Kensington & Chelsea Review Summer 2021

VOLUME FIVE | ISSUE EIGHT | FREE

The Hit Refresh Issue

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

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Welcome to the latest issue of Kensington & Chelsea Review.

Filled with art, travel, culture and luxury, Kensington & Chelsea Review is the magazine for the rather discerning resident of the Royal Borough.

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EDITOR’S LETTER And, we’re back… It’s certainly been a strange few months for the Borough, but we’re thrilled to see signs of life once again: the unbridled joy of a pub-pulled pint, food that doesn’t arrive in a bag, picnics in the park – we’re here for all of it. We’ve even managed to squeeze in a few PPE-protected spa treatments, and acquired a new piercing courtesy of a hot new Notting Hill jeweller (more on that within).

Of course, there have been days where we’re still a little unsure of venturing outdoors, so we’re grateful to those continuing their decadent food-delivery services and we’ve chosen the best for those still dining à la maison. But, ultimately, we’ve seen glimmers of normality on the horizon and we’re very eager to jump back in – so, find inspiration for future holidays and staycations, restaurants to add to the wishlist and more to do than we’ve seen in months.

So come join us as we head back into the Borough,

The KCR team

CONTENTS

4.NEWS All the latest in the Borough.

7.ARTS AND CULTURE The best in luxury brands and upcoming art shows you can see IRL 23.DINING Eating in the great outdoors and restaurants to look forward to.

26.TRAVEL The trips we still managed during lockdown lulls and best of British hotels.

42.SHOPPING What we’re splashing the cash on this month.

50.BEAUTY Some of the more unique treatments in the ‘hood and the products you need right now PUBLISHER

Talismanic Media FOUNDER & MANAGING DIRECTOR

Sid Raghava

EDITOR IN CHIEF

Kate Weir

BEAUTY & MOTOR EDITOR

Lisa Curtiss

OFFICE MANAGER

Lee Marrero

CONTRIBUTORS

Sid Raghava Kate Weir Harriet Bedder Lisa Curtiss Tani Burns Adam Jacot de Boinod Tracy Borman Sarah Moran Marcus Walters Alison Weir Emily Williams

All material in Kensington & Chelsea Review is strictly copyright and all rights are reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system without prior permission of the publishers. Colour transparencies and photographs submitted for publication are sent at the owners’ risk and while every care is taken, neither the publisher or their agents accept liability for loss or damage however caused. The publishers can accept no liability whatsoever of any nature arising out of nor in connection with the contents of this publication. Opinions expressed within the articles are not recessarily those of Kensington & Chelsea Review and any issues arising therefore should be taken up directly with the contributor

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READ ALL ABOUT IT A RUNDOWN OF NEWS AND THINGS THAT INTRIGUE US FROM THE WORLDS OF ART AND CULTURE, ALL HANDPICKED FOR THE ROYAL BOROUGH RESIDENT WELCOME BACK BELMOND Set in the heart of Chelsea, the Bar and Terrace at the Cadogan, a Belmond Hotel, is ideal for an artisan coffee, creative cocktail or afternoon tea, and has just recently opened up after lockdown.

With a design that echoes the hotel’s rich heritage, the Bar and Terrace is a timeless and evocative space and its menu features an array of traditional British bites, with chef Adam Handling’s signature twist. Feast on the signature cheese doughnuts, zero-waste croquettes or indulgent wagyu cheeseburger, accompanied by classic cocktails that nod to the hotel’s infamous past residents, such as Oscar Wilde and Lillie Langtry. www.belmond.com/hotels/europe/uk/london/ belmond-cadogan-hotel

AFFORDABLE ART FAIR The Affordable Art Fair will be back in Battersea from 8 to 11 July for a showcase of hand-picked artists and an array of original artworks. The Fair will give art lovers and interiors en-thusiasts the chance to browse and buy from a selection of galleries all under one roof for the first time since March 2020. The Fair, now in its 22nd year, will continue to deliver its mission to democratise the art world and provide a vital platform for artists and galleries looking to emerge from a year in lockdown. The Fair will star artworks at affordable prices (from £50 upwards) with new exhibitors shaking up the existing line up of established galleries show-casing art from emerging talent through to household names.

Image: Kittoe Contemporary_Jess Quinn_Black Sun Oil On Canvas £750 https://affordableartfair.com

COME TO KUTIR Luxe Indian Kutir is serving a brand new menu that was originally designed for delivery and alfresco dining, including dishes such as tandoor paneer served with sweetcorn and papaya salad, a keema paratha with pink peppercorn raita, and a soya apricot mince with fenugreek and potato salli. It also offers a four-course Expedition menu (with a vegetarian option too) for £65.

Chef Rohit’s signature prawn masala and lamb rogan josh remain, much to the relief of locals who haven’t been able to enjoy them since March 2020. The menu is available on the terrace, and for delivery and take away from the restaurant from 1pm to 10pm, Tuesday to Sunday. www.kutir.co.uk

PAINTING OUR PAST Painting our Past: the African Diaspora in England is a powerful exhibition of new portraits depicting historical figures from the African diaspora with links to English Heritage properties.

African figures from the past have played significant roles at some of these historic sites, but many of their stories have been overlooked or forgotten. From Roman Britain to the 20th century, the lives of these different individuals span the centuries and their portraits will shed new light on the long history of African people in England. www.english-heritage.org.uk Painting: Sarah Forbes Bonetta

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COCKTAIL ALCHEMY The mixologists at the Alchemist bar have launched The Alchemist Cocktail Book: Master the Dark Arts of Mixology to celebrate its 10th anniversary. It’s a spellbinding book which features 100 different unique recipes, is accompanied by beautiful images and tons of tricks to help you mix perfect cocktails at home. Stalwarts include Chocolate Orange Smasharac, a fun remake of the classic New Orleans Sazerac, which has been on the scene since the 19th century and Garden Martini, a special summery cocktail. The book is now available to order from Amazon and the Alchemist’s online shop, priced at £16.99. https://thealchemist.uk.com

FABERGÉ IN LONDON Opening this November, the Victoria and Albert Museum announces Fabergé in London: Romance to Revolution, the first major exhibition devoted to the prominence of the legendary Russian goldsmith and the importance of his little-known London branch. With a focus on Fabergé’s Edwardian high-society clientele, the exhibition will examine his triumphs in Britain and the fascination with the opulence of his creations. Three of his Imperial Easter Eggs will go on display for the first time in the UK as part of the exhibition’s dramatic finalé. With over 200 objects across three sections, the exhibition will tell Fabergé’s story, and that of his firm that symbolised Russian craftsmanship and elegance. www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions/faberge An important aquamarine and diamond tiara by Fabergé, aquamarine, diamond, silver, gold.

Workmaster Albert Holmström, St. Petersburg, circa 1904. Photography courtesy of HMNS | Photographer: Mike Rathke

DUKE + DEXTER The Duke + Dexter x Playboy collection of footwear has just launched to much acclaim and will be limited to 250 pairs. It features Luka Sabbat as the face of the campaign. CEO Archie Hewlett says ‘With the Duke + Dexter x Playboy collaboration, we’re not going back to a golden era – we’re bringing a golden era back. Sophistication, class, distinction; they’ve been blended with awareness, a modern relevance and D+D’s trademark subversive nature to create a collection of footwear and accessories that celebrates tradition and advancement.’ https://dukeanddexter.com

BELGIAN WESTERN

Cowboy, the e-bike heavyweights from Brussels, have just introduced Cowboy 4, its fourth-generation model, which includes a step-through frame and a built-in cockpit for the ultimate connected electric ride. Winner of Red Dot’s Best Product Design award 2021, the Cowboy 4 features a new powertrain with 50 per cent more torque, a new design with 200 custom-made parts, and a brand-new Cowboy app. The C4 and the C4 ST offer an unparalleled riding experience, powering your path through the city. www.cowboy.com

WENTWORTH GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB As we see a return to sport, Wentworth is enjoying a surge of interest and demand as old and new members flock back, attracted by the appeal of a luxury golf and country club, within close proximity of London. It’s also able to offer an exclusive retreat for families with world-class facilities and dining, in beautiful surroundings. It is a club that gives members the ultimate in aspirational living, and after investing a significant amount over the last few years it’s seeing an influx of new members as it journeys towards becoming a Debenture Club with ambitions to become the world’s leading Country Club – a sign in itself of people’s willingness to invest and the demand for access to a premium establishment. www.wentworthclub.com

THE FELLOWSHIP We have recently been introduced to The Fellowship. Designed by British male supermodel Andrew Cooper and ex-M&S Group Head of Brand for Beauty, Duncan Morris, it’s a new men’s grooming brand. It’s all made from vegan and natural ingredients, and is centred around a belief in high performance and function, and has a mission to simplify and streamline men’s skincare routines forever. The products will launch on 14 June with five initial products. Everything is made in an apothecary in the Cotswolds, making it a truly a British brand made for all men, of all ages. www.the-fellowship.co.uk

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

Pool Time Glam 1.

2.

3.

Fashion stylist Victoria Tozzi Lidster shares her five favourite pool to party pieces, each perfect for that private villa vacation you’ve been planning.

1.Charo Ruiz, Ibiza Luchi kaftan | £362, www.revolve.com 2.Chiara Boni, La petite robe di Chiara Boni one-piece red swimsuit | £236, www.lyst.com and Muse boutique, 63 King’s Road, Chelsea, SW3 4NT 3.Luisaviaroma, women’s Borsalino Panama hat | £300, www.luisaviaroma.com

4.

4.Dior, 30 Montaigne slides | £660, www.dior.com 5.Tom Ford, oversized square-frame sunglasses | £300, www.coggles.com

5.

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Last chance to see: Making NUNO exhibition at Japan House London The European and UK debut of Japan House London’s current exhibition, Making NUNO Japanese Textile Innovation from Sudō Reiko runs until Sunday 11 July 2021. This is your last chance to see, in person, the eight art installations – including two never-before-seen exhibits – in Japan House London’s gallery. You have more time however, to visit (and revisit) the exhibition virtually. Read on to find out more.

Textile designer Sudō Reiko is renowned for pushing the boundaries of textile production. As Design Director of leading Japanese textile design firm Nuno and member of the revered Japan Design Committee, she is one of the most exciting textile artists working in Japan today.

Weaving Japanese craft traditions into new engineering techniques, Sudō champions regional textile materials, processes and makers from across Japan – from silk farmers in Yamagata Prefecture to weaving techniques in Tango, Kyoto Prefecture. Another major thread running through her work is the theme of sustainability, with Sudō finding innovative ways to make use of materials usually wasted in industrial manufacture and sustaining the regional craft traditions that influence her work.

The eight installations on display at Japan House London include ‘Amate’: a leather-like fabric created from pressing washi (Japanese paper made from mulberry) with amate (‘bark cloth’ made by the indigenous Otomi craftspeople in central Mexico). On display in the window bay of Japan House London, ‘Kibiso Crisscross’ is made from the outer shell of silkworm cocoons, usually discarded in the silk-weaving process.

Meanwhile, ‘Colour Plate’, a vast wall of colourful thread spools, feeds thousands of threads into Sudō’s reinterpretation of a Jacquard loom.

These exhibits are more than just textiles. Bringing them to life is Saitō Seiichi, Panoramatiks Director (ex-Rhizomatiks Architecture), who combines the soundscapes from regional fabric and textile factories in Japan with projections that illuminate the processes behind each exhibit’s creation, taking guests into Sudō’s world. Bringing all artworks together for London is the vision of renowned curator Takahashi Mizuki, Executive Director and Chief Curator of Centre for Heritage, Arts and Textile (CHAT) in Hong Kong.

If you have missed the chance to see this exhibition in person, or you are unable to make it to Kensington High Street, then why not pay a virtual visit? The exhibition is available online and offers visitors the chance to view these textile textures up close.

Explore the virtual exhibition of Making NUNO – Japanese Textile Innovation from Sudō Reiko on the Japan House London website: www.japanhouselondon.uk/discover/ exhibition/making-nuno-virtual-exhibition

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

I’M GOOD, THANKS. AND YOU? As we slowly shuffle towards freedom, we’re taking stock of the effect the pandemic has had on everyones’ day-to-day. In his first column for the Kensington & Chelsea Review, dandyabout-town MARCUS WALTERS gives us the lowdown on his lockdown.

Hi, I’m Marcus Walters. I’d like to offer you my hand, but…

1) This is an article.

2) I’ve been locked down due to a deadly virus for the last year.

Just like you have and everyone else.

3) It’s been so long I’m a bit nervous around people I don’t know.

The other morning as I was getting dressed for work, a latenight-show host was talking about the anniversary of the first lockdown. He reflected that the end of Covid was on the horizon. He talked about ‘getting back to normal’. But I wonder how close to normal that can be and how long it will last. I really can’t answer. But there is another question that everyone will be asking each other when that day finally comes – and I can pretty much answer that question today.

‘So, what have you been up to for the last year?’

For the first time in my adult life, I’ve had a real chance to look at the world around me. And, well… I have a few thoughts. So, I’ll be talking about the things I’ve learned this last year. Not just here, but going on from here. First up, my work.

I’m sitting in my office at my old job, group messaging back and forth with my friends. I’m a little annoyed as they’re shocked I’m in the office and it feels a little accusatory, ‘What are you doing there?! Why haven’t they sent you home?!’ I’m about to grumpily reply that ‘I’m paid to be here, and until that changes I’ll turn up’, when one of the directors walks over, ‘What are you doing here?’, she asks, ‘hasn’t Gert spoken to you?’ Just 10 minutes later, I’m heading home, rolling my eyes at everyone’s overreaction to this. This is just another swine flu. This is another SARS. As it goes, this is the last time I would work in that office. That day I got off the train for the last time in the following three months.

Six weeks later, I’m made redundant.

Then, I’m back in the trousers for a job interview. I try to suck in my new paunch as best I can and give some pretty decent answers. So then I became a recruiter. I always hated them, but I’m surprised to find I’m good at it. I still suck at paperwork – somehow it’s even harder while working from home. Then I’m on the phone to my boss once more; lockdown has returned: ‘I’m looking at ways of keeping you on.’, she tells me.

Just over a week later, I’m unemployed again.

Once again, I’m back in the trousers for one last interview. This is the first interview I’ve ever had in a face mask. I try to sell myself using my eyes. And just like that, I’m a commuter again, my life back as the sidings to my work.

Which brings us up till now. I turn off the late-night host and head down to heat up the breakfast I prepared the night before.

I eat standing up to save time. Supposedly, I’m ‘back to normal’ like nothing had ever happened. So, what will I tell people when they ask what I’ve been doing this last year? I expanded my mental real estate? I worked on my art? I was a regular mourner? I became a social-media buzzkill?

I think that there’s no way to show all the facets of a year once it’s gone. Instead, we tell stories to try to encapsulate the joy, the pain, the changes – the wasted potential. We’ll be telling stories about 2020 for decades to come. We’ve shown the holes in the way we live. It’s been an opportunity to actually change it for the better. As for me? Well, don’t go away, I’ve got a few stories of my own…

A few weeks in and I realise this is serious. For the first time since I was a baby, I have nowhere to be and nothing I need to do. I’d been unemployed in the past, but this time I’m on furlough. It’s a new word that I’ll hear daily, along with, ‘Zoom call’ and ‘social distancing’. It’s almost 10am and I’m squeezing myself into a pair of trousers for a video call (I don’t want to risk my team accidentally seeing me in shorts). I can barely fit into them. They were loose when I took them off. I squirm uncomfortably through the meeting.

I’m lugging my shopping bag back to my new home when my phone rings. It’s my boss’s boss. She called to reassure me that despite the circumstances the company, ‘isn’t currently considering redundancies’. I thank her for the call. The thought of redundancy hadn’t occurred to me until that very moment.

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Charlotte Perriand: The Modern Life at the Design Museum

The Design Museum is the world’s leading museum devoted to contemporary architecture and design. Its work encompasses all elements of design, including fashion, product and graphic design.

Since it opened its doors in 1989 the museum has displayed everything from an AK-47 to high heels designed by Christian Louboutin. It has staged over 100 exhibitions, welcomed over seven million visitors and showcased the work of some of the world’s most celebrated designers and architects including Paul Smith, Zaha Hadid, Jonathan Ive, Frank Gehry, Eileen Gray and Dieter Rams.

In June, Design Museum, London puts a spotlight on the work of one of the giants of 20th-century design, a free spirit who championed good design for all. Marking 25 years since the last significant presentation in London, visitors can follow Charlotte Perriand’s creative process through sketches, photographs, scrapbooks, prototypes and final pieces. One of the great designers of the 20th century, at the age of 24, Perriand produced a number of critically acclaimed innovative pieces of metal furniture, which drew the attention of Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret. As a result she was given a position at Le Corbusier’s studio where she developed a series of tubular steel chairs, among them the famous chaise longue basculante. In the mid-1930s, she started to experiment with natural materials such as wood and cane. She travelled to Japan in 1940 as an official advisor on industrial design to the Ministry for Trade and Industry and became inspired by traditional Japanese materials and techniques. She also had a keen interest in the synthesis of the arts and was friends with Pablo Picasso and Fernand Léger who she collaborated with on projects. Her work aimed to create functional living spaces in the belief that better design helps in creating a better society and was an advocate for leisure activities and an outdoors lifestyle, designing various mountain

refuges throughout her career which culminated in major architectural projects such as Les Arcs ski resort.

Cassina will act as the exhibition’s ‘Reconstruction Content Partner’. Founded in Meda by Cesare and Umberto Cassina in 1927, Cassina launched industrial design in Italy during the 1950s by taking a completely new approach, which saw a shift from handcraftsmanship to serial production. Cassina was pioneering in the way that it showed a striking inclination for research and innovation, combining technological skill with traditional craftsmanship. Today ‘The Cassina Perspective’ unites the company’s values to express the best contemporary design – avant-gardism, authenticity, excellence and the combination of technological capacity with skilled craftsmanship – and offers a broad panorama of configurations for the home, where innovative products and modern icons come together to create complete and, above all, welcoming environments, dialoguing according to a unique design code based on excellence.

