiches, smoked fish platters, bagels, a Bloody Mary shakshuka, schnitzel, latkes, cholent and Jack’s 96-year-old grandmother’s chicken soup. With cheesecake and honey cake among the dessert options, you may feel like you’re in grandma’s front room but this is a bright, spacious, modern unit with outdoor seating for warmer days.

Cacao Tree in Borehamwood has launched a daily breakfast/brunch menu. In true Cacao style, Kushan Marthelis has created dishes bursting with tempting flavours and interesting combinations. Summer Beauty features roasted sweet potato with poached eggs, smoked salmon, avocado and pomegranate, while Blond Lady is grilled sourdough with spinach, poached eggs, paprika and parsnip crisps. There is an epic shakshuka, a full English with chicken and apricot sausages and brioche French toast with cinnamon and maple syrup.

Now the days are longer, if you fancy a drive out of town, you’ll find that a cup of tea is infused with a whole new flavour when it’s taken in the Great Hall of a home in Berkshire originally built in 1666 by the 2nd Duke of Buckingham for his mistress. Cliveden House is now a magnificent hotel sent in nearly 400 acres of National Trust grounds. It is famously the former home of the fabulously wealthy Astor family, who shipped in accoutrements from their other homes all over the world to enhance it, many of which remain in situ today, including

floor-to-ceiling fireplaces and the intricate panelling in one of the dining rooms. Despite the grandeur, afternoon tea is a relaxed affair, with chatty staff talking you through the various delicacies, among them a 24-carat gold pickled egg representing the Octagon Chapel where William Waldorf rests, and an artistic fruit cake showcasing the ceiling mural that’s on the grand staircase portraying the Duchess of Sutherland’s four children as the seasons of the year. As for the brew itself, the Classic Tregothnan is the first tea produced on British soil, in Cornwall, and is the perfect accompaniment to finger sandwiches and scones with cream, jam or lemon curd. But this is the sort of place where, when they ask if you would like to start with a glass of champagne, you feel it would be rude not to.

The unstoppable Honey & Co has opened a bakery pop-up across the road from their newest restaurant on Lamb’s Conduit Street. Sandwiches, breads, babka, burek and more are displayed on the counter, while the shelves are filled with cookies, snacks and storecupboard essentials.

Kapara in Soho is now open daily, so you can have a Tel Aviv fantasy every day, and at weekends you can enjoy sister restaurant Bala Baya’s brunch menu there too.

Karma Bread in Hampstead, famous for its bread, has launched a carb-free lunch option in the form of Skinny Queen – poached eggs on wilted spinach with roast veg, cumin and dill. But there’s also a pretzel challah dog sabich, Yemenite tuna salad pretzel dog sandwich and Karma Royale.

Lilienblum in Shoreditch has a new spring menu and there’s something different coming for dinner at Miznon in Notting Hill.

Carmel

Wilde’s

Cacao Tree

Freddie’s

Cliveden House

Ottolenghi

Carmel

But first...

While I’m firmly committed to getting my five a day, it seems that most around me have moved on –to three a week. I’m on fruit and veg – they are on coffee, spending an average of £530 on takeaway coffees each year to get their caffeine fix. And then there’s the in-office cup, the at-home cup, the afterdinner cup and so it goes on.

Coffee mixes well with milk, sugar and celebrities, with George Clooney being the face of Nespresso (reportedly earning $40 million (£32m) from the collaboration) and De Longhi signing up Brad Pitt to act as home barista .

served in the coffee houses that were springing up everywhere. By the 17th century, coffee had made its way to Europe. It was already popular among Jews, with the Chief Rabbi of Egypt, Rabbi Avraham ben Dovid Yitzchaki (1661–1729), referring to it as the ‘Jewish beverage’.

LOUISA WALTERS LOOKS AT THE JEWISH CONNECTION TO COFFEE

for Jewish diets as in all its forms it is considered kosher and indeed parev, as long as no milk or cream is added. It’s also kosher for Passover, although decaffeinated coffee is often processed with ethyl acetate, which can be derived from chametz, so check the hechser when buying it this week.

top-end lots. Difference Coffee was the first company in the UK to offer award-winning speciality coffees in machine-compatible capsules direct to the consumer. It now supplies Michelin starred restaurants and luxury hotels

Coffee is the most popular drink worldwide (after water), with more than 400 billion cups consumed each year. Big numbers for a little bean that originated in the Ethiopian highlands and then spread east to the Arabian Peninsula.

According to some historians, coffee was first introduced in England by a Jew named Jacob, who opened the Angel Inn coffee house in Oxford in 1650. The nearby Queen’s Lane Coffee House was opened by Cirques Jobson, a Levantine Jew from Syria, in 1654, and claims to be Europe’s oldest coffee house to continually serve coffee.

It was not until the 15th century that roasted coffee beans, and the beverage made out of them, became popular,

‘Runners’ would go from café to café to keep patrons up to date with the latest news. As the admission price was so low, anyone could frequent coffee houses, and they soon became connected to equality and republicanism, which concerned Charles II so much that banning them was considered in 1675. Owing to public outcry, the motion was withdrawn. The popularity of coffee houses decreased around the 18th century, as tea became more popular.

Coffee is pretty trouble-free

Israeli-born Amir Gehl, founder of Difference Coffee, came from a long line of tobacco producers. A committed tea drinker, he was no fan of coffee, finding it tasted “burnt and bitter”, but when his wife bought a Nespresso machine he started to experiment, determined to find a capsule he liked. Then he started ordering coffee in restaurants and realised that what he was making at home was far superior even to what he was served in the higher end restaurants.

This sparked an interest in the bean trade and he went on a mission to make truly good coffee available to the masses. He hired Jonny England, one of the most prestigious roasters in the world, and sought out the best beans, snatching the

“Coffee is the second-most traded commodity in the world after oil,” he says. “That means there are an awful lot of brands out there selling coffee. Like wine, 99 percent of coffee sold is of commodity grade and just one percent qualifies for the Grand Cru Classé. In the world of Arabica, this is called speciality grade coffee. What we specialise in is identifying the absolute best lots of that one percent – the top one percent of the best one percent. In this sense, we literally buy the tastiest coffee in the world.”

In 1994, brothers Yariv and Sahar Shefa opened a coffee shop called Aroma on Hillel Street in Jerusalem. They fell out in 1999, which led to the formation of separate chains: Aroma Tel Aviv (run by Sahar) operating in Tel Aviv, and Aroma Israel (run by Yariv) operating in the rest of the world. Widely recognised as the most popular coffee brand in Israel, Aroma has 153 outlets across the country.

Back here in the UK, more than 70 per cent of homes have a coffee machine and sales of these reached more than £160m in 2023. As a committed Nescafé

Gold Blend drinker at home, with the occasional ‘skinny capp’ for socialising purposes, and only ever a fresh mint tea after meals, I am not the target market, but if I were I’d be sure to enter the competition opposite. If you’re going to have an appliance you may as well make it a Miele, and if you’re going to make coffee at home, you may as well have a machine to do it for you.

Milk, no sugar for me.

