The Africa Express hits KX – and KXCommunity Projects has got tickets to give away!!!

Posted on August 24, 2012 by Sophie Talbot

Hailed as the most revolutionary force in popular music for two decades, Africa Express brings together musicians from different cultures, genres and generations to break boundaries and offer a new perspective on Africa and its music.

It all began in 2006 with a trip to Mali, when co-founder Damon Albarn took the likes of Fatboy Slim, Martha Wainwright and Jamie T to work with African legends such as Toumani Diabate, Salif Keita, Amadou & Mariam and Bassekou Kouyate.  This was followed by a trial London event, then the now-legendary Glastonbury 2007 show, followed by trips to Nigeria, the Congo, Ethiopia and shows at the BBC Electric Proms, for 25,000 people in Paris town centre and with 50,000 people on a Spanish beach show.

The Africa Express, produced in association with the Barbican as part of London 2012 Festival, will culminate in a finale concert in London’s Granary Square at King’s Cross on Saturday 8th September where an incredible line up includes:

John Paul Jones
Nneka
The Temper Trap
Amadou & Mariam
Damon Albarn
Rokia Traore
Kano
Baloji
Charli XCX
Fatoumata Diawawa
Noisettes
Jupiter & Okwess International
Jack Steadman (Bombay Bicycle Club)
and more!

“An absolute lose-yourself epiphany for everyone who was there. I’m almost reluctant to go to Glastonbury again because I can hardly imagine how it could possibly be topped.”  The Times

Tickets cost £20 each from http://www.kililive.com/artists/africa-express.

But you could be there for free!!!

The lovely people at Africa Express have donated two pairs of tickets to King’s Cross Community Projects and we are giving them away to people living within a half mile from KX Station. Just answer the three questions below correctly:

  1. Which African duo first met at Mali’s Institute for the Young Blind?
  2. What does the Baloji song title Nakuenda, a Swahili word, translate to in English?
  3. Which King’s Cross African restaurant is closest to the station as the crow flies?

Email or post your answers together with your name, address (which must be within a half mile of KX Station) and daytime phone number to:

info@kccp.org.uk (Put ‘Africa Express comp’ in the subject line)
or
King’s Cross Community Projects, 32 Battlebridge Court, Wharfdale Road, London N1 9UA.

Entrants must be aged 18 or over. All entries must be received by 7pm 1st September 2012. Correct entries will be placed in a hat and the two winners drawn at random. Trustees and contractors to KCCP may not participate.  The draw will take place on Sunday 2nd September. Winners’ names will be listed on organisers’ websites.

King’s Cross Community Projects is a registered charity number 1124925
Donations are always welcome!

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Housman’s new bookclub: The Fuse

Posted on August 24, 2012 by Sophie Talbot

Housmans is starting up a monthly book club, to be run by Wali Hawes, and they’d love you to take part.

The book club will meet monthly, at 7pm on the second Thursday of every month. The books will be chosen by Wali and concentrate on socio-political concerns, past and present, in the UK and abroad.

The reading schedule so far is:

October 11th: ‘When A Billion Chinese Jump’ by Jonathan Watts (with guest from Campaign Against Climate Change)
November 8th: ‘Real World’ by Mick Parkin
December 13th: ‘Riot City’ by Clive Bloom
January 9th ‘The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists’ by Robert Tresswell

On occasion the author, or other knowledgeable party, will be invited along to the book club meeting. All books will be available from Housmans with a 20% discount.

There are only 12 spaces available for the book club, so please sign up as soon as possible so as to have time to get hold , but only do so if you are committed to taking part regularly. Please email nik[at]housmans.com if you are interested.

Wali Hawes is a ceramic artist

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Brewhouse on York – independent coffee shop replaces Pirate Books

Posted on August 22, 2012 by William Perrin

It’s great to see a good independent coffee shop filling the slot vacated by the infamous Pirate Books at 4 York Way.  ‘Brewhouse on York’ has been reviewed in complimentary terms by coffee-loving local worker Bexquisite.  I had a simple black Americano today which was excellent – I couldn’t remember buying a better coffee in Kings Cross.  Why not give it a try and let us know in the comments how it rates compared to other locals. Any comments along the lines of ‘I always like a nice coffee after a sex shop’ won’t be let through.

There doesn’t seem to be a website, but I did turn up this blurb on London Coffee Jobs:

‘The Brewhouse on York is a brand new boutique coffee house and eatery with it’s first site opening opposite London’s Kings Cross station.

We have teamed up with Brighton’s bespoke roastery, Small Batch Coffee Company, who are working with us to develop our own blend of fantastic beans, setting our high standards as far apart as possible from the local chains.

Along side out fabulous coffee will be a fresh food offering that champions great ingredients. Bread and pastries from artisan bakery “The FlourPot”, roast hams, homemade sausage rolls and seasonal patisserie are the order of the day.

With the addition of knowledgeable and passionate staff The Brewhouse on York will be setting the local benchmark one cup of coffee at a time.’

Posted in Food and Drink | 2 Comments

King’s Cross photo exhibition coming soon!

