While Matt Damon and his fellow film stars are living it very large on the nation’s IMAX screens, east London is set to host its own show set in the aftermath of Homer’s Iliad.
Bloodsport: After Helen Of Troy by Ava Pickett chronicles the queen’s return to Sparta following the war fought in her name – her husband, Menelaus’ celebrations and her childhood friend Cee’s dismay.
Staged for its world première at Stratford East, the play deals with friendship, motherhood, loyalty and the “true cost” of one woman’s decision to abandon her life.
Michelle Dockery, best known for Downton Abbey, will play Helen, opposite Laura Aikman who is making her stage debut in the role of Cee following stints in Gavin And Stacy and Line Of Duty.
a bold reimagining
“Ava is such an extraordinary voice in storytelling right now and I’m delighted to be part of this bold reimagining of Helen’s return from Troy,” said Michelle.
“Stratford East’s history of bringing vital and ambitious stories to life makes it the perfect home for this production.”
Laura added: “From the moment I read Ava’s brilliant script I was desperate to play Cee.
“I think we can deliver something really gripping and I can’t wait to get started.”
The production is directed by Lisa Spirling, artistic director and co-CEO of Stratford East, and will run at the venue from September 3 until October 10, 2026.
She said: “When I first read Ava’s debut full length play Bloodsport three years ago, I was struck by how powerful, prescient and visceral it is.
“To tell this mythical story of Helen Of Troy at Stratford East, through Ava’s laser sharp lens is thrilling and to get to do that with our phenomenal creative team and company led by Michelle and Laura is ridiculously exciting.
“The team and I are buzzing to bring Bloodsport to Stratford East and to share it with our audience.”
Ava added: “I feel so excited and lucky to be working with Lisa, Michelle and Laura on this new play at Stratford East.
“To be given the opportunity to reimagine characters we feel we know is such a privilege and I can’t wait to share this story with audiences.”
Ava’s debut play, 1536, enjoyed a West End transfer following a successful run at the Almeida Theatre.
Also an historical work, the dark comedy drama explores female friendship in Tudor England against the backdrop of the fall of Anne Boleyn.
key details: Bloodsport: After Helen Of Troy
Bloodsport: After Helen Of Troy runs at Stratford East from September 3 until October 10, 2026, with evening performances at 7.30pm and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm.
The brand’s latest launch sees owners Denis Gobjila and Victor Rosca build on their success in Stratford as they deliver Peruvian-Japanese fusion dishes
Bamboo Mat serves Nikkei cuisine, a fusion of Peruvian and Japanese cooking – image supplied by Bamboo Mat
Already it’s hard to remember a time when East Village in Stratford wasn’t a thriving community.
What was once the athlete’s village for the 2012 Olympic Games has become both an attractive place to live and a sustainable home for hospitality businesses.
That the likes of Darkhorse, Signorelli and La Gelatiera have all been trading for more than a decade, is no small achievement in a turbulent sector.
Having truly come alive over the last year, there’s a sense something similar is happening to the food and drink scene at the eastern end of Canary Wharf’s Wood Wharf.
Ong Lai Kopitaim, Mama Li, Cafe Seek and Signorelli have all proved popular since launching, while Osteria Al Molo and Lockdown are finding their feet.
Beam, a rapid re-brand of Nora London from the same owners, is also attracting all-day diners, having moved towards more brunch-friendly fare.
Walk through on a sunny weekend and you’ll find al fresco tables packed with Wharfers enjoying food and drinks from across the world as awareness rises.
With more rental properties on the estate due to come on stream through Vertus, it feels like an auspicious place to expand to.
That’s very much the hope of Denis Gobjila and Victor Rosca, co-owners of Bamboo Mat, who are aiming for a September opening next door to Beam.
An artist’s impression of how the Canary Wharf restaurant will look when it opens – image supplied by Bamboo Mat
growing in east London
Born in a small unit in Leyton in 2022, their first Bamboo Mat achieved runaway success following a glowing review from Grace Dent in The Guardian.
This allowed them to quickly open a bigger site in Stratford, which has been their focus ever since and continues to grow steadily despite pressures in the industry.
Now it’s time to branch out and their plans are for a venue unlike anything else on the estate.
“What we are building will be one of the nicest restaurants in Canary Wharf,” said Denis.
“It will be a journey. Customers are not going to come just for the food, but will be excited by what they’re seeing, hearing and feeling.
“Gynda Gourmet Hospitality Management group has overseen the design based on the combination of two cultures – Japanese and Peruvian, which is at the root of the Nikkei cuisine we serve.
“We’ll be recreating the beautiful Rainbow Mountain – the restaurant will have the feel of a house in the Peruvian highlands.
“Everything is hand-made, with wood as the key material.
“We’re having chairs carved especially for us – there’s an artist working on them for us non-stop.”
Bamboo Mat co-owner, Denis Gobjila – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
a focus on detail and balance
It’s not just the furniture.
Bamboo Mat takes great pride in presentation, with all the ceramics used in the restaurant hand-thrown in Denis’ native Moldova to create backdrops to the restaurant’s dishes.
Overall, the approach is similar to the style of food that will be on offer – an exacting approach to high quality ingredients that fuses into a result that’s more than the sum of its parts.
Nikkei cuisine is all about the delicacy of Japanese preparation married with the fiery vibrancy and crunch of Peruvian cooking.
For Denis and Victor, that looks like an 82-cover restaurant that features a raw bar and cocktail bar on its ground floor and a robata grill, hot kitchen and sushi operation upstairs.
