Me and my camera in my home town, my capital city, my Soho
It sounds like the plot of so many bad films..evil property developers want to squeeze out independent business for massive profit and a small band of misfits have to fight to stop them to preserve their way of life..in the films the good guys always win in the end, in real life it is always the bad guys…
Madame JoJos which has been in existence since the 60s and is one of the most beautiful iconic venues in London and a symbol of everything that is great about Soho as been closed by the council who revoked their license after a single violent incident with their security staff and a member of the public. However, it turns out they had already approved planning permission to Soho estates to develop the entire block where Madame JoJos sits on Brewer st to Soho Estates. Its was a stitch up. Pure and simple. This was business. They were just in the way.
On Saturday a small band of misfits met in Soho Square to demonstrate against this injustice although, it was barely a protest. It was in truth a wake for Soho. It was supposed to be a vigil which in hindsight, although appropriate, was not the most upbeat and defiant of themes for a protest march….
….but the feeling that the fight was already lost was too apparent to ignore. It was already a done deal.
The air of defeatism amongst the crowd, which barely hit 3 figures, and like any good event in the modern age, probably had as many photographers as attendees, was grim and painfully reflective of the situation.
So why be there at all? Because to do absolutely nothing, to show no anger or resentment at the destruction of a community and the essence of Soho would have been even worse.
We did a funeral style procession down Oxford St passing the offices of the evil Soho Estates, but this was not a film so there was no Mr Villain to do a mwah haa haa laugh as he mocked those he had crushed, it was a saturday so there was no-one there and we just moved on, silently. Their sign had been marginally defaced, the only visible form of enraged protest.
We passed through the last remaining vestiges of what Soho once was, a glimpse into a former world whose days are now definitely numbered. It is no longer a question of if, just when.
When we arrived at Madame Jojos everyone stood around not quite sure what to do, we lay wreaths and candles at the door and more pictures were taken and then everyone gradually dispersed, no chanting, not even a murmur. It was very sad.
The developers in league with the council will not stop the gentrification of Soho until they have erased every single bit of character and every trace of debauchery from an area that was defined by it. They are not happy with the 90% they already have. They must have it all. When they have finally removed all the venues, it will not be Soho, it will just be bits of really expensive concrete, just like everything else. Well done. Good job.
There is a petition to save jojos (and the all important hashtag #savejojos) so even in a world of pointless protest and in spite of a massive air of defeatism from me please sign here
