BELGRAVIA Resident’s Journal
S E P T E M B E R 201 2
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Proudly published by
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Editor Kate Harrison
Editor-in-Chief Lesley Ellwood
Associate Publisher Sophie Roberts
Deputy Editor Elle Blakeman
Production Hugo Wheatley
Project Manager Alice Tozer
Head of Design Hiren Chandarana
Production Manager Fiona Fenwick
Head of Finance Elton Hopkins
Designer Sophie Blain
Client Relationship Director Kate Oxbrow
Managing Director Eren Ellwood
W W W. R E S I D E N T S J O U R N A L . C O . U K
from the
Editor
Dear Resident
,
Post-Olympic meltdown has got the better of us all. What more timely an occasion than now, for the arrival of a sparkling new Residents’ Journal? This month we celebrate London 2012 by seeing how Belgravia in particular responded to the unique sporting fortnight (The Notebook, page 4). At the same time, we stay on the ball with road closures that may affect residents when the Paralympics get underway on 29 August (Planning & Development, page 18). As the nights draw in, the Residents’ Journal team seems to have gotten a bit darker in tandem, with the exploration of the unsavoury, criminal past of the area – namely highwayman action of the 1700s. Turn to page 6 and you may just be surprised by the number of parallels between today’s and yesterday’s worlds.
Illustration: Russ Tudor
In full contrast, there’s nothing to cheer the soul more than a trip to The Lanesborough. And even more so if you’re greeted by Dominic the doorman. We interview a man who has become part of the furniture at this inviting, neighbourly institution (The Belgravian, page 10). I hope September sets you off to an excellent start. It’s that time of year for re-programming and appreciating every lasting moment of ‘the maturing sun’, as Keats so aptly put it.
The Belgravia Residents’ Journal is published independently by Runwild Media Group with regular editorial contributions from The Belgravia Residents’ Association. To become a member of the BRA, visit www.belgraviaresidents.org.uk. We would highly value any feedback you wish to email us with: editor@residentsjournal.co.uk; or telephone us on 020 7987 4320.
The Notebook
Who and what is moving and shaking in Belgravia recently? We bring you up to date
Belgravia’s Olympic hour Belgravia last month enjoyed its status as a quiet retreat for those looking to take some time out from Olympic fervour and make the most of the quiet village feel among the streets. By no means distancing itself from Olympic celebrations, Grosvenor encourages Belgravians to pop across to Grosvenor Square in nearby Mayfair to enjoy food and drink, games, activities, music and theatre. This, having caught all the sporting action at neighbouring Hyde Park’s big screen. Sara Oliver, of the Belgravia Residents’ Association, said: ‘We surprised ourselves! The Jubilee spirit spilled over to become the Olympic spirit and those of us who stayed in London to be part of the moment were, in the main, pretty well pleased. Belgravia played her part – looking pretty, being welcoming and cheering on the winners. Belgravia does manage to balance being traditional with being at the forefront of things.’ Meanwhile, local café and cigarshop owner, Tom Assheton of Tomtom renown, was far from his sofa as he got stuck into some volunteering at Eton Dorney, venue for the rowing and canoe sprint Illustration: Russ Tudor events. He said: ‘I have been thoroughly enjoying myself and basking in the vicarious pleasure of Team GB gold. I’ve learnt much about managing queues and giving directions to the loo. The early mornings were a bit unsettling but luckily I had plenty of our strongest coffee beans to get me to cruising altitude. It was a very special experience – especially to feel the nation united.’
Above / A group watching a harpist at Summer in the Square
Above / Tom Assheton with some Grenadier Guards, whose uniform inspired the Games Maker outfit
From Belgravia to Cheltenham John Hanna, previous manager of upmarket Belgravia hotel The Lord Milner, has been appointed General Manager at Ellenborough Park. Both hotels are part of the Mantis Collection. The Lord Milner, which is located on Ebury Street, is a chic and elegant place to stay and combines style with comfort, whilst Ellenborough Park is an award-winning country house hotel and spa in Cheltenham. Hanna leaves Emilia Khomych to hold fort at The Lord Milner, alongside whom he was previously co-manager. She is currently on maternity leave and so Timothy Gardener has stepped in for now. Good luck to the new re-structured team!
Linley goes from strength to strength Viscount Linley, son of the late Princess Margaret and nephew of the Queen, is in the process of launching a refurbishment of his Belgravia-based bespoke furniture store, particularly renowned for desks featuring hidden drawers. Founded in 1985 by Linley himself, the luxury furniture brand recently sold a 60 percent stake to Jamie Edmiston. It is Mr Edmiston, in his role as Chief Executive of the Linley business, who is behind the refurbishment of the Belgravia store. The business is currently thriving, as customers from abroad have helped sales soar, and there are plans in the pipeline to open a fourth store in London over the coming weeks.
Belgravia travel app takes off
Theatrical hotel takes centre stage No. 11 Cadogan Gardens has recently been transformed from a private members’ club to a luxury boutique hotel. Based just off Sloane Square, a short walk from the heart of Belgravia, the hotel displays an elegant combination of nineteenth-century features alongside modern facilities. Services include a restaurant with floor-to-ceiling windows, a bar that is open until 2am every day, a cosy library, a gym and two outdoor terraces. The hotel comprises fifty-four bedrooms and four one-bedroom Mews suites, all of which are finished to a luxuriously high standard. The location is perfect for shopping in London’s designer districts as well as for more relaxing, laidback breaks.
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Holiday operator Jetsetter has recently launched its first iPad travel feature for London. The app covers various parts of the city individually, focusing on aspects of life that might not be covered by the usual, cumbersome guide books. The company asked locals from all around London for tips and advice and then added some of their own expert knowledge. Belgravia is one of the first areas to be covered by the app; tourists can get the lowdown on where to stay, where to shop and where to eat, alongside information on the favourite haunts of well-known locals. Not solely for tourists, the app is available to download from the Jetsetter.com website and already has five other Londonhotspot strings to its bow.
