Richard's new book, "Think You Can't Sing? Think Again!" is available to buy from Amazon. Aimed at dispelling the myths about tone-deafness that permeate society, this book will take the reader on a journey to discover their voice, aided by over 40 online companion videos. Illustrated by choir member Rachael Dunstan, this book is perfect for people who were thrown out of the school choir or asked to "just mouth the words".
December 2023 - Take a look at what we've been up to
As usual, LCV have been very busy in the run-up to Christmas. We've performed at many events, including our own five (yes, five!!!) Christmas concerts, and raised a record-breaking amount of money for charity.
Singing at the Tower of London with MD Brunch
On Sunday 3 December LCV were delighted to take part in another weekend of singing at the iconic Tower of London. We joined several other choirs from around the country to provide some Christmas songs for sightseers visiting the Tower. It was a bit wet, but who cares when you're singing everyone's Christmas favourites.
LCV Community Arts Day
On Saturday 9 December we held our inaugural LCV Community Arts Day, organised by the tireless Neil Clive Fowler.
LCV is full of creative people, and we thought it was about time everyone got to show off their other skills apart from singing. We had stalls selling Christmas cards, decorations, artwork, glass pieces, baked goods, and, of course, Richard's book!
Mike and Rosalind ran a very successful "paintalong" with some great results. Who knew we had so many arty folks in our midst! Maybe the Tuesday art group will find a few new members.
Isabel brought a fabulous selection of goods from her tiny artisan bakery - Oakfield Bakery. Those went down very well indeed!
All these stalls, along with the cafe, raised over £750 for our charity this year - Sarcoma UK.
Christmas Open Mic
We held our final open mic night of the year straight after the Community Arts Day, so it was a very full day indeed. As usual we set up the church with lights and mics, and enjoyed some fabulous performances.
Paddington Station Charity Collection
This year we only did one charity singing session, also for Sarcoma UK. It was at Paddington station on 14 December. Our Christmas repertoire was greatly enjoyed by the enthusiastic collectors, and the commuters, of course.
Christmas Concerts
On 15, 16 and 17 December we held our Christmas concert marathon. For the Friday and Saturday we took over St Mary-at-Hill Church - our Wednesday home - to put on matinee and evening concerts. Our original three concerts sold out weeks in advance, and we loved performing to a packed house of our family and friends. These concerts were streamed so they could be enjoyed by audiences far and wide.
Our theme this year was American Songbook Christmas, and our dress code was 'all your finery". Of course, no one in LCV needs much encouragement to dress up, so the concert was a sea of sequins, satin, djs bow ties.
As usual we held a charity collection at all our concerts. Everyone was very generous, and we even had an anonymous donor pledge to match the donations made at Saturday's concerts up to £1000!
Having sold out our first concerts so quickly - 24 hours! - we decided to put on another couple of concerts, this time at our favourite summer venue, Tobacco Dock. It was a very different atmosphere from the church, but as the audience enjoyed their mulled wines and fizz, we still made it very festive...
... possibly helped by Richard's hat and nose combo!
...and finally...
Hackney Food Drive with Aisling Bea
On 20 December we were delighted to be invited back to this annual charity event. Like last year, we sang outside the Bill Murray pub in Hackney to an audience that filled the street and included many famous faces. After performing all our Christmas songs, Richard played for a special rendition of Fairytale of New York by Nish Kumar and Aisling Bea. The drive collected a roomful of donations for the Hackney food bank.
Our amazing Inquizitors are back!
Save the date: after rehearsal on Wednesday 25 May, St Mary-at-Hill
It's sure to be the same kind of fiendishly fun evening that kept us all entertained during lockdown.
We may be able to livestream the quiz so that Out-of-Town members can enter a team too.
Teams of 8, £10 per team
BYO nibbles and drinks (white/clear only, please)
On Sunday 22 August we held our first concert since December 2019! We were up on the roof of Tobacco Dock performing a selection of old favourites and some great new songs including Stacy's Mom, Toxic, Lady and Richard's epic Rock Mashup. The audience included friends and family, and lots of old LCV-ers. It was great to see so many familiar faces.
As you might expect, the after-show party was huge fun. It was the first time many of us had seen each other in many months. Paul was our DJ, until rain stopped play and we rushed to the downstairs bar to dry off. Even the downpour couldn't dampen our spirits though, as Richard led a rousing singalong.
Do you know your Grenache from your Gavi, your Rioja from your Riesling? All that singing at LCV makes us very thirsty, so join us on this wine-tasting course, led by Alex Stevenson, wine expert and general beverage guru (and husband of Krastina). This an extensive course covering red, white and sparkling wines. You can do as many or as few of the individual sessions as you like.
The events will be hosted at Richard and Kate's (20 places available) but you don't need to attend in person. You can host a remote hub and be connected to the main event via Zoom. Hubs of 6 (or multiples of 6) are the most economical as each bottle divides neatly into 6 portions, but your hub can be any size you like. Invite a few friends round and join us on Zoom. Hub hosts will receive a pack containing a bottle of each of the wines we'll be sampling. You'll be able to order more packs if you have a larger hub.
The first session will take place later this term - dates to be advised and prices tba.
Whole course programme to follow. As we said, you don't have to sign up for the whole thing. You can do as many or as few sessions as you like.
Week 1: 05-12 June 2022
Week 2: 12-19 June 2022
Join us for either week - or both!
In June 2019 several lucky members of LCV enjoyed the choir’s FIFTH holiday on the gorgeous Greek island of Spetses. With workshops in the morning, sunbathing and exploring in the afternoon, and lots of lovely meals in the evening, the holiday is truly idyllic.
After a Covid-forced gap of two years, we are now planning our SIXTH trip there in June 2022.
Find out more
Each week will be capped at approximately 30 people. To reserve your place on Spetses 2022 we would require a non-refundable £100 deposit per person. We expect this to be very popular so register your interest early to avoid disappointment.
Welcome to summer 2025!
Hi there. Welcome to our summer term.
CONCERT
We're very pleased to announce that our end-of-term concert/party will take place at the lovely Fox and Firkin on Lewisham High Street on Sunday 17 August 2025. Tickets will be available nearer the time.