51 posts tagged “london”
As many of the world leader’s gathered in London to hash out new plans for new economic promises at the G20
summit here this week, I went along to join thousands of others who marched to the Bank of England, 1 April. All day I tagged along to follow protesters, as they strongly expressed views on the financial crisis, jobs, lost homes, the environment, war, lost pensions and savings and plenty more issues. I followed along behind the Green Horse, which was one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, a theatrical series of parades staged to wind through the city, converging on the Bank of England.
Everyone had a myriad of issues to demonstrate for this week, in hopes that G20 summit attendants would listen, and what form of expression people chose to take stretched from 60s-style peace, love and flowers, to radical black masks and throwing things.
While many other eyewitness accounts include reports of poor treatment by police, I left the areas of concern just prior to any major incidents happening, however, during the day did see plenty of activity that created intense escalating tension, which left me fearful for what might happen.
For a short time, I could not find a way out of the area, as police surrounded and corralled about 4,000 people. This, I learned, is what happens when police “kettle” protesters to keep them under control, and it freaked me out. Despite being in the middle of it for hours, with a handful of individuals causing damage, it all seemed to be a mostly festive street party atmosphere with live music, dancing and even bubble blowing machines. The sun kept shining, splashing the impressive fortress that is the Bank of England in glorious light, where in its shadow, thousands chanted calls of “Bankers are Wankers!” There were serious, but mostly happy faces, for what was turning out to be a street party.
Among the crowd, some tossed eggs and fruit, some smoke bombs were set off and reports came in of windows
being smashed in at the Royal Bank of Scotland. A few masked men jumped fences and tried to flee the area, and soon the police appeared in full riot gear, blocking entry and exit points in the Threadneedle Street area. I saw a man climb up the front of the Bank of England and hang up some banners, and a few protesters ran about the area spraying graffiti onto the walls. Those in masks circled together at one point, and were under careful scrutiny by the police. The police were comprehensively documenting people in attendance, with photos and videos.
By late afternoon, those who remained inside the cordoned
off area, including many press and remaining protesters, needed to use bathrooms,
get water, get home – get out. I circled the perimeter of the area, to find
lines of police refusing exit to anyone. Asking police about the situation, one
cordially told me “sorry love, you’ve just got to stay here for a little while
longer” and refused to let anyone through. Realising that, in fact, we all
might be trapped in this kettle thing, and could be for hours, fear set in for
others and me.
Protesters started pushing up against the police, demanding exit, and I saw the officer’s lift up batons in ready action for any confrontation. Then I got uneasy, and wanted to get as far away as possible from the situation. A man I talked to told me that there was still an exit open, and pointed me toward a narrow street that seemed free and clear. I found it and left the area, to seek out a bathroom and go see if I could visit the Climate Camp, an encampment that had set up with tents, a composting toilet and even hot food, in front of the European Climate Exchange.
Finding Climate Camp at Bishopsgate was like discovering some sort of urban oasis in the middle of what was increasingly feeling to be a very tense situation. A woman handed me some free granola, and welcomed me to the area. A farmer’s market was providing fresh food, and people were sitting calm and relaxed, hanging about their tents, aware but not overly concerned about the increasing gathering of police on the edges of the encampment, and the circling helicopters. Workshops were being held on climate issues and people gathered to hear speakers share ideas. A group kept some of the crowd dancing with drums, and from above, office workers looked out from windows on at the happenings below, most smiling and laughing.
I saw a couple of well-dressed men in suits stop by to watch
the activity, and no one paid any attention to them – glad to see the were not targets for any abuse, given that police
gave repeated warnings to city workers to beware of the potential for attack from protesters.
From other people’s Twitter updates, I started hearing about police on horses riding into the bank area and further corralling protesters who remained. Apparently, shortly after I left the area, authorities tightened grip and blocked all exits. Seeing these reports, I was relieved and grateful to have found Climate Camp where the situation remained calm. I stayed a couple of hours at Climate Camp, talking to people who had travelled from other parts of England to join in the protests, and looking at the latest edition of The Evening Standard with others. The newspaper’s front page photo showed a man covered in blood being beaten by police, not far from where I had been standing for hours near the Bank of England. Shock.
