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Category Archives: Ken Towl
‘If a bear attacked me, no one would ask me what I was wearing’
KEN TOWL on the topical, and brilliantly performed, Man or Bear, staged last night at The Front Room as part of The Croydonites Festival Earlier this week, celebrity rapist Russell Brand was sentenced to 10 years and six months for … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Comedy, Croydonites Festival, Ken Towl, The Front Room, Theatre
Tagged Amaia Naima Aguinaga, Coercive control, Croydonites, Croydonites Festival, David Walliams, Grooming, Katie Hurley, Ken Towl, Lesley Ewen, Man or Bear, Rape, Rapist, Russell Brand, Sarah Hehir, The Front Room
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The croissants in Janes are good, the arguments not so much
KEN TOWL set off on a mission to trial the new bakery chain in town and got much more than he bargained for At breakfast time on Saturday, I popped into Janes Pantry to try their coffee and their croissant, … Continue reading
Posted in Addiscombe East, Addiscombe West, Business, Coughlan's, Janes Pantry, Ken Towl
Tagged Addiscombe, Ball gag, Celebrity Traitors, Coughlans, Croissant, Janes, Janes Pantry, Ken Towl, Romesh Ranganathan, Traitors
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In a world of Russian bots and algorithms, Maxwell spied hope
THEATRE FESTIVAL: The 2026 Croydonites’ opening night has set a very high standard. KEN TOWL went to the Front Room and made sure he turned his fucking phone off Hannah Maxwell, the opening act of this year’s Croydonites Festival, set … Continue reading
Lloyd’s bequest to the people faces up to challenge of drought
THAT’S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR: The long, dry summer had an impact on many of the borough’s parks and open spaces. KEN TOWL meets the Friends of Lloyd Park to hear about the work they are doing in the middle … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Community associations, Croydon parks, Environment, Friends of Lloyd Park, History, Ken Towl, Lloyd Park, Nature Notes, South Croydon, Walks
Tagged Croydon, Croydon Council, Disc golf, Friends of Lloyd Park, Ken Towl, Lloyd Park, TCV, The Conservation Volunteers, Walks
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You’ll very much like the rice, jerk chicken and divine lamb
A new bar-restaurant on South End has opened, and KEN TOWL definitely liked the lamb First things first. The suya lamb chops at Anything Yuh Like are divine. The finely balanced spices complement rather than overwhelm the perfectly cooked, pink-in-the-middle … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Ken Towl, Pubs, Restaurants
Tagged 1 South End, Anything Yuh Like, AYL, Blacksmiths Arms, Croydon, Jerk chicken, Jollof rice, Ken Towl, Kendra Marful, South Croydon, Suya lamb chops, The Corner House
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Steeleye Span’s Prior arrangements still sounding evergreen
KEN TOWL goes all around his hat to interview Maddy Prior, lead singer of Steeleye Span, ahead of their concert at the Ashcroft Theatre on Nov 5 “We are heavy on sex and death,” says Maddy Prior as we chat … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Ashcroft Theatre, Fairfield Halls, Ken Towl, Music
Tagged All Around My Hat, Ashcroft Theatre, Croydon, Fairfield Halls, Ken Towl, Maddy Prior, Steeleye Span
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Saved for the nation, Selsdon Wood conserved by its Friends
THAT’S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR: This year’s annual residents’ fair was where KEN TOWL found out more about the need for volunteers Jim Dunning is the first of the Friends of Selsdon Wood that I meet at one of their … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Community associations, Croydon parks, Environment, Friends of Selsdon Woods, History, Ken Towl, Selsdon and Addington Village, Selsdon Residents' Association, Selsdon Vale and Forestdale, South Croydon, Walks
Tagged Friends of Selsdon Wood, Ken Towl, Selsdon, Selsdon Park Hotel, Selsdon Wood, Walks
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This play kills fascists: see Woody Sez for light in the darkness
