Colville LAUNCH SPECIAL

community history project issue 13 October 2015 under the flyover

Slideshow talk by Tom Vague Saturday May 14 2016 3-4 pm North Kensington Library 108 Ladbroke Grove W11 1PZ with accompanying Reclaim North Kensington Library petition signing at the entrance on Ladbroke Grove 1-3 pm

50 years ago on May 15 1966 the World Heavyweight Champion Muhammad Ali visited the London Free School children’s group, run by the Carnival founder Rhaune Laslett at 34 Tavistock Crescent. As well as Muhammad Ali and the first Notting Hill Carnival/Fayre procession, the Free School encompassed adult education, adventure playgrounds, auto-destructive art and Pink Floyd gigs. Do you remember Ali’s visit to the area? If so please come along and share your memories. Colville 1966 project 2016 Vague 83 The baby being held by Ali in the photo above, which should be a mural on Tavistock Crescent, is Joey Ricketts, who now lives in Melbourne, Australia. His father ran the West Indian Barbershop on All Saints Road between Tavistock Road and Crescent. His earliest memories are of the Shanty Town adventure playground in the gardens behind the old houses to the east of St Luke’s Road.

Colville 1966 Muhammad Ali and the London Free School

Colville Community History Project issue 15 May 2016 It’s Your Colville www.colvillecom.com contact tomvague@gmail.com Getting it straight in Notting Hill Gate

May 15 1966 The World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Muhammad Ali came to Notting Hill to visit Rhaune Laslett’s London Free School play group at 34 Tavistock Crescent, in the run up to his second Henry Cooper fight at Highbury on May 21. Ali was photographed talking to the kids and in the doorway with his RAAS bodyguard escort, which was organised by Michael de Freitas aka Michael X, as the street became blocked by onlookers. Rhaune Laslett is to Ali’s right in the picture above. Her house, which was demolished in the 70s, was to the east of the footbridge on the south side of Tavistock Crescent —over the Kensington border in Westminster—around about the site of the current playground, which continues the tradition of her Shanty Town.

‘Bodyguard for Cassius 15.5.66. 24 broad shouldered members of the Racial Adjustment Action Society guarded Cassius Clay today, when he visited a Notting Hill terrace house to talk to 50 coloured and white children of the area. The visit was stage-managed by Michael X, 33-year-old Michael de Freitas, Trinidadian leader of the society, Britain’s closest counterpart to the American Black Muslims. Mr de Freitas marshalled his men into two solid ranks from the front door of the house to the pavement to keep back a crowd of 300 multi-racial Notting Hill residents who packed Tavistock Crescent to cheer or boo the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion. Photo shows the bodyguard for Cassius Clay line up outside the house in Notting Hill today.’

The day before Ali visited Notting Hill he was photo-graphed in Hyde Park with Everton fans down for the cup final. The Grove newsletter of May 23 1966 reported ‘Muhammad Ali visits W11. World Heavyweight Champ-ion Muhammad Ali paid what was supposed to be a private visit to the Play Group of the London Free School at 3 pm last Sunday. But for the entire neighbourhood it was one of those days when there was something in the air from first thing in the morning. Maybe it was the steady flow of well-washed children into 34 Tavistock Crescent, maybe it was the dozen or so determined looking helpers who dutifully gathered to make sure that no harm came to the great man. Whatever it was, Muhammad Ali had been in the house for only 10 min-utes and the street was blocked with expectant people. What a Sunday afternoon! The newspapers, bless them, had also heard and the cameramen waited impatiently. ‘Inside, Muhammad gently sat down on the floor and talked with the children, signing countless autographs. Half an hour passed quickly, and party dresses got crumpled, carefully brushed hair wildly ruffled. But no-one minded, least of all Muhammad himself. It’s not often you have the chance to climb all over the World Heavyweight Champion! After a short word with the grown-ups, Mohammad went out and stood in the porch, shaking hands and talking to anyone who could get near enough. The crowd went wild and he just grinned. “Are you happy?”, a voice shouted. “Yes, I’m happy here”, he replied, almost in a whisper. Then it was time to go. After some time a path was cleared through the cheering crowd, and our visitor was gone. The street full of people, sun shining, warm day.’ Michael de Freitas wrote in his ‘Mrs M and Mrs L’ article in The Grove: ‘From Mrs May McCash’s house on Tavistock Road to Mrs Rhaune Laslett’s on Tavistock Crescent is a very short walk indeed. Walking at the briskest of paces, the fattest man in the world could not shed an ounce of fat on that journey, but he will find that not only would he have entered a different street but a different world. May, as I call her quite affectionately, has been a friend of mine for longer than I can remember. She was born, I believe, an Irish Catholic. Today she is studying Islam—never among all these lost souls in the Ghetto have I seen a person so willing to learn—She seldom leaves her bed, let alone her room, still her com-pelling personality dominates the street and all come to visit and seek her counsel. From the tiny tots—“she’s my auntie May” — to the grandmothers—“The kindest, warmest person I know”—May is the sweetheart, the prostitutes’ darling, always a kind word for anyone. May Allah help me in guiding her on the path she’s chosen. ‘Mrs Laslett is a more recent acquaintance. The Free School brought us together. Her home is always full— sometimes as many as 50 kids playing there. There’s nowhere else to go and she takes them all in. It’s hard work but she revels in it somehow. I’ll convert her some-day, Islam needs women like this. She’s so sweet that I,

