SPHERE Summer 17.2 2024

SPHERE

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REGULARS

12 NUCLEUS

Fashion, culture, travel, beauty, food and drink — we curate the season’s best

30 FASHION

Cool whites for women, sage staples for men

76 WATCHES

Make time for our highlights from Watches & Wonders Geneva 2024

89 SPHERE LIFE

Our guide to the best of gifting, wellness and interiors this season, including hideaway havens at home and abroad

FEATURES

34 RETURN OF THE KING

Jeremy King, longtime doyen of London’s top tables, is back — and on top form

40 AHEAD OF THE CURVE

Groundbreaking jeweller Kiki McDonough has been setting the gem agenda for 40 years

44 SPARKLINGLY NEW

We raise a glass to the welcome renaissance of Spanish Cava

50 HOMES WITH HEART

In a delightful green Hampstead setting, The Oren epitomises ve-star luxury living

54 EASY ON THE EYES

Face-furniture with panache: this summer’s top sunglasses are backed by big brands

60 TO THE VERY FINEST DETAIL

Top turnkey properties are curated from the new owner’s preferred artists to their favourite snacks

66 BREATH OF FRESH AIR

The summer’s best al fresco entertainment, from Shakespeare to the circus

70 WORLD OF WELLNESS

Our pick of the luxury global resorts that nurture body, mind and spirit

82 SUPER GROUPS

The interest-focused US and UK members’ clubs you need to belong to

98 MASTERCLASS

Top chef Simon Rogan on making a kitchen garden that will ourish deliciously

EDITOR’S LETTER

Welcome to the summer issue of SPHERE, alongside our partners Kiki McDonough and The Oren. Our bespoke cover by Nathalie Lees celebrates the magic of the circus, and this is also the inspiration for McDonough’s new dazzling jewellery collection, as revealed by Avril Groom. Big-top extravaganzas are a key theme for the season, as Charlotte Metcalf raises the curtain on the most brilliant outdoor theatre in the capital and beyond.

Elsewhere, our exclusive interview with Jeremy King by Ben McCormack pro les a restaurateur at the top of his game. Simon Brooke puts luxury brands under the lens to explore the key names snapping up the smartest acquisition in fashion: haute eyewear. Zoe Dare Hall shines a spotlight on The Oren, which is cornering the market in luxury living for the over-65s, and also investigates super-prime turnkey properties.

There’s plenty of escape to be had. Lisa Barnard clocks in at Watches and Wonders Geneva to explore this season’s nest timepieces. We have long admired the allure of storied members’ clubs, and a new chapter in their evolution sees venues focusing on specialist interests, from dining to wine, yachting and music. Nina Caplan raises a glass to Cava and new wave tapas — and, in case you’ve overindulged, our travel feature showcases the best wellness destinations for all voyagers to book this year.

As ever, we unearth the latest in style, culture, food, drink, travel and wellness. For weekly access to the hottest news and luxury insights, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter at spherelife.com and please let us know at sphere@iln.co.uk if you would like to receive the magazine in the future.

SPHERE

Editor

Jemima Sissons

Art Director

Lucy Wise

Sub-Editors

Hester Lacey

Katie Myers

Production Consultant

Pete Kraushaar

Group Advertising Director

Jane Washbourn

tel: +44 (0)7920 821 577

email: jane.washbourn@iln.co.uk

Chief Executive

Lisa Barnard

email: lisa.barnard@iln.co.uk

Contributor

Lucia Ferigutti

SPHERE PARTNERS

KIKI MCDONOUGH kiki.co.uk

THE OREN theorenhampstead.com

CONTRIBUTORS

The work of London-based freelance illustrator Nathalie Lees has been published in The Economist, Time magazine, Le Monde, Die Zeit and The Washington Post, among others. She aims to distil complex themes and communicate ideas through the use of simple forms and bold colours.

BEN MCCORMACK

Ben McCormack has been the restaurant expert for Telegraph Luxury since 2013, for which he was shortlisted in the Restaurant Writer category at the 2020 Fortnum & Mason Food and Drink Awards. He is also a regular contributor to the Evening Standard, Food and Travel and Decanter

SIMON BROOKE

Simon Brooke is an award-winning journalist, copywriter and media trainer who writes about the luxury sector, business, wealth management, property and travel. Publications include the Financial Times, The Sunday Times and The Daily Telegraph, while brands range from Montblanc to Johnnie Walker.

ZOE DARE HALL

Zoe Dare Hall, a property writer for publications including the Financial Times, The Sunday Times and The Daily Telegraph, has been SPHERE’s property expert since our first issue 13 years ago. She lives in London but wants to live in practically every place she visits — Dorset and the Algarve are her current favourites.

CHARLOTTE METCALF

Writer and award-winning film-maker Charlotte Metcalf contributes to various publications, is editor of Great British Brands and associate editor at Country and Town House, and co-presents the Break Out Culture podcast. Her book Walking Away is about her time making television documentaries in Africa.

Wine, travel and arts writer Nina Caplan is the author of award-winning travel memoir The Wandering Vine: Wine, The Romans and Me. She writes wine and lifestyle columns for Times Luxx Club Oenologique and The New Statesman, and is a regular contributor to Travel + Leisure magazine.

email: sphere@iln.co.uk

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© 2024 Illustrated London News Limited. Articles and other contributions published in this journal may be reproduced only with special permission from the Publishers. The Publishers Illustrated London News Ltd accept no responsibility for any views or statements made in the articles and other contributions reproduced from any other source. All details and prices are subject to change. No responsibility is accepted for the claims made in advertisements appearing in this journal and the Publishers reserve the right to accept or refuse advertisements at their discretion.

Sphere magazine is published by Illustrated London News Limited, Soho Works, 4th Floor, The Tea Building, 56 Shoreditch High Street, London E1 6JJ Tel: +44 (0)207 426 1011 iln.co.uk

Jemima Sissons

NATHALIE LEES

NINA CAPLAN

A Racing Machine On The Wrist

NUCLEUS

FOR BEACH BOYS Bridgerton actor Jonathan Bailey, winner of an Olivier award, stars in the Orlebar Brown spring/summer campaign wearing the brand’s Hibbert shirt and Bulldog swim shorts, both in its snazzy floral Fiore print. Shirt £295, swim shorts £295, orlebarbrown.com

SUMMER SLINGBACKS

Rupert Sanderson has opened a new store at 61 Great Portland Street. His latest collection includes this chic Susie shoe in black calf. The monoblocco leather slingback with pointed toe alongside a cool brass chain is perfect for stepping out for work or play. £635, rupertsanderson.com

CHANNELLING ROCK ROYALTY

Luxury sunglasses brand Renauld has created a limited-edition collectable of its sleek, iconic Sixty-One design, as worn by Elvis Presley, the King of Rock and Roll. The Elvis Memphis, available in 24ct gold plate, houses a precious authenticated keepsake belonging to Elvis, encased in the lens. £995, renauld.co.uk

TAPPING INTO TRADITION

Drawing on the best of British heritage, the design of Samuel Heath’s new One Hundred bathroom fittings collection nods to automotive and fashion brands, fusing the integrity and authenticity of skilled craftsmanship with the finest materials and finishes. Basin filler in antique gold, £2,621, samuel-heath.com

THE EXPERTISE OF YEARS

Champagne Bollinger Grande Année is only issued in the best vintage years and relies on every facet of 195 years of winemaking prowess. Grande Année 2015 is the latest release, made by chef de cave Denis Bunner. champagne-bollinger.com

BRIGHT IDEA

Hats o to Acqua di Parma’s new Chapeau candle, which cleverly encompasses two in one. The cap contains a one-wick candle, with the handcrafted bottom revealing a four-wick version. The elegantly Art Decoinspired design by Dorothée Meilichzon features the Luce di Colonia scent, an Acqua di Parma favourite. £580, harrods.com

TRANSPARENTLY STYLISH

The Dodo side table, which doubles as a glass sculpture, amalgamates Murano master glassmaking techniques with the modern trends visible throughout this year’s Milan furniture festival. An intricate mandala-inspired pattern provides a subtle surface. From £1,068, chaplins.co.uk

NUCLEUS

BOUNTIFUL BOTANICALS

Graff’s new diamond pieces from its Wild Flower collection exquisitely evoke nature’s generosity and strength. Necklaces, pendants and bangles are all crafted in Graff’s London workshop. From £3,200, graff.com

SUN SETS

A quintessential pairing of two muchloved brands, Heidi Klein has collaborated with Alice Temperley London to create a new summer range. With two prints, including this brightly hued geometric one, it includes swimsuits and bikinis, as well as matching pareos. From £195, heidiklein.com, temperleylondon.com

FIT FOR A QUEEN

Let your home design take flight with Cole & Son’s Selection of Hummingbirds collection. Originally created in the 1780s, Hummingbirds is a late Georgian design that can still be found in Queen Victoria’s former bedroom at Kensington Palace. The updated modern selection includes cotton poplins and raw silks. Two new designs, including a striking panel and an all-over trail pattern, are hand-painted at Cole & Son’s headquarters in Chelsea. Hummingbirds wallpaper, £174 per roll, cole-and-son.com

NUCLEUS

A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE

From William Grant & Sons comes Wildmoor, a new range of ultra-luxury blended Scotch whisky. Taking inspiration from rugged Scottish landscapes and drawing on the company’s vast inventory of reserves, Wildmoor combines reserve malts and grains, and includes seven expressions. wildmoorwhisky.com

BE SWAYED

A more relaxed adaptation of the much-loved Chukka from Crockett & Jones, the Bibury offers a multigenerational suede boot composed of a one-piece all-round pattern with a butted seam apron. The wedge rubber sole, exclusive to the brand, is the perfect barrier to any unseasonal showers. It is one of the brand’s most practical crossover pieces, with flexibility, durability and grip as well as good looks that take elegant wearers from the office to the country pub to the sporting field. £495, crockettandjones.com

GET UP AND GLOW

Keep skin radiant this summer with Nescens, now in Harrods for the first time. The Knightsbridge store is stocking the Swiss brand’s carefully edited selection of products as well as a customised facial care menu devised using cutting-edge technology. Try the Oxylight facial, a non-invasive aesthetic treatment that promotes cell regeneration. From £45, nescens.com

Photography

Simon Procter

NUCLEUS

GREATS AT TATE

Expressionists: Kandinsky, Münter and the Blue Rider, a new exhibition at Tate Modern, is a radical exploration of colour and form, including pieces never before seen in the UK. Discover works by Paul Klee and Franz Marc, and this Wassily Kandinsky piece, Improvisation Deluge, 1913 (Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus). tate.org.uk

NORTHERN LIGHT

Novocastrian was founded by Richy Almond to celebrate the industrial history of the north of England. Its metalwork pieces include the stylish Insulator table lamp. £3,716, novocastrian.com

LAWN-READY LOOK

Make a statement at garden parties this summer with Asprey’s multifunctional 1781 goatskin pochette. A detachable shoulder strap means it can be worn in multiple ways. The 1781 collection plays homage to early travel bags; seek it out in the new Asprey store in The Peninsula London. £2,750, asprey.com

NUCLEUS FOOD AND DRINK

LOCAL BOUNTY

Set in the wilds of Lancashire, two-Michelin-starred Moor Hall opens seven new rooms in its gardens this summer. The tasting menu draws from the best of the locale; delicious snacks include an English muffin with buttered lobster, and asparagus with chorizo and cured egg yolk. From £650 per night, moorhall.com

BEEFBAR, OOH LÀ LÀ

Bringing some soigné Gallic chic to the already fashionable Chelsea Green, Le Petit Beefbar is making a name for itself with its addictive crispy fried chicken with Cinzano marinade, and its more waist-friendly kale salad, served on highly covetable bespoke Limoges plates. beefbar.com

HOP IN

Los Mochis, known for the Japanese-Mexican cuisine that fuels its loyal Notting Hill fans, has launched Juno, an omakase bar that hosts only six guests. Prepare to make friends with fellow diners, as the setting is very intimate — but all eyes are on the chefs, who create 15 masterly single-bite dishes from sustainable seafood, plus some surprising ingredients. On our visit, a dish was topped with Mexican-inspired dried grasshoppers. All dishes are nut- and gluten-free. £207, losmochis.co.uk

