Bellenden Belle

Just to say what a lovely time I had on Friday - particularly great meeting those I haven't met before - Keef; Michael P; Alley Cat; Barry Marshall; Another Paul; AnnaJ; and the adorable Mockney Piers (cue Bellenden Belle being particularly dizzy and asking what his real name was!) Not to mention the legend that is CWALD - I shall never look at dog owners in the same light again! And lovely seeing all the regulars too - Georgia, Bagpuss; Sean; CitizenEd, to name but a few. East Dulwich is wonderful ... and you all are too. A big hug and ahhhhh all round x

I once bit a dentist... drew blood too ... he refused to treat me after that.

Mr Bellenden Belle will also be coming... ooooh, could this mean the super duper board?

Looking forward to coming along tomorrow night.... though I still haven't got a clue about Tantrix!

our Name: Bellenden Belle Famous Artist/Band/Musician: Barbara Streisand (the one and only) 4 letter word: Bath Vehicle: Bus TV SHOW: Bagpuss City/Town: Bournemouth Boy Name: Bob Girl Name: Belinda Occupation: Butcher Something you wear: Bolero jacket Celebrity: Britney Spears Food: Bangers and mash Something found in a kitchen: Breadknife Reason for Being Late: Bumped into Britney Spears in Bournemouth, made her drop the breadknife, and felt she was in desperate need of bangers and mash.

Another vote here for Dulwich DIY - when I was looking for some complicated low voltage dimmer switch they were the first of three shops to actually be helpful and order what I needed rather than fob me off with something unsuitable. And they happily keep my paint for me while I go and have a coffee. Moo Too are always cheerful and I have had lovely friendly service from William Rose (very excited to hear they deliver!).

New bookstore ... tell me everything! Oops that is slightly off topic ... actually I must say I do know what you mean - I can't say I have encountered many friendly stores - it certainly doesn't have a neighbourhood feel to it, which is maybe what you are suggesting Rafester.

Sorry can't make it tonight but will try next week. Have fun!

Sean - to be fair, their tea and pastries are fairly priced - I don't think anyone has made a fuss about that ... but did you look at their "food menu" - that's where it becomes extortionate. Perhaps they don't want to encourage people to stay and eat while sitting on the precious chairs. But even then I wouldn't mind if the sandwiches were exquisite - but they were absolutely painfully ordinary. Style over substance I'm afraid Sean. But great tea yes.

One pound sixty for one single a4 copy. Ouch!

I had a surreal experience while waiting for the colour photocopier to warm up. I was made to sit on a rather high chair for what seemed like an age; and quizzed on my work, husband, and life. I thought the man was rather lonely - but, short of making me a cup of tea, he couldn't have been nicer. However I nearly fell off the chair when I realised how much the colour photocopy was!

Wow - I'm really pleased to hear that... when I went there (about two weeks after the place re-opened) it was absolutely awful - cheap cafe food at restaurant prices. We were the only couple there and still they got my order wrong. I would love to hear things have changed but until then I will stick with Montpellier; Gowlett; Il Giardino; and Ganapati for my Bellenden grub...

Magnolia - great ensemble film which leaves you emotionally exhausted at the complexity of life and yet manages to capture the wonderful notion of serendipity in a shower of frogs! (Does that sentence make sense only to me?) Good call on Beautiful Girls Sean - that gorgeous exchange on the ice rink - And I'll be Winnie The Pooh to your Christopher Robin." Garden State, also starring Natalie Portman also managed to get me. But it is theatre that usually gets me - most things by Owen McCafferty - particularly Scenes from a Big Picture; Conor McPherson's Port Authority... Laura Wade's Colder Than Here... wonderful quiet plays. And books - Augusten Burrough's Dry had tears running down my face, as did Jonathan Saffran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. And sadly... On Golden Pond works every time too!

A huge congratulations to you citizenED and to Mrs Ed too ...

Development officer for arts charity for people with mental ill health.

Hello, Now I know I have said this before but I am going to try really hard to make it tomorrow. Promise! BB

That's absolutely fantastic - good luck!

