One of the changes I've enjoyed in London is seeing Trafalgar Square become much more used as a public space, for celebrations and not just for pigeon feeding. (I'm not fond of pigeons.) Everyone knows it is Nelson's Column in the middle, but not one in a hundred Londoners could name any of the other statues in the square. There are four plinths, one on each corner. Three are occupied with forgotten figures -- statesmen or soldiers. The fourth plinth is empty, and a few years ago it got a new life. Different art works each take a turn of a few months, more or less just in front of the National Gallery. Some of the works are very strange pieces, and most of them get passers-by talking: "Is it art?"
Last Thursday and Friday there were film clips shown in the square, as part of the London Film Festival. They stretched all across the twentieth century, feature films and documentaries, sad and happy and ironic, lovers and eel pie sellers and children. There were hundreds or thousands of us in the audience, sitting on the steps or on the ground, enjoying the atmosphere. (See the photos here.) It's just the right season: dark enough for after-work outdoor films, not yet too cold. I noticed the clever people next to me had brought a thermos of something hot to drink, and a flask of something warming: tea and whiskey!
Monday 27 October 2008
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