events

A True Tale of Oppression, Resistance and Love:
As war rages in Ukraine and a genocide goes unchecked in Palestine, Adeeb Shaheen offers a unique perspective, and a stark warning: Unless we hold those in power to account, everything and everyone we love is in danger. Narrating the life and struggles of author Adeeb Shaheen, from Palestine, to Jordan, to imprisonment, to Ukraine, It is War! narrates a story of displacement, repression, violence, and resistance.  

Adeeb Shaheen was born in Palestine in the late fifties of the last century. In 1967 he witnessed the six-day war, and the occupation of his hometown Nablus. Because of this, he was forced to live through forced deportation and displacement all his life. When he returned to Palestine in 1988 he joined his people’s fight for freedom during the first
Intifada (uprising) and was abducted, alongside thousands of other Palestinians, by the Israeli occupation army. He was jailed for four years.

In 2003 he left Palestine for Ukraine with his family to try to build a new life without wars, until Russian aggression on Ukraine forced him out of this home. Here in the UK, he joins the people’s movement against genocide and injustice in Palestine, Ukraine, and other places, for dismantling the global system of oppression, for freedom and justice in the world. 

 The ever-popular Club Verbal Discharge returns. Probably the best spoken word night in North London. - come along to hear super spoken word readings. If you're writing prose, poetry, monologues, plays and want an audience of fellow creatives this is the event for you! 

This month in our gallery: a selection of street art by local artist James Straffon.

The little boy who lives down the lane presents THREE BAGS FULL - an abridgement of artworks, spanning a decade of painting on West Green walls.

Just the showcase, in which to embrace, possibly purchase, from here and there, a menagerie of notable local beasts, and artful fanfare; briefly released, from their habitat in the hood. To make All Good; the spotted woodpecker; dotty ladybird; got lit lemur. The famous urban fox; kerbside elephant; triumphant Lioness. Not to mention that schoolyard giraffe; rare bird Hornbill; majestic mouflon. Set to rub shoulders with Alexandra of Denmark; Alice of Wonderland; Little Simz of Izzy; Felix the Cat; Duke Ellington; Grace Jones; the late Queen Elizabeth II. Not to forget further puffed pigment, from notable names, that made a mark. STEWY. Mobstr. The Toasters. And some bloke called Banksy.

James Straffon (b. 1966) is a London-based artist whose work explores the intersection of the natural world and urban life. Beginning as a graphic designer, he shifted focus to street art and ecological projects, creating public, free-to-view imagery that engages audiences with issues of conservation, biodiversity, and climate change.

(Photo [left] by Veronica Bailey)

Join artist James Straffon for a celebration of his new show in our gallery.

Two speakers, two subjects, twenty minutes each. The subject matter is a mystery - the audience finds out when the talk begins! One of our newest events and already a firm favourite. 

Join author Gurnaik Johal for the launch in paperback of his debut novel.

AN OBSERVER BEST NEW NOVELIST 2025

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WATERSTONES DEBUT FICTION PRIZE 2025

A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE INDEPENDENT, TELEGRAPH, NERVE AND GUARDIAN

'An ambitious, stylishly delivered novel ... Reminiscent of Salman Rushdie' OBSERVER

'Johal has written a major novel, and at his very first attempt' TELEGRAPH, 5-STAR REVIEW

'Saraswati is a major achievement, and Johal a huge talent. One of the biggest novels of the year' Martin MacInnes, Booker-longlisted author of In Ascension

Centuries ago, the myths say, the holy river Saraswati flowed through what is now Northern India.

But when Satnam arrives in his ancestral village for his grandmother's funeral, he is astonished to find water in the long-dry well behind her house. The discovery sets in motion a contentious scheme to unearth the lost river and build a gleaming new city on its banks, and Satnam - adrift from his job, girlfriend and flat back in London - soon finds himself swept up in this ferment of Hindu nationalist pride. As the river alters Satnam's course, so it reveals buried ties to six distant relatives scattered across the globe - from an ambitious writer with her eye on legacy to a Kenyan archaeologist to a Bollywood stunt double - who are brought together in a rapidly changing India.

Brimming with love, lush, violence and loss, Gurnaik Johal's magisterial debut deftly animates the passions that bind us to our histories, our lands and each other.