A sizeable chunk of the centre of the Isle Of Dogs is set to be developed following the approval of a planning application by Tower Hamlets Council.
Mastmaker Court, a joint venture by landowner Pirin Ltd and developer Fifth State, will see two towers built on a site just off Mastmaker Road.
two towers?
That’s right. One will rise to 43 storeys and the other to 27. The larger one will contain 843 co-living apartments, while the other will house 153 affordable homes.
They have been designed by Squire And Partners architects, also known for Landmark Pinnacle locally.
The scheme includes landscaping at ground level – image by Fifth State
co-living?
Essentially the larger block will be rental only following a wider trend in the residential development market.
The offer is typically self-contained flats with communal facilities to encourage socialising.
These are usually marketed to young professionals and key workers.
While Fifth State has built out a couple of office blocks in Shoreditch, its projects in Bermondsey, Hampstead, Croydon, Southwark, Deptford, Hornsey and Leicester Square – spanning co-living student accommodation and affordable housing – have yet to be completed.
Its website promises that accommodation includes a shower room, a kitchenette, a double bed, storage space, high speed broadband and flexibility on length of stay with a three-month minimum.
While details of its Mastmaker Court scheme have yet to be released, the company says its projects include wellbeing studios and facilities with a programme of classes and events for residents such as seminars and debates, cooking classes, brunch and supper clubs, guided group meditation, circuit and weights workouts and more.
co-working?
Again, while specifics have not been released, Fifth State says co-creating spaces lie at the heart of its schemes with facilities such as artists studios, private desks, communal workspaces, recording studios and conference walls to be expected.
The scheme features Squire And Partners – image by Fifth State
what about the affordable housing?
For its Isle Of Dogs scheme, the affordable tower will house 121 properties for social rent and 32 earmarked as intermediate homes, which may be offered as below market rent or shared ownership apartments.
Around two thirds of the social rent flats will have three or four bedrooms aimed at families.
a new school?
Two existing warehouse buildings will be knocked down to make way for the towers.
At ground level the affordable housing block will include a 161sq m community facility facing onto a new 1,500sq m park located in the south-west corner of the site.
The plans also include outline permission for a new alternative provision school for up to 100 pupils in the north-west corner of the site, which could deliver up to 4,510sq m of educational space.
key details: Mastmaker Court
Planning consent has been granted for the two-tower scheme at Mastmaker Court.
“Our first students are in their last few months of the course,” said Dr Yahaya Alhassan, head of academic operations at the University Of Sunderland In London.
In line with the university’s consistently practical approach, the programme was developed after Yahaya spotted a gap in the market.
“It was while I was working as an external examiner for another institution that I realised people were offering trading courses,” he said.
“Some were delivering fintech elements, but these were usually add-ons to finance courses dealing with things like online banking.
“My understanding of fintech is that it relates to specific technologies – things like artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrencies and machine learning – and how you apply those to finance.
“I couldn’t find a programme like that, which also included trading so, following some market research, I decided to develop a course that would bring the two together.
“I defy anyone to find a similar offering – as of today we are unique.”
Based at the University Of Sunderland In London’s Isle Of Dogs campus at Harbour Exchange, the one-year course features a dedicated Fintech Lab created in partnership with the London Stock Exchange.
The London Stock Exchange Group Fintech Lab at the University Of Sunderland In London – image supplied by UOSiL
putting practice at the heart of the course
“The approach we adopt with the delivery of this programme is hands-on, practice-based, with a small number of students to ensure we give them a very good level of experience,” said Yahaya.
“We work with a number of prestigious partners, with those on the course also receiving certificates from them as part of the programme.
“Students learn how to trade and invest in stocks – which are doing well and which are not?
“But the reason we combine this with fintech is so they can use technology to make predictions based on the data flowing into the lab.
“In the past, traders have made decisions based on their own experience while looking at such information.
“But with technologies such as AI, once you have a lot of data, you can use it to start forecasting whether the price of a stock will rise or fall.
“With blockchain and machine learning, our students are taught how to model and to build apps, enabling them to potentially create their own fintech businesses.
“We also work with companies to ensure our courses are delivering what employers, such as those at Level39 in Canary Wharf, expect from someone with an MSc from this university.
“We also constantly look at the needs of the students and changes in the market.
“Our programmes come up for review every five years, which is when they get revalidated.
“But with technology developing so fast, we can’t wait that long so we’ve adopted an enhancement plan where we look at our programmes every two months to make sure we’re flexible and giving the market what it needs.”
The University Of Sunderland In London is based at Harbour Exchange on the Isle Of Dogs – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
from Ghana to London via Sunderland
Yahaya himself is a good case study for the way in which education and exposure to new ideas can have a profound impact on the direction of a person’s life.
Originally from Ghana, he began his career in the higher education sector at the University Of Development Studies in Tamale not as an academic but as a member of its support staff as an assistant accountant.
“One day I was in the vice chancellor’s office and I saw an advert in a magazine for an MBA course at the University Of Sunderland,” he said.
“The VC had been in the UK himself, studying and working in Nottingham before he was recruited back to Ghana.
“I’d never thought about travelling abroad in my life, but I decided I might give it a go – I applied and then, honestly, I forgot about it.
“About two months later, a letter arrived containing a provisional offer to go on the course.
“I was supposed to pay £13,500 but it was a lot of money and I had no idea where I would get that from.”
In the end, Yahaya’s employer awarded him a scholarship to go on the course and he wound up bound for the North East and arrived improperly dressed for the weather.
“Arriving in Sunderland was the first time I’d seen snow in my life and I didn’t have a proper jacket,” he said.
“I didn’t know how to get to the university campus and I couldn’t understand the accent of the first man I met.
“Fortunately, I found someone who showed me where to go. I completed my MBA and returned to Ghana in 2003.
“That was part of the agreement for my scholarship but, after about nine months I was feeling discontented.
“Everything was so slow.
