Community celebrations in London's improved parks

21-06-2025

As London's neighbourhood parks undergo improvements through the Neighbourhood Parks Improvement Fund, the city announced each improved park will host a celebration.
The upcoming events will feature music, games and activities. Josh Morgan, mayor of London said the improvements are about the people from the community enjoying the space.
'This is really exciting because it's not something the City of London has done before, is invest in an infrastructure asset and then say, actually we want everyone to come out and really enjoy it together because that's what it's all about,' said Morgan.
The first event will be hosted at Murray Park, on June 25 from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The park, one of the first to be improved, has added seating and a new basketball court.
The fund supports 23 park improvements, with $4 million allocated to the project. Improvements are expected to be completed by 2027, with 10 projects being constructed this year.
'A lot of people like to spend time in parks, and something we hear a lot as public officials is, 'please make these improvements, please improve the public spaces we use,' and this is an example of us being able to do that,' said London City Councillor Skylar Franke.

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How the antisemitic meltdown at the Glastonbury Festival unfolded

National Post

8 hours ago

National Post

How the antisemitic meltdown at the Glastonbury Festival unfolded

When Pascal Robinson-Foster, 34, a rapper from Ipswich, U.K., who goes by 'Bobby Vylan' came on stage Saturday afternoon at Britain's Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts in front of a Palestine flag, there was already tension in the festival's executive offices. Article content It was not yet centred on Bob Vylan, the rap duo who are newly infamous for leading the audience at Britain's leading summer pop cultural event in a chant calling for death to Israeli soldiers, but who on Saturday were a downticket entry on the West Holts stage, which showcases reggae, hip hop, jazz, beats and electronica. Article content Article content Article content The most pressing concern was about a similar protest from Kneecap, the Northern Irish rap trio, one of whose members faces a terrorism charge for flying a Hezbollah flag at a show in London last year. That charge prompted U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer to say Kneecap's presence on this year's Glastonbury lineup was 'inappropriate.' Article content Article content So when the British Broadcasting Corporation belatedly said it regrets not pulling its live broadcast during Bob Vylan's anti-Israel provocations, it is not because it did not expect controversy over the Mideast at all. The BBC had already decided not to broadcast Kneecap live. And just last week, BBC Director-General Tim Davie announced new editorial guidelines about hate speech, including that broadcasting it could constitute a criminal offence, if it is 'intended to stir up hatred relating to religious belief.' Article content What followed, then, was predictable if not specifically expected. Avon and Somerset Police have announced a criminal investigation under hate crime law into Bob Vylan's performance, which is classed as a 'public order incident.' Article content Article content Article content IDF is the Israel Defense Forces. He repeated it five times, backed similarly by some of the audience, then said, 'hell yeah, from the river to the sea, Palestine must be, will be, inshallah, it will be free.' Article content He also spoke to the audience about working for 'f—ing Zionists' at his record label. Article content Bob Vylan were followed in their performance by Kneecap, but not on the BBC live feed. Article content Festival organizers said they were 'appalled,' and that Bob Vylan's behaviour went against its mission of 'hope, unity, peace and love.' Article content BBC staff have reported feeling ashamed at how long this diatribe was allowed to continue in the live stream. The BBC itself said in a statement Sunday: 'The team were dealing with a live situation but with hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen. The BBC respects freedom of expression but stands firmly against incitement to violence. The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves.' The segment has been removed from streaming services, and the BBC has launched a review.