New Cross and Camberwell Radical History Walks

Past Tense, who publish a range of radical history pamphlets, are organising 'a mini-programme of guided walks, exploring subversive, rebellious and social history in four areas of London'. The Summer/Autum 2012 London Radical History Walks will include:

New Cross and Deptford, Saturday 9 June - ramble through the history and music of the local area, starting out at 2 pm outside the Hobgoblin pub opposite New Cross Gate station.

Hammersmith, Saturday 8 July - meet 4 pm outside Hammersmith Underground (Hammersmith and City line), Beadon Road, W6.

Bloomsbury, Sunday 9 September - meet 3 pm outside the cafe in the middle of Russell Square, WC1.

Camberwell, Sunday 7 October - meet 2 pm on Camberwell Green by the corner of Camberwell Church Street.

All the walks are free, last about an hour and a half to two hours and end up in the pub.

The Dish and The Spoon - new Nunhead cafe

I had my first coffee last weekend at The Dish and The Spoon, and very nice it was too.

The new cafe is at 61 Cheltenham Road SE15, which I guess you could call south Nunhead (up towards Peckham  Rye on the 343 and 484 bus route).

The Dish and The Spoon opens from 7:30 am in the week, and 8 am at weekends, so perfect for that coffee and pastry hit on the way into work.

I like the decoration, with the wooden cut out images of foxes, deer and owls.

More information on facebook, where they say: 'The Dish & the Spoon is a Cafe/Deli in Nunhead, South East London. Serving highly regarded, Dark Fluid Coffee, roasted a few miles away in Grove Park. Tregothnan Tea, grown in Cornwall, in the UK's only tea plantation & the high quality Jaz and Juls Hot Chocolate. We serve a range of deli goods including British Territorial Cheeses, Ham & Charcuterie from Moons Green Farm in Kent, made in the style of continental charcuterie such as Saucisson & Chorizo. Daily bread is from Paul Rhodes of Greenwich. We are also very family friendly with room for childrens play, baby change, booster seats, high chairs & steps for small people in our bathroom. Friendly, well behaved dogs also welcome inside'.

Holland and Barrett Pickets

(look away if you want to maintain your illusion that a shop that sells vegetarian scotch eggs must be beyond criticism)

Last Saturday, the movement against workfare schemes (compulsory unpaid work for the unemployed) once again targeted Holland & Barrett stores locally, the company being a significant participant in the scheme. In protests called by South London Solidarity Federation, a group of people first picketed the Blackheath branch of the chain and then headed into Lewisham shopping centre where they briefly occupied the shop there before being removed by police and security (full report here).

A similar action on 31 March 2012 targeted the Catford branch of the store (pictured, from The Void).

History Corner: 1912 Nunhead Tragedies

A hundred years ago, the Old Nun's Head pub was the scene of a bitter inter-family dispute. The story in the South London Press was headlined 'Nunhead schoolgirl's escapade - Publican's daughter's trip to Southend on stolen coppers' (SLP 26 April 1912).

In the children's court at Tower Bridge, twelve year old Nellie Hazell was 'charged by her mother with stealing 20 shillings in coppers from the bar... Mrs Hazell stated that on April 15 she missed four 5s bags of coppers from the bar, and on the same day Nellie did not return from school. On Saturday she heard that Nellie had given herself up at Southend-on-sea'. A few weeks previously she had apparently taken a trip to Hastings in the same way.

The consequences for Nellie were serious. The Magistrate recommended that she be remanded 'with a view to the girl's committal to a school'

Death in police custody

Shortly afterwards another resident of Nunhead Green died in police custody.  Alfred Lockyer (33) 'a carman of 13 Nunhead Green' was arrested for being drunk in charge of a furniture van outside the Duke of Cambridge pub in Hooks Road, Peckham.

Taken to Peckham police station, he was found in the evening to be 'insensible'. His father had come to bail him out, but was refused permission to see him. The Divisional Surgeon ruled that he was 'fit to remain in the cells'. The next morning, a doctor was called for again and Lockyer was moved to Camberwell Infirmary where he died from a fractured skull.