While I heard bursts of shouting while standing there, I had thought the excitement in the area had been mainly for the appearance of Chris Knight, a University of East London professor, now suspended for his statements about hanging the bankers, who media say was the instigator for much of the protesting surrounding the G20 summit. It seems the noise was a result of windows being smashed at the Royal Bank of Scotland and clashes between police and a few of the protesters.
Later picking up some of the mainstream media’s evening newspapers, it seemed all press attention was toward the individuals and violent moments of the day, with headlines screaming out “Anarchy In The City!”
By this time evening was fast approaching and police were increasing in numbers surrounding Climate Camp. It all seemed quite likely that the protesters would achieve their goal of spending the night camped out in the city streets, and I decided to make my way home and leave them to it.
The journey home was a relaxed group of commuters, with fewer than you would normally expect during peak rush hour. I was glad to have escaped the kettle situation, impressed by the level of organisation and teamwork that I found at Climate Camp, and glad to be going home to an area far from the heart of activities.
Upon arrival home, and finally getting to recharge my mobile phone’s batteries, I checked Twitter updates from others in the protest, and once again discovered that the situation turned very different from what I experienced. Reports said police had blocked in Climate Camp and then proceeded to dismantle the encampment. Some protesters reported that they were roughed up, and at first trapped in the area, some then found themselves being dragged out by police. Dogs were brought in to chase people out and the police requested that people give their name, address and photo ID before being allowed to leave, apparently a request that is not legal. All this was reported by a number of people via Twitter, but I wasn’t there at that point, so can’t confirm or deny any of it myself. If you want to see some of the eyewitness accounts, visit:
Climate Camp
http://twitter.com/climatecamp
G20 Meltdown
http://twitter.com/G20Meltdown
notq
G20 Voices
The Times journalist Kaya Burgess:
http://twitter.com/kayaburgess
IndyMedia UK has been following along with most incidents, here:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2009/03/423717.html
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2009/02/421421.html
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2009/04/426159.html
*For a great view inside the G20 Summit happenings, follow the Tweets and blog posts of G20Voice, a group of 50 bloggers who were given security access to the event and got to interview Gordon Brown, Bob Geldof and other high profile individuals here:
G20 Voice
I reported what I saw during the protests, while I'm concerned about the economy and envirionmental issues my main objective was to observe, learn about the issues and have the experience of being there, peacefully. You can see my blog post over on DigitalJournal.com. I featured a few of the people I
talked to, including the group War On Want, fighting against poverty, who carried a dead canary to represent the end of the city's finance district at Canary Warf. I think that for the most
part, I wasin a shiny, happy place where there were bubbles and nice food being
shared about – I didn’t see blood. I didn’t get treated badly by any police and
I saw nothing that seemed at all like the “riot” some media reports were
calling it
Having been through both 9/11 in New York City and here for 7/7 in London, I was nervous about going to see the events of the G20 protests. I’m grateful that I didn’t experience anything overly traumatic, as seems to have happened for some, but still feeling stress about the tense atmosphere in the city. I hope things remain safe.
I considered going along to further protest happenings on Thursday, but feared the possibility of things getting too dangerous and opted out. This was partly the result of getting a few nasty hate monger comments to my Twitter feed (follow @lisadevaney), from right wingers and also getting some criticism from left wing activists. After getting support from friends, I'm back to blogging and uploading thoughts and photos to Twitter and Flickr, and won't be afraid.
Now I’m watching events unfold via Twitter feeds, and the mainstream media, to see what others are experiencing, but have been hiding out from all the action. Saw enough action for one week really, having also attended the Put People First rally over the weekend, and too intimidated by what might happen to venture out solo and experience more. Guess I’m just not that brave, but I respect the people who are making their views known peacefully. I am angered that the pockets of violence have clouded over the demonstrations and painted an unfair angle to the intentions of the majority of the participants.