When it opens it will be the only establishment serving dishes of this kind on the estate.
“Canary Wharf will have a menu that is a 90% match to our Stratford restaurant, but there will be some differences,” said Denis.
“We’ll have the charcoal grill, which is a nice update and we’ll have ceviche and our signature salads downstairs so people can enjoy them with a glass of Champagne.
“Bamboo Mat is really a sharing concept so people can try as many flavours as possible – there will be our take on sushi, teriyaki and tiradito.”
Nikkei dishes make much use of fresh fish and ceviche techniques – image supplied by Bamboo Mat
combining the flavours
Victor added: “The bar will serve wine, all kinds of spirits and, of course, Peruvian cocktails and other drinks that match with our food.
“We like our dishes to always be balanced when it comes to texture and taste. My favourite on the menu is the Chicken Anticucho, which is flavoured with coriander and mashed potato.
“There are 25 ingredients on the plate including produce from Peru and the Amazon.
“Using those in balance is what we’re always trying to do as chefs and it’s one of the most difficult parts of the job – we know we did it right when we see empty plates.
“If we can keep doing that, I’m confident we’ll do well in Canary Wharf.”
Bamboo Mat itself is, perhaps, a venture that could only have emerged in London.
A pair of European chefs cut their teeth in the capital at the likes of Sushisamba, Inamo, Lucky Cat and Roka before meeting at trailblazing Nikkei restaurant Chotto Matte.
They team up in east London to cook food inspired by a South American reinvention of Japanese cuisine and go on to successfully grow and expand. It’s a fusion of multiple, potent ingredients.
Bamboo Mat co-owner, Victor Rosca – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
targeting the top
“We started out by wanting to make something we are proud of – to create and deliver good food and, if you do that in the right way, then money follows,” said Denis.
“Hospitality is a big challenge for everyone and the bills are massive, so we have to be careful, but alongside the stress comes happiness.
“We want to become the best restaurant in Canary Wharf, to make everyone happy after a day in the office and we’ll do that by offering really good quality at the right price.
“One of the trends we’ve noticed is that people like to dine out at restaurants in the neighbourhoods where they live so they don’t have to travel after dining.
“If you create a nice atmosphere, then that will attract customers.
“Everything at Bamboo Mat is going to be open, so guests will see how we cook and create what we’re serving.”
Chicken Anticucho at the Stratford restaurant – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
key details: Bamboo Mat
Bamboo Mat is set to open at North Lane between Union Square and Harbord Square in Wood Wharf in September.
A fresh programme of free dance classes is set to begin at Sadler’s Wells East in September.
Held on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from September 14, 2026, the initiative takes place on The Dance Floor at the East Bank venue, a deliberately public-facing space on the ground floor that looks out over the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
“In our first year we had more than 6,600 people participate in these classes,” said Natasha Anderson.
“And that’s just one of the ways we use the space.
“Creating The Dance Floor when Sadler’s Wells East opened was done with the vision that dancing in the foyer, on the stage and in the rehearsal rooms upstairs are all the bread and butter of what we do.
“It’s positioned by the window so there are lots of people passing by who see what’s going on and come in to take a look.
“The floor feels like our most welcoming space, so we spend a lot of time thinking about the dance styles we want to showcase on it, the type of artists we’ll feature and what we’re going to teach people.”
Natasha Anderson of Sadler’s Wells East – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
welcoming people in
As Sadler’s Wells head of community engagement, Natasha is tasked with reaching out beyond the organisations’ walls to connect with residents, organisations and visitors, with The Dance Floor central to those efforts in Stratford.
“People might just stop by to visit the café or the toilets at Sadler’s Wells East,” she said.
“No matter how you come into this building, we want you to feel welcome and that this space is for you.
“The Dance Floor is our shop window and it’s one we’re really proud of, whether that’s the classes we’re hosting or the performances we’ve programmed.”
From September 14, there will be free lunchtime classes three times a week, this season covering Afro-Caribbean Fusion, Funky Social Dance and Reggae + Soul Line Dance.
These are suitable for all ages, but under-18s must be accompanied by an adult.
A free class on The Dance Floor – image by Sylvie Belbouab
a place where friendships start
“I tell people to expect the unexpected in terms of how they’re going to feel,” said Natasha.
“People who are dancing for the first time often come with hesitation and trepidation, but they leave with such big smiles on their faces because they’ve had so much fun.
“It’s been a place where friendships have started – those interactions are so important for mental health, as well as the physical benefits of getting on the floor and dancing.
“There are so many joyful things that happen to your body when you move to music – serotonin levels rise and it makes you feel good.
“We work with a pool of really talented teachers who work in a variety of different styles. The important thing for us is to set a bar for positivity – that’s really important.
“I encourage as many people as possible to take part in these classes, including our own staff.
“They can be a real jumping off point for people to discover what they like and then to find other places to dance too.
“New this term will be the Reggae + Soul Line Dancing – it’s something that’s really big in the States. We ran a trial session in June and it went down really well.
“People might know the steps to Candy from parties, but there so much more to explore.”
The space is used by a wide range of ages in a variety of ways – image by Sylvie Belbouab
Natasha said: “The community groups we work with use it as a performance space too and we’ve had some really lovely feedback.
“For a lot of the groups we work with, getting the support, the care, being heard, being seen and respected, has been really amazing.
“We’ve even had some dancers ending up on stage because they performed here on The Dance Floor and were seen by artists putting on shows here.
“We also use it in our work with schools across east London for our regular Creative Classroom sessions.
