Camden Lock Live – a free event

Tomorrow see the first of Camden Lock's boutique urban festivals.
There will be a lot of what you'd expect from Camden Lock plus plenty more – special bars (inc a cocktail bar on a boat), The Pongathon's ping pong tables (not on the boat!), live music and spoken word courtesy of Roundhouse Presents, street performances and many different kinds of food. Plus, of course, plenty of shopping opportunities which will include extra craft stalls. Come on down... see you there.
From 10am until 10pm... More info here.
Here's some pics of ducks on the Regent's Canal...

The Black Cat Cabaret at Café De Paris

From the ridiculous to the sublime... 
After the torture that was The London Dungeon (see previous post!), I needed a lift, so hurrah for this fabulous show in a fabulous location.
Inspired by Montmatre's cabaret underworld, The Black Cat Cabaret is on every Friday at the Café De Paris. It's an engaging few hours of singing, dancing, feats of agility and strength, fire breathing and more. Proper cabaret entertainment. I loved it.

The gorgeous venue with its sweeping staircase and pillared gallery is modelled on the ballroom of the Titanic. It gives the feel of much older than it is but was actually opened in 1924. It reminds me of those supper clubs you see on old movies when people used to really dress up to go out and be entertained by crooners and showgirls. Enjoy the show whilst enjoying a meal on the ground (dance) floor or sipping drinks from the upper level.
And then, after the show has finished, the dining tables are cleared, the dance floor exposed and the place is totally transformed into a nightclub.
A really cool venue.
(My good reviews are always so much shorter than the bad ones!)

The London DUNG-eon

Last Thursday I went to the new London Dungeon tourist attraction at County Hall. Those of you who know me will already be thinking, "You went WHERE?! You? Why?"
Well, see, I had a free ticket to a promo evening when the place wouldn't be crammed full of people so I thought it might possibly be OK. Fun even.
Hmmm. I should have known better. The clue, after all, is in the name.

Photos taken in the vicinity of this "attraction"

We were warned that we would get wet. One of the early parts of the tour involves sitting in a boat in semi-darkness on a trip to Traitor's Gate. We went past a projection of Brian Blessed as Henry VIII (by the way, he's barely recognisable and a lot of effort has been put into 5 seconds of footage that I doubt many people even pay attention to). With most people carrying cameras and mobile phones these days we didn't think this 'wet' thing would be more that a few jets or some spray. But no, the lights went out and a whole bucket of water was chucked at close range in my direction resulting in the left side of my body getting very wet indeed. Actually, completely sodden. A staff member took my jacket and said it would be dry and ready for me at the end of the tour (it wasn't – it was given back to me still horribly damp). Throughout the rest of the tour, indeed for the next few hours I had to suffer the uncomfortable sensation that I had pissed myself because a lot of that water had also gone into my lap and worked its way down. Yeurch. It was a good job I had put my phone into a plastic bag that I happened to be carrying with me or the whole mess would have been even worse and expensive (for them).
I gritted my teeth and waddled around the rest of the tour with the others. We followed the trail through nondescript corridors with dripping ceilings, bad smells and beer barrels into various rooms where an actor performed a short skit – a jailer, a hangman, a barmaid, a prostitute etc. Lots of lights on and off and 'scary' stuff designed to make the punters scream. I didn't scream though, as I can never fathom why people get so agitated or frightened in an environment that's designed to make you jump. And I felt quite sorry for these actors having to do perform the same thing over and over every day. Did they do all that training for this?
Many of the actors spoke in Laahndun accents and as a Londoner myself I found a few of them hard to follow because they gabbled or spoke too fast. They are probably briefed to do this to keep the conveyor belt moving. But how non-english-speaking visitors manage to understand them is beyond me, especially the innuendo and jokes. And, call me old-fashioned, ("you're old fashioned Jane!") but I felt the historical facts were lost when mixed up with comedy asides. And what's Sweeney Todd doing in there? He's fictional! We'll have tourists believing he was fact. All I learned was something about torture implements, and condemned men showboating at the gallows.
Oh, and the attention to detail of a lot of the props and costumes is a bit suspect; in particular, the shoes worn by the mortuary attendant which must have come from the future – rubber soled walking boots during The Plague?
The best bits for me were something to do with leeches (I won't explain) and the short Alton Towers style ride at the end. There was no mention that this was the end of the tour. We got off the ride and the next stop was a desk selling photo merchandise where, for a rip-off price* you could buy a photo of you on that ride. Then... no, that was it – exit through a big gift shop into the blandness that is the ground floor of County Hall. No "thank you for coming", no no amusing "take care". If that's how they treat the people they have invited to promo the thing then that's how they treat the paying customers.
The London Dungeon blurb says "just follow the smell". As previously mentioned, there are recreated pongs as you wander through the show. But I didn't really expect discover a similar stench in the modern toilets within County Hall where an attendant sat doing nothing next to one aisle of closed stalls while a queue formed by the other aisle for the few toilets that were flushable or contained paper.
They say this new London Dungeon show is in response to the feedback from people who said the original one in Tooley Street was too scary; too gory. Well, this new show is torture. One and half hours of torture.
I suggest if you really want some horrible history then watch the brilliant cbbc programmes.
*The ticket price for an adult is £22. Oh, but if you book Madame Tussaud's, Sealife and The London Eye at the same time you can get the lot for £56. OUCH!

