Welcome

Weather slightly cooling but still unseasonably hot for September. We've got an easy honey cake recipe for you, good news on the Ally Pally Bonfire Night fireworks and fun Finchley-picks from the post bag.

🍯 Honey Cake for Jewish New Year

Friday night is the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, Jewish New Year.

What are the Jewish New Year traditions?

It’s a two-day festival, a time for reflection in the run up to The Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur ten days later. A time for families and communities to come together and celebrate. One custom is to hear the notes of the shofar, ram's horn, to awake you to reflection.

Traditions include eating apple and honey, for a sweet new year, saying blessings over a new fruit (typically pomegranate, although in our Ottolenghi times many people partake of pomegranates on a regular basis!) and honey cake.

From Sasha...

I am delighted to share the honey cake recipe I’ve been making for over twenty years.

I usually make a spare one for the freezer and use it to break the fast after Yom Kippur. Nothing quite like a slice of honey cake and a cup of tea.

Honey cake recipe

This is a family recipe, it’s really rich and moist. Also on insta.

First, warm together gently in a saucepan:

· 1lb Golden Syrup

· equal volume of water

· 8oz caster sugar

· 8 floz vegetable oil

Allow to cool, then add:

· 1lb self raising flour

· 2 tsp mixed spice

· 1 tsp ground cinnamon

· 1 tsp ground ginger

· 1 tsp baking powder

Fold in:

· 3 eggs

· 2 level tsp bicarbonate of soda

· 5 tbsp kiddush or sweet wine

Use a cake liner for your tin(s) as this is a very runny batter.

Transfer the batter to tins, filling about 2/3 full as the mixture rises, and cook for 45 minutes at 180C, 350F, gas mark 5.

Traditional greetings

So wishing all those who celebrate shana tova u’metuka – a sweet and happy new year.

And even if it’s not your tradition, you may want to try the honey cake recipe, it’s delicious. 🍎🍯

Events

COMMUNITY

Saturday 12th September

​Our Yard at Clitterhouse Farm - Guided Tour | Sat, Sep. 12 | 10:00 am to 4:00 pm | Clitterhouse Playing Fields, Claremont Road, NW2 1AP | Free (Open House) | A grassroots community enterprise where the historic farm buildings meet a crowdfunded cafe. Find out how the buildings were saved and brought back into community use, and what happens next.

Tuesday 15th September

​The Wembley Jobs Fair | Tue, Sep. 15 | 10:00 am to 4:00 pm | Wembley National Stadium, Olympic Way, Wembley, HA9 0WS | Free | Brent Council's employment service Brent Works, fills the stadium with employers. More than 8,000 people came last year, for everything from first jobs to career changes.

Thursday 17th September

​Save A Life September | Thu, Sep. 17 | 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm | St John Ambulance Barnet HQ, Priory Grove, off Westcombe Drive, EN5 2BE | Free | Free lifesaving skills from St John Ambulance: CPR and how to use a defibrillator, the recovery position, and what to do about serious bleeding or choking. Email BarnetNetwork@sja.org.uk.

FOOD

Saturday 12th September

​Barnet Food Festival 2026 | Sat, Sep. 12 | All day | RAF Museum London, Grahame Park Way, NW9 5LL | £10 | A weekend of flavours from around the world, live entertainment and a free Kids Zone, all set among the aircraft.

Monday 14th September

Elephant Inn Reopening Night | Mon, Sep. 14 | 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm | 283 Ballards Lane, N12 8NR | Free entry | Sammy and the team throw open the doors at the newly refurbished Elephant Inn. RSVP to elephantinn.finchley@fullers.co.uk.

MUSIC

Saturday 12th September

​Organ Recital: Jonathan Gregory | Sat, Sep. 12 | 6:30 pm for a 7:00 pm start | Monken Hadley Church, Barnet, EN5 5PZ | £15 | Bach, Mendelssohn, Bret and Stanley, with welcome drinks from 6:30 pm.

Sunday 13th September

​Morning Coffee Concert: Organ Recital | Sun, Sep. 13 | 11:30 am to 12:05 pm | St Mary-at-Finchley, 26 Hendon Lane, N3 1TR | Free, retiring collection | A short recital with a relaxed cup of coffee, played by outgoing organ scholar Macie Sutherland. Bach, Kerensa Briggs and plenty in between.