Justin McGuirk, Chief Curator says ‘Charlotte Perriand was a hugely influential figure in design. Her life spanned the 20th century and her career reflects the twists and turns of the modernist movement. Yes, she was long overshadowed by her male counterparts, but this exhibition presents her not just as a brilliant designer who deserves wider recognition – she was also a natural collaborator and synthesiser. There is so much to admire, not just in her work but in the way she lived her life.’

Charlotte Perriand: The Modern Life runs until 5th September 2021. www.designmuseum.org, www.cassina.com #PerriandLiving @DesignMuseum Image: Charlotte Perriand, Perspective drawing of the dining room in the Place Saint-Sulpice apartment-studio, Paris, 1928. © AChP/ © ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2021

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

CHELSEA’S VANISHED PALACES: TRAGEDY AND SCANDAL IN TUDOR ENGLAND As the Borough regroups for its future, historian ALISON WEIR takes a deep dive into its royal past.

In 1520, Sir Thomas More, that ‘Man for All Seasons’, bought a fine house at Chelsea. It stood by the River Thames on the site of modern Beaufort Street, and was surrounded by gardens and orchards. Henry VIII would sometimes visit unannounced ‘to be merry’ with his friend More. Once, he came to dinner, and afterwards ‘in a fair garden, walked with him for an hour, holding his arm about his neck’. The King arranged for the artist Hans Holbein, to lodge with More at Chelsea, where Holbein painted his famous portraits of More and his family.

More built a chapel in Chelsea Old Church, which survived the Blitz of 1941. He cared nothing for pomp and show. When the Duke of Norfolk found him in a plain gown, singing with the church choir, he tutted, ‘God’s body, my Lord Chancellor! A parish clerk! You dishonour the King and his office!’ More was unmoved. There is no evidence to support the tale that his head was buried in the chapel after his execution in 1535.

At that time, his house became forfeit to the Crown. In 1536, Jane Seymour stayed there while Anne Boleyn was in the Tower, and it was at Chelsea that she received news of Anne’s execution.

Only the orchard wall of More’s house survives today, enclosing private gardens on the west side of Paultons Square.

In 1536, Lord Sandys gave Henry VIII a riverside manor house at Chelsea, which occupied a site now bounded by Cheyne Walk and Oakley Street. Henry converted it into a bijou palace.

Constructed of red brick, it resembled St James’s Palace, which was built around the same time, but was only two storeys high.

Ranged around two quadrangles, it had five acres of gardens, including a walled ‘Great Garden’ to the east and a privy garden with borders of rosemary and lavender, cherry, filbert, damson and peach trees and damask roses. There were 64,000 privet hedges and a fishpond. Water was piped into the palace by conduit from a spring in Kensington.

In 1544, Henry VIII granted Chelsea Palace to his sixth wife, Katherine Parr. Soon after he died in January 1547, she moved there with her 13-year-old stepdaughter, the future Queen Elizabeth I.

marriage was made public, it caused a scandal, coming too soon after Henry VIII’s death, even though the nine-year-old King Edward VI had privately encouraged the match.

In June, the swaggering, swashbuckling Seymour moved into Chelsea Palace. That summer, Lady Jane Grey, the future ninedays Queen, joined the household. Already, though, Seymour was showing an unstepfatherly interest in Elizabeth. He had had keys made for himself for all the rooms in the palace, including her bedchamber. He would enter in the mornings and ‘strike her familiarly on the back or on the buttocks’. Elizabeth’s response was not that of a child.

Katharine was last at Chelsea in October 1547. She died in childbed in September 1548 at Sudeley Castle, having tried to mend her marriage after surprising Seymour and Elizabeth in an embrace and sending Elizabeth away. Seymour was beheaded for treason in 1549. Chelsea’s connection with Henry VIII’s queens continued. In 1557, when the health of the divorced Anne of Cleves declined, Queen Mary I arranged for her to reside at Chelsea, where she died in July. She was the only one of Henry VIII’s wives to be buried in Westminster Abbey.

In 1653, after it had been extended in the 1630s and 40s, the palace boasted three halls, five parlours, three kitchens, three drawing rooms, twenty-six other chambers, three cellars, four closets, garrets and summer rooms. The complex was still enclosed with the Tudor brick wall. The house was demolished in 1828. All that remain are seven chambers vaulted in brickwork in the basement of 24 Cheyne Walk, extending beneath the road to Cheyne Mews.

Alison Weir’s latest book Katherine Parr: The Sixth Wife is published by Headline. To purchase or find out more, visit: www.alisonweir.org.uk

Credit: Anthony Delanoix

It was probably at Chelsea, in late May, that Katharine secretly married Thomas, Lord Seymour, Queen Jane’s brother. The marriage was kept secret. Thomas would visit Katharine at Chelsea in the middle of the night; she left a gate unlocked, warning him, ‘Ye must take some pain to come early in the morning, that ye may be gone again by seven o’ clock.’ She did not want to be found in bed with him when the household was rising. She was headily in love, longing for each tryst, and observed to Seymour, ‘The weeks be shorter at Chelsea than in other places.’ When the KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

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Credit: Bruno Martins PAGE 11

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

LARRY POONS MAKES HIS LONDON RETURN

By Tani Burns For over half a century, Larry Poons has been identified as heir to the heroic era of American painting, following in the footsteps of such greats as Pollock, de Kooning, and Rothko. In his first solo show in London for almost two decades, works from as early as the 1970s feature alongside those created in the past year. His evolution as a painter over the decades has a life as dynamic as the canvases themselves…

In 1969, aged 32, Poons featured in the landmark exhibition New York Painting and Sculpture 1940–1970 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Curated by Henry Geldzahler, who devoted the show’s culminating gallery to the artist, this seminal exhibition saw Poons’ work stand out alongside those American greats, the final room glowing with his early ‘Dots and Lozenge’ paintings, as well as several then-recent expansive, colourful abstractions later regarded as iconic works in the Colour Field movement. The youngest artist included in the exhibition, Poons was at the time regarded as the promising, guiding star who could lead the way toward exciting new possibilities for contemporary painting.

Over the course of the five decades since the Met exhibition, Poons has more than fulfilled that promise. His trajectory was, however, not what most critics and art-world observers were expecting, or perhaps were even equipped to understand. Poons, as it turns out, was a much more radical painter than anyone could have imagined. Indifferent to the demands of critics, curators, and the marketplace, he remained steadfast on his own, inimitable path, constantly evolving and always surprising his audience.

This summer, and opening in perfect time for London’s first Gallery Weekend, Almine Rech are now presenting a solo show of Poons’ work in their Mayfair gallery space. This will be the artist’s first London show in nearly two decades, and constitutes a concise Larry Poons survey that picks up where Geldzhaler’s Met show left off. Already an art-historical figure, with the vibrant, energetic, and surprising works he continues to produce, he re-enforces his stature as one of the most significant artists of this moment. Widely regarded as among the foremost colourists of the latter half of the 20th century, 50 years on Poons is as relevant today as ever.

Starting with the early work, this new exhibition at Almine Rech features a particularly representative work of the 1970s, Yellow Cat on Hand (1976), a brilliant example of Poons’ richly textured ‘Throw’ paintings. Here, cascades of innumerable rivulets of pigment flow down the large canvas like a mesmerizing waterfall. By the 1980s, Poons was renowned as one of the pioneers of Colour Field painting, but defying expectations, he shifted away from a focus on pure colour, and furthered his experiments with texture, enhancing the already rich impasto of his surfaces. In works such as The 4 Fenton Bros (1985) and Carioca (1986), he applied bits of foam rubber and crumbled paper to the canvas in order to slow the movement of the numerous layers of thrown paint.

The results are enthralling compositions of richly nuanced textures and earthy colours that recall rocky cliff faces or lichen-covered hillsides on a rainy day.

shimmering pigment. It communicates a pulsating rhythm that fits the work’s title. Music also provides a connection with Poons’ background in music, as well as his lifelong interest in it – from 1955 to 1957 he studied at the New England Conservatory of Music, with the intent of becoming a professional musician, however after seeing Barnett Newman’s exhibition at French and Company in 1959 he gave up musical composition and enrolled at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Although Poons gave up music in a formal, educational sense, nevertheless he kept that passion alive, playing guitar with The Druds, a short-lived avant-garde noise music art band that featured prominent members of the New York proto-conceptual art and minimal art community in the early 1960s. Walter de Maria played the drums, LaMonte Young played the saxophone, Patty Mucha (Oldenburg) was the lead singer, while Andy Warhol and Jasper Johns wrote the lyrics.

In his more recent works, Poons largely abandoned the threedimensional elements that often served as the structure for each composition. In a large part, he also abandoned brushes, and many recent works, including No Home (2010), and Bye Corinthian (2016) were painted primarily with hands and fingers. It is as if Poons had returned painting to a realm of primordial artistic expression, embodying human emotions and the sensations of living through the fundamental mark-making capabilities of the human hand—the artist’s hand. And in the 2020 painting Centaur (2020) with its frenetic shifting clouds of light and colour, Poons demonstrates his virtuosity with seemingly effortless panache.

Those who may have seen him in the HBO documentary ‘The Price of Everything’ some years ago will recall him as the artist walking through a snowbound landscape in upstate New York, on his way to his woodshed studio. In the film, he spoons paint onto his palette with his hands before applying to a vast canvas. This unlikely star of the documentary, Poons is presented as the antithesis of art-market superstars such as Jeff Koons, also in the film. On camera, Poons condemns the market for preferring his ‘old stuff ’, railing against the idea that the ‘best artist is the most expensive artist.’ His lyrical ideas around the purity of art and his work’s modest rise at auction provide a stark juxtaposition to scenes of market darlings like Koons.

In Almine Rech’s show in London, thankfully, we see that the old Poons is still in there – all the physicality, the musicality and the acute purity still remain – but we also see that, now in his 80s, the artist has continued to strive, continued to surprise, to grow and change. As Poons said in an interview at the time of the film’s release: ‘It’s impossible to stay the same unless you’re catatonic. Much like Leonardo da Vinci said, a work of art is never finished, only abandoned.’

LARRY POONS is at Almine Rech Mayfair until 31 July 2021.

For more information visit www.alminerech.com

The large 1990 composition Music is a key work in Poons’ evolution.

The surface of this sumptuous, prismatic-hued canvas has been built up with clusters of bisected rubber balls, and bits of rolled and crumpled paper fixed to the canvas and ensconced beneath many layers of

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

JR: CHRONICLES AT THE SAATCHI With large-scale socially aware installations spread across the world – plus an Oscar nomination and TED Prize to his name, French ‘photograffeur’ JR’s new exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery is big news…

Like many who started out tagging walls, French artist JR has kept a degree of anonymity – cloaking himself in a Clark Kent-esque disguise of dark glasses and a hat – but his work is all about shining a spotlight on people, especially those who slip under the radar. He may have started out as a graffiti artist on the streets of Paris, but after finding a camera abandoned on the Metro, he turned the lens on his artist friends and then the wider world.

Now, his large-scale photographs of slum dwellers, migrants, impoverished farmers and other marginalised groups, blown up to immense proportions and pasted onto the sides of buildings, train roofs, along the US-Mexico border, buried in a symbolic funeral and more, are bold and confrontational, yet engaging and open to wider discussion. As JR says, ‘For me it’s really clear. I was writing my names on walls to say ‘I exist,’ then I started pasting pictures of people with their names to say they exist.’

So, we were very excited about JR: Chronicles at the Saatchi Gallery, the largest solo exhibition of the artist’s work to date.

It focuses on some of his most important projects, including The Secret of the Great Pyramid (2019), a vast trompe-l’œil KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

wheatpaste laid out around the Louvre’s glass pyramid (which JR once made ‘disappear’ by pasting an image of the Louvre over it). And Tehachapi, a project carried out in a Californian prison, where JR photographed the prisoners (many of whom had been behind bars for a decade or had little chance of parole) and guards, and filmed each subject telling their story. Working with the subjects, he pasted an image of prisoners and guards together to cover the entire prison yard.

The show traces his evolution from documenter of young graffitists, to radical architectural interventionist, posting vast works illegally in countries such as Sierra Leone, Kenya and Brazil, to his digitally collaged collective portraits of communities. From the work of Expo 2 Rue, which showcases his early images of spray-paint wielding teens, to his socially aware work in Portrait of a Generation, portraits of the people living in Les Bosquets, a housing project in the Parisian suburb of Montfermeil, which became a focal point for the riots of 2005. In showing their faces and documenting their stories, JR allows the youth from the project to tell their side of the story aside from media narratives.

He’s also used his medium to draw attention to conflicts (Face 2 Face, where photos of Israelis and Palestinians who hold the same job were placed opposite each other over the border wall), recognised women’s contributions to public life (Women Are Heroes, where photos of women’s eyes and faces were displayed throughout their community), and highlighted the value of the

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elderly (The Wrinkles of the City, installed in Havana and Los Angeles, featuring portraits that told tales of the cities’ older residents). And, his film work is recognised here too, both Faces Places, made with famed New Wave filmmaker Agnès Varda, and The Gun Chronicles: A Story of America, which deals with one of the US’s most divisive issues.

Exactly how anonymous JR might be these days is up for debate, what with worldwide acclaim, big-ticket shows, Oscar nominations and a TED Prize win, but it’s a moot point really because he emphatically shows you where he wants you to look – somewhere where sight is much needed. This show, curated by Sharon Matt Atkins and Drew Sawyer from the Brooklyn Museum, gives further focus to his artistic advocacy and couldn’t be timelier when the world feels so fractured.

JR: Chronicles runs until 3 October 2021. To book tickets visit: www.saatchigallery.com Images: Top: JR (French, born 1983). The Chronicles of ClichyMontfermeil 2017, (detail), Duratrans prints, lightbox. © JR-ART.NET Right: JR (French, born 1983). Women Are Heroes, Liberia, Rebecca Deman, 2009. Gelatin silver photograph. © JR-ART.NET

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

FIND YOUR TRIBE

Bee in a Daisy Web (2020) Tuesday Ridell Fulham Town Hall is the stunning scene for an exhibition of work by some of the most exciting female artists working in London right now. TANI BURNS spoke with young up-and-coming curator MC Llamas about the show, titled ‘The Tribe.’

As part of ‘Art in the Age of Now’ at Fulham Town Hall, The Tribe was curated by MC Llamas to bring together new work by contemporary female artists, presenting the different faces of femininity – from the strong or vulnerable to themes of sexuality, mystery or whimsy – without objectification. From Nettie Wakefield’s eerie reverse portraits to Abigail Fallis’ enormous bananas, the pieces oscillate between the humorous and the esoteric. Tuesday Riddell’s intricate Japanning panel opens us to a guided dream world from which Nancy Fouts’ Little Red Hiding Hood erupts – the works have conversations and make light of each other’s secrets.

The Tribe features work by Holly Allan; Pauline Amos; Kiera Bennett; Dana Berber; Elodie Carrel; Arietta Chandris; Catherine Eldridge; Abigail Fallis; Nancy Fouts; Anna Kenneally; Lily Lewis; Bip Ling; Jil Mandeng; Marion Mandeng; Sarah Maple; Tuesday Riddell; Savannah Macmillan; Jessica St. James; Chloe Karayiannis; Nettie Wakefield.

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

Spanning three rooms in the vast space of Fulham’s old Town Hall – the iconic, deserted 51,000sq ft Victorian building in West London – The Tribe moves through several key themes. In the first, eerie and mysterious works include Nettie Wakefield’s sharply drawn reverse portraits of the back of women’s heads, Jil Mandeng’s collage family portrait reflecting on blurred childhood memories, and the late Nancy Fouts’ Little Red Riding Hood – charmingly dark as it references both a young girl taken from a childhood bedtime story and the very dark aesthetic of the pointed hoods of the Ku-Klux Clan. Tuesday Riddell’s highly lacquered small painting of a fantasy forest scene brings in detailed insects to take part in a modern tale.

Fun in its femininity, the centrepiece in the second room is a large stack of bananas made specifically for the room by Abigail Fallis – referencing Andy Warhol and Maurizio Cattelan while at the time offering a sarcastic take on womanhood and authority.

Edie Baker’s works are inspired by pin-up magazines, where she paints, collages and weaves into the images, creating a dialogue with the subject and elevating the images by creating a strong narrative around them. In the third room a series of collaborative works between Pauline Amos and MC Llamas will be presented – a collection of new timed paintings, where the artists swapped works every 30 seconds, constantly adding to each other’s marks.

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We managed to get a few minutes with the artist-curator MC Llamas ahead of the show’s opening…

Kensington & Chelsea Review: Tell us a bit about the title of the show, ‘the Tribe’.

MC Llamas: The title is from one of the works performed in

the showrooms, a poem by Dana Berber, which is an incredible ode to love and unity. The string of poems is written partly in Hebrew and has an incredible typographical and symbolic element to it, as it is transferred on the wall.

KCR: The exhibition is female artists only – was this a conscious decision?

also made a book together called Tempus Fugit (time flies), which is symbolic of the collaborative art during a pandemic, when time did drag and yet the year flew by!

KCR: Fulham Town Hall is an incredible venue – have you curated the show with the space in mind?

MC: The Fulham Town Hall is such an incredible space, one can definitely feel the weight of history embedded in the walls.

I loved curating the space, it has a homely and intimate feeling, which is enhanced by the nature of the artworks and the stories they tell.

KCR: And what have you got coming up next?

MC: I never made a conscious decision for it to be an all-female show, I started thinking about specific works that I wanted to create a story with, but realised that I had been selecting works by female artists, so decided to keep going!

MC: I’m also curating a series of shows at an incredible new pub called the Hawk’s Nest in Shepherd’s Bush; the first exhibition will be a solo show by James Vaulkhard.

KCR: We’re interested in your collaborative work with Pauline Amos (in which you call yourselves ‘M.C.P.Amos’) – how important has this collaboration been for you over the past year – both personally and as an artist?

