local resorts - Kentishtowner

Top 5
JOANNA BRISCOE
E
C
I
T
S
E
B
CREAMS
‘I’m inspired by
the slightly odd,
the disturbing,
and even the
dodgy.’
issue fourteen july/august 2014
SUMMER
READING
SPECIAL
ICH BIN...
Siân Pattenden
& Luke Haines
on cider,
gentrification
- and rabbits
eleven
local
corkers
North London’s award-winning cultural guide
kentishtowner.co.uk
HOT IN THE CITY...
K ENTISHTOWNER
has always been a
travel guide for locals – not, as some
people still believe, the local paper!
So no, we don’t cover news or politics
in the traditional way. Our raison d’être
has always been to unearth and celebrate
the best things in the neighbourhood
and beyond. It’s really just about seeing
what’s around us with fresh eyes.
In this issue we offer tips on how to
make the most of those balmy August
days when temperatures on Talacre
can beat those in your mate’s annoying
Facebook posts from Magaluf.
But where better to start our sundrenched tour around north London
than Camden Beach? Ingeniously
devised by the Roundhouse a couple of
years ago, it’s been a smash hit from day
one, attracting 100,000 visitors so far
onto its elevated coastal strip beside the
railway lines.
Last year the big draw was a posh
“seaside” diner, Fishy Business, all jolly
stripey awning and smoking grill, with
VIP beach huts to boot. This season?
They’ve gone one better with the
FREE
Top 5
LOCAL
RESORTS
see
p.3
unveiling of a swanky rooftop garden for
120 revellers with an actual swimming
pool overlooking the sands. Yes, this is
actually happening in Camden Town.
Intrigued? The whole shebang launches
on July 26, and runs till August 23.
Continued on p.3
BRINGING AN ICONIC LONDON PUB
BACK TO LIFE
SERVING PROPER CASK ALE
& FRESH, SEASONAL BRITISH FOOD
COMING SOON
REGISTER YOUR INTEREST AT
BULLANDGATENW5.CO.UK
389 KENTISH TOWN ROAD, KENTISH TOWN, LONDON NW5 2TJ
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03/06/2014 17:55
3
the kentishtowner
Editor
Stephen Emms
Co-Editor
Tom Kihl
Designer
Olly Skinner
Logo
Russell Loughlan
Cover image
Justin O’Hanlon
(Fellows Road Photography)
Contributors
Kevin MacNeil
Joanna Briscoe
Jennifer Rigby
Sarah Park
Siân Pattenden
Published by
London Belongs To Me
Ltd 2013
www.londonbelongstome.com
Send us nice things:
The Old House,
39-41 North Road
London N7 9DP
Membership enquiries
and any other feedback
please email us at
info@kentishtowner.co.uk
To advertise
please call
0207 607 5765
or email
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BACK ISSUES
Available from
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VICTORY!
Your enthusiasm, tweets
and comments on the pages
of kentishtowner.co.uk over
the last three years has all
helped bring a cinema back
to Kentish Town for the
first time in over 40 years.
Without your support we
know this would never have
happened. We’ll keep you
posted on what happens
next to the redevelopment
of the former Pizza Express
building.
HOT IN
THE CITY...
(contined from p1) And if NW1’s
seaside is looking a bit too chocka for
your liking, then as we all know the
wider area has plenty more ‘resorts’,
if you know where to look (see box
below).
Everyone is familiar with the
Heath, but for real urban solitude have
you tried the rolling fields of the West
Meadow, hidden away on the Kenwood
House estate? Never too busy, you’ll
find rural vistas and lashings of peace
and quiet, even on the most sizzling
Sunday.
Other Heath spots worth seeking
out (and so much easier in the era of
GPS), include bucolic secret village
the Vale of Health, and nearby Sandy
Heath if you really want gorse-lined
paths and antediluvian swamps to
yourself. And don’t forget it’s easy
to relax off-peak at the Lido, or
the various swimming ponds and
accompanying grassy banks.
Elsewhere in this issue? We’ve
illustrated a handy world map
outlining the best restaurants to “go
abroad on your doorstep” (see p. 7),
and name-check some of the more
imaginative ice cream parlours to
cool down with (p.13). There’s also
a list of our top local summer reads
(p.10-11) and Dartmouth Park-based
author Joanna Briscoe on her new
novel, but don’t fear, it’s not all about
sedentary pursuits. We get off our
behinds and saddle up with writer
Kevin MacNeil’s paean to cycling (p.9);
and why not explore the area’s blue
plaques dedicated to some of the most
celebrated artists and thinkers in the
world (p.12-13)? We show you how, and
even where to refuel en route.
Lest we forget: the two big local free
festivals are on consecutive weekends
this year: Alma Street and Queen’s
Crescent (see p.14 for all the details).
Finally, the summer is an underrated
time to visit local pubs, often not nearly
as busy as you think with so many
regulars away on their holidays. So bag
a prime spot on a roof terrace, or rock
up on a Tuesday somewhere you’d
usually need to book. We’ll see you
outside for a cider.
– Team Kentishtowner
Vegbox is a community-led social enterprise
bringing affordable seasonal vegetables to Kentish
Town from small-scale organic farms near London.
Members of Vegbox collect their weekly
vegetable bags from pick-up points convenient
to them around Kentish Town.
Standard bag £26 per month (£6.50 per week)
Family bag £44 per month (£11 per week)
Small bag £20 per month (£5 per week)
Fruit a supplement of £2.50 to add fruit to a bag
top: a scorcher on
Granary Square,
King’s Cross
right: The Stag
bottom right:
Primrose Hill
left: team
Kentishtowner at
Alma Street 2013
SHHHHH H H !
Top 5 OTHER LOCAL RESORTS:
King’s Cross
A 15 minute walk along the canal is this ever-changing
central district complete with new postcode (N1C) and full
summer programme at Spanish-style piazza Granary Square:
fountains, deck chairs, pavement terraces, live music and
p.14).
streetfood stalls (for highlights see p.14
Belsize Park
Bask on the leafy European parade stretching north of the
tube (its Western side features more indies), or the village feel
of England’s Lane, with its many artisan cafes and delis.
