Martin in Tower Hamlets is 81-90 and is Cloth Trader.
Martin, with his business partner Philip, runs the last remaining cloth merchants in Spitalfields, East End, which used to be the centre of the cloth trade in London. Their business was recently burned to the ground and they thought it was lost forever. Recently they have garnered a lot of local support and have now rebuilt their business back from the ashes.
Film Maker: Laura Kloss, Nick Shaw
Questions & Answers
- What's your first memory of London? My first memory of London is the bombing during the War.
- What do you miss when you're away from London? There is a great beauty in London, if you have time to look at it. You take it for granted, but if you go away from it, there is something really special about London to me because I am a Londoner, the city of London is really beautiful.
- What's your favourite neighbourhood? Belgravia.
- What's your favourite building? I like the Nash buildings in Regents Park.
- What's your ideal day out in London? When we go on our Christmas lunch at the Ritz.
- What's your ideal night out in London? I like to go out eat, getting dressed up and going out for dinner.
- What's your most hated building? The Shard.
- What's the best view in London? Parliament Hill.
- What's your favourite open space? Hampstead Heath its incredible.
- What's your favourite bar, pub or restaurant? We go to the Library Bar at the Lanesborough Hotel.
- What's the most interesting shop? Harrods is the most interesting shop.
- What's been your most memorable night out in London? Our night at the Mansion House with Michael Bear the Lord Mayor from a few years ago.
- How would you like to spend your ideal day off in London? Going out for a strunz, going out for lunch.
- Where would you take someone visiting from out of town? I used to take people to the House of Lords. If you can get in to the House of Lords it would be a wonderful thing, I think.
- What's the worst journey you've had to make in London? To work every bleedin morning! The cyclists, you can tell Mr Boris Johnson when he makes the cyclists have the same laws as the motorists and pay for their road tax and they overtake on the outside instead of the inside then less of them will get killed.
- What's your personal London landmark? Berwick Street, the first post on the corner of Berwick Street and Noel Street that is where I started of my person business, from that post was my office.
- Who's your favourite fictional Londoner? Bill Sykes.
- What's your favourite London film, book or documentary? Spitalfields Life.
- If you could travel to any time period in London, past or future, where would you go? 1700s.
- For you, who is the ultimate Londoner? Sir Winston Churchill.