I hope everyone remains safe throughout London,
-Lisa
My comedy cabaret show the House of Hee Haw! will be back on stage this coming Friday, July 4th, to celebrate:
The event will be a lively celebration of Americana-style music, and a DJ spinning souful favourites, along with rock and some cowboy country music. Our growing cast of hillbillies is proud to be part of the new London country rocker club night Little Bit Country Little Bit Rock n Roll. We'll be hee hawing it up alongside a fantastic line-up of live music, and even Cheerleaders! from the dance troupe Cheer-A-Go-Go.
**Download your flyer here and bring it along to claim your
This party is going to be country fried finger-liking good fun.
*And I bet a £1 that everyone will be hee hawing it up all night. No party poopers welcome, this is dance all night, sing all night wild and wacky fun.
***Please note, the artists request that you please leave your hat at the door, following pretend cowboy, cowgirl and hillbilly fun times at the party -- so we can use the hats the next time!
AMERICAN
CO-(IN)DEPENDENCE DAY
FOURTH OF JULY
CELEBRATIONS!
Featuring...
♥♥♥ Cheer-A-Go-Go! ♥♥♥
(Hillbilly
Comedy Cabaret)
♫♫♪♫♪ HellzaPoppin’ ♫♫♪♫♪
(Rockin’ Stray
Cat-Style Trio)
London debut of:
♫♫♪♫♪ The
WildCat Tamers ♫♫♪♫♪
(Country,Soul,Rock’n’Roll)
♫♫♪♫♪ DJ Jon the Boatman ♫♫♪♫♪
& Surprise Special Guests
Barbecue & Grill. Very Reasonable Bar Prices
Friday 4th July 2008. Doors 8 ‘til late. £6/£5 concs.
Inn On the Green, 3-5 Thorpe Close, Portobello Green, London W10 5XL.
1 minute
walk from Ladbroke Grove Tube Tel: 0208 962 5757 www.iotg.co.uk
www.myspace.com/littlebitcountryuk
red, the white and the blue -
- of both countries!!
-Lisa
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London, offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original Cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
Coming up this July 2-3 in London is a new event called 2gether08 that is being organized summer-festival style, combining the best of conference, with a bit of Festival fun mixed in. Check out what’s happening here:
2gether08 is brought to you by the innovative UK broadcaster Channel 4.
***Early Bird Discount Passes Available Now***
You’ve got until this Monday, 16th June, to
get an early bird discount for passes.
Register here: http://www.2gether08.eventbrite.com/
Come along and help...
Solve Bigger Problems at 2gether08
On offer are two days and nights of talks, workshops, debates, interviews, parties, awards and some surprises. More than 300 people from throughout London’s creative industries are planning to attend and the speaker line-up includes politicians, writers, a philosopher, economists, entrepreneurs, technologists, scientists and more to soon be announced. See the who’s who list of speakers here http://2gether08.com/programme/
Among attendants you’ll find many of London’s top influential creatives from new technology, business, media, art and entertainment, all gathering to hammer out new ideas, along with a few positive action steps that can be taken to make the world a better place. I’m hoping that this is going to be similar to what happens, when ideas get started, and spreading at TED talks.
2gether08 is a Grassroots, DIY, Co-Created, People-Powered Festival of Ideas
Most inspiring is how 2gether08 is being organized, with the active participation of those attending. Invitations and calls for ideas went out among London’s creative entrepreneurial community to begin shaping the agenda for what 2gether08 will tackle, and topic discussions will cover every subject from climate change to international relations to community issues. At the heart of the concept is a focus surrounding how new technology can propel social change, and it is social networking that has been shaping out 2gether08 across London.
I can report that the organizers are listening, with about 100 workshops being organized for attendants, by attendants.
My agency Hai Media Group is proud to be among the supporters of 2gether08.
We are helping out the organizers with PR support, if you have queries about press passes, please contact me. Download the 2gether08 Event Alert here:
**If you have a blog, or Twitter, or know someone who does,
please post news about this event, and help get the ideas going.