“When I came to the UK people were working from 8am, but I realised in Ghana it was going to be difficult for me because of the difference in pace.
“I told my boss I had to go back to England, and he said he understood, so I moved to London in 2004.
“My first job was at a college in Greenwich, teaching English in 2005 and I remained there until 2011.
“That’s when I saw that the University Of Sunderland was opening a London campus and I decided to apply.
“At first I was working 10 hours a week, then 20 and, after a couple of months, full-time – teaching on its MBA programme.
“After a year, the programme manager was leaving and so I applied and got that job in 2014 before going on to become assistant head of academic operations.
“Now, as head of academic operations, I make sure all the teaching and learning at the London campus goes well, dealing with quality assurance and making sure everything is done in line with our academic regulations.
“I am part of the senior managers team as well and I am responsible for the day-to-day running of the London-based academic programmes.
“The courses are led from Sunderland and run down here, which is why our campus has programme managers rather than leaders.
“I never thought I’d be working where I am now. I even told my friends in Ghana I would be coming back in a year.
“I still have that vision, to return one day, perhaps to follow my father in a political career.
“When I’m teaching, I say: ‘Who knows, maybe I’ll be president one day’.”
In the meantime, Yahaya’s passion is continuing to help develop the university’s offering with a BSc in Fintech And Digital Finance now available.
The intention of this three-year course is to act as a pipeline for those seeking to study the MSc, providing them with the relevant skills and knowledge to prepare them for the postgraduate course.
Earwax. Right now, if you’re reading this, it’s slowly, imperceptibly flowing out of your ears.
The movement of our jaws and muscles in our faces is usually enough to create a gentle current that renews and refreshes this essential substance, whose role is to protect and sanitise our ear canals.
However, for a range of reasons, this smooth and natural process can go wrong.
Drainage fails and build-up occurs, potentially leading to hearing loss, earache, tinnitus and even vertigo.
“I was seriously ill with leukaemia and in hospital for about eight months,” said Tim Galvin, co-founder and director of EarLab.
“Sometimes I would wake up during that period and I wouldn’t be able to hear.
“When I was up, the wax would shift and I’d be able to hear again.
“I’m OK now, but one of the lasting side effects of that period is that my ears still block up quite regularly.
“While I was in hospital, a good friend of mine – David Walker – came to visit me.
“He happens to be an ear, nose and throat surgeon and he said I needed to get my ears micro-suctioned to remove the wax.
“He described the process as using a miniature vacuum cleaner to clear the ear canal.
“It’s the modern alternative to syringing – squirting warm water in there and hoping for the best – and it’s much safer.
“With the older technique, some people’s ears can be quite damaged by the pressure.
“I couldn’t get them suctioned in hospital but, when I got back home I tried to get it done locally but had to travel for the procedure.
“When I had it done, it was instant relief.
“I hadn’t realised that my ears were basically dirty, I’d just lived with it.
“Suddenly I could hear clearly.
“There was no muffling, it was just fantastic.”
EarLab co-founder Tim Galvin – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
the birth of a business
A couple of months later, Tim saw David again at a barbecue and the two got talking.
The NHS no longer provides syringing as a core service and GPs tend to advise using drops to tackle troublesome ear wax, but this does not work for all cases.
In some areas referral for micro-suctioning may be possible but long waiting times can be involved.
“Together, we realised there was a gap in the market,” said Tim.
“David had the medical qualifications and the expertise, but no time to handle a side business.
“I have a background in IT and experience in property, so we formed a 50-50 partnership, starting in 2022.”
It’s now set to open a branch at Canary Wharf in facilities at Cabot Place.
“We’ve found people are happy to pay £85 for an instant service and that’s what we’ve built our business around,” said Tim.
“Hearing is really important. Without it people can feel really isolated.
“Some of our clients tell us they feel like they’ve got their lives back after the treatment.
“One elderly gentleman said he couldn’t hear conversations but, once we’d removed the wax, it turned out he didn’t need hearing aids after all.
“We have lots of wonderful stories like that.
“When you wake up in the morning and you can’t hear, it’s horrible – you don’t want to wait six months, you want to get it done as soon as possible. That’s what we offer.”
EarLab is not the only business to offer private micro-suctioning, but Tim believes the service it provides has some key benefits not found elsewhere.
“The first is that our clinicians use surgical microscopes to look inside the ears and guide the procedure,” he said.
“These give you the best possible view inside the ear canal. The equipment provides binocular vision at a very great magnification under a very bright light.
“It doesn’t touch your body at all and it doesn’t hurt in the slightest, but it allows the practitioner to see everything they’re doing and to have both hands free.
“We use a small funnel-like device called an ear speculum that allows us full access to the ear canal, which is curved.
“Together with the microscope, this enables us to be very precise with the suctioning and to ensure we don’t touch the ear drum, which is very delicate, and to make certain we remove all of the wax.
“With the average case, there will be some build-up of wax there, but it might not be completely blocked.”
David clears England Rugby captain Maro Itoje’s ears – image supplied by EarLab
why EarLab employs medical professionals
In addition to precision, EarLab prides itself on the level of expertise its practitioners offer, employing qualified nurses and doctors to carry out the procedure.
“We’ve grown the business organically, often expanding when we’ve found a clinician to work with,” said Tim.
“Our criteria have always been that we offer these services in an excellent medical environment with good transport links so people can access it easily.
“With David’s background and reputation, we’ll never cut corners on the service we provide.
“Having highly qualified professionals working for us means we can offer the complete procedure in 20 minutes because the people doing it are so experienced.
“We’ve expanded to Canary Wharf for two reasons.
“Firstly, I knew the area because I used to work here and also one of our existing doctors recently relocated to Lewisham and said he would love to host a clinic here.
“We prefer to grow like this and the demand is obviously there.
“When we started, we honestly thought a few hours a week would be enough, but that quickly became multiple days as word spread and people came.
