Daily Photo: 31/03/10 – Squid Salad

I popped over to the Guildford Arms last week for a bite to eat. I had some great fishcakes to start and my dining companion had this: Chargrilled squid with roast plum tomato, rocket, chilli and lemongrass dressing. If it tastes as good as it looks (he assured me it does!), then I will be trying this on my next visit.

Don’t forget to check out our new local offers page where we details of a big discount for Greenwich.co.uk readers at the Guildford Arms this Friday.

Theatre Review: The Duchess of Malfi, Greenwich Theatre

There’s some pretty impressive lurking going on at Greenwich Theatre. The Duchess of Malfi shouldn’t be all about hiding in shadows but if you don’t get enough of it in a Jacobean revenge tragedy you can feel shortchanged. It is clear that the cast and the audience very much enjoyed the lurk-level in Elizabeth Freestone’s interpretation.

After all the shifty action in the windows and the doors, there’s no way round confronting the bloody nature of the play head on. Knifing, incest, mutilation, infanticide, regicide, strangulation, and torture are its currency or even, dare I say it, its lifeblood. Since we have turned up to see the play we might as well enjoy its violence, and for the greater part of the evening this worked well. Pools of blood and stained blankets effectively implied the horror without too many full on Tarantino moments; the lady in front of me barely had her hand from in front of her eyes during the second half.

So, aside from the lurking, what’s it all about and what line has this production taken? I found that a little hard to define and, although the production is an enjoyable gallop through a gory story, I feel that play has more to offer than that.

I wasn’t convinced by the decision to set the play in what I took to be the 1930’s against the gathering clouds of war. The Duchess’s powerful cardinal brother sheds his cassock for a Fuhrer’s uniform and suddenly we are in World War II. The only scene that I thought was illuminated by this setting was when Antonio, the Duchess and their family cross the stage like refugees fleeing from the ruins of their former lives. This image was certainly poignant and made the subsequent murders all the more shocking.

There are a couple of really fine performances that get to the heart of Webster’s theatricality. Tim Treloar as Bosola is a truly evil presence making the pulse beat faster; even when he repents it is difficult for us to find any sympathy. Aislin McGuckin’s Duchess is a commanding presence at the emotional centre of the production, finely moving from love to ruin whilst retaining a perfectly believable poise and integrity.

The imagery in Webster’s play is surprisingly modern and effective, sideswipes at corrupt politician and duplicitous Catholic prelates are hard hitting and have powerful resonances for our age, and possibly for all time. Elizabeth Freestone is greatly skilled at creating images that keep the audience on its toes, and none more so than the startling opening sequence in which we are left to watch the members of the cast slowly breathe their way through a minute’s silence. However, despite the visual strength, the violence and the well-told story, nagging at the back of my mind throughout was a feeling that the production didn’t really make sense of the action; I needed a firmer guide through the comings and goings.

The designer, Neil Irish, has used the space with complete assurance and it’s a real pleasure to see that he has made the fabric of Greenwich Theatre breath again. StageOnScreen’s production, specifically designed for the theatre, confirms that the building can be much more than a tour venue; we really do have a jewel on our doorstep.

Daily Photo: 30/03/10 – Greenwich Peninsula Ecology Park

Greenwich Council Meeting: 24th March 2010

Last Wednesday night’s council meeting was the last full meeting before elections take place in May.

The current Leader of the Council, Chris Roberts, was not in attendance although former Council Leader and current London Assembly member for Greenwich & Lewisham, Len Duvall, was seated in the Public Gallery.

Tributes

The session began on a sombre note as tributes were paid to former Councillor, John Antcliffe, whose death Greenwich.co.uk reported on last week. Councillors from all parties paid tribute to him before a one minute silence was held in his memory.

Tributes were also paid to Councillors who are standing down at this election, with the fondest words of all probably reserved for Councillor Peter King (Con, Eltham South) who has served on the Council since 1978 and has the distinction of being the only Councillor to ever represent the now-abolished Palace ward.

Pedestrianisation

Deputy Leader of the Council, Peter Brooks (Lab, Thamesmead Moorings), was asked by Councillor Paul Webbewood  (Lib Dem, Middle Park & Sutcliffe) for an update on the town centre pedestrianisation proposals.

Cllr Brooks told the meeting that the Council is “a way off” from having a finalised scheme, and that it would most likely be a “hybrid” of the options floated in the recent consultation.

Allowances

Councillors voted to accept a freeze in their member allowances for 2010/11. The basic member allowance for Greenwich Councillors next year will continue to be £10,210.

The Special Responsibility Allowance (SRA) for the Council Leader (£52,458) was criticised by Cllr Paul Webbewood, who said Greenwich was a “below average borough in performance” but was “above average in what we pay our leader”.

This raised the hackles of Councillor Peter King (Conservative, Eltham South) who said it was an “appalling suggestion” that the Council Leader should be paid less. “A Council Leader does a lot more than an MP”, he added.

There was howls of laughter in the chamber when Conservative group leader, Spencer Drury (Conservative, Eltham North) noted that the SRA for the leader of the second largest minority party meant that the leader of the two-man Liberal Democrat group, Councillor Brian Woodcraft (Lib Dem, Middle Park & Sutcliffe), who wasn’t present, is “paid £5,000 to lead Councillor Webbewood”.

Designated Public Place Order

Councillors voted through an urgent extension to anti social drinking controls in the borough. Designated Public Place Orders (DPPO) are already in place for Greenwich and Woolwich town centres but this will now be extended to cover the whole of the London Borough of Greenwich.

Designated Public Place Orders give Police and accredited community officers the power to stop people from drinking in public spaces, confiscate alcohol and issue fines to non-compliant drinkers.

This was brought before the Council as an urgent item in advance of this summer’s World Cup.

Daily Photo: 29/03/10 – Where in Greenwich was this taken?

A virtual round of applause for anyone that work out from this photo whereabouts in Greenwich it was taken – and double points if you know what it is.

Theatre Review: Volpone, Greenwich Theatre

One of Greenwich Theatre’s highlights last year was its collaboration with Stage on Screen resulting in productions of Dr Faustus and The School for Scandal. These plays won national critical claim, transferred to DVD and are, by all accounts, selling well to schools throughout the country. The productions marked a welcome return to producing by our theatre and 2009’s Dr Faustus was unashamedly local, using a set and props that looked as though they’d been borrowed from the Royal Observatory for the purpose. Even the DVD of the production began with a high-speed trip down the Thames taking in local sights before arriving at Greenwich Theatre.

Ben Jonson’s Volpone, which opens this week, is the new joint project and will be joined by Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi. To some extent Volpone is a parable for our times, a comic story of greed, covetousness and feathering one’s own nest – the director might have had Canary Wharf in her sights as she travelled to Greenwich. However, the moral of the tale is wider than this and applies to get-rich-quick schemes throughout the ages. For his audience Jonson ironically, and successfully, seeks to mix ‘profit with your pleasure’.

The arcaded walls and tiled floor root the play in Venice, while smoke billows ominously around the theatre. There is a sense of spaciousness, created by designer Neil Irish, that is appropriate to large Venetian piazzas and palazzos. It is a world inhabited by humans who exhibit almost every deadly sin, most notably greed and lechery. Jonson, and the production, successfully unsettle the audience by creating drama in that most awkward area, between high comedy and brutal violence. Often the play is hilarious, but that only highlights the brutality of deception and rape.

The play’s success can be measured by the comic relationship between the double act at the centre of the action. In this production we find an almost perfect pairing, Richard Bremmer’s spidery Volpone disgusts and amuses in equal measure and is served brilliantly by Mark Hadfield’s energetic and crumpled fixer, Mosca (aka the parasite). Amongst the excellent cast I would highlight James Wallace’s creation of a hugely endearing character, Sir Politic Would-be. His sunburnt features and panda eyes parody perfectly the Englishman abroad. His character seems to pay homage to the late Iain Carmichael as the audience’s sympathy is aroused by his truly pathetic attempts to be an entrepreneur.

Director Elizabeth Freestone has created a hugely imaginative world in which she can slow time down, speed it up and rewind it in order to manipulate the characters for the audience’s greater enjoyment, the action after the interval being a particular treat. The costumes are wonderfully absurd creations, touched with slightly cartoon-like features, for instance stiff curled tailcoats and absurd feathers. The only element which worried me was the role of Volpone’s colourful array of companions, including a rather tall dwarf, and an unmusical castrate. Although these are Jonson’s comic clowns, in this production, they were less funny and more uncertain than one might expect.

The introduction in the programme suggests that an aim is to ‘restore Greenwich Theatre to its position as one of London’s significant producing theatres’. On this evidence it has returned and now needs to consolidate its success – perhaps with Volpone’s sister production The Duchess of Malfi?

Volpone at Greenwich Theatre running until April 10th

Reaction to Greenwich Park planning decision

On Tuesday night, after a marathon session of the Planning Board, consent was given – with conditions attached – for London 2012 to use Greenwich Park as a venue for the Equestrian events and Modern Pentathlon.

Cllr Chris Roberts, Leader of Greenwich Council, said:

“This decision means we can concentrate on working with LOCOG, Royal Parks and other key stakeholders to deliver a spectacular event in 2012.

“The planning application was subject to extensive consultation and generated a large number of responses. All this feedback has been carefully considered, and a number of planning conditions have been applied to address the issues that were raised.

“We will work closely with LOCOG to ensure these conditions are met and that we safeguard the Park and surrounding area to preserve its unique and special character.”

Councillor Nigel Fletcher, Greenwich Conservatives’ Spokesman for Culture and Olympics, commented:

“Whatever your view of the plans, it was right that the views of residents were properly heard by Lord Coe and his team, and by the Council. I want to see that public engagement continuing now that the application has been approved, including as many residents as possible. After last night there can be no doubt how much people love the Park. We will continue doing everything we can to ensure there is no damage to it as a result of LOCOG’s plans, and to ensure the Games are good for Greenwich.”

Green Party council candidate for the Peninsula Ward, Darryl Chamberlain, welcomed the formation of an advisory group to oversee the implementation and restoration but added:

“It also needs to meet in public and involve local people as much as possible.

“One suggestion was that amenity groups such as the Greenwich Society should have a role – that’s fine, but other locals should be involved too. People should not have to pay membership fees to have a say in what goes on in their neighbourhoods.”

NOGOE (No to Greenwich Olympic Equestrian Events), who had fought a long and high profile campaign against the proposal, said in a statement on their website:

NOGOE is disappointed because Greenwich Park itself is the loser. This is a bad day for the protection of the nation’s heritage, which will inevitably be damaged despite mitigating measures. We’ve heard what LOCOG have SAID, now let’s see what they DO. There are 42 planning conditions which must be satisfied before these events can take place, and NOGOE will be monitoring their every move.

Daily Photo: 26/03/10 – Mogul

Apologies for the lack of Daily Photos this week – has been a hectic week at Greenwich.co.uk HQ. Earlier in the week I went over to Mogul Indian restaurant in Greenwich Church Street, pictured above. It was my first time in and I must admit I had never realised from walking past that as well the dining area you can see from the window, there’s a cavernous downstairs area and a great lounge upstairs. Not being particularly used to Indian cuisine, I asked for some assistance from the menu and ended up going for the Harayli tikka for starter, and the Meerchi masala murgh for main – both of which were delicious.

Squeeze honoured with Greenwich plaque

Squeeze went back to their Greenwich roots on Tuesday when a plaque was unveiled at the Borough Halls, the venue for one of their first concerts.

Founding duo Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook joined the rest of the band in Royal Hill, at what is now the base of the Greenwich Dance Agency.

The fledgling band played there in 1975, ahead of a career which has saw them score worldwide fame with hits such as Up The Junction, Cool For Cats and Take Me I’m Yours.

It is the fourth plaque to be erected by rights body PRS For Music at the sites of major bands’ early gigs. The first – marking a Dire Straits show in Deptford’s Crossfields Estate – was unveiled last year.

Tilbrook, who still lives in Charlton, told greenwich.co.uk how the band cut its teeth in venues around Greenwich and Deptford.

“Our first gig was at the Northover – between Catford and Downham – which is long gone.

“We used to play at Hardys Free House every week. We’d also play the Deptford Arms, the Bell – in Greenwich around the back of the church – all places were we could get residencies when we were coming up.

“After we left the Deptford Arms, that’s when we started touring and stopped doing the local things so much, and then you get propelled into a different world, that it doesn’t seem possible to come back from. Now we’re in a world where we play big places and small places and I like that – lots of mixing and matching.”

