11. There's a Strange Victorian Machine in the Middle of Catford
Councillor [Host Name] explores how the Victorian-era administrative machine of Catford continues to shape modern governance, offering insights into enduring structures.
1 Aug 2026TRANSCRIPT
10. Doorsteps as the Parliament of the Everyday and a Threshold on Brookdale Road
Host [Host Name] explores doorsteps as everyday parliaments and a specific threshold on Brookdale Road, offering unique insights into Catford's urban landscape.
14 Apr 2026
9. Staircases and Municipal Ghosts
I started off with a vague idea for an episode on staircases, based on what my toddler likes around the house, and ended up with this.
A staircase is never just a staircase, because small steps, done properly, really can shift the mood of an entire neighbourhood.
Here's an article about the missing Catford Green bridge - https://ladywell-live.org/2021/01/17/austen-steps-up-campaign-for-catfords-missing-bridge/
and another - https://www.salamandernews.org/is-catford-station-links-project-moving-at-last/
This is the book I mention by Jos Boys - https://disordinaryarchitecture.co.uk/start-learning/doing-disability-differently-book
24 Mar 2026
8. A Conversation with Ciarán O’Fathaigh on Catford, Lewisham and Meeting the Moment
Ciarán is a Lewisham based creative director and founder of Renegade Production, a digital media and content studio. He has over twenty years of experience spanning photography, videography, music production, digital strategy, editorial work and campaign development. He is also central to the Keystone initiative, helping to drive its community focused vision and direction.
In general,and in this episode, Ciarán and I keep returning to Milford Towers for different reasons.
Keystone will be launching through a special event on June 25th. Follow their progress here:
https://www.instagram.com/keystone.selondon/ (https://www.instagram.com/keystone.selondon/)
and here: https://www.renegadeproduction.co.uk/keystone (https://www.renegadeproduction.co.uk/keystone)
Here's a video he made for Team Catford: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CKt0Dw1n-Mx (https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Ftv%2FCKt0Dw1n-Mx%2F%3Futm_source%3Dig_web_copy_link%26igsh%3DMzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D&data=05%7C02%7Cdaniel.dream%40ucl.ac.uk%7C85d52a6a8db54723a0c908de899d1f38%7C1faf88fea9984c5b93c9210a11d9a5c2%7C0%7C0%7C639099504920378183%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=%2FDbGFJ9kNtv%2B0dZLi8PSht%2FEPPRyS3dmfQSprIMMSHc%3D&reserved=0)
Here's a music video he made in Catford for Sonny Green: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zxvQxepzMM&list= (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zxvQxepzMM&list=RD7zxvQxepzMM&start_radio=1)
and here's the promo clip for the boxer he mentions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlEXZKr27SA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlEXZKr27SA)
You can find a more negative take on Milford Towers here, including a link to the 2011 report I mention - https://www.salamandernews.org/milford-towers-residents-voices/ (https://www.salamandernews.org/milford-towers-residents-voices/)
However, you'll struggle to find many designers who can take the following statement seriously:
'Milford Towers has limited aesthetic merits and architectural interest, however it is not a fine example of brutalism, nor innovative in terms of its design or concept. It is considered that Milford Towers does not possess the architectural quality or historic interest to meet the listing criteria.'
Catford deserves more imagination than the assumption that any change is automatically progress.
26 Feb 2026
7. Dare to Dream: A Catford Election Announcement
I am running for the Green Party in Catford (Rushey Green) in the local elections on May 7. You can follow me here - https://www.instagram.com/catfordreams (https://www.instagram.com/catfordreams)
The choice is simple. More of the same with Labour, or the kind of change I talk about in this episode. Only Labour or the Green Party can win this election.
