I had run out of Soy Sauce and some other bits so I thought I'd take a trip to London's Chinatown, via Wardour Street.
Wardour Street is named after the architect Sir Archibald Wardour who designed some of the buildings in it, although many of the buildings are quite lovely, but more recent Art Deco once you look above the lower floor shopfronts
Over the past 100 years the street has had a strong association with both the film and music industry, I'd like to think this building was the HQ of Hammer Films, but have yet to find a source to confirm this.
As for music there is a blue plaque here to commemorate Keith Moon at the site of the old Marquee Club, where just about anybody who was somebody in the music biz trod the boards at some time
I used to love the Marquee, the first time I went there was to see Ian Carr's Nucleus back in 1975 I think, in those days there were even vinyl chairs in front of the stage for people to appreciate the music. That soon changed once it became the centre for London's punk and metal scene! Amongst the bands I saw there were Motorhead, Iron Maiden, Hanoi Rocks, Twisted Sister, Johnny Thunders, Van Der Graaf Generator and the Wonderstuff - who were supporting Balaam and the Angel at the time!
They used to say that if you wanted to know who was playing at the Marquee just pop in to here at lunchime
This was always a good place to go before and after gigs as the beer was better and cheaper than inside the club and there was always the chance you might run into some musos. Another post Marquee hang out was the Intrepid Fox
This place was so Rock N Roll that the barman made customers in ties take them off, its just languishing empty now which is a shame.
A bit further down Wardour street is St Anne's
The tower dates back to 1803 but the rest of the building is more recent as the Nazis bombed the church out in the Second World War. The crime writer Dorothy L Sayers (creator of Lord Peter Wimsey) was a church warden here and is buried under the tower. The grounds which used to be a haven for druggies are being developed as a sort of Arts space by Architecture Ensemble, keep up the good work folks!
Crossing over Shatesbury Avenue takes you into Chinatown where I saw this lion hanging over the street sign
who is I guess protecting the gateway to Chinatown. Just over the street in this splendid Art Nouveau building is Wong Kei
a restaurant that is as famous for its rude waiters as its cheap menu, I have eaten in there a few times and its very good value. The building is pretty splendid having previously been the home of Willy Clarkson a theatrical costumier and wig maker. At the door there are plaques marking the laying of the foundation stone by Sarah Bernhardt in 1904 and the coping stone by Sir Henry Irving in 1905.
taking a left into Gerrard street and you are in the heart of Chinatown
which is full of Chinese restaurants, cake shops and supermarkets
where you can get the best value Chinese and south east Asian groceries in London like thsee Durian fruit which I understand are very tasty but stink something rotten
Shopping done I headed back to the office pausing to shoot this rather nice bit of signage back down Wardour Street
Back into Shatesbury Avenue I spied the fans tribute to Michael Jackson just by the Lyric theatre where the Jackson musical Thriller is playing.
I found this much more touching than that macabre spectacle played out behind his coffin last night.
