Blue clouds over Peter Avenue

Monday

Where's the poetry?

Opening times for the Willesden children's library

I went into the half of the library that's been plonked in The Lewinson Centre on the High Road. The other "half" is at George Furniss House, Grange Road. I asked the man, down behind the desk, where the poetry books were. He suggested looking in the other half of the library at George Furniss House. I told him I'd been there and they have no poetry. The man said, "We only have children's books here." I said, "Oh, is this the children's library?" "Yes." "Okay," I said. "By the way, children should have poetry too!"

Feargal

Designer jumble sale

Queens Parade, Walm Lane

"Secondhand designer fashion at affordable prices". Link

The steampunk dinosaurs that ate Willesden

Demolition of the Willesden library centre continued today.

Brent Artists summer show

Sign on gallery door, Queens Parade (Walm Lane)

Full details online at BAR.

Demolition of the Willesden Library Centre (video)

A perfectly good building, which contained the local library, museum, cinema, art gallery, concourse, bookshop, café bar, performance spaces, meeting rooms and council one-stop shop is being demolished. In its place there will be a Stalinist sounding "Cultural Centre" with council offices and four blocks of luxury flats, currently advertised in Singapore as "For Sale - the Library at Willesden Green" with a list of features including "No affordable or key worker housing", "Gated development" and "Underground car park". Our library centre (by the way a good, literate and fluent name for it, now appropriated by developers of the apartments) was used by innumerable community groups and was nearly always packed with schoolchildren studying at the reading tables. There will be two years at least now during which pupils and students who would have made use of the spaces will lose out on their education. This is all thanks to our local Labour (would you believe?) council, which has also closed six other libraries, out of 12, in the past year. One of the libraries they closed and stripped and sold to property developers, was the Kensal Rise library, on a site donated by All Souls College in Oxford on condition that it be used for a community library and opened in 1900 by Mark Twain. In the past five years or so, they have taken £600,000 from the Heritage lottery fund to renovate the building you see being demolished, and to move in the Brent museum from its previous home at The Grange (where have they sold that, by the way?). What a rotten shower they are. They are not fit to run a whelk stall let alone local government. They sold the town hall as well and got themselves a new office block with no parking and not enough space, hence more offices on top of where our old library stood. Don't they make you sick?

Mezzoroma special today

Willesden High Road (beside the Spotted Dog)

The demolition of the library centre (2)

Thursday

I wonder if they are smashing that wonderful theatre lighting rig. I think they've reached where it was now. Wanton vandalism, waste of public resources, betrayal, sellout. Thank you Labour.

Food for Thought: today's specials

Willesden High Road

Summer flowers

Frontenac, Peter Avenue

What are they, anyone?

Update: Two suggestions so far: 1. Triffids. 2. Acanthus (x 5). 3. Delphinium.

I think, a la Eurovision voting, only Acanthus can now win. Thanks to everyone for the suggestions.

From Mordell Gardens: "Acanthus mollis (or spinosa - need to see leaf to check)". From American friends: They are also called "bear's britches".

King Edward VII park this evening

Every dog has its day.

Mackerel sky

Smart new signboard at the Northeast entrance

Peace in the community - mural

Grange Road

Boxing gloves for sale

Charity shop window, Walm Lane

True Buddha temple - Friday

Bunting blowing in the wind

Demolition of Willesden Library Centre

1. From Grange Road

2. Closer up, with jet descending

3. The Willesden Bookshop is next.

"The heart of Willesden Green"

They have painted the hoarding around the library centre.

The library centre is being demolished.

By the way, I think it's Willesden, not "Willesden Green", which is down by the station of that name, to be more precise. They were two separate hamlets. Willesden was also the name of quite a large London borough before it was merged with Wembley to create the horror that is the present London Borough of Brent.  However, nobody cares, as the word Green will probably help to sell new flats overseas, making a killing for the developers at our expense.

They are now in the process of demolishing the excellent pub restaurant and beer garden, now known as The Queensbury, formerly The Green (which is in Willesden Green), for another block of flats, ten storeys high, which will be in a place with nothing left of any value anymore to recommend it, except to overseas investors. None of the people in charge seems to give a damn about what is left for future generations. They are too busy looting and pillaging what was left to us by previous generations.

More: Singapore: "For Sale - the Library at Willesden Green"

Success stories: Emma Martin

A rave review for a short story collection "Two Girls in a Boat" by New Zealand author Emma Martin, who recently won the prestigious Commonwealth Short Story prize. We're proud around here that her story "Victor" was included in Willesden Herald: New Short Stories 5.