NUCLEUS FOOD AND DRINK

MAKING WAVES

Don’t let the sweeping view of Hammersmith roundabout put you off. The fishforward Faber restaurant’s fresh, light-filled setting forms a canvas for delicious piscine plates cooked by appropriately named Ollie Bass, working with ethical British suppliers such as Portland Shellfish and Shrub provisions. Expect dishes such as grilled Cornish cod cheek skewer with tartar sauce or Hampshire chalkstream trout tartare with soya, keta caviar and nori. faberrestaurants.co.uk

HIGHLY TASTEFUL

Clap is causing a stir in Knightsbridge with its finely tuned Japanese fare and two-storey rooftop setting. Located in The Knightsbridge Estate, the moody, low-lit sixth-floor main restaurant with its living ceiling and open kitchen, including robata grill, makes way upstairs for a bar with 180-degree views of the neighbourhood. Dishes include shojin tempura with daikon oroshi and green tea salt, the moreish crispy rice with avocado or salmon, and pistachiocrusted baby chicken. claprestaurant.com

IN THE PINK

Domaine Clarence Dillon’s Clarendelle Bordeaux Rosé, a blend of Merlots and Cabernets, is the first o cial rosé from the maison. The delightfully pale liquid dances with hints of raspberries, pink grapefruit and lychees, making it the perfect partner for summer dishes. clarendelle.com

RAISE YOUR GLASS

Purveyor of ne wines and spirits Justerini & Brooks marks its 275th anniversary with the opening of its rst boutique and tasting room in Mayfair’s Burlington Arcade. Discover rare vintages and select whiskies, and repair to the velvet-clad rst- oor lounge for Coravin tastings of ne wines. justerinis.com

THE INNOVATIVE WATERPROOF WALLPAPER

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NUCLEUS TRAVEL

ON THE WATERFRONT

Kuda Villingili in the Maldives has launched 28 new water villas with private pools alongside a three-bedroom beach retreat. The resort focuses on cuisine, with a playful hawker-style venue o ering Asian street food, while the Mar-Umi restaurant fuses Japanese and Peruvian fare. Budding Kelly Slaters can tackle the famed Chicken Break, a reef stretch creating clean 10-second barrels. From £1,200 per night, kudavillingili.com

PALERMO ON A PLATE

Villa Igiea’s new gastronomic tours of the fast and furious Sicilian capital cover edible treasures at the Capo and Ballarò markets, a cookery class, a visit to the Tasca d’Almerita winery, and a cruise dinner at sunset. From £1,400 per night, roccofortehotels.com

WITH THE WORLD’S MOST RENOWNED ARCHAEOLOGISTS

NUCLEUS TRAVEL

SUITE DREAMS

Grand Hotel Son Net, the second property from the creators of much-loved Finca Cortesin, boasts lush surroundings and a private art collection. The new spa at the 31-suite hotel has saltwater pools and a gym with views of the Tramuntana mountains. Suites from £590 per night, sonnet.es

HOMAGE TO ANDALUSIA

Bringing to life the sun-drenched city of Seville, Assouline’s Sevilla Arte illuminates the Andalusian capital’s proud traditions: flamenco, equine culture, majestic churches, Semana Santa Holy Week and Spain’s oldest soccer club. £85, assouline.com

FROM ESTATE TO PLATE

Lucknam Park’s new Walled Garden restaurant o ers diners a gourmet experience this summer. Sourcing produce from the Wiltshire hotel’s kitchen garden, the seasonal venue o ers indoor and al fresco seating, and serves up local fare such as estate-reared lamb, asparagus with rarebit and watercress, and a strawberry and pistachio knickerbocker glory. lucknampark.com

NUCLEUS BEAUTY

FRUITFUL FRAGRANCE

Fashion brand A.P.C. has introduced a new beauty and personal care range. The collection features six products, including shower gel, hand lotion and lip balm, all with a signature orange-blossom scent inspired by founder Jean Touitou’s native Tunisia. From £15, apcstore.co.uk

SUN TRAP

Master perfumer JeanClaude Ellena — the man behind Hermès’s iconic Garden fragrances, as well as Terre d’Hermès — has captured the essence of summer in a bottle with Kérylos, a new fragrance for L’Objet in collaboration with the brand’s founder and creative director Elad Yifrach. Inspired by the vibrant landscape of the Mediterranean, this citrus scent has notes of yuzu, mandarin and grapefruit, balanced by white musk, sandalwood and wild herbs. Eau de parfum 50ml, £135, l-objet.com

READY TO GO

For a quick transition from beach to dinner, pack a few staples from Byredo’s summer collection in your make-up bag. The waterproof Ultra Definer Brow Pencil (£35) adds polish and definition in seconds, while the Liquid Lipstick Vinyl in Frozen Memo (£45) lends glossy shine and enhances sunkissed complexions. byredo.com

FACE TIME

Sensai’s lightweight Total Finish powder foundation leaves skin with a naturally healthy glow — perfect for the warmer months. Refill, £42, and compact case, £22, sensai-cosmetics.com

1961

FASHION

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With three venues opening in London this year, restaurant royalty Jeremy King shows no sign of relinquishing his crown

WORDS BEN MCCORMACK PHOTOGRAPHY GEMMA DAY

RETURN OF THE KING

It’s rare that a restaurateur will suggest meeting in a rival’s restaurant, particularly when they have a new place of their own to show o . Jeremy King, however, is the rarest of restaurateurs, responsible for the heydays of Le Caprice, The Ivy and The Wolseley, the seminal London dining rooms of the 1980s, 90s and 2000s, respectively. And with three restaurants opening in the capital this year alone, King is set to repeat the hat-trick for the 2020s, too.

We meet in Maison François in St James’s. King’s rst new restaurant that we’re here to talk about is Arlington, which is new only in the sense that the relaunch of Le Caprice, now safely back under King’s ownership after being closed during the pandemic by Richard Caring, chairman of Caprice Holdings, has a new name since opening its doors in March. So why are we round the corner in Maison François? “I think that François O’Neill, the owner, is a kindred spirit,” King says. “And I like restaurants that have booths and corner tables. The whole

“I’ve seen tears in the eyes of people walking through the door”

point about being a restaurateur is to create restaurants you’d like to go to yourself.”

Those restaurants did not exist in 1981, when King and his then business partner Christopher Corbin opened Le Caprice in the cul-de-sac of Arlington Street. The story goes that the restaurant only took o after King and Corbin took a booking from model Marie Helvin, who was hosting Mick and Bianca Jagger, Bryan Ferry and Jerry Hall.

Soon everyone from Elton John to Princess Diana (“she was terri c, a very natural person”) were coming for bang bang chicken, shepherd’s pie and salmon shcakes — all of which are on the Arlington menu, although, King says, “tweaked and enhanced”. Diana’s favourite table, number seven, has gone in the new incarnation, but the Venetian blinds removed by Caring are back, along with a luminous new set of David Bailey prints, and former regulars are delighted.

“I’ve been taken aback by how emotional people have been, and realising just how much Le Caprice has meant over the years,” King says. “I’ve seen tears in the eyes of people walking through the door. The goodwill has been amazing.”

When I have dinner at Arlington ahead of meeting King, the most delicious avour is nostalgia. Annabel Croft and her family occupy one table, Alan Yentob another,

while Graeme Souness and his wife Karen are sitting at the table next to us (we end up having drinks with them at The Sta ord hotel afterwards; an evening at Arlington tends to unfold like that). Orlando Bloom sticks his head through the door to enquire about availability. King is keen to emphasise that Arlington isn’t just for the late-middleaged and upwards. “The last thing we should do is rely purely on nostalgia or the previous demographic,” he says. “Arlington has to appeal to a whole new group of people who I’m trying to encourage to come along because they’re interested to see what all the fuss is about.”

The biggest name attached to Arlington, however, was Jesus Adorno, the legendary maître d’ who started working at Le Caprice as head waiter in 1981 and announced on Instagram he was leaving Arlington a fortnight after launching, saying “it wasn’t a good t for me”. King won’t be drawn on his departure, though one rumour is that Adorno has been poached by Richard Caring for the reboot of the Le Caprice brand, which he bought from King and Corbin in 2005, when The Chancery Rosewood on Grosvenor Square opens next year.

King won’t be drawn on Caring either, except obliquely. “I think St James’s is restrained and quite elegant; it’s a very di erent experience to Berkeley Square,” he says, alluding to Caring’s Sexy Fish and Bacchanalia with a wry smile that is almost a pursing of the lips. “I’m not sure people really want somewhere very blingy with loud music.”

King and Corbin opened The Wolseley on the corner of Arlington Street and Piccadilly in 2003. Two years ago, King attempted to buy back what had become a collection of half a dozen restaurants from his former backer Minor International, but instructed his new investors to pull out when they had reached the limit of what he was prepared to spend (Minor is understood to have paid more than £60 million for what is now The Wolseley Hospitality Group). “Hey, these things happen,” King says with a shrug about losing a company he started from scratch. “I was particularly sad that I was forced out immediately without being able to say goodbye to anybody. It was an upsetting time, but slowly that changes.”

King’s follow up to Arlington, The Park, is due to open in mid June. The all-day restaurant will take up a light- lled corner on Bayswater Road and Queensway, opposite Kensington Gardens. West London is, admits King, “a departure for me”, and not only in terms of location.

Where his previous restaurants have been known for modern-British and Mittel-European cooking, The Park will be all-American. The 170-cover space will also feature a terrace and private dining room, and dogs will be allowed in the daytime. “You might come in your sweats during the day and then dressed up in the evening, or vice versa,” King says. “Both the feel of the place and the food will be contemporary comfort.”

King lives in Primrose Hill, north London, with his second wife Lauren Gurvich King, an American-born interior designer. He worked

Previous page: restaurateur Jeremy King From far left: King has long been a leading light of London’s dining scene; a tranquil moment at Arlington before the day’s rush begins

“No self-respecting maître d’ can come to work unless they’ve read a broadsheet in the morning”

in merchant banking in the early 1970s before becoming the front of house for Joe Allen in Covent Garden. The role of maître d’ seems an odd career choice for someone who claims to be shy, but it has allowed him to carve out his own distinct niche of arm’s-length charm. “Restaurateurs are normally gregarious, hail-fellow-well-met characters,” he says. “I’ve never done that. I’m not someone who hugs people and sits down with them to have a drink. I think of myself more as a catalyst for them to have a good time, but I’m always going to be slightly distant.”

King turns 70 this summer and previously imagined he would be retired by now — “but I’m glad I’m not,” he says, even if he hadn’t anticipated opening three restaurants in the space of 12 months. The third is Simpson’s in the Strand, the historic dining room, or Grand Divan, attached to the Savoy hotel. “It’s early days, but hopefully it will be open by the end of October,” King says — well ahead of its bicentenary in 2028.

The restaurant, whose former patrons include Disraeli, Gladstone and Churchill, was closed by the Savoy in 2020 and past its best for a long time before that. “A lot of people have never really known what Simpson’s was like,” King says, which gives him something of

a blank canvas on which to work. The wood panelling, plaster mouldings and carved-beef trolleys in the Grand Divan will remain, but everything else will be brought up to date.

“Simpson’s won’t be traditional British, but its roots will be British,” King says. “It’s funny how things are cyclical. In the 1990s the na est thing you could serve in a restaurant was prawn cocktail, but now everyone is doing it. A lot of Parisian brasseries are successful because they serve a variation of what they’ve been doing for over 100 years.”

In addition to the Grand Divan, the upstairs Ladies’ Room will reopen as a banqueting space, while the basement bar and its 1am licence will be back, too — a challenge to recent reports of the death of late-night London. “When we opened Caprice, we took orders until midnight, which was pretty much unheard of,” King says. “The relationship with the theatre fraternity ourished because of it. I was recently talking to some actor friends and they nd it really di cult to get a meal after a performance.”

Arlington takes last orders at 10.45pm; King and I, however, have been having breakfast and it’s time to pay the bill. What does this master of the art of front of house recommend as the best way to attract a

waiter’s attention? “Normally I can get their attention just by staring — even if their back is turned to me.” The most important attribute in waiting sta , King says, is to be well-informed. “I always tell my sta that no self-respecting maître d’ can come to work unless they’ve read a broadsheet in the morning.” Aspiring maître d’s will be able to read King’s advice in a book of his life lessons due out by the end of the year.

We head back to Arlington along Jermyn Street, where King, a copy of TheTimes tucked under the arm of his 6ft 5in frame, clad in an elegant grey three-piece suit, looks perfectly at home among the gentleman’s out tters — though he has never imposed a dress code at any of his restaurants. Once through Arlington’s doors, it becomes clear why we met in the quiet of Maison François: it’s not even midday and there are lunchers at the bar knocking back Champagne with one hand and glad-handing King with the other.

