Luxury London Magazine April 2019

MAGAZINE

April 2019 £7.00

DRIVE FEATURING: LAMBORGHINI’S STEFANO DOMENICALI, JAGUAR’S IAN CALLUM

ASTON MARTIN’S ANDY PALMER & MAREK REICHMAN, THE LATEST FROM THE GENEVA INTERNATIONAL MOTOR SHOW AND, ER, DUA LIPA

CONTENTS

24 UP FRONT 10 EDITOR’S LETTER

13 38 PRIZE LOTS

66 POLE POSITION

The Rothschild vintages going

Top gear for discerning drivers

under the hammer

13 THE BRIEFING

40 BIG SHOT

Inside Damien Hirst’s high-

The pick of the bunch at Sony’s

octane hotel suite

World Photography Awards

22 ON LONDON TIME

48 RUNS LIKE CLOCKWORK

Luxury living with nightclub

The story behind Stanley

connoisseur Luca Maggiora 24 IAN CALLUM In the driving seat with

Kubrick’s most controversial film

COUTURE

Jaguar’s director of design

C U LT U R E

DRIVE 70 TORQUE OF THE TOWN

Braking news from the automobile industry 78 WINDS OF CHANGE

Lamborghini chairmain and CEO Stefano Domenicali shares his brand strategy

54 NEUTRAL TERRITORY

84 EXTREME MACHINE

How to wear the colour of the

Electric car racing prepares to go

season: beige

off-road

32 THE AGENDA

56 CONCRETE JUNGLE

88 NEW RULES

Terry O’Neill marks six

Street style for the city that

Dua Lupa partners with Jaguar

decades behind the lens

never sleeps

on its first all-electric car

THE MOTORING ISSUE

88 90 MAKING HIS MARQUE

84

18

ESCAPE

How Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer gave the 106-year-old

114 ADVENTURE ISLAND

marque a new lease of life

The conservationists on a misson to save Mauritius

96 MAREK REICHMAN

The brain behind Aston Martin’s

120 DESIGN INTERVENTION

most recognisable cars on

How one architect changed the

designing the brand’s first SUV

face of Florida’s Palm Beach

98 BRUTE FORCE

124 PRIVATE PANEREA

Road testing two of the fastest

The tiny Aeolian island favoured

street-legal hypercars 104 Y EAR IN REVIEW The top 10 classic car auction

by Beyoncé and Jay-Z

PROPERTY

results from 2018 106 HAPPY TRAILS

132 INSIDER KNOWLEDGE

Navigating North America’s

toughest off-road course, the

140 S POTLIGHT

infamous Rubicon Trail

A five-bedroom house in Pimlico

London’s new mansion hotspot

COV E R The Lamborghini Huracan Evo Spyder, which debuted at the Geneva International Motor Show 2019 (p.80)

FROM THE EDITOR April 2019 Issue 11

Just as I sit down to introduce our motoring-themed April issue, over in Australia Lewis Hamilton records the fastest time in the second practice session of the first Formula One meet of the year. He has just beaten Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas by 0.048 seconds, who pipped the Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Pierre Gasly. Germany might claim Mercedes as its own, but the company’s F1 division is actually based in Brackley. Red Bull operates out of Milton Keynes.

In fact, six of the ten teams competing in the championship this year are based in Britain. More accurately, within a 60-mile corridor in southern England – the so-called ‘Motorsport Valley’. Following the end of the Second World War, so the story goes, the area was littered with abandoned airfields and inhabited by a population of aerospace engineers who, after some thumb twiddling, turned their attentions to building fast, lightweight race-cars. RAF Silverstone became a popular testing ground.

A couple of decades later, a group of British entrepreneurs, headed by engineer and designer Robin Herd and former FIA president Max Mosley, started March Engineering in North Oxfordshire. They built cars for a range of championships, including Formula One. At the end of the seventies, Bernie Ecclestone, aided by Mosley, began securing the TV rights and trackside advertising space that would transform Formula One into the bigmoney behemoth it is today. By the time satellite television exploded the sport into living rooms on both sides of the Atlantic in the eighties, the track had become dominated by three main British-based manufacturers: Brabham, Williams and McLaren. Between 1980 and 1999, McLaren achieved seven constructors’ titles; Williams won nine.

Having surrendered supremacy to Schumacher and Ferrari in the noughties, the last decade has seen Button and Hamilton – with Brawn, Mercedes and McLaren – reassert the ascendency of Britain’s home counties. Last year, Aston Martin became the title sponsor of Red Bull Racing, its first involvement in Formula One since 1960. The company is currently the world’s fastest growing car manufacturer; not surprising when you listen to CEO Andy Palmer and CCO Marek Reichman talk strategy and sustainability (p90).

Elsewhere: Lamborghini CEO Stefano Domenicali discusses the marque’s most successful ever year (p82); Jaguar’s director of design Ian Callum muses on creating motoring masterpieces (p24); and how Formula E is going extreme (p84). Back in the eighties, Brabham and McLaren did battle on the track; today they’ve turned their attention to the road. We pit their flagship hypercars against each other on public tarmac (p98).

Buckle up.

EDITOR Richard Brown DEPUTY EDITOR Ellen Millard ONLINE EDITOR Mhairi Graham CONTENT DIRECTOR Dawn Alford EDITOR-AT-LARGE Annabel Harrison EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS Abisha Sritharan Dom Jeffares CLIENT CONTENT MANAGER Sunna Naseer HEAD OF DESIGN Laddawan Juhong DESIGNER Ismail Vedat GENERAL MANAGER Fiona Smith PRODUCTION MANAGER Alice Ford COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR Rachel Gilfillan BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT EXECUTIVE Madelyn Curnyn MANAGING DIRECTOR Eren Ellwood

PUBLISHED BY

RICH ARD B ROWN Ed itor LUXURYLONDON.CO.UK

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TH E B R I E F I N G T H E L AT E S T N E W S F R O M T H E W O R L D O F L U X U R Y

P.14 SUITE DESIGN Inside Damien Hirst’s Las Vegas hotel suite

P.16 GARDEN STATE The square mile gets a new rooftop garden

P.18 BON ANNIVERSAIRE Bugatti celebrates 110 years in business

The Lamborghini Aventador SVJ Roadster makes its worldwide premiere at the Geneva International Motor Show. The car takes 2.9 seconds to accelerate to 62mph and can reach a top speed of 217mph.

INSIDE DAMIEN HIRST’S HIGH-OCTANE HOTEL SUITE THE £100,000-A-NIGHT ROOM RIFFS ON THE ARTIST’S MOST FAMOUS WORKS Sharks floating in formaldehyde, marlin skeletons suspended from the ceiling and stone pillars decorated in dainty rainbow spots are what guests can expect to find at the Damien Hirst-designed Empathy Suite in Las Vegas. The two-storey, twobedroom villa at Palms Casino Resort spans 9,000 sq ft and has been designed to mirror the artist’s most prolific works, with butterfly and pharmacy motifs peppered throughout – including a large pill cabinet filled with diamonds.

One of the world’s most expensive hotel accommodation offerings at £100,000 per night (although it can only be booked for a minimum of two nights) the suite comes complete with an indoor basketball court, a private bowling alley, 24-hour butler service and chauffeur. Guests also receive access to Palms’ premier amenities and $10,000 credit to utilise at the resort.

The suite has two large lounges that also serve as media rooms, with seating for more than 50 guests There is a salt room designed for therapeutic treatments, flanked by two private massage areas

LUXURY LONDON

F E AT U R E

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THE CITY GETS A NEW ROOFTOP GARDEN 120 FENCHURCH STREET UNVEILS A GARDEN ON ITS 15TH FLOOR The Walkie Talkie’s Sky Garden has competition: Fen Court, located at 120 Fenchurch Street, has opened its public, and completely free, rooftop garden – the largest of its kind in the capital.

Landscaped by German firm Latz & Partners and located on the 15th floor of the Eric Parry Architects-designed building, The Garden at 120 is sandwiched between the Walkie Talkie and The Gherkin, providing a pretty decent peek at the City at work. Along with enviable views of the capital, there is is a pergola with fruit trees, Italian wisteria, seating, a water feature and a coffee hut.

The new garden joins the 60 green roof spaces already found in the Square Mile and more are expected to be built. Already, seven of the 14 new skyscrapers due to be completed in the area by 2026 will have viewing galleries or terraces.

At nearly 3,000 sq ft, the rootop garden is the largest of its kind in the capital

A restaurant by D&D London, the brains behind Madison, is due to open this autumn

LUXURY LONDON

NEWS

BUGATTI UNVEILS ONEOFF ANNIVERSARY CAR LA VOITURE NOIRE WAS MADE FOR BUGATTI ENTHUSIASTS Ettore Bugatti’s son Jean developed and drove one of only four Type 57 SC Atlantic coupés produced; he nicknamed it Le Voiture Noire – the black car. The vehicle disappeared after WWII, but today it is reimagined as a special edition, one-off model produced to celebrate the marque’s 110th anniversary. “Every single component [of this car] has been handcrafted and the carbon fibre body has a deep black gloss only interrupted by the ultrafine fibre structure.

This is a material that has been handled perfectly,” says designer Etienne Salomé (pictured). “We worked long and hard on this design until there was nothing that we could improve. For us, the coupé represents the perfect form with a perfect finish.” Le Voiture Noire was purchased for $11m, making it the world’s most expensive new car. bugatti.com

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LUXURY LONDON

NEWS

“I created MB&F to make threedimensional sculptural kinetic art pieces that give the time,” says company founder Maximilian Büsser. The Legacy Machine FlyingT, the brand’s first piece dedicated to women, is the latest manifestation of that lofty ambition, marrying fine art with haute horology in a timepiece that is aesthetically beautiful and mechanically spellbinding.

Under a high-domed sapphire crystal case, a 60-second flying tourbillon was designed to endow the timepiece with dynamic energy. Affixed to the top of the upper tourbillon cage is a single large diamond that rotates simultaneously with the mechanism. A 280-component calibre provides a four-day power reserve. At 7 o’clock a delicate sub-dial with serpentine hands offers the time, but, angled at 50 degrees, only to the wearer. Time, after all, belongs only to you.

Approx. £110,000, mbandf.com

THE LEGACY MACHINE FLYINGT THE FIRST ‘TIME MACHINE’ FROM MB&F DEDICATED EXCLUSIVELY TO WOMEN

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O N LO N D O N T I M E

LUCA MAGGIORA T H E I TA L I A N - B O R N H O S P I TA L I T Y M A E S T R O B E H I N D TOY R O O M , S C A N D A L A N D C H A R L I E N I G H T C L U B S T A L K S S U C C E S S , S E C R E T F A M I LY RECIPES AND READING 100 BOOKS A YEAR

I

f you’re a night owl and club lover, you’ll undoubtedly have come across one of Luca Maggiora’s haunts in the twilight hours, whether LUXX, Project, Toy Room, Scandal or Charlie.

Added to his portfolio last summer was a venue far removed from the buzzing clubs Maggiora has become known for – La Mia Mamma is a homely, cosy trattoria on the King’s Road, inspired

by Italian ‘mommas’ cooking.

Maggiora moved to London in 2006 and, after a spell in finance, opened his first club in Mayfair in 2009. LUXX was followed by Project and Toy Room, complete with a teddy bear emblem called Frank – there are now Toy Rooms in seven international locations, as diverse as Dubai, Mykonos and São Paulo. Scandal opened next, to cater to a “more commercial hip hop audience with a forbidden red light district theme”. Completing the pack is Charlie – named after Charlie Chaplin – which can be found on Berkeley Street.

would take them to one of my clubs – Charlie, Scandal or Toy Room.

What’s your favourite time to be in London? Christmas.

What do you want most in life?

Everyone wants happiness. The most important thing nowadays is to find a good balance of what I love to do (my work) and how I spend quality time with people I love. This is what I have been searching for during the past few years and I think I have found a good balance.

What’s the best piece of advice you have ever been given: Not to rush – whether that’s work, friendship or love.

Which luxury brands do you favour?

I love Tom Ford, who I think is the best designer for men; Saint Laurent because it’s very classic; and Givenchy also offers classic styles.

What watch do you wear everyday?

My Patek Philippe Nautilus.

What is luxury to you? Quality time – a great dinner with friends, drinking a great bottle of red wine, talking about life for hours and not checking the time, or our phones.

Who’s the most stylish Londoner you know? Rosie The Londoner is a great blogger. I love her amazing style and I have always been a fan.

Your favourite place in the world: Rio de Janeiro during the Carnival because the energy and happiness is unique and makes it feel like the best place on earth.

How would you show someone a good time in London? I would take them to my restaurant La Mia Mamma in Chelsea where Italian mommas cook their secret family recipes and then I

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What are you reading and listening to at the moment? I read more than 100 books a year concerning sociology, psychology, anthropology and romance.

Each book gives me cultural growth and gives me fulfilment, teaching me something different every day. I’m listening a lot to Mumford and Suns and a Welsh singer called Novo Amor.

How important is technology to your life? It plays a big part because of what I do. I keep my schedule strict; I won’t check my phone until 10am after I have woken up, meditated, and had a coffee and shower.

What next? I would love to inspire the new generation by becoming a life coach.

IN THE DRIVING S E AT C U R R E N T LY J A G U A R ’ S D I R E C T O R O F D E S I G N , I A N C A L L U M P R OV I D E D T H E C R E AT I V E V I S I O N FOR THE FORD ESCORT RS COSWORTH A S W E L L A S A S T O N M A R T I N ’ S D B 7, D B 9 A N D VA N Q U I S H . W I T H T H E J A G U A R I - PA C E R E C E N T LY T A K I N G T O P S P O T A T T H E 2 0 1 9 E U R O P E A N C A R O F T H E Y E A R AWA R D S , T H E S C OT T I S H A U TO M O B I L E C R E AT I V E EXPLAINS HOW AN UPBRINGING IN DUMFRIES S E T H I M O N A C O U R S E F O R D E S I G N G R E AT N E S S

Words: Jeremy Taylor

I

an Callum is responsible for some of Britain’s best-loved cars of the past 40 years. It was his pen that created the stunning Aston Martin DB7, DB9 and James Bond’s Vanquish. Later he sculpted the Jaguar XK and coveted F-Type, yet the Scotsman is probably the most celebrated designer many people have never heard of.

Fortunately, petrolheads and those in the automotive business continue to hail Callum for his rich body of work.

The ground-breaking Ford Escort Cosworth was his creation, along with Nissan’s R390 Le Mans car, the legendary Ford RS200 and now the new, all-electric Jaguar I-Pace.

“I was drawing cars from the age of three,” says Callum.

“I grew up in the Scottish borders where you barely saw a vehicle in the 1950s, but my brother Moray and I were always fascinated by cars.”

Callum’s father was a lawyer in Dumfries and worked with a trade society for local car dealers. “We would go along to the showrooms and collect the brochures for every new model. They must have got really fed up with us, but we were tolerated because they knew dad.

“I shared a bedroom with Moray and we would pin the brochures across every available inch of wall. There were so many that when they were taken down to redecorate, the plaster fell away too.”

The hours poring over those brochures has clearly paid off for both brothers: Moray is now vice president of design for Ford and is also credited with the radical shake-up of Mazda styling from 2001 to 2006, including the best selling MX-5.

While Dumfries is the celebrated home of poet Robbie Burns, the starting place for Robert the Bruce’s rebellion against the English, and also boasts a renowned, world-

champion haggis, Callum says he couldn’t wait to escape the town.

“I felt trapped, cut off and became quite rebellious. I knew I had to get out as soon as I could,” he admits.

His love of car design never faltered though. His favourite make was Jaguar and in 1968, aged 13, he sent some drawings to Jaguar’s then vice president Bill Heynes, asking for advice on how to design cars. “Bill replied and I was bowled over. Neither of us could have known where I would end up working 50 years later.”

Callum went on to study at Glasgow School of Art, Coventry University and the Royal College of Art in London, where, sponsored

by Ford, he left with a post-graduate master’s degree in vehicle design. His first job was based in Essex working on the Fiesta.

“I hated it and didn’t expect to last more than six months,” he says.

“I designed a lot of steering wheels, including the Sierra. It was 11 years before I finally moved on and joined Tom Walkinshaw’s TWR outfit in 1990.”

Many of Callum’s colleagues at Ford thought he was crazy to leave the corporate world and move to a start-up in an industrial unit in Oxfordshire. “The fact is, I couldn’t have been happier. I was in charge of setting up the design studio and more able to express myself in the way I wanted to, especially when I began designing for Aston Martin.”

Despite his forward-looking design philosophy, which been so successful at Jaguar, Callum laments the ‘old days’ of working through the night to prepare a sketch or model. “We didn’t have to go through endless meetings designing the Vanquish for Aston Martin.

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“We created a clay model of the car in just five weeks.

Jacques Nasser [then CEO of Aston’s parent company Ford] flew in for one day, said ‘Change this, this and this’ and that was it. Now that’s how to design a motor car, not meeting after meeting with everybody having some form of input.”

Callum worked on the Range Rover before realising his lifelong ambition to join Jaguar in 1999, where he succeeded the late Geoff Lawson, creator of the XJ220.

Slowly, he swept away the old-school image of the brand, personified in the S-Type saloon, and then floored critics with the radically styled XK sports car in 2006.

ABOVE CLAY MODEL OF JAGUAR I-PACE AT V&A DESIGN MUSEUM IN DUNDEE

The much-lamented XK is still one of Callum’s favourites. He famously claimed the curvy bodywork of the grand tourer was inspired by the figure of actress Kate Winslet. “It was an exceptional car – the fact prices of second-hand examples of the XKR-S have risen substantially since production ended five years ago speaks volumes.”

The C-X75 hybrid concept followed in 2010. One of the first electric supercars, it was created with Formula One team Williams and would certainly have been a success, had Jaguar not pulled the plug on production due to the economic crisis. The C-X75 appeared in the Bond movie Spectre but never made the showroom.

Callum’s modest office at the Jaguar design centre near Coventry suggests he’s a fan of minimalist design.

Apart from a giant painting of the iconic E-Type that’s placed behind his desk, there’s very little to hint at his imperious credentials.

The man in charge of the metamorphosis of Jaguar over the past 15 years is currently working on a new XJ luxury saloon – or NextJ, as he likes to call it – and there’s seemingly no escape from the endless meetings crammed in his diary.

He lives 15 minutes from his office but says his house isn’t a design-fest of chic. “I have a Dyson vacuum cleaner and a Naim audio system. Otherwise, most of ‘me’ is in the garage where I keep my cars.”

His collection currently numbers 10 and includes two American hot rods that Callum loves to tinker with.

“I’ve always been fascinated by American cars of the 1950s. Hot rods give people the opportunity to express themselves in a very individual way,” he says.

He also owns two Mini Cooper Ss, a Jaguar XJ-C, a Land Rover Defender and a Vanquish – plus more than 300 toy cars that he has collected over the years. “If the house was on fire I would grab the keys to my Porsche 993 – most designers love the 911.”

In February 2019, Callum was honoured at the London Classic Car Show, where he was presented with an Icon Award in celebration of his life in design. Seven of his most famous cars were on display, including the DB9, F-Type and RS200.

“It’s always an honour to win anything but I was very excited to see all these cars in one display for the first time. It was also a chance to speak to the audience and share how my car designs have evolved over the years, and what my inspirations have been.

“And if there were any young designers out there in the audience then I hope it inspires them, too. I certainly answer as many letters as I can from youngsters because I remember how that spurred me on as a 13-year-old.”

LUXURY LONDON

INTERVIEW

DESIGN INTERVENTION CALLUM HAS HAD A HAND IN DESIGNING SOME OF THE BEST-LOVED BRITISH VEHICLES OF THE PAST 40 YEARS. HE HAS WON COUNTLESS AWARDS BUT THE TRUE MARK OF HIS GENIUS LIES IN THE CARS THEMSELVES. HERE ARE OUR TOP SIX CALLUM COLLECTIBLES

3

1

2 ASTON MARTIN DB7

FORD RS200 There are very few collectible Fords, but the RS200 has almost mythical status. Designed as a Group B rally car, it was half Ford Escort, half supercar, created around a mid-engine layout with four-wheel drive and a fibreglass shell. Just 200 road-going examples were built, which now command huge prices.

Even Callum admits this is the one that gave him the biggest thrill. It’s been voted the ‘most beautiful car in the world’ on several occasions and described as “the most beautiful thing ever made by man” by a cooing Jeremy Clarkson.

FORD ESCORT COSWORTH The Escort Cosworth was a lunatic and redefined the hothatchback market when it was launched in 1989. The huge rear spoiler screamed muscle and was matched by a turbocharged engine and four-wheel drive.

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5

ASTON MARTIN VA N Q U I S H

J AG U A R I - PAC E Jaguar stepped into the unknown with the I-Pace – an all-electric SUV that can cover 298 miles between charges and 0-60mph in 4.5 seconds. A challenge for Callum? Yes, but the I-Pace is bold, desirable and incredibly stylish for an SUV.

4

J A G U A R F -T Y P E The hype around Jaguar’s first two-seater sports cars in decades was immense.

Callum’s F-Type paid homage to the iconic E-Type of the 1960s but is very much a Jaguar sports car of the new millennium.

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While the DB7 has won countless plaudits, for many people the Vanquish is Callum’s finest design. It’s just been replaced by the DBS Superleggera but in Vanquish S form was one of Aston Martin’s greatest cars.

C U LT U R E MUSIC,

MUSEUMS AND

MASTERPIECES

P.38 UNDER THE HAMMER Nab a Château Mouton Rothschild vintage at Sotheby’s wine sale

P.40 IN THE FRAME The winners of the Sony World

Bond on the Moon, ©Terry O’Neill/Iconic Images

Photography Awards

Photographer Terry O’Neill captures Sean Connery playing golf on a deserted film set in Pinewood Studios during the filming of Diamonds Are Forever (p.34)

T H E A G E N DA YOUR CURATED GUIDE TO CULTURE IN THE CAPITAL Words: Ellen Millard

SOUTH KENSINGTON THE V&A CELEBRATES THE YOUTHFUL SPIRIT OF THE SIXTIES IN A MARY QUANT RETROSPECTIVE Last June, the Victoria & Albert Museum put out a call to the public to track down

rare Mary Quant garments from fashion fans across the country. The museum received more than 800 responses, and 35 objects from 30 individuals were selected alongside personal stories from the owners. This April, these garments, along with 120 pieces found in the designer’s personal archive and the V&A’s own fashion

holdings, will go on display at the museum as part of its Mary Quant exhibition, a retrospective focused on the years between 1955 and 1975 – two decades that saw the designer revolutionise the high street.

6 April – 16 February 2020, £12, Cromwell Road, SW7, vam.ac.uk

ABOVE MARY QUANT WITH VIDAL SASSOON, PHOTOGRAPH BY RONALD DUMONT, 1964 ©RONALD DUMONT/STRINGER. GETTY IMAGES

B AT T E R S E A THE SPRING DECORATIVE ANTIQUES AND TEXTILES FAIR RETURNS

The spring edition of the Decorative Antiques & Textiles Fair returns to Battersea Park for five days this April. More than 150 dealers specialising in antiques, fine art, 20th-century design, vintage jewellery and garden furniture, will unite to show off their wares.

9-14 April, Battersea Evolution, Battersea Park, SW11, decorativefair.com

KENSINGTON SERPENTINE GALLERY SHEDS A LIGHT ON SWISS HEALER AND ARTIST EMMA KUNZ

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP WORK NO.003; WORK NO.13; WORK NO.004; WORK NO.12; ALL BY EMMA KUNZ, PHOTOGRAPHY ©EMMA KUNZ ZENTRUM

A self-taught healer and artist, Emma Kunz used her extra-sensory powers to produce hundreds of geometric drawings. She said they were visions of energy fields, from which she formulated diagnoses for her patients who came to her for help with physical

and mental ailments. By the late-1940s, she had begun making largescale drawings. It’s these that are the subject of a new exhibition at the Serpentine Gallery, which was planned in partnership with Cypriot sculptor Christodoulos Panayiotou. The artist has created stone benches for the gallery, from which visitors can view Kunz’s work.

Until 19 May, Kensington Gardens, W2, serpentinegalleries.org

FROM TOP CARNATIONS IN A BLUE & WHITE POT, FELIX MASSEAU; MAHOGANY WINGBACK CHAIR, C.1880

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C U LT U R E

CHELSEA TERRY O’NEILL MARKS SIX DECADES BEHIND THE LENS WITH AN EXHIBITION IN CHELSEA Twenty of Terry O’Neill’s starstudded snaps have gone on display – and sale – at Chelsea’s Box Galleries. The Starstruck exhibition marks 60 years since O’Neill first began his career.

Among iconic images of Elton John and David Bowie is a neverbefore-seen print of Frank Sinatra on Miami Beach in 1968. “I worked with Sinatra for decades, and during this time he taught me the most valuable lesson: Stay out of the way,” O’Neill says. “He taught me that a top photographer should be ever-present, but never caught up in the lifestyle of their subjects.”

Until 31 March, 402 King’s Road, SW10, boxgalleries.com

LEFT ELTON JOHN – DODGER STADIUM, LOS ANGELES, 1975; ABOVE DAVID BOWIE, DIAMOND DOGS, LONDON, 1974, ©TERRY O’NEILL / ICONIC IMAGES

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C U LT U R E

LEFT THE SCREAM 1895, EDVARD MUNCH (1863-1944), PRIVATE COLLECTION, NORWAY, PHOTOGRAPHY ©THOMAS WIDERBERG; BELOW EDVARD MUNCH ON THE TRUNK IN HIS STUDIO, 1902, ©MUNCHMUSEET

BLOOMSBURY BEHIND THE SCREAM: THE BRITISH MUSEUM CONSIDERS NORWEGIAN ARTIST EDVARD MUNCH The largest UK retrospective of Edvard Munch’s work in 45 years will open at The British Museum this April. More than 80 artworks, 50 of which have been borrowed from Norway’s Munch Museum, will go on display to highlight the artist’s adept skill in expressing human emotion – from love and desire to jealousy, anxiety and grief.

11 April – 21 July, Great Russell Street, WC1B, britishmuseum.org

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LUXURY SHOPPING & DINING IN THE CITY PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR A FULL LIST OF STORES AND OPENING TIMES

THEROYALEXCHANGE.CO.UK THE ROYAL EXCHANGE, EXIT 3 BANK, CITY OF LONDON EC3V 3LR

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C U LT U R E

SOLD

£447,000 DATE: 27 FEB R UA RY 2019 ESTIMATE: £ 200,000£ 300,000

L’écuyère en Rose, Marc Chagall A childhood spent watching street performers in Russia sparked Marc Chagall’s lifelong obsession with the circus. L’écuyère en Rose, which was recently sold at Sotheby’s Impressionist and Modern Art Day Sale, shows his own vision of the perfect performance, with acrobats, dancers and violinists in pink and green. sothebys.com

PRIZE LOTS

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP L’ÉCUYÈRE EN ROSE, MARC CHAGALL, C.1962; ANELLO VASE, YOICHI OHIRA, 2005; CHÂTEAU MOUTON ROTHSCHILDS FROM 2013, 2005 AND 2009 (L-R), PHOTOGRAPHY ©DEEPIX, COURTESY CHÂTEAU MOUTON ROTHSCHILD

UPCOMING

UPCOMING

ESTIMATE: £ 12,000-£18 ,0 0 0

Anello Vase

E ST I M AT E : P OA

Versailles Celebration Cases

Japan’s answer to Emile Gallé, Yoichi Ohira is renowned for his glassworks. His skill is shown in his Anello vase, which comprises hand-blown glass canes with murrine, avventurina, granular and powder inserts. It is due to go under the hammer at Phillips’ Important Design auction.

Important Design, 21 March, phillips.com

Sotheby’s Wine is offering 75 limited-edition Versailles Celebration Cases of five Château Mouton Rothschild vintages, each with labels designed by artists who have exhibited at the Palace of Versailles. Winning bidders will also recieve an invitation to a private tasting at the Château, and to the Versailles Private Gala Dinner on 21 September 2019.

Finest & Rarest Wines, 17 April, sothebys.com

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The Decorative Antiques & Textiles

FAIR

ANTIQUES AND 20th CENTURY DESIGN FOR INTERIOR DECORATION THREE TIMES A YEAR IN BATTERSEA PARK, LONDON

SPRING

9-14 April 2019

AUTUMN

1-6 October 2019

WINTER

21-26 January 2020

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BIG SHOT

T H E W I N N E R A N D S H O R T- L I S T E D I M AG E S F R O M SONY’S ANNUAL PHOTOGRAPHY PRIZE GO ON D I S P L AY AT S O M E R S E T H O U S E T H I S A P R I L

Words: Ellen Millard

DREAMERS AND WA R R I O R S Martin Stranka was awarded first prize in the Open competition’s Creative category, as well as the National award for the Czech Republic for his Dreamers and Warriors snap. It’s his third and fourth win in the annual competition, having scooped up gongs in the National and Enhanced categories last year.

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RUNNERS I A chance meeting with a boys’ high school track and field team in a Boston park led to American photographer Brooke Bartletta being shortlisted for the Open competition’s Motion category.

Her atmospheeric snap is one of a series of photographs she took on the day, dubbed Into the Fog.

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A MOMENT “Two moods in one photo: fear and fun,� is how Cambodian photographer Ban Chun sums up his snap of a small child playing with a paddling of ducks, which earned him second prize in the National competition.

A Q U AT I C R I D E R

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A lesson in scale, this photograph of a scooter rider next to the Zaha Hadid-designed London Aquatics Centre was taken by Briton Daniel Portch. It was shortlisted in the Open competition’s Architecture category.

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TOURISM IN HELSINKI Finnish National award winner Heikki Kivijärvi took this shot of Helsinki cathedral after a blizzard. The floods of tourists that typically crowd the area were sheltering inside, and the unusually sparse setting made Kivijärvi’s image look black and white – though it is actually a coloured shot.

2019 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition, £10, Somerset House, Strand, WC2R, somersethouse.org.uk

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R U N S

L I K E

CLOCKWORK A S A M A J O R R E T R O S P E C T I V E O F S TA N L E Y K U B R I C K O P E N S AT T H E D E S I G N M U S E U M , L U X U R Y LO N D O N E X P LO R E S T H E E V E N T S T H AT M E A N T O N E O F H I S M O S T I C O N I C M O V I E S C O U L D N ’ T B E S E E N I N T H E U K F O R N E A R LY T H R E E D E C A D E S

Words: Rob Crossan

‘B

eing the adventures of a young man whose principal interests are rape, ultraviolence and Beethoven.’

So ran the strap-line at the top of the poster for Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange, released in British cinemas in the freezing depths of January 1972.

Introducing audiences to a world of ‘deng’ (money), ‘milk plus’ (milk laced with drugs), ‘veks’(men) and ‘devotchkas’ (girls) – all part of the dialect of ‘Nadsat’ spoken by the main characters – the adaption of Anthony Burgess’ novel showed a dystopian Britain of the near future. Immorality and free will are blamed for society’s ills and the thuggish teenage protagonist Alex DeLarge is subjected to radical brainwashing techniques designed to make him ‘good’.

The film sent both critics and audiences into a frenzy. The highly stylised violence led Roger Ebert in the The New York Times to brand the film an ‘ideological mess’ while Pauline Kael in the The New Yorker called it merely ‘pornographic’.

The rancour even triggered politicians to wade in, with Labour MP for Coventry West Maurice Edelman predicting in a newspaper interview that “when Clockwork Orange is released, it will lead to a ‘Clockwork cult’ which will magnify teenage violence”.

While critics and politicians debated the meanings and nuance of the film, in suburban parts of the UK tales of a more visceral nature emerged. Throughout 1972, newspapers feasted on stories concerning supposed copy-cat gangs who, in the manner of DeLarge and his ‘droogs’ (friends), would run riot, assaulting, raping and engaging in their own bouts of ‘ultra-violence’.

Rarely, however, did these stories stand up to even moderate rigour. Richard Palmer, a 16-year-old from Bletchley, went on trial for the murder of a tramp, a scenario that famously appears in one of the film’s first scenes.

The media furore began when a consultant psychiatrist testified that Palmer was “acting a part very similar to the characterisations given by A Clockwork Orange”. The Daily Mail wrote a story concerning the ‘Clockwork Orange boy’, ignoring the fact that Palmer, being underage for an X-certificate film (today’s 18 rating) hadn’t actually seen the movie at all but had merely been told about it by friends.

Meanwhile in Lancashire, a 17-year-old holidaying Dutch girl was raped by a gang of youths who, according to reports, sang ‘Singing in the Rain’, another apparent

replica of one of the film’s most notorious scenes.

By 1973, almost any violent crime committed by youths seemed to be attributed to the film. Mike Purdy who worked as a solicitor for the Metropolitan Police later recalled: “At the Old Bailey we kept seeing people on assault charges who had seen the film and been impelled to go out and beat someone up. Most of us who worked at the court thought this a load of rubbish but unfortunately such cases got a lot of publicity and many judges would impose lesser sentences in these cases.

“It got to the stage when we referred to these cases as ‘Clockwork Orange defences’ and it became almost boring as one after another tried using this excuse.”

Many judges felt differently. One judge, after sentencing a 16-year-old for beating a younger child while dressed in the droog’s uniform of white overalls and a bowler hat, stated that the crime was part of a “horrible trend which has been inspired by this wretched film”.

The famously reclusive Kubrick, faced with protests taking place outside the front door of his home, gave an elegant riposte to the mounting barrage of criticism in an interview with film critic Michel Ciment, first published in the French film magazine Positif.

“I know there are well-intentioned people who sincerely believe that films and TV contribute to

The film sent both critics and audiences into a frenzy

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violence,” he argued, “but almost all of the official studies of this question have concluded that there is no evidence to support this view. At the same time, I think the media tend to exploit the issue because it allows them to display and discuss the so-called harmful things from a lofty position of moral superiority.”

It wasn’t just the media that felt the wrath of Kubrick. The English judicial system was, for him, equally erroneous.

“The simplistic notion that films and TV can transform an otherwise innocent and good person into a criminal has strong overtones of the Salem witch trials. This notion is further encouraged by the criminals and their lawyers who hope for mitigation through this excuse.”

What came next has been widely misunderstood.

The noun most commonly associated with A Clockwork Orange is ‘banned’ though this was never actually the case. Despite his robust written defence of A Clockwork Orange, it was Kubrick himself who instructed that the film be withdrawn from circulation in the UK in 1973 (it could still be seen anywhere else in the world) and continued to refuse any screenings of the movie up until his death in 1999.

And so, for teenagers of the 70s, 80s and 90s, A Clockwork Orange developed an entire cult of its own as ‘the movie you couldn’t see’.

The fact that Kubrick’s withdrawal of the film only applied in the UK meant that cinemas in Amsterdam made a handsome trade offering screenings of the film 24-hours-a-day to curious British tourists. And, in the era of the bootleg VHS video tape, numerous black and white copies, which varied hugely in quality, did the rounds of university halls of residences and ‘under-thecounter’ video rental shops across the UK. Why Kubrick maintained his position on the film up until his death is a matter of pure conjecture. He never spoke about it – yet his actions on the matter were perhaps indicative of his stubborn character. In 1983, the Scala Cinema in Kings Cross went out of business after losing a legal battle with Warner Bros, launched at Kubrick’s insistence, when the cinema held an unauthorised screening of the film.

Perhaps Kubrick was right to be so intransigent. In recent years, his widow, Christiane Kubrick, has spoken of death threats against the family as the controversy surrounding the film intensified in 1972. Julian Senior, the vice-president of European Advertising and Publicity at Warner Bros at the time of the film’s release, later stated in an interview with The Guardian that: “the police were saying to us, ‘We think you should do something about this. It is getting dangerous.’”

It was Kubrick himself who instructed that the film be withdrawn from circulation in the UK Now, nearly half a century on from the film’s release, questions are still being asked about A Clockwork Orange.

It was re-released in March 2000 in UK cinemas after a 27-year absence, and the reaction from critics and first time viewers was mostly that of mere curiosity and relief to finally view a slice of cinematic history long stripped of its supposed power to incite real life horrors.

Yet, although the graphic violence may no longer shock us as it did in 1972, the film continues to ask questions of us.

Is the film still a social prophecy of our future?

Where does the gap between entertainment and moral responsibility for a director lie? Is there any real difference between a ‘clockwork’ obedience to the state and a mind mechanised towards violence and the self?

And, perhaps most pertinently, how culpable are we, the audience, for the more degenerate elements of society if we continue to watch films which expose and explore the more nefarious elements of human nature?

As Kubrick himself wrote: “To try and fasten any responsibility on art as the cause of life seems to me to put the case the wrong way around. Art consists of reshaping life, but it does not create life, nor cause life.”

Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition (£16) runs from 26 April to 17 September at the Design Museum, Kensington High Street, designmuseum.org

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COCO-DAVEZ-LUXURY-LONDON-AD.indd 2

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COUTURE CUT FROM A DIFFERENT CLOTH

P.54 SET THE TONE How to wear fashion’s favourite new shade: beige

P.66 TOP GEAR Discerning accessories to wear behind the wheel

Read all about it: the best New Yorkappropriate fashion from the likes of Marni, Roksanda and Mulberry. Full credits on page 56

NEUTRAL TERRITORY Words: Ellen Millard

DIOR GRAND BAL PLUME BLANCHE The oscillating weight, adorned with white feathers and set with diamonds, of Dior’s Grand Bal Plume watch features a lacquered white dial set with pink gold threads. It is intended to recreate the swirl of a ball gown.

The 36mm model is limited to just 88 pieces. £25,500, dior.com CASHMERE JUMPER When it came to designing the Leandra knit, Max Mara’s team ensured nothing was spared. One hundred per cent cashmere? Tick. Boxy cut?

Tick. Cable knit design? Tick.

Turtleneck? Tick. Wardrobe staple? Tick, tick, tick. £490, net-a-porter.com

CROSSIANT EARRING It’s a well-known fact that the best food in life is beige – or is that gold? Enjoy your favourite baked good every day with Alison Lou’s 14-karat crossiant earring, a charming tribute to the breakfast of champions. £190, net-a-porter.com

C E C Y L E B AG Not to be worn near any red wine, lipstick or sticky fingers, this ivory calf leather bag by Bally has a classic quilted design, with gold hardware and a unique keyhole lock clasp. £1,195, bally.co.uk

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ROSIE SUNGLASSES Spread the love with Chloé’s heart-shaped sunglasses. The Rosie frames have gold-tinted lenses and scalloped edges for extra kitsch. £266, matchesfashion.com

M I R A G E P YJ A M A S Asceno’s 100 per cent silk pyjamas are the stuff that duvet days are made of.

This fishnet-printed set comes with a matching eyemask to help you catch those Zs. From £210 for the bottoms, asceno.com

C A N A DA S C A R F Acne Studio’s 100 per cent woollen scarf-cum-blanket is perfect for wrapping up during the winter – or sheltering from the office air-conditioning during the summer. £140, matchesfashion.com

B O DY O I L Those who’ve visited Chanel au Ritz will be pleased to hear the spa’s exclusive quartet of body oils are now available to purchase. Our pick is L’Huile Jasmin, one whiff of which will transport you to fields of Grasse. £172 for 250ml, chanel.com

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C O N C R E T E J U N G L E PHOTOGRAPHER TURI LØVIK KIRKNES STYLIST VICTORIA WRIGHT

Cotton dress with paillettes embroidery, £2,240, Cotton coat with paillettes embroidery, £1,690, Python white bag, £2,330, marni.com; Suzi Derby shoes, £695, Nicholas Kirkwood, farfetch.com

Wax polished leather coat, ÂŁ3,665, miumiu.com

Jacket, POA, Dress, POA, Belt, £1,350 dior.com; Alpha Croc cotton and polyester shoes, £785, christianlouboutin.com

Him: Pont Neuf Zodiac evening jacket, £2,500, Zodiac evening shirt, £945, Pont Neuf evening trousers, £945, Vendome Richelieu calf leather brogues, £1,130, louisvuitton.com; Her: Silk top with open sleeves, £1,880, Linen shorts, £1,190, louisvuitton.com; Suede Kirstie boots, £785, stuartweitzman.com

Green linen vest, £1,750, Optical white shirt, £800, Green wide leg linen trousers, £1,300, delpozo.com; Suzi Derby shoe, £695, Nicholas Kirkwood, farfetch.com

Cashmere wool coat, £3,895, Wool top, £585, Techno jersey trousers, £825, Nylon knit shoes, £795, Saffiano Brique belt bag, £950, prada.com

Credits for page 53 Him: Knitted top, £360, Trousers, £500, marni.com; Kicko wool and calf boots, £1,065, christianlouboutin.com; Her: Jacket, POA, Trousers, POA, Roksanda, 9 Mount Street, W1K; Poppy Mary-Jane croc print sandal, £520, mulberry.com Models: Beata Grabovvska @ The Identity NYC and Jacob Gonzales @ Bella Man NYC Hair and Make up: Rachel Toledo using Marc Jacobs and Oscar Blandi

Her: Anita satin back crepe dress, £455, mulberry.com; Suede Kirstie boots, £785, stuartweitzman.com; Midnight blue faux fur beret, £325, emmabrewin.com; Him: Blazer, £850, Trousers, £350, T-shirt, £150, tods.com

LIFTING ELEVATED TO NEW HEIGHTS REMASTERED WITH

CAVIAR PREMIER

GOING BEYOND WHAT WAS PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT POSSIBLE, CAVIAR PREMIER CAPTURES THE FULL POTENTIAL OF CAVIAR FOR NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN LIFTING AND FIRMING PAIRED WITH A NEW DIMENSION OF SENSORIAL INDULGENCE.

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PROMOTION

THE CITY EDIT E L E G A N T A C C E S S O R I E S F R O M T H E R O YA L E X C H A N G E R E S I D E N T S SAGE BROWN, LEICA AND SEARLE & CO

THE ROYAL EXCHANGE, EC3V THEROYALEXCHANGE.CO.UK

LEICA The kitsch SOFORT camera is Leica’s 21 st century answer to the Polaroid. As well as offering a variety of modes – including automatic and sport – and varying time exposures, the camera has a programme for selfportraits, complete with a timer with two delays for all your #selfie needs. £275, The Royal Exchange

SEARLE & CO

SAGE BROWN UNVEILS ITS SABRINA BAG Family-run leather specialist Sage Brown has more than 25-years’ experience crafting fine leather goods for discerning men and women. Its latest launch, the Sabrina bag,

is handmade from premium calf leather with a crocodile skin effect and a suede leather lining. The tote is available in a selection of colours, including orange, pink and this versatile forest green shade. £225, 31 Royal Exchange

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The Searle & Co team has been selling silverware and vintage jewellery from its Royal Exchange residence for more than 100 years, ever since it set up shop in 1893.

Today, you’ll find just an eclectic and well-sourced collection as you would have a century ago – such as these striking Japanese pearl and diamond earstuds. £1,670, 1 Royal Exchange

POLE POSITION Words: Dom Jeffares

“I have no idols.

I admire work, dedication and competence”

Aryton Senna

R O L E X D AY T O N A Initially a sales flop, it’s fair to say the Daytona’s fortunes have taken a turn for the better – the timepiece now commands one of the longest waiting lists in watches. Beat the queue at Watch Finder.

Ref. 6239, £69,950, watchfinder.co.uk

DRIVING SHOES For heel-and-toe adherents, the sole of your shoe should never measure more than 1cm. Enhancing the feel of the pedals, these moccasins are also a staple of stylish Europeans (usually found with a jumper draped stylishly over their shoulders). £340, carshoe.com

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T H E D R I V E G LOV E S These Chester Jefferies gloves are an essential bit of kit – scorching gear shifters and wooden steering wheels baked by the hot sun shouldn’t detract from the driving experience. Just make sure you don’t drive an airconditioned car.

From £97, chesterjefferies.co.uk

S T E V E PA N T S DENIM 173 Founded by Mr Alessandro Squarzi – a Porsche enthusiast – Fortela blends Italian style and Japanese sensibility with an authentic broken-in feel. These trousers are a regular fit to ensure a comfortable driving experience, when the roads get twisty and the going gets tough. £230, fortela.it

M -1 9 4 3 JAC K E T The M-1943, which replaced the M-1941 used in WWII, was a revolutionary field jacket featuring a removable pile liner, making it versatile in both warm and cold weathers. So now you can decide to take the roof on or off your 1965 Mercedes Pagoda. £565, realmccoyslondon.com

CIGARETTE CASE You drive your nice car fast, which means you take risks, which means you probably smoke.

Why not do so with class? Made from one single sheet of Venezia calf leather, this cigarette case’s patina gleams like Japanese lacquer. Complement it with a vintage Zippo lighter. £290, berluti.com

D E L AY 2 S U N G L A S S E S Effector is a Tokyo-based eyewear maker, specialising in handmade glasses using materials such as acetate and titanium. The brand takes its inspiration from the beatnik, rock ‘n’ roll and aviator styles from the 50s and 60s. £320, rivetandhide.com

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D R I V E

H Y P E R C A R S , H O T H AT C H E S & S U P E R S U V S

P.84 ELECTRIC AVENUE Formula E to go extreme by 2021

P.90 ANDY PALMER Aston Martin’s CEO on his future plans for the marque

P.98 POWER PLAY The two fastest hypercars go head to head

P.106 OFF ROAD Negotiating the world-famous Rubicon Trail

Lamborghini goes in search of the world’s best roads (p77)

TORQUE OF THE TOWN THE INSIDE TRACK ON THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY Words: Ellen Millard & Dom Jeffaries

JAGUAR LAND ROVER UNVEILS NEW RANGE ROVER SPORT HST A N E W H Y B R I D P OW E R T R A I N INCREASES SPEED AND EFFICIENCY

Jaguar Land Rover’s new special edition Range Rover Sport HST has launched with an all-new 3.0-litre turbocharged six-cylinder mild-hybrid engine, which generates 394bhp and 550Nm of torque.

The engine is assisted by an electricallydriven compressor via a 48V mild-hybrid system, meaning it can reach 62mph from standing in just 6.2 seconds and has a top speed of 140mph.

Jaguar Land Rover claims the mildhybrid system produces economy figures of 30.5mpg and emissions ratings of 213g/ km of CO2. The system can also recover energy using the regenerative braking and store it in the battery for later use.

Internal updates include 16-way electrically adjustable seats, red brake calipers and satin chrome gear shift paddles. There’s also a choice of five exterior colours: black, white, silver, red and grey.

From £81,250, landrover.com

DANCING ON ICE WHEN AN AUSTRIAN ALPINE LEGEND MET A FLYING FRENCH HOT ROD Hermann Maier has probably spent more of his life on snow than he has on dry land. With four overall World Cup titles, two Olympic gold medals, and three World Championship titles, he was given the moniker ‘The Herminator’ for his courageous and risky downhill skiing style. For an adrenaline junkie like him, the Chiron would seem the perfect companion with its 8-litre W16 engine producing 1500 HP, perfect weight istribution and all-wheel-drive, allowing for

controlled chaos on ice.

“I’ve practically spent my whole life on skis. I never imagined that four wheels could deliver a similar joy in the snow as two skis”, Maier gushed. “Despite the raw power of this car I felt safe and in control from the beginning.”

Reassuring words from a man used to going very fast – just watch his run from the 1998 Nagano Olympics. Read Maier’s full Chiron review in Bugatti’s Ettore magazine. bugatti.com

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PHOTO COURTESY OF STEFAN BOGNER

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MCLAREN DEBUTS ITS FASTEST EVER CREATION T H E A E R O D Y N A M I C S P E E D TA I L C A N R E AC H S P E E DS O F 2 5 0 M P H McLaren’s hotly-anticipated Speedtail will be the marque’s fastest car when the first examples hit the road in 2020. Nicknamed the Hyper-GT, the model is said to be the brand’s most aerodynamically efficient car to date, and is modelled on the McLaren F1. From standstill, the Speedtail can reach 186mph in just 12.8 seconds – 3.7 seconds faster than P1. Keep on accelerating and it will reach its top speed of 250mph. Its power can be put down to two things: its innovative aerodynamic design and its pioneering 1050PS hybrid powertrain, which features a 4-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine assisted by electric motors.

Just 106 unique Speedtails will be made and all of the models have already been sold to customers hand-picked for their loyalty to the brand (for a rumoured £2m price tag). cars.mclaren.com

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ULTIMATE HYBRID POWERTRAIN FOR ASTON’S ULTIMATE HYPERCAR MARQUE CONFIRMS PERFORMANCE FIGURES F O R F U L LY H Y B R I D VA L K Y R I E

The heart of the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s powertrain is a clean-sheet Cosworth-built 65° naturally-aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine. Based on the spine-tingling, ultra-high-revving F1 engines of the 1990s, but benefitting from two decades of progress in design, material and manufacturing expertise, it sets a new rpm record for a naturally-aspirated, emissions-compliant road car.

With a certified peak power output of

1,000bhp at 10,500rpm, it can continue to a maximum 11,100rpm. Peak torque is 740Nm at 7,000rpm. These outputs are delivered purely by the internal combustion engine, with a further performance boost delivered by the battery hybrid system.

Featuring a KERS-style boost system, akin to those fitted to F1 cars, the Valkyrie’s hybrid system has been developed by two main technical partners: Integral Powertrain Ltd, which supplied the bespoke electric motor, and Rimac for the lightweight hybrid battery system.

The full hybrid system contributes an additional 160bhp of power and a further 280Nm of available torque with the certified max power output of Aston Martin Valkyrie standing at 1,160bhp at 10,500rpm. Equally, with the full hybrid system, peak torque will stand at 900Nm at 6,000rpm. astonmartin.com

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SCANDINAVIA PROVIDES FOR THE ULTIMATE ROAD TRIP L A M B O R G H I N I TA K E S ON THE NORWEGIAN FJ O R D S

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Lamborghini is on a mission to discover the most spectacular roads on Earth. Last year the Volkswagen Group-owned Italian car marque took a fleet of its supercars to Norway to take on a 500km route that included mountains, glaciers and off-road lunar landscapes.

The convoy started from the fairytale town of Ålesund, a picturesque Art Nouveau village. From there, the Lamborghinis challenged the Trollstigen, commonly known as the road of the Trolls, which winds along 11 hairpin turns that climb between walls of rock and waterfalls.

The group continued through Valldal and on to Geirangerfjord, designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The adventure progressed across the Jostedalsbreen, the largest glacier in continental Europe, before arriving at Mount Aksla, overlooking the convoy’s original starting point. This year’s expedition has a lot to live up to. lamborghini.com

W I N D S O F C H A N G E THANKS TO THE LAUNCH OF THE URUS AND THE ENDURING APPEAL OF THE V10 HURACÁN AND V12 AV E N TA D O R , L A M B O R G H I N I S A L E S S U R PAS S E D T H E 5 ,0 0 0 M A R K L AST Y E A R FOR THE FIRST TIME. CHAIRMAN AND C E O S T E FA N O D O M E N I C A L I D I S C U S S E S B R A N D S T R A T E G Y, H Y B R I D I S A T I O N A N D W H AT ’ S N E X T F O R T H E B R A N D O F T H E RAGING BULL

Words: Hugh Francis Anderson

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2018 was a decisive year for Lamborghini. The launch of the Urus, the marque’s first luxury SUV, was a make-or-break moment for Stefano Domenicali, the company’s chairman and CEO. Fortunately for Domenicali, the arrival of the Urus saw the Italian car manufacturer record one of the most successful periods of growth in its history.

Replacing Stephan Winkelmann in March 2016, Domenicali joined the company during a period of immense change. Born near the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari race circuit in Imola, just 80km from the Italian supercar mecca of Maranello, you might say that Domenicali was destined to work in motorsport.

“There were races at Imola almost every weekend, so my passion for cars and bikes started when I was very young.

When I was at school, I spent most of my time at the circuit doing anything at all – working in the paddocks to help teams park, for example, simply because I loved it so much.”

Upon graduating from the University of Bologna in 1991 with a degree in business administration, Domenicali sent his CV to Ferrari, joining them shortly after. His rise within Ferrari was nothing short of extraordinary. Within a year he was race director of the Mugello race circuit and became team manager in 1996. By 2002 he was sporting director; by 2007 director of Ferrari Formula 1; and soon after, team principal, a role he held for seven years.

So why the change of job? “After my 23 years with Ferrari and Ferrari Formula 1, I went to Audi for a different challenge – to be part of a different organisation. Audi is the shareholder of Lamborghini and they decided to give me the responsibility of running it. I am really very honoured to have been able to serve at the top of Italy’s two greatest car brands.”

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LAMBORGHINI HURACÁN EVO SPYDER WITH THE AVENTADOR SVJ ROADSTER IN THE BACKGROUND

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Under Winkelmann’s 11-year reign, Lamborghini saw its turnover triple, sales figures double and the workforce grow by more than 50 per cent. But Domenicali hasn’t had a hard job filling his shoes – Lambo can’t make Uruses quick enough. “Since the announcement of the new super SUV we have collected orders worldwide that fill more than 12 months’ production. In 2018 we delivered more than 1,700 units to the first clients. We are very pleased that over 70 per cent of orders are from customers entirely new to the Lamborghini brand.”

In 2018, production increased from 3,815 to 5,750 cars, signalling a 51 per cent increase in worldwide sales and the eighth consecutive year of sales growth. Of these deliveries, 1,761 – or 30 per cent – were all-new Uruses – a massive win for Domenicali. “For sure, we always planned the Urus would contribute to a doubling of production and we are well on track to realising this,” he says. “On this, though, to me personally it is always about the people: we were at 1,750 employees by the end of 2018, with 70 per cent of them hired in the past five years. It is the people within our business that mean the most to me. It is all about an incredibly passionate and dedicated team.”

The Urus has been a runaway global success, and Lamborghini’s other flagship supercars aren’t doing badly, either. Last year saw record sales of both the V10 Huracán and V12 Aventador models, another win for Domenicali’s three-model strategy and for the marque’s future.

“We have already put in place significant infrastructure investment to enable not only the production of our three ranges but an investment into the future, too. Research and development is at the heart of Lamborghini.”

The Huracán Evo launched earlier this year, and its Spyder partner, alongside the staggering 770bhp SVJ Roaster, was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show last month. While the Evo is another variation of the model that has been around since 2014, and uses the 640bhp engine and activeaerodynamics from the much-acclaimed Performante, it’s bound to be another exceptional V10. Like Domenicali, it too has big boots to fill. The Huracán Performante won the Autocar Innovation Award for its active-aerodynamics back in 2017, and even got Jeremy’s Clarkson’s seal of approval at The Sunday Times Motoring Awards as his best car of the year.

Clearly, the Evo has something rather spectacular to beat.

“The Huracán Evo uses a feed-forward logic, predicting the best set-up of the car for the driver and conditions in milliseconds,” says Domenicali. “The coupé and opentop Spyder versions have their own personalities, but with uncompromised performance from both; acceleration from 0-62 mph in the coupé is just 2.9 seconds (3.1 in the Spyder) and both offer a top speed of more than 200 mph.

However, it’s the dynamic and handling experience, as well as the design of both cars, that also helps make them such emotionally engaging cars to own and drive.”

So what does the future look like for the Raging Bull barnd? “Lamborghini always looks to the future: it’s in our DNA, from the very first cars developed by our founder Ferruccio Lamborghini. We are constantly investing in R&D and innovations across the board in order to realise the projects that we plan for the future.”

At a human level, the company’s Manifattura Lamborghini initiative, first introduced with the Urus, sees the production of new technologies to support workers on the assembly line, and also ensures the factory remains carbon-neutral, despite doubling in size. The company continues to develop its international race series, the Lamborghini Super Trofeo, and even boasts a clothing line, the Collezione Automobili Lamborghini. But what does the future look like for supercars themselves?

As regulations tighten, technology surely needs to migrate away from high-octane guzzling engines. Domenicali lightly nods to this fast-approaching reality. “Supercars are different from normal cars, but as electrification and hybridisation will become part of our market, it’s fundamental that we ensure our research and development team are studying this [area of technology] for our future cars.”

The Terzo Millennio, for example, was created in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and shows how Lamborghini visualises the future of allelectric supercars. While this is commendable, I’m keen to know how production vehicles will be modernised too.

Regarding the cars themselves, we continue to test electric engines as well as develop areas such as energy storage systems and innovative materials,” says Domenicali.

“The first step towards electrification will be represented by hybridisation in the next generation of our super sports cars, as well as the Urus.”

Few CEOs seem better suited to their role than Stefano Domenicali. “In the future, our portfolio has to remain super sport. And this is the focus we need to keep. I want to make sure we can push Lamborghini through the next phase of growth because this really is a fantastic brand,” he smiles. “I can promise you there is always something new and exciting to come from Lamborghini.” I don’t doubt it for a second.

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E X T R E M E M A C H I N E B L U E P L A N E T M E E T S T H E D A K A R R A L LY ? E L E C T R I C C A R S A R E S E T TO ENTER THE EXTREME OFF-ROAD RACING SCENE WITH A NEW GLOBAL SERIES LAUNCHING IN 2021

Words: Jeremy Taylor

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t started with a brainstorming session and now Extreme E is on its way to becoming the world’s first all-electric, off-road racing series, with a budget of tens of millions of pounds and events due to be held at five of the most remote locations on the planet.

A spin-off from the hugely successful Formula E track series, Extreme E was launched in London by motorsport legend and Indianapolis 500-winner Gil de Ferran and flamboyant Spanish businessman Alejandro Agag (the chairman of investment management firm Addax Capital LLP) in January this year. The first race for electric SUVs is due to take place in January 2021, with 12 teams expected on the grid.

The concept will cash in on the imminent boom in battery-powered SUVs. Tesla’s Model X and the Jaguar I-Pace are the two mainstream SUVs currently available, with the Audi E-tron launching Volkswagen Group’s

“Formula E doesn’t use cars that people in the street can go out and buy” electric offensive, Mercedes rushing to get the EQC to market, and the Porsche Taycan due in 2020.

Other manufacturers are also hot on the electric SUV trail – and Agag and his team have been in secret talks with many of them to encourage participation in the inaugural Extreme E series in two years’ time.

“Formula E was a great concept, but it doesn’t use cars that people in the street can go out and buy. We thought this was a gap in motorsport that could be filled,” explains Agag, who originally dreamt up the concept of Formula E with former Ferrari F1 boss and now FIA president Jean Todt in 2011.

Agag is still chairman of Formula E – the series that has taken electric car racing to city-centre locations around

the world and is currently in its fifth season. “I’m very proud of what we have achieved with Formula E. It is a leading global motorsport and on an upward trajectory.”

There are rumours that Formula E could appear in London again for the 2019/2020 season, too, after the capital slipped off the calendar due to complaints from local residents around the Battersea Park road circuit. “We are making good progress and hope to visit London again soon. It is my number one priority,” says Agag.

However, he will now turn some of his attention to Extreme E – Formula E’s off-road sibling. The logistics involved will be immense as proposed locations include the Himalayas, the Amazon rainforest and the Arctic.

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“Some of the places are damaged by climate change and by human pollution already. Extreme E wants to highlight the challenges these environments face, not try and gloss over them. It will play a key role in raising global awareness about things such as melting ice caps, deforestation and rising sea levels.”

Extreme E will be captured as a first-of-its-kind docu-sport TV series by filmmaker, Fisher Stevens, who won an Oscar in 2010 for Best Documentary Feature with The Cove.

“Electric racing has become a passion for me, having worked alongside Leonardo [DiCaprio] to create a new documentary film to be released later this year on season four of Formula E. It tells not only the story of race car drivers, but also the story of how electric motorsport can have a pivotal role in helping us battle climate change,” says Stevens.

“I think Extreme E is a revolutionary concept that can both continue the

fight against climate change and help set new standards in how not only motorsport, but all sports can be broadcast. My focus will be on assembling a brilliant team. It should be Blue Planet meets Dakar.”

In 2013, Autosport magazine named de Ferran among 50 of the greatest drivers never to have raced in F1. Says the Brazilian of Extreme E: “This idea offers an adventure and entertainment concept that has never been seen or done before. Viewers can expect a completely new way of consuming sport, with each episode telling not just the story of a race, but the wider race of awareness and the need to protect these remote environments.”

Extreme E will use a traditional round-robin format with two groups of six teams, with the top-four progressing to the knock-out stage and each driver going head-to-head to earn a place in the final. The off-road stages will be up to eight miles in length, with a series of virtual gates to be navigated by drivers

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in a mixture of extreme heat, high altitude and sub-zero temperatures.

To overcome the logistical issues, Extreme E has devised an ingenious mode of transportation. All equipment will travel by sea on board the RMS St. Helena, a 7,000-ton former Royal Mail ship. The cargo liner will act as a ‘floating paddock’ and will be modernised and improved using renewable energy technologies.

Agag and his team will now spend the next 12 months scouting locations for the series. The Spaniard, who drives both an electric BMW i3 and i8, says he is aware that the eyes of the conservation world will be watching carefully as the schedule is announced.

“The global audience for Extreme E will heighten awareness of the current and future challenges that the world faces. We need responsible interaction with our environment and the protection of important ecosystems too.” extreme-e.com

CLOCKWISE FROM FAR LEFT JAGUAR I-PACE; ALEJANDRO AGAG SPEAKING AT THE EXTREME E LAUNCH; ST. HELENA; [FROM LEFT] DAVID DE ROTHSCHILD, ALEJANDRO AGAG, GIL DE FERRAN & FISHER STEVENS

NEW RULES F R O M P L AT I N U M A L B U M S A N D C H A R T-TO P P I N G C O L L A B O R AT I O N S TO P E R F O R M I N G AT G L A S T O N B U R Y A N D M A K I N G Y O U T U B E H I S T O R Y, D U A L I P A H A S T H E W O R L D AT H E R F E E T. F O L L O W I N G A C O L L A B O R AT I V E P R O J E C T W I T H J A G U A R O N I T S F I R S T A L L- E L E C T R I C C A R , T H E P O P S E N S AT I O N D I S C U S S E S P U S H I N G B O U N DA R I E S , H E R I N S P I R AT I O N S A N D M A K I N G H E R O W N L U C K

Words: Jan Janssen

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t 23, singer-songwriter Dua Lipa has already achieved the kind of recognition that some musicians strive to gain over a lifetime. She made YouTube history as the youngest female artist to hit one billion views for a music video and was the most-streamed female artist in the UK in 2018. Her debut self-titled album was released in 2017 to critical acclaim and reached platinum status in just over a year.

She’s produced a string of infectious, femalefocused anthems – including the 2018 single New Rules, which tied with Edwin McCain’s I’ll Be as the longest charting pop song ever – a record-breaking number of Brit Award nominations, celebrity duets and covers for GQ, Elle and V magazines. And the awards keep coming: she won two Grammys this year for Best New Artist and Best Dance Recording with Silk City for their hit Electricity.

Away from the charts, she’s used her musical prowess to partner with Jaguar on the marque’s first all-electric car, I-Pace. The motor boasts in-built “remix software” that takes your favourite Spotify tracks and uses your driving style to rearrange them into a new tune.

“I love to push boundaries with my music and my performances and this partnership takes things to an exciting new level,” she said of the collaboration.

“It’s a hi-tech project combining music and Jaguar technology, and I know my fans are going to love what we are creating together.”

With her second album due for release later this year and more exciting projects in the works, we caught up with the pop sensation to find out more about her family, inspirations and musical muses.

Through your music, you project a real sense of independence and self-confidence. Would you say you are a confident person? Getting up and performing my songs, I do feel very confident. But a lot of the songs come from a place that lacks that.

Something I always wanted was a way to portray confidence in my music – trying to make myself feel better in certain situations.

What is the main inspiration for your songs?

My life. My songs are all very personal and autobiographical. I write about things that happened to me, about things I know. Of my weaknesses. In fact, every time I feel weak, I try to write something that makes me feel stronger. Obviously, given that what I describe are situations and feelings that we all feel, I hope that others can recognise many of these same emotions.

What music did you listen to growing up? My father was always listening to music in the house – David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Sting, Radiohead. Then I started listening to really strong female artists, like Nelly Furtado and Pink.

How has your father’s career as a musician shaped your own approach to the industry? My father has always given me good advice. He taught me to have very clear goals and not become distracted from pursuing your dream. He told me not to worry about having a Plan B because that can be a distraction and make you lose sight of what you really want to achieve. If you’re not thinking about a back-up plan, then you’re forced to concentrate on your true goal.

Did you father encourage you to be a musician?

Seeing him perform on stage with his band made me realise that music was what I wanted to do with my life. He was always encouraging me. One of the greatest gifts he gave me was the advice that you need to work very hard if you want to bring yourself luck. That phrase has always resonated with me. You have to earn your luck. I believe that if you’re going to succeed you need to be very determined How has social media aided your success?

I wanted to become an artist who would one day be able to perform in front of audiences in every part of the world. Since I had no idea how I could go about that or who I could find to help me accomplish that, I decided to use social media to my advantage. Social media is also the best way for me to reach out to my fans and build a connection with them.

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MAKING HIS MARQUE DUBBED THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSON IN THE AUTOMOTIVE I N D U S T R Y, A S T O N M A R T I N C E O A N D Y P A L M E R H A S B R E A T H E D N E W L I F E I N T O T H E 1 0 6 - Y E A R - O L D C O M P A N Y, M A K I N G I T T H E WO R L D ’ S FA S T E S T G R OW I N G C A R M A N U FAC T U R E R .

F O L L O W I N G T H E L A U N C H O F T H E B R A N D ’ S F I R S T E V E R S U V, H E TA L K S S U C C E S S S TO R I E S , C O M PA N Y C A R S A N D W H Y H I S F U T U R E P L A N S I N V O LV E M O R E T H A N J U S T M O T O R S

Words: Josh Sims

ANDY PALMER SPEAKING AT THE GENEVA INTERNATIONAL MOTOR SHOW 2019

“I

do miss the Japanese food. I really love my food,” says Andy Palmer. But, after 23 years with Renault-Nissan – where he was chief planning officer, number two to the CEO and about as high up the pecking order as he was likely to get – Palmer moved back home from Japan towards the end of 2014. And not just home in the sense of the UK – his move back to join Aston Martin meant working at the company’s headquarters at Gaydon, Warwickshire, where he grew up.

He’d done it all by then, mind – apprenticed at 16, transmissions chief engineer, marketing officer. “I’d done everything in the car industry except finance,” he says, jokingly referring to his decision to leave Nissan as a kind of mid-life crisis – he’d just turned 50 at the time.

“The fact is I’d always wanted to be a CEO. I knew I could settle down with what was a fantastic job, or I could live the dream. And there was a feeling that every bit of my training was leading me to this moment.”

His lack of experience in finance didn’t, however, stop him joining Aston Martin with the condition that the company received around $1 billion up front from lead shareholders Investindustrial (of Italy) and Tejara Capital (of Kuwait) – one half of the original consortium, led by Prodrive chairman David Richards, which bought Aston Martin from Ford in 2007.

That money wasn’t for himself, of course, but to fulfil the vision his study of the carmaker had inspired. That meant having the equity to give the company fresh momentum to produce four new cars, including a forthcoming SUV. It was something of a gamble, and it’s paying off: last year Aston Martin announced record profits. It was also named not only the world’s fastest growing car brand, but the fastest growing British brand of any kind.

“I’m an arrogant b*****d,” laughs Palmer. “Of course I knew that I would be pilloried by some for suggesting the likes of an SUV should be made by a sports car company [unlike the Formula 1-inspired, most-expensive-ever Aston Valkyrie; or Palmer’s promise that there will always be at least one manual transmission car on offer in the Aston Martin line-up]. But that didn’t bother me. Ultimately, surviving is more important than staying true to an ideal that was relevant 50 or 60 years ago.”

It’s fighting talk – something one imagines Palmer rather enjoys. Indeed, he’s taking a rather radical stance with the company as part of what it calls its Second Century Plan. With the future of hardcore, petrolheadteasing sports cars in the balance, he sees Aston Martin as becoming more of a luxury lifestyle brand: hence its recent move into designing swanky apartments in Miami,

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ASTON MARTIN VANQUISH VISION CONCEPT AT THE GENEVA INTERNATIONAL MOTOR SHOW 2019

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ASTON MARTIN VALKYRIE AMR PRO

ASTON MARTIN BY Q

ASTON MARTIN VALKYRIE AMR PRO

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he says with boyish relish. At the time of writing, he finds himself driving a DB11 – and there’s an enviable garage to choose from. The road ahead is by no means clear, but since his tenure, positive steps have been taken.

Aston Martin has (in exchange for a small shareholding) been able to tap into Daimler’s electronic systems capabilities, for example – a crucial step at a time when the car industry is spending billions on just that, seeing it as essential for ensuring longevity. It has come up with some ground-breaking technologies, including the likes of the DB11’s Aeroblade, an ‘invisible’ spoiler. Bonded aluminium and other high-tech material structures have become something of an Aston Martin speciality too, he says, although these may prove useful for the future of the company, again in ways the traditionalists might not approve of: those lightweight, aerodynamic, low-roll resistant structures are perfect for electric cars.

“Again, you can’t ignore the rise of the electric car,” says Palmer. “You have to make choices. That doesn’t mean following trends. But it does mean making certain bets on how the world will change. As it happens the things that electric cars like least are mass and drag – and managing those are something Aston Martin is really good at. That kind of technology is really relevant and really sellable.”

All in good time. Palmer agrees that there are certainly still ideas that could be imported to the company culture that would help achieve his aims for it. He speaks of the Japanese emphasis on teamwork and admits that when he joined Aston Martin he was surprised by all the internal politics, having been away from that curiously British style of working for so long. “In Japan, working together comes naturally and intrinsically, maybe because they all know they have jobs for life, but they just think for the betterment of the company, rather than the individual,” he explains.

But what sets Aston Martin apart, he argues, is passion.

That may be a cliché, but Palmer sounds genuinely impressed by what he’s found at his new charge. “Really, never with all the car companies I’ve been associated with over the years have I seen anything like it,” he says.

“If you’re just doing it for the money, you’d go over the road here at Gaydon and work for Jaguar Land Rover. But there’s a real sense that working at Aston Martin gives you real standing in the industry. Mention at a dinner party that you work for the company and it makes you the centre of conversation. Here you’re exploring the outer reaches of physics, not the outer reaches of accountancy.”

Finance, if you recall, is not a field Palmer has ever worked in. Perhaps that will actually prove to be to Aston Martin’s great benefit. Dig down and Palmer is all about blending the company’s world-class design and engineering capabilities to make what he calls “the most beautiful cars in the world”. It’s as simple – and as complicated – as that.

furniture, a bicycle, a speedboat, even a submersible, all complementing a broader range of vehicle types. It’s all well beyond the heartlands of the famed Aston Martin DB line that celebrated its 70th anniversary last year – and which, thanks to James Bond, is many a man’s introduction to the marque.

“We’ve moved from, as it were, having three Russian dolls in one sector of the car market – GTs essentially – to covering a much broader base. There were so many categories of car for which Aston Martin just didn’t have anything. Now we’re going to be less like Jimmy Choo, a specialist, and more like LVMH – a house of brands,” explains Palmer – with, for example, the revival of the Lagonda marque set to give Bentley a run for its money.

“And that all opens up opportunities – for licensing, say.

You get to cover a broader lifestyle proposition. There’s a danger in this if you’re all about caps and T-shirts – but we’re getting into products that have genuine crossover for our customers. You can buy a multi-million-pound tender from us now. You can even buy a holiday. I just don’t see Aston Martin as just being a car company anymore. And one of the biggest challenges has been getting our heads around that.”

If that sounds a little scary to the motoring purists, Palmer insists that it comes out of both admiration for Aston Martin and out of a desire to see it thrive – not something its history has ever really suggested was possible.

As he notes, the company has – for all but two years – never been profitable, in the sense of generating cash, “but I had a strong sense that it should be,” says Palmer. “Study the story of Aston Martin and it’s really one of successive millionaires buying the company, producing one car, and then walking away. I don’t see Aston Martin as ever being anything less than exclusive – I have a deep conviction that the only way you can make money in the car industry is at the very top, or at the very bottom. But the company has never had a discrete range of cars that appealed to different kinds of people, which is what you need.”

That, in essence, is Palmer’s hard-headed vision for the Aston Martin of the 21st century – identifying the variety of needs of the high-net-worth individual (or the varieties of high-net-worth individuals) and providing a car to match. That may sound mechanistic against the romantic spirit of Aston Martin’s heritage, but not for nothing did a Forbes magazine study conclude in 2013 that Palmer was the world’s third most influential marketing officer – after those at Apple and Samsung. Only the coming years will suggest whether his vision is proven right, but Palmer sees no reason why Aston Martin can’t be, as he puts it, “a second Ferrari”. As he notes, it wasn’t that long ago that Aston Martin was selling more cars than the famed Italian maker.

Palmer has, at least, fulfilled one ambition in becoming CEO. “The best thing about the job is the company car,”

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FI V E MIN U TES WITH...

MAREK REICHMAN

ASTON MARTIN’S CHIEF C R E AT I V E O F F I C E R M A R E K REICHMAN IS THE BRAIN B E H I N D T H E O N E - 7 7, THE DBS V12 AND, MOST R E C E N T LY, T H E B R A N D ’ S F I R S T- E V E R V E N T U R E INTO SUV TERRITORY: THE DBX. AS THE MARQUE U N V E I L S I T S L AT E S T C O L L A B O R AT I O N W I T H HACKETT LONDON, THE ASTON MARTIN RACING PRO COLLECTION, THE DESIGNER TA L K S D R I V E R L E S S C A R S , A U T O M O T I V E I N N O VAT I O N A N D H I S AWA R D - W I N N I N G C R E AT I O N S

What did it mean to you when the DBS Superleggera was named The Sunday Times’ Best Designed Car of the Year?

As a designer you put a lot of your heart and soul into something and when that gets recognised there’s an immense feeling of pride and honour. It makes the days of blood, sweat and tears all worthwhile. I have an amazing team and for them to get recognised in that way, there is no better feeling.

What challenges did the DBX pose to you as a designer?

Design at its core is to solve problems using processes, material science or aesthetics to make a better world, and there are lots of challenges when you’re producing a hypercar that’s got 900 Newton metres of torque and 750 brake horse power – but the real challenge tends to be making sure you can create beauty out of function.

Obviously with those kind of figures there’s a high need for aerodynamics and functionality, and combining that with beauty is always the challenge, but it’s the challenge that I get out of bed for every day.

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– so it will be the same. It makes a difference to a mass manufacturer, but for Aston Martin and Lagonda, people will still want to drive their cars for as long as possible.

CLOCKWISE FROM FAR LEFT GILET, £250; JACKET, £195; GILET, £250; JACKET, £395

Who are the world’s greatest designers?

I always take my hat off to Sir Norman Foster; he’s probably one of the greatest architects that has ever existed. Ross Lovegrove is also someone whose work I really appreciate, and I’m an absolute fan of the artist Antony Gormley.

What inspires you?

As a designer you have to have open eyes and an open mind and I tend to be inspired by many things. Without a doubt nature and art are the most relevant, but also music. On a daily basis, nature provides a solution and a wow, whether it’s seeing the sunrise, enjoying the sound of something or seeing something that nature’s created.

What’s Aston Martin’s long-term vision for Lagonda?

Lagonda is the world’s first fullbattery electric car company, so the vision is to set out a language that represents electrification and really takes advantage of the fact that you’re not having to package an internal combustion engine, an exhaust system and a fuel tank. We can really push the boundaries of the vehicle’s proportion and shape and give all that space back to the occupants. The vision is to really show the change in luxury and combine luxury and technology, which hasn’t been done to this point.

How far do you expect the driverless car story to progress?

Driverless cars are inevitable as the technology becomes safer and more relevant. At the end of the day, everything becomes automated – typewriters became automated, washing clothes became automated

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What makes Hackett a natural partner for Aston Martin?

We’ve been working with Hackett for 15 years and we’ve grown together.

The core of the two brands is British craftsmanship and every time I have a meeting with Jeremy [Hackett, the label’s co-founder], we talk about the things that make the companies work well together. We have a shared appreciation of the finest detailing, craftsmanship and Britishness.

What does the rest of the year have in store for you and Aston Martin?

Personally, I’m off to the Australian Grand Prix because it’s the start of the season and that’s very important for Aston Martin’s Valkyrie hypercar programme; I’m then out to Shanghai for the Shanghai Motor Show to present some of the concepts that we showed in Geneva and to do a lecture at Tongji University, where I’m a professor. We’ll then be showing a lot more of the products up until the end of the year, when we will launch DBX, our first ever SUV. hackett.com

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LEFT MCLAREN SENNA RIGHT BRABHAM BT62

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R A B I D , R AV I N G , R A G I N G , T H E M C L A R E N S E N N A A N D B R A B H A M B T 6 2 A R E T W O O F T H E P L A N E T ’ S M O S T F E R O C I O U S S T R E E T- L E G A L H Y P E R C A R S – T R AC K C A R S TA M E D F O R T H E R OA D. S O H OW D O E S T H E 8 0 0 B H P B R I T CO M PA R E TO T H E £ 1 . 2 M I L L I O N AU ST R A L I A N ?

Words: Jeremy Taylor

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hey were two behemoths of motor racing – legends of the racetrack who won six world championships between them and a string of heavyweight accolades. Now, the late Ayrton Senna and Sir Jack Brabham have been further immortalised with a brace of eponymous hypercars.

McLaren claims the £750,000 Senna GTR is the most extreme road car ever built. A futuristic rash of spoilers and aerodynamic slats, the twinturbo V8 engine will blast the car to 200mph and keep going until the driver’s nerve finally gives out.

The Brabham BT62 manages to look even madder. Originally conceived as a track-only model, in January 2019 Brabham Automotive announced a Road Compliance Conversion option for the European market (at a cost of £150,000, on top of the car’s £1.2m list price). Yet even the normally aspirated V8 engine dispenses with many of the niceties that would allow a McLaren owner to pop in to Waitrose on the way home from work in a road-legal Senna.

The truth is, just one peep at that enormous spoiler on the boot of the Senna suggests few owners will ever venture on the highway. The McLaren is essentially a track car that can be driven to and from a circuit.

Only 500 Sennas will be built and they sold out to deep-pocketed enthusiasts long before the first car was even seen in the metal. Many customers will splash out more on bespoke interiors and livery, pushing the final price to well over £1m.

The limited supply also guarantees secondhand prices will soar. The old McLaren F1 is now one of the most sought-after roads cars ever built – no wonder there has been a feeding frenzy

surrounding the release of the new Senna.

The Brabham BT62 is the first car from Brabham Automotive, run by David Brabham, Jack’s son. A former F1 racer and 24 Hours of Le Mans winner himself, David believes the twoseater has what it takes to compete against the Senna GTR. The BT62 features carbon-fibre body panels and weighs just 972kg – that’s considerably less than the 1,283kg McLaren. So while the Brabham produces ‘just’ 700bhp, it has the power-to-weight ratio advantage over the 789bhp Senna.

Unlike the Senna, which is the next step in McLaren’s Ultimate Series – above the Super Series 720S, and Sports Series 540 and 570 models – the Brabham was created from a blank canvas, and just 70 will be made.

“Brabham is an iconic name thanks to dad and we weren’t doing anything with it. I’m pretty sure he would have been proud with what we have achieved with the BT62,” says David.

The McLaren Senna is essentially a track car that can be driven to and from a circuit “I think racing was always in the family blood.

I never saw my dad compete in Formula One but I did like speed when I was growing up on the farm in Australia. The ultimate aim is to race the BT62 at Le Mans.”

David set up Project Brabham in 2014, which led to the May 2018 launch of the BT62, a midengine track car powered by a 5.4-litre unit. Built in Australia, the BT62 is currently undergoing tests in Europe and, at the time of writing, no journalist has been allowed behind the wheel.

The McLaren Senna is so fast you really need a racetrack to fully exploit it – which is why I was packed off to a Portuguese racetrack to do just that. Ayrton Senna’s first grand prix win was here in Estoril, driving a turbocharged Lotus, but, fortuntately for me, what you don’t need with the McLaren is Senna’s level of ability. It’s still a sharp learning curve, however – strapped tightly into a six-point racing harness and accompanied at all times by a tame racing driver.

BRABHAM BT62 PRICE: £1.2 million ENGINE: 5.4-litre V8 POWER/TORQUE: 700bhp/667Nm TRANSMISSION: Six speed, rear-wheel drive 0-62MPH: Sub 3.0 seconds TOP SPEED: 200mph + ECONOMY: N/A

MCLAREN SENNA GTR PRICE: £750,000 ENGINE: 4.0-litre twin turbo V8 POWER/TORQUE: 789bhp/800Nm TRANSMISSION: Seven speed, rear-wheel drive 0-62MPH: 2.8 seconds TOP SPEED: 208mph ECONOMY: 27.7mpg

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LEFT BRABHAM BT62 RIGHT MCLAREN SENNA

Monstrous power has been squeezed from the same 4.0-litre engine fitted to the company’s brilliant 720S model. The car, codenamed BP23, at birth relies on incredible, track-focused technology to get it around the circuit faster than anything I have ever driven.

This isn’t a hybrid like McLaren’s much-vaunted P1 of 2012. The twin-turbo petrol engine supplies the power but it’s the suspension and aerodynamic prowess of the Senna that makes it so special.

That enormous spoiler weighs just 4.8kgs but produces 800kg of downforce. The result? The Senna feels stable and responsive at ridiculous speeds. Specially-made Senna tyres provide staggering grip through the corners and straightline performance and braking are brutal.

The cabin is a mix of stripped-out racer and basic road car. Some versions feature glass-panel side doors – all have a variety of buttons in the roof to add to the sense of occasion. Those lucky enough to be on the delivery list are in for a real treat, although quite why anybody would want to drive it on a potholed British road is beyond me. But if you do own a small corner of England somewhere, this is the car to fill your boots. It feels locked to the road, totally unshakable – a rollercoaster on steroids.

While they’re waiting for their purchase to arrive, however, future owners should get down to the gym and build up some neck muscles. This is one motor that really should come with a health warning. Apart from a Formula One car, there really is nothing quite like the McLaren Senna GTR.

RACING LEGENDS S I R JAC K B R A B H A M Sir Jack Brabham was a Royal Australian Air Force mechanic who came to England to further his racing career with the Cooper team. He was a driving force in the development of rear-engine racing cars that had never been seen on the track before. Brabham won his first championship in 1959, competing against such luminaries as Sir Stirling Moss and Bruce McLaren in an era of regular fatalities.

His Cooper beat teams from Porsche, Ferrari and Maserati.

He won his second title in 1960 and a third in 1966 when he was 40, beating John Surtees, Graham Hill and Jim Clark. He retired in 1970 after friends Bruce McLaren and Jochen Rindt died within months of each other. Brabham’s 1966 championship made him the first man to win a Formula One world championship in a car bearing his own name.

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AY R T O N S E N N A Ayrton Senna is still regarded as one of the greatest racing drivers of all time. The Brazilian won the Formula One world championship for McLaren in 1988, 1990 and 1991, following a rise through the ranks from go-kart racing.

His 10-year spell in F1 was action-packed and filled with thrills and spills. Senna forged great friendships and bitter rivalries, with notable examples including his relationship with former team-mate Alain Prost and going wheel-to-wheel with Nigel Mansell. His qualifying lap at Monaco in 1988 is regarded as one of the greatest laps of all time and, in 1991, he won the championship in front of a home crowd despite his engine having locked up in sixth gear. He died at the San Marino Grand Prix in 1994 after his car left the circuit at 190mph and crashed into a concrete wall. He was 34.

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YEAR IN REVIEW H A G E R T Y, T H E W O R L D ’ S L A R G E S T I N S U R A N C E A G E N C Y F O R V I N T A G E V E H I C L E S , O F F E R S A N I N S I G H T I N T O T H E L AT E S T T R E N D S I N T H E C O L L E C TA B L E C A R M A R K E T

Words: John Wiley

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he $48.4 million 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO was the biggest headline in the collector car world in 2018.

This blue-blooded Italian captured the highest price ever paid for a car at auction at RM Sotheby’s Monterey, California, auction in August. Despite drawing huge crowds, the sale was overshadowed by another 250 GTO that reportedly sold for $70 million in the private market earlier in 2018. During the same August weekend, a 1935 Duesenberg SSJ Roadster sold for $22 million at Gooding & Company’s auction. After bidding stalled near the $10 million estimate, it burst back into life and finished at a record for an American car and a public record for a pre-war car.

Plenty happened elsewhere in the collector car world last year that will have a more lasting impact than those eightfigure sales. For the first time, younger generations became the majority of people who were interested in acquiring collector vehicles, and their influence became evident in some surprising ways. Unlike Baby Boomers, younger collectors – Gen-X and millennials – don’t collect the cars of their youth.

One of the golden rules of car collecting is that people buy the cars they wanted (or had) as youths. Which means that over the past two decades, Baby Boomers were buying 1960s and 1970s sports and performance cars with fervour. Now that Gen-X and millennial buyers are moving into the market, logic suggests they will buy newer cars, but it turns out that cars from the 1960s and 1970s are just as compelling to these younger collectors. And who can blame them? Those cars were at their unregulated best and are antidotes to today’s computerized cars.

For years, Baby Boomers have dominated the collector car market, but their children are edging in. At the end of 2017, the majority of requests for quotes that Hagerty received to insure a collector car tipped toward Gen-X and younger enthusiasts. That trend continued in 2018, with 53 per cent of quotes coming from Gen-X and younger collectors.

Another interesting facet that our data revealed: While Baby Boomers tend to have cars that are on average 14 years younger than they are, millennials tend to own cars that are on average seven years older than them. Among Hagerty policy-holders, the median model year for Pre-Boomers is 1964, Boomers 1968, Gen-X 1970, and millennials 1970.

New digital marketplaces for collector cars went mainstream in 2018. Curated online auction site Bring a Trailer increased its offerings to approximately 40 vehicles per day. Auctions start five days a week, and each auction lasts one week, providing plenty of time for opinionated commenters to weigh in. Facebook Marketplace is also gaining momentum. The established identities of the Facebook community and the network’s ability to present specific content of interest give it two big advantages over traditional online classifieds like Craigslist. The third online marketplace that grew in popularity in 2018 is Instagram, the Facebook-owned photo app. Instagram’s emphasis on visual content is an excellent medium for selling discretionary items, from handbags to antiques. Some vintage-car dealers sell primarily through Instagram, an undeniable acknowledgement of the ease and reach of these digital platforms. hagertyinsurance.co.uk

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1962 FERRARI 250 GTO SI COUPE

$48,405,000 (approx. £36,500,000) RM SOTHEBY’S

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1956 FERRARI 290 M M BY S C AG L I E T T I

$22,005,000 (approx. £16,600,000) RM SOTHEBY’S

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1935 DUESENBERG SS J R OA DST E R

$22,000,000 (approx. £16,600,000) GOODING & COMPANY

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5 1961 ASTON MARTIN D B 4 G T Z A G AT O C O U P E

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$13,315,899 (approx. £9,910,000) BONHAMS

1963 ASTON MARTIN DP215 COMPETITION PROTOTYPE

$21,455,000 (approx. £16,200,000) RM SOTHEBY’S

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1966 FORD GT40 MK II COUPE

$9,795,000 (approx. £7,385,000) RM SOTHEBY’S

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1965 FERRARI 275 GTB SPECIALE COUPE

$8,085,000 (approx. £6,090,500) GOODING & COMPANY

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1 9 3 2 - 3 4 A L FA R O M E O T I P O B GRAND PRIX MONOPOSTO

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1958 FERRARI 250 GT TOUR DE FRANCE COUPE

$6,600,000 (approx. £6,010,000) GOODING & COMPANY

1985 PORSCHE 959 P A R I S - D A K A R R A L LY C A R

$6,067,210 (approx. £4,574,000)

$5,945,000 (approx. £4,482,000)

RM SOTHEBY’S

RM SOTHEBY’S

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O F F - R OA D I N G O N T H E I N FA M O U S R U B I C O N T R A I L – A 2 2 - M I L E S T R E TC H O F C R A G G Y, B O U L D E R - S T R E W N T E R R A I N I N T H E S I E R R A N E VA D A M O U N T A I N S

Words: David Williams

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The Rubicon Trail is only 22 miles long, but what it lacks in length it makes up for in attitude

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ike, my guide – alongside me in the passenger seat – is strangely calm as I nudge his Land Rover Defender 110 over the top of a dried-out waterfall, above a nasty drop to the rocks below.

“Plenty of left-foot braking to ease us down over the rocks and keep the engine revs up with your right foot to nudge the rear tyre over that boulder,” he says, as my heart hammers my ribcage.

It feels like madness. One false move and we’ll either roll over and slither to the bottom, or fall downhill. The waterfall might only be around 10 ft high but either course of events would wreck the vehicle that Mike has been modifying all winter.

And that uprated 2.8-litre Cummins engine, airlocking differentials front and rear for extra traction, raised suspension, ‘bash’ plates underneath for protection and special six-speed automatic gearbox didn’t come cheap. It could also prove painful.

Virtually standing on the brake pedal to control our descent, I feel the Land Rover lurch suddenly to the left as the rear wheel sinks off the boulder, the two front wheels drop neatly into a gulley worn smooth by the river, and we jolt to the bottom in one piece. ‘Shiny side up’, as they say.

“Told you it’d be easy!” laughs Mike. It’s OK for him; he is a veteran of the famous Rubicon Trail, known as the toughest off-road course in all of North America, and with good reason.

Around 80 miles east of Sacramento, it’s only 22 miles long but what it lacks in length it makes up for in attitude. Snaking over inhospitable, high-altitude sections of the High Sierra in California, it takes, on average, two to three days to complete – including camping out under the stars. Vehicles inch, creep, crawl, scrape, crash, and, in some cases, disintegrate over boulders, through fast-flowing rivers and along implausibly narrow, rocky canyons.

It wasn’t always like this. The trail, which today attracts more than 70,000 4x4 enthusiasts from all over the world during the summer months alone and which is open for all to enjoy, started centuries ago as a hunting, fishing and trading route for Native Americans.

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The trail has elevations running from 5,400 ft to more than 7,000 ft When gold fever gripped California in the mid19th century the trail was invaded by a new breed of explorer, only becoming better known when thousands of panhandlers returned home, bringing tales of this wild, enchanting land with them.

Soon, visitors were trekking for days by horse and cart to discover its beauty. It wasn’t until 1908 that a car was first seen in the area, when a woman from Tahoe drove to Rubicon Springs to promote the Mitchell automobile. Vehicles have been coming ever since.

First, local daredevils penetrated the High Sierra in battered Studebakers and Cadillacs, using planks of wood and ropes to haul their cars over boulders the size of large trucks and through fast-running rivers.

Many vehicles never made it out again, their rusting hulks punctuating the landscape for years to come.

Today, though, I’m confident of getting out alive. I’m a guest of US tyre giant BFGoodrich, which has spent years developing its latest allterrain tyre, the KM3. To demonstrate its ability, the company has flown me by helicopter – accompanied by an assorted group of guests from across Canada and the US – from nearby Lake

Tahoe to put it through its paces.

In the dazzling sun and thin air – the trail has elevations running from 5,400 to more than 7,000 ft – hats, sunscreen and shades are vital as we gather around our guide, Cameron Steele, for a safety briefing.

An experienced off-roader, Steele doesn’t pull his punches. “You’re here to have fun, but it’s not a race and we want you to go slow,” he informs us. “Listen to your guides. Whatever they tell you to do, even if it seems crazy, do it; they know this terrain intimately.

“The best way is to follow in the wheel-tracks of the 4x4 in front. But if their brake lights come on and there’s a whole lot of grinding going on as they try to reverse, maybe find a different way round... ” Jumping into the 1988 Land Rover for the start, I feel stranded. There’s no exit from the mountain top plateau. There’s a cliff face to the right, a steep, scree-covered drop-off to the left, boulders in front, boulders behind. I don’t know whether to go into reverse or attempt to drive straight over a huge rock in front of those nice shiny new KM3s.

“OK, into first gear and a bit of gas,” instructs Mike and, scarcely noticing the succession of

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obstacles – more stepping stones than pathway – I inch the car forward. The chassis on the white Defender, which has a turbodiesel engine producing 167bhp and a useful 260 lbs of torque, groans as we tackle that first, dry, waterfall.

Then we traverse a mighty, madly off-camber slab of rock, where only the KM3s, inflated to 15psi and moulding themselves magically around every inch of available grip, save us from sliding into the abyss. Next we scale an abrupt wall of rock, which, if you had ropes, climbing boots and a safety harness, might be fun to climb on foot. In a car it seems suicidal.

Famous obstacles along the trail are spoken of in hushed terms by our guides. We started at Little Sluice, lunched at The Slabs, negotiated Big Sluice Box, Martini Tree and ended at Big Sluice End. Other iconic hurdles include The Granite Bowl, Thousand Dollar Hill, Soup Bowl and Cadillac Hill – each responsible for a trail of wrecked vehicles.

Part of the fun is watching the Jeeps in front sway, claw and grind their way over obstacles that I would never have believed possible to traverse in a four-wheeled vehicle.

Ahead of me are 16 brand new Jeep Wranglers, all shod in BFGoodrich’s KM3s and modified with highrise suspension, skid plates to protect the drivetrain and with electrically operated diff locks, front and rear. Behind me is a Land Rover 90, equipped with a butch-sounding 4.5-litre JE Rover V8 engine, followed by another 110, doubling as a back-up and Wi-Fi truck.

After all, if it does all go wrong in the mountains, we’ll definitely want to contact base camp for help.

Every inch of the way I remember to observe the terrain immediately ahead, looking out for ledges and boulders on which we can place a wheel or two, pivoting the Land Rover over large jagged rocks and fallen trees.

Despite the vehicle’s 15 inches of ground clearance, it’s a vital tactic that sees us see-sawing, often teetering on two wheels – and having the time of our lives.

As if we need further proof of the new tyre’s performance, BFGoodrich arranges a rendezvous with KM3shod Mad Max-style Ultra-4 Rock Racing vehicles and we enjoy passenger rides as they hop and spring crazily from rock to rock at speed, in the hands of competition drivers.

After a day’s hard driving, we feel as though we have driven to the ends of the world. In reality, we’ve crawled just three or so arduous miles through jaw-droppingly beautiful scenery, stretching as far as the eye can see.

It’s exhilarating, the vehicles are still in one piece, there’s not a puncture in sight and – as our helicopters whirl into view over a snowy mountain ridge to return us to civilisation – I wish I could do it all over again, waterfalls included.

STRETCH YOUR DRIVING SKILLS WITH THE WORLD’S MOST EXTREME MOTORING EXPEDITIONS

TASMANIA TOUR The ‘Tasmanian Supercar Tour’ is ideal for owners of fine machinery looking for an opportunity to put it through its paces over

MOROCCO MOTORCYCLE TOUR

For some, only two wheels will cut it on an adventurous trip of a lifetime, and this motorcycle

SARDINIA TOUR

Sardinia is the backdrop to a spectacular 18-day tour, run by Classic Car Tours International. Guests begin by spending five days travelling through some

rubicontrail.org

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three days, in an exotic location. Guests of ‘Ultimate Driving Tours’ get the chance to circumnavigate this picturesque island state on some of the roads featured in the renowned Targa Tasmania tarmac rally event, with experienced guides and vehicle support.

Participants enjoy luxury accommodation and gastronomic dining. ultimatedrivingtours.com

tour of Morocco, with Motorrad Tours, fits the bill. Covering around 2,100 miles of tarmac roads, the tour starts and ends in Malaga, Spain and includes a ferry to Africa, followed by 14 days of exploration.

Participants visit Rabat before heading into the Atlas Mountains, and the Sahara. Participants can test their skills on a gravel section too. motorrad-tours.com

of France’s most beautiful regions, such as the Loire Valley, the Dordogne, the Tarn gorges and Provence, before arriving in Genoa where they catch the overnight ferry to Olbia on the north-east coast of Sardinia. Once in Sardinia, guests spend 12 days exploring the island, navigating the scenic coastline as well as in the stunning mountains inland. classiccartoursinternational.co.uk

TO READ MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS VISIT TO READwww.luxurylondon.co.uk MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS VISIT www.luxurylondon.co.uk TO READ MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS VISIT www.luxurylondon.co.uk

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ESCAPE TO ST R I V E , TO S E E K , TO F I N D. . .

P.120 THE FACE OF PALM BEACH An architectural history of Florida

P.124 ITALY’S BEST KEPT SECRET Exploring Beyoncé’s favourite Aeolian Island: Panerea

How a team of conservationists are striving to save the struggling ecosystems of Mauritius (p.114)

ADVENTURE ISLAND CHARLES DARWIN ENTHUSED OVER THE BEAUTIFUL P L A I N S O F S U G A R C A N E , T H E L AVA F L O W S A N D T H E V I O L E N T B A S A LT I C P I N N A C L E S H E S AW O N M A U R I T I U S . N E A R LY T W O C E N T U R I E S L A T E R , M A N Y O F T H E I S L A N D ’ S E C O S Y S T E M S E X I S T I N A S TAT E O F F R A G I L I T Y. T H A N K F U L LY, VA R I O U S C O N S E R VA T I O N O R G A N I S AT I O N S A R E AT T E M P T I N G TO TURN BACK THE HANDS OF TIME

Words: Nick Savage

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or anyone who’s walked a forest path, there’s something familiar and arboreal about swimming through Mauritian mangroves. Pine-hued fronds of seaweed undulate from each side as you thread a narrow waterway of blonde sand. There’s a pervasive quietude that calms the nerves, the only interruption the occasional gurgle of water.

Flashes of pattern shock the mind into awareness.

There’s a jolt of adrenaline and a sense of danger as the eyes focus and bring into vision a ghostly fish fanning its Bengal-striped fins, barely visible beneath an ochre boulder. A moment later, to its right, I notice two doppelganger dotted eels wound together like knitwork, their mouths open in twin rictuses.

There’s a light pressure on my shoulder, my snorkel dips underwater accidentally and suddenly I emerge into the bright ocean air of Anahita, coughing out a mouthful of saltwater.

My guide Rick Bonnier and his colleague Jyodee Pilly explain that we’ve just come across a lionfish, a geometric moray eel and a leopold moray eel. Both guides are educated to graduate level – Bonnier at UC Berklee and Pilly at Bangor University in Wales.

For two days they’ve steered me and my wife through

the fragile coral ecosystems that seperate the island of Mauritius from the deep waters of the Indian Ocean.

Mauritius has a long history in the fields of biology and conservation. In The Voyage of the Beagle, Charles Darwin enthuses over the brilliant plains of sugarcane, the lava flows and violent basaltic pinnacles of Mauritian mountains. Over the years various indigenous creatures here have been pushed to the brink of extinction – famously the flightless dodo bird was entirely exterminated by invasive species such as rats, pigs, monkeys and deer brought over by European settlers. However, various organisations such as the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation are attempting to right the balance.

Both Bonnier and Pilly are employed by global marine education and conservation specialist WiseOceans in a partnership with Four Seasons Resort Mauritius at Anahita. They have been instrumental in helping us to understand the comprehensive measures the local government has taken to preserve marine wildlife locally. As part of the resort’s wider environmental conservation programme, WiseOceans provides constant screening of the coral reefs.

We travel by speedboat 30 minutes to the south of Anahita, admiring Mont de Lion, a mountain ridge

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The entire spectrum of colour is visable in the scales of fish and the plumage of birds is a good place to go. From there we can move to implementing new policies.”

There’s plenty of nature circulating through our hotel’s grounds. Nestled on the quiet eastern side of the island in the Flacq district, Four Seasons Resort Mauritius at Anahita features 132 spacious villas each with its own landscaped terrace and plunge pool, spread across a 64-acre spit of land jutting out into the turquoise waters of the lagoon that surrounds the nearby Île aux Cerfs island.

In the mornings the entire spectrum of colour is visible in the scales of fish and the plumage of birds as they pursue their own breakfasts. At lunch a quartet of Aldabra giant tortoises rouse themselves and plod through their enclosure nibbling leaves of lettuce.

The next day we put on our hiking boots, provision our daypacks and enjoy a leisurely drive down narrow roads along the Bambou mountains and the Domaine du Chasseur nature reserve, looking out over the waters we’d boated the day prior, until we reach Vallée de Ferney, a 200-hectare wildlife retreat in a verdant valley. We wander the gardens before boarding a bus packed with Dutch birdwatchers who titter excitedly as we drive up into the saddle of a ridge.

A herd of Timor deer and a troop of macaques shade themselves underneath a grove of traveller’s tree. Both animals originated in Indonesia and

ABOVE AND RIGHT FOUR SEASONS RESORT MAURITIUS AT ANAHITA

resembling a lion in Sphinx-position, as well as a constellation of small igneous islands on the way to our snorkelling site. The waters are a crystalline turquoise, with a uniform 2.5m depth until the coral reef deepens to 20m and the water takes on a robust teal colour.

Our captain drops anchor, and Bonnier and Pilly give us a refresher course on underwater communication. We don our flippers and masks and jump into the Indian Ocean. The reef is teeming with marine flora and fauna, a carousel of butterflyfish, angelfish, bullethead parrotfish, longfish, trumpetfish, cornetfish, soldierfish, squirrelfish, triggerfish, grouper, blue-green chromis and barracuda.

Pilly points out a crop of staghorn coral and explains that if it has blue tips then it’s a healthy specimen. Though the coral around Mauritius are generally in good health, they face local dangers such as cyclonic weather events and dredging. This is in addition to rising global sea temperatures which invariably lead to bleaching – the coral expel the algae residing in them which give them their colour.

Asked about the best means of helping to conserve this ecosystem, Bonnier answers, “I think we need to raise awareness with our own people. Educating children

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THIS PAGE DINAROBIN BEACHCOMBER OPPOSITE PAGE CHAMAREL WATERFALL

During the 17th and 18th centuries it was a refuge for escaped slaves. When slavery was abolished in 1835, a squad of British soldiers ascended the mountain to inform the slaves of their emancipation. Mistaking the soldiers’ intentions and believing that they were going to be arrested, the escapees cast themselves from the cliff sides, opting for death over recapture. Since then Le Morne Brabant has become a national symbol of freedom and autonomy, and was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2008.

The day I climb to the top, I rise at 4.30am to meet my mountain guide Rafiki, who sports a thick head of dreadlocks. He has a keen interest in holistic medicine and natural remedies and points out various plants as we skirt the mountain’s base, listing their healing properties. The path is gentle enough in the beginning, but as the pitch increases the larger trees give way to exposed rock. The climb continues via a succession of vertiginous vistas, each one better than the last, taking in the southern shores of the island and the ‘underwater waterfall’, an optical illusion visible only from above.

When we reach the summit, Rafiki points out a sizeable shrub, taller than either of us, with reddishgreen flowers. He explains that it’s an endemic plant named the boucle d’oreille, which only grows on the plateau of Le Morne. Following the establishment of Mauritius as a republic in 1992 it was chosen as the national flower. Thinking about it on the return flight, it all seems very apt. The intrinsically unique nature of Mauritius persists in its least visited places.

were introduced to the island by Dutch settlers.

However, their presence, particularly that of the tree, is anathema to the mission of La Vallée de Ferney, which is attempting to preserve the endemic species of a 400-year-old forest.

We part ways with the ornithologists and strike out into the forest, our guide Bhavish pointing out the exotic species such as cinnamon, Chinese guava and mango that threaten to crowd out endemic species such as the black ebony, corkscrew palm and nailwood, of which there are only four left in the park.

We traverse wooden bridges and pass beneath waterfalls as the trail steadily gains altitude. Part of the park’s mission is to encourage the proliferation of endangered endemic fauna such as the pink pigeon, the echo parakeet and the Mauritius kestrel – staff members feed the otherwise wild birds at the trailhead daily.

There’s a panoramic vista when we reach the summit. The air is redolent of cinnamon and the landscape musical with birdsong and the susurration of grass and leaves. In the distance the bay is framed by two muscular valley ridges – a band of darker water between the coral reef and sky. What I think is a crow flaps its wings above us before the sun backlights its wings and illuminates its veins and skeleton – another fruit bat clawing at a thermal.

Eventually, we pack our bags and drive through the Black River Gorges National Park, descending a long series of hairpin turns down a steeply pitched slope into the fertile rolling hills of Chamarel before heading south to Dinarobin Beachcomber, where we will be spending the duration of our time on the island.

Located in the shadow of the spectacular basalt plug Le Morne Brabant, a 556m mountain jutting out into the azure waters at the far south-western side of the island, the resort offers 172 sea-facing suites set along a stretch of pristine, flaxen beach. Borrowing its name from the one bestowed on the island by Arab sailors 500 years before, Dinarobin Beachcomber is run by a Mauritian hotel group that blazed a trail for the local hospitality industry.

While the steady wind might not foster the same quantity of animal life, it does provide plenty of human diversions: sailing, kayaking and stand-up paddling are popular watersports, but the windsurfing and kite-surfing are world renowned.

Regardless of the activity, whether it’s a long walk down the beach, cycling along dusty trails, kayaking in the bay or enjoying local cuisine at one of the hotel’s many restaurants, the craggy monolith towers above us in silent immensity.

My driver Jean-Louell explains its dark history.

Four Seasons Resort Mauritius at Anahita, from £390 night, fourseasons.com; Dinarobin Beachcomber, flights, transfers and seven nights in a junior suite from £1,655 per person sharing, beachcombertours.uk

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DESIGN RIGHT HOW THE VISION OF ARCHITECT ADDISON MIZNER TRANSFORMED T H E FAC E O F F LO R I DA’ S PA L M B E AC H

Words: Sophie Halse

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he greatest day of Addison Mizner’s life was in August 1888. The then 15-year-old was accompanying his father on a trip to Guatemala and their first stop was Mazatlán in Mexico. It was the future architect’s first brush with the Hispanic world, and a moment he would later herald as life-changing.

As an adult, Mizner went on to train as an architect in San Francisco, and to design a number of country houses in Long Island, but it wasn’t until 1918, when the designer visited Florida for the first time, that his sojourn to Mexico revealed the mark it had made.

Noting that the existing architecture in Palm Beach was wooden, and better suited to colder climes, Mizner began designing stone, tile and stucco buildings appropriate to Florida’s sub-tropical climate and modelled on those he had seen on his tour. His big break came in the form of the Everglades Club, which opened in 1919. The pink stucco palace sparked a wave of copycat designs, and between 1919 and 1924 Mizner created 38 houses in similar Spanish style. The face of Palm Beach was transformed.

The Boca Raton Resort & Club is perhaps one of the best examples of Mizner’s work. Originally called the Cloister Inn when it opened in 1926, the hotel was envisioned by the architect as a major resort destination, and was modelled on a Spanish palace complete with Mediterranean, Moorish and Gothic influences. At the time, it didn’t quite achieve the scale the architect had intended, but future owners would later build on the land and achieve his dream for him.

Two years after opening, the 100-room inn was sold and expanded to include more guest rooms, a golf course and a Cabana Club on the beach. A third owner in the 1930s pumped $8m into the property and brought elite guests such as Herbert Hoover to its door. During World War II, the US army purchased the hotel to house its Air Corps trainers and it was nicknamed the most elegant barracks in history.

Today, the hotel is owned by Waldorf Astoria and spans 356 acres and three properties: Boca Raton Resort & Club, Boca Beach Club and Yacht Club at the Boca Raton Resort. You can choose from one of the 1,047 rooms in the original cloister building, which retains its grand design and is sensitively decorated with wooden furniture and tiled flooring; opt for a tower room with a view of Lake Boca at the Yacht Club; or hole up in one of the more laid-back bungalows at the Beach Club.

But it’s not just for the design that people flock to this palatial resort. Its amenities are second to none and it

has accolades to back it up: the hotel has been named in Condé Nast Traveller’s top 10 resorts in Florida for the past two years in a row.

A 55,000 sq ft, Waldorf Astoria Spa, inspired by The Alhambra palace in Granada, Spain, offers a menu of custom treatments that range from mineral baths to waterfall showers. Outside, there is half a mile of private beach, seven pools, two state-of-the-art fitness centres, 30 tennis courts and two championship 18-hole golf courses.

The comprehensive all-day kids’ club Quest has activities such as kite-flying, basketball and ping pong on offer, as well as a butterfly garden and a FlowRider wave machine for surf practice.

For the grown-ups, there are Everglades tours, airboat rides, catamaran cruises and deep-sea fishing excursions to keep you entertained. Should you get hungry, there are 13 restaurants to choose from, ranging from casual poolside bites to Japanese cuisine and, perhaps most unusually, a monkey-themed bar. In essence, you can want for nothing – just as Mizner intended.

From £294 per night including breakfast, bocaresort.com

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EXTRAORDINARY

Wild Coast Tented Lodge, Yala, Sri Lanka.

Photo by Anna Lisa & Porter @recesscity_coll

We look beyond the ordinary, creating bespoke experiences that ignite the senses, materialise even the wildest dreams and make every possibility a reality. Discover travel through Carrier’s eyes and you’ll never see the world in the same way again.

Search Carrier Holidays

Visit: carrier.co.uk Call: 0161 826 1914

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PA N A R E A I T A LY ’ S B E S T K E P T S E C R E T I S A C E L E B R I T Y H I D E O U T C A S T AWAY FROM THE REST OF THE WORLD Words: Joshua Bozin

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ANAREA, a speck off the coast of Sicily, is the smallest island in the seven-island volcanic Aeolian chain. For years it has provided an idyllic playground for A-listers and industrialists thanks to its remote location and the way it has largely kept the modern world at bay – up until the early 1990s, many of the Aeolian islands had no electricity, and residents kept up with events on the mainland by wiring radios to car batteries.

Vistors to the island, which has a permanent population of around 280, have included design doyens Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, Kate Moss, Beyoncé and Jay-Z, and the late ‘L’Avvocato’ Gianni Agnelli. The Borghese, Visconti and Bulgari families have homes here, and on Panerea Italian film director Michelangelo Antonioni found the perfect backdrop for his 1960’s masterpiece L’Avventura.

Panarea is unequivocally beautiful. Its streets are adorned with bougainvillea, as well as olive and lemon trees, which are all native to the island. The limestone backstreets will entice you to explore; discover idyllic cafes, local bakeries and stores selling handmade jewellery.

And don’t expect to see any cars – golf buggies reign supreme here, save for the odd Vespa zipping by.

GETTING THERE Jet-setting to Panarea isn’t as easy as you might hope.

Firstly, you’ll need to fly into either Palermo or Catania, two international airports in Sicily. You will then need to find your way to the port of Milazzo, where daily hydrofoils commute to the Aeolian Islands. Don’t expect things to run to schedule; this is Sicily, after all.

Panarea is one of the last islands on the seven-island tour, so don’t hold your breath for a zippy transit. But as the island eventually comes into view, its beauty is worth every waiting minute. Alternatively, there is also a heliport located on the island.

As you dock, boats are seen in all shapes and sizes; fishmongers are busy and the local tourist traps are weaving their magic. But that’s about it. The length of the main village strip, San Pietro – where a few artisan and boutique stores can be found – runs only 100 metres or so in length.

ROOM WITH A VIEW There are a handful of hotels on the island. Hotel Raya first opened in the 1960’s, and could be considered a forerunner of the boutique hotels that can now be found all over the world. The hotel was originally empty for a majority of the time, but its reputation picked up, immensly with the arrival of guests such as Gianni Agnelli, Aristotle Onassis and Francis Bacon. These noteworthy

figures frequented the hotel’s open-terrace dance floors, and transformed it into one of the Mediterranean’s most chic and exclusive destinations.

Days begin and end at Hotel Raya, which, with its whitewashed walls and beautiful bougainvillea, is rustic and unmistakably Mediterranean. Rooms are simple and quaint; the lack of technology – including televisions – is genuinely refreshing. The viewpoint overlooking the semi-circular cape of Panarea is the real enticement. As the sun goes down, guests might be lucky enough to revel in the truly stunning sight of lava-spurting from the Stromboli volcano as the light fades in a pink-hue.

“The Raya is for people who have too much and want to find themselves,” Myriam Beltrami, the hotel’s owner and director, once said.

Neighbouring Hotel Cincotta is another boutique hotel from times gone by. Walking through the downstairs common room feels like a pleasant trip down memory lane.

In my opinion, the views from Hotel Cincotta are superior to thsoe from Raya’s, as your vantage points are amplified and take in many different angles of this fantastic island.

Cocktail hour by the pool has never looked sweeter.

AL FRESCO DINING Although dining opportunities on the island are scarce, the quality of the food is fantastic. Fresh seafood is caught every day; pasta is of the region and made in front of you; meats are farmed locally. And best of all, thanks to the warm Sicilian sun, dining outside is a sheer delight.

Most of the hotels have an in-house restaurant but roaming the village seeking a late night dinner won’t lead you astray. The warm and charming Broccia restaurant serves Sicilian cuisine on an open terrace with a spectacular backdrop. Highlights include fresh mussels in saffron; tuna belly loin with a green stew of clams and boiled octopus; homemade maltagliati pasta with swordfish ragout; and angler steak with chard raviolo and coriander.

A PA R T Y L I K E N O O T H E R After dinner, if you’re not staying at Hotel Raya, you’ll want to end up there, regardless. Dance the night away with strangers that you will soon call friends, as you do shots and clear the bar of Aperol and prosecco.

ESCAPE THE CROWDS Explore the island your way. Secluded beaches and rocky alcoves can be found with a bit of luck, or do as the Italians do and rent a boat for the day. This is a fantastic way to explore Panarea and visit landmarks such as the Arco degli Innamorati – or, Lovers’ Arch.

Hotel Raya, from €150 per night, hotelraya.it; Hotel Cincotta, from €160 per night, otta.it; Ristorante Broccia, panarea.me

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LUXURY LONDON

PROMOTION

AT YO U R S E R V I C E H O W M AY FA I R - B A S E D B O L D & R E E V E S I S H E L P I N G L O N D O N ’ S S U P E R P R I M E HOMEOWNERS WITH ITS UNIQUE APPROACH TO PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

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our house is one of your most expensive assets and needs looking after. Other luxury assets, such as cars, yachts and planes, are regularly serviced, and there’s no reason why your home shouldn’t have the same level of care.

This is where Bold & Reeves can help.

Bold & Reeves is a market leader in the property industry, in terms of innovation and PropTech in-home maintenance. The expert team is able to manage its clients’ super prime

London properties by using an online system to remotely monitor, assess and identify faults in equipment such as boilers, air conditioning, swimming pools, satellite TV, alarms, refrigeration and electrical systems.

This system provides peace of mind and demonstrable risk management for insurance purposes. The service is bespoke, proactive, carefully planned and meticulously managed. Clients have their own personal property manager who plans, organises and

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oversees every aspect of the service and deals with expert tradespeople.

Bold & Reeves clients have seen two key benefits from a preventative maintenance programme being implemented in their properties.

Firstly, the number of issues within the property is reduced, meaning they spend less time having to worry about fixing them. Secondly, they have seen a drop off in the actual running cost of their property. This is borne out by actual client data.

Clients are provided with an electronic property maintenance logbook available through the web or via an iPhone app, which records all activities undertaken and provides valuable continuity, enabling customers to see, check and change their schedule for complete confidence and control. As a result they can avoid expensive emergency providers while adding value to their property, as potential purchasers will be able to see the full service history before buying.

Everyone has logbooks for their cars and boats, so it makes sense that clients have one for their homes, too.

The service also provides peace of mind for clients whose property has been sitting on the market for a while. A number of developers have used Bold & Reeves to look after their luxury properties while they are on the market, and to subsequently provide maintenance services for the first year after purchase to help owners with the running of their new asset. These clients have recognised the value of Bold & Reeves managing, maintaining and monitoring their homes.

Bold & Reeves delivers convenience, peace of mind and value for all clients. boldandreeves.co.uk

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P R O P E R T Y T H E F I N E S T H O M E S I N T H E C A P I TA L

INSIDER KNOWLEDGE The latest news from the world of property

P.140 SPOTLIGHT A five-bed family home in Pimlico hits the market

The North London street experiencing a mansion building boom (p.132)

A newly refurbished house with outside space.

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Paultons Street, Chelsea SW3 This is an exceptional low built double fronted house that is 26ft wide and is situated in the south eastern corner of Paultons Square.

• • • •

James Pace looks forward to helping you. james.pace@knightfrank.com 020 3641 7308

An incredibly rare double fronted property A beautiful period house Benefiting from an abundance of natural light throughout Approximately 3,657 sq ft (339.74 sq m)

Guide price

£8,500,000

Freehold knightfrank.co.uk Connecting people & property, perfectly.

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INSIDER KNOWLEDGE SURVEY REVEALS A NEW NORTH LONDON HOTSPOT FOR UHNWI

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venue Road is hotly becoming north London’s mega mansion hub following the construction and completion of 12 mansions with a combined market value of £500m, a new survey by Aston Chase reveals. The findings are the result of plot history analysis and local market intelligence, cross-referenced with recent LonRes data. It found that 30 per cent of the mansion makeovers are speculative projects undertaken by ultraluxury developers, while the remaining 70 per cent are private client projects.

The avenue’s close proximity to St John Wood’s High Street, Primrose Hill and Regent’s Park are said to be attracting buyers, along with the fact that it is one of the few thoroughfares in St John’s Wood where buyers can purchase substantial plots.

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Grosvenor Square, Mayfair The Grosvenor Square Apartments are located in desirable Mayfair, between the wonderful, green, open spaces of Hyde Park and the vibrant, cosmopolitan bustle of the West End. Luxury retailers are a five minute walk away as are many of London’s finest dining experiences.

Pegasi Management Company Limited 207 Sloane Street London SW1X 9QX E: enquiries@pegasi.co.uk | T: +44 (0)207 245 4500 pegasi.co.uk

Ansdell Terrace, W8 £6,000,000 Located in a quiet cul-de-sac in the heart of Kensington, this four-bedroom townhouse boasts over 3,000 sqft of luxury living. It features three reception rooms and an impressive open-plan kitchen/dining room with bespoke walnut cabinetry and bi-folding doors that lead out to a courtyard garden. Freehold. EPC=D • Five-story townhouse • Underfloor heating throughout • Roof terrace

Kensington office: 020 8033 9025 sales.kns@marshandparsons.co.uk

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Striking Medieval conversion, Knightsbridge.

Ansdell Terrace, W8 £6,000,000 Located in a quiet cul-de-sac in the heart of Kensington, this four-bedroom townhouse boasts over 3,000 sqft of luxury living, with three reception rooms and an impressive open-plan kitchen/dining room with bespoke walnut cabinetry and bi-folding doors that lead out to a courtyard garden. Freehold. EPC=D • Five-story townhouse • Underfloor heating throughout • Roof terrace

Kensington office: 020 8033 9025 sales.kns@marshandparsons.co.uk

Matching people and property in London for over 160 years.

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Communal garden apartment Oakwood Court, W14 Holland Park Underground Station: 0.7 miles 2 reception rooms, 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, balcony, access to communal gardens, concierge.

Service charge ÂŁ8,451 pa for the year ending 31 March 2018, Ground rent Peppercorn. EPC = D

Leasehold approximately 955 years | 2,470 sq ft (229.47 sq m) | Guide ÂŁ3.35 million Stephen Holmes Savills Kensington Residential Sales 020 7535 3300 sholmes@savills.com

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Prime Knightsbridge apartment Lowndes Square, SW1X

Knightsbridge Underground Station: 0.1 miles, Hyde Park Corner Underground Station: 0.3 miles

This well-proportioned apartment is situated on the 6th floor of this portered building with direct views over the prestigious Lowndes Square communal gardens, reception room, eat-in kitchen, 3 bedrooms with en suite bathrooms, air conditioning, access to the garden square, by separate negotiation, 24 hour security and porterage, lift, EPC rating = E,

Leasehold approximately 130 years remaining | 1,973 sq ft | Guide ÂŁ5.5 million

Tom Wilson Savills Sloane Street Residential Sales 020 7730 0822 twilson@savills.com

Superb mews house Devonshire Place Mews, W1G

Regents Park Underground Station 0.3 miles

Entrance hall, double reception room, kitchen/dining room, master bedroom with en suite dressing room and bathroom, 2 further bedrooms, further bathroom, garage, EPC=D

Freehold | 1,738 sq ft (161 sq m) | Guide ÂŁ3.5 million

Alex Ross Savills Marylebone & Fitzrovia Residential Sales 020 3527 0400 ahross@savills.com

Fabulous entertaining space Hertford Street, W1

Green Park Underground Station: 0.3 miles

Entrance hall, reception room, kitchen/dining area, master bedroom suite, further bedroom, bathroom, EPC = Exempt

Share of Freehold | 1,691 sq ft (157.1 sq m) | Guide ÂŁ4.95 million

Charles Lloyd Savills Mayfair & St James's Residential Sales 020 7578 5111 clloyd@savills.com

SPOTLIG HT A FIVE-BEDROOM VICTORIAN HOUSE IN PIMLICO HITS THE MARKET

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erched on the edge of the Pimlico grid, Westmoreland Terrace offers peaceful living in the heart of the capital. This five-bedroom Victorian house has recently hit the market, offering 2,500 sq ft of space arranged over five floors.

A large kitchen and family room, which is equipped with Miele and Fisher & Paykel appliances, takes up the entirety of the lower ground floor. Contemporary white units and worktops have been carefully chosen to reflect the light that floods in from the skylight, which brightens the underground space. The ground floor boasts an expansive reception room and

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PROPERTY

a balcony, while the first floor is home to the master bedroom, the property’s largest bathroom and a roof terrace complete with a glass roof veranda. Four bedrooms are spread across the remaining two floors, along with three bathrooms – two of which are en suites.

Conveniently located near to Pimlico Road, Westmoreland Terrace is close to Belgravia and Sloane Square, and is a short walk to Victoria station.

£3.85m MARSH & PARSONS 53 Warwick Way, SW1V, 020 7828 8100, marshandparsons.co.uk

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Cadogan Street, Chelsea SW3 £1,750 per week

Flexible Furnishing

Alexander Street, Notting Hill W2 £1,025 per week

Unfurnished

A stunning three double bedroom property with excellent entertaining space.

A beautifully refurbished split level three-bedroom maisonette with a gorgeous open plan kitchen and living space.

1,719 sq ft (159.7 sq m) Two reception rooms | Dining room | Kitchen | Three double bedrooms | Three bathrooms | Garden patio | Balcony | Utility room | Air conditioning | EPC rating C

1,072 sq ft (99.6 sq m) Three bedrooms | Two bathrooms | Open plan kitchen | Living room | Roof terrace | EPC rating D

Chelsea 020 3504 5588 | chelsea.lettings@struttandparker.com

Notting Hill 020 3773 4114 | nottinghill@struttandparker.com

Holland Park Mews, Holland Park W11 £1,150 per week Unfurnished

Clabon Mews, Knightsbridge SW1X £2,500 per week

A stunning three-bedroom mews house in Holland Park with the advantage of a garage.

An immaculately presented and furnished two/three-bedroom mews house, with garage and private terrace.

1,386 sq ft (128.76 sq m) Reception room | Kitchen area | Master bedroom with en suite shower room | Two further bedrooms | Bathroom | Utility area | Garage | Balcony | EPC rating D

2,663 sq ft (237.4 sq m) Entrance hall | Drawing room | Study | Cinema room | Kitchen/ breakfast room | Two double bedrooms with en suite bathrooms | Third bathroom | Cloakroom | Garage | Garden | EPC rating D

Kensington 020 3813 9477 | kensington@struttandparker.com

Knightsbridge 020 3504 8796 | knightsbridgeLettings@struttandparker.com

Furnished

*After an offer is accepted by the Landlord, which is subject to contract and acceptable references, the following charges and fees will be payable before the commencement of the tenancy: Preparation of Tenancy Agreement £222 (Inc VAT),

/struttandparker

@struttandparker

struttandparker.com

60 Offices across England and Scotland, including prime Central London.

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Chipstead Street, Fulham SW6 £1,900 per week

Unfurnished

Tregunter Road, Chelsea SW10 £5,250 per week

Unfurnished

A fantastic five-bedroom family house located on a sought after street within the popular Peterborough Estate.

An elegantly presented six-bedroom Grade II Listed semi-detached white stucco house with excellent entertaining and family space.

2,827 sq ft (262.65 sq m) Kitchen | Dining room | Reception room | Master bedroom with en suite | Five further bedrooms | Two bathrooms | Media room | Conservatory | Study | Utility room | Cloakroom | Patio | Garden | EPC rating D

4,310 sq ft (400.43 sq m) Two reception rooms | Two dining rooms | Kitchen | Five double bedrooms | One single bedroom | Five bathrooms | Cloakroom | Three terraces | Garden | Off-street parking | EPC rating D

Fulham 020 8023 6671 | fulham@struttandparker.com

Chelsea SW10 020 3813 9185 | chelseaSW10@struttandparker.com

Roland Way, South Kensington SW7 £3,500 per week

Furnished

Waldemar Avenue Mansions, Fulham SW6 £1,635 per week Unfurnished

A gorgeous five-bedroom house located on this quiet secure mews in the heart of South Kensington.

A stunning and incredibly unique three-bedroom, split-level apartment.

2,557 sq ft (237.6 sq m) Reception room | Dining room | Kitchen | Master bedroom suite | Four bedrooms | Conservatory | Outside seating area | EPC rating E

2,218 sq ft (206.04 sq m) Kitchen | Reception room | Master bedroom with en suite, dressing room and private patio | Two further bedrooms with en suites | Utility room | Cloakroom | Garden | EPC rating C

South Kensington 020 3504 5901 | southken@struttandparker.com

Fulham 020 8023 6671 | fulham@struttandparker.com

References per Tenant £54 (Inc VAT), a deposit – usually between 6-10 weeks of the agreed rent. Any rent advertised is pure rent and does not include any additional services such as council tax, water or utility charges.

Strutt & Parker is a trading style of BNP Paribas Real Estate Advisory & Property Management UK Limited, which provides a full range of services across the residential, commercial and the rural property sectors.

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Ovington Street, Chelsea SW3 £3,850,000

Freehold

All Saints Road, Notting Hill W11 £1,695,000

Leasehold

A superb newly refurbished Grade II Listed freehold house on the west side of this popular street.

A stunning two-bedroom maisonette with a private entrance and planning consent for a roof terrace.

1,643 sq ft (152.6 sq m) Reception room | Dining room | Kitchen | Master bedroom suite | Two bedrooms | Three bathrooms | Utility room | Patio garden | EPC rating E

1,133 sq ft (105 sq m) Private entrance | Reception room | Kitchen/dining room | Guest cloakroom | Master bedroom with en suite shower room | Second bedroom | Shower room | EPC rating C

Chelsea 020 3504 5588 | chelsea@struttandparker.com

Notting Hill 020 3773 4114 | nottinghill@struttandparker.com

Campden Hill Court, Kensington W8 £4,650,000 Share of Freehold

Lancelot Place, Knightsbridge SW7 £5,850,000

An impressive three-bedroom apartment on the fifth floor (with lift) in this portered mansion block with wonderful views.

An excellent opportunity to acquire a larger than average two-bedroom apartment in this prestigious building with 24hr concierge & parking.

2,471 sq ft (229.6 sq m) Entrance hall | Drawing room | Dining room | Kitchen | Master bedroom with en suite bathroom | Two further bedrooms | Shower room | Utility room | Porter and lift | EPC rating F

1,977 sq ft (183.7 sq m) Reception hall | Reception room | Dining room | Kitchen | Master bedroom with en suite bathroom | Second bedroom | Shower room | 24hr concierge | EPC rating B

Kensington 020 3813 9477 | kensington@struttandparker.com

Knightsbridge 020 3504 8796 | knightsbridge@struttandparker.com

/struttandparker

@struttandparker

Leasehold

struttandparker.com

60 Offices across England and Scotland, including prime Central London.

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Edenhurst Avenue, Fulham SW6 £3,850,000

Freehold

Caroline House, Bayswater W2 £18,500,000

Leasehold

An immaculate seven-bedroom, semi-detached house benefitting from off street parking and a 40ft west-facing garden.

A unique Penthouse apartment, with some of the finest views you are ever likely to find in London.

3,770 sq ft (350.23 sq m) Kitchen | Reception room | Master bedroom with dressing room | Six further bedrooms | Three bathrooms | Shower room | Cinema room | Utility room | Two cloakrooms | Garden | Roof terrace | EPC rating D

5,626 sq ft (522.7 sq m) Entrance hall | Double reception room | Sitting room | Kitchen/breakfast room | Four bedroom suites | Study/bedroom five | Cloakroom | Utility room | Roof terrace | Double garage | EPC rating E

Fulham 020 8023 6671 | barclay.macfarlane@struttandparker.com

Knightsbridge 020 3504 8796 | knightsbridge@struttandparker.com

Old Brompton Road, South Kensington SW7 £3,750,000 Freehold

Chelsea Park Gardens, Chelsea SW3 £8,950,000

A superb four-bedroom Victorian terraced townhouse with large garden and terraces.

An exceptionally wide seven-bedroom family home situated on this quiet, private section of Chelsea Park Gardens.

2,086 sq ft (194 sq m) Reception room | Family room | Kitchen | Four bedrooms | Four bathrooms | Utility room | Front and rear gardens | EPC rating D

4,042 sq ft (375 sq m) Entrance hall | Drawing room | Study | Dining room/kitchen | Master bedroom suite | Five further bedrooms | Playroom/ bedroom | Garden | Off-street parking for two cars | EPC rating D

South Kensington 020 3504 5901 | southken@struttandparker.com

Chelsea SW10 020 3813 9185 | chelseaSW10@struttandparker.com

Freehold

Strutt & Parker is a trading style of BNP Paribas Real Estate Advisory & Property Management UK Limited, which provides a full range of services across the residential, commercial and the rural property sectors.

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Vicarage Gate, Kensington W8

ÂŁ19,500,000 Freehold

An outstanding and beautifully presented six-bedroom family house, with excellent entertaining space, a passenger lift and a garden.

8,717 sq ft (809.8 sq m) Entrance hall | Drawing room | Dining room | Kitchen/breakfast room | Family room | Study | Master bedroom with dressing area and en suite bathroom | Five further bedrooms | Four further bathrooms | Two shower rooms | Cloakroom | Treatment room | Swimming pool | Gym | Lift | Garden | EPC rating C

Kensington 020 3813 9477 | kensington@struttandparker.com

/struttandparker

@struttandparker

struttandparker.com

60 Offices across England and Scotland, including prime Central London.

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Lyall Mews, Belgravia SW1X

£5,750 per week Furnished

Quietly situated at the far end of Lyall Mews, this outstanding house (circa 3,496 sq ft) features a showpiece Boffi kitchen, great volume and the rare advantage of a lift.

3,496 sq ft (324.8 sq m) Drawing room | Dining room | Sitting room | Kitchen | Utility room | Cloakroom | Master bedroom with en suite bathroom | Three further double bedrooms | Three further bathrooms | Lift | Garage | EPC rating C

Knightsbridge 020 3504 8796 | knightsbridgelettings@struttandparker.com *After an offer is accepted by the Landlord, which is subject to contract and acceptable references, the following charges and fees will be payable before the commencement of the tenancy: Preparation of Tenancy Agreement £222 (Inc VAT), References per Tenant £54 (Inc VAT), a deposit – usually between 6-10 weeks of the agreed rent. Any rent advertised is pure rent and does not include any additional services such as council tax, water or utility charges.

Strutt & Parker is a trading style of BNP Paribas Real Estate Advisory & Property Management UK Limited, which provides a full range of services across the residential, commercial and the rural property sectors.

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