“Friends tell each other and we have husbands and wives coming together to get their wax removed.
“Over the four years we’ve been going, we’ve had some people who have come 12 times during that period.
“It’s a very personal business and we have a phone line which is answered by a human being.
“Everything can be done online, but some people like to call and ask questions.
“We pride ourselves on being able to offer that reassurance.”
David and Tim with England Rugby’s Sam Underhill – image supplied by EarLab
clearing the ears of the England rugby squad
EarLab also has quite a significant claim to fame as it provides its service to the England Rugby Union squad, having been approached through the team’s full-time doctor.
“We’ve been to Twickenham three times now after David was asked to set up a temporary clinic there,” said Tim.
“The first time, we were expecting 10 players, then 20 were listed, but we ended up doing many more than that during the course of the afternoon, including the likes of Maro Itoje and Sam Underhill.
“Being able to hear clearly is an essential part of the game and they’d never had this done before.
“As a business more widely we have been surprised by the demand for our services, although there are things people do that can cause wax to build up.
“Normally, when your jaw moves during the course of a day it flexes the ear canal slightly and this creates a system where little flakes of wax are gradually expelled naturally and imperceptibly.
“That’s the natural order of things and, in a normal healthy person that’s exactly what happens.
“However, if you do anything to impede that process – using ear plugs or in-ear headphones – you interrupt that flow.
“The more you do it, the less wax can get out and the more likely you are to get a build up.
“It can get to the point where, when you’re putting the ear plug or headphone in, you’re pushing wax back down the canal towards the ear drum.
“We’ve also seen people who do a lot of swimming are prone to wax issues and others just have naturally narrow ear canals.
“Everyone is different, we’re all unique and just the shape of your anatomy can, unfortunately, cause problems for some people.
“Putting things in the ear like cotton buds is definitely not a good idea and, similarly, practices such as ear candling and using small plastic screw-like devices can be really dangerous.
“It’s so easy to cause damage with these methods because you can’t see what’s in there and you’re going in and experimenting.
“The ear is incredibly delicate and should always be treated with the utmost care by people who know what they’re doing using microscopes to guide them.
“At EarLab, we keep things simple.
“We just offer micro-suctioning and also expert advice because we can see what’s going on in the ear.
“We’re now right at the heart of Canary Wharf meaning people working or living in the area don’t need to travel to have this procedure.
“As it only takes 20 minutes, it’s easy for people to have it done in their lunch hour or even a break.
“That’s plenty of time to take the medical information we need and then to complete the treatment.”
key details: EarLab
EarLab is set to run a clinic in Canary Wharf’s Cabot Place, initially on Wednesdays, with scope to expand depending on demand.
A 20-minute treatment costs £85 and includes micro-suctioning in both ears.
Stories of Cleopatra VII – the last ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom Of Egypt – have long echoed down the years, spun into great romances and decorated with Elizabeth Taylor’s vibrant eye shadow.
But, while Cleopatra: The Experience – an immersive exhibition that’s set for a 15-week run at Excel’s Immerse LDN in Royal Docks from March 26 – has its genesis in her enduring popularity, it’s been created with the aim of revealing the person at the heart of those tales.
“She’s a pop icon and there’s a legend behind her, but we wanted to show the real woman, drawing on what contemporary sources and classical authors said about her,” said Nacho Ares, scriptwriter and curator of the exhibition for its producer Madrid Artes Digitales (MAD).
Nacho, a broadcaster and Egyptologist isn’t new at this.
He first worked with MAD on Tutankhamun: The ImmersiveExhibition, which enjoyed a run at Excel last year and has now been seen by more than 2million people.
In similar vein, the new show uses technology – holograms, virtual reality, 360º projection and even scents – to bring Cleopatra and her world to life for visitors.
“I’ve been interested in Egyptology since I was a young teenager,” said Nacho.
“I read a history of archaeology – Gods, Graves And Scholars – and I fell in love with the history of the tomb of Tutankhamun.
“I was interested in anything related to ancient Egypt.
“I first visited in 1991 at the age of 21 and it was incredible. I became involved with MAD in 2022 through a friend who is a member of the Spanish Egyptology Association in Madrid.
“They were looking for a writer with experience of TV and so on – back then it was a company of four people and now we have 30.
“It was a dream to bring our Tutankhamun exhibition to Britain, the home of Howard Carter, who discovered his tomb – that was a lovely moment in my life.
“I think Cleopatra will also be a great success because there are so many mysteries and she’s an amazing character.
“We still don’t know where her tomb is – many people have looked around Alexandria and they are still searching today.
“She remains very popular and we’re here to present her biography.”
The exhibition aims to bring her story to life – image supplied by MAD
Cleopatra: The Experience – unlocking an audience
Part of the exhibition’s mission is to bring that story to a new audience.
Dr Chris Naunton, is a British Egyptologist, writer and broadcaster, acting as official ambassador for Cleopatra: The Experience.
He said: “I worked for the Egypt Exploration Society from 2001 to 2016, and was its director for the last few years of the period.
“My work nowadays is mostly writing, some of which has informed the content of this exhibition, which is a great honour for me.
“I think the technical side of it is amazing.
“It’s important for Egyptology to use whatever methods there are to reach a wider audience and Cleopatra is an obvious subject for that.
“While her story is superficially well known, that has more to do with her legend.
“There was a real woman and this exhibition grounds audiences very well in what the evidence really shows about her life.
“What people will see isn’t made up, it’s based on historical sources.
“The trouble with trying to present a story like this in a conventional way is that there are so many gaps.
“It’s difficult to tell the story of Cleopatra through objects, because we have so little – except classical sources, which were often written by her enemies, and aren’t all contemporary accounts.
“Sometimes they were written with particular intentions in mind.
“The exhibition treads the line very well.
“It’s not dry, which just presenting the evidence we have, might be.
“My sense is that the video game generation will not be engaged by a traditional exhibition.
