The three lives of Soho.

I’ve been working around Soho since the early 80s. Back then, the area had three distinct lives. During the day it was all advertising and film. Around dusk, the restaurant and theatre goers arrived. Then under cover of darkness, it became the world’s most famous red light district. Between about 4am and 6am, Soho grabbed a couple of hours’ sleep before the shutters went up on its many Italian-run cafes and sandwich bars. My favourite was always the Star Cafe in Great Chapel Street. It remained unchanged until a couple of weeks ago when its proprietor, Mario Forte, passed away. I’m just back from his funeral in Soho Square. Mario ran the Star for 60 years and his was the Soho of John Deakin, the 2 I’s coffee bar and the greatest British rock’n’roll record ever made.