Canal meeting on Wednesday 27th November.
Our next public meeting will take place on Wednesday 27th November at Holborn Studios. 6:30pm to 8pm
Click here to see directions and an agenda.
Threat to mature trees in St Pancras
A property developer is trying to severely cut back some historic trees that form a canopy in Granary Street. This looks like a stepping stone towards a controversial proposal to intensify the adjoining hospital site.
Please visit our webpage for more information.
Open House Festival events, Sept 2024
Please see our map that identifies events and guided walks that might interest canal supporters.
Open day at the Canal Club, Belmont Wharf.
On Sunday 15th September, between 2pm and 5pm, as part of the Open House Festival, the Canal Club and its community garden will be holding a drop-in open day event.
Please take this opportunity to discover a hidden gem that the local council has been trying to destroy.
For further details click here.
Save Coal Drops Yard.
Sept 2024: Camden council has received a planning application to erect a retail pavilion in the middle of a carefully restored public open space.
Please see our web page for further details.
Angel Canal Festival - Sunday 1st September.
This popular family-friendly event is being held at City Road Basin on Sunday 1st September.
For directions, map and timetable please visit our mobile-friendly festival programme
Canal information centre has reopened in Camden.
The Regent's Canal Information Centre, located on the ground floor of the Lock Keeper's Cottage in Camden High Street, is open to the public once again.
Click here to see a guide to this facility.
Canal boat skippers wanted
The Pirate Castle charity is looking for more volunteer skippers and crew to help with its canal boating operations. Please contact them if you have a current CCBM (Certificate in Community Boat Management) or Boat Master accreditation. Alternatively, as a training centre for the National Community Boats Association, they can provide skipper and crew training. Although these are voluntary roles, travel and subsistence costs will be covered.
Vince McCartney RIP
On 7th January 2024 Vince McCartney, founder of Holborn Studios and Eagle Wharf Marina, died, aged 74, after a short illness.
Click here to find out about his contributions to our canal and our activities.
21-storey tower block at St Pancras Hospital
There is a proposal to build a 21-storey tower block on the edge of the canal at Granary Street. The height of this building was kept secret from the local communities until the third phase of the public consultation.
Click here to see our web page on this topic.
2023
Canal meeting on Wednesday 1st November.
Our next public meeting will take place on Wednesday 1st November at Holborn Studios.
6:30pm to 8pm
Click here to see directions and an agenda.
Angel Canal Festival - Sunday 3rd September.
This hugely popular festival will return to the Regent's Canal on Sunday 3rd September.
For directions, map and timetable please visit our mobile-friendly festival programme
Lawlessness on our locks
The good weather has attracted thousands of visitors to the towpath in recent weeks but sadly a few hundred of them have strayed off the public areas and onto the lock structures.
To the untrained eye this looks like harmless fun but it can be dangerous and antisocial. For more information and examples please see our latest photos or last year's BBC news item or our photos from 2013
Islington Boat Club to reopen this summer.
A year on from its abrupt closure the Islington Boat Club is preparing for another season of water-based activities. See news item in the Islington Tribune. If you are interested in working as a paddlesport coach then please visit the club's website
Regent's Wharf developers are trying to relax the light pollution rules
The Regent's Wharf developers' war against the canal and its neighbours continues. They are trying to overrule a council decision that was imposed three years ago to protect the canal's tranquil environment.
See news item in the Islington Tribune, along with objections from the Friends of Regent's Canal and the local councillors.
For further information see our webpage.
Ferris wheel gets green light from Camden Council.
On 8th June the planning committee voted in favour of a controversial Ferris Wheel that will tower over several listed buildings along the canal. (See news item in the CNJ)
However, the applicant still faces a few hurdles because the Mayor of London has the power to overrule this decision. (See letter from the local councillors)
Angel Canal Festival is saved.
In March 2023 we heard the depressing news that the Angel Canal Festival had been cancelled. It is now going ahead after all, on 3rd September, thanks to the efforts of Sasha Keir, supported by Islington Council and various stakeholders.