“Most people want to walk into a restaurant and have somebody recognise them, call them by their name and know what they want,” King says. “In the end, longevity trumps pure talent. A lot of restaurants employ very talented people, but don’t stay open for more than two or three years.”

Arlington might be the biggest comeback in West End history, but the real star will always be the man behind the scenes. arlington.london

From far left: King in the dining room at Arlington, the revival of the former Le Caprice; King believes that the point about being a restaurateur is to create restaurants you’d like to go to yourself

AHEAD OF THE CURVE

Kiki McDonough continues to shape the face of British jewellery with her latest vibrant collection

WORDS AVRIL GROOM

As our interview comes to an end, I congratulate Kiki McDonough, not only on almost 40 years of a business that is still quietly expanding, but also on maintaining her independence and running her brand from one chic but unassuming store and salon in Chelsea. “Yes,” she says, looking pensive. “I’ve survived three recessions and a pandemic, and I’m still here.”

McDonough is the spirit of Britain in jeweller form. Dogged, determined to go her own way and proceed at her own pace, she also has British design creativity and air in spades. Her latest collection, Carousel, is inspired by nostalgic, childhood memories of bright lights, sparkling colours and the dizzying joy of the fairground. Drop hoop earrings and simple pendants are made magical by specially cut, smooth,

trapezoid baguettes, set so closely that no metal shows and the gradations of colour — vivid or delicate — provide maximum impact. They vary from tri-colour mixes of the palest morganites, aquamarines and citrines to bold blends of deepest pink rubellites, green tsavorites and light blue sapphires. Others feature pastels in pink or blue, sparked with an occasional bright stone. All are suspended from pavé diamond hoops or studs. Pendants are similarly suspended, as a brilliant, graduated ring from pale citrines to the deepest tangerine garnets, or a mix of fragile, transparent pastels. Circular drop earrings and pendants feature baguette stones, designed to mimic the beautiful, decorative roof of the carousel and the instantly recognisable shape of the Ferris wheel. The curves, which are also broken circles, are di erent — voluptuous, sensuous

Right: jeweller Kiki McDonough has been at the forefront of the industry since founding her eponymous brand in 1985. Her latest collection, Carousel, includes graduated ring pendants with her signature blend of vibrant colours and precious stones

“I know how lucky I am to have built this business solely by designing pieces I enjoy wearing”

The Carousel range includes exquisite earring designs, from organic, voluptuous curves, with soft shades of pastels and diamonds that catch the light, to circles and magical drop hoops

and organic, with softly geometric gems artistically arranged so that light and scattered diamonds shine between them. The stones are shaded from pale pink to deep magenta or from misty pale green through to deep rosé wine. Simpler alternatives draw the front-to-back shape as a diamond pavé white-gold curve, with intermittent gemstones in random shapes in shades of mauve or pink, set so the pair is asymmetric.

McDonough is one of several designers who started out in the early 1980s and moved the British perception of jewellery sharply away from classic rubies, sapphires and emeralds, mounted with diamonds in traditional designs, to a bright new world of colour, often in daring combinations, and stones with unfamiliar names.

These were known as “semi-precious” but their huge increase in both popularity and value over the years means they are all now regarded as precious. Some of this growth is due to McDonough. As one of very few women in Britain at the time who not only designed jewellery but also created their own business from it, her target market was the increasing number of young women like herself, making waves in the working world and with the wherewithal and interest to buy their own jewellery, rather than waiting for a man or their family to gift it.

Nowadays that seems completely normal but life was very di erent when McDonough was growing up in the 1970s as the fth generation, and only woman, in a jewellery

dealing family — her father, an expert in Georgian jewellery and English silver, owned an antique jewellery shop on Bond Street. It never occurred to her to train in jewellery, but she developed a stylish persona while working in the fashion department of Vogue and, as a well-connected young woman about town with a thriving social life, went on to work for rms such as Party Planners and Eximious personalised gifts.

She was contacted by her friend Nigel Milne, a well-known dealer in Edwardian, vintage and bespoke jewellery, who wanted to start selling modern ne jewellery.

“He actually wanted to set up a business and store with me as designer. He said I wasn’t scared of ne jewellery and I knew what people wanted in fashion. I was very surprised but it was an irresistible challenge,” she says. Milne put up some money and McDonough’s father loaned her the rest while overseeing the paperwork. “I paid him back within a year,” she says proudly.

She had very di erent ideas from her father. “Jewellery shops then had heavy mahogany cabinets, and were run by, and sold mainly to, men,” she says. “I admired the beauty and craft of the jewels my father sold but I wanted more modern colours in adventurous combinations. New stones and colours still come on the market and I tried to nd a new one each year. So many have beautiful soft shades that blend together for daily wear, not just special occasions — exactly what modern women want to buy.”

Her stores — she has had three so far, each more spacious than the last — are equally light, bright and informal, with subtle but e ective security. Since 2008 she has been settled in a comfortable, welcoming space just behind Sloane Square, with cushioned chairs, pale cream and gold decor, and discreet areas for private appointments. She has seen many changes in buying habits. “Quite early on I noticed couples coming to shop, rather than just the man, or men shopping for pieces already researched by their partner,” she says. “Then, surprisingly quickly, women buying for themselves became the norm.”

Alongside the new range, she has a large number of collections, some of which are as popular now as they were in her early days. The Kiki Classics range features pieces such as the iconic double oval earrings inspired by the costumes from TheSleepingBeauty ballet. A passionate supporter of the art form, McDonough is a trustee of the New English Ballet Theatre and a patron of Covent Garden. The range also includes simple pieces with oval stones in a rubover setting or the diamond “halo” edging that has become a modern classic, as well as three-stone gypsy and bombé rings, and multi-shaded tennis bracelets, all in optimistic, original colour combinations. With a stockist network that ranges from Fortnum & Mason to Harrods and Mappin & Webb in the UK, and top stores in America (her second biggest market), she is happy with the exclusivity of one store, where her handpicked, 20-strong team operates. Relations with the workshops where her pieces are made, in several countries including the UK, in Birmingham, Italy and Asia, are equally personal. “I have worked with the same four gem dealers for about 25 years, and craftsmen for almost as long,” she says. “I learned the quality of craftsmanship on the job.”

She maintains client relations “with two or three events a year, usually drinks in the store; dinners are too pressured as people may wish to consider before buying. We also do trunk shows at our best stockists. People expect it today, as they do a strong online presence. The pandemic brought forward the acceptability of online jewellery shopping by ve years.”

McDonough, who is a business mentor for the The Prince’s Trust, plans to launch a major new collection next year to celebrate 40 years of her brand. “I know how lucky I am,” she says, “to have built this business solely by designing pieces I enjoy wearing.” kiki.co.uk

Left: McDonough’s chic, understated store and salon in Chelsea

Sparklingly new

Discover the winemakers and vineyards that are heralding the next wave of Spanish

zz, honouring their historic roots while raising a glass to the future

Cava might be the bestconceived name in the wine world. The Spanish for cellar, the word is evocative, short and easy to pronounce, and it signi es a wonderful drink: elegant and nutty, with zinging lemony acidity balanced by toast and spice. But it may also be the worst, due to its presence on the labels of rivers of boring Spanish zz, selling nearly as cheaply as sparkling water, which have poured into supermarkets in the past 20 years, turning o discerning drinkers.

Great Cava is simply beautiful. And it costs what a great sparkling wine ought to, re ecting the care taken of the vines, the minimal or non-existent use of pesticides, and the long and involved production process once the grapes get to the winery. Cava, after all, is made via the traditional method used in Champagne, and second fermentations in bottle with at least nine months’ ageing on lees (the yeast residues that give texture to the wine) shouldn’t come cheap.

Over his extraordinary Mas del Serral 2012 — a sparkling wine of depth and complexity made entirely from the Catalan variety Xarello, which spends 10 whole years on lees — I ask Pepe Raventós what has gone wrong. We’re having lunch at Arros QD, the Fitzrovia restaurant overseen by three-Michelinstarred Valencia chef Quique Dacosta.

A 21st-generation winemaker, Raventós is surely the person to ask. His family has been making wine in Sant Sadurní d’Anoia, 30 miles inland of Barcelona in the Catalan region of Penedès, since 1497. It was his ancestor Josep Raventós Fatjó who, in 1872, after a trip to Champagne, decided to create a sparkling wine. “But ours was made only from the Xarello variety, which is really well adapted to Penedès soils, as well as being capable of ageing,” he says. The wine was very successful and soon spawned lots of others. Around a century later, the winemakers wisely chose to abandon their rst choice of name, Champaña — even back then, their equivalents in Champagne were inclined to get a little upset about imitators.

WORDS NINA CAPLAN

So the drink, usually made from three native varieties — Macabeo, Parellada and Xarello — came to be called Cava. “My grandfather, José Maria Raventós, came up with the name,” the renowned winemaker explains. The DO (Denominación de Origen, the Spanish equivalent of France’s appellations) was made o cial in 1991. But with this dreamed-up name, so easy to pronounce but so hard to pin down, the seeds of Cava’s current troubles were sown.

Our oysters in the shell are perfect with the saltiness of the Raventós i Blanc De La Finca 2020, made from grapes grown on ancient terraces beside the river Anoia. These are packed with fossilised sea creatures that lived on what was, 16 million years ago, the bed of the Mediterranean. The elegant, mineral 2019 Textures de Pedra, from indigenous red grapes Sumoll and Xarello Vermell, glints faintly pink and goes beautifully with corn-fed chicken and citrus mayo. The Mas del Serral (which he labels under his own name) is fabulous with everything. Only mojo rojo, a spicy sauce accompanying delicious grilled squid, looks too much for the wines, and we avoid it. Raventós is not the only person making serious, high-end sparkling wine in Penedès. Gramona, a winery that has made superb zz since the late 19th century, is certi ed biodynamic, and has a long list of

“My nose filled with the perfume of white flowers, while in the mouth it was bready and rich”

sustainability commitments as well as a winery built in 2001 that won the European Award for Sustainable Architecture. For the Gramona family, the most important auditors are the bees and the bats: as long as the animals thrive, the winemakers say, they’re clearly doing right by the natural environment. After the Spanish Civil War and then the Second World War left their bottles in the cellar well past the usual time, long ageing became a Gramona watchword. Today, their wines age for between 18 months and 10 years, and older vintages are released under their Enoteca label.

The wines are fabulous, especially Lustros, a single-estate blend of Xarello and Macabeo that spends over 80 months on lees. At José Pizarro’s marvellous eponymous Bermondsey restaurant, I drank the 2015 with lemon ice cream and caramelised lemon peel. The dessert brings out the citrus undertones in the wine, de nitively scotching the idea that bonedry sparkling wine can’t work with dessert.

Gramona was the rst Cava (as it was then called) that I fell in love with, long ago, but neither this nor the Mas de Serral is the oldest I have tried. Ten years after my

father’s death I opened, with anticipatory regret, a bottle of Juvé & Camps Gran Reserva, accidentally kept for 20 years. I thought it would be sad and probably at, but maybe useful for cooking. Instead, it was a revelation. My nose lled with the perfume of white owers, while in the mouth it was bready and rich, the bubbles still vivacious after all that time.

I can name many other wonderful sparkling wines from this region; what I can’t do is group them together. And this is the real problem. Raventós has left the Cava DO and dreams of o cial recognition for

Previous page: covering 22.5 hectares, the Gramona estate extends from the Anoia river to the hill of Mas Escorpí Clockwise from top far left: Pepe Raventós joined the family business

in 2001; great Cava is simply beautiful and pairs well with a wide range of dishes; Gramona dates back to 1850; fifthand sixth-generation winemakers Leo, Xavier, Jaume and Roc Gramona

“These winemakers have so much in common and so many uniquely beautiful wines between them”

his chosen name, the slightly unwieldy Conca del Riu Anoia (Anoia River Basin). Several of his neighbours have also quit the appellation, choosing the slightly catchier designation Corpinnat (the heart of Penedès) — Gramona is one of them, as is Recaredo, another excellent biodynamic producer whose Turó d’En Mota cuvée is as admired as many Grand Cru burgundies. To answer to either designation, the wines must be made here, in the Anoia valley, which is not true of Cava. Juvé & Camps has, nonetheless, stuck with the Cava DO, as has Sumarroca, maker of a quartet of complex and delicious single-vineyard wines under its Nuria Claverol label.