Swains Lane
Sometimes referred to as Kentish Town’s very own ‘resort’,
this curving parade in N6 is all alfresco people-watching.
Grab a chair at Kalendar and a capuccino – or, more
appropriately, a glass of chilled Cotes de Provence.
South End Green
The Stag on Fleet Road is almost a veritable holiday
destination itself, with vast pebbly beach of a beer garden,
BBQs, up-for-it crowd and eclectic local bands. Around the
Overground are longstanding brasseries and independent
shops to browse.
Primrose Hill
Visit on a balmy weekend and fight for the best spots
overlooking the London skyline, or bag a seat along Regent’s
Park Road promenade – Negozio Classica will make you feel
like you’re in Tuscany – and watch the picnickers and posers
parade up and down.
Kentish Town’s
local veg box
scheme
Sign up today:
www.vegbox.org.uk | 07906 883 209 | info@vegbox.org.uk
4
the kentishtowner
righteous and the poor are a nuisance. We
are labouring under a modern morality
that is insidious, almost invisible and
cruel. I cannot stand the idea that people
who grew up in an area now cannot afford
to live there. It happened to my dad (who
lived in Twickenham); it’s happened to
some of my son’s friends’ families. Kentish
Town must not become Primrose Hill.
Surely the council can do something. This
is where my Art Cave idea comes in. Let’s
all live in the cave.
Luke All of what Siân says. Plus the pubs
that are not really pubs but are in fact
restaurants. Reservations in a pub? These
are end days.
Siân Pattenden is an artist and author. She used to write about pop music, but now illustrates her own
children’s books as well as exhibiting her art across London. Luke Haines was the front man in 1990s band
the Auteurs and one third of chart hit-makers Black Box Recorder. He has a new album out, New York in the
Seventies. They are married and have lived in NW5 for 12 years.
When were you happiest?
Siân After two pints of psychedelic
Cider Bus in the Southampton Arms,
I’m generally in a wobbly mood. And
wobbliness directly equates to happiness,
it has been scientifically proved by
Laboratoires Garnier.
Luke I’m in a constant state of happiness
– because I’m very ignorant.
Where would you like to live?
Siân I like where I am. Although I am
tempted to burrow inside Parliament HiIl
sometimes and live in some sort of Art
Cave. Daubings on the wall, raves at night,
some sort of artisan bakery - it could
happen. The council will be receiving my
planning application soon.
Luke I don’t wanna move – you can’t make
me. I’m K-Town till I die. *Air Punch*
What is your earliest memory?
Siân I lived in Evangelist Road for the
first year of my life - but I don’t remember
any of it. I think it would be odd if I did.
What is the most important lesson life
has taught you?
Siân Life is a cautious balance between
having a good time and not being an idiot.
“My most
unappealing habit?
Reading the Daily
Mail in a high voice to
rabbits on the Heath”
What is your favourite sound or smell?
Siân The sound of blackbirds singing
about the smell of wet pavements.
has a photo of the bloke out of The
Darkness posing with the chef. These are
hearty commendations.
What makes you unhappy?
Siân Words and phrases like “revenue
stream”, “monetise”, “trending”, “page
impressions” and “artisan” anything.
Luke The stuff that happens without my
permission.
What is your greatest life achievement?
Luke I helped a nun across Highgate
Road once.
What is your guilty pleasure?
Luke Guilt is a useless emotion. But I do
enjoy a takeaway curry from Monsoon
which advertises itself as Ed Milliband’s
fave curry house. There’s another which
What is your most unappealing habit?
Luke Reading the Daily Mail to rabbits
in hedges on Hampstead heath in a high
voice.
Who or what do you hate and why?
Siân This mindless “gentrification”
of London, where the rich are seen as
Where do you hang out?
Siân When I’m not burrowing into the
land, I wander around Kentish Town High
Street waiting for the Lidl to finally open
its doors. I also hover round Blustons
looking at the tops. Oh and the library
is quite good a) for books b) for seeing
people do their thing. In my opinion there
are not enough libraries in K-Town. There
should be one long library on the East side
of the High Street which incorporates a
pub and the Citizens Advice Bureau office.
Then the other side could be one long
artisan bakery or something.
Luke I like the Southampton Arms for
its refusal to become another gastropub. I
also like O’Reilly’s on Kentish Town road,
a proper boozer with ‘Black Night’ blaring
out on the Jukebox and a barman in a
Lonsdale shirt who knows everyone.
What’s been your best experience?
Siân I had quite a nice time at Alma
Street Fair 2013 selling art and soaking up
the smoke from the hog roast stall.
What’s the worst thing anyone’s said to
you?
Siân Someone came up to me on the
Heath last year, a complete stranger, and
started to tell me how much she loved my
“wacky” look. “Unlike all those yummy
mummies,” she said. What if I had wanted
to look like a Yummy Mummy? How dare
she. I wanted to smack her in the teeth but violence is not the answer - so I just
smiled and walked away.
Tell us a secret.
Siân The world of children’s books is
a viper’s nest. It’s the most competitive
industry I’ve ever experienced, and
I’ve met Simon Cowell so that’s saying
something.
sianpattenden.co.uk
lukehaines.co.uk
24 July – 10 August 2014
Central Saint Martins | Kings Place | The Streets & Public Spaces of King’s Cross
020 7520 1490 | www.tete-a-tete.org.uk
6
the kentishtowner
FOOD
Bear + Wolf
One kid-friendly opening. Two different takes
A
CHIC CAFÉ arrives alongside the new
independent butcher, fishmonger and bistro on
Fortess Road and everyone comments on the rise
and rise of the parade this year. But in fact, Bear + Wolf has
been years in the making.
Owner Matthew Neel cut his teeth running the original
raw food café at Primrose Hill’s Triyoga (we were big fans
of his raw courgette ‘noodles’), before a stint at Junction
Road gastro boozer St John’s Tavern.
Now he’s created the kid-friendly hangout he struggled
to find trawling the neighbourhood with his toddler. After
initially losing the site (at one time operating as Books For
Free) to a bakery, who then changed their minds, it’s finally
open – even if his daughter is well and truly of school age.
“Throughout
our lunch,
locals peer
through the
door and
exclaim
‘When did this
happen?!’”
Having been stockpiling industrial lighting and stripped
back furniture in his loft all the while, he’s also pulled in
some favours from a branding consultant mate to create
a beautiful airy space with a directional thread running
through everything. The name? Well, it aims to play on
fairy-tale themes, without sounding too cutesy.
Perched at the shared table in the front window, in fact
it’s all very sociable – and adult – with any ankle-biters
safely stowed in the lively back room. With our own kids at
school, the wife and I get chatting to our interesting tablemates while sipping on an orange, Thai basil and frozen
strawberry number from the smoothie menu (from £4). It’s
as honest-to-goodness tasty as it sounds, yet a mango, apple
and mint one just nudges it in the refreshment stakes.
The menu is simple posh café grub, served with flair and
imagination from the calm open kitchen right at the heart
of the main room. A smoked salmon sandwich is elevated
by the inclusion of red onion and caper cream cheese and
beetroot pate.
Meanwhile a more pedestrian halloumi salad (£8.50) is
all about the bitter-sweet tahini and mint dressing. But both
come served with superior quality bread, also available to
take away by the loaf, we were pleased to note.
Coffee comes from Shoreditch grinders Ozone, and an
americano served in a small glass is unashamedly strong,
the right amount of water calming, not swamping, the more
acidic notes. Even better, it’s the perfect foil for the gooey
chocolate brownie and a lemon pistachio tart.
Throughout our lunch, locals peer through the door and
exclaim “when did this happen?!”
Matthew, clearly over the moon to have finally opened
his own place, bounces proudly up to each of them. One
couple welcome him to Tufnell Park. He thanks them
politely, having actually lived here himself for 12 years.
At least his café has finally found its home.
Tom Kihl
153 Fortess Road NW5
SARAH PARK SPEAKS OUT
I know where mothers go
for babyccino so I don’t go
there for coffee...
IT’S NOT just my aversion to soft play areas, and the
atmosphere of chaos, it’s the sense that I’m an intruder.
As a childless woman in my 30s, I feel guilty in the
presence of the busy mums juggling sticky cakes and
hungry mouths as I slide into the last free seat to read
my book. So I was apprehensive to survey the scene in
Bear + Wolf: buggy park, cub room, outdoor play area.
But Lou Reed on the stereo, New York loft-like decor,
great menu and heads bowed over laptops? Definitely a
place for grown-ups as well. And best of all, two minutes
from my new flat (shhh, I’m an ex-south Londoner).
A café is, of course, only ever as good as its coffee.
Here, the flat white is all wolf: dark, brooding and
mean in a tiny glass. It bites you, which is exactly what
it should do. And on my second visit, a shepherd’s
pie topping is crisp with sharp cheese, although the
meat could have been beefier – but, hey, I was born in
Manchester, so perhaps I have different expectations.
Ultimately this is a clever concept: a foodie café for
solitary reading and coffee-gazing without the guilt while its kid-friendly schtick means it’s not, in fact, so
solitary after all.
Follow Sarah on Twitter @sarahparktypes
7
the kentishtowner
Eat your way
around the world
only a few steps away...
NORTH AMERICA
Q Grill
29-33 Chalk Farm Road
OUR TIP: Flat iron steak served
medium rare
ENGLAND
FRANCE
30 Hawley Crescent
40 Chalcot Road
Poppies
L’Absinthe
OUR TIP: Classic cod
and chips, what else?
OUR TIP: Chicken liver
parfait with sweet red
onion marmalade
POLAND
Beetroot
92 Fleet Road
OUR TIP: Pierogi potato
and cheese dumplings
TURKEY
CHINA
98 Queen’s Crescent
322 Kentish Town Road
Efe Ocakbasi
SPAIN
Jamon Jamon
AMERICA (DEEP SOUTH)
Porky’s
18 Chalk Farm Road
OUR TIP: Spiced and fried
catfish
CARIBBEAN
Mango Shack
47-49 Camden Road
OUR TIP: Salmon home-cured
with rum and lime
177 Haverstock Hill
OUR TIP: Charcoalgrilled chicken salad
La Patagonia
31 Camden High Street
OUR TIP: Garlic and whiskymarinated grilled chicken
with parsley fries
Miss Bun
OUR TIP: Home made pork
dumplings
INDIA
OUR TIP: Grilled squid
with garlic and parsley
peppercorn sauce
Bengal Lancer
JAPAN
OUR TIP: Sabjee begun pie:
spiced aubergines, chickpeas
with cheese
8 Fortess Road
Kami
253 Kentish Town Road
SARDINIA
Pane Vino
323 Kentish
Town Road
OUR TIP: Linguine
a la bottarga (silver
mullet roe)
THAILAND
Baan Thai
18 Fortess Road
OUR TIP: Durian ice cream (if
you dare)
GREECE
ARGENTINA
WHY spend a small fortune on flying somewhere
exotic only to encounter one culinary
disappointment after another? We all know that,
food-wise, there’s “no place like home”. So allow
us, if we may, to illustrate some of our favourite
eateries and show you how diverse the north
London eating scene really is. From Argentina to
China, Sardinia to the Deep South, you really can
go around the world in just a mile or two. Come
fly with us.