The recent death of country singer-songwriter Dolly Parton focused attention on American folk music. Before Dolly, there was Woody. KEN TOWL took the chance to see an acclaimed new play about Guthrie’s life and work currently on stage in Soho … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Ken Towl, Music, Theatre
Tagged Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Dolly Parton, Joan Baez, Ken Towl, Soho, Theatre, Underbelly Theatre, Woody Guthrie, Woody Sez
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Tasty way to enjoy a cool temper on Purley’s Old Lodge Lane
Roving reporter KEN TOWL visited Croydon’s own chocolatiers and got a flavour of the hand-made chocolate business “Your next assignment,” said the Editor, “is to visit Cocoa Jones in Purley and make a bar of chocolate. That’s what they do … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Ken Towl, Purley
Tagged Chocolate, Cocoa Jones, Ken Towl, Old Lodge Lane, Purley
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Woodland wonderland that’s hidden behind Selsdon’s suburbia
THAT’S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR: For his latest visit to a group of hard-working conservationists and volunteers, KEN TOWL retraces his steps from one of his LOOP walks to discover ‘Selsdon’s secret wood’ You know that look you get when … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Community associations, Croydon parks, Environment, Friends of Littleheath Woods, History, Ken Towl, Selsdon and Addington Village, Selsdon Vale and Forestdale, South Croydon, Walks
Tagged Friends of Littleheath Woods, Ken Towl, Littleheath Woods, London Outer Orbital Path, LOOP, Monks Hill, Selsdon, Vanguard Way, Walks
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Thanks to the magic of Merlin there’s more to see in the woods
THAT’S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR: This week, seeking pudding-like rock, a Bronze Age barrow and one of the highest viewpoints in Croydon without taking a lift in a tower block, KEN TOWL has been to Croham Hurst, where he may … Continue reading
Comedy Fyles are worth seeing when they get to Edinburgh
FRINGE REVIEW: As the Croydonites festival enters its final two days, KEN TOWL (Croydon’s answer to Tynan), pictured right, conducts a compare and contrast of two of the shows this week, and marks your card for tonight and tomorrow, and … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Comedy, Croydonites Festival, Ken Towl, Poetry, Stanley Halls, The Front Room, The Front Room, The Oval Tavern, Theatre
Tagged Croydonites, Croydonites Fringe, Edinburgh, Edinburgh Festival, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Emma Davies, Emmy Fyles, HR, Human Resources, Ken Towl, Stanley Halls, The Front Room
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Social media ban is the chance to reclaim children’s childhoods
CROYDON COMMENTARY: The government wants stronger controls on how under-16s use their phones. KEN TOWL welcomes the move We are arming our kids with weapons we hardly understand and, up to now, the rules around these weapons have been principally … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Ken Towl, Schools
Tagged Croydon, Elon Musk, Facebook, Ken Towl, Molly Rose Foundation, Online Safety Act, Sir Keir Starmer, SnapChat, Social media ban, TikTok, Twitter, X
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From Morocco to the Whitgift, captured in broken egg shells
One night in Morocco in 2014, a young artist lay on the flat roof of her home and stared up at the stars in a clear sky. She thought about a documentary she had seen, about the use of eggshells … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Ken Towl, Turf Projects
Tagged Croydon, Egg shell art, Hammersfield, Ken Towl, Sara Hayfa, Turf Projects, Whitgift Centre
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Take a turn around Shirley Windmill for a history masterclass
Making a strong pitch for a promotion to becoming Inside Croydon’s tea and cakes correspondent, KEN TOWL pictured left, makes a visit to the Shirley Windmill and adds it to your summer ‘To do’ list We started on the dust … Continue reading
It’s really time to go when they throw ‘Mix’ into gesture politics
CROYDON COMMENTARY: Are you a ‘Mr’, a ‘Ms’, or a ‘Mx’? You’re unlikely to be a ‘Mix’, unless you’re a member of the Labour Party in its troubled Croydon East CLP. KEN TOWL, pictured right, explains A couple of days … Continue reading