Queen’s Lane Coffee House, Oxford

Aroma coffee, Israel

Amir Gehl

George Clooney reportedly earns £32m from a collaboration with Nespresso

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IN the case of Nick Collins, a lighting specialist and electrician, just the one, writes Debbie Collins.

Growing up in the ‘Beattie Generation’, we were geared towards getting an ‘ology’ and nabbing jobs typically pushed by the school careers o icer in medicine, law and finance. An admirable living for sure, but how many of them truly love their jobs? In a time where mental health really does matter, 100 percent job satisfaction is a common theme for this group of gra ers who don’t mind getting their hands dirty…

How many Jews to change a lightbulb?

The worst part is getting a face full of cobwebs and covered in crap, o en quite literally if I’m working with sewage. My advice? Buy a DIY book. It has everything you need to do really basic stu and most problems can be avoided!

NICK COLLINS – Electrician

As a kid, I was always taking things apart and fixing them – I still do that! I’d been in lighting through the family business and, in 2007, I shi ed into electrical installations. I think it surprises people that I’m involved in the design and the physical installation and I’ve worked on some of the most

incredible properties in London, including one in which we installed £150,000 worth of lighting – it was spectacular. There’s no better feeling than the big reveal of switching on the lights and seeing clients over the moon with my work. The downside is having to work outside in winter and getting older really takes a toll on my knees and hips. My advice? Don’t work with cowboys.

SCOTT KAYE – Handyman

I’ve been doing this for about seven years as a change from sales. I was the typical kid fixing things and playing with Meccano. My job definitely draws interest from wives bemoaning that their other halves (o en Jewish husbands!) are useless around the home. I once retrieved a diamond ring that had gone down the plughole – I saved the day and the marriage! Property maintenance throws up challenges, to which I love finding solutions, especially if someone says it can’t be done.

SOPHIE YERSHON –Gardener

I’ve been doing this o icially since Covid and love the landscaping and styling aspect. As a kid, I was always in the garden making mudpies and mini rockeries. People are always surprised by my job – it’s not o en you see a Jewish girl schlepping giant bags of compost and planting up flower beds. We once found a rat in a famous client’s garden – we got rid of it, but only in exchange for a selfie! I always love installation day and seeing everything come together –it outweighs the sadness of never being able to have my nails done. The admin stu isn’t fun but it has to be done. My advice? ‘Grow your own’ if you can.

ELLIE TAYLOR – Decorator

seeing everything come together –

I’ve been doing it successfully for four years, having worked previously in events and always being creative with an eye for design. When Covid killed the events industry, I started doing DIY through watching YouTube. Clients are always shocked

when they find out I’m Jewish, let alone a woman working such a physical job. It earns me a lot of trust, especially with female clients as there’s no intimidation, with one even having me move in and dogsit for her while she was away. It’s tough when you’re squeezed on a

Nick Collins

Scott Kaye

Ellie Taylor

Sophie Yershon

Johnny Haik

does it take lightbulb?

job – some people want more than originally quoted, but I truly love my job. My advice? Buy the best tools you can a ord for DIY and keep a list of your property’s paint colours – it’s never ‘just white paint’.

JOHNNY HAIK – Builder

As a kid, I would always try to figure out how stu works – your hands do the work, but the brain figures it out first. My dad’s a builder and I’ve been going 17 years now and proud of the company I’ve built, focusing on refurbishments and property maintenance. You have to be prepared with every single tool for the job, so it’s pretty annoying when stu gets nicked. My advice? Don’t do it yourself – call the pros.

NICK HARRIS – Window Cleaner

A er working in retail and IT recruitment, I wanted something I could do for myself and window cleaning suited. My wife was my biggest encourager as I do all of the cleaning around the home – I’m quite finickity. I’ve been doing this job successfully for 18 years and have seen some things in my time, including ‘forgetful’ clients, who

take a shower just as I’m doing the upstairs windows – which aren’t frosted I might add! The summer months are great for work; obviously winter weather tends to make my job tricky, plus I’ve fallen o my ladder a couple of times. Par for the course though. My advice? Whatever it is, just give it a go!

ADAM GOLDMAN – Plumber

I was the typical Lego-playing kid, always fixing things and good with my hands. I knew I didn’t want to go down the traditional university route and follow my parents – my dad’s an investment banker and

MICHAEL BEN HAIM –Carpenter

I studied cabinet-making in Israel in high school and, ever since then, I’ve had a love for the feel of wood, working in carpentry and kitchenfitting for 45 years. I get complete job satisfaction and I truly find it relaxing. My advice? If you’re not sure, call a professional.

my mum’s a mortgage broker. I wanted to do something hands-on and practical and I love working for myself. When clients find out I’m a Jewish, it’s always a talking point. During Covid, I was o en the only visitor for elderly clients and my ‘quick job’ would turn into another half-hour because they wanted me to sit and chat over a cup of tea and a biscuit. My advice? Leave it to the experts.

JOEL WOOLF – Handyman

What started as a bit of a sideline at weekends and evenings doing favours for family and friends has given me nine years of steady work. Even now, if someone says they’ve got an Ikea flatpack to build, I’m there! I really love my job, exhausting as it is sometimes. I’d say 95 percent of my business is word of mouth – the north London Jewish community can be your best friend or worst enemy.

Since 7 October, a lot of clients, especially the elderly ones, feel more comfortable with me in their home because I’m Jewish. My advice? Watch YouTube for simple stu , but don’t touch the plumbing or electrics.

SIMON LEACH –Heating engineer

JASON ROTH – Mechanic

I’ve been in the motor trade for 30 years, working in the family business, so I was always around cars from a very young age. Working with my family isn’t such a bad thing and it’s a convenient trade, with loyal and longstanding customers. Winter is the toughest part because no one wants to work in a chilly garage! My advice? Don’t neglect your vehicle.

Originally I was in product development, got made redundant, got married and bought a house. It needed everything doing, so I gutted it and got to work, employing contractors to help with areas I couldn’t handle. I recall paying the heating engineer the most money, so I retrained as one and, 15 years later, alongside some electrical work, it still suits me. You o en have to mediate when dealing with tricky customers. When my kids were younger, the ‘mummy network’ at the school gates was a brilliant source of income and I remember going to work on a flat and the neighbour downstairs was supergrumpy about the disturbance from upstairs when trying to fix the problem. He eventually became a really good customer of mine and actually brought me in even more business through the locals in Muswell Hill. Happy customers means you’ve done a good job and I’ve never had to advertise. My advice? Fix a problem straight away before it ends up causing you more problems and more money.

