The South Londoner - August 2022

SOUTH LONDonER August 2022

Issue 15

Painting the town red SE15 is the place to be as Peckham Festival returns

Celebrate summer with a

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contents

august 2022

About us ― We’ve been based in the old Biscuit Factory in Bermondsey since 1994.

We are proud to be a London Living Wage employer.

Our flagship publication, the Southwark News launched in 1987 and is now London’s only independent, paid for newspaper.

We also publish the Greenwich and Lewisham Weekender every week.

We created the Bermondsey Biscuit and Rotherhithe Docker in 2018 with support from sponsors including Sellar, Grosvenor, British Land, and many more local businesses.

Greenwich & Docklands International Festival

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Laura Burgoine

Deputy Editor

Holly O'Mahony

Design

Lizzy Tweedale, Dan Martin,

Marketing

Tammy Jukes, Clarry Frewin, Sophie Ali

Media Partnerships

Anthony Phillips

Finance

Emrah Zeki

Managing Directors

Chris Mullany and Kevin Quinn

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18-28 Catch Ya on the Rye The return of Peckham Festival & a spotlight on the best of SE15

30-34 Bermondsey Street festival Designers and their dogs put their best foot forward at the annual Village Fete in the city

Peckham Festival

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Phone

020 7231 5258 @southlondonmag

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Website

thesouthlondoner.co.uk

Family Outdoor cinema, the Secret Garden immersive exhibition, Broadway bangers for tiny tots & more

39-41 Food & drink All the latest bitesize news on restaurants, cafés and bars in your ‘hood & a vino tour of Peckham Cellars

southlondonermag@gmail.com

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Arts & entertainment The showstoppers of Greenwich & Docklands International Festival & the West Norwood artist to watch

Contact us ― Email

Home Secretary Picnic in Elephant Park, Brixton House’s new season of theatre & events, free Crystal Palace clay workshops & more

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Contents ―

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Wellbeing Words of wisdom from the Forest Hill love doctor

54 Printed by Ilif fe Print Published by Southwark Newspaper Ltd

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Local faces Rye Lanez tattoo artist Moby Kenyon inks university students, career criminals, celebrities and everyone in between!

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The local line-up for your diary ―

FREE CLAY WORKSHOPS As part of Crystal Palace Festival, ClayKilnCraft are throwing open their doors for an Open Studio.

Go along and see what members have been making, buy some early Christmas presents or treat yourself to some handmade pottery. The clay-makers are also holding free tile decoration and pinch pot making workshops between 12pm and 2pm. These are 20 minutes long and open to adults and children. There is a small charge if you want your work glazed and fired.

Sunday 18 September from 11am-4pm. http://claykilncraft.com

Laura Burgoine

BOYS INTERRUPTED

YOUR VOTE MATTERS!

Hot off the heels of the US Hella Mega Tour, supporting Green Day, Weezer, and Fall Out Boy, and playing UK’s Slam Dunk Festival, Los Angeles band the Interrupters (comprised of Aimee Interrupter, partner and guitarist Kevin Bivona, and his younger twin brothers Jesse on drums and Justin on bass) return to Europe and the UK this summer with a performance at Brixton’s O2 Academy.

Four Crystal Palace businesses have reached the final of the annual Croydon Business Excellence Awards. Businesses have been selected for Contribution to The Community (Shop SE19), Business Resilience (Craft & Courage), Best New Business (Haven Wellness) and best social enterprise (ClearCommunityWeb).

September 3 at the O2 Academy Brixton, 211 Stockwell Road, SW9 9SL. Tickets: wearetheinterrupters.com

PACK YOUR TRUNK FOR AN ELEPHANT FOODIE SAFARI Take a culinary tour around the world from the comfort of Elephant and Castle as Picnic at Elephant Park returns for its second year. Picnickers can depart on a foodie safari, picking up samples from the participating cafes, restaurants and bars, before choosing an al fresco dining spot in the new two-acre Elephant Park and Elephant Springs rock and water landscape. Offerings on the menu include: loaded fries or nachos from Four Quarters, pastry or ice-cream from Little Louie, arancini from Sugo82, spiced potatoes, falafels and hummus from Bayroot, dumplings and salt fish fritters at Tasty Jerk, and plenty more.

equipment. They work across Croydon, Bromley, Lambeth and Southwark. Craft & Courage has just celebrated its 5 year anniversary in Crystal Palace and like many hospitality businesses soldiered on during the many different phases of lockdown by partnering with local food businesses and launching new products. Their latest venture is an in-house gin distillery producing Antenna Gin with their own botanical family recipe. Haven Wellness is a shop, apothecary and suite of therapy rooms which opened at the height of lockdown in 2020 and has rapidly gained a following, offering ethically produced wellness products.

Shop SE19 was founded in 2019 to formalise the links between local independent businesses in Crystal Palace and has grown to offer much-needed peer support to local indies, help them weather the storm during the height of the pandemic and to promote and increase the profile of our local high streets. ClearCommunityWeb is a social enterprise/ CIC which supports those who are ‘digitally excluded’ with access to training and reconditioned

Voting is now open, with winners being announced in September.

For more information visit: https://croydonawards.co.uk

NEW SEASON FOR BRIXTON HOUSE It’s a jam-packed line-up for autumn/winter at Brixton’s newest theatre.

From October 5-7, Black Corporeal (Breathing By Numbers) continues Juliaknxx's investigation into the ways in which Black psyches are affected by their physical experiences. The film is anchored by the returning voice of Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, as she traces her journey to having air pollution officially listed as a cause of death of her 9- year-old daughter, Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, the first time this had happened in the UK. Knock Down is a promenade, site-specific production journeying along Brixton (October 7-9). A collaboration between local talent and local businesses to celebrate and explore the memories and stories of those who call Brixton home.

Picnic at Elephant Park is available throughout the summer until August 31.

Dishes and drinks are priced from £1 - £5. www.elephantpark.co.uk/picnic

Dance Umbrella brings three international artists to Brixton House for a mixed bill exploring themes of transformation, transmission, and representation in Change Tempo (October 12 and 13).

The season culminates with multi-awarding winning company Poltergeist’s production of Alice in Wonderland (December 1-31), which sees 11-yearold Alice leap onto a tube seconds before the doors shut, following an explosive argument with her Mum at Brixton Underground station. Trapped on a train speeding into Nonsense, surrounded by weird and wonderful passengers, and at the mercy of a Queen who won’t relinquish the controls, can Alice turn this train around?

For the full line-up of events, visit: https://brixtonhouse.co.uk

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Rainbow foam mountains and biodegradable fireflies ―

By Holly O’Mahony

Greenwich+Docklands International Festival returns for 2022

G

reenwich+Docklands International Festival (GDIF) returns this summer with a bumper 17-day programme of family-friendly outdoor installations and live performances spanning a broad spectrum of the arts. Now in its 27th year, the festival is going heavy on the big, eye-grabbing attractions it was originally known for, after the two pandemic summers forced the team to put together a more demure programme and think about durational installations which could run over a number of days.

“We had to change tack. GDIF used to be a festival that specialised in spectacles 5,000 people might come together to experience for 45 minutes,” recalls Bradley Hemmings, founder and artistic director of the festival. This year, he’s excited to present a festival more in keeping with his original ambitions, and having also co-directed the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympic Games when they were held in London in 2012, he’s well-versed in orchestrating large-scale phenomenons.

“We’ve always tried to do those extraordinary, arresting moments people will take away and remember for a long time afterwards,” he says.

Unlike many big wow-factor spectacles that focus entirely on creating surface-level pizzazz, GDIF’s events are ethical, sustainable and firmly rooted in the arts; Bradley and his team carefully choose each company based on their commitment to these principles and an ability to create attractions likely appeal to an audience of all ages.

While local to Greenwich, GDIF has an international outlook: its programme of events are created by companies from around the world – something which has been significantly harder to organise, Bradley says, since Brexit. “I guess we’ve built up knowledge but it’s still a slower and more painstaking experience bringing people across borders. All of those visa and travel arrangements are complicated to make,” he says, but: “London being the most international city in the world is an important value for us and we’ll always fly that flag.”

Every year, the festival runs with an underlying theme, which this year is ‘common ground’. “Given the times we’re living through, which have been divided and uncertain, we want the festival to [be]

a sanctuary where you can find something uplifting and positive, and share common ground with others,” Bradley says.

The 2022 festival was originally due to run under the theme of ‘new beginnings’, “then the invasion of Ukraine took place in February and we realised it was not going to be the right theme,” reflects Bradley. “We landed on ‘common ground’ because it encompasses everything and might be what everybody needs right now.”

While the show-stopper spectacles offer a muchneeded dose of escapism, Bradley was keen not to overlook the war in Ukraine, and give Ukrainian artists a platform to tell their story. ‘Discover Ukraine: Bits Destroyed’ (August 26 - 29) offers visitors “an audio-visual spectacular presentation in the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College”.

Not all modifications made for the pandemic have been overturned. In both 2020 and 2021, GDIF’s On Your Doorstep series brought live performance into often overlooked pockets of the borough, including Avery Hill and Abbey Wood, in a bid to dissuade people from travelling into town centres when contagion was rife. So popular was it with local audiences who otherwise might not have been able to access the festival that the team are bringing it back this year, heading deeper into neighbourhoods with circus, theatre, dance and arts events.

Long-running favourite Dancing City (September 10 & 11, Canary Wharf ), a celebration of diverse dance from across the world, is also returning with a bumper programme of performances.

Keeping the festival free remains integral to the ethos of GDIF. This year, only seven of the events are ticketed and only two of those have a price attached: site-specific theatre spectacle ‘Peaceophobia’ (September 7 - 10, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park Multi-Storey Car Park) and Protein dance company’s promenade dance odyssey ‘En Route to Common Ground’ (September 2 - 4, Royal Arsenal Riverside) both cost £10, but even those can be accessed for free by local residents.

“A free festival in the middle of a cost of living crisis, what could be better?,” says Bradley.

Island of Foam by Stephanie Luning

GDIF 2022: the highlights…

©Violetta Wakolbinger

Spark

Island of Foam: Version XVIII

A new work by Dutch artist Daan Roosegaarde, Spark is a gentle, organic firework display, set to illuminate the sky above the Queen’s House in Greenwich. Inspired by the natural light of fireflies, the installation features thousands of biodegradable lights, which can be marvelled at from below.

