Drinking, dancing, taking a nice young lady to the cinema - all the things that make life worthwhile
Music
Kinks, Small Faces, The Who - Londoners, not like those scouse twats the Beatles.
Bowie - he might look like a lady sometimes, and occasionally sing about gnomes, but he's a proper London (Bromley) Boy. He knows the price of a pound of apples, narmean?
Movies
Notting Hill - I have aspirations
Television
If I had my way, the only programmes they'd show would be The Two Ronnies, Man About the House, George and Mildred, Rising Damp, and 1970s reruns of Crossroads
But now... it's all Sky... obviously
Books
Books... I don't read books... I burn books...
Heroes
Walworth's finest, Mr Charlie Chaplin!
Enzo Goldfinger - designer of Metro Central - "Stalin's buildings as they should have been!"
And the bloke that made the Faraday Memorial - out of steel and not glass, in case the local lads trashed it, ha ha ha!
Mr Elephant's first albums are now up in the blog - sadly in the wrong order 'cos MySpace keeps messing with them. Click on any pic to take you to the Flickr site if you'd prefer. Mr Castle's albums are currently being prepared. Feel free to comment
Elephant & Castle is in your extended network view more
About me: Welcome! I'm Elephant and Castle – you’ve probably heard of me. The Picadilly Circus of South London they used to call me – only I don’t get as many tourists and I like it that way. I’m a love or hate figure – well, let’s be honest, everyone hates me – and I love it.
There’s a lot of theories about my name – the one I like was that King George I put his wife in prison and had two fat girlfriends. They were so fat Londoners used to call them the elephant and the castle. But they’re all wrong. I was named after Mr Elephant and Mr Castle, the best comedy double act ever to grace the music hall stage. They even gave our own Mr. Chaplin a run for his money. “Mornin’,” Mr. Elephant. “Afternoon,” Mr. Castle. Now that’s comedy - they don’t write them like that anymore….
But past is past – that's all forgotten. Really, I was born in the ’61 with the Faraday Memorial (the silver box) and left school in ’74 when they put the last screws into Heygate – you don’t need to know about the rest. Those were my glory years – they defined me, they made me what I am today. I was intended as “one of the world’s great traffic spectacles” – and today I’m the fifth most dangerous road junction in London. I reckon they’re lying, I’m sure I’m top 3. Probably so many round here don’t have insurance or even a licence, they do a runner and nobody hears.
You’ll maybe know me for my Shopping Centre, used to be a lovely shade of pink till that Lenny Henry painted it red to match his nose. I ask you. Huh! You know I think liked it best back when I was shiny and new and the locals stayed in East Street and wouldn't touch the place. It's not a centre for people, I wasn’t designed for them, I was designed for cars, I was designed for pipe-dreams and utopian futures. People don’t belong in the centre anymore, not since they tore down the cinema and the dance hall. Just think how beautiful I’d be if they fenced me off and left me as an open air museum, where always it’s 1973, and the TV is always showing the test card, with that bird and the blackboard. Hhahahahahahaa
I never stood a chance really, I was written off before I was even finished. As early as ’67 the architects were slagging off me and my brummie mate Bullring; they said we were “two major and uncomfortably visible blunders born of over-confidence.” Architects, what do they know? They conceived me, they wanted to abort me, and now they want to put me to sleep. They want to tear me down and start again, just like they did in the 60s. Rip out my guts and divert my lovely traffic. Norman Foster said that if buildings last any more than 30 years it’s a bonus - well, it is with the shoddy crap he builds, haaahahaha! so I’ve had me time. Like the ghost of Christmas Present my time on this earth is shortand the developers are at the door again.
But I’m smarter than them, see. I’m going to dodge the wrecking ball and escape into this virtual world. They can flatten my body but my soul lives on, be my friend and we'll have a fine time ... Because I’m Elephant and Castle, and this is MY-Space, and I make the rules round here, narwhaImean?
Click here - to see what they're planning for me
Who I'd like to meet: Timmy Mallet, Pat Sharpe and Barbara Windsor.
Funny you should say that about being away too long, I went back yesterday (05/04/08)to meet a few old Walworth School mates for beers around the area. ended up in the Slug and Lettuce at the Borough, untill it had to close early due to about 20 Millwall fans coming in and going totally mental. Glasses smashed, jumping up and down on the bar, you have never seen a bar empty so quickly Police were called and they just shut the place down. ended up at the Anchor Bankside. Ahhhh it was good to back. brought back so many memories.
I have moved away from Sarrff London and I love the photos. Is there any news on a new batch being posted. I always call the place a shithole but these photos make me feel almost homesick 'specially the one with a clear blue sky or the one that was taken at dusk. Please please please post some more of your blinding work
I don't often have time to send a comment to all on my list, but trying to do the rounds this weekend ;) Wishing you a happy weekend and a good week ahead. Keep smiling! Peace and Hugs Carol xxx
was watching some short films about the E & C today in a solar pwoed movie house in elephant rd. also meet Mr Don Letts ( see blog and photo) where were you . I hope you are going the Trojan Sound System at the coronet next sunday, would love to have a dance with you xxxx
hey Elefest is here again and tomorrow on Elephant Rd Mr Don Letts will be holding a Q&A then a showing of his new doc/film on SLF . what more does a girl need!