Words - Bryony Warren
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Illustrations: Mai Osawa
Your money or
your life, Sir What do Belgravia’s highwaymen of yore have in common with the Tories, Boris and the postman? Alice Tozer delves into the area’s murky past to find out
The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees, The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas, The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor, And the highwayman came riding— Riding—riding— The highwayman came riding, up to the old inn-door
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‘These horse-riding Belgravia badboys were considered socially superior to their equivalent who robbed on foot and were thus variously referred to as “knights” and “gentlemen” of the road’
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o begins the poem, The Highwayman, by Alfred Noyes. It sets a moody start to the long verse which depicts, in romantic vision, this type of horsemounted robber who operated – ‘his pistol butts a-twinkle’ – in Great Britain and Ireland, with particular prominence in Belgravia, from the mid-to-late 1500s until the early 1800s. Noyes was not being controversial; it was a curious fact that highwaymen carried an edge of heroicism in some people’s eyes and it is said that this putting-ona-pedastal came from the way they confronted their victims face-to-face, ready to fight upfront for what they wanted. The penalty being hanging, those highwaymen who went to the gallows with an outward display of joviality, repressing their inward fear, also did wonders for that sub-culture of admiration that existed towards them. The example supreme is Dick Turpin, the English highwayman of the 1700s, whose exploits were highly romanticised through folktale following his execution. Formerly a butcher of meat, it didn’t take long before he became one of people, notoriously so, and his horse Black Bess was almost as much a household name. Taking their golden halo off them for a second, highwaymen were first and foremost thieves who preyed particularly on travellers. Attacking sometimes solo, other times in pairs, and when the fancy took them in larger gangs, they tended to target horse-drawn coaches; those vulnerable, unprotected entities. Hence many a drawing from the era depicting a damsel in distress being pulled from a carriage amidst a mêlée of whinnying horses. Other targets were the poor postmen (or boys as they were), easy prey too in their solitary cause. Ever wondered about the origins of the phrase ‘Your money or your life!’? Now the cliché of many a gangster blockbuster, highwaymen can take full credit. Another common threatening demand to exit their mouths as quickly as their guns did their pockets was ‘Stand and deliver!’ No small feat, managing to apprehend a highwayman could bring a reward in the region of £80, a significant sum at the time. Belgravia was a highwayman hotspot, together with the Knightsbridge area. The fact that the area was dominated by open fields and market gardens during the highwayman heyday of the 1700s sheds some light on why. Belgravia was previously coined ‘Five Fields’ because it was cut into five areas by footpaths. (It was only termed ‘Belgravia’ when the Grosvenor family made their presence felt in the 1800s and mass house built
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in the area; they had originally come from the small village of Belgrave near Leicester.) Five Fields was not merely dangerous but notoriously ‘no-go’ at nighttime. The lack of lighting and buildings in this marshy swampland with its detachment from the city centre were reasons why highwaymen discovered it easy to operate in. The Westbourne river which – curiously – continues to flow underneath Belgravia today, was a reasonably sized visible river in the 1800s and frequented by highwaymen. ‘Bloody Bridge’ straddled it; so dubbed because of the high number of attacks there. Belgravia seems incongruous with highwaymen, today being the height of civilized city dwelling (though not devoid of house robbery by any means). However there’s a certain fittingness to the fact that these horse-riding Belgravia badboys were considered socially superior to their equivalent who robbed on foot and were thus variously referred to as ‘knights’ and ‘gentlemen’ of the road. Elsewhere in England, they would strike repeatedly on Hounslow and Bagshot Heaths as well as Shooter’s Hill on the Great Dover Road. All of these areas sat on roads to ‘somewhere’ – favouring escape – and so it makes sense that a very important factor in the quelling of highwayman activity was the expansion of the system of turnpikes: manned and gated toll-roads. Think it’s a new idea to make Londoners pay to travel by road? Tollhouses were the forerunner of the modern-day congestion charge. The houses levied passing traffic and the monies raised were used for the maintenance of the highways. Boris’s congestion charge may have been controversial when introduced but that was nothing compared to the riots resulting from the turnpikes. So, whilst their existence did make it a conundrum for a highwayman to escape unnoticed, the turnpikes bought their own causes of confrontation. One popular comment was that they housed the most ruthless highwaymen of them all; men demanding pay for use of the roads! The sale and removal of the Hyde Park toll in 1825, a stone’s throw from Belgravia proper, was described by William Hone in his Every-day Book, in an entry dated 4 October that year: ‘[The toll is] entirely cleared away, to the relief of thousands of persons resident in these neighbourhoods. It is too much to expect everything vexatious to disappear at once; this is a very good beginning, and if there be truth in the old saying, we may expect a good ending.’ It had commanded one of the leading roads into London since
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the 1600s. All turnpikes were eventually abolished in 1864 and county councils took hold of the baton concerned with road maintenance. Don’t think highwaymen were a scourge of our city alone though. There are translations of the term with culturally specific renditions in many countries across the globe. In the American West, highwaymen of the 1800s were known as ‘road agents’. At the same time over in Australia they were dubbed ‘bushrangers’. India’s most notorious equivalent were the ‘thuggees’, a quasireligious group that was eventually put to bed by British, colonial administrators. The culture kicked off early on in Ireland in the mid-1600s, when bandits who harassed the British were labelled ‘tories’, which came from the Irish for ‘raider’ – tórai. Irony lies in the fact that these nuisance makers were inspiration for the term ‘Tory’ which we now use as a synonym for The British Conservative Party. It was first used in this country for supporters of the Duke of York, later King James II, during the 1678-1681 Exclusion Crisis which sought to exclude him from the throne for being Roman Catholic. The term’s baptizing in England therefore carried pejorative connotations. The chief place for the execution of Belgravia’s highwaymen was Tyburn Tree, close to the modern-day Marble Arch. The ‘Tree’ was actually a gallows (wooden triangle style) on which more than one person could be hanged. It stood menacingly in the middle of the road, presenting a very obvious deterrent for law-breaking behaviour. Famous highwaymen who ended their lives there include Claude Du Vall, James MacLaine and Sixteen-string Jack. Oliver Cromwell also made his exit on the Tree. The executions proved extremely popular, attracting Olympic crowds. It was understood at the time, when said, that to ‘take a ride to Tyburn’ was to go to one’s hanging, whilst to ‘dance the Tyburn jig’ was code for the act of being hanged. Belgravia remained a haunt of highwaymen until well into the 1700s. The last recorded robbery by one of his kind nationwide didn’t occur until 1831, though. One reason for the happy decline in Belgravia was increasing swathes of mounted police patrolling the London districts. The circulation of banknotes, more traceable than coins, also made criminal life more difficult in the easily escapable open fields which gradually became swapped for the stucco-faced maze of streets we know so well; a much trickier environment from which to make a speedy equine exit, for sure.
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The
Belgravian GOOD THINGS COME TO THOSE WHO WAIT AT DOORS
Alice Tozer meets doorman of distinction, Dominic Mullan, at his second home, The Lanesborough, where he just can’t stop winning awards for characterful service provided over three decades
Illustration: Russ Tudor