The cause of the injury was not established, and the Coroner refused permission for an acquaintance of the dead man to speak; 'The jury returned a verdict of Accidental death, and added that no blame attached to the police. Lockyer's father complained that the affair was 'shocking' ('Nunhead Man's Death in a Cell', South London Press, 24 May 1912).

Robin Gibb and the Hither Green Disaster

Many of the obituaries for Bee Gees singer Robin Gibb, who died at the weekend, mention that he escaped death  in the Hither Green rail crash. On 5 November 1967 a  Sunday evening express train from Hastings to London derailed shortly before the train crossed the St Mildred's Road railway bridge, between Hither Green and Grove Park railway stations. Most of the carriages overturned, two of them having their sides torn off. 49 people died.

Robin Gibb was on the train, along with his fiancee Molly Hullis. They were returning from visiting her parents in Hastings. Gibb recalled 'the carriage rolled over and big stretches of railway line came crashing in straight past my face'.  At the time he was only 17, but the Bee Gees had already had their first big international hit earlier that year - New York Mining Disaster 1941. He reflected: 'If our hits were not making so much money, I would not have been able to buy first-class tickets. Most of the people who died were in the second class compartments, which had no corridor to protect them'

Recovering immediately after the crash, Gibb wrote the song 'Really and Sincerely':  'It doesn't mention anything about a train crash but it does reflect the mood I was in' (quotes from The Bee Gees: Tales of the Brothers Gibb by Andrew Hughes).

Later in 1967, The Bee Gees played in Lewisham at  a charity show in aid of the Hither Green train disaster fund.

Music Monday: A.L. Lloyd

As mentioned here before, the famous folk song collector/ singer/ writer A.L. 'Bert' Lloyd (1908-1982) lived in Greenwich at  16 Crooms Hill for much of his adult life. A new biography has been published, and later this month there's a free talk coming up by the author at Goldsmiths in New Cross.



'Goldsmiths Popular Music Research Units presents The Life and Music of A.L. Lloyd.

A talk by Dave Arthur to coincide with the publication of his book Bert: The Life and Times of A.L. Lloyd (Pluto Press).

Small Hall Cinema, Richard Hoggart Building Goldsmiths College New Cross London SE14 6NW/   Tuesday 29 May, 5.00pm, followed by drinks. All Welcome.

Folk singer and folk music collector, writer, painter, journalist, art critic, whalerman, sheep station roustabout, Marxist, and much more - this is the story of A. L. (Bert) Lloyd's extraordinary life.

A. L. Lloyd played a key part in the folk music revival of the 1950s and 60s, but that is only part of his story. Dave Arthur documents how Lloyd became a member of the Communist Party, forceful antifascist, trade unionist and an important part of left-wing culture from the early 1930s to his death in 1982. Following his return from Australia as a 21-year-old, self-educated agricultural labourer, he was at the heart of the most important left-wing movements and highly respected for his knowledge in various fields.

Dave Arthur recounts the life of a creative, passionate and life-loving Marxist, and in so doing provides a social history of a turbulent twentieth century.

Dave Arthur is writer, painter, singer and instrumentalist (guitar, banjo and melodeon), writer of plays for stage, community and puppet theatre and Director of the Society for Storytelling'.

Goldsmiths library houses the A.L. Lloyd Collection and Archive, as well as the Ewen McColl archive, must get down there some time and do some SE London folk music research.

New Cafes for New Cross?

I notice that work is being done at the former Come the Revolution cafe at 465 New Cross Road. A sign outside says 'Cafe 465 coming soon'. The previous cafe there, associated with Lewisham People Before Profit, closed in March this year amidst recriminations with disgruntled staff complaining about working contracts and the owner blaming the state of the economy (the workers held a public meeting at the Amersham Arms to air their grievances).