advice? Fix a problem straight away

Nick Harris Adam Goldman

Simon Leach

Jason Roth

Michael Ben Haim

Fine Art, Antiques and Collectables

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HOMES

Louisa Walters looks at ways to enhance your home as the days get longer

WATERWORKS

If you’re updating your shower space, you’re probably having the ‘enclosure vs wetroom’ conversation. Jo Sangster, senior designer at Ripples London, says there are pros and cons to both but it’s all about what works for you. “An enclosure is a much more budgetfriendly option. With no complex installation and few materials required, shower trays can easily be incorporated within a bathroom with minimal hassle. There is a range of colours to match your floor colour, creating an almost seamless finish. This means you can very easily create the look of a wetroom without having to allocate a large proportion of your budget to creating one.” The enclosure is also better in small bathrooms and, if you utilise a space in the corner of a room and pick a corner-shaped enclosure, it won’t impinge much into the room. Wetrooms, on the other hand, can be made completely bespoke to suit your bathroom. “The great thing about a wetroom floor is that it creates lots of options,

so you don’t feel like your space restricts you,” says Jo. It is important to check you have the correct gradient for a wetroom floor for the waste to drain away. You can install a heated membrane under the wetroom floor and behind the wall tiles, which dries out the space quickly and creates a warm feeling underfoot when you step out of the shower. ripplesbathrooms.com

COSY KITCHENS

Creating kitchens within small spaces can be a challenge, but when you work with a company like Poggenpohl, this won’t affect the overall design. In a first floor apartment in a Georgian townhouse it was a nonnegotiable that the period features of the building and features such as the original sash windows would be complemented in the kitchen design. The most important thing for the client was the fluidity of the kitchen through to the living space, but also that there would also be a separate area for cooking. Not a problem! A Crittall framework was installed to create a glass wall between the kitchen and living area, which looks really striking, and it was incorporated into the design by using the top of the arch as a focal point and making the wall units to the same height. Tall ceilings meant additional storage could be added but, so as not to overpower the space, a gap was left at the top. Fluted glass doors keep things traditional while open shelving makes a pretty feature and stops the small

space feeling too enclosed. The breakfast station has pocket doors to hide smaller appliances from view and keep worktops tidy. poggenpohl.com

EXPERT DESIGN

DREAM MACHINE

You might not be in the market for a whole new kitchen, but perhaps you do need a new appliance or a repair on an existing one and MA Wash Vac in Edgware has been fulfilling both requirements for 30 years. Selling all the major brands, the expert team really do know their stuff and will advise you well. As a member of Euronics, Europe’s largest independent electrical buying group, you know you’ll be getting competitive prices, but also great local service you can trust. The repair service has a fixed labour charge so you will always know what it is going to cost you and you can normally get a same day/ next day service. MA Wash Vac is very familiar with supplying Shabbat-friendly appliances and know exactly what is compliant. The showroom has a wide range of built-in and freestanding appliances to look at with the latest technology, such as Neff’s Slide and Hide oven door and the Siemens Roast Probe, helping you to get perfect results every time. mawashvac.co.uk

WINDOWS ON THE WORLD

Four decades of experience in designing and delivering the perfect kitchen, no matter what the size or budget, means that Cameo should be on your list if you’re looking for a new one. Established in 1993, the company has an exceptional reputation and the fact that almost all of their work is the result of personal recommendation is testament to this. The Waltham Abbey showroom is arranged over two floors and features a wide range of kitchen styles and appliances. Here you can meet the experienced team of designers and special advisers who offer good old-fashioned service on a product that is exceptional value for money; Cameo designer kitchens can be a similar price to those from large retail chains and builders’ merchants. Many luxury products, styles and bespoke sizes are available that competitors cannot offer. The designers present detailed specifications and costings, visiting on-site or working from architect’s drawings and using computer-aided design systems to prepare stunning illustrations of proposal, to ensure you get the kitchen of your dreams. cameokitchens.co.uk

It looks like it could be curtains for traditional blinds, as Shaded Blinds has introduced the latest breakthrough in window furnishings: the Waved Vertical Blind by Allusion Blinds. Imagine the graceful allure of voile curtains seamlessly merged with the functionality of blinds. This is a visionary window treatment that redefines the art of light control in your kitchen, bathroom or living areas. You can choose to have a soft glow of natural light or have shade from the glare of the sun with this really attractive blind design, which is remarkably affordable. Shaded Blinds also has a comprehensive range of curtain and blind styles from traditional draperies to modern roller blinds. shadedblinds.co.uk

A wetroom by Ripples

Poggenpohl

MA Wash Vac

Cameo Kitchens

Window treatment from Shaded Blinds

Poggenpohl Hampstead

477-481 Finchley Road

London NW3 6HS

phone 020 7794 7801

hampstead@poggenpohl.com

www.hampstead.poggenpohl.com

It was last February that I was diagnosed with high risk Neuroblastoma.

The diagnosis was a real shock as I had no symptoms apart from a tummy ache.

I knew about Chai because they’d helped us when my grandpa was unwell.

So it felt really good to know that they would be able to help us all again.

For Dad it was counselling, for Mum it was therapeutic massage and for me and my siblings, a combination of talking, music, art and play therapy.

Thank you Chai.

Ari, 13

WISHING YOU A HAPPY AND KOSHER PESACH

To fi nd out more about Chai’s specialised services, please call our freephone helpline on 0808 808 4567 or visit chaicancercare.org or scan the QR code

It felt really good that Chai was there for me and all my family

A MEMORY FOR MASON BLOOM

I’ve been the treasurer of Israel Guide Dog Centre UK for several years, but had never visited. So when the events of October 7 compelled me to go to Israel to show solidarity and volunteer, it was also an opportunity to see what goes on at the centre and how it profoundly changes people’s lives. There was another reason for going. My great friend Martin Segal, chief executive of the charity in the UK, sadly died in January and he gave me his blessing to go, which meant so much to me. I would loved to have made the trip with Martin.

The centre, based in Beit Oved, is specifically designed to help blind or visually-impaired people move around as easily and as safely as possible, and I was incredibly impressed by how much love and e ort has gone into developing the campus. It is both an oasis of calm and a hive of activity.

The nursery is where breeding and whelping happens, and I was fortunate to spend time with a litter of 11 four-week-old Golden Retriever puppies – a heart-melting moment. There was also a cohort of Labradors that were in their final stages of training before being partnered.

The guide dogs train on an obstacle course and I experienced that blindfolded to see what it was like to walk with a dog – immediately realising how challenging it is to be blind.

There is also a unit set up as a bedroom, where service dogs are trained to help Israel Defence Force soldiers su ering from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). I witnessed a dog automatically going over to comfort someone having a panic attack or nightmare.

At Ben Gurion University, in Be’er Sheva, I met a group of students who have volunteered as puppy raisers for the centre. In the university grounds, I observed the centre’s trainers at work, guiding and encouraging the students into good behaviours with the puppies. It was amazing to see how well-behaved the dogs were when brought together as a group.

A highlight of the trip was cycling with the centre’s associated Canvelo tandem group. Cycling was one of Martin’s passions and he rode with the team on many occasions. I was in awe at how courageous the blind cyclists were as they sped down a steep hill on the back of a tandem, showing absolute confidence in their lead rider.

I also met one of the centre’s partnerships, guide dog Roly and his owner Dan Layani, who lost his sight in the 1982 Lebanon War. Dan explained to me the di erence a guide dog has made to his life, giving him back his independence and restoring his confidence. I felt privileged to spend time with him.

