See Wimbledon's Artesian Well

An interesting anomaly on Arthur Road in Wimbledon, the Artesian Well is was originally the site of a well dug in 1763.


The well was then deepened in 1798 on the orders of Earl Spencer to more than 500 feet deep taking - we are told - over a year to reach that depth an strike water. By the early nineteen century, the well had silted up and eventually it was finally converted to a house in 1975.

For more, see http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-204990-the-artesian-well-greater-london-authori

Watch VHS at Roxy Bar and Screen

In what could either be an terribly entertaining or completely awful evening, old favourite the Roxy Bar and Screen on Borough High Street this evening screens a tribute to VHS from the 80s and 90s.


For your author - who is not exactly a digital pioneer - it's a bit of a surprise that VHS is some sort of retro thing, but this tribute specialises in amateur film making, hence "rarely seen classics" from all presented as they were meant to be...off of VHS cassettes.

For more, see http://www.roxybarandscreen.com/listings.php?event=2116

_{^Picture © futureshape used under a Creative Commons license^}

Play bingo at Palace Bingo

One evening last week, your author unexpectedly found himself at the Palace Bingo Club in Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre. It was hard to tell whether the experience was good or bad, and it is best described as like going numb in a vast room void of natural light.


An expanse of humanity seemingly sits up there at all hours, listening to the trundle of numbers coming from an apparently disembodied voice, and repeated on screens as far as the eye can see, occasionally hooking up with other clubs around the nation who are presumably playing with similar disinterest.

That said, there's something vaguely exciting about the experience, and whilst your author would have been too worried about getting it wrong to actually call out, the playing was the main thing and the whole experience was relatively cheap. There are also vendors to keep you fed, watered and to fulfil any sort of gambling habit you may have.

For more, see http://www.thepalaces.co.uk/london.php

See Ruskin Park Community Garden

A small area of one of London's lesser-known parks, Ruskin Park Community Garden is a peaceful spot, and has been run by volunteers since May 2010. It's all about growing vegetables, aiming to educate and enthuse local people about them in an area with scant vegetable patches and open to all who are willing to come along and have a dig.


Though their mission statement reads like something straight out of the hippy buzzword encyclopedia - think inner-city carbon-reducing sustainable inclusive diverse community volunteering & recycling - it's clear enough that they like growing their own food and teaching urbanites about the joys of nature and gardening, and that is very admirable.

For more, see http://www.ruskinparkcommunitygarden.org/

Visit St George's churchyard and gardens

Separated from the Church of St George the Martyr in Southwark by a short pedestrianised section of Tabard Street, St George's churchyard and garden is a fairly peaceful place, set back from the hustle and bustle of Borough High Street.


The church itself dates from the 18th-century and the churchyard was opened as a park as early as 1882, when Southwark Metropolitan Borough Council made the necessary arrangements, and in 1903 part of it was lost when the now-pedestrianised section of Tabard Street was extended through it.

In an area with strong Dickensian connections, it is perhaps unsurprising that the church featured in Little Dorrit, but a more intriguing memorial in the alleyway behind the park reminds us that this site once bordered the old Marshalsea Debtor's Prison, where the writer's father John Dickens was imprisoned for three months in 1824.

For more, see http://www.burial.magic-nation.co.uk/bgstgeorgemartyr.htm

Eat at Zeret Kitchen

A decent little restaurant on little square set back from Camberwell Road, Zeret Kitchen specialises in traditional Ethiopian cuisine, served well and with a smile. Though your author doesn't know a lot about Ethiopian food, of the few such restaurants he has experienced this has been the best.


Happily, for those who find deciding difficult, a Zeret Surprise is on offer, combining various Ethiopian dishes with traditional spongy bread, and if the mood takes you and Ethiopian Coffee Service is available.


For more, see http://zeretkitchen.com/

Cycle in the Olympic Velodrome

As avid consumers of Olympic build-up hype will almost certainly be aware, one South London venue from the 1948 Olympic Games remains in active use. The Herne Hill Velodrome was originally built in the early 1890s, and chosen for improvements with the addition of a bitumen track the last time the event was held in London.


