| | | Explore Black History in London
Visit Brixton's Black Cultural Archives, and you'll find a Black History tube map. It's a brilliant starting point to exploring London's Black cultural history, which is brimming with pioneering figures — from Sislin Fay Allen (the UK's first Black police constable) to Wilston Samuel Jackson (Britain's first Black train driver) to the first Black footballers. Many of these were part of the Windrush generation — as was Joan Harry who shared her memories of coming to London in 1960 with us.
We can never forget that London is pocked with unsavoury links to the slave trade — some more unexpected than others. This botanical map of Brixton spills unpalatable truths about slavery. We also found 10 London places and institutions involved in slavery, including banks, hospitals... and lifeboats. That piece, by the way, was written for us by Black History Walks, an amazing organisation which we also covered in this feature.
You can set out on your own Black history walks of London as well, with the help of this insightful map, and the book Black London: History, Art & Culture in Over 120 Places. You can also browse our archive for more London-centric Black history content by using our search function, linked below. |
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| | | Oktoberfest Fun Isn't Over Yet
The UK's biggest Oktoberfest celebration continues this week, with three glorious days of beer-fuelled fun in Finsbury Square, 2-4 Nov. Dig into bratwurst and schnitzel, washed down with frothy steins of specially-crafted German brews, while the beats of a live oompah band transport you to Bavaria. Prost! |
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| | New Gunpowder Plot Musical
Remember, remember the... 8th of November? That's when Treason explodes onto the stage of Alexandra Palace Theatre with a musical retelling of the Gunpowder Plot, 418 years (and three days) after Guy Fawkes and co. attempted to blow up the House of Lords. Here till 18 November. |
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| | High Flying Women Of London
In last week's free edition of Londonist: Time Machine, we searched for the first woman to fly over London. Turns out she was a teen, and has no memorial or plaque (we couldn't even source an image of her — the above is another early woman balloonist, Letitia Sage, whose story we also dig into.) |
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| | Fresh From The Fringe
Couldn't make it to Edinburgh this summer? No bother — Pleasance Theatre Trust have brought their favourite Fringe comedy shows down to Islington! Tickets start at just £8 a pop and there are tons of talented stand up acts involved, including Jo Griffith, Ignacio Lopez and Anu Vaidyanathan. |
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| | Ten Shows To See In 2024
2024 is shaping up to be another vintage year for London theatre, with new musicals, star-studded plays, and not one but two Studio Ghibli adaptations coming to the capital. Click below to see which ones we're currently most excited for — all of which you can book now!
Image by My Neighbour Totoro, Barbican |
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| | Ilford's Heroic Animal Cemetery
From pigeons who carried wartime messages to terrorist-thwarting dogs, some of the country's most heroic animals were laid to rest in east London. For our latest video, we went to visit the remarkable Ilford PDSA Animal Cemetery and learnt about a few of their residents. |
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