I’ll be blogging about what ideas emerge from 2gether08, and
if you have any pressing topics that you’d like to see guest’s put
their heads
together on, I’m interested to hear your thoughts, so please leave a
comment
about what is happening in your part of the world that needs attention.
You are welcome to contact me here, or email me at info [at]
haimediagroup [dot] com
Helping out to solve bigger problems with 2gether08,
-Lisa
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London,
offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original Cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
This month my agency the Hai Media Group heads to Manchester, along with other digital media creative entrepreneurs from throughout the UK, for the conference bTWEEN08, where our agency is a finalist in the Branding Talent competition.
HMG has teamed up with media partner Isabella Hu, a designer, to develop this seed idea for an integrated promotional campaign to support Littlewoods, a popular online shopping site for fashion and house wares. We’ve presented the judges with our Rare Fruits concept, that invites customers to visit Littlewoodsdirect.com, to pick rare fashion fruits from the branches of trees, growing on islands. The virtual world concept wraps around what we’ve already been told about Littlewoods new branding initiatives to build excitement with a television commercial involving a desert island, scheduled to be aired in the 2008 holiday season.
Among
our mentors for this experience will be 4Talent
(an innovation arm of the broadcaster
Channel 4), Aegis Media, Just-b (the creators and
designers of bTWEEN08) and Littlewoods.
bTWEEN08's Sponsors
We
join other finalists to develop our seed ideas into a full proposal for the
client, during a conference workshop, and find out Friday, 20th June 2008, if
our Rare Fruits campaign is a winner. We are thrilled to have the opportunity
to work closely with our digital creative peers for bTWEEN08, and hope we have
a good chance at winning the cash prize of £5K. You can see some screenshots of our Rare Fruits campaign concept below:
Check out our Rare Fruits entry here, which is up for public vote online, among other contenders:
http://www.just-b.com/btween/branding-tallent/rare-fruits
How do you vote? Please sign up to the bTWEEN08 online community, a helpful resource for digital entrepreneurs.
Creative Branding Inspiration
Hai Media Group hopes the judges will love our Rare Fruits campaign, a concept that aims to build website traffic by creating consumer excitement around exclusively available items from popular brands such as Miss Selfridges, Diesel, Love Island, Henleys, and other brands the retailer currently stocks. We've also suggested the possibility of offering prizes or products from the brand’s official spokeswomen Trinny & Susannah, who are leading fashion divas in the UK. We’ve been inspired by the successes High Street retailers have had in recent years by offering shoppers fashion lines from celebrities and designers, and see this new branding initiative as an opportunity for Littlewoods to capture the same excitement online.
Kate Moss, Madonna, Lilly Allen and others, have unveiled their collections at Top Shop, H&M and other retailers, but we think the best case study example is when Stella McCartney’s collection debuted at H&M in November 2005, which launched consumer fervour outside the Oxford Circus retail outlet on its launch day, with thousands of fans queuing for their chance to own an original piece of the collection. The store sold out within the first day, and remains a coup d'état moment among the fashion industry marketing types.
We hope to fuel similar excitement for Littlewoods, and offer busy women a new way to have a chance to own an original fashion item, that doesn’t require taking a day off from work, or raising kids, to queue for hours at a shop. In the run-up to our Rare Fruits campaign debut for Littlewoods, we’ve got integrated promotional strategies surrounding our campaign, to build buzz and excitement over an 8-week period in the run-up to the holidays, that we’ll be discussing further with the judges of this competition.
We are looking forward to working closely with other entrepreneurs, and media mentors to finalize our campaign ideas during the bTWEEN08 conference.
We join other finalists in a development workshop on Wednesday June 18th June 2008, to develop our seed ideas into a full proposal for the client. We’ll find out Friday, 20th June 2008, if our Rare Fruits campaign is an award-winner.
Hoping we've got a winner with the Littlewoods Rare Fruits campaign,
-Lisa
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London, offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original Cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
Who’s Isabella Hu?
Hu is an artist and designer who works across
the fields of interactive arts, motion graphics and new media. Her experience includes design consultantcy specializing in
digital, film, and print media. She has screened
her work internationally at various festivals throughout Europe, Canada, Asia,
Australia and in the UK. Visit her portfolio here: Ecolocate.