The centre wouldn’t function as it does without the incredible people who lead, work and volunteer there. I have never met such a wonderful group of individuals who, together, make such a positive di erence to the lives of those they help. Martin had such strong relationships with the team and made such a positive impact that I felt their loss acutely when we spoke about him. Martin’s memory lives on with everyone at the centre and with the guide dogs and PTSD and emotional support dog users who have been helped by the charity. He lives on in my heart too. Israelguidedog.org.uk

What’s Bubbling

Owners tend to follow the pack when picking a groomer, o en settling for a popular parlour rather than the best place for their dog. Remember, popular means busy, so your fur baby might be groomed at speed or spend too long waiting in a crate to be seen. That doesn’t happen at newly-opened Bark and Bubbles as the policy is one dog at a time. This allows groomer Amy to style a client carefully – so no nasty nicks – and hand out treats and cuddles. As the parlour is located at Mill Hill’s Waggingtons: Dog Day Care and Boarding, a pup can spend the day with pals and leave groomed at pick up. With two Golden Retrievers of her own – Milo and Monty – Amy can handle dogs big and small, and she adores them all, so it’s like leaving your pet with an auntie as appreciative client Albus can confirm. amy.barkandbubbles@outlook. com or call: 07436502100

Give a dog a home

It’s impossible to look at this line-up and not cry. Every one of them needs rehoming and there are many more not pictured who need the same. Rescued by All Dogs Matter, the charity works in and around London to transform the lives of unwanted and abandoned dogs. They even rehome dogs from overseas and, in 2023, placed 331 dogs with new owners. Being passionate about dog welfare is what drives the charity which never puts down a healthy dog, nor do they discriminate against a dog’s breed or age. The team and volunteers are simply committed to making sure that dogs have happy and healthy lives and are determined to ensure the best outcomes. Of course the best of all outcomes is when a potential new owner arrives and a dog leaves with them for its forever home. alldogsmatter.co.uk

PAWS FOR PRAYERS

A toast is long overdue to Edgware and Hendon Reform Synagogue for celebrating the role of animals in our lives. On one particular Shabbat, 32 dogs and their human companions attended the first outdoor Bark Mitzvah – “a joyful and supportive occasion” according to Rabbi Mark Goldsmith, who chose the readings, blessings and songs. “You would be amazed at how well behaved they were,” he said of the dogs that ranged from lap-sized to Alsatians. “We added a doggie Kiddush, with vegetarian dog snacks and another

wonderful feature of the Bark Mitzvah is how it includes neurodiverse people, for whom their pet relationship is a special support.” EHRS has also done a Cat Mitzvah on Zoom with members at home. “That was lovely too,” added Rabbi Mark, with member Andie Lucas declaring that “the first Shabbat in Elul at EHRS has now been designated our Bark Mitzvah service.”

Members of EHRS celebrate the pooch

At work: Amy of Bark and Bubbles

Mason, Dan and Roly by the Western Wall

A Golden Retriever puppy

Albus in the bath

Albus looking smart

Students volunteer as puppy raisers

Beauty at

There should be an expiry date on birthday cards embossed with numbers. Double digits on badges are loved by kids but, a er 21, the last thing any adult wants is a fluorescent figure reminding them they’re old. At least I didn’t.

Of course, it was lovely to receive so many flowers and birthday wishes from friends three months ago. I just wish they had opted for a cute dog card than one with a 6 and a 0. So resistant was I to referencing my soon-to-be age, I named my celebration trip ‘Six Decades’ on WhatsApp and packed the schedule with bars and late nights. Even if I was zonked by midnight, the intention to stay up had been logged. I’d sooner be woke at 60 than in need of waking up. Anyway, I don’t feel my age, though I’ve no idea how a 60-year-old should feel. But, according to Generation Alpha’s new rules, if you feel it, you can be it – so I’m sticking with 45.

Keeping one’s age secret is impossible for celebs and for Jewish stars more so because yachnas like to broadcast that Paula Abdul tuned 61 and Lisa Kudrow’s 60th was last July. It’s nice knowing a ‘Friend’ is a peer, but also disconcerting in the same way that Jane Seymour (born Joyce Penelope Frankenberg) is 73 and Jennifer Grey, Dirty Dancing’s ‘Baby in the corner’ is now 64.

Age is such a small word for something so big. It really should have more letters, like ‘sesquipedalianism’, but that’s taken and means a ‘tendency to use long words’. So ‘age’ is what we’re stuck with and it means more with every passing year, and the fact that I’m now 10 years older than my father was when he died might explain my reluctance to own the number.

The Divine Presence

However, Judaism values ageing in the Torah and Pirkei Avot 5:21 mentions 50 as the suggested age for giving counsel. It also states in Leviticus 19:32 that respect is due to those of my age and older with “rise before

the aged and show deference to those who are old” and Midrash Tanchuma says “one should greet an elderly person as one greets the Shekhinah, the Divine Presence.”

To be greeted like a “divine presence” certainly takes the edge o turning 60, so I will pass this on to the girls I’ve known since I was 11, who pretty much look like they did at school, at least to me. Hopefully they’d say the same of me or stay quiet, which is the reason we’re still friends. Being the fairest in the land was not me then or ever, but looking in the mirror at 60 isn’t as much fun as it used to be.

Things have moved about, lines have lengthened and my chin is reaching for my toes. I definitely look less like the ‘hot’ me, so I admire Jewish actress Helen Hunt for sharing a make-up-free selfie on her 60th. To me, she looked only a bit younger than her age, but fans accused her of having plastic surgery. If she did then the results are more commendable than Madonna’s flattened face at 60, but now even Barbra Streisand at 81 is sporting Hollywood pu y.

Salmon sperm is not for bagels

60

SALMON SPERM, TORAH WISDOM AND WEARING ELECTRIC BLUE. BRIGIT GRANT FINDS WAYS TO DEAL WITH SIX DECADES

Not many older gals have the confidence of Dame Helen Mirren to still wear a bikini, but at 78 she needed prosthetics to look like Golda Meir at 75. A tough life aged Golda, but that was how a lot of septuagenarians looked before the advent of Botox and salmon sperm filler, which is endorsed by Jennifer Aniston.

And that’s what I had – the cat’s out the bag, not because it smelt fish as.I can vouch that it has no scent at all, as I had the treatment a er seeing a study of 2,000 women who revealed they felt invisible by the time they were 51. I realised something had to be done if I didn’t want to disappear at 60.

The Queen of Beauty (queenofbeautyuk. com) on Baker Street is aptly named for a ‘divine presence’ and aesthetician Polina Chayevich is very respectful of female faces. Many of her successes are in the

Paula Abdul

Helen Hunt

Helen Mirren

Salmon sperm treatment

Jennifer Grey

Lisa Kudrow

Jane Seymour

10 (studio10beauty.com) perked my interest as founder Grace Fodor has a proage philosophy, with the hashtag ‘beauty that comes with age’

album she shares with me, of before and a er, that show improvements that even include nose jobs. Done only with Botox and filler, hooks are smoothed and bumps removed without the use of a knife. Convinced Polina is the Michelangelo of makeovers, I went with her suggestions, which she assured would be e ective but not obvious. For the troubling vertical line above the top lip it was Botox into the tiny muscles. “Be prepared for a little swell and water leaking when you drink,” she said. Neither occurred thank goodness.

