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Programme for music at the craft market, December 22nd 2012

Our final craft market of the season takes place as ever outside Blockbusters in West Ealing Broadway (the western end on the south side of the Uxbridge Rd) from 10-3pm on Saturday December 22nd, 2012. Pick up some last minute presents that no one else will have from our local artisans. Subscribe to this blog or email westealingneighbours@gmail.com to stay informed about ‘next steps’ in the market.

December 22nd has music in the music gazebo. We will host carolling from the Ealing Churches Winter Night Shelter and local man ‘Ralph’ of King Ralph,  will sing us out…till next time, probably the first Saturday in March 2013. Stay tuned.

Craft market music programme for Dec 22nd:

12-1pm: The Ealing Churches Winter Night Shelter carolling crew sings for us. ECWNS http://www.ecwns.org.uk/home/ helps some homeless people to get off the streets and begin the journey to finding their own home. It also enables people who are on the edge of rough sleeping to avoid hitting the streets. ECWNS stands in the gap by providing for the most basic and essential needs for homeless people – sleep and food. A person who has been made homeless faces enormous risks as a rough sleeper including substance abuse, poor physical and mental health, and acts of criminality.

king ralph greenford 2012

1pm-2pm: Ralph of King Ralph will sing us out. ‘King Ralph are an acoustic trio from the Brentford borderlands. They can usually be found at local festivals and other events in the area playing their original punk-folk and other people’s songs in similar style.  Sometimes they let Ralph out on his own, where he can be found in local pubs like the Grosvenor singing for free a pint, or the Brewery Tap paying for his beer like everybody else. You can hear some of the songs at myspace.com/kingralphmusic. Contact Helen Martin Promotions (philandhelenmusic@gmail.com) for bookings and info.’

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News from the craft market, Dec 15th, 2012

Dina the donkey A spectator said, ‘Am I dreaming? I think I’ve just seen a donkey in the high street.’

Dina the donkey paraded in West Ealing broadway and helped tell the old, old, good-news story. There was music, too, outside Blockbusters in the craft market. (Video links are below.)

Note: Dec 22nd is our last craft market of the year so don’t miss out, come and find some unique locally made bargains to complete your Christmas shopping. More info from: westealingneighbours@gmail.com

Local youth club talent: Westside Allstars – video; Meetman and the Butchers – video

Local classical singer, Romeo, with mellow sounds full of ‘heart’: video

Local singer, Maria, with a show-stopping voice: video

Local band, Mobile Clones, make the audience happy: video

Local voices and instruments, with Slightly Mysterious carols: video

 

 

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Shooting in West Ealing last night – two people injured

Update

The Uxbridge Road is still  closed this Sunday morning  (12noon) following a shooting last night somewhere around the post office/Daniels store area. Over a year ago there was another shooting in the same area near an internet cafe.   The Ealing Today website has the story as a gang shooting with two people injured but no one killed. More news to follow.

11pm Sunday

BBC News site says four people arrested following this shooting. It seems one man was shot during a fight and another hurt with both being taken to hospital but neither with life-threatening injuries.

2pm Monday

The problem seems to have been an argument between two groups at some late night event that got out of control. I guess the obvious question has to be who on earth turns up at a party or similar armed with a gun and why?

10pm Monday

Quite a lot more information, including a message from the police, on the Acton W3 forum

 

 

 

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Creative Ealing launched – bringing together information about what’s happening in the creative arts in Ealing

I went to the launch last night of Creative Ealing, a consortium of creative arts venues in Ealing working together to publicise and promote the work of the four founding local arts venues – The Questors Theatre, The Ealing Club, OPEN Ealing and The Drayton Court Hotel. I was involved in the development of this idea when I was with OPEN Ealing and I’m delighted to see it come to fruition.

Back in the summer, what set me thinking about the need for arts venues to co-operate was my regular walk to do the banking in Ealing Broadway. On my way there I walked past the two new hotels being built almost opposite one another in the Uxbridge Road – Travelodge and Premier Inn (plus the nearby Hotel Xanadu in Bond Street). I wondered how guests would know what entertainment was on locally. What could they go and see or do that day or evening? The answer seemed to be they wouldn’t easily find out this information. There didn’t seem to be any central website or publicity that listed what arts events were happening in Ealing that day or that week. Out of these bank visits came the idea of arts venues in central Ealing joining together to create this central website and joint publicity. And so Creative Ealing was born out of discussions between these founding venues and now it’s real and you can find its website here 

I hope this is but the start of  Creative Ealing’s journey and, as it gains recognition as a key source of information about what’s happening in the arts in Ealing, other venues will join and a momentum will gather to create an ever more informative site.

The launch of Creative Ealing follows hot on the heels of the launch of The Ealing Music and Film Valentine Festival. From the 14th to the 17th February next year a really exciting looking series of events, concerts, talks and exhibitions will be put on at various arts venues in central Ealing. Highlights for me include blues music at The Ealing Club and Raga Jam at The Questors. There’s something for everyone and it’s another welcome initiative for the arts in Ealing.

 

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Dina the donkey is coming to town! – ‘Nativity in the Market’ this Saturday from 12.30. Come along and enjoy the moment.