NATURE

Saturday 12th September

​St Mary-at-Finchley Community Gardening | Sat, Sep. 12 | 10:00 am to 12:00 pm | St Mary-at-Finchley Churchyard, N3 1TR | Free | Help look after the churchyard, home to seven Grade II listed memorials. No experience needed. Bring gloves and some enthusiasm, and borrow the tools when you get there.

SPORTS

Saturday 12th September

​Seated / Standing Yoga at Edgware Library | Sat, Sep. 12 | 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm | Edgware Library, Hale Lane, HA8 8NN | £3.00 | A gentle practice for flexibility, balance and strength. Every pose is seated or supported, whether you are in a chair or on the floor.

THEATRE

Sunday 13th September

​Splat! - OftheJackel at Jacksons Lane | Sun, Sep. 13 | 11:00 am and 2:00 pm | Jacksons Lane, 269a Archway Road, N6 5AA | See website | Family circus from OftheJackel, part of the new Jacksons Juniors strand launched by Creative Director Angus MacKechnie. Two shows on the day.

Events - Book Ahead

Tuesday 13th October

​Romeo & Juliet | Tue, Oct. 13 | 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm | artsdepot, 5 Nether Street, Tally Ho Corner, North Finchley, N12 0GA | £19 | Dynamic staging, evocative sound and Shakespeare's verse, in a retelling that leans into the passion, peril and youthful intensity at the heart of the play.

Friday 16th October

​The Funny Club at Brent Cross Town | Fri, Oct. 16 | 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm | Pavilion, 145 Claremont Road, NW2 1FE | Price TBA | Four nights of live comedy, five acts a night, from big-name headliners to rising North London talent, with a compere keeping the punchlines coming.

Monday 19th October

​Connections | Mon, Oct. 19 | From 9:00 am | artsdepot, 5 Nether Street, Tally Ho Corner, North Finchley, N12 0GA | Free | Claire Weinstock's drawing and printmaking, exploring the world through familiar forms found in the home and the natural environment.

Local Lowdown

Remembering

• Family and friends have scattered Bill Oddie’s ashes on Hampstead Heath, fulfilling the wildlife presenter and comedian’s final wish. His ashes were carried in a makeshift bird’s nest during a celebration reflecting his lifelong love of birds, nature, music and the Heath he cherished deeply.

Collecting

• Last Friday's fire at the Wembley waste transfer station stranded some of Barnet's bin lorries on site. The council says collections still went ahead over the bank holiday and residents should not see disruption while investigators check the damaged building.

Sparkling

• Bonfire night has doubled up this year. Alexandra Palace splits its fireworks and drone festival across 7 and 8 November, a party night then a calmer family day. Bier festival, ice skating and funfair included. Early bird tickets from £10.50, under 10s free on the Sunday.

Housing

• Crouch End's 1929 YMCA building could be replaced by something considerably bigger. Levitt Bernstein has lodged plans for a five storey block on Tottenham Lane with 174 en-suite rooms for homeless young people aged 16 to 35, up from 155. Haringey Council decides.

Spraying

• Stand on the marked spot and Freddie Mercury's face appears. A 30ft anamorphic mural by street artist Frank Styles now runs across all 58 of Wembley Park's Spanish Steps, marking what would have been his 80th birthday. Free to view until December.

From the Postbag

Hot on the heels of our Finchley-centred Hollywood extravaganza, thanks to these two eagle-eyed locals for new picks.

Josh shared The Chronicles of Narnia (2005), clip above, and remembers the loud cheer in the Barnet Odeon (now Everyman) after the line!

And thanks to Tony for this gem.

​North Finchley Library was used as the filming location for the Lou and Andy library sketch in Little Britain. (Matt Lucas grew up locally, so makes sense).

In this specific sketch, Lou takes Andy to the library to pick out a book. While Lou is distracted talking to the librarian, Andy stands up from his wheelchair, climbs all the way up a massive bookshelf to grab a book from the very top shelf, and climbs back down just in time before Lou turns around.

Editors' Note - From Tessa

It's my husband's 50th birthday today, which is a big day in the Davis household. Cake and gifts are at the ready.

Happy birthday F!

Also, let us know about local events or local news. We curate our content to keep it a 5-minute read, so can't include everything we're sent.

You can now get a guaranteed (paid) listing for local events or local lowdown/news items.

​And email us with any projects or ideas you'd like us to write about.

Tessa Davis Sasha Frieze