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hen I meet sixty-seven year old Dominic Mullan in The Withdrawing Room at The Lanesborough hotel, he comes scurrying in clutching a certificate, freshly bestowed him: ‘The Lanesborough Character Award’. It’s yet another to add to his collection. He worries about wall space to accommodate the framed item in his Brands Hatch home. Myself, I‘m more concerned about the accompanying mystery prize, of which I’ve left him bereft since dragging him out of his presentation ceremony at this untimely appointment hour. He doesn’t seem at all put out, and I soon sense why. It’s clearly not about the bonuses for Dominic. That, despite proudly donning a Dunhill watch and mentioning he has a Cartier equivalent at home; both hotel gifts for various milestone years of service. He has a ticket to, literally, ‘anywhere in the world’ which he still hasn’t validated. It was last year’s achievement award. ‘I don’t like taking advantage,’ he says when I enquire how many times he’s been put up in the hotel (just two New Year’s Eves in twenty-one years of service; fairly modest by all accounts). Dominic is one of those rare breeds; a human being who basks in his job. ‘I think the man above sent me here, because it’s special,’ he says of his position as doorman at The Lanesborough hotel. He’s always worked in high-end hospitality because it is where he feels at ease – ironic, given he is incredibly downto-earth and was born ‘up a mountain’ in Northern Ireland with seemingly few demands on life. As a page boy at Quaglino’s, aged sixteen and freshly arrived in London, he was sent to Kensington Palace on day one for the occasion of Prince Michael’s marriage. (This most famous of London’s society restaurants had been opened by Giovanni Quaglino in the 1930s. It eventually closed in the 1980s and was subsequently rebuilt in 1993 by Terence Conran on the same location of 16 Bury Street, St James’s Place.) Subsequent days at the restaurant saw him look after the Christie’s clientele. ‘I felt like I was myself. People were nice to me,’ he recalls. There was also the happy coincidence of brandy, whisky and a few sealed envelopes come Christmas time, a fact he laughs off cheekily. Life had begun slightly less glamorously, but with just as many anecdotes, in Northern Ireland where Dominic’s first job was as a lift boy. He is quick to remark the lack of fulfilment this brought him – ‘I didn’t want to stand around pressing buttons all day’ – and soon tells how the highlight of the lacklustre, lift life came when he bumped into a certain footballing great. ‘I was standing in the lift talking to myself one day when Bobby Moore stepped in with the England football team.’ Dominic made such an impression on Moore that he ended up buying Dominic a suit. Needing no further encouragement for a metropolitan life, next stop for Dominic was London. It’s all very well to joke about the soullessness of his former days, but
doesn’t standing outside for hours on end equally have its vacant moments, once the charm of The Lanesborough becomes commonplace? ‘Hyde Park Corner is the most exciting corner in Europe!’ Dominic protests. ‘I never get bored, even if I am waving at tourists.’ It turns out that he is something of a London landmark to the microphone-wielders aboard the upper decks of London sightseeing buses, who point out Dominic as if he were a walking statue of Nelson himself. Back pain? Surely that’s a factor, I enquire. I get a very matter-of-fact retort. ‘Your lumbar back hurts for three months at the start then the pain goes away.’ My precious-little-petal concerns are perhaps the reason why there are, to-date, no female doorladies at The Lanesborough. ‘I wish there were!’ exclaims Dominic. ‘But I don’t know if it would be good for a young lady to stand on her legs all day, freezing. I’d end up having to keep her warm and getting her a chair!’ Chivalry comes second nature to this man who tells me he bought his late wife flowers every Friday without fail for forty-one years. If there’s one thing I’m sure Dominic’s had to deal with it is difficult punters. The Lanesborough must attract a fair amount of celebrities and moneyed tourists, both of whom could surely have a fair few outrageous demands up their sleeves. He appears unfazed by the bait I feed him. This is in part due to an iron will to be loyal to his clients (‘You don’t mind do you? In this job you have to be deaf sometimes’). But I think his reserve also stems from a genuine desire to avoid conflict. ‘When I see it coming I do a vanishing act. I give them a Lanesborough umbrella and wish them a good day. I try to sort out their problem: the customer is always right. But when I retire I’ll write a book. Hotel Babylon will blaze into insignificance!’ He’s only joking though, alas. Dominic has learnt a lot from his pal Victor, another award-ridden doorman who has worked at Dominic’s side for fifteen years, since making a move over to The Lanesborough from The Ritz. ‘We’re like brothers. I watch him and he watches me,’ Dominic explains of their quasi-predatory behaviour which is carried out with the aim of observing new ways to interact with people. Dominic really believes in the power of awards, and he should know. It’s an institution for which he credits General Manager Geoffrey Gelardi: ‘From day one of the Hotel’s existence in 1991 [when Dominic also started] Mr Gelardi installed in us a feeling of family and gave us confidence.’ Dominic was the first person to get The Lanesborough’s employee award and surely this is because he does above and beyond his call of duty which, by the way, is the following when stripped down to its bare bones in Dominic’s mind: to greet, to smile and to be the last to say goodbye. And yet, he says: ‘I walk people back home after they’ve had one too many and I stay until the last person goes home.’ That heart of gold which I long-ago detected resurfaces as he tells me how four years ago he
‘Hyde Park Corner is the most exciting corner in Europe!’ I never get bored’
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facilitated a lady’s chauffeur-driven journey to Buckingham Palace after her hotel reception. He felt she deserved some special attention, having been married in a hospice at her mother’s bedside. Fait accompli; this and many more gestures secured Dominic a week at the Plaza Hotel in New York as another prize. Apparently it wasn’t a patch on The Lanesborough, but it did mark his foray into international travel. ‘It all happened in New York,’ he smiles, recounting rencontres with Eddie Murphy and Elizabeth Taylor who were staying at the Plaza. I should imagine he was keen to get back to work though, for when I broach the topic of retirement he seems predictably alarmed. ‘It’ll be heart-breaking. I’ll go on for as long as my legs can.’ The local Belgravian residents are The Lanesborough’s neighbours, Dominic says, and constitute a fair wodge of the hotel’s clientele. ‘It’s their second home and I know many by name. “Welcome home”, I say to them! But I don’t get overfamiliar with them and they respect
that.’ Have you ever turned anyone away, I probe? Dominic takes his time to answer and I know he’s going to reveal nothing. ‘Someone with a Tesco’s trolley maybe! I try and be discreet; if a Big Issue seller comes up to me I give him money for a coffee and encourage him on his way.’ Dominic has a great sense of humour, something he probably uses on the guests as much as he does to fend me off. The Lanesborough was formerly St George’s hospital, as Lanesborough House. It only opened as a hotel twentyone years ago but has the established character of having existed much longer. ‘People still come in asking for the hospital. So I sit them down and tell them I’m a doctor,’ says Dominic, a twinkle in his eye but he had me going for a moment. He is sat in a heavylooking ‘summer’ uniform. How does he cope in the heat? ‘They send us to the desert for three months,’ he replies with a grin. Clearly, he just gets on with it. That must be the stuff of awards.
‘Retirement will be heart-breaking. I’ll go on for as long as my legs can’
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B E L G R AV I A R E S I D E N T S ’ J O U R N A L
Established in 1972 we have 40 years’ experience in matters affecting Belgravia and its residents. Local decisions have to be made every day from how new buildings should look to which way traffic should flow.
We know that residents care deeply about the neighbourhood and their way of life and we aim to support them through our initiatives and activities. Join us and discover more about life in Belgravia.
For more information or to join, please visit:
www.belgraviaresidents.org.uk
Art Focus
Out and about on the Belgravia art trail, and beyond. . .
Irish influence Ransom gallery will see off the summer with a selection of works by contemporary British artist, Tim Woolcock. Woolcock’s art is often inspired by his experiences of working and living in Ireland; colourful, dramatic and vibrant depictions of the countryside and landscape. Established in the early nineties, Mark Ransom’s two galleries regularly feature a range of art by Andy Warhol, as well as some twentieth-century furniture pieces, antiques and decorative accessories. Compositions by Damien Hirst and original Francis Bacon works will also be available for your viewing pleasure this month.
Above left / ‘Solstice’ (52x62cm) by Tim Woolcock and (right) ‘Planetary Abstraction’ (57x76cm)
Ransom: 62-64 & 105 Pimlico Road 020 7259 0220
Which is the fairest? The oldest gallery in the Pimlico Road area, Ossowski has been a world-class specialist in eighteenth-century, English giltwood furniture since 1960, focusing specifically on looking glasses and side tables. The gallery also offers eighteenth and nineteenth-century decorative wood carvings and a workshop for the restoration of giltwood objects, practising rare techniques. Owner Mark Ossowski’s affection for the Belgravia area is clear: ‘A nice Chippendale or Adam mirror above the mantel has long been a classic design statement, and as I walk around Belgravia I have a mental map in my head based on the homes our antique mirrors have found.’ September will exhibit two such treausres, so seize the opportunity to view the distinguished works on offer. Ossowski: 83 Pimlico Road 020 7730 3256
Heady French art ‘An artist cannot speak about his art any more than a plant can discuss horticulture.’ So claimed French artist Jean Cocteau whose creative outpour will be on display at Nicholas Haslam this September, among other antiques, modern prints and etchings. Cocteau’s drawings and prints are compulsively surreal, providing an insight into the absurdist cultural circles of early twentieth-century Paris. Founded by Paolo Moschino and Nicky Haslam in the mid-nineties, Nicholas Haslam provides objects necessary for all aspects of interior design. Artwork, antiques, lighting and furniture can all be purchased at the two branches of the business, which are located across Ebury Street and Holbein Place.