Mobile phone etiquette

There was an item on the news this morning about cashiers in supermarkets refusing to serve customers who are talking on their mobile phones. They say it's rude. The item went on to discuss other forms of mobile phone (mis-)use and whether answering a call or text when we are in the middle of a conversation is also impolite.
Well, yes, I agree with the second part. Why do some people think it's perfectly OK to take a phone call when the conversation they are having with a person in front of them with is in full flow? It's even worse when they answer a text. The butter-in is given more attention than the person who was already being supposedly listened to.
If a human being came up in person and butted in like that, then at least there would be a chance to introduce that person into the conversation. So it follows that doing the same when a phone call comes is even more rude because the invisible person on the other end of the phone, who didn't even buy the beers(!) is being perceived to be more important.
More often than not the person taking the call then proceeds to talk on the phone in front of the friend, or worse, wanders off and leaves them sitting there. If these calls were emergencies then OK, but they rarely are. This is what voicemail is for.
As regards the supermarket situation, I don't agree. Talking on the phone when is no different to talking to a real life friend. I think the cashiers are being very hypocritical here, as many times when being served in some large supermarkets the cashier who is supposed to be serving me has not even made eye contact, even when asking for the money or giving the change. I have on many occasions had to listen to cashiers talking to each other across the tills about how the day is dragging and asking each other what time their shift ends and where they are going out that evening. They behave like the customers are not even there. Now that's really rude!
And in some small shops and mini-markets a man at the till (I have only ever experienced men doing this) is on the phone when he starts serving me and continues to chat throughout the transaction and gives me my change without even looking at me, let alone a smile or a thank you.
Enough of this.
Here are some pics that show telephones in London.

Dulwich Picture Library – arty gem of the south

There is a part of South London where time seems to have stood still. One imagines that Jane Austen might walk past any minute, or Charles Dickens might doff his hat, or Beau Brummel might alight from a carriage.
That place is Dulwich Village. It's like a clash between Hampstead, Windsor and The Cotswolds, but with a London postcode.
In the midst of all this sits the lovely Dulwich Picture Library, designed with skylights by Sir John Soanes so as to achieve the maximum level of natural light indoors – check out his own house in Lincoln's Inn Fields to see the same idea applied in more colourful ways.
The Dulwich Picture Gallery, England's first purpose-built public art gallery, has recently had a re-hang (er... has recently re-hung its paintings in a different configuration.... has recently had moved about the art what's inside).
Rooms have been redecorated and rearranged to further enhance the pieces contained within them. Less is more. A lot of thought has been put into comparative pieces, and larger canvases have been moved down to eye level so that the visitor can best see the artistry.
Of special note is a watercolour by James Stephanoff (c.1788-74) showing the gallery as it was in that era. This new acquisition has been placed in a position where you can best see and compare the difference in the gallery then and now.
When you visit be sure to sit and absorb the simple yet beautiful mausoleum at the back of the building. This is where the gallery's founders are buried.

