At just after 2:20pm this afternoon, two men exited a
crashed vehicle in Woolwich, South East London, close to the Royal Artillery Barracks near the
corner of John Wilson St and Artillery Place. Armed with a knives, they proceeded to attack young male pedestrian.
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posted by hydatius
on May 22, 2013 -
375 comments
The Free Help Guy found that he had nothing to do for six months. So decided to spend that time helping others with their "morally deserved, fun, interesting and different" projects.
Today he's helping tourist Gillian Chin (
@Geeliann) explore London with an Oyster Card, a warm hat and a series of clues to be solved by Twitter Followers.
posted by Just this guy, y'know
on Apr 9, 2013 -
6 comments
In this virtual exhibition you can find out more about the people, buildings and plays that made Yiddish theatre in London so special, as well as explore the unique collection of Yiddish theatre photographs, documents and objects held at the Jewish Museum London.
posted by Deathalicious
on Apr 5, 2013 -
6 comments
Jungle Fever, a 1994 Documentary from Canal+ on the origins of Drum & Bass with some live footage, and interviews with MC's, DJs and producers. It's
en Français, but most of the interviews are in English.
posted by empath
on Mar 28, 2013 -
19 comments
The first District line train out of Upminster in the morning is the first train anywhere on the underground network. It leaves the depot at 4.53, the only train anywhere in the system to set out from its base before 5am ... if you catch that train, you might be tempted to say ta-dah!—except you probably wouldn't, because nobody is thinking ta-dah! at seven minutes to five in the morning; certainly nobody on this train. People look barely awake, barely even alive. They feel the same way they look; I know because, this morning, I'm one of them.
John Lanchester on the experience, at once aversive and hypnotic, of
catching the London Underground. Lanchester's article is an extract from his forthcoming entry in the new
Penguin Lines series of tube-reading-friendly books released to commemorate the Underground's
150th anniversary. Meanwhile, the
Guardian have
compiled a collaborative
Spotify playlist of songs that mention Tube stations, for those so inclined.
posted by Sonny Jim
on Mar 6, 2013 -
37 comments
The Framers Gallery in London is currently hosting
Teh Exhibishun, an exhibition of lolcat art. Special guest is
Kate Miltner, author of
SRSLY PHENOMENAL:
AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE APPEAL OF LOLCATS [MA dissertation, pdf available on her website]. Admission is free, but 50% of all proceeds collected will go to
Battersea Home for Dogs and Cats. The BBC
is there (with video) to speak with curator Jenny Theolin, some of the artists, and Miltner.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl
on Feb 19, 2013 -
15 comments
The journey with no destination.
"We board in northwest London on a regular bus, with the intention of heading into the heart of the capital, where there is a much greater choice of night buses when it gets later and colder. By now the group seem to have fully accepted my presence and are keen to tell me about their lives. The most pressing question I have is: why? Why would you eschew safety and warmth and comfort for this? It turns out that while a couple of kids might be along for the ride, for most this is their only option.
A boy with huge brown eyes, who is so small he barely looks older than 12, tells me: “I’m allowed home in early mornings to have some food and change my clothes, but I have to be gone by the time my mum wakes up.” When I ask him why, he shrugs, as if the answer is forgotten or irrelevant."
posted by fight or flight
on Jan 17, 2013 -
34 comments
Perched high up above the Thames in downtown London every month this past year a different writer has spent four days living in a replica of the Roi des Belges, the boat Marlow travels up the Congo in Joseph Conrad's
The Heart of Darkness. Each author would write a short text during their stay "which explores London, rivers, the work of Joseph Conrad, or even all three." They would be visited on the last day by a journalist from The Guardian who recorded them reading their essay, poem or short story. Among the poets, historians and novelists were Adonis, Jeanette Winterson, Teju Cole, Michael Ondaatje and Kamila Shamsie. These recordings, each prefaced by a short interview, are all available on the Guardian website, to stream or download. Below the cut there is a link to each recording, with a short description.
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posted by Kattullus
on Dec 31, 2012 -
7 comments
Lets Swim To Work! "Centuries of boat traffic, heavy industry, sewage runoff and toxic dumping have ingrained in us the idea that urban waterways are not places for people. Even as cities have rushed to the water’s edge over the past couple of decades, building elaborate waterfront parks and esplanades, few have taken the next logical step: encouraging residents to dive in."
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posted by the man of twists and turns
on Nov 23, 2012 -
42 comments
Every few minutes of the day, all over the capital, people gather into small groups to share the same space and fleeting moment in time... simply to wait for something routine and forgettable as a London bus. In transient, with time to kill, and often among strangers, each collection of these individuals proves completely unique from the next. Each collection provides a little insight into London's incredible diversity, how they relate to their surroundings, and each other. The very deliberate intention with
By the Bus Stop, was to capture those little moments which happen spontaneously, when the meeting of individuals is completely left to chance.
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posted by netbros
on Nov 1, 2012 -
37 comments
When is a private space a public space? When it's a
Privately Owned Public Space (POPS). In accordance with the planning codes of some cities, owners or builders of buildings are mandated to provide members of the general public access to spaces which include rooftop gardens, courtyards, and plazas.
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posted by larrybob
on Aug 31, 2012 -
23 comments
A Yarn of Olympic Proportions "Residents of Saltburn, in North Yorkshire, are scratching their heads today after a mysterious 'yarnbomber' wrapped the town's pier with a 50-yard scarf stretching out along the railings.
The impressive garment features woollen athletes competing in various Olympic events, from synchronised swimmers to rowers and cyclists, and has delighted young and old alike as the town discusses the good yarn."
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posted by zizzle
on Aug 13, 2012 -
40 comments
London Mayor and favourite for next Tory leader Boris Johnson has thrown himself into the Olympic spirit. This doesn't always go
entirely to plan, leaving the blond mop-head hanging around for a while this afternoon. Fortunately, the Internet knows exactly
what to do. From standing start to a country laughing its socks off - there's a #dangleboris hashtag - mere hours have passed.
Will it damage Boris' chances of taking over from the gaffe-prone David Cameron? Probably quite the opposite.
posted by Devonian
on Aug 1, 2012 -
72 comments
As you turn eyes to London to watch this year's Olympics, you might be surprised to find out that the
City of London has a population of about 11,000 and is only one square mile.
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posted by eye of newt
on Jul 26, 2012 -
65 comments
There's been a lot of talk about the snarls and snafus preceding this year's games. But even as the training is winding down and the athletes are pouring into the Village, there's still plenty of interesting stuff going at this year's Olympics.
Like, have you heard about
the Olympian without a country? (
He's not the first independent athlete to compete.)
Or that
almost all the US swim team gets themselves ritually tattooed with the Olympic rings?
Or that
a California girl is one of Saudi Arabia's two female competitors?
Or that Caster Semenya (previously
1,
2)
will be South Africa's flag bearer?
Or that Nur Suryani Mohamed Taibi
may be the first Olympic athlete to have to worry that a kick from her unborn child may put her out of the medal running?
The Christian Science Monitor has been
highlighting athletes who's struggled to get to the games, including
Behdad Salimi, who'll have to prove he's the strongest man in the world to bear Iran's lone medal hopes,
Hiroshi Hoketsu, who's competing in his third Olympics this go round --- second since he retired from his desk job, and
Gladys Tejeda, who grew up in a family of subsistence farmers in an Andean village so remote she hadn't even heard of the Olympics until her family got a TV --- in 2007. London will be her third marathon.
Of course, there's another class of competitors whose fight to get to the games was a little more literal: This is the first year for women's boxing....
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posted by Diablevert
on Jul 24, 2012 -
66 comments