whom the papers say is a White Hater, go to her home at least twice weekly to get a glimpse of beauty. I need this reassurance that all whites aren’t devils. May the blessings of Allah be upon her. ‘On Sunday the area had a treat. The greatest Heavy-weight Champion of all time, Muhammad Ali came to visit. I asked him to come. The Free School asked me to ask him to come. The national papers pretended not to know the truth. Some of them looked for sinister motives behind the visit, but I will tell you why he came. It was because I told him about bedridden May collecting pen-nies so the kids could have pencils to draw and play with. Because of Mrs Laslett, soon to be confined to a wheelchair, moving around faster than anyone in the Grove helping, truly helping, anyone who asks for help, and often they’re too weak or stupid to ask. Because I love these people, the kids, all 50 of them, black ones and white ones. Because he is a kind and loving man and will help anyone he can. ‘We live in what is described as an affluent society, we spend thousands of millions of pounds on arms and other unfinished useless projects, and our children have to be taken off the streets by women like this. Shame. Our representative in Parliament pretends our children and indeed their parents don’t exist except at election time. Wake up people, the eyes of the world looked in on you and you made history. Yesterday your children played in the streets, today your neighbours open their doors for them. Open the other doors. Let’s see what tomorrow will bring.’

In his autobiography ‘From Michael de Freitas to Michael X’, Michael Abdul Malik elaborated on Ali’s visit: ‘Mohammad loves children. He can make direct contact with them and he’s very happy when he’s with them. During the evening we spent in the ghetto he must have chatted and played with something like 70 of them. There was no discrimination. I’d already explained to him that I didn’t believe in segregation of children and that at the London Free School, white and black people worked voluntarily together for the good of the community. He didn’t query it. He figured I knew best how things should be done in Britain and I rather think he was advised before he left the States that over here he’d find things a little different. Anyway white and black children met the champion and found him equally happy to see them. He would turn up in a room and sit on the floor with them and take pictures with them. The kids would jump all over him. Sometimes you couldn’t see him for children. ‘Mohammad went into quite a few houses and an aura of excitement hung over the whole area while he was there. He captivated everyone he met and the serious questions that arose in his mind, but that he was too polite to ask people, were unleashed on me later: how much do these people earn? Can they live on it? What sort of rents do they pay? Where else does the money go. We’d arranged to have a photographer along and he snapped the champion all the way. There was a lot of happiness in the ghetto that night. For many ghetto people one of their proudest possessions is the picture on the wall of Mohammad Ali making friends with the children of the family.’

‘Shortly before the fight took place, I was showing Mohammad some essays I’d written about the English scene, one of which ended with the words: ‘I know there will be blood on the streets, white man. And it is my con-cern to see that the blood will not be that of my people.’ Mohammad read it and shook his head. “You don’t want to shed your blood”, he said. “After the fight I’ll give you something.” After the fight he gave me his shorts spat-tered with Henry Cooper’s blood. “Here’s the blood of an Englishman for you”, he said. A boxing fan has offered a lot of money for those shorts, but I treasure them to this day.’ Muhammad Ali’s tour of Notting Hill inevitably ended up in El Rio café at 127 Westbourne Park Road, where Michael attempted to take over proceedings, and have only halal food served to impress the Nation of Islam, causing a pre-big fight bout between himself and the Rio owner Frank Crichlow (of later Mangrove fame). In February 1966 Muhammad Ali had been reclassified by the Louisville draft board as 1-A from 1-Y. Whereupon he made his famous anti-Vietnam war statement, which was seen as refusing to serve: “I ain’t got nothing against no Viet Cong, no Viet Cong never called me nigger.” He was due to have a bout in Chicago in March with the then World Boxing Association heavyweight champion Ernie Terrelll, after the WBA stripped Ali of the title when he joined the Nation of Islam, but the press furore over Ali’s anti-war stance led to the fight being cancelled by the Illinois Athletic Commission over technicalities. Therefore Ali went to Canada and Europe to fight championship bouts with George Chuvalo, Henry Cooper, Brian London and Karl Mildenberger.

