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Comedy and music this weekend at OPEN Ealing

OPEN Ealing starts its fundraising for its move to West Ealing with two events this weekend.

Comedy @ OPEN on Friday 2nd March from 7.30pm

A night of comedy featuring:

Phil O’Shea – a stand-up comedian who has been performing in Scotland for the last two years and just moved to London.

Alex Holland – award-winning comedian and writer

Hatty Ashdown – stand-up comedian, presenter, writer, actor …and slipper wearer

Tickets are £10 from OPEN on 020 8579 5558 and more details of the night at www.openealing.com

 

Music Showcase @ OPEN on Saturday 3rd March from 7.30pm

A line up of four local bands:

Boss Terror – a band whose roots developed in West London and have now spread with different names and sounds

Du Bellows – formed after and open mic night in Ealing, Du Bellows involve a soulful feel and just the right amount of rhythmic and cadence tension

Blushing Bones – acoustic folk loveliness from West Ealing

Jon Mapp and Johnny Hereward – OPEN’s own resident musician Johnny Hereward and Jon Mapp play with a selection of musicians who perform regularly at the Castle Inn on Sunday evenings.

Tickets £10 from OPEN on 020 8579 5558 and details of the bands at www.openealing.com

Do please come along and support OPEN – and there are fantastic raffle prizes on offer including having your portrait painted, your garden designed or a meal at the Star & Anchor.

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We need your help. Come along to West Ealing Neighbours’ AGM Tuesday 7.30pm at OPEN Ealing

We’re holding our Annual General Meeting tomorrow (Tuesday 21st) at OPEN Ealing from 7.30pm. We’re looking for your help in shaping how WEN develops over the next few years. I wrote a piece for this month’s newsletter:

Five years on and if I do for a moment stop and, as they say, smell the roses, I’d say we’ve made a pretty good start. We helped save some of our traditional lampposts; started the annual Family Day celebration; launched our Abundance project; will soon start a monthly craft market and are within touching distance of helping make the Lido Junction safe to cross.
Now though we need to plan for the next five years and that’s where we need your help to answer a vital question: what shall we do with WEN? We need to decide. On Feb 21st we have the fifth AGM and my tenure as Chair, Eric’s as Vice, Andy’s as Treasurer and Gill’s general membership of the committee – well, our time is up. We decided five years ago that we didn’t want WEN to stagnate.
So, the question is, what shall we do now? It’s your organisation and it’s a democracy so we all need to decide. No one has so far come forward to hold any of the posts – can we continue as an un-led organisation?
I think we are at a crucial moment for West Ealing. We have the major development at Green Man Lane, the forthcoming redevelopment of the Sherwood Close Estate and the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Forum, under the new Localism Act, to propose a design for central West Ealing (see Eric Leach’s blog of 3rd January 2012 for full details). This is an exciting time for West Ealing and WEN needs to be at the heart of it and helping shape our future and not just letting it be imposed upon us.
Here are some of the aspects of WEN that we feel are important but what do you think?
• an information hub for West Ealing
• a think tank
• an incubator for exciting new projects like WEN Abundance, OPEN Ealing, SEAL – the lampost project, the book swap, and much more
• a people resource – we’ve 400+ members
• a social network
• full of potential for becoming an integral part of the re-shaping of the local governance of our neighbourhood
• holding Ealing Council to account
At the moment the floor is open wide – do we re-form as something different? Do we each go our separate ways into our different projects? Do we put ourselves into a holding position until we work out what’s best? Or is there someone/some people out there right now longing to lead WEN into the next phase of its life?
If you’d like to stand for any of the main officer posts – chair, vice-chair, secretary, treasurer – please let us know before the meeting. Otherwise, please come along, bring your neighbours and let’s talk about our town and ways in which we can make a difference.
If you’d like to talk to any members of the committee beforehand, let us know.
Please do come along to our Annual General Meeting on Tuesday 21st February at OPEN Ealing starting 7.30pm.
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Man knocked down at West Ealing’s Lido Junction

A man was knocked down at the Lido Junction this Friday lunchtime. Luckily it does not sound as if he was too seriously injured but it comes barely two days after the Council announced the public’s overwhelming support for plans to put in pedestrian crossongs and make the Lido Junction safe to cross.

The online Ealing Gazette has the story – http://www.ealinggazette.co.uk/ealing-news/local-ealing-news/2012/01/20/pedestrian-64-knocked-down-at-dangerous-crossing-64767-30166693/

We look forward to the inplementation of this scheme and, at last, making this junction safe to cross so there are no more such accidents.

 

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Armed robbery attempt at Barclays Bank West Ealing

There was an attempted armed robbery at Barclays Bank in West Ealing this afternoon at around 3pm. I happened to be walking along Leeland Terrace at the time and heard then saw police cars and vans hurtling along the Uxbridge Road. Some turned down Leeland Terrace and the others carried on along the Uxbridge Road.

I believe there were three robbers and, according to an eye witness, customers at the bank tackled one of the robbers and sat on him until the police arrived. Again, according to an eye witness, this man had two guns on him.  I can’t verify any of the details yet but will update the story when we have more information.

Update on Thursday morning

A bit more detail coming out. Seems it was three robbers.Two got away and the third was tackled by a bank customer as he left the bank and in doing so some of the money was scattered on the pavement at the top of Leeland Road!  Talk of £8000 being stolen. The third robber was held until the police arrived.

I understand a man has now been arrested (after being detained at the scene) and charged.

