Isle Of Dogs Archives - Page 4 of 6

July 13, 2023July 16, 2023

Isle Of Dogs: How you can learn to sail on the waters of Millwall Outer Dock

Docklands Sailing And Watersports Centre instructor Leila Moore on teaching adults and kids

Subscribe to our Wharf Whispers newsletter here

“Anyone can come here – it’s an amazing place to go out on the water whether you’re an adult or a kid,” said Leila Moore, sailing instructor at the Docklands Sailing And Watersports Centre (DSWC) on the Isle Of Dogs.

“I grew up on the Island and was nine when I first tried out sailing, windsurfing and kayaking at the centre – I’m 22 now and I’m still here.”

Leila remains a part-time instructor at the centre while studying for a degree in ocean science and marine conservation at the University Of Plymouth.

“I love the water and I always wanted to be a marine biologist, so sailing has given me a chance to be out on the dock and ocean a lot,” she said.

“I think the DSWC is something not many people expect to find in London and it’s a great facility.

“I really enjoyed all the watersports I tried when I was a kid, but then the weather started to get colder so I stuck with sailing, which was on the water rather than in it.

“By the following summer I was racing and I loved it.

“At the centre, kids have the option to become volunteers if they are doing well at the age of 14 and can start shadowing instructors on courses.

“That’s what I did, which was quite interesting as sometimes you’re teaching adults while still a teenager.

“At 16 I did my instructor’s course, which then gave me a job that I really enjoyed and gave me even more opportunities to be out on the water.”

Leila now works at the centre whenever her studies allow, helping children and adults discover sailing and develop their skills.

The centre is located on Westferry Road on the Isle Of Dogs

“The minimum age is eight for our sessions and we run a youth club on Monday evenings and Sunday mornings as well as sessions in the holidays and over half terms,” she said.

“The kids learn how to sail from scratch – the parts of the boat and how it works.

“We teach them all the way from Royal Yachting Association stage one to stage four, which covers everything from the very beginning to starting to race.

“The RYA certificates are recognised globally and are evidence of how much sailing a person can do.

“For adults we do something similar with levels one to three available, although most people only do up to level two, which is what’s generally necessary to hire a boat.

“If someone has done level one with us then we’re happy for them to go out sailing on our boats – then we have open sessions all day, every day apart from when we’re hosting private events.

“Anyone with an RYA Level Two, or equivalent experience can go out sailing without instructors.

“Annual membership is £150 for adults and only £30 for children so it’s very good value.

“There’s also family membership for £300, which includes two adults and four children.

“Of course, anyone can come and hire a sit-on kayak or a stand-up paddleboard for an hour so long as they are water confident.

“We get all kinds of people who come to try things out – passers-by who didn’t know we were here, locals who want to get out on the water, tourists who have found us online and workers who regularly travel to this part of London for work.

Watersports take place on Millwall Outer Dock

“We believe in safety all day, every day and we always have instructors on or watching the water.

“Our safety boats are always rigged and ready to go so we can get from one end of the dock to the other in under a minute if we need to, although it’s very rare for kids or adults get into a situation that they can’t sort out themselves.

“Everybody wears a buoyancy aid and there are no exceptions to that rule apart from the open water swimmers who are also based here.

“The water itself is very clean – we check it regularly and I can confirm I’ve been in and out of the water since the age of nine and have managed to survive.

“For me it’s close to home, of course, but the reason I keep coming back is that the people are really lovely – it’s a great environment.

“Some of our adult racers have been coming for many years too – I was racing against them when I was a kid – it’s just such a nice place to be.

“We’re very reasonably priced and, compared to similar places nearby, we have the greatest variety of boats and offer the most sessions on the water.”

While an injury at 16 curtailed Leila’s solo career she has since moved on to sailing racing yachts as part of a team.

In addition to competition and recreation, her experience with boats has also opened doors for her academically.

“As an ocean scientist, the sailing has helped me a lot,” she said.

“I spent all of January and most of February on a yacht in Turkey doing some research and I only got that opportunity because of my skills as a sailor.

“The project was for people doing PhDs, but they needed somebody who could handle a boat and there have been a few things like that.

“A surprising number of people who study the ocean don’t have sailing skills, so it’s been really useful.”

It costs £15 for non members to hire sit-on kayaks at the centre for an hour

Leila has started taking her nieces and nephews out at the centre too in the hope that they might follow in her footsteps, admitting that her siblings are not water people.

However, while there are all kinds of craft piled high in its yard, DWSC is about more than the activities on the dock itself.

“We have a bar upstairs that’s usually open from 5pm on weekdays and from 1pm at weekends as well as a Tiki Bar downstairs, which is very exciting,” she said.

“We also have a space that can be hired for weddings and birthdays or any kind of party along with the bar.

“We do corporate events too such as team building, where companies can hire the whole site – we do activities such as dragon boat racing, which is a great thing to do with colleagues paddling together.”

Sit-on kayaks and paddleboards can be hired for £15 for non-members and £5 for members.

A full list of activities and prices can be found on the centre’s website alongside booking links.

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to our Wharf Whispers newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

May 18, 2023May 18, 2023

West India Quay: How the Museum Of London Docklands is marking its 20th

Institution is planning a The Big Docklands Street Party with late access to its galleries on June 10

Drag queen Vanity Milan will headline The Big Docklands Street Party

Subscribe to our Wharf Whispers newsletter here

The Museum Of London Docklands is gearing up for a celebration.

On June 10, 2023, the chimes of the bells at St Mary-Le-Bow will ring out to mark 20 years since the late Queen officially opened the West India Quay institution.

Two decades on and it’s drag queen Vanity Milan – known for her appearances on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK in 2021 – who will headline The Big Docklands Street Party in celebration of the milestone.

Running from 7pm-10pm on the Saturday evening, the event will feature Hackney Showroom’s Bobby Dazzler outdoor stage with a line-up of live music acts and performances to entertain revellers.

Tickets, which should be pre-booked online, cost £20 dropping to £12 for those aged 20.

Other attractions will include a makers market featuring products from Craft Central creatives, street food stalls and pop-up bars as well as an East End-themed pub quiz.

The museum’s galleries will also stay open late to host a range of talks, tours and film screenings including a focus on the origins of street parties in the capital, the history of the Notting Hill Carnival and the other festivities that have brought Londoners together over the years.

The latter is something Museum Of London Docklands managing director Douglas Gilmore is very much hoping the street party will do.

“There will be film, dance and lots of activities and we’re really excited about it,” he said.

“We want to be diverse and to make sure everyone who might want to come to the museum can and for people who haven’t visited to feel that they can too.

“We’ve done these kinds of events before, so local people are used to them, but we also want people to come from further afield to grow our audience.