“But what this exhibition gives us as Egyptologists, is the opportunity to reach people who would never leave their sofas to visit a museum.”
What we do know is that Cleopatra VII’s story is remarkable – one of finely balanced power and intrigue.
Audiences can expect a number of different experiences including chair-based virtual reality – image supplied by MAD
a skilled politician
“She ruled at the end of a period of 300 years, during which Egypt was run from Alexandria by a family of Macedonian Greek origin, descending from Ptolemy I,” said Chris.
“He was one of Alexander The Great’s generals. During this period, the kingdom was influenced to some extent by Greek culture – the Greek language and script became the administrative language, for example – but it was still very much the Egypt of its traditional gods.
“Cleopatra comes in at the end of this dynasty, ruling initially alongside her brother, at a time when Egypt was very much part of an international scene.
“By the end of the Ptolemaic period in Egypt, Rome has become the most important power.
“The versions found in the movie and Asterix tell a story of a richly drawn character, a wily, beautiful woman.
“What all the ancient sources agree on is that Rome is increasingly important, exerting more influence on Cleopatra and her family.
“In making allies of Roman leaders Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, regardless of any romance that may or may not have happened, she was undoubtedly doing the right thing for Egypt.
“I think we can certainly say she was extremely skilful politically and she was a great survivor.
“It was a time of great in-fighting in the Ptolemaic family, a time of great intrigue.
“Her relationship with her brother, Ptolemy XIII, doesn’t work out very well – there’s a war – then her relationship with Caesar is disrupted by his assassination in Rome.
“Her relationship with Antony is only brought to an end by the irresistible force of Octavian, who defeats them.
“The threat of Rome taking over the whole of the Mediterranean had been coming for decades, something that could be seen as having been held back by her for quite a long time.
“There is a fascinating story to tease out, which I think is historically valid and goes beyond the Hollywood version.
“My take is she was a very successful politician.”
The story even includes the death of Caesar in Rome – image supplied by MAD
key details: Cleopatra: The Experience
Cleopatra: The Experience is set to run at Immerse LDN on the southern edge of Excel from March 26 for 15 weeks.
Tickets are on sale now, from £29 for adults and from £24 for children aged 4-15. Group packages and school bookings are available.
The experience lasts around 90 minutes and is open every day from 10am.
“Choir Boy absolutely resonates with me,” said Tatenda Shamiso, co-director of the show that’s set to arrive on Stratford East’s stage later this month.
“I grew up in the US, in a Catholic school and I’m queer.
“To be a queer person in a rigid and hyper-traditional religious environment makes it very difficult to discover who you are when you’re discouraged at every turn.
“The show dates from 2008, but it gets updated every time it’s remounted and it feels all the more pressing at the moment, even from when we revived it in 2023.
“It can be hard to be black and queer in an environment that tries to force-feed you the idea that there is no space for you.”
Tatenda’s role has grown from associate director to co-director for the new show.
He frequently runs the rehearsals, with Nancy typically in the West Country as the production is updated for its run in the capital.
Choir Boy co-director, Tatenda Shamiso – image supplied by Stratford East
a struggle to access softness
“Choir Boy is about an all-boys black preparatory school in upstate New York in the US,” said Tatenda.
“These boys are under immense pressure to understand what it means to be the black leaders of tomorrow – the black men of the future – and to hold onto the labels and duties we associate with masculinity and black excellence.
“It’s a struggle to access any softness in this environment and to identify how to step into your real self when there isn’t any room for it.”
The show follows the story of Pharus (Terique Jarrett), a gifted singer who has earned his position as a soloist, but falters when his pride is sullied by one of his peers, forcing him to question what it means to be a young, black, openly queer man in such an institution.
“We’re taken on this journey with a really beautiful score of a capella gospel music, sung by the boys,” said Tatenda.
“Choir Boy is hilarious – definitely expect to laugh – but it’s also deeply joyful and cathartic.
“Whether you believe in something or not, the spirit will move through you when you hear these boys sing. It’s beautiful and very tender.
“One of the big changes we’ve had is two new cast members – Rabi Kondé playing Bobby and Freddie MacBruce as AJ – which has given us a really great opportunity to refresh the whole show.
“We have a star-studded team in the cast and backstage and it’s still very much a family affair.
“It’s really great to bring fresh talent into the piece.
“One of our former cast members said that while he was sad to leave, he was really happy to pass the gift of being able to play the role on to someone else who needs it.
“In Bristol, we had five weeks to prepare the show for the stage and this extra time has given us an opportunity to maybe deepen our thoughts.
“With the cast a couple of years older now, we’re asking what it means to be a teenager right now?
“I hope we’re offering audiences a cornucopia of things to take away.
“I hope they leave with greater empathy and compassion for the people they’ve been watching and those around them, perhaps a softness and a strong urge to sing.”
Kalid Daley is back in the role of JR – image by Camilla Greenwell
echoes of Choir Boy
As a director, writer, performer and artist, Tatenda’s own theatrical journey began at school.
He said: “Children’s hobbies are taken ridiculously seriously in California and I started off as a performer in musicals.
“I was doing about three shows a year for most of my time in school. I was a really shy child, but there was something about being a performer, being something bigger than yourself, that really appealed to me.
“You can enrapture an audience and take them on a journey.
“For me it was like a mission to learn how to be an extrovert, which was really lovely.
“It got me out of my shell and introduced me to a beautiful community of people who were as strange as I was, which was a very joyful experience.
“That’s the core theme, whatever I’m doing, which keeps me in theatre now.
“It’s the ritual of transformation you go through as a company, but also what you’re bringing to those who are watching.”
Martin Turner as Mr Pendleton and his pupil, Pharus – image by Camilla Greenwell
from performer to writer and director
After moving to Europe as a teenager, Tatenda’s path began to broaden while at university.
“I fell in love with directing while I was training at Goldsmith’s,” he said.
