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Hexagonal mat crocheted to look like a bouquet of flowers surrounded by leaves.
Table mat
Typed, photocopied sheet.
Questionnaire
Front page of newspaper printed mostly in Greek
Newspaper
People dressed in Greek costume, carrying a Greek flag and letters spelling the word 'enosis'.
Photograph
Greek orthodox priest with a white beard wearing long black robes and a hat and carrying an umbrella. He walks down the street arm in arm with a woman wearing a headscarf. Two women walk behind.
Photograph
Groups of students seated at tables eating.
Photograph

Greek Cypriot London

Greek Cypriots left their island homeland to find work in Soho throughout the 1920s and 1930s. Some opened cafes and restaurants, but as rents increased, they moved to areas like Camden.

The unstable situation in Cyprus caused further Greek Cypriot immigration during the 1960s and 1970s and has meant families settling permanently in London. Many now live in Haringey.

The Cypriots established snack bars and takeaways both in the areas where they lived and in the West End. London society acquired a taste for moussaka and kebabs, pitta bread, hummus and taramasalata. Dancing on tables became a Soho craze.

Robert Winder 'Bloody Foreigners', 2004

Cyprus officially became a British colony in 1925 and was known as ‘Cinderella of the Empire’ due to its failing economy.

During the 1920s and 1930s Greek Cypriot villagers migrated to Britain looking for work and some found jobs in the catering industry in Soho, the most cosmopolitan area of London.

Following the mass internment of Italians during World War II, some Cypriots bought up their businesses cheaply and opened their own cafes and restaurants. Many of the women worked in the largely Jewish-run rag trade.

Postwar rents in central London rose and Greek Cypriots mostly moved out to areas like Euston, Camden, Fulham and Camberwell.

Here, they opened restaurants and shops and established Greek Orthodox churches. The oldest existing Greek Orthodox Church in London is Saint Sophia in Bayswater, founded in 1877.

As Cyprus became independent in 1960, Greek Cypriot immigration reached its peak. Many people joined relatives already established in Britain.

During the 1970s, a Greek military coup ousted the Cypriot president Archbishop Makarios and caused the Turks to invade to protect the Turkish minority. Cyprus was divided as Turks moved north and Greeks moved south. The precarious situation meant that Greek Cypriots in Britain were unwilling to return to the island.

By the 1970s, many London based Greek Cypriots had saved the money to buy homes in residential districts. They moved to Haringey and Palmers Green in Enfield, still centres of settlement today. In London, Greek Cypriots often live peaceably in the same areas as their Turkish Cypriot neighbours. 

Cypriot grocers, restaurants and takeaways are a mainstay of London's food scene. The weekly newspaper ‘Parikiaki’ keeps the community up-to-date with the latest events.

Bibliography

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