Tonight, as with every Tuesday from April until September, from 6pm until 8pm there is an open session of road bike training, offering an unstructured chance to ride where once Olympic athletes competed for medals on a medium banked track. The track reaches 30 degrees at its steepest point, providing an opportunity for road riders to practice in a traffic free environment, and we are told it's especially popular with triathletes and sportive riders.

For more, see http://www.hernehillvelodrome.com

_{^Picture © Paul Wilkinson used under a Creative Commons license^}

Hear the music of Norman Long

A well-known voice in the 1930s, the music of Sydenham-based Norman Long - a BBC entertainer known for his wit, charm and ability to poke fun at the establishment - has all but disappeared into the ether, but for one South-London-singer who is determined to keep his memory alive.


We are told that Norman Long was the son of a Sydenham bootmaker and lived in a house on Queensthorpe Road. During the First World War, he entertained as part of his service, and despite deciding on a career as an insurance salesman after the war, he found the time to write music which gently mocked the establishment, and became famous after recording songs for various BBC programmes including "A Song, A joke, and a Piano".

South London singer Alexandra Carter has decided to revive his work in a concert that, she believes, may be the first time in around 90 years that anyone has heard Norman Long's songs in concert. For more, see https://sites.google.com/site/alexcartersinger/

Attend Speakeasy & Swing at the Half Moon

Tonight we are told to expect the Half Moon in Herne Hill to be transformed with the sounds and tastes of the 1920s, as big band Le Chat Creole entertain us with swing, Dixieland and jazz.


Your author will be there, and not just because a former flatmate is singing, but also because it offers the chance to sip on a Sidecar, feast on fried chicken and pretend that we are back in the 1920s, which were apparently terribly fashionable.

It promises to be a good night and tickets are available at http://www.wegottickets.com/event/168823

Wander on Mitcham Common

During one of your author's regular aimless wanders in South London, he stumbled across Mitcham Common as part of a survey of large green spaces in the A to Z and was not disappointed.


Once dominated by oak woodland, the massive 460 acres of common land are thought to have been cleared as early as neolithic times for grazing, and today the common has a real gritty suburban charm, and is wilder than many green spaces in London, with overgrown scrubland and ponds dominating, and living alongside a full 18 hole golf course.

We are told that the soil here is acidic, and has also suffered from frequent rubbish dumping, but yet the views across the surrounding neighbourhoods and patches of trees and scrubland make it an interesting environment.

For more, see http://mitchamcommon.org/.

Attend London Reads at the Deptford Lounge

Tonight at Deptford's new Deptford Lounge library-community-leisure-space-thing, Londonist Editor Matt Brown is hosting a London book event with two very talented London writers and one lightweight chancer speaking about their books on London.


Your author is joined by Craig Taylor, author of Londoners and we are told erstwhile writer of the Guardian’s One million tiny plays about Britain, and Christopher Fowler, author of am amazing 30+ London novels, notably thrillers such as the Bryant and May mysteries.

For more on all this, see http://londonist.com/2012/05/londonist-presents-london-reads-deptford-lounge.php

Visit the Rookery in Streatham

A small formal gardens which are maintained by Lambeth Council as part of Streatham Common, we are told that the Rookery was once known as Streatham Spa, and was a place where people came to take local spring water for its medicinal and healing properties.


The gardens stood in the grounds of a larger house called The Rookery, and visitors to the Spa declined the Rookery and surrounding woodland were acquired for public use, opening as a public garden in 1913. Today, the spot is a lovely place to while away an hour or so and is popular with local families.

For more, see http://www.freewebs.com/streathamfriends/history.htm

Wander in Belair Park

An interesting local park in West Dulwich, Belair Park is formed from the gardens of the grand Belair House, built in 1785. The park is an interesting green space, with a large open area of grass, tennis courts, and even a stretch of the usually-subterranean River Effra.


Now maintained by the London Borough of Southwark, the park came into public ownership in 1965, and the landscape is Grade II listed, whilst the house is now home to the Beauberry House restaurant.

