London Borough of Culture: How it begins

Anyone who witnessed the opening of Waltham Forest’s Year of Culture last weekend was not disappointed. The amazing laser display was quite unexpected and totally magical – transforming Lloyd Park into a scene from “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and the pictorial display projected onto the front of the Town Hall reminded me of a light show by Michel Jarre on the banks of the Thames over 20 years ago.

I had the job of hosting one of the two evenings of Storytelling and Poetry at “The Magistrates” on Saturday and Sunday. At 5 o’clock on Saturday evening I presented myself at the YMCA on Forest Road where many of the volunteers, participants and organisers hung out. We were introduced to our volunteer minders and the producer of the events and shepherded across Forest Road and down to the old Court building. That meant we did not have to queue – when we were there it tailed all the way along Forest Road. I understand the Lloyd Park queue was even longer.

We started at 6:45 pm and I hosted the event. The acts performed in a small area of the coffee shop there and the place was packed with young kids  to see Lottie Allen and her  “Magic Box” –  a wonderful story-teller who with the use of minimal props transported kids and a few adults too with a tale of pirates, hidden treasure and stormy seas. It was a really raucous half hour. Then a complete change of pace as Angelena Demaria and Tim Scott, prize winners in our Waltham Forest Poetry competition, read a selection of their work. We shifted gear yet again with Mate – a performance poet from Chingford and a young rapper called “Kitch”  – he was born in the kitchen hence his nickname. Both high energy performances and we ended the evening with a series of poems by Aisling Faheyn who was London’s Young Poet Laureate in 2014/15.

My friend and fellow poet Paul McGrane  MC’d on the Sunday. Unfortunately that evening was interrupted by the arrival of the Fire Brigade: smoke from a food stall outside the building setting off the fire alarm. A red hot start to our year of culture.