Dear Local Citizen
I simply wanted to welcome you to The Chelsea Citizen, a dynamic new hyper-local newspaper which will be launching this spring.
The Citizen’s primary focus will be the SW3 & SW10 post codes, but it will also cover important stories and events in the neighbouring areas of Kensington, Battersea and Fulham. On occasion, it will even dip a polished Brioni toe cap into matters concerning Belgravia.
The newspaper’s content will be available online for free. It will report great local stories and work closely with the communities, RBKC, cultural organisations and businesses. The Citizen will also be a campaigning newspaper and a force for good.
This year will mark 40 years since I became a journalist on the weekly Wimbledon News (you can read about my career here and about my local campaigning here). I am throwing every bit of my hard-won journalism experience into re-imagining The Chelsea Citizen as a traditional local newspaper for the 21st century.
There will be news stories and features highlighting everything from council matters and planning disputes, to golden weddings, births and deaths, to restaurant reviews and cultural highlights, to big interviews and small diary events. We may even run a report if a cat gets stuck up a tree.
This year will also mark 30 years since I moved to Chelsea. I care very much about this area of London and I feel deeply connected to it. So, I now intend to combine my two great passions – journalism and Chelsea.
But I need YOU!
For this venture to succeed, it is important that The Citizen generates a keen and engaged readership. This will attract advertisers and sponsorship, which will help it grow and keep it free.
I believe that local journalism is a fundamental and vital part of any connected community. It is clear from the feedback I have received since announcing The Chelsea Citizen just before Christmas that the people of RBKC agree.
I am financing the initial build of the website and generating all the content, but I am also urgently and actively seeking funding from investors and philanthropic individuals, as well as reaching out to landmark local businesses to encourage them to become headline advertisers. If you have any suggestions for potential investors or sponsors, please get in touch.
I have been working hard on multiple stories recently to create some basic example content. This kind of reporting work will continue in the coming weeks, but the key is to secure funding. That way, I can retain other reporters to get writing. Plenty of stories and diary events for the borough will be flagged up on Instagram, so please Follow us.
I hope you will join me on this great adventure and, please, spread the word.
Best Wishes
Rob McGibbon
Founder & Editor
News and Features
Legendary King’s Road nightclub 151 is re-born as The Rex Rooms
One of Chelsea's most famous lost nightspots has finally shaken off its hangover and re-emerged on the King's Road with an exuberant flourish. 151 - the small basement venue, so-called simply because of its street number - has reopened as The Rex Rooms at 151 and is set to carve out a reputation as the go-to partying destination that will...
Charter for Public Participation: Tell RBKC how it can connect better with Chelsea
RBKC Council has announced a 12-week consultation to review and refresh its Charter for Public Participation. Initially introduced in 2019 to rebuild trust between the council and local residents following the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the initiative aspires to encourage people to participate in local decision-making. This consultation is part of...
TREE FELLA: Red card as “drunk” sports fan tackles two saplings. Do you know him?
A man shouting foul language at the top of his voice was filmed ferociously destroying two saplings. At around 11.25pm last night (13th April), residents heard loud shouting in Burnaby Street from a man - possibly aged in his late 20s - in what appeared to be a red football club shirt. He was calling out, to no-one in particular, "Who fucking...
Chelsea houseboats battle bubbles to the surface in court battle
The long-running and increasingly bitter battle between houseboat owners at Chelsea Reach and the Chelsea Yacht and Boat Company (CYBC) has exploded into the public glare at a court hearing in London. Boat owner Simon Howard, who lives on a 100ft converted Dutch barge near Cremorne Gardens, is facing legal action and eviction by CYBC following a...
Lineker, the colossus of crisp acting, treads the boards at Finborough Theatre
Gary Lineker, the legendary character actor from television crisp adverts, was an unlikely late substitute on the team sheet at the Finborough Theatre. Lineker, the former England captain and Spurs and Barcelona striker, came off the bench to host a special discussion panel following a performance of the raw and bloody love story Men's Business...
Fastgas Mercedes crashes into double-decker bus on King’s Road
A speeding Mercedes crashed into the side of a double-decker bus on the King's Road early on Monday morning (7th April). Widespread traffic chaos spread out across west Chelsea for a period of around two hours as police rushed to close lower King's Road (west), Cremorne Road and Gunter Grove. There was gridlock the length of Lots Road, Edith...
Creative thinking is at the heart of the first businesses signed up for The Gaumont
Chelsea's prime landlord Cadogan has revealed that the first lettings for The Gaumont - its ambitious new £235m development on the King's Road - are to be businesses with an eclectic creative edge. The three new sign-ups will bring a blend of art, music and literature to the landmark re-invention of the 1934 cinema originally called Gaumont...
VC Day (Victory in Chelsea!) as council offers £500 for VE Day celebrations
RBKC has announced plans to chip in £500 cash to support community celebrations to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day on Thursday, 8th May. Organisers can apply for grants up to £500 for events and the council will also waive fees for road closures and parking suspensions to encourage people to throw street parties across the...
Veg oil is greasing the wheels of RBKC bin lorries
A new pilot scheme across the Royal borough has been fuelling a positive environmental bounce - running diesel-guzzling bin lorries on vegetable oil. Forty-four refuse trucks - out of the full fleet of 80 - have been part of a successful trial that has replaced the usual dirty fuel with hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO). The scheme has been...
Parking tickets go up from £65 to £80
Parking tickets will go up across the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea from £65 to £80 from 7th April. If you do not pay within two weeks, you miss out on the "discount" and will have to pay £160. Mayor Sadiq Khan is responsible for the rise, which he has inflicted upon councils in all London Boroughs. RBKC does not the power to set its...