Demolition of BBC Car Park to Begin in June

The old BBC Car Park on Wood Lane is to be demolished; work will start on or around 11th June 2021. 

The old car park is a massive structure filled with concrete ramps, and with deep foundations.  It will take "at least 35 weeks" to remove it, so local residents in Macfarlane Rd must brace themselves for many months of noise, mess and general disruption.

The new building is to be constructed by Peabody Trust; it will be called Macfarlane Place, and comprises two buildings, including 142 "affordable" housing units. 

Humans of Shepherd's Bush - No 15

Meet Gary Rawlings, the finest window cleaner in Shepherd's Bush.  Gary knows everyone in our neighbourhood; his family have been in the area since 1880; his great-grandfather was a local coffin maker.

Today, Gary cleans the windows of the Bush with rain water he collects in his garden - purer than water from the mains, and better for your windows. 

Gary is a busy man and his order book is pretty full - but his inside-and-out service is well worth the wait.

"Tiny Forest" Planted in Hammersmith Park

"Tiny Forest" in Hammersmith Park

According to recent news reports, Hammersmith Park is set to house London’s first "Tiny Forest", planted in the old Bowling Green in the Park.  

Our Council, LBHF, posted a news story about the forest back in March.

But where is this forest? And how do you get there? Turns out, it isn't that easy to find, and there isn't any legitimate public access.

Why is Shepherd's Bush Green Such a Mess?

Spring has come at last, good news us all, but bad news for poor Shepherd's Bush Green, which once again has become a public rubbish dump.

Local resident Sonia Carnelli has written to our local council, and councillors, to express her own response to the problem.

Sonia isn't just complaining; she also offers a number of possible solutions that might make things better.

After all, it surely cannot be impossible to clean up Shepherd's Bush Green.  Giving up on our public green spaces - which can at times feel like no-go zones - cannot be the right choice for our neighbourhood.

The Guerrilla Gardeners are Back

The Guerrilla Gardeners are back, planting flowers in the beds of street trees in Shepherd's Bush, quietly and anonymously making our neighbourhood just a little bit nicer to live in. 

Amidst the noise and grunge of Shepherd's Bush, local people are making their own small contribution to keeping our streets feeling loved and cared for.

Why not adopt a local street tree of your own, perhaps the one outside your front door? Eight-packs of bedding plants can be bought from the Brook Green Tesco for just £2 a pack, less than the price of a coffee.

Cherry Blossom in the Bush

Blossom in the Bush

Some years ago I lived for a time in Japan, and experienced the annual festival of Hanami, the Japanese celebration of Cherry blossom.  

The citizens of Tokyo gather every year in the gardens of the Imperial Palace to experience the blossom filtering the sunlight and gently falling on the grass. 

We may not have any palaces in Shepherd's Bush, but we have many cherry trees, and at this time of year our streets become a riot of white and pink blossom, as the cherry trees come into bloom. 

White City John Lewis to Re-Open After Lockdown

John Lewis to re-open at Westfield

The John Lewis Partnership confirmed yesterday that the White City John Lewis will re-open after Lockdown.

This will be reassuring to those who had feared that the flagship store might be on the list of post-Lockdown closures; John Lewis lost over £500m in the last financial year.  

Westfield, which is currently almost deserted, will again become Europe's biggest shopping mall once it re-opens after Lockdown ends.  At its heart is the £33 million John Lewis store, which first opened in 2018.

Woody's "Woodisms" Become Lockdown Art

Woody is eight years old, lives in Shepherd's Bush and attends the same school as my own children. He is a little bit different from the other kids; he has autism, and today, Woody's unique way of viewing the world has led to a new line of Lockdown art, including greetings cards, which feature Woody's unique take on life under Lockdown. To see more, and feel a genuine sense of inspiration about the ways in which special needs can indeed lead to special gifts, watch the BBC video above.  To support Woody and buy his art, go the official site at www.woodism.co.uk.

Scaffolding Goes Up at St Stephen's Church

Scaffolding goes up at St Stephen's

St Stephen's church on the Uxbridge Road has finally raised most of the £220,000 needed to re-roof the church buildings, and scaffolding is going up for work to begin.

It has taken the best part of a decade to raise the money, largely through the dogged efforts of Juliet Byford, chair of the St Stephen's Roof Committee. 

St Stephen's is an inclusive church that welcomes people from many different backgrounds, a place where diverse communities come together.  

What About a Lido for Shepherd's Bush?

Saltdean Lido

Shepherd's Bush film-maker Eddie Morgan has an idea for improving life in our neighbourhood - a Lido.  

Lidos are - so says the Guardian - experiencing a revival in the UK, so why can't we have one in Shepherd's Bush? 