“We have set times when anyone can come and use the space called The Floor Is Yours – people just need to sign in and then they can get moving.”
Natasha, who worked for the Barbican before joining Sadler’s Wells, said she especially enjoyed watching young children dancing with their adults at the regular Family Freestyle sessions, which are also free but need to be booked in advance.
Family Freestyle sessions take place on Thursdays, from September 14 and are also free but must be booked in advance, suitable for ages 2-4 accompanied by an adult.
In the first of a series of regular collaborations with Canary Wharf’s guitar school, Kitchen Jam, we take a look at the history of a track with a local link and deliver some tips on how to play it
Kitchen Jam founder Darryl Powis has created a video tutorial to help Wharfers get their fingers around the riff that drives Rebel Rebel. Simply follow this link to get playing
To play the whole track you’ll need the chords below:
All the chords you’ll need to play Rebel Rebel by David Bowie – image by Wharf Life
looking back on the history of the track and its link to Docklands
BY ZAINAB HASSAN
Picture this – it’s early 1990, and David Bowie has just announced the Sound+Vision tour, a series of gigs where he’d play his biggest hits live for the very last time.
Rather than choose the setlist himself, he handed the decision to his global fanbase through telephone voting.
Dial 1-900-2-BOWIE-90 on your landline, and you were taking your chances at getting your favourite track onto the bill.
As calls flooded in from every corner of the globe, Bowie built the setlist from a mix of UK votes, American votes, and requests from everywhere else in between.
It was a truly global selection, curated to reflect what the world wanted to hear.
echoing on the island
For three nights that March, the tour landed in the capital at the London Arena, an indoor venue on the Isle Of Dogs that held up to 15,000 fans.
Demolished in 2006, the landscape is markedly different to when Bowie’s genre-shifting hits were last played, but the echoes of his riffs still resound in the hands of guitarists to this day.
glam rock swagger
The Sound+Vision tour setlist was shaped with deep cuts standing shoulder to shoulder with Bowie’s biggest hits.
One such song, Rebel Rebel, came early in the setlist. Salvaged from a scrapped Ziggy Stardust musical, it was the lead single for 1974 album Diamond Dogs and was the last of Bowie’s singles to swagger with true glam rock bravado.
Deceptively simple, yet roaring with a Rolling Stones-esque ferocity, the main riff loops around three chords – D, A and E – and an unrelenting descending melody that’s as instantly singable as it is impossible to shake.
the end of two eras
As a swan song to glam rock, Rebel Rebel was the end of an era for Bowie.
The Sound+Vision tour was the end of another, as he retired the hits from his live sets for good.
Two farewells, made decades apart, overlapped for three nights at the London Arena.
But all these memories remain in music. Just listen to that rebellious opening riff – it all comes flooding back.
For those who’d like to know more, east London is also now home to the David Bowie Centre in Stratford.
Based at the V&A East Storehouse, the collection includes more than 90,000 items from the artist’s archive and is free to visit.
key details: Kitchen Jam
Kitchen Jam offers guitar lessons rooted in musical connection and community from its studios in Canary Wharf and Stratford.
Annual free outdoor arts showcase presents its 31st edition on Greenwich, Woolwich, Romford, Thamesmead, East Ham and Stratford
Efectos Especiales (Special Effects) is set to be performed on Greenwich Peninsula on August 29 and 30, 2026 as part of the Greenwich + Docklands International Festival – Image by Matheus Jose Maria
Having given nearly a third of a century to curating and producing the annual event, Bradley’s enthusiasm is undimmed as he and his Greenwich Peninsula-based team prepare for its 31st edition.
“The theme this year is ‘We Move’ – we wanted to respond to what the festival does best, which is to give everyone a bit of a lift,” he said.
“Those wondrous moments in public spaces that are created as part of our programme are exactly that and it’s important that they are free and accessible to everyone.
“For the theme, we took inspiration from a common expression used by young Londoners to indicate when they’ve put an issue to one side so they can get on with their lives.
“We want to embody that spirit of resilience you see in this city – the way people make things happen and get on in difficult times.
“All our events are open to everyone, but we’re especially thinking about how we engage with young Londoners in 2026.”
360 will open the festival in Woolwich – Image by Duy Laurent
opening in Woolwich
This year’s programme kicks off, as is traditional, in Woolwich’s General Gordon Square with a 55-minute performance of 360 at 7pm on August, 21.
“It’s an amazing dance theatre spectacle, that’s getting its London première,” said Bradley.
“The performance takes place on a multi-tiered stage with energising music and a real sense of connection with the challenges that young people face – but it’s also full of hope and possibility.
“The audience will get drawn in until the line between who’s watching and who’s performing is blurred.
“It’s been created by an incredible French choreographer called Mehdi Kerkouche of CCN De Créteil Et Du Val-De-Marne and we’re really excited to be bringing it here.”
Returning to Greenwich Park it boasts an extensive schedule of events.
“This is another festival institution and the new location was hugely successful last year,” said Bradley.
“It’s a setting that audiences really appreciate – it’s relaxed and the tree cover is quite useful at this time of year.
“There are incredible views and the programme we’ve put together is great.
“There will be children’s games, dance performances and installations.
“Do Birds Dream Of Flying? by Fabla Collective from Slovenia will be one of the highlights and I’m also really looking forward to Inertie by the French company Underclouds CIE, who perform using a circular frame that’s very reminiscent of a sundial.
“In the context of the Royal Observatory Greenwich, it will be a nice thing to see alongside.
