High Street 2012 2) WHITECHAPEL HIGH STREET Commercial St to Osborn St
As High Streets go, this one's piddly-short. It's no more than 400 metres long, and the western half (which I covered yesterday) barely looks High-Street-y at all . But from Commercial Street east, on one side of the road at least, you could almost believe this was once the heart of the local community [photo]. Almost.
Don't expect a row of recognisable shops - Costcutter is about as chain store as it gets. A few independent stores hold court, but probably nowhere you'd go out of your way for (unless you have electrical needs, t-shirt requirements or demand use of an online money transfer service). Starbucks have yet to intrude, so the metal tables outside the D&G Espresso Bar see good service [photo]. For something a little stronger there's the White Hart, a proper narrow pub (established 1721). And there's a great big trench down the middle of the traffic-jammed road, very recent, very coned off, very unappealing.
But there is one big tourist attraction - the Whitechapel Art Gallery. It's probably the only serious draw between here and Stratford, which doesn't bode well for any sightseeing potential that High Street 2012 might want to inspire. And at present, with a major rebuilding project underway, it's barely a cultural magnet at all. Rainbow sheeting masks the distinctive castle-like facade, and the main entrance is shut away behind boards and scaffolding. Don't give up now, there's a new entrance hidden round the back, up Angel Alley.
It's badly named, is Angel Alley. It's a green-lit narrow passage leading to a devilish shadowy courtyard, and you can well imagine some Victorian prostitute leading her temporary partner up here for a bit of relief. Don't be put off. The brick walls are now lined with lefty murals, including a panel depicting international radical thinkers [photo] - a hint that the Freedom Press anarchist bookshop is tucked away beyond. Further still and a gleaming white doorway leads into what's left of the Art Gallery. That's the shop, then, and a dark room which turns out to be an auditorium where arty films play out to an audience of probably nobody. And that's it, for now. Really, I wouldn't bother, and the girl on the information desk looks similarly unexcited. Come back next year, it'll be much more fabulous by then.
Also reopening with the Gallery, but not in its previous form, is the famous Whitechapel Library[old photo]. There was an outcry when this fabled depository closed its doors three years ago after a century of service to local learners. Jacob Bronowski was one of thousands of Jewish immigrants who learned to speak English here, and the vast collection of Jewish (and later Bengali) literature was hugely appreciated. But the library's stone staircases proved a barrier to disabled access, and these days if a building can't accommodate everybody it has to close. The replacement library may have won architectural awards but, as we'll see further up the road, its only attempt at character is in the fiction section. Let's hope the old building reopens with respectful artistic intentions.
four local sights » Albert's: You have to look hard for Whitechapel's Jewish heritage these days. But an intricate six-pointed star emblem above the front door of this long-established menswear store reminds passers-by that here was once the editorial heart of the Jewish Daily Post. [photo] » Bloom's: ...whereas you'd never guess that the Burger King in Whitechapel High Street trades on the site of what was once Whitechapel's biggest Jewish restaurant. "M Bloom (Kosher) & Son" moved here from Brick Lane in 1952, but was closed down in 1996 to fend off insolvency after inspectors uncovered unkosher practices in the kitchens. Gefilte fish afficionados can still find their fill at Bloom's in Golders Green. » Gunthorpe Street mural: A tinysidestreet through an archway, enlivened by an informative historical panel on the wall, and a glazed map of the local area tiled overhead. [photo] » London Metropolitan University: The City Campus of London's largest unitary university is dotted around the area. But not in a gorgeous way.
High Street 2012
Don't expect a row of recognisable shops - Costcutter is about as chain store as it gets. A few independent stores hold court, but probably nowhere you'd go out of your way for (unless you have electrical needs, t-shirt requirements or demand use of an online money transfer service). Starbucks have yet to intrude, so the metal tables outside the D&G Espresso Bar see good service [photo]. For something a little stronger there's the White Hart, a proper narrow pub (established 1721). And there's a great big trench down the middle of the traffic-jammed road, very recent, very coned off, very unappealing.
It's badly named, is Angel Alley. It's a green-lit narrow passage leading to a devilish shadowy courtyard, and you can well imagine some Victorian prostitute leading her temporary partner up here for a bit of relief. Don't be put off. The brick walls are now lined with lefty murals, including a panel depicting international radical thinkers [photo] - a hint that the Freedom Press anarchist bookshop is tucked away beyond. Further still and a gleaming white doorway leads into what's left of the Art Gallery. That's the shop, then, and a dark room which turns out to be an auditorium where arty films play out to an audience of probably nobody. And that's it, for now. Really, I wouldn't bother, and the girl on the information desk looks similarly unexcited. Come back next year, it'll be much more fabulous by then.
four local sights