Still a few years shy of 60, Grace is bolshy about ageing, and is an instant boost for a sheepish 60-year-old by refusing to accept that women should dress ‘age appropriate’.

She says: “It could not make for a more dull passage of time so, as I make my way through midlife into old age, I will continue to wear whatever I choose.”

Aestheticians typically prolong appointments, but Polina is fast, fastidious and gentle. As scary as the multi threads of polylactic acid look, I felt nothing, and even if I did it was all for the sake of forsaken gravity. Once in the skin, the body is prompted to produce more collagen, resulting first in improved texture and tone and, over time, new collagen creates a firmer, youthful face. With the farewell to saggy skin underway, it was time for the salmon sperm, aka polymerised polynucleotides, which is not for bagels, but has similar DNA to ours.

One of the few products to be used under eyes, it stimulates collagen and elastin and attracts water molecules that plump up the skin. Warning me that I would see no immediate change, I’m happy to report the dark troughs are fading and there’s growing tightness under my chin. Oh, and Polina is coming to live with me.

Grace also chose to create beauty products for mature skin, knowing that with age comes thinner skin, dark circles and loss of fatty tissue in eyelids that makes them more prevalent.

“A good concealer to brighten the eye area and smooth the skin is a must,” she says. Colleague Louisa swears by eyelid strips to li her one droopy lid and even showed me, so I showed her Studio 10’s flawless foundation, hydra li corrector and plumping blush, which puts youthful peach back into my cheeks.

For extra plump in north London, I’ve never been able to resist a Cetuem Gold Facial. Andria is the only beautician who ever gets a reaction from my husband; by that I mean he notices how much brighter I look a er a full hour of being drenched in products made by this family of biochemists. (020 8368 0008 / cetuem. com) I doubt that the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had too many facials before entering the US Supreme Court at the age of 60. Rarely out of black, we can only surmise what her seasonal colouring was but, at 60, I now know I’m ‘sultry winter’, which I share with Gal Gadot and others with darker skin.

Back at home, the face work continued with zeal, belying my age. The handheld Israeli designed NEWA (£249 newabeauty. co.uk) that is always by my bed had not been used, but I stepped it up a er the treatments to further tighten and li ‘under the neck’. Trust me, this seriously good device has a 3DEEP radio frequency that generates heat to rebuild collagen and I saw my face change shape in a week when I first got it.

I’ve also taken to wearing patches – not nicotine, but ones to rejuvenate by the Mellow Patch Company (themellowpatchcompany.com), which delivers a supply of anti-ageing properties, such as antioxidant pomegranate extract, natural energiser ginseng for vitality, green tea, which reduces inflammation, and nourishing blackberry extract. I’ve combined it with their facial serum too, but I’m finding the patches are helping with tiredness, which is constant at 60.

#beautythatcomeswithage

Inheriting my mother’s make-u bag when she died made me realise how young she looked at 78. Only Nivea touched her skin and she rarely changed brands because she knew what suited her. I thought I did too but, never one for favourites, Studio

Your seasonal colouring is dependent upon your genetics and House of Colour image consultant Fiona Ingham determined mine by trialling a spectrum of colours against my skin. Until that moment I’d never thought about which colours suit me best; I just got dressed. As luck would have it, black, grey and white are right for me – and what I always wear, although Fiona’s analysis introduced purple, green and ice aqua, which I will certainly wear if I can find it.

House of Colour (houseofcolour.co.uk) does make-up, too, and matches it to your season, but the must-buy is its silky primer, which even makes a di erence without make-up. When Fiona produced a swathe of electric blue as one of my colours, I was instantly reminded of a silk dress I had once bought in the identical shade. The night I wore it, I got so many compliments, but I was also 23. If the electric blue dress I’ve since ordered has the same e ect, I will embrace 60. Rock on, 1964!

Grace Fodor Sultry winter Gal Gadot

Carole Grant

So rose red blush

Medium concealer

Lipstick

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Plumping Blush Glow

Studio 10 products

NEWA

House of Colour products

Hydra li corrector

Skin Repair Perfect Canvas Treatment foundation

LOUISA WALTERS

TOURS THE REGION THAT BOASTS 10 OF THE PRETTIEST VILLAGES IN FRANCE

As Vianne Rocher in the movie Chocolat, Juliette Binoche fell in love with a fictional village in the Dordogne, but I fell in love with the real thing – and not just one village either, for each little hamlet along this winding river in the south-west of France is prettier than the one before it. If you like castles, medieval cities, foie gras and tru les, you will love it too.

The only thing this exquisitely beautiful area had been missing was a luxury hotel, but the Pruneyac family has seen to that, with the opening (in 2022) of Domaine de Rochebois, a 40-bedroom boutique property set on a stunning estate with a nine-hole golf course.

About an hour’s drive from Bergerac airport, Rochebois is the kind of hotel where, once you enter your supremely comfortable bedroom decorated in a calming colour palette of pastel neutrals with French furniture and top-level bedding, and open the doors on to your terrace you simply won’t want to leave. And with a gourmet restaurant recently opened under the auspices of Michelin-starred chef Adrien Soro, who trained under Joël Robuchon and Alain Ducasse, casual dining available at The Wedge restaurant on the golf course, plus an outdoor pool, a spa and a kids’ club, you really don’t need to.

A river runs through it

castles (1,000 of them) and small towns. Among the 154 villages featured on the ‘Most Beautiful Villages of France’ list, 10 are along the Dordogne.

A er breakfast on the terrace at Rochebois – it was still warm enough in September to eat outside – we headed to the market in the village of Saint-Cyprien, fondly described as “small city of character”. Each Sunday morning, around 150 traders ply their wares along the main street – mainly food but also a deliciously sweet wine called Montbazaic from nearby Bergerac, along with cra goods.

We took a drive to the Italianate-style Marqueyssac gardens, a parkland filled with contrasts – 6km of pathways interspersed with winding labyrinths, with a castle at its heart that has been restored to support the typical stone Perigord Noir roof.

The main feature of the gardens are the extraordinary boxwood, which number 150,000, and the beautiful views; which you can regard from a delightful, inexpensive restaurant onsite.

And yet, this region, which is in many ways reminiscent of the Cotswolds with its honeycoloured buildings and multitude of little towns and gardens, needs to be explored –and we did just that.

The Dordogne is a river, said to be the cleanest in Europe, and stretches for 515km through hill country that is full of old villages,

At the foot of a cli running along the Dordogne is the tiny village of La Roque-Gageac, whose most notable feature is the staircase cut into the rock leading to a recently-renovated fort with views of the river and verdant forests 40m below. It was a struggle climbing the steps in the midday sun, and equally so the steep narrow street that leads to a luxuriant botanical garden with palm trees, lemon trees and Japanese medlar trees – but so worth the e ort as this is a truly fascinating feature in a quaint French village.

We had earnt an ice cream at Glacier Fabricant Lambert in the walled village of Domme, a 13th-century royal bastide

(fortified medieval town). Created in 1281 on a protected cli by order of French King Philip III, it was invaded by the English in 1346 for a time but remained relatively unscathed and you can see the ramparts and the Porte des Tours in which the imprisoned Templars made engravings, which are still visible today.

