Week 16

Hey chickaroos,
Silly conversation I overheard in the pub the other day:
*trendy hoxton kids with deliberately mis-matched socks talking about some sort of event they're organizing*
girl: I think we're just going to have to find some of those people that think they're cool, rather than always just inviting our little group of people that actually are cool, because they're just aren't enough of us. Yeah, definitely home in on those people that just think they're cool.
boy: yeah, no, yeah, you're right.
*thoughtful silence*

how brilliant. hope you guys have had equally fruitful eavesdropping sessions and have an excellent week!



So, clearly not my own idea as Ed Carpenter has already made his millions with his plastic lovelies but here's my very own handmade version of it. A huge thank you to Josh Grant for accompanying me to Leylands, don't think I could have handled that amount of social outcasts alone, or known how to fit a light bulb to a switch for that matter.
I bought everything I needed from Leylands and it cost me roundabout £15 but have got loads of aluminium sheet leftover so am thinking of making a rat for the landing. Or a cockroach for the kitchen...

This week we love...

Proud to introduce our person of the week, Dr Victoria Watson, lecturer at Westminster University, proud architect and probably the only original person we know. While she's a published writer and respected intellectual in her field of work, we know embarrassingly little about her achievements so we highly recommend that you check out her website as soon as you're done reading this feature, but for now, here is her list of her top 10 favourite buildings in London.

1. Bank of England - an amazing plan, a building made up entirely of interior architecture
Threadneedle St, London EC2R 8AH‎











2. St Stephen's Walbrook - pure geometry
38 Walbrook, London EC4N 8









3. Mies van der Rohe's design for an office building and City Square at the Mansion House - a great pity it was not built




4. Saint Pancras Station - I like the way it is raised up on a field of tiny columns
Camden Town, Greater London N1











5. The Penguin Pool - because architects are supposed to like it

ZSL, London Zoo, London NW14RY








6. Elgin Marbles - ancient Greek Temples are OK
The British Museum, Great Russell St, London WC1B 3DG





7. The Finsbury Leisure Centre - there is one five-aside-football pitch in particular
Norman St, London EC1V 3PU‎








8. Golden Lane Estate - especially the swimming pool
Golden Lane, EC1










9. Middleton Square - for the bricks, sash windows and railings
Islington, Greater London EC1R 1








10. Westminster Abby - for the stonework
20 Dean's Yard, Westminster, City of London SW1P 3PA












The life of the World to Come- The Mountain Goats

A lovely young man took me to see these guys at Koko last week and you cannot comprehend the excitement I felt when I realized that I do actually know who they are. You know that fateful moment when you catch a single line that you know the lyrics to and belt them out like your life depends on it, then spend the rest of the song mumbling and bopping your head to cover up the fact that that was it, that was the extent of your knowledge. You'll be happy to know that I have now done the required research and am happy to present to you John Darnielle's 17th studio album. The title is taken from a passage of the Nicene Creed and as you'd imagine, the whole album follows a religious theme, with each of the 12 tracks being named and inspired by a passage of the Christian Bible. I didn't find anything offensively religious about the music, just lovely tunes with incredible lyrics (Darnielle was an aspiring poet but figured he'd make a better living if it was all set to music), favourites being 'Genesis 3.23' and 'Genesis 3.30'.


I Am Love- Luca Guadagnino

'I Am Love' follows the lives of the various members of the Recchi family, textile manufacturers and members of Italy's haute bourgeoisie. While the film captures the various disruptions that the family faces as they head towards the new millenium, special focus is on elegant but endlessly repressed mother Emma (played by Tilda Swinton) as she engages in a love affair with much younger but brilliant chef Antonio. While the film is set just 10 years ago there is something so elegant and classic about the aesthetics from the font, to the furniture to the way the women slip off their jewellery, that it seems from a different era altogether. Tilda Swinton fits in perfectly as an unusual but timeless beauty and while there's certainly a lot of drama her relationship with her daughter is extremely refreshing and makes for a beautiful ending. Very stylize, with everything placed 'just so' I Am Love is an uber elegant drama well worth a watch although explicit sex scenes could make for awkward viewing if in the wrong company.



Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese- Wine Court Office, 145 Fleet Street EC4A 2BU

Yes, I know the name sounds ridiculous and that most places that advertise themselves as 'ye olde' where built by men going through a mid-life crisis and involve waiters in tacky period costumes serving Coke in goblets, but as one of the oldest pubs in London, this place does actually deserve its title. Walking down the grubby little alleyway that leads to the entrance you can't help but imagine yourself being murdered by Jack the Ripper or getting in a really seedy pub brawl and I'm afraid to say the interior only aggravated my over-active imagination. Think dark wood panels, uneven floors and an endless series of spiral staircases leading to a maze of rooms. This place is a fucking labyrinthe. Favourite detail has to be the little sign painted above one of the doorways that reads 'gentlemen only to be served at this bar'. You've got to love a bit of old fashioned sexism. The pub prides itself on having been the preferred watering-hole of Dr Johnson, Voltaire, Thackeray and Dickens, as well as being the home of a parrot called Polly who entertained people for a good 40 years before karking it and having its obituaries printed in newspapers all around the world. Oh and if you need any more convincing it's a Samuel Smith pub so drinks are heaps cheap.

Also...

Amore pasta from the lovely Yolanda. Clearly delicious.