“Then there’s ElevateHer by Daughters Of The Wire, which has a feminist perspective and a joyous soundtrack that celebrates the heritage of women as circus performers.
“Regular visitors to our events may remember that one of the directors of the company performed on the high wire back in 2018 at the Old Royal Naval College in a piece created to mark the anniversary of women’s suffrage.”
The UK première of Benched will be part of Dancing City – Image by R+Solholm
branching out to Romford
Romford Market will be the setting for a pop-up son et lumière show on August 28 and 29 as the festival reaches out to Essex with Meet Me By The Fountain.
Variable Matter’s presentation takes inspiration from a lost water feature, using video projections and sound to span nearly 800 years of history and take audiences through into an imagined future.
Similarly transformational, Efectos Especiales (Special Effects) is an Argentinian show by Luciana Acuña and Alejo Moguillansky that casts the audience as part of a live film shoot as they follow a dancer past a truck with blaring music before the elements erupt, thunder rolls and snow falls.
“This will be staged over August 29 and 30 on Greenwich Peninsula, which is another of the festival’s long-standing destinations,” said Bradley.
“We’ve worked there since 2017 and we try to do new things each year.
“Our offices are based there and we’re very much a part of the creative district.
“I saw the show in Paris and it’s beautifully staged – a very beautiful piece with wind, rain, smoke and fire.
“It’s one of the pieces we’re able to bring to the festival through support from Without Walls, which works with events nationwide and allows productions to tour across the country.”
I Have No Name forms part of Nature Speaks in Thamesmead – image by Vidy Lausanne
dates for the diary
Other diary dates for readers to note are September 3 and 4 in Queen’s Market Square in Green Street for Chair! and Kismat Walla and September 4 and 5 for Nature Speaks in Thamesmead.
The latter is a two-part immersive storytelling experience in the Tump53 Nature Reserve featuring imagery, music, sound and voice.
The penultimate major pop-up event in GDIF’s programme is then set to take place on September 5 when Dancing City returns to Stratford.
Bradley said: “We’ve packed the schedule with shows, having established a really strong relationship with Sadler’s Wells East and the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
“This includes the UK première of Benched by a Danish company called Uppercut Dance Theatre. It’s a very high energy piece featuring five dancers.
“There’s also a specially commissioned production from Fuse Theatre called Man Down, which explores issues around toxic masculinity.”
GDIF is set to conclude back in Woolwich’s General Gordon Square with a performance of (In)visible Dancingon September 6.
Bradley said: “This is by the fabulous Protein, a phenomenal company based in Woolwich, and audiences are in for a real treat as the choreography builds throughout the town.”
key details: Greenwich + Docklands International Festival
The Greenwich + Docklands International Festival is set to run from August 21 until September 6, 2026, across a variety of locations.
“Discover is a hands-on centre for creative story sharing,” said Rebekah Polding, the charity’s CEO.
“When you come here, there’s nothing children can’t touch – they are completely free when they come through our doors to enjoy play, making stories, reading books and taking part in storytelling sessions in whatever way works for them.
“Children learn through play, they learn to love stories, to love reading and, as we know, loving books is the single greatest skill that any child can develop to lead a long, happy and successful life.
“It is the magic bullet, it is transformative.
“Books can help us overcome anything this world throws at us. I’m so proud that Discover delivers that for the people who come here.”
Discover Children’s Story Centre CEO Rebekah Polding – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
a haven, a cafe, a playground
Following the upgrade, the centre has been brightly decorated outside by artist Hanna Benihoud, whose colours frame large windows onto its new cafe and bookshop space.
Part haven for refreshments, part playground, this features a reception desk complete with purple fur, plenty of plywood construction to create nooks to explore and relax in as well as a horde of books dotted around that are free to read with kids.
This is an attraction in its own right, but pay for entry, venture into the centre and there’s so much more to discover.
Author and illustrator Rob Biddulph has been enlisted to create a graphic retelling of Discover’s origin story – billed as “totally real and intergalactic”.
Alien visitor Hootah, following the disappearance of stories on their own planet, Squiggly Diggly, has journeyed across space to Earth in search of tales to beam back across space and help restore their homeworld.
Consequently all visitors to Discover are not only enriching their own lives, they’re helping save another planet by creating and participating in storytelling.
Everywhere there are little and large Hootahs to spot, not to mention a space ship and plenty more steampunky installations to discover.
“We have a fairytale forest with a trip-trap bridge and plenty of areas for children to explore,” said Rebekah.
“Then on the upper floor there’s a spaceship theme that skews to slightly older kids.
“Outside, we have our beautiful story garden where we’ve increased the diversity of planting for sensory exploration and also have incredible structures to climb on.
“Everything has been designed with the help of children, taking inspiration from their imaginations.
“Following the renovation we now also have a dedicated multi-sensory space for our smallest visitors aged 0-2, filled with interactive toys.
“Books are a great bond between carers and little ones.
“You don’t need to be a scientist to see that babies tune into the person reading to them and they understand a little bit more about focus and concentration each time it happens.
“It’s like a really wonderful hug.”
The centre’s enchanted forest – image by Marc Sethi
a new quiet space and upgraded facilities
Also new is a quiet space that can be used for prayer, feeding or simply taking a little time out.
The centre also features a new heating and cooling system, to better cope with the extremes of weather the UK is now beset with, as well as refurbished toilet facilities that are fit for purpose.
“It feels amazing now we’re back in our space after a meanwhile pop-up in the Stratford Centre while the work was being done,” said Rebekah.