Until 22nd September.... "Nash, Nevinson, Spencer, Gertler, Carrington, Bomberg: A Crisis of Brilliance, 1908–1922".
This fascinating exhibition compares and contrasts the work created by a group of art school friends who all attended Slade School of Art. They were not a 'group' in the sense of 'the Cubists', 'the Pre-Raphaelites' etc; just a group of talented contemporaries.
It is set out in chronological order and I was especially intrigued how WW1 affected each of the artists differently.
There are also various education and creative workshops to get involved with, including painting and poetry – see the gallery's website for more.

Seeing red – save our post offices!!

My local post office near the Nags Head junction of Holloway Road is always busy. Especially so in the run up to Christmas.
A queue of about 20 people usually snakes up and down the central area of the shop and there is always another queue at the secondary counter for parcels, stamps, lottery tickets etc. I think I can count on one hand the number of times I have walked in there in the past 25 years and been able to go straight to a counter.
So, how come this branch is threatened with closure? And why is this happening to other branches all over London, indeed the UK? In this area alone we have lost three sub Post offices in as many years.
Perhaps Post Office's are not handling so much mail these days? Royal Mail's recent price hikes may have something to do with it as a lot of customers, like me, are sending parcels via other (cheaper) independent couriers. 
Or perhaps the RM bosses think that TV licensing, tax discs, utility bills etc can all be done over the internet? But this is not fair on all those people who do not like to pay their bills etc on line. Many things are still better achieved in person.
There is a plan to locate the Post Office facilities within a "retail partner". This effectively means a small supermarket with a post office within it.
Er... two things...
1. How will there be room for shelves of food etc when the shop will be full of people queueing for postal service?
2. Holloway does not need another supermarket or grocers – the immediate area already boasts Waitrose, Morrisons, Iceland, M&S, a couple of large pound stores and lots of mini markets, with small Tesco, Budgen and Sainsbury stores close by.
This news is, quite frankly (frankly!!) appalling.
SAVE OUR POST OFFICES!!!
Specifically, save Holloway Crown Post Office – sign the petition – do something!!

Three of the images here feature hexagonal shaped Victorian "Penfold' pillar boxes with acanthus leaves on the top. Dating from a brief period (1866–1879) there are only a few of these left jotted around London. I have so far seen and photographed nine, although I do know of others.

Weekends in London

Last Saturday 22nd it was all about art and dance – I went to see Dion Salvador's selling exhibition at the Northcote Gallery (nice to finally meet him), followed by Sadler's Sampled, a two-week showcase of various styles of dance at Sadlers Wells #freeyourmind. But you know that cos I promoted it earlier this month.
On Sunday 23rd I did a market stall at Camden Lock. I have never seen the markets so empty. This was probably due to the closure of Northern Line over the weekend.

This weekend there's so much on that I have option anxiety...
Music.... Glastonbury will be in full flow and the BBC have lots of opportunities for us to watch it from the comfort of our sofas.
Tennis.... Wimbledon is in full swing again and if you haven't secured a ticket you can also watch this on TV. But if you prefer to watch your tennis surrounded by like-minded sports fans there are plenty of places in London with large outdoor screens, such as Bankside, Victoria and Holborn. The semis and finals can be watched in Chelsea where there will be strawberries and bubbly, or with Pimms and strawberries & cream on Potter's Park next to City Hall.
LGBT.... Have some Pride. Not the the lovely Fuller's beer, but the gay celebration. It's already in full flow – see the full events listing. The always colourful parade travels from Oxford Street (west) to Trafalgar Square from 1pm on Saturday.
Performance.... Saturday is the last day to catch some amazing free shows covering many different dance, circus and theatrical disciplines at various locations in and around Greenwich and the Docklands. I have only just discovered this event and am annoyed to have missed so many good things already.
Dragonboats.... On Sunday you can watch 40 teams compete in the London Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival at London Regatta Centre, E16.

So how can I fit all this in?
Well, I am not really bothered about the tennis, and the dragon boats might get shelved. Also, I'd planned to go on a guided walk in EC3 on Saturday.
Where is my parallel universe when I need it?
Answers please to jane@janeslondon.com
And as for doing a market stall on Sunday 30th... I don't think it's gonna be productive, do you?!