Back to the LOOP to pass site of Tudor palace like none other
SUNDAY WALKS WITH KEN TOWL: Our resident rambler has set off on his travels again, this time picking up on the LOOP – the London Outer Orbital Path – to explore a short stretch of the Surrey Hills between Banstead … Continue reading
Posted in Ken Towl, Surrey, Walks
Tagged Banstead Downs, Ken Towl, London Outer Orbital Path, LOOP, Nonsuch Palace, Nonsuch Park
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We’re glad all over! The Croydon Insider looks back on Leipzig
The Croydon Insider returns to its more eclectic look at recent local news, with a visit from the website’s football correspondent to share his experience of travelling to Leipzig for the European Conference League final. Plus, the panel discusses how … Continue reading
Posted in 2026 council elections, Andrew Sinclair, Annabel Smith, Croydon Council, Croydon Insider, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Education, Inside Croydon, Ken Towl, Old Palace, Schools, SEND, Tom Bowell, Trinity School, Under The Flyover, Whitgift School
Tagged Andrew Sinclair, Annabel Smith, Croydon, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Crystal Palace FC, Ken Towl, Leipzig, Oliver Glasner, SEND, Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, Steve Parish, The Croydon Insider, Trinity School, Under The Flyover, Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation, Whitgift School, Yusuf Osman
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At Croydon’s Fairfield Halls, Abba becomes a five-piece band
KEN TOWL has a night out in Croydon, but not for the first time, he’s heard it all before Mamma Mia! Here I go again! My, my, how can I resist the Fairfield Halls when they put on yet another … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Ashcroft Theatre, Fairfield Halls, Ken Towl, Music
Tagged Abba, Ashcroft Theatre, Croydon, ELO, Fairfield Halls, Francis Rossi, Ken Towl, Michael Jackson, Steeleye Span, Thank you For The Music
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#DigitalDebate: Inside story from Croydon’s first e-hustings
Our hustings correspondent, KEN TOWL, has seen plenty of pre-election meetings before, but never one quite like this, as Inside Croydon brings the candidate debate into the 21st Century Charmingly chaired by Cheryl Fergus-Ferrell, this was like no other hustings … Continue reading
Posted in #DigitalDebate, 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Ben Flook, Croydon Greens, Inside Croydon, Ken Towl, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Pusey, Peter Underwood, Richard Howard, Rowenna Davis, Under The Flyover
Tagged #DigitalDebate, Cllr Rowenna Davis, Conservative, Coulsdon, Council Tax, Councillor Rowenna Davis, Croydon, Croydon Council, Green Party, Ken Towl, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London, London Borough of Croydon, Major Richard Howard, Mayor, Mayor Jason Perry, Peter Underwood, Richard Howard, Rowenna Davis, Tony Newman, Tory, Waddon
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‘Decency’ hustings as no one missed the missing candidate
ELECTION SKETCH: In a cramped ‘hub’ in Broad Green, the first full hustings of the 2026 Croydon Mayor campaign took place last night. KEN TOWL was there, so you didn’t need to be (and you couldn’t have squeezed in, anyway) … Continue reading
Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Community associations, Croydon Business Association, Ken Towl, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Pusey, Peter Underwood, Richard Howard, Rowenna Davis, Ruskin House
Tagged 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon mayoral election, 2026 local elections, Ben Flook, Cllr Rowenna Davis, Conservative, Councillor Rowenna Davis, Croydon, Croydon Council, Dan Tebbutt, Green Party, Ken Towl, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Peter Underwood, Richard Howard, Rowenna Davis, Taking The Iniative Party, Tory, TTIP
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Bruising drama that delivers a punch against the patriarchy
KEN TOWL goes 12 rounds with the latest must-see play to be staged at the Coulsdon Community Centre. Photos by STEVE NORTH Director Anya Destiney has not made things easy for herself. The Sweet Science of Bruising makes big demands. … Continue reading