Find out more about ‘The Tribe’ and ‘Art in the Age of Now’ at Fulham Town Hall at www.artbelow.org

MC: P.A. and I developed a framework together. It helped me maintain a sense of focus during this lockdown. I was in London alone and it was quite tough. Pauline was in Devon, she was my bubble, we were each other’s support. Collaborating helped you step up and do more, when the isolation was difficult. We

Check out The Hawk’s Nest at www.the-hawks-nest.co.uk Follow MC Llamas on Instagram @mc.llamas

Banana Splits (2020) by Abigail Fallis

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

HISTORY IN THE MAKING Luxury watch-making brand Bremont is opening a long-awaited Manufacturing and Technology Centre – SARAH MORAN gets the lowdown Bremont is an award-winning British luxury brand, manufacturing mechanical watches in Henley-on-Thames, England. Co-founded by brothers Nick and Giles English in 2002, Bremont has made a substantial impact on the watch-making industry in a very short period of time. The brand remains true to its original principles of aviation and military, British engineering and adventure. As well as manufacturing watches for some of the most exclusive military squadrons around the world, Bremont continues to play an influential role in revitalising the British watch industry, the birthplace of numerous timekeeping innovations still used today. The brand is now in the top handful of chronometer producers in the world.

Bremont has been on an unwavering 19-year quest to manufacture watches in the UK and the opening of their new centre is a considerable leap towards that dream. The Bremont Manufacturing and Technology Centre, aka ‘The Wing’, is a state-of-the-art facility for manufacturing mechanical watches, the likes of which hasn’t been seen in this country in the UK since the 1970s. It provides the perfect foundation for the future growth of Bremont, enabling the brand to manufacture more components here in the UK and cement their global position as a manufacturer. Not only has The Wing been designed to perfectly fulfil a manufacturing requirement, but also with architectural merit that makes it a destination for watchmaking. When Bremont started all those years ago, the aim was to be more than just a marketing company outsourcing watch manufacturing overseas, and this was always going to be a massive challenge. Bremont’s mission statement remains the same: ‘To make exquisitely engineered mechanical timepieces on British soil with the lofty objective of reinvigorating the nation’s horological past, using our adventurous spirit, passion for detail, desire to innovate and dedication to the highest quality of customer satisfaction.’

building up a team of first-class engineers to reduce reliance on its non-domestic supply chain and as a key part of its onshoring programme. An increased focus on movement manufacturing and assembly will see Bremont further develop its apprenticeship scheme and will ultimately lead to the recruitment of more technical engineers as well as skilful craftsmen and women. As proud supporters of the British School of Watchmaking, Bremont will be looking to integrate training courses for its students at The Wing.

Bremont is opening up the new HQ to visitors and asking for a £25 charity donation which will go directly towards the Jon Egging trust. To find out more please see: www.bremont.com/products/the-bremont-tour

The Wing is a 35,000sq ft purpose-built state-of-the-art mechanical-watch-manufacturing centre, enabling the full machining of Bremont’s watches. Sitting on the edge of a beautiful English Oxfordshire town, it was designed by award-winning architects Spratley & Partners on the site of a former piggery with strong eco-credentials, including a living roof, and recycled-air heating system. The site has been transformed into an end-to-end mechanical manufacturing centre with CNC machining, finishing and assembly as well as an on-site boutique and significant entertaining space. Just as importantly, the site will provide a destination for watch lovers to visit from all over the world.

Bremont has been running its own apprenticeship scheme for some time now, training up its workforce in this very specific and exacting craft. Working with partners like Rolls Royce, Jaguar and now Williams F1 presents a remarkable opportunity to collaborate and learn from some of the finest engineering businesses in the world, and Bremont is committed to KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

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#myAVI8

HAME SWEET HAME KATE WEIR tries her hand at professional cheffery with Adam Handling’s DIY meal kit With restaurants back open again, why on earth would you want to dine in? We’ll tell you why: Hame by Adam Handling.

The celebrated chef ’s home-delivery kits bring his decidedly decadent, upmarket comfort food into your kitchen, sustainably packed and prepped with easy-to-follow recipe cards, which even have QR codes revealing videos of Handling himself showing you how it’s done. At the time of writing it was the closest I could get to having Handling cook for me – always a welcome prospect – so I was eager to give it a go (full disclosure: with the help of my chef partner).

Hame offers several tempting packages for beautifully conceived DIY feasts, ranging from a Sunday lunch with a truffle-stuffed chicken to a ‘Who are you trying to impress?’ box with caviar and lobster wagyu. However, the à la carte has all of Handling’s big-hitters and so that’s where we turned our attention, ordering cheese doughnuts, beef tartare with caviar, lobster in wagyu beef fat, beef Wellington with clotted-cream mash and a silky chocolate and raspberry mousse cake.

I rarely do the cooking in our flat, so I was bemused to open the huge delivery box to find seemingly disparate sachets of ingredients (pouches of beaten egg and vegetable oil, dough ready for the proving). I’m familiar with the inner workings of a restaurant, but part of the joy of fine dining is seeing a dish magicked up from the kitchen fully formed. Assemblage was a daunting prospect, but we got stuck in.

The beef tartare, mixed with kimchi sauce, pickled mushrooms and caviar was a strong start – a tangy, punch-packing dish with plenty of bite. The lobster looked somewhat forlorn in its vacuum-sealed package, but laid out on the plate, fat and pillowy, pooled in butter, it was ravishing and tasted as succulent and meaty as you’d hope. The beef Wellington was packed with sausage meat instead of a crepe, an excellent substitute that added to the richness of the dish, while the mash tasted like Devonshire’s finest. To finish, the mousse cake was a calorific, velvety mouthful of joy.

I’ll admit, there were some technical difficulties, when we didn’t have a rack to rest the cake on, the meat thermometer arrived sans batteries, and we mistook the Wellington for the tube of mash, and fledgling cooks like myself may baulk at some of the prep, even with Handling’s help, but overall we would absolutely hunker back down indoors for this top moveable feast.

Order yours here: www.adamhandling.co.uk/hame, from £130 for two.

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

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A Silk-Wrapped Sensation Cook at Home Meal Kit From CERU Fine dining in your front room has been a rising trend during lockdown. EMILY WILLIAMS delves into the delights of CERU, South Kensington’s Levantine restaurant that delivers flavoursome, stylish and sustainable DIY meal kits to your door.

What was going to be just another Friday night in lockdown turned into something surprising and special thanks to CERU in South Kensington. By this point, I’d exhausted all options on Uber Eats and dried-up dinner choices on Deliveroo. It was time to go back to the drawing board and find a unique and authentic meal that would transport me from the confines of the flat.

I virtually scrolled the streets of South Kensington on Google maps and the bright aquamarine awnings of CERU restaurant popped up on street view. It’s this captivating shade of blue that inspired the name of the restaurant and the Levantine cuisine that it serves. The cerulean colour represents the beauty of the East Mediterranean sea, which fringes the countries of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Palestine and Jordan that make up the Levant region in the Middle East.

The word ‘levant’ originates from the French word ‘to rise’, as the sun rises in the east. It’s a historic and colourful part of the world with a kaleidoscope of flavours, aromas, and ancient cooking styles. CERU restaurant aims to encapsulate the sensorial experience of this rich agricultural region known as the ‘fertile crescent’, using fresh ingredients from top London markets, and bring it into the comfort of your home. The result?

A flavour-filled package that’s bursting with Mediterranean sunshine.

I could tell from the moment my CERU delivery arrived that it was prepared and presented with care. On receipt of the large cardboard box, I stripped back the seal to unveil a cool bed of reusable frozen-gel packs nestled around a vibrant parcel of ingredients wrapped in a bespoke silk scarf. As I carefully undid the knot and held up the luxurious fabric in front of me, the print revealed captivating clusters of raspberry-coloured cows framed by a chic royal-blue edging.

It was a thing of beauty, and before I had even turned to the ingredients, I started mentally pairing it with outfits in my wardrobe. What a brilliant idea – CERU has crafted stand-out sustainable packaging that combines its food concepts with a fashion accessory. With this stylish keepsake, the memory of the meal kit experience lives on beyond the final bite. Never mind haute couture, haute cuisine anyone?

I was impressed by how easy the instructions were to follow (the whole recipe only took 20 minutes in total), and how well adjusted they were to domestic kitchen conditions. All the ingredients were included and only familiar cooking equipment was required, such as an electric or gas hob, an oven with two shelves, a sharp knife for chopping, one bowl for tossing the cooked potatoes, two metal oven trays and a grill or frying pan.

As I cut open each ingredient package, I could smell and see the fresh quality of the ingredients, from the aromatic zing of the Zhug salsa to the lean tenderness of both beef fillets. For starters, homemade houmous and warm pitta were on the cards, a winning combination. Dipping the light and fluffy bread segments into melt-in-the-mouth garlicky creaminess set off the meal to a great start and it was only up from there.

Achieving a perfectly cooked medium-rare beef fillet was far less daunting when the recipe specified minute-by-minute instructions. All it took was one minute and 45 seconds in the frying pan on each side, followed by eight-and-a-half minutes in the oven to create that edge-to-edge pink interior and a seared outer casing. As I plated it over the artistic sweep of verdant Zhug salsa and sprinkled it with crushed hazelnuts, I was amazed at how professional the finished fillet looked. CERU has refined the minutiae of the menu so that customers can get it right every time.

The side dishes were another highlight in the overall composition. CERU provided lightly spiced pre-cooked potatoes that only needed 10 minutes in the oven to complete.

Meanwhile, sautéing the tenderstem broccoli added a divine dose of green, topped with the contrast of velvety tahini.

Tucking into the varied palate of textures and tastes, I felt completely transported and excited by the thought of visiting the Levant region in person.

CERU provides a gastronomic journey that fuses Levantine cooking methods, locally sourced British ingredients and a premium restaurant experience in a relaxed setting of your choice.

Plus, thanks to their environmentally-conscious silk packaging, you can indulge in high-quality cuisine and embellish your wardrobe all in one go. CERU delivers a dine-at-home meal kit that goes the extra mile — it’s a flavoursome and fashionable silk-wrapped sensation.To order your CERU cook at home meal kit, visit: cerurestaurants.com/cook-at-home-kits

At once, I’d donned the scarf around my neck and was beaming from ear to ear as I unpacked the ingredients and laid them out on the counter. Each vacuum-packed bioplastic slip was clearly labelled with allergen information and the beef-fillet recipe card provided detailed instructions alongside a step-by-step video link condensed into a useful QR code.

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

A SPARKLING SUMMER After what’s been a trying year for most of us, we need little excuse to celebrate now we are emerging into a positive new post-lockdown era. Let’s finally meet with loved ones and toast to happy times with some of these wonderful sparkling wines and champagnes as selected by LISA CURTISS.

The Palm by Whispering Angel

Taittinger Nocturne Sec City Lights

Bottega Gold Prosecco

A visual twist on the traditional Nocturne with fine bubbles and delicious notes of white blossom, peaches and apricots. On the palate it is soft, fresh and mellow with delicate floral and ripe-fruit flavours. The aftertaste is long and soft with a subtle sweetness. £40, www.champagnedirect.co.uk

Bottega Gold Prosecco Brut is made from Glera grapes, grown in the Valdobbiadene hills that surround Venice. Fermented for 40 days, it’s given its signature sparkle via the Charmat method, and bottled in an opaque golden bottle to protect the precious formula from light. With a fruity, floral bouquet and fresh, elegant palate of pears and apples, this is a lovely bubbly for any special occasion. £18.99, www.thedrinksbasket.com

Langham Estate Rosé 2017 This lovely English rosé is a blend of 54% Pinot Noir, 23% Pinot Meunier and 23% Chardonnay, which produce this pale-rose-gold wonderfully elegant wine with a stream of fine bubbles and a lasting finish. Aromas are of rhubarb crumble, cherry, cranberry and raspberry compote. The palate has a fine mousse with notes of strawberries, cherry and zingy apple. Langham was named Sparkling Wine Producer of the Year recently by the IWSC. £29.90, www.langhamwine.co.uk Ca’ di Rajo Pink Prosecco DOC Treviso Rosé Millesimato Brut 2019

From the makers of iconic Provence rosé Chateau d’Esclans comes the Palm by Whispering Angel, an effortlessly chic and refreshingly approachable new wine for the rosé-lover looking to bring an extra splash of style to their summertime sipping. £13.99, www.thedrinksbasket.com

Krug Grande Cuvée Krug Grand Cuvée Champagne is the magnum opus, a finished product that starts out as a combination of over 120 wines, expertly blended by the brand’s Chef de Cave, hence the limited quantity. Fresh and full-bodied, you’ll notice notes of toasted bread, hazelnut, sweet nougat, jellied fruits and barley sugar, accented by green apples, floral notes and a dash of savouries, like almonds, marzipan, gingerbread and sweet spices. £149.99, www.thedrinksbasket.com

An elegant pink prosecco with a touch of Pinot Noir bursting with flavours of summer berries. The Pinot Noir gives the wine a pretty pink blush, as well as adding delicate tastes of wild strawberry and fresh raspberry. It’s a delightful summer drink, with a lower-than-usual alcohol (11.5%), and a light body. £14.56, www.independent.wine Francone Antichi Poderi dei Gallina 2020 Moscato d’Asti A highly aromatic, light-bodied and exceptional sparkling Muscat wine from award-winning Piemonte winemakers, which has only 5% ABV and is ideal as an apéritif, and irresistible on summer afternoons.

With notes of guava and pear, candy, and white-flower blossom. The wine has the typical sweetness of Muscat, with medium acidity, a fine mousse, low alcohol and a long lingering finish. £16.16, www.independent.wine Bolney Estate Cuvée Rosé A wonderful award-winning English sparkling wine from vineyards in Sussex. An elegant and delicate single vintage, traditional-method sparkly with a pretty salmon-pink colour and very fine bubbles. Floral and red apple aromas lead to red apple and cranberry on the palate with a bright, fresh finish and lovely length. Cuvée Rosé Magnum 2016, £69, https://bolneywineestate.com Jenkyn Place Blanc de Blancs 2015 This award-winning wine is made exclusively from Chardonnay grapes from the boutique vineyard’s 500 vines. Pair with a fresh asparagus tart or white meat, such as chicken in a light garlic and cream sauce.

It notched up many awards, including a gold medal at the Wine GB 2020 awards, silver at the IWSC awards 2020 and winner Best English Sparkling Wine at the World Sparkling Wine Award 2020. £38, www.jenkynplace.com

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

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FENN Kate Weir Fenn is our first time at a restaurant in a depressingly long time – we dine alfresco in their cosy-as-can-be heated (and covered, praise be!) terrace, of course – but, by the time this goes to press, everything being well, things should be back to as normal as they can be, and you won’t have any excuse for not getting yourself to Fenn for their excellent tasting menu, or to simply pick and choose your way through their equally excellent à la carte.

A gift to Fulham’s fine-diners from the team behind Nest, chef Joe Laker (formerly of Farringdon’s Anglo) and executive head chef Johnnie Crowe, Fenn brings Nest’s appreciation of an ingredient’s provenance and some East London swagger to Wandsworth Bridge Road. It’s a love letter to British produce; and with some of the country’s finest producers already in their address book (say, Swaledale Foods’ and HG Walter’s meat, Cornish Flying Fish seafood, shellfish from Scotland’s Keltic Seafare, and fruit and veg from Shrub Provisions), they’re expertly placed to fly the flag in delicious fashion.

The à la carte presents something of a problem in that you’ll feel drawn to each dish, but compelled to order just three courses (and five helpings of Lincolnshire Poacher dumplings, which arrive drenched in mop-uppable shavings of cheese). So, the very reasonable tasting menu (just £50 for a very satisfying seven courses) is the way to go in our opinion, with the very interesting wine selection, a journey through soft Iberian reds, English sparklings, cider-y natural wines and other unique selections by manager Harry Cooper.

To start, some of those moreish cheese dumplings and FFC (Fenn Fried Chicken), a spicier, Korean-leaning take on popcorn chicken with a punchy wild garlic purée, then the potato sourdough with a crust you can tap on and the pillowiest of insides. Beef tartare, a dish I normally associate with tart dressings, comes with fermented chilli and smoked oil, which gives the high-quality meat a more complex, earthier flavour. At this point, we opt to supplement the meal with the hand-dived scallop with apple, bathed in chicken butter (£11), because frankly, who could resist?

A meaty slab of halibut is elevated by the sea-saltiness of samphire and delicate sweetness of crab, and aged Yorkshire beef comes with a quenelle of puréed purple sprouting broccoli, pickled walnut, bone-marrow sauce and a decadent layered potato cake. To finish, Pump Street chocolate ganache and soil with a yoghurt sorbet that brings just the right amount of acidity. It’s a Goldilocks menu that doesn’t over – or, indeed, under – whelm you with food, with enough of each dish to let the flavours and the top produce truly shine. We left overjoyed that this time around, the chance to return was higher than it’s been in the last year – book now before everyone else does.

194 Wandsworth Bridge Road, Fulham, London, SW62UF

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

LE DELI ROBUCHON BOISDALE OF BELGRAVIA Kate Weir

Kate Weir

It’s been a weird old year (and a bit), and pick-me-ups, however small have become a necessity – especially if they involve little cakes and champagne, we recently discovered when we tried Le Deli Robuchon’s new afternoon tea at-home. We’ve long been fans of this London institution for its Franco delicacies: cheese and charcuterie, viennoiseries and breads (look at the size of those baguettes…), wines from indie makers and gourmet groceries, many of which were favourites of the late and lauded chef Joël Robuchon himself, who certainly knew his superior products.

So, we had high expectations for a Gallic twist on this most British of afternoon pastimes, and these were met with gusto. There’s no greater interruption to an afternoon of work than having the doorbell ring and a flurry of glossy bags and boxes whisked in. This is the deli’s first afternoon tea delivery offering, and the ordering process is swift (there were no delivery snafus), the presentation feels special and luxurious, and for the amount and quality of food, it’s well worth the cost (£59 for two with a half-bottle of Laurent Perrier, £71 for two with a full-size one).

