"Writing about music is like dancing about architecture," goes the saying.

It’s usually employed as a critique of attempting to capture the essence of a piece of music inadequately through written words.

I’ve done a lot of that over the years, but this week has definitely felt more like a futile little hip-shimmy across the heavyweight issues of the built environment.

My ‘good people on both sides’ approach to writing about the complex views of locals and the developers of Camden Film Quarter in last week’s edition generated a real mixed bag of feedback - a selection of which you can read below.

My position remains that the urban condition is one of permanent change, and schemes that can be encouraged to deliver/restore cultural assets alongside the cash cow housing and other environmental gubbins depicted in their glossy brochures are to be cautiously welcomed.

But I can see that if you’ve been on the sharp end of redevelopment disruptions and broken developer promises (HS2 the most glaring example of far too many such debacles locally), you’ll be much less sympathetic or willing to give the latest global capital vehicle to eye up the area a chance to prove themselves.

There’s genuine concern of over-development on various schemes being pursued in Camden at the moment, all of which inevitably look to address the housing crisis by building upwards and packing in many hundreds of rather dull homes in the process.

Another consultation arrives this week for a site right next door to CFQ, part of the same area masterplan but from a totally separate developer. SPRING_Kentish Town, (yes, complete with and over-stylised, wholly superfluous underscore) launches its own consultation process next week, which, combined with the 20+years of proposed Council-as-developer tower-building in West Kentish Town, begins to reveal a radically different high rise/high density neighbourhood in NW5 the next decade or so if everything comes to pass.

Is this just the next part of a process of moving from farming to railway to light industry to terraces to towers over hundreds of years of human urban evolution, or a lowest common denominator money grab by powerful forces that will ruin the very fabric of the place? I maintain that all these forces can be in the mix at once, and the role of a platform like Camdenist is to try and push pro-social, pro-cultural outcomes by listening to and yes, working with, everyone who’s truly invested.

Ultimately, there’s a whole lot of subjectivity at play - whether you’re writing about music, or film studio schemes, or… Thomas Heatherwick Studio’s latest project.

This week, popular buildings and neighbourhoods commentator, Philip Downer, posted a stinging rebuke of the decision to put Heatherwick in charge of transforming Fitzrovia’s iconic but defunct BT Tower (main pic) into a hotel.

The hotel developer has “hired one T Heatherwick to manage its transformation from modernist landmark into the usual piece of unspeakable rubbish,” says Phil.

“To be fair, there’s a limit to how much damage Heatherwick will be able to get away with on the Tower itself, which is Grade II listed, though with his track record for infantilising the built environment we should take nothing for granted. The podium building from which the tower sprouts is unlisted, and I’m guessing this is where Tommy will really get stuck into his despoliation,” he continues.

Heatherwick’s Studio have become both the darlings and the most disappointing of flash design firms. From their King’s Cross home, they’ve delivered high profile successes around the globe - such as the Seed Cathedral at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai and the Olympic Cauldron at London 2012 - which have been somewhat tempered by the unloved ‘Boris’ fake Routemaster buses, the budget-busting Garden Bridge scheme and the debacle of the ‘stairway to nowhere’ aka New York’s Vessel, with its three-year-long closure to make it less prone to suicidal jumpers.

Heatherwick’s decade-long Humanise campaign against ‘boring, soulless buildings’ has rubbed plenty of people up the wrong way, too, particularly as the firm’s massive about-to-be-completed Google HQ, looming alongside King’s Cross station, looks fairly open to being tarred with that very brush, at least when viewed from afar, jaw agape.

Supporters of the design and legacy of 20th Century housing, Modern Estates, have even produced a witty Stop Thomas Heatherwick t-shirt, for sale in aid of brilliant youth opportunities charity Arts Emergency.

Yet just over the canal from Google, Heatherwick’s ‘kissing’ roofs at Coal Drops Yard deftly dealt with a burned out heritage structure with a creative flare that’s produce a totally new visual centrepiece for this widely acclaimed scheme.

The Studio’s ‘playful’ approach certainly isn’t to everyone’s taste, but they are not afraid to embrace the unavoidable tussle you get when millions of opinions and emotional connections with a place get in the mix.

Architecture and redevelopment are a key cultural issue in a place like Camden, and I hope we can continue to do justice to all the viewpoints at play, while provoking everyone to occasionally look upon even the most hated of local carbuncles with an alternative critical gaze.

With the unhelpful ‘big reveal’ of next week’s budget currently hanging over the already battered operators of our beloved eating, drinking and entertainment destinations, some big names are getting organised to urge the powers that be to make the right decisions.