“Our research has shown some people think Docklands is hard to get to but we know it isn’t – there are five stations across three different lines within five minutes’ walk of us and most museums can’t say that.”

While the party, like Vanity Milan, is the headline attraction, the museum’s 20th birthday has also become the focus of a sequence of events taking place throughout the year.

The Queen opened the museum on June 10, 2023

“We’ve been open for two decades on this site,” said Douglas.

“We want to use that and incorporate it in our new strategy, which we’ve entitled Moving Centre Stage, because with the Museum Of London temporarily closed for its relocation to Smithfield we are now the centre.

“Our strategy has three main pillars – the first is to grow our audience, both in terms of numbers and diversity, the second is to improve our content, both in what we have and what we show and the third is the efficiency of how we operate.

“Our anniversary will be used to feed all of those. June is really our party month and, in addition to the main celebration there will be activities for both adults and children.

“Then, our next big month will be September when we’ll be organising a mudlarking festival.

“Ideally we’d like to grow that into an annual event, starting small but talking about it in the same way the Natural History Museum does Wildlife Photographer Of The Year, which has become an international event.

“We plan to run foreshore tours with an expert from the British Museum to assess items found on the banks of the Thames.

“There’s a lot of interest in mudlarking and part of what we do as a museum is to tell the story of the Thames though the Port Of London Authority’s archive and things found in the river.

“It’s a part of our identity with our Mudlarks Gallery for kids, which is hugely popular.”

The museum is seeking to boost the diversity of its audience

Whatever the museum does, Douglas is focused on making sure that as wide a range of people participate in its activities as possible.

“Museums are famously un-diverse,” he said.

“Ours is actually one of the best with 23% of visitors coming from diverse backgrounds, which is great because most national museums wouldn’t get anywhere near that.

“That’s partly because of where we are – the local boroughs around here are quite diverse – but also because we are one of only three museums in the country that has a permanent display about the slave trade, which is a diverse subject in terms of the audience it affects.

“These are the main reasons we’re doing so well already. However, we want to improve because the Museum Of London has an ambition to represent the city in terms of both our staff and the people who visit us.

“London’s population is around 40% diverse, so while 23% is good, it is only about half way to where we should be.

“The way we want to do that is partly through what we show here.

“This month we have a new display called Indo + Caribbean, and that’s very relevant for us as we tell the story of migration and Indian indenture.

The street party will feature live music and entertainment

“In October we’ll be opening Fashion City here as part of the 20th anniversary, which is a different thing for us to do and hopefully will bring in a new audience.

“The strap-line is how Jewish Londoners shaped global style, telling the story of how immigrants came to the East End and started making clothes here, with some moving to the West End to start couture houses.

“There will also be Windrush Day, with readings and performances from poets of Caribbean heritage on June 20 as we mark the arrival of the Empire Windrush at Tilbury Docks.

“For everything we do, we need to think about the audience we’re attracting here.

“One thing I definitely want to achieve while I am here is record visitor numbers.

“We’ll also be producing a masterplan this year to define where we want this building to be in 10 years’ time.

“From this, we’ll work backwards to see how we can achieve it – how the museum will look inside and what that might mean for the way it’s laid out.

“We could definitely use our outside space more to make the quay really come alive.”

The Bobby Dazzler stage will certainly be a vibrant starting point to that process.

Prepare for an evening of celebration and history

EVENTS COMING UP

Check out these upcoming events at the Museum Of London Docklands – all part of its plans to mark 20 years since opening in 2003:

Dal Puri Diaspora screening + Q&A

May 31, 6.30pm, ages 14+, paid

Follow the journey of dal puri across space and time, from indentured workers from India’s Gangetic Plain in 19th-century British and Dutch Caribbean colonies, to today’s global Indo-Caribbean community.

LGBTQIA+ Life In Limehouse

Jun 17, 2pm, ages 18+, paid

Join The Urban Rambler, Nick Collinson, for an afternoon jaunt through the streets of Limehouse stopping at queer-friendly and owned pubs along the way

Family Knees-Up

May 30, 11am / 2pm, under 5s, free

Listen and sing along to the sounds of the inimitable Tom Carradine as he brings a family friendly version of Carradine’s Cockney Singalong to the Museum. Expect plenty of ivory tinkling and bananas.

Spitalfields Ballad Walk

July 1, 11am, ages 14+, paid

Join folk singer and researcher Vivien Ellis for a musical walking tour focusing on the rich history of street vendors and others who used song to make a living on the streets. Learn about unsung heroes of the East End and discover how music brought communities together.

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to our Wharf Whispers newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

May 4, 2023May 4, 2023

Isle Of Dogs: How The Bakineer is set to serve sweet treats at Mudchute Farm

Hash Mastan will take over converted horse trailer Ruby Red to sell his blondies, brownies and bakes

Friendly neighbourhood baker: Hash Mastan of The Bakineer

Subscribe to our Wharf Whispers newsletter here

What’s in a name? Well, for Hash Mastan, quite a lot.

He started his business when the pandemic first hit.

With his mechanical engineering masters on hold at Imperial College London and his role at Hummingbird Bakery furloughed, he started baking at his family home near Island Gardens on the Isle Of Dogs.

Trading under the name of Hash Blondies, he began selling his tray bakes online and building up his business by handing out free samples on South Quay.

“That was the name for about two years,” said Hash. “I chose that name because it was my name and the product I specialised in but it began to cause some confusion.

“Firstly people assumed I only baked blondies, but I do brownies, cookies, cheesecakes and doughnuts as well.

“But I also began to get serious enquiries from people who wanted me to make hash cakes for them.

“Every second person wanted to know if they contained cannabis.

“While drug-free blondies and brownies remain my signature products, it was always the plan to expand and the range is getting larger and larger.”

So the old name was retired in favour of The Bakineer, a blending of baker and engineer – emblematic of Hash’s approach to his craft.

That it sounds a bit like a superhero moniker, is just a happy coincidence – but apt given his guerilla marketing techniques.

Hash will soon be selling his bakes from Ruby Red at Mudchute Park And Farm

“I always had a knack for technical subjects, maths, problem solving, things like that,” said Hash.

“I got the job at Hummingbird because it was a short walk from the university in South Kensington.

“I had no previous experience of a commerical bakery, but while I was there, I began to apply my problem-solving skills in engineering to baking.

“I began suggesting ways to improve recipes or to change processes – the creativity was building up.”

Following exams for his course and before he returned to Hummingbird, this bubbled up into his own side hustle – baking in his family home and selling online.

“I did return to Hummingbird and my university studies, but within a couple of weeks it was already getting overwhelming,” said Hash.

“Word had started to spread and I was finding myself dealing with customer enquiries while I was on shift in the bakery.