In two there are neat rows of precision-cut sandwiches, all as dainty as can be and delicious, but some stand-outs were the smoked-salmon with egg and wasabi mayonnaise for its zing, the hefty aubergine and burrata with olive tapenade (spot on for vegetarians), and the finger sandwich take on a Niçoise salad with green beans and tuna.

Another bag yields the champagne, which we pop and glug down with perhaps too much haste for such a genteel repast, but there are also tea sachets (high-quality Earl Grey and Moroccan mint) and coffee to even things out.

Then, we get to the sweet stuff: two boxes of cakes, pastries and scones, one filled with madeleines, plain and raisin scones and brioches au sucre; another with mini éclairs, mille-feuilles and fruit tarts. Together we’re transported to the kind of dining spaces where aloft pinkies, hushed gossip and a profusion of pastels are de rigueur.

All in all, it’s a rare treat, and one we recommend your demand to your door post-haste.

Le Deli Robuchon, 82 Piccadilly, London www.robuchonlondon.co.uk/le-deli

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

As a half-Scot, I took to the Boisdale warmly when I first visited years ago. The Scottish restaurant’s Christmas-hued tartan walls, dark-wood panelling and white tablecloths laden with a cutlery drawer’s worth of utensils nodded to a stalwart sense of tradition, while Albannach – its main competition at the time – had a curious Scots-in-space aesthetic with white-plastic antler chandeliers, light-up bucks and Eero Saarinen-style chairs. Well, Albannach is long gone and the Boisdale is still here – even in the midst of a pandemic – with four outposts (Belgravia, Mayfair, Canary Wharf and Bishopsgate), and it looks reassuringly the same. So, while there is a whiff of Highlands Disneyfication to it, one suspects for the tourists, it’s still the homiest place to come for a haggis fix.

Opened in 1989 by restaurateur with a roguish reputation, Ranald McDonald (not to be confused with a similarly named burger-peddler), Boisdale Belgravia celebrated 30 years of hearty north-of-the-border fare, live jazz and being one of the few places you can smoke in relative shelter in London, thanks to its upstairs humidor and penchant for fine cigars. So, we decided to see how the institution holds up in its third decade, and its proved it’s still capable of impeccable hosting and a touch of hootenanny-ing.

The menu is Scottish with some influence from mainland Europe, but Boisdale’s trump cards are thick slabs of Buccleuch beef (so highcalibre it’s supplied to no less than Buckingham Palace), gourmet burgers and roast Dumfrieshire blackface haggis. To start we order some fine Carlingford oysters with a Vietnamese ginger and chilli dressing, and a platter of Scottish smoked fish (Dunkeld oak- and Talisker-smoked salmon, whisky-smoked Isle of Gigha halibut and pickled orkney herrings), all of which have satisfyingly deep and complex flavours.

For mains, I bend to the will of my half-homeland and order the haggis, served in traditional style with neeps and tatties, it’s moist and meaty and the portion is generous enough to sate most Scots. My partner opts for a rib-eye steak, which comes with enormous chips that go sadly unfinished because every scrap of cooked-just-right meat must be eaten. For dessert we simply cap our night with a dram and a cheeky puff in the humidor. In the time since I first visited the Boisdale, the rise of Mac & Wild has seen a more competitive burger come along, and while Scots’ alleged tightness is nothing more than a stereotype, the menu’s prices may have some snapping the purse strings shut.

But, as live jazz kicks in somewhere around our main course and the whisky starts to warm us, coming back to the Boisdale after a dearth of dining out, feels very much like coming home. www.boisdale.co.uk

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COCOTTE

COMO GARDEN

Tracy Borman

Kate Weir

So, the concept is simple: chicken – served whole, half or quarter – with a range of different sides. Sound familiar? If you’re thinking of a certain well-known high street chain that starts with ‘N’ and ends with peri-peri sauce, then think again. Cocotte is about as far from that as Claude Monet is from painting by numbers. For a start, it’s French – genuinely so. The chickens (all free-range) are sourced from the Pays de la Loire; the sides and other dishes have an unmistakable French feel, with truffles being a particularly prominent ingredient; and the wine list is as ‘beautifully curated’ as the website claims. The decor is also reminiscent of an unpretentious but excellent bistro, with tables and items from the menu picked out in gold lettering on the windows.

If you’re a fan of the zesty Latin American fare in Kensington’s Zuaya (indeed, we’ve covered it previously and could seriously do with one of their mezcal- and pisco-loaded cocktails right now) then it might excite you to know that Alberto and Arian Zandi, the Spanish twin brothers behind the venture, launched an Italian restaurant just next door late last year. Como Garden, as you can tell from the name, is inspired by Lombardy’s great lake and botanical beauty. The dining room resembles an extremely elegant planter, with trailing ivy clinging to the walls and even a fully grown tree buffered by cosy cream banquettes, plus a few Renaissance-inspired statuettes for a true holiday feel.

My husband and I visited the Parson’s Green restaurant, but there are also branches in Notting Hill, Shoreditch and Queen’s Park. Because of restrictions, it was outdoor dining only but the warm welcome from the friendly staff more than offset the distinctly chilly evening.

There’s just one teeny problem – at the time of writing, I couldn’t see any of it – at least until Boris lowered the chequered flag on lockdown restrictions. But Como’s Italian pasta chef and dedicated team soldiered through, turning to Deliveroo to get punters excited about their tapas-style plates and hearty mains, made using ingredients nonna would approve of from the motherland. And so, in a somewhat more modest dining room, we awaited a delivery that would, at least in spirit, whisk us away to the Med.

We started with a glass of the crisp and perfectly chilled Picpoul de Pinet while perusing the menu. There was an enticing array of starters, sides and salads, as well as plenty of vegetarian and vegan options. We chose two varieties of croquettes (foie gras with mushroom and ham with cheese), both of which came with a perfectly matched dipping sauce and were absolutely divine – light, crisp and creamy.

It would have seemed rude not to go with chicken for the main, and from the extensive selection of accompanying sauces; we went for tarragon and mustard and truffle mayonnaise. While this was all delicious, the star of the show were the sides: roasted root vegetables, truffle mash, ratatouille and sweet-potato fries. OK, so we over-ordered slightly but everything was so tastebud-tinglingly good that hardly a crumb was left on our plates by the end. My only regret is that we were unable to do justice to a dessert because they, too, promised great things.

Cocotte is open all day, so if you fancy treating yourself to breakfast or brunch, there is plenty of choice: from the traditional sausage-andegg muffin to truffle croque-monsieur or an array of sweet treats. The lunch menu is just as tempting, or if you’re in a hurry there’s a range of organic coffees to-go. I think it’s always a sign of a good restaurant when on the train home I’m already planning what to have next time.

The train had only just pulled out of Parson’s Green station when I was busy pondering whether to go for breakfast, brunch, lunch…or all three. 271 New Kings Road, London SW6 4RD www.mycocotte.uk

The restaurant recommended three dishes each, but this isn’t a hard and fast rule – with delights such as raviolo filled with gorgonzola and pear, and truffle and pecorino, and crowd-pleasing cacio e pepe and rich beef ragu, you may want to challenge your appetite. We shared the calamari with lemon aioli and steak tartare with sweet mustard – the former is a little diminished by the travel time and would be crisper dining in, but it was still succulent squid, the latter, while not pretty, had a generous helping of meat punched up by the sauce.

For seconds, the lasagna had a good ratio of meat, cheese and sauce, and was as comforting as a bear hug from mamma, while gnocchi slathered in gorgonzola with sweetened walnuts was a decadent rustic dish with a warming autumnal feel. To follow, a seductively unctuous osso buco, where the veal easily tore from the bone, and a tender tentacle of grilled octopus. But, there was more still, the big finale was the Como Ferrero Roché dessert: essentially a haute take on its namesake.

We’re still longing for the buzzy ambience of a restaurant in full flow once again, and even moreso a getaway to the Italian lakes, but at least with such top Italian food just a few clicks away, you can still satisfy some desires. 37 to 45 Kensington High St, London W8 5ED https://comogarden.co.uk

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Inspiration for your post-Covid getaway: fly off to Flanders

Image: Jorn Urbain

SID RAGHAVA extols the virtues of glorious Ghent Belgium is quite a small country. Around 11 million people occupy a rather small western part of the European mainland sandwiched between France to the south and the Netherlands to the north. Yet its capital Brussels houses the headquarters of the European Commission, hosts the Council of the European Union, and the European Council, and is also home to one of two seats of the European Parliament. The country is also the birthplace of popular cultural icons like Tintin and the Smurfs and culinary treats such as waffles and fries. Let’s not forget the staggering number of quality beers that come out of this country – more variety than anywhere else in the world – and arguably the best quality brews too, paired with some of the most ingenious glassware to aid consumption. And then there are the famous artists – Rubens, Breughel and the Van Eyck brothers to name a few – who rivalled the best in Europe and the World. This small country is essentially a tale of two provinces: the French-speaking Wallonia in the south and the Dutch or Flemish speaking Flanders. The latter has always been, in my humble view, the most underrated part of Europe. Yes people visit Flanders in droves and we are all very familiar with Ghent, Antwerp and Bruges but do we really appreciate the contribution that this smaller of the two provinces has made to the world as a whole? Take a closer look at the history and culture of this beautiful part of western Europe and you won’t find another region that has regularly punched above its weight in these ways, time and time again. Its art and architecture rivalled the best of Italy and on the economic front, there was a time when this was the wealthiest part of the world. Since we will KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

most likely be shunning travel to faraway countries in the aftermath of Covid-19 (at least in 2021), it’s best to look at nearby options and rediscover the brilliance of Europe. We will aim to cover one city in Flanders in every edition this year to highlight this wonderful part of the continent. The first part is a quick guide to Ghent – a city which has so much to do that almost all visitors keep coming back; the allure remains and there’s always something more to discover.

The most obvious thing about Ghent is the sheer accessibility and proximity of various attractions. It boasts the largest pedestrian-friendly area of Europe by percentage, so walking around from one highlight to the other is never a chore. Likewise, cyclists will also feel positively at home and renting one is a piece of cake. Boats, taxis, trains – public transportation is never a problem and you will always feel close enough to Ghent-Sint-Pieters railway station. Then there are waterways and canals all around the city that have been instrumental in making the city what it is today. For a city that offers the arts, fashion, history, beauty and architecture, it is no surprise that there are several tour options from the most professional of guides. So what did we discover on our last – but certainly not ‘the’ last – trip to Ghent?

Music to our ears Unesco recognises Ghent as a ‘Creative City of Music’ mostly because of its world-class infrastructure, which includes everything from bandstands, public venues and stages and a diverse network of cafés, art centres and concert halls. It is home to several large and small festivals including Ghent Jazz Festival, the Festival of Flanders and Ghent Festivities. Current bands

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from the city, like Balthazar, benefit extensively from this hugely effective system. All music fans should visit the Bijloke Music Centre. The former infirmary has been transformed into a concert hall with the most thrillingly unique acoustics. Put succinctly, it is a combination of medieval and 17th- and 19th-century buildings connected by a 21st-century walkway. De Bijloke Muziekcentrum, 2 Jozef Kluyskensstraat, www.bijloke.be Water rats, ahoy!

Ghent is a free-spirited city which was originally built at the confluence of the Lys and Scheldt rivers where St Amand built St Bavo’s Abbey. Water is the enduring lifeline of everything around the city and for swimming enthusiasts, there is Portus Ganda, a marina that houses a wondrous art-deco Van Eyck swimming pool. Simply breathtaking. 2 Veermanplein, www. portusganda.be Masterpiece St Bavo’s Cathedral is home to the world-famous The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, Van Eyck’s masterpiece. The Ghent Altarpiece is one of the most influential paintings of all time with its polyptych re-imaginings of the stories of the Bible on no less than 20 panels. Standing a gigantic 4.4 by 3.4 metres high and wide, it is a remarkable amalgamation of fine detail and translucence which gives it a mysterious glow. Sint-Baafsplein www. sintbaafskathedraal.be A foot in the past and an eye to the future Quite comfortably the best and most famous museum of its kind in the whole of Belgium, Design Museum in Ghent houses extensive collections from the 15th century to the present. Their core aim is to promote and strengthen Belgian design culture and highlight modern themes including sustainability, mobility and smart technology. The emphasis on the future of design is omnipresent. Two ongoing exhibitions to look forward to in the summer concern the evolution of the humble desk and another about visionary interior design. 5 Jan Breydelstraat, www. designmuseumgent.be

Image: Joost Joossen

Revolution in Europe Ghent was the operating base for the first industrial revolution on the European mainland and the Museum of Industry houses the history behind this fantastic achievement. It is based in a former cotton mill and chronicles the last 250 years of rapid industrial and technological change. 10 Minnemeers, www. industriemuseum.be Ghent is a free-spirited city with a rebellious edge and an amazing history. At one point it was second only to Paris in size due to its lucrative wool trade, and in patchier times lost all its rights and privileges due their residents’ tendency to resist power, but certainly the present is beautiful and the future is bright. If you haven’t been, go. And if you have been already, give it another whirl. There’s always something to do and you can relax and feel at home. I always do.

Fact Box Sid was hosted by Ghent Marriott Hotel: 10 Korenlei, Ghent, +32 9 233 93 93 Website: www.marriott.co.uk/hotels/travel/gnemc-ghent-marriott-hotel

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Image: Anthony De Meyere

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

The Resident Covent Garden LISA CURTISS plays house in one of London’s most welcoming hotels A perfect city-staycation hotel, the Resident in Covent Garden is ideally located just a stone’s throw from great dining, shopping and entertainment and is conveniently close to the Tube.

It’s one of those London hotels you would recognise from the outside, with its characterfully distinguished façade; and it’s certainly worth venturing inside too, to experience luxurious, modern rooms and host of clever stay-enhancing features and services.

Although the hotel doesn’t have its own restaurants, all of the luxurious, modern and comfortable rooms are thoughtfully equipped with their own mini-kitchen, complete with fridge, microwave, sink with Brita filter tap, kettle, crockery, cutlery, glassware, Nespresso coffee machine with free capsules and Fairtrade teas. And a feature we particularly appreciated was the fact the teams there can also pre-stock your fridge and larder with any items you choose 24 hours before you arrive.

Whether you fancy locally baked croissants, deli platters and snacks, wine and cheese or champagne and truffles – as long as staff are able to find it at a nearby shop or supermarket – they’ll collect whatever you prefer, and have it ready for you in your room for when you arrive, all without a price markup, or a service or delivery charge.

This is also ideal and reassuring for those who want or need to stay in a London hotel, but would prefer to still avoid busy restaurants, those who prefer the complete freedom and flexibility to store and prepare your own food and drinks to enjoy whenever you wish.

The Resident also offers room service and you can order from

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their drinks and snacks menu. A choice of specially selected wines, in partnership with Berry Bros. & Rudd is available and of course you are free to make use of any of the online food-delivery apps you might have on your mobile and the front desk will simply call your room to let you know when your meals have arrived before delivering to your door.

The rooms themselves have all been designed to combine comfort with luxurious British style and design, refreshingly chintzfree. The decor is calming, with warm-toned neutrals and pops of cherry red and navy. There’s a choice of Standard Double, King, Superior, or spacious Junior Suite rooms, the latter of which features bespoke furniture handmade in London, luxurious fabric throws and cushions woven in Scotland, special-edition Paul Smith lamps, and original handpainted artwork. These can sleep up to three people and are at least 288sq ft in size; and they’re well insulated from the noise and bustle outside. The bathrooms are very attractive, spacious and well appointed too.

If you do wish to venture out to experience local delights, the hotel’s warmly welcoming staff will happily help you discover the best dining experiences in the neighbourhood by sharing their favourite restaurant and bar recommendations. Covent Garden of course has plenty of outlets to choose from to suit just about every taste, from fine dining and rustic French to Peruvian-inspired cuisine.

To sum up, we found this hotel to be ideally and conveniently located, with spacious, beautifully designed and comfortable modern rooms, and the in-room mini kitchen area and grocery delivery service was a super touch. The staff were very welcoming too, and delighted to help in any way they could. If you plan on staying in any Resident Hotels we do recommend becoming a member to enjoy some great discounts and offers. Visit: www. residenthotels.com

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Checking back in with the Kensington Hotel SID RAGHAVA gets back into the swing of prepandemic life with a stay at one of the borough’s best boltholes Covid-19 has wrecked our pre-pandemic idea of easy, limitless travel and a holiday abroad is a distant dream for most, especially over the last six months. The only viable alternative in these unprecedented and dire times is a simple staycation perhaps involving a mere sleepover in a warm, comfortable and cosy hotel. The residents of Kensington and Chelsea don’t have to look much further beyond their little borough (smallest in London, keen quizzers) for some of the finest hotels in the world. The Kensington is one of our favourites for a variety of reasons. It stands preening away in an exquisite corner of Queen’s Gate at the crossroads of all the action – smackdab in the middle of the meatiest part of the Royal Borough and minutes away from South Ken tube – cushioned between the V&A, Natural History and Science Museums.

The elegant townhouse hotel has delectably charming 19thcentury Victorian touches and interiors that embrace grace, elegance and luxury while also exuding a homey feel, thus making it the ideal destination for these troubled times. It is a perfect respite from the year-long reality of our socially distanced lives that have robbed us of the joys of travel and of the relaxing effect of a memorable hotel experience. The living spaces, which range from the opulent Kensington Suite right, down to the compact ‘cosy’ rooms for singles, feel ample and luxurious overall. The Kensington also boasts the sweetest and most caring personnel, who make it their personal duty to keep you thoroughly happy and satisfied through the entirety of your stay.

In fact, everything at the Kensington feels that extra bit special.

The 10 townhouses at the heart of the Kensington combine to yield 150 rooms of which 24 are exclusive suites. There is an inescapable home-away-from-home feel despite the omnipresent abundance of luxury. Most rooms have their own unique theme and most importantly lots of space, no matter what grade. The suites are lavish and even junior ones come with a full marble bathroom, heated floors and high Victorian ceilings.

