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For a city of film lovers, specialist movie bookshops are oddly thin on the ground in London – at least beyond BFI Southbank and Forbidden Planet in Covent Garden. Say a big hello, then, to Ripley & Lambert, a trove of movie goodness recently opened just round the corner from Dalston Junction.
‘Something for everyone’ is proprietor Catherine Staples’s stocking policy, so you’ll find movie scripts and Agnès Varda biographies, film theory doorstoppers and ‘Star Wars’ tomes. There’s a cosy café, quiz nights and a basement space for screenings.
‘I wanted to create a place that would welcome film fans of all levels and types, to discuss and enjoy their film interest,’ explains the movie-loving Staples on the inspiration behind the store. ’Film books enhance cinema massively: I still remember the inspiration and fascination I felt reading William Goldman’s “Adventures in the Screen Trade” and Peter Biskind’s “Easy Riders, Raging Bulls”. Also, I really like cake!’
Andy Parsons
The only downside of this bright new spot in London’s movie landscape? For a shop named after two characters from the ‘Alien’ franchise, the shelves aren’t restocked using a power loader.
Andy Parsons
Ripley & Lambert, 542 Kingsland Rd, E8 4AH. Dalston Junction Overground.
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