Meanwhile at the other end of New Cross Road (number 106), work is proceeding on The Cottage Project. They say  'We are currently renovating the derelict New Cross Tandoori... The New Cross Project will be a creative cafe space, full of tasty food, good coffee, making, baking, art, talks, projects and exhibitions. It is the brain child of designer Osian Batyka-Williams who loves constructing things for people and weaver Holly Berry who loves to plant, bake and make. The Cottage project will welcome local artists, families, students, revolutionaries and the old and wise'. Here's a short film of work in progress:

  

Lewisham Pensioner Book Sale

Lewisham Pensioners Forum have another of their periodic book sales coming up on Sunday 20th May, with a huge range of books at bargain prices. Venue is The Saville Centre, 436 Lewisham High Street, SE13 6LJ (not far from Lewisham Hospital).

The Odyssey in Deptford

In June, Teatro Vivo will be staging an interactive promenade performance of the Odyssey throughout Deptford, 'an interactive adventure that will start at the Albany and then take the audience on a journey around Deptford as the audience discover what happened to Odysseus. They will comes across Gods and Goddesses, Monsters and Nymphs, death and desire as well as seeing parts of Deptford in an unusual way'. It will take place from 7th - 23rd June 2012 (ticket details here).

Sounds good, but you don't have to just go and see it - you could take part. Teatro Vivo is looking for people from the local community to join them as part of our Community Chorus. They say 'Help us tell this epic story and gain skills in performance, improvisation, song writing and do something a little bit different! Are you outgoing, interested in acting, singing, playing music or working behind the scenes? We are looking for people of any age over 18 that want to join us in creating an epic adventure. Interested? email info@teatrovivo.co.uk or call Sophie on 0773 3134701'.

History Corner: Resisting the National Front 1980

In 1977, the famous Battle of Lewisham occurred when a march by the extreme right wing racist National Front from New Cross to Lewisham centre sparked fighting between anti-fascists, the NF and the police. But sadly this was not the end of the NF in South London. In 1980 there were two marches in quick succession, one in Southwark and one in Lewisham.

The NF march in Southwark took place on Sunday 2 March 1980, despite an earlier unsuccessful attempt by Southwark Council to get it banned. 'Around 1,000 Front supporters took part in the march from Wyndham Road, along Camberwell Road, to Camberwell Green, turning left in to Peckham Road, along Lyndhurst Way to residential Holly Grove [in Peckham] for an open air rally. The marchers - mostly teenage skinheads... chanted "National Front is the white man's Front, join the National Front". There were roars of "N---er Lovers" and "Kill the reds" whenever the few onlookers - mainly from windows - shouted anti-Front slogans' (South London Press 4 March 1980). The leader of this motley crue of racists was then NF Chairman Andrew Brons, who spoke at the rally at the end. He is now a BNP Member of the European Parliament.

The NF speak outside derelict house in Holly Grove 1980,
© Jim Rice, www.londonphoto.co.uk

A similar number of anti-racists turned out to oppose the march, with the counter-demonstration called by Southwark Campaign Against Racism and Fascism (SCARF)*. But they were prevented by the police from getting near to the NF: 'Hundreds of officers threw a cordon around them as they gathered outside the London College of Printing, Elephant and Castle... The organisers were informed of the progress of the march by motorcyclists riding between the two rallying points... Some marchers headed for New Kent Road only to be turned back by lines of police'.  Police also cordoned off all side roads along the route, banning pedestrians and traffic. There were ten arrests (SLP 4 March 1980). At one point 'A group of demonstrators started running, trying to get ahead of the escorting police, and scuffles broke out. Several policemen were bowled over' (Times 3 March 1980).

The Lewisham March

On Saturday 12 April 1980, 100 NF marched from Clapham Junction to Wandsworth High Street. The following weekend they moved on to Lewisham. The march there has been called after Lewisham Council refused the NF permission to use a Council building for a meeting during its Greater London Council election campaign for its West Lewisham candiate Lynda Mirabita.