Worthless Bicycle Pinched in Shepherd's Bush

Like many people in Shepherd's Bush, I like to cycle around the neighbourhood, but I don't have any storage for my bike, so I leave it chained up in the street. 

Knowing the problem of bicycle theft in London, my solution has always been to own an ancient bike that no-one in their right mind would bother to steal; in my case, an ancient Raleigh ladies bike of uncertain vintage.

Two Brook Green Markets From Saturday

Brook Green now boasts two Farmers' Markets on saturdays. The original Brook Green Market, which has taken place in Addison Road (entry from Bolingbroke Rd) every Saturday morning since 2014, has moved to new premises on Masbro Rd since Saturday 6th March.

The new market site is St Mary's Catholic Primary School, 40 Masbro Rd, Brook Green, W14 0LT, and takes place every Saturday as usual from 9.30am until 3pm.

The old Addison Road site will also, from this coming Saturday 20th March, play host to a new market, branded as the "Urban Street Food Fest" (see poster on left). 

Shepherd's Bush Green Road Closed

Traffic is being re-routed on Shepherd's Bush Green today, as works continue on what looks like a burst water main. 

Traffic traveling along the south side of the Shepherd's Bush Green cannot turn North, at least until the works are complete.

Ginglik Applies for Planning Permission for Restaurant

Edwardian loo, later Ginglik nightclub, now derelict

The former Ginglik nightclub on Shepherd's Bush Green has put in an appplication for planning permission (note that you may have to log in to the LBHF site to see the details).

The application is for a change of use, from a nightclub to a restaurant.

This surely good news for this long-neglected corner of Shepherd's Bush Green.

Brook Green Market Moving to Masbro Rd

Brook Green Market, which takes place every Saturday morning, has outgrown its old home and is moving to bigger premises on Masbro Rd from tomorrow, Saturday 6th March.

Brook Green Market is moving to a new, bigger site, down the road at St Mary's Catholic Primary School, 40 Masbro Rd, Brook Green, W14 0LT.

The new larger location is able to host more stalls, more fresh produce and street food. 

The family-friendly Brook Green Market takes place every Saturday from 9.30am until 3pm. 

To see more details, visit their official site:

http://www.brookgreenmarket.co.uk/

World Book Day Comes to Shepherd's Bush

Spot the real Mr Twit

World Book Day came to Shepherd's Bush today.   World Book Day is a charity event held annually in the UK and Ireland on the first Thursday in March. 

On World Book Day, every child in full-time education is given a voucher to be spent on books; the event was first celebrated in the UK in 1995.

Local primary school St Stephen's Head Teacher Michael Schumm got into the spirit, leading the dressing-up as a very plausible Mr Twit from Roald Dahl's classic children's tale "The Twits". 

Yellow Post Box on Uxbridge Rd

Some things in life are just supposed to be, like red buses, red phone booths - and red post boxes. A yellow post box isn't part of the British landscape, it just feels - wrong.

And, yet here is one today, on the Uxbridge Rd, freshly painted, in all its garish finery, as if to say "look at me, I'm a yellow post box. What are you going to do about it?" 

There is even a helpful chalk mark on the ground announcing "wet paint" to prove its newness.

What can this mean? Is the Post Office changing its colours? Or perhaps they have run out of red paint?

No Bridge? How About a Ferry Instead?

A new campaign has been formed to petition Richmond Council for a ferry to replace Hammersmith bridge for up to five years, while our Council, TFL and Whitehall argue over who should foot bill to repair Hammersmith Bridge.  

The campaign needs more signatures; would you support a ferry being in place for five years to replace, temporarily, Hammersmith Bridge? To offer your support, click on this link and then click on the box that invites you to leave a comment.

Sponsored Community Cookathon for Shepherd's Bush

On St Valentines Day, February 14th 2021, Shepherds Bush families are taking part in a "Sponsored Community Cookie Cookathon for Streetyltes" to raise £5,000 for a new oven for St Stephens Church in Shepherds Bush. 

The new oven is needed to feed homeless people in Shepherd's Bush, as the old oven is broken, and you cannot serve hot meals without an oven.

BBC Car Park on Wood Lane Sold to Peabody

Proposed Peabody Trust Buildings on Wood Lane

Peabody Trust, one of the UK's oldest charitable housing associations, is to acquire 142 affordable homes at Television Centre in White City, on Wood Lane. 

According to a recent press release, developer Stanhope have have exchanged contracts with Peabody for 142 new affordable homes in two new buildings at Television Centre, London, W12.

The buildings form part of the Television Centre development.

Designed by Maccreanor Lavington Architects, the new buildings will replace the existing former BBC multi-storey car park on Wood Lane, W12, opposite Westfield.