Here’s a high-quality version of ‘Please Sell No More Drink To My Father’, as sung by Elsa Lanchester, the opening verse of which is quoted at the start of my recent story Reconstruction Monument.
The story itself was inspired by the closure of The Charlie Chaplin in Elephant and Castle, and the general way in which South London, a long-maligned and neglected section of the city, is presently being carved up and torn down. Reaction to change is often met with nostalgia, which can easily gloss over the specifics of history. It can also mask or attempt to excuse awful behaviour and attitudes.
Since writing this story, closure of the Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre has been confirmed, which will displace a large Latinx community.
Tom Druker 