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 Campaigner, academic and lifelong adventurer Brian Potter in the Almeida |
Almeida’s the place for high flier
It’s a long way from housing campaigning to skydiving – almost as long as driving to Africa on a scooter – but Brian Potter has done it all.
Interview by Mark Blunden
DOWN Islington’s corridors of power, he is revered as a fearless housing campaigner and outspoken thorn-in-the-side of the Town Hall.
But few people know that Brian Potter gets his adrenaline rush thousands of feet above the ground skydiving or that he once rode a scooter all the way to Africa.
The chairman of the Federation of Islington Tenants’ Associations and Islington Leaseholders’ Forum has now dedicated his later life to securing a better deal for those living in a council home.
On Friday we dined at Brian’s favourite restaurant, the Almeida in Almeida Street, off Upper Street. The gourmet delights of the Almeida are a short walk from Brian’s Canonbury home and the winding back streets where he has lived all his life.
He attended Laycock School but left at 15. The itchy-footed teenage Potter had a touch of the young Indiana Jones about him and an unquenchable thirst for adventure.
He said: “I’ve go a terribly low tolerance for boredom. When I was 18 I borrowed a friend’s Vespa scooter to tour Europe and ended up in north Africa, going through 18 countries to get there.”
Later, Brian worked towards his commercial pilot’s licence at an airfield in Elstree, Hertfordshire. Skydiving and gliding have for many years played a huge part in his life.
“On my 13th jump at 4,000 feet, the ’chute didn’t open and I went into a Roman candle [a rapid spinning plunge] until I finally got control at 500 feet and my secondary ’chute opened with only seconds to spare.”
The campaigner claims five diverse academic accolades: a PhD in crystallography; an MA in small molecule crystallography; a BSc in geology; two fellowships and an LLB.
Now 66, he still manages to spend quality time with his large family, most of whom still live in Islington.
Brian’s knowledge of housing began in the 1960s when he worked as a plumber, gas fitter, electrician and glazier.
In 2004, Brian was among the most vociferous opponents when Islington Council transferred the borough’s housing stock to an arm’s length management organisation, a private company called Homes for Islington, in exchange for a £157 million loan.
He said: “I became a leaseholder after the council went to repair my roof. I had to buy the place so I could sue the council over poor workmanship. Now I oppose their bad policies. It’s as simple as that.”
On Friday, we dined at the recently redecorated Almeida, which was every inch the French fine-dining experience.
To start, we both enjoyed the seared tomato tart with mesclun salad and chilli jam. For the main course, Brian chose the sea bass fillet, soft herb gnocchi and roast langoustines.
I had the massive maple-glazed duck leg with confit turnips and a cherry sauce. We were then forced to indulge in pear tart with soft caramel and ice cream and a hot chocolate fondant with ice cream, all washed down with a bottle of the light, citrus-tasting Roussanne La Croix Gratiot at £23 a bottle.
The Almeida serves lunch courses for £24 per person, or £30 for dinner.
It is most definitely, as Brian says, “the place to come for something special”.
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