For more, see http://www.southwark.gov.uk/info/461/a_to_z_of_parks/1290/belair_park

Learn to sail on Island Barn Reservoir

Established in 1959 and sailing on Island Barn Reservoir in the outer ring of South West London, 15 miles from the centre of town, Island Barn Reservoir Sailing Club is a fully operational Sailing Club, offering courses in sailing for beginners and more experienced sailors.


This year, the club is running its annual Tuesday Trysail training course, offering those new to the sport the opportunity to learn the ropes for 13 weeks from 1st May to 31st August, at a bargain basement price of just £75.

For more, see http://www.islandbarn.org.uk

_{^Picture © Copyright Mike Bovington and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence^}

Explore Tooting Commons

Covering a sizable 221 acres, Tooting Bec Common and Tooting Graveney Commons are the largest open space in Wandsworth Borough. A remaining part of common land which once stretched as far as Mitcham, the Commons were protected from encroachment following the Metropolitan Commons Act of 1866, when the Metropolitan Board of Works acquired the land in the 1870s.


Today, the Commons are an important centre for local sporting activities, with football pitches, play equipment, horse riding, fishing, an athletics track and tennis courts, as well as probably the most famous aspect of the commons, Tooting Bec Lido, which reopens in May.

For more, see http://www.wandsworth.gov.uk/info/200073/parks_and_open_spaces/264/the_commons/2

Drink at the Three Stags

Almost unique in that it is a pub run by Greene King that isn't awful, the Three Stags, on the corner of Lambeth Road and Kennington Road in Lambeth, is a good place for a drink on a spring evening, whatever the weather.


On the downside, it does describe itself as a 'gastropub' and has a cocktail menu, and whilst your author has had some very nice chips in there late on a Friday night, and once ordered a shandy at the bar, he is regrettably unable to vouch for whether either the title or the cocktails are worthwhile, or indeed necessary. Still, it's a decent pub, which hasn't had its character ripped out by the pub chain that owns it, and for that we must be thankful.

For more, see http://www.thethreestags.com/

_{^Picture © Ewan Munro used under Creative Commons^}

Visit the Roots and Shoots Garden

A half-acre wildlife garden in Kennington, the Roots and Shoots Wildlife Garden Study Centre is part of a broader project to allow local people to study learn about wildlife.


The garden is home to an array of insect species, as well as breeding and migrating birds and pond life, and is open today for an open day with storytelling, microscope workshops, pond dipping, art and refreshments for all the family.

For more, see http://www.rootsandshoots.org.uk/2012/03/spring-open-day-2/

Walk on Streatham Common

A welcome green space in South London, Streatham Common has a history dating back to the Domesday Book, and 66 acres of common land were formally protected by an Act of Parliament in the 19th Century. Today, it is a lovely spot for a wander, and offers spectacular views over South London.


The Common offers locals and visitors access to a great range of amenities including an area of woodland, where your author kicked through the last of the wintry leaves. Other treasures include a cafe, tennis court, some lovely benches with great views in various directions, the historic Rookery, of which readers can expect to hear more at a later date, and a playground and paddling pool for the children.

For more, see http://www.freewebs.com/streathamfriends/

Listen to jazz at Hideaway

Some of London's best venues are a little way out of the centre of town, and Hideaway in Streatham seems to be making efforts in the right direction, with a full calendar of music nights and other events, including jam sessions and jazz workshops.


Hideaway also offers decent-looking food and drinks, and often reaches beyond jazz to funk, soul, R&B and other types of music.

To see what's on, see http://www.hideawaylive.co.uk/calendar

Explore West Norwood Cemetery

Sprawling across forty acres of South London, West Norwood Cemetery was opened in 1837 as one of the 'Magnificent Seven' metropolitan cemeteries founded to deal with the huge growth of London during the period.


The cemetery is an amazing place to visit, with more than sixty Grade II and II* listed monuments inside, and memorials to many London greats, including underground engineer James Henry Greathead, Sir Henry Tate - the sugar magnate whose collection of art began the Tate galleries - and famous Household Management writer Mrs Beeton. Your author also understands it has some remarkable catacombs, which will have to be saved for another visit.

For more, see http://www.fownc.org/