“Now we have a place where people can mingle that’s safe, a place where they can connect both for the people of Newham and London beyond.
“That’s part of the magic – interacting away from screens.
“We enable really supportive behaviours.
“There isn’t really a typical amount of time that people spend here.
“It depends a lot on the attention spans and energies of the individuals involved.
“But we’re designed as an enriching experience – there are lots of quiet nooks and corners where those who are here can rest and refresh themselves.
“A visit might involve free play, time in the gardens and then listening to one of our story builders’ interactive performances, which are included with entry.
“That might involve reading, creating, singing or dancing.
“We also have our early years shows which feature lots of props and action in an intimate setting.”
Discover’s outside now features art by Hanna Benihoud – image by MT Art
from film to stories
Rebekah herself is just the right mixture of silliness and passion.
She’s clearly delighted to be running an institution that carries a crucial message – the importance of reading for both personal education and enjoyment – but carries it with lightness and fun.
We spend some time during our interview, for example, seriously discussing the merits of various jacket potato toppings in the cafe (she is, naturally, right to champion beans and then cheese).
Having worked in the cultural sector her entire career, she became CEO of Discover via a route that included Picturehouse cinemas, Film London, BAFTA and Enfield Council.
She said: “I joined in April 2023 and am extremely grateful to my predecessor Karla Barcacle-Best who saw Discover through Covid.
“The first thing we did was to sit down with kids, local families, community groups and others and that’s enabled us to build our Stories For All strategic framework.
“One of the planks of that has been the capital renovation of the building called ‘up and out’ – words from Willy Wonka who also accepted no limits to what he could achieve.
“That’s the work that we’re nearly at the end of now, turning this former hotel from the 1870s into a place that families will really enjoy visiting in the 21st century.”
The next milestone in the project will be the opening of new immersive exhibition Luna Loves London on July 25, 2026, in the building’s basement, created with former children’s laureate Joseph Coelho and illustrator Fiona Lumbers.
Kids aged 0-11 are encouraged to revel in stories at the Stratford centre – image by Sorcha Bridge
even more to come…
Rebekah said: “These installations are unique to Discover and we have a history of celebrating some of the best writers in children’s literature – Judith Kerr, Michael Rosen and Julia Donaldson.
“The exhibition opens towards the end of the month and it’s a way for children to step in to the kinds of environments they’d find in the Luna Loves series.”
Visitors will encounter a bus, a library, a street for playing sports, an art gallery, a community garden, a dance studio and a carnival with a strong emphasis on the kind of down-to-earth settings of the real city rather than a collection of landmarks.
Tickets for the experience cost £5.50.
One further, major, change is also in the pipeline at the centre.
Discover is set to drop an enormous oak tree into the building that will sit proudly in a disused atrium under a glass roof.
“This is going to be so exciting,” said Rebekah.
“With the help of Adventure Playground Engineers, based in Canning Town, we’re going to build a three-storey vertical playground in its branches with wheelchair accessible treehouses guided by children’s designs.
“The idea is that stories grow like trees and there will be a whole series of adventures for kids to discover and explore.
“Stories are important. One of my favourite books is called My Cat Likes To Hide In Boxes.
“It’s a building story and includes the line: ‘The cat from Norway got stuck in the doorway’, which has always made me laugh.
“So, in our family, whenever anybody gets stuck, we all shout: ‘The cat from Norway’.
“This is what reading is. It’s about shared experience, empathy and connections between people.
“Telling each other how we experience the world and seeing it through new lenses.
“We built Discover so children can learn there’s no right way to tell a story – that’s why the monster on our roof has no name. You have to give them one.”
The refit includes a new space for ages 0-2 and their adults – image by Marc Sethi
key details: Discover Children’s Story Centre
Discover Children’s Story Centre is located at 383-387 Stratford High Street and is open from 10am to 5pm every day.
Entry costs £11 for adults and children aged one and over.
Babies aged 0-1 are free. Discounts are available for Newham residents.
The best value option, however is £19 per person which grants a full year of unlimited access.
Opened a couple of years ago, the original plan was for a sports-focussed space more akin to A Herd Of Yaks’ establishments in Wembley and Elephant And Castle.
Both of those are named Feed The Yak in tribute to totemic Nigerian striker Yakubu and a fan chant encouraging his teammates to pass him the ball, that followed him throughout his career in the English leagues.
But the company’s founder, Sebastian O’Driscoll, is a cheerful laid back sort – a man content to let his bars find identities suited to their communities rather than the other way around.
“I’d been working in the third sector for a number of years, but I had a bit of a desire to set up my own thing,” he said.
“So in 2014 I decided to jack it all in, took over a shipping container in Elephant And Castle and built a little sports bar in it with a friend.
“The Six Yard Box did really well over four years and we went on to open our first bricks and mortar bar – Feed The Yak – in 2018.
“Yakubu was this everyman footballer who seemed to have played for every mediocre club in England and that felt like very much the vibe.
A Herd Of Yaks founder, Sebastian O’Driscoll – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
“We wouldn’t get fans of Manchester United or Arsenal so much, we’d have disparate groups of Leeds or Aston Villa supporters.
“We were a little bit cult, a little bit fringe.
“While I dictated that vision onto the first Feed The Yak – I wanted it to be a sports bar – with our openings in Wembley and Deptford, things have been more organic.
“That really works because we’re not inspired by the kind of American sports bars that have 550,000 screens and serve wings.
“We looked to the kind of cafe bars you find in Spain, Portugal and Italy in smaller towns.
“These places are everything to their communities.
