This annual festival is based around City Road Lock and
Basin and along the tow path to Packington Park. There will be a variety
of stalls, fun-fair, music, refreshments, boat trips and viewing of
Community Boats. In the Basin there is a regatta and a bell-boat race.
Boat trips will be available in both directions, going east, and west
through the Islington Tunnel to London Canal Museum where passengers can
stop off to visit. On the water there will be displays by Islington Boat
Club and a Bell Boat race between local community groups. On the towpath there will be around 70 stalls selling
everything from canalware and crafts, books, to refreshments. These give
many local and national charities the chance to raise funds.There will be
all sorts of music, walks and talks, and the local public houses will be
open! Everyone will enjoy attractions such as hawks and owls, bee keepers,
and a variety of music. There will also of course be a range of different
food stalls. Entertainment will include a range of musical performances
both beside the lock and around the festival site. There will be a
fun-fair, and various other entertainment! On top of this of course there
will be a wide range of boats attending, and a regatta in the basin, with
bell-boat racing. As
the event is FREE we rely on
funding and gifts in kind from many sources including the Community Chest,
City Road Basin Limited, The Eric Evans Memorial Trust, The Morris
Charitable Trust, the GLA/London Canals Committee, Gratte Brothers Ltd,
LBI Regeneration, and Pollard Thomas Edwards Architects.We also have
excellent support from BW London, SPCC, the Inland Waterways Association
and the London Canal Museum and Islington Council.The Festival is run by
un-paid volunteers who put in approximately 1600 hrs a year. Our aim is to produce an enjoyable
day-long Festival celebrating the Regents Canal around the City Road Lock
and Basin area promoting the canal as an historic, local, community,
environmental and leisure asset for all to enjoy. Latest News from the ACF
Team VOLUNTEER
RECRUITMENT DAY REPORT, 27 JULY 08, 11am to
5pm We had a wonderfully sunny day for our first Volunteer
Recruitment Day on Sunday 27th July on the towpath of the
Regent’s Canal, opposite the City Road Basin. Steve set up the red & white gazebo, banners, display
boards, parasol, table and chairs beneath the trees to take advantage of
the shade. Once the pictures
were on the boards and the flyers, and job information ready, Jim, Beryl
(in the angel wings she got for Christmas) and Henrietta accosted passers
by with flyers and the offer of a free 10 minute boat trip round the Basin
on the ‘Lady A’. Having
completed 6 trips with an estimated total of 60 passengers, Emile and
Tanya from Canal & River Cruises left in the ‘Lady A’ at 3pm to fulfil
their next booking in Greenford, 5 hrs away. Sorry as we were to see them go, we were happy to see that
Kate, with her Ice Cream Tricycle, had already arrived. A tasty addition to the ice cold
water we were offering from our cool-box. By 5pm we had collected 25 names and contact details. We even had an offer of some free
Street Theatre for the Festival and possibly a free sample of what new
band ‘SixNationState’ sound like, before they get really famous.
We met some lovely people and had a great day and felt it
was well worth the effort. We
will be contacting all 25 within the next two weeks to firm up the
commitment, suggesting jobs and hours to suit. There will be a new issue of our
Newsletter too, hopefully with pictures plus, an invitation to the
Boaters’ DIY BBQ on Sat 6 Sep, 7pm to 10pm in Graham St Park, alongside
the Basin. As well as thanking the 25 new Volunteers, we should like to
thank Awards for All for funding the gazebo, banners, etc. also the boat
trips and the ice cold water! Beryl (with the wings) Windsor Co-ordinator, ANGEL CANAL > The ACF team would like to thank all the volunteers
from all supporting organisations, as well as the essential band of
angels, that made the 2007 event again so sucessful-without them
there would be no event Some
of the Angels wearing their T-shirts: They
are:- back row: Tony, Sheila, Henry Interested parties please contact
Beryl Windsor on 0121 244 8439 or 07973 504 212 or British Waterways, Islington
Boat Club, Islington Narrowboat Association, St. Pancras Cruising Club, London
Canal Museum, Friends of Islington
Museum, Friends of Regent's Canal, London
Borough of Islington. Text from Martin Sachs of the London Canal Museum Photos from Pauline Lord, British Waterways, INBA and
other contributors.



Angel Canal Festival
Islington, London N1
NEXT FESTIVAL
Sunday 6th September
2009
11.00 a.m. to 5 pm, adjoining City Road Lock,
Islington
Free Admission.






ANGEL GLIDE
Great
news the somewhat unusual gliding Angel will be back again in 2008-must be
seen
CLIMBING
TOWER
This will be located in Graham St
www.the-warehouse.co.uk
'BAND OF ANGELS'
front row: Jessica, Justine &
Maxine.
beryl@angelcanalfestival.orgThe Angel Canal Festival is
Organised by the ACF Management Team comprising
