Tin-Tone’s Magical Guitars

By Tom | Published: 7 July 2010

All photos by Ben Hopper (http://THEREALBenHopper.com)

I’ve always loved guitars. Even though I can’t play to save my life I just can’t help but stop in front of music shops or any other collection of those beautiful shiny instruments. Imagine my surprise then to find a collection of the strangest and prettiest little guitars I have ever seen in a random window on our very own Church Street.

A selections of custom guitars at Jon Free's Tin Tone

A selections of custom guitars at Jon Free's Tin-Tone (photo by Ben Hopper)

Here lives and works Jonathan Free of Tin-Tone, who has been a musician with bands like Gin Palace, Penthouse, Country Teasers and The Cesarians for over 23 years, a live sound engineer for 10, and who has been building and repairing guitars for a very long time. The window in question is where you find his workshop, and what I found there was a little guitar magic…

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Desperately seeking… Tony & Annette Paul

By Tom | Published: 15 June 2010

[Press Release] In early 1960 a brand new fountain was installed by Hackney Council on Stoke Newington Common.

The fountain was dedicated to Florence duVergier, the very first woman to be elected Mayor of Hackney, during the war in 1943. Originally a teacher, Florence duVergier was elected to be a Hackney Councillor in 1928 and mayor in 1943. Altogether she was a councillor for twenty-five years (1928 -53) and made a significant difference to the lives of Hackney people. She started the youth club on the Kingsmead Estate, and undertook substantial work in the fields of public health, housing and older people.

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See it roar: New beginnings at The Lion

By Tom | Published: 4 June 2010

You might have noticed the light. Over the last couple of days Church Street has been lit up like a Christmas tree… The Lion is back!

The Lion on Stoke Newington Church Street

Well, almost.

After well over six months of refurbishment, severe water damage that completely destroyed the new hardwood floors, and more refurbishment, The Lion is re-opening on Saturday, 12 June, in time for the first England match in the World Cup. I had a chance to look around and get the dirt on what’s going to happen.

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The Hackney Gentlemen’s Racing Club – From Church Street to Mongolia

By Tom | Published: 13 May 2010

Hackney Gentlemen's Racing ClubWhatever plans you have for summer, chances are they won’t be quite as wacky as those of the Hackney Gentlemen’s Racing Club, a group of local residents who are competing in this year’s Mongol Rally, an automotive endurance race to Mongolia.

In July, the four friends from Stoke Newington who make up the team will attempt to drive a third of the way around the world, from London to the capital of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar, in order to raise thousands of pounds for charity.

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Tallulah Rendall and the art of independently producing an album

By Tom | Published: 9 May 2010

Tallulah RendallLast year we interviewed Tallulah Rendall about her first album, Libellus, which turned out to be a bit of a beauty. Now she is back at work on her second offering, and to finance it she has found an ingenious way of mobilising her fans and support a charity on the side. We caught up with her to find out how it’s going.

I wrote the second album, which is sounding much rawer and more up tempo than the first, whilst we were on tour in Japan, and in June we will go into Hookend Studios to record. This is being funded through profits from the first album. However, there are lots of additional costs that we are raising money to cover, hence I got involved with Pledge Music. All kinds of things are up for grabs, from signed CDs and a chance to be in our video to private gigs and personalised songs.

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Calling all artists…

By Tom | Published: 8 May 2010

Basket House Village Universe, the newly established gallery in Leswin Place, have just announced their new summer show Open ‘10, an extravaganza of art for everyone, and they are giving all you artists out there a chance to be part of it.

Whether you work in painting, printing, photography or sculpture, this is your opportunity to have your work displayed. Visitors will also vote on their favourite artwork and the winner will be awarded a one week solo show at BHVU in 2011.

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What do you love most about Stoke Newington?

By Tom | Published: 8 April 2010

Stokey means a lot of things to a lot of different people. Which areas, things, places or characters do you love about living here in Stoke Newington, and what do you dislike, hate, avoid or feel is ruining it?

Becky Ford, a local resident and freelance graphic designer, is working on a project to create an alternative map of Stoke Newington as part of her Graphics Design MA, one that captures the spirit of the place through people’s experience of the area, rather than traditional landmarks.

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The Drop Opening Night

By Tom | Published: 5 March 2010

Phew… so only a couple weeks after the Butchers closed its doors to be turned into yet another gastro pub we now have a new late night venue in Stoke Newington. And, fear not, my gentle friends, I’m glad to be able to tell you that it is nothing at all like that fiendish place used to be.

The Washington Rays at The Drop opening night

The Washington Rays

The Drop is located just below the Three Crowns, just turn left instead of right once you get inside. It’s a bit of a box of a room with seating along both sides, a stage on one end and a bar on the other. There you have it, easy enough… you won’t get lost in here.

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Datte Foco – Pizza with a Twist

By Tom | Published: 18 February 2010

Yesterday I finally sampled the pizza at the latest addition to Stoke Newington Church Street’s Italian Connection, Datte Foco. As someone else has said before me, Datte Foco, which calls itself a “pizza and love joint”, is not like other pizza restaurants out there, and this might be the reason it took me so long to go after they opened in December. The interior is a functional affair somewhere between take-away, caff and restaurant, and the menu and concept takes a bit of getting used to…

Datte Foco - A Pizza and Love Joint

Datte Foco - A Pizza and Love Joint

Datte Foco serves pizza al taglio, sort of similar to Soho’s Maletti or Moorgate’s Mangiare… slices of pizza that are in this case prized by weight. The selection available also differs from what you get in most other pizza joints; you definitely won’t find pineapple here, thank you very much. The key here are original Roman creations with simple yet gorgeous toppings. It’s a great concept but it means that the first time you go you will need some time to figure out what your options are.

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Reel Rebels Radio

By anne c | Published: 11 February 2010

Long time friends and sometimes collaborators Charlotte Delaney and Alicia Graham are at it again, this time they are busy setting up a brand new community radio station in Stokey.

Based in the new Politi Arts studio, Reelrebelsradio.com will offer a unique mix of music, talk, documentaries and radio plays – sort of a like a funked up Radio 4. Unlike some other internet radio stations, Reel Rebels will be broadcasting 24/7 and will offer programmes on everything from erotica to religion.

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