After a painful couple of days without my trusty bicycle I am now re-united with it, courtesy of Mosquito Bikes of Islington (just round the corner from Essex Road station).
They transformed my creaky wreck into a gleaming, silent speed-machine. Their deluxe service is expensive, but the bike feels better than it did when it was brand-new, which means it was money well-spent. For what it’s worth, they have my seal of approval and my short-term gratitude, until I manage to wreck my bike again.