Above/ Mirrors from Ossowski’s collection including (left) a George-III carved wood and panited oval Chippendale period mirror, £26,300
Nicholas Haslam: 202 Ebury Street (020 7730 0445) and 12-14 Holbein Place (020 7730 8623)
Makingimpression a good over time Bryony Warren visits The Royal Academy to witness a collection gathered over time; one which reveals Impression not to be such a predictable and safe genre as many may believe
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he Royal Academy’s From Paris: A Taste for Impressionism showcases paintings created between 1874 and 1886 which were purchased by Sterling and Francine Clark, a wealthy American couple. They gradually built up a collection of art that blossomed into the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Buried within are some major finds that demonstrate the particular techniques pioneered by the Impressionists. The story of the Clarks’ collection, and of their passion for and commitment to art of the nineteenth century, runs alongside the paintings displayed, providing an interesting academic insight into the process of art collecting. Split into thematic sections, the exhibition offers a clear and navigable introduction to the various genres within Impressionism. It also touches on the works of certain earlier artists who laid the foundation for the development of the movement, including Corot, Rousseau and Jean-François Millet. The still-life and landscape genres focus particularly on the canvases of Renoir, Fantin-Latour, Sisely and Manet. Whilst the flowers and fruit depicted in the still-life paintings may seem rather staid and conventional from a modern perspective, they reveal a great deal about the combination of meticulous attention to detail and symbolism that defined much of the Impressionists’ work; the controlled nature of the genre allowed for great experimentation with colour and technique. This paved the way for a greater emphasis on landscape paintings, which became the main subject of Impressionism during the nineteenth century. Landscapes allowed the Impressionists to adhere rigidly to their principles of visual honesty, and to this end artists would work under the full force of the elements, observing the changing light and weather conditions. Pissarro’s ‘Road: Rain Effect’ is a particularly impressive example of this, capturing perfectly the smudgy, bleary greyness of a rainy day. As the century progressed, this honesty was applied to industrialisation as well as to nature; the Impressionists were unflinching in their portrayal of the changing rural landscape. Pisarro’s ‘Port of Rouen’, for example, presents an entirely James Tissot’s ‘Chrysanthemums’, c. 1874-76
urban scene, highlighting the ships, factory smoke and workmen that were synonymous with industrialisation. Paintings known as ‘genre scenes’ represent situations from contemporary life; a more truthful vision of the everyday than was offered by similar paintings made in seventeenth-century Holland, where a moral dimension always existed. The female form, specifically, is appreciated in the works of Renoir, Stevens and the female painter Berthe Morisot. Each of the paintings depicts women in a state of partial undress. Stevens’s ‘Memories and Regrets’ shows a woman at her most exposed and vulnerable, her almost-nude breast reflective of the raw emotional state in which we see her, whilst Morisot’s ‘The Bath’ delivers a female staring directly out at the viewer, arms above her head; a much stronger example of femininity than the passivity of subjects in other of the paintings. The influence of the Orient can be seen in paintings such as Gauguin’s ‘Young Christian Girl’, which fuses Brittany’s rural backwardness with the more exotic culture of Tahiti. Bold colours and a lack of traditional perspective create a sense of the exotic and the primitive, in contrast to the rapid industrialisation of the Western world. Renoir’s two self-portraits, painted at the beginning and end of his career, reveal the stylistic change his works underwent throughout his lifetime. The first is looser and less rigid, whilst the other is much sharper and more precise, painstakingly showing the bags under his eyes and each hair in his beard. Happily, some of the major works by well-known artists will be unfamiliar even to those with an in-depth knowledge of the period. The exhibition provides insight into the process by which the paintings were accumulated whilst conveying the range of expression encompassed by ‘Impressionism’. If the term just makes you think of school days and daubs, think again. Until 23 September www.royalacademy.org.uk
Claude Monet’s ‘The Cliffs at Étretat’, 1885
Alfred Sisley’s ‘Banks of the Seine at By’, c. 1880-81
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Above (circle) / Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s ‘Girl with a Fan’, c. 1879 All images © Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA, 1955.595
Jean-François Millet’s ‘Shepherdess: Plains of Barbizon’, before 1862
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The Calendar Bringing you the status quo of local events this month
September royale Cadogan Hall will spoil concertgoers with two performances by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra this month. On 18 September, it will launch the new season with Wagner’s ‘Overture to The Flying Dutchman’, Sibelius’ ‘Violin Concerto’ and Tchaikovsky’s ‘Symphony No. 4’. Winner of the 2012 Classical BRIT Award for ‘Young British Performer of the Year’, violinist Jack Liebeck, will be the proponent of the Concerto, a performance hyped as the perfect showcase for his virtuosity. A week later, on Tuesday 25 September, some more unusual sounds will take centre stage, with a performance of Azerbaijani pieces by Fikret Amirov: ‘Azerbaijan Capriccio’ and ‘Piano Concerto after Arabian Themes’. The pairing merge Azerbaijani folk-music and strong orchestration. The night will also feature Stravinsky’s Petrushka, the classic piece originally written for a ballet about a Russian puppet. Cadogan Hall: 5 Sloane Terrace 020 7730 450
Literary fill for bookish residents Pencil in Thursday 13 September at 6.30pm for a book club rendez-vous at local treasure, Belgravia Books. This month’s choice is Richard Weihe’s latest book,The Sea of Ink, introduced by the author himself with the assistance of translator Jamie Bulloch. The synopsis? When the old Ming Dynasty crumbles, Bada Shanren – a member of the Chinese royal family and ’s of Great Britain born in 1626 – becomes an artist, committed to capturing The true storythe essence of nature with a single brushstroke. The rulers of the new Qing Dynasty soon discover his identity and Bada feigns successful of the mo madness to escape. Join in a conversation on the complex theme a stglass somehave 2,of wine at mpians areand to London 201 Britain’s Paraly rt. In the run up spo rld British wo in the athletes the same time. Book your free place online. eheads from gur fi and s itor y of how leading compet que inside stor ent tell the uni of mpic movem mpions on one Paralytopical Whilst you are in store, why not peruse the very Paralympic Heroes? Whilst we wait and cha elite athletes ic Games. mp they became aly Par of all – the es stag t ges big to see if Team GB can fair as well in the Paralympictheleague table as it did in the Olympic one, reflect on the fact that British Paralympic athletes won a staggering forty-two gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics and achieved second place in the medals table. As the blurb goes: ‘Against this backdrop of genuine sporting prowess, this book looks at what it takes to be an elite Paralympian. It weaves together each athlete’s early years, how they started to develop their sporting potential, the friends, family and coaches who supported them, how they accessed funding, their training, and eventually their elite athlete successes. It also tells the story of ablebodied people who became Paralympians following accidents. Featuring first-hand interviews throughout, the passions and aspirations of this amazing collection of athletes shines through to produce a truly entertaining and inspirational read.’ s journalist rienced sport is a highly expe c Games CATHY WOOD and Paralympi red the Olympic lete who who has cove A former triath a for the Daily Mail. Ironman level, while working elite at n st d Great Britai pted her intere has represente prom ent accid ng training career-ending iewed many leadi interv has sport. She n across in Paralympic and has writte ans ympi Paral Mail on Olympians and ing the Telegraph, includ ns catio multiple publi Times Magazine, zine, Sunday Sunday, You Maga ard. Evening Stand Daily Mail and t Britain’s most is one of Grea MBE ES, ga HOLM CHRIS athletes. Durin experienced es, decorated and Paralympic Gam r spanning four swimming caree , five silvers and dible nine golds incre a an been won has he he l. Since retiring, n and missio Com one bronze meda s Right for the Disability in 1992. Commissioner services to sport an MBE for his was awarded test Britain’s brigh t Grea of S, MBE is one became ELLIE SIMMOND swimmers. She most talented won two athletes and llist when she gest gold meda ympic Games the UK’s youn Paral 2008 g at the Beijin g Sports gold medals 2008 BBC Youn 13. She won the ded an at the age of d and was awar the Year awar Personality of ing year. MBE the follow
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London 2012
Storey (Duo bottom: Sarah graphs, top to Simmonds Front cover photo Images); Ellie ss Association s (Private Zhang/Landov/Pre s); Chris Holme g/Getty Image Getty Images); (Natalie Behrin son (Phil Cole/ Thomp GreyStrange Collection); Tanni Images); Clare Clarke/AFP/Getty (Mike n Lee Pearso s). Association Image (Phil Noble/Press
Belgravia Books: 59 Ebury Street, 020 7259 9336 www.belgraviabooks.com Printed in Great
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Cathy Wood
9/1/11 12:22:
Peek through the keyhole The Caledonian Club will be opening its doors to the public on Sunday 23 September; a rare treat for curious residents and part of Open House London 2012. Entry is usually restricted to members who, in turn, have to be of direct Scottish descent, have a close association with the country or be the child of a club member. For the rest of us, an appreciation of the architecture this September is the closest we can get, and it is well worth the visit. Built in Neoclassical style, the mansion was the last of its kind to be built in London. In addition to witnessing beautifully balanced rooms, visitors can learn the history of the Club, which was founded in 1891, through a supreme collection of art and artefacts, various of which were commissioned by members throughout the twentieth century. A new wing was opened by the Queen in 2006 and includes a library housing a rich collection of Scottish literature, reinforcing the origins of The Caledonian Club which has even earned a reputation as ‘The Scottish Embassy’. The Caledonian Club: 9 Halkin Street 020 7235 5162
Hope for new collections Shoe boutique Emma Hope, known locally for its Sloane Square shop, will be opening a showroom from 1 September until 31 October in its other store at 207 Westbourne Grove. By appointment, customers can view the new women’s and men’s collections. The brand stocks a huge variety of footwear, from trainers and heels, to slippers and sandals. So if Emma Hope is a favourite of yours, it is well worth heading over in September to see what the latest creations offer. Emma Hope: 53 Sloane Square 020 7259 9566
Too much information? Two fast-paced and innovative plays will be performed at The Royal Court this September. The first, Caryl Churchill’s Love and Information, showing from 6 September until 13 October, follows over one-hundred characters as they try to make sense of the confusing mishmash of people and events of which their lives are comprised. Running more or less concurrently (4 September until 6 October), is Tarell Alvin McCraney’s Choir Boy. Set in an all-boys, all-black American prep school, the play takes a brutally honest look at problems relating to minority and masculinity, following the plight of Pharus as he fights to be the best choir leader in the school’s history. The Royal Court Theatre: Sloane Square 020 7565 5000
Do you have an event that you’d like us to cover? Send us an email: calendar@residentsjournal.co.uk
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Planning &Development Keeping you in the know about important street plans affecting Belgravia
The Paralympic Games London 2012 road closures The Paralympic Games (29 August-9 September) will affect roads touching on the Belgravia area. The Paralympic Marathon on 9 September is well worth being aware of. Starting and finishing on The Mall, roads will be closed from around midnight and will not reopen until late afternoon.