“They’re somewhere you can go for a drink, get something to eat and where everyone goes to watch the match because they have the big TV.
“Equally though, they’re the places where musicians will play and artists will showcase their work.”
Little Yak manager, Phoebe Tallman – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
food, drink and entertainment
Little Yak shares its space with Irish-Chinese takeaway Paddy Wok (paddywok.com) and global fusion foodie spot How Greedy (howgreedy.co.uk) and has taken an adaptive approach to appeal to the Deptford community.
Manager Phoebe Tallman, who has worked with Seb for seven years, is in charge of things and has led a redesign of the bar, bringing live music and DJs into the mix.
She said: “We wanted to make it more like a lounge – somewhere very comfortable – a third space away from home were people could come and see friends, relax, eat good food, have a drink and play board games. We’re also pet friendly.
“On the live music side, we have a group from Trinity Laban Conservatoire Of Music And Dance, who put on a regular night, which is really amazing.
“I’ve been blown away by the quality.
“It’s something we’d like to do more of, as well as poetry nights and things like that, because there’s a really well established artistic community here and building something for them is really important to us.
“We have local DJs too, who come down and mix their own tunes and a regular hip hop night that’s really popular.
“We also have a really good selection of beers – some crafty, but also standard lager.
“We wanted to be accessible and offer something for everyone on tap that would also go well with the food.
“Our assistant manager, Ed, has built a great little cocktail menu too with a lot of south American flavours such as Pisco Sours and Chilli Margaritas as well as a really good Espresso Martini.”
Inside, the theme is welcoming comfort – image supplied by Little Yak
popping over from Cork
Seb, originally from Cork, is especially passionate about the stout, opting to stock Beamish, which has been brewed in his home town since 1792 rather than Guinness.
Another Irish flavour, Mo’s Lager, is set to arrive at the venue in the coming days.
“It’s gluten free and, because lots of our visitors are here to enjoy Paddy Wok’s food, we think it will work well for that market,” said Seb.
The venue has not abandoned sport, opening a second bar outside with a big screen and late licences for fans to enjoy matches during the World Cup.
“We’re not a very conventional venue to watch a game of football in – it’s not like going to the pub, which can sometimes feel a bit off putting, especially for people in the queer community, for example,” said Seb.
“While we do serve alcohol, we also have lots of food options and non-alcoholic drinks – I hope we’re a welcoming space for everyone.
“We really like welcoming different people.
“The manager of our Elephant And Castle bar, for example, is Colombian so we’ll be staying open late for all of Colombia’s games and driving hard to welcome any expats in London for those.”
The bar has moved away from a focus on sports to a broader remit – image supplied by Little Yak
launching in Stratford
Growth is also in the offing for A Herd Of Yaks as it prepares to open its latest bar in Stratford at East Bank.
“We’ll be launching a pop-up there on June 27, 2026, and then hoping to open fully in September,” said Seb.
“The plan is to marry the work we’ve done in all the other venues – it will be our largest space by far and we’ll be aiming to serve the West Ham fans or away supporters but also to have a compelling offering for the students at UCL East and the London College Of Fashion.
“We’re also looking to tap into the cultural venues like the V&A East Museum and Sadler’s Wells East and I hope, as an independent bar, we’re dynamic enough to do that.
“There are a lot of chains in that area and we want to offer something different, including kitchen residencies with up and coming chefs to give talented cooks a space in a place they might not otherwise be able to afford.
“We’ve been so lucky in south-east London to be able to get involved with things like Deptford Jack In The Green and to welcome the community in.
“Hopefully we can take that approach in Stratford too.”
Little Yak is screening World Cup games – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
key details: Little Yak
Little Yak is located at The Artworks Creekside in, well, Creekside a short walk from Deptford Bridge DLR station.
The venue is usually open Tuesday-Thursday from 4pm-11pm, Fridays and Saturdays from 1pm to 1am and Sundays from 2pm to 10pm. It is closed on Mondays.
Located at Sweetwater Mooring on the edge of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, it boasts a fine dining floating restaurant, a riverside terrace, a garden, a sister ship that sells drinks and gelato and plenty of space to stretch out alongside the River Lee Navigation canal.
It even offers paddleboard, kayak and canoe hire and that’s before you even mention the connections to DJs, live music and entertainers.
Fine dining is available on board – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
flexible options for all kinds of function
“We’ve got space at Barge East for almost any type of function, from weddings to corporate away-days and festival-style summer parties,” said Stuart ‘Tommo’ Thomson, one of the three founders of the business.
“We’ve got restaurants, with outdoor menus and terrace menus, with Parisian bistro-style, and our street food menus with amazing burgers.
We’ve got food across different price points, and all of it is sustainably sourced, using responsible suppliers.
“There’s our 125-year-old Dutch barge and the Milk Float, a more modern wide beam vessel with a beautiful sun deck that overlooks the London Stadium.”
Executive chef Kayla Dimmick and her team hard at work in the venue’s kitchen – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
In addition to adding this new ship to the fleet, Barge East is also now operating the Moo Canoes hire business, allowing people to explore east London’s waterways via stand up paddleboard, canoe or kayak.
“We can offer all sorts of activities and events at Barge East for groups of any size.
“We can organise garden games, entertainers and live music outside and we’re happy to signpost Bola Beach Tennis next to us and work alongside them in collaboration.
“Companies are welcome to use Barge East for a whole day or use us as a base to explore the area.
“There’s so much going on around the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and Hackney Wick.
