I lived in East London from 1980 until 1992, and have written quite a lot about this amazing city. Many of the pieces selected here are connected to A Journey Through Ruins, which was written with the help of the London Review of Books, the New Statesman, the Guardian and the Independent on Sunday, all of which published earlier versions of various chapters.
Hackney Town Guide Cabinet, Dalston Junction, 1991 (Andrew Holmes)
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Siraj Izhar’s public lavatory »
September 27th, 1995 | Posted in: London, Art & its applications, Articles GeneralOn Siraj Izhar and Strike, a group of art activists based in a redundant public lavatory outside Christ Church, Spitalfields, East London. Published as ‘Two loos, low trek’ in the Guardian, 27 September 1995.
Down among the Gentrifiers »
May 6th, 1992 | Posted in: The Resurrection Slot, London, Articles General1992. A time of post-boom tristesse in East London. The uncompleted Canary Wharf went into receivership, and the property market had suddenly collapsed, causing tremors of anxiety at dinner tables where conversation had previously dwelt on the astronomical rise in house prices. It seemed like a good time to review the idea of ‘gentrification’. Published in the Guardian, 6 May 1992.
A night to remember »
November 1st, 1991 | Posted in: Politics, London, Articles GeneralA report from Hackney Town Hall, describing the eventful night when Councillor Medlin Lewis defected from the ruling Labour group to join the Conservative opposition. Published in the Guardian, 1 November 1991.