Retsina
48-50 Belsize
Lane
OUR TIP: Ovenroasted knuckle
lamb kleftiko
OUR TIP: Dragon roll:
eel, prawn tempura and
avocado
MALAYSIA
Bintang
93 Kentish Town Road
OUR TIP: Wasabi prawn
tempura with cod roe
ETHIOPIA
Queen Of Sheba
12 Fortess Rd
OUR TIP: Green lentil stew
with injera bread
AUSTRALIA
Ruby Doc
Camden Lock Market
OUR TIP: A flat white
(obviously), after the
courgette quiche
8
the kentishtowner
BIKES
below:
the author with
his trusty steed
Cycling’s open secret
Haven’t picked up a bike for years? Author Kevin
MacNeil on what you’re missing
I
F I HAD TO give everyone on the
planet an inessential material gift,
I would give them a set of wheels.
Do not underestimate wheels. Anything
that cannot be reinvented is fundamental.
Civilised life thrives on wheels. Prams.
Cars. Wheelchairs. Bikes.
When I started cycling, some years ago,
I was living in a simple draughty cottage on
a weatherful island in the extreme north.
In my mid-thirties, I’d had a brokenhearted, broken-minded kind of life I
often thought of writing about, though the
sheer scale of the task – not to mention its
potential egotism – defeated me. In fact, in
Shetland as a writer in residence, I hadn’t,
for a long time, been able to write anything.
Pressed down by the weight of my own
flaws, I had felt blank and hopeless. Until
the bike.
I bought it on a whim. It was new, a
sleek black machine that fascinated me. An
artist once said that the bike is a ‘surrealist
invention’, that cycling is ‘a surreal way
of walking’. The bike was a work of art. It
symbolised freedom. Here was art with a
commensurate practical value, like a novel
that cheers you up, taking you up and away
out of yourself.
I WENT SWOOPING through Shetland’s
wind scoured contours, with its
schizophrenic sea views and enormous
wheeling sky, and the elements united in
rhythm: my heart and the bike and my legs
and the road and my lungs and the wind.
The very cadence of things actual and
things perceived melded. Cycling was like
a drug. But a nourishing, healing one.
I pared my crestfallen life down to
essences – eating, drinking, sleeping,
reading, writing, cycling and meditating.
My ennui slowly lifted. I began to feel more
confident, more connected, more joyful.
And my creativity returned. I found myself
not only fulfilling my current writing
projects, but attracting new commissions
too.
I NOW LIVE in London and cycle three
or four times around Richmond Park to
maintain my equilibrium. And to help
me write. Wheels love the imagination.
Bike-riding hypnotises you, even while
demanding a Zen-like mindfulness. The
landscape blurs past and the movement
seems to give a more adventurous shape
to thought patterns. Cycling – itself a
solitary pursuit – has helped me to feel
engaged with the world, a sense that
can often elude writers, typing away in
their insular bubbles. On my bike, I feel
part of something bigger. I’ve harnessed
that awareness into trying to help others
by cycling for charity. In 2009, I rode
1300km of the Danube, from the source
to Budapest, to raise money for cancer
charities, and last year I cycled from the
north of the Isle of Lewis to the south
of the Isle of Harris, in my native Outer
Hebrides, for the hospice where my
mother spent her final weeks. Always on a
fixed-gear.
The rise in cycling’s popularity
makes me happy. I quietly gladden when
I see others cycling: giddy toddlers on
trikes, eager teens on mountain bikes,
cosmopolitan renegades on fashionable
fixies, senior citizens on tandems sharing
rich memories and late-life heartbeats.
They all understand cycling’s open secret that it encourages us to get more out of life,
to be healthier in body and mind.
Kevin MacNeil is an award-winning poet and
novelist from the Outer Hebrides. He now lives
in London where he writes, cycles, and helps
others to write.
Visit KevinMacNeil.com or find him on
Twitter @Kevin_MacNeil
“Here was art with a
commensurate practical
value, like a novel that
cheers you up, taking you up
and away out of yourself”
ON YOUR BIKE
Good cycle shops
near you
1. Giant Camden Once Chamberlaine’s,
this local institution dates back to the 1950s,
and changed its name earlier this year. Now
it’s all scrubbed up with separate women’s
and men’s sections, plus a very hi-tech Giant
PowerFit, a unique bike-fitting system. 75-77
Kentish Town Road.
2. Simpson’s This family run affair on
Malden Road has been around for decades,
but late last year reduced their operation to a
smaller, still friendly outlet at the same spot.
114-116 Malden Road
3. Lunar Cycles Tucked away near
Talacre Gardens, it’s a hip under-the-arches
go-to place for repairs, accessories – or a
quality MOT. Arch 66, Wilkin Street Mews
4. Bicycle Gallery Right opposite
Kentish Town West station is this highly
rummagable secondhand arch. Expect to
find everything from 1970s hipster shoppers
to racers and mountain bikes. Prince of Wales
Road
5. Camden Cycles The self-confessed
“only green bike shop in London” deals in
secondhand and reconditioned bikes 241
Eversholt Street
roundhouse.org.uk
/camden-beach
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ICE CREAMS &
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26 JULY
FREE ENTRY
10
Spooky summer
HOLIDAY READING SPECIAL
Author Joanna Briscoe explains why she is attracted to the gothic,
the creepy and out-and-out odd around Kentish Town
M
Y LATEST NOVEL, Touched,
has ghosts in its margins, while
the humans wreak havoc all of
their own. I’m inspired by the slightly odd,
the disturbing, and even the dodgy.
The loveliness of where I live –
Dartmouth Park, that oasis between
Kentish Town proper and Swains Lane –
doesn’t, of course, preclude spookiness.
I was born in Hampstead, in the old
St.Mary’s maternity home on Heath Street,
now flats, and my parents took me straight
out to a coffee bar, wrapped up against
the January snow. Soon they wanted to
get their firstborn out of town, and so we
moved to Letchmore Heath, just north
of London, near Elstree. I was only there
till the age of four, but that pretty village
became the setting of this novel.
Though I spent most of my subsequent
childhood in the West Country, north
London always drew me back and I
returned twelve years ago. As I walk
around, it’s that mixture of the polished
and the somewhat less refined that keeps
the place lively.