“When I wasn’t on stage, I spent the time figuring out what everyone else was supposed to be doing, so I ended up doing a lot of different tasks.
“I turned that into a career as a writer. As far as directing goes, I started off as an assistant director on other shows, then directing my own work and performing it at fringe venues.
“My first big show was assisting on A Streetcar Named Desire, back in 2022 at the Almeida Theatre, before going on to work on productions in the States and getting the chance to contribute to Choir Boy.
“I’ve developed a really beautiful working relationship with Nancy and a friendship too. She’s such a generous collaborator.
“I’ve been really moved by this show.
“It’s quite rare in this role to see yourself in what you’re making and what’s being put on stage.
“It feels incredible when you see a message being communicated so beautifully by this cast.
“Every creative steer you give them, they multiply it ten-fold with their bodies, their spirit, their minds and their voices.
“What they bring to these characters, these experiences, is almost overwhelming.
“One of the amazing things about seeing live theatre is that you get to have a collective experience, that the audience is going to be roughly in the same place emotionally as they watch.
“That’s something you don’t get in the digital world and I do think people are hungry for that kind of connection.”
Daon Broni as Headmaster Marrow – image by Camilla Greenwell
key details: Choir Boy
Choir Boy is set to run at Stratford East from March 26 until April 25, 2026.
Performances are typically at 7.30pm with shows at 2.30pm on selected Thursdays and Saturdays. Tickets start at £10.
“The best thing about running Wapping Docklands Market is being able to connect people in a world that’s more and more isolated,” said Will Cutteridge, founder of The Market Network.
“It’s also having the ability to offer grassroots enterprises access to audiences and to get that instant feedback.”
Brussels Wharf was, in 2020, a disused car park – an irregular pentagon of earth, cobbles and quayside jutting out into Shadwell Basin, nominally described as a park.
But Will, having spent half a decade learning the ropes of commercial real estate before leaving that world to sell cheese on a market stall, saw an opportunity – a site that might be put to better use.
Wapping Docklands Market opened in 2021 and is now set to celebrate its fifth birthday in April, 2026.
There might even be a cake.
Wapping Docklands Market hosts a wide range of hot food traders throughout the year – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
creating a community
“The thing that’s really great is the community we’ve got here – the regular customers who come back week to week– that’s what really keeps us afloat,” said Will.
“They just happen to be lovely people, and it’s a nice place to be every Saturday.
“We have evolved over the years but hot food – which has always been the primary driver for us – has become more popular and we have live music and a pop-up pub.”
As we talk, pleasant jazz wafts over the assembled crowd played by gentlemen in attractive woollen hats.
Tables and benches are full despite the 6ºC February weather, with visitors keeping out the chill with toasty dishes from the food traders and mulled cider from the bar.
On the lower level of the site, traders sell fresh produce, plants and crafts, adding to the mix.
“It’s morphed over the years – we have up to 12 hot food vendors in the summer months and eight in winter,” said Will.
“One of our mission statements is to empower new and small food enterprises and, as we move towards spring, we typically get a lot of new businesses applying for pitches.
“Firstly what we’re looking for is passion – a reason that someone is doing what they’re doing that isn’t the money.
“Our newest food trader is Tito Vito serving Bocadillos, filled baguettes from the Canary Islands.
“Vito was persuaded by his partner because of his passion for cooking – she’s good with graphic design and created a brand for the business – and you could tell from day one that the food was amazing, that this was something he’d always wanted to do.
“That’s what we’re looking for.
“Then there’s Bahaa, a Syrian refugee who, along with his mother, runs Sojok.
“He serves up toasties filled with spiced minced meat and a savoury yoghurt drink called ayran on the side, which is made with water and salt.
“When he first started, he wasn’t doing so well but he’s evolved his product over time because he knew the market was busy so it was something he was doing that needed changing.
“Now when he’s not at the market, people ask where he is because the stall is so popular.
“My advice is to dunk the toastie in the drink – you won’t regret it.
“It’s also always a good tip, if you’re struggling to decide what to have, to know what the staff on the market enjoy for breakfast.”
Musicians entertain the crowds at the market – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
access to the Wapping Docklands Market audience
Community is really at the heart of everything Will does, ably supported by long-term operations coordinator Fabiana Da Cunha.
Together, they provide the foundation, marketing, support and curation that allows Wapping Docklands Market to continue, providing a platform for commerce, employment and interaction.
“It’s such a good feeling when you’re able to offer people with passion a way to get access to an audience,” said Will.
“I’ve learnt over the last five years that it’s unbelievably hard to run a business but also not to get so stressed and that everything will be fine.
“It’s really great when we see familiar faces coming here or when you spot people who meet at the market and then are back three weeks later having a beer together.
“We’re giving people the chance to get out of their houses and talk to each other.
“These are things that are important in the world and I wish we could do this more, in more places.
“We’re generating opportunities for new businesses, with our traders often living locally and we’re employing people.
“We have a 17-year-old working for us who lives locally and gets the London Living Wage because we believe that’s the right thing to do.
“We also pay our musicians, who need opportunities to play because venues are cutting live entertainment at the moment.”
Will’s journey has not been without its headwinds.
Operating markets can be a precarious business with limited security on short licences, predicated on the whims of landowners.
Wapping’s sister operations at Tower Hill and Canada Water have both closed, the former in favour of a Padel Tennis court and the latter due to a licensing dispute.
With the late winter sun beating down through the bare branches of the trees, finely crafted improvisation stealing over the crowd and traders serving queues of eager diners, it seems perverse not to support such endeavours.
The market is open weekly at Brussels Wharf – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
key details: Wapping Docklands Market
Wapping Docklands Market is open on Saturdays from 10am-4pm at Brussels Wharf on the edge of Shadwell Basin.
The location is around seven minutes’ walk from Wapping station on the Windrush Line or about 10 minutes from Shadwell DLR.
