The London Minute ⏰ Tuesday 17 June 2025
Hunt for cinema sex attacker, Oxford Street survey results, e-bike firms fined + local pub paintings in the New York Times
🌤️ Good morning London. Just a heads-up that today’s edition starts with serious news about an incident which may be triggering for some. I am sorry that sometimes the newsletter has to include such grim updates, but it’s there with ‘safety first’ in mind. Click here to skip past it to the rest of the news. Or click here to get to the ‘better news’ section.
Here’s Tuesday’s London Minute.
🚨 Police are hunting for a man who tried to rape a woman in a Finchley Road cinema last week. The victim, in her 30s, is being supported by specialist officers. - The Met Office published this appeal for information.
⮑ CCTV footage of a distinctive-looking man was shared by police here.
⮑ Leading the Met’s investigation, Detective Chief Inspector Paul Ridley said:
“We are steadfast in our commitment to take those who pose the biggest threat off our streets, so women and girls in London can feel safe going about their daily lives. This horrific attack happened in the middle of the day in a busy establishment – highlighting the brazen and opportunistic nature of the offender. It is really important we find this man as soon as possible.”
🗞️ Tuesday’s news links:
🏗️ A new housing block in Acton currently under construction will be a UK-first in providing homes exclusively for women and survivors of domestic abuse struggling to find a home. - Philip James Lynch, Local Democracy Reporter, BBC London News.
🚦 Two thirds of Londoners support plans to pedestrianise Oxford Street, according to survey results published overnight by the Mayor’s office.
So far no new visual plans have been shared, but ‘detailed traffic and highway proposals’ are now being developed. These will show pedestrianisation plans for almost a mile of road between Orchard Street and Oxford Circus up to Great Portland Street. These will be consulted on later this year.
Bosses of shops including Ikea, Selfridges and John Lewis are quoted in the Mayor’s press release, backing the plans.
Beware potentially misleading headlines about this today, such as ‘Oxford St pedestrianisation: Sadiq Khan approves traffic-free mile’ - The plans have not yet been approved or even finalised.
🚔 Two teenagers were hospitalised after a double stabbing at a park in Paddington yesterday afternoon. - Rafi Mauro-Benady, MyLondon.
🚲 Bike hire firms Lime and Forest have been fined more than £30,000 in the latest crackdown on abandoned e-bikes in London. - Ross Lydall, The Standard.
🅿️ Hackney has ‘significantly fewer’ disabled parking spaces than Blue Badge holders. - Josef Steen, Local Democracy Reporter, Hackney Citizen.
🏡 London’s housing crisis will only get worse unless UK Government funds go to providing council housing at social rent, according to the Museum of Homelessness, which shared its Spending Review reaction here.
🌳 Campaigners in Potters Bar say they are at the ‘front line of huge changes to London's green belt’ and fear plans for Europe's largest cloud and AI data centre will destroy it. - Tom Edwards, BBC London News.
🏅 Freddie Hudson, Head of Arsenal in the Community, has been awarded an MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours for his nearly 40 years of work dedicated to social inclusion in Islington. - Mike Brooke, Islington Gazette.
✌️ Better news
This section aims to include better news from all over London. It’s a wide range of things, and as always you’re welcome to submit yours here. My hope is that it inspires more civic pride and community spirit, new plans in your calendar and a few smiles or laughs along the way.
💚 Islington’s vegetarian Indian restaurant Omnom has a new fully veggie breakfast & brunch menu, which Clare from The Little London Vegan reviews here.
📍 The Soho History Club has been relaunched.
👑 The UK's first ever exhibition dedicated to the life of French queen Marie Antoinette is to open at V&A South Kensington in September. - BBC London News.
⮑ Free but limited tickets for preview events are here.
🎨 A giant tea bag, blue masks, the art market circus, abstract painting history and woven heads make up Tabish Khan’s top five London exhibitions for June.
🖼️ A new immersive exhibition chronicling the history of the human species, presented by Sir David Attenborough, is set to open at the Natural History Museum this week. - Megan Howe shares the first look at it in The Standard.
🎨 Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara’s huge new retrospective show is on at the Hayward Gallery. - See what else is happening in a busy week on the South Bank here.
🍻 South London-based artist Lydia Wood was on the front of the New York Times newspaper at the weekend. The report highlights her Pub Project, in which Lydia is drawing every pub in London. - She talks about it in this video and the New York Times report by Amelia Nierenberg is here, with the headline: ‘How Long Does It Take to Draw a Picture of Every Pub in London?’
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📌 “There's just 5 days to go to the Hilly Fields Fayre. This event is run entirely by an army of volunteers who give up a few hours of their time to make the event the huge success it has become. If you are interested in helping out, we still have a few slots left to fill namely the early set up from 7.30-9.30 or 9.30-11.30, we need 12 stewards from 8.30-12.00, raffle ticket sellers after 12 noon, 2 shifts to fill on the BBQ team and helpers for the breakdown team after 4.30 and last but not least cake bakers! The more cakes the merrier to be dropped off on the day at the tea stall. Without the volunteers there would be no Fayre so we are very grateful to all our volunteers for whatever time they can offer. If you can help, please email volunteer@brockleysociety.org.uk” - Thanks to Minute subscriber Damon for sharing this.
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