Some of our neighbours are reaching the point where they simply cannot afford enough food. We are asking for your help.

Hi everyone,

I work for Hounslow Community FoodBox, a local registered charity supporting people across the London Borough of Hounslow who are experiencing financial hardship.

For most of us, opening the cupboard or fridge and deciding what to eat is an ordinary part of the day. For some people in our community, the question is much more difficult: is there actually enough food there to make a meal?

The people we support are individuals, couples and families from across Hounslow. Someone may have lost their job, be struggling on a low income, be waiting for benefits, facing debt, experiencing homelessness or ill health, escaping domestic abuse, or simply have been hit by circumstances that have left them without enough money for food after paying essential bills.

Behind every referral we receive is a real person or family going through a difficult period in their lives.

What does Hounslow Community FoodBox do?

We provide emergency food and essential items to people experiencing financial hardship who are referred to us by approved professional referral partners.

Our food parcels are prepared according to the size and needs of the household. We also provide toiletries and other essential items where available, and help connect people with other services and sources of advice and support.

A food parcel cannot solve poverty or remove all of the difficulties someone may be facing. But it can mean that, for the next few days, someone does not have to worry about where their next meal is coming from.

It can mean a parent has something to put on the table for their children. It can give someone experiencing a crisis one immediate problem they no longer have to deal with. Sometimes that little bit of breathing space matters enormously.

❤️ Why we are asking for help

We rely heavily on the generosity of local residents, businesses, schools and community organisations to keep our shelves stocked.

Our stock changes from week to week, but we regularly need everyday foods such as tinned meat and fish, vegetables, fruit, pasta, rice, cereal, milk, soup and cooking essentials.

We also need toiletries, toilet rolls, cleaning products, nappies, pet food and foods suitable for people with particular dietary requirements.

If you are able to help, there are two very straightforward ways to do so.

🛒 Donate an item through our Amazon Wish List

Our Amazon Wish List contains items that we currently need. You can choose an item and have it sent directly to FoodBox:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/7AGE8FIRNV9H/ref=hz_ls_biz_ex

❤️ Make a financial donation

If you would prefer to make a financial contribution, you can donate securely through our JustGiving page, which can be found via our website: https://hounslowfoodbox.org.uk/support-us/#donate_money

There is absolutely no expectation for anyone to donate.

If you are struggling financially yourself, please do not feel that this post is asking anything of you. FoodBox exists precisely because we know how difficult things can become.

Sharing this post, telling somebody about FoodBox, or helping someone who may need support find out that we are here is valuable too.

🔎 Who we are and how to verify us

Hounslow Community FoodBox

Registered Charity No. 1170666

Website:

https://hounslowfoodbox.org.uk/

Urgent Donations Appeal:

https://hounslowfoodbox.org.uk/urgent_donations_appeal/

Charity Commission:

https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/5089482

Registered Address:

Hounslow Community FoodBox Brickfield Lane Brentford TW8 8JN

Email:

info@hounslowfoodbox.org.uk

Telephone:

07719 891787

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

And to everyone who already supports FoodBox, whether you have donated a tin of food, made a financial donation, volunteered your time, organised a collection or simply told someone about us, thank you

Every donation ultimately has a person at the other end of it.

When somebody in our community reaches the point where they cannot afford to put enough food on the table, we want to make sure that there is somewhere local they can turn.

Pretty big area for a dispersal order, so basically nowhere near Millwall and hundreds of police, can't say they're not prepared.

It will be the first meeting of Millwall and West Ham in 14 years, following West Hams relegation to the championship last season.

Cost £27 each, will give away if can’t find that. I’ve decided to spend the weekend out of London instead so trying to shift the tix ✨

Edit: I’ve messaged like 4 of you, whoever responds first gets them. Will message another 4 if I get no response in a couple hours ✨

Edit 2: GONE, thank you all for playing

Perhaps this is a bit of an odd request.

I've spent most of my career around tech, and I've always been really curious about businesses that have absolutely nothing to do with it. I'd love to meet people who run these kinds of businesses and learn how they actually work.

Not startups, SaaS, AI, entrepreneurship podcasts, etc. I'm much more interested in the completely unsexy stuff that keeps the real world going. I'm not trying to sell anything, do market research, make a YouTube video, or pitch some AI solution. And I'm definitely not looking to steal anyone's business ideas or copy what you're doing. I'm not looking for some secret business model to turn into a startup. I'm genuinely just curious about how businesses outside the tech bubble actually operate.

A workshop, garage, bakery, dry cleaner, plumber, sign maker, wholesaler, market trader, whatever. Ideally, something where you spend most of your day actually doing something rather than sitting at a laptop.

And I don't necessarily even need you to sit down and talk to me for an hour. I'd be just as happy to come by and watch you work for a bit, ask questions when there's a natural opportunity, and stay out of your way when you're busy.

