On Tuesday night, I had the pre-Christmas pleasure of attending a thoroughly bauble ‘n tinsel draped Drake & Morgan in King’s Cross for the London Eco Champion Awards.

Unless you’ve had a particular focus on urban rewilding, bike campaigning or waste reduction type pursuits, you can be forgiven for not having encountered this event before. That, and the fact that for the previous three years it’s been a short ceremony dishing out gongs to eco-minded school kids on a Saturday morning.

But not so the 2024 edition, which boasted nearly 200 attendees, a lavish spread, plus a film crew making a documentary destined for Amazon Prime. The ambition upgrade accompanies the city-wide expansion of locally-founded, recently rebranded non-profit London Clean Air, who now have the whole of the capital to pick from when awarding green projects and success stories.

With the relentless, heavy smog of news about climate target inaction and the growth of more downright denialism in the wind, the evening made for a refreshing reminder that those shouty ‘drill baby drill’ voices are firmly in the minority. The next generation are on this.

Hearing from plucky 14-year-olds busy tracking the reduction of plastic use by all the families in their class, or out there pressing TfL to replace the petrol-fueled buses that pass their school gates with clean electric ones, provided a burst of proactive positivity in dark times.

Wanting cleaner air and a healthier environment should be universal, which makes those who actively stand in the way of change seem at once ludicrous and scary. What was so fabulous at the Eco Champs was to witness that very ‘Camden’ (but clearly very London too) approach to progressive thinking, which is just to be damn well getting on with doing it.

It is great to see younger generations simply ignore outdated ideas around how we use our limited resources, and get on with hardwiring better practices into society from the ground up. There’s no time to wait for the suits in Baku or the liars lining up in the US to have their impacts, so we’ll just quietly do it for ourselves.

The proverbial breath of fresh air, in fact.

While on this topic, do get involved in the ongoing conversations around more Green Mobility Hubs, currently being planned for areas around Kentish Town, following a similar process in Somers Town.

Ditching a bit more on-street car parking in favour of handy cargo bikes and EV charge points feel like the future to me, but this is one area where consultation and dialogue is likely to yield better result than ‘just getting on with it’, as the kickback to cycle lanes and traffic calming rushed through in lockdown demonstrates.

Another hot cultural flashpoint this week where the progressive approach seems to be finally cutting through despite the noisy backlash, is news that recreational drug testing facilities (which have saved lives at summer festivals) are now coming into venues year-round.

It wasn’t very long ago that certain Tory ministers were actively blocking this glaringly sensible harm reduction measure, still unable to acknowledge the abject failure that is prohibition, and keen to be seen as coming down hard on people who simply want to get intoxicated for a few hours because, well, it’s a shed load of fun.

As anyone with the slightest ounce of savvy knows, drug-taking is an intrinsic part of many areas of culture, and the law has been totally unable to stop this, no matter how many people have been threatened or busted. The rise of dangerous synthetic substances is a direct result of terrible global drugs policy, and the lack of regulation producing the exact opposite of the supposedly desired effect of protecting the public.

While having testing at a cultural powerhouse such as Tottenham’s Drumsheds may not quite be a watershed moment, it is sure to move the dial in a more sensible direction.

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EVENT

Chinakwe success at Camden Goods Yard last night

Great to be out IRL last night too, meeting Camdenist readers, art fans, people from the worlds of fashion and interiors, and masses of genuine lovers of the borough at our showcase event with local artist Caroline Chinakwe held at the new Camden Goods Yard.

The fascinating panel discussion focused on how the need for artists to have access to local spaces, whether temporary or permanent, is being addressed, Caroline’s mission to bring the diversity of the borough through into its many galleries, and the exciting support that’s being offered to students and others coming up through the educational programmes on offer in this most dynamic part of the world.

We also ate food courtesy of our friends at nearby Jamestown Rd’s Peron No.4 independent local Mediterranean restaurant, and enjoyed hand-making intricate paper decorations with Tina Luo of Storyigami.

