Bird's Eye View

BEVs First Roller Derby

Whip It Roller Girls including Drew Barrymore

On Saturday 6th February myself and Julia (also of Birds Eye View) approached a sports centre in Tottenham Hale with our BYOB in our hands and the anticipation of the unknown ahead of us.

We were walking into our first roller derby.

By the time we left we were on a high, super-excited about The BEVFF Closing Night Gala – London Premiere of Whip It + live roller derby action from the London Roller Girls and the London Rockin Rollers!

Having spoken to Bette Noir (Director of the London Roller Girls) I knew the event  was a sell out and the colourful throng surrounding us proved this to be the  case.  We were met with a buzz of excitement as we entered the gym; people selling cupcakes, 80′s classics blaring and roller girls rolling around.  Char Char Gabore takes us to our seats and explains the rules of the derby. I feel at an advantage having seen Whip It – I know there are blockers who block and jammers who dodge and try and lap the other team. Ellen Page’s character in Whip It, Bliss Cavanargh, or Babe Ruthless (her skate name) is a jammer! Read the rules of Roller Derby, properly explained, here.

Following a brief introduction to the teams: The Ultraviolent Femmes in white and green and Clockwork Orange style make up and The Suffra Jets in purple and electric blue we are in the midst of the bout – and its riveting! High-energy high-competition fun. The audience, pleasantly sipping away on beer, get rowdier as the game goes on. At half time we get to meet our new heroes: Ningette, Hula Gunn, Dot Slash and Angri La!  What is most striking about these girls is their energy and passion for the sport (training up to four times a week!) and the fact that most of them have full time jobs – again I think of Whip It, Bliss working away at the ‘Oink Joint’, a diner in a small Texan town. Texas is the birth place of the sport and most of them cite the US teams as a source of inspiration. It’s hard not to find the idea of escaping you everyday life to enter this thrilling underworld and become your alter-ego attractive – a very cinematic double life. And its not hard to see why Drew Barrymore decided to use it as a backdrop for her film – there is such a sense of solidarity and fun.

Getting or got a ticket for Whip It? What would your skate name be? Tell us and win a personalised Tatty Devine necklace!

Tatty Devine are official sponsors of the London Roller Girls

Ana Ki, Bonnie Boiler, Kamikaze Kitten, Correctional Felicity, Grace of Wrath, Ningette, Hula Gunn, Dot Slash are a few London Roller Girl names…

Email clare@birds-eye-view.co.uk telling us what yours would be & include your BFI booking reference for Whip It. The best name will be chosen by Bette Noir, Director of the London Roller Girls and KitKat Power Director of the London Rockin Rollers & announced at the screening.  Tatty Devine will be russling up a custom necklace with the winning skate name on it! Click here to check them out.

Buy tickets for the Birds Eye View Film Festival Closing Night Gala London Premiere of Whip It + live roller derby action from the London Roller Girls and the London Rockin Rollers here

Watch the short video of our day at the derby below.