Beynac-et-Cazenac is another medieval town with cobbled streets and forms part of the Valley of Five Chateaux, named for the five castles that date from the 100 Years War. Chateau de Beynac, perched on the cli op overlooking the town, is one of the best preserved in the region and has been used many times for filming, including for Luc Besson’s Jeanne d’Arc with Faye Dunaway, John Malkovich and Dustin Ho man in 1999.

Castelnaud-la-Chapelle has two castles, one of which, the Milandes, is the former home of the music-hall artist Joséphine Baker. It was built in the 15th century by an aristocratic French family that wanted to bring back beauty into a region that had been ravaged by fighting against the English. It reached new fame in the 20th century a er its restoration and enlargement and in 1947 it was bought by Mme Baker. She lived there for 30 years, the rooms representing her life as it was, from her costumes to the living rooms and bathrooms.

Jews lived in the Dordogne as far back as the 13th century, but were expelled in 1302.

There is a street known as Rue Judaïque behind the Museum of Périgord in Périgueux, the largest town in the region and, during the Second World War, Alsatian Jews settled in the town. Eventually, the Resistance was suppressed and the Nazis deported them. A community centre was built in the 1960s, in the wake of the arrival of Jews from North Africa and there remains a synagogue today. Every corner you turn in these hilltop towns a ords another breathtaking view of the Dordogne sparkling in the sunlight. At dusk, the gently-lit villages reflect o the water, which is the beating heart of this region. Johnny Depp apparently never visited the area when he was filming opposite with Juliette Binoche in Chocolat. To quote another well-known film: big mistake. Huge

Rooms at Domaine de Rochebois cost from €190 per night. rochebois.com / perigordnoir-valleedordogne.com marqueyssac.com / milandes.com

Les

Domaine

Le Château des Milandes

A bedroom at Domaine de Rochebois

Jardins de Marqueyssac

de Rochebois

Juliette Binoche in Chocolat

La Roque-Gageac

No holiday plan? No problem

Louisa Walters checks out what you should check in to this summer

Lastminute.com was the cleverest of all concepts because so many of us run our lives this way. As such, here we are in the middle of April and that last holiday is a distant memory with nothing in the calendar. I find a change really is as good as a rest, which is why short breaks in boutique hotels are my thing, but if you want to flop somewhere for a week or more, a resort will be more yours.

Casa Cook is a design-led collection of intimate hotel hideaways embracing laid-back luxury. There are three in Greece, one in Egypt and a new one opens in the Italian Alps by the end of the year. I would choose Casa Cook Rhodes in the village of Kolymbia. Elegantly boho, with 119 verandah-fronted rooms with direct access to a shared swimming pool, it’s a short walk to the beach, and you can tuck in to Greek-inspired sharing plates to the backdrop of the house DJ’s summer beats. From 113 euros per night. casacook.com

Not just for holidays, Portugal has become the place to live, with

properties available at a range of prices and year-long sunshine. For every grey and rainy day here, the Algarve has blue skies and heat, so grab a long weekend at the beautiful farmhouse Casa De Mondo in Boliquieme. The property has rave reviews for its peaceful location and caring hosts, who take care of guests travelling alone. Lavish breakfasts and tapas suppers are served in the verdant gardens overlooking the pool and, if you time it right, you can join a Portuguese cookery class. There are only three double rooms with kitchens and private terraces, so it never feels crowded, and the beach is a 15-minute drive. Known for its Mamma Mia!-style hen parties and shabby chic

weddings, there’s a 10 percent discount on a £95 per night stay until the end of May – if you quote ‘JNmondo’. casademondo.com

Provence is always a good idea and Crillon le Brave is a gem in the heart of the stunning Vaucluse countryside. Fly to Avignon and then relax in this pretty hotel, explore the tiny village and its alleys, lounge by the pool, recharge and relax in the hotel’s spa, and indulge in exquisite French food. From 350 euros per night. crillonlebrave.com

Or make your way to the Luberon area and check in to Coquillade on a 100-acre estate studded with historical vineyards, cypress trees and 300-year-old olive groves. This 63-room hotel, within

a restored 11th-century hamlet, has rooms spread across a collection of bastides (country houses, an on-site organic winery, an awardwinning spa and a BMC Cycling Centre. From £545 per night. coquillade.fr

In Tenerife, Tivoli La Caleta has taken up residence where the Sheraton used to be, just 15 minutes from Tenerife South airport and well located for all the great restaurants for which the area has become known. The building has been refurbished, with the addition of a new spa, with an ice igloo, although I’d personally rather be warm by one of the three outdoor pools. There are also padel courts and a Technogym. Dine at Seen Beach Club and Yakuza, both by wellknown Portuguese ‘chefpreneur’ Olivier da Costa. From 390 euros a night. tivolihotels.com

From 5 July to 4 August, the historic city of Savonlinna, in Finland’s picturesque lake district, will transform into an opera lover’s paradise, with a line-up featuring masterpieces by Verdi and Mozart. Perfomances take place at Olavinlinna Castle, an island fortress in the breathtaking setting of Lake Saimaa. Fly to Helsinki and stay in Hotel Hospitz in Savonlinna From around £100 a night. hospitz.com

Keight Hotel Opatija is one of Croatia’s newest hotels and has a rooftop sundeck with a swimming pool and bar overlooking the red-tiled roofs of the 19th-century town. In the heart of the charming seaside resort town of Opatija, it’s less than a two-minute walk from the sea and famous Franz Jozef

Lungomare, Opatija’s seafront promenade. Fly to Rijeka, and from there visit many of Croatia’s islands, including Cres and Krk. From approx £250 per night. hilton.com

Israelis have long been going to Cyprus and we should follow suit, especially to stay at Secret Forest in the hills above Paphos, which is every inch a retreat in which to wind down. Israeli owner Yoni Kahana runs the place with an air of charm and calm, even offering (kosher) brunch from 10am to 1pm so you don’t need to get up early. From £550 for two nights for an exclusive all-inclusive experience. secretfo.rest

If city breaks are your thing but you’d rather stay outside the centre, the tranquil Villa Fiesole Hotel, a renovated historic home, dating back to medieval times, has romantic views of Florence and the surrounding countryside. There are just 32 bedrooms and the main building was originally a serra (greenhouse) used by monks from the nearby monastery. From approx £200 per night. fh55hotels.com

The Athens Riviera is only a one-hour drive from the capital, where the new Israeli-owned Isla Brown Corinthia Resort & Spa has unobstructed sea views overlooking the Saronic Gulf from the hotel’s 166 guest rooms. Head up to the rooftop for a drink at the bar or to relax on loungers beside fire pits. Downstairs, there is a charming taverna, buffet restaurant, lobby bar and a pool bar for a quick bite, plus two swimming pools a private beach, gym and spa. From around £250 per night. brownhotels.com

Keight Hotel, in the seaside town of Opatija, is one of Croatia’s newest hotels

Coquillade in Provence

Casa De Mondo Casa De Mondo Villa Fiesole Isla Brown Corinthia Resort & Spa

Since October 7th ELNET has:

• Urged hundreds of UK and European lawmakers to speak out in support of Israel

• Organized more than 20 emergency solidarity missions to Israel from 22 European countries

• Escorted over 200 European legislators to Israel for briefings and meetings

• Accompanied 07/10 survivors and hostages’ families to testify before six European parliaments and governments

ELNET works to expand European support to counter Iran’s nuclear, missile, and regional threats, promote Arab-Israeli normalization, fight anti-Zionism and antisemitism, and strengthen Israeli-European economic relations.

