LATIN LONDONER #26 - Caro Gomez - Fashion Designer
Caro Gomez is a fashion designer with her own label, for which she was awarded "Ones to Watch" title by the Sustainable Lifestyle Awards and won The LUKAS Fashion Designer of the Year 2019. She's also a speaker on…
LATIN LONDONER #63 - Díana Bermudez, Actor
A fiercely multi-faceted performer, Díana made history as the first Colombian actress to feature in a Marvel series, playing Yatzil in 'Moon Knight' opposite Oscar Isaac and Ethan Hawke. Closer to home, she was part of…
Five Reasons To Love....Almodovar's Sex Fetishes
Internationally acclaimed director Pedro Almodovar, who released his latest film I'm So Excited in 2013, has demonstrated he is an all-embracing, multi-faceted film-maker to say the least. Combining elements of comedy and…
Made in Brasil's Moqueca
Moqueca is A Classic from Bahia, mixed seafood and fish stew made with sweet peppers and coconut milk served with steamed rice. The etymology of the word moqueca traces it back to an African word mu'keka meaning "fish…
IGUANA LIKE THE SUN (2022) Julián Robles
‘Can a pregnant woman watch an eclipse?’ Mexican actor/ writer / director Julián Robles has emerged with an interesting debut feature that will be screened at the Raindance Film Festival, It represents a notable change of…
'AS YOU SEE ME NOW' by The Jools Holland Rhythm & Blues Orchestra with José Feliciano
A stunning 14-track collaboration between Puerto Rican guitar legend and Grammy Award winner José Feliciano and Jools Holland's Rhythm & Blues Orchestra, you can really feel how these musicians enjoyed making these…
LATIN LONDONER #17: Juliano Fiori - rugby player
If anyone epitomises the uniqueness and strength that comes from being bi-cultural it is Juliano Fiori. Not only is he a West Londoner who is playing rugby for Brazil in the Olympics, but to do so, he’s had to juggle a full time…
Films To Watch Before You Die #4 - O’ Desafio (The Challenge) Dir. Paulo César Saraceni
A PLACE FOR POETS – O’ Desafio (The Challenge) of living in a Society that you don’t understand. Once again, the 4th film in our series of “Latin American films you should watch before you die” explores the topics of love and…
Birdsong in Quechua
Considered one of the most important indigenous singers to emerge out of South America over the last 50 years, through her 25 albums Luzmila Carpio has inspired millions while singing in both her native Aymara-Quechua language…
The Pain of Separation - an interview with Julio Medem
Native of San Sebastián (b. 1958) and settled in Madrid, Julio Medem is one of Spain’s most acclaimed directors. Famous for ‘Sex and Lucia’, ‘Lovers of the Arctic Circle’, and also for 'La Pelota Vasca' a film about…
“The Birth of Latin Jazz was simultaneous to the Birth of Jazz”
Associate Professor of Music at Columbia University, Chris Washburne is one of the world’s leading academics on both jazz and Latin music and a respected musician in his own right, having played with many of the artists he writes…
LATIN LONDONER #30: Daniel Carbonero, dancer
Born in Malaga, Spain Daniel Carbonero is a professional dancer, choreographer, model and actor. After 16 years of intense training and dance competitions in Spain Daniel moved to London and founded the Carbonero Dance Academy,…
Brazil: Independence Celebrations Mark a Day of Divisions, over Unity
Clorrie Yeomens reflects on the trauma and mixed feelings that Brazilian Independence Day conjures up for many Brazilians
Salsa Albums of New York's 'Golden Era'
Over the years there have been so many different types of Salsa that it is impossible to do an over-arching Top Ten Salsa albums. Here are the best of New York's Golden Era. In the following weeks we'll be bringing you…
London's Top Latin Food Stalls
FOODIE ALERT!!! From Ceviche, bandeja paisa, empandas and churros to tacos, paella, pan de bono and cholados, London has some of the best Latin American street food in Europe. Recently we picked the best of the crop to come and…
Lucuma smoothie
Lúcuma is an amazing Superfood from Peru, it’s full of potassium with bright yellow coloured flesh and tastes a bit like maple syrup! So much so that it’s often used as a natural sweetener… Lúcuma has a very low Glycemic index,…
Esteban's Colombian Pandebonos
Medellín-born Esteban Arboleda runs Colombian Street Kitchen and since August he's been wowing guests and visitors to Green Rooms hotel in Wood Green with his authentic Colombian Street Food dishes. He's halfway through…
Patrick Rice
The Irish Priest who became one of Latin America's most committed and loved Human Rights activists. He dedicated his life to the defence of human dignity and to the hope of a better world