If you live in Catford, there's a good chance you live in the Rushey Green council ward. The map can be found here: https://lewisham.gov.uk/mayorandcouncil/elections/ward-maps (https://lewisham.gov.uk/mayorandcouncil/elections/ward-maps)
Here is an article covering Zack Polanski’s recent visit to Lewisham: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/feb/05/green-party-lewisham-zack-polanski-labour (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/feb/05/green-party-lewisham-zack-polanski-labour)
You can register to vote here: https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote (https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote)and apply for a postal vote here: https://www.gov.uk/apply-postal-vote (https://www.gov.uk/apply-postal-vote)
My running mates are Samantha Gardiner and Claire Wills. Here are their Instagram accounts for the election:
https://www.instagram.com/samanthagardinerforrusheygreen/ (https://www.instagram.com/samanthagardinerforrusheygreen/)
https://www.instagram.com/clairewillsforrusheygreen/ (https://www.instagram.com/clairewillsforrusheygreen/)
Promoted by Daniel Dream, Green Party, PO Box 78066, London SE16 9GQ.
16 Feb 2026
6. Follow the Yellow Brick Walls
There are yellow bricks all over South East London, forming our homes and the school walls opposite my house. These bricks were once dug from the brickfields that used to stretch across Lewisham.
A wall marks where responsibility lives.
Things mentioned:
The essay on the Berlin Wall by Rem Koolhaas:
https://www.scribd.com/document/235581097/The-Berlin-Wall-as-Architecture
The BFG appears next to Holbeach Primary School in this advert:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaF1my5h-Os
A 360-degree view from above Blythe Hill Fields:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/1WVzRmHjKt5iDUMq5
Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah was a student at Holbeach Primary School who died as a result of air pollution aged nine. Her mother's campaigning can be supported here:
https://www.ellaroberta.org/about-ella
--
Since beginning work on this episode, I have been selected to run as a candidate in Catford (Rushey Green) in the May local elections. With the possible exception of one episode, this will not change the podcast, as this is who I am regardless. Legally, I have to say: Promoted by Daniel Dream, Green Party, PO Box 78066, London SE16 9GQ.
30 Jan 2026
5. Goldsmiths is moving to Catford (Shepherds, sheep and parakeets)
I’ve been seeing a lot of parakeets in a lot of different places recently, and thinking about how we can turn Goldsmiths moving to Catford from a good idea into an absolutely outstanding one.
Here’s the Instagram account linked to the podcast: https://www.instagram.com/catforddreams/
And here’s a short piece on the artists being displaced as a result of the Goldsmiths move: https://lewishamletter.co.uk/artists-face-being-forced-out-of-capital-due-to-council-studio-eviction/
The five principles mentioned are:
Radical Openness
Protecting Legacy Businesses
Community Wealth
Renter Protection
Ground-up Culture
There’s a huge amount of material online about the work of Stuart Hall (1992-2014), worth exploring.
Shepherds, not sheep.
5 Jan 2026
4. Bill the Postman and a Twelfth Night Story
Uploaded at sunset on January 5th, 2026, Twelfth Night.
Huge thanks to the Black Cat pub in Catford Shopping Centre for hosting us.
A quick fact check: Bill accidentally said he had lived in Catford for 14 years. He actually meant he has lived here since 2014.
The postman keeps walking, and Catford keeps dreaming.
Happy New Year.
21 Dec 2025
3. Vera
Some thoughts from Vera, who has lived in Milford Towers, Catford, for the past five and a half years. She makes Catford a better place.
12 Dec 2025
2. Storytelling
The forest in the floorboards, the river beneath the road. Stories are not decoration, they are direction.
29 Nov 2025
1. Milford Towers
A Catford resident's thoughts on the past, present and potential future of Milford Towers.
Here's the demolition photo mentioned in the episode. (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/Tower_Block_UK_photo_n23-14.jpg/640px-Tower_Block_UK_photo_n23-14.jpg)
This episode of Catford Dreams is produced for community discussion and storytelling. All views expressed are for informational purposes only and do not represent official positions or endorsements.
Inside a recent episode
11. There's a Strange Victorian Machine in the Middle of Catford
Published 29 Aug 2026 · Transcript excerpt
[…] Lewisham has a directly elected mayor who appoints a cabinet. Between us we take most of the executive decisions the council makes. There are plenty go straight to officers under delegated powers. But the large ones, the ones that have often got serious amounts of money attached, mostly land with the mayor. and the nine of us on the cabinet. So, essentially, I've gone from being somebody who makes a podcast about regeneration in Catford, to the elected person responsible for it in Lewisham. I sit at the front of the council chamber now, and that first meeting was surreal with achievement, as I looked back at where I had been sitting a few months before. […]
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