“Then Hash Blondies was featured in the media and it didn’t sit right with Hummingbird.

“They classed it as a conflict of interest and asked me to choose between my small business and my job.

“So I chose my small business because I believed I had a great product I could continue to develop. I went part-time at university and went all out for my bakery.”

Tireless is a good word for Hash. Frequently fuelled by his own bakes, he delivers much of his output on foot even though he’s recently acquired his first car.

But his time in the kitchen is equally relentless as the engineer meets the baker, constantly creating new recipes and refining old favourites.

Hash inspects the roof of Ruby Red ahead of opening

“I’ve got more than a hundred flavours now, but I don’t just mish-mash random ingredients together – I think very deeply about what the customer will experience – the sweetness, the saltiness and the contrasting textures,” said Hash.

“I try to introduce a new flavour each week, but I won’t release something until it’s ready. That’s in contrast to other bakeries, which might do once a month.

“That way there’s always something new to try.

“It’s been nearly three years and I’m still excited to get in the kitchen and design the menu for the coming week.”

In addition to the bakes, Hash’s business is also evolving. Having built a local following online and through partnerships with local institutions like The Space arts centre on Westferry Road, The Bakineer is now set to get its first regular physical gig.

Hash, now aided in production by his brother Hasib (himself a Hummingbird and Lola’s Cupcake baker), is set to take over Ruby Red at Mudchute Park And Farm on the Isle Of Dogs.

The hatch of the converted horse trailer will be open Thursday-Sunday, from 10am-4pm, serving a rotating range of stalwarts and fresh flavours.

“Last year there was a dog show at the farm and I came dressed as Spiderman – something I do to promote my business – bringing my brownies and blondies along to sell,” said Hash.

“It was four hours, but the bakes sold out in two – I completely underestimated the demand.

“People were very excited that Spirderman was there selling blondies and after that we started thinking about a collaboration with the farm.

“One of the trustees approached me and asked if I’d like to take on Ruby Red and it was perfect.

“I can’t think of a better organisation to partner with and I really want to find ways for my business to help the farm thrive in the future.

“It’s also great because I have a large local customer base, I live just round the corner, where all the bakes are made and it’s the right colour for my logo and the costume.

“That’s an image that will stay in people’s minds – Spiderman in a red truck.

“Wearing the costume started because I loved the movie Spiderman: No Way Home and I began to see the parallels with what I was doing. In the movie, Spiderman delivers pizzas and I deliver my bakes in pizza boxes.

“So I bought a costume, went out delivering and it caught on. It is dependent on the weather as it can get quite hot, but people tell me it cheers them up when they see me and that’s an added bonus.

“Some even specifically ask me to deliver to them wearing it.”

As for the future, Hash is focused first on establishing the business at the farm before going on to centralise his production.

“At the moment, everything is baked using commercial equipment at my family home,” he said. “We’re fully inspected by the council and have a five-star hygiene rating.

“But the dream would be to find somewhere that we can produce the baking and sell the products on a single site.

“I also have lots of new marketing ideas. One of my heroes is Dwayne Johnson and he’s inspired my next campaign.

“I love his work ethic and, every time I feel like I’m hitting a wall, I look at his Instagram page, his tenacity, and think that I’m nowhere near my limit.”

Single slices from The Bakineer typically cost £3.50 and are available to order online or buy in person.

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to our Wharf Whispers newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

March 23, 2023March 23, 2023

Isle Of Dogs: How Dovetailed London makes vibrant clothes at Craft Central

Owner Adaku Parker on the African wax print fabric business she created after leaving her legal career

Dovetailed London owner Adaku Parker is a former barrister

Subscribe to our Wharf Whispers newsletter here

Walk into Adaku Parker’s studio at Craft Central on the Isle Of Dogs and it’s impossible to miss the core element of business.

Everywhere there are metal shelves piled high with vibrant African wax print fabrics.

Every glance takes in a rainbow of bright, iridescent hues.

Then there’s Adaku herself, eyes glowing and dressed in a blue and yellow Camille dress from her new ready-to-wear range, set to launch later this year.

Colour is Dovetailed London’s business – an operation with many strands to it.

Adaku imports and sells the fabrics she uses, with pieces available from as little as £3.50, with scrap bags and charm packs also available to minimise waste.

For those inspired to sew for themselves, she produces patterns for crafters to recreate her creations and offers monthly subscription boxes so customers can build their collection of fabrics, thread and haberdashery.

A sequel to her first book Sewing With African Wax Print Fabric is due out in the autumn and she also runs weekend and Monday night workshops, where participants can learn to work with the brightly coloured materials and make some of her designs.

She imports, sells and makes clothes from African wax print fabric

It’s a business that has grown from a chance encounter with an episode of The Great British Sewing Bee in 2016.

“I’d wanted to be a barrister since I was 14 – I went to a school where we were encouraged to aim quite high,” said Adaku.

“Being brought up in a Nigerian home, I was expected to be either a barrister, a doctor, an engineer or an accountant – to enter a profession which was safe, secure, where you were guaranteed an income and you could look after yourself and your family.

“So I started on that route. I went to university to read law, went to law school, entered pupillage and was taken on as a criminal barrister and practised for about 15 years.

“I did a lot of white-collar crime – fraud, confiscation, money-laundering – and I really enjoyed that, because the numbers can never really lie, I liked the certainty in that.

“I have no background in sewing or fashion, but when I went on maternity leave in 2016, I just knew that I wanted to try something new.

“I was channel hopping and there was The Great Pottery Throw Down, but that wasn’t for me, so I kept on going and saw what was literally the final of the Sewing Bee.

“I liked that there were professionals on it – people who worked with their creativity and that was really attractive to me.

“I thought that if they could be interested in sewing, then maybe I might be too.”

So Adaku began dipping her toe into the fashion and textile world, taking courses and experimenting.

She also sells sewing patterns and subscription boxes

“I did about 20 different classes – tailoring, garment alteration and decorative techniques – and I would always take along African wax print fabric.

“I could see the tutors thinking: ‘Oh no,’ because pattern matching and things like that can be quite tricky.

“But I took to sewing really quickly and it didn’t take me long to get quite good at making things I liked – bags and skirts, for example.

“It gave me a real boost. I feel passionately about the fact that a human being can do many different things even though we often narrow ourselves and go down certain paths.

“Many skills are transferable, and I’d always felt that deep down, but I’d never experienced it, even though I knew it to be true.”

Dovetailed as a business emerged incrementally from those beginnings.

“I was making for myself, but then family and friends wanted things, too, and they were commissioning projects and items that they could buy from me,” said Adaku.

“Then I had the idea to take some to a small market to see what would happen.

“It felt amazing and so affirming, that somebody would part with cash for something I’d made by hand.

