Category: Art and Culture

Vane search ended

The Weld Chapel, demolished to make way for Christ Church Southgate. Image (c) Enfield Local Studies Archive

A little bit of Palmers Green and Southgate’s history has reemerged in Sundridge Hertfordshire.

In our section on this website titled survivals, oddities and curiosities we told of the story of the weather vane which sat on a garage in the north circular road, on the site of McIntoshes old forge. The weather vane had originally graced the Weld chapel (built 1615) . The chapel was demolished in 1862 to make way for Christ Church, Southgate, and the vane had sat atop one of the Walker family’s barns until it was brought back to the forge in the 1920s.

Stephens Engineering moved to the forge site in 1968 and remained there for forty years before relocating five years ago. There were fears that the vane had been lost.

Not so. Engineer Bill Stephens has now restored and repainted it, and it now sits atop his new premises in Thundridge Business park. Bill welcomes anyone who would like to see it to pop along. More information about the story of the vane here.

Art and Culture Comedy Food Palmers Green

Come dine with us in Palmers Green

Post author By Suzanne Beard
Post date February 25, 2014
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ITV is looking for four couples from North London to take part in a new series of the legendary Come Dine With Me.

If you arent familiar with the show, four hosts take it in turns to hold a dinner party for the three other contestents. The person who hosts the evening voted the best wins £1000. More than 800 shows have been made, spanning 24 series and counting.

Are you willing to let viewers into your home, hearth and recipe book? Contact emma.leonce@itv.com.

Art and Culture Community Food Palmers Green

Bim’s and Baskervilles provide home comforts on BBC 1

Post author By Suzanne Beard
Post date February 23, 2014
No Comments on Bim’s and Baskervilles provide home comforts on BBC 1

Palmers Green institutions Bim’s Kitchen and Baskervilles feature on James Martin’s Home Comforts on BBC1 tomorrow afternoon (Monday) at 3.45.

The programme focuses on small artisan producers who make their products from home. Bim’s Kitchen were filmed just before Christmas, making their award winning African Baobab Chilli Jam, before decamping with the film crew to Baskervilles tea room, who stock their products, for a tasting with some customers.

We haven’t seen a preview,” says Nicola Adedeji, who runs Bim’s Kitchen as a family business with husband James (Bim), “It will be interesting to see which bits of a whole day of filming they use in the 3 min film…!”

If you havent yet tried Bim’s Kitchen’s products, there is rather a treat in store for you. My bap at the Palmers Green festival is still fresh in my mind.

Bim’s use ingredients native to or commonly used in Africa like baobab fruit, cashew nuts, alligator pepper, cubeb and hibiscus flowers amongst others, to make easy-to-use sauces and condiments. Reading through the mouth watering recipes on their website this evening has made me a tad unsatisfied with our choice of tea, and Baskervilles closed an hour ago. Boo. But they are open again tomorrow. Hurrah!

Art and Culture Community Enfield Green Palmers Green History Palmers Green Planning and open spaces

This is the sound of the suburbs

Post author By Suzanne Beard
Post date January 28, 2014
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What does Palmers Green sound like?

One answer is contained in a new sound map produced by a fascinating London website, London Sound Survey. The map pays tribute to Beck’s iconic map of the underground, but instead of tube lines, the focus is on waterways, or more accurately, the sounds around London’s Waterways, including the New River at Palmers Green, and at other sites as the 400 year old man-made water course makes its way into the city.

In the Palmers Green recording, taken at the New River by Oakthorpe Road in September 2011, you can hear traffic, children playing outside the mosque, birdsong, airplane drone, and in a back garden a mastiff begins barking.

Elsewhere on the site there is a two-minute recording of Green Lanes at Palmers Green – mostly traffic, speech and the obligatory car horn. The sounds are somehow soothing, and make you wonder what Palmers Green might sound like in 50 years time and how strange the sounds might be to our descendents.

The map is part of a much wider website dealing with sound in the capital – now and in the past. There are some wonderful things contained therein and I really can’t recommend it highly enough.

One to explore

Art and Culture Comedy Community Film Palmers Green

Time to put on shorts

Frankly the weather is abysmal but next Wednesday (29 January) Talkies Community Cinema plans to fill PG with cheer with a special programme featuring London’s young film makers.

Showing at the Fox, the evening of short comic films will be introduced by and MC’d by actor Gem Carmella, who has graced our screens in The Bill, Casualty and Holby City. There is even one with that nice Martin Freeman.

Here some teasers for the programme

Do estate agents fulfil your dreams? Kate Herron might answer that in Open House
You will order your coffee carefully after Marc Hardman shows We Are What We Drink
The Wizard by Simon Guerrier gives a comic slant to a ‘back to work’ scheme
Cat lover or not, Pussy People from Andrew Lang will raise a smile
Chris Shepherd, an experienced animator and engaging raconteur will show three animated films – Broken Jaw, Don’t Fear Death and his collaboration with artist David Shrigley Who I am and What I Want
Martin Freeman takes on a very different persona in The Girl is Mime by Tim Bunn
Dan Turner’s Storm animates Tim MInchin’s beat poem about alternative lifestyles.

and all for a modest fiver.

You can get tickets by booking online, or direct from Annita at the Palmers Green station kiosk, or Anthony Webb estate agents.

Art and Culture Community Green Palmers Green History Palmers Green Planning and open spaces Shops Uncategorized

It’s about time

Clock tower design - the identity of the man is unknown — Clock tower design – the pic illustrates the height relative to Costas Georgiou

Local residents are being asked to give their opinion on designs for the new clock tower at the Triangle in two consultations this month, one being run by the Green Lanes Business Association (GLBA), the other by the Palmers Green Community website.

The plans to erect the clock tower follow on from an application to the Enfield Residents Priority Fund by the GLBA. The longer term future of the Triangle area remains uncertain – a more fundamental make over could still be a long way away.

The design itself has been developed by GLBA Chairman Costas Georgiou, Mark Leaver of Enfield Business and Retailers Association working with Kareen Cox, a local graphic designer. Triangular in shape, it draws on the architectural motifs of neighbouring buildings. Once finalised the plan is for the new monument to be made by Palmer’s Green’s Triangle Metal Works.

Comments on the design are requested by 31 January, and can be sent to Makr Leaver mark.leaver@ebra.org.uk or Costas Georgiou costas.georgiou@ebra.org.uk .

Meanwhile Palmers Green Community’s survey takes a wider view, asking for residents’ views on whether there should be a clock tower at all, whether they like the clock design, what they like and dislike, whether they want the Triangle traffic island to remain, and ideas about how it could be improved. Palmers Green Community website has published some of the first responses, which make interesting reading. There is still time to take part by clicking here.