Wapping Docklands Market offers people the opportunity to support its operations by becoming a patron.
Friends pay £18 per month, which includes a number of perks including reserved seating at the market.
Members can pay £30 per month, getting all the same perks plus 10% discounts at The Market Tavern and Wapping Roots And Fruits grocery stall.
It’s been 45 years since the Royal Docks ceased to function for their intended purpose.
Having survived the Second World War, they’d become the busiest facilities of their kind in the 1960s only for containerisation to render them redundant as global trade demanded deeper and more accessible ports.
Since their closure in 1981, they’ve lain relatively vacant as land around them has found new purpose as exhibition and events space, a university campus, housing and a home for businesses.
While the development of London City Airport in the late 1980s saw some of the water lost under its runway and, more recently, its new taxiway and aircraft stands, bar the odd pop-up and vessel of interest, little advantage has been taken of the surface of Newham’s largest liquid asset.
Royal Victoria Dock as it is today – image supplied by RDW
what are the plans?
In short, there are three main uses proposed for the 12 hectare stretch of water adjacent to City Hall – floating wellness, a floating park and floating homes.
Plans for the first include a lido, sauna, spa and expanded support for open water swimming in the dock.
The park will comprise a floating green space, art installations and cultural programming with the possibility of future expansion.
The homes will be provided via residential moorings and floating dwellings.
It’s unclear what will happen to existing watersports and hospitality facilities in the area including the Oiler Bar and WakeUp Docklands.
The plans feature a floating lido and sauna facilities – image supplied by RDW
they say
Scott Derben, managing director of Royal Docks Waterways, said: “This vision represents the biggest step change in the management and development of the Royal Docks since they were closed to commercial shipping at the end of 1981.
“Now, 45 years later, our goal is that the docks that used to feed London will be used to nurture its inhabitants.”
The proposals aim to encourage open water swimming – image by Emma Nathan
what now?
Naturally it’s consultation time.
RDW is seeking to engage with stakeholders and members of the public to help shape the detail of the plans as it begins to establish partnerships with organisations that will deliver them.
Britannia Village Hall will host exhibitions of the proposals on March 4, from 3pm-6pm, so people can view them and discuss the ideas.
Online sessions will be held on March 3 and 12 at noon and 6pm for those who can’t make it down in person.
Then, on March 7-8, Thames Sailing Barge Will is set to be moored at Royal Victoria Dock West.
Open from 10am-3pm each day, the 100-year-old vessel will be carrying a cargo of information boards and plentiful post-it notes for people to jot ideas onto.
At 100ft long, she’s the largest of her kind ever built and is well worth a visit in her own right.
Following the public engagement events, there will be further workshops and opportunities to get involved with – details to be disclosed at a later date.
RDW is also looking to have private meetings with local stakeholders and businesses. Interested organisations should email rvdw@royaldockswaterways.com to set up dates.
A floating park would be open to the public – image supplied by RDW
then what?
Following the consultation, feasibility studies and other administrative gubbins, the first elements of the plans are expected to be delivered by 2030.
In some ways, his journey to becoming an entrepreneur reads typical.
He manned his parents’ corner shop as a kid, made extra cash selling sweets in the playground and graduated to tickets for parties.
He studied management science at the London School Of Economics, went to work in the states and then returned to the capital for a couple of years at consultancy giant McKinsey.
“I guess I’ve always had a passion for business,” he said.
“I’ve been building them my whole life.
“When I was creating my second company – a consulting firm – I knew it was going to be hard work.
“I know people see it as cool and sexy, but underneath, it’s tough.
“That was the first time I could afford a personal trainer, a massage therapist and a physio – I got first-hand experience of what impact the idea of holistic health can have on your life.
“It wasn’t just about looking good to go on holiday – it affected my energy and how I felt.
“Before, I’d thought holistic health was a fallacy.
“But in building that business, I saw the opportunity to create Until.
“As I explored health and wellness, I found that the existing operating model for practitioners in the sector was to spend some years learning their craft, often while being paid relatively poorly.
“Going freelance was seen as taking a risk, so the majority were still working for companies with others choosing to set up on their own.
“In this sector, typically, you don’t learn business skills when you’re training as a doctor or a physio.
“The idea for Until was to build an infrastructure that would help practitioners create their own businesses and unlock their potential.
“I thought it might attract more people to their services and be a cool journey to go on.”
In short, Vishal’s concept was to collect a diverse set of practitioners in a single location to both support their operations and to foster collaboration between them.
Until co-founder Vishal Amin – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
a place that fosters collaboration
“It is a practitioner-first business, where we wanted to allow top-rate people to be able to collaborate and build multi-disciplinary teams,” said Vishal who co-founded the company in 2021 and is currently CEO.
“In doing that, we’ve created locations where you can get all your services instead of having to shop around with different postcodes and different waiting rooms.
“We provide a very integrated experience.
“The practitioners join the ecosystem and, for a membership fee, they can service their clients at our clubs.
“Consumers come to us with a specific need or problem and we’ll help to provide a team of people to help.
“Gone are the days when only professional athletes access these services.
“High performance comes in many different forms and we need a team to support that.
“What we do is help consumers build that team.”
Opening initially in Soho with coaches and trainers, Until has since branched out to host medical professionals.
It’s gone on to launch clubs in Liverpool Street and Marylebone and is gearing up to unveil its Canary Wharf location at YY London in the spring.
“Every day there is new learning, especially with how to get practitioners to work collaboratively,” said Vishal.
“We haven’t nailed it yet, it’s not straightforward, which is probably why it wasn’t there before.
“Step one was building environments which practitioners can work from.
“Step two is helping them to access the customers, so we have to find ways to get people to use the services.
“The idea is that we will act as both landlord and referrer.”
Until has won the backing of investor, entrepreneur and podcaster Steven Bartlett who joined the business in 2023 as marketing co-founder.
