For decades,
Deptford has been misunderstood and dismissed as dreary and dangerous by
outsiders who have never really visited the area. To the insider, it is an
inner-city secret: mixed, vibrant, historic, arty, with decent values, some
fine architecture, and excellent transport connections.
It has a local
rooted community, which is highly creative with a real sense of identity, and a
totally unpretentious high street and market, where independent shops that
serve the needs of a multi-ethnic community still rule the roost.
So it is into
this mix that we launch the first and long-overdue Deptford Heritage Festival that
is being put together by an awesome team of creative residents who want to
reflect on the area's past, its historic importance in the world, and its
present diversity through art, walks, history, food, literature, talks,
quiz nights, river trips, film, and music, from opera to hip-hop.
Special events
will feature key elements from Deptford's remarkable history and the
fascinating figures that have shaped it, including Henry VIII and the historic
dockyard, John Evelyn and Sayer's Court Gardens, Christopher Marlowe and the
intrigue surrounding his death, and the love life of Robert Browning. And we
will come right up to date with Dire Straits, who played their first gig in
Deptford , Jools Holland, and our inspirational and internationally acclaimed
and award-winning poet Kate Tempest. And we will not forget our tragedies,
including the New Cross fire and the St John’s train crashes.
The Festival
will run from 1-4 May 2015 over the bank holiday weekend.
All money raised
will be used to benefit local charities such as the www.lewishamfoodbank.com, the Second
Wave youth project and others still to be confirmed.
We plan to issue
a full list of events this September and hope over the summer to hear from
local residents and groups who would be eager to organise events, as well as people
willing to offer their services, from local historians and poets to musicians and
street artists, to local businesses and venue owners.
Anyone
interested in being part of this awesome weekend or who would like to organise
an event, please email: DeptfordHeritageFestival@aol.com.
It’s our
Deptford. Let’s celebrate its diversity, history and our place in the community
we love to call home.
Ray Woolford
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