Attendees are encouraged to bring a pillow and a blanket to watch the sky sparkle.

Bradley says: Spark completely reinvents the idea of what a conventional public celebration might look like. Many people might reach for fireworks and pyrotechnics, but [given] our need to be much more environmentally responsible, this allows us to achieve that while also doing something incredibly beautiful. [Visitors] will be mesmerised by the myriad of floating particles above them.

Fancy seeing Greenwich Peninsula engulfed in rainbow-coloured mountains of foam? German artist Stephanie Lüning makes her UK premiere with Island of Foam, a large-scale installation which will shape-shift and float before finally disappearing.

Bradley says: Like Daan Roosegaarde, Stephanie Lüning has really considered the environment with her installation, which makes arresting use of public space; people won’t be able to forget it.

August 26 - 27 | 9pm The Queens House Lawns, SE10 9JH

Charon First seen at Burning Man festival in America, Peter Hudson’s monumental installation Charon is a 32ft rotating zoetrope mounted with replica human skeletons – a nod to the ferryman in Greek mythology, who would row the recently deceased across the river Styx to the afterlife. Animated at dusk and set dramatically against the fading light, Charon is operated by a team of volunteers – and you can join them.

Bradley says: Charon is an ingenious object encouraging us to reflect on mortality, something it’s important we have the opportunity to do after the times we’ve just lived through.

September 1 - 10 | 8pm Limmo Peninsula, Royal Docks

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September 3 - 4 | 6pm Greenwich Peninsula

Unfurl One for night owls: this multi-coloured light show sees nature, art and soft robotic technology combine to create enchanting, alluring installations visitors can get up close to and manipulate with their movements.

September 9 & 10 | 8pm Bethnal Green Gardens

Greenwich Fair Look forward to an afternoon of family-focused street arts, theatre, circus and interactive installations as GDIF’s much-loved festival rolls into town.

Greenwich+Docklands International Festival (GDIF) runs from August 26 - September 11 with events taking place in various locations.

Admission: FREE. www.festival.org/gdif-2022/ August 27 | 1-7pm Old Royal Naval College & Cutty Sark Gardens

Comedy on the Green is back!

The best alternative comedy night south of the river returns at the iconic Balham Bowls Club. Come join us every other Thursday to see some of the biggest names in comedy and the best rising stars in the country.

We kick off again on September the 1st with a blockbuster line up to announce our return.

15th September 29th September 13th October 27th October 10th November 24th November 8th December Tickets can be bought through the Instagram page @_comedyonthegreen_ or through the Balham Bowls club website - balhambowls.com Make sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter for daily updates and behind the scenes of all our upcoming shows!

Instagram: @_comedyonthegreen_ Twitter: @ComedyontheG

august 2022

Epic Burning Man installation comes to GDIF ―

By Laura Burgoine

A

n artwork of monumental scale is reinventing the wheel at the Greenwich and Docklands International Festival (GDIF) this summer.

Charon, a gigantic 32ft high rotating zoetrope with posed human skeletons mounted on its inner edge, is completely human powered and each night, bathed in dramatic light and sound, teams of volunteer operators will animate the ferryman, who in Greek mythology rowed the souls of the recently departed across the river Styx. Originally created for Nevada arts festival, Burning Man, San Francisco artist Peter Hudson is now bringing his kinetic installation to a new festival site in Royal Docks.

“It weighs 14,000 pounds and takes two containers to ship it over,” Peter tells the South Londoner.

Despite its vast scope, the creation came about “very quickly,” Peter says. “It took less than a year from concept to build. It took on a life of its own.”

The artist, who began his career as a stage hand for

Charon by Peter Hudson, Photo by Mitzi Peirone

the San Francisco Opera before moving into dressing television and film sets, applied for a grant from Burning Man to create Charon after attending the festival himself and being inspired to give back. “The most compelling principle of Burning Man, to me, is no commodification, no advertising, no buying or selling. It’s a gift economy. No one gets paid,” he says.

“Over 100 volunteers helped created Charon; the grant money is basically spent on rent for a shop space but I could not have done any of this without the volunteers.” In addition to the grant, which only covered around a third of the building costs, the team

also raised money on kickstarter and by doing events.

Charon is Peter’s fourth zoetrope and all his pieces are human powered.

“This project took all my focus. I’m relatively unemployed when I’m working on a piece. They let the artist take a stipend out of the grant for living expenses but I’m basically happily unemployed,” he says.

Greek mythology also inspired Peter’s first piece, a swimming Sisyphus called Sisyfish.

“The theme for Burning Man in 2011 [when Charon debuted] was rites of passage and I thought,

singers or duet double-act might lend you the confidence you need to take to the stage, Bearpit Karaoke champions the brave and encourages singers to coax strangers into joining them for a song. So brainstorm those crowd-pleasing earworms – this is your time to shine.

Bearpit Karaoke, 139 Vauxhall Walk, Lambeth, London SE11 5HL. August 13 and September 10, 3pm - 7pm.

Admission: FREE. www.beinvauxhall.com/whats-on/bearpitkaraoke-summer-22/

You’re gonna hear them roar! ―

By Holly O'Mahony

W

hat’s your go-to karaoke song? Don’t be shy, we all have one. If your vocal chords need a dusting down, you’re unlikely to stumble upon as friendly a mic and stage as that found at Bearpit Karaoke. The free, Berlin-born phenomenon returns to Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens for the fifth year this summer, running once a month until September. Its next sing-along is happening on August 13, so get practising your favourite ABBA, Meatloaf or George Michael tracks.

Founded roughly a decade ago by Joe Hatchiban, Bearpit Karaoke has become a Sunday fixture of Berlin’s Mauerpark, reportedly attracting up to 2,000 spectators in any one session. The Vauxhall iteration is a more under-the-radar affair, but it runs on the same principle: to get strangers singing and having fun together.

While persuading your mates to be your backing

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well the last rite is death. I was already thinking of something with skeletons then Charon came to me in less than an hour. It willed itself into being, which is a blessing and curse because then it’s so much work to then actually make it. But then when I see the look in people’s eyes when they see it moving for the first time, that’s the moment. That’s what I wanted to give back to the Burning Man community. That’s why I do this.”

Charon is at GDIF from September 1-10 at 8pm on Limmo Peninsula. https://festival.org

arts & entertainment

august 2022

“If we can keep an open dialogue, we can tackle anything.” ―

By Holly O'Mahony

Dancer Joe Powell-Main came back to the dance world with a different perspective and approach. Now he’s changing the landscape.

D

ifferently abled dancer Joe Powell-Main is taking this summer’s Greenwich and Docklands International Festival by storm, performing in a ground-breaking Royal Ballet production of Sleepwalker. A retelling of La Sonnambula, the piece is directed by Royal Ballet principal dancer Alexander Campbell.

“I was intrigued by the opportunities that the story presented and was keen to explore a way of moving that was interesting and could capture the essence of a fascinating phenomenon,” Alexander tells the South Londoner. “I had wondered whether the unique qualities and skillsets of wheelchair dancers might lend itself well to this idea and when I saw the work that Kristen had created for Joseph Powell-Main alongside dancers of the Royal Ballet for the Paralympics GB Homecoming I was convinced that it was an idea worth pursuing.”

Based in Wales, Joe has been dancing since age 5, and went to the Royal Ballet School (RBS) for four years, where he performed with the Royal Ballet in The Nutcracker, Matthew Hart's Peter and the Wolf at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, and understudied and performed in the world premiere of Antonia Castilla's Legado.

During his fourth year of training, Joe developed injuries after a prolonged period of growth and underwent surgery on his left knee, which led to further complications. At the same time he was also involved in a serious car accident and acquired a disability, losing the use of his left leg, which meant he had to leave RBS. He stopped dancing for three years. “It was quite a challenging process but with support from family members, I found my way back to dance,” he says. “I’d love to see more dancers with disability working with different companies and I think people are interested in that.”

Joe found his way back into the field through ballroom and Latin dance. “My mum had seen a leaflet for dancers that use wheelchairs and I started going to the nearest classes, which were in Manchester,” he recalls. “The other dancers in the

©Royal Opera House

class were aware of how to work things for themselves, they didn’t hide their disability and weren’t ashamed of that. I had to watch how they did things. You don’t always have someone showing you how you can use a wheelchair, so I gained a lot from watching others.”

Coming back to classical ballet has been a journey for the dancer; the Paralympics GB Homecoming was one of the biggest performances of his career. “When I stopped dancing I found it difficult to look at anything to do with ballet. I was so upset by it so I hid all my books and things away for a while. I was quite nervous coming in and doing work with the Royal Ballet but what’s good is things have changed. There’s been a massive evolving of the entire dance industry as a whole towards inclusivity.”

“There’s not many other dancers with disability in the classical and contemporary world. It’s definitely a challenge to adapt that to a wheelchair because I was used to standing. I’m lucky I can still use my right leg but the physics of a wheelchair come with certain limitations so I had to do a lot of

discovering for myself.”

Joe’s sister is a ballet teacher and an ongoing source of support and inspiration to him. “People took a chance on me. I did a degree in dance at the Arden School of Theatre in Manchester and they recognised they’ve not had a student on the dance floor with a disability and were eager to learn about that and see what’s possible. It’s good because I have the support of others,” he says.

The Royal Ballet are making “massive steps forward” in seeing what’s possible for differently abled dancers, Joe continues. “It’s going to be a continuous process to break down barriers and make classical ballet more accessible,” he says.

“Looking at how others do stuff was very key to seeing what was possible. I’m very lucky I have a dance chair made specifically for dancing. That’s not to say there aren’t possibilities with an everyday manual chair but having a chair custom made for me that’s lightweight and you can move it at speed, that’s really enhanced some of the stuff I do.”

“When I was younger, I kind of thought once

12

you’d made it to a professional level that you would have learned everything but that’s not the case.

Regardless of disability or not, every dancer is always learning new things you can do.”

