May 2024

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Award-winning open-air theatre company Illyria will return to Wanstead Park this summer with three family-friendly performances.

The new season begins on 21 July with Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers, followed by The Hound of the Baskervilles on 13 August and Doctor Dolittle on 24 August.

All shows will take place in the park’s Temple enclosure.

In May, June and July, the Wanstead Village Directory will be offering a pair of tickets as the prize for the crossword competition.

Visit wnstd.com/parkshows

In the third of a series of articles charting the challenges facing Aldersbrook Medical Centre, Paul Wildish from the patient participation group explains some of the small campaign victories achieved so far

It’s already two weeks into April as I write this and the patients of Aldersbrook Medical Centre (AMC) still have no resolution to the question: who is going to run our doctor’s surgery after June?

Those who have been following our story here will know that AMC’s patient participation group (PPG) have been busy organising street protests, lobbies and meetings. We aimed to convince the managers of NE London Integrated Care Board (ICB) that the new contract they wanted to impose on us fell far short of our reasonable expectations of service and medical care.

The AMC PPG has been determined in its resistance to the ICB when it constructively forced out our current GP providers by offering a renewed contract with a 10% cut in the budget if they wanted to stay. For a practice already working on a break-even basis, this was impossible for our Richmond Road providers to be able to manage. They felt forced to give notice that they couldn’t continue under those conditions. Since then, the ICB has tried to spin a tale that the providers had decided to hand in their notice out of the blue and that they wanted to give patients ‘security’ by making our surgery a ‘branch’. This would make AMC an add-on to any interested local GP practice that wanted to bid to take us on but not necessarily guarantee us the same level of service.

Since we last reported in this publication, we have taken our case directly to ICB, sending delegates to question their plans and putting forward our alternative viewpoint at two ICB meetings. We were well supported by patients staging friendly protests at the foot of the ICB offices in Stratford. We were also able to put our case to Redbridge Council’s Health Scrutiny Committee. Our delegation was supported by AMC patients who filled the public gallery, demonstrating to the councillors our commitment to the cause. We were pleased to receive a good hearing from councillors on the committee. Following Sarah See’s response on behalf of the ICB, councillors Sheila Bain, Daniel Morgan-Thomas and Bob Chattaway asked probing questions, which drew out the inconsistencies of the ICB’s position. We came away much encouraged with the knowledge the issue would be followed up at a future council meeting.

While it feels it’s a hard slog to gain any traction, we have won some significant concessions, most importantly the ICB abandoning the idea that AMC should be a ‘branch’ of another practice. Instead, they have recognised it should be a second site, fully staffed and realistically funded. We have also persuaded the ICB to reopen negotiations with the Richmond Road providers, whose long-term continuation at AMC is the patients’ preferred solution.

For more information about the Aldersbrook Medical Centre patient participation group, visit wnstd.com/amc

Wanstead High School will be holding a ball next month to celebrate the school’s 100th anniversary.

“Everyone is welcome, be they current parents, former pupils or members of the community who are keen to support the school by helping us raise funds,” said a PTA spokesperson. The event – which will be held in a marquee at Eton Manor RFC on 15 June – includes a three-course dinner and will feature eighties cover band The Nightshift, fronted by two parents from the school (tickets: £60).

Visit wnstd.com/100ball

Wanstead Climate Action has produced a leaflet to give residents ideas on how to attract birds, bugs and other creatures into their gardens.

“Our gardens are increasingly important as wildlife havens and corridors, or they can be with just a few additions and adjustments, for example, being less tidy and leaving leaf and log piles around will provide food and shelter for beetles,” said a spokesperson.

The A3 folded leaflets can be collected from The Stow Brothers (117A High Street), which is sponsoring the initiative.

It’s been 21 years since Marian Temple first put a garden fork into what she calls an SPPS (Sad Patch of Public Soil). Out of that small action grew the dedicated Wanstead Community Gardeners, who invite you to celebrate with them this month

In April 2003, the power of ‘feduppery’ kicked in big time when I was walking past the Corner House Garden, a sorry sight indeed! Waist-high in weeds and full of takeaway food rubbish and pigeon spikes that had descended from on high. What a sight! What did the hundreds of people who walked past it every day think about it? Something had to be done. 

