October 21, 2022

BUSINESS • Bankola Lounge - Massive lounge hidden in Ilford serving authentic Nigerian food as well as many menu items if you prefer burgers, fries etc. With 6 years of experience cooking in the finest restaurants, our chef is excited to present their vision to you and all our guests. Our caring and committed staff make sure you have a fantastic experience with us. https://bankolalounge.com/ Google 5.0 (3 reviews) • Jam Shack -Serving from Tavern on the Hill, Higham Road, London. The chef-driven menu highlights Caribbean authentic taste ingredients in simple, handcrafted dishes served straight from our kitchen. Add even more to your experience with a selection from our complimentary beverages, and trust us—save room for dessert. On Sundays the menu includes the Caribbean roast (Featured on TikTok @foodguidelondon @dianasdelicacies and @foodyouluv) Dishes have all the trimmings of a traditional roast, with or without fragrant jerk marinades and seasonings. https://www.jamshack.co.uk/ • Afrochenix - Afrocenchix exists so you can access safe, effective, responsibly made products, and scientifically sound guidance you can trust. We expertly blend natural & organic ingredients to make hair care simple. We never test on animals, our raw materials are ethically sourced & we strive to be environmentally friendly. https://afrocenchix.com/ EVENTS • LYNETTE YIADOM-BOAKYE FLY IN LEAGUE WITH THE NIGHT- (Tate Modern 26 November to 26 February) Lynette Yiadom-Boakye is a British artist and writer acclaimed for her enigmatic portraits of fictitious people. This exhibition brings together around 70 works from 2003 to the present day in the most extensive survey of the artist’s career to date. The figures in Yiadom-Boakye’s paintings are not real people – she creates them from found images and her own imagination. Both familiar and mysterious, they invite viewers to project their own interpretations, and raise important questions of identity and representation. https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/lynette-yiadom-boakye •Angie Le Mar (20 November, Crescent Theatre) - The Queen of Black Comedy returns to Crescent Theatre with her unique brand of humour. Angie Le Mar An award winning Comedienne, Broadcaster and Playwrite. The First Lady of British Black Comedy, playing The Legendary Harlem Appollo Theatre. Angie's critically acclaimed plays The Brothers, Funny Black Women on the Edge, Daughters, Forty, were huge box office hits. TV work includes: Top rated shows Ch4's hit series 'Run', BBC's Real Mckoy and Ch4's 'Get Up Stand Up' Talk Show 'LadiesTalk' As a Radio and TV host Angie has interviewed many great entertainers: Activist and Legend Maya Angelou and Actors: Idris Elba, Stevie Wonder, Mary J Blige, John Legend. https://www.crescent-theatre.co.uk/event-details/211131AHCGNPLJVLMCRNGSVQGVNKRJQRB/angie-le-mar/ • Invest Fest Europe (Monday 31st October, Royal Albert Hall) - Invest Fest is the first of its kind, an in-person experience that combines investing, entrepreneurship, pop-culture, and entertainment under one roof all over the world. Invest Fest was created by Earn Your Leisure and has become the centralised annual location for small businesses, top entrepreneurs, and celebrities to come together and share their goods, expertise, and services with all in attendance. https://www.royalalberthall.com/tickets/events/2022/earn-your-leisure/ • Anne-Marie Imafidon: She’s in CTRL ( Sun 23 Oct, 2pm Part of London Literature Festival) Queen Elizabeth Hall) - Hear the call for women to claim their seats at the table, lab and keyboard to ensure a tech-led future that benefits us all, from lauded computer scientist Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE. https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/talks-debates/anne-marie-imafidon-shes-ctrl?eventId=914290 Ave, London WC2N 5BY BOOKS • This Close to Okay: A Novel (Leesa Cross-Smith) - On a rainy October night in Kentucky, recently divorced therapist Tallie Clark is on her way home from work when she spots a man precariously standing at the edge of a bridge. Without a second thought, Tallie pulls over and jumps out of the car into the pouring rain. She convinces the man to join her for a cup of coffee, and he eventually agrees to come back to her house, where he finally shares his name: Emmett. Over the course of the emotionally charged weekend that follows, Tallie makes it her mission to provide a safe space for Emmett, though she hesitates to confess that this is also her day job. What she doesn't realize is that Emmett isn't the only one who needs healing-and they both are harboring secrets. Alternating between Tallie and Emmett's perspectives as they inch closer to the truth of what brought Emmett to the bridge's edge-as well as the hard truths Tallie has been grappling with since her marriage ended-This Close to Okay is an uplifting, cathartic story about chance encounters, hope found in unlikely moments, and the subtle magic of human connection. 4.2 out of 5 Amazon 3.7 out of 5 Goodreads