“I hadn’t grown up in that environment, I’d just bought things in shops never really thinking about who had made it.

“I’d never sewn on a button before I did that first workshop.

“Then in 2018 I was on maternity leave for the second time and was really thinking about doing something other than the law – that’s when I committed to really running the business.

“Now sometimes I have to pinch myself – I do really big fabric shows around the country in London, Birmingham and Surrey.

She designs and makes ready-to-wear clothes as well as bespoke pieces

“I’ve been on shopping television and Dovetailed was featured on Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas with Kirstie Allsopp.

“I sell online through my website and I’ve been featured in magazines – it’s really been amazing.

“Appearing on shopping television and telling the story of African fabric was that seminal moment for me – Dovetailed was no longer a hobby.

“Navigating the journey to becoming a business that pays for my lifestyle and employees is exciting and I’m having a great time doing it.

“Dovetailed curates a range of African wax print fabrics that are produced using a very specific process – a mechanised form of batik.

“I buy them from Ghana, Nigeria and Holland with a focus on quality.

“You can get very inexpensive African fabrics but they will look and feel cheap, so I prefer to import and sell really good quality material.

“There’s a density and a weight to it and it looks very different – people just love it.

“The designs make colour very wearable, it’s about finding what suits you and matching the right fabric to the project.

“My designs just come to me. Although I haven’t had a background in fashion, I’ve always been quite fashionable and I love colour and dressing up – I’ve never really stopped.

“Even when I was a barrister I loved passing on what I know.

“I really enjoy encouraging and inspiring people – writing the books is part of demystifying the craft of sewing.”

Adaku also runs weekend and weeknight workshops from her base at Craft Central on the Isle Of Dogs

To that end, Dovetailed is set to launch a series of six-week workshops on Monday evenings, starting on April 10, running until May 15.

Participants can choose from a selection of projects including dresses, tops, trousers and pinafores. See prices online.

As for the future, Adaku has big ambitions for her brand.

“My ultimate dream would be to have my ready-to-wear garments on sale in Selfridge’s,” she said.

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to our Wharf Whispers newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

March 9, 2023March 11, 2023

Blackwall: How The Gun pub is helping customers discover its wine list

Venue plans regular monthly tastings dubbed The Grape Escape hosted by deputy manager Fabio Scarpa

The Coldharbour pub is set to host more monthly wine tastings

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s newsletter here

The Gun is a pub that has long been about bringing people together.

That might be the illicit meetings of Lord Horatio Nelson and Lady Emma Hamilton (whose trysts remain immortalised with their names on the toilet doors), rugby fans indulging in pints while watching the game or locals catching up around the fire or out on the terrace in the warmer months.

Recently it’s been experimenting with wine tastings – refining and ageing its formula ahead of the launch of a regular series on the last Friday of the month, set to kick off in earnest on March 31, 2023.

Having recently attended one of the warm-up events, I’m happy to confirm that The Grape Escape features no uncomfortable tunnelling beneath the Thames or Steve McQueen impressions.

Rather, it was a snug evening in the company of fellow wine enthusiasts, heated by an open fire and set to the gravelly tones of deputy manager Fabio Scarpa, whose rich drawl proved as deep and rewarding as the notes in a well-aged Cabernet Sauvignon.

We tasted seven wines, nibbled on cheese and took turns to tour the pub from top to bottom – enjoying its views, nooks and cellar to get an appreciation of the place’s history and continuing appeal.

Fabio Scarpa hosts the The Grape Escape at The Gun

Perhaps the most striking thing about the evening, however, was its role as a catalyst for interaction – bringing long standing local residents together with east London newbies, to much merriment.

Lubricated by three reds, three whites and a fizz, the atmosphere was open and welcoming as a diverse group of attendees talked about the wines, themselves and a certain amount of nonsense (me) in good cheer.

Having come through two years where talking freely to strangers was pretty much an impossibility, it was refreshing to see how easily and enjoyably the world has returned to normal.

Looking around at smiling faces, with fast friendships formed, it was also a moment to reflect that people have been enjoying such pleasant evenings at the venue since the 1700s.

With a lazy fire smouldering in the grate and the scent of wood smoke in the nostrils, perhaps some things don’t change so very much.

The final format (and price) of the forthcoming tastings is still in production but will be announced on the venue’s website and social media channels in due course.

WHARF LIFE’S PICK OF THE WINES

Meerlust Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot, £65

Stellenbosch, South Africa

This wonderful, rich companion should be drunk in leather armchairs by an open fire in fine company.

Eins Zwei Dry (Best Buy)

Riesling, £41

Rheingau, Germany

Crisp and refreshing with a pun in the name, this was the wine of the night as well as being the most modestly priced

Bolney Estate

Bubbly Brut, £50

West Sussex, England

This fizz is a true delight on the tongue and a wonderful way to start an evening. Refreshing and approachable

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

February 23, 2023February 23, 2023

Isle Of Dogs: How The Ignition Platform hopes to set Lanterns Studio Theatre alight

Jamiel Devernay-Laurence has teamed up with Kennedy Junior Muntanga for his latest dance event

Jamiel Devernay-Laurence has created The Ignition Platform

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s newsletter here

Tucked away behind glass and green steel just off Millharbour lies the Lanterns Studio Theatre.

The venue, which boasts a vast, 3,000sq ft plus, sprung dance floor, is generally used by major production companies as a rehearsal space – one of the few capacious enough to accommodate the really big shows.

These sessions are typically held behind closed doors away from the eyes of the public. Lanterns, however, is starting to open up to audiences, thanks to Jamiel Devernay-Laurence.

Building on Ballet Nights, a show he hosted there in October 2021, The Ignition Platform is set for a public performance at the Isle Of Dogs venue on March 4, 2023.

Jamiel essentially grew up at Lanterns – run by his mother Janet Viola – and following a dance career with Scottish Ballet, it’s where he’s decided to base his newly minted venture, Jamiel Laurence Creation.

“I’ve worked all over the UK,” he said. “I’ve lived in Glasgow, London and spent the past year working in Cardiff, bringing quality dance performances to that city.

“When that came to an end and I was thinking about what to do next, I decided to put on a new intensive programme at the Lanterns Studio Theatre – which is no stranger to new and exciting things, although often there isn’t a performance output.

“We rehearse, without doubt, every major production company in the UK and now some in Europe as well – we’ve just had Theatre Du Chatelet, who were preparing for their production of 42nd Street.

“After spending a decade learning how to put on those shows and seeing the companies in action, I decided it was my go.

“The first thing I did in January was to launch an intensive programme for professional dancers and the response to that was hugely overwhelming – there’s a real gap right now in contemporary dance for professional development.

