If you fancy a cup of coffee and a chat about anything West Ealing you’re very welcome to join us for a coffee this Saturday morning at Silva Cafe anytime between 11.30 and 12.30. The plans for a 60-bedroom hotel are likely to come up along with other changes and developments along the high street. If there’s anything you want to ask or need help with just drop in – we’d love to see you.
Reprieve shortlived as Blockbusters in West Ealing to close
Sadly, the reprieve for the West Ealing Blockbusters has been short. There is a large Closing Down sign now on their window. I’m sorry for everyone who works there and for the loss of what appears to be a profitable branch. It will leave a hole on our high street and it’s a challenge for us as a residents group and others to find a way to bring this part of West Ealing back to life.
West Ealing Neighbours Facebook is nearly up to 150 – join us if you can
Even if you’ve avoided facebook up to now, it might be worth joining just for WEN Facebook which is now romping along with 148 members. I’m a recent convert thanks to others posting in a way which engages me (especially Tony Luckhurst our butcher who was on The One Show talking about horsemeat the other day and was very enlightening).
It’s a bit like local radio where you can chip in in passing, with either a comment to an existing post, or put in your own post about your own event, activities, queries. You can be funny, whimsical, serious, as brief as you like, add pictures/videos, link to other interesting websites; you can be personal or talk about things to do with our town. Think ‘neighbours chatting over garden fence or in the pub or high street’.
You do need to sign yourself up with your own page first (here: http://www.facebook.com/) and then ask to join the WEN Facebook. But you don’t have to accept all or any friend requests or become active within your own page if you don’t want to.
If you already have a FB page, just log on and ask to join WEN Facebook.
Here are some good guides: http://digitalunite.com/guides/social-networking-blogs/facebook .
Hope to encounter you there soon – and here’s hoping we make it to 500.
Bollywood and London: how popular Hindi cinema views London – talk in West Ealing on Monday 11th February
Monday 11 February
7.30 – 9pm
at Ealing Centre for Independent Living Bayham Road, West Ealing W13 0TQ
Bollywood and London: how popular Hindi cinema views London and its inhabitants. Another talk in the series by Angela Ayton
Entrance: £5 including refreshments
Join us for coffee on Saturday morning – 11.30am at Silva Cafe – and find out what’s happening in West Ealing
Come and join us for coffee on Saturday morning 11.30 am at the Silva Cafe in West Ealing (opposite Kwik Fit). We’ve had our winter break and are starting up our coffee mornings on the first Saturday of the month again. The idea is for anyone to join us and contribute to our efforts for West Ealing or come and see if we can help you with any particular problem you have. On Saturday I know we’ll be talking about local policing and community safety, ideas to improve our high street, how to improve our monthly craft market, perhaps even the plans for the new mosque and more.
If you care about what happens to West Ealing you’re very welcome to join us.
What goes on inside our head? – free event at Drayton Court Hotel with leading science communicator on Thursday 7th February 3pm
This sounds interesting and a little challenging! ‘A journey of recovery to the heart of his grey matter following a traumatic head injury’. It’s a free event because the people involved in staging this would like your feedback so they can fine-tune it before it goes on tour.
In 2011, leading science communicator James Piercy suffered a traumatic head injury that made this question more pertinent than ever before. Join him as he shares his at times emotional journey. Find out just what we know about what is in our heads and the effect of brain damage via tales of the brain’s structure, MRI, monitoring and the effects of trauma.
It’s downstairs at the Drayton Court Hotel on Thursday 7th February starting at 3pm.
website www.sciencemadesimple.co.uk or blog http://whatsgoingoninhishead.wordpress.com/
Find out more about the planned redevelopment of the Sherwood Close Estate in West Ealing on Saturday 2nd February
The redevelopment of the Sherwood Close Estate just south of Dean Gardens is the second major housing development in the centre of West Ealing. Building on the Green Man Lane Estate is well under way and is due to last between 8 – 10 years. Work on Sherwood Close will start in 2014 and will last a similar length of time.
Back in October, the Council selected Affinity Sutton to redevelop the Sherwood Close Estate, just south of Dean Gardens, and said that there would be opportunities for local people to get involved with shaping the new estate. On Saturday, 2 February Affinity Sutton, their architects and the Council invite you to come along to a public exhibition where you will be able to meet the team, find out more about their proposals and let them know your views before they progress their plans and submit a formal planning application later in the year.
When: Saturday 2 February – drop in anytime between 11am and 2pm
Where: The Marquee next to Target House by Northfield Avenue
Refreshments will be provided
For more information contact Affinity Sutton on
0300 100 0303
Caravaggio – was he the most original and influential artist ever? Come along to West Ealing on Monday Feb 4th and find out
This talk on Caravaggio is put on by OPEN Ealing on Monday 4th February 7.30 – 9.30pm. The talk is given by V&A guide Colin Lomas and is one of a series of highly entertaining talks by Colin. It’s being held at the Ealing Centre for Independent Living, 1 Bayham Road, W13 0TQ
£5 entry and illustrated notes provided
7.40 – 8.40 illustrated talk
8.40 – 9.30 refreshments & discussion
More information available from Colin Lomas – ring 07909 896541
David gets the T-shirt
It’s not smart, it’s not clever – but it is BIG and also unique and imbued with a huge thank you from local members of the West Ealing community.
WEN’s chair David Highton was cited in this year’s New Year Honours for his contribution to our community in West Ealing which, as most of us know, is considerable.
So local neighbours and tradespeople signed a logo’d T-shirt and thanked him and toasted him in a small local celebration. No royalty were present and he maintains he’ll wear a smart suit and shirt when he receives his well-deserved British Empire Medal later in the year.
Tough times on the high street as Blockbuster goes in to administration
Craft market in St James Ave with Blockbuster on the right corner
Hot on the heels of Jessops and HMV the next high street chain to go in to administration is Blockbuster UK, though it appears it will keep trading whilst a buyer is sought. Blockbuster has a shop in West Ealing on the corner of the Uxbridge Road and St James Ave. This spot is a key one for WEN and others who are working on ideas to reclaim the dead space at the top end of St James Avenue. WEN has run a monthly craft market here since April and OPEN Ealing may move its arts centre to the building above Blockbuster. In addition, there may be TfL money to improve this pedestrianised area at the top of St James Avenue and the Council is putting in a bid for ‘pocket park’ funds to add to the Tfl ones. What happens to Blockbuster on this corner could have an impact on these plans. So we’ll be watching events carefully to see what happens.