Arcadia (Leaf) Development -- Public Enquiry underway

"Arcadia Centre" -- the story so far...

Some time ago, Ealing Council thought it would be a clever idea to build an ugly high rise housing estate in Haven Green, right in the centre of our town. In 2007, a planning application was submitted by Glenkerrin, a group of Irish developers. After a consultation process, the application was revised to include seven buildings: an 85.7m tower, 567 new flats and 37 new retail units. On December 17th, 2008, at a highly charged sitting of the Council's "Planning Committee" (who turned out to be a committee of stuffed shirts), under the chairmanship of Councillor Ian Potts (Conservative, Ealing Broadway -- remember that name next time you're voting), rubber stamped the revised application, and ignored an unprecedented tidal wave of objection from local residents.

Then on January 21 2009, when Mayor Boris Johnson added his rubber stamp to the plan, it seemed to be game, set and match to the vandals and wreckers.

Finally, when all appeared to be lost, and in a highly unusual move, Hazel Blears, the then Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, called the application in (pdf), effectively taking the matter out of the -- incapable -- hands of Ealing Council. The final decision, which may be delayed until next year, now rests with central government.

Which brings us up to date. As part of the new review process, a formal independent public enquiry was launched yesterday in Ealing Town Hall, and may last for up to twelve days. Among those giving evidence are Ealing Council (who, by the way, are forking out £1.5m of your money to pay for some of the most expensive planning barristers in the business), and "Save Ealing's Centre", a group funded by local residents.

Will Good finally triumph over Evil? I wouldn't bet on it, but let's wait and see.

"Waiting for Godot", Theatre Royal Haymarket

So last week we went to see Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot” at the Theatre Royal Haymarket.

Things got off to a very promising start with a quick visit to Kettner’s in Romilly Street. It was here, once upon a time, that Oscar Wilde wooed young Bosie. Instead, I was very happily entreated by a couple of tasty venison sausages in a red wine sauce, washed down with fine red Bordeaux. Life was good, and as we made our way across Soho to The Haymarket, it was just about to get better.

All was set… a classic play, the creative hand of Sean Mathias, and an all-star glittering cast: Sir Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Simon Callow and Ronald Pickup. The lights dimmed – the magic commenced. I can truly say we weren’t disappointed. It was enchanting from start to finish. In particular, Callow’s burlesque interpretation of Pozzo was the cherry on an already delectable cake…


Stewart, Callow, McKellen

For anyone not so familiar with the play, Godot is a story of camaraderie between two hapless vagrants as they wait, forlornly and apparently in vain, for the arrival of a mysterious Mr. Godot. The exact purpose of the rendezvous is never properly explained, beyond that Mr. Godot may have some “offer” for the two tramps. In that way, curiously, the play is premised entirely upon an event that apparently will never happen – a non-event: Godot isn’t coming. So what are we waiting for?

Variously the play has been described as absurdist, or even existentialist – it’s a matter for the literati; but in simple terms it is a kind of metaphor, a tragicomic yet uncompromising reflection upon life’s manifold shadows: the loneliness, the fear, the boredom, the frustration, the constant bewildering search for meaning.

And yet within that terrain, there is also a rich seam of humour, and it is that which so characterized Mathias’s production. No comedic opportunity of the text was lost, but pounced on with relish and indulged. I never thought I could laugh so much at something so despairing. Indeed some of the po-faced critics and purists have seized upon this with a reproachful frown – as if someone had just farted in church. I disagree. In the end it is theatre, in the end it is entertainment.

In over thirty years of visiting West End theatres, I could name other productions I’ve enjoyed as much, but I’d struggle to name more than five. Perhaps three from the mid-eighties: Richard Griffiths’s “Volpone”, Lauren Bacall’s “Sweet Bird of Youth”, McKellen again in a 1984 production of Chekov’s “Wild Honey”, or more recently we had Spacey’s “Moon for the Misbegotten”… all of them quite brilliant in their different ways. For me, Godot can comfortably join this class.

So there you go my friend, if there are any tickets left and you think you can afford such an extravagance in these straightened times, then this Ealing Rambler humbly suggests you could do a lot worse for a night out.

The Polish Community in Ealing

With a population of 305,300 (and growing), Ealing has the third largest population of the thirty-two London boroughs, (behind Croydon and Barnet). Recently the numbers have been bolstered by an influx from Eastern Europe, but in particular from Poland. Since Poland’s accession to the EU in 2004, some 21,000 Polish nationals, newly resident in Ealing, were issued with national insurance numbers. This means Ealing has received more Polish folk, than any other local authority in the UK.

