Portobello? The clue’s in the name.

It’s Spanish for “Beautiful harbour”. I took a stroll down Portobello Road today, past the old Spanish convent which is now the Spanish Cultural Centre then past Garcia’s, the famous Spanish deli which has been there since I was a child. Back then, the area around the northern end of Portobello Road was home to London’s Spanish community. I remember their Sunday night discos with great fondness. The girls there seemed so much more exotic than the Irish girls on our side of the Harrow Road. But I’m sure those very girls viewed us in the same unflattering light when they compared us with the Spanish boys of Portobello. Nowadays, the area’s Iberian vibe seems largely forgotten. But on a quiet Wednesday afternoon with neither tourists nor trustafarians to distract me, I could almost hear Peter Guttierez’s mum calling him in for his tea.