These winemakers are all within a circumference of less than ve miles; they have so much in common and so many uniquely beautiful wines between them. If only they would agree to be called one thing, they would make wine-lovers’ lives so much simpler, no matter how complicated their ultimate choice of name. Still, I won’t let the multiple monikers put me o : after all, it is what’s in the glass that counts.

WHERE TO DRINK GREAT CAVA

Noble Rot, London

The trio of excellent London restaurants owned by Dan Keeling and Mark Andrew MW are justly famous for their superb wine lists, so it is no surprise to find Raventós wines here. They also serve Pago de Tharsys, a Cava produced near Valencia. Andrew says he admires the winemaker’s commitment to organic and sustainable farming “that yields wines with succulent orchard fruit flavours and fantastic, mineral-driven precision.” noblerot.co.uk

Pizarro, London

José Pizarro has been delighting the UK with his wonderful Spanish food for 25 years, and he hasn’t lost his native insouciance. In his Bermondsey restaurant, all sparkling Spanish wines are listed under Cava, although Gramona and Raventós i Blanc are no such thing — nor is the terrific Colet Navazos, which has opted for the Penedès DO. josepizarro.com

Above: Cava is the perfect pairing with many of the superb dishes on the menu at Noble Rot. With three London locations, in Bloomsbury, Soho and Mayfair, this award-winning restaurant is a mustvisit for those who appreciate good wine

Arros QD, London

This superb fine-dining restaurant in Fitzrovia, overseen by three-Michelin-starred Valencia chef Quique Dacosta, is the place to try Recaredo’s elusive Turó d’en Mota, from a single vineyard planted in 1940 and now ploughed by horse. To accompany this or other wines from his impressive list, there are delicacies cooked on the open grill, and many delicious iterations of Dacosta’s particular obsession: paella. arrosqd.com

Homes with heart

One of the most highly anticipated new arrivals in the UK capital, The Oren o ers the very nest in luxury living

WORDS ZOE DARE HALL

As you pull up to your home in The Oren, Hampstead’s eagerly awaited new development, the concierge o ers to help with your shopping, while a valet takes care of your car.

followed by a spa treatment or a dip in the hydrotherapy pool. Alternatively, you could relax and soak up the verdant views from your private terrace across gardens landscaped by the multi-award-winning designer Christopher Bradley-Hole. From the penthouses, the panoramas stretch out above the canopy of surrounding mature trees to take in the whole of London.

The Oren sits among the nest new developments in the capital and, possibly, globally. Its amenities rival those of the world’s best hotels and its round-the-clock team of sta have honed their expertise with careers in high-end hospitality.

Clockwise from above: the three-bedroom penthouse at The Oren features a wrap-around terrace with 270-degree views; the penthouse boasts an elegant, open-plan living and dining area; the development’s wellness centre includes a pool

You may pause to have co ee with friends or family on the restaurant terrace before you return to the comfort of your apartment, designed by Alan Stanton of the RIBA Stirling Prize-winning practice Stanton Williams. (His recent projects include the transformation of the Royal Opera House and Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design’s striking new King’s Cross home.)

Perhaps afterwards you’ll head to the wellness centre for a workout in the gym,

What sets The Oren apart is that its 44 residences are purely the preserve of those aged 65 or over. The development is setting the bar high for a new level of retirement living — the sort that will attract people who want capacious storage for their skis and golf clubs, are drawn to the idea of dinner in a theatre-style kitchen that rivals the immersive experiences o ered by top-end London restaurants, and enjoy being part of a likeminded community who aren’t the classic retiring type.

“Hampstead is home to very special individuals who have worked hard throughout their lives, with many living in

beautiful, established homes. This sense of place is just as important in the next chapter,” says Gavin Stein, CEO of Elysian Residences, the developer of The Oren.

The company’s award-winning retirement developments also include Wildernesse House, a sumptuously restored stately home in Kent, and new, modern apartments at The Landsby in Stanmore.

At The Oren, apartments start at £1,895,000 for a two-bedroom residence, rising to over £5 million for a grand, three-bedroom penthouse apartment, all with private outdoor space. The scheme is due for completion in autumn 2024 and there is a show apartment on site to give prospective owners a taste of what they can expect.

“There is no element here of living with less. There is no sacri ce or compromise needed,” says Stein. “Homeowners at The Oren are likely to be moving from large houses on large plots — often in Hampstead — and one wants to continue to enjoy the same lifestyle. Here, the apartments are of a quality of design and speci cation among the best you’ll nd anywhere in the world. One can live in a beautifully appointed home, with the convenience of on-site services that o er the future-proo ng support that many look for.”

These services, Stein observes, are discreet, but have a high impact on the lives of owners. They might, for example, include

booking a restaurant on an owner’s behalf before they leave for the theatre, or loading the luggage for a last-minute trip — or practical support, from simple home maintenance to arranging a service for an owner’s car. “Our lives are busy,” he says. “We strive to remove the hassle.”

There is an abundance of activities, including language classes, music performances, supper clubs and a range of health classes, including yoga and pilates, should The Oren’s owners choose. “This isn’t about the old-school formality of a classic hotel,” says Stein. “It’s far more friendly and personal.” Those who love gardening can continue to enjoy it — or they can simply enjoy the oasis that Bradley-Hole has crafted, which combines sociable areas with secluded spots and is inspired by Japanese garden design that changes colour with the seasons. The garden terrace properties have proved especially popular for homeowners with pets.

Striking the perfect balance between privacy and sociability is key to the vision

behind every element of The Oren, and its unique location, overlooking Hampstead Heath’s Golders Hill Park, provides the sense of a secure sanctuary. Where else can you live in a woodland setting so close to central London? “The design was heavily in uenced by the surrounding landscape. The process of tting the building into the hillside was three-dimensional and the result is something truly special,” says Stanton, who has worked with Bradley-Hole on several projects, including King’s Cross Square.

The building’s design concept also o ers the opportunity for seclusion or connectivity, connecting apartments set in four interlinked pavilions, positioned not to be overlooked. Each is subtly di erent in layout and outlook from any other.

“Our primary aim was to build a community,” Stanton explains. “The question of choice was terribly important to this end, because we all have a di erent lifestyle and way of connecting. We have designed a building that is a tranquil, calm and secure place, o ering varying levels of

“The apartments are of a design and specification quality among the best you’ll find anywhere in the world ”

Clockwise from above: The Oren is situated in the lush greenery of Hampstead; the high-end design is instantly warm and welcoming; owners adapt their apartments to suit their own personal design taste; kitchens all feature premium materials and fittings

sociability, privacy and support.” Longevity and energy e ciency are also important pillars of the project’s design, including photovoltaic panel arrays on the roof, passive design to maximise daylight and regulate heating and cooling, and green roofs to conserve water. There are cycle storage and EV charging points for owners.

Inside the spacious, light- lled apartments, the high-end design is instantly warm and welcoming — not to mention customisable. Some owners will adapt their apartment to suit their personal design tastes, or work with their own interior designers. Every master bedroom has a large ensuite bathroom, and spare bedrooms might also o er the perfect study. “Those who have shown early interest are on the boards of companies and do charity work,” says Stein. And, of course, every apartment features the premium materials and top-of-the-range ttings you would expect from a leading ve-star development.

Meticulous attention to detail has also gone into what lies behind the scenes, from the highest levels of sound insulation and thermal glazing to full-height doorways and fully accessible bathrooms, which sacri ce nothing in style but o er future-proofed comfort and reassurance for owners.

“We believe passionately that, as we grow older, life can and should be ful lling, engaging and uplifting,” says Stein. “This runs through everything we do at The Oren. Our aim is to give owners access to the very best that life has to o er, whether that be food, experiences or service.”

theorenhampstead.com

EASY ON THE EYES

This season’s spectacular eyewear o erings are hard to overlook, as global brands focus on a growing market

WORDS SIMON BROOKE

Men seldom make passes at girls who wear glasses,” observed the celebrated wit Dorothy Parker. If this was ever true, no one seems to have told the world’s largest luxury brands. The worth of the global luxury eyewear market is calculated at $40.8 billion and will expand at a compound annual growth rate of 4% from 2023 to 2030, according to Cognitive Market Research — putting its expansion comfortably ahead of most other sectors of the luxury market.

LVMH’s eyewear division Thélios is on a major splurge. In November it announced an agreement to acquire Barton Perreira, a renowned luxury eyewear company. Two months earlier it bought up Vuarnet, the 60-year-old French high-end outdoor sunglasses brand. “Vuarnet perfectly blends in the Thélios’ portfolio of LVMH luxury Maisons through its unique brand positioning at the crossroads of outdoors and fashion,” said LVMH. “Thélios aims to restore the brand’s former glory, empowering Vuarnet to further elevate its product quality and push the boundaries of innovation.”

In January Thélios announced that it would be partnering with TAG Heuer to enable the renowned Swiss watchmaker to return to the eyewear sector. Bulgari is the latest luxury brand to hand over design, manufacturing and distribution of its eyewear collections to Thélios. Not to be outdone, Kering Eyewear has recently snapped up Maui Jim, the world’s largest independent sunglasses brand, as well as UNT, a key player in the manufacture of

Left: Cartier is ramping up its eyewear o ering with witty details such as this stylised panther on its Panthère de Cartier range

high-precision metal and mechanical components for the luxury eyewear sector.

RM Luxury Limited, a new sustainable luxury eyewear brand, has just announced the launch of Aderiyike sunglasses in Mayfair. According to creative director Aderiyike Makinde, the inspiration for the brand is a desire to “revolutionise the fashion industry by infusing sustainability and longevity.”

She says: “Witnessing the detrimental impact of fast fashion, I envisioned a brand that o ers stylish, enduring eyewear without compromising on quality or the environment. What makes it special is the fusion of fashion-forward aesthetics with eco-consciousness, o ering our audience a chance to express their style sustainably.”

This increasingly bullish market is being matched by bold, con dent designs in sunglasses this summer. Yves Saint Laurent’s Amelia pilot range, for instance, has a sharp angular silhouette with metal bars supporting

“You’ll probably use a brand’s glasses more often than its handbags. Eyewear is very visible, very prominent”

dnane nemow si gniebat

vintage frames. Cartier has added witty little details such as stylised panthers to its new Panthère de Cartier collection. Gucci has a vintage vibe, with shades of orange, pink and pistachio green, and heavy branding. Chloé’s collection also features large statement frames. Mindful of concerns about conspicuous consumption in these di cult economic times, the luxury fashion industry generally might be leaning towards more discreet looks with less prominent logos, but eyewear is clearly bucking the trend.

As product knowledge becomes increasingly important for luxury customers, the new Maybach collection, like a growing

Forpricesandmoredetails,seewebsites

number of luxury eyewear ranges, puts an emphasis on materials — in this case, wood, natural bu alo horn, ne carbon bre, leather and titanium among others. With its use of 18ct gold and diamonds, this new collection almost feels like a jewellery range, rather than eyewear.

Alongside his main range of eyewear, designer Tom Davies has just unveiled his Luxury collection, a series of handmade frames featuring precious metals. “The collection has grown and evolved into something special,” he says. “I’ve actually been making frames from natural horn, silver 925 and 18ct gold for more than 10 years but this is my biggest release to date. It’s not something you can easily just launch — we needed to become experts in manufacturing these materials and then we carefully developed the collection and the concept. It’s taken a lot of work but I’m really happy with where it is right now.”

Chloé chloe.com Balenciaga

Far left: designer Tom Davies

Right: Aderiyike sunglasses make a statement that’s stylish, striking — and sustainable

Left: Yves Saint Laurent’s Amelia pilot range conjures up the exploratory spirit of the pioneering aviator Amelia Earhart

PHOTOGRAPHY:

“Spectacles are increasingly seen as a status symbol, associated with education and high earnings”

As an eyewear professional, why does Davies think that the luxury eyewear sector is expanding with the big luxury houses now buying up individual brands? “For 30 years big eyewear brands were just licensed products to gigantic eyewear conglomerates,” he explains. “Then the big brands found they didn’t like two things. Someone was earning more money than they were — and they lost control of their brand positioning. It’s a problem for brands like Gucci when their frames are positioned mid-market. So I guess there’s an element of them wanting to wrest back that control – though that’s easier said than done.”

Mario Ortelli, managing partner of Ortelli & Co, a strategy, mergers and acquisitions advisory company specialising in the luxury goods industry, compares the expansion of eyewear with the way in which luxury houses have moved into beauty over the past few years.