Well last Friday night my performance art group helped a great bunch of folks kick-off a new club night here in London called Little Bit Country Little Bit Rock n Roll, an evening presented by artist and musician Cheyne Pride, who, if you remember the 80s, had a hit dance track called Call Me Mr. Telephone.
As part of my hillbilly comedy cabaret art, I wrote new material to present an evening performance featuring my Hee Haw! House.
The audience laughed out loud over the show, featuring a cast of characters who went at it SMACK-down style in cabaret wrestling! I loved the mash-up style of the evening that mixed country rock lovers with British punk rock lovers and a lot of other pop cultural influences inbetween. We teamed up with Cheer-A-Go-Go to energize the audience for the evening, and get them ready for the fantastic headliner band JC & The Disciples, formed by a couple of legends from the original London punk rock scene.
Check out a few of my favourite photos from the night, here:
Folks liked it so much that we've been invited back for more, and are now invovled with helping the organizers get ready for a big bash here in London celebrating the Fourth of July! If you are in London, please mark your calendar and I hope ya'll can come on out and join us at Inn On the Green in Ladbroke Grove on Friday, July 4th!
-Lisa
PPS: Hey, do you want to be part of our urban hillbilly fun? We are looking for all kinds of artistic collaborators for this adventure. If you can do things like play a washboard, harmonica, banjo, pots 'n pans, jews harp, square dance call, line dance, or whatever you think an urban hillbilly might get up to -- please get in touch with me! Drop me a note here on my Vox blog, or email me: info [at] haimediagroup [dot] com
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London, offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
Ya’ll will have another chance to check out my Hee Haw! House comedy cabaret act, this coming Friday night, as we are performing as part of a new club night A Little Bit Country and a Little Bit Rock N Roll. The night promises to be an Americana-style celebration offering up country western, blues and good old fashioned rock-n-roll music, along with dancing and performance and DJs, and great big grins at the Inn On The Green .
Yes, smiles will be a plenty among this crowd, a gathering being organized by the talented
country western, and rock ‘n roll, singer Cheyne Pride. She’s brought together talent for the first of her new regular club nights with an Americana theme that will leave Londoners feeling warm and fuzzy about the good ‘ol stars and stripes and the fantastic music, art and cultural talent that has brewed from the USA.
Headlining the night is the band National Debt, a country blues rock band based in London, founded by Ronnie Smith and Michael Messer, with backing vocals by Cheyne Pride, sound engineer Chris Clarke, and Ed Genis contributing on guitar. The band’s debut album ‘From the Horse’s Mouth’ was released last spring, earning attention from music press in the UK, including airplay on BBC Radio 2, when Mark Lamarr took a liking to the band's tune ‘Oozlin’ Daddy Blues’.
This band will get you slapping your thighs, lifting your cowboy hats in tribute and tapping your feet along with the beat. Added bonus of the night is JC & the Disciples and dancing cheerleaders from Cheer-A-Go-Go, along with my very own Hee Haw! Whore House comedy. As The Madam of the Hee Haw! Whore House, I’ll be presenting new comedy material SMACK-down style with cabaret wrestling!
Well I hope ya’ll can come on down this Friday, and if you can’t make it this week, do mark your calendar for July 4th to enjoy an American-style celebration of the national holiday, right in the heart of Londontown at Inn On The Green.
Here
are the details for Friday:
Cheyne Pride Presents:
A Little Bit Country A Little Bit Rock-n-Roll
A new London country western and rock ‘n roll club night featuring:
National Debt
JC & The Disciples
Cheer A-Go-Go
Hee Haw! House
Doors Open at 7:30 PM
(Yes, there is a cover and it will be less than a tenner)
INN ON THE GREEN
3-5 Thorpe Close W10
(Ladbroke Grove tube - cross over and walk under the motorway - look for a balcony and come upstairs)
Buses 7, 15, 23, 52, 70, 295
Feeling a little bit country and a little bit rock ‘n roll,
-Lisa
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London, offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original Cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
What will Boris do?