See the news item in the Islington Tribune.
2022
Islington Boat Club fighting for survival.
The Islington Boat Club, which has been based at City Road Basin for over 50 years, is seeking public support in order to secure an 18-month lease extension. For further information please see their website and the latest article in the Islington Tribune.
Canal information centre to reopen in Camden.
The Regent's Canal Information Centre, located on the ground floor of the Lock Keeper's Cottage in Camden High Street, was closed to the public when Starbucks vacated the premises. The new leaseholder is Black Sheep Coffee and we are currently discussing plans for the exhibition area.
If you are interested in taking part in these discussions then please send an e-mail to friendsregentscanal@gmail.com.
CRT to sell a strip of land at Commercial Road Lock.
The Canal and River Trust is proposing to dispose of a parcel of land alongside the double lock at the entrance to Limehouse Basin. If the drawings are accurate then this could undermine the future of the second lock chamber.
For further information see here.
Canal meeting on Thursday 20th October.
Our next public meeting will take place on Thursday 20th October at Holborn Studios.
Click here to see directions and a provisional agenda.
Ferris wheel at Camden Lock Market.
October 2022: The market owners are proposing to erect a Ferris wheel alongside the basin used by the waterbuses. The waterbuses will be relocated to the Dead Dog Basin beneath the Interchange Building and the recycling barges will need to alter their operations.
Please visit our web page for more information.
Closure of Islington Boat Club.
In early May the Islington Boat Club was closed to the public following an inspection of its premises.
There is no ETA or action plan available for its revival and we await an official statement from a council spokesperson. As at 8th August 2022 the only information available in the public domain is a news report in the Islington Tribune
For further information on the council's strategy for this site, see here
East End Canal Festival.
The Art Pavilion, Mile End Park, Clinton Rd, London E3 4Q.
Sat 16th and Sun 17th July. 11am to 5pm
See flyer (PDF format)
QMU: bulky building alongside Mile End Lock.
July 2022: Tower Hamlets council has received another planning application from Queen Mary University to demolish some modestly sized halls of residence and to erect a 7-storey building next to the Lock Keeper's Cottage. This is an improvement on the previous plan (rejected in 2019) but the size of the proposed new building is still disproportionate to its surroundings.
Please visit our web page for more information.
Barnsbury Estate: bulky towers at west portal of the Islington Tunnel
June 2022: Islington council has received an aggressive planning application to build three tall buildings alongside the Regent's Canal in Barnsbury. Their height exceeds the council's 30 metre limit, but the developers will be looking for every legal loophole or trick to override any democratically-led decisions made by the council.
Please visit our web page for more information.
UPDATE: This is going to the planning committee on 29th November 2022
Another threat to Holborn Studios
On Thursday 10th March the Hackney planning committee will decide whether to support or reject an extremely unpopular plan to demolish Holborn Studios.
Please see our bulletin on this topic and please visit our web page for more information.
UPDATE: The committee voted to reject the plan. The buildings and the studios have been saved again!
2021
Erosion of green corridor in Camden Town
Camden Council has received a plan that will remove a tree to make way for a 4-storey building at the Baynes Street entrance to the canal. This is in a unique stretch of the canal that currently provides a welcome contrast to the hard landscaping elsewhere in Camden. Click here for more information.
Intensive redevelopment at Sturt's Lock
Hackney Council has received a plan that could change the character of Sturt's Lock forever. It could also result in irreversible changes to the dual lock configuration. Click here for more information.
STOP PRESS: this plan is going to the Hackney planning committee on Wednesday 1st September 2021
Del Brenner RIP
On 12th January 2021 Del Brenner, one of our most passionate and committed campaigners, passed away after a short illness.
We are in the process of archiving some of the many illustrated documents that he produced during his tireless fights against overdevelopment.
See here
for some examples.
Here are some tributes to Del:-
Islington Tribune
Hackney Gazette
Waterways World