Its expansion to Canary Wharf, taking space in a building where it will count Revolut and Deutsche Bank as neighbours is something of a statement of intent.
Until’s club will offer fitness facilities for personal trainers to use – image supplied by Until
bringing Until to east London
“Canary Wharf has always been part of our vision,” said Vishal.
“Health and wellness isn’t just aspirational any more, it’s essential.
“Since the pandemic, everyone has their eye on it.
“The great thing about Canary Wharf is it allows our practitioners to build their brand.
“The transport connections here mean we can serve a wider area – you really feel you’re in the city centre.
“This will be our largest club and the first where we have all five facilities available – train, treat, coach, medical and dental.
“I’m most excited about the combination of expertise we’ll be offering here.
“It’s going to be a beautiful club to visit in a fantastic location.
“Once all of our practitioners come together, it allows consumers to experience how their services join up.
“Once that happens, they begin to understand the deeper benefits.
“For example, we offer dental services because oral health is connected to brain health.
“Adding in medical services is really important to what we’re doing.
“Also there are huge businesses around here and they all want to help their employees to get healthier.
“Many have facilities within their premises, but they’re just not activating them. It’s not inspiring.
“I’d like to help them to put programmes together, some of which could be delivered within their buildings and others outside.
“We have a community of practitioners in London who could come and leverage that.
“So we want to build corporate relationships. We’re here to add value to the estate.
The facility will also have treatment and consultation rooms – image supplied by Until
key details: Until Canary Wharf
Until currently operates clubs in Soho, Marylebone and Liverpool Street, with Canary Wharf set to open this spring.
You can find out more information, including a list of practitioners working from its sites via this link.
Until’s clubs are intended as a one-stop-shop for health and wellness – image supplied by Until
For the last 14 years, financial services firm Investec Bank has been fostering social entrepreneurship in east London.
Run in partnership with the Bromley By Bow Centre, its Investec Beyond Business programme has seen scores of businesses created with the aim of solving social problems.
These operations have a collective turnover of nearly £10million since the initiative was started in 2011 and support some 430 jobs.
Now entering its 15th year, individuals and organisations are encouraged to submit their applications by March 15, 2026, for up to £24,000 of funding each.
Ideas must have a clear social purpose and support communities in Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Newham, Waltham Forest, Islington or Barking And Dagenham
“We are typically looking for entry-level startups, which are no more than two years old, that will generate profit and reinvest this money in what they’re doing,” said Amitava Guha, enterprise team leader at the Bromley By Bow Centre.
“You don’t have to have a registered company – you might have identified an issue and want to start something to help address it. We can work with that.
“For 2026, I think we really want to elevate this programme, to support big ideas.
“People often opt for the safe route, but I think you can’t really become a successful entrepreneur if you don’t take risks.
“You have to have determination.”
The Bromley By Bow Centre in east London – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
mentoring, coaching and support
This is an area in which Amit is well versed.
Having founded and led digital consultancy Magicframe in India from 2006 to 2020, his own journey has been steeped in business development.
Having relocated to the UK and exited that company, he’s recently spent time coaching, mentoring and advising others on how to turn their ideas into viable operations.
“I joined the Bromley By Bow Centre in 2024 to take care of the Investec Beyond Business programme,” he said.
“Last year we received 148 applications, long-listed 30 and then short-listed 10 to present their ideas to the Investec panel, Dragon’s Den-style.
“Each year, we try to fund four or five enterprises.
“What’s essential is that, if you are called to make that presentation, you can explain your idea well so we can understand what you want to do because, ultimately, it will be you driving this change.
“Many of the ideas that are submitted have been quite good, quite interesting, but I think we can go further.
“We’d love to see some interesting thoughts coming out of Canary Wharf, for example.
“One of the important things to consider is that, while we understand people often come from a social action background, social action is not social enterprise.
“These ideas have to work as businesses.”
One of last year’s winners was Round Retail, a charitable resale platform for branded items where sellers get a third of the sale price and the balance goes to local charities and to fund expansion.
Feeling Social and TrailFam also won funding, providing mental health first aid training to organisaitons and offering trail running programmes to young people, respectively.
While Bamboo Bicycle Club is already an established business in Canning Town, the panel decided to fund its project to work with parents serving custodial sentences to build bikes for their kids to help maintain a tangible connection with their children.
Bamboo Bicycle Club founder James Marr received funding from Investec Beyond Business – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
ideas with the potential to spread
Amit said: “We made an exception for this company because it was such a good idea.
“It was quite emotional for us and the programme has gone really well.
“It’s a good example of exactly the kind of projects Investec Beyond Business wants to fund.
“They can be small ideas that start in east London but have the potential to spread everywhere.
“We really like ideas that get people to think differently.
“They don’t need to be absolutely radical or outside the box and it can be something that needs some development.
“One of the key things for us is that the £24,000 is seed funding, to support the person or the organisation the idea has come from.
“We don’t restrict how that money is spent, but we do have quarterly meetings with the winner and produce a report.
vWe’re also on hand to mentor and support them and many previous winners also participate in the programme in this way.
“That’s a process that continues beyond the first year.”
With 50 applications already received, the 2026 programme of funding is set to begin in May, after shorlisting and interviews in April.
Issues typically addressed by applicants include social enterprises working in youth unemployment, social isolation and loneliness, mental health and wellbeing, community cohesion, the rehabilitation of ex‑offenders, food insecurity and environmental sustainability.
Those applying – and IBB especially welcomes applications from under-represented founders – are expected to demonstrate how their idea would benefit at least one of the six boroughs it operates across.
Amit said one area of focus he would like to see tackled was the pervasive effect of social media on both the young and old.
“I think there are a lot of problems around attention and interaction,” he said.
“Through social media and AI, we’re in danger of creating generations of people who have no idea what they’re talking about and can’t articulate their ideas when they go for an interview, for example.