Every home that Jewish Blind & Disabled adapts means people like Mark can live independently, safely and with dignity.

“I love my automatic front door because I can come and go without having to struggle with my wheelchair and heavy door. Going out’s so much easier now.”

Name: Mark

Adaptation: Automatic door

Life: Changed

Will you change a life this Pesach?

CHARITY in Bloom

Jewish charities continue to support our community in the UK and Israel this spring

By Louisa Walters

New beginnings

Spring marks a new beginning for Jewish Care and Jami as they become one organisation, bringing new opportunities for support and new hope to tackle the unprecedented growing mental health challenge for the Jewish community. As we get together to sing, celebrate and tell the Pesach story, Jewish Care and Jami’s appeal highlights that one in four people around our seder tables will be living with mental illness, distress or trauma. This figure rises to one in two for children and young people under 25.

Together, the charities will be better equipped to respond to the mental health needs in our community, with services including suicide prevention, social work, art therapy, outings and one-to-one support.

Twelve-year-old Amy is one of 127 young people who have benefitted from Jami’s Children and Young Person’s service since its launch in May 2022. It provides one-to-one support with a Jami specialist mental health practitioner. Amy says: “I was struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder. I felt sad and anxious. I started meeting Ciara, working on di erent ways to help manage my anxiety. I love going to my sessions – they make me feel free.”

Amy’s mother, Talia, who was o ered support from Jami’s Family and Carer support service, says: “I have two children who have mental health problems and when my youngest daughter started to develop issues, I felt like I must be doing something wrong. I felt like I’d messed up as a parent and I’d messed up my kids.

“Just a er Amy started getting support, I started speaking to Sarah, one of Jami’s carer peer support workers. She understood the toll it takes on a parent to have children who are struggling so badly. She walked me through some very di icult conversations and reassured me that I couldn’t have done things di erently. She has that unique perspective of having been in my shoes, understanding the guilt and feelings of failure.

“Having support for Amy, and having someone who could also support me, helped me to feel better and stronger, so I can be there for my children. Jami has been a lifeline

for my family through the most di icult of times.”

The support 85-year-old Sara has received at Jewish Care’s Sidney Corob House care home for adults with mental illness has also been a lifeline. “The sta are incredible people, supporting me every day. I have my independence, but I feel safe here with plenty of people to be around. I’m no longer lonely.”

• jewishcare.org / jamiuk.org

Live and learn

Spring ahead with your Jewish learning at The London School of Jewish Studies (LSJS), which is now accepting applications for the next Rabbi Sacks Learning Fellowship cohort (commencing in September). This one-year programme is full of high quality Jewish learning infused by the world view of Rabbi Sacks – and it’s free. Meanwhile, the LSJS summer term programme has a variety of inspiring courses, tours and special events, including The Jewish World of Alexander Hamilton, the annual Rabbi

Sacks Chair of Modern Jewish Thought lecture, a special look at the life of Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, an opportunity to explore identity via the history of Jewish costume with Ilana Epstein, and a free weekly class developing Rabbi Sacks’ thoughts on the weekly Torah portion. There are also day trips and, if you want to start learning Hebrew or improve your current Ivrit skills, the LSJS Summer Ulpan starts on 29 July.

• lsjs.ac.uk

New shoots

As a first responder, WIZO immediately put in place emotional resilience and specialist trauma therapy throughout its 800 projects in Israel to support a country in trauma. In March, Lara, a 14-year-old student at WIZO Hadassim school, performed two songs at the Commitment Gala Dinner in London and spoke about how, thanks to WIZO, she is using her music to recover from the pain of the past six months.

• wizouk.org

Spring is in full bloom in WIZO’s new legacy garden in Jerusalem. Tended by toddlers from WIZO’s Day Care Centre, students from the vocational high school and families from the women’s shelter, the shoots of plants, rose bushes and the herb garden are providing a positive, educational and calming space. WIZO’s programmes are also bringing about new beginnings for those of all ages, cultures and backgrounds. Since October 7, the charity has been committed to restoring lives and rebuilding futures.

Community and inclusion

Recent research indicates that one in 67 people in the UK is autistic and, this spring, the goal at Norwood is to make our community more inclusive for them. Many of them rely on routine and consistency to conquer anxiety and sensory processing challenges, and unfamiliar environments can be unnerving so at Norwood’s locations there are floor plans readily available.

As a person-centred organisation, Norwood’s sta listen to the individual’s needs so they can create a fully inclusive environment, and are aware that autistic people may find direct eye contact challenging, may need to pace the room or take a break from the wider group. Every member of the Norwood family is fully supported, enabled and empowered to be the best they can be.

• norwood.org.uk

Jewish Care and Jami are a lifeline for the community

Rabbi Dr Raphael Zarum of LSJS

Norwood sta listen to the individuals’ needs

Lara, 14, a student at WIZO Hadassim school, perfoms in London

New life

Since the war started, Shaare Zedek Medical Centre in Jerusalem has experienced a record-breaking number of births. Midwife Jodi Stender says: “As the news filled with grim reports of death and carnage, I continued to bring new, innocent and beautiful life into this world and the spirituality and hope felt in the delivery room has intensified enormously. The labouring women of Israel post-October 7 are ‘Wonder Women’. The strength I have seen them demonstrate while birthing, as their husbands fought to protect the country, as their families were transplanted from their homes to safer areas, and as the sirens roared around them, is remarkable.”

project manager, says: “We’re excited to be bringing people together to make friends and support each other with their sight loss experiences.

Our monthly meetings are designed for members to meet new people and share their advice, ideas and support.”

Lisa Wimborne, JBD’s chief executive, says: “We have a waiting list for our housing, and we also recognise that there are others in the community who do not want to live with JBD but would benefit from support. This is why we have decided to invest in developing our community support o ering.”

• jbd.org

Jodi supported a woman from one of the southern communities, who spent 15 hours in her safe room with her children during the October 7 infiltration. She was rescued and evacuated with her family to a hotel in Jerusalem. A day later, she went into labour with her seventh child at Shaare Zedek. This birth was a di erent experience for her. She was exhausted and it became apparent that she needed permission and support to acknowledge her stressful experience and to take an epidural to help her relax. She then gave birth to a beautiful healthy baby.

“My work at Shaare Zedek has taken on a new meaning,” says Jodi. “It’s a privilege to be part of such an incredible team during these challenging circumstances.”

• shaarezedek.org.uk

Meet and greet

This spring Jewish Blind and Disabled (JBD) is launching two new monthly support groups – in Borehamwood and Finchley – for Jewish people with sight loss in London and Hertfordshire. Any adult who is experiencing sight loss and identifies as Jewish is very welcome – as are their friends, carers and family members.