Many Londoners are wondering the same thing I am, for better, for worse, for whatever. Boris Johnson is our new Mayor, and I’m looking forward to watching these things unfold, living under this new leadership:
Buffoonery
There is going to be a lot of it, and I get the feeling that Boris, in addition to outsourcing his entire professional team, is also recruiting a top comedy performance coach to keep his public laughing, as we get dragged along for this ride.
Comedy Sketch Shows
Can’t WAIT to see what the top British comedy talent comes up with. Will Matt Lucas step up to the plate on this one? There is plenty of material for him already.
Fancy Dress
Festival season, fancy dress parties (hey Americans, that means costume party) and club nights are going to be sprinkled with Boris look-a-likes. I suspect the fancy dress shops are now stocking up on floppy blonde haired wigs. Better get my order in.
Documentaries
I suspect that brainstorming is now in progress among Channel
4’s Dispatches, the BBC’s Panorama and all the other fantastic British documentary producers, who are planning for the
next investigative piece about how and why Boris Johnson won the London Mayoral
election. I’m looking forward to some hilarious ‘docudrama’ about the subject,
and wondering who will be cast as the lead role for...Boris the West End Musical, or for Boris the Movie? Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis could dye his mop blonde, gain weight, and give a fantastic OTT moving performance, something he is great at, as a bonified card-carrying member of the Overactors Annoynmous. He won't take the gig though, as for him to play Boris, it would require him to do some actual acting.
Virals
I’m already seeing some citizen-created viral campaigns appear in response to this election, such as the folks over at I Didn’t Vote For Boris, who invite non-Boris voting Londoners to tag a photo with ididntvoteforboris and add it to the Flickrstream. The conservative viral online campaign viral Boriswatch, has had its day, and now I’m looking forward to other Citizen Journalist reports, such as the eye view of Sunny Hundal, from the frontlines of what may be a new sport in London of Boris Watching. Clearly with 2,000+ already signed up to the Facebook group, it will be a popular activity here.
Celebrity Commentary
Some have already spoken their mind, and I’m watching to see what others have to say, on both sides, in what is going to be endless payday for the tabloids, paparazzi and other media types who feed on electric headlines. Here’s a few A-Lister comments I’ve enjoyed, and thanks to Devious Diva for compiling many more:
“Boris has as little knowledge of multiculturalism as I have of life on Jupiter. He used to go to this club in Oxford called the Bullingdon Club, full of snobs and creative conmen. The man has not only no physical ability to run anything, he is immoral and a bully. Boris as mayor would be like discovering you had piles and there was no cure for it.”
“In Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, there is a scene where a character is talking
about another who is a card player and he’s described as ‘a fucking liability’. That’s my idea of Boris. The mouth engages before the mind does. He doesn’t have any sense of diplomacy or tact. London is a cosmopolitan city. You can’t have someone who makes quotes like that [Johnson’s “piccaninnies” comment] representing London, regardless of the fact it was in the past [Johnson wrote the comment in 2002]. Of all the things people say about Ken, in my view he’s done a lot for London. When you go into the city it looks like a European capital now with all the regeneration, and it didn’t before. Trafalgar Square is a much more welcoming place.”
David Mitchell
Comedian, Peep Show
“Boris is mad. He wants to bring back bus conductors, but that’s never going to happen. I think he talks rubbish. He’s
out of touch and he doesn’t understand Londoners. People say Ken is obnoxious, but what can you do? One thing about him is he knows London.”
Charlie Brooker
Guardian columnist and Television Presenter
Thanks to this election result, I’ve now got a powerful
retort to the next Brit who blames me for the conservative politics of George
Bush, because clearly it can happen here as well, and I will not be surprised if David Cameron is this country's next Prime Minister.