Planned Road Works and Closures in AND AROUND SEPTEMBER STREET
PLANNED WORK
DATES
WORKS OWNER
Brompton Road, Knightsbridge & Belgravia
Hoarding build, this hoarding will be up till 31st oct but on 1st July it will be pushed back to the property line, all been allowed by Alan Davidson. Build will be done in the evening after shops close. Will park in the side street for part of build and parking dispensation for end part.
1 Jun-2 Nov
Transport For London 0845 305 1234
Eaton Square, Knightsbridge & Belgravia, 11
OSV Exchange in the footway. Permanent reinstatement to becompleted in the same phase..
10 Aug-3 Sep
Thames Water 0845 9200 800
Ebury Street, Warwick, 123
as above
as above
as above
Eccleston Street, Knightsbridge & Belgravia, junction with Buckingham Palace Road
Carriageway resurfacing
14 Sep -31 Oct
City Of Westminster 0207 641 2000
Elizabeth Street, Knightsbridge & Belgravia, 48
OSV Exchange in the Fway in Footway. Permanent reinstatement to be completed in same phase.
10 Sep-12 Sep
Thames Water 0845 9200 800
Belgrave Square, Knightsbridge & Belgravia, on the traffic island at the junction with Chapel Street & Upper Belgrave Street
Excavation of a trial hole to ascertain ground conditions /services.
13 Sep-17 Sep
City of Westminster 0207 641 2000
Grosvenor Place, Knightsbridge & Belgravia. From Grosvenor Cresent to Lower Grosvenor Place, North and south bound
Mobile works at various points along route, to work on lamp post (lane 1) then switch to lane 2. Closed working hours: 22.00 – 5.30. These works are for the Olympic advertising.
20 Sep-21 Sep
Transport For London 0845 305 1234
Planning applications in the local area A selection of the multiple applications currently in motion, pending approval. Visit Westminster Council’s website to comment on an application or to follow its progress.
Application received
Friday 27 July 2012
Address
1-10 Lowndes Square
Proposal
Amendments to planning permission dated 26 November 2009 (RN: 09/06406) for erection of extensions at rear sixth floor level and main seventh floor roof level with associated roof terraces in connection with the provision of two residential units (1 x 1 bed and 1 x 4 bed); namely to add a condition listing the plan numbers – Condition 11.
Application received
Thursday 12 July 2012
Address
11-12 Motcomb Street
Proposal
Alterations to shopfronts including removal of door at No. 12, installation of railings, removal of pavement lights and reinstatement of pavement.
Application received
Fri 06 July 2012
Address
11C West Halkin Street
Proposal
Amendments to planning permission dated 7 February 2012 (11/10499/FULL) for the use of the first and mezzanine floor as a private health club (Class D1) and installation of plant at roof level namely, extension of the west mezzanine (by 25sqm) and east mezzanine (by 6sqm) floor areas.
Application received
Mon 30 July 2012
Address
41 Eaton Square
Proposal
1 x Bay tree (rear): Reduce crown by 20 precent to create a conical shape and crown lift by 0.5 -1.0m
Olympic restaurant relay On the site of what was formerly Mimos in Elizabeth Street is a new local restaurant, Olivocarne. Belgravia Residents’ Association’s Sara Oliver said: ‘Mimos was a much-loved and is now a much-missed Italian restaurant which operated in Belgravia for over forty years. Olivocarne opened during the Olympics and serves Sardinian homemade pasta and meat dishes and we wish them very well in their new venture.’ The owner of the local restaurant chain, Olivo, is Mauro Sanna. Pierluigi Piu, architect of the new addition to the Olivo group, told the Belgravia Residents’ Journal: ‘It was my intention, when designing Sanna’s new venue (now the fourth one I have designed for him), to narrate about Sardinia (Mauro’s as well as my home island). I did this through iconographic references to the main points of its traditional economy (sheep farming and handicrafts; specifically weaving, in this case) and from works of a Sardinian contemporary artist, Eugenio Tavolara, who remarkably contributed, throughout his whole life, to bringing out and safeguarding our traditional culture. ‘Far from wishing to evoke Sardinia through trite images, apt for low-cost tourism, my tale has been told with a language that winks at contemporary design, whilst resorting to the work of various skilled Sardinian artisans, such as sisters Stefania and Cristina Ariu – two ceramists who have moulded a huge bas-relief evoking a flock of sheeps, as well as Mauro Angius who has given life to a crowd of peasants, horsemen, shepherds, wild boars and hunters which animate the restaurant’s walls.’
‘Far from wishing to evoke Sardinia through trite images, apt for low-cost tourism, my tale has been told with a language that winks at contemporary design’ - Pierluigi Piu, architect of Olivocarne
Do you wish to comment on any local planning stories? Send us an email: planning@residentsjournal.co.uk
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That was
Then
One of the most infamous figures of the twentieth century, Lord Lucan (Richard John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan) disappeared suddenly in November 1974. It is widely assumed that he fled 46 Lower Belgrave Street, the home of his estranged wife and children, following the murder of Sandra Rivett, the children’s nanny, and the attempted murder of Lady Lucan. Since then, there has been widespread speculation as to the whereabouts of ‘Lucky’ Lucan , so called because of gambling successes in his youth. There has never been enough evidence to support concretely any of the various theories of his existence in far-flung corners of the planet, but the life of the man who was and the grizzly events of that evening continue to be a source of salacious fascination.
Much has been written about the murder that shocked Belgravia’s high society to its blue-blooded roots and evolved into the manhunt of the century in the search for Richard John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan. It would become a case dominated by doubt, rumour, red herrings and false trails… The Plumbers Arms is a quiet public house 100 metres from the Lucans’ home on the same side of Lower Belgrave Street, in the direction of Victoria station which lies at the far end… At 9.50pm on that murky November night there were only ten customers in the warmth of the saloon, clustered at the long bar. A murmur of voices talked over the gossip of the day, news that was dominated by the Watergate scandal in the USA, where the White House tapes were about to be aired. All conversation stopped abruptly as the door crashed open and a woman staggered in out of the night.. Outside the pub the officers spotted flecks of blood that formed a trail on the pavement leading to the Lucans’ house, and were visible despite the rain. They followed it to number 46 and stared up at the building, evaluating the scene. .. … Like so many other houses in Belgravia, number 46 was redolent of the grandeur of past decades. Many of the neighbouring properties were now converted into spacious flats, the outside walls painted white in contrast to the shining black wrought-iron railings that surrounded their first floor balconies. Even if the atmosphere was one of faded elegance, Lower Belgrave Street was still one of the most sought-after addresses in London.