The Night Time Industries Association is urging the Government to act on the sharp decline of the UK’s after hours economy, as ‘night-time deserts’ emerge across the country (a shocking 26% fewer towns and cities now hosting nightclubs compared to pre-Covid) threatening jobs, local economies, and the very engine of our musical and social culture.

Their #cutthedancefloortax campaign makes it super-easy to send a pre-formatted letter to your MP calling for a permanent VAT cut for hospitality and nighttime venues, reinstating National Insurance thresholds for employers, and sustaining business rates relief until reforms are in place.

Meanwhile KERB and London on the Inside’s stunt yesterday at Seven Dials Market - offering food at the price operators make on each slice of pizza or tray of gyoza (basically a quid or less) - called for the same measures via a website called Savehospo.

KERB asked their many small food businesses what they’d do if the measures were adopted and 50% said they would hire more staff​, while 40% would lower menu prices​. Almost all (93%) said a VAT reduction would have the most positive impact of all.

Lend your support if you agree, and let’s see what happens this week…

DRINKING: 🍺The long-awaited Guinness Open Gate Brewery London finally, er, opens its gates on Thurs Dec 11th, as part of a series of festive bonanzas happening at Covent Garden’s The Yards over the next few weeks.

We’ve been trailing the arrival of this ambitious mix of brewery tours and experiences, fine dining and merch retail for bloody ages. Consulting the Camdenist archive, we first promised it as coming ‘at the end of 2023’ and then again in our excitable roundup of ‘big things due in 2024 to look forward to’, so nice that it’s just scraped in to operations in the last days of 2025.

Good to see Pip Lacey, previously of Coal Drops Yard’s much-missed Hicce, helming both the communal grilled feasting restaurant and the posh fish bar up on the panoramic top floor terrace. Plus there are pies and pints for the more casual diners down in the Yard from Calum Frankin, aka London’s ‘Pie King’.

Having spent many millions on the delayed build in a historic site, we’re slightly scared to find our how much a pint will cost, but it does sound like an experience that locals - as well as, inevitably, loads of tourists - will be keen to check out.

EVENTS:🎄The big Guinness opening is the culminating evening of three festive shopping evenings under the twinkling banner of Lantern Light Nights. The first one kicks off this Thurs 27th Nov, with a communal sing-song, there’s outdoor ballet and classical music on Thurs 4th and then a Irish-themed Christmas Céilí bringing live Celtic music, Irish step dancing and traditional performances to the courtyard directly outside the Brewery to celebrate it’s opening day.

COMEDY: 😂 While we’re on the subject of the Emerald Isle, fancy seeing a load of top draw Irish stand-up comedians all on the same bill - who wouldn’t really? So make your way to London Irish Centre this Wed 26th Nov for the monthly Comedy at the LIC night and fill yer boots.

ART: 🪟 Backstreet window exhibition space Spring Up Art Gallery is running L’Ascension De Venus, a new show that’s ‘en hommage aux artistes feminines’ and runs to 20th Dec.

FOOD: 🥩 Hawksmoor St Pancras opens tomorrow in the frankly f’ing fantastic setting of the historic Midland Grand Dining Room, and it looks primed to be a bit of a smash hit. Don’t forget the Martini Bar too, for a setting that will do its strong drinks justice, and a bar snacks menu including platters of oysters and sliders.

STAGE: 🎭 The iconic Felicity Kendall returns in a new production of Tom Stoppard’s Indian Ink (which she first appeared in back in 1995) at Hampstead Theatre from 3rd Dec to 31st Jan. A meditation on art and love, the play explores how creativity can bridge even the most profound cultural barriers.

DANCE: 🩰 The annual showcase that sees raucous young dance enthusiasts up on stage with the professionals, Fresh is back at The Place this Sat 22nd Nov for a bill of short performances and maximum energy.

MUSIC: 🎶 As Chalk Farm’s Roundhouse announced its new CEO this week to be Jenny Mollica, (coming over from the English National Opera just as their controversial forced move out of the capital comes to fruition), she’ll likely be keen to ensure stability in her new role. After all, outgoing predecessor Marcus Davey did 27 years in post. But most music fans won’t really be that bothered, as long as events such as Sat 21st Nov’s 1985 Music all day showcase keep coming. Expect a line-up of bass music royalty curated by label boss Alix Perez.

We’re keen to help build a thriving ecosystem of decent London newsletters you might like, which focus on topics like the ones we cover here in Camdenist. This week, we’re highlighting The Know, which promises to help you start your day feeling informed and hopeful, via a 5-min read covering the big news stories of the day without bias or clickbait, plus positive news and hand-picked recommendations, too.