“We’ve even introduced a litter-picking day every month where groups go out on the boats, help clear the waterways and then swap the bag of rubbish they’ve collected for a beer.”
Barge East offers bistro style dining on the canalside – image by Barge East
space for summer parties
Barge East is located a short walk from Hackney Wick station and can also be easily accessed from Stratford.
The boat itself can handle standing receptions for up to 80, while its Terrace and Gardens can take up to 150 and 300 respectively.
The Milk Float is suitable for standing parties of up to 80 and all of the venue’s spaces can be booked in combination.
Barge East offers a wide range of party packages starting at £15 per head.
Executive chef Kayla Dimmick oversees all the food on-site including dishes created with ingredients from the venue’s edible garden.
Those seeking a deal can visit Barge East’s Terrace on weekdays from noon-4pm to indulge in its £10 lunch offer and enjoy a Chicken Burger or Mushroom Burger with a drink for a tenner.
The Milk Float has joined the Barge East fleet – image by Barge East
The collaborative promise of East Bank has been long in the making.
But now the wait is over.
V&A East, Sadler’s Wells East, UCL East, BBC Music Studios and the London College Of Fashion have all come together for the first time publicly to play their parts in The Music Is Black Festival in east London.
Essentially a creative response to V&A East Museum’s first exhibition – The Music Is Black: A British Story – the programme includes four weekends of live gigs and performances as well as film screenings, talks, digital elements and exhibitions.
The aim is to reflect the breadth and depth of the impact made by black music in the UK.
East Bank director Tamsin Ace – image by Christian Cassiel
collaborating on The Music Is Black Festival
“Each of these five institutions have pivoted to respond to this theme and, layered on top of that, we have our programme of four live weekends – one each month,” said Tamsin Ace, director at East Bank.
“For example, the BBC has created The Music Is Black digital hub across TV, radio, iPlayer, Sounds and online to celebrate some of the key genres, personalities, scenes and compositions that define the last 125 years of black music in the UK.
“They’ve also created amazing educational resources through BBC Bitesize for secondary schools to use.
“It’s all been developed in collaboration with V&A East Museum.
“UCL East have organised a series of talks looking at black British visual culture, fashion – all kinds of different things – throughout the season.
“The London College Of Fashion is also hosting an amazing exhibition looking at sound system culture and designer identity.
“Then the four live weekends will bring people down to East Bank to celebrate the artists and musicians through free public performances.
“For these we’ve worked with an amazing curator, Gillian Jackson, and for each event we’ll have three stages – two right on the East Bank waterfront, with the Sadler’s Wells East public dance floor making up the third.
“The idea is we’ve got intergenerational dances, workshops and specially commissioned choreographed pieces, with live music, DJs and MCs.
“That’s the format we’ll follow for each of the weekends.”
The festival is inspired by the V&A East Museum’s The Music Is Black: A British Story exhibition – image by Jon Massey / Wharf Life
The Music Is Ours
The live programme kicks off on June 13 and 14 with The Music Is Ours, featuring acts curated by Footsie, of grime collective the Newham Generals, on the Saturday and saxophonist and Soul Mama restaurant owner, YolanDa Brown, the day after.
Performers will include the likes of King Original, Tailor Jae, Nicole Blakk, My Runway Group, Acantha Lang and Melodees From Heaven.
Tamsin said: “We’re kicking off with a real block party, a celebration of east London’s huge contribution to black music.”
Sadler’s Wells East will feature Garage X Grime Reload curated by Kloe Dean on the first day with Breakin’ Convention taking over the dance floor on the Sunday for exhibition battles.
Power And Respect – image by Flashpop
Power And Respect
Black women and non-binary people take centre stage on July 11 and 12 with Jamz Supernova on curatorial duties for the first day with Yaazmin Lacey and Tyson handling the second.
At Sadler’s Wells East, Jade Hackett’s Let Love Be Your Rock will showcase original group work set to lovers rock and reggae on the Saturday, followed by DJs L’attise Rhoden and Glade Marie the day after.
“This will have a different flavour and feel to it,” said Tamsin. “We hope people will come to all four of the weekends, but others may just pick one to attend.
“One of the things we’re really excited about is building that kind of recognition, that people will start getting to know that the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is a place where you can just turn up and bump into culture and creativity. We’re building that into a regular rhythm of free programming.
“We also know that people are hungry for moments of congregation and celebration and being in a joyful environment, and that’s what these free weekends will create.
Queer Frequencies – image by Leo Patriz
Queer Frequencies
Bringing together the queer collectives and communities that shape the rich tapestry of London’s queer scene, August 22 and 23 will be curated by Shy One, Donnie Sunshine, Mark-Ashley Dupé, Joel Mignott and Zinzi Minott.
Sadler’s Wells East will be blending dance with poetry and sound art alongside a pre-carnival party from Faggamuffin Bloc Party.
“This weekend is all about focussing on the huge contribution that queer creators have made to the scene, delivering a different vibe and energy,” said Tamsin.
Black To The Future – image by Atlantide Phototravel
Black To The Future
“This is all about showcasing people who are really pushing the dial, bringing together different ideas and genres to mix things up,” said Tamsin.
“We don’t know what the music of the future is, but these are some of the people who are imagining what it might be.
“What’s exciting about it is that there are people right now, in their studios and bedrooms, in their youth centres and their schools, creating sounds we have not even heard yet.
“That’s what east London has done so brilliantly over so many decades.”
Taking place on September 12 and 13, the final live weekend features curation from Flohio, The Blues Project and Dannielle ‘Rhimes’ Lecointe.
