June 2016

I bought a camera when
I was eight with the
money off me paper
round
Even though he left the East End a long time ago
– he moved away when he was 19 to set up his
own studio by St Paul’s and now lives in France –
he owes a lot to the area where he grew up. “My
perception of the world, my principles and how I
relate to emotions all come from the East End.”
His portfolio also includes a great number
of portraits of famous characters, including
acclaimed film director John Huston and British
East life
comedian Tommy Cooper. “He was a charming
man and great fun,” Claridge recalls. “I spent an
intense couple of hours with him and had belly
ache from laughing so much.” He describes
comedian Spike Milligan, who asked him to take
pictures for a book cover, as “another beautiful
man. He suffered from depression and would go
from being down to incredibly funny.”
When asked to choose his favourite photo, he
mentions the photos shot by the London Docks
“showing the ships coming in through the fog”, but
says he finds it difficult to pick one. “One picture
doesn’t encompass everything.”
It would be wrong to close your eyes to anything,”
he adds. “I’m still looking.”
How did East London influence your work?
Being born and brought up in an area that had
value across the whole spectrum, it gave me an
attitude towards how I saw, and how I still see, the
world.
Continued overleaf...
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LOVEEAST JUNE 2016 5