Brixton

Brixton is an area of South London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth.

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First recorded as Brixistane in 1067 (which means 'at the stone of Brihtsige'), Brixton remained mostly waste land until the beginning of the 19th century, the main settlements being near Stockwell, Brixton Hill and Coldharbour Lane. With the opening of Vauxhall Bridge in 1816, improved access to Central London led to a process of suburban development. The largest single development, and one of the last in suburban character, was Angell Town, laid out in the 1850s on the east side of Brixton Road, and so named after a family which owned land in Lambeth from the late 17th century until well into the 20th.

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Brixton is a vibrant inner London suburb 3.3 miles (5.3 km) south of Charing Cross and the capital of the Jamaican community of London. Windrush Square between Lambeth Town Hall and the Tate Library was formed to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the arrival of the modern British Afro-Caribbean community on the Empire Windrush

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There is a significant clubbing and live music scene. Large venues include the Brixton Academy, The Fridge and Mass. A range of smaller venues such as the 414, Windmill and the Effra Tavern amongst others are a crucial part of London's live music scene, drawing performers with international reputations.

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Brixton was the scene of race riots in April 1981 and September 1985. In both cases the riots saw young black men reacting to concerns over what some alleged was discriminatory and heavy-handed police "stop-and-search" policies. Following the 1981 riots, the Government appointed Lord Scarman to report. Although the Brixton area subsequently saw pioneering community policing iniatives, the continued death in police custody of young black men, coupled with suspicious distrust of the police, led to smaller scale protests through the 1990s.

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More recently, Brixton's symbolic role at the "soul of Black Britain" led to a 1996 visit by Nelson Mandela, but also attracted the attention of neo-nazi bomber David Copeland in a 1999 blast that injured 39 people.

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The heart of Brixton is the Market, open every day selling produce from all over the world. The song "Electric Avenue", written and sung by Eddie Grant in 1983, refers to part of the market (come out of the tube, turn left then left again), so named because it was the first street in Britain to be lit with electric lamps, in 1888 (Brixton itself is mentioned in the lyrics at the very end of the song). The market sells a huge range of Afro Caribbean products as well as reflecting the many other communities in the local area with Indian and Vietnamese supermarkets and South American butchers amongst the shops and stalls. Brixton is also home to a 1970s purpose built skatepark, named Stockwell Skatepark.

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Director Richard Parry shot a film here (released in 2001) called South West Nine (SW9), referring to the post code covering much of central Brixton. Confusingly, this post code is actually for Stockwell, whereas SW2 (the Brixton Hill sorting office) also covers much of Streatham Hill

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Former British Prime Minister John Major spent part of his childhood in a two-room flat off Coldharbour Lane, and started his political career as a Lambeth Councillor while still living in the area. Former British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan was born in Brixton.

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David Bowie was born in Stansfield Road, Brixton.

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Drum and bass producer Dillinja is from here.

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Fruitbat of power-pop punk band Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine is a life-long Brixton resident.

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Freddie Davies the comedian and actor was born in Brixton in 1937.

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The song "Guns of Brixton" by The Clash, written by Paul Simonon, had reggae influence and showed the reggae roots of both Brixton and Paul Simonon's musical background.

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Brixton also has a windmill built in 1816, and surrounded by houses built soon after, as London expanded. The Windmill pub (see above) is named after it.

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Stockwell: Stockwell is an inner city area in the London Borough of Lambeth....

Brixton Hill: Brixton Hill is the name given to a 1km section of road between Brixton and Streatham, which forms part of the traditional main route south (A23)from London and Brighton. It follows the line of the Roman Road, Stane Street, leading south from the capital Londinium to Chichester....

Coldharbour Lane: Coldharbour Lane is a road in South London that leads south-westwards from Camberwell to Brixton. In total the road is over 1 mile long with a mixture of residential, business and retail buildings - the stretch of Coldharbour Lane near Brixton Market contains shops, bars and restaurants. The junctio...