“It’s a way of scaling up and reaching more customers,” he says. The lower price point of these accessories compared to clothing and handbags means that more customers can interact with the brand. In some cases, ticket prices for handbags have risen by more than twice the rate of in ation over the past few years. “You might not be able to a ord a bag at £3,000 but you can often buy the brand’s glasses at £300 — and the chances are that you’ll use them more often than a bag. Eyewear is very visible, very prominent.”

Ortelli points out that, with gross margins of up to 80%, eyewear is commercially very attractive to luxury groups. There’s another parallel here with the trend among the big luxury groups to develop brand extensions and to move into new sectors by buying other companies rather than partnering with them. “Acquiring eyewear brands and manufacturing, rather than just granting licences, gives luxury groups more control of the product, the distribution and the brand story,” he observes.

Sunglasses aside, high-end optical eyewear is also bene ting from another trend: more of us require glasses these days. Half of the world’s population could be short-sighted by the year 2050, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, an increase of more than a third on the total today.

Forpricesandmoredetails,seewebsites

Spectacles themselves are also increasingly seen as a status symbol. According to a paper published last year by Columbia University, “many studies nd that the more education you have, the more likely you are to be myopic” and “high earners are more likely to wear glasses than low earners.”

The big luxury houses are on the lookout for opportunities to expand their collections. “I’m approached every few months about being bought out,” says Davies. He anticipates more acquisitions by the big luxury eyewear brands. “You’re not seeing so many fashion brands launching their own eyewear line, but established eyewear lines are being snapped up by the big fashion houses. I think we’ll see more of that.”

As the large luxury groups identify new sectors and consumers look for new ways to express their individual style, along with the growing need for more of us to wear glasses, this is a sector whose future looks bright.

To the very finest detail

From artwork to aromas and even aperitifs, today’s super-prime turnkey properties o er a whole new level of luxury and convenience

WORDS ZOE DARE HALL

I’ll never forget his choice of words,”

Jon Byers at Anderson Rose estate agency recalls of a recent client from Johannesburg. “He said, ‘I want the at and everything in it, right down to the peanuts in the jar’.”

For Byers, and many other super-prime London estate agents like him, this kind of demand for a turnkey property, where, he says, “you can just move straight in as soon as you’ve landed,” now dominates the highest echelons of the market.

Mark Pollack, from Aston Chase estate agents in St John’s Wood, calls them “toothbrush-ready” properties. It’s not enough, he says, just to present buyers with a beautifully renovated home. “You need to stage the property too. Otherwise it’s like giving a present without wrapping it.”

That means furnishings, down to the teaspoons and toiletries; choosing the artwork and books; selecting the perfect aroma to greet you as you walk in; and the right brands of whiskies and gins to stock the reception room bar. It costs buyers up to 30% more than they would pay for a non-turnkey property, says Jo Eccles at Eccord buying agency. But it’s the price of convenience and the super-rich are more than happy to pay.

The most expensive new property on the London market currently is the £132-million penthouse at The Bryanston, a new Rafael

Viñoly-designed development next to Marble Arch. There is only a tiny pool of possible buyers globally with that kind of cash — for what will, undoubtedly, be one of several residences they own. Simply marketing the space — all 14,000 sq ft of it, plus a private 4,000-sq-ft terrace overlooking Hyde Park — to this rare ed audience isn’t enough.

Every minute detail of this beautiful behemoth, named The Townhouse in the Sky, has been painstakingly curated and crafted in the hope, and possibly expectation, the buyer might take the lot (though extras aren’t included in the price).

Kathrin Hersel, property director at the scheme’s developers Almacantar, can practically tell you the names of the childhood pets of the many artists whose work is featured here, so hands on is she — along with the penthouse’s interior designer StudioMorey — with the “gallery-level” art on display. Pieces range from a 150kg glass sculpture suspended from the 6.5-metrehigh entrance hall ceiling to a discreet arrangement of tiny wooden sculptures that represent the sound wave patterns of di erent bird song in the Royal Park.

In the super-prime market, turnkey property of this sort is all about “instant grati cation,” comments Knight Frank’s Rupert des Forges. “You are e ectively putting an instant solution in front of buyers.

the Grade II* listed, 21,000-sq-ft 33 Portland Place has 11 bedrooms and is on sale for £75 million. The turnkey renovation has preserved and enhanced the period features, seamlessly blending them with modern-day luxury living and tech

Right:

“Buyers would rather pay a premium for a turnkey home they can move straight into”

Nine out of 10 times, they’ll buy everything, lock, stock and barrel.”

In the most sought-after areas of northwest London, adds Marc Schneiderman at Arlington Residential, 75% of his sales over the past year have been for turnkey homes. This includes £50 million-plus houses sold to Far Eastern clients who want to buy “literally as seen, with all the contents.”

Elsewhere, in The Bryanston, the £19-million price tag on a 3,000-sq-ft apartment includes everything within, as designed by David Collins Studio and documented in detail in a heavy co ee-table book for the future buyer. There’s the sofa that’s a replica of the one Princess Diana posed on when photographed by Mario Testino, the side tables from Claridge’s, personalised notepaper in the home o ce embossed with this trophy home’s address… and on it goes. Every piece, big or small, has a story behind it.

With turnkey properties, there are plenty of touches of fun among the sheer

PHOTOGRAPHY: TARAN WILKHU (33 PORTLAND PLACE)

From top left: at 33 Portland Place, every detail echoes the history and grandeur of the property; the mansion is the most lavish example of a period property

o ered for sale in turnkey fashion; a onebedroom property at The Bryanston

decadence, but there’s also a more prosaic reason for buying a home in this way, where you don’t even need to choose your own bedside reading. And that’s to avoid the hell of supply chains. “They are a real problem,” sighs Hersel. “Just importing a table can take 20 weeks.” She recently spent months waiting for a sofa to clear customs because it shared a shipping container with “an illegal substance”.

While buyers may not balk at the high costs of renovating a property, despite construction costs having risen by 25-30% in the past two years, they simply don’t have time to do the work and wait for furniture to arrive, says Eccles.

“Attention spans are shorter,” agrees Jess Bishop, an advisor at DDRE Global, which deals exclusively with this level of the market. “It can take at least three years just to do a full basement refurb, so buyers would rather pay a premium for a turnkey home they can move straight into.”

It’s not just new-build trophy properties, however, that are getting the turnkey treatment. 33 Portland Place, an 11-bedroom Regent’s Park mansion on sale for £75 million, is the most lavish example — in price, size and historical name-dropping — of a period property o ered for sale in turnkey fashion.

This Grade II* listed 21,000-sq-ft mansion has an illustrious pedigree: built in 1775 by Robert Adam and host, over the centuries, to aristocrats and celebrities (including Colin Firth when lming TheKing’sSpeech here).

Despite this, however, it was in a run-down state that didn’t do it justice nor would command a premium price.

“The key to a successful turnkey renovation is embracing the bones of the property,” comments Claire Reynolds, managing partner at UK Sotheby’s International Realty, which is marketing Portland Place. “It’s about embracing the history and grandeur of the building through preserving and enhancing the period features, and seamlessly blending it with modern-day luxury living and tech,” she adds. And the trick is not to “ ght against the building” by ripping out the old, but equally not to make the design so “highly personalised” that the buyer will just rip it out and start again.

Design studio 1508 London — which is well versed in designing new turnkey properties, at The OWO and Chelsea Barracks — took on the challenge. “It was about the layering of the di erent periods in the property’s history,” says Hamish Brown, a partner at 1508 London. “We wanted to retain and restore original features such as the panelling, the chandeliers and the grand staircase, but we also brought in features on the top oor that made it like a standard 21st-century super-prime London home.”

While turnkey period properties — which are still relatively rare — seldom have the hotel-style luxury facilities that their shiny new counterparts show o , Portland Place now boasts an exquisite swimming pool with hot tub, gym, home cinema and wine room in its basement, plus a modern “sky lounge” with a bar and professional-grade kitchen.

Tory Ashby at Oliver Burns Studio agrees that with period turnkey renovations, it’s all about striking a balance. “High ceilings and beautiful architectural details are a must for UHNWIs. It’s then about being thoughtful in

Square features a six-floor, 10,000-sq-ft townhouse designed by Edo

founded in 2014, Studio Vero creates unique, considered, timeless interiors; design firm 1508 London created the stunning interiors at 33 Portland Place

From top left: Mulberry

Mapelli Mozzi;

“It’s as much about creating the collection of a lifetime as it is about dressing a home”

the way you weave in modern-day requirements like HVAC, lifts, lighting and sound. The secret is to uncover the property’s history. It’s all about maintaining the gravitas, seamlessly combining historical elements with wrap-around luxe.”

Some designers, such as Studio Vero, take those historic bones and go on a ight of fantasy. Given “a generous budget” by the overseas buyer of a 7,600-sq-ft apartment in a redeveloped 1890s building in Chelsea, Studio Vero’s co-founder Romanos Brihi describes “hopping from gallery to gallery and visiting antique dealers and suppliers all over the world” to give it the turnkey nish the buyer wanted. The studio created a black-and-white chequered entrance lobby and a raspberry-coloured hallway, hung an Antony Gormley above the replace — “We saw it hanging in the Royal Academy,” says Brihi — and watched decorative artist Henry der Vijver spend 16 weeks hand-painting the double-height living room walls to resemble detailed chevron marquetry.

After all, history has to start somewhere — so why not now, by “providing the buyer with a legacy in design that can be passed down through the generations,” says Edo Mapelli Mozzi, the CEO at Banda Property design rm (and husband of Princess Beatrice), who has recently designed a brand-new £42-million Mulberry Square townhouse at Chelsea Barracks.

He always starts with one focal feature in each room. In the townhouse’s formal reception room, it’s a bespoke Pierre Augustin Rose sofa created speci cally for this house. “It’s as much about creating the collection of a lifetime as it is about dressing a home,” he comments.

The speed of sales of turnkey show homes in new schemes illustrates just how much buyers value not having to think about taps and tiles, work out how to furnish rooms with super-high ceilings and curving walls, or ll metres of bookshelves. Developer Northacre recently completed on the sale of a £16-million turnkey penthouse at The Broadway in Westminster, a huge new mixed-use scheme on the site of the former New Scotland Yard, in one week. Design studio Morpheus & Co barely had time to switch on the aromatic di users before its dressed apartments at Nova in Victoria and Riverwalk in Westminster were snapped up.

“This expectation for ‘hotel living’ has become the norm and clients expect to turn up, quite literally, with their suitcases, and be able to begin e ortlessly and seamlessly enjoying their new homes,” comments Morpheus & Co’s founder Andrew Murray.

As for the South African buyer from Johannesburg — well, he got his at, and his wish. “True to the deal,” reports Byers, “I bought him a glass jar, engraved his name on it and lled it with peanuts.”

Breath of fresh air

From cli side amphitheatres to Shakespeare, opera and a circus with a twist, this season a world of outdoor performances awaits

WORDS CHARLOTTE METCALF

In London, summer never feels truly underway until a visit to Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. Inside one of London’s loveliest rose- lled parks, it’s probably my favourite theatre anywhere, with its picnic areas, restaurant, food stalls and excellent bar serving themed cocktails. The auditorium has no bad seat, and as the sun starts setting, swallows swoop and pigeons settle and coo in the magni cent old trees framing the stage. I saw AMidsummerNight’sDream here as a schoolgirl and remain entranced. Now my daughters are equally spellbound. It’s been a regular annual destination for multiple shows ranging from JesusChristSuperstarto Romeo andJuliet. This summer TheSecretGarden, Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic tale, nds its ideal magical setting, and from late July the theatre mounts its much-anticipated performance of Fiddleron the Roof

At Shakespeare’s Globe on the South Bank, summer highlights include Antony andCleopatra and the Globe’s own artistic director, Michelle Terry, playing the title role in Richard III. There’s a run of comedies too, including AComedyofErrors, back by popular demand. Having seen it on its rst run, I can con rm it is, as critics attest, “rib-ticklingly” hilarious.

In Powys, the Willow Globe is one of the country’s most unusual and largest willow constructions, and certainly the only one to be used as a theatre. Based on Shakespeare’s Globe, though a third of its size, the organic green structure merges into its environment during summer months, making it a memorable outdoor treat. It’s staging several re-imagined performances this summer, from TheWinter’sTale to The Wet Mariners theatre troupe’s version of Pericles

In Cornwall, the spectacular Minack Theatre is just four miles from Land’s End. Carved out of a granite cli , it juts precariously over thrashing sea and is surrounded by world-famous gardens that are open all year round. Reminiscent of an ancient amphitheatre, it was designed and built in the 1930s by Rowena Cade, who helped stage its rst production of TheTempest in 1932. Today Minack o ers a mix of performance, storytelling, dance and music. Summer drama includes musical versions of SenseandSensibilityand YoungFrankenstein, the 1841 comedy LondonAssurance, and adaptations of John Fowles’s The French Lieutenant’sWoman and Daphne du Maurier’s JamaicaInn.

