Guttersnipe by Ronnie Rainbow - the true story of a young Portobello Market worker during WWII

Those interested in the history of Notting Hill and its wonderful Portobello Market may be very interested to hear about a book covering the real life experiences of a young boy who worked at the vegetable market during World War II, and his eventful life post-evacuation.

Guttersnipe tells the story of Jack Dawkins, a streetwise 13-year-old growing up in London during the Blitz. Evacuated to Cornwall, he manages to escape the clutches of his exploitative foster parents and make his own way back to Portobello Market. The book's synopsis continues:

...he finds himself involved in a German spy ring he knows just what to do to save himself and his country. What Jack is not prepared for, however is the duplicity of the British Establishment who in wartime, it seems, will do anything- anything- to make sure that state secrets stay secret...

The Kindle edition of the book is available FREE until Sunday 22nd January - do download a copy for a great read! For more on the book and to download a copy, please see http://www.amazon.co.uk/Guttersnipe-ebook/dp/B006V2KN8A.

Enjoy Christmas at the Gate Cinema

This Friday and Saturday - just before the big day itself - kick back and relax with a great Christmas bill at the Gate Cinema on Notting Hill Gate. Wings of Desire, Les Enfants du Paradis and the festive classic It's A Wonderful Life will be showing, with the latter two screened as part of a great double-bill on Friday afternoon and evening.

The 1987 fantasy film Wings of Desire, directed by Wim Wenders, tells a tale of angels inhabiting the city, listing to the thoughts of its citizens. Les Enfants du Paradis, filmed in 1945 and set in the theatre district of Paris in the 1840s, focuses on the characters of the 'Boulevard du Crime'.

If the season has got you a little manic (or perhaps you're an organised type and had everything bought, wrapped and sorted weeks ago and have lots of free time!) pop down to the Gate to enjoy one - or more - of these great films.

It's A Wonderful Life

Friday 23, 6pm
Saturday 24, 4.30pm

Wings Of Desire
Friday 23, 8.45pm

Les Enfants du Paradis
Friday 23, 2.00
Saturday 24, 12.45

Book tickets online at www.picturehouses.co.uk or by calling the box office on 0871 902 5731.

Gate Cinema

87 Notting Hill Gate
W11 3JZ

An African Election + Director Q&A at The Gate Cinema on Tuesday, 22nd November

The Gate Cinema in Notting Hill will be hosting a screening of the film An African Election next Tuesday, 22nd November, which will be followed by a question and answer session with director Jarreth Merz.

Set against the backdrop of Ghana's 2008 presidential elections, the documentary film follows the election's key players over a period of almost three months, providing an unprecedented insider's view of the political, economic and social forces at work in the country. The film provides an amazing insight into the larger-than-life politicians, party operatives and the citizens of Ghana who battle for the soul of their country.

The question and answer session will be hosted by Yaba Badoe, director of the acclaimed Witches of Gambaga.

Tickets for this screening can be purchased online or by calling 0871 902 5731.

Portobello Acupuncture Project in Notting Hill every Friday and Saturday

Every Friday and Saturday, the Portobello Acupuncture Project's clinic in The Tabernacle opens its doors to the people of Notting Hill to offer acupuncture in a slightly different and very interesting way.

Founded by Patricia O'Hara and Juliet Burns (who are also the clinic's principle practitioners), the Portobello Acupuncture Project offers acupuncture in a "multi-bed" setting. After a quiet consultation with a practitioner, patients are then treated in the large, quiet and comfortable room at the same time as others also receiving treatment. Such a practice is in fact very normal and indeed the authentic way of receiving acupuncture in China and, in this way, the Project is able to reduce their costs and pass on their savings to their patients.

The Project makes obtaining acupuncture even more affordable than that, however. All patients decide what they can afford to pay between £20 and £40 for their treatment, as the clinic not only believes in allowing their patients to have options, but also that their sliding fee scale elicits the simple principle of trust. Those that can afford to pay the full £40 do so, whilst those that need to pay less than this (perhaps because they need longer term treatment) can also do so. A patient's decision on how much to pay will be respected by their practitioner and no questions will be asked about your decision.

Although acupuncture was considered to be the "people's medicine" for many thousands of years due to its low cost and being easily obtainable, it is apparent that some alternative healthcare in the UK is becoming increasingly inaccessible to some due to its high cost. The Project not only recognises this and aims to rectify it, but also understands that almost all of us these days juggle many financial responsibilities and obligations.

Founders and lead practitioners Patricia and Juliet are both members of the British Acupuncture Council (BAcC) which ensures all members have BSc degree level training in Chinese medicine, traditional acupuncture and Western biomedical sciences and are compliant with the BAcC code of safe practice and code of professional conduct.

Portobello Acupuncture Project

11am - 4pm, every Friday and Saturday

The Tabernacle

35 Powis Square (just off Portobello Road)

W11 2AY

Tel: 07939 924726

Web: www.portobelloacupunctureproject.com

It's competition time! Win 2 tickets for Pearl Jam Twenty at the Gate Cinema on Wednesday

Thanks to the wonderful Gate Cinema on Notting Hill Gate, we have the opportunity to run a great competition! Here's a chance to win tickets to a screening of the documentary film Pearl Jam Twenty at the cinema at 8.45pm next Wednesday.

To be in with a chance of winning, you need to head on over to Twitter to find us (we're @nottinghillnews) and then look for the following tweet:

We've teamed up with @gatecinema to offer a pair of tix to the doc Pearl Jam Twenty next Weds. Just RT & follow to enter.

and then retweet it and follow us. That's all you have to do to enter!

We will contact the lucky winner on Wednesday via Twitter to arrange the prize.

Directed by Cameron Crowe, the film is taken from 1,200 hours of rarely-seen or never seen before footage - as well as 24 hours of recently recorded film from concerts and interviews - that tells the story of the band and their career. A must for all Pearl Jam and rock fans!