In light of recent events, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has been on a quest to appoint the city’s first Night Czar with the aim of nurturing and protecting nightlife within the British capital.
Over the weekend comedian, writer, broadcaster and DJ Amy Lamé was revealed as London’s first Night Czar, tasked with the uphill battle of turning around the city’s night-time economy — an agenda item often championed by Mayor Khan when he was running for office.
Discussing her new appointment, Lamé stated: “It’s a privilege to be London’s very first Night Czar. I can’t wait to hit the streets and have loads of ideas of what I can do for revellers, night-time workers, businesses and stakeholders.
“For too long, the capital’s night-time industry has been under pressure — music venues and nightclubs in particular are closing at an alarming rate. With the advent of the Night Tube, and the Mayor’s commitment to protect iconic venues across the city, I’m confident that I can inspire a positive change in the way people think about the night-time economy.”
The aim is for Lamé to legitimize London’s nightlife like never before, mediating between clubs and local officials, lobbying on behalf of prospective venues seeking 24-hour licenses, protecting venues where needed, remove the stigmas associated with nightlife and instead work on eliminating the real sources of the problems the industry faces and more. Issues the likes of those that led to fabric’s closure will hopefully be worked on to ensure the downtrend of the city’s nightlife is reverted for good.