“I hadn’t realised how big the need was – it was exactly the right time – and off the back of that I reconnected with Kennedy Junior Muntanga who performed at Lanterns as part of Ballet Nights.

Kennedy Junior Muntanga is set to perform at Lanterns Studio Theatre

“Chatting with him about his ambitions was a powerful moment because it made me aware young choreographers are really feeling the pinch.

“There are lots of cuts to the arts right now and that means there are fewer opportunities out there.

“I’m a doer, so I decided to launch Ignition in response – a platform to put work by young choreographers up on stage.

“The first level of that is what audiences will see on March 4. Our budget might be minimal, but what matters is that the dancing will be anything but.

“It’s about showcasing a really big voice in dance that needs to be heard on the Isle Of Dogs – not an area that’s traditionally known for these things.

“I’m very confident there will be an appetite for this locally so that’s stage one – the plan in future will be then to come back with a bigger production the next time.

“Hopefully the third time will be an all-singing, all-dancing, hologram-showing extravaganza.

“The idea is that Ignition will allow choreographers themselves to make a case for why their work should be on stage – then we make it happen for them.”

Tickets for the event on March 4 – The Ignition Platform: An Evening With Kennedy Muntanga – cost £20. The performance is set to start at 7pm.

“The performance itself will consist of a 30-minute trio from A Death Has Occurred, which is a piece that Kennedy has written, taking inspiration from his faith to explore themes of destiny, identity, spirituality and truth.

“It follows the story of Nebu, a young journalist obsessed with the idea of being his own helmsman, as he struggles to offer himself to God’s plan for his life.

“Reporting as a war correspondent, Nebu is given a vision that prophesies a city abandoned and left to crumble to the wrath of war.

“Nebu’s interpretation of the dream leads him to reject God in protest at what he sees. Kennedy uses fiction to bring to the forefront his learning and understanding of accepting a plan much greater than his own, even when suffering prevails.

“He plans one day to turn the piece into a full 90-minute show.

The Ignition Platform will include a trio from Kennedy’s A Death Has Occurred

“After that, we’re going to have a solo dance by Kennedy himself, created exclusively for Ignition.

“There will also be a Q&A with the choreographer following the performances.

“It’s really exciting that I can take someone like him and give him a platform.

“His dancing is not any recognisable contemporary technique or format, his movement is really from a new place – it’s very contact-heavy.

“The word you see about him in every review is ‘visceral’, and that tells the tale – his work features very muscly, athletic men and women in contact with each other.

“He lives in Finsbury Park, but spends much of his time in Greenwich as the artistic director of Trinity Laban’s Youth Dance Company as well as Kennedy Muntanga Dance Theatre.

“What he does that’s really interesting is that he puts on classes for free every Tuesday night, and they are his practice in action – that’s how he’s refining his voice.”

Jamiel said the March 4 performance would also help to make the case for further events at Lanterns and beyond.

“The Ignition Platform is really about support and what I want to do is build an audience who feel like they’re the home crowd for dance,” he said.

“My philosophy is that I don’t think dance on stage is broken as a model – that’s not where the problem is. Instead, it’s the pastime of going to see dance.

“For example, people on dates might go to the cinema or a show and have a meal first – they’d know how to navigate that. But with dance theatre it’s different.

“Would it be a long show, a short show? Would there be time to eat? Is it expensive or affordable?

“I’d like to achieve for dance what stand-up has for comedy – to have artists practising their craft and audiences getting a raw, accessible version of the work.

“Right now there are too many dancers and not enough opportunity.

“Long term, the goal for Ignition would be to build our own touring circuit – we’d very much like events to be exportable.

“That might be to other venues in London, but we’d also like to connect with Scotland, Wales and other towns and cities in England as well.

“Further afield from this, I would love to have work that could tour internationally. That’s for the future.

“Right now I believe there’s a huge opportunity in Docklands – a place that’s become a growing residential community.

“Lanterns can provide something for people locally where they don’t have to travel to the West End to see high quality performances – it’s right here on their doorstep.”

Get tickets and more info on The Ignition Platform here

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

February 8, 2023February 8, 2023

Isle Of Dogs: How Ten Days at The Space brings Russia’s Revolution into the present

Theatre maker Matthew Jameson talks putting history on stage to reflect our troubling times

Theatre maker Matthew Jameson has created Ten Days

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s newsletter here

History isn’t something that exists trapped between the pages of dusty books, for Matthew Jameson.

The playwright, actor and director doesn’t just see echoes of the past in the present – for him, it’s much more immediate than that.

So his forthcoming production at The Space on the Isle Of Dogs may be the story of what happened between February and October 1917 as the Tsar was overthrown and the communists rose to power. But it’s something else as well.

“I didn’t want Ten Days to be a piece of historical theatre, something that happened more than 100 years ago, which we can only learn lessons from,” he said.

“These kinds of things are ongoing around us, so I wanted the play to be in a contemporary setting – Europe 2023 – scarily close to where we are now.

“The characters are in modern dress and we have a diverse cast who will better reflect our own times than Russia in 1917.

“We also have a lot of video and tech to help to convey some of the scale of the events we want to portray.”

The production is set to run on various dates at the east London arts centre from March 14-25, 2023, with performances at 7.30pm and a pair of Saturday matinees at 2.30pm.

Matthew said: “People should look forward to something epic – it’s a story that covers the breadth and scale of the overthrow of Russia’s ruling family, the establishment of a provisional government and the eventual rise of Lenin and the Bolsheviks.

“It has a cast of 10, of which I am one, and we’ll all be playing multiple roles.

“Among others, I’ll be Vladimir Antonov-Ovseyenko the unlikely leader of the assault on the Winter Palace – a slightly baffled, befuddled and depraved man.

“Ten Days is something I’ve been working on for about a decade.

“I completed a masters in dramaturgy part-time over the last couple of years and the focus of that was on creating a play as a final project – this was the vehicle to complete it.

“It’s gone through various iterations and I’d never quite finished the draft, but through doing the course, I’ve now completed the whole thing – redrafting, streamlining and editing to reflect the ongoing chaos the world seems to be experiencing.”

Matthew isn’t new to putting real events from the past on stage.

Raised in the North East, he’d always wanted to be a performer and became involved with a company called the Heretical Historians whose play The Trial Of Le Singe brought him to The Space for the first time in 2017.

“That was as a visiting actor, but I really enjoyed being part of this institution,” he said.

“The play was about the story of the Hartlepool monkey and we were doing this post-Brexit, reflecting the idea of a conflicted, anti-European England.

“That’s when I first found The Space and I’ve never really left.

“A lot of the Heretical Historians’ stuff was telling previously untold true stories from history and bringing them to life for a modern audience.