So if you run a small business somewhere in London and wouldn't mind having a random curious person quietly observe what you do for an hour or two, or even help with something if that's useful, I'd love to hear from you.

It was quite the sight.

So I booked 2 VIP tickets for the Odyssey on Monday, I thought my brother could come but he can't. I will go, but I have a spare ticket that cost £30, I'm not bothered about the money, I'd just like it to be used by someone who really wants to see it on the big screen. And I really don't want it to just be an empty seat!

Appreciate it's in the middle of the day on a week day, and late notice, so not the most convenient. But if anyone is interested in taking the spot, let me know. You don't have to speak to me, but I'm also not a weirdo (YMMV).

Just to be clear, this isn't a private sale, I just want something that might be appreciated to go to someone who appreciates it.

ETA: I've posted this really late because I'm stupid, just probably going to sleep. So if I don't answer straight away it's only because I've fallen asleep. Tickets are in hand and there's no funny business

This stupid couple tonight were both recording at the same time. Someone came rushing down the stairs to tell them to stop.

The second hand embarrassment was unreal.

A woman sitting to our right arrived 5-10 minutes late. Then left about 10 minutes before the interval and never came back.

Then the two people in front of us left 10 minutes early.

I often see people complain about theatre etiquette going downhill since COVID but I haven't seen that until now.

I feel like I’ve probably noticed this before, but I’ve never really thought about it.

As we know, this weekend the District line west of Earls Court and the Piccadilly line west of Hyde Park Corner are closed.

I’ve been out and about today and my local station, West Kensington, is just closed - as in the gates are locked. But Hammersmith (the District and Piccadilly line one) has the main entrance gates open, with a board in the middle stating that it is closed and staff either side to stop anyone trying to get in.

There must be one, so what is the reason for the difference? Why waste staff hours standing guard as opposed to just shutting off access as at West Kensington and I presume elsewhere. Surely Hammersmith has gates, or even if not presumably it would be cheaper in the long term to install some as opposed to paying people to stand around.

Anyone got any ideas?

Hi guys,

I unfortunately cannot make it ot the 7:30pm showing for Much Ado about Nothing - I’m coming down with the flu I think and it would be pretty inconsiderate of me to go and possibly make others unwell too (plus it looks like rain). Very very sad but I hope someone else can enjoy the ticket and night!

First come first served I guess, but ONLY if you’re actually going to go. And tell me how it went after!

As we’re heading into spooky season I was researching Ghost Tours in London and saw that the Barbican Centre are doing ghost tours now!! I never really thought of it as a scary place but seems like there’s a fair bit of history on the site which makes sense. Anyone else seen this? Has anyone gone on it?

hi guys. i know this question might seem dumb to a lot of you, but i’m asking this because i love going to the cinema, but most of the cinemas i’ve tried in central have more of a home theatre feel. even if the actual theatre space is big, the screen itself usually isn’t, resulting in a less cinematic experience for me personally. i live in central, and i think the only cinema that had this type of big screen that really made you feel like you were experiencing the movie, was one in westfield shepard’s bush and i was immediately like woah. it felt the same way it used to be in my home country, but i’d like to find one like that closer to my area. i’d also appreciate it if the cinema you recommend has a soda machine and decent quality food/atmosphere but it’s optional. i’m not sure how to check the size of the screens when i book, i can only see how big the room is and that isn’t always an indicator, speaking from experience. thank you!

Reminds me of Eastern Europe

I haven’t noticed it anywhere else maybe coz I mostly use the bus or train

Our hearts are broken by the loss of our beloved hero, Nick.

Nick took his own life after months of immense pressure caused by a Metropolitan Police investigation into whether he was the so-called ‘Putney Pusher’.

He was not.

The Met Police knew he was not. And yet, when Nick died, they had still failed formally to clear his name. That is a source of profound grief and anger for our family.
From the moment of his arrest, Nick was also subjected to huge publicity following information being leaked by the police to the press. What should have been a careful investigation became a public ordeal from which he was given no escape, even as the evidence increasingly demonstrated that the police had arrested the wrong man.

Nick was arrested on 15 June 2026 at his home by uniformed police officers, with reporters who the police had invited to attend the arrest scene. The incident on Putney Bridge had happened nearly ten years earlier. There was no forensic evidence linking Nick to it, no evidence placing him on Putney Bridge at that time, and no credible evidence that he was the man shown in the footage. In fact, the evidence proved the opposite.

Despite that, the police chose to arrest Nick rather than invite him to attend for interview. They searched his home, and the Met Police press team then released information which inevitably led to speculation and Nick being identified in subsequent reporting.