It’s no coincidence of course – Poles have been coming to Ealing for decades. Prior to EU accession, the most significant periods of migration occurred as a consequence of the two world wars, and especially the second. Fleeing the ravages of Nazism and to support the Allied war effort, thousands of Poles made their way to Britain’s shores. When eventually the Nazis were defeated, Poland fell captive to a new Soviet empire and a new era of occupation. So it was that thousands of displaced Polish servicemen (and in some cases their families too) were unable or indeed unwilling to return home. Of those, a great many settled in West London, and in particular in Hammersmith and Ealing.

Not surprisingly then we can find plenty of signs of Polish life dotted around the borough – like the Polish (and very busy) Catholic Church near the Broadway, (“Our Lady Mother of the Church”), the restaurants, cafes, and many delicatessens, the Polish Centre in West Ealing, the group “Zywiec” (a local folk song and dance group), and of course, last but not least: the people themselves.

There’s no doubt that for a long time the Polish have contributed much to life in Ealing, as they do today. In celebration of this, a lottery grant was recently provided to support the “Polish Lives in Ealing” project:

“This project will underline the important role that Polish residents have played in the local community for nearly 70 years. It will preserve the memories of the earliest settlers as well as spanning the generations between those who arrived in the 1930s, those who were born here, and the most recent arrivals.”

The project is headed up by local historian and writer Jonathan Oates, a very knowledgeable fellow based at Ealing Central Library.

And finally, my absolute favourite Polish connection in Ealing, and a gem in the blogosphere, is Michael Dembinski’s beautifully written blog account of growing up here in the sixties – “Grey Jumper'd Childhood”. Michael, who returned with his family to Warsaw in the late nineties, records with striking clarity, recollections and details from his childhood that will resonate with anyone of his generation. If he’s reading this now, I just wish he would write more!

Recommendation 02: The Kebab Kid

Ok folks, listen up! As part of my free service on this blog, I like to make an occasional recommendation, and today’s is an especially good one!

Feeling peckish? Then rev up your little vespa and whizz down to New Kings Road. Number 90 to be precise …it’s where you’ll find: “The Kebab Kid”.

That’s right, kebabs. These guys have been making them for years, and they are experts. You’ll find no mechanically extracted cat food in this shop. All the meat is lean and deliciously fresh – straight from Smithfield Market, with no additives or emulsifiers, or any of that kind of stuff. Even better, they make all their own dressings and sauces, and they’re ever so tasty.

The Kebab Kid

Hanging up inside the shop is a personal testimonial from Jamie Oliver, but don’t let that put you off, because this establishment has the ultimate in commendations: it’s where London’s hungry cab drivers go! Sometimes you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a taxi rank, except all the cabbies are sitting in the back, kebabs in hand, munching their way in silence…to cabbie heaven.

But don’t take my word for it – try it yourself. I recommend the chicken shawarma, with all the dressing and chilli sauce. Bootiful.

Question: where’s the best place to buy a decent kebab in the borough of Ealing? (I’m stuck for an answer on this one).

Smear, scandal and now election defeat: Labour is a spent force

They’ve even been beaten in Wales. They’ve been kicked into third, fourth or fifth place up and down the country. The party is hopelessly split between those who really want Brown to go but haven’t the bottle to get rid of him, and those who would take their chances – heads buried deep in the sand.

Last night, at an emotionally charged meeting of the PLP, Brown pleaded for loyalty and support. It was high drama, a Hollywood moment, a time for cheers and rousing applause. In the end, he got what he wanted – a kind of support, and a kind of closure. It seems Labour finally nailed their colours to the mast, for which now they will pay a very heavy price.

Labour's Hollywood moment

Only the most delusional Labourite would dispute that heavy defeat at the next general election is looming large. All that is left is to name the date. Bring it on Gordon.

European Election: votes in Ealing borough

This table shows the breakdown of the Euro election 2009 vote in the borough of Ealing:



Compared to 2004 the Labour vote has dropped by just over 6%. Without wishing to over-simplify matters, this is roughly the same as the vote share received by the pro-Tamil candidate Jan Jananayagam. Perhaps if she hadn't appeared on the ballot paper, Labour might have fared better.

My conclusion is that the Conservative vote has held up strongly, but I see nothing in the data to suggest anything other than a very tight contest at the next general election, especially in Central Ealing.

European Elections: it’s a bit sad…

It’s a bit sad to learn we now have a couple of racist BNP ninnies representing Britain in Europe. That’s democracy folks. However, if the London Assembly Member, Mr. Barnbrook’s performance is any indication, their contribution will be an instantly forgettable mix of embarrassment and unintended humour. They will contribute nothing of substance.

No need to get hysterical about the BNP’s vote-share either. Historically they’ve done a little better while Labour is in power, and particularly when the government is unpopular. Once the Tories are back in charge, the BNP will be back in the box.

...........

Elsewhere Daniel Finkelstein, on the BBC’s results programme, made one of my favourite comments of the evening. He said that Michael Foot was perhaps one of the biggest winners of the night: Foot’s lamentable record of being the worst ever election loser for Labour having now been surpassed. Bravo.