Michael X is said to have paraded Ali’s shorts spattered with Henry Cooper’s blood around the Notting Hill area. He later famously swapped the sporting memorabilia for John Lennon’s hair. Michael de Freitas became Michael X/Michael Abdul Malik in 1965 when he befriended Malcolm X and gave the American Black Power leader a guided tour of the area. In the black photo history book, ‘Notting Hill in the 60s’ by Charlie Phillips and Mike Phillips, he is thus described: “He was a visionary right, all this Carnival down in the Grove is down to Michael, you know… he’s talking to this woman who’s running a neighbourhood thing down on Tavistock Road, Rhaune Laslett, and they twos up, and that kick off from there... I ain’t saying make an epitaph to him but...” Michael was a key figure in the formation of the London Free School group, along with John ‘Hoppy’ Hopkins and Pete Jenner. In the minutes of an LFS meeting in February: ‘M de Freitas suggested booking of Porchester Hall for successive weeks for different types of fund-raising functions:: poetry, jam sessions, dancing, festivals. Money has to come from the people who are involved anyway, and this is quite a good way to get it. The method would have to be businesslike, performers would have to be paid. Porchester Hall costs 28 guineas and would hold 700 people dancing. One might get £1 from each person with a little care. Bigger people like Brian Epstein could well be interested in local talent. It was difficult to lose money at this sort of affair...Joe Boyd could be asked to start thinking about this... Essam and de Freitas had ideas about West Indian contacts, steel bands, etc; Jenner about pop groups.’

Acklam before the flyover ‘Muhammad Ali May 15 1966. American boxer Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) shakes hands with fans during a visit to a children’s home in Notting Hill, west London, 34 Tavistock Crescent. Michael X on left in dark tie and suit with beard. Rhaune Laslett to the left of Ali, partially obscured, Carnival organiser, whose house they were visiting. Photographer R McPhedran. Collection Daily Express. Hulton Archive, Getty Images, Unique House, 21-31 Woodfield Road, London W9 2BA.’ In the photo on page 3 captioned ‘The Greatest. World heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali visits a children’s home in Notting Hill, London’, the photographer Howard Bingham is on the far right at 34 Tavistock Crescent. Susan McMahon has noted her sister sitting next to Ali in the living room picture on page 5, to the left of him laughing, and her brother in the left hand corner. In The Grove newsletter of May 23 London Free School groups update there was: ‘Families group, led by Rhaune Laslett at 34 Tavistock Crescent, late after-noons. Teen group, led by Mike Laslett, meets most evenings at 7.30 at LFS (26 Powis Terrace). English (basic), led by Michael de Freitas, Tuesday 7.30 at the LFS. Music, led by Dave Tomlin (of the Third Ear Band), Friday at 7.30 at LFS. Trade unions, led by Marc Kornfeld. Sundays 2.30 at LFS. Photography, led by Graham Keen, Sundays. Housing, led by Peter Jenner (who went on to manage Pink Floyd), Thursdays 7.30 at LFS. The following groups are in the planning stage: that is, we hope to start them in the near future. Drama-Improvisation, Maths and Statistics, Sciences, Econom-ics, Law, Senior Citizens group for old people. The most successful groups so far have been the Play Group for children aged 5 to 11, and the Teen group.’ ‘The London Free School Housing Group have joined the Social Action group, which is being organised by the Notting Hill Community Workshop. The first move has been to set up a neighbourhood service centre, which is being run by Mrs Laslett at 34 Tavistock Crescent. In effect this means that Mrs Laslett is available almost any time of the day for people to drop in and discuss their housing and welfare problems. It could prove to be a very exciting experiment. What we want to do is give people the opportunity to break down their fear of the authorities and the landlords, and we think this can be done if people act together...’ The May 23 newsletter also announced a ‘Street Carnival to be held in July (although it turned out to be in September). Will any of our neighbours willing to participate, or with any suggestions, please contact John Hopkins PAR 1489 or Rhaune Laslettt PAR 9883. May 27 Friday 7.30 pm at All Saints Church Hall in Powis Gardens, young and old welcome to a grand social organised by LFS. Music, dancing, bring your friends and family. May 28 Saturday 2 pm at Porchester Hall, March for Peace pageant, organised by Peace Pledge Union, on foot around district. May 30 to June 4 the adventure playground on Telford Road, Ladbroke Grove stays open 10 am to 8 pm for the Whitsun Holiday.’

