Rose’s realisation that she knows almost nothing about the people and places she has encountered every day for years will be a familiar one for city dwellers all over Britain. For Rose, it sparks the inspiration for an adventure through one of the most diverse and surprising London districts. Fearless in her quest to learn more, Rose – in the company of neighbours and friends including Louis Theroux and Alexei Sayle – explores the streets around her, meeting community activists, a tantric goddess, railway enthusiasts and the founders of the UK reggae scene along the way. Rose Rouse has lived in Harlesden for eighteen years. She is the author of two previous books and has written extensively for the Guardian and the Observer, as well as reviewed music for the Times. Honest, whimsical and always with an eye for the unexpected, her willingness to talk, to explore and to open her mind to new experiences invites us to share her love for this ever-changing community. As Louis Theroux says in his introduction to this book: “Harlesden represents something bigger than itself. It is a petri dish of what is happening – in less concentrated ways – across Britain.”

Rose Rouse learnt her writing craft as the rock’n'roll writer for The Face and Time Out and has a column in her local paper called Rose Rouse Rocks Around Harlesden. Louis Theroux is the maker of funny, ground-breaking documentaries.