Weekend update for May 8
Includes ravens, ferrets and chicken knees
đ„ An update on The Kids versus Brian Rose story we mentioned in Wednesdayâs newsletterâŠ
To recap: Teen politics podcast Politics Relaxed got into a bit of a beef with Rose when he seemed to cut short an interview with them after taking offence to their line of questioning. Then Rose tried to block the interview from appearing on YouTube on spurious copyright grounds.
Since then Brian Roseâs PR team have âhit backâ at Politics Relaxed (a reminder: they are kids) saying that he had to cut the interview short as they ârocked up late for their Zoomâ. A claim the podcasters have refuted.
Anyway, the video is now back up on YouTube, so you can watch for yourself just how quickly Rose exits once he realises that the softball interview his PR team set up for him is actually going to be a proper grilling:
đŠ Last summer there was a tiny bit of a panic when it was reported that the lack of tourists at the Tower of London was making the Towerâs famous ravens âbored and causing them to fly awayâ. But now it seems we donât have to worry about the âKingdom fallingâ, as two new raven chicks have been born (bringing the total to a safe-feeling nine).
One is called Edgar (after Poe, obviously), but the other (a female) is set to be named by the public, who can choose from Matilda, Florence, Branwen, Bronte, Winifred or Ravey McRavenface (we made one of those up). You can vote to name the Raven here, and get introduced to them both in this video:
P.S. Collective nouns for a group of ravens include âtreacheryâ, âunkindnessâ and âconspiracyâ. But out favourite by far is a âraveâ of ravens.
đ Sticking with animals for a second. Diamond Geezer has done some digging to discover just how many animals the London Fire Brigade rescue each year (and which type). If you only read one article this year that contains the sentence âFerret trapped in radiatorâ then make it this one.
đ Uber is going to start producing its own fleet of electric vehicles. In order to meet their own âClean Air Planâ goals for London the company is encouraging âdrivers to apply for financial assistance to upgrade their vehicles, culminating in an entirely electric fleet in London by 2025.â
đ Meanwhile, black cab drivers at Heathrow are apparently sleeping overnight in their taxis as they wait up to 24-hours for fares. According to the Mirror, âcabbies are sleeping at the airport to keep their place in the huge queues, using gas stoves and kettles to make food, while sleeping on hammocks, mattresses and blow-up beds inside their cabs.â (Which raises the question: how do you sling a hammock in a black cab?)
đ You can always rely on the Brighton and Hove Independent to ask the really important questions, such as âHave you ever wondered what it was like to drive a train from Brighton to London Victoria?â If you are either of the people who have wondered that, then youâre in luck. As the B&H Independent breathlessly reports: âIn a new release out this summer, called Train Sim World 2: Rush Hour, players will be able to drive the Brighton Mainline from London Victoria and back virtually,â (weâre glad they added that word âvirtuallyâ on the end there, otherwise people might have got confused).
đ€ïž Waterloo station didnât make it into Train Sim World 2: Rush Hour, but it has just had a makeover, so fingers crossed for Train Sim World 3. Wallpaper magazine has all the details of the ânew platforms, concourse space and retailâ which have been added as part of the refurb of the International terminus, which was left in a bit of limbo when the Channel Tunnel departed in 2007.
đ The Telegraph has a report on how TFLâs already beleaguered finances have been dented further as advertising income plummeted during lockdown. Between April and June last year it fell 93 per cent to ÂŁ3m. While itâs rebounded slightly since then, going back up to ÂŁ20m between September and December, it âstill remains ÂŁ22m lower than levels seen in the third quarter of 2019/20.â
đïž Picking up on the theme of our last edition (i.e. London slowly mugging itself, brick by brick) the arts magazine Apollo has published an article decrying The City of Londonâs decision to âdestroy the heart of its Fleet Street conservation areâ in order to install the new Justice Quarter.
đĄ It looks like house prices are going to continue to go up this year thanks to the stamp duty holiday. According to City A.M. even though âLondon has seen the lowest monthly rate of growth since last July at just 0.43 per cent,â we could still see âa further ÂŁ21,623 added to property values in the capital this year.â
đïž The Guardian was 200 years old this week. To mark the occasion theyâve reprinted the article from 5 May 1921 detailing how the first edition of The Manchester Guardian reached the capital, passing through âStockport, Derby, Leicester, Northampton, Hockliffe, Dunstable, St Albans, and Barnet finally, if God permitted and the skill of the coachman allowed, due at the Golden Cross in the Strand, London, by six oâclock the following morning.â
đ Dubious PR âsurveyâ alert: Blinds Direct have conducted a very scientific study into the sleep patterns of the nation and discovered that workers in central London âwere most likely to experience sleep disruption due to longer working hours, with 24.4% regularly working unpaid overtime.â
Bits to see and do
đ The London Review Bookshop has launched a new, biannual series of short festivals called Subject/Object. Each festival will âloosely trace a theme through the archive of the London Review of Books.â The first event starts on 24 May (itâs all happening online) and is all about âThe Birdsâ (the animal, not the film). Details and tickets here.