Video on the panel and more to come, but for now we grabbed a few clips for a quick Reel that’s up on @camdenist Instagram. Stay tuned for news of our next local invite event, too… 😉

THINGS TO DO

While we’re talking of fashion and interiors…

🎬 The latest Lightroom immersive show, Vogue: Inventing the Runway has just opened in King’s Cross to rave reviews. The all-encompassing screens, musical soundtrack and the swish of the finest couture from across the years makes for must-visit is you love fashion. Runs until 26th April.

🛋️ A tasty pop-up at Coal Drops Yard by The Conran Shop is also already providing a destination for design lovers. You’ll find an exclusive curated collection of Parisian brand Esther & Paul among the attractions, and the shop will be around until the spring.

🎯 Final bit of KX news for the week is the imminent arrival of Electric Shuffle, the luxe modern take on the game of shuffleboard, with cocktails, which will be sliding into a new home in leafy Lewis Cubitt Park in the springtime.

☕Warren’s Street’s beautiful and very tasty Yemeni coffee and patisserie spot Qima Cafe are expanding with a new branch on the way in Covent Garden. It will be landing soon on New Row, that food-heavy passageway down to Leicester Square that boasts no less that three different shops selling global variations on the theme of puff/pasty/patty alone.

👜 Head up South Hill Park (just up from Hampstead Heath Overground station) for a lovely little Christmas pop-up Hampstead Hideaway, that’s just opened showcasing curated brands from all four corners of the globe.

👗 If you like how singer and actress Paloma Faith dresses, make sure to head to Malden Rd boozer the Gipsy Queen on Wednesday 27th Nov, as she’ll be selling off a load of her clothes in support of Oxfam’s Gaza-Lebanon Appeal. She promises designer pieces, shoes, bags, accessories and more, and if you slip her £20 for the fund, she’ll pose for a selfie with you, pint in hand, we hope.

MUSIC

🎵 Jazz-trance-blues-flamenco, and all things in between

🎙️The ongoing ESG London Jazz Festival throws up some epic events, and Afro-Cuban rockstar Cimafunk roadblocking KOKO tonight, Fri 22nd Nov, is one such biggie. Redefining contemporary Cuban music with an innovative mix of funk, Afrobeats and hip-hop, his live show is a vibrant and kinetic explosion of energy.

The Scala hosts live German trancy electronic legend Schiller who is brining a whole host of vocalists and production collaborators to the stage with him. Sun 24th Nov.

🎸 There’s a blues all-dayer at Dingwalls on Sunday, 24th Nov, with Kyla Brox, Backbone Blues Band, Long Road Home, Back To The One and The Too Bad Jims play at the inaugural London Rhythm and Rock Festival 2024.

🎶 De Fuego is a multi award-winning Spanish guitar duo playing energetic instrumental flamenco and rumba music. They’re bringing the firs to The Green Note Basement Bar on Thurs 28th Nov.

STAGE

🎭 Snowmen and workingmen

☃️ I’ve seen the posters forever, but still didn’t realise that The Snowman has been running at Holborn’s Peacock Theatre every Christmas for 27 years. So whether you’re a regular or a first timer, you know it’s going to be a good festive outing with that pedigree. Starts this Sat 23rd Nov and runs through until 4th Jan.

🍺 This week at Kentish Town’s Lion & Unicorn Theatre (Tues 26th - Sat 30th Nov) catch The Workingman’s Club. After winning some money on a scratchcard, best friends Sarah and Gemma embark on a fun night out at the local Workingmen’s Club in a forgotten north-east mining village, but the night barrels toward disaster when they meet the charismatic and chaotic Jonny.

👯‍♀️ Through the music of David Bowie, Kate Bush, Kurt Weill, Sondheim as well as a few of her own songs, The Sarah McGuinness Story: Grit, Glitter & Gaslight! A Cabaret Musical takes audiences from Sarah’s dysfunctional childhood on the Irish border in Derry, through to the heights of international success as her life intertwines with entertainment icons. It returns to the Etcetera Theatre on Tues 26th Nov.

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