Topical Ghosts in Oval

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We love contemporary art and we love Gasworks Gallery in Oval. And while nothing will quite achieve the varnished heights of a previous show which turned the gallery into a Hampstead Heath cruising area, the current offering certainly tries its best. So if your taste includes ghosts who can play the piano while talking about racism, then you’re in for a real treat.

The current offering at Gasworks is by Portuguese American artist Gabriel Abrantes and is called ‘Bardo Loops’. The animated ghosts reference a phase between death and rebirth. Think of them as really articulate zombies. The ghosts talk about a range of topics without the other ghost listening (they are dead after all) in a friendly and almost mocking tone. The challenge for the viewer is that some of these topics are indeed very serious, but made to look trivial. Abrantes uses the ghosts as a way to explore issues relating to loss, illness and vulnerabilities. The manmade disasters unfolding behind them (eg a forest fire) seem minimal as we remain trapped in our own drama, ultimately only getting out of said drama by the use of our phone or AI. Or both.

Bardo Loops is open now until 7 June and is totally free. But please remember that if you want to mingle with the apparitions, the gallery is only open Wed-Sun 12 to 6. If you want even more ghostly fun they are having an artist curators tour on 9 May and a few other phantasmic offerings to be found here.

Kennington Invents the Taxicab…Sort of.

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You’ve probably walked or bussed by the massive red brick and terracotta behemoth buildings at the top of Brixton Rd next to the park but never noticed them. Built in 1905/07, it was the original home of the General Motor Cab Company and oversaw the first wave of motorised taxis in London. This imposing structure has also had an inordinate impact on our vernacular, as three commonplace words were coined in these very buildings….Taxicab, taxi, and cab.

London’s first petrol fuelled cabs were rolled out in 1903 and by 1905 they became the norm, but they of course needed a depot where they could be parked. The garage of the General Motor Company then came into existence with home for over 2000 cabs and one of its first tasks was to get the new motorised whizzies fitted with meters. Thus became the synthesis of the words ‘taxi’ (from the French taxomiter) and ‘cab’ (from the French cabriolet).

In a time before Waymo driverless cabs threatened to mow you down in Kennington Lane, the regulation of taxis was a laborious undertaking and made compulsory by 1907 and an administration extension to the depot was erected that year, likely used to oversee revenues from the cabs.   And for the young ones out there, taxis are something that old people used wave down to get home from a boozy night out. You might still see a few of them about. They’re black and driven by guys named Gary who want to talk to you about football and ‘all those people coming over in boats’.

The current occupant is largely the shared office outfit ‘Workspace’, offering shared and personal work environments at an extortionate rate….but if that subsidises their cheap coffee and free Wifi in their café then we say ‘keep up the good work’!  The building is so massive, in fact, that until recently part of it was rented to the National Theatre as a storehouse for all their costumes. That space is now occupied by Pure Gym, where our PR assistant Adam once somehow managed, with devasting consequences,  to get his shorts trapped in a stationary bike. Other occupants include firms of architects, consultants, catering and, most tantalisingly, a K-Pop dance school. Sign us up!

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Because we all Need a Fresh Start

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Establishments reviewed by the Observer have an unfortunate habit of going bust shortly after they’ve been benighted with our pixie dust, and thus was the case with Unique at 63 Black Prince Rd. in Vauxhall which uniquely managed the feat a mere five weeks after our review. The new occupant is coffee shop ‘Osoji’, which roughly translates to ‘fresh start’ in Japanese.

To these events we usually invite Phil from accounts but he’s lookmaxxing at the moment and unable to even drink a cup of tea. When we pointed out that tea in fact has no calories he muttered something about controlling the amount of fluids in his body, which is funny as he’s never said that in a pub. Moving on, Osoji has the regular staples such as loose leaf tea, cappuccino, flat white, Americano and others.. and on our visit we encountered ACTUAL ITALIAN PEOPLE. We didn’t understand what they were saying but they certainly looked content with their espressos and macchiatos. Thrown into the mix is also a nice assortment of pastries

The demographic of Osoji consists of earnest dog walkers, mums dropping their kids to school, and folks scurrying to work. Customer service facing local businesses live and die largely on their ability to engage with customers and this was in evidence on our visit, as the staff were funny and engaging. It appears that new owner Nancy already knew some of the punters as she worked there before, and it shows. Overall, Osoji is solid spot for a quick brew or to work (they have WiFi). And Osoji, if you’re reading this please be aware that we love your subtle nod to Japanese design

Taro

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We’ve often pondered the why there aren’t more sushi joints in Greater Kennington, and have placed this into the category of the unexplained. Other examples of the unexplained are why people talk about their personal lives over the phone on the 59 bus. Or why you never see a baby pigeon. The only quality sushi joint in our manor is Taro near Kennington Cross. It is so acclaimed, in fact, that it’s been on our Top Ten© list since opening  in 2018. We went on a Tuesday evening and the place was buzzing with friendly, hair flicking folk.

