Wick Week - Day 7 - Urban Gardener

Still in Cadogan Terrace, this image with the reflection of the trees, the nets and the window box so perfectly sums up the Urban Gardener.

Still on holiday, and the Wick Week continues. You can read the entire text of the Beating the Bounds walk (a lot more than just the photos) here. Today's photo is near 9.

Wick Week - Day 6 - Cadogan Terrace

Continuing the walk we came to Cadogan Terrace, an entirely elgant row of Georgian terraced houses opposite Victoria Park, always forgetting the odd few houses representing properties bombed in the war.

I rather liked this design, stencilled on a .... dustbin.

Still on holiday, and the Wick Week continues. You can read the entire text of the Beating the Bounds walk (a lot more than just the photos) here. Today's photo is near 9.

Wick Week - Day 5 - Canal Art

The quiet canal banks are perfect for the odd bit of graffiti, and some of it is quite odd. A surprising amount is rather good, though.


Still on holiday, and the Wick Week continues. You can read the entire text of the walk (a lot more than just the photos) here. Today's photo is near 7.

Wick Week - Day 4 - Olympic Visions

The waterway by the Olympic building site is a little less pastoral. Here, you will find hordes of people are scurrying around to get the site ready for 2012, and legions of security staff who have no greater pleasure in life than to tell anyone with a big camera to stop taking photos.

On the other side of this fence used to be Hackney Greyhound Stadium. Here is a great article about the close relationship of London with dog racing.


Still on holiday, and the Wick Week continues. You can read the entire text of the walk (a lot more than just the photos) here. Today's photo is near 4 & 5

Wick Week - Day 3 - The White House

We're off "Beating the Bounds" now, and this idyllic scene by the Lea Navigation has a ghost on its left - the White House where Dick Turpin the highwayman was known to have stayed.

Still on holiday, and the Wick Week continues. You can read the entire text of the walk (a lot more than just the photos) here. Today's picture is near 3.

Wick Week - Day 2 - Tree Nursery

The thing about the Tree Nursery that you need to know is that it has been turned into an "Edible Garden". The Tree Nursery & Edible Forest Garden is a community operation, run by volunteers on Hackney Marsh. Trees are grown from seed and cuttings in the Tree Nursery, until they are large enough to be planted out in Hackney's parks and open spaces. Food is grown in the Edible Forest Garden as a model for local food production, using permaculture principles.

It is open to the public at odd times, and used as a resource by local schools. I'd urge you to go and visit, it is a real oasis surprise. These crab apples shout "autumn" to me.

Still on holiday, and the Wick Week continues. You can read the entire text of the walk (a lot more than just the photos) here. Today's picture is near 1 & 2.

Wick Week - Day 1

I'm away on holiday, and while I'm away, Wick Week (or thereabouts) will be playing here on London Daily Photo. When I was at the Hackney Wick Festival I went on a "Beating the Bounds" walk organised by The Hackney Society. This was a walk around the Marshes and the Wick with a storyteller, discovering all manner of things and bits of history about a fairly nondescript piece of London. Nondescript, but the focus of attention as the Olympics are right here in 2012. I had my camera with me (surprise!) so you can come, too.

This is the Tree Nursery, where we started I didn't realise that young trees could be that dangerous, as they obviously have to be fenced in. More on this place tomorrow.

Open for Business

It's not often you can talk about a shop's "Open" sign, but Paintworks art shop, opposite the Geffrye Museum, is the exception. I dare say they sell one or two cans of spray paint.

Shame on Cyprus

I commented last week how nobody can guess why people end up sleeping rough. In Connor O'Dwyer's case, you don't have to guess. He is trying to draw attention to the apparently shameful treatment he has received in Cyprus. When I met him in St James' Square, he came over as a regular guy, and the more you read of his story, the more you have to feel sorry for him. Why not spread the story about, if you can. All he has to fight with, is the publicity.

The Geffrye Museum

Those of you who said The Geffrye Museum, give yourselves a cheer. This little gem of a museum is astonishingly overlooked (ok, I confess, I hadn't been in for probably 40 years before this), although they do sterling work with local schools.

It shows the changing style of the English domestic interior in a series of period rooms from 1600 to the present day. And with the magic of the Internet, you can visit without leaving your seat. It's set in an old Alms House, so these luxurious interiors couldn't be more different that its original use. I would urge you to pay a visit if you've not yet done so.

Two more interiors here and here. Oh and a new addition to my "London Links", too.

See where on the London Daily Photo Map

All is not quite what it seems

This scene from the 17th century ought to be from a grand house or maybe a theatre set. One or two of you will recognise where I am, but I'll warrant not many, All will be revealed tomorrow.

Did someone say "Cake"?

To ease you gently into the new week, here's a photo I took in Mrs Marengo's an offshoot of Mildred's, a vegetarian restaurant that was an early arrival in the gentrification of Soho, nearly twenty years ago.

Any more words are superfluous.

See where on The London Daily Photo Map

Jose Parla

I said a couple of days ago that Josie Firmin pointed me to two London things, the second was a gallery, Elms Lester, hidden behind London's Tin Pan Alley in Denmark Street. There, I discovered Jose Parla, an artist who is a catalyst, fusing street art into the viewer's psyche. He was holding a signing - every person got their own artwork inside the book.

This painting is titled "Hackney Canal". Whatever you may think about the photographic representation of art, I can tell you that his work has a vibrancy in real life that no photograph can capture.

Read the artist's statement here.