Ten Days is set to run at The Space from March 14-25, 2023

“Ten Days feels like an extension of that. It’s a new company – BolshEpic Theatre – and it’s all about bringing the truth of history to life and making it accessible.

“A lot of my previous work was focused primarily on comedy and entertainment.

“Now I feel there’s a lot of stuff happening in the world that requires our response to be a bit more measured and serious.

“Within that, telling the story of the Russian Revolution is something that is directly relevant to the present.

“Although there’s a lot of entertainment in the story we’re telling, there are also more serious parallels we need to explore, and you can’t do that simply through comedy, although it does help the medicine go down.

“There is the war in Europe at the moment and the apparent collapse of some democracies across the world – it’s been exhausting to keep up with what’s been happening while writing.

“What I want is for audiences to be able to take a look at what it means to live through a crisis and to ask: ‘What hope can we have for democracy?’.

“Ten Days doesn’t give a definitive answer to that, we just present what happened. In Russia back then there was mass industrial action and it feels like we’re getting close to a general strike now.

“They had four heads of state in the space of a year. We’ve had three prime ministers and two monarchs.

“I don’t know whether that’s a cause for optimism that things can change, or a cause for worry that things could get worse.

“I think that in Russia in 1917 they really didn’t expect a revolution and that was one of the fundamental things that caught everyone by surprise.

“It’s not something that tallies with the Soviet version of history – a planned uprising of the people – or the rightist take – a well-calculated palace coup.

“The revolution was something in between, which was messier and muckier and, as a result, far more real and funny.

“What we’ve found is people don’t necessarily know that in the period between the Tsar and the Bolsheviks there was an elected government, where Russia could have turned into a European-style democracy.

“In Ten Days, we take things chronologically with a Sergei Eisenstein-style short film sequence showing the story as you think you know it – Lenin comes in and chucks the Tsar out, resulting in freedom for the people.

“That isn’t what happened but you need to see it as a reminder.

“There’s something about the truth of history that fiction never quite matches up to.

“As a writer you can aspire to be as absurd and ridiculous as you like, but as soon as you write something as silly as the truth people often won’t believe it.

“Hopefully, people will see our posters and think: ‘Lenin – OK, let’s see what this is about,’ but they may not know the other figures so it’s a way of introducing them to the audience.”

Tickets for Ten Days start at £5 and are sold on a pay-what-you-choose basis.

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

February 8, 2023February 8, 2023

Canary Wharf: How South Dock Bridge connects the estate to the Isle Of Dogs

Knight Architects design director Hector Beade-Pereda talks dockers hooks and slender elegance

An artist’s impression of how South Dock Bridge will look when finished

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s newsletter here

East London has a bit of a problem with bridges. Crossings are proposed, ideas generated and fancy images created.

But few make it as far as actual physical existence. Notably none of the various schemes to cross the Thames east of Tower Bridge have, partly because of the scale and cost of such projects.

The latest proposal for a new crossing across West India South Dock does, however, appear to have momentum and purpose with it.

Planning permission for Knight Architects’ design for South Dock Bridge was granted in December, detailed design work is now ongoing and construction is expected to start this year.

Tower Hamlets Council is behind the scheme and is currently working to acquire the appropriate chunks of land necessary and permission to build over the waterway.

A long time coming, the project is needed due to the creaking capacity issues of South Quay Bridge.

This swinging silver crescent moon, with its rattling aluminium planks and dramatic cable suspenders might have provided a dramatic backdrop for zombie horror 28 Days Later and spy flick The Constant Gardener, but functionally it’s always been a bit of a bodge.

Originally twice its current length its graceful S-shape was sliced in two when development narrowed the dock and it wound up sitting uncomfortably high at the point it arrives on the Wharf.

Anyone who’s braved the journey at peak times knows the little stone stairs do nothing to help the awkward flow of pedestrians on or off the estate – a rare planning error in an area that’s otherwise mostly frictionless for walkers.

The case for a new crossing is obvious. The Isle Of Dogs has an ever growing population meaning demand for routes into Canary Wharf as residents walk to access its amenities is on an ever upward trajectory.

So what of the new proposal, which will connect South Quay Plaza with Upper Bank Street?

Knight Architects’ design, which will be built for the council in partnership with engineering firm Arcadis Consulting and moving bridge specialist KGAL Consulting, is the result of responses to a previous outline design.

Knight Architects design director Hector Beade-Pereda

“South Dock Bridge was an atypical brief for us because we got involved in 2019 at the second stage,” said Knight design director Hector Beade-Pereda.

“In this case, many decisions, including where to cross, had already been made and had partly gone through a consultation process.

“We built our understanding of the site on the outcome of that process and designed a different bridge in response to that.

“There are some things that are the same. Our design is also a bascule bridge with the moving portion of the bridge towards the north.

“The position across the dock is the same, but the bridge is different because the public suggested we should consider various factors and almost start from scratch in agreement with the council. That’s what we did.”

When finished, South Dock Bridge will be Knight’s second crossing over the waters of the West India Dock complex.

Canary Wharf Group hired the firm to design its Water Street road bridge, which links the older portion of the estate with Wood Wharf, just around the corner from the proposed site of the new bridge.

“South Dock Bridge also has a section that is a bascule bridge that can be raised,” said Hector.

“While the two won’t be seen together, they can be experienced by walkers on the same journey, so we wanted to do something similarly understated to that design.

“They both have to respond to the water and to the Canary Wharf buildings around them.

“In form, the designs are actually pretty different. Water Street is a straight line, whereas South Dock uses more organic-looking, curved shapes.

“What we wanted to do was design something that would be respectful to the dock.

“We wanted something low profile that wouldn’t compete in scale with the buildings around it or the other existing bridges over the dock.

“We have made a big effort to make it slim, slender, elegant and attractive whether it is open or closed.

“It is a two span bridge. It has a pier in the centre of the dock. Before, the plan was to have more piers, but we wanted to have the minimum number to respect the water as much as possible.”

The bridge as it will be seen from Canary Wharf

Another potent influence on the design was the heritage of the local area – reflected by the form of the bridge in two ways.

Hector said: “One of the things that came out of the original consultation was that the bridge should pay tribute to the area’s past, so we thought quite a lot about that.

“We could have designed something that was triangulated, quite industrial but that would have been impossible if we were to keep the bridge slim and slender.

“So we looked at the shapes of the cranes that were used in Docklands – many of which were curved and elegant – and took inspiration from them.

“They looked like the contemporary industrial designs we see today.

“At the Museum Of London Docklands, we also saw the curved hooks that were used by dockers to help unload cargo from ships.

“They are the most beautiful things – really, really lovely – and that is reflected in the design.

“We will also make the surface of the bridge feel like the deck of a ship using angles and steelwork to convey that.