đ Tickets are also on sale for Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street at the Design Museum from 18 May until October. The exhibition promises to look at the evolution of trainers, from sportswear to cultural symbol, as well as the design process and the lucrative resale market.
đž The David Hill Gallery in Ladbroke Grove has been showing amazing photography since it opened in 2015 (after they couldnât find a gallery to show Bill Bernsteinâs pictures of New Yorkâs â70s disco scene, so opened their own space). From this week theyâs showing TĂȘte-Ă -TĂȘtes part 2, an exhibition of West African portraiture, which if this short video is anything to go by, looks absolutely unmissable (itâs a commercial gallery which is why it can open now, but that means viewing is by appointment, so youâll have to ring before you go).
đš Eileen Agar was a surrealist painter who was brought up in London, but was born in Buenos Aires to a Scottish father and American mother (she also took some great photos of Picasso and his mates âchilling on the beachâ). Agar is also the subject of the Whitechapel galleryâs reopening exhibition in a couple of week. Tickets are on sale now.Â
đŒïž If you want to see some art right now, you can do, youâll just have to look at it through your phone. The Augmented Gallery is âan interactive art trailâ that begins at the National Gallery and ends at Fortnum & Mason, and includes works by Titian, Vincent van Gogh and Tracey Emin . This is all part of the Art of London initiative who are also behind that David Hockney billboard we mentioned earlier in the week.
đȘ Dodge is âa thrilling new open-air experienceâ that is going to be in the courtyard at Somerset House from July. There will be Dodgems with a difference (i.e theyâll generate an interactive musical composition as you drive them), an open-air art installation by Yinka Iloro, and food and drink via Jimmyâs Pop Up. Thereâs also Dodge Lates and Bump & Brunch (waffles, cocktails and DJs). You can book spaces for all of this now.
đŹ Sundance London isnât back until July (tickets go on sale in June), but the organisers have just announced that the festival will open with Edgar Wrightâs first documentary feature The Sparks Brothers. Hereâs the trailer.
Food and drink bits
đ The Yards is not just a âshopping, dining and wellness destinationâ itâs also an âurban oasisâ. Or, if you prefer, itâs the bit of Covent Garden behind Shelton Street, where it hits St Martinâs Lane (you know, where Dishoom is). The latest eatery to move in to The Yards is Lahpet, the Burmese restaurant that started out in a Hackney warehouse before opening in Shoreditch in 2018. Expect Dishoom-esque queues when it opens later this year.
đ„ Two words: savoury eclairs. If you havenât already skipped to the next item then let us introduce you to Parisian pastry chef Yann Couvreur who has a quarter of a million Instagram followers, and a pet fox. He can cook pretty well too. Couvreur was all set to open his eponymous patisserie in Mayfair last year but⊠well, you know. According to London Eater Londonâs poshest bakery will now be opening later this year on South Audley Street, just off Hyde Park. Greggâs must be quaking in their boots.
đ Talking of Instagram-famous chefs⊠Remember Salt Bae? Well, heâs opening a London restaurant and it will serve 24-carat gold steaks. Nusr-Et, London (Nusret Gokce being Salt Baeâs given name), is due to open on 17 May at The Park Tower Knightsbridge hotel. We give it a year.
đ„ In slightly more exciting news, Frankâs Cafe in Peckham is reopening next week. The rooftop will be open from 5pm on Friday May 14th. All the details are here.
đ If you do manage to get a holiday abroad this year, and you fancy a change from Wetherspoonâs Express for your airport refreshment, then maybe try Big Smoke Taphouse & Kitchen which is opening at Heathrow T2 later this month. There will be craft beer (obviously), all day breakfasts, DIY tacos, and home-made burgers.
đł Max Rocha is the son of fashion designer John. Heâs also just signed a lease on a new restaurant on the canal, round the corner from Broadway Market. Itâs going to be called Cafe Cecilia and it looks like it will be serving quite a bit of veggie, brunch-style snacks like potato rostis with fried egg and asparagus, purple sprouting broccoli & creme fraiche pasties.Â
â The FTâs Claer Barrett has tested out all the Coffee Chain subscription services to see if theyâre worth it. Itâs the FT so in case you come up against a paywall weâll summarise her findings for you: you have to buy quite a lot of coffees to make it worth it, youâre also handing over your personal data in return for discounts, and youâll probably end up spending the money youâre saving by buying a doughnut or one of those cheese and ham croissants that Pret do.
đWe canât let a week go by without talking about a new chicken restaurant, and this week itâs Humble Chicken the yakitori spot thatâs opening on Frith Street on 20 May. Their Instagram promises cartilage, gizzards and chicken knees (alongside the more traditional cuts) all made delicious over a traditional charcoal Japanese grill.
Long read of the week
The Financial Times asks Can London reinvent itself after the pandemic?
After reminding us that âMore people have contracted Covid-19 and more have died from the virus in London than any other regionâ this FT article covers every side of the pandemicâs effect on London and what the capitalâs future might look like (and, as we write this, itâs not behind a paywall).