I’m watching Boris,
-Lisa
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London, offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original Cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
Don't Vote For This Cupcake:
We'd be better off with this cupcake:
I've been mulling over which candidate to give my vicarious vote to -- either Ken or Brian Paddick, or the Green Party's candidate Siân Berry and paused from electoral considerations to join up with other performance art lovers at Liverpool Station tonight, to participate in another flashmob, similar to the great fun had at the recent pillow fight. This time the theme was FREEZE, and those who participated struck statue-like poses in the midst of the evening rush hour, for four minutes. It was more harmless, hilarious fun that took the edge off of a cold rainy day here. New York City's Improv Everywhere group staged a fantastic example of this public art fun, and you can see what happened here:
Whoever serves as Mayor in London, my hope is that they support the arts in this city, which have taken a brutal beating from funding diversions happening across the city, which many are attributing to, and being told, as the funding plug gets pulled on budgets, that it is happening in order to support the upcoming £10 billion+ 2012 Olympics.
At least random performance art flashmobs don't need Art Council funding and are free for anyone to participate in.
-Lisa
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London, offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original Cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
I've got some breaking news this week from an individual that I support here in London, both with PR services from time-to-time, with my agency the Hai Media Group, but also because I'm simply just a fan of Dr. Richard Barbrook.
Next week, Richard is headed to Vienna, where he has been invited to be a guest speaker in the Austrian city's annual May Day celebrations. He'll be taking the podium to speak with a crowd of 100,000 on Thursday, May 1st 2008, and is an honourable guest of Vienna Mayor Michael Häupl, who has invited Richard to talk about his ideas from his book The Class of the New, a popular title among many urban dwellers, who have interest in a thought leadership initiative surrounding the concept of 'creative cities.' If you are in the USA, you may have heard of an author by the name of Richard Florida, who is also known for his ideas about the urban creative classes, and yes, these two authors do share some similar views, but haven't met in person -- yet.
Much like Richard Florida in America, Britain's Richard Barbrook is both an author (his newest book is Imaginary Futures) and a lecturer of politics at the University of Westminster here in London. Prior to relocating to London, I also had the opportunity to meet and see the inspiring Richard Florida speak in the USA, and I think both academics have a lot of food for thought for people, especially urbanites, to consider. When it comes to Barbrook, I think the number one reason I most value the impact he has in this city, is because he is truly a great supporter of so many creative people, projects and entrepreneurs in London.
He is an early adopter, and is credited with being the first instructor to introduce students, and get them thinking about, the wild wonderful world of the web, with his founding of the Hypermedia Research Centre back in the mid-1990s, an academic department that was formerly based at the University of Westminster. He also conceived of, and set up Cybersalon, an organization that fosters thinking toward cyberpoltics, as well as exploring the intersection between art, music and technology with its festival Cybersonica. Over the years, many of his students have become his idea fans, and quite a few have gone on to produce some terrific things in the interactive world, as well as in the media, music, arts and entertainment worlds, including the fantastic animated rock band The Sancho Plan, which emerged from Cybersonica. Now he is getting up to something NEW:
This Weekend in London: Saturday,
If you are in London, I'm pleased to invite you along to witness a new project that Richard Barbrook has been developing this year, called Class Wargames, a performance art gaming project of sorts that sees a group of academics, artists and gamers re-create Guy Debord's Game of War at The Pump House Gallery in Battersea Park, at 12 NOON this Saturday, April 26th 2008. *Please note that the park has re-scheduled this event from an evening time slot, to take place in the afternoon.
Who's Guy Debord? This is background from the group's website: Guy Debord is celebrated as the leader of the Situationist International and as the author of the searing critique of the media-saturated society of consumer capitalism: The Society of the Spectacle. What is much less well known is that after the May '68 Revolution, Debord and his partner - Alice Becker-Ho - quit Paris and went to live in a remote French village. Over the next two decades, Debord devoted much of the rest of his life to inventing, refining and promoting what he came to regard as his most important project: The Game of War.
Class Wargames,
-Lisa
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London, offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original Cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
Inside every Londoner is an inner hillbilly, just a hoot in’ ‘n a hollering to get out!
With the debut of my new comedy cabaret act the Hee Haw! Whore House this week, I helped the closeted hillbilly spirit inside my fellow Londoners unleash itself for the Finger in the Pie cabaret festival at Madam JoJos.
