It's an exciting Summer full of culture and it's started.

The excellent Greenwich & Docklands International Festival starts today and runs until 30th June. There's far too much to list here, but Prometheus Awakes looks like a very exciting free theatrical event. Check your diaries quick because it's happening tomorrow night by the Queen's House in Greenwich Park. It doesn't start until 10pm so too late for young children which is a shame as it looks pretty stunning.

This weekend, continue to bombard yourself with culture and entertainment and more Greenwichness as it's the Greenwich Fair. Every nook and cranny of the town centre will be taken over by street theatre and quirky performances. Should be great whether it rains or shines. Not sure which shows I'd pick out, but The Pig looks intriguing and worrying at the same time.

As if that's not enough, the Laban Dance Centre in Deptfordshire is hosting The Big Dance Picnic on 23rd June from 12pm. It's more about dance, circus arts and performance than picnic, but there should be enough movement for everyone's appetite. There will alos be a multi-sensory tent which sounds like a must-do.

Steam train

A Crossness steam railway service coming in 2 years time. That's seriously exciting. Heard this on the wireless today.

Love Clean London

This Love Clean London website looks like a good idea. Some of us have mobile telephones (personally I don't think the idea will catch on), and lots of these phones have cameras.

With Love Clean London, you use your mobile telephone camera to photograph filth and general environmental crime from your local area. Send the photograph to 07725 202020 and before you know it, a team of ghostbusters will swoop down and rid our streets of detritus.

For the vast majority of us who don't know what a mobile telephone is, use a computer to visit something called a website on something called an internet (another concept that has no future, I feel). The internet address can be found below.

http://www.lovecleanlondon.org/Reports/Home

With this super tool, we can make Plumsteadshire looking super clean.

Save the Maryon Wilson Animal Park - part the seconde

One lovely listener has sent me a link to the Friends of Maryon Wilson Park website.

http://www.friendsofmaryonparks.org/friends/what-we-do/save-the-animals

See what happened with us giving the Government a hard time about saving the woodlands? They got scared and saw sense (well, that's what I like to think). We can do it with MWP.

please save us

Click on the deer and sign the petition. What the hell, do it again and again with as many false names as you can think of. Turn it into a party game. Theresa Green? Aguerra Dos Latte?

Whatever you do, just don't sit on the fence and watch it disappear.

Save the Maryon Wilson Animal Park

I love the many green spaces around The Shire, and (as long as there's a Wi-Fi hotspot nearby¹), I love getting down with nature too.

The animal care centre in Maryon Wilson Park is under threat and it must be saved. I've taken Toddler Pangloss to meet and feed the animals many times and we loved it. We are really lucky to live in London and have the privilege of learning about animals. I know we also have Woodlands Farm on Shooters Hill, but that can be a drag to get to if you need to get on buses with a child and a perambulator and a bag of nappies et al.

If you've not been to the Maryon Wilson Animal Park, then go on a Wednesday at 1.30pm. You won't be disappointed.

There's an online petition for everyone to sign and make our virtual voices heard.

Don't make excuses like, I'll do it tomorrow, because you'll forget about it tomorrow. Sign the petition now!!!!

footnote
1- sort of joking

4,000 trees to be planted

I just read this little article about the 4,000 street trees that will be planted in London. Great news. I'll look forward to a few trees on the vast forecourt outside the Co Op, Spice Island and the carpet shop.

But stap me vitals!!!! This list doesn't seem to include the borough of Greenwich. Surely this is a typo error or has it been decided that Greenwich has enough trees already? Hmmm.

A busy weekend

The more observant of you will have noticed a countdown timer on Plumsteadshire. It is linked to atomic clocks on Easter Island, Jodrell Bank and Bryn Terfel's Barber Shop on Dallin Road.

We are counting down to 'Plumstead Live!', the premier cultural event on Plumsteadshire's calendar. Looking at the weather forecast, the weekend looks like it'll be nice and sunny for the concert. Keep yourselves free on Sunday 26th July between 3pm - 8pm and come to Winns Common. Spread the word, bring a friend. What the hell, even bring the family too.

There is a very exciting event this Saturday. It's called The Great 'Blow Up' Party In The Park. It's in Maryon Park and forms part of the Greenwich Film Festival. There are tours of the locations used in the film. Shaky bush number 1. Shaky bush number 2 etcetera as well as other goings-on culminating in an outdoor showing of the famous '60s film.

Before you get too excited, do check with the organiser's of the Greenwich Film Festival as the Greenwich Council website has noted that this event has been SOLD OUT. The promotional leaflet I have has no mention of it being a ticketed event, so do double check and if anyone has confirmation of this, please do let us know by posting a comment at the bottom of this blog post.

On Friday (tomorrow), evening there is a similar event at the Well Hall Pleasaunce in Eltham. This time it's the The Railway Children. I don't think there will be tours of famous herbaceous borders, but there definitely will be an outdoor showing of said film.

Catch That Train

My post bag has been bulging this week with requests for information about a train I recently mentioned. That being the one near Falconwood.

Well, it sounds like a bit of an unknown gem in these here parts o' the shire.

The train is run by the Welling & District M.E.S. (model engineering society to us common folk), and it sounds like they'll be evicted from the Falconwood site next year. Boo. Here are the open days:-

14th & 28th June 2009

12th & 26th July 2009

9th & 23rd August 2009

6th & 20th September 2009

4th October 2009

They aren't open the public apart from these dates, so do go along sooner rather than later as you know you'll just keep saying 'ah, I'll go next fortnight', and so on and so on until it's 5th October and that's it. Gone forever.

On these days, they open between 2pm - 5pm. Last orders at 4.30pm.

Here's a funny new-fangled map to locate the train.

View Welling & District M.E.S. in a larger map

DLR in Woolwich

The word on the streets is that the Docklands Light Railway (you know that funny train that doesn't have a driver), is starting its' service from Woolwich Arsenal THIS SATURDAY. Form an orderly queue please.

Canning Town here I come!!!!

Woolwich DLR opening soon

Oh boy, I am really excited about the DLR arriving at Woolwich Arsenal. Apparently, it'll be opening this month. I wouldn't mind booking a flight from London City Airport to Milan, just because I can and the journey would be so ridiculously easy.

Where else shall I go to? 

Let's see...... how about the Thames Barrier Park with its' contemporary planting and modern architecture tea house?

I'm keeping an eye on an exciting proposal for an eco visitor attraction called Biota! It's planned for Silvertown but I don't know if it's a

concept or actually being built. The architect's visuals look pretty stunning though. I'll have to find out more.

So the DLR is a bit more than a commuter's dream to get to Bank. I'm going to live my dream and sit at the very front and pretend I'm driving the driving the train.

Brilliant.

new links

I've added a couple of links to blogs I visit in the right hand column.

They are Charlton Average and Arthur Pewtys Maggot Sandwich. I haven't a faintest idea who they are but they're a jolly good read.

Slade Green

Messing about on the interweb, somehow I've managed to come across a website for Slade Green. I don't really know where it is, but do know it's along the Plumstead railway line.

Best of all, the photo page is quite spectacular. Featured photos include Londis, a post box and a toliet [sic]. It did make me wonder though if a fully blown Plumsteadshire website would prove equally mundane. Having said that, the person who runs the site seems to have a light-hearted tone of voice for the site. Nice.