Hitomi Hosono, Perrier-Jouët and The St Pancras Renaissance Hotel

Earlier this week I spent a pleasant hour sipping champagne and admiring the work of Hitomi Hosono at the Chambers Club within the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel.
Hosono is the winner of this year's Perrier-Jouët Arts Salon Award. Having seen her intricate work on line I was keen to go an view it in person. Also I love the building and its sympathetic renovation and rebirth (see here) and any excuse to get inside a room I have been in before is a bonus!
Hisono's work is amazing. Her work is inspired by botany and nature with titles such as Chysanthemum Bowl and Wisteria Tower and each piece takes about a month to make as each delicate flower or leaf has to be cut out and applied by hand. Some of them have hidden storage; barely visible horizontal cuts open up to reveal gem-like gold or silver leaf interiors.
I was also impressed how the pieces really suit the club's environment, as I noticed that the ceiling roses echo the same botanic shapes.
If you would like to see these for yourself, please note that the Chambers Club is a members only lounge so you cannot just wander in to have a look when you are passing. Appointments can be made by calling Caroline on 07590 262370, and you'll get a free glass of Perrier-Jouët bubbly when you visit.
Some of Hosono's work can also be found in Fortnum & Mason, the British Museum and the V&A, as well as in the homes of the rich and famous. I really do believe that these are treasures for the futures.

Keeping abreast of things

Yesterday I went for my first breast screening. Or bap squashing session as it ought to be called. Ooh good, I thought, I have finally got a good reason to put together a collection of London breasts.
Have you noticed how many bare breasts are out there? Above our heads there are ladies who are scantily dressed in gauzy or loose fitting scraps of material,  some look like they've left the baby on the bus with one boob uncovered, and many are completely naked. One relief even makes it looks like she's in the process of having an imaging test done too.
Some of the women depicted are truly beautiful. But many others I have spotted are really bizarre with pneumatic nipples or deformed breasts placed way too high up the chest or too far apart. Perhaps the artists had never actually seen a woman's naked body before and just placed tea cups of plaster where they thought they might belong.
But I do find interesting is that most of these were created and put in place during the 'prudish' Victorian period – the Victoria memorial and statuary around the Albert Hall are tits agogo. I suppose they explained it away as 'art'.
Also included in this set of images is a rather well-endowed devil and a docker's mistress which, as you can see, looks very matronly from a certain angle and is probably why it is so named.
I have also noticed that many of Covent Garden's Mercers Maidens (not included here) are also rather perky – see here.
Very titillating!

Horseguards Parade

Yesterday afternoon I found myself ambling down the Mall. There were railings in place all the way down from Queenie's house to Horseguards Parade where I found 100s of all kinds of soldiers and guards taking breaks between practising for tonight's Military Music Spectacular.
Well who knew? I certainly didn't!
Lots of stuff goes on in London of the spectacular and pomp variety that completely passes me by.
Anyway, I stood there for almost an hour admiring the amazing uniforms of the Massed Bands of the Army's Household Division (had to look this up!) with their tassels, pleats, plumes, piping and cords. And the horses too. Gorgeous animals.
It's raining as I write this... They are making a spectacle of themselves right now. Those lovely kilts and animal pelts will be sodden. And the bearskins will lose their fluffiness.
Here's some more info on what the event is all about.
Oh, and Trooping The Colour for The Queen's birthday is this Saturday (just discovered that too!).

Dance, dance wherever you may be!

Billed as a 'two-week taster festival of dance', Sadler’s Wells is hosting Sadler’s Sampled, a brand new pop-up festival for London featuring dance, live music, art, films and workshops. It offers audiences the opportunity to watch a range of dance styles including contemporary, hip hop, ballet and tango. The festival also features interactive art installations, pre-show discussions, live music, films, and post-show contemporary, tango and break dancing classes. 

Saturday 22 June until Sunday 7 July Tickets start from just £8.

