It’s that Twixmas time of year, when we look back at our ten favourite features from the last year. Here’s our review of 2024, in date order, of course…

A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT FROM NORMAL

In January we spoke to Super Normal Extra Natural producer Hayley Miranda about their dance performance in the Whitgift Centre. Choreographers, Requardt & Rosenberg, and London’s creative powerhouse for dance development, The Place,  joined together to create a community-based performance where dancers and singers were joined by Croydon locals in this surprising dance spectacle. It really perked up a January weekend, turned lots of shoppers’ heads, and very much stood out as a highlight of our year.

Read the original feature here.

DAVID, MEET TILDA

Also in January we had the pleasure of attending a screening of The Eternal Daughter, at the David Lean Cinema – a film by director Joanna Hogg and starring (in two roles) Tilda Swinton. The icing on the cake was that after the film, patron (and Croydon resident) Joanna Scanlan invited her uni friend, yes, Tilda Swinton, herself, to come in to talk to the audience about the film and her career in independent cinema. The candid chat between the longtime friends took place about a metre from us in the front row, which was a surreal and very intimate experience.

Read the original feature here.

THE LAND OF CRO CRO 24

Fast-forward to April and our music festival Cro Cro Land returned for its second edition, this time to the lovely Stanley Arts, with a two-day lineup of over 40 bands performing on two stages. Guest writer Richard Stableford reviewed the weekend. In his words: ‘It felt such a special privilege to be at such a fabulous festival. Please let’s have another one next year and put Cro Cro Land firmly on the map.’

Read the original feature here.

THE PERFECT SHOW FOR EVERYONE

In May we swapped the bright lights and skyscrapers of Croydon for the bright lights and skyscrapers of the Barbican, as we attended the press night of Zoo Co’s Perfect Show For Rachel.

Zoo Co, in case you don’t know, is a Croydon-based theatre company who champions creative accessible theatre. Deaf and disabled artists are leaders on every project and Zoo Co shows are signed and captioned as the norm. Their mantra is that theatre is better when everyone is invited. And indeed it is. We missed the premiere of this delightful show at the Barbican back in 2022, so we were very glad to be able to enjoy it this time around.

This was a very personal production for Zoo Co’s (usual) artistic director, Flo O’Mahony. We say ‘usual’ as in Perfect Show for Rachel she handed over the director’s chair to her sister Rachel – a 33-year-old Kylie Minogue fan, who also happens to be a learning disabled care-home resident.

Read the original feature here.

MODERNIST MATT

In June we visited the modernist church on the corner of Chichester Road, off of Park Hill Road for the first time. We had a cuppa and a tour of St Matthew’s interior with the new vicar Ruth Chapman. Regular readers will know that we are huge fans of Croydon’s modernist architecture, so seeing the beauty of St Matthew’s was a real treat.

Read the original feature here.

HETAIN PATEL’S HOBBY HEAVEN

In July, the brilliant  exhibition ‘Come As You Really Are’ opened. The brainchild of London-based artist Hetain Patel, and commissioned by art organisation Artangel, it was billed as ‘the most ambitious exhibition ever presented about the UK’s hobbies’. A cross between a PunchDrunk venue and an eclectic antiques shop, the exhibition, situated right in the old Mian Bar, in Grants, was packed to the rafters with people’s creations and memorabilia. Eclectic to the max, this has to be one of our absolute favourite cultural moments in Croydon post-Covid.

Read the original feature here.

HAPPINESS IS CREATIVE CROYDON

Also in July, the latest Creative Croydon exhibition hit the streets of Central Croydon. This year the Creative Croydon exhibition took on a bit of a different format. We teamed up again with Croydon BID and our alter ego 31% Wool (aka our day job) to curate the third instalment of the outdoor exhibition which is still showcased on lamppost banners across the town centre. What made this year different? Earlier in the year we launched a competition for young Croydon artists (aged 16-25) to enter three pieces of art that responded to the theme ‘happiness is’. All entries were judged by a panel of established artists, who were also previous Creative Croydon artists. The five winners each received a £500 commission for their exhibited work.

Read the original feature here.

CROYDON SPEAKS OUT

In August we caught up with Croydon’s Poet Laureate, Shaniqua Benjamin, one last time before she ‘retired’ from her role to ask her a final question about her multi-generational project called ‘Out of Silence’. The project engaged a diverse mix of Croydon people in schools, youth organisations and elders groups through poetry workshops led by Shaniqua and five other local poets, to amplify Croydon’s voices that are often unheard and unseen. We had the pleasure of working with Shaniqua throughout the year on various visual outputs of the project.

Read the original feature here.

BEACH CENTRALE

Also in August, we saw the opening of Centrale & Whitgift’s rooftop beach which was on the top of Centrale’s multi-storey car park, and wittily named Costa Del Croydon. There was a lot of sand, a splash zone, giant games, food and drink stalls as well as a few fairground-esque rides and games (hook-a-duck, trampolines and bumper cars), which gave a feel of Brighton Pier, but without the train journey. An excellent summer edition to the centre of Croydon.

Read the original feature here.

LIT NIGHTS’ HIGHLIGHTS

And last but not least, in November we went to the inaugural Lit Nights – a modern-day take on the traditional Literary Salon, presented by Maddy Duxbury of East Croydon Cool and hosted by award-winning journalist (and Croydon resident) Isabella Silvers.

The format of the event was to enjoy an evening of thought-provoking conversation between the Lit Night host and a renowned writer who is pushing the cultural conversation forward (topped and tailed with music and cocktails, naturally). The launch night welcomed the perfect literary guest in international best-selling author (and of course Croydon resident) Yomi Adegoke. We caught up with Lit Nights presenter, host and guest afterwards to find out their highlights.

Read the original feature here.

So let’s give a final roar for 24. We’d like to say a resounding thank you to our readers, contributors and collaborators from this year, and we hope you all enjoy the rest of the festive season. See you in 2025…

Posted by Julia. See original features for full photo credits.