Surrey Comet, September 2006
The background to the Festival was a couple of RSA Coffee House Challenge discussions held in Kingston. The first, in September 2006, was held in the Bentalls Starbucks, on the very open topic of "Community in Kingston". Amongst other things the discussion group homed in on the Market House as a shamefully underused cultural / community asset in the centre of town. After the discussion we walked around the Market Place, which was empty and looked at the Market House, which was, as usual, dark and unused.
The ideas that emerged, of using the Market House as a community / cultural centre, surrounded by cafes and restaurants rather than closed shops at night, provoked much interest, local media coverage (see above and below), and some encouragement. It led to a second discussion in the summer of 2007, "101 things to do with a dead Market House".
Surrey Comet, September 2006
Kingston Surrey Comet, October 2006