Music Coffee Bagels

Nice words, aren't they? There are relatively few independent music shops left in London, and when one is combined with an exceptional cafe, you know you've found somewhere special. So do a lot of writers, artists, locals - it's one of those rare places that has a real atmosphere. And that's Brill in Exmouth Market. Their website is here. (oh... Music Coffee Bagels and free WiFi)

See where on the London Daily Photo Map

Hidden East End

The garment trade in the UK has all but disappeared over recent years. Where there once was a thriving manufacturing base, there are now designer shops and restaurants. The East End was full of small business once, full of people scraping a living and dreaming of better things. You'll find those dreamers in Bangladesh, Macao, the Philippines. But, if you look carefully down the side streets there are still one or two places left.

Ordinary Londoners - No 19 in a series

Josie Firmin is one of the artists behind Cosmo China and a Londoner to her core. It's not that often I get useful recommendations for pictures and places I hadn't heard about, but Josie gave me two - the Hunterian Museum (three days ago) and another - yet to appear. We chewed the fat for a while about living in the centre of town (I used to many years ago), how things have changed and yet remain the same.

You can see examples of the prodigious talent of the Cosmo China artists on their flickr pages.

The Ordinary Londoners Series is here. See where on London Daily Photo Map

Blog Action Day '08 - Poverty

Today is Blog Action Day 08 with the theme of Poverty where around 9,000 sites and 9,000,000 readers will focus on one idea.

Some will look at poverty around the world: there are many countries where poverty will grind you to death and, if you are moved to, there are many organisations that need your help.

As I'm a Londoner, I'd like you to think of the poverty that exists right here: living on the streets is when you have reached the very bottom of the pile. There's no telling how people get there - some to seek their fortune, some to escape abuse, some from drugs, some because there's nowhere left to go. You really can't judge.

To ease my conscience, I support Shelter. You can listen to this track while you are thinking.



Some other B.A.D. blogs:

Daily Photo Blog Action Day
• Houston, TX (USA)
• Greenville (USA) by Denton
• Tacloban City (Philippines) by agnesdv
• Tauranga (New Zealand) by Lisa Sarsfield
London-ish Blog Action Day:
• Crazy Brit Heaven
• Anchors & Masts
• Ausgrind
• Blog till you drop
• Musings and Marketeerings

Cosmo China

If you are looking for an extraordinary present, for someone special or yourself, Cosmo China is there for you, as they have been as a family business for over twenty years.

I love the freshness and fun of the designs and the pleasure you get each day from using them.It helps that they are porcelain, rather than coarse pottery.

And, there's a connection between today's shot, and yesterdays. But you'll have to wait for that.

The Hunterian Museum

I couldn't take photos inside, but I have to tell you about the Hunterian Museum. Based in the Royal College of Surgeons, it has the most fantastic collection of gory stuff you will ever see.

A worthy candidate for one of the most overlooked museums in London it is primarily the collection of the work of John Hunter who died in 1783. This collection charts the growth of human medical knowledge and the search for understanding that leads to this day, where medical science provides a safety net for our lives. Although you can't photograph inside the museum, the website has excellent pictures and history. A picture of the impressive staircase leading up to it is here.

And very pertinent today, as I am entrusting my wellbeing to a member of this august society for a minor op.

See where on the London Daily Photo Map

Problems with neighbours?

The perfect, perfect answer.

See where on the London Daily Photo Map

Sunset and a Kink

This sunset and shape is outside the Theatre Royal Stratford where I went with Mrs Ham to see the musical "Come Dancing" by, and featuring, Ray Davies. It was an interesting show; although not entirely consistent it was worth seeing - one where the sum of the whole was greater than the parts. The show is set in the time when ballroom was giving way to rock'n'roll and the characters touch chords in the memory.

By all means go to see it, but see The London Revue first.

OK, OK, here's the song you want to hear.

Ordinary Londoners - No 18 in a series

James Michalos is responsible for the music and lyrics of the London Revue - did I mention yesterday that you need to go and see it if you can?

James teaches singing at Guildhall School of Music & Drama and his love and fascination for London comes through loud and strong in this production. Also, if - like me - you enjoy Musicals you will be fascinated by the way you can identify influences in the work from an astonishing range: from Rice & Webber through Gilbert & Sullivan, Bernstein, even Flanders & Swan and Sondheim. What's more, he does it well.

The London Revue at the Hen & Chickens

If you possibly can, do go and see the London Revue at the Hen & Chickens. Really.

It's an hour and a quarter of full-on entertainment; pathos, bathos, fun and laughter, a slice of London life. Four people, with voices that make you want to listen, sing about the things you know and things you see but also things often left unsaid.

For those that can't make it, here's a short video clip (note:unless you have a very fast connection you may need to pause before playing to let the video buffer)

I may well tell you more about it tomorrow.

Stretch Limo-nette

Sometimes, you just have to take the picture.

It's a Classic

Anybody following this blog will know that I'm an enthusiastic cyclist - what you won't know is that I love cars and motoring, too. My personal prefence is also for cars with character, which have long disappeared from the mass market. That character has been replaced with reliability, so that's probably a good thing. But motoring? you can't do that in the UK much any more.

So I'm rather pleased to bring you an idea born in London and now spread around the world - The Classic Car Club. The idea is simple. You pay an annual sum (from £3,000 or £1,500 for "low end" cars only) for which you get to drive any of their fleet. No repair bills, no aggro, just fun.

Even thought this is the Bertone rather than Farina bodied Dino, it still ranks as one of the more desirable cars in my hierachy. Trivia: the Dino was named after Mr Ferrari's son, who died.

Will I join? No, but that's because I enjoy mucking around with them myself (here's the last one I had)

See a view of the showroom here and see where on the London Daily Photo Map.