In Leicester, Kilworth House Theatre has a similarly eclectic mix of jazz, dance, theatre

Clockwise from far left: Willow Globe has the option of a big top in wet weather; Fool’s Delight Circus; Grange Park Opera; guests arrive for a performance with picnics; Tom’s Midnight Garden at the Minack Theatre; Willow Globe is a scaled-down, living version of Shakespeare’s Globe; Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

and entertainment, with the outdoor venue o ering an irresistibly uplifting adaptation of Singin’intheRain by the creative team behind Hairspray. Even better, Kilworth House is a hotel set in a glorious estate, so you can really make a weekend of it even if the weather is terrible.

The National Trust also o ers outdoor music, theatre and lm events all over the country, with some of its most beautiful stately homes as backdrops: from HenryV at Bodiam Castle to AMidsummerNight’s Dream at Sutton Hoo and TheWind in the Willows at Ickworth.

Opera-goers are spoiled for al fresco choices. In London, Opera Holland Park is staged annually in formal, owering gardens in front of one of the city’s most historic Jacobean mansions. This season features operas by Ruggero Leoncavallo and Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Yeomen of the Guard, and Peterand theWolf.

Garsington and Grange Park stage operas in the Chiltern Hills and Surrey Hills, respectively. Though both involve venturing inside for the actual performances, the draw is the mingling, dining and drinking in spectacular gardens. At Garsington, operas

“The circus provided a portal to a lost world”

by Mozart, Verdi and Britten run until late July, nishing with three performances of Andrew Norman’s family-friendly community opera ATriptotheMoon

Founded in 1998 by Was Kani, Grange Park Opera attracts devoted audiences, partly due to its romantic story. The opera relocated from Hampshire to West Horsley in 2017 when the late Bamber Gascoigne, University Challenge’s much-loved, longstanding quiz master, inherited the estate from his aunt Mary, Duchess of Roxburghe, and gifted it to the West Horsley Place Trust, allowing it to be the opera’s home. The 350-acre estate comprises a 14th-century house and formal gardens with vistas of rippling, golden grasses, wild owers, herbaceous borders, ancient trees, fountains and box hedging giving way to secret corners. Nature is tamed just enough to allow access to a comfortable cushioned bench or sheltered and shady picnic spot.

The season ends in mid July, so race to buy tickets for Donizetti’s Daughterofthe

Clockwise from left: Twelfth Night at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre; the worldclass Fool’s Delight Circus; Grange Park’s Theatre in the Woods; the opera house is set in spectacular grounds; Willow Park o ers an eclectic range of arts performances; Gi ord’s Circus’s latest show Avalon is inspired by the Arthurian legend

Regiment or Janáček’s KatyaKabanova

There’s also a world premiere of Sir David Pountney’s Island of Dreams, a reinvention of Shakespeare’s Tempest with music and libretto composed by Anthony Bolton.

When I brie y lived in Oxfordshire, the arrival of summer was heralded by Gi ords Circus, a joy for children and adults alike. Founded in 2000 by Nell and Toti Gi ord, the circus provided a welcome portal to a lost, innocent world where magic consists of ducks, dachshunds or ponies doing funny things, alongside acrobatic acts from around the globe and Tweedy, the popular bedraggled clown.

Gi ords represents an antidote to the showy glitz of a big, commercial, contemporary circus like Cirque du Soleil. Instead, you’ll nd a meadow or village green with a tiny round tent decked with bunting, painted wagons and stalls, and then the ultimate treat — dining at the travelling restaurant at trestle tables adorned with wild owers in jam jars.

Nell Gi ord died in 2019, but the circus has continued. This year’s theme is Avalon, immersing the audience in a world of Arthurian legend and pageantry. Nell Gi ord’s niece, Lil Rice, has founded her own troupe, Fool’s Delight Circus. Its o erings include circus dinner shows — a delicious meal and a world-class circus rolled into one.

Finally, for something completely di erent, there’s Kynren, staged every Saturday till mid-September. When Kynren opened in Bishop Auckland near Durham in 2016, nothing similar had been mounted in Britain previously. It’s based on the celebrated French summer show Puydu Fou, and its founder’s son helped adapt the British show. A seven-and-a-half-acre stage with 8,000 seats and an arti cial bridged lake is the setting for a re-enactment of England’s history.

The show is a conglomerate of snapshots to celebrate moments that have de ned our nation across 2,000 years, and embraces the Roman invasion, King Arthur’s knights, the Battle of Hastings, Henry VIII, Charles I’s execution, the industrial revolution and Sir Winston Churchill’s call to arms during World War Two. It is run by 12,000 volunteers, known as ‘archers’, and is heart-warming and engaging precisely because it is a little rough and ready, and delightfully homespun. I took my 12-year-old daughter to one of the rst ever shows and she loved watching key moments from her history lessons come alive as the moon rose on the extraordinary scenes before us.

Britain might have a short summer, but we do know how to make the most of our great outdoors, combining world-class culture with beautiful landscapes and gardens for unforgettable al fresco experiences.

World of wellness

Body, mind and spirit are all nurtured in our global pick of health-focused resorts

WORDS JEMIMA SISSONS

BEST TROPICAL ESCAPE JOALI BEING

Located in Bodufushi in the Raa Atoll, Joali Being is the Maldives’ rst complete wellbeing island. The resort is built on the principles of biophilic design (no ‘negative energy’ or sharp corners) with 33 beach villas and 35 water villas, each with its own butler. A team of naturopaths, therapists and movement experts creates bespoke programmes that draw on the resort’s hammams, watsu baths and hydrotherapy facilities. Every diet is catered for, and there are specialised packages focused on mothers to be, sleep, and male wellness. From £1,050 per night, joali.com

Clockwise from top left: the spectacular tiered restaurant at Joali Being in the Maldives takes an earthto-table approach; the retreat’s design is based around biophilic principles; an aerial view of Teranka in Formentera reveals its verdant setting; the cuisine at Teranka uses the resort’s home-grown produce as well as locally sourced specialities; Joali Being o ers a range of waterbased therapies

“Teranka’s wellbeing retreats take a deep dive into fitness and holistic experiences”

BEST FOR NATURE TERANKA

Away from the razzmatazz of Ibiza, on Formentera’s Migjorn coast, Teranka is accessible only by boat. Set in a fragrant pine forest, in an area known for drawing a free-spirited crowd, it is the perfect location for transformative retreats, from breathwork to group meditation and yoga or kickboxing. There are 35 rooms set across three stone barns with a library. Restaurants o er fresh fare from the kitchen garden alongside local

red prawns and Iberian pork. The hotel’s dedicated wellbeing retreats take a deeper dive into tness and holistic experiences, which include lymphatic drainage, osteopathy, ayurveda and anusara yoga. Discover the island’s beauty on guided hikes, or by kayak or paddleboard, or go wild swimming in hidden coves. It’s not all immersive nature — DJs and jazz bands visit regularly and you may be lucky enough to catch the handpan musicians. From £1,200 per night, teranka.com

“Seven-floor destination Siro is dedicated to first-class fitness and wellness”

BEST FOR URBAN WELLNESS

SIRO

Temples of wellness are frequently found in lush jungles or Teutonic lakeside settings. Less usually, the rst outpost of Siro, the new wellness brand from Kerzner (which brought us One&Only, among other hotels), is set in a glass tower in the heart of Dubai. With sweeping views of Old Dubai to one side and Burj Al Arab to the other, the seven- oor destination is dedicated to rst-class tness and wellness. This means a sprawling gym sta ed with a willing team of

master trainers and classes such as Functional Fitness, designed by the tness bo ns at AC Milan. It is for those who fancy a spin or a reformer pilates class before heading to explore Dubai’s Museum of the Future, and whose idea of heaven is a minibar stocked not with Ruinart but pomegranate juice and protein powder. A stay feels like stepping into 2050, with cryotherapy and infrared pods, meditation beds and IV stations. Those who want a beachside bottomless brunch, look away now. From £240 per night, sirohotels.com

BEST FOR COMPLETE TRANSFORMATION SHA

The much-loved Spanish SHA wellness hotel and retreat has opened a second outpost in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. Programmes range from four to 21 days; focuses include Rebalance & Energise, Detox & Optimal Weight, Well-ageing & Prevention, and Leader’s Performance. The SHA approach combines nutrition, preventive ageing strategies, holistic medicine, cognitive stimulation, advanced preventive diagnostics, wellbeing, inner balance and physical performance, which together form what has become known as the SHA Method. Wind down by exploring the largest coral reef in the Americas. From £1,800 for a four-day programme, shawellness.com

Clockwise from top far left: the state-of-the art gym at Siro in Dubai includes a running track; SHA in Mexico prioritises carefully devised, personalised programmes in beautifully designed settings; the exterior of the resort and its surroundings are as appealing as its stylish interiors; every aspect of the SHA experience sets out to revitalise the body; Siro’s tower location o ers views right across Dubai’s modern cityscape

BEST FOR SAUNA FANS THE WELL

Located 15 minutes from Oslo, The Well focuses on the ancient Scandinavian tradition of bathing and is the largest spa in the Nordics. With 11 di erent pools, 15 saunas and steam baths, and 100 showers, it includes everything from Japanese bath houses to oriental hammams and rhassouls. Prepare to strip o (there is an entire section on the website titled ‘natural to be naked’) for a full day of saunas and treatments (including the intriguing Flower Power aufguss sauna ritual) before feasting at the Asian-inspired Mori sharing-plate restaurant and bedding down in comfortable hotel rooms, all of which include breakfast and access to spa, gym and meditation room. From £148 per night, thewell.no

“Families can enjoy foraging, picnics, swimming and cycling”

BEST FOR FAMILIES BROUGHTON SANCTUARY

Set amid 3,000 acres of rolling Yorkshire pasture, Broughton Sanctuary is the ancestral seat of the Tempest family, which aims to transform it into one of Britain’s most alluring family nature retreats. There are two o erings; one is more adultcentred, and includes a Grounded Pilgrim retreat and tantric healing. The other will appeal to families, with foraging, meadow picnics, wild swimming and cycling along ancient tracks through the Dales. Connect

with ancestors in the Bronze Age cairn circle or retreat to the Hermit Hut to swim in the lake and toast marshmallows at an open re. During school holidays, the Wild Explorers club gives children the chance to spark res from int and run free in the forest. The hall’s four-poster splendour can be hired; otherwise stay in one of the estate’s cottages, decked out with contemporary artworks and mid-century furniture. Hearty vegetarian food is served in the glassfronted Utopia restaurant. From £520 for three nights, broughtonsanctuary.co.uk

Clockwise from top far left: there are multiple saunas at The Well in Oslo; fine dining at the resort’s Asian-inspired Mori restaurant; Broughton Sanctuary’s tranquil Avalon pool suite; a traditional Broughton interior; the Yorkshire estate is a healthy, inspiring playground for families; the impressive exterior of The Well, the largest spa in the Nordics

WATCHES OF WONDER

The Watches & Wonders salon in Geneva is the top global gathering where new and concept watches are presented to the world by the leading luxury watch brands. SPHERE’s Lisa Barnard was in attendance and selects her highlights for 2024 from a dazzling array.

