London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

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Selected publications

Conference: The Korean Independence Movement and the United Kingdom

To commemorate the 140th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and the United Kingdom and the 80th anniversary of the Cairo Declaration, SOAS University of London and the National Memorial of the Korean Provisional Government are jointly holding this international academic conference. Scholars from Korea and the UK will gather to engage … [Read More]

Books and People: a Korean Cornucopia

Brother Anthony of Taizé has donated to the Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, his extensive library of nineteenth and early twentieth-century books by foreigners on Korea and will offer comments on selected books and the personalities behind them. Biography Brother Anthony of Taizé (naturalized Korean name An Sonjae) studied Medieval and Modern languages at Oxford. … [Read More]

Andong remembers the Queen

The Korea Times has a nice article reminiscing about the Queen’s visit to Andong’s Hahoe Folk Village in 1999, where she celebrated her 73rd birthday. The village has set up a temporary memorial for the Queen for visitors to pay their respects in the period leading up to the state funeral on 19 September. The … [Read More]

Cliff Richard in Seoul, 1969

OK, here goes… possibly LKL’s first ever Cliff Richard post. While searching for vintage Korean vinyl records sold in the UK on the Discogs record collectors website (they do crop up now and then, but if you’re a fan of Songolmae or Lee Mija, forget it: you’re too late!), I found this intriguing item – … [Read More]

V+A Korean programme receives boost from MCST

Great news for the V&A’s programme of Korean activities and gallery: V&A announces landmark partnership with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism 17 June 2020: The V&A has today announced a new five-year partnership with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Korea. This major grant will enable the redevelopment of the museum’s … [Read More]

A roundup of the early Autumn celebrations

As people return from their summer holidays and prepare for the autumn season, there’s a range of celebratory events that form part of the annaul cycle: from the Korean holiday calendar there’s Chuseok (celebrated over the full moon of the 8th lunar month – 12 -14 September this year) and National Foundation Day, also known … [Read More]

Paul Smith retrospective opens in DDP

A retrospective of designer Paul Smith’s work opened at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza yesterday. A good friend of LKL went along to the opening and took a few pictures. The exhibition is hosted by the Seoul Design Foundation and the Design Museum in London. The Korea Times describes it as “like walking into the renowned … [Read More]

The Duke of York’s visit to Korea

HRH Prince Andrew paid a visit to Korea last week, and as part of his visit retraced the footsteps of his mother’s state visit twenty years ago. He arrived on 12 May and his first engagement was a reception hosted by the ambassador HE Simon Smith: https://twitter.com/TheDukeOfYork/status/1127907416526458885 The next day, after giving a welcome speech … [Read More]

Korean Englishman team wins cultural ambassador award

Congratulations to the Korean Englishman team Josh Carrott and Ollie Kendal for their “Korea Image Stepping Stone Bridge Award” from the Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI). The award ceremony was held two days ago. Josh and Ollie run the 영국남자 Korean Englishman and JOLLY YouTube channels, which between them have over 4 million subscribers. Links: Corea Image … [Read More]

Sokeel Park awarded MBE

Congratulations to Sokeel Park for being awarded an MBE in the 2019 New Year’s Honours list, published on 28 December. The official citation in the Foreign Secretary’s Diplomatic Service and Overseas List reads: Sokeel John PARK, Country Director, Liberty in North Korea. For services to UK/Korea relations … though you suspect that Mr Park is … [Read More]

National Pension Service buys Goldman European head office

Korea’s National Pension Service is buying the Goldman Sachs European head office building for £1.165 billion (around $1.5bn), four years after it sold its investment in HSBC’s headquarters building in Canary Wharf. That sale netted them around $0.5bn in gains. “We are excited to re-enter into the London market with this high quality asset which … [Read More]

Yi Han-eung remembered at BKS Seollal celebration

The British Korean Society gathered on the newly refurbished top floor of the South Korean embassy yesterday for a belated celebration of Seollal, courtesy of the Deputy Head of Mission, Minister Sun Nahmkook. Apart from the generous buffet, a splendid selection of innovative cocktails and the opportunity to socialise, the highlight of the evening was … [Read More]

UK military develops plans for rescuing Brits

Apparently the MoD have been doing some contingency planning, and sent some top brass over to check out the lie of the land: Based on the information [Senior British military officers] collected, they are devising an evacuation plan for some 8,000 British civilians in South Korea (Chosun Ilbo). I suppose it was the responsible thing … [Read More]