That’s what I love about Kentish Town.
There are attempts at gentrification, and
it’s certainly happened in some areas, but
there is still the peeling, rowdy, bus-roaring
scuzziness that has always marked this
place and must never disappear.
And if you look closely, there’s so much
that is atmospheric, odd, decaying or fullblown spooky.
First and most obvious is Highgate
Cemetery, especially the western side,
a focus for goths, vampire lovers and
historians from all round the world.
Those ivy-clad graves, steep overhung
paths, the Beer mausoleum, the Circle of
Lebanon, and Terrace Catacombs are all
so ridiculously gothic, we locals are spoilt
for choice, and of course it’s inspired many
authors, from local Tracy Chevalier to
Audrey Niffenegger (see p.11).
Yesterday, I saw a rat running over the
path on the Heath, just before Parliament
Hill, where there’s a shady passage of trees,
and if I want to immerse myself in the
more chilling aspects of the Heath, I have
only to get lost among the beeches or sink
a little in the mud on the way to Kenwood.
I’ve also been on several of fantastic Bat
Walks. Note on resident rodents: hundreds
of poke their heads up in the evening at
the side of the canal in Camden. As long as
they’re not going to jump near me, I can
pretend I’m watching Game of Thrones.
OTHER LESS PICTURESQUE horrors lurk
in the various railway sidings round us.
That bridge leading to Churchill Road
from Acland Burghley school is shadowy
and decidedly strange, and always looks
as though it’s about to collapse, while
College Lane is built, surely, for ghosts and
danger, lovely though the houses are there.
They end in the almost Disneyfied row of
ancient cottages that is Little Green Street
– a different land - where the proportions
are so tiny, the staircases so narrow, with
terraces of roof terraces, vicious angles, and
tumbles of interconnecting rooms, they are
straight out of a Dickens novel and could
surely host some interesting presences
among the shadows.
The most potentially haunted corner is
where the high street meets Holmes Road.
Look at the top of O’Reilly’s pub, where it
says The Old Farm House among decaying
masonry and wonder…. Though spookier
still might be the blank blue building next
door above McDonald’s, where anything
could be going on. Further down Holmes
“There is still the
peeling, rowdy, busroaring scuzziness
that has always
marked this place”
photo: Jason Alden
the kentishtowner
Road, the ghost of Le Petit Prince still
hovers above Troy Café.
The slightly odd, down-at-heel nature
of Kentish Town Road can only be retained
if we keep lovely old shops like Blustons,
B & S DIY, or the London Bead Company.
It wouldn’t even be the same without
the somewhat worrying Rio’s Relaxation
Spa. If that palmy facade ever advertises
Starbucks instead, NW5 will lose its dodgy,
eerie air that is so vital to its character.
Take a look, if you will, at York Mews, but
not on a dark night. It’s all rubbish bags
despite dire warnings, and ends in a vast
metal container, while blasted squares in
one wall make it look like a recessionary
half-developed Greek island.
NO WONDER Kentish Town inspires me
as I walk around. Often I simply stand and
puzzle. That tower behind the fire station.
What is it, exactly? And the much loved
camel at the end of Lady Somerset Road,
straddled by one human boot? I trust and
hope she talks to other toddlers, now my
own children are too big, because I know
just how sonorous her voice is….Camelina,
we celebrate you.
Finally, the ghostliest bits are those we
can’t even see. Take South Kentish Town
Station. Never heard of it? That’s because
it’s not on the map. It was only in use
between 1904 and 1927, it’s inaccessible to
us, but TFL use it as a maintenance tunnel,
and it’s not hard to picture that mournful
ghost station down there. John Betjeman
even wrote a story about a poor passenger
who became trapped in the disused station.
My own story is tense, ghostly and full
of human longings and distortions; of what
lies, hidden, beneath our feet or above our
heads. There is so much to see all around
if only we look, or know. If I want fresh
inspiration, all I have to do is walk out of
my front door.
Touched by Joanna Briscoe is published
by Hammer Books, out now.
11
the kentishtowner
AUGUST
READING
LIST
From back garden to beer
garden, you don’t have
to sit on a beach to tear
through a page-turner.
Here are eleven local
romps perfect for your
north London staycation
words: Stephen Emms
TOP TIP Her Harriet Lane
Understated tale of middle-class
revenge bouncing between Archway’s
mean streets and the leafy slopes of
Highgate. Like Lane’s haunting debut
Alys Always, this new novel lingers
long after the last, bleak page. Written
in careful, subtle prose, it’s a tale of two
women with very different lives – Emma
a struggling mother, Nina a successful
artist – connected by an event that
occurred many years before. While the
author’s focus is on the minutiae of life,
the repeat narration of events by each
alternating protagonist builds tension
and suspense, right up to the unsettling
climax. Lots of revealing insight into the
stresses of motherhood, too, and local
colour abounds: Nina’s studio is in a
former piano factory in Kentish Town,
she lunches at Mario’s Cafe, and there’s
frequent contemplation of “scruffy”
north London.
TEN MORE TO CONSIDER
Her Fearful Symmetry Audrey
Niffenegger
Creepy tale of identical twins set in a flat
overlooking Highgate Cemetery.
Notes on a Scandal Zoe Heller
All time classic study of loneliness and
obsession set on Archway, the Heath and
the surrounding areas.
Hollow Man Oliver Harris
Crime romp featuring corrupt
Hampstead detective Nick Belsey; also
recommended is its sequel, Deep Shelter.
How We Met Katy Regan
The main character in this slice of
chicklit lives in Kentish Town.
Tomorrow’s Past Emma Dally
Near-incest, murder, domestic abuse,
horse castration, home abortions and
prostitutes (on Leverton Street, if you
please!)…in this 1940s-set family saga in
NW5.
