Ever bought or read a copy of Smoke? If not, you should. The sporadic publication (this time delayed due to the editor's broken Mac) is a selection box of London-themed writing, photography and cartoons. Those of a literary bent can ponder the many thoughtful essays and short stories about London life, while people of a restricted attention span can focus on the silly little bits, such as the photo of a giant canal plunger on the inside-back cover.
We're only eight pages into the new issue and we've already travelled through time at the George Inn, witnessed some spooky goings-on in Manor Park Cemetery, and chortled our way through editor Matt Haynes' rant about the state of London's press.
Regular readers will find most of the usual features (Tricity Bendix, The Astonishing Routemaster cartoon and London's campest statues), but we're dismayed to see that the ever-popular 'pigeons in puddles' column has been replaced by the third in a new series: 'Simple, eloquent and profound memorials which unfortunately look a bit like giant taps when viewed side-on'.
Smoke is whatever the local equivalent of a 'national treasure' is. It brims with humour, pathos and references to New Cross. Issue 15 can be yours for just £2.90 from these stockists.
