What with the Test Match washed out for the day, Glorious Goodwood drowned and well-known people going on very long summer holidays, it can only be the Silly Season. Accordingly, and just to prove it, two of our most courageous (maddest?) Members climbed the 140 foot high tower crane on the Barnet College site in July. Thankfully, an hour or so later, they returned from the sky.
Meanwhile, for those Members who prefer to stay nearer to ground level, the June visit showed the early metamorphosis from naked structure to a recognisable building. What a difference a roof makes. Service pipes, drainage fittings, floor screeds and glazing attachments were beginning to appear. With the project a week or so ahead of schedule the Site Manager could be quietly confident.
Back in May, the President and others were invited to the ‘Topping Out’ ceremony. Held on the roof of a new building, this function, which traditionally celebrates the builders reaching the highest point, is a thanksgiving for safety so far and blesses the building and those who will later use it. Simpler now, it involves the guests in a chilly half hour listening to speeches, followed by many hours of re-warming (with suitable stimulants).
A talk given by Jennifer Linford to Barnet Society on 20th May 2009. Jenny, who lives in Barnet, has been an author for 19 years and is an expert on London gastronomy and food retailing. She has recently published “The London Cookbook” lSL3N 978 1 902910 29 1.
A packed audience came to hear her views, particularly as The Barnet Society’s main area of concern currently is the state of our own market. Jenny certainly gave us a few things to think about. “We live in London and have a fantastic range of shops and markets, it is a rich treasure trove.”
The first main theme of the talk is that London is ever changing and constantly reinventing itself. She gave us a miscellany of examples.
In Soho there are a huge number of ethnic mixes which shows in the variety of food available and as each new group settled, they opened their own specialist food outlets There is a huge influence from the French - Patisserie Francaise - and post - 1945 the Italians. The best coffee in London can be bought from The Algeria Coffee Shop in Old Compton Street. In the 1950’s the Chinese arrived here from the Limehouse area.