Karen from Finance is still resplendent in her new post Ozempic glory so she left the tempura prawns to your scribe who found them light, airy, but with that savoury crunch we all expect. The sushi came as it was freshly prepared by the chefs in a Izakaya manner from the open kitchen. Izakaya is equivalent to ‘pub food’, but more importantly this word is a great one to throw out in order to impress/condescend to your friends during said meal. Among the first to emerge was the Ebi gyoza. In the inside they managed to stuff prawn, leeks, and cabbage. It was pan fried and delicious with a vinegar soy sauce.

We personally don’t approve of rainbow hued maki rolls with flecks of gold. However, we fully accept that we live in an era of Insta and TikTok where an image can immediately determine the life or demise of a company. And so they arrived, along with a spicy tuna roll and tofu. The rolls were stuffed with cream cheese, chives, prawn and crunchy veg. They were topped with a generous slice of fish and finished off with a dollop of Kewpie mayo. The tofu  was pan-fried and coated in a sweet/savoury sauce made from soy, mirin, and sake. Delicious. As for the tuna, At one point Karen had three large rolls in her mouth at the same time requiring us to lean over and say, tactfully, ‘let’s not go back to the bad old days Karen’. Karen nodded in agreement as she was unable to talk. Evidence if it is needed of the appeal of spicy tuna.

Taro is open seven days a week and also on all delivery services for  the Gen Z’ers who can’t be bothered to walk down the street. Lots of love.

Beauty and Destruction at the Imperial War Museum

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We love nothing more than a four day weekend, but after a fifth episode of ‘A Place in the Sun’ things can get rather, shall we say, boring…..So we’ve decided to build some brain cells by popping over to the Imperial War Museum to see the petite, pop up exhibit ‘Beauty and Destruction: Wartime Art in London’. Its free (we love free) and open throughout the weekend.

Through the medium of oils, watercolours, pen and ink drawings and even letters we can see the destruction wrought through 57 days of the Blitz and beyond. Included are works by Paul Methuen, Evelyn Gibbs and Leonard Rosoman. We frankly have no idea who any of these people are, but they’re good artists who were either commissioned by the government to undertake these works or were casual painters. The most notable of these being Henry Moore. As with all exhibits at IWM, this is not a glorification of warfare, and many of these works are testaments to resilience, depicting mums shopping or people just getting on with their lives. So you have no excuse to get your Guardian reading selves over there.

Beauty and Destruction is on now until 1 November and is totally free. As the exhibit is small, why not pop over to the Blavatnik Art, Film and Photo Gallery on the same floor? They have a number of stunning works and it’s a fun way to spend some time.  Well, if you can sidestep the unfun fact that’s been endowed by a dodgy Russian oligarch. So Guardian readers, you get a free pass on this one.  

Elizabeth Bligh, the Most Patient Person in Greater Kennington

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For a number of years we’ve wanted to write a piece about William Bligh as his family lived in a house facing the Imperial War Museum. However, after a fair amount of research we’ve reached the scholarly conclusion that he was in fact an irascible and nasty piece of work who was given roles he wasn’t qualified for merely because of his connections. That led us to investigate into a more worthy resident of 100 Lambeth Road; his long suffering and patient wife Elizabeth.

When Elizabeth and Bligh married in 1781 she was aware that they would be apart for long periods of time, and after reading his history perhaps that’s one thing that attracted her to him. While not running a household with four kids and staff Elizabeth was a Conchologist; a collector of seashells. Many of which Bligh lovingly obtained as he sailed the South Pacific yelling at people.

Bligh is best known as the cause for the Mutiny on the Bounty, instigated by sailors who grew weary of his incompetence and abuse (Observer bigwigs take note of this). Less well known are his hijinks afterwards. In a ‘deju vu’ moment, several years after the Bounty he was involved in the Nore Mutiny and was once again forcibly removed from the ship has was captaining. Through all of this Elizabeth remained devoted to William and stood by him.