Coming soon

Submissions can be uploaded starting from August 1st this year. The website has been spruced up and the rules given a shake-out. One of the main things is it's a bit more expensive and you can enter as many times as you like. The idea is to try and make the competition and publication of the anthology all self-supporting, instead of having to issue appeals for backing as part of the process. The entry fee has gone up from £3 to £6. Part of that goes to pay for the sparkly new submission system, which replaces our previous homemade database and forms. Here is the link: come see the paradise.

Catnap

On a sultry evening in the backstreets of Willesden

Walm Lane

Upstairs at MacGowans opposite Willesden Green station

Mezzo Roma nearby

There's another Mezzo Roma in the High Road, beside the Spotted Dog.

Tonight

Nightfall

Best wishes to Kate & Wills

Monday morning: News and media set up camp outside St Mary's where a royal delivery is thought to be expected any day soon.

"Ladder Sale" for photographers

View towards the media "encampment"

Homeopoetry

a series of one word poems

by Monkberry Rosalinda Isolde Chipati Florence Hereward Doublebottom - Fortescue 

Contents  

Lackaday - 1

Oh - 2

Mulligatawny - 3

Lollygagging - 4

Chapbook - 5

Page 1

Lackaday

Lackaday

Page 2

Oh

Oh

Page 3

Mulligatawny

Mulligatawny

Page 4

Lollygagging

Lollygagging

Page 5

Chapbook

Chapbook

--

Stephen Moran

Brent council neglecting Roundwood Park

Before

Flowerbeds July 2011

After

Flowerbed recently, June 2013

More: Is Brent council neglecting Roundwood Park?, including more pictures taken recently and comparative pictures from 2012. This is all part of the continuing culturecide, preparatory to further expropriations, confiscations and transporting the poor for resettlement / internal exile. All organised and marshalled by the traitorous "New Labour" collaborators, acting as camp guards for the Tory LibDem kleptocracy, pillaging the land to replenish all monies lost by the rich in the great banking con.

Could this be another example of ruthlessly letting a local facility fall into dereliction, prior to some cosy deal to sell off neighbourhood assets to very, very, friendly business partners? They ran down the library centre with brutal and despicable forethought by thrashing the cinema, the cafe bar, and the car park, all before (hey presto!) selling out local people to Galliford Try, for the benefit of people living in Singapore (Willesden's Loss is Singapore's Gain). All the signs are that they have something similar in mind for your parks. Once again: CUI BONO?

Singapore: "For Sale - The Library at Willesden Green"

Willesden's loss is Singapore's gain.

The site surrounded by hoardings this week,
including the council's recent £3,000 worth of graffiti.

Well, well, well. If this isn't a new low. The library centre is being demolished, a council offices cum "cultural centre" (w.t.f.t.i.) with their lordships traipsing through and parking their lardy arses on the top floor, with their deadening glassy eyes overseeing everything in their tiny empire, is to replace it. Oh and the small matter of luxury flats now advertised in Singapore, while the library centre's corpse is not yet cold and while Brent Council is holding officious, plausible sounding meetings about the "lack of affordable housing". CUI BONO?

And remember Brent Labour council have closed six other libraries in the past year, including the one donated by All Souls Cambridge and opened by Mark Twain in 1900, and that one is being turned into flats as well, so keep an eye out if you're in Hong Kong, Dubai or Singapore for that when it comes up.

Here is the advert:
http://www.stproperty.sg/overseas-property-for-sale/united-kingdom/condo/the-library-@-willesden-green/3885312

Here is what they are offering, which was formerly owned by the people of Brent, now expropriated.

"THE LIBRARY @ WILLESDEN GREEN, LONDON
PRICE FROM GBP350,000 (SGD6xxK)

Willesden Green is one of North London’s liveliest and most cosmopolitan areas, whose excellent Zone 2 Jubilee Line connections really set it apart. 

The Library takes a prominent position on Willesden High Road, and sets new standards in contemporary accommodation for the area. This exciting scheme comprises four buildings, offering ninety-five highly specified 1 and 2 bedroom apartments, many with balconies or terraces. The development is gated and has underground parking for residents: always a bonus in London. 