In the past, there’s been misconceptions that classical ballet dancers are there to execute someone else’s vision but things are changing, Joe says. “In the work I’ve been doing, they’re keen for me to have a voice.”

“When I was coming back to dance, I struggled to find someone like me. So if dance companies or producers are willing to take that step to try things out, especially in bringing disability and classical ballet together, it’s going to be a big learning process, and it’s not easy, but if we can continue to have conversations and just keep an open dialogue we can tackle anything.”

Joe performs in Sleepwalker at GDIF on September 10 and 11 at 1:35pm and 3:55 in the Columbus Courtyard, Canary Wharf.

Admission: free. https://festival.org/gdif

arts & entertainment

august 2022

Art with heart ―

By Holly O'Mahony

Jonny Kemp on sketching the South Norwood community

L

ockdown, for many of us, was a chance to devote more time to our loved but neglected hobbies; the activities which offered us creative solace, but typically took a back seat to our careers, family responsibilities and daily errands. For English teacher and South Norwood resident Jonny Kemp, the months at home led him to spend more time on his art, sketching portraits and creating oil paintings. He found he had a real knack for it and when the world reopened, Jonny took the opportunity to set up a stand at the annual South Norwood Market, where he sold his first works and realised there was demand for his drawings.

This is not your typical side-hustle story, though: with his talent for reproducing faces on paper, Jonny has become a piece in the puzzle of South Norwood’s ongoing regeneration. His most recent project, South Drawood, saw him celebrate his fellow SE25 dwellers by drawing the portraits of local business owners, community workers and faces about town.

Working with his partner Lizzie Walters, who’s currently studying for a PhD in community development, Jonny staged an exhibition of his portraits at local multipurpose arts hub Stanley Arts (formerly Stanley Hall). Lizzie interviewed the subjects about their work in the community and loyalty to the area, and these stories accompanied the sketched faces as part of the show.

“We wanted to do something towards building a sense of community and bringing people together,” explains Jonny. “South Norwood is in the process of regenerating and it’s trying to do so without losing the existing character [or] becoming gentrified. It’s not a big place and it's often overlooked as it's between Croydon and Crystal Palace … but it’s got this cool and exciting community who really love it; people move there for the sense of community.”

South Drawood, he says, is primarily about “celebrating the people who run an independent business or the people who volunteer there”, and “showing the real diversity of the area”.

Noting it’s not dissimilar to the work she’s doing as part of her PhD research, Lizzie adds: “I've been speaking to the community about what they do and why on a daily basis. There’s people who look after the parks, people who litter pick, people trying to make the area prettier and promote this amazing community and area. They’re all really friendly and passionate about

where they live.”

For Jonny, part of the joy in choosing his subjects has been telling the stories which aren’t typically celebrated.

“It’s good to hear the stories of the people you wouldn’t expect to hear,” he explains. “We hear a lot about people who open cafés or craft beer places, but less about the person who moved from Brixton and opened a locksmiths,” he points out, in reference to one of his sitters.

Following the exhibition at Stanley Arts, Jonny gave the portraits to his sitters free of charge, but he’s in talks with the council about the possibility of a more permanent, public home for his sketches – potentially the South Norwood Underpass, which is already a walk of art.

With his South Drawood exhibition wrapped up, Jonny is taking paid commissions for his sketches and says it’s a real mix in terms of who requests one.

“Sometimes it’s a gift, sometimes it’s a secret present for a partner, or it’s to commemorate a specific event, like a family portrait with a newborn child. Sometimes it’s remembering someone who’s passed away and the family has a nice photo of them they want to individualise or personalise in some way.”

As for any readers who want to give sketching a go themselves, Jonny has some tips. “Drawing is like learning a musical instrument; it’s something you should practise as frequently as you can,” he says. While if you’re painting portraits, “Forget thinking you’re looking at a person, and think of [the face] as a series of shapes. An eye is an oval, for example. Break it down into geometric shapes and angles.”

For more on Jonny Kemp’s portraits and South Drawood, visit: www.jonnykempart.co.uk/

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peckham festival

Three cheers for SE15! ―

By Holly O'Mahony

S

ustainable art exhibitions, live music, daring theatre and wellbeing workshops: the seventh annual Peckham Festival runs from September 16 - 18 and it’s yours to enjoy for free. A celebration of the people, places and creativity of SE15, the not-for-profit community festival once again makes Copeland Park and Peckham Levels its primary hubs, while spilling over into bars, studios and community spaces across the neighbourhood.

Established in 2016 by Tim Wilson and Jordana Leighton, Peckham Festival aims to unite the area’s diverse, multi-generational community through a shared celebration of the arts. Over 100 artists are contributing to the weekend-long festival, which expects to attract up to 20,000 visitors.

Make a day of it and you could listen in on talks by local charities, catch a sustainability-focused exhibition, join a hip hop yoga class, take part in a sustainable fashion workshop, dance to live music, laugh along to live comedy and tuck into some street food once you’re truly exhausted and in need of refuelling.

Summarising the event, Peckham Festival director Jules Hill says: “It is a wonderful opportunity for both the local community to come together and also to bring business and footfall to Peckham off the back of the pandemic.”

So, what to look out for at this year’s festival?

THE PROGRAMME



The Community Hub

Affectionately known as the heartbeat of the festival, the Community Hub at Peckham Levels is where a smörgåsbord of over 30 local businesses and community groups including The Sisterhood Supper Club and Voices for Autism will congregate, ready to tell visitors about their work. Here, you can also get involved with free activities and workshops, including hip hop yoga and pilates.

Made in Peckham

Hungry? Copeland Park has you covered. Here, local traders including The Fat Crust pizza and The Vegan Rasta are dishing up their goods.

Those for whom a good festival involves having a drink in hand at all times are also being looked after. Gosnell’s Mead Garden is trading at the festival, teaching visitors about their bee-friendly mead. At gamers’ paradise Four Quarters Bar, over 15s can make the most of free DJing workshops, while at rooftop bar Skylight, you’ll find a comedy night, Sunday drag brunch and live music. Hipster favourite Prince of Peckham is getting involved too, with an art installation and more live music.

Festival Stage

 ©Olly Fathers

Street Market

Pubs and bars

Taking place in homes and open studios across Peckham, this wing of the festival is the chance to discover (and buy!) the works of over 100 local artists.

 ©Yaneva Santana

Copeland Park, courtesy of Peckham-based Electric Pedals, or head inside Copeland Gallery, where a sustainable art exhibition Life After Life, curated by local artist Katrina Adams, features works made from repurposed materials and questions the role art can play in the future of the climate crisis.

Copeland Park is the festival’s main hub of live music. Hear sets from community groups including Kinetika Bloco, Nunhead Community Choir, South London Youth Theatre, Theatre Peckham, Peckham Chamber Orchestra and Rye Lane Chapel Gospel Reggae, plus a special performance from south London-based marimba band Otto & The Mutapa Calling. Local DJs, drag acts and spoken word artists are also performing.

Theatre

At the Lost Text Found Space, you can make your imprint on the festival through contributing to a durational installation overseen by Green Means Theatre and designer-cum-poet Hannah Harding.

At Grade II-listed venue Asylum, writer-director Amanda Douge presents a climate-focused theatre production St.Joan/Greta (September 15 & 16,

Sustainability programme Sustainability is front of mind at this year’s festival. Catch a bicycle-powered film screening at

18 18

Kinetica Bloco

6pm), in which Greta Thunberg and Joan of Arc are united on stage. Then don’t miss the chance to hear from the change-makers of tomorrow, as These Are Rituals shines a light on the challenges, hopes and frustrations faced by teens from minority backgrounds today.

With so much to see and take part in over the festival’s three-day run, Jules has two approaches for first-timers hoping to make the most of it.

“My advice would be to have a look at what’s on in order to get the most out of the festival experience, however it is also fun to just turn up and see what you stumble across,” she says. Above all, she hopes to offer “a warm-hearted community experience for everyone, [and] an insight into the world of our local artists and creatives”.

So throw yourself into taster workshops, interact with charities and community organisations, sample local street food, listen to live sets from a mix of emerging and established artists, and celebrate the creativity of SE15.

Peckham Festival is taking place at Copeland Park and Peckham Levels, with further events held at Bussey Building, Social, Jumbi, Peckham Market, Skylight, Four Quarters, Peckham Audio, John The Unicorn, The Prince of Peckham, Ivy House and The Arches Studios.

September 16 - 18, times vary.

Admission: FREE. www.peckhamfestival.org/

august 2022

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august 2022

Catch ya on the Rye

Pick 'em in Peckham ―

Laura Burgoine

T

he great philosophical question of Peckham’s reinvention story might just be: did the hipsters bring the Negronis or did the Negronis bring the hipsters? Of course, it’s a moot point because both are very much here to stay. It’s happy hour somewhere and that somewhere is Peckham, a melting pot of international cuisine, art, music, underground clubs and elevated rooftop cocktails -not to mention the only place in London where you can still go to the cinema for a fiver at beloved local institution Peckham Plex.

Frank's Café



The Yard

view from the top Frank’s Café -the much Instagrammed rooftop bar above the abandoned Rye Lane multi-storey carpark- played a large part in establishing SE15’s cool factor. Not-for-profit arts organisation Bold Tendencies remains based there, supporting artists who create site-specific projects and live performances for the space, like the multi-storey orchestra who fill the concrete cavern with orchestral symphonies. Next came Peckham Levels, a project providing local talent with access to space to create thriving enterprises with a focus on small, owner-operated businesses. With nearly 100 independent creative businesses housed in the building, they’re on a mission to keep Peckham local. Levels 5 and 6 are home to bars, cafés and street food kiosks as well as a yoga studio, a hair salon, and a rolling programme of exhibitions, installations and events commissioned from local creatives and artists.

In other rooftop offerings there’s trendy hangout Skylight, laid-back cocktails and small plates at Forza Wine, summer cinema pop-up the Rooftop Film Club above the Bussey Building, and CLF Art Lounge and Roof Garden, a two-floor speakeasy and supper club, which is the brain child of DJ Mickey Smith, founder of the CLF Art Café, the Bussey Building, record bar Rye Wax and South London Soul Train, a popular Bussey Building club night that also very much put Peckham on the map.

