A Bit of Bling…

This Saturday 10th November is the Lord Mayor’s Show, a brilliant spectacle for a dull autumn day. Wrap up warm and take a brolly – a flask of something good and hot might be an idea too – and take in the pageantry and fun. There are no fireworks this year, but the tradition of a flotilla has been resurrected with the Lord Mayor taking to the barge Gloriana at Westminster.

Check out the full details at the Lord Mayors Show website.

Pearlies & Planting…

We’ve searched and searched for free local events and have only been able to find two… Still, there are loads of places nearby that you can check out – take a peek at our links on the right of the webpage.

This is the last of our weekly ‘free stuff to do’ blogs, but we’ll post occasionally when we hear about anything worth seeing. We will still be posting news about the launderette and anything of interest for the Boundary community, so keep visiting! Don’t forget that the launderette is open 8am until 7pm every day except Bank Holidays, so make the most of your time and get a service wash!

It’s the spectacular Pearly Kings & Queens Harvest Festival on Sunday, 30th September, at 1pm in Guildhall Yard. This annual event features traditional entertainment including maypole dancing, Morris dancers and a marching band. Then the Pearlies will parade around the City of London to St. Mary-le-Bow Church for a harvest festival service at 3pm. The event is free but all harvest festival offerings will be donated to the Whitechapel Mission. See the  Pearly Society’s website for more information.

Postponed from last Sunday due to rain, the Friends of Arnold Circus bulb planting takes place this Sunday, 30th September, from 2pm until 6pm. Fingers crossed the weather co-operates! Keep an eye on the FOAC website for the latest info.

From a humble bulb… © Philip Green

Peeking & Planting…

It’s Open House weekend in London. On Saturday 22nd & Sunday 23rd September over 800 properties across the city will be open to the general public, many of which are usually firmly closed to us, and there will be special events too. Needless to say we’ll be open as alway, so if you’d prefer peeking around an interesting building rather than stare at your smalls as they’re washed and dried, leave your laundry with us for a service wash and enjoy yourself! As ever, we have more links for more ideas on the right of the webpage.

© Open House London

There are so many places to visit locally and the programme does change, so we’ve provided links to the local area pages. You can visit anything from a small terrace house to a grand mansion, and every type of office, place of worship and much else besides. The Open House homepage offers information and links for the whole of London, and the Online Guide allows you to check on individual boroughs and properties. There are pages for Tower Hamlets, Hackney and the City so there’s plenty of choice!

The Friends of Arnold Circus bulb planting afternoon has now been postponed. Check the FOAC webpage for more information.

From a Humble Bulb © Philip Green/Boundary Community Launderette

Music & Games

It looks like it’s going to be a nice weekend – sunny and not too chilly – keep your fingers crossed. We’ve found a few things to see and do for free, and there are loads more ideas on our links to the right of the webpage. As usual, enjoy your weekend whatever you do!

On Saturday 15th September the Great River Race starts from Millwall Riverside, Westferry Road E14, at 10.40am and will pass under Tower Bridge at around 11.15. Over 300 rowers will be taking part in boats ranging from small one-person rowing boats to Hawaiian war canoes, Chinese Dragon Boats and Viking longboats. There will be entertainment and refreshments – check out the Time Out webpage and Great River Race website for more information.

© Time Out London

The annual Brick Lane Music Festival takes place this Saturday 15th & Sunday 16th September. Some of the UK’s top DJs, including MK, Khalil and Thristian will be making sure Brick Lane shakes to the sounds of classic hip-hop and funk. More information is on the Time Out webpage.

The South Bank Centre will be hosting a weekend of fun and games from Friday to Sunday. The Hide & Seek Weekender will include games that appeal to adults and children alike – from competitive sandwich making to punching custard. For the imaginative, weird and wonderful games on offer check out the Hide & Seek website.

Also, the Love Music Hate Racism exhibition continues at Rich Mix. On Saturday 15th September there is an all-day event, (which does charge from £3), that includes film screenings, discussions, poetry, music and comedy. Local photographers and film-makers Phil Maxwell & Hazuan Hashim will be showing their film ‘From Cable Street to Brick Lane’ as part of this event, with Phil taking part in a Q&A session afterwards. Visit the Rich Mix website for more information.

A classic image from the LMHR exhibition

A Barbecue, A Festival and Two Exhibitions!

It’s a weekend of variety with so much going on that there surely must be something for everyone – with some of it right on our doorstep and the BBC weather forecast saying it’s going to be warm and sunny too it’s looking like the perfect weekend!

The No Boundaries annual Shoreditch BBQ takes place this Saturday, 8th September, 2pm until 6pm at Rochelle School. This great local youth organisation holds this event each year to bring the community together - everyone’s invited for good food,  fun activities and good company! Check out the No Boundaries website for more information.

Rich Mix currently has two exhibitions well worth seeing. Look Again – Stories of the World is an exhibition of photographic portraits created by young people and inspired by works of art from The Courtauld Gallery and Love Music Hate Racism – an exhibition of memorabilia from the late 1970s to today. This artwork shows a time when radical music fused with a full on message to create a powerful movement. The exhibitions are open every day, for full details visit the Rich Mix website.

An Iconic LMHR image © Love Music Hate Racism

This weekend is the Thames Festival, with two days of amazing theatrical, musical and boating events on the river, the bridges and on both banks between Westminster Bridge and Tower Bridge. There truly are too many events to list – films, fireworks, fairground rides, food and loads more at locations all along the river. Check out the Thames Festival website to pick an event, or just wander through the parks and riverside on both sides of the Thames in the warm sunshine.

Whatever you do this weekend have a great time and enjoy the sunshine. Don’t forget the launderette is open 8am until 7pm so leave your laundry for a service wash and enjoy yourselves!