With the encouragement of the Wanstead Society and agreement of the council, a small group of us got going to turn this sad patch of soil into the cottage garden that has graced our High Street for the last two decades. Weeds and rubbish out, compost and leaf mould from our own gardens added and joined by plants from our gardens and those of passers-by. Hey presto! In its first summer, it was a great improvement and by the second year (pictured here) it was a total delight. The hollyhocks had always been there but they were joined by seven-foot high mulleins, a British native, achillia, crocosmia, anthemis, poppies… the list is endless. We used wild flowers and cottage garden plants that would need little maintenance and wouldn’t be fast food for the slugs.

An old-fashioned garden is a constantly changing procession of flowers, each flowering in its season. There’s always something new to see. This iconic garden has been a favourite with Wansteadians ever since its inception. I loved it when an elderly lady told me: “I haven’t seen that flower since I was a kid. It was in my nan’s garden.” Yes! We’ve arrived. That’s what we wanted. A cottage garden in the middle of a London high street. Not bad!

That was the beginning of the story and it was a long time ago. We still carry on in an effectively ramshackle way, but we are a bit more official now, meaning we are a small charity, have insurance, a bank account, have done our first-aid courses etc. However, our propensity for land grabbery proved insatiable. Our real estate portfolio is bulging. We maintain over 40 patches of former SPPS (Sad Patches of Public Soil) from near to the Green Man roundabout in Leytonstone down to Snaresbrook. Our patches range from modest tree pits to perennial borders and full-sized gardens. We have a Gravel Garden where the drug dealers used to do their stuff. They disappeared. A traffic roundabout has been turned into the quirkiest garden patch ever with a “Back in 10 minutes” sign and the present jewel in the crown is a wall garden. I don’t mean a garden surrounded by a wall. I mean a garden on top of a wall. Basically, no sad patch of unloved earth is safe from our depredations. 

We’ve had 21 years of this. Time to celebrate. On Sunday 19 May, we will be in the back garden of the Corner House for tea and cakery. With photos of our years of activity, we’d be delighted to see and chat with you. Please join us and celebrate 21 years of street gardening in Wanstead.

The Wanstead Community Gardeners will be holding a celebration with refreshments and displays in the back garden of the Corner House (opposite the Co-op) on 19 May from 2pm. For more information, visit wnstd.com/wcg 

Parish organists of the past will be celebrated this month as the May Music Festival returns to St Mary’s Church. Plus, there’ll be a variety of performers, all with a local connection, says festival director Alison Wells

Following the inaugural festival last year, we are very pleased to present this year’s event, which has a feast of music and performers, all with a local connection.

As you’ll see on the poster, we start with a saxophone quintet led by Melanie Henry, an Aldersbrook resident whom I first encountered when we were both professors at Trinity Laban Conservatoire. Melanie is bringing a quartet of brilliant young players from Trinity Laban, including another Aldersbrook resident, and they promise a highly entertaining evening of a wide range of music with Melanie herself playing and compering.

The organ day, which proved very popular last year, will feature a talk about organists past and present of the Parish of Wanstead. There have been a few well-known composers, for example, Healey Willan (1880–1968), who was Director of Music from 1900 until 1903 and who later emigrated to Canada in 1911. He was an expert on plainsong and we are aiming to have a few of his organ pieces played in the concert.  

Also well known was Montagu Phillips (1885–1969), who succeeded Healey Willan, although he was better known for his popular songs rather than his organ works. However, we’re hoping to include some of his compositions.

Parishioner Davis Watson has also been digging around in the archives to find out more about the previous Directors of Music and has found interesting characters there, including some ancestors of present-day parishioners. Davis and Michael Tivey, one of our team of organists, will be giving a talk about them – and they promise a few organist-related jokes! This will be followed by a recital of organ music by members of the parish team and other local organists or those connected with the parish.  

And the Bank Holiday Monday will see the extraordinary spectacle of All Rest, a site-specific composition by local composer Simone Spagnolo, setting words by the writer Serena Braida. The audience will join a chorus of ghosts as they take you around the churchyard to meet some of its inhabitants. Featuring six solo singers and instruments, this is a world premiere coming to Wanstead. Be sure not to miss it.

Tickets for all events are available from Wansteadium using the QR code on the poster and there will also be tickets available on the door. Please note, tickets for All Rest will be limited to 40, so book up early for that one. Why not buy a season ticket for all three events and save a little on the price? We’re really looking forward to welcoming you all to our beautiful church of St Mary’s.

For more information and to book tickets, visit wnstd.com/may24

Ahead of a Living Landscapes concert in Aldersbrook this month, The Woodford Singers’ musical director Kath Savage offers some insight into her own musical journey

I trained in music at Dartington College of Arts, studying singing and flute, launching my solo career with several performances of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, subsequently singing for several years with The Cornel Music Group, and also with the BBC Northern Singers. After further freelance work in the National Tour and West End production of Cabaret, I met my husband, a West End musical director. 

I also worked for the Council for Music in Hospitals giving concerts for long-stay patients in hospices, hospitals and prisons, bringing music to those not able to venture out, and to some who had lost their connection with the art for whatever reason. I became increasingly interested both in the physiology of the voice itself and the psychology of singing. 

Singing has always been a huge part of my and my family’s life. Believing I could sing anything, I took on everything that was offered, so my voice deteriorated with overwork; I lost confidence and indeed the very essence of my being. As I now know, many performers suffer such burnout and I am eternally grateful to two mentors who helped pick me up and put me back on track.   

This, plus marriage, changed my direction from performing to teaching, leading several school music departments. For 12 years, I was the singing coordinator at Performers College, one of the UK’s major stage schools, and later taught at Bird College. It has been a privilege to nurture developing voices, guide young professionals and rehabilitate ‘shot’ voices, which continues to be most rewarding in my own private practice.  

In 2011, I came into contact with a small number of women eager to sing, but who sought guidance to develop into a musically tight and high-quality choir. This small group soon became the nucleus of The Woodford Singers, now numbering 30 committed members, who I am proud to lead and work with on Wednesday evenings.

The choir started with a handful of singers and some shaky performances in small venues. We now perform to sell-out audiences across Essex and North East London, and we’re looking forward to celebrating our 15th anniversary in 2026. Next year will see our second performing tour, this time to the Isle of Wight. Another important development is the patronage of Canadian composer Sarah Quartel, who will soon be travelling to the UK to watch ‘her’ choir perform. But readers won’t have to travel quite so far; we’ll be performing in Aldersbrook this month.

The Woodford Singers will perform at St Gabriel’s Church, Aldersbrook on 19 May from 5pm (tickets: £10; under-12s: £5). To book tickets, visit wnstd.com/ws19may

For more information on The Woodford Singers, visit woodfordsingers.co.uk

Actress Greer Garson – who was born in Manor Park on 29 September 1904 – will be the subject of a Wanstead Historical Society presentation this month.

“She was a major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during the war, famous for playing strong female characters, including Mrs Miniver. She starred in over 30 films,” said a spokesperson.

The talk will take place at Wanstead Library on 13 May from 8pm (visitors: £3).

Call 07949 026 212

A formerly empty garden plot at the junction of Blake Hall Road and Blake Hall Crescent has been taken over by a group of community gardeners.

“After much negotiation and paperwork, the plot was handed over to us by Simon Stodel, Neighbourhood Engagement and Education Officer at Redbridge Council. On 20 April, 13 volunteers met at the site. We prepared the area, sowed wild flower seeds provided by the council and planted a variety of plants,” said Rosemarie Coffey from the Lakehouse Estate and AHS Gardeners.

In the 39th of a series of articles, David Bird from the Redbridge Music Society introduces guitarist Adam Brown, who will be returning to Wanstead to perform this month

Redbridge Music Society, currently celebrating its 75th anniversary season, continues its current project of bringing high-quality live chamber recitals to the borough with a solo recital given by classical guitarist Adam Brown. On 14 May at Wanstead Library, Adam will perform a programme of guitar music with a Spanish and Latin American flavour.

Scottish-born Adam Brown lived in Wanstead for a number of years and taught guitar at Forest School. He studied at the City of Edinburgh Music School before starting studies with the internationally famous guitarist Carlos Bonell at the Royal College of Music London, where he received a BMus (Hons) degree and several prestigious awards. He then studied with classical guitarist Sharon Isbin at the Juilliard School in New York City, obtaining a Master of Music degree and subsequently becoming the first guitarist to receive the Artist Diploma, the Juilliard School’s most prestigious performance award. He gained a Doctorate in Musical Arts at the University of Southern California where he studied with the celebrated guitarists William Kanengiser and Pepe Romero. 

Adam has performed throughout Europe, the United States and South America. Numbered among his many concert appearances are recitals at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall in New York, St Martin-in-the-Fields, the Southbank Centre and the Wigmore Hall in London. He has performed at such renowned music festivals as Aspen (USA), Spoleto (Italy), Amsterdam International Guitar Festival (Netherlands), Edinburgh International Fringe Festival and the International Guitar Festival at Kings Place, London. He has also performed throughout the United Kingdom as a Making Music Selected Artist.

Adam’s first solo album on CD, The Rebels Within, featured 20th-century masterpieces by composers such as Benjamin Britten, Lennox Berkeley and others. His second album, Gladios, released in 2010, highlighted the melodic lyricism of music from Latin America and showcased works by prominent Latin American composers such as Lauro, Montes, Piazzolla and Barrios. Without Limits – An American Century of Music for Guitar, released in 2013, explored the guitar’s pre-eminent role in American cultural life by presenting a number of contemporary genres that cross boundaries between classical and popular music. Adam’s more recent album Pássaro de Madeira, released in 2019, returns to the musical migrations and creativity of Latin America, providing distinctive insights into its rich and diverse culture.

Please come along to hear Adam perform and to support Redbridge Music Society’s 75th anniversary!

Adam will perform at Wanstead Library on 14 May from 8pm (tickets on the door; visitors: £12; members: £8). Call 07380 606 767. Redbridge Music Society is affiliated to Making Music.

Having spent the last 26 years running Anne’s Newsagents opposite Nightingale Green, Ash and Paula Patel bid a fond farewell and reflect on their memories. Photo by Geoff Wilkinson

It has been an honour and a privilege to serve the Wanstead community from the heart of Anne’s Newsagents for the past 26 years. As we turn the page to our next chapter, Anne’s Newsagents will transition into new hands. While we look forward to the future with excitement, we can’t help but feel a bittersweet sentiment as we reflect on the past.

In 1998, we embarked on a journey from Southampton to London, seeking the vibrancy and diversity this magnificent city offers. We found our haven in Wanstead – a lovely family area known for its strong community vibes. As we reflect on the years gone by, our hearts are filled with cherished memories of countless customer interactions. From lighthearted chats about lottery dreams and passionate football debates to sharing homemade food and experiencing the kindness of receiving birthday cards, gifts and flowers – every moment has etched a permanent place in our hearts.

We’ve had the privilege of watching young families blossom, witnessing children mature into adults and observing the enduring essence of Wanstead. These experiences have been priceless, highlighting the unique character and continuity of our community.

As we prepare to turn the page, we look forward to a change of pace, embracing the opportunity to relax, embark on family holidays and reconnect with relatives across the globe. While we will deeply miss the daily interactions that have brightened our days, we are filled with excitement for the new adventures that await us.

We cannot express enough our gratitude for the support, business, loyalty and, most importantly, the friendships you have graciously offered us over the years. You have been an integral part of Anne’s Newsagents and our lives, and for that, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

Anne’s Newsagents is located at 86 Nightingale Lane, Wanstead, E11 2EZ