You can also use the external lift near the Artists' Entrance on Southbank Centre Square to reach Mandela Walk, Level 2.

Shut up Kofi,’ Gloria replied. ‘And go kitchen and get me some crips, please’. She said things like ‘crips’ whenever she was trying to be super ghetto. Talk to a member of staff at the auditorium entrance if you have a disability that means you can’t queue, or you need extra time to take your seat. They can arrange priority entry for you as soon as the doors open. Kofi and the Rap Battle Summer is a joyous read, filled with characters that you want to spend more time with. Happily for the reader, this is just the beginning of Kofi and his adventures.

Book Club Poster

The first of the Kofi series of books, Rap Battle Summer beautifully captures the experience of growing up in the ’90’s. Adult readers will enjoy the cultural references, whilst younger readers will gain an insight into the kind of childhood their parents experienced before the existence of mobile phones and the internet. For readers of all ages, the depictions of everyday family life are entertaining and hugely relatable. Kofi and the Rap Battle Summer is a fun and nostalgic, music-fuelled adventure set on a South London estate in the 90s, heavily inspired by Jeffrey’s childhood growing up in Brixton. Small Island adapted to the stage from the original novel by Andrea Levy. My wife and I both agreed that we’d watch it again instantly. Wonderful.

The family in the book are all interesting, Gloria and Jeanette made me laugh and Uncle D seemed super cool. Kofi and Kelvin are my favourite characters though, especially when they are together, as I like their friendship. The book is set in the 1990’s so I didn’t understand some of the things they were talking about, especially the TV show which is mentioned regularly but I looked it up and I wish it was on now because it looked brilliant and I can see why the characters family liked it so much. It’s one of the biggest literary clichés: that books are a portal into other worlds, a way of escaping into new universes through nothing but words printed on paper. This is the heart-warming story of eleven-year-old Kofi, as he tries to navigate secondary school whilst earning himself a little extra money using his natural entrepreneurial skills. When Kofi realises that his best friend Kelvin has an awesome photographic memory - remembering every single line of a song he's heard only once - he decides to put that to use to make some money. As the whole school is obsessed with music and rap based ‘cussing’ contests (insults in rhyme), Kofi believes there is a fantastic opportunity to sell a magazine full of song lyrics to all the young people at school. I recommend this to anyone over the age of 8 years. I passed it on to my mum and she loved it too, especially the bits she remembered from growing up.After Kofi goes to extreme – and hilarious – lengths to avoid a group of intimidating youths on his estate, he learns that appearances can sometimes be deceptive. There are some tense moments in the story, as there are for young people in real life, but these are skillfully balanced with moments of humour and tenderness. For step-free access from the Queen Elizabeth Hall Slip Road off Belvedere Road to the Queen Elizabeth Hall auditorium seating (excluding rows A to C) and wheelchair spaces in the Rear Stalls, plus Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer and the Purcell Room, please use the Queen Elizabeth Hall main entrance. Nothing at the moment but I’m very tempted to rewatch The Wire. Possibly some of the best long form television ever made.