call-up papers for National Service dropped through the letterbox of the family home in Eaton Square, Belgravia… … Johnny headed for the élite Coldstream Guards, courtesy of his father, George Charles Patrick Bingham, who had commanded the regiment’s 1st Battalion in World War II and won the Military Cross for distinguished services to King and Country. National Service over, Lucan found a post with the merchant bank Brandt’s in the City, at a salary of £500 a year. That was the day job. After dark, he would earn more than his annual wage packet on the throw of a dice playing backgammon at the gaming tables of Mayfair clubs, or dealing from a deck of cards at chemin de fer and poker. The press had got hold of the story, and were camped out on the pavement around 46 Lower Belgrave Street. The first headline appeared in Friday’s Evening Standard, and it was front-page news: ‘BELGRAVIA MURDER AT EARL’S HOME’, and below it: ‘Body in Sack’... … The Standard story stated that the police were anxious to interview the 39-year-old in case he could provide information about a nanny found battered to death at his Belgravia home. Ever cautious, a Scotland Yard spokesman issued a statement to the hungry newshounds: ‘We are trying to trace Lord Lucan to tell him of the incident.’ ... By noon on the day after the attack on his wife and nanny, Lord Lucan had still not surfaced. All bets were off at Gerald Road (police station) that Friday morning as the police came to terms with the fact that their prime suspect was not going to appear after a good night’s sleep to help with their enquiries. Instead Ranson and Gerring realised they had the makings of a first-class scandal on their hands, one that would shake the complacent society of Belgravia and the closed world of the Mayfair gambling salons to their very foundations.
‘They had the makings of a first-class scandal on their hands, one that would shake the complacent society of Belgravia’
Born on 18 December 1934, son of the 6th Earl of Lucan, the boy was evacuated from London to America at the age of six, when the clouds of war darkened the skies over Britain. Along with his younger brother Hugh and their two sisters, Frances and Sarah, his parents sent him to stay with a wealthy property tycoon… where they sat out the war in enviable luxury in the grounds of magnificent country mansions… ... Lord Bingham – or ‘Johnny’, as his friends called him – went to preparatory school in Oxford, then took his gilt-edged route to Eton, where he was house captain in his final year. The first signs of Johnny’s gambling addiction were there to see when he risked expulsion by indulging in nightly sessions of poker with his upper-class chums, as well as ‘skiving off’ on illicit trips to Ascot to lay bets on the horses for fellow students. In 1953 the dreaded brown envelope containing his
Extracts from ‘The Lucan Conspiracy’ by Duncan MacLaughlin and William Hall; pp 4-7, pp 13-14, pp 22-24, pp 39; published by John Blake Publishing Limited 2004 Compiled by Bryony Warren
Illustrations: Mai Osawa
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Residents’ Culture We interact with readers about top-notch cultural and community events
Residents’ Journal Book Club:
with a local author
Q&A
Belgravian resident and forner City worker Marcus Fedder is also the author of Sarabande, a tragic love story set in Sarajevo. In it a young London-based Bosnian doctor goes there on a mission to help in a hospital during the war of 1992-93. When did you start writing and why? I had the idea of writing Sarabande when watching news of the Sarajevo war in December 1992. LIt struck me that lterally an hour’s flight away from where we were celebrating Christmas, people were being sent to concentration camps – again. I wanted to write a story which, though fictional, sounded personal. At one book club, I remember a man who worked for an investment bank telling the club that he had been reading Sarabande on the tube and all of a sudden he noticed everyone was staring at him. He realised he’d been crying all the way.
What do you most enjoy about the process? Visiting Sarajevo was most interesting. Back at the end of the 1990s, there was hardly any information on the internet and so you had to do research on the ground, which was fascinating.
What are you currently working on? Another novel called Justice, written from the perspective of a German judge who, when retiring in 1990, decides to trace the tracks in the Soviet Union that he had travelled as a young soldier during World War II. Again, it is a love story in which an old, grumpy judge gets woken out of his one-dimensionality by a young pianist.
Do you have a favourite Belgravian haunt? I used to love Oriel and was dismayed when it was closed down, but The Star Tavern in Belgrave Mews West is wonderful too.
What do you most savour about living in the area? Belgravia is a most beautiful part of London with great architecture; a mix of magnificent and charming buildings. It is very residential despite all the embassies. It could do with more galleries, street cafés and decent book shops, though. I’m sure that will come! The Belgravia Residents’ Journal has three copies of ‘Sarabande’, signed by the author and to give away to readers. To have a chance of receiving one please email culture@residentsjournal.co.uk with your name, age and what most appeals to you about the novel. Please also include mention of what your favourite part of this month’s Journal is and why. Lucky recipients will be notified by the end of September.
What is concerning you about life in Belgravia? Write to us at: letters@residentsjournal.co.uk
The Residents’ Association
Round-up
by Sara Oliver
At a recent residents’ meeting, it was arranged for the movement off site of one large piling rig and one crawler crane on Saturday morning, 11 August at 2am. The movement was necessary at this time because of restrictions placed on large vehicles travelling within London during the Olympic period between 6am and midnight. The last piling rig and crane will be removed from site imminently. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. If you require any further information please do not hesitate to contact the site manager, Barry McDonagh directly: Barry.McDonagh@berkeleygroup.co.uk.
Being miserable
in vogue
Lulu Rumsey meets post-Olympic depression head on with a visit to see Les Misérables, now in its 27th year and still going strong
Our Companion website, Perfectly Belgravia, is now active and growing fast. Please do visit the site for the latest and greatest Belgravia has to offer. To join in the community spirit contact: communciations@belgraviaresidents.org.uk. We are in the process of compiling our new Black Book Directory for 2013. We aim to publish it in late autumn 2012. Contact us at Communications for further details and to advertise in what should be our finest publication yet. We are also in the early stages of planning a car rally for 2013; go to our website for further details and sponsorship opportunities.
A venerable institution of London’s West End theatre, this aptly named melancholy tale of wretchedness in post-Revolution French industrial society charts the life and moral transformation of lead character Jean Valjean and offers a glimmer of salvation for all. This summer the stage welcomed Geronimo Rauch to undertake the role of Valjean (he will play Les Misérables’ protagonist until June 2013). Rauch’s Valjean is heartrendingly desperate yet also triumphant in his reckoning of the injustices of nineteenth-century France and his attempts to set right his own path and the lives of those who cross it. All the while he is haunted by the threat of the long arm of the law, branded by long-time adversary policeman Javert. Rauch’s ’Bring Him Home’ is undoubtedly the stand out performance, teaming with an emotional intensity which can’t help but strike a chord even among the most apprehensive audience member. That’s not to say there isn’t also room for other characters to shine; Cameron Blakely and Katy Secombe’s Monsieur and Madame Thénardier are hilariously and outrageously offensive and steal every one of the scenes they are in. The ensemble renditions of ‘Do You Hear the People Sing?’ and ‘At the End of the Day’ are also stand outs, as well as Éponine and Marius’s ‘A Little Fall of Rain’ (played by Danielle Hope and Craig Mather, respectively). 2010 was the musical’s big twenty-fifth anniversary, marked by three different productions of the musical staged at the same time across London. But two years and several cast changes have done nothing to dampen the spirit and draw of a spectacle that has captivated audiences for over a quarter of a century.
We were sad to see The Belgravia Coffee Bar in Lower Belgrave Street disappear after many years. The long-standing café was once the haunt of many famous Belgravians. Let’s hope it is just a refurbishment.
Send us a 200-word review of any West-end production for possible publication on the Residents’ Culture pages: culture@residentsjournal.co.uk
Upcoming events include an Historic House Tour of Spencer House on 1 October. Do join us for a glass of champagne before heading off to lunch at Restaurant 36 in the beautiful Dukes Hotel with a traditional clubby atmosphere and in St James, a short stroll from Spencer House. These tours have proved to be exceedingly popular so we recommend you book early as places are strictly limited for both the tour and lunch. Please book via the website or email communications@ belgraviaresidents.org.uk. For details visit: www. belgraviaresidents.org.uk/ eventsmanagement.