WORDS LISA BARNARD

ROLEX PERPETUAL DEEPSEA

The big launch from Rolex is the Perpetual Deepsea dive watch, now in 18-carat yellow gold, with a titanium caseback. Given how substantial this 44mm watch is, some may be forgiven for wondering if it might weigh divers down, but its oceanic blue lacquer dial and bezel are dazzling. Underwater tech includes a 60-minute Cerachrom bezel, allowing divers to monitor their time underwater, and a compression ring within the Ringlock system, enabling ultra water-proo ng. The Deepsea was originally launched in 2008, and the 2024 model introduces some gem-set day dates. This is a high-performance watch for extreme divers. Granted, many are unlikely to descend to the 3,900 metres the Deepsea is capable of, but I do love the way it glows in the dark. Rolex.com

IWC PORTUGIESER ETERNAL CALENDAR

If you are a leap year baby, you hope to live to 2100 or you’re concerned about the moon’s orbit in 45 million years’ time, you will want to know more about this watch. IWC has gone to the ends of the earth and beyond with this rst secular perpetual calendar. It recognises the varying lengths of the months and adds a leap day every four years. The new 400-years gear completes one revolution over four centuries – which will occur for the rst time in the year 2100. Take note of the precise Double Moon™ phase display, which means it will only deviate from the moon’s orbit by one day after 45 million years. To boot, it comes in a platinum case, with a complex glass dial and an alligator leather strap from Santoni. Mathematically genius. IWC.com

CARTIER PRIVÉ TORTUE MONOPOUSSOIR CHRONOGRAPH

If you’re after something supremely elegant and quintessentially Cartier, let’s go straight to Cartier’s Privé collection and the Tortue, a dress watch and now a chronograph. First created in 1912, the Tortue tonneau is so named as it resembles the curved shell of the tortoise. In 2024, the Tortue has been re ned, with a lithe pro le and a gorgeous strap. Or do you want a watch that goes backwards? It sounds perverse, but I loved this clever ‘Rewind’ edition. If you are stuck for a dinner party conversation, start looking at your watch. The new Santos de Cartier models come with peacock blue and emerald green dials and matching straps. Cartier has dipped into its archives yet again and come up with something extraordinary. Cartier.com

CHANEL PREMIÈRE RIBBON COUTURE

The Chanel launches brought wit to Watches & Wonders, combining dressmaking utility with couturier timepieces. I covet the double wrap Première Ribbon Couture bracelet styled as a tape measure, in black calfskin with gold leather trim and a gold ardillon buckle. This limited edition features a titanium and 18-carat yellow gold case and is adorned with a playful charm attached to the dial, featuring the image of Coco Chanel herself in yellow gold and black lacquer, set with a brilliant-cut diamond. This is not just for fashionistas: the watch features a high precision quartz movement and is water resistant up to 30 metres. Chanel.com

JAEGER-LECOULTRE DUOMETRE CHRONOGRAPH MOON

You can go back to 2007 to appreciate Jaeger-LeCoultre’s ground-breaking Duometre mechanism – the complication that epitomises precision. This year the brand launched an entirely new timepiece, powered by the new Calibre 391, combining the ultra-precision of a chronograph with the appeal of a celestial complication. When it’s described as lightning fast, they mean it. The Duometre Chronograph Moon combines time intervals as tiny as 1/6th second with the slow rhythm of the moon as it passes through its cycle in 29.53 days. It has a beautiful design with three chronographs on the dial, one with a celestial moon decoration, with night and day display and the movement hidden between 5, 6 and 7 o’clock. Two variations were shown: a platinum case with a coppercoloured dial, and a pink gold case with a silver dial, both models presented in a hand-stitched alligator strap with elaborate alligator lining. Jaeger-lecoultre.com

Clockwise from left: Chanel’s Première Ribbon Couture watch features a playful charm in the image of Coco herself; the Montblanc 1858 Geosphere 0 Oxygen showcases the brand’s sustainability credentials; the latest Piaget Altiplano wows with its ultra-thin tourbillon;

artist Erin O’Keefe has designed the colourful Cut Collection for Hermès; Patek Philippe’s 5330G-001 self-adjusts when the wearer crosses the International Date Line; and the JaegerLeCoultre Duometre Chronograph Moon uses the new Calibre 391 to create an ultraprecise piece

PATEK PHILIPPE 5330G-001

For the jetsetters, Patek Philippe’s new 5330G-001, from The World Time with Date collection, is a patented global rst, with a new ultra-thin self-winding 240 HU C calibre movement. It o ers a di erential system to manage local times and dates, made up of 70 components, allowing the date display to synchronise with local time. So when the wearer crosses the International Date Line, there is no need for correction. Genius! Phileas Fogg in Around the World in Eighty Days would not have mistakenly thought he had lost his bet by a day, if the 5330G-001 had been invented. The beautiful blue-grey dial features city names from around the world, 24-hour markers and a sun/moon image, and the International Date Line. Patek.com

HERMÈS CUT COLLECTION

The Hermès Cut Collection, designed by New York artist Erin O’Keefe, is a stylish debut of sports watches for women, with a sleek, rounded aesthetic. More conventional in the steel bracelet and a lot more showy with 56-bezel-cut diamonds, I was much more drawn to the understated colourful shades of the exible and tactile rubber straps – white, orange, gris perle, gris étain, glycine, vert criquet, bleu jean and cappucine. If I had to choose one hue, it would be orange, true to Hermès style, but fortunately the straps are interchangeable. It’s easy on the eye: a bevel-cut bezel surrounds the curved silver-toned dial with sculptural edging. The mechanical self-winding calibre is displayed in the sapphire crystal caseback. There are some Hermès twists: the crown is at the 1.30 mark with a lacquered or engraved H. The seconds hand on the steel model features a luminous orange Hermès dot, with grey and orange minutes track. Hermes.com

MONTBLANC 1858

GEOSPHERE CARBO2 0 OXYGEN

Montblanc’s hero piece in 2024 is the Montblanc Iced Sea 0 Oxygen Deep 4810 dive watch. Why 4810? This inverts the exact height of Mont Blanc mountain to minus 4810, connecting the ocean to the famous peak. But the timepiece that demonstrates the brand’s commitment to sustainability and innovation is the 1858 Geosphere 0 Oxygen, featuring a CARBO2 middle case. This collection has been designed for mountain exploration and takes inspiration from its iconic Minerva pocket watches and chronographs from the 1920s and 30s. The new watch case nano- bre material uses a pioneering process capturing CO2 from biogas production and mineral waste from recycling factories, combined with carbon bre. The case has an engraved luminous blue outline Mont Blanc on the side that only the wearer can see and the mountain also features on the titanium caseback.

Montblanc.com

PIAGET ALTIPLANO ULTIMATE CONCEPT TOURBILLON

Piaget is famous for its ultra-slim watches, and now has made the thinnest tourbillon in history – no mean feat as the tourbillon is one of the most intricate complications a watchmaker can create. The Altiplano Ultimate Concept is mesmerising, as you cannot believe what is packed inside its 2mm depth. With water resistance to 20 metres and its blue PVD-treated blue cobalt alloy case, the Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon appears to possess all the features of an everyday watch. However, its thinness and 41.5mm diameter combined with its ying tourbillon take Altiplano to a di erent plane. It is powered by a manual calibre with a one-minute peripheral tourbillon and 40-hour power reserve. To achieve this Piaget had to redesign 90% of the components of the original 2018 Altiplano. In its 150th year, the brand continues to push the boundaries. Piaget.com

VACHERON CONSTANTIN LES CABINOTIERS THE BERKLEY GRAND COMPLICATION

Possibly the most wondrous watch at Watches & Wonders is Vacheron Contstantin’s Berkley Grand Complication, with 63 horological complications and the rst ever Chinese perpetual calendar. It’s almost unbelievable that 2,877 components are packed neatly into this extraordinary timepiece. Eleven years in research and development by three watchmakers, it surpasses the record already held by the Maison for Reference 57260. The movement assembly alone was spread over a year, including a trial assembly, to ensure it runs smoothly. Wonders will never cease. Vacheron-constantin.com

TUDOR BLACK BAY 58 GMT

The most exciting launch from Tudor has to be the Black Bay 58 18K Master Chronometer, a solid gold dive watch. It comes in full yellow gold, with a three-link gold bracelet and bidirectional bezel. The 39mm case sports solid gold hands and hour markers, and at 193g this is a mighty watch. Reminiscent of the golden age of travel, it is a watch for nostaglics. Black Bay 58 is named after the year in which the rst Tudor divers’ watch, the “Big Crown”, waterproof to 200 metres, was introduced. The watch is the perfect match for a GMT function, the must-have for globetrotters. The bezel is burgundy and black with a gilt 24-hour scale, in keeping with the aesthetic of the Black Bay line. The winding crown bears the Tudor rose logo. tudorwatch.com

Bay 58 GMT; the most complex timepiece in the world, the Vacheron Constantin Berkley Grand Complication; Tag Heuer’s latest incarnation of the Carrera Skipper, with the new TH20-06 movement; and the Van Cleef & Arpels Lady Jour Nuit, a wonderfully whimsical piece

TAG HEUER CARRERA CHRONOGRAPH SKIPPER

Tag Heuer is famed for its technical prowess, its love of speed, married with its sailing and maritime heritage. A sailing edition launch that epitomises this blend is the Carrera Chronograph Skipper, a column-wheel chronograph with 80-hour power reserve. The Skipper, or ‘Aye Aye Skipper’, as it was nicknamed when it launched in 1968, makes its debut in rose gold and reinterprets the dual counter of Jack Heuer’s original with vibrant colourways of the dial in teal, orange, blue and green. It features the new TH20-06 movement, the brand’s latest upgrade. To celebrate 60 years of Carrera, Tag Heuer is producing ‘Glass box’ editions consisting of domed sapphire crystal encasing the dial and bezel. It also features its famous regatta timer, making this a must for boat racers.

Tagheuer.com

VAN CLEEF & ARPELS

LADY JOUR NUIT

I can never resist an opportunity to discover the whimsical novelties of Van Cleef & Arpels, who in their devotion to haute horologie and extraordinary craftsmanship, never fail to bring a sense of magic and storytelling. This year the Maison lived up to expectations by adding to its Poetic Complications collection with a reinvention of the Lady Arpels Jour Nuit (introduced in 2008). A journey to the sun and moon, the dark blue dial features a diamond-paved moon and a diminutive constellation of stars cluster. A snow-set yellow sapphire sun shines like a beacon, or you can choose a guilloché yellow gold sun instead. It is nished with Murano aventurine glass to add depth to the design. The result is exquisite poetry on the wrist. Vancleefarpels.com

Clockwise from left: Tudor’s nostalgic Black

Super groups

A new wave of members-only venues is rede ning club culture, focusing on everything from ne wine and dining to wellness and top-tier luxury voyages

WORDS JEMIMA SISSONS

“Most of the new breed of clubs offer a cultural or experiential element”

IPrevious page: Gabriels is among a host of world-class bands to perform at Koko

From above left: the club has vinyl listening booths; Crurated o ers wine lovers a wide range of events and experiences; the platform fosters a dynamic community

t’s nearing midnight on a Friday and electronic DJ Dixon is starting his set in the red-bathed splendour of Koko’s restored and converted Victorian theatre in Camden. Lights illuminate a dance oor lled with revellers, who had to be Glastonbury-quick to secure even standing-room tickets to see the hugely popular German artist. Yet the place you really want to be is on the stage, behind the booth. Here, photogenic groups of chiselled European bankers, gallery owners, actors and tastemakers sip tequila on ice, arms adorned with various levels of VIP wristbands. After enjoying lobster linguine on the second- oor Stage Kitchen, perhaps taking time out over a paloma mixed in the secret Goon Bar next to the hidden vinyl listening booths, complete with stacks of rare records, the partygoers in this exclusive

space have made their way to the coveted backstage area. The former Camden Palace — where shoes sticking to the dance oor was obligatory — has now morphed into one of the smartest members’ clubs in London. Aimed at music and culture lovers, it welcomes members and their friends, including Sienna Miller, Benedict Cumberbatch, Leonardo DiCaprio, Olivia Colman, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Stormzy. After a supper club hosted by artist Jeremy Deller you might catch Liam Gallagher performing on stage, or watch John Oates of Hall & Oates performing an intimate show in Ellen’s jazz club and a breakout show from a future Grammy winner. At weekends even o spring get a look in, with activities from craft tables to circus training. Entry is a strictly vetted process, costing £2,150 per year for over 35s. One way to secure a

10-year membership is to join its Patrons programme — for a one-o £75,000 for two memberships, it provides ongoing support for Koko’s programming and for the charitable Koko Foundation, which supports upcoming artists.

London boasts one of the most revered members’ clubs scenes in the world, stemming from its storied, deep-rooted tradition in the fabled streets of St James’s and Mayfair. Yet a new breed of specialist club is fostering loyal communities, from wine lovers to ne diners and voyaging one-percenters. Take Surrenne, the handsome new subterranean wellbeing and longevity sanctuary below The Emory, Maybourne’s new suite-only hotel in Knightsbridge. For members who can splash out £10,000 a year plus £5,000 joining fee, this means classes from cult celebrity tness

expert Tracy Anderson, and a multifunctional studio, which o ers on-demand virtual classes such as Yin Tibetan-bowl meditation in a Japanese garden, Heart Fire Flow yoga in the Agafay Desert in Morocco and Broga Body Rehab on a cli edge in Devon. There are OxyGeneo facials with a backdrop of Damien Hirst artwork, and bespoke Alice Temperley kimonos in the changing rooms. You can also gain entry by staying at the hotel, at rates from £2,040 per night, which include The Emory Standard services.

