Gay Camberwell

I wonder why chandeliers are so ubiquitous in Camberwell bar decor. Go to the Dark Horse... the Castle... most places seen quite unable to resist their glamour, but on Friday night we went to The Cambria (see our bar review) and found a whole new level of chandelier enthusiasm. I hadn't heard of The Cambria until I read about in on the Camberwell online blog, and was quite impressed. Back on Monday for jazz night, hopefully...

Saturday found me having brunch at the very pleasant Seymour Bros, popping into the Library in the quest for further useful Gay Camberwell information, and heading out with some trepidation to "The Library House", a newly-opened squat behind the Minet Library in West Camberwell, near Myatt's Fields. The people behind The Library House are apparently planning to make it a new art space, but after we poked our head round the door and found people sitting around a dingy living room drinking tea, remembered that I don't really like squats, and backed out again. The Minet Library was lovely though, with a lending library and archive room in a pretty building, and we found an adjacent dance school (McAlpine dance studio) at Longfield Hall where adults and children can learn ballet, tap, contemporary, Spanish and jazz dancing, and drama. Further wandering brought us back to the excellent Bear, though we were very distressed that they do not sell cake. Indeed, we didn't have cake until the evening at the Ritzy which, though in Brixton rather than Camberwell, is probably the best cinema in south London (particularly in terms of cake provision), and a mere 10 minutes away by bus. We went to the live screening of The Secret Policeman's Ball, a comedy event for Amnesty International live at the Royal Albert Hall and broadcast to various cinemas around the world. The turn-out at Brixton was not massive. Presumably because Camberwell is the cooler place to be on a Saturday night...