“This is why South Dock will have a different design language to the Water Street bridge even though they both stem from some common principles.

“South Dock will be cantilevered with counterweights so, from a sustainability point of view, it will need less energy to raise it.

“The curved forms also help the bridge respond to its internal forces quite strictly and that means you can use less material to build it, meaning it weighs less and requires less force to move.

“In finding a form that harmonises those forces, we have also found a design that responds to the history of the area and the council has been a very supportive client.”

Designed to last some 120 years with proper maintenance, the new bridge will be exclusively for pedestrians – an extension of the existing pedestrian spaces at either end.

Hector, who has been designing bridges for 22 years, moving to the UK from Spain eight years ago, said: “My understanding is the focus for cycling will be on improving routes on the edges of the Island.

“The existing bridge is already thought to be the second busiest pedestrian bridge in London so this one will get a lot of use.

“The new bridge has been designed to cope with a high level of traffic and will probably be more used than some of the other bridges we have designed.

“That’s something to be really proud of.

“I have been designing bridges for more than two decades and it’s still always a very special moment when something becomes reality – when you can see the full structure at the end of several years’ work.

“In the future, I would love to design a bridge over the Thames – that would be a good one. For me, the important thing is designing bridges that are needed, that really serve a purpose.”

With east and south-east London continuing to experience population growth and regeneration, perhaps he’ll get his wish.

The bridge as it will appear from South Quay Plaza

WHAT THE COUNCIL SAYS

The London Borough Of Tower Hamlets cabinet member for regeneration, inclusive development and housebuilding Cllr Kabir Ahmed said: “We are delighted that the strategic development committee has resolved to grant planning permission for the South Dock Bridge – there is no doubt a need for this project as significant new development around the docks on the Isle Of Dogs has increased pressure on pedestrian routes and connections in the area.

“This pressure is particularly acute at South Dock, which separates the significant housing growth area from the commercial centre and transport connections at Canary Wharf.

“Along with this development, the addition of the new Elizabeth Line station will attract more pedestrians and there is also a need to improve access to South Quay DLR station.

“The existing bridge is currently approaching its capacity at peak times in terms of comfort levels.

“We know through our consultation that construction of the bridge is welcomed by residents of the Island and, of course, our residents are at the forefront of this decision.

“The bridge will help to reduce congestion on the DLR and link new development at South Quay with Canary Wharf and Wood Wharf.

“It will be designed to accommodate projected pedestrian flows well into the future.

“Further to this, the bridge will greatly improve access to public transport links, which will aid connectivity and support access to jobs, retail, and other services at Canary Wharf.

“The pedestrian aspect will promote active travel, with its associated health benefits, and encourage a shift from less active travel behaviours.

“In resolving to grant planning permission, the Strategic Development Committee noted that the new bridge was a high-quality and elegant design that is considered appropriate to its contemporary surroundings.

“I echo this sentiment and anticipate that the bridge will be a positive addition to the area and encourage continued interest and investment in the Isle Of Dogs and surrounding areas, bolstering our local economy, and creating a place that’s accommodating for residents and visitors alike.”

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

January 25, 2023January 25, 2023

Isle Of Dogs: How TLZ Movement is tackling waste in fashion from Craft Central

Founder Nadia Piechestein repairs, reworks, alters and creates clothes at The Forge in east London

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s weekly newsletter here

At the heart of TLZ Movement is the joy of taking something that already exists and changing it to make something new.

Nadia Piechestein studied fashion in Buenos Aires before going on to found one of the first ethical fashion brands in Argentina.

Her clothes were made with sustainable khadi cotton, made by a cooperative, with the clothes produced by another cooperative in the city that offered classes to former prisoners to help with their rehabilitation.

As a dancer herself, her styles focused on costumes for performance as well as pieces to exercise in.

Relocating to London a few years ago, with her husband Herman, she arrived with her collection in the UK, bought a sewing machine and initially started making clothes here.

“But then I decided not to make any more clothes at all, because I think we already have enough on this planet,” said Nadia.

“My idea was to make existing clothes better so people can keep them rather than throwing them away.

“So I stopped making clothes and I started repairing, customising and altering them.

“That’s what I do for customers, but I also teach people how to do it themselves.”

Nadia at work in her Craft Central studio on the Isle Of Dogs

TLZ Movement is now located at The Forge on the Isle Of Dogs’ Westferry Road and is a member of Craft Central, the charity that runs the facility.

Nadia essentially offers three core services.

She reworks existing garments, using up-cycling and dead stock materials from other producers that would otherwise go to waste.

She uses these to refresh and customise clothes for their owners to give them a new lease of life.

Nadia also offers a more standard alterations and repairs service to ensure clothes fit correctly to start with or to rescue damaged garments.

For this she is happy to create visible or invisible repairs depending on her customers’ desires.

Then there are her workshops at The Forge, where participants can learn mending techniques, how to use a sewing machine, copy their favourite clothes, weave and rework.

“I’m not against the theme of having a bright new garment – that’s my inspiration,” said Nadia.

“If you’re bored with a piece in your wardrobe, you can bring it to me and I will put something new into it.

Nadia uses scraps of fabric to create new clothes

“That way you get the feeling of having a new piece of clothing again.

“The best way is to think of it as caring for your clothes, as keeping them and continuing to love them. It’s also something nobody else will have.

“For Christmas this year, I asked friends for garments they no longer wore – I didn’t tell them what I was doing.

“Then I reworked them, gave them back and my friends were amazed. When they wore them, they had that story to tell.

“When I make visible repairs or additions, the more people can see the time and effort that has been put into something.

“It connects the owner with the maker and shows how much you care about a garment.

“Here at Craft Central and in London, I collaborate with other makers and textile businesses a lot, using pieces and scraps of fabric that would otherwise go to waste.”

Nadia also sells iron-on patches to repair of customise garments with

In a world of ceaseless pressure and communication, the convenience and discount pricing of fast fashion is an ever-present temptation.

Never in the UK have so many garments been available to consumers so cheaply.

But at what cost to those engaged elsewhere in the world making them – or for the planet in terms of the resources necessary to produce them and the inevitable waste mountain they create?

To help address some of these issues, Nadia has created iron-on patches that can be used both to repair and customise clothes.

Made with khadi cotton sourced from India, they can be applied with a normal household iron, so no need to get out the thimble.

Available in a variety of designs with prices starting at £18 for six, they are aimed at time-poor individuals looking for a rapid fix or update to their apparel.

“Patches can go in the washing machine at less than 40ºC and should last a long time,” said Nadia.

“I would encourage people to think that wearing them is a statement about Planet Earth.

“It shows that you care about the environment and it spices you up as a person.

“People can buy them online and use them to create any shape they want – they just need to cut them.