London. It has the mystique of a gentlemens’ club combined with the smart and contemporaneous feel of a trendy bar. Oak panels, polished brass accents, velvet-upholstered stools and leather touches – they are all there. There is a compendious list of cocktails on offer and you can rest reassured that the K Bar is definitely heaving with choice, with all manner of tipples.

However, if you fancy something cryptic and exciting, there is a Greek barmaid in-house who will suggest drinks based on your gait, mannerism and style. Intrigued? Try it – she’s psychic and always gets it right.

The Townhouse is the hotel’s much loved all-day restaurant and is elegantly spread across three different rooms, surrounding the K bar on three corners. It has its own private entrance on Manson Place and breakfast, lunch and dinner are served here to the highest standards and in the most relaxed ambience.

We have all paid our dues during Covid-19’s reign. It has made us miss the simple things we took for granted pre-pandemic.

Now that we’re slowly getting back to our former lives, we as residents of Kensington and Chelsea are lucky that we have a bevy of hotels and establishments to choose from to reward ourselves with the things we enjoy and treasure. The Kensington Hotel is easily one of the best places to escape to in the Royal Borough, be it for a spot of afternoon tea, a scrumptious English breakfast or a luxurious home-away-fromhome experience.

Fact Box

Rates for the ‘Make A Night Of It’ package at the Kensington start from £405, including an overnight stay, dinner and breakfast. Book at www.doylecollection.com/hotels/the-kensington-hotel.

Address: 9-113 Queen’s Gate, South Kensington, London SW7 5LP. Phone number: 020 7589 6300.

If you are fan of afternoon tea, look no further than the Drawing Rooms with their ultra-cosy open fireplaces and beautifully intermingled art pieces. There is even a discreetly positioned smoking space which opens into a tiny garden unit filled with heater warmth and flickering lights – very handy if you’re still smoking in the 21st century, especially in the winter. The quintessentially English London Landmarks Tea is only one of the hotel’s prized offerings. It takes inspiration from London’s most iconic sights, including Big Ben, and is appropriately served on a London Eye-inspired tea stand. It is an absolute must-try for every guest. Champagne and cocktails can also be added to a tea gathering from the conveniently neighbouring K Bar. The K Bar is quite easily one of our favourite hangouts in

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

BESIDE THE BEACHES OF NORTH NORFOLK

ADAM JACOT DE BOINOD escapes into the English countryside What reassuring familiarity – north Norfolk is charmingly redolent of yesteryear Britain: old-fashioned petrol pumps, village greens with telephone boxes and butchers alongside second-hand bookshops and links courses (at Brancaster and Cromer) overlooking sand dunes. The region equally offers children all the fun of Arthur Ransom’s children’s adventure tome, Swallows and Amazons, with boats to jump in and birds to spot as well as the traditional bucket-and-spade holiday on fabulously expansive beaches, salt marshes, dunes and scrubs.

I stayed just outside Fakenham, under three hours away and in such a delightful part of Norfolk close to the Royal Family’s Sandringham. My self-accommodation felt just like a top hotel suite. Cranmer Cottages are a conversion from a former Victorian dairy farm into eight luxury cottages or eco barns. Mine was called ‘Garden House’, though most have avian titles such as Owl, Tern, Wagtail, Swallow and Coot: the smallest sleeping three and the largest eight.

The interior is slick, chic and homey, with a stylishly modern feel within its original framework. There are tasteful, coloured photographs of local beach scenes looking down over the luxuriating living space.

The bedding is high-quality and in the kitchen everything is thoroughly thought through.

Concertina doors provide a seamless inside-outside opening onto a landscaped terrace, decked with lavender and bamboo and a barbecue all set within an original brick wall and overlooking a paddock-sized field beyond that’s dotted with silver birches whose delicate leaves blow in the breeze. All very dreamy, de-stressing and enriching.

The cottages have shared use of an indoor swimming pool which is open throughout the year. It was once a threshing barn where out through its huge, oversized windows the wind took the chaff. It’s a magnificent asset: fabulously warm, free of standard

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chlorine and long enough in which to exercise properly.

The forward-thinking owners passionately support sustainability by reducing the impact on the environment with their own wind turbine, ground source heat pumps, solar panels and rainwater harvesting. Deep loops came up from underground to heat my Garden House and a biomass boiler recycled wood chips to stay carbon neutral. They’ve even planted 25,000 trees in the 175 acres that constitutes their land.

Local town Burnham Market has many charming boutiques: dress and food shops, as well as a second-hand bookshop into which I popped to discover a glossary of Norfolk words. But, in preparation for a hearty afternoon walk, I needed to ‘yaffle’: eat hungrily rather than ‘pingle’: play with my food. So where better than to enter The Jolly Sailors (www.jollysailorsbrancaster.co.uk) run by the efficient and friendly Simon Parkin. It’s on the main road going through Brancaster Staithe (a ‘staithe’ being a landing stage for loading and unloading cargo boats). Here I savoured prawns prepared in the eatery’s very own smokehouse before diving into one of their homemade chocolate brownies. With a large garden for kids to run around in it suits all kinds and the vibe certainly lives up to its advertised motto of ‘Eat, Drink and Be Jolly’.

The next day I drove east through Holt, a town with its fair share of boutiques, especially for interiors and antiques. At Byfords (www. byfords.org.uk), Richard Knights prepared for me the poshest of picnics. It came in boxes: salads with the freshest and healthiest ‘first of the season’ dressed local crabs and then an indulgent box with fruit and cheese scones with butter, clotted cream and jams.

Though nicknamed ‘very flat Norfolk’ by Noel Coward, the northern stretch has a landscape of vast, flat, fecund fields and the greenest of its long avenues reflect mazy patterns on the road, reminiscent of recent Hockney works. There are vibrant shots of yellow rapeseed fields with hares hopping hares and alarmed pheasants. The churches typically have rounded towers and the vast majority of buildings are

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On the terrace I was spoilt with Norfolk asparagus and soft-poached hen’s egg as a starter before launching into and revelling in the ‘seafood platter to share’ consisting of ‘North Sea’ lobster, dressed Cromer crab, crayfish and prawn cocktail, ‘Staithe Smokehouse’ salmon, Brancaster oysters with shallot vinegar, saffron-pickled cockles, smoked mackerel, lemon mayo and sourdough. With it came Cobble Hill, the local wine, a crisp and fresh Bacchus grape white. What a magnificent lunch.

What’s so good about self-accommodation is, as owner Lynne Johnson admits, the flexibility and choice to venture forth or stay put. She was keen to stress that ‘what’s special about all Premier Cottages (www.premiercottages.co.uk), a group spread across Britain to which Cranmer Cottages belong, is that they’re run by passionate owners like me who want to give the very best to their guests who all sign up to expect a similar level of experience wherever they go’. I must return soon.

Fact Box Premier Cottages features almost 1,000 four- and five-star selfcatering cottages across the UK. Properties range from small, romantic boltholes to large family-friendly country estates. The collection includes pet-friendly accommodation, baby-friendly properties and the widest range of accessible properties in the UK. Many holiday homes have on-site facilities like swimming pools, gyms, spas, indoor games rooms and children’s play areas.

A week’s stay in Cranmer Country Cottages’ Garden House for up to six guests starts from £1,240 and a three night break starts from £909. (www.premiercottages.co.uk, 01328 823135)

distinctive with flint. Clouds scud across big blue skies and the sunsets are spectacular. For more see: www.visitnorthnorfolk.com On my beach walk from Cromer to Overstrand the waves discharged their burden in small helpings and the wind was brazing as I stumbled over sand and pebbles alike. Cromer is an honest and unspoilt seaside resort complete with a seafront, promenade and pier, with beach huts, ice-cream vans and surfing shops. It’s all highly reminiscent of Betjeman’s Cornwall, where along the beach golf balls appear from nowhere to compete with shells to satiate eager mudlarkers and metal detectors.

On the way back and beyond Holt is Letheringsett, home to The Kings Head (www.kingsheadnorfolk.co.uk) and a perfect place to which to repair and restore myself. Run by Jessie Petrie, the interior has cool and interesting antiquities such as old skis and hunting prints. Here I pondered over a menu offering the spoiling range of crispy tofu burger, a paprika-spiced aubergine, feta and preserved lemon quinoa salad or a swordfish steak with mango salad. I can particularly recommend their homemade cumin-spiced flatbread.

The next day I came to Holkham Beach. Here the waves unfurled continuously and relentlessly on the sandy strands. Down ‘Lady Ann’s Drive’ I drove to walk onto what initially were marshes but, beyond and out of sight, I discovered where the magic was as I reached the broadest expanse of flat sand imaginable. Here in this lunar setting I wandered blissfully free.

I returned to Brancaster Staithe to eat at the White Horse (www. whitehorsebrancaster.co.uk). Scattered across its vast establishment are tables on the terrace, courtyard and marshside presented with different menus. The setting has gorgeous panoramic views over the marshes towards Scolt Head Island and the infinity beyond. Here the chef forages the sea beet (the ancestor to beetroot, sugar beet and swiss chard). The restaurant, ably run by general manager Rob Williamson, has lovely black-and-white pictures of fishermen beneath lampshades in the shape of lobster pots and lights employing nautical pulleys.

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Paradise on Top of The Shard SID RAGHAVA finds himself at the top of the world in London’s sky-high hotel My favourite poem of all time is the Orient- and opium-inspired Kubla Khan. Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s incomplete epic is a classic example of the West’s obsession with Eastern myths, opulence and mysticisms. Shangdu (Xanadu), the near-apocryphal summer capital of the Yuan dynasty is the perfect setting for the fantastically psychedelic musings of that great romantic mind.

Much before Coleridge, Marco Polo’s description of Shangdu lays bare his awe, surprise and astonishment at the lavish lifestyle of the Mongol Khans. In similar vein, much later in 1933, James Hilton described a fictional omnipotent place called Shangri-La in his work Lost Horizon. It was described as a lost, mythical, exotic, utopian and isolated paradise on Earth, nestled in the Himalayan mountains where people were immortal and happy as can be. A whole genre of music, Exotica, was inspired by this and such other paeans to the Orient. It also inspired a hotelier in Malaysia to name a hotel chain after it and Shangri-La London brings all of those exotic visions and dreams to life in a way only a property in the Shard can inspire. Occupying 18 floors – starting on the 34th level – a fantastical 125 metres high above the busy streets surrounding London Bridge, the Shangri-La evokes emotions much like what it says on the tin. It also houses London’s highest infinity pool on the 52nd floor, which in itself is a sight to behold. Welcome to one of London’s top hotel experiences.

ments, hairdressing, manicures and make-up through partners like London Serenity, Viva Therapy and Neal’s Yard Remedies.

The hotel has 202 rooms and suites, all of which boast floorto-ceiling windows, making for spectacular views of the London skyline – most of the suites and higher-grade rooms even have panoramic views. Luxurious linens drape contoured beds to make your stay extra special and comfy, something we all desire after the backbreaking exercise that getting through the pandemic has been. With marble-interiored bathrooms and mirror-embedded televisions, it can be safely said that luxury abounds in every corner of Shangri-La. However, if you’re looking for sheer opulence, head to the 39th Floor for the grandest of suites, eponymously named the Shangri-La Suite.

It has up to 232sq m of space when combined with the adjoining room and offers sublime views from Canary Wharf to the London Eye. It can also be accessed via a separate, private lift and has a dining room which can sit up to 10 guests.

Fact Box Address Shangri-La at the Shard, 31 St Thomas Street, London SE1 9QU Phone 020 7234 8000 Website www.shangri-la.com/en/london/shangrila

But not all the action is on the 52nd floor. Located on the 34th floor, Sky Lounge is your café in the clouds with marvellous views of the City of London and River Thames and a delicious menu of small plates and beverages. Bar 31, on the other hand, is your local for the stay with a grand selection of beers. The piéce de résistance of the food and drink offerings is Ting (Chinese for ‘living room’).

It sources local produce and offers some of the best selections of both Greater Asian cuisine and modern and classic British dishes.

Kubla Khan was an unfinished classic that Coleridge felt he could not quite complete because he forgot the lines that he had envisioned in his dream. Opiates do promote hazy thinking and dreams are not always vivid enough. However, Lord Byron saw merit in the epic and it was finally published at his insistence. On the other hand, Shangri-La London is an epic experience which doesn’t need a Byron to extol its virtues. We all stare at its towering magnificence wondrously everyday amid the lights and haze of London. We might be far away from the Tibetan plateaus and Mongolian plains where paradisiacal, sensational and utopian cities once flourished but we’re lucky enough to have a Shangri-La in town.

And that’s merely the start of the adventure at Shangri-La. On the 52nd floor, aside from the aforementioned pool, there’s the stylish Gong Bar, home to some of the swishest cocktails and talented tipple servers in Europe. Three defined areas – the Cocktail Bar, Champagne Bar and the Sky Pool – exist in a splendid space characterised by a traditionally Chinese architectural feature of interlocking wooden brackets. The Wellness area on the same level offers REVIV’S signature IV therapies and vitamin injections to invigorate you with minerals,antioxidants, vitamins and nutrients. Other treatments include massages, beauty treat KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

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The Elixir of Lixouri Adam Jacot de Boinod spies Lord of the Rings-style landscapes, dines on the freshest fish and dances with dolphins in Kefalonia Having previously recorded my experience of Greek island Kefalonia’s northern niches in Fiskardo and on the southern shores of Lourdata, I just had to complete my exploration and see the western waves of Paliki.

As a peninsula, Paliki is wonderful to drive around. I hired a car from Rent Car Kefalonia (www.rentcarkefalonia.gr/en) – the owner Apostolis is very friendly and knowledgeable. Paliki has a unique geographic shape, with its long gulf beginning at the wetlands in the Bay of Livadi, a protective environmental area, which gently emanates into the Ionian Sea. Yet again on Kefalonia I was to savour a completely different landscape and environment from the rest of the island. Pronounced and protruding were bluffs and bumps, clumps and humps amid fertile hills that grew out of a clay soil, ideal for vegetation, and remarkably green (reminiscent of Puglia) for the southern Mediterranean. This mazy landscape with its plains and mini KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

peaks took me right back to my childhood perusing maps in an edition of The Hobbit.

I was fortunate enough to stay in the newly finished Elia Villa (https://alekos.eu/index.php/elia), very much the VIP villa of the Alekos Beach Houses group (www.alekosbeachhouses. com) and in walking distance of Lixouri, the local town. It has a supreme setting beneath a craggy bluff and backed by gorgeous olive groves, whose woody aroma, from being picked and scorched, proved the most joyous of welcomes. The villa looks out to a mesmeric panoramic prospect across Kefalonia’s major gulf that possesses as much grace and serenity as the Italian Lakes. Here seagulls hover over fishermen’s boats and ferries glide like swans with a constancy in stark contrast to the ever-changing light from sunrise to sunset. For, as the heat departs, the pink sky arrives over teal or turquoise waters on which the moon is reflected; towering above are the hills and Mount Ainos beyond. A prize position indeed.

I stepped out of the widened doors to the patio where inside meets outside with seamless continuity. The infinity pool actual-

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ly finishes in front of olive groves. At night crickets chirruping like referees give a soundtrack to a full galaxy of stars.

My interest piqued by my luxe lodgings, I went to visit some alternative accommodation within the Alekos Beach Houses (www.alekosbeachhouses.com) group. Their portfolio comprises 20 villas under a consortium of owners, 15 of which extend right onto the beach. Alexandros Beach House (https:// alekos.eu/index.php/villas), in front of the rippling shores of the golden Logos beach and close to the longer Lepeda beach, houses as many as 10 people and is perfect for a deeply relaxing time, catering even for meditation and yoga retreats.

Alekos Beach Houses all come with a prompt and professional concierge service run by the charming, conscientious and super helpful Kostas Voyatzis, who is ever-ready to share a passion for the island that started with his childhood holidays. He espouses his own philosophy of ‘living like a local’ and offers up the chance to participate in activities such as harvesting olives, picking grapes and baking fish in the sand. For the more active, he researches and arranges tailor-made boat trips, free-diving and paragliding. He’ll even come and collect you from the airport. His wife Vicky goes a step further by delivering the most scrumptious of ‘briam’ ratatouilles one day and the richest of mushroom pies on another.

It’s handy for both villas to have the local tavern Apolafsi (www.apolafsi.gr) close by. Alongside its traditional Greek menu it offers an intimate invitation to witness the family at work. An aged lady takes my order by pulling up a chair to sit beside me, and a young mother delivers my plate with her baby in arms.

Kostas took me on one of his truly memorable bespoke boat trips to some places which are inaccessible from the shore.

They’re not in the guidebooks – how can they be when only Kostas, with the help of the skipper Demetris, can get one there across Myrtos Bay? We went past the village Zola and the beach Vouti in his boat to the one at Agia Kyriaki. Chalk cliffs beyond the stony white beaches, sit in spectacular contrast to the bluest of waters: an extraordinary turquoise which dazzles when lit by the sun.

Demetris, available via Kostas’s concierge service, has another boat, dubbed the ‘Romantica’, in which he takes people out for the whole day, stopping at secluded beauty spots where you can swim and have lunch. He took me to see Assos, a peninsula with the most charming villages. Here there are traditional houses with striking colours and brilliant bougainvilleas framed by vivid green pine trees and ancient plane trees. An authentically picturesque harbour without any twee affectation.

What a treat next, to go by boat to reach the famous Myrtos beach, the scene of the bomb detonating in Captain Corelli’s Mandolin. At the top of the bay is a house belonging to a psychiatrist who clearly benefits, it would seem, from living life on the edge. Alongside the port I came to the excellent restaurant Bella Mangia. A special hidden spot in Paliki, with an Italian accent, it’s perfect for families as the kids could have a pizza while the parents enjoy pastas, stacked subs and cannolis. What joy to discover that my sea bass, perfectly grilled, moist yet crisp, had come fresh from the neighbouring fisheries.