The route of the NF march on Sunday April 20 1980 was kept secret until the last minute - it went from Forest Hill to Catford where 'A rally was held in a confined areas bordered by Catford greyhound stadium, a railway embankment and bridge, a second railway line and a canal' (Times 21 April 1980). According to the South London Press (22 April 1980):  'Estimates varied between 250-700 NF marchers - mostly young skinheads - against 1,000 counter marchers. Marquees were put up in Hilly Fields for the 4,000 police drafted in for the day'. The police used similar tactics to those employed in Southwark: 'The Anti Nazi League grouped its supporters by Lewisham Town Hall but they were unable to reach their target because police had cordoned off all side streets along the route... mounted police prevented counter-demonstrators breaking through a cordon at Holbeach Road. About 50 protestors tried to reach the Front marchers by cutting across the Private Banks Sports Ground and a football match was temporarily halted as police rugby tackled the demonstrators on a pitch... Another group, armed with spanners patrolled the streets in a car searching for Front members'.

The St Pauls riot in Bristol had taken place just before the Lewisham march, and The Times reported (21 April 1980): 'After the march several hundred of the Anti-Nazi League counter-demonstrators suddenly turned and charged down Lewisham High Street. A few bottles broke against windows to cheers and a brick smashed a tailors shop window. Some youths, mainly black, changed 'Bristol, Bristol' as they ran... Mounted policemen were sent through back streets to cut of the charging youths.' Five people were arrested when police found four petrol bombs in a car in Lewisham High Street, and in a trial later that year four teenagers were jailed for six years each for possession of the petrol bombs which the prosecution claimed they had intended to use against the National Front (Times October 22 1980).

In total 72 people were arrested on the day of the demonstration, the majority of them counter-demonstrators. The police tactics were criticised by Christine Trebett of the All Lewisham Council Against Racism and Fascism: 'Police were present in enormous numbers and prevented the counter-demonstrators reaching the National Front by sealing all routes to the march and threatening arrest to those who tried to break through; counter demonstrators in Brockley Rise were lined up against the wall and people leaving the local public house were prevented from going home. At about 4.00 pm the National Front were diverted into the Catford stations and the counter-demonstrators started to march towards Lewisham. The police lost control and started to run along the main road, driving vans fast along both sides of the carriageway; the police then formed up and drove back the demonstrators, kicking and knocking down any who resisted and making arrests. The police were particularly violent towards the women demonstrators' (report to West Lewisham Labour Party, 1980, included in 'Modern Britain since 1979: a reader', ed. Keith Laybourn and Christine Collette, 2003).

A racist GP in New Cross

Shockingly, a local GP addressed the NF march at the end: 'Dr Robert Mitchell, who has a surgery in Queens Road, said yesterday he would advise his patients against mixed marriages only if asked for advice. He also believed in repatriating black people. Dr Mitchell polled 1,490 votes when he stood as National Front's Parliamentary candidate in Deptford last year'. Lewisham Labour Councillor David Townsend said 'We must take an urgent look at how a doctor with such appalling views can be allowed to practice in such a racially sensitive area as New Cross' (SLP 22 April 1980).

The following March, the NF proposed to hold a provocative march past the scene of the New Cross Fire but this, and a planned counter-demonstration, was banned by the Home Secretary (Times, 5 March 1981).

Racist attacks

Marching wasn't the only thing NF activists were up to at that time. In May 1980 the sometime chair of Southwark NF, Kenneth Matthews, was jailed for six years for a plot to burn down Union Place Resource Centre. This workers co-operative printshop was on Vassall Road near the junction with Camberwell New Road (next to the Union Tavern pub), and printed lots of radical literature.

Matthews(aged 44) lived in Lorrimore Square SE17 and worked for Southwark Council as a dustcart driver. Stephen Beales, another NF member, was jailed for 3 years for the same offence and for petrol bombing a club used by Irish people in Lorrimore Sqaure. A third member of the gang was sent to Borstal (South London Press 22 May 1980). They had been caught outside Union Place with petrol, thunder flashes, and wires intending to make an electronically-detonated petrol bomb (Times 23 May 1980).

Not long afterwards, three other men were jailed for a violent racist attack on a black van driver at East Greenwich service statin (SLP, 10 May 1980)

*The Ruinist found some SCARF graffiti from that period still visible in 2009 in Amelia Street, Walworth - can you still see it?: