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Soviet Tank on Old Kent Road

16/1/2011

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Off Old Kent Road a Soviet Tank is helping wage a one-man war on Southwark Council.  Angry at not being granted planning permission for a new development, local resident Russell Gray followed the only sensible course of action available to him: he bought a decommissioned T34 for his seven year old son and parked it on the disputed land.  Before doing so he applied for new planning permission, not for a building but for a 'tank'.  Assuming that he must mean a container of some description, the council approved the request.  Their linguistic loss is our gain.  Urban legend has it that the turret points at the council offices.  Which it actually does right now. However as the tank is the play thing of graffiti artists and anyone who fancies clambering over a piece of cold war history, it is matter of some luck whether it will when you visit.

Russell bought the T34 in 1995 after it was transported from Czechoslovakia to London, for filming a modern day version of Richard III.   He named the tank 'Stompie', in memory of Stompie Moeketsi - an ANC activist killed by Winnie Mandela's bodyguards in 1988 after they suspected him of being an apartheid government informer.  A not uncontroversial decision given that it is parked at the end of Mandela Way.


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In 2002, Russell first allowed the tank to be painted, when the American artist Aleksandra Mir wanted to turn it a bright shade of pink.  Mir's project harked back to an event eleven years earlier, when Czech sculptor David Cerny painted a similar tank pink in Prague.  The fact that the tank in question was a Soviet war memorial caused a bit of a stir.  Officially the memorial was meant to commemorate the Soviet liberation of Prague from the Nazis.  However for locals it came to symbolise the Soviet tanks that put down the student uprising of 1968 (in which Stompie had taken part).  Whatever its connotations, the government couldn't have it being defaced, so the army repainted it green three days later.  Ten days after that, a group of political campaigners painted it back to pink.  Which meant the government had to give it a green coat again.  Which meant that... Well you get the idea.  Before paint stocks ran perilously low, the government decided it was best for all involved if the tank was removed and replaced with a fountain.  All of which explains why Alexandra Mir went to the trouble of painting Stompie pink and geting a girl in a pink bikini to pose on its turret (ed: does it?). With the precedent set it is now open season on poor Stompie for anyone with a spray can and a dream.  Although obscured now, the latest makeover gave Stompie the colours of a Chicago Taxi Cab.

And what became of the young seven year old boy who received a tank for a present?  In 2006, he was asked to leave an elite private school because of his persistent poor behaviour. His father lost a quarter of a million pound lawsuit trying to fight the explusion.  Is that the rumble of more tanks I hear?

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New Groups, New Questions, Another Great Day

5/12/2010

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Thanks to all those who joined us today at the National Gallery.  You were fantastic hunters and I hope to see you all again on another Hidden Wonders scavenger hunt soon.
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Bonnington Square

25/11/2010

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Bonnington Square is my favourite of London's many hidden gems.  At the Square's heart is a Pleasure Garden that has been beautifully landscaped by the local community.  Hidden among the palms at one end is a giant guardian in the form of an 1860s industrial waterwheel that watches over the trees, flowers and visitors.  The garden alone would be enough to justify a trip across London, but Bonnington Square has much more to offer.  The huge community spirit that went into the garden has overflowed into the surrounding streets, taking the gardens with it.  Every available inch has been used to plant yet more trees, shrubs and flowers.  The pavements feel as if they are bursting into life.  Look a little closer and you'll find that there are open passages winding through houses to yet more community gardens. 

Having explored the gardens I recommend visiting  the small resident-run cafe opposite the garden gates.  Come on the right night and you'll be treated to local musicians and singing staff.  London life and community spirit really doesn't get much better than this.

Robert

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Free Comedy at The Source Below (Soho)

15/11/2010

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In the spirit of the fringe, we are big fans of free comedy.  So it's great to see that Lewis Schaffer is performing free (voluntary collection after the show) every Tuesday and Wednesday evening at The Source Below in Soho.  We'll be going this week, so check back in a few days for a review.

Update:  Lewis Schaffer is a dark and slightly disturbed individual.  But what better material for a comic?  His show is the troubled tale of one American's struggle with divorce, bankruptcy and English culture. None of which has been made easier by his self-professed mild racism.  As he himself admits, no one wants to go see a mildly racist comic:  nice people take offence and true racists think you're a sell out.  Which is perhaps why he still has yet to make his big break through, and until he does he will be 'Free Until Famous'.  So why not give him a go?  You have nothing to lose but your temper.  If you're like his audience tonight, you'll leave feeling happily amused and abused in equal measure. 

Robert
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A great group today for the National Gallery Heist

14/11/2010

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A big thank you to today's Hidden Wonders hunters and especially to Charley.  It was a real pleasure meeting you all and I'm glad you enjoyed it.  It was also nice to see a team get so close to a perfect solution.  I hope you'll be back for more events in the future.

Robert
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Hidden Wonders on the web

27/10/2010

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Today Hidden Wonders is joining the world wide web and giving an open invitation to join us as we explore London.  We'll be using this site to announce upcoming events, uncover unique things to do in London and promote the hidden side of this wonderful city.

The first Hidden Wonders mystery hunt will be the National Gallery Heist.  It is perhaps fitting, then, that our site goes live fifteen years after the theft of five Monet paintings from the Musée Marmottan in Paris.

We hope you'll enjoy what's to come and will join us at one of our events.
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    HiddenWonders is a group of Londoners, united by a passion for exploring their city and sharing the treasures they find with others.

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