One woman’s life transformed by London homelessness charity
By Keith Fernett, Chief Executive of Caritas Anchor House Caritas Anchor House is a residential and life-skills centre for single homeless adults, based in the London Borough of Newham. They act as a beacon of hope to those who need it most in their community, and offer a home and support to up to 250 homeless people every year. By providing education, guidance and personal rehabilitation, they support their residents to grow in confidence and move towards leading independent, self-fulfilling...
Charity fundraising in 2017, whatever next?
By John Baguley, the Chair of the International Fundraising Consultancy With fundraisers following bankers onto the naughty step, uncertainty over the effect of Brexit on accessing funds from Europe, and a new draconian fundraising regulatory regime set up to curb aggressive fundraising techniques, 2016 will definitely go down as annus horribilis for the not-for-profit sector. Public confidence in charities was damaged, fundraisers were concerned about income levels dropping off proverbial cliffs, and charity services to the vulnerable were hacked cut....
Playlist: Best of FEBRUARY 2017
It looks like January was no fluke. Aside from a shaky Grammys (Lemonade snubs but congrats Chance!) February has been seriously solid for good music. First up we have our cover star, Sampha, who put out his debut LP this month. If you're looking for smoothed-out RnB with an electronic sheen, Process is well worth your time. Elsewhere we've got a gutsy combo of Priests and Lowly delivering crisp indie in two flavours over 'Lelia 20' and 'Prepare the Lake', and pure funk fun...
Tomato Red: Film Review
By Stephen Mayne @finalreel Tomato red is almost the colour of Jamalee Merridew’s hair, and it’s the name of the Daniel Woodrell novel from which this film is adapted. Woodrell has written nine novels to date, a number of them set in the bleak forgotten lands of the Ozarks; mountainous country crossing over Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma. There’s clearly something cinematic about his work because two previous novels became the excellent Ride with the Devil (1999) and Winter’s Bone (2010)....
It’s Only the End of the World: Film Review
By Stephen Mayne @finalreel On cursory inspection, the new film from French-Canadian wunderkind Xavier Dolan, the sixth already from a man not due to turn 28 until next month, is a distant proposition. It seems sterile and forbidding, full of stagey artifice, which is not necessarily a surprise given it’s an adaptation of Jean-Luc Lagarce’s play of the same name. And it is all these things, only very deliberately so to achieve an even greater impact. The premise is simple...
We Are The Flesh: DVD Review
By Leslie Byron Pitt I’m sure some will consider me a philistine for my dislike for We Are the Flesh. Some may perhaps consider me a wuss. Indoctrinated on too main mainstream cinema to deal with the more shocking aspects of Emiliano Rocha Minter’s transgressive art film. It’s clear that We Are the Flesh is looking to push boundaries and borders and arouse reaction within a viewer. Even if they are ones of disgust. I, however, found myself bored and...
Beer of the Week – Wild Card Brewery ‘Jack of Clubs’
Brewed: Walthamstow, London Strength: 4.5% ABV Founded on the back of a hobby that turned into an obsession, Wild Card Brewery functions from its own site in Walthamstow, having opened at the beginning of 2014. Since launching, Wild Card has become renowned for producing no-nonsense, uncompromising beers with a four-strong core range inspired by playing cards. These include ‘Queen of Diamonds’ hoppy IPA, ‘King of Hearts’ blonde beer, ‘Ace of Spades’ London Porter, and ‘Jack of Clubs’ ruby ale. Brewed with British...
Theatre Review: The Cherry Orchard, Arcola Theatre
A tall narrow bookcase dominates Iona McLeish’s set design on director Mehmet Ergen’s stage. It’s never ending length, reaching to the stars, and with a cherry tree exploding up and ripping through its belly, is a metaphor for Mme Ranevsky’s pipe dream that somehow her family estate will be saved and that life will continue for her and her entourage as much as it has done in spite of the social, political and economic turmoil that will soon hit Russia....
Britain in the grip of a Caravan and Motorhome Boom
Britain is in the grip of a caravan and motorhome boom, according to new research, with more families than ever opting for touring holidays. There are currently 755,000 UK touring caravans and motor homes in use and this figure is set to rise to 807,000 over the next five years – and to 889,000 by 2030. The analysis by the Centre for Economics and Business Research was commissioned by newly renamed the Caravan and Motorhome Club too celebrate its 110th anniversary this year. A survey of 2,000...