Literary
Salon
founder
TOBY BROTHERS
“SOMEWHERE along the
lengthening of days, the
summer offers an opening out of
the imagination. Perhaps it’s the
slower movement of time, or the
easing of industry in the warmer
air that encourages immersion
in the world of words. A
NW Zadie Smith
Strangely, Smith glides over K-Town in
this tale of four inter-connected lives, but
there’s plenty of Camden, Kilburn, Swiss
Cottage, and Archway.
Jimmy Coates: Blackout Joe Craig
Children’s author Craig pens this series of
action-thrillers aimed mainly at the 8-13
crowd and set in prime NW5 locations
like the Forum.
The Fields Beneath Gillian Tindall
Not your average “beach read” but as
fascinating a story of our very own urban
village as you’ll ever read.
Dinner at Mine Chris Smyth
A lightweight riff on Come Dine With Me
partly set in Kentish Town.
Murder Underground Mavis Doriel
Hay
1930s detective novel recently
republished about a murder at Belsize
Park station.
delicious book can take you
over: suddenly those big blocks
of Dickens or Dostoevsky
compel rather than overwhelm,
and we slip more easily into the
realm of the characters. In the
summer I can dip into works
for no reason beyond intrigue
and pleasure, or the discovery
of beautifully crafted sentences.
My reading is guided by random
recommendations and happy
accidents, and can follow the
gallop and drift of my attention.”
ADRIANO
COSTA
SAM
FALLS
SAMARA
SCOTT
MICHAEL
E. SMITH
26 JUNE–10 AUGUST
ZABLUDOWICZ
COLLECTION
LONDON
SARVISALO
NEW YORK
zabludowiczcollection.com
176 Prince of Wales Road
London NW5 3PT
12 FREE WEEKEND
the kentishtowner
FREE WEEKEND? TAKE A LITERARY TOUR
Channel 4 reporter
Jennifer Rigby plots a
city hike with a purpose
Y
OU’RE WALKING down a fairly
nondescript north London street.
It’s summer, but it’s probably
raining. The shopping bags are heavy, the
phone has just run out. But wait – what’s
that? A flash of blue on the tall brick
building opposite.
Intrigued, you cross over, and find out via
a plaque on the wall that George Orwell
– one of the 20th century’s most amazing
and prophetic writers – used to live here.
Ah well, you think. If George carried
his shopping down here, I reckon I can
probably put up with it.
And he’s not the only one. Let’s begin
at Camden Town tube station.
1. WELLCOME
Where: Sir Henry Wellcome, 6
Gloucester Gate, London NW1 4HG
Why: A quick stroll up Parkway to
Regent’s Park is the house of arguably
the coolest pharmacist ever: Sir Henry
Wellcome. Born in the Wild West, he
founded a drugs company, got filthy rich,
bought himself more historical objects
than most museums could ever afford
– and then set up the Wellcome Trust
to fund pioneering medical research
after his death. These artefacts are now
visible at the Wellcome Collection on
nearby Euston Road, one of London’s best
museums.
Refuel: Not yet guys. You’ve just started.
Get some stamina.
Directions: Now walk up towards
Primrose Hill – through the park if you
like, or on the Outer Circle, then cross the
canal and turn right on Prince Albert Road
directly in front of the hill. Turn left at the
edge of the greenery, then right when you
hit Fitzroy Road.
2. YEATS, PLATH and ENGELS
Where: WB Yeats, 23 Fitzroy Rd, London
NW1 8TP; Sylvia Plath, 3 Chalcot Square,
Primrose Hill, NW1 8YB; Friedrich
Engels, 122 Regent’s Park Road, Primrose
Hill, NW1 8XL
Why: Bit of a literary enclave this, with
the former homes of three epoch-defining
writers clustered in close succession. First
up on Fitzroy Road is the home of WB
Yeats, an Irish poet and dramatist who is
responsible for arguably some of the most
beautiful verse in English. “The world
is full of magic things,” he once wrote,
“patiently waiting for our senses to grow
sharper.”
In a pleasing bit of synchronicity, tragic
poet Sylvia Plath actually rented the very
same flat years later when she lived in the
area – she was excited to discover WB
Yeats had lived there. Her blue plaque is
round the corner though, left onto idyllic
Chalcot Square. Number 3 is the home
top: Sylvia Plath
middle: Piet
Mondrian
left: George
Orwell
she shared with Ted Hughes before their
separation, and her ultimate suicide, at 23
Fitzroy Road when she was just 30 years
old.
Only a little further on, back onto the
main drag from Primrose Hill to Chalk
Farm tube, is the house of Friedrich
Engels – one of the fathers of modern
communism. Alongside Karl Marx, (who
lived in the currently blue plaque-free
46 Grafton Terrace, over in west Kentish
Town) the German political theorist
and philosopher wrote The Communist
Manifesto and Das Kapital.
Refuel: Lovely boozers lie tucked away,
from the Princess of Wales to The
Pembroke and The Lansdowne. Try the
Little One for coffee or L’Absinthe for
decent steak frites.
Directions: Follow Regent’s Park Road
round and cross over the railway bridge.
Walk down past Chalk Farm tube station.
Turn left up Haverstock Hill. In a few
minutes, go right up Parkhill Road.
3. MOORE and MONDRIAN
Where: Henry Moore, 11A Parkhill Rd,
London NW3 2YH; and Piet Mondrian, 60
Parkhill Rd, London NW3 2YT
Why: Two world famous artists for
the price of one here. First up is Henry
Moore, English sculptor extraordinaire,
best known for his monumental bronze
sculptures dotted around the globe as
public works of art. You might have seen
them at the Tate or in the grounds of
Kenwood House, outside the House of
Lords or at Kew Gardens.