Newcomer Peckham Audio (sharing a building with co-working space Market Peckham) has also quickly established itself on the local club scene.

shop local For bougie food shopping, look no further than the Sourcing Table wine shop, Village Grocer, Flock and Herd butchers and Melange chocolate. For clothes, locals love boutiques Peckham Supply, Worn not torn, and Form SE15, while L’Appartement is an oasis for plant-lovers and readers can browse the literary selections of Review book shop, and Books (for second hand books). 



L'Appartement

movers and shakers There’s all kinds of fitness offerings to get your heart racing in SE15, from Yogarise Peckham, Hotpod Yoga, Peckham Yoga Den and LevelSix, to CrossFit at The Yard, F45, London Community Boxing and Be Military Fit bootcamp on Peckham Rye. For those who’ve developed a head for heights from all the rooftop wining and dining, Flying Fantastic is home to the aerial arts: silks, hoops, slings, and more.

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

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august 2022

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Catch ya on the Rye

august 2022

global flavours Vegans are spoiled for choice with plant-based offerings Deserted Cactus and En Root. Elsewhere there’s Mexican cuisine at Taco Queen, European and South American dishes and bottomless brunch at TUPI and a wine shop, tapas bar and deli at the Tapas Room. Copeland Park bar and eatery Social is where the co-workers collab, while the Coal Rooms has become one of Peckham’s leading culinary destinations with an open kitchen fitted with a bespoke, coal-fired grill. Whatever you fancy, chances are you’ll find it in Peckham: Oi Spaghetti, Il Giardino, and Artusi (Italian), Miss Tapas, and Uva Tapas Bar (Spanish), Eastern Bloc Peckham (food from around the Black Sea), Zaytoon Grill (Lebanese), Yada’s Green Kitchen (middle eastern), Hanar (Kurdish), Bocachica (Dominican Republic), Mr Bao (Taiwanese), Banh Banh (Vietnamese), Begging bowl (Thai), Ganapati (Indian), Mambow (Malaysian), Tonkotsu (ramen) and Green Choy (Korean).

For burgers there’s Honest Burgers Peckham, and Slow Richie’s hamburgers, and for slices of heaven there’s Pizzeria Peckham, Voodoo Ray’s pizza, Made of Dough, and Mike’s Peckham.

Meanwhile the duo behind Fat Crust Pizza Company make canotto style Neapolitan pizza upstairs at John the Unicorn while moonlighting as Peckham Sauce Co, where they create small batch craft fermented sauces, handmade in Peckham.

The sauces are a mix of secret spices blended with chillies resulting in Britain’s freshest, finest hot sauce.

They’re 100% vegan, 100% natural and don’t add any preservatives or additives.

 Hainanese chicken sando at Mambow  The team at Gosnells

©Caitlin Isola

WHERE EVERYBODY KNOWS YOUR NAME Long running boozers the Montpelier, the Victoria Inn and the Gowlett Arms remain pillars of the community for good reason, while Clement Ogbonnaya’s pub Prince of Peckham has quickly established itself as a favourite among locals, celebrating its fifth birthday this year. After surviving the lockdowns, the Prince continues serving up quality food and drink along with regular events, comedy nights, quizzes and live music.

The Paperworks has a new home just behind Peckham Rye station, serving up drinks, food and music all weekend long, while the area’s original craft microbrewery Brick Brewery Taproom now boasts 20 draught lines, including cask, as well as a fully stocked can fridge of Brick Beers and brews.

Kanpai Sake Brewery in Copeland Park is the UK's first sake brewery, crafting modern British style sakes using traditional Japanese techniques, and Gosnells of London is a Peckham-based mead-maker that now has its own taproom with a second opening in Bermondsey imminently.

Vino fans need look no further than Peckham Cellars, which boasts over 150 wines, and has a wine club and tasting events.

Four Quarters, which opened on Rye Lane in 2014, is London’s first arcade bar and became so popular the owners went on to launch venues in Elephant and Castle and Hackney. Newcomer Zapoi bar boasts vegan cocktails and exotic plants while John the Unicorn describes itself as a LGBTQIA+ safe space specialising in seasonal cocktails and craft beer.

WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE Popular brunch spots include Good Neighbour, Dovedales bakery, Nola coffee and Petitou.

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Contemporary European ‘bistronomy’ at Levan The second restaurant from the team behind Brixton’s critically acclaimed Salon restaurant, Levan serves seasonal and inventive food in a relaxed setting in the heart of Peckham, moments from Peckham overground station. With an open kitchen, counter seating and a cosy dining room, the food, drinks and service has a distinctly contemporary European feel.

Open for lunch and dinner, the eatery serves a 6-course set menu at dinner and à la carte menu during the day, with a good balance of meat and fish alongside vegetarian and plant based dishes. There’s also an enticing selection of snacks and smaller dishes to enjoy with drinks.

The founders describe their wine list as “a love affair with the grape juice of France, Italy, Spain and Germany and their close neighbours.” The owners work with a carefully selected range of quality, low intervention, organic and biodynamic wines from small artisanal producers. Along with a healthy penchant for the wines of Jura, the list explores terroir, sense of place and the exciting range of varietal differences that the wine world offers today. Levan’s cocktails and beers are also tied into this vinous ethos with ale aged in wine barrels and spiritous aperitifs that look like wine.

painting the town Art galleries of Peckham include Bosse and Baum Art Gallery, Copeland Gallery Seen Fifteen gallery, Kiln Rooms Copeland Park, and MOCA London.

London based artist and photographer Natasha Godfrey (whose illustrations of Peckham you see featured here) specialises in pen and ink illustration and travel photography. Natasha does illustrations, etchings and life drawings and has drawn a large number of South East London businesses and homes. She takes private commissions and sells her work online.

12-16 Blenheim Grove, SE15 4QL. Phone: 020 7732 2256. www.levanlondon.co.uk

Check her out here: www.natashagodfrey.co.uk

Meet market Market on Rye Lane is the definition of diversified business: a co-working space at its heart, it also has a restaurant, rooftop bar, shops and a live music venue. A stone’s throw from Peckham Rye station, the 1908 Edwardian building has been redeveloped to become a home to small businesses and freelancers who value being together, living and working differently in the local neighbourhood.

A shared workspace, it offers hot desks, fixed desks and studios options.

Up on the top floor, Forza Wine serves antipasti in a rooftop garden with a 360 view of London, and on the first floor is Tonkotsu, a steamy Japanese noodle bar. The basement is run by Peckham Audio who carefully curate the best bands and club nights south east London has to offer, while facing onto Rye Lane, on the ground floor, is a rotating selection of small independent retailers.

Market was designed and developed by the small team of architects at Frame and is an independent operating business run by Nick Mansour and Simon Thorpe.

Market, 133a Rye Lane, London SE15 4BQ. Phone: 0203 325 0760. www.marketpeckham.com

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Catch ya on the Rye

august 2022

National Vintage League: a home for American sports apparel in Peckham ―

By Holly O'Mahony

“

Fast fashion is the second biggest polluter in the world after air flights. I just don’t think ethically anyone can really justify it, even at a cheap price point,” says Chris Miler, owner of National Vintage League Ltd, a Peckham-based vintage store specialising in 1990s American sports apparel. “All the clothes you could want in your life already exist.” he adds, while giving me a virtual tour of the warehouse-based business over Zoom, which in the four short years since its inception in 2018 has become the UK’s leading supplier in the field.

The business boasts thousands of authentic vintage pieces from the '70s, '80s, '90s and into the 2000s – because, as Chris points out, what you throw away today is tomorrow’s vintage. “Nostalgia dealers are what I’d call us,” he grins.

The collection is weighted largely towards sports jackets for American football, baseball, ice hockey and basketball teams, but there are vest tops, t-shirts and other articles among the rails too. The team-branded clothing comes in all different sizes and, through a 2022 lens, could be described as gender neutral.

“Our three main business pillars are: sustainability, authenticity and community,” Chris continues, adding that a key aim is to “keep the items we specialise in, mainly made from polyester, out of landfill and give them new life.”

He explains: “We try to be as sustainable as possible.

[All items] are thrifted and hand-picked, we don’t buy huge bales, we choose every item that we sell in the shop.”

Despite being designed by American sports teams, 99% of the stock sold at National Vintage League is sourced from the UK. “If we ever source anything from overseas, we’ll carbon offset that flight. And all of our bags are compostable too,” he says, proudly rustling one in front of the camera as an example.

A key arm of the business is helping sports apparel customers buy with confidence. “There’s a huge market for fake sportswear. People get taken advantage of because they would spend a lot of money on [the shirt of ] their favourite player,” Chris says. “So we wanted to create a place for UK buyers to be able to buy NFL [America’s National Football League] jerseys with confidence.”

The business doesn’t just sell sportswear either, prospective customers can make the most of its authenticating service if they want to check items they’ve already bought or spotted elsewhere. Chris is an

season. “So you might support the worst team in the world, but there might have been a point historically when they were really good. People want to buy the stuff from when their team was really good, or to prove they’ve been with them a long time.”

The business exploded over lockdown – no doubt helped by the resurgence of '90s fashion – but for now, Chris and warehouse manager Willie remain a twoman team.

Price wise, Chris hopes to offer something for all budgets. “You can buy items from our store for as low as £10 and as much as £350; things rarely go higher than that,” he says. The most expensive item currently on sale is a gold LA Lakers jacket, going for £300. “Yes, it can be a lot to pay for a jacket, but these clothes were made to last,” he stresses.

On our virtual tour of the warehouse, we pass jackets designed by Jeff Hamilton, vintage LA Lakers jerseys, vests from Michael Jordan’s glory days on the basketball court and team outfits worn by ice hockey squad The Mighty Ducks in the Disney movie franchise.

Eighties posters of NFL players designed by the Costacos brothers line the walls and on one shelf, there’s a replica of the troll-topped Geller Cup from the widely memorable Thanksgiving episode of Friends.

Next to Chris’s desk is a Nintendo 64 game console.

“Squad goals,” he grins.“We try to make it like a

authority on the subject of real versus fake sportswear items. “Between myself and my warehouse manager Willie, we have 10 years’ experience authenticating this sportswear. We know all of the different brands, producers and manufacturers,” he clarifies.