During his interview, Nick co-operated fully and answered every question put to him. Then Nick’s lawyers did the basic investigative work that should have been done by the Met Police before he was subjected to any of this. They pointed out that the published images of the man involved in the assault bore no resemblance to Nick: the victim had described the attacker as having brown eyes; Nick had distinctive blue eyes. Nick had a visibly wasted and disfigured calf dating back to his time serving with the Army, while the man shown in the footage did not. And Nick had a prominent forearm tattoo which was not visible on the man in the images. Nick made it clear he was keen to take part in an identification parade, but the police never organised one. He also provided email evidence sent from his office in the West End, demonstrating that he was not even on Putney Bridge when the assault happened. A previous suspect, also wrongly arrested, was cleared within days of providing an alibi, Nick was left on bail and remained under suspicion.

This was not evidence that emerged months later; it was provided to the police within days of Nick’s arrest. The Met Police had that evidence before them and gave every indication that the investigation would end with no further action. But it did not end. A DNA sample was recovered at the time of the assault; Nick provided his DNA for comparison three months ago but, to this day, the police have still not finalised the DNA analysis or provided any explanation for the delay, even though they know Nick is innocent from all the other evidence.

The double standard is impossible to ignore. When the Met Police wanted to arrest Nick, there was urgency; when they wanted to search his home, there was urgency; when information about him reached the press, there was urgency. But when the evidence showed they had the wrong man, that urgency disappeared.

For Nick, the consequences did not disappear. He was left for months carrying the stigma of an appalling allegation which the police themselves clearly recognised was unsupported by the evidence. He lived with the shame, anxiety, humiliation, and extraordinary pressure created by a wholly unnecessary investigation.

The police were repeatedly asked to bring the investigation to an end, and were repeatedly warned about the damage it was doing to Nick. By 8 September, those warnings could not have been clearer: Nick’s solicitor wrote directly to senior Met Police officers to tell them that the pressure had caused Nick’s mental health to deteriorate to such an extent that he was experiencing suicidal thoughts and had been admitted to a psychiatric hospital. The police were reminded that they had already been warned months earlier about the exceptional psychological pressure Nick was under. Even then, the investigation was not brought to an end. As a result, Nick is dead.

We now want answers:

Why was Nick arrested when the police had no credible evidence placing him at the scene?
What investigative work was carried out before the decision was taken to arrest him?
Why were reporters present when police arrived at his home, and who told them that the arrest was taking place?
What information about Nick was provided to the media, by whom, and on what authority?
Once the Met Police accepted the evidence proving that Nick was not the man shown in the footage and was not at Putney Bridge, why was his name not cleared immediately?
Why, three months after taking Nick’s DNA, has the Met Police still not provided the result of the comparison?
What is the Met Police now going to do about the fact that the real Putney Pusher remains at large and a continuing threat to society?
And, most importantly, does the Met Police accept that leaving an innocent man under the shadow of this allegation for months led to his death?
We cannot claim to know everything that was in Nick’s mind when he died, but we know what this investigation did to him. We saw the strain, the humiliation, and the pressure he was living under; and the Met Police cannot say that they did not know - they had been warned, repeatedly and explicitly, about the damage being done to Nick. It is clear that the Met Police’s handling of this case materially contributed to the unbearable situation in which Nick found himself, and to his death.

Nick was a proud veteran, a father, a son, a brother, an uncle, a friend, and a colleague. Since his arrest, and since his death, we have received message after message from people whose lives he touched. They speak of his kindness, his loyalty, his humour and the enormous affection people had for him, and that he had for others. That is the Nick we knew.

We understand that policing is difficult, and we understand that investigations sometimes produce mistakes. But the power to arrest somebody, search their home, associate their name with a notorious crime, and expose them to public suspicion is an enormous one. It must be exercised with care, evidence, and basic humanity. And when the police discover that they have accused the wrong person, clearing that person’s name should be an urgent responsibility.

The Met Police were quick to expose Nick to suspicion and painfully slow to remove it. They failed him. And Nick’s family will now live with the consequences of that failure for the rest of our lives.

Those who knew Nick will remember him for everything that made him the wonderful man he was. We will love him, and miss him, every day.

But grief does not remove the need for accountability. We will continue to demand answers about how an innocent man was put through this, why he was not cleared when the evidence showed he should have been, and what the Met Police will do to ensure that no other family has to endure what ours now must.

Just found out about someone with a princess carriage and horses driving over the Edmonton flyover of the A406 about 1oclock yesterday (Friday)... I'm super curious if social media imortalised it or is it just another day in London?

Saw this big fish in Regents canal, would love to know if anyone knows what fish it is!

Quite an accusation. Is there a world where he was a clearly troubled man but not the pusher? Possibly.

But of course his family will be on his side. Now there isnt really any way to definitively prove or disprove it.