Further up is the former abode of
abstract painter Piet Mondrian. In fact
it’s no surprise he lived here: this area
was a hotbed for artists for a short period
between the two world wars and the clan
even helped him get a flat in the area. As
well as Moore, Barbara Hepworth and
her second husband Ben Nicholson lived
round the corner, and Naum Gabo, Roland
Penrose, Cecil Stephenson and art critic
Herbert Read – who called the area “a
nest of gentle artists” – lived nearby. But
they weren’t necessarily popular. When
Read displayed Mother and Child, by
Moore, in his front garden, the local paper
apparently got up a campaign against it.
Sadly the artists were chased out of
London by the Second World War by
around 1940, Moore to the English
countryside and Mondrian to New York,
who wrote sadly: “For art it was too
difficult in London.”
Refuel: The Hill on Haverstock Hill is a
good food pitstop, as is trad boozer the
Steeles, or why not try new craft beer pub
The Bluebell on Malden Road?
Directions: Wander down Tasker Road
and through the charming cut-through
Alan Cheales Way (which snakes around
St Dominic’s Priory) to Malden Road. Go
downhill, turning left at the junction with
Prince of Wales Road and keep straight
until the former Pizza Express building.
Now cross over, our final destination is
just up behind the Abbey Tavern.
4. ORWELL
Where: George Orwell, 50 Lawford
Road, Kentish Town, NW5 2LN
Why: He wrote some of the most
influential works of English literature,
“It was his move
to Lawford Road,
Kentish Town,
that put Orwell’s
literary career on
the right tracks”
the kentishtowner
FREE WEEKEND
OF THESE INSPIRING BLUE PLAQUES
from Animal Farm to 1984. But it was
a move to Lawford Road which put
Orwell’s literary career on the right
tracks. And that was after the peripatetic
writer had done a short stint at a flat
on Parliament Hill, right by the Heath,
where there is also a plaque.
Orwell, who was working on early
novel Keep the Aspidistra Flying during
his time here, shared three rooms on the
top floor with writers Michael Sayers
and Rayner Heppenstall. He slept at the
back where they dined together, mostly
on spaghetti, at a large table. Heppenstall
was even despatched daily to the Duke Of
Cambridge on the corner (now flats) to
bring back jugs of beer.
And while you contemplate that, cast
a glance at neighbouring Camden School
for Girls, where, in the 19th century,
pioneering cheerleader for female
education Frances Buss was headteacher.
Refuel: Congratulations – you’ve reached
your goal. To celebrate, choose from one
of the nearby hostelries – The Oxford,
Abbey or Lion & Unicorn – and drain a
pint (and even spark up a cigarette if you
really want to pay tribute to keen smoker
Orwell).
Find Jennifer Rigby on Twitter @jriggers.
Additional research: Stephen Emms
Top 5 ICE CREAM PITSTOPS
Where to cool down with a sorbet on your urban walk
Amina e Cuore
Characterful new garden cafe with
a arresting selection of flavours, all
concoted from scratch in-house. We
recommend the silky dark chocolate
sorbet, a killer stracciatella and a pistachio
made with just-roasted nuts, giving it an
amazing, almost dry quality. 129 Kentish
Town Road 10am-9pm
Samba Swirl
These local frozen yoghurt specialists
dispense a rainbow of fat-free fruit, nut
and berry flavours, on daily rotation via a
bank of DIY hand pumps. The chocolate
is about as good as California-style guiltfree indulgence gets. 5 Jamestown Road,
11am-11pm
Chin Chin Labs
The original nitrogen ice cream factory is
always a favourite with visiting kiddies.
Gasp as the explosions of NO2 gas ensure
the creamiest creations. Flavours are on
rotation, but will usually include
an 80% coco dark chocolate and a
rich vanilla, made with fresh pods
imported especially from India. 49-50
Camden Lock Place, 12am-7pm
Gelato Mio
You’ll be hard-pressed to find gelato
done as well as this if you’re travelling in
Italy this summer. Try the Nocciola for
a creamy hazelnut treat, or the Mirtillo,
a blueberry sorbet that delights the kids
and refreshes on the muggiest of London
afternoons. St Pancras Station, 8am-9pm
Ruby Violet
The capital’s hippest parlour boasts
quirky flavours galore and snaking
queues. Ingredients are local where
possible, so enjoy honeycomb from
the Heath or allotment-grown chilli
chocolate. 118 Fortess Road, 11am-10pm
weekends
Tom Kihl & Stephen Emms
13
14
the kentishtowner
MUST DO August
1. GET CULTURAL IN KX
Tête à Tête is the world’s largest festival of new opera with dozens of
performances both free and ticketed (July 28 – Aug 10). Elsewhere in and
around Granary Square there’s Sports Day (July 18 and 19) to celebrate the
opening of the new public pools at 5 Pancras Square, streetfood bonanza
KERB Saturdays (July 19 and Aug 16) and Store (Aug 23-25) which will see
a pop-up department store spring up for the weekend. Finally, don’t miss
immersive experience Battle Bridge (Aug 29-31), which promises to take
you back to the time of “gladiators, chariots and warrior queens.” Yikes.
2. BIG LOCAL FESTIES
Kentish Town’s two finest free summer events take place this year on
consecutive weekends: Alma Street Fair is first off on Sunday July 27
(12-6pm) with the celebrated multi-street mix of stalls, streetfood, arty
pop-ups and live music stages. Meanwhile the following Saturday is the
more community-focused Queen’s Crescent festival: a great excuse to
check out all that’s new at the market, plus the popular Camden Has Talent
competition (12-6pm).
3. DISCOVER A NEW CAFÉ ON YORK WAY
Canal Reach Canteen is on the fringes of the King’s Cross development,
beneath the new student accommodation – and a bun’s hurl from
Brecknock School. On our visit salads were seasonal and healthy
(watermelon and mint), and daily hot specials well-priced (around £8). A
huge terrace is about to open, perfect for an alfresco wine or bottled beer.
