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Rich Nimbys are strangling the capital’s culture by blocking concerts in Brockwell Park, and the poorest Londoners will suffer the most, writes James Ford
Do you remember when London was fun? Not just mildly fun, but properly and riotously so. A heaving metropolis where sweaty clubbers, ebullient party goers and merry music lovers packed themselves onto night buses after a rip-roaring night of dancing, wine and general hedonism. Whatever your vice, peccadillo or guilty pleasure, London offered an outlet and was all the better for doing so. Samuel Johnson famously took time off from inventing the dictionary to quip that “when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life, for there is in London all that life can afford”. Not to be outdone, Benjamin Disraeli described the capital as “a modern Babylon”.
But the vibrancy, exuberance and joyful spirit that once defined London and made it so distinct are slowly being strangled. London risks becoming boring. Less of a Babylon, more of a Basingstoke. Much has already been written about the decline of the capital’s night time economy and the poor public policy that is accelerating it. But it is time to acknowledge that a new threat is emerging to rain on Londoners’ parade: rich killjoys.
Where once wealthy Nimbys were content to channel their negativity into opposing affordable housing at the end of their street, now they have set their sights on ruining your weekend. Last week, ‘Protect Brockwell Park’ (PBP), a group of south London residents, successfully took Lambeth Council to court to stop the borough hosting Brockwell Live, a series of live events and concerts in Brockwell Park this summer. These are not your common-or-garden local moaners, mind you. They have boasted of having a £40,000 legal war chest (which, having been awarded costs at the High Court, remains intact) and their ranks include leading luvvie Sir Mark Rylance. Although PBP were victorious, the organisers of Brockwell Live have confirmed that this summer’s events programme will go ahead. PBP are unlikely to leave the matter there, and their legal victory is only likely to embolden other groups of affluent killjoys.
London should be Babylon, not Basingstoke
Perhaps it is tempting to dismiss this intervention as a one-off; a quaint exercise in citizen power made possible by the ineptitude of officers at Lambeth. But it has potentially huge ramifications. Almost one third (31 per cent) of the economic contribution that live music events make to the UK (valued at £6.1bn and 230,000 jobs in 2023) comes from events in London. Little wonder then that Michael Kill, CEO of the Night Time Industries Association, described the High Court decision as “a dark day for culture, workers, and community” and warned that cancelling Brockwell Live would “mark a devastating blow to London’s identity as a global hub for live music”.
This decision could also impact the bottom line for councils across London and even create a two-tier cultural economy. Organising festivals and live events are great ways that the boroughs can raise revenue and stimulate their local economies. If they are concerned about fighting off expensive legal challenges from their affluent citizens, then they may think twice about continuing with their current programmes let alone developing new events. Moreover, ticket-buying attendees at Brockwell Live arguably subsidise the Lambeth Country Show, one of the biggest free family festivals in the UK that attracts 120,000 visitors to Brockwell Park in a single weekend each summer, to the tune of £630,000. Without that revenue, it is unlikely the Lambeth Country Show could continue. It is likely that many London boroughs would face similar difficult financial decisions about running much needed free cultural activities that help to build a sense of community or provide a welcome distraction for financially squeezed Londoners.
Fun and festivals are not added extras for London. They are vital necessities that make the capital liveable for residents and attractive to visitors. A curmudgeonly elite might want to spend their summer sipping Pimm’s in silence in their gardens, but they are short-changing their fellow Londoners. We must not let a self-appointed party-pooping few with deep pockets ruin London for the fun-loving many. It is not too late to stop the capital from becoming just another Basingstoke. Let’s make London fun again.
James Ford is a public affairs consultantand former advisor on transport, environment and technology policy to then mayor of London Boris Johnson
