Our February 2021 meeting was a bit of a strange anniversary for us, as it signified a year since our last in person meeting. We miss meeting in the community centre and can’t wait to be back there, but we’re so pleased that so many of our members have been able to engage with our meetings online.
We were delighted to welcome Celia from Eel Pie Island Museum in Twickenham to our meeting to tell us about the island’s heritage.
Described as ‘120 drunks clinging to a mudflat’, Eel Pie Island has a remarkable history including as the home of pioneering boatbuilders and as the birthplace of an extraordinary number of famous musical acts.
There was a time, for instance, when the Rolling Stones had a six month residence on the island and played every Wednesday night. The list of famous names that played the island was quite incredible – in addition to the Stones, during the 60s you could Eric Clapton and Rod Stewart, among others, at the beginning of their careers.
The talk also gave some of our members an opportunity to share their own memories of the island and other music venues at the time such as the Ealing Club and the Crawdaddy Club in Richmond.
We were astounded to learn that Eric Clapton still owes our committee member Janet 10 bob, and Mary once came across Marianne Faithful in a fur coat looking for her pussy. Only at the WI!