Here’s a video taster. #freeyourmind

And here are some pics I have taken in the general vicinity of the theatre, including a ghostsign that I still cannot decipher except that most words end in ING. Ideas welcome:

Kentish Town Carnival

It's carnival time, and this Sunday 16th from 11am until 7.30pm in Talacre Road and Gardens, next to Kentish Town West Station on Prince Of Wales Road, there will be a free cultural arts festival curated by the Many Cultures One Community.
As well as all the things you'd expect from an event like this, there will be a mini film festival, performances in the gardens, spoken words in the tents, craft stalls hosted by the Dandylion Market (find me there) and, live music from Erik Rutterford and, of course, the carnival parade which will feature colourful floats and samba bands.
More info here.

Pics above show some images taken around the Kentish Town area

Soho Flea Market this Sunday

Continuing on from the great success of last year... this year City Showcase's Dean Street event takes place on Sunday 2nd June with a similar mix of stalls and entertainment.
I won't be touting my wares there this year as I am busy elsewhere. If only I could be in two places at once...
More info here.

Holloway Road Then and Now (3)

Today's post concerns two major junctions in central Holloway.

The pair of images above shows the change at the southern corner of Parkhurst Road at the Nags Head junction. The black and white image of the old market arcade is from the mid-1970s. When I moved to Holloway in the late 80s the market building was mostly boarded up and it continued to sit empty and semi-derelict for years until it was demolished in the 1990s to make way for a [carpet] shop with student accommodation above. This replacement building with its bright machined bricks has a half-hearted attempt at architectural detailing including a raised band above the 4th floor and semi-circular shapes at the very top, perhaps a vague attempt to echo the high window arches that were a feature of the old Holloway Arcade.

Look at the difference almost a century has made to the southern corner of Tufnell Park Road (opposite the Odeon). In Edwardian times Holloway Road, specifically the Nags Head area, was in its heyday with shops all along the eastern side and houses along the western side running all the way down to Holloway Road station. Now most of this stretch has also been replaced by shops and cafes as shown on the right.

See all the posts in this series here

Cock-a-doodle-doo!

The fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square will change again this summer.
After the success of Antony Gormley's 'One and Another' when members of the public had one hour slots on the plinth, followed by the well-received of 'Nelson's Ship in a Bottle by Shinko Yinobare', 6 options were proposed for the plinth and the winner was chosen by votes – a boy on a rocking horse. I wasn't impressed.
But I wasn't very moved by with any of the 6 choices, each one having, to my mind, something 'wrong' with it. I thought (and still do) that he boy on the rocking horse looked plastic and half-finished; the battenburg cake bricks were the wrong proportion; the musical cash machine also sat oddly on the plinth, and the UK land mass looked like a half-cocked (!) attempt at a reasonably good idea. But the over-decorated statue of  Field Marshall Sir George White does intrigue me as I would have liked to have seen how all that embellishment would have been achieved at actual size.
And now we are to get the runner-up – a big blue cock!
Katharina Fritsch's cockerel is supposed to represent regeneration, awakening and strength. Er... how? Can somebody please explain how a noisy farmyard bird represents regeneration any more than, say, an egg? And how does it tie in with London and, specifically, Trafalgar Square? Answers please.
Here are some more cocks in and on various erections in London:

That's the way to do it!

This Sunday I will be going to the 38th Covent Garden May Fayre and Puppet Festival in the beautiful gardens of St Paul's churchyard.
Situated in the shadow of Inigo Jones' Church (also known as the Actor's Church because it is favoured as a memorial and resting place for those in the acting profession) there will be a one day event with stalls and entertainment.
This event takes always place on or near to Punch's "birthday"; the date Samuel Pepys first saw Mr Punch in England on May 9th 1662 and recorded in his diary. It's also why the nearby pub is so-named.
The day will start at 10.30am with a Grand Procession at 11am led by The Superior Brass Band. This is followed by a church service at noon and then the afternoon will be all about puppetry. In addition to Punch and Judy performances, there will be puppet shows of all kinds and you will be able to learn the art of puppetry from the experts. The event is free.
The church and its gardens are well worth a visit in themselves... be sure to check out the interior of the church and marvel at Grinling Gibbon's amazingly intricate wood carvings.
Hope to see you there... There will also be a small craft market there so do come find me at my stall (perhaps I should have made a clay pipe puppet?).