‘coastline’. True to its maritime character, it had old wooden beams above pictures of the harbour and ships from the old days. Here I tried the ‘spanakopita’, a favourite, consisting of spinach and feta within its flaky filo pastry, followed by codfish with potato and garlic mash. I could imagine sitting out in mid-summer on the roof terrace, above diners spilling out onto the street, to watch people alighting from the ferry and local kids trying out their push bikes.

I also went with Kefalonia Sailing Point (www.kefaloniasailingpoint.gr), whose charming skipper Nikos Hionis was clearly at one with his 44-foot-long yacht. He has won inter-island prizes for his mastery of the sails and knows the Ionian Sea like the back of his well-wrought hands. He offers trips with up to six beds for anything from seven to 10 days aboard, from the gulf to Zante, to Lefkada, to Paxos and as far as Corfu within his May to October season. Accomplished, humourous and unob trusive, Nikos is the perfect host.

He took me out from the inland across to the uninhabited ‘Rabbit Island’ and on to the golden and fabulously long strand of Xi beach. To crown such a special outing, on returning through the gulf, I chanced upon a school of dolphins who were joyously snacking on food that spills out of the fish farms of Argostoli and dancing majestically in the sun.

Another winning eatery was V+S Corner, which has been owned by the same family for 10 years. It has a simple modern design, with a glass-fronted interior that gives it an effortless inside-outside feel. Images of fish on the walls nod to fresh daily catches and there are cushioned couches for people-watching.

I tried the local Sclavos Orgion wine, which perfectly complimented my steak au poivre.

The beach Xi (pronounced ‘chsi’), named after the Greek letter whose shape it resembles, is the ideal length for a proper walk beneath cliffs of white argillaceous clay, which spa-going types smooth into their skin for its mineral benefits. The beautiful red sand changes mesmerically from a shade of ginger to cinnamon and cumin at dusk, while the sunsets perform a magical light show over what Homer described as the ‘wine-dark sea’.

Fact Box Adam stayed in Kefalonia before lockdown. He reached Gatwick Airport via Southern Railway (www.southernrailway. com) and had support from Holiday Extras, the market leader in UK airport parking, hotels, lounges and transfers. They’ll aim to find you a hotel and parking package that’s cheaper than the cheapest airport parking on its own (for two week breaks). To book the Hilton at London Gatwick Airport, visit HolidayExtras.com or call 0800 316 5678.

Prices for Elia Villa for two people in low season start from €180 a night, and from €392 a night in high season (equivalent to €20 per extra person). To book, visit: https://alekos.reserve-online.net Prices for Alexandros Beach House for two people in low season start from €69 a night and from €296 a night in high season (equivalent to €15 per extra person). To book, visit: https://alekos.reserve-online.net/?room

Also on the portside was the restaurant Akrogiali, meaning

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

A’BUZZ ABOUT THE FUZZ

KATE WEIR checks into Great Scotland Yard Hotel – where inventive cocktails, bold artwork and supremely comfortable rooms make it a criminally comfortable staycation spot

Handsome Polly (inspired by Victorian perfumes) was a fragrant mix of brandy, mango wine and bergamot liqueur. The burgers were juicy, flavourful and towering, and a side of arancini made us feel a little more like we were properly dining out.

Usually a trip to Great Scotland Yard might have me perturbed, but as our taxi traverses Charing Cross, I’m actually quite excited, largely because this is my first hotel stay in a while and it’s because the Metropolitan Police haven’t actually worked at this particular address since the 19th century. In fact, they’re now based at Victoria Embankment, but I imagine that since the Grade II-listed Edwardian building that houses Great Scotland Yard hotel (part of the Hyatt’s design-led Unbound Collection) was given new life by UAE-based Indian billionaire Yusuff Ali, who modernised the entirety of the inside, creating glossy rooms and a five-storey townhouse, plus filling it with exciting large-scale artworks, they’d rather still be ensconced here.

The rooms at the hotel are somewhat quieter than the common areas, the artworks are more subtle, the nods to the police are restricted to design touches such as small badge motifs in prints, and there’s an altogether more restful feel, which I suppose is the point. We stayed in a Sherlock Suite, inspired by the great fictional detective. There was a stylish modern four-poster and an adjacent sitting room with a marble fireplace and space for dining, but my favorite part was the Smart Japanese toilet, something that very rarely pops up in London hotels.

And, we had a bath tub to stretch out in. As there was little to do nearby, this proved to be an immensely cosy place to while away time in, whether watching TV by a toasty fire, breakfasting in grand style or snoozing on high-thread-count linens.

So, as we’re not under the police’s watchful eye, we don’t have to be entirely on our best behaviour, but their presence is felt through ephemera on the walls (truncheons, hats and the like), a partial rogues’ gallery depicting notable characters on either side of the law, and a collection of artworks by currently incarcerated prisoners (a result of a partnership with charity Koestler Arts). Amid louder pieces – chandeliers of shattered glass, a giant clock that hangs like a sword of Damocles over the entrance, a giant throne shaped like a rhino – these affecting works speak of yearnings for freedom (say, depictions of Dartmoor from between bars) and more inflammatory statements (a large matchstick made of matches) made using materials available (a figure carved out of soap). I found these to be the most fascinating of 600 newly commissioned artworks at the hotel.

The next day, we made the most of having the hotel practically to ourselves, wafting around taking in the artworks and relaxing on the lavish couches dotted throughout the lobby.

We could probably have spent quite a lengthy sentence here, and our final verdict: it’s guilty m’lud, of stealing our hearts.

Fact Box Great Scotland Yard Hotel, 3 to 5 Great Scotland Yard, London SW1A 2HN www.hyatt.com/en-US/hotel/england-united-kingdom/greatscotland-yard/lhrub

When we stayed, most of the hotel’s dining and drinking spaces were closed and the Yard was recalibrating its concept, but we were still allowed to sneak into speakeasy bar Sibin, hidden behind a bookshelf and fitted with a sociable whisky bar for tastings and clubby corners. We also popped into the Parlour, an exotically dressed space for afternoon tea and cocktails, where the wallpaper is boldly printed, the floor checkerboard, seating has a mid-century Asiatic feel and quirky accoutrements include an inverse grandfather clock. Our options may have been limited by Covid when it came to food, but not too diminished – the 40 Elephants bar, named for an infamous – yet awesome-sounding – band of female thieves was open for cocktails and burgers. The space, decked out in maroon and navy, with intimate banquettes to cosy up in, also includes little law-and-order Easter eggs and ephemera.

But, our attention was diverted by the cocktail menu, and my Black Diamond was a sultry smoky sipper with whisky, tokaji wine, apricot juice and a hint of tobacco, while my partner’s KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

A Turquoise Glimmer of Normality in Babylon

HARRIET BEDDER tries her luck at escaping the UK for a remote island stay at Velassaru in the Maldives Travelling during Covid times is an undeniably testing experience. The second you know there is still a chance to go ahead with your travel plans – without the government imposing yet another travel ban – a whole new world of stress arrives. From Covid tests that are required within set hours of flying, at which point your trip still hangs in the balance, and wearing masks for a solid 24 hours, to almost abandoned airport lounges. But after the year we’ve had, looking at inspirational travel posts online, combined with the countless number of cancelled trips abroad already, we aren’t complaining. After all, what with furlough and redundancies, what’s a little more stress for the chance of a break? From the moment we arrive at the airport with our negative tests, we hold our breath – figuratively – until we board the connecting plane at Dubai International. Where even after seven hours of flying, there is still a chance that we can be turned around. We only exhale when we take off from Dubai and see the turquoise waters of the Maldives islands below.

I have never been one to get emotional on an aeroplane. When you take around 24 flights a year, flying is like catching an Uber to dinner.

But this last flight stirred something in me. I found myself feeling blessed to be spending the next ten days in the Maldives, so far removed from the lockdowns and restrictions at home where I, along with millions of others, haven’t been able to see family members or even travel out of the immediate borough for almost a year. As soon as we step off the plane at Velana International airport

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

and feel the hot tropical air on our faces, all we want is rip off our masks and jump straight back into holiday mode. We want to kiss the shimmering tarmac and dance in circles, to pray and hug and cry and laugh, but instead we enter the airport shuttle and head to the terminal to collect our baggage, before proving for the third time in 24 hours that we are Covid negative. We’re eager to remove our masks for 10 whole days and, after a very emotional journey to get here, our patience won’t be tested. Within 30 minutes we board the bus, clear security, collect our luggage and meet our rep for Velassaru, who leads us to our transfer speedboat. Seconds after I take my mask off, the flipflops are on.

We hand over our luggage, have our temperature checked, and board the boat for the 20-minute trip to Velassaru island. We climb the stairs to sit with the captain. We want to take it all in. As we watch the mainland shrink into the horizon behind us, we look forward. The whole trip feels like a dream. We haven’t slept at all, and feel deliriously happy.

Arriving on the deck at Velassaru, we are greeted by a smiling welcome party, who have barely seen anyone other than their colleagues in the last six months of quarantining on the island, A welcome juice and a map of the island are handed to us when we reach reception. Exhausted, we cannot wait to get to our room and before long we are led to our Water Villa. Panoramic vistas of the Indian Ocean stretch out before us. The water is so clear we can see fish moving below the deck. We pop our free bottle of prosecco, clamber into our bikinis so quickly I’m surprised neither of us suffered serious injury, play NAO loudly on the speaker and sit in speechless disbelief on our private deck. We have come to the most beautiful place in the world, during one of the most testing times our world has ever faced – and we’re filled with gratitude.

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First on the agenda – after a much-overdue sunbathing session – is dinner. We dress up, without masks for the first time in nine months, and head across the beach to Sand restaurant, where we are led to a candlelit table to be treated to the island’s à la carte offering. At our intimate, beachfront dinner we are spoilt rotten with jumbo prawns – the size of lobsters – and an indulgent beurre blanc, served with a very moreish garlic fried rice and a light okra salad, which is stuffed to the

Clarks Anemone’s and schooling banner fish linger around the steps of the surrounding villas. We even see a stingray and a turtle from our deck at dusk. The waterbound adventures don’t end here. One night sees us subscribe to a serene sunset cruise, complete with canapés and champagne aboard an authentic Maldivian boat. Another evening, we’re aboard our usual dive boat for the evening dolphin discovery cruise. A magical guided excursion where we eagerly anticipate spotting the dolphins on the horizon (much harder than it sounds) and then are followed by the whole pod for miles while they whistle and click and flip around us. I’d never seen a dolphin before, and by this point in the trip I was overwhelmed with so many new experiences.

After a year in South London isolation, I feel like I’ve walked onto a film set – everything is just so perfect and surreal.

Before we head home, we decide to visit the spa for a Swedish massage.

Velassaru has six overwater treatment villas with uninterrupted views of the Maldivian seascape. The hour-long full-body massage was made all the more relaxing by seeing the ocean below, and within 15 minutes I was asleep on the table. When I wake up, refreshed and rejuvenated – albeit a little groggy – the sun is going down, so I hop into the spa’s infinity hydropool, which is perched over the lagoon, and enjoy the last of the sunset with a fruit juice, before heading back to the room for dinner. I can only describe the 10 days of being on Velassaru as therapy. The past year has been difficult for everyone in many ways, and we’ve all faced struggles. The 10 days we had in paradise were spent detaching from troubles at home, disconnecting and focusing on friendship. It was 10 days of laughing, crying, and actually managing a full night of undisturbed sleep; of swimming freely and eating food not delivered contact-free. And, it was 10 days without a mask, and thus days of perfect skin and unrestricted breathing. And, most important of all, it was 10 days of actual, genuine happiness. We honestly couldn’t think of a place we would have rather stayed. Velssaru was and always will be the perfect location to go for a detox in every sense of the word.

We would go again in a heartbeat – but, we’d probably never leave.

Fact Box

brim with local ingredients; the tomatoes, coconut and coriander are balanced with a sweet honey dressing. We devour it all along with starters and desserts, despite the very generous portion sizes.

So, other than sitting in your panoramic overwater villa, what else can you do on the 21-acre island? Apart from relaxing on the wraparound pearl-dust white beaches, or swimming in the crystal-clear turquoise water, the island offers a dive centre and a watersports centre, perfect for the more adventurous holidaymakers. I decided to book in for my diving refresher, while my friend books her first ever open-water lesson. I wait with bated breath to see if she loves or hates the experience; we had both adamantly agreed that we couldn’t travel to the Maldives – home to some of the most beautiful dive sites in the world – and not see what the coral reefs have to offer. Despite her first-timer nerves, she loved it. On her first dive we saw a school of 15 mobula rays glide elegantly above us, and four turtles After a handful of further dives, we decided to head to the watersports centre for what we hope will be a relaxing experience. Stand-up paddleboarding was on the agenda, and we drifted around the whole island taking in the views from the ocean towards our new home, albeit while ever so often body slamming the boards when the tide came in fast – altogether, it wasn’t as relaxing as others make it seem, and definitely a workout for the arms. But, with gyms closed back at home, we’ll take this outdoor exercise.

Harriet was hosted by the hotel when restrictions were eased.

Turquoise Holidays offer seven nights at Velassaru (www.velassaru.com) in a Deluxe Bungalow on a full-board basis from £2,698 a person. Up to 25 per cent off on accommodation, saving £670 a couple. This includes return speedboat transfers and international flights departing from London Heathrow with Qatar in November 2021.

Enquire with Turquoise Holidays, 01494 678400, www.turquoiseholidays.co.uk

From our paddleboards we drift towards the edge of the reef and over coral, and when we return we’re told we can borrow free equipment from the dive centre so we can snorkel right outside our villas. We spend hours over the next week looking at a wealth of fish; striped

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

NOW OPEN Located in the heart of London’s most prestigious Royal Borough, the newly refurbished Forty Five Kensington offers a dining and gaming experience that sets new standards in style and sophistication.

Sample the delights of our luxurious new restaurant, offering fine dining with an inspiring menu of dishes from around the world. Equally as impressive as the menu is the level of service, with our team of highly trained staff attending to your every need.

After your meal, enjoy a drink in the relaxed surroundings of our elegant bar or experience the excitement of the Kensington Gaming Floor, where you’ll find all your favourite table games and state-of-the-art electronic gaming machines.

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

1.

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1.Image Skincare Iluma intense brightening crème | £109 for 48g www.imageskincare.co.uk 2.Initio Parfums Privés Musk Therapy | £205 / 90ml, www.harrods.com 3.Brioni Eau De Parfum | £70 for 60ml and £95 for 100ml, www.brioni.com 4.Wild Science Lab, Root + Fruit Juice Boost Brightening Serum | £38 for 50ml, www.wildsciencelab. com 5.Pamoja, Multi-Purpose Beauty Oil | £36, https:// pamojaskincare.com 6.L’abu, Oat Milk Cleanser | £15, www.labuskin.com 7.Creed Fragrances Viking Cologne | £240 / 100ml, www.creedfragrances.co.uk 8.Parfums de Marly Greenley Eau de Parfum | 75ml £160.00, www.selfridges.com

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

REIGN IN SPAIN Three new homes-from-home from Asturianproperties.com Property in Luarca, Asturias. €3,990.000

Property in Llanes, Asturias. Price: €785,000

This palatial villa overlooks the historic port of Luarca in the west of Asturias. The villa stands on a sea promontory above the cliffs with extensive views of famous landmarks: the Cantabrian coast and Cordillera Cantábrica mountains. Its land comprises 14 hectares, of which 28 acres have been landscaped into a world-class garden (larger than the Botanic Gardens of Madrid) that embraces a valley through which flows a natural stream and is fringed by beach-coved cliffs. The gardens have been open for pre-arranged visits, it was designed in 1992 with the help of expert gardener Rafael Ovalle and takes you from Japan to the tropical palm-fringed islands of the Americas – special mention must be made of the thousands of Camellias and Azaleas, so many they were mentioned in the Guinness Book of Records. The 1,100sq m villa, designed in the mid-late 20th century by Madrid architect Javier Rojo, is meticulously decorated and maintained with antique furnishings . There are eight bedrooms (most with ensuites), two-bed housekeeper lodgings, plenty of spaces for socialising and dining, a study and library, garage, kitchen and a traditional Asturian granary that could be used as a work room. The property would also be ideal as a hotel offering garden tours. Just a few minutes from Luarca town and 50km from the airport. This garden and Villa are looking for a new owner who will ‘consolidate and nurture them for the benefit of future generations.’, in the words of their progenitor.

This fully-restored 912sq m house, ready for occupancy, sits by the 19th-century Mendoza Cortina Palace in a south-facing coastal spot. The three floors (the stables and garage, first floor and attic) bear Andalusian design and craftsmanship, with brick archways, Iroko wood and a Moorish water garden. Outbuildings totalling 417sq m have been assiduously converted from former stables and the impressive two-storey cider press could be a workshop/ studio. Take a 700m stroll to unspoilt Pendueles beach, one of 30 along this coast, called The String of Pearls. The nearby limestone cliffs are famous for breathtaking ‘Bufones’ or sea geysers, and the Llanes port is only 13km away for surfing, sailing and fine dining. The cities of Santander, Oviedo and Bilbao are little more than an hour away. The Palace, now in ruins with some walls and roofs intact, was owned by two noble families and has a fascinating history. One can appreciate its former grandeur,as it was built in cast iron typical of that epoch. Pendueles is directly on the northern St James’s Way, and is a popular cultural stop-off point.

The Palace’s dimensions are recorded at 3,500sq m, with an additional 700sq m approved, totalling 4,200sq m, to be redeveloped as 35 apartments, a n elderly care home, or elite hotel. The €785,000 price is for a limited time only – excellent value since the entire complex is valued in excess of €2,000,000, including the restored house with apartments. The Mendoza Cortina Palace occupies a 6,861.79sq m plot close to beaches, facing the Cantabrian Cordillera mountains. Its purchase comes with the option to take the property as it stands or have all works undertaken.

Property in Llanes, Asturias. Price: €4.8 million At this designer-acclaimed clifftop villa: everything’s planned – just arrive, relax, have fun. Wake up to wide sea vistas, stroll along your private clifftop – there’s no-one to bother you here.

Yet, you’re only a 50m amble to the local unspoilt beach. There are three floors, all reached by the lift, plus seven bedrooms and bathrooms, two kitchens and dining rooms, a wine cellar, larder and laundry facilities too. You and your guests will be in awe of the surrounding mountain and marine landscape. Exercise in the indoor and outdoor pools, the Jacuzzi, sauna, gym, tennis court, basketball and football pitch in 12,000sq m of grounds, including 948sq m of habitable space and a 108sq m terrace. In Llanes there are top restaurants, some Michelin-starred, and the Santander International Arts Festival or the Opera season in Oviedo are held here. The villa featured in Interior Designs magazine shortly after construction, for its sleek lines and clean finishes. There’s also a garage for six cars, and an automatic pellet-drive eco-system which supplies underfloor heating, air-conditioning and heating for both pools. And, you can control all aspects of the villa when away via the top-of-the-range remote system. The nearby A8 Highway, which links to all parts of Spain and Europe, is out of sight and ear-shot, while airports, ferry ports and other principal transport links are within an hour’s drive.

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

The company

I am Miriam Malga-Smith and Asturian-Property.com is my business, the highly personalised online agency for English-speakers worldwide, now with 200-plus sales since 2002.

My home in London is my business base, where I connect discerning people looking for property to buy or sell with agencies in Green Spain. I speak daily with the agencies whom I have specially chosen and know intimately. I am bilingual and have bilingual professionals to assist my clients through all stages of the sale/purchase. And, if you have a property to sell in Green Spain, the same personal service is guaranteed from me and the team I work with, with help at every stage and in finding legal and other professionals. You‘ll find more information at Asturian-Property.com, or please contact me personally via my email miriam@asturian-property.com or the following mobile numbers (+34) 639 170 320 or (+44) 754 575 6152.

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A SPARKLING TRIP TO ASTRID & MIYU KATE WEIR investigates the hip jewellery brand’s new Notting Hill outpost by road-testing a tragus piercing…

Most of us are looking for a small cosmetic upgrade after lockdown, be it an inch or so off after an influx of comfort food, a haircut or a piece of clothing that doesn’t have an elastic waist. Well, with the arrival of a new Astrid & Miyu shop in Notting Hill, we’re stepping it up a notch; alongside very covetable chunky hoops, dainty anklets and mix-and-match necklaces, the superlatively stylish, box-fresh shop offers tattoo and piercing services alongside a unique welded-bracelet offering. With our heads turned by their gem-encrusted – not too heavy-duty – barbells and stackable rings and cuffs, we decided to visit for a tragus piercing and to check out the beautiful new space.

If you feel a little apprehensive at the thought of needles piercing your skin or making a permanent modification to your body, be sure to book in here; because from the dried flower displays around the doorframe, to the blush-hued interiors, to the model-beautiful yet immensely welcoming staff, it’s a place where you feel immediately at ease. Astrid & Miyu clearly have a good sense of their clientele – those looking for dinky tattoos of planets, stars or zodiac signs rather than full-back pieces or flirtily curated ear candy rather than subdermal implants – and they’ve created a safe, laidback space for those who might be intimidated by a more hardcore studio.

go, and the brand have been impressively giving during lockdown: all their profits for May and June 2020 were donated to the Rainbow Collection to aid domestic-violence survivors; they partnered with Med Supply Drive to supply PPE; delivered sanitary products to NHS workers; gave key workers a 30 per cent discount; sewed masks; and provided free business advice for small brands. Plus, they supported LGBT+ charity Just Like Us during Pride; started a three-month mentorship programme which has helped alcohol brand Collagin, accessory and lifestyle brand Sun & Day and work-bag business AMZA; and Nam personally forwent her salary for three months to provide grants for black-owned businesses. If sustainability is your concern, then it’s Astrid & Miyu’s too – an innovative 3D-printing service they’re developing cuts down on their carbon footprint and allows them to customise pieces to clients’ tastes. Frankly, we’re happy to put our money – and our ears – into their hands; Notting Hill residents’ lives just got a little sparklier. For bookings and to purchase pieces visit www.astridandmiyu.com.

My experience was seamless and thankfully pain-free – and Covid safe throughout. I filled out the standard safety forms in a cosy waiting area with a neon light, plants and velvet couches, then went into the coolly decked out studio, sat in the chair, turned my head to one side and within less than five minutes I was the proud possessor of some glamorous new ear-gear.

At the time of writing it’s healing incredibly well with the odd spritz from a saline solution. I would happily return to accoutre more cartilage or get some cute permanent markings. And, if you’re not quite ready to make such a commitment, the store’s welded bracelets – certainly the first I’ve seen in London – are an excellent alternative. This hot new take on the BFF bracelet is a claspless gold chain secured onto your wrist by an experienced jeweller; the result is something tasteful and timeless which can easily be snipped off with scissors should your bracelet buddy fall out of favour. It’s just one of the innovations the brand has in plan.

We chatted with founder Connie Nam, who moved from a role in finance in Hong Kong to conceiving a jewellery business around her kitchen table in Notting Hill (this outpost is something of a homecoming for her). Inspired by the more inviting, accessible jewellery stores of Seoul, where pieces weren’t imprisoned behind glass and you could see artisans at work, Nam has adopted a more holistic method of shopping and an altruistic approach throughout the brand.

In-store there’s a workspace at the back and Grind coffee on the KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

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PUTTING A RAVE FACE ON THINGS KATE WEIR gets a back-to-life glow-up courtesy of Kensington’s hottest aesthetician…

‘Languishing’ is creeping into the lexicon of Covid-related terms as we inch out of lockdown and back into our lives – it’s the ‘meh’ sensation of recalibrating your life after a traumatic year, and the other day I felt it quite strongly after a difficult few months. Trying to jump-start yourself out of a malaise like this isn’t easy, but I can show you a good place to start: Shane Cooper’s beautiful Kensington clinic. Now that we can tentatively be beautified in safe, PPE-protected surrounds, those longing for haircuts and some full-on pampering have swooped in to nab appointments; and while we can’t claim Shane’s fountain-of-youth facials to be wholly evocative of ‘the lipstick effect’ (this level of bespoke luxurious self care costs a couple of hundred at the least), we can tell you – emphatically – that you will leave with the freshest, glowiest of visages and feeling somewhat lifted from any post-lockdown funk.

On arriving at the hush-hush clinic – a non-descript door on Cromwell Road, that nicely aligns with Shane’s one-toe-in-thespotlight approach – I do wonder what kind of facial upgrades to expect. My usual experience is to lie back, have some delicious balm rubbed and scrubbed into my face then relax with a hot cucumber-y towel over my eyes as Enya-esque music plays – but here I’m in for an altogether more serious, yet indulgent and soothing treatment. Any concerns are soon alleviated on meeting the chatty, warm and welcoming Shane, whose workspace is hung with hip artwork, dressed with stylish furnishings and feels professional yet reassuringly far from anything too white and clinical.

Spice Girls play in the background and Shane gets to work on his Exclusive Facial Treatment – one of his most popular, also used as a pre-red-carpet booster by many a celeb (Maya Jama, Vicky McClure, Lily Allen, Rita Ora and many more can attest to his magical skin-brightening powers). He’s keenly aware of how diverse skin types can be and as such, he’s much sought

after for his ability to tailor treatments to the client, so I’m confident that he can quench and enliven my dry, psoriasis-troubled face.

We kick off with some radio-frequency exfoliating to prime the epidermis and slough off any unwanted flaky bits, tighten things up and boost collagen. Then we move on to micro-currents to give the muscles a nudge back into shape – they’re tamed using plastic wands with a small electrical current (not as scary as it sounds, honestly), and I can already feel mine leaping to attention as he works. It’s a therapy used on stroke patients that’s made the crossover to beautifying and appears to be equally adept at aiding both. Next up, dermablading to a marble smoothness that I haven’t felt for a while, having been too timid to wax at home – it’s immensely satisfying to feel those hardto-tweeze hairs and dull patches of skin be scraped away to be reborn with a more literal radiant outlook.

Then a cooling oxygenating mask infused with hyaluronic acid and rose water for a dreamy scent is laid over my face as I’m treated to a mini rave under Shane’s LED light machine (another gentle encouragement to my collagen). It also bestows some much needed hydration on my ‘dehydrated due to being back in the pub again’ face. Throughout Shane tells me about how he started, helping his mother with anti-aging treatments in Essex and giving me the lowdown on his ascendence to a top-of-the-field therapist and his interest in emergent technologies, with some enjoyable conversational diversions into Nineties pop music and our desired travelling spots once things are ‘back to normal’. The coup de grâce for any troublesome skin is a blast on Shane’s cryotherapy gun, which caused some consternation with its beeping countdown, but proved to be a refreshing digestif. Then there’s ‘the reveal’ – and there I am, indeed looking younger and more revitalised then I’ve felt in months. I’ll admit that I had some skepticism about the efficacy of facials that come with a hefty price tag and involve methods that may seem torturous to the uninitiated, but what’s a few hundred pounds when you look like a million bucks? And, I’ve been converted to the ways of serious beauticians after such a pain-free – indeed, very laidback – experience. But, what matters even more is the psychological difference – I’ve gone from colourless languishing to thriving and feeling very human again in the space of an hour, which is honestly something that’s hard to put a price on. Now, the bad news: Shane’s diary is chock-ablock; but, if you’re jonesing for a refresh, he’s releasing his own line of personally approved pick-me-ups in the form of firming creams, serums and masks that will tide you over until you get an appointment – and if lockdown’s left you desperate to do so, we highly recommend you try to secure his next free spot.

Fact Box Shane Cooper skincare clinic, 85 Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BW For products and to book visit www.shanecooperuk.com, or email info@shanecooperuk.com.

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

Effective Solutions to Post-Lockdown Stress and Lack of Sleep

Effective Solutions to Post-Lockdown Stres Finally emerging from lockdown feels like heaven for most of us, however mental-health experts are noticing an emerging phenomenon – post-lockdown anxiety. While excited about finally being free again, some navigating the new world may have feelings of apprehension, anxiety, depression and lack of sleep.

However, there are self-care rituals and products that can really help; and, always keen to take the holistic route, beauty editor LISA CURTISS shares her top recommendations for gently yet confidently easing yourself into the world once more.

As a qualified and experienced aromatherapist, using essential oils are an integral part of my daily routine. It’s quite incredible how just inhaling a few drops can make a hugely positive difference to our state of mind and wellbeing.

Lavender is a great choice, of course, to lift your mood, and relax and calm the mind, but also zesty mandarin, soft and feminine rose geranium, rich and herbal clary sage, light and lemony rose otto and heady and exotic ylang-ylang, frangipani and tuberose.

These latter three will transport you to a tropical island paradise in an instant, and are lovely blended with a little sweet-almond oil and dabbed on your wrists when you just need a pick-me-up on a particularly stressful day.

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

As with all pure essential oils, do use sparingly, and, unless you are confident you are not sensitive to having them on your skin, always use heavily diluted in a carrier oil. Only purchase from reputable suppliers – believe me, those packs you see on Amazon are generally of very poor quality and are often diluted already.

My recommended suppliers are Quinessence Aromatherpy (www.quinessence.com), Tisserand (www.tisserand.com), Neal’s Yard Remedies (www.nealsyardremedies.com) and Amphora Aromatics Ltd (www.amphora-aromatics.com ).

Tisserand offers some excellent diffusers too – try the elegant Aroma Spa Diffuser which cleverly uses ultrasonic aroma technology instead of a candle to create an incredibly fine vapour which quickly fills any room with your chosen oils. It also uses chromotherapy through gentle variations of soft coloured light.

You can add a few drops of essential oils into a hot bath too, or on to a tissue you keep near your pillow at night. Popping a few drops into a carrier oil and using on your legs and arms as a daily moisturiser is highly effective also.

If you are a little unsure of creating your own aromatherapy blends there are plenty of pre-prepared products available from each of these companies too. And you don’t have to buy actual essential oils to benefit from their calming and healing properties, some skincare products feature these as their primary

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ss and Lack of Sleep ingredients. Some of my favourite products worth seeking out include: Tisserand’s excellent ranges such as the Total De-Stress Collection and Sleep Better range. Lily & Loaf (https://lilyandloafinternational.com) and Nourish London (https://nourishskinrange.com) both offer high-quality, beautifully fragranced essential oil blends and aromatherapy products.

Artisanal brand Africology (https://uk.africologyspa.com) offers a wonderfully scented Rose Absolute Serum which is gorgeous and effective to use. Another product I’ve used daily for months now and sadly am on my very last drop is the delicately scented Rose Plus Marine Collagen Complex from the Organic Pharmacy (www.theorganicpharmacy.com), who also do an ultra-luxurious Rose Diamond Face Cream. And one of my favourite skin-care brands Zoetic (www.zoetic.com) has a lovely range of creams with CBD and fragrances of exotic delights such as lemongrass and ylang-ylang.

taste most have. Try a relaxing tea before bedtime too. Passion Flower Tea from Naturboutique (https://naturboutique.co.uk) tastes great and works well.

Finally, consider using silk eye masks to block out the light – particularly if you live in the city and are disturbed by street lamps.

And treat yourself to a silk pillowcase – which not only is incredibly soft and cool to rest on, but helps keep your hair and skin smooth too. My favourites are from This is Silk (https://thisissilk.com) and UNCU (www.uncu.london).

It’s worth investing in some of these lovely products and creating a daily ritual where you can be still and centred and find the calm, confident and balanced you once more.

In addition to using aromatherapy to relax, do consider CBD oil drops – excellent brands include Pure Sport (https://puresportcbd.com), Cannaray (https://cannaray.co.uk), Life Spark (https://lifesparkcbd.co.uk), Cannadox (www.cannadoxshop. com), and one I’m enjoying currently is Blood-Orange CBD drops from Thrive (www.wethriveofficial.com) – these taste amazing, with none of the sometimes harsh, sharp, nettle-like

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

Summer Skincare Specials Now we’re finally free to travel to many destinations, we can look forward to choosing a holiday wardrobe and treat ourselves to some polishing and pampering. The prospect of being mask-free in the sun is the perfect excuse for taking time out for some serious skin prep before we go. Here are some of our favourite skincare products to try.

La Prairie Pure Gold This is a wonderfully indulgent and highly effective new collection from one of the world’s best skincare brands. The Pure Gold Diffusion System is designed to provide immediate radiance and sustained delivery of key replenishing ingredients to help compensate for a loss of receptiveness of the skin. This results in a more even skin tone, smoother and finer skin texture and a luminous glow. Treat yourself to all or some of the products from the range, comprising a Radiance Concentrate Serum, Radiance Cream and Radiance Eye Cream. They really are a delight to use. www.laprairie.com RÉDUIT Spa Device This new innovative gadget delivers ingredients directly to pores without the need of unnecessary filler. The device works with accompanying Skinpods by using magnetic misting, which gently amplifies the infusion and delivery of actives into the skin, while ultrasonic diffusion and sonic pulsations ensure the formula is evenly distributed. Skinpods are a sustainable alternative to the unnecessary filler ingredients that come with most skincare products as each targeted pod contains the most potent ingredients delivered exactly where your skin needs them. There’s a pod for every skincare concern, including the Clean Vapor Skinpod that rids the skin of residual oil and grime and the Hydro Boost Skinpod, which delivers a nourishing boost. £179 from http://reduit.com

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Sensica Sensilight PRO For silky smooth hair-free skin, this clever device is a must.

Designed to give the same results achieved in a professional spa, it’s clinically proven for at-home use, with unlimited flashes.

The RPL™ technology inside every Sensilight PRO has been designed with both effectiveness and safety in mind. A cordless design gives you full freedom of movement, and the battery life provides up to 600 flashes between charges which can cover a full body in one charge, making the Sensilight PRO versatile too. £379, www.sensica.com Skinego Prime Using an eye massager is one of the most effective ways to deal with not only eye strain from staring at screens for too long, but help improve the appearance of the skin under your eyes too. The Skinego Prime is designed to fit neatly into the contour around the eye and reaches a temperature of 42 degrees. With thermal treatments being clinically proven to help stimulate collagen production, this function allows you to fully target problem areas such as dark circles, puffiness or tired eyes like never before which can result in tighter firmer looking skin. £95, www.skinego.com Sensica Sensilift MINI and PRO Hailed as some of the best anti-ageing products on the market, both these excellent non-invasive, medical-grade facial-therapy devices help slow down the signs of ageing to tighten and firm your skin, reduce wrinkles and reveal a more radiant and toned appearance. While most treatments usually only address the surface of the skin, Sensilift is different. It acts on deeper layers using its patented InTrense RF™ technology to promote collagen synthesis and deep-tissue lifting. You’ll start to see results with even just a five-minute treatment once a week. They are both painless and easy to use. The MINI is perfectly portable too, so you can take it on holiday with you and never miss a treatment.

Sensilift MINI (£179) or Sensilift PRO (£279), www.sensica.com Lily & Loaf Luminescent Face Polish Eliminate dead skin cells, decongest pores, reduce the signs of ageing and boost circulation with this evening facial polish which contains soothing avocado oil. Do try the rich yet easily absorbed Bedtime Revitalising Cream too and other great skincare, aromatherapy and nutrition products by this lovely brand. £19.95, https://lilyandloafinternational.com

taking on holiday is their Discovery Range – four of their hero products including facial essence, wash, balm and moisturiser in generous travel-sized jars. From £35, www.slowageing.co.uk Grass Roots Super-Glow Miracle Oil and Skin-Drench Super Serum This brand offers a luxury, cosmeceutical and result-driven range of skincare that is vegan, cruelty-free, has recyclable packaging and is made in the UK. The products feature CBD. Favourites include their Super-Glow Miracle Oil, and SkinDrench Super Serum which glide on and leave skin feeling incredibly soft and nourished. Use the oil with their black obsidian Gua Sha in a lifting, firming and fluid-draining facial massage. From £24.99, www.grassrootsskin.com Ren Daily AHA Skin Tonic Summer Edition Get the ultimate refreshed summer glow with Ren’s Summer Limited Edition Daily AHA Tonic. It’s lovely and cooling to use and brightens, hydrates, exfoliates, soothes and smoothes the skin. And it has a delicate summery fragrance of fresh organic cucumber. £28, www.renskincare.com ESPA Overnight-Glow Enzyme Peel, Yuzu and Ginger cleansing sorbet, Clean and Green Detox Mask All ESPA products are a delight to use. To achieve a summer glow your skin needs to be clear and exfoliated and these three products do just the job. Each has a delicious fresh scent, too.

