London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

Highlights of the Thames Festival

The Sookmyung Gayageum Orchestra playing Wondergirls and SNSD. And their amazing body-popping dancer The Kukkiwon Taekondo demo team performing in the pouring rain. Amazing that no-one broke their neck The crazy K-pop lovers in their noraebang tent singing along to their favourite K-pop tunes The amazing enthusiasm & energy of the seemingly hundreds of young … [Read More]

Family Ties with Director Q&A at the KCC

Last year the Thames Festival provided the opportunity for a couple of collateral events in the form of concerts by Winterplay and Baramgot. This year, director Kim Tae-yong is over for the screening of the restored silent film Crossroads of Youth, and will stay to answer questions after the KCC’s screening on Monday of his … [Read More]

Donguibogam to feature at the Thames Festival

2013 will see the 400th anniversary of the first publication of the Donguibogam, the most precious book in traditional Korean medicine (TKM). There will be a commemorative World Traditional Medicine EXPO (known as Donguibogam EXPO) in Sancheong in 2013 (6 September — 20 October, 45 days) to celebrate this anniversary. Sancheong County, at the foot … [Read More]

Korea Calling at the Thames Festival 2011

Korea returns to the Thames Festival this year (10-11 September) with a range of entertainments. The Taekwondo demonstrations are always popular, plus this year there’s the Sookmyung Gayageum Orchestra. If you’ve ever heard a Beatles number performed on massed Gayageums, you were probably listening to these ladies. They’ve also been known to accompany B-boys, which … [Read More]

Three outcomes of the London Riots

Three Korea-related outcomes of the London riots this year: Big Bang will not be coming for the Thames Festival (though the guilty verdict on Dae-sung didn’t help either. # Third Window Films, great supporters of Korean movies, hit as Sony’s main CD and DVD replication centre is burnt down: huge amount of stock destroyed. http://on.fb.me/npACjW … [Read More]