Archway To Organic Heaven

Food Revolution Slowly Unfolding Across London

Speaking to mummy on the phone the other day I was pleased to hear that her runner beans had won first prize in the village horticultural show. I expressed my regret that I had missed her moment of glory. But she told me not to worry – ‘it’s the County Cheese Show next weekend, dear, you can come to that’.

So I headed off last Saturday to Somerset where my parents have chosen to see out their retirement. I expected to be free from the thoughts of London for a couple of days, but something happened at the Cheese Show that meant I couldn’t get the big city out of my head. Surrounded by cider drinkers (who think a Magners is where baby Jesus laid his head), huge rotund cheeses weighing more than a Smart Car, and hosts of intimidating bristly sideburns, I struck up a conversation with a lovely old lady about Slow Food Movement.

I’d heard the name before but not really known what it was. In a nutshell, it’s about people wanting tasty, naturally-produced food, which in turn protects and nurtures out environment. It’s not surprising that you find supporters of such things out in the country – this is where the producers are based – but what got my mind ticking over was the wholesale infiltration of these ideas into London - redoubt of ready meals, fortress fast food.

The past few years has seen seismic rumblings (if not shifts) in attitudes towards food. London’s restaurant scene has transformed from decidedly average, to diverse, exciting and down-right delicious. And it’s thanks to this blossoming array of places to eat out that their customers are being inundated with inspiration. The knock-on effect are some really excellent shops and markets where you can pick up top-quality ingredients to recreate the food at home.

Many’s the Saturday that I head down to Borough to scour the market for a particularly heady herb-infused olive oil, some juicy, bright-red tomatoes, or a piece of stilton so smelly it has the neighbours complaining.

Borough might be the most well-known market in the capital – in no small part thanks to Jamie Oliver’s vocal praise – but there are farmer’s markets springing up all over the capital from Chiswick to... Archway. Yes, that’s right, it might be little more than a road junction but Archway has its own market! Visiting a friend the other day, as I exited the station I was stunned to discover a petite but perfectly lovely set of stalls doing a bustling trade in fruit and veg, colourful blooms and rustic cheeses. I came home with a bag full of goodies.

On top of this you’ve got the organic mini-markets, which range from corner shop plus, to the heavily branded Fresh and Wild (soon to get its very own organic super sister store on the site of the old Barkers department store in Kensington).

Whilst I read in the paper every week that by 2020 we’ll all be so fat that the London Underground will be unable to cope with the sheer volume of people (think about it), I really think that Londoners attitudes are starting to change.

Now, I am not asserting that London is at the forefront of Slow Food, far from it. Just look at the ranks of battery-charging tasteless fried chicken emporiums, community-stultifying Tesco Metros and all the other crimes against gastronomy that line our streets. But we’re heading in the right direction at least. I am very much looking forward to the Archway Tower hosting the 2020 Urban Cheese Olympiad.

Sink or Swim

It seems London’s lidos are an endangered species. In the 1920s and 1930s around 50 lidos were built in the capital by the then London County Council. Pushed forward in a bid promote healthier lifestyles and to get more Londoners outdoors, lidos presented the only chance most people had of swimming in the open air. Eighty years on, lidos no longer have such a significant role, although the ones that remain are increasingly popular. Only 12 lidos are still in operation in the capital. In 1980 the lidos were passed from the Greater London Council to the local authorities but with no accompanying revenue budget. Londoners are campaigning for the re-opening of closed lidos. Apparently London Fields is a hopeful so watch this space!

The Final Frontier: Can We Bridget?

Mankind’s latest attempt to find evidence of Life on Mars has gone on show in London. It’s a six-wheeled robot nicknamed Bridget and is a prototype of the UK developed rover, officially named ExoMars which will jet into space in 2011. The remote controlled go-kart, with a top speed of 150 metres an hour, bemused visitors as it sped around the Science Museum. The onboard technology allows ‘Bridget’ to drill down two metres into Martian soil and test samples for signs of life. In addition, by learning more about the planets' atmosphere and environment, ‘Bridget’ will also have a major role in paving the way for humans to visit the red planet. Launched in 2011 the journey to Mars will take two years and the landing will avoid the planet’s dust storm season. Let’s hope ‘Bridget’ is a more of a success than the doomed Beagle 2 Mars rover than got damaged on landing last year.

Thieving Monkeys

A man has been charged with the theft of a rare monkey from Chessington World of Adventures. The cheeky squirrel monkey, fondly referred to as ‘SpongeBob’, went missing from the theme park and zoo in July but was later found being played with by children in Clapham. A 22-year-old from Brixton was arrested by police. As for SpongeBob, he has not been able to rejoin his friends at the zoo as yet and is being kept in a separate enclosure. One of the female monkeys bit him and poor SpongeBob is now awaiting surgery. Experts are sure he’ll make a speedy recovery.

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