Chris is happy to buy second-hand items off the public too. “A lot of customers turn up with trade bait,” he chuckles. “We’re more than happy to take a look, but we ask them to send pictures first so we can authenticate [the clothing] and work out whether they’re selling items we’d like to add to our collection.”

Thrifting and American sports are long-standing passions of Chris’s. “I’ve always been into thrifting. I started focusing on American clothing when I got back from America, where I lived for seven years,” he says, informing me that “90,000 people watch the NFL in the UK when the season is on.”

It was discovering the sport had a huge following in the UK that gave Chris the idea to collect and sell authentic team kits.

The clothing has enduring appeal, he says, because sport is as much about the history as it is the current

26

clubhouse here.”

And you can see so for yourself: while the majority of its sales are made online, the National Vintage League is open on weekdays, so customers can browse the extensive collection in person. And while an obscure exterior keeps the warehouse largely hidden from those who haven’t come looking for it, Chris is quick to affirm that “after two years of being locked up in this bunker of vintage and doing everything online, it’s been really nice to open the doors.”

National Vintage League is beginning to get noticed.

The business recently supplied clothing for a Craig David music video and further items were snapped up by the costume department for Marvel movies. “We’re also currently a finalist for the Southwark Business Excellence Awards, for Best Customer Service,” says a chuffed Chris before wryly humblebragging: “We’re such nerds, but nerds rule the world now.”

National Vintage League, Unit 2, Print Village, 58 Chadwick Rd, London SE15 4PU. Monday - Friday, 10:30am - 5pm. www.nationalvintageleague.com/

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BErmondsey street festival

august 2022

The Village Fete in the City is back

N

ow in its 18th year, the Bermondsey Street Festival is bouncing back postpandemic and decking the halls with designer bunting. Teaming up with IMAT at Bermondsey Square, at this year’s event you’ll find: • • • • • • • •

Food stalls The famous dog show (finishes at 4:30pm) Maypole dancing Bermondsey Lock Rin Tin Theatre Morocco Band Hot Jazz Books & Beers

The Bermondsey Street Festival is on Saturday 17 September from 11am-7pm.

Stalls close at 6pm, Tanner Street Park closes at 7pm. www.bermondseystreetfestival.org.uk Photo by Red Agency

The Best Bermondsey Pooches are back for a further year

R Photo by Red Agency

egistration starts from 11am at Leathermarket Gardens and is limited to 20 a class.

The Entry Classes • The Lily Award (1.30pm) which is Best Pedigree bitch • The Eddie Award (2pm) which is Best Pedigree Boy • The Holly Award (1pm) which is best mash up and/or rescue • The Augusts & Nelly Bear Award (3pm)

30

which is anything goes... fancy dress, best trick, best 6 legs • The top 2 from each class go through to BEST IN SHOW (3pm) The winner will receive £75 towards a Holly&Lil dog collar of their choice. There will be small prizes for all runners up and losing entrants receive a ‘WE WOZ ROBBED’ rosette.

There will be a free pack of ByBenji treats for all entrants too and 10% off all collars leads and harnesses at Holly&Lil.

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6 NOV – 31 DEC

THIS CHRISTMAS ENJOY A SPECTACULAR NEW VERSION OF THE CLASSIC TALE For everyone aged 7+

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green se15

Helping build a greener Peckham ―

By Holly O'Mahony

A

new research project has been launched in Peckham to help local businesses respond to the climate emergency. Sustainable Peckham is the latest initiative from Circulo CIC, a community-focused company established in 2020 to facilitate a greener, cleaner and more collaborative business community in Peckham.

At the helm of the project is long-term Peckham resident Laura Ford, who previously founded the award-winning campaign group Plastic Free Peckham.

With Sustainable Peckham, Laura hopes to nurture independent local businesses to help them develop sustainable leadership skills and a more resilient trading ecosystem. In its launch phase, she’s hoping to speak to local business owners to gain an understanding about the needs and views of its client base. With time, she hopes the initiative will bring stakeholders together through the sharing of

knowledge and resources, which in turn, she hopes, will raise awareness of what can be done locally to help the climate crisis.

Laura said: “There is, of course, no easy solution to the complex problem of creating a more sustainable relationship with our environment, but we believe that such a profound transition can

only be achieved through collaboration. We are committed to providing Peckham’s independent businesses with the resources, relationships and knowledge they need to overcome the challenges ahead while strengthening and supporting our community. But to do this, we need to hear from as many local voices as we can. Every view is

34

valuable as we seek to understand how we can create a sustainable future that is entirely relevant to Peckham.”

For more information on Sustainable Peckham and to get involved with the project, visit: www.circulocic.org/

august 2022

family

Family events —

Broadway bangers for tiny tots Summer holidays with the Black Prince Trust Got a restless summer holidayer on your hands and in need of some support to keep them busy?

The Black Prince Trust is offering a host of free sports lessons to kids and teens aged 8 - 18 over the summer holidays in a bid to boost physical activity and group participation. There’s boxing, basketball, football and multi-sport sessions to get involved with, and as an added bonus, healthy lunches are provided for free to those who take part in the sessions. On top of that, the trust is giving short, 30-minute workshops on all-important topics including nutrition, employment and mental health.

By Holly O'Mahony

Outdoor cinema mania over the summer

Discovering The Secret Garden

If you’re yet to take your brood to watch a movie in the great outdoors this summer, there’s still time.

London is playing home to several pop-up screens right now, and plenty of them are south of the river. Huzzah! Having already touched down in Clapham, Dulwich and Wimbledon this summer, touring favourite Luna Cinema heads next to Kew Gardens (August 31 - September 4), where screenings of Moana and an Enacto sing-along are among its family-friendly line-up. Meanwhile, Pop Up Screens is calling in at Hither Green (August 19 - 21) and Greenwich Peninsula (August 26 28), showing The Greatest Showman, Ghostbusters Afterlife and Moulin Rouge!.

Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic story The Secret Garden, about a girl who discovers wonders hidden in a sprawling country house, is the inspiration behind an immersive exhibition running this summer at the Garden Museum. The story has been adapted multiple times since its release over a century ago and the exhibition celebrates some of its most familiar illustrations. A series of interactive games, trails and the chance to do some light gardening will keep little ones engaged.

Luna Cinema at Kew Gardens, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 2DF. Admission: £14.75 - £17.75. www.thelunacinema.com/venue/ kew-gardens/

Black Prince Community Trust, 5 Beaufoy Walk, Off Black Prince Road, London SE11 6AA. July 25 - August 26, 10:30am - 4pm.

Admission: FREE. www.blackprincetrust.org.uk/activitybooking/

That’s a tune!

Garden Museum, 5 Lambeth Palace Road, London SE1 7LB. Until September 4, 10am - 5pm, daily.

Admission: £14/kids go free. www.gardenmuseum.org.uk/

What’s your favourite song? Or the one that always puts you in a dancing mood? Or the first ever single you bought on vinyl (or tape, or CD, or, er, whatever the kids do these days)? Whatever it is, come and celebrate it at Brixton House, where ‘Tune! Vinyl Record Storytelling’ is a project encouraging visitors to share the stories behind the songs they love most.

Bring your vinyls and the whole family along with you.

Pop Up Screens, Hither Green, Manor House Gardens, Taunton Road, SE13 5SU / Greenwich Peninsula, Central Park, East Parkside, SE10 0BN. Admission: £10. www.popupscreens.co.uk/

The Nook at Brixton House, 385 Coldharbour Lane, London SW9 8GL. August 12, 5pm.

Admission: FREE. www.brixtonhouse.co.uk/ shows/tune-vinyl-record-storytelling/

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Take your littlest ones to new, multipurpose arts venue Woolwich Works to catch its popular family show Baby Broadway. Listen out for musical hits you know and love (including songs from Mary Poppins, Singin’ in the Rain, Mamma Mia and Frozen), and sing along to numbers from the shows which have dazzled on the star-studded streets of Broadway and the West End. On top of that, expect bubbles, puppets and plenty of space to throw some shapes.

The event is open to all ages – from newborns to grandparents.

The Fireworks Factory, 11 No 1 Street, Royal Arsenal, London SE18 6HD. August 13, 11am.

Admission: £10.50/£9 concessions/under 6 months go free. www.woolwich.works/events/baby-broadway-1

History time at Eltham Palace The Medieval era is being resurrected at Eltham Palace for the summer holidays, where school aged kids are being summoned to find out what life was like for those who lived between the 5th and 15th centuries. The programme promises jester workshops, archery, storytelling and lessons in courtly etiquette.

Those who want to get even more into character can become a Medieval actor and take part in a series of interactive Robin Hood plays, from August 1 - 7.

Pray thee, book now to avoid disappointment.

Eltham Palace and Gardens, Court Yard, Eltham, Greenwich, SE9 5NP. Events until September 4, times vary depending on event.

Admission: £17:60/£10:60 children. www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/whats-on/ eltham-medieval-season/

Boosting your child’s homework confidence

Buzzing Battersea

We’ve all been there..... it’s evening time and you find that your child is resisting doing their homework. So now, in addition to being a parent, provider, chef, taxi driver, etc, you get to be the homework enforcer. (P.S. it’s a thankless job) David Carnochan Centre Manager of Mathnasium in Dulwich, who specialise in teaching mathematics, speaks with parents regularly and they tell him what works. Here are his top 5 tips.

1/ Environment Create a homework friendly area with keys materials like pencils, paper, textbooks etc at hand.

Try to ensure this is well lit and away from distractions like TV & Video games

I

deally situated in the heart of London’s Battersea Park the zoo has so much to offer children and their families throughout the summer, with over 100 amazing animals from around the world to the energy burning activity playgrounds including a life size fire engine and sea rescue helicopter!

Check in on the exotic monkeys, tamarinds and lemurs - maybe you could follow a keeper as they feed the otters and meerkats. Our new edition this year and proving very popular with all ages are the beehives. London Beekeeper Association help us care for the bees and are happy to answer any questions when they are at the zoo. If you would like to be even closer to the animals why not try a Keeper Experience and enjoy the company of a keeper throughout your visit, and see how they spend their days caring for the beautiful animals and birds at Battersea Park Children’s Zoo? For more information visit our web site www.Batterseaparkzoo.co.uk

2/ Establish a schedule Get them into a good habit. Form a routine and agree guidelines such as assignments must be completed before play time or TV. 3/ Be a mentor & a motivator While its important children take ownership of their homework it really helps to show interest.

