Havin' a kick & prance with me old chinas!

We spent a lovely day dancing and listening to music at Swing East last Sunday, in Poplar, the heart of London's East End.

Top line-up!

As well as being the epicentre of Cockney rhyming slang, and pie and mash, the east is also home to the Chrisp Street Market, which is where the event was held.  Built as part of the Festival of Britain in 1951, this was a great location to listen to live music and DJs playing records from the 50s.  The icing on the cake, was that no bees and honey were required, because it was freeeeee!

There were three bands that played throughout the afternoon, starting with Carmen Ghia & the Hotrods, who were fun, energetic and really got the party started...

 What a voice!!!

Followed by Sugar Ray's Lucky Combo, who played an excellent set, which kept the dance floor packed...

Sugar Ray's Lucky Combo, fronted by Pat Reyford, who incidentally hails from Poplar!

The last band of the day were The Hot Tin Roofs who provided a large dose of sassy swing to keep the crowd entertained...

Apparently my dirty dancing with Loverboy got this pretty lady a little hot under the collar...ooops! You can't take us anywhere...

They were all excellent, and the combination of jumpin' tunes and witty banter (Carmen Ghia is a hoot!) kept the party atmosphere going all day.

Diamond geezer, DJ Nel Raiser played a mix of rock n roll, jump blues and swing music, and I liked what he played...I liked it a lot!  Everyone else liked it too, as the dancing continued non-stop, all day.  If you don't Adam and Eve it, then have a butcher's at these...

Good thing we all had on our dancing Ones and Twos!

Of course, with all this dancing, we worked up quite an appetite, so we headed for a bite to eat at Maureen's.  Cast your minces on these...

Pie, mash and liquor - it had to be done! 

But the real star of the show...

I'm not telling a porky - I think this hot salt beef bagel was better than the ones on Brick Lane...! 

There were also a few stalls selling records, vintage clothes and accessories, homeware and food and drinks.

Roll out the barrel, we'll have a barrel of fun!

Overall, the day was a great success - there were loads of people in attendance, and it was a complete mix of locals, non-locals, old, middle-aged, young and younger!  There was a real street party atmosphere, and even the sudden downpour of rain (which I don't think many people were expecting - good thing we were sheltered from it!) didn't dampen any spirits.

Me and my Treacle...
Photo by Yole Quintero

We were pretty cream crackered after a full day of kicking and prancing, and ducking and diving!   It's fun events like these which are part of the many reasons why London is one of the best cities in the world.  Hopefully Swing East will continue to put on this event at Chrisp Street Market, and make it an annual party!

Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner, that I love London so....