“I worry these technologies are damaging our ability to think independently and I’d love to hear ideas around what can be done to address this.”
key details: Investec Beyond Business
Applicants to the Investec Beyond Business programme are invited to submit their ideas to the programme by March 15, 2026.
…my feet slip in first, breaking the gently shifting blue surface of the water, liquid so chilled it feels silken as I sink down into it.
Muscles tensing, heart-rate climbing, my breathing quickens as my body goes into full fight or flight mode in response to the unrelenting cold.
But I don’t lose it to the panic, I take deeper breaths, bringing the shock under control, then relax into the balm of the icy water, counting my inhales and my exhales.
The monolithic sensation of the chill is all I can think about – sensory overload – until a few minutes later it’s time to wake and emerge from the water…
Third Space mind and body master trainer, Clare Walters – image supplied by Third Space
some like it chilled…
“Contrast therapy and cold exposure are not new disciplines, they’ve been around since ancient times,” said Clare Walters, mind and body master trainer at Third Space.
“There has been a really rich culture of sauna and polar plunges in lots of the Scandinavian and eastern European countries and the practices in this country go back at least to Roman times with baths of different temperatures.
“However, there’s a growing recognition of their benefits in the wellness industry.”
Recently, in response to this demand, the luxury health club fitted a Brass Monkey cold plunge facility at its Wood Wharf branch, offering members who’ve heated up in its steam room and sauna, or who just feel the need for a profound full-body chill, a poolside option overlooking the dock far below.
“The brand is one of the leading providers of ice baths and they really know their stuff,” said Clare.
“The products are of a really high standard with the water constantly filtered to ensure its clean and that the temperature remains stable.
“That’s important, because you need that cold shock to get the benefits.
“Recovery and wellness is very much something we’re prioritising in our clubs and, for me, it’s a mission to help people regulate their nervous systems.
“We have lots of ways of doing that and cold exposure is an important tool we can use.
“We offer cryotherapy at our Recovery Spa in Third Space Canary Wharf, which some people prefer.
“It’s much colder than the water of a plunge could ever be, but it’s a dry cold for up to three minutes and you warm up quickly afterwards.
“You still get the benefits, but it doesn’t feel quite as intense.
“An ice bath can feel more dramatic and, because exposure is for a longer time, there’s an aspect of building mental resilience to it as well.
“When you go into the cold, you’re experiencing something which, in large quantities, could be very bad and possibly fatal – but is very beneficial for small amounts of time.
“Doing hard things you don’t necessarily want to do can help build mental and emotional resilience.
“It’s similar to training really hard in the gym.
“When you push yourself lifting weights, for instance, you know you’ve accomplished something and you feel really good about yourself.
“There’s also a neurological aspect to cold exposure.
“When you plunge or do cryo, you get a huge rush of dopamine into the bloodstream – around 200% higher than your baseline rate.
“Drugs may induce that kind of change but only for a few minutes whereas, a cold water rush can last for many hours.
“When I do a cold plunge, I can walk around the city for hours feeling happy.
“It can be really good for regulating mental health, particularly in the winter months, when it’s grey and dark and there’s very little Vitamin D coming to us.”
Ready and waiting, the Brass Monkey cold plunge at the Wood Wharf Club – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
advice on cold plunging at Third Space
Alternating between hot and cold is also widely thought to further boost these benefits with both environments having the added bonus of easing muscle pain and other physical stresses.
But how best to approach the icy depths?
Clare said: “First of all I’d say you should not aim for a long period of time in the water.
“If you’re new to cold plunging, you should aim for 30 seconds plus, but definitely try to get all the way in.
“I’ve seen so many people going in, getting to knee height, saying ‘no’ and getting straight back out again.
“Some get straight in and then out again.
There will be benefits, because you’ll be getting into your fight or flight response, but the real benefits come if you stick to it for a little bit longer.
“Doing it gradually can be real torture, so get in swiftly, but smoothly, not in a chaotic way.
“Get the water to neck height if you can – over you shoulders and to the back of your neck. It will feel more intense, but you’ll be able to calm down quicker.
“The gasp reflex is what we want – your sympathetic nervous system is triggered and your stress hormones are released.
“The heart rate starts to speed up and you get more blood flow around the body, but the longer we’re in the cold, we want to calm ourselves down – that’s when we think about breath.
“Focus on exhaling through pursed lips, which will force you to extend your exhale and start to calm down.
“Once you feel that’s happening, start to take an even, slow breath – breathing in for a slow count of four and then out for the same.
“Hold still. You can even close your eyes if you like.
“When I’m in the cold, my mind just goes clear, I just sit there and it feels amazing.
“Some people feel their extremities get cold – that’s because your blood vessels constrict and direct the blood flow to your vital organs to keep you alive.
“Combining a plunge with the sauna is great for this because in the heat your blood vessels open up and going between the two can be really good for circulation.
“Hands can also be kept out of the water for those who feel the cold in them.
“Ultimately a good rule of thumb to aim for is about one minute of immersion per degree of the ice bath.
“At Wood Wharf it’s kept between 5ºC and 7ºC.
“Typically women need less time, while men tolerate the cold a bit better.
“Conversely the opposite is true in the sauna.
“Across a week, we say 11 minutes of cold plunging and an hour in the sauna will give you optimum benefit for both, although not in a single session.”
The sauna at Third Space Wood Wharf – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
embracing contrast therapy
With the facility at Wood Wharf up and running, further change is coming to the Canary Wharf club, which is set to open a new Wellness Spa later in the year.
This will include a hydropool, a cold plunge pool, a steam room, heated loungers as well as two different kinds of sauna.
There will also be a sky garden for members to relax in.
We’ll bring you more news on this major development in a future issue of Wharf Life.
key details: Third Space membership at Canary Wharf
The Wharf membership at Third Space includes access to both its Wood Wharf and Canary Wharf clubs and costs £245 per month.
Group and Group Plus memberships, which include access to other sites are also available.
