No sooner than it started, the Great Squat of the George appears to be over. The paper covering the windows, along with the hand-written notices asserting legal rights to squat are, as of Monday afternoon, no longer.
Workers arrived on Monday morning to put up scaffolding and by later afternoon were well under way with moving furniture out of the pub and storing it containers in the car park at the back of the pub, presumably to make way for redecoration.
Just days after Wetherspoons closed the George pub, squatters have moved in and told people that there is nothing anyone can do about it.
The Wetherspoon signs were removed within 24 hours of the pub closing at the start of last week. It had just been announced that the pub had been taken over by Urban, a small chain which operates 50 other pubs in London.
But by the weekend, squatters had got access to the building and covered up the windows with paper and signs declaring their legal rights. This did not, however, stop scaffolding being erected on Monday.
Longtime readers will remember the squatting in the former Barclays Bank, which was empty for months while Sainsbury’s decided if it was going to turn it into a mini-supermarket. In the end it became Gail’s.
And going waaay back to 1968 (even before Wansteadium existed) the Hollies, the small block of flats on the crossroads of the high street with New Wanstead, was the target of the London Squatter Campaign which was demonstrating against ‘luxury flats lying empty for years’. For a while, apparently, Wanstead was a cause célèbre.
Buildings standing empty for years is hardly the case with the George, however, which was empty for just a matter of days.
Wanstead residents fighting against the reorganisation of bus routes are hoping a meeting with a TfL official might lead to a breakthrough.
A “schemes design officer” is to take part in a meeting on Tuesday evening (22 Oct) at Christ Church after reviewing how the new routes and timetables are working.
There are reports that TfL wants to relocate the zebra crossing outside the former NatWest because of the difficulty for larger buses in turning down Nightingale Lane. And at a busy junction on Elmcroft Avenue, pictured, the bigger vehicle has had trouble making the turn.
Bigger buses are necessary because TfL has made the route once-per-hour rather than three or four times. But the reduction in services has massively reduced the usefulness of the service for school and work purposes.
The approval of plans to turn the former Wanstead Youth Centre into an education hub has only highlighted the need for regular transport options.
A spokesperson for the Save Our Local Bus Service Campaign said: “People can’t get to food shops, hospitals, schools …. Timetables weren’t made available anywhere for the once an hour buses that run through the Nightingale Estate, and the way the route is full of bottlenecks, that service can never be reliable. Local people can’t get information on where the new routes run because TfL is so confused itself by the complex routes.”
The meeting will take place at 6pm.
The George in Wanstead has been bought by independent London pub chain Urban Pubs and Bars, just days after Wetherspoons unexpectedly announced the much-loved pub was to close this Sunday.
The pub will be renamed The George and Dragon, reverting to the name it had until 1904. In a statement Urban Pubs & Bars said:
“We are delighted to be able to rescue this much loved pub, a place that has been part of Wanstead’s history since 1716.
“Following some refurbishment work the pub will reopen as a great London traditional pub serving great food including a range of delicious Sunday roasts and a wide selection of beers. We look forward to seeing you soon.”
Though many drinkers had been dismayed by Wetherspoons’ decision, the news that the George will be remaining as a pub, rather than being converted into a sports bar or restaurant, will be welcomed.
Urban Pubs and Bars runs 52 pubs in London, including the Red Lion in Leytonstone and the Bat and Ball in Stratford.
Councillor Paul Donovan, who had led a campaign to try to persuade Wetherspoons to change its mind, told Wansteadium: “It’s sad to see the George go but I’m pleased that it will continue as a pub.
“Also, it’s encouraging that the new owners, Urban Pubs & Bars, are reverting to the original name of the George & Dragon. The big issue of course is cost. Wetherspoons offered cheap food and beer, which will no longer be the case. So, on the plus side the pub remains, on the minus the bargain food and drink are no more.”
Update 1800 The Duke issued a statement to its customers:
We’ve been contacted a few times on ‘what can you do’…Well, no one can compete with a £2 pint, madness. Short of trying to out bid Global Mutual US investment co, who have backed Urban Pubs and Bars and are buying up as much property as they can (as evidenced by The Red Lion and Clapton Hart in recent weeks) and out pricing the independent operator – we can certainly offer to continue the community spirit!
Wanstead gets its first Repair Cafe this weekend, as handy volunteers get ready to help people mend things which would otherwise get thrown away.
Household items such as clothes, jewellery, small electrical items (but not white goods, lawnmowers or microwaves) and bicycles, can all be brought along to be fixed, completely free of charge. Every family can bring up to one electrical and two sewing items for repair – though tasks will be tackled on a first come first served basis.
The event is taking place at Christ Church Hall on Sunday 13th October from 2pm-5pm. It’s supported by Christ Church, the London Borough of Redbridge, Wanstead Climate Action and the East London Waste Authority.
It will be run by volunteers and anyone wanting to volunteer as a repairer or to help generally is asked to contact wansteadrepaircafe@gmail.com
The Wanstead Fringe has been given a £3,000 award by the London City Airport Community Fund to help with the development of the Wanstead Kinema. The grant is part of £40,000 the fund is distributing to good causes in East London.
Over the summer the Fringe team crafted the Wanstead Curtain – a cinema, theatre and performance space – in the disused hall at the Wanstead Methodist Church on Hermon Hill, and the grant helps fund the equipment needed for the showing of films.
Giles Wilson, chair of the Wanstead Fringe, said: “We’re really grateful to the London City Airport Community Fund for their grant. It means a lot to us because the Fringe is entirely volunteer-run, and receives no funding from anyone except our sponsors and members. The grant means our hopes for developing the Wanstead Curtain as a home for our Kinema activities have been given a real boost.”
This year the Fringe was sponsored by Petty Son & Prestwich, Edwards Duthie Shamash, Two Toms, North London Loft Rooms, the Duke, Compassionate Funerals, East London Brewery, the Wanstead Society, Wanstead Bookshop and City Place Coffee.
Its membership scheme, which was launched this year, gives individuals a chance to support the development of cultural activities in Wanstead – at the time of writing there are 63 Wanstead Fringe members. New members can join here.