Possibly because they wanted to get him out of the way, in 1806 the Navy appointed  Bligh as Governor of New South Wales. He requested that Elizabeth join him but she promptly shut him down. We’re picturing a Regency version of Elizabeth putting her hand in his face and saying ‘I don’t think so’. When stories began to circulate from New South Wales that he was trying to be deposed, the caricatures and rumours started to fly.  As if she didn’t have enough on her plate, Elizabeth actively campaigned on his behalf by writing letters to persons with influence regarding his fitness to remain and defiance in what became known as the Rum Rebellion.

Despite her prolific letter writing, Bligh was dismissed from his role down under just two years after being appointed. In what must have been a ‘Oh FFS not this again’ moment for Elizabeth, he joined her again at 100 Lambeth Road. Elizabeth was probably Bligh’s only friend, and to repay her for a life spent raising kids, running a household, writing letters and collecting shells Bligh infected Elizabeth with syphilis and she died in 1812, aged 59. Websites indicate that Bligh contracted syphilis by ‘talking to natives in Tahiti’. Well, here at the Observer we know a thing or two about catching STD’s and they aren’t transmitted by talking, thank you very much.

The tranquil family resting point is in the courtyard of the Gardening Museum, next to their very swishy restaurant which we’ve been trying to get the aforementioned bigwigs to fund for ages, to no avail. Could a mutiny be brewing in our underground offices?

Covi-Mora and Greengassi Galleries

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Today we find ourselves in the highly acclaimed yet little known Covi-Mora and Greengrassi galleries,  located incongruously in a kind of alley behind the towers of the Hurley Estate. Commercial galleries can sometimes seem a daunting to normal folk such as us, but rest assured these galleries not only want you to visit but require it to stay afloat. And in spite of the scowl of staff scrolling through their DM’s at reception, they welcome the diversion that your mere presence provides. 

Downstairs at Covi-Mora is a collection of ceramics by artist Sam Bakewell who we’ve seen here before. These are process driven works where you can see how he’s manipulated the clay with fingers and other implements. And in his own words, they ‘hone in on a psychosexual love affair’. OK. The muted colour palette is also very pleasing.  And given that ceramics require a very hot oven, Mr. Bakewell PLEASE tell us your surname is made up.

Upstairs at Greengrassi we encounter an installation of photos and videos by Moyra Davey in which she connects the lives of four artists of Ukrainian descent. The stories are told from Riverside Park in Manhattan, and the arresting photos on the walls we were unable to ascertain if they are current or archival, which is perhaps the point. The galleries also operate a pop up gallery called ‘NEITHER’ at 2 Wincott Parade in Kennington Road. It’s currently showing works by artist Colin Pearson. Access to this site is by arrangement but as it’s in a shop front you can just see the paintings on your way home from the pub. All shows are on until 30 May.

Covi-Mora and Greengassi galleries are located at 1A Kempsford Road SE11 4NU. The entrance looks not unlike the doors to a prison or a sex dungeon (not that we’d know), but once buzzed through by the scowling staff it’s a very interesting visit. And if you’re ever made to feel unwelcome in a gallery, invoke the immortal words of Edwina Monsoon from Absolutely Fabulous – ‘You only work in a shop you know. You can drop the attitude’.

Roam Community Cafe – End the Cycle of Jinxism!

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We often find ourselves strolling past a former Victorian pub at the corner of Tyers and Johnathan St. in Vauxhall and long ago consigned it to ‘jinxed property’ status, as it’s variously been occupied by everything from a creche to a jujitsu studio. It’s with great glee that we can announce that it’s now a community owned coffee shop called Roam with a soft play and role play area downstairs. And for those of you unaware of the concept of soft and role play, it’s about toddlers playing on safe surfaces as opposed to what you might undertake on any given Saturday night.

On the tranquil ground floor Roam serves the usual battalion of pastries in addition to espressos, flat whites, and soft drinks. Our tea was just £1.50. For those lucky/unlucky enough to have little ones, there is a lift down to the basement café. For £4.50 parents can enjoy a range of toys and activities suitable for under 5’s, and they even have a slide. Again, we’d like to remind our readers that the slide is just for kids. In our now famous clandestine guise as normal people, we got chatting with the owners who explained that the concept was derived from them being mothers of little ones themselves and were seeking a place where both the kids and parents can have some variety while chatting with other parents. Both owners also live locally, which we found doubly exciting.  