Beef bourguignon - basically beef stew made with red wine - slow cooked for ten hours since this morning. When my key turns in the front door, the aroma will hit me - the best welcome home in the world! A slow cooker recipe book was this year's best purchase for me. Is that a sign of old age?

Spangles30 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Bellenden Belle, if you are going to direct > comments towards me suggesting I am lying then > please state it explicitly. I did no such thing. I merely asked readers to make up their own minds, based on the calibre of your own words, in both previous and current posts. Equally they could search my name or any other poster's name and get a sense of where that person's thoughts and views might be coming from. Hysterical outbursts offering telephone numbers of people who have been stabbed on their doorstep and have since moved to Australia do not strengthen the case that you are a reliable source. You have stated your opinion on the area - leave it for others to decide if they wish to pay attention to it or not.

A word of advice when reading any thread containing alarmist and frightening "facts" - always look first at the source. Do they have a history of making unsubstantiated claims to back up their opinions, have their previous postings been balanced and rational, or are they intended to provoke distress and unease. That was the most important lesson I learnt during my history lessons. Probably worth bearing in mind in light of the comments re stabbings on doorsteps.

The Oglander closed about six momths ago ... think the site is earmarked for homes actually. The Gowlett and The Montpellier are both really good local pubs. As for black youths hanging around with pitbulls - are you sure that isn't estate agent prejudice? It's not something I have encountered. But I loved your comment about addresses on parcels, Catalyst - I know exactly what you mean! The only time I pull that one is late at night when getting black cabs - and sadly it does make a difference, say Peckham and suddenly they are going home,say East Dulwich and you stand a fighting chance of getting home. Whenever I walk past Bellenden Primary School it seems really well run and the kids seems happy - in fact the ofsted report from this year suggests there is a great deal of care and support for the children and speaks highly of the individual attention it gives. But its academic results are poor and that is what many parents will go by. I suspect parents who send their kids to Villa (I think it's about four thousand a term) are the type who would always favour private education - or just have so much spare income they don't know what to do with it.

Actually while I have no desire for a Waterstones (they can keep their 3 for 1 offers from Richard and Judy's booklist) , I would disagree that East Dulwich already has a very decent book shop. Chener Books is not particularly welcoming; I never feel relaxed in there; and the staff are entirely disinterested. Good bookshops are inspiring - Chener is depressing. I would love to see a Daunt Books - - yes it's a small chain (3 shops in North London) , but it still retains its independent spirit and it seems to be run by booklovers for booklovers. I haven't trawled through the rest of the thread but I hope someone has mentioned the need for some decent sushi in se22.

Next month marks our anniversary of moving into Maxted Road. And hand on heart I can say it is the best move we ever made. The area is incredibly friendly - have a walk down the road on the weekend and you will see for yourself. It feels quite small in a really good way but has enough shops that one doesn't feel in the middle of nowhere. My number one priority when moving was that I felt safe (we were moving from Clapton) - and I really do. As safe as I would feel anywhere in a city late at night- as safe as I would in East Dulwich. Yes the craziness of Rye Lane is only a hop skip and a jump away but it is easy to avoid if you wish. As for house prices - have a look at www.ourproperty.co.uk and you will be able to see that house prices have soared in the last two years (wish I'd moved earlier!). If the proposed crash in house prices takes place then I think the area might suffer... it's a question of whether you think that's a possibility or not. As for schools- it's in the catchment for St John and St Clement; Goose Green and I know Catholic neighbours with children at St Anthony - so very solid primary schools. Secondary schools are a different matter - not something concerning us yet. I actually made a very conscious decision to live in Bellenden rather than East Dulwich when house hunting - it felt more like a community than a trendy high street; it was far better value and certainly we found most gardens were a better size than in similar properties in ED. That said - I'm a huge ED fan which is great since I am only a very short walk away from Lordship Lane.

Okay I am totally biased here and it should also be noted tht I'm not much of a gardener but don't cats usually cover their faeces? They always seem quite modest that way. And certainly when I was growing up I played in a garden frequented by every cat within a ten mile radius (my mother encouraged every stray to visit) and I never ended up covered in s**t - actually bloody hell, can't kids just stick to Wii (no pun intended!)

Lamoon in Camberwell is definitely the best I have had in a long long time... well worth going over the hill for!