Come hither

Call me oversensitive, but after spotting a couple of negative tweets about Hither Green recently I feel compelled to defend the little corner of London that I call home.

When I tell people where I live (to clarify: I don't run up to strangers and tell them where I live, I mean when I'm answering a question), most have never heard of it. Well, for those of you who have never heard of it, Hither Green is a little suburb in south east London which nestles cosily between Blackheath and Lewisham in Zone 3.

I moved here just over a year ago because house prices here are bloody reasonable and the transport links are, for the most part, ace. Despite the lack of tube, there are trains to central London every ten minutes or so; more frequently during rush hour. The trains even run later than a tube would anyway, with the last train from London Bridge departing just before 1am. Sure, during the recent snowy conditions the trains buckled somewhat, but Lewisham DLR station is a only 15 minute walk away, and the DLR is ALWAYS running.

It's by no means the most exciting place in the world to live, but it's got a lot going for it, such as:

• Crazy golf. Yes, you heard me right. Rumour has it that Hither Green is to become the London's crazy golf hotspot, with an indoor course taking shape as I type. My dream of becoming crazy golf world champion lives on!
• Manor House Gardens. One of the prettiest little parks I've ever come across in London, and I'm lucky enough to have it on my doorstep. There's a lake with a fountain, a 'beetle loggery', tennis courts, a cute cafe, and there's a farmers' market the first Saturday of every month (pictured above - Flickr photo from basswulf). There are lots of other parks within walking distance too.
  
• The best library ever. Ok, maybe not the best, but it's a beautiful building (I've blogged about the library before, here)
• A fab curry house. I'd very much recommend Bengal Brasserie's banquet deal on Mondays and Tuesdays.
• Shops: Hither Green itself isn't exactly brimming with retail outlets, although the lovely independent furniture shop on Hither Green Lane is great (I bought my coffee table and living room mirror there) and an amazing interiors shop on Lee Road called Objet D'Art. For groceries there's a big Sainsbury's. But Blackheath is so close for a bigger selection of boutique-y type places, and don't dismiss Lewisham either - it's even got an H&M!!!!...
• A creative vibe: The Old Firemaster Building is now rented out room by room to creative types, such as artists, singers and musicians, and a gym may be opening there soon. Witness To The Beard (my band) have practised there a few times, and it's also where I have my guitar lessons.
• Live music: The Station Pub runs an acoustic music night every Thursday evening called The Icarus Club.
• Cute cafe: Just outside the train station there's a coffee shop / bakery / florist / gift shop called You Don't Bring Me Flowers. It's a little gem of a place, with kitsch decor, shabby chic charm and a secret room upstairs where you can nibble on cakes and drink tea from fab mis-matched china. 

Ok, and here's some more negative points for the sake of transparency:

• Hither Green is sadly most famous for a nasty train crash which happened here in the 1967. Lots of people died.
• Although transport links to central London are great, transport links to anywhere else are pretty poor, and it's often just easier to walk to places like Blackheath or Greenwich. But it is a lovely walk, and the view from the Greenwich Observatory is worth it (about a 40 minute walk from my flat).
  
• Lack of watering holes. Hither Green was originally based around the Corbett Estate, which was built by the Scottish Presbyterian Archibald Corbett. Pubs weren't allowed back then, and sadly that theme lives on. There's really only one pub in Hither Green, and that's The Station.
  

Useful websites about the area:

The Original Hither Green Website

Message-board based site which is useful if you're new to the area or looking for general information.

Max Calò's blog

Lib Dem candidate for the council election for Lewisham Central, who's got his finger firmly on the Hither Green pulse.

Walking Hither Green

Hasn't been updated for a while, but still gives you a good feel for the place.

Wikipedia

Some more historical info, including rumours that Jude Law apparently grew up here.
The Blackheath Bugle
Blackheath's only up the road...
Greenwich.co.uk
And Greenwich is only a bit further...

Here's what Time Out and the Guardian have got to say about Hither Green.

This blog post has taken me a lot longer to write than I thought it would, which is testament to all the great stuff there is here, and proves how much I like living in the area. It's not - and never will be - the most happening spot in London, but after a hard day in the office, it's just so nice to be able to hop on a train to this quiet and safe area where I can relax and get an undisturbed night's sleep, yet only ever be 30 minutes away from the bright lights of the West End.

Pub quiz-co

So I'm having a bit of time away from London during my week off work, chilling out with my family on the outskirts of Bristol, where I grew up. Knowing how much I enjoy a good pub quiz, my parents decided we should go along to the Upton Inn a couple of miles down the road for their Monday night curry and quiz. I like pubs, I like curry, and I like a bit of healthy trivia-based competition, so it sounded like a good deal to me. But I was not prepared for what fun was to come...

For after the quiz had finished but (crucially) BEFORE the winner was announced, the lights are dimmed, the music (from the music round) is switched on and the little country pub transforms itself into the hottest village disco this side of, err, Bitton. It was lots of fun, and a great way to liven up what would otherwise be the dullest evening of the week. So bravo, Upton Inn - your curry was gurt lush, your staff were all tip top, the quiz cash prizes were not to be sneered at (we came a respectable fourth out of eleven teams and won £20, the winning team got £100) and all in all I would highly recommend a visit. But be warned: it's a popular place is this, so booking is definitely recommended!

Special Ks

Lots of fun in Cardiff last night. It felt a tad strange to be back there after a couple of years since my last visit, but it didn't let me down.

As a student many moons ago, I used to frequent an Indian restaurant called Kismet on City Road. Whenever I return to the city I make an effort to pay Kismet a visit, because the value is unbeatable and the food is yummy. A mere fiver for a starter (Kebab-E-Kismet is awesome), curry, rice AND side dish. Booze is pretty cheap too - £11.95 for a bottle of house plonk, but with their permanent BOGOF wine deal, you get two bottles for the same price. Excellent stuff, and precisely what we needed before heading to the CIA to watch The Killers.

What can I say, the gig was faultless. Check out some footage that I managed to film here. At 2mins55secs I very nearly drop the camera, hence my girly shriek. There was tickertape, pyrotechnics, and a fab mass-singalong to Bohemian Rhapsody just before they came onstage. I also managed to avoid the ridiculously long queues for drinks by sneaking upstairs and discovering a secret bar.

Hmmm, I appear to have written more about Kismet than The Killers...