• The How: Notes on the Great Work of Meeting Yourself (Yrsa Daley-Ward)- Yrsa Daley-Ward's words have resonated with hundreds of thousands of readers around the world: through her books of poetry and memoir bone and The Terrible, through her powerful writing for Beyoncé on Black Is King and through her always-illuminating Instagram posts. In The How, Yrsa gently takes readers by the hand, encouraging them to join her as she explores how we can remove our filters, and see and feel more of who we really are behind the preconceived notions of propriety and manners we've accumulated with age. With a mix of short, lyrical musings, immersive poetry and intriguing meditations, The How can be used to start conversations, to prompt writing, to delve deeper - whether you're on your own or with friends, on your feet or writing from the solace of home. 4.6 out of 5 Amazon 4.3 out of 5 Goodreads

PODCASTS (SEX AND RELATIONSHIPS) • Black Widow - Welcome to the Black Widow. A bar where you can come and listen to people freely talk about sex. the good, the bad, and the kinky. Please wear your headphones for a fully immersive erotic experience. https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwi65ta21-f6AhWQiFwKHTH7C4UQFnoECBAQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fpodcasts.apple.com%2Fgb%2Fpodcast%2Fblack-widow-podcast%2Fid1210935826&usg=AOvVaw1-SaEptjViUvOvl-5qXbtc •Lovers and Friends- There is so much great and life-changing information about sex and intimacy, but let’s face it, it can be dry as hell! Intimacy expert and sexologist Shan Boodram takes a deep dive into anything and everything about sex, relationships, and the science of attachment every week with expert guests and friends who will tell all. It’s everything The Talk should be. https://open.spotify.com/show/2xMmVkuQz8aCYvtib5pZsg RADIO • My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite - Set in Lagos, this wickedly, razor-sharp story explores the relationship of two sisters. When Korede's dinner is interrupted one night by a distress call from her sister, Ayoola, she knows what's expected of her: bleach, rubber gloves, nerves of steel and a strong stomach. She should probably go to the police for the good of the menfolk of Nigeria, but she loves her sister, and as they say, family always comes first. But just how long can that rule apply and how far can Korede go? https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p08qfhfj

FILM/TV • Till - The true story of Mamie Till Mobley’s relentless pursuit of justice for her 14-year-old son, Emmett Till, who, in 1955, was lynched while visiting his cousins in Mississippi. Directed by Chinonye Chukwu. With Danielle Deadwyler • Whoopi Goldberg • Jalyn Hall • Frankie Faison • Tosin Cole • Kevin Carroll • Sean Patrick Thomas • Roger Guenveur Smith • Jayme Lawson. • On the Come Up (September 23, 2022) - Bri, a young rapper and the daughter of an underground hip-hop legend who died just before making it big. Her father’s legend makes him a hard act to follow, but between Bri being bullied and watching her mother struggle after losing her job, she pours out her frustration into songs that become big viral hits.Directed by Sanaa Lathan. With Sanaa Lathan • Method Man • Da'Vine Joy Randolph • Mike Epps • Jamila Gray. •End of the Road (September 09, 2022) -A recently widowed Brenda, drives her family cross-country to start a new life. In the New Mexico desert, cut off from help, they must learn to fight back when they become the targets of a mysterious killer. With Queen Latifah • Ludacris. Me Time (August 26, 2022) (NETFLIX) - With Kevin Hart • Regina Hall. The film follows a stay-at-home dad who finds himself with some “me time” for the first time in years while his wife and kids are away. He reconnects with his former best friend for a wild weekend that nearly upends his life. WHAT AM I PAYING ATTENTION TO? • Muyiwa Oki -Elderly white men in bow ties have tended to run the very grand and possibly even stuffy Royal Institute of British Architects. Muyiwa Oki, its youngest boss ever at 31, spells out his vision for unions, the climate crisis and island-buying oligarchs (Guardian). https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2022/oct/12/muyiwa-oki-black-president-riba- •Black Unity Bike Ride (August 2023) - I completely missed this and I was not aware of the organisation, but it's on my calendar for next year. https://blackunitybikeride.com/ •New member appointed to Black Business Advisory Committee at Lloyds Banking Group— Another group that I had no idea existed. Claudine Reid MBE, Black Business Advisory Committee chair, said: “The aim of the committee is to provide tangible recommendations for Lloyds Banking Group to implement and others to learn from about how the world of business can transform to become fully inclusive of Black communities. https://www.business-money.com/announcements/new-member-appointed-to-black-business-advisory-committee-at-lloyds-banking-group/ WHAT I AM PERSONALLY RECOMMENDING? 1. Small Island by Andrea Levy Small Island by bestselling author Andrea Levy won the Orange Prize for Fiction and the Orange Prize 'Best of the Best' as well as the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and the Whitbread. Possibly the definitive fictional account of the experiences of the Empire Windrush generation, it was selected by the BBC as one of its '100 Novels That Shaped Our World'. 4.5 Amazon reviews 2. City of God - Explosive, highly acclaimed look at the denizens of a Rio de Janeiro housing project, tracing their lives from the building's opening in the 1960s, when youthful gangs committed small robberies in and around the building, through the 1980s, in which two ruthless gangs vied for control of the city's criminal activities. The events are recounted by a photographer who escaped the violent fate of his peers. 4.7 Amazon reviews