Our ‘The Spirit of Belgravia’ photography competition has now closed. The winners have been announced and the presentation will follow in November. Many thanks to Ayrton Wylie for sponsoring us in 2012. The winners are: James Barnett (adults section) with ‘Elizabeth Street moment after the rain’, outside Mungo & Maud – a dog and mistress walking in the door, mirroring the dog in the window; and Kate Sharpe from Francis Holland School (schools section) with ‘The Lady Sign Writer’.
A message from our Chairman, James Wright: ‘For the last two decades, anyone living in Belgravia and owning their own property has, in essence, ‘won the lottery’ through rising house prices. That has not gone unnoticed, but there is a level of development that if gone unchecked will destroy the quiet and the character of this area through insensitive development. Legislation as it currently stands makes this difficult but together with Grosvenor and Westminster City Council, we are involved in lobbying and attending meetings in Parliament to bring about a change in the law to bring basement planning back into the control of the local authority and out of its current state of “permitted development”.’
Until next month… Photography: Michael Le Poer Trench
B E L G R AV I A R E S I D E N T S ’ J O U R N A L
Above / Photography: Mark Fiennes ©Spencer House
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Cigar
style
Sharna Heir goes up on the roofs, in search of cigar-space supreme
C
igars in our part of the world trace back to a 1492 voyage which saw Christopher Columbus and his crewmen encountering tobacco for the first time on what is now the Dominican Republic. Until the 1900s, the idea of smoking a cigar was certainly frowned upon in England, but then famous figures such as King Edward VII of England and later Churchill romanticised the pastime. We’ve come full circle and cigar smoking is certainly as controversial as any form of nicotine, but it’s no matter of debate that London has a burgeoning repertoire of cigar rooftops. These cosy and high-class outdoor smoking areas have come about partly as a means of getting around the smoking ban. But they do carry a cigar-specific label, to respond to increasing numbers of individuals looking for one long, smoke-fed indulgence in aroma, something the cigar claims to deliver. Along with a happy after-kick. Typically hoisted above shops and restaurants, there is an array of cigar-sociable rooftops ready for exploration in Belgravia herself. And, there are some indoor options which deserve mention, too, in the likely event of a cloud-covered night or two coming smokers’ way as summer tapers off. Cigars seem to have an ever-greater, albeit subtle, appeal to a younger clientele and also to women. Step aside male-orientated, smoke-clouded rooms of the past and welcome to open spaces for the mingling of the sexes, the cigar and the cigarette, the smoker and the drinker, alike.
Cigars, and all that jazz One of many individualised rooms in local jazz referencepoint, Boisdale, is its cigar terrace which is found above The Macdonald Bar. Well-lit with a sky light and a surrounding backdrop of the neighbouring town, this terrace is suited for those who enjoy captive scenery of the local area, perhaps relaxing and unwinding after an evening meal in Boisdale’s courtyard garden. Decorated with its signature tartan design, this cigar rooftop responds to seasonal changes with heaters and warm cashmere blankets. Boisdale ensures that guests are well-placed all year round in a cosy and comfortable setting, adorning a snug choice of sofas and armchairs. Boisdale offers regular cigar tasting sessions, allowing new guests to explore the world of cigars, and seasoned smokers to revel in the pleasantry. Open Monday-Friday, 12midday-1am; Saturday, 6pm-1am Cuban cigar tasting: 10 September, 6pm Boisdale: 15 Eccleston Street, 020 7730 6922
Ladies first
Smoked not stirred Available for private bookings, Dukes hotel is a small luxury venue located in nearby Mayfair and has extended its drinking area to include an intimate al fresco cigar setting. The garden is subtly decorated with a light and airy feel with a beautiful canopy and stylish subtle lighting. Accommodating up to twenty guests, this garden is perfect for a celebratory occasion or friendly nightcap, and all the better at a hotel renowned for its martinis. If nothing else, sample the bold cocktail Ruby Windsor, made specially for the garden and sporting Champagne, angostura bitters, cognac and a sugar cube. A lovely tranquil spot, but beware: only cigars bought from Dukes may be consumed in the garden. Open Monday-Sunday, 6pm-11.30pm Dukes: St. James’s Place, 020 7491 4840
Indoor-outdoor jungle A walk-in humidor (the UK’s first within a hotel), underfloor heating and windproof table lights. The Lanesborough Hotel’s Garden Room has really thought of everything, and houses a collection of the world’s finest premium cigars and vintage cognacs too – including the world’s oldest cognac from 1770, which sells for £4,000 a shot. Its ample selection of cigars offers a field day for smoking connoisseurs, and leaves novices a little daunted with over a thousand options. Included in the range is the rare Davidoff Dom Perignon and the famously exclusive Cohiba Sublimes, but if indecisiveness leaves you a-tremble, the cigarknowledgeable staff will be ready to assist. Recent additions to the bar include its third box of Cohiba ‘Behike’ Cigars, which are £3,000 a stick.
At Ten Manchester, a cigar terrace leads off from the ground-floor restaurant. The Hotel offers a selection of hand-rolled Havanas including Cohiba, Montrecristo and Romeo y Julietas, kept in humidors to preserve their condition. You may bring your own cigar, but there is then a minimum spend of £25. Exclusive to Ten is their ladies’ cigar evenings where the cigar-curious females among us need feel no shame. During the session you can expect to find yourself sipping on a cocktail or two, and sampling some of the Havanas available to purchase, whilst Hunters & Frankau will host the night and talk about complimentary cigars and cocktails. Sounds tolerable enough. For enthusiasts, there are exclusive cigar events which held every three months. Open daily, midday-9pm Upcoming Ladies’ Event: 17 September Ten Manchester:10 Manchester Street, 020 7317 5900
Soft-top smokin’ Opting for a beachy feel in the urban scene, Belgrave Hotel’s cigar terrace is ideal for glorious gatherings and intimate summer evenings with its retractable roof (for cooler evenings, expect to be warmed up by heaters before rain ends play). In addition to their rich cigar menu, there is a cocktail one too. You’ll find yourself in close proximity to Mark’s Bar inside, where you can pick up a few nibbles to compliment some time well spent. Most prominent is the décor; a washed shade of pale timber with relaxing Dedon chairs and pendant lights. Escape the bustle of the city and take to the skies. Because it jets out the side of the building, you only have to go up to the first floor, too. Open daily, 9.30am-10pm Belgraves: 20 Chesham Place, 020 7858 0100
Open Monday-Saturday 4pm-11pm; Sunday 4pm-10.30pm The Lanesborough: Hyde Park Corner, 020 7259 5599