Ask about assignments and quizzes. Get them to show you their work and solicit feedback.

Help them make a plan if they have a lot of work.

4/ Praise their work Acknowledge their efforts, recognise improvements in concentration, handwriting or recent marks. Maybe agree a treat if work is completed on time.

5/ Don’t be scared to ask for help.

Many schools have a homework portal on their website. Ask about availability of extra study sessions / clubs. If regular challenges persist talk with your child’s teacher.

David explains that Mathnasium, (The Maths Learning Centre) help students catch up and get ahead in maths by making it fun. Their highly trained tutors also set aside time at the conclusion of lessons to provide support with school homework, so the student feels better prepared, transforming homework frustration into a welcome challenge. dulwich@mathnasium.co.uk ∙ www.mathnasium.co.uk/dulwich ∙ 0208 299 1171

BE AMAZED BY WILDLIFE Meet our amazing animals at this family friendly zoo in the heart of Battersea Park.

After listening to our many keeper talks and watching the feeding sessions, why not have fun on our adventure play areas.

Located next to our farm you will find a life sized helicopter, fire engine and tractor, along with a sandpit, swings, wooden fort, climbing ropes and much more.

Battersea Park Children’s Zoo Battersea Park London SW11 4NJ T: 020 7924 5826

Central School of Ballet_Summer Adult Classes_Southwark news_AW.indd 1

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august 2022

FOOD & DRINK

Bitesize ―

By Holly O'Mahony

The Flygerians The Flygerians has a bold ambition: to serve the best jollof rice in town. But that’s not all you can order here: the short, brightly flavoured menu promises wings, suya (Nigerian skewers), and naija beans with plantain among its offering. There’s also a chin chin-based banoffee pie for the sweettoothed and cocktails for those looking to make a night of it. This Nigerian street food joint from Jess and Jo Edun has popped up at several sites over the years, but home is currently Peckham Palms.

Fly to it!

Kanpai Did you know Peckham is home to the UK’s first sake brewery? It was founded back in 2016 by a British couple, Tom and Lucy, who fell in love with Japan’s signature rice wine while exploring the country. Six years on and the brewery is thriving; it’s won a load of awards, and offers tours and tastings on select dates, but you can also pop in informally for a glass of hot or cold sake in its airy taproom. The pair pride themselves on their traditional brewing methods: their sake is low-intervention and made by hand with no added alcohol, sulphites or preservatives. It’s best enjoyed in the taproom, they say, because sake is always at its best when fresh. Oh, and no visit here is complete without a trip to the bathroom, where a high-tech Japanese toilet will warm then wash your nether regions.

The Flygerians, Peckham Palms, 14 Bournemouth Close, London SE15 4PB. Tuesday - Saturday, 1pm - 11pm. www.the-flygerians.business.site/

Kanpai Saki, Copeland Park, Peckham SE15 3SN. Wednesday - Friday, 5pm - 10/11pm; Saturday 12pm - 11pm; Sunday 12pm - 7pm. www.kanpai.london/

Mondo at The White Horse

Bars-cum-record shops, boasting serious vinyl collections and DJs spinning the decks, are very much in vogue. New offering Jumbi, which has been open just four weeks, brings the trend to SE15, and is the place for a late-night boogie this month. Cocktails range from cheap (a ginger and lime shandy will set you back just £5) to quirky (coriander martini, anyone?), and there’s a jerk-led menu for those who arrive hungry. Our advice?

Come nice and early to line your stomach and get a little tipsy, then stay for when the tables are pushed away to make room for a dancefloor.

Here’s a start-up story we can get behind: Mondo Sando was conceived as a lockdown project, when best mates Jack and Viggo started making mega sarnies for their lucky friends and neighbours in SE5. They found a niche: stacked subs overflowing with exciting fillings, playfully named in reference to movies and cult magazines. April 2021 saw the business go professional, opening as a pop-up in Camberwell’s Grove House Tavern. Now, a second branch has arrived, this one at The White Horse pub in Peckham.

Signature subs include the vegan Thai larb (vegan soy larb with Thai basil, mint, coriander, pickled beans, cucumber and lettuce); and The Fauxmoor (rare roast beef, shoestring fries, peppercorn sauce, sweet peppers, rocket and gravy mayo). While sandwiches are the main event, it’s worth leaving room to sample the expertly seasoned skewers: an oyster shroom in a miso glaze and shichimi stole our hearts.

Jumbi, Unit 4.1, Copeland Park, 133 Copeland Rd, London SE15 3SN. Wednesday - Friday, 4pm - 12am; Saturday 2pm - 2am; Sunday 2pm - 12am. www.jumbipeckham.com/

The White Horse, 20-22 Peckham Rye, London SE15 4JR. Open daily, 12pm - 3pm & 6pm - 9pm on weekdays; 1pm - 9:30pm on Saturday; 1pm - 5pm on Sunday. www.whitehorsepeckham.co.uk/mondo-sando/

Funkidory If the cheesy name (a play on hunkydory and funky, of course) sounds familiar, you may have visited this late-night spot in its pre-pandemic guise, but the long lockdowns gave owners Sergio and Anna, a local couple with plenty of experience in the hospitality sector, time to rethink their vision for their bar, and a trip to Funkidory now comes coupled with the chance to listen to vinyls while sipping on natural vinos. Do opt for a seat at the bar, where you’ll be spoiled by barmen enthusiastically regaling the drinks list and, once you’ve tried a glass of the exceptional chilled red wine, do move onto cocktails: the frosé paloma (rosè, 100% Agave Blanco Tequila and homemade pink grapefruit cordial) is summer debauchery in a glass. You’ll lose hours and make hazy memories here.

Funkidory, 42 Peckham Rye, London SE15 4JR. Tuesday - Thursday, 5pm - 11pm; Friday & Saturday, 5pm - 12am. www.funkidory.com/

Jumbi Bottle & Rye Wherever chef Robin Gill goes, our stomachs will follow. The culinary maestro behind restaurants including Sorella, Darby’s and Bermondsey Larder, and gone-but-not-forgotten The Dairy and Counter Culture, has arrived in Brixton, working with his wife Sarah to set up Bottle & Rye: a petite bistro that channels Parisian vibes through a menu featuring croque madames, Ogleshield Gougères and Vichyssoise Oyster Tartare. As the name suggests, wine is a key part of the offering too, and a lengthy list pays homage to all corners of France. Bon appétit!

Bottle & Rye, Ground Floor, 404-406 Market Row, London SW9 8LD. Wednesday - Sunday, opening hours vary. www.bottleandrye.com/

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august 2022

No Cellars remorse in Peckham ―

By Holly O'Mahony

W

here neighbourhood restaurants are concerned, you want your local high street to have two things: a trusty, simple spot with no frills that you can pop into for a quick bite to eat when even piercing the film lid of a ready-meal is too much effort, and a place that wines and dines you like a flashy date. The latter is a special place, one that surprises you with its ever-changing menu, spoils you with spectacular drinks and makes you feel like your life is about ten per cent more exciting when you’re tucked in at one of its tables, soaking up its electric atmosphere. For those lucky enough to live in the Queens Road end of Peckham, that place is Peckham Cellars.

The restaurant and wine bar has straddled the corner of Queen’s Road and King’s Grove for the best part of three years, having been opened in November 2019 by hospitality pros Helen Hall, Luke WestWhylie and Ben McVeigh. But we all know what happened during that time to prevent a new restaurant from flourishing. The good news is, Peckham Cellars

FOOD & DRINK

is now very much in its stride. When we turned up for dinner on a sunny Thursday evening, every one of its tables – indoors and spilling onto the pavement – was taken.

An intimate affair, it seats just 24 covers, with as many again outdoors when the weather plays ball. Our visit fell on one of those days, when light streamed through its wide open windows, unifying those dining al fresco with those indoors, and casting a golden aura onto the carefully-sourced bottles and colourful posters decorating its walls.

We sat at the bar, where everyone knows you get the best service, and were indulged by our worker bee waiter, who juggled our many questions about the lengthy wine list with pouring thimble-sized tasters of unusual varieties and dishing up small plates to those further along the counter.

Opting for wine by the glass to make a decent dent in the list, I started with a glass of Col Fondo, a natural, English sparkling wine – served here on tap, as a bonus novelty – which had the trademark cloudy sourness natural varieties are known for, but was light, fruity and very drinkable. I chanced a more standard Provence rosé next and then a full-bodied Sicilian orange, but your own visit could take you roaming across Europe. Like what you try and you might be able to pick up a bottle to take home, too:

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the restaurant doubles up as a bottle shop with shelves helpfully organised by colour and price. An entire row dedicated to bottles under £19 was a relief to see.

It would be a sin to stop in only for wine (or cocktails – the negroni is the signature here), when there’s so much to nibble on. Come solo for an apéritif, as the lady to our left did, and a plate of red pepper and caramelised croquetas – three golden, generously portioned, tubes oozing with soft and salty goodness – might do it. Come as a four and you could polish off the 16-strong list of small plates, which range from £4 – £15 in price, without doing too much damage to your purse.

Only a dish of ceviche, with too-big hunks of fish wobbling on a too-sweet bed of sweet potato purée, was a let down. But this was easily forgettable once a round of pork belly in a zingy mojo verde and a steaming bowl of lightly fried potato bravas speckled with chives and drizzled in a moreish aioli arrived.

As we left, I found myself eyeing up the wall of posters, all of which proudly commemorated special events held at the restaurant. To leave your dinner with an A4 piece of art advertising it might sound bizarre, but hey, I’m all for shouting about a decent meal. Had there been a poster to remind me of my night at Peckham Cellars, I’d have taken one for the road, along with a bottle of that Sicilian orange.