It’s hoped that the festival will form something of a blueprint for future years with East Bank’s members continuing to collaborate.
“It feels like a significant moment for the project,” said Tamsin.
“It’s amazing to see the momentum and we’re supporting 20 jobs for east Londoners to help deliver the festival programme.
“The ambition is to build a corps of freelancers that East Bank can tap into and invest in – a pipeline of local creative talent and that’s so important.”
key details: The Music Is Black Festival
The Music Is Black Festival runs from June 13 until Sept 13, 2026, and includes four free weekends of music.
Leeds-based Phoenix Dance Company returns to the East Bank venue, following the sell-out success of Inside Giovanni’s Room last year, to showcase a programme of four pieces.
“Interplay is all about artistic expression – what we wanted to do was to produce works that were varied and that ask what it means to express ourselves in different ways with specific reference to the idea of duality,” said Marcus Jarrell Willis, artistic director at Phoenix.
“The key is in the title we’ve given the show – it’s a way for us to remember that, while this is a dance programme with a unified theme, we don’t always have to take everything so seriously.
“Yes, there are meaningful messages in the different works featured, but it’s also about simply offering a full palette of dance so audiences can take what they want from it.
“I don’t have any intention of trying to prove anything with that, I just want it to be something that people can connect to.
“People may love all the works, just one or none of them.
“I just hope those watching feel something, that they are impacted by what they see and that they receive something.”
Phoenix Dance Company artistic director Marcus Jarrell Willis – image by Hugo Glendinning
choosing the works
For Interplay, Phoenix, which operates as a rep company, will present Marcus’ Next Of Kin, Ed Myhill’s Why Are People Clapping?!, Travis Knight and James Pett’s Small Talk and a new collaboration between Marcus and choreographer Yusha-Marie Sorzano entitled Suite Release.
Some are duets while others are ensemble works.
Marcus said: “The programme actually came together quite seamlessly.
“With one selected, immediately it tapped into my brain and I’d think of a complementary work to go with it – it all gelled.
“Small Talk came first – I’d been following Travis and James’ work already, connected and had a conversation.
“A year prior to them creating, I just invited them into the studio to have a jam session, to play and to see how they related, with no real expectation.
“Straight after that, there was something there, which led me to commission the work.
“I’d seen Ed Myhill’s piece years before in different iterations.
“He grew up in Leeds and has been a dancer for a long time in the National Dance Company Of Wales.
“When I first came to the UK to focus more on creating dance I was based in Cardiff and I’d viewed Why Are People Clapping?! digitally during lockdown and then seen it on stage.
“It’s set to Steve Reich’s Clapping Music, so people’s hands are the driving force that create the rhythm for the dancers.
“It’s really interesting to see something so unusual, but also about who is coming to our company.
“I’ve known Ed for a long time and I knew he’d bring a great energy to our studio and the culture of Phoenix.
“From there, I knew I wanted to restage Next Of Kin, which I choreographed and originally danced with a dear friend many years ago.
“I was quite precious about it at first, but I realised I wanted it to be reimagined with this company because there are such special relationships between the dancers and this is a work that draws on those.”
Ed Myhill’s Why Are People Clapping? features in the programme – image by Drew Forsyth
a step into the unknown
“Finally, there’s Suite Release, which has been an incredible project. It’s my first time co-creating,” said Marcus.
“I’ve cooperated on many projects but never with another choreographer and it was about recognising that, while I have responsibilities and expectations, I’m still learning as well.
“So, I dug deep into what that might look like, picked up the phone and called Yusha-Marie. We have a 25-year-plus journey together.
“We danced together and have been friends for many years and we have seen each other grow.
“I wanted to make sure that it was with someone who I felt comfortable with but who would still push me and that I could push.
“We’d spent all these years in different companies, continuously trying to enhance and perfect our crafts, with all these different styles and techniques.
“Our piece is about why we started dancing in the first place.
“She was a young girl, born in Trinidad who migrated to Miami, with her dad DJ-ing and I grew up in Houston, Texas with hip hop, r’n’b, house music and soul.
Phoenix Dance Company members perform Suite Release – image by Drew Forsyth
“I danced at the barbecues with my family and that’s where the moving started.
“So Suite Release is a big party.
“It allows the dancers to break free from all expectations.
“They know it’s on stage, but they have to dance like there’s nobody watching.
“Collaborating was really great, actually and I will admit I was a bit nervous.
“I hoped it wouldn’t ruin a friendship, but many of our ideas just pinged off each other.
“We do have our own singular ways of approaching our practice as creators, but we have a common goal.
“It was nice to be in the studio and work in that way.
“One of the other really lovely things was that the dancers in the company got to see me in a different light.
“We work and play hard in the studio, and so we always have openness.
“Having someone come from my beginnings into the space allowed them to see young Marcus hanging out with a friend, which then opened them up and made them more ready to go.
“It’s amazing and the four dancers have really held that essence throughout the tour we’ve taken Interplay on.
“It’s also been an experience that’s made me want to collaborate more.
“Even now I’m tapping into colleagues and friends that are trying to be involved in the more dramaturgical side of things.
“I feel I’ve opened up a whole new layer on how we, as a company, can collaborate too – we know how to bring creative people into the room, but what happens when we start producing?”
Small Talk by Pett Clausen Knight – image by Drew Forsyth
key details: Interplay
Interplay is set to run at Sadler’s Wells East for four performances from June 24-27, 2026.
Shows start at 7.30pm and last an hour and 50 minutes including an interval. Tickets start at £15.