Come along with your family this Saturday (15th December) to meet Dina, a real live donkey, in the Nativity in the Market, organised by St James Church. Dina and the nativity players will start off their tour of West Ealing in Dean Gardens at around 12.15pm, make their way to visit the farmers’ market in Leeland Road for 12.30, then donkey willing, a walk around the streets and on to Melbourne Ave for around 1.45pm. In Melbourne Ave the players will perform the first part  of the nativity play before their final stop in St James Ave and the craft market for 2.15pm where they will complete their performance. Everyone can join in and take part in this family event, sing carols and take part to celebrate and enjoy being part of our local community.

 

Also this week at the craft market in St James Avenue will be a local opera singer who will start off in Sylvester’s barbershop just round the corner, the Westside performers from the nearby youth club and ancient carols with local voices and instruments. More details on this blog.

 

 

 

 

 

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Programme for Dec 15th 2012 West Ealing craft market – and donkey watch!

Another December Saturday means another craft market in cheery West Ealing – next door to Blockbusters on West Ealing Broadway. On Dec 15th it will be packed with action including youth bands,  opera, the reuturn of a favourite band and the Nativity with live donkey. Come with camera – and shovel – and don’t forget to buy some delightful local crafts to give to your loved ones. (More market/music on Dec 22nd, too – then we subside till March 2013.)

Programme for December 15th

11.30-12.30: The Westside youth centre is fielding a great hour of local young people ‘doing their thing’. Westside says: ‘Cross Culture presents a showcase of Ealing’s undiscovered young talent.  Musicians of all genres emerge into the limelight fresh from rehearsals at Westside Young People’s Centre’s studio aiming to impress and inspire.  The performers have been taking part in a project called Bandform funded by the Youth in Action programme in partnership with Ealing Council’s Youth & Connexions Service. The project seeks to make music a mechanism for youth empowerment, integration and participation.’

12.15 (at Sylvester’s) then at the market 12.30-1.30 (update):  Sadly ‘The Four Wise Men a barbershop quartet can’t now make it, but West Ealing’s local talent has stepped in, as follows:  local resident and classical singer, Romeo Kherkhenlidze will start with a few songs to gladden the heart at Sylvester’s the local barbers, and then on to the market where he will give us more, followed by local group The Mobile Clones (diminished – it was late notice!) who give us their irresistible brand of community warmth, all wrapped up in song.

1.30-2pm: Slightly Mysterious Carols  from a fusion of St James’s church worship team and the local folk scene.

2.15-3.15pm: The Nativity – there will be Herod on a stepladder, there will be Dina the donkey (touring West Ealing beforehand – look out for the mobile sound wagon) – the old, old story portrayed in the market place – and you (bring a teatowel or crown or sheep onesie,  grab a passing songsheet and just make sure you’ve got that camera!)

For more info: westealingneighbours@gmail.com

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Videos of music in West Ealing craft market, Dec 8th 2012

Thanks to all lovely volunteer players, singers, sound people – you made it a great afternoon. More on Sat Dec 15th (with nativity and live donkey) and Sat Dec 22nd (outside Blockbusters, in W Ealing broadway). Here are a couple of video ‘moments’. Enquiries: westealingneighbours@gmail.com

 

 

 

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Winter Night Shelter urgent request for overnighter December 11

Message from Alison at the Ealing Churches Winter Night Shelter project:

‘I have an urgent request for a volunteer overnight on Tuesday 11 Dec. It would be from 9:45pm to 7am in Southall (St Anselm’s church near the railway station), with half the night watching, half sleeping.’ Please contact Alison direct:

Alison Wood, Project Co-ordinator
Ealing Churches’ Winter Night Shelter
www.ecwns.org.uk

ecwns.office@yahoo.com

07930 378263

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More back garden development? – proposed changes to planning laws over back garden extensions

One of WEN’s members is keen to raise awareness  about the government’s proposed changes to planning laws to allow larger back garden extensions without needing permission. It’s a topic that’s certainly got a number of local councils stirred up and could affect local residents.

He writes  ‘The government plans to change Planning laws so that your neighbour can build a 6-metre extension 4 metres high without needing any permission from anyone – least of all from you.

This may be fine for cabinet ministers who live in spacious areas. But 80% of us live incities, where small gardens provide most of the green space. In our terrace, the back gardens are 12 metres long. Half your neighbour’s garden gone – perhaps on both sides of you? Plus separate outbuildings, if they choose? And you’ll get no protection from Planning laws that used to protect you from overbearing, dominating, character-destroying developments. The government wants this to happen!

The government’s consultation period ends 24 December. We need all our friends across the country to say what they think of this proposal. You can reply online at this location:

www.communities.gov.uk/publications/planningandbuilding/extendingpdrconsultation

or you can write to Helen Marks via e-mail:

PlanningImprovements@communities.gsi.gov.uk

or on paper:

Helen Marks

Permitted Development Rights – Consultation

Department for Communities and Local Government

Zone 1/J3 Eland House

Bressenden Place

London SW1E 5DU

Tell your MP and David Cameron and Eric Pickles what you think. And get your friends across the country to do the same – or we could all find ourselves in concrete jungles.’

Download this page at kevinraftery.net/attack.pdf

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Music videos for December 1st, West Ealing craft market

Here’s the evidence for Dec 1 (see below) – a multitude of thanks go out  to our entirely voluntary sound people, singers and players. Come to enjoy more extraordinary local music and delectable unique hand-made crafts, same place (outside Blockbusters), 11-3pm, on Dec 8, 15, and 22. It’s the place to be seen (and heard) in W Ealing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yYxHjYzVIY