The Mayor’s Newham Show takes place in Central Park over in East Ham this Saturday and Sunday, 21 & 22 July. The festival hosts the Newham Carnival on Saturday, which this year will have a special guest – the Olympic Torch will be accompanying the colourful Carnival floats, arriving in the park at around 11:15am where it will be greeted by an 180-strong choir made up of local school children.
Entertainments at the Newham Show will centre around the main stage and cabaret tent – on the main stage there will be line up of song, dance, music and spoken word while the cabaret tent will cater to more colourful entertainments, such as jugglers, gymnasts, conjurers and comedy. For younger people, Blue Peter’s Big Olympic Tour will be arriving in the park – presenters Helen Skelton and Barney Harwood will be inviting children to try out several Olympic sports and will be talking to them about London’s Olympic history.
In common with most ‘country shows’ there will also be a village fete, an artificial beach has been constructed for those brave enough to sit there under their brollies, and there’s another space which I think will be of interest to those with a passion for London’s local history. Next to Central Park’s war memorial will be the ‘Pride of Newham’ tent – visitors will be able to examine the 1948 Olympic Torch and look at other memorabilia from London’s last Olympic Games, see an exhibit on how Royal Jubilees have been celebrated in Newham in the past, and at 3pm on Saturday and Sunday there will be an opportunity to chat to Gladys and Eva about their experiences working as ‘sugar girls’ at the Tate & Lyle Factory in Silvertown.
The nearest tube station to Central Park is East Ham on the District Line, and the Mayor’s Newham Show is free of charge to enter. You might want to consider popping your boots on before heading out however as it’s likely that some parts of the park are water-logged given our recent downpours, and who knows what the weekend has in store for us…
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