The damage (for 2): Glass of Col Fondo sparkling wine: £9.50 Two glasses of Cinsault rosé: £7.50 Glass of Xarel-lo orange wine: £8.50 Glass of Gruner Veltiner wine: £7 Glass of Catarratto orange wine: £7 Red pepper + caramelised onion croquetas: £7 Pollock Ceviche: £13 Confit duck salad: £12 Pork belly: £15 New potato Bravas: £5 TOTAL: £91.50 Food & Drink: 4 STARS Ambience: 5 STARS Value: 4 STARS Disabled access: YES Disabled toilet: NO Booking: YES

Peckham Cellars, 125 Queen's Road, London SE15 2ND. Tuesday - Friday, 5:30pm - 11pm; Saturday 12pm - 11pm. www.peckhamcellars.co.uk

Day Opportunities Flexible hours as required £22,880 (full time equivalent) Aspire Wellbeing Centre, West Dulwich Want to make a difference to the lives of people with physical, learning and/or sensory disabilities? We are seeking to make some new appointments to our team and are looking for individuals who can contribute to, and sometimes lead on, the provision of flexible, person-centered support for our members.

Aspire Wellbeing is a disability confident organisation and is experienced in providing care and rehabilitation services for adults with physical, sensory and learning disabilities. You will need a qualification in Health and Social Care, Nursing or a similar vocation will be essential (e.g. NVQ Level 2; Level 2 Diploma in Health & Social care). You are expected to have worked in a Health and Social Care environment for a minimum of 2 years and willing to work within a team.

If you are interested in applying please send your CV to Florence Chiwetu - florence@ aspirewellbeing.org Closing Date: Friday 9th September 2022 with interviews taking place the week commencing Monday 19th September 2022.

Aspire Wellbeing, 1 Park Hall Road, West Dulwich, London SE21 8EH.

Medical and aesthetics Clinic East Dulwich Anti Wrinkle Treatment Medical Grade Skincare Dermal Fillers Skin Boosters Weight Loss Morpheus 8 Lumecca IPL Incontinence PDO Threadlifts

133 Lordship Lane, London, SE22 8HX

Advanced Nurse Practitioner AND INDEPENDENT PRESCRIBER IG: @aestheticsbylaurenturner p: 02082263800 e: info@aestheticsbylt.com

Wellbeing

august 2022

Communication is NOT the key to a successful relationship ― Forest Hill love psychologist Nancy Elliot says don’t believe the hype!

T

he idea that communication is the key to a successful relationship is the most commonly held myth circulated worldwide by relationship experts.

As a result, this myth has become deeply embedded within the ‘psychology of relating.’

Unfortunately, this means experts in the field are taking a myopic view on what tools are critical for cultivating a loving and successful long-term relationship.

I am an accredited Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist in Private Practice; my specialisation is working with women, and I love my job. Day in, day out, I watch as my clients sit opposite me, utterly crushed and totally overcome with despair. And it’s all because they have a core belief, whether conscious or unconscious, that their relationship must be in trouble if the communication has broken down or is lacking in certain areas. I remain steadfastly optimistic and explain to my clients at this point that sometimes, the breakdown of communication is precisely what a relationship might need to grow to its next level.

I recommend that they reframe the meaning that they are giving to this issue. Perhaps, the conflicts they are experiencing around communication indicate that the relationship is trying to reconfigure itself and requires that the individuals work towards adjusting themselves accordingly.

In her influential book Women Who Run With The Wolves Jungian Psychoanalyst Clarissa Pinkola

Estes describes how fundamental it is to accept the life/death cycle in our relationships. “If one wishes to be fed for life, one must face and develop a relationship with the Life/Death/Life nature. When we have that, we are no longer bumbling around fishing for fantasies but are made wise about the necessary deaths and startling births that create true relationships.”

I too was once held under the spell of the ‘communication myth’ and was initially counselling my clients to try to ‘talk it over’ in various ways. It wasn’t until I became a more seasoned clinician and gained more experience in my own relationships that I started to see the flaws in the idea that communication is the key to a good relationship.

I realised that many people I knew had a deep love and respect for each other but just couldn’t seem to see eye to eye on some or many things.

While this was causing conflict and a stuckness for them, it was by no means an indication that the relationship lacked love or the ingredients to make it long term. These relationships were far from over. I thought there must be another way to move past the blocks that are presenting themselves in relationships.

In the end, it was a combination of the work I did in my clinical practice, the failures and successes in my own relationships, along with the research evidence I gathered over the years, that enabled me to identify a mismatch between how effective this ‘communication is key’ myth was in

actually resolving the challenges we face around communication breakdowns in our relationships and what tools are actually working in the lives of people to effectively help them transcend their particular issues around communicating with their loved ones.

It became clear that we had to ditch the idea that our relationship health is hinged on our ability to communicate with our partner. The fact is, there are some issues that no amount of well-meaning smart talk between two people who love each other can resolve or surmount. Ask anyone who’s in a long-term relationship. This is because relationships are enormously complex. Wherever two disparate elements are attempting a long-term merger or synthesis, complications will arise. Such an emphasis on communication as the fulcrum of our relational success is, therefore, an oversimplification. It is also dangerous and misleading.

Want the good news? There is a way to transcend the differences inherent in our relationships without good communication, and that is through good old-fashioned love. I mean the unconditional kind of love. I admit, unconditional love is a rather vague and sweeping method to apply as a concrete technique to one's relationship problems. So, let’s get specific. If communication is not the key to a successful relationship, then what exactly is?

“The most critical tool necessary for a relationship to succeed long-term is acceptance. Acceptance is the first step towards unconditional love. Of oneself and of others.”

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Unlike depending on the prospect of good communication with those we love, acceptance doesn’t seek resolution or understanding from the other. It is an inside job. Now, this is really rather prudent because, let’s face it, we can’t control a single thing that others will do, think or feel about us and vice versa. We can’t change anyone. We cannot control whether those we love can respond to our needs adequately or to what degree they have the emotional language we require to feel sufficiently loved or acknowledged by them. We are powerless in this regard. Acceptance, on the other hand gives us total power. It is the stance that enables us to love unconditionally. We can then emotionally detach from investing too heavily in how the people we love behave and love them anyway. Think about a parent’s love for their child.

Acceptance puts us in the driving seat of our own emotions and feelings. It means we get to love the people we love just the way they are. Which is precisely how it should be. Plus, we get to be really kind to ourselves by not being consistently wounded when someone we love doesn’t want to do things our way. Remember, it’s never personal.

Now take a deep breath, channel Barry White, and repeat after me: “Don’t go changing, to try and please me. I love you just the way you are."

For more information visit www.nancyelliottcoaching.com

Foundation Certificate in Counselling Skills October 2022 start

make a change • Are you looking for a dynamic and respected starting point for

your ambition to change career and train as a therapist?

• Or perhaps you want to improve your understanding of human

behaviour and motivation?

• Do you want to be part of a course that will provide you with the

opportunity to gain, and develop, counselling skills you can use in all areas of your life?

If your answer is yes, then this is the time to apply for this stimulating and varied part-time course.

To find out more about all the counselling and psychotherapy courses offered at WPF Therapy register to attend our next free Open Event on Saturday 17th September, 10am - 12pm or the Taste of Training Sessions on 3rd & 10th September, 10am - 1pm.

WPF Therapy, 23 Magdalen Street, London SE1 2EN training@wpf.org.uk www.wpf.org.uk

t r a St r u e o y ur t fu w! no Charity No. 273434

A Passion for Life and Learning since 1741

James Allen’s Girls’ School Autumn Open Events Find out more about JAGS including our free and subsidised places.

BOOK ONLINE

jags.org.uk 45 South_Londoner_250x300.indd 1

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wellbeing

august 2022

“Choosing this school was the best decision. They truly care about the progress and wellbeing of my child.” Parent An infectious culture of aspiration, exploration and connectedness Our goal is simple: to provide an outstanding education for our community. Our pupils experience a broad, challenging and stimulating curriculum so they can reach their potential. Visitors to Compass School notice the calm and friendly learning environment, engagement in lessons and warm sense of community. Pupils bid you good morning, hold doors open and speak enthusiastically about their school.

Enabling pupils to fulfil their potential and passions We are passionate that education must reach beyond the academic so the whole child is educated and inducted into a culture where they can make the most of their talents and excel. Whether it’s The Brilliant Club, Oxbridge schemes or Leatherwork, pupils see and experience clear pathways to university. Debate Mate hones their critical thinking and oracy skills. Music instrument lessons, singing and dance enable pupils to fulfil their passion. We promote active and healthy lifestyles and our sports clubs include links with community groups Ballers’ Football and Greenhouse Table Tennis so pupils can continue their activity outside of school.

We are generous with trips, including going to the theatre and taking part in performances. We visit galleries, offer residentials and overseas visits, so pupils can have a truly enriched educational experience.

Giving back to our community We give back to our community through a broad range of charitable activities and outreach. Our annual First Give programme is built into the curriculum, so all pupils in a year group carry out social action for their chosen local charity and have the opportunity to pitch for an additional £1,000. Compass pupils provide coaching for local primary school pupils through our Greenhouse Table Tennis programme, or through Sports Leaders. Pupils also lead fundraising for causes such as Ukraine, the Manna Homeless Centre in London Bridge and Breast Cancer Awareness.

A new building for September 2023 and small class sizes Our new state-of-the art building due to open in September 2023 has a maximum capacity of 600 pupils which will be taught across 5 forms - an average class size of just 24 pupils.

There’s so much packed into our small school setting! Most of all, we’ve built an infectious culture of aspiration, exploration and connectedness with our community that must be seen to be appreciated.

So do come along and visit us this autumn. We’re just a stone’s throw from Bermondsey tube. A warm welcome awaits!

A new state-of-the-art building opening in September 2023

Open Events

2022 Open Evenings • Tue 13th September

5pm - 7pm

• Mon 26th September

Open Mornings • Thur 15th September

9am - 10:15am

• Mon 19th September

• Wed 28th September • Tue 4th October RI V ER T H A M

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Please visit compass-schools.com/admissions for more information Compass School Southwark, Drummond Road, Bermondsey SE16 2BT 020 3542 6506 • info@compass-schools.com @compassSE16

200 pupils at Dulwich have free or subsidised places

Join us at our Open Events Book your place dulwich.org.uk/admissions Pupils are encouraged to be and do everything

Entry into Years 3-6 (ages 7-10) Mrs Polly Twisk, Junior School Admissions 020 8299 8432 junioradmissions@dulwich.org.uk

Entry into Year 7 and Year 9 (ages 11 and 13) Mrs Sarah Betts and Mrs Alison Williams 020 8299 9263 the.registrar@dulwich.org.uk

Bursaries of up to 100% and Academic Scholarships of up to one third of full fees are available.

