Anita's Vintage Fashion Fair on 18th March 2012 (Mother's Day!)

The eighth spring edition of Anita's Vintage Fashion Fair is coming to the beautiful 20th Century Theatre on Westbourne Grove on 18th March 2012 - and with it being Mothering Sunday, the Fair will be paying tribute to this special day. It's sure to be a perfect Mother's Day treat and perhaps the ideal place to pick up a vintage gift!

28 exhibitors, all carefully selected for their superb knowledge and expertise, will be present at the Fair, showcasing the best in vintage fashion and accessories.

Kathy of KatsEye Style will also be at the Fair, offering her dedicated personal vintage fashion styling services. At one her sessions, she offers a full styling consultation to suggest certain looks, as well as showing the possibilities of incorporating vintage pieces into your everyday wardrobe.

Mother and daughter duo June and Rita - who comprise alterations service Recycle and Sew - will also be appearing at the Fair, teaching mini vintage craft sessions and demonstrations on creating the perfect sentimental Mother's Day gift.

Anita's Vintage Cafe will also be serving delicious homemade cakes and refreshments all day, which will help you and mum to indulge in a spot of relaxation after a busy few hours' browsing.

The Fair is run by Anita Bott, who is the founder of the original Vintage Fashion Fairs in Notting Hill and Battersea and has run these Fairs for close to a decade. The aim of the Fairs is to establish them as London's number one vintage fashion event by providing a relaxed, upbeat and creative atmosphere, whilst showcasing quality vintage pieces that are exceptionally good value.

Entry to the Fair costs £2 (£1 concessions and students with ID; children under 16 go free) and tickets can either be purchased in advance via info@vintagemarketplace.net or on the day.

There's also a special Mother's Day Vintage Special package which costs £17 (for 2) which includes a styling session for both you and mum with Kathy, plus afternoon tea for two in Anita's Cafe, complimentary entry to the Fair, a gift bag and a glass of bubbly to enjoy during the styling session. Limited places available.

Full details on Anita's Vintage Fashion Fair (and to book tickets) can be found at http://www.vintagefashionfairs.com/component/content/article/223-explore-the-4-capitals-of-style-at-anitas-vintage-fashion-fairs.html.

Anita's Vintage Fashion Fair
11am - 5pm (trade: 10.30am), Sunday 18th March 2012

20th Century Theatre

291 Westbourne Grove

W11 2QA

Underground: Notting Hill Gate/Ladbroke Grove

More Bang Reading Slam Fundraiser, this Friday 24th February

To celebrate the launch of her new novel Body Temperature and Rising, author KD Grace and co-sponsors the Fannies Rule Groups (headed up by Sarah Berry) will be presenting the More Bang Reading Slam at Sh! Women's Erotic Emporium on Portobello Road this Friday.

As well as KD Grace and Sarah Berry, other authors reading on the night include Kay Jaybee, Lexie Bay, Lucy Felthouse, The Dragon King's Daughter, Liz Coldwell, Scarlett French, Annie Player, Janine Ashbless, Ernesto Sarezale, Katie Walsch, Lynn Mann and Meg Phillips.

If you'd like to also read at the event, come armed with five minutes of "filth and fun" in order to participate on the night. There will also be raffles and giveaways, fizz and cupcakes but mostly fun and sexy readings!

Tickets cost £5 for guests and participants, with all proceeds going to the Sexual Advice Association charity.

Spaces are limited, so please email shop@sh-womenstore.com to book a place. Guys are welcome as guests of women.

More Bang Reading Slam
6.30pm for a 7pm start, Friday 24th February 2012
Sh! Women's Erotic Emporium
Unit 4
253 Portobello Road
W11 1LR

An Audience with Steven Berkoff at The Tabernacle, Saturday 11th February

Actor, writer and director Steven Berkoff - best known for his performance at General Orlov in the James Bond film Octopussy - will be providing a talk on his life and work at a fundraiser for the charity Equal People next Saturday, 11th February 2012.

The evening will also feature professional performances of poetry and song, in celebration of Valentine's Day, by the charity's service users as well as celebrating the work undertaken by Equal People members as part of a new social enterprise.

Mr Berkoff is equally well known for his other villainous roles, including as Lt. Col Podovsky in Rambo: First Blood Part II, Victor Maitland in Beverly Hills Cop, and Adolf Hitler in the epic mini-series War and Remembrance. After having studied drama and mime in London and Paris, he formed the London Theatre Group in 1968. Among the many adaptations Mr Berkoff as created for the stage, directed and toured with are Kafka's Metamorphosis and The Trial, Agamemnon after Aeschylus, and Poe's The Fall of the House of Usher. He has also directed and toured with productions of Shakespeare's Coriolanus (playing the title role), Richard II, Hamlet and Macbeth, as well as Oscar Wilde's Salome.

Equal People is a charity that provides a range of services for people with learning difficulties, as well as to their families and carers. The charity encourages community participation and contribution, fights inequality and provides high quality individualised support that is flexible, responsive and reliable.

Tickets for the evening cost £15 (£12.50 concessions) and can be booked online at http://www.tabernaclew11.com/whats-on/eventdetails/11-feb-12-an-audience-with-steven-berkoff-tabernacle/.

An Audience with Steven Berkoff
7.30pm - 9pm, Saturday 11th February 2012
(light refreshments from 6.30pm)
The Tabernacle
Powis Square
North Kensington
W11 2AY

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