Toni Lewis, JBD’s community services

policing London. We are very grateful to Jewish Women’s Aid for delivering fantastic training, which has received great feedback from students,” says Cherelle Brown, community engagement and partnership adviser for the Metropolitan Police Service. A er working with Jewish survivors of domestic abuse for 10 years before taking up this new role, Ziona is passionate about raising awareness of the issues that women face and about breaking down the barriers to accessing support. “It has been a privilege to fly the flag for Jewish Women’s Aid and raise awareness of the issues of domestic abuse and sexual violence in the community. With the knowledge that professionals have received training on the sensitive issues that a ect Jewish women and girls, our frontline team are able to reassure our service users that they will be supported by these organisations in a culturally sensitive manner.”

Women of wisdom

• jwa.org.uk

Keep safe

high levels of protection at schools, in communal areas, over Shabbat or at large communal demonstrations has presented CST with new challenges and more than 1,000 new security volunteers have stepped up to help.

The security grant from the government (that CST facilitates) will this year fund commercial security guards at more than 550 schools, synagogues and community buildings.

• cst.org.uk

Jewish Women’s Aid (JWA) has recently o ered tailored training to 2,000 professionals across a wide range of organisations and professional services, as a result of which JWA’s professional referrals have increased by 40 percent. Ziona Handler, Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) outreach lead, educates Jewish communal organisations about domestic abuse, how to spot the signs, and how to make a referral to JWA. Ziona also educates the wider community about additional barriers to reporting domestic abuse in the Jewish community and how to culturally and sensitively respond to reports and disclosures. Her training has covered the Metropolitan Police, social workers, domestic abuse professionals and midwives and will expand to include Greater Manchester Police in the summer.

“We want to make sure o icers are aware of and understand the di erent communities they serve when

There is a cyclical rhythm to Community Security Trust’s (CST) work where everything is renewed, refined and enhanced to strengthen the multifaceted security operation. CST ensures that security is embedded into the infrastructure of communal life to ensure the protection of British Jews, with constant training, regular assessments of physical measures, building partnerships at the highest levels within society and expanding the security remit in line with emerging technologies. There has been a sustained increase across CST’s operations since the Hamas massacre on October 7, including security provision, research and helping hundreds of victims of antisemitism each month. To facilitate

Staying informed

StandWithUs

UK is an indispensable ally in the fight against antisemiitsm and the disseminaton of misinformation about Israel and, since October 7, it has redoubled its e orts to support students and communities. More than 11,000 people have been reached across the UK, each having been provided with an in-depth educational session on a range of important issues. The charity has distributed thousands of resources on the war, Israel and other geopolitical issues, visited communities across the UK, led online workshops and webinars, and been into schools, universities and youth groups, to ensure that everyone is confidently equipped with the tools to support Israel and engage in di icult but important conversations.

Meanwhile, TeachWithUs is a new magazine for educators in Jewish and nonJewish secondary schools to help support their e orts when educating students on Israel, Zionism, and antisemitism.

StandWithUs has held intimate roundtable briefings at Parliament and at the Israeli embassy and leveraged the power of social media to combat hate and spread factual information, reaching more than a billion people globally in the past year.

• standwithus.com

A mother at Shaare Zedek Medical Centre shows her soldier husband their newborn child

JWA provides training to the Metropolitan Police so o icers understand the Jewish community

JBD helps people with support and housing

CST ensures that security is embedded in communal life

StandWithUs UK aids students to fight hate

Midwife Jodi Stender

Live your best life

Quality, personalised care, day and night

Warm and welcoming surroundings

Fully trained staff

Full activities programme

Excellent menu choices

Short term care available as and when you need it

Oakmoor Lodge

London Road,

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Tel: 020 3343 2440

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Riverside Lodge 44 Church Street, Rickmansworth, WD3 1JE

Tel: 01923 617 930

If you’re looking for care, either for yourself or a loved one, we can help guide you through the process.

Contact us on 01707 393293 or at enquiries@quantumcare.co.uk

This Pesach, please help Kisharon Langdon to meet the growing needs of our community

At Kisharon Langdon, we understand the challenges faced by families in the Jewish learning disability and autism community. We need to raise £4 million per year from the community to meet the increasing need for our services including education, supported living, employment and day opportunites.

Thank you for your support this Pesach.

Please donate at kisharonlangdon.org.uk, call 020 3209 1187, or scan here

This Passover, don’t pass them over!

With thousands of families still displaced throughout the country and the need continuing to grow, Help Leket Israel provide meals for the holiday.

£180 = 160 rescued meals

passover.leket.org/en/uk

October 7th, 8.30am: Noa, her husband and baby flee to their shelter near Gaza, praying they would not be attacked.

WIZO is now providing specialist trauma therapy and support for Noa and her husband and a safe place for their son in a WIZO Day Care Centre.

“WIZO is our lifesaver.” Noa

Immediately after October 7th and since, WIZO, as the largest social welfare provider in Israel, actioned an extensive programme of specialised psychological support for the displaced and vulnerable. The impact of the horrrors cannot be underestimated, leaving a traumatised nation for years to come.

This Jewish Women’s Week 2024, we thank you for your support ensuring that we can continue to restore lives and rebuild futures for those, like Noa, who so depend on us.

Chag Pesach Sameach from the Spring Grove family

Come and visit Spring Grove in Hampstead to feel what it’s like to be part of the family. Our doors have been open for 55 years and we provide the highest quality of care including an interactive activities programme and a nutritious diet. We hope to see you soon!

Since October 7 over 230 new WIDOWS over 550 new ORPHANS

The IDF Widows & Orphans Organization is facing an unprecedented crisis, embracing new families on a dramatic scale not seen before.

We are Israel's leading nonprofit organization providing lifelong support for the widows and orphans of those killed in action while defending our home. We are here to ensure they receive the holistic care they deserve.

Supporting our work is a profound gesture of solidarity and compassion to those who have paid the highest price for Israel's security.

Scan to make a tax-deductible donation, or go to: www.idfwo.org/en/donate/

When it comes to #CareerGoals we are all different. Your dream job isn’t going to be the same as your brother’s or your best friend’s. Resource understands this and we’ll give you the perfect employment advice, CV support and skills training that’s just right for you. Whether you are just starting out in the job market, looking for a change or have concerns about the future, landing your perfect job – well that’s our job.

IT STARTED WITH A CALL TO RESOURCE

Donate now at worldjewishrelief.org/pesach or call (0)20 8736 1250

War still rages in Ukraine.

It’s been two years of hurt and pain, two years of damage and devastation, two years of fear and uncertainty. Parents and children are traumatised. The suffering of war never seems to end. But you can help them today.

This Pesach, will you help Ukrainian families suffering from the trauma of war?

“I had never thought about living in a later living community, however, I was drawn in by the ready-made community and the assurance that everything is taken care of. Living here is completely different, you welcome a lot of things that you wouldn’t normally have, such as remarkable facilities, attentive staff available every step of the way and having everything you need on your doorstep”

Miriam and Vivien, Pegasus Homes Resident