The cleansing sorbet cleverly changes from a balm to oil to simply melt away impurities and leave your skin silky soft and able to absorb moisturising treatments more easily. From £40, www.espaskincare.com Forlle’d Hyalogy Forlle’d Hyalogy is a state-of-the art Japanese nano-technology skincare range, with a ‘liquid skin’ formulation which delivers long-lasting skin health, renewal and regeneration. Using Nanotechnology, Biofermentation and Ionisation the products work simultaneously on both epidermal and dermal layers of skin for scientifically proven results. Do try the P-effect Reliance Gel and Hyalogy Lift Cream. From £93, www.forlleduk.com

Age Defy + by Cha Vøhtz This is a highly acclaimed collection of luxurious and organic skincare products designed to reverse the signs of ageing through skin regeneration, moisture balance and hydration.

Particular favourites include the Collagen Boost Vitamin Serum which has Vitamin C, Bakuchi Oil and Hyaluronic Acid. Perfect for summer is the DD Tinted Moisturiser SPF 15, and the Hydrate and Renew Serum. From £39, www.greenpeople.co.uk Slow Ageing Face Discovery Range A range of excellent products to transform the radiance of your complexion, help slow the effects of time on your skin, boost natural energy levels and feelings of inner calm. Perfect for

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

Summer Cool - Lexus LC 500 Convertible

Glamourous, super-stylish, beautifully crafted and great to drive, the Lexus LC 500 convertible really does tick all the luxury drop-top boxes. If you’re planning any escapes from your city home to countryside manor or cottage by the sea, this really is the perfect car to take in the scenery, enjoy the fresh air and make each journey a pleasurable experience.

Still busy notching up awards since its launch, this most elegant and desirable model has recently won the title of ‘Best Luxury Car of 2021’ in the Women’s World Car of the Year Awards and also ‘Best Open Top’ in the UK Car of the Year Awards 2021.

Judges’ praise included comments such as ‘The feel-good factor of driving a car which looks astounding, sounds terrific and should be as reliable as a Swiss watch, cannot be underestimated’, ‘one of the best-looking convertibles – ever’, ‘The Lexus LC 500 Convertible is a car to add to the bucket list’ and that it’s ‘brilliant to drive.’ Thoroughly enjoying the car on test, we couldn’t agree more.

The LC Convertible – following the example set by its sister Coupe model reviewed last year, perfectly captures the spirit of Lexus’s evolution as a luxury lifestyle brand, providing discerning customers with driving pleasure, unique design and superb craftsmanship quality.

Its story started when a concept version was revealed at the Detroit motor show in 2019, revealing how Chief Designer Tadao Mori and his team had succeeded in translating the award-winning design of the Coupe into an equally stylish and desirable soft-top, following the principle of ‘ultimate beauty.’ Refreshingly, only minimal changes were made for the production version, which was launched in world markets last year and took its place as an aspirational, halo model for the entire Lexus line-up.

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

Unlike many convertibles, it’s evident to see the designers really focused on making a car that looks equally beautiful with the roof up or down, applying Lexus’s famous attention to detail in areas such as the folding-top mechanism to achieve the ideal lines without compromising cabin comfort or load space.

The LC 500 convertible’s credentials certainly don’t stop at its impressive visual appeal. It’s a thrilling and engaging drive thanks to its 5.0-litre V8 engine and 10-speed Direct Shift automatic transmission, matching the Coupe with a 155mph electronically limited top speed. The 0-60 sprint takes just five seconds, while precise aerodynamic styling prevents any uncomfortable wind buffeting when travelling at speed. The cabin is beautifully appointed, finished in high-quality materials throughout and reflecting Lexus’s human-centred philosophy in its design, comfort and multi-sensory appeal.

It’s the perfect car for exploring the countryside and heading out to the coast. Driving top-down enjoying fresh sea air is wonderful and with its dynamic handling, each mile is a pleasure to travel. The engine sounds rich and throaty too – unique to a naturally aspirated V8.

The LC 500 Convertible at circa £93,000 is practical as well as pretty, the boot is actually more spacious than you might think from its streamlined lines, the roof can be raised and lowered in just a few seconds at the touch of a button, and thanks to minimal buffeting from wind, you can arrive at your destination looking as immaculate as when you left. This really is a beautiful, luxurious and desirable car. Visit: www.lexus.co.uk

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King of the Road - Range Rover D350

Large, imposing yet elegant, the Range Rover D350 is a car of class and substance, and it’s hard to think of another more perfect for heading out to the coast and country as a family.

Celebrating its 50th birthday, the appeal of this motoring icon has endured and it’s easy to see why.

The high roofline, acres of glass, and space affording enough head, shoulder and leg room for just about anyone means it’s like a light and airy, super-comfortable lounge with an ever-changing view. This is a remarkably quiet car thanks to touches like an acoustically laminated windscreen, enabling passengers to just relax back and let the world in all its chaos pass peacefully by. This space and comfort doesn’t compromise on the Range Rover being a thoroughly decent drive though.

The D350 mild hybrid 3.0l diesel AWD auto on test can tackle the 0-60 sprint in just 7.1 seconds – not bad at all for a car of this size. At 700Nms there’s plenty of torque to play with when you need an overtaking boost, and towing even a sizable horse box will be no problem at all.

The ride delivered is smooth and forgiving thanks to air suspension as standard – even on pothole-riddled country lanes and with the larger 22-inch Style “9012” 9 Split-Spoke Gloss Black wheels we had fitted. Handling for a car of this height and weight is remarkably good. The steering is well judged and weighted.

Off-road is where the Range Rover really leaves its rivals in its wake. It truly is a car for all seasons, as even if you never leave tarmac, you’ve the reassurance that you and your passengers will be as safe as possible travelling in the worst of weather and surface conditions. The beauty of it is you don’t need to be an off-road driving expert either thanks to Land Rover’s unbeatable Terrain Response system, which, with a twist of a dial, auto-

mates as much as possible for you. Our vehicle featured Terrain Response 2, All Terrain Progress Control and a Drive Pack comprising Blind Spot Monitor, Driver Condition Monitor, Traffic Sign Recognition and Adaptive Speed Limiter.

The Range Rover’s high ‘command’ driving position gives an unbeatable view of the road ahead, and from the steering wheel to seats, just about everything can be electronically adjusted to suit your exact height/visibility and comfort needs. Our car was fitted with a 360-degree surround camera but rear cameras come as standard along with front and rear parking sensors.

For excellent visibility and safety driving at night, Matrix LED headlights, which can remain on high beam without blinding oncoming drivers, are also standard. All driver controls are sensibly placed too. The two 10-inch sharp-focus touch screens are intuitive and easy to use – once you’ve had a pre-drive familiarity play.

The cabin and cockpit as you’d expect from Land Rover and a vehicle of this calibre; they’re superbly appointed, luxurious, elegant and tech-rich. The deployment of craftsmanship is clearly evident and all surfaces, trims and materials are of the highest quality. Our £103,000 Vogue SE model featured Vintage Tan Seats with Ebony / Vintage Tan Interior, aluminium treadplates with Range Rover script, configurable ambient interior lighting, 20-way heated and cooled front seats with power-recline heated and cooled rear seats and heated steering wheel, Kalahari veneer, soft door close, a Meridian Surround-Sound System, fixed panoramic roof, three-zone climate control, Tow Pack and much, much more.

This monarch of much loved, large, luxurious, truly all-terrain capable cars is set to stay top of the pack for some time. We say ‘Long may the Range Rover Reign.’ Visit: www.landrover.co.uk

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KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

Electric Dreams - Audi e-tron S Sportback

Substantial, striking and head-turning , Audi’s e-tron S Sportback couples ample kerb appeal with impressive power, performance and electro-eco creds. This first Audi all-electric S model is also the first production vehicle in the world to boast three electric motors – one powering the front wheels and two powering the rears, producing a hefty 370kW and thrilling thrust of torque surging to 973Nm in Boost Mode and even 808Nm without. This takes the car to 62mph in just 4.5 seconds – impressive for a sizable car weighing in at over two tonnes.

Performance is meaningless without decent handling though, but as one of Audi’s elite S models, you know you’re in for a rewarding, dynamic yet safe drive. The model’s electric quattro system shares the task of getting a grip on the road between all four wheels and torque vectoring distributes driving force between the two rears with millisecond-targeted precision. For a large car, out on test it proved to be a remarkably swift, agile, instantly responsive and thoroughly engaging drive. One of the concerns for many when it comes to choosing an all-electric car is the worry of a limited driving range and being caught short power-wise mid route, miles away from home. However, this model features a high-voltage battery with a gross energy capacity of 95kWh, of which 91 per cent (86kWh) is usable. With one battery charge it’s capable of achieving up to around 226 miles – enough to please and reassure most and make those trips out to the coast or country a pleasure.

In addition to a practical range and excellent performance the e-tron S Sportback is a stylish, spacious, comfortable and superhigh-tech car. Looks-wise, prominent bumpers and flared wheel arches create an extra 5cm of width over standard models and the sculpted curves and bold sweeping lines give more than a hint to its impressive performance pedigree. There’s a choice of eight attractive colours. Our test car in Catalunya Red metallic was particularly eye-catching, set off nicely by 21-inch black-diKENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

amond-cut, sport-alloy wheels, selenite silver intakes and surrounds and a panoramic sunroof.

Slip inside to discover a cabin that’s as attractive, roomy and comfortable as it is tech-rich. The supportive, electronically-adjustable, heated front S Sport seats were in a tasteful rotor-grey valcona leather with anthracite diamond stitching and S logo embossing. Deluxe two-zone electronic climate-control with remote preconditioning allowed us to heat or cool the car before entry, and rear passengers enjoyed plenty of legroom, as unlike many other electric cars, the e-tron’s battery is positioned underneath the car, so there is no need for a space-taking central tunnel. There’s a sizable boot to fill, which at 615 litres, can accommodate a mammoth Waitrose shop or enough cases for a long family vacation.

As you’d expect from an Audi and car of this calibre, there’s ample state-of-the art tech to enjoy. Included is MMI Navigation Plus with MMI Touch and Audi Virtual Cockpit Plus – two high-definition, excellent touchscreen colour displays and a full-colour, fully digital Audi Virtual Cockpit with additional Sport and e-tron displays. Plus a 36-month subscription to Audi Connect, which provides high-speed 4G internet access in your car via an embedded SIM card with no data charge. There’s also Parking System Plus to guide you into tight spots with a rear camera and parking sensors at the front and back, and Cruise Control, Smartphone Interface and more.

To summarise, Audi’s e-tron S Sportback is one of the world’s most desirable all-electric models. Seamlessly marrying ample style, space, comfort and refinement with potent and engaging power and pace, this is a true drivers’ delight yet still practical, eco-conscious and family friendly too. Visit: www.audi.co.uk

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Scandi-Eco Star - Polestar 2

As electric vehicles go, Tesla would probably be the first brand to come to mind for most. That is, until Polestar emerged from Scandinavia to steal the spotlight and win drivers over with its super-stylish, effortlessly cool and eco-conscious cars.

Viewed kerbside, the Polestar 2 is a simply stunning fastback-style car. Bold yet understated, futuristic without being flashy, lean yet muscular, curvaceous yet honed – all these seemingly impossible contradictions work and the result is a model which is a visual delight.

Features like frameless mirrors and avant-garde lights give it an other-worldly air but it’s never a case of show without sense. The Polestar 2’s door handles are aesthetically pleasing but also enable you to unlock the car just with a light touch – and thanks to integrated ground lighting, you can see them easily in the dark.

The boot can be opened just by running your foot below.

Inside, the aesthetic appeal continues and it’s here you can experience the brand’s efforts to be eco-kind. Our model on test, in bright Snow metallic, featured a vegan Charcoal Weave Tech with Black Ash deco, set off beautifully with contrasting bold yellow seatbelts to really give a racing air. They may be small details, but the Polestar 2’s interior lights make a big difference.

White mood lights give a clean, fresh vibe, and make it easy to find things in the dark. And the hexagonal gear selector with an illuminated Polestar symbol in the base is a beautifully crafted and a unique visual focal point.

Although the Polestar 2’s interior has been carefully designed using innovative materials, its uncluttered appearance still comes fully loaded with a raft of state-of-the-art features even as standard. The generous list actually runs two columns of an A4 page! Highlights include an always-updated infotainment system powered by Android Automotive OS, 360° surround-view

camera, heated front and rear seats and steering wheel, plus a panoramic roof. As with cousin Volvo models, Polestar boasts industry-leading safety tech too, including the likes of Cross Traffic Alert and a host of advanced collision warning and avoidance systems. There are also great option packs and features to choose from. Our model on test came with an excellent Harman Kardon Premium sound system available as part of the Plus Pack, and the Performance Pack adds high-capacity Brembo brakes, adjustable Öhlins Dual-Flow Valve dampers, 20-inch Forged Alloy Wheels and more.

It’s not all about looks and tech though. The Polestar 2 really is a contender for the best electric car in production. With up to 408hp, a sub-5 second 0-60 sprint, instant torque delivery and super-responsive feel, it’s an engaging delight to drive. Overtaking is child’s play and it’s the type of car you will make excuses to keep heading out to play in. Equally at home on motorways or country B roads, the steering is precise and well-weighted, there’s ample grip and the electric delivered instant thrust at the slightest touch of the toe – a thrilling delight. If your preference is for the more sedate then you might like to know the Polestar 2 can actually tow even a six-berth caravan with ease.

Many people have some concern over the lack of range electric cars have, and over the ease of charging. You’ve up to 335 miles on a single charge with this model, which isn’t bad at all, and Polestar does all it can to make charging as easy and as accessible as possible, plus the number of public charging stations is growing all the time – even in more rural places.

If you desire a premium electric car with gorgeous looks, great performance, decent range and plenty of features as standard, the Polestar 2 is a cracking choice. Visit www.polestar.com

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Versatile Volvo XC40 Recharge

Stylish, spacious, practical and great to drive, not many cars tick all these boxes, but Volvo’s excellent XC40 can – and add class-leading eco creds and safety too. It’s no surprise this highly acclaimed model has won a cabinet full of trophies, including the ‘What Car? Family SUV of the Year’ title – for the third time, and ‘Car of the Year’ on its award debut in 2018.

The XC40 premium compact SUV continues to set the standards in its class. It’s just so easy and great to live with. As the What Car? Judges said: ‘It might be a few years since we voted the multi-talented Volvo XC40 our Car of the Year, but it still cuts the mustard. It blends generous passenger space and a practical boot with a quality interior and top-notch safety, so you aren’t only buying a hugely desirable product, but one backed up with real substance.’ Today, the XC40 range exemplifies Volvo’s far-reaching commitment to electrification, with a line-up featuring two Recharge petrol-electric plug-in hybrid versions (the T4 and T5) and two mild-hybrid petrol powertrains (the B4 and B5). Anticipation is also high for the first UK customer deliveries of the XC40 Recharge Pure Electric P8, Volvo’s first fully electric car.

Enjoying our Recharge FWD Inscription for even just a couple of weeks you can really understand why the XC40 has been so well received by motoring experts and the public alike. A handsome car, it’s a just-right combination of muscularity and fluid lines and clearly a car of quality and class. Smaller than its also excellent XC60 and XC90 siblings, but it’s still remarkably spacious even when fully occupied front and rear. Slip inside and you’ll see that, as with all Volvo cabins, the clean, functional and fuss-free design means knee and elbow room isn’t compromised and there’s a great choice of scandi-chic tasteful interior trims in eye-pleasing light neutral tones.

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA REVIEW

The XC40 is a masterclass in ergonomics and functional design, but this certainly doesn’t mean it’s lean on tech and features.

Even as standard, all variants of this model feature a crystal-clear nine-inch centre-console touchscreen with voice-activated control, Volvo On Call with app, Sensus Navigation and Sensus Connect, Data SIM card providing up to 100GB of data for 12 months, eight-speaker sound system with three USB sockets and a host of advanced safety tech. Highlights include pedestrian, cyclist and large-animal detection, front-collision warning with fully automatic emergency braking, steering assistance if you unwittingly drift out of your lane and even a system which automatically tightens the front seatbelts should the car inadvertently leave the road. Our Inscription-spec model also came fitted with handy wireless phone charging, a heated steering-wheel and windscreen, dark-tinted windows, heated seats front and rear, a 360° view parking camera, panoramic sunroof, excellent Harman Kardon Dolby Pro Logic II surround-sound system and more…

Both XC40 T4 and T5 FWD Recharge Plug-in Hybrids tip the scales at a minimum of 1,812kg (running order weight). However, they are swift, agile and engaging to drive. The T5 produces 180hp and 265Nm of torque, delivering the 0-60 sprint in 8.2 seconds from its 1.5-litre petrol engine, along with 82hp and 160Nm from its electric motor. Its maximum-braked trailer-towing capacity is 1,800kg. The efficiency of its petrol-electric powertrain results in official WLTP Combined fuel economy of 117.7-134.5mpg, while CO2 emissions are 47-55g/km, together with an all-electric driving range of up to 27.3 miles (according to battery charge, vehicle load and driving conditions).

Whether for daily commuting, acting as a family run-around, or even to carry golf clubs or tow ponies to shows, the XC40 is a perfect choice. Visit www.volvocars.co.uk

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With NetJets you can rely on access to the largest private fleet in the world. Every day, we make the impossible possible. That’s why, with minimal notice, you can be on your way, wherever you’re needed most.

Call +44 (0)203 811 7234 or visit netjets.com All aircraft offered by NetJets® Europe are operated by NetJets Transportes Aéreos S.A., an EU air carrier.

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