Ginglik is a small venue near my house, in Shepherd's Bush, West London. It's run by Tammi and Colin, two good friends of mine. They took over the old public toilets on the Green from the old snooker halls that used to be there about 7 years ago. I helped paint the place when they first moved in there, and I saw them turn the place from a dingy snooker hall where everything but snooker took place, to a vibrant local music, comedy and community venue, unique in this area of London. We don't have many good independent venues round here, and Ginglik became the best place in the west of London to see up-and-coming acts and hear good independent music.
In 2009, Hammersmith and Fulham council are planning a vast redevelopment of the Shepherd's Bush Green area to coincide with the launch of the massive £1.6bn Westfield Shopping Centre that is currently being finished off behind the shop fronts on the North side of the Green. The mall will almost certainly ring the death knell for the shopping areas in Hammersmith and most of the small shops and local businesses in Shepherd's Bush. As part of this, Hammersmith & Fulham Council want to close Ginglik, and fill the venue with concrete. They claim that the roof of Ginglik is unsafe (which is possibly true), and that the damp problem and frequent flooding mean that the total cost of making the club fit for purpose could reach upwards of £300,000. Whether or not this price is correct, the loss of a venue like Ginglik would be tragic for the local area, meaning a lack of good independent venues from Ealing to Notting Hill. The council claim that the good of the local residents is their primary objective, and that too much money would need to be spent to save Ginglik. Of course, the council have known of the problems of the building for years and their decision to dispute the terms of occupancy now is more to do with their development of the area than any perceived advantage to the local area. Perhaps the development company should have spent some of the money they wasted on the terrible logo design for the £1.6bn Westfield Shopping Centre on saving a vital local resource.
This weekend, Tammi and Colin organized a "Save Ginglik" protest on the Green, above the venue itself. It was a show of strength for the community and proved to the council the depth of feeling of local residents. Cars hooted their support as they passed and numerous people came and joined the protest, the police walked past smiling and nodding their support.
It would be awful if the club was closed and there is a chance that if enough people sign the petition then the short-sighted, money orientated council may rethink their idiotic policy. I hope they do.