The Juanes Mash Up
The Colombian music landscape has transformed dramatically over the last 10 years, with reggaetón becoming the new pop, but one Medellín rockero has transcended all trends and remains as relevant today doing the music he loves.…
'THE TRAITOR' Dir. Marco Bellocchio
An Italian/Brazilian/French co-production, 'The Traitor', a BAFTA contender this year, is a true crime drama based on the story of how Tommaso Buscetta, a prominent member of the Sicilian Cosa Nostra, decided to become…
Brazilian Strings: Interview with Cellist Tania Lisboa
Corina Poore interviews Brazilian cellist Tania Lisboa, who celebrates 30 years based in the UK with a charity concert playing the sublime music of Villa- Lobos, Debussy, Guarnieri and Bridge with Scottish pianist Elizabeth Mucha…
UnStrictly Tango: German Cornejo
For those of us appalled by BBC Strictly’s unashamedly banal demonstrations of tango dance, the yearly visits of German Cornejo and his dance troupe of world class Argentine dancers have been a welcome oasis of authenticity. We…
The Dose (La Dosis-2020)- thriller by Argentine director Martín Kraut
Angels of Mercy or Angels of Death? The taut psychological thriller ‘The Dose’ (2020) by Argentine first-time writer/ director Martín Kraut screened at the 35th BFI Flare London LGBTIQ+ Film Festival, will, no doubt, reopen the…
Top Ten Artists of Canción Social
Some of the most beautiful melodies and inspiring music ever to come out of Latin America were part of the Canción Social movement of the 1970s and 1980s. As democratic and revolutionary movements were being ruthlessly crushed,…
Cumbia Feminism?
What is Acid Coco? You surely are asking. Acid Coco is that first sip of Colombian coffee in the morning to get the day started right. Acid Coco is taking a stroll through ‘El Tayrona’ watching the sunset, making you feel in tune…
As Fado Bicha – Challenging the Taboos of Portugal's Most Famous Music
Whilst the ‘Three Fs’ of fado - Fatima (the shrine), Football and Fado - which cemented the genre's association with the Salazar dictatorship, and its inherent conservatism, especially about gender issues, have put many…
Esteban's Arroz Con Pollo (Chicken and Rice)
Meet the famous Colombian party meal! Arroz con pollo is a rice-based tomatoey paella with a twist. It's well balanced, colourful and cheerful.I always associate arroz con pollo with getting together with family and friends…
Reclaiming Tango: an interview with Maia Castro
Quality and passion never go out of fashion and the wonder of tango is that, though one of the most traditional music genres in Latin America, it keeps evolving and producing new and exciting singers. One of those is singer-…
'THE BREATHING ISLAND', Ismael Rodríguez’s first solo show in London
In this multi-media debut show ‘The Breathing Island, Ismael Rodríguez has focussed on life in this world. Expressing a keen awareness of the complexity and diversity of this planet, Ismael Rodríguez’s thought-provoking mixed-…
Mexican Mambo
Widely regarded as one of the most influential Mexican music bands of all time, La Sonora Santanera’s unique big band style with elements of mambo, cha cha cha, bolero, cumbia and merengue, has made it popular all over Latin…
Latin Londoner #44 - Sofia Serbin de Skalon, Film Curator
World cinema specialist, writer and culture maker, Argentine born Sofia de Skalon is founder of the Argentine Film Festival London, a showcase for contemporary Argentine cinema. Through her PR agency, Sofia has promoted more than…
Essential Films to watch about Argentina's 'Dirty War'
Fifty years ago, on 24th March 1976, Argentina's armed forces, led by Jorge Videla, Emilio Massera and Orlando Agosti, deposed President Isabel Perón in a coup, establishing a dictatorship. What happened next was one of the…
Brazil's Antonio Társis wins the VIA Arts Prize 2019
Bahiano ANTONIO TÁRSIS from Brazil has won the 2019 VIA Prize out of a record total of 402 submissions. His large and colourful collage is built up from fragments of fruit boxes from all parts of the world, that he meticulously…
The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmão (2019) Directed by Karim Aïnouz.
‘THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF EURIDICE GUSMÃO’ (2019) is a dramatic melodrama that delves into how family bonds and betrayals can affect people’s lives for years. Set in Rio de Janeiro in 1950, Eurídice, 18, and Guida, 20, are two…
THE LUKAS DANCE WINNERS 2019
From Tango and Salsa to Flamenco and Ballet, here are The LUKAS Winners For Outstanding Contribution To Dance