It was sad to see news of the death of Andy Kershaw at 66. I never met him but of course was well aware of his stints on OGWT, Radio One and Radio Three. In some ways he carried on the work of Charlie Gillett underlining that the music produced in urban City environments across the world could likewise be understood and enjoyed in the same places globally including the UK. A world of which Nigel Farage has no conception.
Kershaw although a Lancashire man had a strong North London connection with the restaurant Banners that he opened with his then partner Juliette Banner in Park Rd, N8 in the early 1990s. It closed in 2023. I was not a regular customer, preferring the pubs of Crouch End but Banners became an institution
A farewell to Banner’s, the restaurant I have loved for 30 years | The Standard
It also reflected changing times in London N8. The Hornsey College of Art occupation was hailed as the start of the British May ’68. Later the building became the TUC National Education Centre for a period. I started work in the then Post Office telecoms office just down the road in October 1979 (its now an M&S) and drank in the immediately adjacent Railway Pub (Draught Bass).
The Queens pub on the Broadway (still open) was a left gathering point from the 1960s. Later a then little known activist Jeremy Corbyn became the organiser of the Hornsey Labour Party, while local resident Tariq Ali found his attempt to join blocked.
However Hornsey & Wood Green did not elect a Labour MP until 1992 with Barbara Roche. Following the Iraq War LibDem Lynne Featherstone won the seat and then post the Tory-LibDem Coalition, Catherine West who is now the sitting MP for Hornsey and Friern Barnet.
Andy Kershaw was very much on the left, if its little mentioned in his obituaries. Also not mentioned enough is his conviction for harrassing his ex-partner. It was as he admitted a very difficult time.
All that said Andy Kershaw did a little bit to change the world and his Crouch End years played a part in that
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