Happy 5th birthday Jane's London

It's five years since my first posting here... wow. How?
Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to look in every now and then, and a big thanks to those of you who have contacted me with ideas of things to do and places to see – especially those of you who offer me freebies ;-)
I don't post regularly like other similar sites, sometimes only once a week, and this is because a) I don't have the time (the mosaic photo collections take quite a while to put together) and b) as a reader I don't like being bombarded by emails or updates every day. Therefore, I like do to as I would be done by, hoping my sporadic approach is more likely to invoke an "ooh" rather than "oh gawd another missive from Jane".
I get a lot of emails from people asking if I allow guest posts. The answer to that is easy "no" – it's all in the title – Jane's London, which is about my thoughts, my ideas, my observations and my photographs, not those of other people. It's me me me!
Five Years... now I am singing the David Bowie song. Excellent.
Here are some nice London 5s:

Learn to swim in a tanked tent

I thought this was a joke when someone told me about it – a temporary 12m swimming pool will be in Euston/Camden from Monday 29th April until Thursday July 11th.
Total Swimming's aim is to teach 1,200 people how to swim through community swimming programmes. Lessons are free of charge, but tickets are, of course, limited. Please see the website for more info.
Additionally (something I noticed in this week's Time Out), the pool is available outside lesson time during the evenings and at weekends for just £2 entrance fee, though you still need to book.
Next stop Southwark.

Top: Hornsey Rd, Kentish Town, Haymarket, Holborn

Middle: Tufnell Pk, Westminster x3

Bottom: Holloway, Parliament Hill, Hoxton, Kentish Town

Get Britain Writing

Most days I am sat at a computer typing on a keyboard. When I do pick up a pen to write something down in my diary or on a scrap of paper as a note to self it's more often than not a scrawl that I cannot understand when I look at it days later. At school we were taught how to write neatly, with fountain pens using joined up letters. Oh dear. It seems practice really does make perfect. I am sure I am not alone here.
These days it's all texting and touch screens. So I was pleased to read that the art of handwriting is being promoted to coincide with National Stationery Week (April 22 to 28) – Sheaffer, the official partner of NSW, is inviting handwriting enthusiasts in the UK to pen a page of their own longhand which will be analysed by Sheaffer's expert graphologists as part of the campaign to ‘Get Britain Writing’.
Each article of handwriting submitted to Sheaffer will immediately be in with a chance of winning a luxury calligraphy set. 
To enter Sheaffer’s handwriting assignment, simply drop a note in the post to Sheaffer Handwriting Assignment, Creative Industries Centre, Wolverhampton, WV10 9TG. For more information visit www.sheaffer.com
National Stationery Week is in conjunction with the National Literacy Trust which carries out a great deal of good work in schools and families across the UK.
Here are some nice pieces of scripts and hand lettering I have discovered in London:

Top: Victoria, Camden, Kings Cross, Covent Garden
Middle: Islington, Leyton, Caledonian Rd, Archway
Bottom: Borough, St Martin's, Charterhouse, Stoke Newington

Camden's getting crafty

This Friday sees the first of We Make London's twice a month appearances at Camden Lock Market where 30 designer-makers will be selling all sorts of wonderful one-off handmade items including homewares, ceramics, accessories, prints and jewellery.
This hub of creativity can be found in the Middle Yard every first and third Friday from April 5th.
There will also be a farmers market where you can get some great food direct from the makers, plus all the diverse shops and bars in the area. What's not to like?
Hope to see you there (I will be trading myself... plug, plug!).
More info here.
Below is a collection of my photos of details found in and around Camden Lock Market featuring, in particular, Camden High Street and Chalk Farm Road.

Holloway Road then and now (2)

Continuing from my recent post about Pugh Bros, this entry looks at the changes to the buildings to the left of it in the Victorian parade that links two pubs; The Bailey and The Wig & Gown.

In 2008 I started taking photos along the Holloway Road – the architectural details that no one seems to notice or appreciate; the kind of things that get overlooked or ripped out in the name of 'progress'. 

The image below, top left was taken at that time and shows most of the old windows with their original multi-panes contrasted with the modern cheaper, kind. But, returning to this image today, I now cannot work out which street numbers those windows belonged to. Five years and so much has changed.    

