It's
our weekly London roundup starting with a few headlines that caught the eye in
London over the last week or so, click the links for the full stories…
ENVIRONMENT:
Landmark legal action taken against Boris Johnson's decision to "waive
through" the destruction of Norton Folgate…
Campaigners
battling to prevent London’s historic Liberty of Norton Folgate being
redeveloped with corporate office towers have today been allowed a benchmark
legal challenge against the Mayor of London.
High
Court judge Mr Justice Collins has granted permission for a Judicial Review to
the Spitalfields Trust against the Mayor waving through the plans in breach of
legal procedures.
The
Judicial Review challenges Boris Johnson for over-ruling Tower Hamlets Council,
which has twice rejected the developers’ scheme in partnership with the City of
London Corporation which has been buying up properties in the Georgian
conservation area over the past two years.
MUSIC:
The Half Moon in Herne Hill is campaigning to save its music licence…
The
Half Moon Pub in Herne Hill, is set to reopen its doors this summer but will
cease to be a live music venue under new proposals.
Responding
to a public petition which has attracted more than 6,000 signatures, the Mayor of
London has now urged the pub’s new management to “continue with a regular
programme of new and cutting edge grassroots music acts”.
CULTURE:
The Freeedom To Party protest takes place today in Shoreditch. “This will be
one to remember," say organisers. "Let them know we mean peace, love,
unity and respect. All we want to do is dance.”
More
than 2,500 people plan to dance through the streets of east London on Saturday
in a call to end persecution of the UK’s free party movement.
The
Freedom to Party protest is due to kick off at 2.30pm in Shoreditch. “Remember
to bring all portable speakers, mini rigs, 12v rigs etc anything that plays
music,” organisers have said.
More
than 2,500 people have indicated they will attend the event, which has been
organised on Facebook. A similar number have said they are interested in
attending.
In
Brief…
If You Do One
OTHER Thing In London…
Our weekly slot in which we point you in the
direction of other happenings and events in our great city. A new exhibition, a
gig, a museum, a pop-up-shop – the best of London within a few minutes of a London
Walks walking
tour.
Westminster
Cathedral Viewing Gallery
The
Shard and the London Eye often upstage Westminster Cathedral’s viewing gallery
these days. But the view from the Roman Catholic cathedral 64 metres (210 feet)
above street level should still be on your London bucket list for 2016 –
especially if you are on a budget. The view is certainly spectacular, but best of
all, the experience an unhurried one – take your time and take it all in.
Westminster
Cathedral
42
Francis St,
London
SW1P
1QW
Opening
Times:
9.30am-5.00pm
Monday-Friday
9.30am-6.00pm
Saturday-Sunday
Prices:
Adults
£6.00
Concessions
£3.00
Family
£12.00 (two adults and up to four children)
Walking &
Footwear News
I
enjoyed this piece from Canadian Broadcaster Stephen Quinn, a meditation on
ditching the car and getting out on one's hind legs …
Walking
is free, it feels good, it helps me think and it lets me see the city in a way
that just isn’t possible otherwise. Sticking to the same route brings the
comfort of the familiar, and changing up the route brings new discoveries.
Never before have I been so conscious of the seasons.
There
are familiar characters along the way, like the man I have named Strongman – a
triangular, broad-chested older man with a thick neck, a shiny bald head and a
grey handlebar moustache. He is perpetually wearing shorts, and marches every
morning in the opposite direction with the sort of purpose reserved for soldiers
who know that victory is near. I may spot him anywhere between the viaduct and
Commercial Drive, depending on my timing. He covers a lot of ground quickly.
The
g-word –
gentrification – is consuming New York City's former dowdy
neighbourhoods every bit as rapidly as it is here in London. This piece from
The Gothamist caught my eye, focusing as it does on the g-word (one of my fave
rants) and the role of the Doctor Marten boot (my fave shoe for leading walking
tours,
see earlier post) and its role as a signifier of gentrification…
A
Doc Martens store is opening on Bedford Avenue, furthering Williamsburg's
well-documented SoHo-ification. But do not shake your fist at the gods of
gentrification, for Doc Martens is a much more appropriate North Brooklyn
transplant than the J. Crews and Ralph Laurens that have preceded it. Because
Doc Martens boots are, in fact, the Williamsburg of Shoes.
And
Finally…
Thanks
to London Walker Michelle Siedel and London cabbie and blogger Richard Cudlip
(what a fine and resonant newspaperman's name that is Mr Cudlip, most
appropriate for a blogger!) for pointing me in the direction of this grab from
Street View capturing Richard P leading one of his famous Beatles walking tours
for London Walks…
Have a great week! London Spy will return next Saturday.
A
London Walk costs £10 – £8 concession. To join a London Walk, simply meet your
guide at the designated tube station at the appointed time. Details of all
London Walks can be found at www.walks.com.
A London commemorative plaque for every day in 2016. 