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How (not) to make it in Britpop at OPEN Ealing on Wednesday 1st February

OPEN Ealing got a name check on Radio 4’s Midweek programme this morning (Wednesday 18th) when Rosie Wilby was one of the show’s guests. Rosie is rehearsing her new show How (not) to make it in Britpop. She will give a special performance of her show at OPEN Ealing on Wednesday 1st February before taking it on tour.

One of our aims at OPEN is to bring in as wide a range of events and activities as possible so, hopefully, we can attract people to venture in, perhaps for the first time.  I’ve already booked my ticket as I think it will be a great night.  Full details of her show are here:

Rosie Wilby presents her acclaimed show How (not) to make it in Britpop as part of National Storytelling Week

Wednesday February  1st at 8pm at Open Ealing. Tickets £5 from OPEN on 020 8579 5558 

“With her self-deprecation and spiteful bitchy asides, Rosie Wilby’s Pop Diary blended delicious volumes of vocals and sparkling stand-up humour.” Western Daily Press

“Good music, good comedy and a feelgood show – a winning combination.” Oxford Times

From playing Glastonbury and Ronnie Scott’s to miming on children’s television, musician turned comedian Rosie Wilby looks back at the emotional rollercoaster of chasing stardom at the heady height of Britpop in her show How (not) to make it in Britpop – a revised version of her acclaimed 2011 Edinburgh Fringe hit Rosie’s Pop Diary.

Mixing stand up, storytelling and acoustic versions of her songs, Rosie delves into a personal treasure trove of old photos, fan letters, reviews and the original ‘Rosie’s Pop Diary’ (her ‘90s column in the now defunct music magazine, Making Music) for this funny and touching new show that explores the nature of nostalgia.

Rosie’s Pop Diary traces the weird and wonderful story of a singer that nearly made it – from bizarre auditions, supporting Bob Geldof and Jamie Cullum to walking barefoot along one of London’s busiest roads just because it would make a good album cover.

As Pulp, Blur and Oasis were making headlines, Rosie’s house and belongings were literally going up in smoke, just days before her big album launch, as her house caught fire. Homeless and without any Cool Britannia clothes, Rosie thought it couldn’t get worse until a friend donated an old Brownie uniform for her to wear at her own gig…

Rosie has appeared as a roving reporter on 5 Live and as a guest on BBC Radio 4’s Loose Ends and Woman’s Hour, LBC and BBC London. She was a finalist at Funny Women 2006 and Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year 2007. Her previous solo show The Science Of Sex won a Fringe Report Award and was a sell-out at Cambridge Comedy Festival, Camden Fringe and Liverpool Comedy Festival. Still a passionate music lover, she writes for award winning website musicOMH.com and has previously written for the NME, Time Out, Ham &High and The Pink Paper.

She is currently developing the show with acclaimed theatre director Anthony Shrubsall, whose production of Security with renowned performance poet Zena Edwards was commissioned by BAC and Birmingham Rep. A former Artistic Director at the Drayton Court Theatre,Anthony is also a Fellow of the RSA.

For more info see www.rosiewilby.com

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Barn Dance West Ealing Sat Feb 4th 2012

Barn Dance/Ceilidh in the heart of West Ealing – easy steps, lots of people – come alone, come with family, come with friends. Steps called from the front. Get it right, get it wrong, bring all your left feet. Nibbles included in £8 adult ticket (advance booking) – bring your own beer/wine. Kids of all ages welcome – admission free/donation up to age 16.

Local Ealing ‘live’  folk band will be out in full force, wrangled by folk professional Laurel Swift.

Sat 4th Feb 2012, 7.30-10.30.

St James’s Church (behind Sainsbury’s in W Ealing), St James’s Ave, London W13 9DL.

Book in advance Gill Witcomb, 020 8568 4276/gillroy66@tiscali.co.uk.   Adults £8 if booked in advance, £9 on the door, kids (up to age 18) voluntary donation

Please forward this to anyone/any organisations you think might be interested.

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Free laid-back jazz at OPEN Ealing this Friday lunchtime

Fran Clark FFM JanCome to OPEN and celebrate the new year with some laid-back yet groovy soul and jazz music! Local established singer and songwriter Fran Clark will be teaming up with Pete Clark on Friday 6 January 2012 from 12.30- 1.30pm to perform at the next First Friday Music.

Fran frequently performs locally including featuring at Brentford Festival and is celebrated for her jazzy mellow vibe and emotional strength of her vocals. With her first album “To Fly” received excellent reviews from online and local radio stations, Fran is in her final recording stage of her second album and many of her original songs will be featured in this performance.

The performance will be held in the OPEN gallery on the second floor. A light lunch and refreshments will be available in the self-service café.

This performance is admission free.

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Quiz Night West Ealing Saturday Jan 21st 2012


Saturday 21st January 2012

St James Church – top of St James Ave, Ealing, W13 9DL

 

£10 per ticket to include main meal

 

Programme:

6.45pm – arrival

7.00pm – dinner is served – chilli con carne + jacket potatoes (please ask for vegetarian meal)

7.30pm – quiz starts

9.00pm – tea/coffee + homemade cake (£1.50)

10.15pm – finish (hopefully on time!)

 

Please bring your own drinks (alcohol is fine)

 

Donations of raffle prizes appreciated – thank you!

 

Tickets from Martyn Clarke – martyn237@yahoo.co.uk or 020 8997 2540. All tickets must be purchased and paid for by 10pm Thursday 19th January so we can purchase enough food.

 

Please either bring a team of up to 8 people, or we can allocate you to a team.