As you can see by the google streetview, top right (which also shows that almost all of the bricks in this terrace have now been coated in render and/or painted over) most of the windows have been replaced with modern versions. 

Whilst I can understand the need for better insulation and double glazing, especially when living on a busy main road, I think it's a crime to put in replacements that quite evidently are not suitable or sympathetic, especially as there are very good wood or UPVC equivalents available these days. I know, because I had my own victorian sashes replaced; they weren't expensive and they look great. 

The three images on the bottom row, above, further highlight what I mean here – the new windows are mostly just plain glass. A hint to the correct style has been made in some cases by introducing fake divisions, but scant thought has gone into this as they have too many sections (try comparing the old with the new). And notice how a lot of the pediments and architraves have been removed. It all makes for a very dull and uninteresting façade.

The pics above, from the mid-1970s, show how the original Victorian sashes were still in place (though probably draughty!). Note the lovely old signage on the three shops: No.87's hand-painted lettering (with ‘groceries’ squashed in at the end), Shing Lee’s then modern sign (the nasty shape of things to come) with an earlier hand-painted advertisement on the wall above which reads (something like): 'Builder, decorator (xxxx?) and plumbing in all branches', and Crossman’s music and radio shop with its deep windows and lovely old signs for HMV, Decca and Ever Ready. See the comments below for more about Crossman/Grossman.

On the subject of bad window replacements, further along the Holloway Road, on the rounded corner above no 201, there are some that are so bad they actually bring a smile to my face. 

Lies, lies, damned lies

For those of you who like a guided walking tour with a twist, I'd recommend Liars' Tours.
Actual facts and are mixed up with total fabrications and it's up to the crowd to work out which ones to believe* – with so many barely conceivable stories about London it's often really hard to decide – truth is often stranger than fiction.
I am booked up for the Vauxhall tour, so perhaps I will see you there.
There are lies to be found all over London, as shown below, so keep your wits about you.

 * 'believe' contains a lie too. Is that ironic?

Wholesale electrical components, fluorescent lamps and switchgear

In June 2008 a friend alerted me to the unveiling of some lovely old hand-painted shop signs on 136 Grays Inn Road. The shop was being renovated and the plain wooden fascias that had been in place for decades had been removed to reveal some lovely lettering showing that in an earlier life the shop had been home to an electrical components retailer (see below, top left and top middle).
Later that same year I took some more photos when all the signs were more visible. Crackled paint, drop shadows. Lovely.
We hoped that these old signs would continue to be visible in the future but they were covered up again. I think they were initially covered with more boards. I think the site became a cafe. (Peter, please correct me here if I am wrong please!)
Two months ago I was in Grays Inn Road again. I stopped in my tracks when I saw what it looks like now – the shop is up for sale/rent, having spent a while as a hairdressers. White gloss has been applied straight over the top of the lovely old lettering and, at certain angles, the words can be seen ghosting through the paint. The bottom right image shows the 'components/switchgear' panel.
Is this progress?
I am sad. Very sad. :-(

Now, this is street art

On a street off Essex Road, Islington, I noticed that a cut down tree has been subtlely transformed into a nature-meets-geometrical-form thingummybob. It's signed TWRJ.I just did a bit of googling and found this video on YouTube about its creation.
Nice. More please.

Holloway then and now

This is the first of a series that I will be posting about Holloway Road, my local high street.
In the late Victorian era, in the days of Mr Pooter, the road was lined with beautiful shops. Many ironmongers' shops (where Mr Pooter may have bought the red enamel for his washstand and bath) were packed to the brim and festooned with items for sale. 

Pugh Bros at No. 95-97 clearly illustrates this, offering all kinds of everything. I am not sure which of the two pictures is older – there may only be a year between them but, even so, the signs indicate that it was like a mini B&Q with extras – gas fittings, lanterns, ladders, lamps, tyres, wheels and more. You could even get your bicycle repaired at Pugh's.

Below you can see the huge change today where the building has been subsequently converted to a pub. It was The Wig and Gown, a reference to the court house further along the road, but has since become the The House of Hammerton – the drinking hole for the local brewery.

Then and now (2013)