...And isn’t Jeremy Vine annoying, prancing about the set in front of the computer graphics pretending to be Peter Snow. I suppose we should be grateful for small mercies: at least he didn’t put his silly cowboy suit on this time. The BBC’s Department for Dumbing Down must have gone to bed early.

Click here if you want to be reminded why it's important to forget it...

Closure of Ealing Hospital Stroke Unit

Virendra Sharma, Labour MP for Ealing Southall, has tabled an Early Day Motion in opposition to a proposed closure of Ealing Hospital's stroke unit. So why exactly has Stephen Pound, his party colleague and fellow MP for Ealing North, declined to sign it?




Stephen Pound (and friends)

Squirrels fight back!

Further to recent reports that Prince Charles has declared war on Britain's grey squirrel population, the squirrels are fighting back.

General Tufty of the Grey Army's horse-chestnut infantry brigade, declared:

"We expect to take the gardens of Buckingham Palace by dawn. It is imperative to cull all royal families throughout the squirrel world, and to establish new grey republics."

Developing.

Recommendation 01: The Drury Tea & Coffee Co. Ltd

OK folks, chuck your old freeze dried coffee in the bin -- it's muck! You know it is.

Get yourself a cafetiere, if you don't already have one, and head straight for The Drury Tea & Coffee Co. Ltd. Post haste.

It's at 3 New Row, just off St Martin's Lane, and is the best coffee shop I know in London.

My favourite is the Costa Rica Tarrazu Coffee, but their Moka D'or blend is also delicious.

My spies tell me that the truly wonderful Tom Courtenay (that would be Sir Tom to you lot), was spotted hiding among the teas last Friday. So there you go! Tea, coffee and screen legends. You'll be in good company.

Plane lost in ocean storm

Plane lost in ocean storm: 228 people missing.

I can hardly begin to imagine the horror of crash landing in a passenger jet, in the middle of a vast, dark watery nowhere.

“Full fathom five thy father lies;
Of his bones are coral made;
Those are pearls that were his eyes;
Nothing of him that doth fade
But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rich and strange.”

The Exhibition Road Scheme

For the benefit of anyone not so familiar with South Kensington, Exhibition Road is the long boulevard that connects South Kensington tube station with Kensington Gore, at Hyde Park. Along its way, the road provides access to a long and impressive list of museums, and other culturally significant institutions – not least the Royal Albert Hall. This makes it a very busy place, particularly for pedestrians.

To improve things, the “Exhibition Road Scheme” was proposed by the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, to:

“improve the pedestrian experience and increase safety for all road users”.

“The project also includes high quality paving materials and street furniture, better lighting, more tree planting and public art to make Exhibition Road a world-class streetscape.”

As it should be – sounds good. As much as I’m a bit of a petrolhead, I think any good idea to improve the beauty and utility of Exhibition Road should be welcomed.

However, controversially, the proposal involves a complete redesign of road architecture using the so-called “shared space” concept. This was the brainchild of a Dutch civil engineer and traffic planning expert, the late Hans Monderman. His theory was that if all symbols of demarcation are removed from a road, then drivers and pedestrians have to “negotiate” for use of the shared space, and therefore, being more socially integrated in the activity, the risk of accident diminishes. Or in simple terms: road markings, footpaths, traffic lights, and everything else indicating a right of way gets chucked out: therefore cars have to slow down, pedestrians can mill about anywhere in the shared space, and everyone has to be more careful.



A Shared Space

But I’m sceptical.

There are a couple of, admittedly, ad hominem bases for scepticism. Firstly, Ken Livingstone’s thumb prints are all over this project. Livingstone has a pathological hatred of private motor cars, and as mayor, had a record of trying to tax or indeed, to physically push cars off the roads. So why would we not expect this scheme to represent yet another unfair deal for drivers? Secondly, looking at the “Shared Space” website, I’m dismayed to see it’s utterly replete with left-wing dogma and other statist nonsense:

“It is necessary to create more space for human beings for the wellness of individuals and the survival of our democratic constitution”. (Yep, I knew we’d need the smelling salts again).

“The primacy for the planning of public space, which is now controlled by technology, is handed back to the politicians”. (…EU funded initiative of course).

In other words, these guys are quintessential social engineers: using real engineering principles to physically modify and control social behaviour.

More than any of this however, my gut feeling is that cars and pedestrians just don’t mix. I hope I’m wrong, but I reckon someone’s going to get hurt, or flattened, and the police will have one helluva job to prove culpability in a court of law. I think we’re adopting an inappropriate solution to a genuine problem on the basis that we have some phoney EU funded, ideologically driven, research suggesting that in particular road environments we get improved safety. But what if they’re wrong? If they’re wrong, who now among the politicians is volunteering to carry the can? Isn’t there a better way of doing this, even if it means more restricted access for drivers?