Punters at the Walthamstow Trade Hall were treated to a surprise Rockafeller Skank last night as legendary DJ Fatboy Slim decided to rock up unannounced and play to an intimate crowd of 250 people.
The DJ night, which was hosted by club night Stow-Ho House in support of the charity Eat or Heat, was originally advertised with musicians James Ford, Trafford, Sarahtonin and Samuel Potts, as well as a secret special guest.
The mystery act turned out to be the 60-year-old British based DJing legend, Norman Quentin Cook himself. Cook played a 2 hour long headline set to the lucky attendees, who danced along to hits like Brimful of Asha and Right Here, Right Now, as well as a version of Rockafeller Skank, which was remixed with I Can’t Get No Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones.
The event raised over £5,000 for Eat or Heat, a Waltham Forest-based food bank just a stone’s throw from the Trades Hall, where the gig was held. The quirky venue is getting quite the star treatment lately, having recently featured in the final series of Netflix hit show Top Boy, and now playing host to one of the UK’s favourite DJ’s.
😈😈😈😈😈 @FatboySlim leads the congregation pic.twitter.com/5XrNIsQRj6
— Walthamstow Trades Hall (@stowtradeshall) September 29, 2023
“He absolutely blew the roof off,” says organiser and co-founder of local charity organisation Stow-Ho House, Juliet Cromwell-Boakes. “Me and my co-founder Sam Potts thought it would be an amazing thing to throw together. We both work in the music industry so we used our contacts to raise some money for charity with these events.
“This was our third and it was hosted in the infamous, local, legendary Trades Hall, which is firmly rooted in the 70s, and it’s an amazing space. We wanted to boost their community PR and lo and behold we managed to secure Fatboy Slim. I mean, Fatboy Slim playing to 250 people, completely sold out. Norman Cook is just so incredible.”
As well as playing a two hour set, Cook also donated a piece of art from his personal collection, signed by the artist and by Cook himself. The charity organisers are now auctioning it off, and hope to fundraise an additional £6,000 for Eat or Heat with the sale.
It may be the early stages of Stow-Ho House’s charity gig endeavours, but Cromwell promises much more to come. “We’re gonna do more in 2024, watch this space. And due to our contacts in the industry we’re expecting some big, future, unnamed DJ guests. It’s so nice to use these connections to create such a stir and hype in Walthamstow and encourage local venues to thrive. It’s talk of the town in Walthamstow right now.”
