Robert Wallace, A.K.A. Parallel Teeth, is a director, animator and illustrator. Originally from New Zealand, he currently works and lives between Wellington and London.
London is so vast I am forever coming across new hidden gems. Walking around the streets and getting lost is the best way to find London's best kept secrets.
The Nightingale is the antithesis of the hundreds of soulless gastropubs that a lot of decent pubs have recently become and remains everything a proper pub should be. Britain's pubs haven't had it easy lately. The smoking ban and the general effects of the recession have hammered the industry hard. The Nightingale continues to be what it has always been, a proper pub at the heart of the local community. Its annual charity walk has raised nearly £500,000 for good causes in over 30 years and it seems determined to do the things a pub should do and do them properly. Once inside you feel like you could be in a country pub instead of in the middle of South London. There's no jukebox and the TV is hardly ever on, but there’s a great atmosphere with a good set of locals and good drink and food. Bliss.
This is one of my favourite places in the whole of London.
Cernamic, run by Nam and Susi, they offer some fantastic workshops and at a very affordable price. They have really cultivated a welcoming environment, full of lovely people and a place to share and recieve knowledge.
I vaguely thought about leaving London recently and the British Library came to mind as somewhere I’d miss. It’s an essential resource because it has almost everything. It also has some interesting exhibitions.