On Saturday I made the most of the glorious autumn sunshine and attended the Lordship Recreation Ground Community Festival. This year’s festival celebrated the near-completion of extensive regeneration works, funded by a £4m Heritage Lottery Grant that had been campaigned for long and hard by local community group Friends of Lordship Rec.

Lordship Rec is a huge-but-tucked-away park in Tottenham, North London. The renovations include a new bike track and regenerated Model Traffic Area. The playground’s been updated with fantastic equipment for kids of all ages, including a flying fox, and a paddling pool that will open in time for next summer.

There’s also a brand new “eco building” that will house a café and be the venue for parent and baby meetups and be used by other community groups too. As someone who’s walked past a neglected-seeming, fenced off old creek for the past year, the most striking change for me is the regeneration of the River Moselle, with three new pedestrian bridges and its riverbank now a mass of wildflowers.

The festival was large and sprawling with live performances in the Shell Theatre (which has also been upgraded), a dance zone, pedal-powered music stage, a bouncy castle, pony rides, the Tottenham Horticulture, Produce and Green Show, a dog show, various sports and stalls from loads of local organisations (such as Tottenham NCT).

The park, which adjoins the Broadwater Farm Estate, has a rich history. The land was purchased by Tottenham Council in 1926 and was officially opened as a park in 1936 with Tottenham Lido opening in 1937 (the lido was demolished in 1984 to make way for housing). The Rec was used as allotments in WWII’s Dig For Victory campaign but was bombed during the blitz – today a commemorative woodland marks the place where 40 locals lost their lives in a direct hit on their air raid shelter.

The park fell into disuse in the 80s but in 2001 The Friends of Lordship Rec was formed and has since  helped clean up the lake, as well as secure the lottery funding.  It’s a great tale of local commitment winning through but, perhaps more importantly, it’s turning a good park into a fantastic resource for everyone in the area for now and for years to come.

Silver sculptures, light installations and Olympic-related artwork has popped up in the London borough of Haringey this summer.

Bruce Castle Park in Tottenham is hosting several works including Lion by scaffolding artist Ben Long. The lion is an impressive work combining a minimal, industrial, “worksite” aesthetic with a sumptuous show of patriotism and heraldry. He stands proudly in front of Bruce Castle Museum, a spot that afforded an excellent vantage point when the Olympic Torch relay passed by here less than a fortnight ago.

I spoke to to Daniel Medina, the supervisor from Up Projects, who said the torch relay, which he also witnessed, was a highlight – with a real community buzz.

Another work, Free as a Bird by Martin Richman and Charlie Kerr, is a more subtle sound-and-light installation tucked away in Bruce Castle’s Hawk Tower. Daniel told me the work took inspiration from the tower’s history, with wing-quick flashes of reflected light and a soundtrack of deconstructed Tudor music. I thought it was very cool and my 15-month-old son found it quite mesmerising.

Venture into Bruce Castle Museum and up the stairs for Ooh Art – where you can see Olympic-themed works by 11 Haringay artists, most of whom have incorporated the help of local children. There’s a good range of stuff here, including ceramics, textiles, painting and photography.

Afterwards, Bruce Castle Park is well worth spending some time in – a large, leafy space with playing fields, tennis courts, a peaceful memorial garden and a playground with kids’ paddling pool.

Have you seen any local art in London this summer? Tell us about it in the comments below.

 

When someone says “Australians in London” to me, it tends to conjure images of backpackers in their early 20s who enjoy nothing more than drinking beers at the Walkabout, listening to pub rock at The Church and dossing on their mate’s couches.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but I’m not that way and nor are a lot of other Australians I know who live here.

I arrived in London during the freezing fog of Christmas 2006. I’d always wanted to live overseas and this was my second – thankfully successful – attempt to establish myself here. Like most of the people quoted below, for me London turned out to be more complex and challenging but also more exciting and rewarding than I ever could have expected. I really love it here now and feel incredibly lucky to live in London.

I asked around to see what drew some of my fellow countrypeople to London. Here’s what they said:

For many visitors travelling from Australia, London provides a fantastic base from which to explore Europe. Like many, I came for this reason, but found myself falling in love with the city itself. Constantly changing and always exciting, I find myself increasingly addicted to London’s lifestyle. While my European travels have slowed down, my love affair with London continues, and six years later I feel lucky to call it my home.
Rebecca, PR Manager, Uxbridge (ex-Sydney)

I moved to London since it’s an exciting city and, cause of cheap airlines, a great hub for the rest of Europe. I stay because the things I want to do seem easier to do here and more things happen all the time. Also the fried chicken. <– not really.
Jan, Graphic Novellist, Holloway (ex-Melbourne)

I moved to London because I was bored stiff of living somewhere where I’d not met anyone new in years and years, that never got any big bands or interesting theatre, and that was too damned hot (Perth). I’ve been here 10 years now and I love London for the culture, the huge number of things that are happening every evening, every weekend.  The variety of restaurants and bars.  But most of all, the sense that anything can happen, the possibilities, the buzz.
Julia, Web Developer, Walthamstow (ex-Perth)

I came to have a change from Sydney, to get some overseas experience and to travel Europe as much as I can. I stayed for the weather.
Ari, IT Contractor, Kentish Town (ex-Sydney)

I moved to London in 2002 in search of brighter horizons and new experiences. My choice to leave Australia was a good one; I fell in love, not only with the close proximity of the world, but also with a beautiful English boy with gentle ways. Not to mention a beautiful city where each season greets you in turn with typically English ways — Pimm’s and bikinis in the park at the merest hint of sun in summer; turning, falling leaves of magnificent plane trees in the autumn; if you’re very lucky, snow and work-free days in the winter; and daffodils and tulips in the spring.
Robyn, Office Manager, Earslfield (Ex-Brisbane)

I didn’t give much thought to why when I decided to pack up and go – it was simply a new frontier, and something to do that could offer a great launch pad for more travel. Since I’ve been here I have realised that London offers so much opportunity, from work to entertainment and everything else that is on the cards with a big city full of a vibrant mix of people. Having been here for 3-and-a-half years, I still have no plans to return.
Penny, Journalist, Dalston (ex-Sydney/Brisbane)

There are so many people in London, and that means that there is a wide range of art, music, architecture, sport, dining, hobbies and activities… It gives London an exciting urgency and cultural awareness that no other city in the world can match.
John, Project Manager, Holloway Road, (ex-Hobart)

Moved to London for work, didn’t want to come. Felt at home from day one. I love how there is always something new to discover or a new place to visit in London; unfamiliar parts of London make you think you’re in a completely different city. And the English’s amazing appreciation of good weather.
Georgie, Banker, Islington, (ex-Sydney)

I moved to London by accident. Leaving Sydney four years ago in search of adventure, the last thing I thought I wanted was to end up in London, which seemed the safe and drab option. I’ve surprised myself by the extent to which I’ve fallen for this city – I’ve even bought a house here! All of life is here, as they say, and I’m proud to be part of it.
Iain, Editor, Tottenham (ex-Perth/Sydney)

Are you an Australian in London? Tell us about it!