Acklam Hall—Subterania

‘Treat for young Shelley May 17 1966. The World Heavy-weight Champion Cassius Clay, of Kentucky USA, takes time-off from training to sign autographs at the ringside in the Territorial Army Gymnasium at the White City this afternoon. The lucky little girl in the ring with Cassius is 2-year old Shelley Obermuller from Acton.’ Ali had previously trained at the White City gym (of which only a small section remains, the rest is occupied by flats), when he was still officially going by the name of Cassius Clay, in preparation for his first fight with Henry Cooper at Wembley Empire Pool in 1963. The Shepherd’s Bush Gazette and Hammersmith Post reported on May 19 ’66: ‘World Heavyweight Champion Cassius Clay – “Call me Ali” – has been belting the leather at the TA Barracks of White City for the past two weeks. Clay is training for the defence of his world crown against British and European champion Henry Cooper at the Arsenal Football Stadium on Saturday.’ ‘Cassius Clay, World Heavyweight Champion, looking pretty relaxed despite the perspira-tion, has the bandages on his hands readjusted by manager Angelo Dundee during training at the White City TA barracks.’ Dundee is next to Ali at the gym in picture 3 from R McPhedran’s ‘The Greatest’ series. The second Ali-Cooper fight is summed up in the photo captions thus: ‘American boxer and World Heavyweight Champion Muhammad Ali throws a long right to British challenger Henry Cooper’s injured left eye in the 6th round of their World Heavyweight Championship fight at Highbury stadium, London. Ali retained his title after the referee George Smith stopped the fight shortly after the 6th round began due to Cooper’s eye injury. May 21 1966 credit Keystone.’ ‘Sport, Boxing, England. May 21 1966, World Heavyweight Championship at Highbury, London, Muhammad Ali beat Henry Cooper, Great Britain’s heavyweight champion with blood streaming from a cut left eye as referee Smith calls him over to inspect the damage. The referee stopped the fight in the 6th round in favour of USA’s Muhammad Ali who retained the title.’ Ali returned to London again in August 1966 to defend his title, this time against Brian London at the Earl’s Court Exhibition Hall. London was KO’d in the 3rd round after Ali landed 11 punches in 3 seconds. Tragically, in the run-up to the Ali-Cooper fight, on May 17 the black British middleweight boxing champion Randolph Turpin committed suicide after being declared bankrupt. Turpin had become the World Middleweight Champion in 1951 when he defeated Sugar Ray Robinson. On May 21, the day Ali fought Cooper, in Notting Hill Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones and John Lennon of the Beatles were photographed walking up Portobello Road with their partners Chrissie Shrimpton and Cynthia Lennon after a party. The following week on May 27, when the Rolling Stones performed their number 1 hit ‘Paint It Black’ on ‘Ready Steady Go’, Mick Jagger wore a red grenadier guards tunic from I Was Lord Kitchener’s Valet boutique at 293 Portobello Road—thus instigating the 60s military jacket fashion trend. On June 1 Bob Dylan went electric at the Royal Albert Hall.

in England,” or little more than “a couple of sessions in some terribly seamy rooming house of Michael X’s.” In April the first LFS newsletter The Gate reported that ‘the photography group was last seen at a ‘happening’ at the Marquee club, surrounded by people dancing around in cardboard boxes. The teenage group have been playing folk music and listening to Dylan records.’ 1966, the year the decade exploded in Notting Hill, also featured the Beachboys, Beatles, Cream and Stones at I Was Lord Kitchener’s Valet, Cat Stevens’ ’Portobello Road’ song, local film scenes in ‘Blow Up’, ’Alfie’, ’Morgan’ and ’Jemima and Johnny’, Nancy Sinatra, Twiggy and Jane Asher photo shoots in the area, the World Cup in English hands on Ladbroke Grove on the way back from Wembley and the beginning of Westway construction.

At the inauguration of the London Free School in March 1966, the group announced that they ‘hoped to run some local dances, carnivals in the summer, playgroups for children, street theatre, and so on.’ Jeff Nuttall recalled in ‘Bomb Culture’ that ‘ultimately the Free School did nothing but put out a local underground newsletter and organise the two Notting Hill Gate Festivals, which were, admittedly, models of exactly how the arts should operate, festive, friendly, audacious, a little mad and all taking place on demolition sites, in the streets, and in a magnificently institutional church hall.’ John Hopkins called the LFS “a scam” and “an idea that really should-n’t be inflated with too much content, because there really wasn’t too much content.” Pete Jenner said it was either the first “public manifestation of the underground