Changing Spaces
Brick Lane, London 2005
Brick Lane, London 2002
A man walks past the 'Taj stores' on Brick Lane. London 1983
Shopping in Whitechapel
Boy with a shopping trolley. Brick Lane market. London 1984
Whitechapel shopping. London 2011
Returning from Sainsbury's. Whitechapel, London 2009
Tea for Two
A mobile cafe dispenses tea at the Vallance Rd car boot sale. London 1988
Cheshire Street Cafe. London 1989
Brick Lane Skies
Brick Lane bridge. London 2002
Brick Lane light. London 2002
Brick Lane CCTV. London 2002
Truman Chimney Brick Lane. London 2002
Arch, Brick Lane. London 2002
Pigeon Shit, the Poll Tax and Margaret Thatcher
During a Q & A, following the screening of ‘East End Lives’ at a festival in France recently, I answered a question which suggested the people in the films were damaged by the policies of Margaret Thatcher. I enthusiastically agreed that Thatcher had a negative impact on the country and the lives of millions but pointed out there was still solidarity and a resolve to defend living standards in the UK which Thatcherism had not broken.
Man wearing a Thatcher mask with a skull. Lambeth Town Hall, London 1990's
Recent events in terms of protests in the UK demonstrated the anger against Thatcher and her current heirs: the ‘coalition partners’. As I stumbled through my answer I tried to restrain my personal anger against the politics of Thatcherism and appear coherent, reasonable and resolutely socialist. Then I remembered an image which best summed up my feelings; the photograph (above) was taken outside Lambeth Town Hall. The Thatcher mask and laughing skull framed by a smattering of pigeon shit summarise my feelings for that damaging era. I only wish I had it to hand when I was asked about Thatcherism. It would have made a splendid visual aid.
