Monthly Archives: June 2008

> Unlike me and the Village Garage, some people had the foresight to record what has gone, before it went. Paul Kelly made a trio of short films about London’s cafés called Today’s Special – this one is about the … Continue reading →

>It’s a bad time for the character of London’s soul. From Dusty 7s comes the shocking news that the Village Garage in Bloomsbury is closed and boarded up. This great art deco survivor had been cheerfully pumping petrol from a … Continue reading →

> From flickrite Sunshine Indoors comes the dread news that coffee merchant Angelucci has moved out of Frith Street after 79 years. They’re now going to be trading from East Finchley. I never got around to visiting their dark little … Continue reading →

>.From Argentinian street artist Blu comes this astonishing short film. It’s called MUTO – and to describe it merely as ‘animated graffiti’ is a gross insult. More good stuff here

> There is a very special quality to the light in the area round Archingeay, a hamlet in the Charente-Maritime bit of France we visited last week. We were staying with my wife’s parents in their part-modernised farmhouse, lost in … Continue reading →

> Last sunday was the Great London Rideout, 2008 – the largest classic scooter event in London. It’s an annual run from Regent’s Park to Southend, and each year something like 500 Italian Shopping Bikes take part, as well as … Continue reading →

> These hand-and-ball iron doorknockers are ubiquitous in France. They’re common in Spain, too where the design is more lifelike. This rusty beauty was on a riverside house in Saint Savinien. The property had seen better days but was still … Continue reading →

> During our week in the solidly rural Charente-Maritime region of France, I was struck by just how many villages and small towns had boarded-up shops and bars. Not closed for winter, but closed for good. The death of the … Continue reading →