Friendship

As part of the Strand Lines Project I met with Dr Barrie Morgan to talk about his associations and interactions with the area whilst working at King’s. Dr Morgan was initially a Lecturer in the Geography Department when he first joined King’s in the late 1960’s. Read more »

Ink and wash sketch drawn from life in Lincoln's Inn Fields park in 2010. The scene reflects two people enjoying and using this open green space only a few minutes away from the busy Kingsway and Strand.

The Strand is London’s greatest thoroughfare, its huge volumes of human traffic easily eclipsing the throngs of cabs, cars and buses that provide its restless soundtrack. As a pedestrian on the Strand, the predominant feeling is often one of swimming against a tide of people, one of having to anticipate the movements of the onrushing hordes in order to successfully permeate their ranks and emerge unscathed. Read more »

A tranquil image of Pushka sleeping

An image of Pushka - the inspiration for my poem Pushka - also on Strandlines

Crossing the road, opposite the public house, one faces the plaque with the name of the street. For some reason, it makes one entertain one’s mind with thoughts about time: How long is it from here to where the walk leads one? How are minutes measured during the walk at 25 meters per half an hour? What does it mean to spend a split second’s stroll standing still?

Fading thoughts about time. Icing a cluster of different wonderings underneath. Questions of wonder. Wonders of walks. Randomness of the routes. Read more »

Strandlines Archives afternoon brought together the various communities we are currently working with: The Connection, a homeless support centre at St Martins; Age UK Westminster; Peabody Wild Street Estate; and St Martins Older Congregation. Members of the recently formed Strandlines Cabinet of Artists also attended; also other interested individuals living/working in the Strand area. Whilst stories from the different communities are placed in close proximity on the website, it was wonderful to see the community realised in one room. Thank you to everyone who attended! Read more »

‘It’s not for us’, says Louise. Her sense of dissociation from the local area is shared by others at the Age Concern Day Centre in Covent Garden. During the afternoon I spent at the Centre last Wednesday, Louise, Stan, Alma, Jean and Antony remembered local stalls and shops - now lost: their view seems to be that the old places have been replaced or rebuilt to suit the interests of younger people and tourists; those with larger wallets and more expensive tastes. Read more »

They say this is the best of England on the South Bank...

Last November Mark and I started making a diary. I visited him everyday for a week and asked what had happened since last I saw him. Mark has spent time sleeping rough in the Strand area; he sells the Big Issue. At first he remained anonymous, but then he wanted to let readers know his name. 

The recordings in this posting, made just before Christmas 2010, are rather different. Mark decided to make his own diary, borrowing one of the Strandlines audio recorders.  Read more »