A free choir on the Peabody Estate in Fulham Palace Road meets most Wednesdays, 6.45pm to 8.15pm. No experience needed; open to adults and children 12 and up.

A new community choir on the Peabody Estate in Hammersmith is looking for singers. It is free, nobody has to audition, and its members so far range from 12 to their 70s.

The Peabody Community Choir rehearses on most Wednesday evenings from 6.45pm to 8.15pm at Hammersmith Community Hall, Fulham Palace Road, W6 9QT. The council’s announcement gives the remaining rehearsals this term as:

  • Wednesday 28 October (tonight)
  • Wednesday 4 November
  • Wednesday 11 November
  • Wednesday 25 November

There is no rehearsal listed for 18 November. The choir’s poster says it is open to adults of all ages and to children aged 12 and over, and that people from outside the borough are welcome too.

How it started

Meerav Shah, 27, chairs the Peabody Estate’s tenants and residents association. Shah set the choir up earlier this year as part of the estate’s centenary celebrations. Its first job was to sing at the estate’s 100th anniversary party in August, held in the estate’s sunken garden in front of around 120 guests, the council said.

That set leaned on Hammersmith’s place in pop history: The Beatles’ runs at what is now the Hammersmith Apollo, and the Tears for Fears live album recorded there in 1983.

“Nothing brings people together like music does,” Shah said. “We want anyone to be able to access the choir at any level of singing ability.” The group is also meant to tackle loneliness, “getting people to know their neighbours”.

A £2,000 grant from Peabody, the housing association that owns the estate, paid to get the group going.

The Peabody Community Choir singing outdoors on a summer evening
The choir performing outdoors in the summer. Photo: via Hammersmith & Fulham Council

Who runs the music

Rehearsals are led by local artistic director Sam Loveless, who is on this year’s shortlist for The Ivors Composer Awards, nominated as Samuel D Loveless in the Best Community and Participation Composition category for Benches, a work the Ivors Academy describes as neurodivergent-focussed. The winners are announced on 17 November.

Shirley Cupit, 72, a former nurse who has lived on the neighbouring Queen Caroline Estate for 28 years, is one of the members. “It’s a warm and welcoming atmosphere and very informal,” she told the council. “I hear myself singing in a way I didn’t know I could sing.”

What it means for you

  • Cost: nothing. The choir is free.
  • Experience: none needed, and there is no audition.
  • Age: adults of any age, and children from 12.
  • How to join: turn up to a rehearsal, or email the organisers at tape.eventsandhall@gmail.com. The poster says people who cannot use email should just come along.
  • Getting there: the hall is on Fulham Palace Road, and the nearest Tube stations are at Hammersmith. Note that from 28 October to 1 November there are no Piccadilly line trains at Hammersmith; the District line still runs. Our roadworks and travel page has the detail.

The choir has not yet published dates for after 25 November. We will add them here when it does.