The venue was packed for showtime last Sunday, April 6th, and
the crowd responded well, whooping it up for our cast of urban hillbillies with
applause, laughter and even participation. As The Madam of the Hee Haw! Whore
House, I packed in some fast & furious slapstick American-style hilarity,
with non-stop silly antics and a few surprises for the performance.
Our little whore house kicked-off a fabulous night for Finger in the Pie, with other really enjoyable new artist acts. I particularly liked the creativity and friendly backstage camaraderie of Lheila Oberman & Timothy Dodd of Aliens Ate My Schnitzel. It was also a pleasure to share the stage with Kittyktja, Victoria L'Etoile, Marianna Harlotta & Ruby Corsette, Miss Rose Thorne as Squaw Blimey, and Frankie Chalet. Many thanks to Vixen DeVille, the evening’s temptress MC who held the night together, and super American-style cheers for the organizers of the monthly Finger in the Pie cabaret festival, a fantastic showcase and supportive environment for new London performance acts. Do check out a future show, for details about upcoming performances make friends with them via MySpace or find the group on Facebook.
Who Loves to Hee Haw!?
James Whatley, aka Whatleydude, was fantastic as our drunken punter, stumbling about with his very own bottle 'o moonshine and making audiences laugh during his performance and a pantomime-style chase scene. No whore house is complete without some whores, and we had two! One pretty, and one, well, butt ugly. The audience oooh’d and ahhh’d over beautiful Tiara Diamond who wowed them with her burlesque dancing skills and sparkly pasties. Shock + horror was on order for Stewart Wright’s hilarious portrayal of our ‘bargain bang bang special’ whore. Stewart saved the show, stepping in last minute as 'understudy' for the night, as our original cast member had a family emergency to tend to.
Our crew also made sure the Hee Haw! Whore House made its stage debut, with my
supportive husband John having to make a mad dash back home to get my forgotten makeup case and costume accessories. He also helped on many fronts, from helping to make our flyer, to burning our music tracks and the list goes on. Costume designer Diana Munduru helped us get ‘in character’ backstage in the dressing room, with her skilled ability to make clothing do what it is supposed to do.
Hee Haw!
Comes to London's West End Stage
It was an honour to officially perform on a ‘West End’ stage, of sorts. Madam Jo Jo’s is in the heart of London’s Soho district, which, in addition to being the centre of West End theatre is also the city’s red light district. Next door to Madam JoJos is the Soho Revue Bar, which historically was the very first strip bar to open in London. That venue was hosting the grand finale of London’s Burlesque Festival on the same night, and, I was thinking that the spirit of porn pioneer and baron Paul Raymond, who recently passed away at age 82, must have enjoyed such a fantastic festive night in his corner of London.
I hope you enjoy some of the pictures I’ve found from the
night, and our Hee Haw! Whore House may even feature in a restrospective book in
the future, as the photographer Peter Lavery, who
documents circus performers, joined the artists backstage to take pictures of
our pre-show preparation. Plenty more photos can be found here.
Credit for the above pictures goes to Flavia Fraser-Cannon, courtesy of Finger in the Pie Cabaret Festival, and BigShinyThing.com's Darrell Berry.
It was all great showbusiness experience, and I’m now thinking about what’s next for the Hee Haw! Whore House here in the UK. Festival season is coming up, and there are plenty of other venues that might appreciate a good ‘ol hillbilly time. If you have any suggestions for where this comedy performance may be appreciated, please email me at info@haimediagroup.com, or leave me a comment.
Can't wait to hee haw! again,
-Lisa
Who’s Lisa Devaney?
I head the Hai Media Group, a multimedia communications company based in London, offering client’s traditional public relations, combined with new technology marketing strategies. I also perform, creating original Cabaret-style comedy skits for festivals, theatre and parties. Find out more about me, and the talented entrepreneurs I collaborate with, by visiting: www.haimediagroup.com
Hee Haw! Whore House 'Playbill'
Here's your very own memento, from the Hee Haw! Whore House:
Just print out these PDF flyers (front and back side) and you've got your own DIY piece of our show:
