BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE HOWARD DE WALDEN ESTATE AND THE PORTMAN ESTATE
Published November 2024
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HAPPENINGS IN MARYLEBONE
Events, exhibitions, film, music, shopping, talks, theatre and walks
14 IN AGNÈSPROFILE:TROUBLÉ
The designer known as agnès b. on art, activism and her heathly disdain for the entire concept of ‘fashion’
24
CHRISTMAS PRESENCE
Marylebone’s top chefs on the food-filled moments that confirm to them that Christma s has arrived
33 THE DIFFERENCE MAKERS
Sarah Bissell of Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity
36 A CLOSER LOOK
Food, style, home, wellbeing a nd healthcare
36
Q&A: RIZ DAR
The owner of Zayna on the flavours of Punjab and Pakistan and the difficult balance between authenticity a nd adaptation
44
Q&A: MICKEY ASHMORE
The founder of Sabah on applying traditional techniques to a modern shoe and revitalising a fading craft in two very different border towns
58
ANATOMY OF A DESIGN
Corin Mellor of David Mellor on a contemporary tableware design that fits within an age- old tradition
60
GIFT LIST
Our Marylebone Christ mas wish list
MARYLEBONE PSYCHOTHERAPY
17 Nottingham Street, London, WtU 5EW
Magda Harbour
0796 8114196
Magda is recognised as one of London's leading experts in hypnotherapy. She specialises in using hypnotherapy to resolve stress, trauma, anxiety, sleep and eating disorders, as well as chronic or non-specific pain. Magda's compassionate approach and extensive experience enable her to create personalised solutions for her clients, helping them navigate challenges and achieve lasting wellness. Beyond her clinical expertise, Magda is recognised for her unwavering dedication to the wellbeing of her clients.
Christian Morton
My world class practice offers a breadth of psychotherapy services for individuals, couples, families and groups. We help clients address their concerns and take a depth-focused approach to therapy. The ultimate goal is to help clients gain insight into both past and present experiences in order to empower themselves to make informed choices that lead to meaningful change. Our business insights program is highly successful amongst prominent business leaders in Central London area, this partnership stimulates both growth and improved performance support without stigma.
(Oxon) - MA (Tavistock Relationships) Approaches, include: Emotionally Focused Therapist (Certified) I Internal Family Systems AEDP ISTDP I EMDR I Psychodynamic www.MilesPulver.com miles@milesQulver.com
BSc (Hon) Psychology, LAPHP, MNRPC, BPS Integrative Therapy CBT I Hypnotherapy Psychotherapy I Psychosexual Therapist I Couples Counselling I Business Coaching www.inthemen.com christian@inthemen.com
Miles Pulver
0781 091112
The stuff of life: Live, Love, Work Live: With deep experience and extensive training in modern psychotherapy approaches, I accompany you through life's challenges, helping and guiding you to resolve emotional distress, trauma and
relationship difficulties. Love: I also empower couples to enhance their connection and intimacy whilst assisting individuals to explore new relationship skills and change counterproductive relationship patterns. Work: Leveraging my prior business background, I offer confidential and collaborative support to business leaders dealing with personal and performance-related issues, as well as providing "Partnership Therapy" to enhance relationship dynamics within businesses.
Luiza Neumayer
0780 337 5794
Transitioning from a background in banking and charity work, as a management trainer and CEO, I've become a chartered psychologist specialising in Jungian psychodynamic counselling and contemporary, neuroscience-informed psychotherapy. My personal experiences of working and understanding trauma have informed my practice. I now offer valuable expertise in addressing attachment trauma, PTSD, anxiety, depression, relationship and a range of other issues for individuals and couples. My approach is described by clients as safe, relational, insightful and transformative, fostering healing and growth. I am also registered with insurance companies and welcome clients to my office in Marylebone.
HAPPENINGS IN MARYLEBONE EVENTS
EXHIBITIONS
FILM
MUSIC SHOPPING TALKS
THEATRE WALKS
MUSIC
19 – 22 NOVEMBER, 7pm ROYAL ACADEMY OPERA: HÄNSEL UND GRETEL
Royal Academy of Music Marylebone Road, NW1 5HT ram.ac.uk
Royal Academy Opera presents the work that made Engelbert Humperdinck a household name after its first performance in December 1893. When Hänsel and Gretel find themselves lost in the forest, they happen upon a house made of gingerbread...
THEATRE
UNTIL 23 NOVEMBER WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT ANNE FRANK Marylebone Theatre 35 Park Road, NW1 6XT marylebonetheatre.com
2. What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank, Marylebone Theatre
3. Chiltern Street Christmas Shopping Evening
THEATRE
UNTIL 24 NOVEMBER
VOILA! THEATRE FESTIVAL
The Cockpit Gateforth Street, NW8 8EH thecockpit.org.uk
Returning for its 11th run, the Voila! Theatre festival presents boundary-pushing work from across the continent of Europe, bringing together a rich array of languages, ideas and influences to present a colourful tapestry of theatrical performances over a threeweek period.
MUSIC
24 NOVEMBER, 12pm RESOUNDING SHORES: ODE TO ST CECILIA
Royal Academy of Music Marylebone Road, NW1 5HT ram.ac.uk
John Butt leads the final concert in the Academy’s 2024 Resounding Shores series of 17th century English music. Students perform Purcell’s Hail, bright Cecilia!, a piece in which singers and instrumentalists play equally dramatic roles. 1.
SHOPPING
Directed by Patrick Marber and starring Joshua Malina (West Wing, Big Bang Theory), this new ‘serious comedy’ tells the story of two Jewish couples – one secular, the other ultra-Orthodox – who play a drink-fuelled game that goes awry.
The independent retailers of one of London’s most picturesque streets join forces to offer a special evening of shopping and music. Shops will host in-store events and exclusive offers for one night only while a roaming choir provides a festive soundtrack.
28 NOVEMBER, 5-8pm CHILTERN STREET CHRISTMAS SHOPPING EVENING portmanmarylebone.com
1. Hänsel und Gretel, Royal Academy of Music
WORKSHOP
28 NOVEMBER, 6pm & 7.15pm MAKE YOUR OWN MACRAMÉ BRACELET
Cox & Power
10-12 Chiltern Street, W1U 7PX coxandpower.com
Jewellers Cox & Power
are hosting an evening of macramé bead bracelet making for people of all ages and experience levels.
There will be two hour-long workshops, with tickets costing £30, including materials and refreshments.
WINE
28 NOVEMBER, 7pm
GREEK WINE: TODAY AND TOMORROW
The Hellenic Centre 16-18 Paddington Street, W1U 5AS helleniccentre.org
Led by wine writer Christina Makris, this evening of wine tasting will explore a selection of very special Greek wines, tell the stories of the winemakers responsible for them, and discuss the evolving shape of the country’s wine industry.
EXHIBITION / FOOD
Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill is marking the 150th anniversary of the birth of its namesake, Sir Winston, with a month-long celebration. The Montagu Kitchen will offer a special Sunday brunch, plus a set menu featuring recipes from Churchill’s archives. In collaboration with Chartwell House, the Churchill Bar & Terrace will be transformed to mirror the feel of the prime minister’s beloved country home. The hotel has also partnered with Thompson’s Gallery to fill the lobby with six typically expressive new artworks by the acclaimed painter Paul Wright, exploring different aspects of Churchill’s life.
UNTIL 30 NOVEMBER
150 YEARS OF SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL
Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill 30 Portman Square, W1H 7BH hyatt.com
FOOD
28 NOVEMBER
THANKSGIVING MENU
108 Brasserie
108 Marylebone Lane, W1U 2QE 108 brasserie.com
Mark the USA’s national celebration with a traditional four-course menu, featuring turkey, crab, squash, sweet potato, creamed corn and cranberries, concluding with a visit to the famous Pie Room for a spread of classic American pies, from pecan to pumpkin, key lime to banoffee.
MUSIC
29 NOVEMBER, 1pm
SIR MARK ELDER CONDUCTS THE ACADEMY SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Royal Academy of Music Marylebone Road, NW1 5HT ram.ac.uk
Sir Mark Elder conducts two mighty tone poems by Richard Strauss: Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche, the story of a trickster who meets an untimely end, and Also sprach Zarathustra, some of his most opulent orchestral writing.
EXHIBITION
Sculpture produces solid objects, while still life renders them on a flat plane, but both find ways of either capturing or defying a sense of stillness. This exhibition puts these two forms of artistic expression in conversation with each another, highlighting their parallels and differences.
12 – 29 NOVEMBER
STILL NOT STATIC Thompson’s Gallery 3 Seymour Place, W1H 5AZ thompsonsgallery.co.uk
THEATRE
30 NOVEMBER, 12pm
PRAXIS 9: THE TIME OF CRISES
The Hellenic Centre 16-18 Paddington Street, W1U 5AS helleniccentre.org
Praxis aims to introduce new Greek-language plays to an English-speaking audience. For this one-day festival, the group presents nine new plays, all of them themed around modern crises, performed in subtitled Greek.
1. The Refuge by Paul Wright, Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill 2. Academy Symphony Orchestra, Royal Academy of Music
3. Thanksgiving menu, 108 Brasserie
4. Tulips by Mhairi McGregor, Still Not Static, Thompson’s Gallery
MUSIC
2 DECEMBER, 7.30pm
ELISABETH BRAUSS
Wigmore Hall
36 Wigmore Street, W1U 2BP wigmore-hall.org.uk
Elisabeth Brauss, the prodigiously talented young German pianist who from 2018 to 2020 was one of the BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists, returns to Wigmore Hall to present a programme themed around goodbyes, featuring works by Bach, Beethoven, Schumann and Prokofiev.
WORKSHOP
3 DECEMBER, 6pm SUSTAINABLE CHRISTMAS CRACKER MAKING
Caroline Gardner 17 Marylebone High Street, W1U 4NZ carolinegardner.com
Learn how to make ecofriendly, reusable Christmas crackers using beautifully designed materials. Tickets include a complimentary gift plus nibbles and fizz. The £20 cost is redeemable against purchases on the night.
SPOKEN WORD
2 – 9 DECEMBER, 7.30pm
NERINA PALLOT:
I DIGRESS
Marylebone Theatre
Rudolf Steiner House 35 Park Road, NW1 6XT marylebonetheatre.com
Singer-songwriter Nerina Pallot’s witty, candid, garrulous personality has always been a big part of her appeal. I Digress, her first one-woman show, isn’t a stand-up routine and isn’t a concert, but promises laughter, reflection and a song or two.
MUSIC
4 DECEMBER, 1pm
ACADEMY PIANO SERIES: KASPARAS MIKUŽIS
Wigmore Hall 36 Wigmore Street, W1U 2BP wigmore-hall.org.uk
Currently studying at the Royal Academy of Music, Lithuanian pianist Kasparas Mikužis has been selected as a 2024 scholar of the Imogen Cooper Music Trust. This recital features Rameau’s Suite in G alongside Rachmaninov’s First Piano Sonata.
MUSIC
Devised and directed by Matt Ryan, conducted by Daniel Bowling and performed by students on the Academy’s postgraduate Musical Theatre course, this vibrant programme explores the best and brightest musical theatre songs of the 21st century.
3 DECEMBER, 2.30pm & 7.30pm THE LAST 25 YEARS OF MUSICAL THEATRE
2.
3. The Last 25 years of Musical Theatre, Royal Academy of Music
5. Plate I from The Carmen Suite by Pablo Picasso, Gloucester Room
6. Dexter Dalwood, Lisson Gallery
WORKSHOP
6 DECEMBER, 6pm CHRISTMAS CARD
CALLIGRAPHY WORKSHOP
Caroline Gardner 17 Marylebone High Street, W1U 4NZ carolinegardner.com
This workshop will teach the art of modern calligraphy, allowing you to create stunning Christmas cards. Tickets include a complimentary gift plus nibbles and fizz. The £20 cost is redeemable against purchases on the night.
1. Nerina Pallot, Marylebone Theatre
Lucy Crowe, Wigmore Hall
3.
MUSIC
12 DECEMBER, 7.30pm
LUCY CROWE & LA NUOVA MUSICA
Wigmore Hall
36 Wigmore Street, W1U 2BP wigmore-hall.org.uk
In the build-up to Christmas, leading British soprano Lucy Crowe brings her impressive versatility to an enjoyably wideranging seasonal programme at Wigmore Hall. She will be accompanied by La Nuova Musica, a rising star among period ensembles.
MUSIC
UNTIL 14 DECEMBER
PABLO PICASSO: THE CARMEN SUITE
Gloucester Room
5 New Cavendish Street, W1G 8UT railings-gallery.com
Based on the story of Carmen, which also inspired Georges Bizet’s opera, this set of 38 etchings by Pablo Picasso was published in 1948 in an edition of 320. Gloucester Room is exhibiting a complete set of etchings, on Monval paper.
EXHIBITION
UNTIL 14 DECEMBER
YU HONG: ISLANDS OF THE MIND
Lisson Gallery
27 Bell Street, NW1 5BY lissongallery.com
For her first solo exhibition in London, Chinese artist Yu Hong presents a new suite of large-scale paintings. Each of her vast canvasses explores a distinctive state of consciousness, inspired by Arnold Böcklin’s Island of the Dead (1880-1901).
THEATRE 28 NOVEMBER – 14 DECEMBER
THE GREAT GATSBY
The Cockpit
Gateforth Street, NW8 8EH thecockpit.org.uk
Produced by Scar Theatre, this new adaptation of The Great Gatsby takes F Scott Fitzgerald’s heartbreaking tale of Jazz Age social stratification, excess and unfulfilled love and retells it from a perspective that draws out themes of queerness and feminism.
EXHIBITION
A permanent resident of Mexico since 2017, Dexter Dalwood has recently been thinking a lot about what it means to be an ‘English’ painter. His new exhibition explores the connections between nostalgia, culture and national identity.
UNTIL 14 DECEMBER
DEXTER DALWOOD: ENGLISH PAINTING
Lisson Gallery
67 Lisson Street, NW1 5DA lissongallery.com
Q&A: ALEXANDER GIFFORD
The artistic director of the Marylebone Theatre on the joys and struggles of running a high-quality independent theatre
Q: The Marylebone Theatre has been open for two years now. Any particula r highlights?
A: We’ve had quite a lot of big stuff happening in November. We had a big gala event with Mark Rylance, Kristin Scott-Thomas and Johnny Flynn. We also had Patrick Marber directing What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank. A big London theatre was going to do it, but then dropped it because it was felt to be too controversial. So, it landed with me, which was great. I just think it’s a very intelligent, dynamic play that I’m very proud to be presenting. Patr ick Marber’s a world-class talent. Funnily enough, we had Natalie Portman and Greta Gerwig drop in to see it the other night.
Q: What made it too controversial for the West End?
A: I think because of the situation in Israel right now. But the beauty of the play is it’s completely balanced.
Nowhere in there could you feel the author was making a statement. It’s addressing the big issues of our time in a very straight, honest way. That’s what theatre is about. It’s an adaptation by Nathan Englander of his own short story about an ultra-Orthodox Jewish couple and a liberal Jewish couple having an argument. They’re friends who're coming back together after a long period, so it’s a little bit like a Jewish God of Carnage.
Q: Financially, this has been a difficult time for theatres. As a new venue, it must be even harder. How’s that all going?
A: Amazingly well! By the end of this year, we expect to have made a small profit. We’re creating a sustainable financial model. Some of the work we produce, and we finance that ourselves, and some people hire us. Then we’re exploring co-productions and getting other investors in. We’re working it out.
Q: Are you looking at maybe touring your productions?
A: Ultimately, we’d love to be sending things on the road. Transferring to the West End is my big dream. We’ve refurbished the theatre and put new seats in, so the place is looking stunning. We’ve gone up to 270 seats now. That means we’re up there with a similar capacity to the Donmar Warehouse, the Menier Chocolate Factory, those really established producing houses. But it also means the show has got to be good to fi ll the space.
Q: What do you consider your proudest moments so far?
A: A big moment for us, this time last year, was a piece called The White Factory, which got lots of five-star reviews and won the Off West End Award for best production. It was a very proud moment. That was such a moving play, and very unusual.
Intervie w: Emily Jupp Portrait: Orlando Gili
Q: What are you doing for your Ch ristmas show?
A: We have a play called A Sherlock Carol returning for the third time. It’s based on Sherlock Holmes investigating the death of Ebenezer Scrooge, bringing together two of the great characters of English literature. It’s very witty, very family friendly. It’s carried by the actors –they play multiple roles and they’re very charismatic. The Holmes Museum is just around the corner, so it’s perfect in that respect. I’m delighted that it comes to us annually and it’s a hit every year.
Q: There’s a distinctly crosscultural character to your programming. Tell us about that.
A: Well, I just think that’s the nature of our times. I’ve always been interested in the art and culture of other lands. So far, we’ve had work that’s Russian, Jewish, Irish, Ukrainian. And Iranian – I’m half Iranian, so I have links in the Iranian community. I think it’s great to celebrate the diversity of London.
Q: With the financial pressures, is it hard to stick to your guns?
A: Yes, it is hard. But I only want to take really high-quality work and I’m having to be quite uncompromising about it. Fortunately, I’m finding my allies. We’re attracting high-calibre artists who bring the audience with them. I just don’t want to put any crap on that stage. We’re not here just for entertainment. If it’s also commercial, great, but our primary motive is to do beautiful, meaningful, intelligent work.
Q: You called this the Marylebone Theatre. How much a part of the community have you become? I suppose it was cheeky of us to take the name! I was wondering what people were going to think about that. But thankfully, local people seem to feel that, yes, we do represent Marylebone. We're aligned to what people think Marylebone is about, which is beauty and quality. But what I want more of is the Marylebone community feeling this is their home and coming regularly, being signed up to our database, supporting us financially. We do need, going forward, to have patrons and supporters.
Q: How do you go about making that happen?
A: Well, at the moment, we’re not doing enough really! But all those smaller theatres, like the Almeida and the Donmar, are surviving on the money given to them by wealthy individuals, as well as the Arts Council. We’ve got nothing yet. We’re surviving on our wits, but if there’s anyone out there who wants to come forward and be a supporter, we'll be very grateful.
29 NOVEMBER – 5 JANUARY
A SHERLOCK CAROL
Marylebone Theatre
35 Park Road, NW1 6XT marylebonetheatre.com
1. A Sherlock Carol, Marylebone Theatre
2. Alexander Gifford, Marylebone Theatre
3. Handel’s Messiah, St Marylebone Parish Church
3.
MUSIC
14 DECEMBER, 5pm
HANDEL’S MESSIAH
St Marylebone Parish Church
17 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LT stmarylebone.org
With a full orchestra, choir and soloists performing in the stunning setting of the parish church, the Waterperry Opera Festival and St Marylebone Choir come together for a celebratory performance of Handel’s Christmassy masterpiece, conducted by Bertie Baigent.
MUSIC
14 DECEMBER, 6pm ROUND ABOUT CHRISTMAS
The Hellenic Centre 16-18 Paddington Street, W1U 5AS helleniccentre.org
Cyprus-born, London-based singer Andria Antoniou and a band of talented musicians present an uplifting festive celebration filled with Christmas songs from around the world, including traditional carols from Greece and Cyprus.
MUSIC
One of the world’s best-loved a cappella choral ensembles marks the new year with a concert in two halves: a multicultural, multilingual programme of songs ranging from the 16th to the 20th century, followed after the interval by a surprise selection from their closeharmony library.
31 DECEMBER, 7pm
NEW YEAR’S EVE WITH THE KING’S SINGERS
Wigmore Hall
36 Wigmore Street, W1U 2BP wigmore-hall.org.uk
MUSIC
16 DECEMBER, 7.30pm
CHRISTIAN GERHAHER & GEROLD HUBER
Wigmore Hall
36 Wigmore Street, W1U 2BP wigmore-hall.org.uk
Together, German baritone Christian Gerhaher and pianist Gerold Huber make up one of the world’s most acclaimed Lieder duos. Here, they present two distinct programmes of work by their fellow countryman, Robert Schumann.
EXHIBITION
3 – 20 DECEMBER
JACK MORROCCO
Thompson’s Gallery
3 Seymour Place, W1H 5AZ thompsonsgallery.co.uk
One of Scotland’s most distinguished contemporary painters, Jack Morrocco is renowned for his masterful use of light and his resistance to easy categorisation. This show covers the wide expanse of his artistic exploration, seeking the connections within a diverse body of work.
MUSIC
22 DECEMBER, 6pm
ST MARYLEBONE VILLAGE IX LESSONS AND CAROLS
St Marylebone Parish Church
17 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LT stmarylebone.org
This Sunday evening service sees the St Marylebone Parish Church Choir present a joyful programme of classic carols, interspersed with traditional Christmas readings. The service is followed by hot chocolate in the crypt, provided by Fischer’s restaurant. 2.
EXHIBITION
9 OCTOBER – 24 JANUARY NOGUCHI RIKA: LIFE ON PLANET EARTH
Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation 13/14 Cornwall Terrace, NW1 4QP dajf.org.uk
Through video and photography, Japanese artist Noguchi Rika conveys her wonder at the world and her increasing preoccupation with how other creatures, particularly insects, experience life on earth.
2. Beach Stall, Tobago by Jack Morrocco, Thompson’s Gallert
3. Natalie Clein, Wigmore Hall
4. Route 66, 1969 by Ernst Haas, Atlas Gallery
5. Anastasia Kobekina, Wigmore Hall
EXHIBITION
British cellist Natalie Clein and Armenian-Danish pianist Marianna Shirinyan present music by two life-long friends, Johannes Brahms and Joseph Joachim, together with Zoltán Kodály’s Cello Sonata, a work of blazing emotional intensity and heartfelt expression.
For its 30th birthday, Atlas Gallery is celebrating the talent and diversity of the photographic artists in its stable. This new show takes in vintage masterpieces from some of the all-time greats.
20 NOVEMBER – 1 FEBRUARY ATLAS AT 30: PART TWO Atlas Gallery
49 Dorset Street, W1U 7NF atlasgallery.com
SHOPPING
2 DECEMBER – 3 JANUARY
CHRISTMAS MARKET
The Prince Akatoki London 50 Great Cumberland Place, W1H 7FD theprinceakatokilondon.com
The hotel lobby of The Prince Akatoki London will host a Christmas market with a distinctly Japanese twist. The market will showcase a selection of exclusive gifts crafted by talented makers, from festive candles to one-of-a-kind ceramic pieces.
Cellist Anastasia Kobekina, a prize winner at the 2019 International Tchaikovsky Competition, is joined by pianist and composer Jean-Sélim Abdelmoula to perform a programme of works by Gabriel Fauré, Leoš Janácˇek and Nadia Boulanger.
4.
1.
EXHIBITION
Moco London’s first temporary exhibition brings together 12 works from Marina Abramovi´c’s long-running series Transitory Objects for Human, including a brand-new commission. Chairs, beds and benches adorned with the artist’s signature crystals invite public interaction and encourage moments of silence, stillness and contemplation.
UNTIL 11 MARCH
MARINA ABRAMOVIC: HEALING FREQUENCY
Moco London
1-4 Marble Arch, W1H 7EJ mocomuseum.com
THEATRE
5 – 22 FEBRUARY
MARIUPOL
The Cockpit
Gateforth Street, NW8 8EH thecockpit.org.uk
Written by Katia Haddad and directed by John Retallack, this powerful new play tells the story of Galina, who, in a desperate bid to find her son, an unwilling soldier. journeys to the Ukrainian city of Mariupol in the wake of its destruction by Russian forces in March 2022.
EXHIBITION
27 NOVEMBER – 2 MARCH
KEEPING TIME: CLOCKS BY BOULLE
The Wallace Collection Manchester Square, W1U 3BN wallacecollection.org
Working at the court of the Sun King, Louis XIV (1638–1715), André-Charles Boulle created clocks that combined cuttingedge science with staggering artistry, the influence of which spread far and wide. This free display brings together five of Boulle’s timepieces.
EXHIBITION
UNTIL SPRING 2025 DIFFICULT SITES RIBA
66 Portland Place, W1B 1AD architecture.com
Architects often produce their finest work when confronted with the challenge of designing for a difficult site. This free exhibition explores remarkable feats of architectural achievement in the face of tricky terrain, awkward urban plots and other challenging briefs, from the 1900s to today.
EXHIBITION
UNTIL 2 AUGUST
THE LAUGHING STOCK OF THE HEARTLESS STARS
The Brown Collection 1 Bentinck Mews, W1U 2AF glenn-brown.co.uk
Curated by Glenn Brown and his husband Edgar Laguinia, this exhibition explores humanity’s pursuit of significance in a resolutely indifferent universe. It features 70 diverse artworks by 28 artists, spanning the past five centuries, including new pieces by Brown.
1. Transitory Objects for Human by Marina Abramovic, Moco London
2. Mariupol, The Cockpit
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AGNÈS TROUBLÉ
The designer and creative polymath known to the world as agnès b. on art, activism and her healthy disdain for the entire concept of ‘fashion’
Words: Lauren Bravo Portrait: Dennis Morris
“I don’t know about fashion,” shrugs Agnès Troublé. It’s a surprising statement from a fashion designer – especially the designer better known to the world as agnès b., the perennially lowercase queen of pared-back Parisian style. Millions of fans worldwide would beg to differ.
“I never enter a shop,” the 82-year-old insists. “I never look at magazines. I protect myself from what the others are doing.”
It is a sultry afternoon in early autumn, and we’re sitting on the balcony of her Shoreditch hotel so that Agnès can smoke. So far, so French. But over the noise of revving traffic and nearby building work, she tells me that she comes to east London for the street art. “I take pictures of graffiti wherever I go.”
If fashion doesn’t hold Agnès’s attention, art cer tainly does. A prolific patron with more than 5,000 pieces in her personal collection, she’s in London for the opening of a new Tracey Emin exhibition, the viscerally raw I Followed You To The End at the White Cube gallery in Bermondsey. She and Tracey have been friends for 15 years, maybe more – “I don’t count years very well” – and Agnès admires the artist for her unfailing authenticity. “She’s political and aggressive, and she’s herself. I like people to be themselves. I hate tricks and mundanities.”
There is scant room for mundanity on a CV as full as hers. Designer, stylist, writer, publisher, photographer, filmmaker, gallerist, activist and philanthropist, Agnès is a Renaissance woman by anyone’s standards – and even in her ninth decade, one gets the impression she is still adding new strings to her bow. Does she ever rest, I ask? She quotes French philosopher Michel de Montaigne: “‘L’action me repose’. Action rests me. I think that’s beautiful – I have written it on a t-shirt.”
Born in Versailles to a cultured Catholic family, she grew up a
stone’s throw from the palace and spent her childhood absorbed in the treasures therein. “When I was 12 I wanted to be a curator. I wanted to work at the Louvre,” she says. But these genteel beginnings were no guarantee of an easy life. Agnès was abused in childhood by a family member, a topic later tackled in her debut feature film, Je m’appelle Hmmm… By 19 she was married to publisher Christian Bourgois, and by 20 she was a single mother of twins. “I left my husband with the two boys, no money at all. I was dressed only from the f lea market.”
Her luck changed when one of her flea market ensembles caught the eye of a staffer at Elle magazine, who promptly hired Agnès to be a junior editor. As a fan of sartorial fairytales, I have to ask: what was the outfit?
“Western boots, my grandmother’s white lace petticoat and a military jacket,” she recalls. “Everything was cheap, but beautiful.” Sixty year s later, she is wearing something similar today: a butter- soft leather jacket (“15 years old”) over a homemade petticoat with biker boots (“20 years old”). Her jacket sports several pin badges and she has added pockets to her skirt. “Alw ays pockets.”
It’s this trademark mix of practicality, rebellious flair and timeless good taste that makes Agnès that rare treasure: a veteran creator in an industry obsessed with the hot new thing. After a couple of years at Elle she decided to try her hand at design, pursuing unpaid internships and working for a succession of French labels before founding her own in 1973. The name agnès b. borrowed her ex-husband’s initial, though in spirit she had already proved far more Troublé than Bourgois.
“I have always been an activist. I was there in ’68, like this,” she tells me, raising a clenched fist in reference to the mass protests
that swept through France in 1968. At one point she pauses our conversation to play me the John Lennon song, Working Class Hero – another forthcoming slogan t-shirt. We listen together as his words float across t he rooftops.
The first agnès b. store opened in 1975, in a former butcher’s shop in Paris’s bustling Les Halles district. As much a community hub as a retail offering, the tiled space included an indoor swing for children, with windows full of papyrus plants, not clothes. Friends used to write on the walls and birds used to fly around freely. “They were born in the shop, in a net over
“Fashion becomes very quickly unfashionable. It ends up in Chile, like the mountains of clothes in the Atacama Desert. And people suffer to make them.”
the plants,” she tells me proudly. “We started with a pair and then we had 35 by the end.”
More shops followed and her community expanded – first to New York in 1980, then Japan in 1983 and London in 1987, the brand’s laidback aesthetic weathering the decade’s more maximalist moods. During the 90s, Agnès’s clothes had cameos in some of the decade’s biggest cultural moments: some of the iconic black suits in Reservoir Dogs are hers, John Travolta wears one of her jackets in Pulp Fiction’s famous diner scene, while in Helen Fielding’s original columns, Bridget Jones worries about fitting into
her agnès b. jeans. But even as her stock soared, Agnès was never afraid to ruffle feathers. At the height of the AIDS epidemic, she gave out free condoms in store.
In an age of overnight shipping, is she keen to preserve the ritual of bricks-and-mortar retail? “I don’t know, I’ve never bought anything online,” she says. “It’s nice to have connection with other people.” Connection is something of an agnès b. buzzword. Her shops have guest books for visitors to leave messages in, while regular artist and charity collaborations are part of the brand’s DNA.
Her clothes have the power
to connect people too, with a devoted fandom around one item in particular: the snap cardigan. Made in France, from sturdy, fleece-lined cotton, it’s the lovechild of a sweatshirt and a prim, Chanel-esque jacket; part chic, part slouch, part babygro – and yet somehow entirely cool. Agnès designed it in 1979, its mother-of-pearl press studs a nod to the “cute buttons” on 18th-century military jackets in the paintings she loved as a child.
Famous snap cardigan wearers include Charlotte Gainsbourg and Chloë Sevigny, while two photography exhibitions and a
Below: Agnès (second from left) and her family outside the first agnès b. store in Paris, 1976
Below left: A young Agnès inside her brand’s Les Halles boutique
IN PROFILE: AGNÈS TROUBLÉ
One of agnès b.’s snap cardigans, based on the iconic 1979 design
“The snap cardigan works for any age, it suits everyone. People pass them onto their daughters. I love the idea of that.”
“I take pictures and I will see the dress I’m going to make through the photography. It’s a very natural process for me.”
book have paid homage to its iconic form. Vintage snaps are now a trophy buy on resale sites, but it’s still available in store in a rainbow of different shades and iterations for women, men and children. “It works for any age, it suits everyone,’ she says. “People pass them onto their daughter, they ask their mother to borrow it. I love the idea of that.” She now has five children, 17 grandchildren and five greatgrandchildren, who are often clad in her hand-me-downs. “It’s not fashion,” she stresses. “That’s why they can still wear it 10 years later.”
A long-time photographer as well as photography collector, Agnès finds inspiration for clothes through her lens. “I take pictures and I will see the dress I’m going to make through the photography. It’s a mix, every day. I see something beautiful in the sky, like a trail where two planes have crossed paths, I take a picture, and then I imagine a man’s t-shirt with that shape on it. It’s a very natural process for me.”
Her lifespan stretches from the days of the box Brownie to a time where everyone is their own documentarian, the camera ever present in our pockets. What does she make of social media? “Se faire chier,” she grins. Translation: it bores her shitless. “It’s too much. People spend too much time on it. Life is so great, and so short sometimes – you have to enjoy it. Enjoy your friend s in person.”
Agnès certainly does. She’s much keener to champion her friends’ achievements than trumpet her own, peppering our conversation with recommendations and praise. She is evidently proud of having dressed David Bowie in his later years (“He was beautiful, although I preferred the teeth he had before”), and has her sights set on a collaboration with Mick Jagger next (“I must find his number.”).
Among her social circle she counts artists Gilbert and George and Shephard Fairey,
photographers Richard Billingham and Dennis Morris and filmmakers Jim Jarmusch and Harmony Korine, the latter of whom she set up a production company with in 2013. She is one of the co-founders of long-running art periodical Point d’Ironie, named after a French punctuation mark denoting irony. And with a vast collection of contemporary art and a gallery to her name – La Galerie du Jour, founded in 1984 – she has realised her early dream of becoming a curator. “I’m very happy about that,” she smiles. “I never forced things.”
Today there are 129 ag nès b. shops worldwide, including her Marylebone High Street store, which celebrates its 25th birthday this month. Despite its lack of graffiti, Agnès is a fan of the area for its style and neighbourly spirit. “We have so many friends around there,” she says. “We have a lot of different customers, young and old, stars and people from the local area. Marylebone has a very agnès b. atmosphere, I think.”
What makes a place feel like agnès b., I ask? “Kindness,” she replies. “I want everyone to be kind.”
Today Agnès is reportedly one of the richest self-made women in France, though her focus is more
on redistributing her wealth than preserving it. “I pay 75% of what I earn to the state, and I’m happy to do it,” she said. “Every rich person should do it, which is not always the case.” Certainly not in the world of fashion, where billionaires grow ever richer off exploiting some of the world’s poorest workers. But of course, Agnès has issues with the f-word. “Fashion becomes very quickly unfashionable. It ends up in Chile, like the mountains of clothes in the Atacama Desert. It’s crazy. When I was young we had very few clothes, but now people consume clothes. And people suffer to make them; they are so badly paid. We are ver y concerned.”
Rather than wallow in impotent concern, Agnès is taking action. In 2003, she and her son Etienne bought a boat and launched The Tara Ocean Foundation, a floating laboratory committed to researching and preserving marine ecosystems in the face of climate change and plastic pollution. Back on dry land, the brand is working towards achieving 100 per cent traceability for all its clothes. Like many of its compatriots, the brand is using French startup Fairly Made to help shoppers research the composition and origins of their clothes by scanning a QR code
BONNE ANNIVERSAIRE
The agnès b. boutique, which opened on Marylebone High Street in 1999, was in the vanguard of a wave of high- quality retailers that revitalised the area around the turn of the millennium.
On Thursday 21st November 4-8pm, the store is celebrating its 25th birthday with an event hosted by presenter and local resident Jo Good. Look out for a 15 per cent discount on many of the brand’s lines, fashion advice from stylist Boo Attwood, complimentary tote bags, and plenty of drinks and canapes.
on the swing tag. “I think it’s a question of understanding what’s going on,” she says. “I’m sure that a lot of people, if they understood, they would be more careful.”
Then there is her endowment fund, through which Agnès finances an array of charities with global missions ranging from child literacy and female empowerment to clean water access and combatting AIDS. Currently her mind is on the refugee crisis, particularly the frequent tragedies of people crossing the sea in small boats to find safety. “It’s terrible. Terrible.” She has been a supporter of migrant rescue charity SOS Méditerranée since 2018, designing scarves and pins to raise money for their work.
Finally, there’s her art foundation, L a Fab, which opened its doors in 2020. An attempt to bring the many facets of Agnès’ career under one roof, the futuristic building in Paris’s fast-developing 13th arrondissement houses her Galerie du Jour, a bookshop and events space offering ever-changing exhibitions and areas dedicated to her humanitarian partners, as well as social housing apartments for those on low incomes and a kindergarten on the rooftop. On the question of combining fashion with activism, she remains resolute: a social conscience is not an optional accessory. “It’s part of my life! It’s part of our lives.”
Or as she is quoted on the agnès b. website: “Clothes, for me, are all about feeling in harmony with yourself so you can think about something else. They are on ly a means.”
One suspects everyone who meets Agnès leaves with plenty to think about.
(My new snap card igan arrives a few days later).
AGNÈS B. 40-41 Marylebone High Street, W1G 6PS agnesb.com
OUT OF OFFICE
How escaping daily routines can help ignite creativity and boost collaboration
In today’s fast-paced world, the daily grind can stifle even the most
creative minds. The routine of office life often leads to the same old ideas and limited inspiration, while the shift toward remote and hybrid work, although convenient, creates new barriers to connection. In these isolated environments, employees lose out on the spontaneous conversations and connections that foster genuine collaboration and camaraderie. Off-sites provide a powerful antidote to these challenges. Away from the usual desks and screens, teams can reconnect, re-energise, and tap into new perspectives.
Offsites not only enhance creativity and problem-solving but also lead to meaningful, productive collaborations. The opportunity to step outside of daily tasks and engage in more meaningful exchanges allows colleagues to discover each other’s strengths, building a shared understanding that boosts team morale and encourages innovative thinking. According to Harvard Business Review, analysis of a firm’s data over an eight year period found that offsites increased cross-team collaboration by 24%, especially benefiting newer employees looking to embed themselves in a company’s culture.
The Power of Place
The choice of location plays a pivotal role in boosting the impact of an offsite event. Unconventional venues spark curiosity, invigorate the mind, and break down mental barriers. An art gallery, a historical site, or a botanical garden can act as catalysts, offering a sense of adventure and making each interaction more memorable. Stepping away from predictable settings creates space for shared experiences that lead to meaningful connections.
The Chapel at Elmtree
In 1813, a humble stable at 32 Welbeck Street was transformed into a chapel. Despite its unassuming appearance, this sacred space drew worshippers from all walks of life, including Tsar Alexander II.
Today, The Chapel has been thoughtfully reimagined as a unique event space by The Howard de Walden Estate in partnership with Spacemade. With its blend of historical charm and modern elegance, The Chapel at Elmtree is the perfect location for a memorable company offsite, conference, or product launch.
Welcoming up to 100 guests, it serves as an extraordinary backdrop, designed to inspire teams and foster meaningful connections.
SCAN TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE CHAPEL Or visit spacemade.co
“For me, brussels sprouts represent something really exotic and exciting”
Ravinder Bhogal of Jikoni
RAV INDER BHOGAL
JIKONI
At home
My personal and professional life are so intertwined that when it starts feeling Christmassy at the restaurant, that’s when I start feeling Christmassy myself. I started thinking about my Christmas menu weeks ago: the turkey is ordered –from Ginger Pig, who we work with at Jikoni. Nearer the time, I’ll be ordering from La Fromagerie, who supply our cheeses at home as well as in the restaurant. I always make a birthday cake instead of a Christmas pudding, as it was my late father’s birthday on Christmas d ay, and it’s a lovely way to commemorate him. I make a different cake each year, but always with ingredients that remind me of him: passion fruit, whisky, Grand Marnier, marmalade. When he was here studying as a kid, he became obsessed with British things like marmalade, or gammon and pineapple. These are the flavours that remind me of him.
In t he restaurant Christmas in Jikoni really kicks off in November, when we start making cashew nut fudge and winter granola for our hampers. The aromas of cinnamon and allspice that fill the kitchen make me feel instantly Christmassy. Then the menu begins to change – and when our brussels sprouts dish is on, Christmas is really here! Charred sprouts with a hot and sour dressing has been one of our most popular dishes. I put them on the menu the very first year we opened and remember thinking, this could be really hit or miss. I love brussels sprouts – I’m an immigrant, so for me they represent something really exotic and exciting, something that you couldn’t find in Kenya. But I quickly learned that there are many people here who hate them. Eight years on, we still have them on the menu every Christmas, and they’ve converted absolutely everybody –even the people who are nervous
“As kids, we would drink litres of ponche Navideño in the runup to Christmas”
Adriana Cavita of Cavita
about sprouts. It’s an iconic dish. Come April, people are still trying to order it.
JIKONI
19-21 Blandford Street, W1U 3DH jikonilondon.com
ADRIANA CAVITA CAVITA At home
There’s a punch we have in Mexico at this time of year called ponche Navideño, made with fresh sugar cane, apples, pears, hibiscus and tamarind. It’s like a very rich tea. As kids, we would drink litres of it in the runup to Christmas. The adults would add mezcal or tequila. One of the big religious festivals in Mexico is Las Posadas, which celebrates the journey made by Joseph and Mary. It runs all through December, and throughout that time people have parties. When I was a child, they closed the roads and everyone made tamales and ponche Navideño and invited all the neighbours round. We
served this punch at the Christmas lights event in Marylebone Village last year, and people really enjoyed it. It reminds me of celebrating in the street with my family and friends.
In t he restaurant
Once the Day of the Dead is done in November we go straight onto decorating for Christmas. Our tree, which is always in the restaurant, gets dressed up for Christmas. I also love thinking about how the tables are going to look and feel. I’m going to Oaxaca in November, and I think I’ll bring a few decorations back with me to add to the ones we kept over from last year. We’ve also just finalised our Christmas menu too: oysters with passion fruit, then turkey tamale with red mole, then the option of rib-eye or lobster with a mix of garlic and dried chillies. It’s going to be really fun.
The moment I think, yeah, it’s Christmas, has to be eating my first mince pie. I like Christmas pudding, but I don’t go on feeding frenzies with it. With mince pies, though, it’s like opening a packet of Pringles. It’s impossible to stop at just one. I am not so keen on shop-bought mincemeat. It’s too sweet – it needs a hint of acidity to cut through it. At Le Gavroche we used to make mince pies, and I still have some mincemeat left over in the fridge from when the restaurant closed, which I’ll use this year. I’ll carry on the tradition of making it though; it’s relatively easy and inexpensive, and when you’re cooking it it’s just glorious; it fills the kitchen with this lovely Christ massy smell.
The trick is to make it well in advance – like a Christmas pudding, mincemeat really does benefit from ageing. At Le Gavroche we always
“Wit h mince pies, I find it impossible to stop at just one”
Michel Roux Jnr of Chez Roux
made it at least six months before Christmas, if not 12. It’s got a lot of booze in it, and the longer you leave it to macerate, the more lovely and plump the fruit becomes. You don’t want a dry filling.
We spend Christmas itself in France, and I have been known to make a mince tart for Christmas instead of individual pies, which you can cut and carve at the table. I’ll eat mince pies any time, but traditionally after a walk in the afternoon. It’s lovely to come in from the freezing cold and have something sweet and warming to get you going again.
In the restaurant
The Langham always has beautiful decorations, and a massive Christmas tree. When that goes up, it’s a real wow moment, which brings a smile to everyone’s faces. I love creating indulgent menus, which this kind of weather makes you yearn for. In Palm Court or at The Landau, we’re hoping to do a French Christmas dinner party,
with oysters, lobsters, a bûche de Noël and plenty of French cheese. One of the key differences between French and British Christmas is the number of oysters – I think because oysters in France are much cheaper than they are in the UK. My pub at The Langham, The Wigmore, comes into its own at this time of year. We have hot wine and hot cider flavoured with cinnamon, and everything leans toward that Christmas spirit: last year we had a Christmas dinner in a pie, which we might recreate this year. The Langham really is one of the most Christmassy places to be.
CHEZ ROUX AT THE LANGHAM, LONDON 1c Portland Place, W1B 1JA palm-court.co.uk/chez-roux/
SAN TIAGO LASTRA KOL
At home
I am obsessed with turkey. Every year since I moved here, I’ve been experimenting with a different >
“Ever y year since I moved here, I’ve experimented with a different
turkey recipe”
Santiago Lastra of KOL
recipe. Last year was my favourite so far: I deboned it, leaving the bones in the wings and legs, then treated it with brine and filled it with truffle butter before grilling it on the barbecue. That was amazing. We eat turkey in Mexico too. It’s cooked whole and served with mole and romeritos, a type of wild plant, and in my family we begin the Christmas meal with our own tradition, which I love: opening all the amazing preserved ingredients we’ve collected on our travels throughout the year and serving them with bread and olive oil, like canapes. It sounds very fancy, but my parents’ family are from Spain, and they love the conservas –pickled oysters in a tin, tinned anchovies and mussels, white asparagus in a can; they are incredible. I like to keep this tradition up: this year I found a tin of preserved razor clams in the north of Spain, so wil l open that. The thing that feels most Christmassy to me since moving
to the UK is the mince pies; I’d not had them before moving here before, of course, but I really like them. The current favourite is from Sally Clarke, who has a bakery in west London, but I’m always searching for a new favourite.
In the restaurant
We don’t do a special Christmas menu, we just do a winter menu, so for me that moment is the Christmas lights coming on in Marylebone. Being inside the restaurant and seeing the Christmas lights and decorations shining outside and having customers experience the whole journey of coming in from the dark, cold air and feeling all the hungrier because it’s cold, carrying Christmas shopping and smiling because it is Christmas – that is where the excitement is for me.
KOL
9 Seymour Street, W1H 7BA kolrestaurant.com
A CHEF’S CHRISTMAS WHERE THOSE IN THE KNOW DO THEIR SHOPPING
Marylebone High Street, W1U 4QD bayley-sage.co.uk
CADENHEAD’S
Exceptional single malt and blended whiskies sold by Scotland’s oldest independent whisky bottler. 26 Chiltern Street, W1U 7QF cadenhead.scot
LA FROMAGERIE
One of the country’s finest cheese rooms, plus a cornucopia of other carefully sourced produce. 2-6 Moxon Street, W1U 4EW lafromagerie.co.uk
LA PETITE POISSONNERIE
All the sustainably sourced fresh fish you need for a traditionally fishy Christmas Eve. 19 New Quebec Street, W1H 7RY lapetitepoissonnerie.com
LE VIEUX COMPTOIR
A glorious selection of under-exposed French wines sourced from small producers. 26-28 Moxon Street, W1U 4EU levieuxcomptoir.co.uk
PHILGLAS & SWIGGOT
One of London’s most respected independent wine merchants, with a wide-ranging repertoire. 22 New Quebec Street, W1H 7SB philglas-swiggot.com
ROCOCO CHOCOLATES
Inventive, creative chocolates and truffles made using the very best ingredients. 3 Moxon Street, W1U 4EP rococochocolates.com
THE GINGER PIG
Meat and poultry sourced from small farms with unimpeachable standards of quality and ethics. 8-10 Moxon Street, W1U 4EW thegingerpig.co.uk
BAYLEY & SAGE
Purveyors of everything from fresh fruit and veg to cheese and charcuterie, to sweets and treats. 33-34
CHRISTMAS IN
CHRISTMAS IN
CHRISTMAS IN
Discover what ’ s on this festive season by scanning the QR code below
Discover what ’ s on this festive season by scanning the QR code below
Discover what ’ s on this festive season by scanning the QR code below
@portmanmarylebone
@portmanmarylebone
#portmanmarylebone
#portmanmarylebone
@portmanmarylebone
#portmanmarylebone
THE DIFFERENCE MAKERS
Introducing the people behind central London’s vital charities and community organisations: Sarah Bissell, deputy director of relationship fundraising at Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity
Interview: Jean-Paul Aubin-Parvu
Images: Orlando Gili
The role of Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity is a simple one: it exists to fund the most urgent needs of Great Ormond Street Hospital. This broadly falls into four different areas, the first of which is the essential rebuilding and refurbishment of hospital wards and buildings. The hospital, located in Bloomsbury, opened in 1852, so parts of it are over 170 years old. Because of the historic nature of the building, updating the facilities to meet the demands of modern medicine is really important, and we are currently in the middle of one of the biggest capital appeals we’ve ever undertaken.
Another area that really excites me is research. Great Ormond Street Hospital conducts groundbreaking research into serious illnesses in children, and that work is already making a real difference, not just here in the UK but all over the world. The third area is the funding of pioneering equipment, including new technologies that require a proof of concept for wider use wit hin the NHS.
The fourth area is one of the truly unique aspects of Great Ormond Street Hospital: the vital wraparound care we provide for children and their families. The pastoral and logistical support we provide alongside the medical treatments includes accommodation for families so that they can stay nearby. It includes the work of play workers and play specialists, who not only help children stay in touch with their childhoods but also ensure they have an understanding of the difficult and complex procedures that they’re going through. It also includes a full chaplaincy team that can support families through the very toughest days.
Every single day, we see around 750 children for a mixture of inpatient and outpatient care. The hospital deals with about 60 of the most serious and complex illnesses and conditions that affect children, so the time they spend here is often the most difficult period in a family’s life. Everything we do at the charity is focussed on easing those inevitable stresses as much as we possibly can. That really is the prism we see things through. We’re focused on making sure that >
“Everything we do is focussed on bringing that sense of home to the child while they’re here receiving care.”
the children stay connected to their normal lives while getting the best possible care from our medical teams.
Our new Children’s Cancer Centre, which is being built right at the very front of Great Ormond Street Hospital, is one of the biggest healthcare builds in the UK and the driver of the largest fundraising appeal we’ve ever had. The hoardings have gone up and and construction work will soon begin, so this is a very exciting moment for us all. We aim to raise £300 million to help build this amazing centre, which will play a major role in taking cancer care forward.
The centre will have digitally advanced inpatient wards that will allow us to significantly expand our capacity and better integrate our cancer care, which is currently spread out across some very old buildings. We will also have a cancer day care centre – an important addition. We believe that a lot of care can happen for children through day care, so they can go straight back home and get back to their childhoods. Up on the roof of the hospital you’ll be able to see a huge garden space, where our families and staff will be able to get outside and really feel the benefits of being off the ward – somewhere to breathe the air, take a little exercise and claim back some of those precious moments of a regular life.
It’s easy to understand why creating a home away from home is really important. A child who is with us for bone marrow therapy, for example, may require a stay of up to nine months. Our staff have thought about that in every single area of care, from the surgery theatres to the rooms where the children and families stay. The children can digitally access friends. Families can sit down at tables for meals. We’re determined to bring that sense of home to the child while they’re here receiving care.
Christmas is very important to Great Ormond Street Hospital, so we’re super excited to be partnering with The Howard de Walden Estate for this year’s Merry Marylebone events. The money we raise will be put to great use in supporting families over the Christmas period and beyond. Some of the Howard de
Walden team have visited the hospital to have a look at our services, and it’s been great to be able to bring it all to life for them – we’re glad that it inspired them to take this action.
This kind of relationship means so much to our charity. My day job involves learning about the hospital, seeing families and hearing about the sometimes brutally difficult experiences they go through, and then hearing from colleagues about the revolutionary care they’re providing and how it can change these families’ lives. I then get the chance to play that back to our brilliant donors. None of what we do would be possible without donors. They really are our lifeblood.
I find it a genuine privilege to work for the charity. I love to spend time with the families, who very much inspire me. And when I’m close to colleagues at the hospital, hearing about the care they give, learning about the remarkable efforts they put into their research and how they go above and beyond to ensure that children get what they need, I find that drives me on. I believe that the money that’s donated to Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity really is going to create revolutions in children’s care. That’s enough for me to keep on asking people for money every day of my life.
The families who come to Great Ormond Street Hospital can count on the care they need being delivered by the amazing people of the NHS. But everything else, everything that gives children either a better chance of a cure in the future or the opportunity for genuine wraparound care today and tomorrow is funded by the charity. Every single pound we receive makes a difference. I give to the charity –I’m going to one of our sponsored runs on Saturday – and I do it because I’ve seen up close the difference it makes. Be it a penny, be it £10 million, it really couldn’t be any better spent.
GREAT ORMOND STREET HOSPITAL CHARITY gosh.org
A CLOSER LOOK
FOOD » 36
STYLE » 44
HOME » 56
GIFT GUIDE » 60
WELLBEING » 64
HEALTHCARE » 66
STYLE »44
Q&A
Mickey Ashmore, founder of Sabah, on revitalising a fading craft in two very different border towns
STYLE »46
STYLE PHILOSOPHY
Hairdressing superstar Larry King on community, cheetahs and his nan’s glamorous blow dries
HOME »58 ANATOMY OF A DESIGN
Corin Mellor of David Mellor on a contemporary tableware design that fits within an age-old tradition
Q&A: RIZ DAR
The owner of Zayna on the flavours of Punjab and Pakistan, his life-changing experiences in California, and the difficult balance between authenticity and adaptation
Interview: Vi el Richardson
Q: Where do you think your love of food came from?
A: When I was a young boy in Pakistan my father opened up a small restaurant in Faisalabad (known back then a s Lyallpur). The main dishes were karahi chicken and bhaati gosht. Everything was cooked fresh in a clay oven. It was very much street food, but it was very popular. Back then, it was unusual for men to be cooking – it was mostly women in the kitchen – but my dad loved it. I loved the food and the sense of hospitality the restaurant represented, but didn’t realise just how deep an impact it was having on me. It wasn’t until I moved to California and started working in kitchens that it really clicked for me.
Q: When did that moment arrive?
A: In California, I really hated the food. I’d grown up in Lyallpur and London eating fresh, home-cooked meals and suddenly I was living on fast food and processed stuff. I started calling my mum and asking her how to make cer tain dishes. I was living with four roommates, and I took it upon myself to make meals. It wasn’t great at first, but my roommates loved the food and that encouraged me to keep going. I started getting better and it became something I really enjoyed. That’s when I realised I might have a passion for cooking.
Q: So, what was your first job in a professional kitchen?
A: It was as a trainee baker in a French patisserie-type place in California. There was a bakery at the front serving things like croissants and palmiers, then at the back it was a restaurant serving Mediterranean dishes. I was so incredibly keen. I had one uniform for the kitchen and another for front of house and would cover any shift I could. I was so eager that within a month I was covering for the cook.
After that, I worked in different positions in lots of different restaurants, which was crucial to my understanding of hospitality. I learned about managing staff and what makes a good restaurant tick. I worked in room service in a five-star hotel in Berkeley Hills, which was a whole different level. I met a lot of people, including some celebrities, and working there showed me what top-tier service should look like.
Q: At what point did you start to become a fully fledged chef?
A: I met a guy from Armenia. He wasn’t a chef by profession (he was actually a plumber!) but he loved to cook and was opening a restaurant. He invited me to come work with him, and that’s where things really started to take off. It was called Magic Garlic Restaurant – everything had garlic in it, even garlic ice cream. The guy had real passion and that inspired me, but at the time I wasn’t familiar with certain foods. I didn’t know what calamari was. One day, a customer ordered a calamari steak and asked for it to be well done, so I sent the order to the kitchen. The owner blew his top, shouting at me because overcooked calamari turns out like rubber and I should have known better.
Q: How did you react?
A: It was a real wake-up call. I wanted to quit, but the owner convinced me to stay. He had a fiery temper, but he was passionate about food, and I respected that. I started learning the
details of different dishes and ended up helping in the kitchen more and more. It was a trial by fire, but I learned so much. It’s where my confidence as a cook really started to grow. The kitchen became my home. After a while, family obligations brought me back to London, but the restaurant bug was firmly planted i n me by then.
Q: Did you come back here with the intention of opening your own place?
A: It was in my mind, but it took a while. I was working and saving and always on the lookout for somewhere, but knew I had to wait for the perfect spot. It was after around 15 years that I found this place. It was a rundown Bangladeshi restaurant, completely neglected, with laundry bags and sacks of onions in the basement and pink and orange walls, but I could see the potential in it. There was a charm – it felt like a hidden, special place. It still has that special feeling now.
Q: Did you know what kind of restaurant you wanted?
A: Yes, I had a very clear vision about what I wanted to do. I didn’t want just another curry house. I wanted to serve authentic, traditional Punjabi and Pakistani food. At the time,
there weren’t many places offering that in London. Most of the Indian restaurants catered heavily to British tastes and I wanted to offer something more genuine.
Q: How did your family feel about you opening the restaurant?
A: They were really supportive. In fact, my father came over from Pakistan. I called him and said: “Dad, come over for a month. Let’s spend some time together creating this menu.” He jumped on a plane, and it was such a great experience for both of us. We spent that month experimenting with recipes,
ORRERY
Igor Tymchyshyn, chef patron of Orrery, on his Ukrainian grandmother, his commitment to seasonality, and a very boozy Christmas cake
Interview: Ellie Costigan Images: Giada Zosi, Justin De Souza
Back home in Ukraine, we grew all our own vegetables. My father had a small farm where he’d grow potatoes, beetroot, carrots, onions, garlic, you name it. My grandmother also had pigs, ducks, rabbits, and I was constantly involved in the growing and preparation of the food, and then the consumption!
One thing I regret is not picking up more from my
FOOD PHILOSOPHY
Left: Riz Dar behind the pass at Zayna
tweaking the flavours and getting everything just right. It was a really special time for me, bringing back memories of our time in the restaurant as a child.
Q: How did you approach the menu?
A: We kept everything authentic, the way it’s done back home. We’re not in the Punjab so some things need to change a bit, but we kept as close to the originals as we could. We did adjust the heat level a bit, as the dishes are generally hotter in Punjab than people here are used to, but the core flavours are all there.
grandmother than I did. She would never use a recipe. Everything would be on taste, touch, smell. I think this is the difference between a person who truly understands food and one who doesn’t. It’s not about the recipe, it’s about that feel.
There are two big things in my life: sport and cooking. You need to be committed for both. Without dedication, without putting the hours in, you’re
You have to be careful with the word ‘authentic’ – you need to ensure that while it’s there to guide you, it doesn’t become a cage that eventually starts to limit your ability to achieve your goals. In my case, that was to bring the smells and flavours of my homeland to diner s in the UK.
Q: Finding that balance sounds like a challenge.
A: It was, but it’s so important to me. I want to keep the dishes as true to their roots as possible, while making sure people here can still enjoy them. For example, back home we always serve meat on the bone,
not going to get far. I can’t live without either of them. I cook every single day. I train every second day.
I am a classically trained chef. When I came to England, I got a job withJean-Christophe Novelli. He made me realise I want to do this for the rest of my life. The nine years I spent with Marco Pierre White also didn’t go to waste – he is the second person who had a massive impact on me. These
but we serve boneless meat in the restaurant because that’s what most people here prefer. The stocks we use to flavour our dishes are made with the bones, so the flavours are still the same. We also make all our sauces fresh every day. I’ve seen places that use tinned tomatoes or cook in bulk and reheat the sauces. We use fresh vine tomatoes, whole spices, and cook everything from scratch every day. We don’t compromise on quality – that’s non-negotiable for me. Fresh spices, fresh vegetables and good quality meat—it all comes together to create a richer, more vibrant flavour. >
two shaped me as a chef. I will always be grateful to them.
The food here is an interpretation of classic French food. We use those techniques or preparations, but the inspiration comes from the produce available to us.
Our menu will always be led by the seasons. As soon as produce becomes available, it goes on the menu. As soon as it’s finished, it comes off. Strawberries are around for two months a year, that’s it. When they’re finished, we don’t get strawberries for the next 10 months. The seasons dictate. We just follow. It should come first in every kitchen.
Our seafood ravioli has been on the menu for more than 15 years. I tried to take it off a few times and I had to put it back on the menu because too many customers were disappointed.
For me it’s important to create a team where everybody helps each other, everybody works together. I don’t need superstars. Nobody needs superstars. We need a team that makes sure the job is done.
We have a big regular following at Orrery. They are really familiar with our food and if we do something wrong, they will tell us straight
away. Some come in once a week, some twice a week, some every second day. Each time they come to Orrery, the quality of the food will always be at a high level – and they will be looked after. There is no compromising. As long as I am here, I will never allow this to change. It’s my reputation and it’s the reputation of every single person who works here.
Look after your people and they will look after you. I’ve got a group of guys who’ve been with me for a very long time – my sous chef has been with me for 13 years and there are people on the floor who have been with us for eight or nine. I am a loyal person and expect exactly the same.
Christmas cake is a tradition at Orrery. The recipe was created maybe 10 years ago. We marinate the fruit for three months in lots of alcohol – if anyone eats the whole cake, they’re going to come out drunk! We also always have a beef wellington on the menu in December. Lots of families come in on Christmas day and sit at big tables. The Christmas lights are on by then in Marylebone and it’s all a little bit special. I love it.
ORRERY
55 Marylebone High Street, W1U 5RB orrery-restaurant.co.uk
Q: If 11-year-old Riz sat down to eat one of these dishes, would he recognise the flavours?
A: He definitely would! There’s something about the way food is cooked in Punjab that you just can’t replicate anywhere else, but we get as close as possible. We’ve had Asian customers from all over the world tell us that our food takes them back to their childhood, and that’s one of the best compliments we can get. That’s really sp ecial for me.
Q: How do you maintain that authenticity while keeping things creative and not getting stuck in a rut?
A: We keep our core dishes, but I’m always experimenting with new ideas. I travel to Pakistan each year to see family, and when I’m there I look for new ideas on food stalls, in restaurants and what the family is cooking. I’m always open to new ideas. We bring in seasonal dishes and adapt the menu through the year, but we always keep the core flavours of home.
Q: What have you added to the menu in recent times?
A: We introduced a traditional Kashmiri dish called harissa, featuring a braised leg of lamb cooked with black cardamom, cinnamon, cumin and ginger. The meat is then removed from the bone, and hand-blended barley and lentils are added for a creamy texture. The dish is finished with onions tempered in ghee and topped with a lamb seekh kebab. It’s a comforting, hearty dish, perfect for cold winter months and not commonly found in London.
Q: Do you find that customers have an interest in the history and culture behind the dishes you serve?
A: Definitely. I get a lot of questions about the origins of the dishes, the spices we use, and even the cooking techniques. It’s great because it gives
me a chance to share some of the stories I learned from my dad and my grandfather. Food has always been a big part of my family’s life, so when I serve dishes like bhaati gosht, it’s like sharing a piece of my history with our customers. That’s what I love about running the restaurant – it’s not just about the food; it’s about sharing those stories and traditions. There’s so much history and diversity in food, and I think people are really starting to appreciate that now.
ZAYNA
25 New Quebec Street, W1H 7SF
zaynarestaurant.co.uk
ZULA BURGER
After conquering Istanbul, ZULA Burger has now arrived in Marylebone. Established in 2017 in the Harbiye neighbourhood of Turkey’s biggest city by a group of friends with roots in the food and drink industry, ZULA has since opened several more branches, including its first UK site on Old Quebec Street. Quick and casual but resolutely stylish, this fast food joint has a menu of inventive, flavourful burgers and hotdogs, including the brand’s signature truffle mayo and pickled relish burger.
ZULA BURGER
5 Old Quebec Street, W1H 7AF
@zulaburgerlondon
NEW ARRIVAL
Celebrating Christmas at St. Marylebone Parish Church with
King Edward VII’s Hospital
Wednesday 11th December 2024, 18:30
We are delighted to invite you to our annual Christmas Carol Concert for an evening of carols, readings, and music. As usual, a number of very special guests will be joining us on the night.
All proceeds go towards funding the Centre for Veterans’ Health ground-breaking Pain Management Programme and 100% Military Grants.
This promises to be a very special start to the Christmas period. We look forward to seeing you there.
Tickets are priced at £25 per person, or £40 for a 2-ticket bundle and include mulled wine and mince pies.
To book tickets scan the QR code or go to https://tinyurl.com/KE-VII-Carol-Service
Alternatively you can search King Edward VII Hospital on the Eventbrite website.
Or send a cheque with the names of attendees to: Fundraising, King Edward VII Hospital, 5-10 Beaumont Street, London, W1G 6AA
Robert Carmo, head chef at The Italian Greyhound, on a luxurious mushroom pasta dish
Interview: Clare Finney
In a nutshell
This is a homemade fettuccini pasta with a sauce of dried porcinis, Scottish girolles and a confit egg yolk, finished with crispy sage leaves.
The inspiration
We’d never had a mushroom pasta on the menu before, but as we came into autumn we had a lot of customers requesting that we do one as a special. They loved it, so we decided to develop something even better to put on the permanent menu; something that was still special, but reasonably priced. The season is short for fresh porcini mushrooms – just a couple of weeks – which makes them quite expensive, so we decided to use dried porcinis instead. The Scottish girolles, which are in season for longer, bring a beautiful colour to the plate, as do the sage leaves. Everyone eats with their eyes, and it’s impossible not to get excited by this combination of the warm yellows, greys and green. It’s a real wow.
The purpose
We do have dishes with fresh porcini mushrooms when they’re in season, so it’s nice to have a dish that still celebrates that flavour but is more accessible: under £20. That’s part of The Italian Greyhound’s philosophy: it’s everyday, but it’s elevated. We also like to use the best British ingredients with the best Italian ones, and this is a good opportunity to
A GLASS APART
Patricia Michelson, owner of La Fromagerie, on a very special Grand C ru champagne
Interview: Vi el Richardson
celebrate sage and Scottish girolles. For us, the colder months signal the return of our more luxurious dishes: the hearty ‘cucina povera’ dishes that are the result of lots of low and slow cooking. This plays into the idea of The Italian Greyhound as a taverna, which comes into its own in autumn and winter.
The technique
Most of the pasta on our menu is fresh. We make it daily by hand, using ‘00’ flour and free-range eggs. We soak the dried porcini overnight, then the next day we cook them with shallots and a bouquet garni of bay, rosemary, thyme and celery, finished with a touch of cream to make a smooth sauce. The confit egg yolk adds a luxurious dimension without being too heavy, while the girolles –sauteed with confit garlic, parsley and butter – add bite.
The secret
This is a relatively simple dish, but it takes time and effort: making the pasta by hand, soaking the porcini overnight, cooking the confit egg yolk for an hour at 65C. It’s a dish you could recreate at home, but you’d need to know what you were doing. You’d also need to love cooking – it’s a true labour of love.
THE ITALIAN GREYHOUND
62 Seymour Street, W1H 5BN
theitaliangreyhound.co.uk
Just as I carefully consider every cheese I source for La Fromagerie, I maintain the same high standards when deciding on a champagne. For our house champagne, we’ve chosen P. Louis Martin Brut. It comes from Bouzy, a commune in the Marne department of northeastern France and one of just 17 villages whose champagnes are classed as Grand Cru. The vineyard has chalky soil and a remarkable microclimate. It faces due south, protected from the north winds by the Montag ne de Reims.
The blend of this wine is 70 per cent pinot noir and 30 per cent chardonnay, with the pinot noir giving backbone and strawberry fruit acidity while the chardonnay gives creamy, brioche richness. A perfect mousse with fine bubbles provides a fresh, almost saline appeal, immediately making your mouth water and livening up you r tastebuds.
Many people think of sparkling wine as a celebratory drink best enjoyed at the start of an evening or as an aperitif, but I treat it like any wine and love to pair it with cheese. I very much enjoy a glass of this particular champagnealongside our signature cheese, Beaufort Chalet d’Alpage, a Savoie cheese made from the milk of cattle grazed on high alpine pastures. It is our most prized cheese and one that works perfectly with a wine that’s
not too dry but has a racy edge, a milky raw-almond bittersweet note, and a depth that matches the rich, fruity, creamy body of the Beaufort. In fact, an entire cheeseboard can be enjoyed with P. Louis Martin Brut –from an earthy goat’s cheese to a farmhouse camembert with its wild mushroom taste and silky texture, or even a blue such as creamy Colston Bas sett stilton.
The potential for pairing sparkling wines goes far beyond cheese. I once spent a very pleasant lunch at Arpège, Alain Passard’s famous Paris restaurant, as the guest of an esteemed champagne house. Four different vintages of their champagne, ranging from extra dry to demi-sec, were served through the meal, and worked beautifully with the food. The lunch was a thank you for the work I had done on matching cheeses with their champagne – a task I have to say was an absolute pleasure!
This is such a lovely champagne at any time of year, but particularly for the festive season. Every New Year at midnight I will open a bottle to enjoy with my Beaufort cheese, toasting the end of the year just passed and the start of a new one.
LA FROMAGERIE
2-6 Moxon Street, W1U4EW
lafromagerie.co.uk
Q&A: MICKEY ASHMORE
The founder of Sabah on falling in love with Turkey, applying traditional techniques to a modern shoe, and revitalising a fading craft in two very different border towns
Interview: Mark Riddaway
Q: How did a kid from Dallas, Texas, come to develop such an intimate and lasting connection with the countr y of Turkey?
A: Growing up in Texas, I was around a pretty homogeneous group of people. Then, when I went to college, I suddenly found I had friends from Dubai, Greece, Slovakia, South America, Asia. I got very turned on by discovering other cultures and made a point of exploring as much of the world as I could. I studied abroad in Hong Kong and on my way there, I went to visit a friend whose family lived in Dubai. At the end of my week there, I still had a bit more time. My friend’s dad said: “You should go to Istanbul,” so I did – and I just fell in love. I thought it was the most magical, majestic, interesting, intriguing city I’d ever been to. I even wrote myself a note: “You’re going to live in Istanbul someday.” When I got out of college, I was working for Microsoft and they had a job opening in Istanbul, so I took it.
Q: What was it that so appealed to you about Istanbul?
A: It was that cl iché of East meets West, old meets new. I love the way the Bosporus moves through the city, and the variety of neighbourhoods, and the architecture, and the food, and the culture – back then, the economy was booming and there was this great arts scene happening. Mainly, though, I love people, and Turks are really engaging and welcoming. I quickly started dating a Turkish woman and had a very Turkish experience – I was one of the only non-Turks in our office, so I learned Turkish pretty quickly and felt really ingrained in the place, less as an ex-pat and more like a local.
Q: How did the shoes enter the picture?
A: After about two years in Istanbul, I ended up getting a job back here in New York City. Before
I left, the girl I was dating gave me a pair of traditional Turkish slippers. I loved them, but after so many months of wearing them, they started to wear out. I wanted to get some more, so started investigating the world of Turkish shoemaking. That’s how I found our business partner of today, Orhan, whose family were the most storied shoemakers in Turkey. They’re in Gazientep, down by the Syrian border. There’s a history of leather and craft there, and it was part of the old Silk Road, so it’s a real trading town. It’s also famous for its food, which is really fun for me. If you had 100 Turks in a room
and asked where the best food in Turkey can be found, 70 would say Gaziantep.
The traditional shoes they were making were really a relic of the past. If you look at paintings of the 1600s, in Ottoman times, they’re wearing those shoes. They weren’t something that Turks in Istanbul were wearing, but they were beautifully made and there were some elements that are so distinct in the world of shoemaking. I started getting excited about the idea of working with this family to make a new version of this shoe, an updated, modern version –and that’s what we’ve done.
LARRY KING HAIR
Larry King, the star hairdresser behind the new Marylebone Lane salon, on community, cheetahs, and his nan’s blow dries
Interview: Ellie Costigan
I wasn’t particularly academic at school and just wasn’t interested in further education. When I was 17, my mum suggested I try hairdressing. She helped get me an apprenticeship at Toni & Guy in Cambridge and I took to it like a duck to water. I absolutely loved training. I knew straight away that I’d found my thing.
I couldn’t have imagined where hairdressing would take me. I just worked really hard and always said yes to every opportunity. My wife Laura and I had children quite young and our struggles as young parents gave us the drive to give them a better life.
Laura has an incredible eye for detail. She does everything from branding to interiors. She designs all the packaging for the products, but also runs the
Q: What have you done to modernise them?
A: The traditional shoes often have a curled front toe, so we took it in more of a sneaker direction. We introduced different materials and colours, more creativity. We also added rubber to the sole – the traditional shoe is leather- soled, more like a house shoe, and the rubber gives it a lot more durability. There were changes to the shape and fit, and then a lot of improvements to the quality of the leather. We’ve spent a lot of time sourcing the best leathers we can and improving some of the supply chains to
Above: The Sabah workshop in Gazientep, Turkey Left: The factory in El Paso, Texas Below: The brand’s bestselling Fort Worth Brown Sabahs
STYLE PHILOSOPHY
business with me. We have a team of more than 60 people now, so it’s incredibly fast paced and there’s always loads to do. The two of us have really different roles, but we believe in each other and trust that we both know what we’re doing. Arguments are thankfully few and far between!
We want to create products that really work and make you better at doing your own hair at home. Like everything we do, it’s important to us that they’re unintimidating, but also beautifully packaged. Laura works really hard to avoid plastic wherever she possibly can, too. Sustainability is key to her designs.
The worst bad hair day I’ve ever had was my wedding day. For some reason my mum persuaded me to have it long. In hindsight, that was a very bad decision.
My career has taken me all around the world and I’ve met the most incredible people. I was recently asked to join model Cara Delevingne and photographer David Yarrow deep in the Namibian desert, working up close with cheetahs. That was one of the most insane places my job has taken me, and the experience will stay in my heart forever.
We take inspiration from our family when creating
make sure the shoe performs wel l over time.
Q: Although the aesthetic has changed, are the shoes still made using traditiona l techniques?
A: Yes. This is as handmade as shoemaking gets. The only machinery we use is a cutting machine, because to cut something by hand is kind of silly. But they’re hand-lasted, which is the process of stretching the leather over the form of a foot. It dictates size, shape and volume, and that’s a pretty hard thing to do with a machine. Handlasting allows for more control –every piece of leather is different,
our products. My Nanna’s Mousse was inspired by the big, glamorous blow dries I used to give my nan Dolly when I was training. She was incredibly fun, flying around on the back of motorcycles and jumping out of planes in her seventies. Liquid Hairbrush was inspired by our youngest daughter Nancy. When she was little, she was a real outdoors girl, always coming home with crazy knotty hair with twigs and leaves in it. We were trying new formulations and when my wife applied it to Nancy’s hair she said: “Wow, this isn’t conditioner, it’s a liquid hairbrush!”
So much of hairdressing is about relationships. How you make the client feel is so important. High-end salons can be really intimidating, but we want ours to be social,
so it allows you to manipulate the leather properly. The sewing is all done by hand, and the construction is distinct to Sabah. The style of stitching means the shoe needs less glue and fewer components to hold it together, so it has this rare mix of durability and flexibility. You can wear the hell out of them. You could make this shoe more industrially, but you would lose its true essence. It’s hand-wrought, and that’s what makes it beautiful.
friendly places, where people feel part of a community.
One of the best things you can do for your hair is find a great colourist who puts the health of your hair first. You should also get a trim regularly and choose your heat tools very wisely – they’re what cause the most damage.
I’ve filled our salons with, in my opinion, the most talented hairdressers in London. Each and every member of our team has different strengths and offers something unique. We inspire each other every day.
Our new site on Marylebone Lane is our biggest project yet. We’ve worked incredibly hard to make the space beautiful, but still intimate and welcoming. We have a bar serving drinks and a photo booth to grab a picture with your friends, mum, nan, or even your dog!
The best part of my job is the people. I get to work with the most amazing team every day and, of course, my clients. I’m either meeting someone new or getting to chat to my friends while I cut their hair. I’ll never get bored of talking to people.
LARRY KING HAIR
55 Marylebone Lane, W1U 2NT larrykinghair.com
A: Well, what’s been cool is, because we’ve been able to build an international market for the shoe, we’ve elevated the quality and elevated the price, and therefore elevated what we can pay for the shoe. We’ve created a lot of great jobs, and people want to work there. When we started, the shoemakers were all quite old. Now, their kids and grandkids are wanting to be involved. The 20-year-olds see that it’s an interesting job prospect and there’s a good living to be made. Orhan and his son Ozan, who now runs our factory, are a great example. Ozan was 14 years old when we started and is now 25, 26.
Q: Given how reliant you are on manual skills, have you had any trouble meeting demand as the brand has grown? >
Larry King
He went to college, is wicked smart, got an engineering degree and probably could have gotten a great job anywhere in the world, but he decided to stay in Gaziantep because he’s proud to be part of it and there’s a great opportunity t here. He and I have become really close friends. I’ll be at his wedding, he’ll be at mine, for sure. Top 10 invites.
Q: Did the earthquakes in Turkey last year affect your operation there?
A: Our town was the epicentre. Thankfully no one in our workshop was hurt, but it was still the hardest thing we’ve ever dealt with. We flipped into essentially being an aid organisation. We were able to turn our logistics team into a suppliesbuying team, and Ozan and the guys on the ground were coordinating the distribution of mattresses and tents and food. Our customers really showed up. The word ‘Gaziantep’ is written in every single shoe and on every page of our website, so when the earthquakes were in the news, people were like: “That’s Mickey’s people.” We raised almost half a million dollars. I wa s very proud of our customers, our community, our team here, the team in Turkey, how we were able to respond, and what it meant for how we’ve built our business. We were like: “Okay. This does run deep. We’ve been tested and we’ve proved it.”
Q: You’ve now opened a second factory in El Paso, Texas. How did that come about?
A: El Paso has a history of cowboy boot making and leatherwork. In a way, it’s very similar to Gaziantep. Both are border towns – with Mexico and Syria. Both are historic trading towns and cultural melting pots. Both are also places where that traditional craft had started to disappear – a lot of cowboy boot making had gone across the border to Mexico and a lot to Asia. We opened a factory there because we wanted a place that we could
get to quickly and do small runs and be creative. We’re using it for more speciality products. Today, we released something called the Bernie Baba – a slipper with shearling on the inside and outside. It’s kind of ridiculous. Part haircut, part shoe. The intention in El Paso is to go slow and be creative, work at a higher cost but a higher price point, innovate and collaborate, have fun and test things.
Q: So, your friends in Gazientep don’t object?
A: No, they don’t care. They were excited about it. What we’re doing in El Paso, we would never do in Turkey, and while it’s only a small piece of the business it helps to build the brand. A rising tide lifts all ships. The Fort Worth Brown Sabah we make in Turkey is our number one selling shoe by a mile, and it always will be, but new things keep all of us energised and inspired.
Q: Who buys your shoes?
A: Everybody. We’ve got farmers and surfers, artists and investment bankers, Nantucketers and Costa Ricans. You name it. You’ve got to be a little independent minded, I suppose. We’ve grown a lot, but we’re still an alternative choice. I think Sabah appeals to people who
appreciate quality over quantity and have a curiosity about the world, who want to engage and be engaged. They love the story of our craft and they like to come to our stores. A lot of our brand is around hospitality and our stores are focused on being a generous space for people to come and interact.
Q: In this age of on line retail, is that in-person experience still important to you?
A: Yes, we started with it and it’s still at the heart of our business. You know, I started selling these shoes out of my apartment. For the first three years, you could only buy them in person or by phone or email – there was no website. I always say: “I shook the hands of the first 10,000 customers.” I think we’ve built this culture around in-person shopping. We put a lot of soul into our stores. You walk in and you feel that each store is the true expression of a group of people. When people come in, they get it straight away. Our website is really beautiful and our content is really rich, but there’s nothing quite like seeing and feeling it.
SABAH
50 Chiltern Street, W1U 7QT uk.sabah.am
Cubitts Marylebone
The Modern Spectacle Maker
SPARKLES
“If you can’t sparkle at Christmas, when can you, eh?” as Martine McCutcheon didn’t quite write to Hugh Grant in her Christmas card. Just as ’tis the season for quoting (or misquoting) Love Actually, so too ’tis the season to be wearing sparkles every day without shame. If not now, when the lights are low, the mulled wine is flowing and the dulcet tones of Mariah Carey are filing the air, then when? To this end, we’ve compiled three of the best: a dress, a brooch and bag that will make you not just stand out but shine out from the crowd.
SEQUINNED DRESS
MAX MARA, £2,845 maxmara.com
All that glitters is not gold, as this sequinned dress from Max Mara ably demonstrates. An array of holly berry-red geometric sequins embroidered over a fitted, feminine metallic organza fabric will ensure an unforgettable entrance – whether it’s into the boardroom or the ballroom. Patent leather-effect straps keep everything in while everything else about this dress screams ‘out out out’.
FANOURAKIS SEA URCHIN PIN
MOUKI MOU, £475 moukimou.com
After 150 years of operating out of Crete, jewellery and goldsmiths’ company Fanourakis knows its sea urchins. The sea creature is as common to the Cretan cuisine as it is to its coastline, and every Cretan is familiar with its taste and compellingly prickly shape. No wonder it inspired fifth generation owner Lina Diamantopoulou Fanourakis to produce a pin in 18 karat gold, to be worn as an ear stud or a brooch pin, to pimp your lobes or the lapels of your most fabulous outfit.
GOLD LEATHER CLUTCH BAG
SANDRO, £199
uk.sandro-paris.com
A classic clutch, from the home of classic French fashion – but with a beautiful gold sheen to keep your feel festive. As always with Sandro, practicality never strays far from style: this clutch bag has an internal pocket for keys and miscellaneous bits, and can transform easily into a shoulder bag, courtesy of a decorative chain. But it’s fun, first and foremost, and will brighten up a more muted outfit as readily as it will make an already loud one delightfully OTT.
BALANCING ACT
Tracey Stainer, design director of ME+EM, on a look that balances contrasting tones and textures
We always start with fabric. As a team, we lay out our favourite fabrics, yarns and bespoke prints, and play with the contrasts. We work through the neutrals, adding layers of tone and texture, then start to build looks and stories. Our new collection is an exercise in contrasting textures, balancing proportion and playing with tonality. We set out to create a rich palette of tonal hues that complement and contrast. Here, we have a wool jacket in bitter orange, a cashmere cardigan in orange spice and our engineered relaxed jeans, accessorised with chunky Mary Jane loafers and a hips - to - waist belt, both in chocolate. The jeans are organic Italian denim, and the loafers and belt are also made in Italy from high-grade leather. The jacket is a virgin wool blend from one of our favourite family-owned Italian mills. This is an elevated day look, relaxed but very polished, perfect for a weekend lunch or evening drinks. The jacket is cut to be neat on the upper half of the body, accentuating the waist, while the bold colour is grounded by the antique military-style buttons and the warm, deep tones of the accessories and jeans. This look works so well because it also picks up on the tobacco stitching on the jeans and the old English gold colour of the bespoke belt buckle. It’s subtle but considered. The leg of the jean is cut to be close at the upper hip and waist, but flares out to the hem, and the engineered seam creates fullness where it’s most flattering, giving the look just the right amount of edge. The fresh white of the shirt gives a crisp contrast to the softness of the cashmere knit, the length of which is finished to hover around the waistband of the jeans. Finally, the belt is a warm neutral break in the outfit, working tonally with the intensity of the orange. At ME+EM we obsess about fit, functionality and clothes that flatter, and this outfit has it all.
ME+EM
4 New Cavendish Street, W1G 8UG
meandem.com
LUCIA PETROL CHAIN BAG LA PORTEGNA, £187.00 laportegna.com
FAIRYTALE OF NEW YORK JUMPER BELLA FREUD, £385 bellafreud.com
SHORT GOLDEN SEQUINED SKIRT THE KOOPLES, £195 thekooples.com
Join us on Saturday 22 March or hold your own walk and make a difference with every step you take.
Setting off from St Mary’s, Marylebone, you’ll take in stunning twilight views of London’s iconic landmarks like Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, and Horse Guards Parade. It’s a family-friendly event for walkers of all abilities!
Choose from a
Sign up now and make a difference!
To find out more and register today visit https://www.thebraintumourcharity.org/ get-involved/thetwilightwalk
Today, 34 people will hear the devastating words, “You have a brain tumour.” Together, we can help them live longer and better.
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& Julian Lonergan, owners of Gloucester Room, on the intimacy of handling artworks, the skill involved in framing, and their appeal to emerging artists
Interview: Mark Riddaway
Q: When you arrived here, you were taking over this space from a real local institution. How did tha t come about?
Nathalie: Railings Gallery was here for over 40 years, run by a delightful couple. They really bridged the eras in Marylebone – they were here in the late 70s, early 80s, first on Thayer Street and then on New Cavendish Street, long before the area was the desirable place it is now. They were among the pioneering spirits who moved into Marylebone and helped to change the atmosphere. Julian and I got to know the gallery in the 1990s. Julian had been an art consultant for many years, working with private clients and collectors, and I’d been more on the gallery and artist side of things. We’d both used Railings as framers. They were lovely people and their work was exceptional. There was also such a feeling
of warmth and familiarity about the space. A few years ago, when we were given the opportunity of taking over, we jumped at the chance. We knew we just needed to build on what was already here.
Q: You offer a bespoke framing service. What kind of artworks do people bring into the gallery to have framed?
Nathalie: It might be: “Here’s a drawing of our dog that my five-year-old did.” Or it might be an exquisite ultra-rare artwork – a Picasso or something. And they might come in on the same day, in the same shopping bag.
Julian: People buy things from auction and then have them shipped to us for framing, and we just open it and go: “Oh, wow. It’s a Picasso. Be careful with that.” We’ve framed paintings that are worth millions of pounds.
Q: Presumably, because of the bespoke nature of the service, this is one of those rare businesses where you’re still dealing with most customers face to face.
Nathalie: Yes, and it’s lovely because it means we really get to know people. There is often a strong sense of care and intimacy, maybe because of the artwork’s value, or maybe because it’s something to do with a family member – from their child, or a memory from long ago or, even more poignantly, something with a sense of loss. There’s an immediate feeling of walls coming down in a way that most professionals don’t get to experience –unless you’re a hairdresser!
Julian: I’m always quite surprised by the people you might call ‘captains of industry’, who are highly unlikely to head to a shop to sort out a bit of shopping but
absolutely love coming in here. They’ve bought this artwork at auction, and they really want to be involved in what it looks like. They get deep into the nuance of the colour, the wood, the glass, the sizing. They give you so much of their time, but you can’t imagine them going into a shop to choose a jumper – they’d just order it online.
Q: Where do you do the framing?
Julian: We have a big framing studio up in north London, about 5,000 square feet, and that’s working all week long. There are six craftsmen and women. We cut the wood, we make the shapes, we stain them in different colours, put different polishes on them, paint them, spray them. Everything.
Nathalie: We’re servicing big museums and galleries and private collectors, but whatever we frame, even if it’s just a little teeny drawing of a dog that your grandson did, a minimum of six people will handle that item. There’s the person who cuts and joins the frame. There’s the finisher who treats the wood, whether it be something like a simple wax or stain, or, at the very high-end, water gilding, which we bring in a specialist to do. If it’s a work on paper, there’ll be the paper specialist who’s preparing it and mounting it. There’s the fitter who brings all those elements together and does the final checks. There’s so much to it. It’s a real craft.
Q: Do you use a lot of dif ferent woods? Nathalie: One big change that we did introduce when we took over was really expanding that range. Julian’s background, dealing with really highend property developers and interior designers, means he has a good knowledge of such things. We started using a lot of walnut, a lot of cherrywood, a lot of oaks.
Q: Presumably the variations are almo st limitless.
Julian: There’s so much to it. You can have the same kind of stain and put it on two different types of wood and it’ll come back completely different colours. Some woods have got more grain than others, some are quite flat and smooth, some are quite textured. Then there’s the glass, and that’s a whole other world! So, what’s right for the artwork, what’s right for your home? Our guys up at the studio are very good at interpreting these needs, and everything is completely bespoke. I think that’s why people still come to us for this type and level of work – there’s nothing off the shelf at all.
Q: The shop is both a framing business and an exhibition space. Was that dual use always part of the plan?
Nathalie: Having known the site for so long, we’d always thought that the space itself was a big part of the appeal – high ceilings, big windows, a great position just off the high street. And we knew from having been on the other side of the equation that clients who are coming in to have things framed are often interested in collecting art as well. This space can be used to, at the very least, show off artworks that have been framed by our team. And as part of that process, we may as well curate what’s in those frames to try to tune into what our visitors might actually like. You never really know what will resonate with people – and that offers quite an exciting opportunity.
Q: How do you find the artists whose work you exhibit?
Julian: We might be drawn to a piece of work that’s been brought to us on the framing side. We also get out and about, to the shows and art fairs. We’re not looking to have a large roster of artists, but if we see something we really like, and we think it’s a fit for Marylebone, we’re quite keen to give things a go. We’ve had quite an eclectic mix: contemporary videos and photography, abstract, figurative. As long as it it’s good quality work, it drags people in, and we can sell it.
Q: Is there anything those artists have in common?
Nathalie: I suppose it’s largely been younger artists, or certainly emerging artists. They have to be comfortable with the notion that the dual sides of the business must work hand in hand. So, we wouldn’t be best suited to working with artists who are looking for a very conventional gallery structure.
Julian: Quite often young artists can’t afford to put a decent frame around their work, particularly if they’re framing 20 different pieces. When we exhibit, we can really showcase the work as it needs to be shown, and it always looks really good. I think they appreciate that opportunity.
Q: It’s not all new works, t hough, is it?
Nathalie: We do a certain amount of dabbling with secondary-market 20th century pieces. We buy a few things at auction and frame them up really nicely. Julian came across some lovely vintage Matisse lithographs – authentic, but not signed. By the time he’d sprinkled his magic, it just looked so lovely. The actual artwork, viewed independently, is of quite a modest value, but there’s so much we can do to create something that will be greatly cheri shed at home.
GLOUCESTER ROOM
5 New Cavendish Street, W1G 8UT
railings-gallery.com
Left: A painting by the artist Sam Wood, on display at a recent Gloucester Room exhibition
Above: The Gloucester Room gallery and framing shop
ANATOMY OF A DESIGN
STAINLESS STEEL SALT & PEPPER MILL SET
Corin Mellor, creative director of David Mellor, on a contemporary design that fits within an age- old tradition
Interview: Vi el Richardson
Requirement
The idea was to create a fine dining table piece, something that would work as a piece of jewellery for the dining table. In this country, we have a long tradition of high-quality salt and pepper dispensers adorning fine dining tables, going back hundreds of years. If you go to the Goldsmiths’ Company collection, you will find superb examples of sterling silver salt and pepper mills. But silver plate needs to be constantly polished, and it takes real skill to keep it at its best. Left in the air, it quickly tarnishes – it can go from gleaming to unusable in a matter of weeks. That’s
possibly why sales of silver plate has really tailed off. When I started, 30 per cent of our cutlery was silver plate. Now it’s about five per cent. I wanted to design something that had the super-smart, fine dining appearance of those silver mills, but in stainless steel.
Inspiration
I wanted to create something that felt contemporary but would fit within this historic tradition. I also wanted something that would sit comfortably next to the other stainless steel products I’ve designed. Originally the pieces had a flat polished top, very purist, which I took as far as the prototype stage. Then I recalled a custom bowl I created several years ago using fluted stainless steel and the amazing interaction this created with the light: when you moved it, the bowl sparkled like a piece of jewellery. I decided to give that a try. I’d wanted to get the feeling of a cog somewhere in the design to reflect the mechanism hidden inside, and the fluting did that.
Process
Making these mills is quite a complex process. They may look simple from the outside but each one contains 27 separate parts. There’s the crushing and grinding mechanism and the injectionmoulded sections that hold the mechanism in place. The top section – the part you twist – is a combination of spun steel and machined steel parts that are welded together. You access the tube inside by pulling the top off; this has to be a snug fit to give that sense of quality but not so tight that it’s difficult to remove. The difference could be as little as 0.5mm between something that worked well and something that just didn’t feel right. With such a complex design, it is incredible how much difference tiny changes in size, shape and position can make. It was a painstaking process getting all 27 components to work seamlessly together, while
continually refining the feel and look of the finished piece.
Materials
I love stainless steel because it’s such a versatile material while also having the potential to be really beautiful. But you have to have a real understanding of it, because this is not the easiest of metals to work with. Its main strength also presents its biggest challenge: that it’s just so hard. Sawing, milling and polishing are extremely hard work. But once you’re done, it’s permanent – this material is virtually indestructible. The grinding mechanism for both mills is made of ceramic. I’ve been using it for years because it’s so much better than the alternatives. Steel can eventually corrode if damaged and nylon can wear out. Ceramic solves both issues. The wooden stand came from a customer telling me that he loved our pepper mill but every time he put it down it left pepper grounds on the table. I designed the stand to solve that problem. This one is walnut because walnut and mahogany were the two woods traditionally partnered with high-status silver plateware.
Philosophy
My philosophy has always been that design follows function – plus a bit more. Pure functionality can slip into being boring. I always start designs with a purist core and then see what else suggests itself. Designs go through several iterations, so ideas arise along the way, most of which end up on the studio floor. But I do like to add a little bit of excitement to a design, to change the feel of the piece. In this design, the fluted top is a nod to what’s happening inside. The fact that the top looks like a mill face did not initially suggest itself to me. Sometimes it comes from a place unknown. But it’s in that that you see some of my design philosophy.
DAVID MELLOR
14 New Cavendish Street, W1G 8UW
davidmellordesign.com
GIFT GUIDE
Our Marylebone Christmas wish list
STONEWARE PET BOWL LE CREUSET, £37 lecreuset.co.uk
BISTROT PEARLY CUTLERY SABRE PARIS, FROM £10 sabre-paris.co.uk
GRAND TOUR NOTEBOOK FABRIANO fabrianoboutique.com
BENTO BOX NIWAKI, £36 niwaki.com
JANCIS ROBINSON X RICHARD
BRENDON YOUNG WINE DECANTER PHILGLAS AND SWIGGOT, £158 philglas-swiggot.com
TRIANGLE DOUBLE HANDED CHOPPER DAVID MELLOR, £24 davidmellordesign.com
Platform provides a showcase for emerging, sustainable designers whose work you’d struggle to find anywhere else. BYAM England is a case in point. The brand is a family affair: mum Mandy, daughter Katie and daughter-in-law Harley. Their signature handmade scented candles, contained within fine bone china vessels, are complemented by coasters, kitchen linens, art prints and greeting cards, all stylishly monochrome, all emblazoned with Harley’s characterful line-drawn i llustrations.
Platform, £55 platform-store.com
BYAM ENGLAND CANDLES
DALAHÄST TOTALLYSWEDISH, FROM £19 totallyswedish.com
MOULIN ROTY SUZY MOUSE COLOGNE AND COTTON, £30 cologneandcotton.com
Back in early January, Lyn Harris, the eponymous Perfumer H, paid a visit to the home of Nigel Slater, much-loved cook, food writer and long-standing client of Lyn’s perfumery. Inspired by the warmth and beauty of his Georgian townhouse, the comforting scent of baking, and the spice and sweetness of their tea and cake, she asked Nigel to collaborate with her in capturing the essence of his home in a fragrance. The result is A FEAST, a beautiful range of products that includes soap, candles, incense sticks and loose-leaf tea – perfect gifts for anyone who would welcome a little more Nigel Slater in their lives.
Perfumer H, £25-£380 perfumerh.com
MUSTARD GREENS GROW BAG LABOUR AND WAIT, £9.50 labourandwait.co.uk
VELVET HAND LOTION DIPTYQUE, £59 diptyqueparis.com
POLISHING AND HYDRATING PAIRING AESOP, £61 aesop.com
MAUDE BURN MASSAGE CANDLE OH MY CREAM!, £30 ohmycream.co.uk
SMALL SILVER PEBBLE SPOON MOUKI MOU, £230 moukimou.com
LIMA EARRING KIMAI, £695 kimai.com
QUARTZ COCKTAIL RING KASTUR JEWELS, £250 kasturjewels.com
THALIA-MARIA GEORGOULIS
SMOKEY
FROM SANDBAGS TO SMART DEVICES
Jon Denoris, exercise scientist and founder of Club 51, on six eras that changed the world of fitness and three developments that will shape its future
HOW DID WE GET HERE?
The a ncient world NOTHING IS NEW
Nothing is really new. Many of the exercises we still see performed in workouts today can be traced back to the ancient world. Bodyweight exercises and callisthenics were prominent, as much by necessity as choice, but Egyptian charioteers lifted sandbags for weight training, while the ancient Greeks developed systemised routines, performed in their ‘gymnasia’. In ancient China and India, the importance of physical activity was widely recognised, often integrating breathing and mindfulness via activities such as qigong, martial arts and yoga. The Romans improved on the methods of the Spartan Greeks and used them to underpin their military prowess. The Roman physician Galen was famous for his fitness routine (which doesn’t seem out of place today), that of “fresh air, sufficient sleep, a sensible diet, drinking plenty of water, and exercise”. He was also a proponent of the medicine ball, still used by gyms everywhere (including my own).
The 19th century THE BODY BEAUTIFUL
Eugen Sandow, the so-called “father of modern bodybuilding”, was way ahead of his time and could even lay claim to being the first celebrity trainer and fitness influencer. In the late 1890s he was selling his own supplement brand, Sandow’s Health & Strength Cocoa. He
was also designing dumbbells and training programmes for the rich and famous, including royalty. It wasn’t until the 1980s, though, that the bodybuilding pioneered by Sandow crossed over into the mainstream, with Arnie and his fellow jacked-up iron pumpers leading the charge.
The 1980s
THE AEROBICS ERA
The concept of aerobics was first given form in the 1960s by the pioneering American exercise physiologist Kenneth Cooper, but it was in the 1980s that these rhythmic routines really broke through. Icons such as Jane Fonda (still got my leg warmers) led the move to dance-based fitness, with more than 17 million people buying her videos. Ironically, it was the invention of the TV – also responsible for the rise of the couch potato – that brought fitness to the masses. Richard Simmons and Kathy Smith played their part, with the latter largely responsible for the ‘step’ craze. The BBC launched The Green Goddess in the early 1980s as aerobics became part of the UK’s break fast routine.
The 1990s
THE BIG GYM BREAKS THROUGH
It was in the 1990s that big chains of gyms and health clubs began to establish themselves in the mainstream, with the likes of 24-Hour Fitness, LA Fitness, Bally, David Lloyd and Fitness First leading the way. This was where the fitness industry levelled up – what the big gyms lacked in creativity and personalisation they made up for in accessibility and in a general improvement in standards, with well-maintained kit and higher levels of
The ancient world
The aerobics era
Jon Denoris
The CrossFit phenomenon
cleanliness and service than were found in the small, dark, sweat-and-sawdust boltholes of old. This was mirrored by a rise in the number of personal trainers, seen for the first time as a resource for the many, not just pampered celebrities.
The 2000s
THE CROSSF IT PHENOMENON
This fitness phenomenon combined elements of weightlifting, high-intensity training and gymnastics and gained a cult-like following. However, with the early band of instructors encouraging participants to train to the point of being sick (their mascot was called ‘Pukey the Clown’) it was never far from controversy. That said, CrossFit has definitely contributed a lot to the fitness and workout landscape. In particular it has made Olympic lifting and strength training using barbells much more mainstream, especially among female enthusiasts. It remains p opular today.
The 2010s BIRTH OF THE BOUTIQUE GYM
With the coming of age of millennials, a new kind of fitness consumer emerged –one who wanted fitness their way, on their own terms, in a more intimate setting than the giant warehouse-like settings of the big-brand gyms. Very much an urban phenomenon, the boutique fitness studio was born. Spin studios and bootcamp workouts began to take centre stage, while personal training studios led by fitness coaches took advantage of the tech boom and began to leverage their brands to a much wider audience, gaining influence via platforms such as Instagram and TikTok.
A refit to be fit Club 51 Intelligent Fitness is Jon Denoris’s health and human performance studio on New Cavendish Street. Following an extensive renovation, new services include VO2-max testing, one-to-one personal training, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Thai boxing, yoga, reformer pilates, physiotherapy, osteotherapy, performance nutrition, sleep coaching, infrared sauna and recovery treatments.
WHERE TO NEXT?
SWEATING WI TH THE OLDIES
Back in the 1980s, Richard Simmons pumped up the music and encouraged people to “sweat to the oldies”. One of my predictions, and one that could change the world of fitness, is that an increased focus on older adults will see us sweating with the oldies. The UK population over the age of 65 is growing at an unprecedented rate. With this cohort facing an increased risk of chronic illness, cognitive impairment and falls, opportunities exist for organisations and health professionals whose service focuses on the unique needs of this under-served demographic. Guided by experts who understand their needs, there is no reason why older people can’t and shouldn’t exercise. The personal and social benefits could be significant.
H IIT ME HARDER
Time has always been one of the biggest barriers when it comes to encouraging people to exercise more regularly. And yet we also know that consistency is one of the most important factors in achieving long-term results. For that reason, I think there will be a spike in the number of ‘time efficient’ HIIT-style fitness offerings. I don’t mean going back to the 6 Second Abs craze (do you remember that fad!?), but as more evidence emerges for the cardiovascular and metabolic benefits of HIIT, short workouts that take less than 30 minutes and offer genuine results are going to be a gamechanger for many busy people.
GETTING SMART
Look out for the increased use of wearable devices that can be used to design personalised routines that meet the specific needs of the individual, and measure the outcomes in real time. By using data to adjust or modify each session, the aim is to maximise those outcomes and reduce the risk of injury. For any trainer, one of the most important jobs is to build a strong sense of the aims and abilities of their clients, and tech, when properly applied, can add a strong empirical base to those assessments. In a sphere in which outrageous over - promising is not unusual (6 Second Abs, I’m looking at you again), it’s important to remember that no amount of smart watches, smart training shoes or bio-hacking techniques will remove the need for hard work and consistency. But they do hold the promise of making that hard work more targeted and meaningful, which can’t be a bad thing.
What we can learn from our quick journey through history is that while some fitness fads come and go, we should be wary of anyone who says there’s only one way to stay fit or active. The real experts still advise a complete programme that includes some form of strength work, some heart health or cardiovascular conditioning and work to improve mobility and flexibility. Exactly what shape that takes is constantly up for grabs.
CLUB 51
51 New Cavendish Street, W1G 9TG clubfiftyone.co.uk
Getting smart
TRANCE ENCOUNTERS
Clinical hypnotherapist Magda Harbour on how hypnotherapy works, who it might work for, and why the fear of ‘being controlled’ is unfounded
Interview: Vi el Richardson
Q: What is clinical hypnotherapy?
A: The official definition is the induction by a trained practitioner of deep relaxation in order to produce a natural biological state of mental absorption of information, concentration and focussed attention. The idea is that when someone is in this state, free from internal and external distractions, they can focus very deeply on the issues that they’re working with. Hypnotherapy is only defined as clinical when it is being used by a trained and registered professional for clinic al purposes.
Q: How does it differ from stage hypnosis or a self-hypnosis app?
A: A true hypnotic state is the same however you reach it, but stage hypnosis is there purely for entertainment purposes and conducted in a public space with no clinical intention. People use self-hypnosis to find a deep relaxed space, and while this may help moderate stress or anxiety, it is not defined as clinical because you’re not addressing these issues directly and the experience is not being led by a trained clinical hypnotherapist.
Q: What training do you need to have undertaken to practice in the UK?
A: Hypnotherapy is considered a complementary therapy in the UK
so there is not a legally binding training framework. However, we have several associations whose registered members are required to undertake extensive training in not only hypnotic techniques but also psychotherapy and its different treatment methods. These organisations also have a code of ethics and require continued professional development to maintain your membership. Having that accreditation is the only way to get insurance as a practitioner. I always advise anyone planning to consult a hypnotherapist to go to one who is registered with a reputable organisation. I’m registered with the Association for Professional Hypnosis and Psychotherapy (APHP).
Q: What are some of the main conditions or issues that you treat?
A: For me, the most common consultations will be for forms of anxiety: panic attacks, phobias, compulsions, insomnia, sleep disorders, the list is quite long. Another area where I do a lot of work is chronic pain. This is pain which is persistent after six months of treatment. I also work with some conditions where the psychological condition has reached a point that is creating physical pain.
Q: What is the experience of the client?
A: First, we have to get to know one another, because the rapport between the professional and the client is critical. If this is not good, they will not move forward with any kind of therapy. We discuss where the client is in their life, what has brought them here and what they would like to achieve. The key is to give both of us some context about what we’re aiming for. Once we’ve agreed on the issues, worries, anxieties and goals, I will explain a plan of action. This includes which techniques we will use and what order we will proceed in. After that
we will start with the treatment. The first hypnosis would probably take place in our second session.
Q: What is the mechanism by which you are treatin g the client?
A: It is very important to remember that the hypnosis itself is not the treatment. It is the platform upon which we overlay the treatment technique. This could be cognitive behavioural therapy, inner child therapy, analytic al therapy –I choose the treatment modality depending on what is most appropriate for the client. I make sure they know exactly what is going to happen, step by step. There is constant reassurance. In fact, even under hypnosis they can ask questions if they arise. The actual hypnosis session takes about 30 minutes. It is an intense session so if we go on for much longer the mind has the tendency to terminate the hypnosis itself and bring the person back to a waking state.
Q: What is the interaction dur ing hypnosis?
A: As the clinician, I lead the session. This will be in the form of me asking questions, providing reassurance, guiding the session. Some of the psychological treatments have the clinician doing most of the talking and guiding while in others it is more of a discussion. As well as answering my questions, the client can ask questions of their own. They can give me feedback about how they are feeling. Some clients only communicate with pre-agreed finger movements, as they feel that talking will break their focus. I may ask questions which they will consider but not answer until after I’ve brought them out of the hypnosis state. It is very much tailored to the individual.
Q: What is the client feeling during the session?
A: While they are in a trancelike state, their awareness of the >
“It is very important to remember that the hypnosis itself is not the treatment. It is the platform upon which we overlay the treatment technique.”
going down a path they’re not ready to explore. Sometimes neither of them are aware that a line has been crossed. In hypnosis the snapping out of the state lets everyone know that some boundary has been reached that needs further understanding and discussion. This is what I like about this process – the inner mind is what we’re working with and it has its ow n boundaries.
Q: Are there people for whom hypnotherapy is not the best tech nique to use?
surroundings does not go away. So, the scent in the room, the nature of the lighting – these are things the client is always aware of. They can snap out of the state of hypnosis in a microsecond. If a question clashes with their religious or moral beliefs, for example, they will snap out of the trance immediately. If they don’t drink for religious reasons and I ask them about enjoying a glass of wine in a social setting, they will come out of the hypnosis at once.
Q: Why will this happen?
A: Because we have strayed outside of our safe boundaries. The mind knows it is in a vulnerable state where it is susceptible to suggestion, so when it recognises a suggestion it considers unsafe it will reject it immediately and bring itself out of the trance state as a form of self-protection. We can then have a discussion about what has been said and how to proceed. This is one of the reasons I really like this technique: there are built-in safeguards within the people themselves.
Q: Explain a little bit more about these ‘safeguards’. W hat are they?
A: In talking therapies, because of the power dynamic between the patient and the clinician, it is sometimes possible for the patient to be unconsciously influenced into
A: Yes, anybody who has got an objection to hypnosis. The most important element of any therapy is for the person to be understood, to be heard and to work in what they feel is a safe space. If this is not the case, they should not proceed. Then there are clinical contraindications. If the client is suffering from psychosis with hallucinations, hypnosis must be completely avoided. Also, while hypnotic treatment is very good for addictions, it should never be used when a person is under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Any form of therapy will be very difficult in this st age, but you should definitely avoid hypnosis.
Q: You mentioned the concept of a safe space. What is this?
A: Most people have a ‘loved space’ – this is family and friends, the circle of love around us. This is crucially important for our general wellbeing. But from a clinical perspective it can have its issues. Because our loved ones want us to recover from a trauma quickly, there may be suggestions, practical advice and after a while an element of frustration. Things like: “Get over it,” or “It’s been months now!” This all comes from a place of love, but it can produce feelings of shame, not being able to share, hiding your true feelings to please the people you care about. It’s a loved space, but it’s not always a safe space. A ‘safe
space’ is one with no judgement, no timescale, no pressure to ‘get better’, no fear of later repercussions about things you might reveal. This is very difficult to achieve within a friend or family group. It is a place where the client is free to explore the issues in a way that suits them, at their own pace. My job is to create such a space and then using the right technique guide the client to where the issue that brought them here can be successf ully treated.
Q: How is hypnotherapy viewed within the NH S these days?
A: Hypnotherapists can be registered on the NHS list of complementary therapies. Some GPs and other health professionals will sit on the fence until a patient has tried everything else and this is a last resort. Others, particularly those with some training in hypnotherapy, will be strong advocates. For some conditions, in certain cases, we can apply for NHS funding if 12 months of other treatments have not worked.
Q: Finally, what would you say are the benefits of hypnotherapy?
A: I would say speed. As I mentioned, we use different psychotherapy techniques in conjunction with hypnosis and these are wonderful in their own right. Different modalities of psychotherapy and pain management have helped millions of people. However, when combined with the power of hypnosis, bypassing barriers, both conscious and unconscious, we can achieve excellent results much more quickly. The wonderful thing is that these can be achieved in a safe, calm atmosphere where the client never feels under pressure. It is why I am so passionate about hypnotherapy. By its nature it is a kind treatment as well as a very effective one.
MORTONHARBOUR
7 Nottingham Street, W1U 5EW mortonharbour.com
020 7486 6711
sales@mcglashans.co.uk
lettings@mcglashans.co.uk
BAKER STREET, MARYLEBONE W1
£1,390,000
A spacious 4th floor apartment. Living room with dining area, kitchen, principle bedroom with en suite bathroom, 2 further bedrooms, family bathroom, lift, morning porter, EPC – C, Council Tax (Westminster) Band G, Leasehold – 970 years remaining + Share of Freehold, Service Charge £4,283 pa, Ground Rent £316 pa
BAKER STREET, MARYLEBONE W1
£1,295,000
A well-designed 3rd floor apartment. Living/dining room, kitchen, principle bedroom with en suite bathroom, 2nd bedroom, family bathroom, lift, morning porter, EPC – C, Council Tax (Westminster) Band G, Leasehold – 969 years remaining + Share of Freehold, Service Charge £3,460 pa, Ground Rent £252 pa
Guide price £3,750,000
4 bedrooms • 2 reception rooms • 4 bathrooms • Balcony • Garage Clay Street London W1U
A contemporary four-bedroom, four-bathroom mews house located moments away from Marylebone High Street.
Mayfair & St James’s 020 7493 0676 mayfair@carterjonas.co.uk
