Festival of Choice Film Night in New Cross

The Festival of Choice is a week of events in London aiming 'to raise awareness of threats to reproductive rights and the plight of those in countries around the world who do not have access to safe and legal abortion. The Festival also wishes to celebrate solidarity and activism and to strengthen and support the pro-choice message, locally and globally'.

On Saturday 26th September, there's an evening of films and discussions at Goldsmiths in New Cross (in the Stuart Hall building from 6 pm). 'Their laws, our lives' will feature 'A quiet Inquisition', which 'follows a doctor in Nicaragua, a country where the draconian abortion does not allow abortion in any circumstance. After the screening, we will have the intervention of one of the directors of this documentary'. This will be followed by 'My Choice, the Freedom Train', a documentary that 'looks at the successful campaign by thousands of activists who stopped the reform that threatened to severely restrict the access to abortion in Spain in 2014'.

Rabbit in Hither Green

Following last month's successful first foray into the world of live experimental performance in Hither Green, Linear Obsessional recordings return to promote another early evening session at the Art Cafe in Manor Park SE13. Music this time from Rabbit (David Aylward and Tom Scott-Kendrick, with guest Richard Sanderson) plus Iris Garrelfs and Oren Marsahll.

Lost London Films at Catford Constitutional Club

Tomorrow night at Catford Constitutional Club (Catford Broadway, SE6): 'Lost London: two film screenings marking the changing face of our city'. 

'A Place for Us' is the story of the 'battle to save Catford's pre-fab Excalibur Estate'; 'A House in Bayswater- the last days of a West London Lodging House'. Free Entry, 7:30 pm start.

How Does it Feel to be Loved? at Camberwell Crypt

It was a sad moment this month when the Canterbury Arms in Brixton closed its doors for the last time, due to be demolished to make way for flats. The pub hosted many music nights in its big back room, including the legendary indie-pop/soul club How Does it Feel to be Loved? - where among other things I once shook the hand of Kevin Rowland.

Emotional scenes last month at the last HDIF at Canterbury Arms

A silver lining to this cloud is that HDIF is moving to a new South London location at the Crypt in Camberwell. They say:

'The venue couldn't be more HDIF - a jazz club in the crypt underneath St Giles' church on Camberwell Church Street, it's a beautiful, atmospheric, and ever so slightly eccentric space which feels like it could have featured on the second side of "Tigermilk". It's 150 capacity... with a cool dancefloor, lots of interesting nooks and crannies for chatting in, and a great private garden for the smokers.

The Crypt runs regular jazz nights on Fridays and then the club is mostly unused for the rest of the month, so we're very lucky to have been given the first Saturday of the month. This is a new kind of venture for them and they're understandably wary about hosting a club crowd in such a refined venue, but I've assured them that our regulars are polite, well-behaved, and make frequent trips to the bar - so please come along and do us proud!

We have been given TWO CHANCES to prove ourselves. First is Saturday October 3rd and then Saturday November 7th. After that, they'll see how the nights have gone and whether they'd like to make this a regular event. If you'd like to have HDIF south of the river, please please come along and support us on these two nights. I can't see many other decent options for a HDIF south, so if this doesn't work out, then I reckon that'll be that.

We play:

The Smiths * The Supremes * The Go-Betweens * Dusty Springfield * Belle & Sebastian * Love * Tammi Terrell * Aztec Camera * The Ronettes * Orange Juice * Beach Boys * The Temptations * Velvet Underground * Felt * The Shangri-Las * Primal Scream * Otis Redding * The Field Mice * Dexys Midnight Runners * Camera Obscura * The Four Tops * Melba Moore * The Orchids

Guest DJ for the night is Chris Stride of Offbeat.'

Usual admission of £4 for members and £6 for non-members. Club will run from 9pm - 2am. Advance tickets here - http://www.wegottickets.com/event/333550

More info from http://www.howdoesitfeel.co.uk/; facebook event details here.

Lewisham Welcomes Refugees

An impressive turn out at the 'Refugees Welcome Here' demonstration in central London yesterday (Park Lane to Downing Street), I would estimate at least 50,000 people - making it possibly the largest pro-migration march ever seen in this country.

Also good to see a 'Lewisham Welcomes Refugees' banner there.

A local contingent met up in New Cross Gate before heading into town to join the demo:

'No human being is illegal' - members of the local New Cross community on route to the solidarity with refugees march

Anthrax at the Birds Nest tonight

Last minute call for  a free punk gig tonight at the Birds Nest in Deptford Church Street, featuring 1980s anarcho-punk/hardcore stalwarts Anthrax, Liberty and Bug Central. I saw Liberty play a few times back then with Conflict etc, nice guys.

Not the Rolling Stones at the Montague Arms

It's the closing weekend of this year's Peckham and Nunhead Free Film Festival, with some great events still to come including the Welcome to Busseywood African film festival tomorrow (Saturday).

Tonight at the Montague Arms (Queens Road SE15) there's a Rolling Stones night, with a showing of the definitive Stones documentary Crossfire Hurricane followed by a live gig with cover band Not the Rolling Stones. There's also an alternative take on the band's history with an exhibition of 'Astonishing band facts and unearthed artifacts from the Nunhead & District Municipal Museum and Art Gallery's archives'. 7 pm start, free entry, no ticket required.

As mentioned here before, Bill Wyman and other members of the Stones did actually drink in the Montague Arms in the 1970s.

Three-sided Football returns to New Cross

Tomorrow (Sunday) sees the return of three-sided football to Fordham Park in New Cross with a new season under the auspices of Deptford Three Sided Football Club.

If you've never tasted the delights of the three-sided game, check out this recent Vice article 'The world's most anarchic, hectic sport':

'In keeping with the anti-authoritarian spirit that gave birth to the sport, the rules of 3sf are few, and considered more as guiding principles than steadfast laws. In general, the game should involve a ball, three teams and a hexagonal pitch – anything beyond this is subject to spontaneous revision. Unlike conventional football, a team doesn't win by scoring the most goals, but rather victory is predicated on how few goals a team concedes to its opponents'.

(the article actually credits me with a small role in relaunching the sport - as well as describing me somewhat dubiously as an artist - but the credit must go to Mark Dyson and the other players who have made Deptford/New Cross the global centre of the game!)

A special Midsummer Game  was held at the setting of the sun over the Hilly Fields Stone Circle on 21st June.

If you want to check out the game, and maybe even join in, come to Fordham Park tomorrow (by Deptford Green school) at around 1:30 for a 2:00 pm start. As well as Deptford Three Sided Football Club, teams participating include Strategic Optimism FC, Philosophy Football FC and New Cross Irregulars.

(see previous 3-sided football reports here - including the Association of Autonomous Astronauts 1998 match on One Tree Hill)

Up from Downstairs

Coming up on Friday 4th September in Deptford, a night of improvisational music and performance featuring Lia Mazzari and Jonas Gustafsson, Bridget Scott (Butoh and traditional Japanese dance), and Rabbit ((David Aylward and Tom Scott-Kendrick). All happening at Vinyl (record shop/cafe/gallery, 4 Tanners Hill, SE8, 7:30 to 9:30 (£5/£3 concessions).