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Sophie Talbot

Here’s some of the fab work being done by photographers at oneKX on the corner of Cromer St and Judd St at the moment… An exhibition follows soon, watch this space!

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Fancy a trip to Broadstairs anyone?

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Sophie Talbot

The wonderful folk at The Calthorpe Project are organising a family trip to Broadstairs the lovely seaside town in Kent.  

It takes place on Wednesday 29th Aug, leaving The Calthorpe Project on Gray’s Inn Road at 9.15am returning 7.30pm. £12 adults, £11 children aged 16 and under.

Contact calthorpe@green-fingers.co.uk for details.

Posted in Community groups, Noticeboard, Young People | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Showtime at Granary Square

Posted on August 15, 2012 by Sophie Talbot

Granary Square is proving to be a fantastic success with the introduction of a wide open and fun space for all the family. You may even noticed local celebrity dog Pan playing with local children in the fountains there – Pan is a retired working sheep dog enjoying her twilight years so can definitely be trusted with children and babies alike! Coming up at Granary Square are various events including the free-to-enter Showtime!

The lovely Pan playing in her beloved fountains (Thanks to MyCamden for the photo)

Says N1C: “Be wowed by critically acclaimed, international performers at Granary Square, in the canalside heart of King’s Cross. Showtime is a fun, free, family day out that will see street theatre, music and comedy.

Performers include:

  • Red Poppy Ladies’ Percussion – having performed at the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics, these ladies will fuse Eastern and Western music in their first London performance.
  • Upswing – their performance ‘Loved Up’ will provide a spectacular and fast-paced performance of aerial dance and hip hop.
  • Lyrix Organic – ‘Relay’ will combine the talents of a poet, a beatboxer, a freestyle rapper and an acoustic singer.
  • Mark Brew – a range of disabled and non-disabled artists will perform in ‘Nocturne’, a choreographed dance exemplifying beautiful moments shared between people.
  • Bash Street – the street theatre group will use silent comedy, circus skills, magic and music to tell the story of ‘Strongman’, which is inspired by Charlie Chaplin’s 1928 film ‘The Circus’.

Food will be provided by local favourites eat.st.

Anna Strongman, of the King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership, said:

“We are very excited about Showtime coming to Granary Square as part of our Summer Stories programme, which is really helping to bring King’s Cross alive.

“Arts and culture are a significant part of the history of King’s Cross and we want to make sure that that continues through the present and into the future.”

 Showtime, presented by the Mayor of London and London 2012 Festival, is a free outdoor arts festival giving Londoners across all 33 boroughs the chance to enjoy world class entertainment and culture on their doorstep. It also forms part of Summer Stories, a summer programme of exciting events which will take place in Granary Square and around King’s Cross.”

Posted in Arts and Entertainment, Kings Cross N1C, railwayslands | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Apostrophe now

Posted on August 15, 2012 by Clare Hill

Yes, it’s the neverending debate over whether to punctuate King’s Cross. No ambiguity in where I stand. Even on this site we can’t all agree, and I stick to my own style rule within my posts. Advocates for leaving out the apostrophe say it’s unnecessary and archaic.

But wait, some new (old) evidence has come to light in an excellent forensic post by London guide Peter Berthoud to support the idea that the area may have been named after a monument to several kings after all – then again, maybe not. The creators of this wonderful obscure print that Berthoud shows in his post have been usurped by a caption that looks like it was added much later. Never mind that – what’s with spelling honour without a ‘u’?

Whichever your stance, evidence to back it up is readily available. In my case, it’s framed on my wall (pic below), and dates from 1878. Although the apostrophe in the image itself could be a nick in the engraving plate. I’m also prone to a bit of bowing at the altar of the style guides of the BBC, The Times, Guardian, The Telegraph and Economist, which all prescribe punctuation – but curiously the Financial Times does not.

The debate will continue, hopefully carrying on the spirited comments thread created by last year’s Londonist piece. But one thing’s for certain, apostrophe or not, typographic crime such as this should not be allowed to happen again:

Posted in Kings Cross local history | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

The best little car wash in King’s Cross

Posted on July 31, 2012 by Sophie Talbot

Fourteen year old Ronnie has a fab Grandad and together they make quite a team. Grandad invested a good few of his hard earned pounds into pressure washing equipment when Ronnie said he wanted to set up the Squeaky Clean Car Wash to make an income during the summer holidays.

It’s easy to spot the Squeaky Clean Car Wash – just think Team GB and head to the union flag bunting!

Ronnie is now washing cars (£5 for a wash and £3 for valeting) and washing down neighbours’ drives, steps and anything else that could do with a clean.

Ronnie has put up signs at either end of Lavina Grove to encourage vehicles to stop for a clean

These days our teenagers are often vilified as tooled up yobs we should all run a mile from. Ronnie’s car wash on Lavina Grove just goes to show how wrong we can be. Please support Ronnie by treating your vehicle to a good clean. It’s easy to find the Squeaky Clean Car Wash at Lavina Grove – it’s on the KX gyratory system just off Wharfdale Road.

We’re keen to carry stories about the great stuff kids are doing in KX… contact us if you’ve got a teenager with a story to tell.

Posted in Local businesses, Young People | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments