Society, culture, heritage, people & passions | Page 2 of 30

Reverend David Pilkington, otherwise known, as Captain Dave on the gloating church, Genesis

Photo by Gilbert McCarragher

Captain Dave: All aboard the Floating Church!

February 18, 2021February 20, 2021 Tom McGhie 258 Views 2 Comments Features 6 min read

Moored up in Hackney Wick is the Floating Church. This barge-come-chapel is run by Reverend Dave Pilkington, a man who

Labour MP George Lansbury in a crowd of people and holding a young boy

Cultural heritage Culture & communities Local

George Lansbury Labour MP for Bow and Bromley: ‘a great, servant to the people’

February 15, 2021March 4, 2021 Citizen Journalist 123 Views 0 Comments Features 4 min read

George Lansbury, former MP of Bow and Bromley, is remembered by all for his immense devotion to the people of the East End. Unlike many politicians who were born into the life of education and power, George Lansbury was truly a man of the people. Hardships from his early years shaped him to be a compassionate and fervent ally to women and the working class of the East End.

Sporting Bengal FC at Mile End Leisure Centre with captain Rokib Chowdhury

Campaigns Cultural heritage Culture & communities Lifestyle Local

Sporting Bengal: the FC tackling racism in football

February 15, 2021February 18, 2021 Tom McGhie 198 Views 0 Comments Local 7 min read

Sporting Bengal United F.C play their football in Mile End Stadium, after being established in 1996 to ‘challenge the underrepresentation of Asians in football’. Team captain Rokib Choudhury and their manager Imrul Gazi speak out about what needs to be done to tackle racism in the game.

Victoria Park in the snow, East London, 2018

Photo by Dawud Marsh

Environment Local Places to visit Things to do

Victoria Park: the wintery wonderland on our doorstep

February 13, 2021March 9, 2021 Tom McGhie 182 Views 1 Comment Local 1 min read

These photos of Victoria Park covered in snow will help to banish any blues you might have this winter. Picturesque all year round, this green space on our doorstep has been transformed into an ethereal world dusted with snowflakes. This really is ‘the best park in the world’.

Cultural heritage Local Planning and development

The tragic history of Saint Clements hospital

February 7, 2021February 5, 2021 Citizen Journalist 232 Views 1 Comment Local 4 min read

Saint Clements Hospital, a place known for treating adolescent heroin addicts, has had an unforgettable impact on the history of the East End. The building withstood fires and bomb damage from World War Two, and its walls contain a very chequered past.

Iranian refugee Mobin, at Tuesday Night Bites food bank in Bethnal Green

Mobin at Tuesday Night Bites © Social Streets CIC

Campaigns Good causes Local Society

Mobin: A story of hope, from Iran to the East End

February 6, 2021February 9, 2021 Tom McGhie 200 Views 0 Comments Features 6 min read

Mobin, 22, came to England in October last year after escaping the corrupt government of his native country Iran. His

Norah Smyth, suffragette, philanthropist and photographer

Cultural heritage Local Society Suffragettes

The adventures of Norah Smyth: her life as a suffragette, philanthropist and artist

February 1, 2021February 1, 2021 Citizen Journalist 64 Views 0 Comments Features 8 min read

Following exclusive information shared by Norah Smyth’s great nephew writer Jane McChyrstal reveals fascinating new insights into the adventurous life of the elusive suffragette, philanthropist and photographer who dedicated her personal wealth and artistic talent to social justice.

George Burchett of Bow, the King of Tattooist

Arts & artists Cultural heritage Local

George Burchett: the tattoo artist from Bow who drew on Kings

January 25, 2021January 26, 2021 Suyeon Kang 170 Views 0 Comments Local 3 min read

George Burchett, known as the ‘King of Tattooists’, lived in Bow in the 1900s and tattooed Kings. His legacy as one of the forerunners of the tattoo industry as it is today survives him and his ink will go down in history.

Grime photographer Simon Wheatley with Mustafa Has, outside Cafe East on Roman Road in Bow, East London

Photo by Serena Brown

Arts & artists Bow Grime music Local

How being an outsider helped Simon Wheatley document grime from the inside

January 23, 2021January 26, 2021 Tom McGhie 146 Views 0 Comments Arts and Artists 5 min read

Simon Wheatley is an acclaimed photographer who spent twelve years documenting grime culture. His book Don’t Call Me Urban! spans the years between 1998-2010 and a selection of the photos were displayed recently in Cafe East.

Dogs of Alcibiades, statues guarding Bonner entrance of Victoria Park, East London

Dogs of Alcibiades, guarding the Bonner Entrance of Victoria Park

Buildings & landmarks Cultural heritage Local Society Things to do

The story behind the Dogs of Alcibiades statues in Victoria Park

January 17, 2021January 15, 2021 Tom McGhie 197 Views 0 Comments Features 2 min read

The statues are marble sculptures of Molossian Hounds and were donated to the park by Lady Aignarth, a wealthy and clearly rather generous resident of East London, in 1912. They are rumoured to have been a commemoration of her late husband, Horatio, who passed away that year.

Gary Hutton, author of Product of a Postcode, holding newspaper clipping from News of the World

Cultural heritage Culture & communities East End & Cockney

Reformed criminal Gary Hutton on being a product of a postcode

January 14, 2021January 14, 2021 Tom McGhie 266 Views 1 Comment society 5 min read

Gary Hutton, reformed East End criminal from Stepney whose book Product of a Postcode talks of the environmental pressures that can lead to a life of crime, a message he now takes to local schools to help prevent young people from making the same mistakes he did.

Ifti Lafit in Victoria Park against the sunset that inspired his lockdown poem

Arts & artists Cultural heritage Culture & communities Local

At least the weather’s good: a lockdown poem from Iftikhar Latif

January 12, 2021February 5, 2021 Tom McGhie 150 Views 0 Comments 1 min read

Ifti Latif is a local poet, who wrote a poem inspired by lockdown last summer. As the winter months take hold and people look for some positivity in the current climate, he has chosen to share his work which he hopes will ‘be something nice to think about, especially as we enter January’.