LONDON

ALL IMAGES © ISTOCK
Today it’s hard to imagine that Chinatown,
with its dim-sum restaurants, duallanguage
signs and sculptures of Chinese
lions, was ever anything else. But in the
17th century, it was a verdant meadow
across which rang the Duke of Monmouth’s
hunting cry of ‘Soho!’ that gave the adjacent
neighbourhood its name.
After 1666, when new housing was needed for
those made homeless in the Great Fire of London,
it was a prime location. Lord Gerrard bought the
land – hence the name Gerrard Street – and built
a slaughterhouse and livestock market. French
Huguenots took over the market’s upstairs floor
and it became known as the ‘Butcher’s Church’.
By the 18th and 19th centuries, artists, writers
and philosophers flocked to the area, among
them Dr Samuel Johnson, author of the
English dictionary, who was a regular
at Gerrard Street’s Turk’s Head Inn.
Around this time, Chinese
immigrants settled in Limehouse,
east London, creating the city’s
first Chinatown. But after the area
was bombed in World War II, many
moved to Gerrard Street where
rents were low. It wasn’t long
before restaurants opened, and
the aroma of Cantonese cuisine
wafted along the streets.
Officially recognised as
Chinatown in 1985, it is now
Europe’s largest, with more than
220 Chinese businesses. It’s a real
“AFTER LIMEHOUSE WAS BOMBED IN
WORLD WAR II, MANY MOVED TO GERRARD
STREET FOR ITS LOW RENTS
”
community, too: St Martin-in-the-Fields church
binds it together with social events and Sunday
services in Cantonese and Mandarin. ‘Our church
has had a long history with the local community,’
explains Reverend Paul Lau. ‘A lot of Chinese
residents come to our events and luncheon
club, which gives them a link with each other.’
Chinese New Year falls on 8 Feb, while the
celebrations in London fall on 14 Feb. London
hosts the largest celebration outside Asia,
attracting up to 200,000 visitors. Mayor Boris
Johnson, who in 2012 dressed up in a yellow
dragon costume, calls it ‘one of the most
colourful events of the year’. The Year
of the Monkey celebrations kick off at
10am with a parade, including dragon
and lion dances, along Charing Cross
Road and Shaftesbury Avenue to Rupert
Street. Trafalgar Square becomes a riot of
colour from midday with performances
by Chinese musicians and acrobats, and
stalls selling goods from lanterns to
snacks. A firework display at 5.40pm
brings the party to a close. Then it’s
time to wish everyone ‘Kung Hei Fat
Choi!’, as the Chinese say − or ‘may
you have prosperity’.
lccauk.com
FEBRUARY 2016 | 9