Find out more and how to apply by scanning the QR code.

Compassionate... Reflective... Inclusive... Supportive... Transformative...

An 11 - 18 Church of England Girls’ School

Open Sessions 2022

Open Mornings: September 22nd, 23rd, 26th, 27th, October 13th All sessions start at 10am (Headteacher’s talk at 10.45am) Open Evening: 29th September from 6pm Our The (Headteacher’s talk at 7.30pm)

Sixth Form Open Evening 20th October

rap Dog Winnie y s ‘Come and ays: see my lovely sch ool!’

New Kent Road, London SE1 4AN T: 020 7407 1843 W: www.ssso.southwark.sch.uk E: office@ssso.southwark.sch.uk

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Firmly rooted in our community and with 140 years’ experience in Catholic all-girls education, La Retraite is underpinned by its inclusive community, strong values and long history of academic excellence.

Why choose us?

• An inclusive Catholic ethos which welcomes students from all walks of life, regardless of their faith • Recognised by Ofsted as Outstanding since 2007 • Students are encouraged to be aspirational and bold, empowered by teachers to flourish and excel • A commitment to preparing every girl for their future • A 7 year journey: the La Retraite 6 is our outstanding Sixth Form, offering a range of pathways including T Level education and unrivalled opportunities, support and outcomes

16-18 and looking to start college?

• A seamless transition into Year 7, Year 12 and post-16.

• An enriching student experience that goes beyond the classroom, developing passions and offering life-changing endeavours

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Come and see what Bosco can offer you.

Places available for an immediate start in:

Business Child Care IT and Digital Media Sport

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Open Day Saturday 24th September, 9am - 1pm

Open Mornings Tuesday 4th October, 9:15am - 12pm Wednesday 12th October, 9:15am - 12pm

Sixth Form Open Morning Saturday 24th September, 9am - 1pm

Formidable Talent – Courageous Spirit – Determined Minds

281 Jamaica Road, SE16 4RS 0207 232 0440 info@bosco.ac.uk

@baconscollege Bacon’s College is a Church of England secondary school and Sixth Form with a commitment to high achievement within a community of care, underpinned by Christian values.

Open Evening Thursday 15th September (5-8pm)

Open Mornings Saturday 17th September (10am-12pm) Tuesday 20th September (9-10.30am) Wednesday 21st September (9-10.30am) Tuesday 27th September (9-10.30am) Wednesday 28th September (9-10.30am)

www.baconscollege.co.uk

august 2022

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education

august 2022

S

t Dunstan’s College, Catford, south London is delighted to be sponsoring the first-ever Catford Literary Festival.

The inaugural Catford Literary Festival will take place in early October and host 15 authors across two days at Abbotshall HLC in Catford.

Speaking about the Festival, St Dunstan’s Head, Nick Hewlett said: 'We are delighted to be sponsoring the first ever Catford Literary Festival, which promises to be a vibrant and engaging event for the local community. St Dunstan's College is committed to working with local partners to provide life-enhancing opportunities to local people that help improve communities.'

Natasha Clarkson, Abbotshall’s Centre and Partnership Director, said: ‘We’re really excited to bring a new book festival to south-east London and to highlight literature in Catford. We really want to showcase the diverse literary talent that the area has to offer and have been inundated with local authors wanting to take part.’

Authors who have signed up to this year’s festival include Jimi Famurewa, Rebecca Seal and Brenda Garrick.

Jimi Famurewa the restaurant critic for the Evening Standard, who will be talking on the Saturday about his forthcoming book, ‘Settlers: Journeys Through the Food, Faith and Culture of Black African London’. Rebecca Seal, who lives in Forest Hill and has been a writer for 18 years, will be talking on the Sunday about ‘SOLO: How to Work Alone (and Not Lose Your Mind)’. Seal is an award-winning writer and also runs a local photography studio, Kemble House. She has written ten books, and her journalism is published worldwide in broadsheet newspapers and magazines.

Brenda Garrick will also be appearing on the Sunday when she will be reading from Jamakespeare.

Containing re-imaginings of Shakespeares's soliloquies

St Dunstan’s College to sponsor the first-ever Catford Literary Festival

Whole School Open Day Saturday 24 September 2022

Sixth Form Open Evening Tuesday 4 October 2022

To find out more, visit www.stdunstans.org.uk or email admissions@stdunstans.org.uk 020 8516 7200 - London, SE6 4TY 53

and monologues that incorporate Jamaican Patois, her book is an inventive and engrossing take on the Bard's classic works. The event is ideal for young readers and Jamakespeare makes Shakespeare fresh and new and is a compelling take on canonical texts.

Other highlights over the weekend include local writer Niamh Mulvey, who will head up a panel event featuring debut authors, and there will be a food writing event featuring well-known names from the world of food and drink including Helen Graves, who has lived in south-east London for many years and writes the wellloved blog ‘Food Stories’.

St Dunstan’s, which was recently named Independent Senior School of the Year at the Tes Awards, is passionate about and dedicated to providing life-enriching opportunities to our local community.

Head Nick Hewlett added: ‘We realise that we hold a privileged position as an independent school both in terms of our facilities and the experiences of our staff and pupils. It is vitally important for us that this can be of benefit to, and enhanced by, the communities that extend beyond our college gates. As one of the only independent schools in Lewisham, we believe in a broader educational purpose that supports the ongoing aspirations for the betterment of the borough and its residents.’

The College aims to routinely work with local partners to provide empowering opportunities to local people that will promote social mobility, engender wellbeing, and improve communities in additional to responding with benevolence and charity.

All of the Catford Literary Festival events will have free tickets available. Guests can make a donation to support the ongoing work of Abbotshall.

Find out more about Catford Literary Festival and St Dunstan's community work at www.stdunstans.org.uk

local Faces

august 2022

M: I think the best thing about running your own business is getting to have creative control with your work. The team and I do things our way, which is different to other shops, but it’s worked for us so far.

It sounds cheesy, but team work really does make the dream work.

A life of skin and ink: the founder of Rye Lanez Tattooing, on the best of Peckham ―

SL: Rye Lanez Tattooing must have some stories from the past five years. Is there a memorable moment that comes to mind?

M: We've had so many amazing memories here but one of the best was when we streamed the 2020 Euro finals [held in 2021] in the front yard of the shop and had the community drop in to watch it. Even though we lost at the last minute, it was an incredible atmosphere and a memorable night for everyone.

By Holly O'Mahony

SL: What’s the most bizarre thing you’ve been asked to tattoo on someone? (that you’re allowed to tell us about, that is!)

R

ye Lanez Tattooing is celebrating five years of being in business this summer. A party was thrown outside the shop on July 23, with friends of the business providing the food, drink and entertainment.

A south-east Londoner born and bred, Rye Lanez owner Moby is a familiar face in the neighbourhood and a champion of fellow local businesses, so finding willing participants to cater for the anniversary was presumably no hard ask.

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for the tattoo parlour though: Moby had to fight The Arch Co to keep hold of the shop, which takes up one of the coveted railway arches on Blenheim Grove.

The South Londoner speaks to Moby about the joys and challenges of running a tattoo parlour, calling Peckham home, and how he got into a life of skin and ink…

M: The craziest thing we nearly tattooed was a Nike tick on someone's forehead, but after finding him smoking something, er, a bit stronger than weed, just outside the entrance to the shop, we gave him his money back and cancelled the appointment.

SL: Sounds like you did him a solid. On the flip side, what’s the most common tattoo you get asked for?

M: I think the most common thing we get asked to tattoo is names – everybody has a word or a name that's special to them or has some meaning in their life.

SL: Tell us something those of us who don’t have tattoos won’t know?

South Londoner: Tell us a bit about yourself. How did you get into the tattooing business and what led you to set up your own shop?

M: I’ll give you a fun fact: according to The Atlas of True Names, which uncovers how global places came to be named, the term Great Britain is a combination of the Celtic word ‘brit’ and Greek word 'prettanoi', which roughly translates as ‘great land of tattooed people’.

Moby: I grew up here in south-east London. I've always been fascinated by tattoos and always wanted to do it.

I eventually got an apprenticeship with Joey Inks in Lewisham. After leaving there, I was living with a friend, Lewis Ham (@lewis_ham), and we were spending a lot of time in Peckham, hanging out in shops like Wavey Garms and Balamii studio in Holdrons Arcade.

We were both interested in starting our own tattooing business, but we needed a team. We managed to recruit two more artists in the form of Sean (@londonboy_ tattooer) and Cei (@obwelectrictattooing), and started looking for a studio space.

SL: As a Peckham local, what do you love about the area? What makes you proud to run a business there?

M: Peckham is great because of the diversity here. We’re a walk-in shop and it's fun to work with people from all walks of life. We tattoo university students, career criminals, celebrities and everyone in between.

SL: In the spirit of supporting other local businesses, what are some of your favourites in the area that our readers should know about?

SL: You opened Rye Lanez Tattooing in a railway arch in Blenheim Grove. Fast-forward to the present and your business turned five this year. What did you do to celebrate?

M: There are so many fine local establishments in Peckham, but to name a few of our favourites: Rye Express, a bar called Tola, Balamii radio, the Peckhamplex cinema, the Nags Head pub, M.Manze’s pie shop, plant-based restaurant En Root and of course everyone in Rye Lane Market, which is where it all started for us five years ago.

M: We threw a party in our front yard on Blenheim Grove. We had some amazing local DJs including Uyless, Sith God, Bluetoof, OneMan, Chinese Daughter and Silva Snipa, and some incredible food and drink served by En Root and Smokey Jerkey.

Rye Lanez Tattooing, Unit 210, 22a Blenheim Grove, London SE15 4QN. Open daily, 11am - 7pm. www.ryelaneztattooing.co.uk

SL: What have you learned from the past five years of running a business?

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