SELLING POINTS:
• Prominent position on Brondesbury Road and Willesden High Road
• Next door to the forthcoming Cultural Centre
• Within 3-minutes ride to Zone 2 London tube station or 5-minute walk
• Within walking distance to Queens Park
• Willesden High Street is thronged with shops, supermarkets (Sainsbury’s Supermarket is a few minutes’ walk from The Library), cafes and restaurants and is a few minutes’ walk from Brondesbury Park
• Excellent transport links – Zone 2 Jubilee Line with direct connections to key interchanges including Baker Street, Waterloo, London Bridge and Canary Wharf
• No key worker/affordable housing
• High quality fixtures, fittings and finishes 
• Fully fitted kitchen by Symphony with integrated appliances and granite worktops 
• Estimated Selling Price: From £350k (SGD 6xxk)

UNIT MIX:
Milne Place (Block A)
1 Bedroom: 545 sqft – 626 sqft
2 Bedroom: 759 sqft – 1005 sqft

Lewis Court (Block B) 
1 Bedroom: 546 sqft – 554 sqft
2 Bedroom: 614 sqft – 862 sqft

Developer: Linden Homes and Green Urban 
Address: 95 Willesden High Road, London, NW10 (Zone 2 on Jubilee Line)
Tenure: 999-years
Estd Completion: Summer / Winter 2014; 4Q 2014
Site Area: 83,958.50 sqft

CALL SALES HOTLINE: + 65 90933158 TO REGISTER YOUR INTEREST☎

View More Project @ www.singaporeproplaunch.com"

* Our emphasis in bold.

"For Sale - The Library"... "a few minutes walk from The Library": No mention of "Cultural Centre" then, oh no, it's Galliford Try that have stolen the good name, and Galliford Try that is trading on the good name of "The Library", which belonged to the people of Brent. Brent Labour have sold us out. Ed Miliband, are you reading this?

Perhaps even more sickening than the moneygrabbing, wanton vandalism and philistinism of it all is the fact that one of the key features, the unique selling points (oh yes) of the new flats is this:

• NO KEY WORKER/AFFORDABLE HOUSING

They add that it's a "gated development". There was supposed to be a public space at the back of the new development, a fig leaf to compensate for the playgrounds, car park/event venue removed, by the way, so how will that fit with a "gated development"?

They refer to their flats as "The Library" and use what are presumably operating company names or cronies of Galliford Try, Linden Homes and "Urban Green". Oh that sounds nice doesn't it, Urban Green. That is exactly what you want if you live in Singapore.

People of Singapore: get your holiday home in London, and when you're not here, let it out. Be a landlord here! You know what, maybe you could even visit your investment occasionally. The locals can't even afford to live here anymore, what a laugh! Their local council is tidying the neighbourhood for you by demolishing local pubs, stately homes etc, removing all trace of local culture and establishing a "Cultural Centre" (a sort of "reservation") with offices for our controllers, from where they can continue their asset stripping and culturecide.

People of Singapore: Did you know that you should be able to gain residency in London by investing in one of these properties. (Check with your lawyer to be sure.) Think how handy that might be to avail yourself of the free NHS, schools etc available to local residents. But, again, don't worry: you never need see any local residents. We are in the historic process of expropriating and relocating them to the outer wilderness.

People who live in Singapore at present: "How can it be done, what is the catch," you may ask. Never fear, there is an endless supply of funding secured from the local populace and almost inexhaustible wealth of resources at our disposal. If you don't succeed in acquiring one of the choice properties in "The Library", Willesden Green, subscribe to our newsletter for announcements of other new developments. For example, we are building flats for you right beside Willesden Green station, on the site of the famous old Queensbury, formerly "The Green" (note, would make a good name for the flats) pub restaurant/beer garden. Yes, we're demolishing that as well. What a laugh! Do you have anything like this in Singapore? No.

******************

If some or all that doesn't make your blood boil, ask your doctor to test you for anaemia.

They wanted to demolish the locally listed Victorian library too.

Hoardings around the library centre

Willesden's loss is Singapore's gain.

Singapore: For Sale - The Library at Willesden Green

• No key worker/affordable housing
• Gated development
• Ideal opportunity for investment. Hey, become a London landlord, gain residency. With residency, pop over any time to use the NHS. 
• Compliant local government.
• 'Nuff said.

Being demolished: Willesden Library Centre including the two storey library, Brent Museum, Willesden Bookshop, Café Gigi, Bellevue Cinema, Studios 1 and 2, including theatre lighting, The Gallery, The One-Stop Shop, venues for many local societies, classes and local markets in the concourse. In two years, expect to see, council offices above the same facilities, no space in front and no car park behind, four blocks of four or five storey flats in a gated subdivision with an underground car park for overseas investors. Meanwhile the Willesden library is split into two temporary locations nearby, one in Grange Road and one a couple of blocks away in Willesden High Road. There was a temporary stint for community groups for a few weeks in Electric House, Willesden Lane, including Brent Artists but that has now been shut down.

True Buddha temple

Today (Willesden Lane)

Last night

Live music pub

Flynn's, Willesden High Road

Bye bye Google Reader feeds

Awopbopaloobopalopbamboom. They disappeared, so we've had an overhaul and gone back to something like the original Willesden Herald style.