“It’s something that can be really creative and they are great for kids too who are always putting holes in things.

“With TLZ I’m really happy with what I’m building here now.

TLZ Movement’s patches can simply be ironed on to clothes

“I’ve been part of London Fashion Week and London Craft Week – I really want to boost what I’m doing now and expand in east London and into the City.

“It would be great to see the patches stocked in small shops so that people can embrace repairing and customising their clothes.

“The majority of my customers are from the Isle Of Dogs and I have so much gratitude for that – there are no words. I love them.

“I also want to reach a new audience through teaching so people can understand all the good things they can do.

“That’s why I’ve started creating team building events for businesses and organisations.

“People can come with their colleagues, have some drinks and learn the basics of sewing before being challenged to repair a garment that they can then take away.”

Nadia also works with arts companies to give performance costumes new lives after their stints on stage.

TLZ Movement’s next event is set to take place on February 18.

People are invited to bring damaged garments to The Forge for a free mending session using her signature patches between 11am and 4pm.

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s weekly newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com

November 25, 2022January 5, 2024

Canary Wharf: How Creative Virtual’s Gluon software is next level for chatbot tech

Founder and CEO of the Cannon Workshops-based company, Chris Ezekiel, talks global growth

Creative Virtual founder and CEO Chris Ezekiel – image Matt Grayson

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s weekly newsletter here

All in all, 2023 is shaping up to be a big year for Chris Ezekiel and Creative Virtual – the company he founded on the Isle Of Dogs in November 2003. In 12 months time, he and his colleagues will be celebrating its 20th birthday.

But before that happens, there’s the small matter of becoming a father for the second time and – business-wise – the firm is set for a major release of its V-Person software, named Gluon.

The software is the platform that has allowed Creative Virtual to grow into a global concern, from its base next to Canary Wharf at Cannon Workshops.

From there, housed in the honey brick of the Grade II listed former cooperage beside West India Quay, Chris and his team compete with the likes of Microsoft, IBM and Google in the field of conversational artificial intelligence (AI).

Together, they have built a business with global reach, servicing clients across the world including the likes of HSBC and Lloyds Banking Group – one of the firm’s first clients and still a customer today.

In 2022, Creative Virtual has operations in the UK, the US, Europe, Australia, Singapore and in India. It’s a Docklands business trading with the world.

“We’re still independent, which is a bit unusual for a tech company in the fast-paced world of AI,” said Chris.

“I always started it for the long-term, and over the years we’ve had quite a few offers to purchase the company, which I continue to refuse.

“I’m just enjoying it and we’re competing in that area we’re operating in – conversational AI is all the rage now.

“For me, it’s about working with incredible people who are passionate about innovation, creativity and technology – some things are more important than money.

“We don’t have investors so what we do isn’t linked to their short term goals.

“While Elon Musk has recently bought Twitter, I reflected the other day that he could not buy Creative Virtual. It’s great to have that independence.”

The company’s position comes through its success developing and implementing chatbots for clients.

These might be used by a firm’s customers, employees or its customer services personnel as a resource to assist clients.

Gluons hold quarks together at a subatomic level so they can become atoms and ultimately everything in the universe

With almost 20 years in business and numerous accolades – among them a Queen’s Award For Enterprise in 2017 – Chris said the company continued to prioritise innovation, investing its profits to grow.

“It was always the dream to become a global company,” he said. “But you don’t often get a chance to step back and consider what you’ve built.

“We pride ourselves on having a really quirky, passionate team – a really eclectic mix of individuals. It also allows us to be adaptable and to work in markets all around the world.

“Travelling to these different locations really brings it home and having the fantastic customers we do really helps.

“Being able to explore creativity and innovation with those companies and partners has been amazing over the years. It’s what keeps us going.”

That ongoing drive has resulted in Gluon, which Chris said would be the foundation of Creative Virtual’s work for many years to come.

It’s aptly named after an elementary particle that holds quarks together to form subatomic particles such as protons and neutrons – the basis for atoms and ultimately everything in the universe.

It’s also a reflection of the Creative Virtual founder and CEO’s love of physics.

“I have a picture of Richard Feynman above my desk with his quote that you should not fool yourself and that you’re also the easiest person to fool,” said Chris.

“That’s something I always focus on because it’s really important to keep things in perspective, to keep them real.

“With Gluon we’re very excited because, while we do small software releases every month or so and major ones roughly every 12 months, this is the kind that only comes along once every four years.”

Gluon as software bears some similarities to gluon particles in that they both connect elements to create something of greater complexity and function.

Gluon is designed to work within the composable enterprise system

“First of all, the new software allows us to integrate our system with lots of other systems at a large enterprise,” said Chris.

“That might include CRM systems and data management systems, for example.

“There’s a lot of buzz around AI and we’ve seen chatbots that use machine learning as a black box without any control over the responses the system is giving.

“We’ve always taken a different path, combining AI with humans overseeing the system, and Gluon will make that easier.

“The way we’re combining those two elements is unique in the industry and Gluon makes it super easy for organisations to use.

“The way it’s configured and the reports that come out of it make it really efficient and also controllable.

“There’s also a lot of interest in something called the ‘Composable Enterprise’ which is all about plugging systems together.

“Gluon fits perfectly into that to become a key piece of the jigsaw.

“We intend to launch in the early part of next year. We already have a test version available and have done 50 demonstrations so far.

“The feedback has been incredible. We sell direct to customers, but we also work through some partners in the world and everybody’s been unanimous in their positive responses.

“It’s a great way to develop, because the feedback is very specific.

“Taking our time is very important, because we’ve been able to listen to what people are saying while we are developing the software.

“We can be more flexible with our customers because we don’t have pressure from investors.

“It’s funny for me on a personal level, because people wondered whether having a 16-month-old now and another on the way in February would change my view about the company and whether it would be time to sell – but it hasn’t one little bit.

“I am often asked how difficult it is to separate the business from my personal life, but my view is that you should give up doing that because it stresses you out.

“If you’re an entrepreneur, you’ve got to build it into your life – it is your life and you have to find a way to do that.

“Having a supportive group of people around you, both inside work and outside, and having some hobbies and interests is essential. I snowboard and watch West Ham to relax.

“But at the end of the day business is business, you shouldn’t take it too seriously.

“That might sound odd from someone who has to pay all the bills and make sure the people who work for me can pay their bills – but knowing there are more important things in the world keeps me level-headed.

“It’s a balance and as long as you can say overall you’re happy with that balance, then you’re in a good place.

“That’s why I can’t imagine retiring.”

Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here

Subscribe to Wharf Life’s weekly newsletter here

- Jon Massey is co-founder and editorial director of Wharf Life and writes about a wide range of subjects in Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London - contact via jon.massey@wharf-life.com