The ingenious concept behind Roam is that you can support a children’s café without actually having to see children. Don’t get us wrong, we love kiddos. In fact some of us in the office were once actual children ourselves. The Observer celebrates every (good) local enterprise which occupies vacant spaces and especially those which are female owned and operated. On your next work from home day, check them out and end the cycle of jinxism!

It’s Spring. Lets Get Walking!

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A nice springtime walk is a great way to discover more about our storied manor. We here at the Observer get little time outside of our locked chamber but when allowed day release we’ve actually been to several of the walks outlined below. They’re being sponsored by the Lambeth Local History Forum and over 120 walks can be found on their website so you could actually be walking for four months. However, as most of the walks involve leaving Greater Kennington to places like, gasp, Clapham, we don’t recommend it. You’ll notice that some of these events are listed as being free. By ‘free’ they don’t actually mean the event is free. They expect a well deserved tip and their work heralded on social media. We say this as we know most of you lot would nick an ice lolly off a toddler given half a chance.

11 APRIL Saturday 2.30pm

Remembering the Chartist Rally on Kennington Common 178 Years Ago

Friends of Kennington Park

Meet Prince Consort Lodge (Trees for Cities), Kennington Park Road, SE11 4AS

Led by Marietta Crichton Stuart

Booking friends@kenningtonpark.org

18 APRIL Saturday 1pm also 20 JUNE

Bazalgette — The Visionary Engineer

Lambeth Tour Guides Association

Meet Lambeth Palace, SE1 7JU

Led by Yvonne Shorten

Cost £12

Booking bit.ly/4tqW79a

23 MAY Saturday 10.30am

Artists’ Footsteps: A guided art tour of Vauxhall and Kennington

Lambeth Tour Guides Association

Meet Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, Kennington Lane, SE11 5AW Led by Lucia van der Drift Cost £15

Booking bit.ly/4jlCoTG

We attended this last year. It’s primarily about the supper boxes and art around the Pleasure Gardens in the Victorian era, but also references contemporary spaces and artists.

25 MAY Monday 1pm

Lambeth Rocks: Music nostalgia and legendary lyrics

Lambeth Tour Guides Association

Meet Oval tube station, SE11 4PP Led by David Turnbull Cost £10 Booking LambethRockWalk.eventbrite.co.uk

4 JUNE Thursday 1pm

Unseen Vauxhall (1) – The Vanished and the Unnoticed

Lambeth Tour Guides Association

Meet Vauxhall Bus Station

Led by Geoff Fairbairn

Cost £12

Booking UnseenVauxhall4Jun.eventbrite.co.uk

For added comic value it would have been hilarious if this tour had commenced outside ‘Fire’ nightclub just after it closed on Sunday morning. That’s when the real unseen Vauxhall emerges.

14 JUNE Sunday 12noon

Pride and Protests: LGBT+ History Walk of Kennington

Lambeth Tour Guides Association

Meet Triangular traffic island, opposite Oval tubeLed by Adrian Gibson & Clare Truscott Cost £15

Booking bit.ly/4qoQsxK

Someone from the team attended this last year and it was primarily about cruising and the Pride festivals in Kennington Park in the 80’s. Very insightful.

LLHF-walks-2026-V6-FINALDownload

Getting Scary at the Cinema Museum

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There are few things in life more comforting, enriching and soothing to the soul than a good old fashioned trashy horror film. Over at the ‘we bet you’ve never been there’ Cinema Museum at the moment they’re having a bit of a low budget horror moment and we couldn’t be more excited. A ticket also gives you access to the museum which includes scary mannequins, oversized dolls, and pics of long dead horror stars to get you into the spirit of things. And they have a licenced bar.

Friday 14.3. The Return of Dr. X (1939) and Planet of the Vampires (1965)

Billed as being ‘for the connoisseur of the macabre’, the latter being aimed at aficionados of cardboard rocks. The former starring Humphrey Bogart in what must have been a true low point in his career.

Saturday, 15.3 The Big Fat Pussycat (1963)

Cheesy pastiche of NYC beatnick culture and featuring a psycho killer who has a penchant for high heels. YES!

Friday, 20.3 Carnival of Souls (1962)

Following a traumatic car accident, a woman becomes drawn to a mysterious abandoned funfair. It’s happened to all of us at some point.

All of these films kick off at 7:30pm and tickets can be grabbed here. And did we mention they have a bar?

If you’d like more information about the museum’s building and how it influenced the work of Charlie Chaplin, of course we’ve written about it.