Tilbrook recently played a residency at the Anchor and Hope pub in Charlton with his other band, The Fluffers – “more anarchic and free-spirited” than his main band. He said we wanted to help new acts get the same opportunities Squeeze did.

“I’ve always stayed in this area and I love this area – I don’t think I’ll ever leave. But I’ve seen it change, and it’s now harder for bands to get started. I’m trying to get something going at the Anchor and Hope.”

Squeeze will be playing the Isle of Wight Festival in June, with a UK tour at the end of the year which will include a date at the O2′s Indigo venue on 9 December.

“I’m not interested in doing anything other than stuff that’s really fun and good – Squeeze is back to being that, and that’s such a good place for it to be,” he said.

Greenwich Council approves London 2012 Greenwich park planning application

Greenwich Council’s planning board has backed proposals to hold Olympic equestrian events in Greenwich Park in summer 2012, together with test events in 2011.

The 12-member board voted 10-2 to back the proposal after a four-and-three-quarter-hour long meeting at Woolwich Town Hall.

Conservative councillors Geoffrey Brighty (Blackheath Westcombe) and Dermot Poston (Eltham North) objected to the scheme, however their party colleague Peter King (Eltham South) voted for organising body LOCOG’s application.

The other members backed approval of the scheme with a string of conditions attached, which include the setting up of an advisory body – including bodies such as English Heritage and Natural England – to oversee works in the park and Blackheath’s Circus Field.

Councillors also told LOCOG to seek approval from Greenwich Council for individual elements of planned construction work, together with crowd management proposals.

The board’s formal backing now paves the way for a temporary stadium to be built in front of the Queen’s House during 2012, the creation of a cross-country course through the park, and the use of the Circus Field as an operational compound.

LOCOG chairman Lord Coe told councillors that Greenwich Park had “a special place in the hearts of many”, describing it as “the beating heart of a diverse community – just ask the thousands of marathon starters who gather there each year”.

“Tonight, we ask you to trust us,” he said, claiming the Olympics would enable “a young urban audience to witness Olympic and Paralympic equestrianism first hand”.

But opposition body NOGOE claimed LOCOG’s proposals were not detailed enough, and risked damaging the park’s ecology and archaeology. There was also criticism that local roads, particularly the Blackwall Tunnel – would not cope with the demands of an Olympic Games.

NOGOE supporter Sue McNeil told the meeting: “We’re not anti-Olympics – we’re pleased Greenwich is a host borough, but using suitable arenas like the Dome.

“Greenwich Park should be the official ‘chill-out zone’ during the Olympics – otherwise we will lose tourists when construction starts.

“We could rent out our houses for a small fortune when the Games are on – but we value Greenwich more than that.”

In opposing the application, Cllr Poston said the park would be an “amazing theatre” for those watching on television.

“But they are not the ones who use the park,” he said. “I have to consider that this is a conservation area – and I’m afraid I’m not convinced that this will enhance or preserve a conservation area.”

Cllr Brighty spoke of the numbers who use the park each weekend, adding “four weeks [of closure] at the height of summer is too much”.

But members who backed the proposal sought to pacify opponents. Labour councillor Clive Mardner (Abbey Wood) said he hoped NOGOE members had “added strength” to scrutiny of the proposals, and said he hoped they would continue as construction got under way.

Denise Hyland (Labour, Shooters Hill) said: “My fears have been completely allayed tonight by what I’ve heard. Passion for the park isn’t just felt by those against the proposal.”

Members who voted for the proposal: Ray Walker (vice-chair, Labour, Eltham West), Peter Brooks (Labour, Thamesmead Moorings), Denise Hyland (Labour, Shooters Hill), Sajid Jawaid (Labour, Plumstead), Peter Kotz (Labour, Thamesmead Moorings), Clive Mardner (Labour, Abbey Wood), Steve Offord (Labour, Abbey Wood), John Wakefield (Labour, Glyndon), Peter King (Conservative, Eltham South), Paul Webbewood (Lib Dem, Middle Park & Sutcliffe).

Members who voted against: Geoffrey Brighty (Conservative, Blackheath Westcombe), Dermot Poston (Conservative, Eltham North).

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