- Playing
- The Gospel of Lido
- From
- Miranda Diboll
"A little oasis in the middle of the city"
That's a lido.
"A Lido, in the United Kingdom and some other countries, refers to a public outdoor swimming pool and surrounding facilities, or part of a beach where people can swim, lie in the sun or participate in water sports. Over a hundred Lidos are still open.
The term Lido comes from the name of a place in Venice where bathing took place.
The Golden Age of new Lidos was in the 1930s when swimming became very popular and 169 were built across the the UK as recreational facilities by local councils. Many have closed as cheap foreign holidays became more appealing, but the remaining Lidos have a dedicated following of supporters"
-From Wikipedia
This is the story of three London lidos and the people around them. One is under threat of demolition as a band of supporters, 'SPLASH', with fond family memories fight local government so that future generations can enjoy it. Another is a thriving business, the largest lido in London and a swimming club with members who will swim in all weathers! The final lido was closed years ago and is now home to the some of London's homeless people*.
Will 'SPLASH' save the Southwark Park Lido? What happens in Tooting Bec on Christmas Day every year? Will the residents of London Fields Lido have a home for much longer?
*London Fields Lido is now an 'Urban Beach' and is set to open in Spring 2007: http://www.hackney.gov.uk/c-londonfields-lido
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Piece Description
"A little oasis in the middle of the city" That's a lido. "A Lido, in the United Kingdom and some other countries, refers to a public outdoor swimming pool and surrounding facilities, or part of a beach where people can swim, lie in the sun or participate in water sports. Over a hundred Lidos are still open. The term Lido comes from the name of a place in Venice where bathing took place. The Golden Age of new Lidos was in the 1930s when swimming became very popular and 169 were built across the the UK as recreational facilities by local councils. Many have closed as cheap foreign holidays became more appealing, but the remaining Lidos have a dedicated following of supporters" -From Wikipedia This is the story of three London lidos and the people around them. One is under threat of demolition as a band of supporters, 'SPLASH', with fond family memories fight local government so that future generations can enjoy it. Another is a thriving business, the largest lido in London and a swimming club with members who will swim in all weathers! The final lido was closed years ago and is now home to the some of London's homeless people*. Will 'SPLASH' save the Southwark Park Lido? What happens in Tooting Bec on Christmas Day every year? Will the residents of London Fields Lido have a home for much longer? *London Fields Lido is now an 'Urban Beach' and is set to open in Spring 2007: http://www.hackney.gov.uk/c-londonfields-lido
Musical Works
| Title | Artist | Album | Label | Year | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summertime | Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince | Greatest Hits. | Jive | 1998 | 00:22 |
| Springboard | The Arlenes | The Arlenes. | Lido | 1999 | 00:28 |
Related Website
Chris Chambers
Posted on March 21, 2007 at 11:19 AM | Permalink
Review of The Gospel of Lido
As a child I used to go to Ruislip Lido in West London. A chink of summer sun and my two sisters, two cousins and I would gleefully head for the water. It's more than thirty years ago now but I still remember the clashing mix of calm and chaos, sound and silence.
I thought this programme might bring those memories crashing back. It was not to be. Where's the sound? Where are those memories. I felt detached. If you're going to make a story about lidos then the lido has to be the star and not just have a walk-on part.
There were good speakers but I wasn't really interested in what they had to say. In fact, I didn't care what they had to say. I wanted them to talk about the Lido as though it was their best friend. I wanted anecdotes.
It would be hard to find a spot for this in any US programming. It's very British and the content makes it too parochial although the concept is anything but - lakes in an urban landscape.