2
4. FAMILY FREEBIES AT LOCAL ART GALLERIES
5
3
Did you know almost every exhibition in the neighbourhood is free? So it’s
the perfect way to occupy the kids on a rainy day during the holidays. Every
Saturday (2pm) don’t miss Families Create at former Methodist Chapel
the Zabludowicz Collection, a drop-in where anyone 3+ can explore the
current exhibition (in this case, the work of four young sculptors). Other
galleries worth a look-in are Rowing, on Leighton Place, Cob Gallery on
Royal College Street and DRAF on Symes Mews, NW1.
5. FEAST BY NIGHT TO FREE MUSIC
Camden Lock launched their Thursday summer night markets a couple
of years back and it’s surely the best way to see the atmospheric cobbled
spaces sans tourists, day-trippers and weekenders. Locals and Londoners
alike sample global streetfood, the Backyard Cinema, Brewdog beer and
pop-up supper clubs - all with live music. (Every Thurs, Aug 7 – Sept 4)
6. EAT AT SHOE SHOP
This low-key all-day cafe and bistro, run by the former owner of Giaconda
Dining Rooms in Soho, serves coffee, breakfast, lunch, weekend brunch
and a simple post-work evening menu. We particularly rated the rib-eye
smothered with shallots and green peppercorn sauce. 122 Fortess Road
9
7. INVESTIGATE TWO CURIOUS NEW OPENINGS
From late July, consider visiting the Rose & Crown, the former Torriano
pub rebooted as a craft beer bar, live venue and kitchen. Or try Upstairs, the
café, bistro and bakery on the former Mamma Mia site (next to Assembly
House) from the Knowhere Special cocktail bar team.
8. LEARN NEW TRICKS AT THE ROUNDHOUSE
6
While parents bask on the beach upstairs (see cover story), Camden’s
iconic music venue is offering 11-19s a fantastic series of summer activities.
The Roundhouse Youth Programme has workshops including: designing
mobile video games, learning tricks from the magician who advised on the
blockbuster film Hugo and building futuristic instruments to perform at
Imogen Heap’s Reverb Festival. Visit roundhouse.org.uk for signup info.
8
9. AN EXCITING NEW ANTIQUES MARKET
4
Two doors down from Queen’s Crescent’s now-established Matt Townsend
antique emporium is his exciting brand new space, which he hopes will
house an independent coffee concession as well as stalls from individual
dealers. Pop down for a rummage. Open Thurs-Sat. 173 Queen’s Crescent
10. AND FINALLY... PREPARE TO BETTER YOURSELF
Toby Brothers’ popular cerebral gathering the London Literary Salon
returns in September with a (deep breath) 8-week study of Proust’s In
Search of Lost Time Vol. I: The Way by Swann’s, or alternatively a 4-week
series on Faulkner’s Absalom, Absalom! With Durrell, Woolf and Joyce all
set to follow in forthcoming months, you’ll be thoroughly engrossed all
autumn. Register now at litsalon.co.uk
NOW
OPEN
Tel: 020 3727 7222
www.londonresidential.uk.com
A sign that the cream of Camden has arrived
London Residential’s Kentish Town office is now open on Fortess Road. So now you too can enjoy our
boundless enthusiasm and resourcefulness - the kind that’s generated and built a quality service in
Camden since 2000.
However, our Camden Office hasn’t achieved its success through luck - but through a decade of hard work,
a thorough understanding of the market and possessing the skills to instinctively know what people truly want.
So whether you’re buying, selling, renting or are a landlord, we’d be delighted to welcome you at our new office.
Kentish Town
2 Fortess Road
Kentish Town
London NW5 2ES
Tel: 020 3727 7222
kentish@londonresidential.uk.com
www.londonresidential.uk.com
00457 LRS KentishTowner Ad 265x180 v03.indd 1
10/07/2014 23:38
every thurs
|
7th aug - 4th sept
|
until 10pm
The Camden Lock Night Market is back for Summer, running every Thursday evening from 7th August to the 4th
September. Featuring our world-class Global Kitchen street food market, live music and DJs, the Night Market is the
perfect, laid-back way to spend a Summer’s evening. With over 30 fantastic food stalls, late night shopping, a bar featuring
BrewDog’s superb craft beers and fresh Summer cocktails, free table tennis and Backyard Cinema’s outdoor screenings
of contemporary and classic movies, this is the ultimate late night London shopping, eating and drinking experience.
officialcamdenlock
camdenlockmarket.com
#CLNightMarket
0071_camden_nightmarketposter_stage8_AR_V1.indd 1
@Camden_Lock
camdenlock
camdenlock
02/07/2014 09:49
FRIENDS, ROMANS, COUNTRYMEN, LEND ME YOUR EARS
BATTLE BRIDGE
KING’S CROSS
BOUDICCA ROMANS
VS
THE
BRING YOUR FAMILY AND JOIN US IN 61 AD, AS KING’S CROSS IS PLUNGED INTO
THE DEPTHS OF THE IMPERIAL ROMAN INVASION. BATHE IN THE EMPIRE’S BATHS,
DRESS UP AND LIVE THE LIFE OF AN EMPEROR OR TAKE UP MOSAICS AND EARN A
CRUST IN ROMAN LONDON. FINALLY, WATCH IN AWE AS GRANARY SQUARE
BOWS UNDER THE WEIGHT OF GLADIATORS AND A MIGHTY BATTLE BETWEEN
WARRIOR QUEENS AND THE IMPERIAL ARMY.
HAIR BRAIDING & ROMAN MAKE-UP • ROMAN IDEAL HOMESHOW • FACE PAINTING • PHOTOGRAPHY AREA WITH PROPS
• ROMAN SLAVES • GREAT BATTLE • HORSE DRAWN CHARIOT • GLADIATORS • QUEEN BOUDICCA
SATURDAY 30 TH & SUNDAY 31 ST AUGUST 2014
AT BATTLE BRIDGE PLACE & GRANARY SQUARE, KING’S CROSS
www.kingscross.co.uk/battlebridge
KXR14 KentishTowner2.indd 1
@kingscrossN1C
facebook.com/kingscrosscouk
11/07/2014 15:32