About this Event
The event will take place at Draper Hall, Hampton Street Junction with Newington Butts (next to the Santander Bike Stand), London SE17 3AN. Please see below for WALKING directions from Elephant and Castle Tube Station to the venue. Car Parking in this area is extremely difficult to find. It is thus recommended that attendees travel to the venue via public transport unless already familiar with the area.
Part 1 – Tickets £5.00
This 2-part Guyana SPEAKS event will start with an introduction from His Excellency, Dr Rajendra Singh, the High Commissioner of Guyana to the UK, on the State of the Nation.
It will be followed by an in-conversation interview with Yvonne Singh about her first book, INK! From the Age of Empire to Black Power,the Journalists who transformed Britain was out with the History Press in October2025.
Part 1 will be finished off with a rum tasting session courtesy of Oren Coleman.
15:00 Doors open
15:30 H. E. Dr Rajendra Singh – State of the Nation
16:00 Yvonne Singh – INK! [Her book will be available for sale.]
16:30 Oren Coleman – Rum Tasting
17:00 End of Part One
Part 2 – Workshop: Storytelling through art – Tickets £5.00
17:30 – Guyanese refreshments available for purchase.
18:00 – 19:30 - Workshop Guyana SPEAKS events always find us sharing family stories from back home, diaspora stories, tales of the best food and drink, places and people. In this workshop run by artist Salina Jane, we’ll be bringing our own stories to life, collecting them in a collaborative zine. Salina is a visual storyteller and will be enabling all participants to share their family stories through drawing, imagery and words. You’ll learn some new skills to express yourself, and there will be colour, lots of fun, sharing and heaps of encouragement. No specialised skills are required; only an interest in storytelling and a willingness to explore new approaches. All materials provided, if you have family photographs or a special object that helps tell your narrative please feel free to bring them along.
Refreshments will be available for purchase: rum from Oren Coleman and Guyanese snacks (bakes & roti) from aunty Faye Gomes of the Original Kaietuer Kitchen
Dr Rajendra Singh was appointed as the High Commissioner of Guyana to the United Kingdom on 1 June 2022. Prior to this appointment he held several senior positions in major Academic Institutions in the United States including Columbia University, New York Institute of Technology and City University of New York. As a Senior Executive, Dr Singh managed several major areas of operation including Facilities and Construction Planning and Human Resources Strategic Planning. Dr Singh also previously served as Chairman of the Guyana Sugar Corporation and then the Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Dr Singh holds a BA degree in Economics, MA degree in Industrial Relations and a PhD in Industrial Relation
Yvonne Singh is a journalist, writer and editor. Her work has appeared in theGuardian, the Observer, the Mirror, the London Evening Standard, the White Review,Marie Claire and the BBC, among others. Her essay More than just a Dreamland …was published in the acclaimed anthology Know Your Place and inspired theexhibition Seaside: Photographed, which toured major UK galleries in 2019. Shecontributed to Unheard Voices (2023) and the Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of BlackBritish Writing, Vol 1, 1723-1914 (2026). She was awarded second prize in the ‘SILeeds Literary Prize 2018’, judged the 2020 prize and mentors for the organisation.She was a London Library Emerging Writer 2022-23 and is a Hawthornden Fellow(January 2026). She teaches the BA in Creative Writing at Canterbury ChristchurchUniversity and lectures at London City Lit and the Council on InternationalEducational Exchange. Her first book INK! From the Age of Empire to Black Power,the Journalists who transformed Britain was out with the History Press in October2025.
Oren Coleman embarked on his career in hospitality as a Barback at Hakamou in Leicester, which ignited his passion for the industry. Since then, Oren has worked in a variety of bars in Shoreditch before joining the HIX Restaurant Group and three years later, he joined the Ottolenghi Group to run their beverage programme. These experiences have led to his current role at El Dorado as the Global Brand Ambassador. Oren has both Guyanese and Jamaican heritage.
Salina Jane is a British artist, illustrator and printmaker of Indo-Guyanese descent making work about the experience of her family’s journey from India through indentured labour to Guyana coming to the UK in the 1950s as part of the Windrush generation. She is a visual storyteller exploring themes of identity, culture, heritage, migration and the double diaspora experience through drawing and in her teaching. She works from her studio in Croydon and teaches across the UK and online.
Venue Details:
If you haven't been to the Draper Hall before, it can be difficult to find. There are two postcodes. If you're walking to the venue from Elephant and Castle tube, please use the following address and postcode: Hampton St, London SE17 3AN.
If you wish to be dropped off by car use: 1 Howell Walk, London SE1 6TL. It is important to note there are no nearby car parking facilities and that we recommend you travel via public transport. Draper Hall is a 4-7 minute walk from Elephant & Castle tube station.
The venue is wheelchair accessible. Any questions?
This event is hosted by the co-Founders of Guyana SPEAKS Rod Westmaas and Dr Juanita Cox. If you have any questions, please contact them at [email protected]
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Draper Hall, Hampton Street, London, United Kingdom
GBP 5.00