The UK capital has always has its dining clubs too. Harry’s Bar, serving pastel-pink bellinis and tru le risotto to its soigné Savile Row-suited clientele, celebrates its 45th anniversary this June. And Mark’s Club — also owned by Richard Caring of The Birley Clubs — has just undergone a major refurb.

A cool physical space or elite access isn’t enough these days — most of the new breed of clubs o er a cultural or experiential element too, in order to build a like-minded community. Crurated is a new platform o ering insider access for oenophiles to uncork some of the nest wines and spirits — from en primeur ex-chateau bottlings to rare Macallans and magnums of Château La te Rothschild. It o ers everything from wine dinners with Charles Lachaux and Théo Dancer in Miami and LA to an overnight Riesling excursion in Germany that includes masterclasses at Egon Müller and Dönnho wineries. “As a collector myself, I struggled with the fact that I was buying bottles in shops or at auction, and I had too many experiences where the quality of the wine was below the expectations and the price paid for them,” explains Crurated

founder Alfonso De Gaetano. “I wanted to create a system that adds authenticity and traceability from the moment the bottle leaves the producer’s cellar.”

The handsome stucco St James’s institution 67 Pall Mall has served wine lovers for eightyears and has now expanded to locations such as Verbier and Singapore, with openings coming up in Beaune, Bordeaux and Melbourne. The members’ club has just introduced its En Primeur category — launching in Hong Kong — which brings wine lovers together in locations without a physical club. Members can expand their knowledge with a calendar of events ranging from workshops to dinners and masterclasses, and can access a sommelier concierge service as well as other worldwide clubs. A brogue’s clip away from 67 is Oswald’s, Robin Birley’s distinguished

wine and dining club. His New York club, opening later this year, is hotly anticipated.

In the US, securing a reservation has become a full-time profession for some — with recent reports of bots snapping up the hottest tables and operators then selling them for an extortionate fee. One way to avoid this: ght tooth and nail to achieve membership of one of the most covetable clubs in NYC and Miami. ZZ’s Club is an o shoot of Major Food Group and is designed in sleek night-time tones by Ken Fulk. Under candelabra and nestled in plush terracotta banquettes in the private outpost of Carbone in New York’s Hudson Yards, members dine on caviar tostados and perfect fritto misto.

Also keeping its American members well fed, and away from snaking queues and digital dealing, is the Miami-based

MM members’ club. Its three restaurants — Ava, Mila and Casa Neos — have introduced members’ areas in all outlets, allowing patrons to skip queues or relax in private rooms and bars. “We have built a strong community, responding to the need for people to get together,” says Marine Giron-Galy, chief branding o cer and partner of Riviera Dining Group. MM has partnered with Vanquish Yachts to cater to high-rollers cruising the Miami River. Membership is accessed with two member friends and the club regularly hosts events. Miami’s maritime community is spoiled for choice, in fact, as Yaya, an invitation-only boating members’ club, is set to launch soon in Biscayne Bay. A gathering place for the boating community, it o ers marina access, valet, drinks on arrival in dock, and access to the private Yaya Club room.

For many of the super-wealthy, voyaging this summer will come in stretched vessels on the high seas, private jets in the skies or mega villas with six- gure weekly price tags. The woman you want on speed dial — if you are lucky enough to be invited — is Jules Maury, who runs Scott Dunn Private, the invitation-only upper tier of the luxury travel company. “We are like the wealth management side of a private bank,” she explains, fresh from planning a completely o -grid adventure spanning Alaska and Patagonia for one of her most elite members this summer.

Her team of six can ip a trip at the drop of a hat (although look away now if your annual travel spend is less than £100,000). Cancelled ights, sandstorms or dodgy snow? The team have you covered. Even the elite, however, aren’t immune to

sky-high ight and hotel prices at the moment, brought on partly by superspending in Europe by American travellers. “This summer our clients are looking at price and going to the US, Kenya or the Caribbean instead — a ticket costs the same as to Greece in some cases,” Maury explains. “We can be nimble, and secure that last room with personal relationships with the GM.” You need to get your skates on, though: according to Maury, there are no BA business-class tickets left returning from Antigua — a hub for a lot of smaller islands in the Caribbean — in early January 2025, and one safari lodge is booked out until 2026.

But if anyone can get you in, it’s Maury: “We invest our clients’ money in holiday dreams and memories that not everyone can make happen.”

“We can be nimble, and secure that last room with personal relationships with the GM”

MM’s sumptuous Mila restaurant; Surrenne is dedicated to wellbeing; the club’s steam room features aromatic scents such as jasmine, eucalyptus, musk and orange blossom; Scott Dunn Private curates the best experiential luxury travel

From above far left:

GIVING | LIVING | NATURE | NURTURE

HAMPSHIRE HAVEN

Heckfield Place celebrates regenerative farming practices and the 100-year anniversary of biodynamics with a series of events throughout the summer, from talks to foraged-cocktail-making workshops and special farm suppers cooked with the Hampshire estate’s seasonal produce. heckfieldplace.com

LAND LOVERS

Astley Clarke’s Terra collection was inspired by endangered botanical species; 20% of the profits from the sale of the pieces will be donated to the World Land Trust conservation charity. From £128, astleyclarke.com

THE GIFT OF STYLE British-Lebanese designer Jennifer Chamandi supports women’s charity Smart Works with product donations. jenniferchamandi.com

BAGS FROM LIFE

Hailing from the Scottish Highlands, Iseabal Hendry’s leatherwork creations reflect traditional local crafts, from basket-weaving to clinker boat building. Each handwoven bag is crafted with local materials and a zero-waste approach, making use of the entire hide with almost no wastage. The Swing case, £160, iseabalhendry.com

POUR THINGS

Elevate teatime with the latest o ering from Ginori 1735. Referencing the historic brand’s elegant forms from the 1950s, the new Diva range features pieces in candy-coloured pastels with gold accents. The collection ranges from teapots to co ee cups, bread plates and milk jugs. From £90, ginori1735.com

STAR TURNS

West One Bathrooms’ One collection with FP5 handles showcases the playful and eclectic sensibility of postmodern design. The handle’s flower-shaped form and range of vibrant colours also encapsulate a sense of whimsy. The collection is available in matt black, chrome, brushed nickel, polished nickel or brushed French gold, with handles also available in pink, green or cream detailing. £1,738, westonebathrooms.com

BED OF ROSES

With designs evoking beautiful bedrooms in stylish chateaux or English rose-scented homes, Cologne & Cotton is the go-to brand for pretty linens. It celebrates its 35th birthday with a reissue of its much-loved Martinique style. From £26, cologneandcotton.com

TOP TABLESCAPING

Make sure your crockery cuts the mustard with Bettina Ceramica, which celebrates the nest contemporary and traditional Italian artisans. Handmade in small batches across the country, each piece is a conversation starter, from gorgeous Puglian Cavaliere candlesticks (£365) and jaunty Arabesco trays from Umbria to this cool white scalloped Gigli bowl from Tuscany (£35). bettinaceramica.com

NURTURE

MEET YOUR MATCH

Amaia’s latest collection includes the Terry blouse and Freesia shorts in Elysian Day Liberty print, alongside the off-white Alice Eyelet Daisy top and Pippa trousers. Known for its matching outfits for siblings, the brand was founded by Amaia Arrieta. From £52, amaialondon.com

SPANISH SANCTUARY Ibiza Gran Hotel unveils OpenSpa, o ering massages, hydrotherapy, a gym and beauty treatments. Smooth out an evening’s excess in the elegant Turkish hammam, Finnish sauna, ice pools and Himalayan salt rooms. From £413 per night, ibizagranhotel.com

BREEZE IN

Elias Papageorgiou founded the five-star Santa Marina hotel on Mykonos 45 years ago, when he bought a patch of land comprising a house, chapel and windmill. Its new threestorey Windmill Suite is an enchanting private chamber. From £980 per night, santa-marina.gr

SPLASH OUT

Treat your little ones to a children’s afternoon tea and swim at the Pan Paci c London, in collaboration with Bonpoint. The tea features sandwiches, scones and jam, and a selection of patisserie in Bonpoint’s spring colour palette. Finish with a dip in the hotel’s pool. £29 per child, panpaci c.com

VERSATILE STYLE

Danish childrenswear brand Liewood’s new woven pieces o er gender-neutral looks in chambray and soft cotton. The Bruno overshirt is inspired by the classic workwear jacket, with a relaxed fit, front button closure and two patch pockets. £70, liewood.com

ECLECTIC INFLUENCES

Athens-based jeweller Lito Karakostanoglou is inspired by global travel, historical symbols and her Greek heritage. Her Il Paradiso collection also draws from Art Deco and the insect world. 14ct yellow gold, diamond and mother of pearl scarab necklace, £14,000, litofinejewelry.com

NATURE

DOWN TO EARTH

Bring the woodlands indoors with Loewe’s latest home scents. Candles, room sprays and di users are inspired by the earthy smell of portobello mushrooms and the aroma of roasted hazelnuts. From £85, perfumesloewe.com

DORSET DELIGHTS

In need of an escape from the city? The Outbuildings in Bridport has launched two new lodges, complete with king-size beds, copper baths and restorative views. From £190 per night, holidayoutbuildings.com

GREEN BOTTLES

Part of Telmont’s In the Name of Mother Nature project, its new Réserve de la Terre is a sustainably produced organic Champagne, bottled in green-hued 100%-recyclable glass. £77, uk.champagne-telmont.com

Time to dig in

Home-grown vegetables and fruit straight from the garden taste better, and producing your own crops is easy, satisfying and fun

Chef Simon Rogan opened L’Enclume in Cartmel, Cumbria, in 2002 and was an early pioneer of the farm-to-table movement. He oversees Our Farm, which supplies the three-Michelin-starred restaurant, with head farmer John Rowland.

What do you need to consider initially when you set out to create the optimal kitchen garden?

There are various factors to look for: soil type, a mix of shaded areas and areas with full sun, wind protection, access to natural water, and good access for materials to be delivered.

Which are some of the easiest vegetables and fruits to grow?

Most vegetables are easy to grow in the right conditions — some good ones to start with are beans, peas, kohlrabi, alliums and kale cabbage. Fruits such as strawberries and currants can be easy to grow as well.

Talk us through some of the best edible owers.

We grow a large range of edible owers, such as alyssum, tagetes, nasturtium, oxalis, verbena, chive, garlic chive, elder ower, viola, oregano, rocket, cime di rapa and borage; we also use cucumber, squash, courgette and pumpkin owers.

What’s the best way to keep pests under control? Is it possible to do this without resorting to chemical products?

The best way is to build up the biodiversity of nature in your garden, by doing things like incorporating a wildlife pond, planting owers that attract pollinators, and having a food source for wildlife such as birds and bene cial insects. Between them, these should take care of most of your pests.

What are you looking forward to using most from your garden this summer?

Our peas, radishes and cucumbers, and a large selection of our herbs.

Which is your favourite tool?

My favourite piece of kit is my Barnel hori-hori weeding knife, which is pretty versatile and can be used for various di erent things — from tackling deep-rooted weeds, cutting stubborn roots and making drills to using the planting depth measurements on the blade, lifting root vegetables and cutting sod.

Which are the most di cult crops to grow? Are there any that you avoid?

Up north we get a lot of wind, so anything that dislikes those conditions can be di cult — so globe artichokes and celeriac can both be hard to grow.

What do you do in the fallow period?

I always want to work to improve our farm garden, so I try to plan projects to further enhance our growing area, apply compost where needed, tend the hedges by trimming them back — and check out the catalogues. It’s nice to spend time looking for unusual plants to try in the new season.

Do you make any fun drinks from kitchen-garden ingredients?

We make soft drinks using our apple marigold and perilla, and then it’s also nice to make a stout from woodru .

Which are your favourite kitchen gardens you have visited over the years? Are there any that have inspired you? The kitchen gardens at Crocadon in Cornwall were very interesting, particularly the raised beds.

lenclume.co.uk

From top: chef Simon Rogan laden with kitchen garden bounty; setting the table where the vegetables were grown; cooking and eating outside is one of the pleasures of summer

Khaki & Ocean Suede