B E L G R AV I A R E S I D E N T S ’ J O U R N A L
025
The Belgravia
Directory A compendium of the area’s key establishments
Estate Agents Ayrton Wylie 16 Lower Belgrave Street 020 7730 4628
Henry & James 1 Motcomb Street 020 7235 8861
Savills 139 Sloane Street 020 7730 0822
Best Gapp & Cassells 81 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 9253
John D Wood 48 Elizabeth Street 020 7824 7900
Strutt & Parker 66 Sloane Street 020 7235 9959
Harrods Estates 82 Brompton Road 020 7225 6506
Knight Frank 82-83 Chester Square 020 7881 7722
W A Ellis 174 Brompton Road 020 7306 1600
Food &Drink BARS Amaya Halkin Arcade, Motcomb Street 020 7823 1166 The Garden Room (cigar) The Lanesborough Hyde Park Corner 020 7259 5599 The Library Bar (wine) The Lanesborough Hyde Park Corner 020 7259 5599 Tiles Restaurant and Wine Bar 36 Buckingham Palace Road 020 7834 7761
CAFÉS Belgravia Coffee Bar 4 Lower Belgrave Street 020 7730 3738 Bella Maria 4 Lower Grosvenor Place 020 7976 6280 Caffe Reale 23 Grosvenor Gardens 020 7592 9322
The Green Café 16 Eccleston Street 020 7730 5304 ll Corriere 6 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 2087 The Old English Coffee House 1 Montrose Place 020 7235 3643 Patisserie Valerie 17 Motcomb Street 020 7245 6161 Tomtom Coffee House 114 Ebury Street 020 7730 1771
The Belgravia (classic) 152 Ebury Street 020 7730 6040 The Duke of Wellington (classic) 63 Eaton Terrace 020 7730 1782 The Nag’s Head (classic) 53 Kinnerton Street 020 7235 1135 The Wilton Arms (classic) 71 Kinnerton Street 020 7235 4854
BRITISH FARE
Valerie Victoria 38 Buckingham Palace Road 020 7630 9781
Bumbles Restaurant 16 Buckingham Palace Road 020 7828 2903
PUBS
RESTAURANTS
The Antelope (classic) 22-24 Eaton Terrace 020 7824 8512
Como Lario (Italian) 18-22 Holbein Place 020 7730 9046
Il Convivio (Italian) 143 Ebury Street 020 7730 4099 Olivo (pizzeria) 21 Eccleston Street 020 7730 2505 Zafferano (Italian) 15 Lowndes Street 020 7235 5800 Ken Lo’s Memories of China Manager: Ardjan Kelmendi Cuisine: Chinese; Capacity: 120 65-69 Ebury Street 020 7730 7734 Mango Tree Manager: Chai Cuisine: Thai; Capacity: 150 46 Grosvenor Place 020 7823 1888 Nahm Manager: Tarama Archer Cuisine: Thai; Capacity: 100 The Halkin Hotel Halkin Street 020 7333 1234
Salloos Manager: S. Quershi Cuisine: Pakistani; Capacity: 55 62-64 Kinnerton Street 020 7235 4444
The Sekara Manager: Kantsi Gunasekera Cuisine: Sri Lankan; Capacity: 50 3 Lower Grosvenor Place 020 7834 0722
Petrus Manager: Paulina Trocha Cuisine: French; Capacity: 86 1 Kinnerton Street 020 7592 1609
La Poule au Pot Manager: Lionel Banda Cuisine: French; Capacity: 70 231 Ebury Street 020 7730 7763
Michael Garry Personal Training 54b Ebury Street 020 7730 6255
Motcomb Green 11-12 Motcomb Street 020 7235 2228
Yogoji (Yoga) 54a Ebury Street 020 7730 7473
Stephen Casali 161 Ebury Street 020 7730 2196
HAIR SALONS
MEDISPA
Colin & Karen Hair Design 39 Lower Belgrave Street 020 7730 7440
Bijoux Medi-Spa 149 Ebury Street 020 7730 0765
The Light Centre Belgravia 9 Eccleston Street 020 7881 0728
The Daniel Galvin Jr. Salon 4a West Halkin Street 020 3416 3116
earthspa 4 Eccleston Street 020 7823 6226
FINISHING TOUCHES
FURNITURE Ciancimino 85 Pimlico Place 020 7730 9959
Mark Wilkinson Kitchens 10 West Halkin Street 020 7235 1845
The Dining Chair Company 4 St Barnabas Street 020 7259 0422
Ossowski 83 Pimlico Road 020 7730 3256
Hemisphere 97 Lower Sloane Street 020 7730 9810
Patrick Jefferson 227 Ebury Street 020 7730 6161
Jamb 107a Pimlico Road 020 7730 2122
Promemoria UK 99 Pimlico Road 020 7730 2514
Sebastian D’Orsai (framer) 77 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 8366
Lamberty 46 Pimlico Road 020 7823 5115
Soane 50-52 Pimlico Road 020 7730 6400
Zuber 42 Pimlico Road 020 7824 8265
Linley 60 Pimlico Road 020 7730 7300
Talisman 190-192 Ebury Street 020 7730 7800
Health & Beauty BARBER
DOCTORS
Giuseppe D’Amico 20 Eccleston Street 020 7730 2968
The Belgrave Medical Centre 13 Pimlico Road 020 7730 5171
DENTISTS
The Belgravia Surgery 26 Eccleston Street 020 7590 8000
The Beresford Clinic 2 Lower Grosvenor Place 020 7821 9411 Motcomb Street Dentist 3 Motcomb Street 020 7235 6531 The Wilton Place Practice 31 Wilton Place 020 7235 3824
Dr Kalina 109 Ebury Street 020 7730 4805
GYM/ FITNESS
SPA
Home ANTIQUES Bennison 16 Holbein Place 020 7730 8076 Turkmen Gallery 8 Eccleston Street 020 7730 8848
ARCHITECTS/ DESIGN Marston & Langinger 194 Ebury Street 020 7881 5700 Paul Davis + Partners 178 Ebury Street 020 7730 1178
ARTEFACTS Odyssey Fine Arts 24 Holbein Place 020 7730 9942
B E L G R AV I A R E S I D E N T S ’ J O U R N A L
Paint Services Company 19 Eccleston Street 020 7730 6408 Rachel Vosper (candles) 69 Kinnerton Street 020 7235 9666 Ramsay (prints) 69 Pimlico Road 020 7730 6776
027
The Belgravia
Directory Westenholz 80-82 Pimlico Road 020 7824 8090
Gauntlett Gallery 90-92 Pimlico Road 020 7730 7516
GALLERIES
Gordon Watson 28 Pimlico Road 020 7259 0555
88 Gallery 86-88 Pimlico Road 020 7730 2728 Ahuan Gallery 17 Eccleston Street 020 7730 9382
John Adams Fine Art 200 Ebury Street 020 7730 8999
INTERIOR DESIGN
RESTORATION
Chester Designs 9 Chester Sqare Mews 020 7730 4333
Humphrey-Carrasco 43 Pimlico Road 020 7730 9911
Coote & Bernardi 59 Pimlico Road 020 7730 6064
Paul Hahn 5 Lower Grosvenor Place 020 7592 0224
Joanna Wood 48a Pimlico Road 020 7730 5064
The Osborne Studio Gallery 2 Motcomb Street 020 7235 9667
Living Interiors 57 Ebury Street 020 7730 0545
Lynton Hotel 113 Ebury Street 020 7730 4032
Belgravia Rooms 104 Ebury Street 020 7730 1011
Tophams Hotel 24-32 Ebury Street 020 7730 3313
Morgan Guest House 120 Ebury Street 020 7730 2384
The Diplomat Hotel 2 Chesham Street 020 7235 1544
LUXURY
Westminster House Hotel 96 Ebury Street 020 7730 4302
Lime Tree Hotel 135-137 Ebury Street 020 7730 8191
BOUTIQUE Astors Hotel 110-112 Ebury Street 020 7730 0158
The Rubens at the Palace 39 Buckingham Palace Road 020 7834 6600
The Grosvenor 101 Buckingham Palace Road 0845 305 8337
The Belgravia Mews Hotel 50 Ebury Street 020 7730 5434
The Sloane Club Lower Sloane Street 020 7730 9131
The Halkin Halkin Street 020 7333 1000
Barclays Bank 8 West Halkin Street 08457 555 555
Royal Bank of Scotland 24 Grosvenor Place 020 7235 1882
William Hill 12 Buckingham Palace Road 08705 181 715
CLEANERS
CHARITIES
C Hoare & Co 32 Lowndes Street 020 7245 6033
BOOKMAKERS
Belgrave Dry Cleaners 8 Lower Belgrave Street 020 7730 9978
British Red Cross 85 Ebury Street 020 7730 2235
Elias Cleaners 3 Motcomb Street 020 7235 2920
Gallery 25 26 Pimlico Road 020 7730 7516
Hotels B&Bs B+B Belgravia & Studios@82 64-66 Ebury Street 020 7259 8570 Belgravia Hotel 118 Ebury Street 020 7259 0050 Cartref House 129 Ebury Street 020 7730 6176 Lord Milner Hotel 111 Ebury Street 020 7881 9880
The Berkeley Wilton Place 020 7235 6000 The Goring Beeston Place 020 7396 9000
Services BANKS
Coral Racing 67 Pimlico Road 020 7730 6516
EDUCATION Cameron House School 4 The Vale 020 7352 4040 Eaton House School 3-5 Eaton Gate 020 7924 6000 Eaton Square School 79 Eccleston Square 020 7931 9469 Francis Holland School 39 Graham Terrace 020 7730 2971 Garden House School Turks Row 020 7730 1652 GEMS Hampshire School 15 Manresa Road 020 7352 7077
Glendower Preparatory School 86-87 Queen’s Gate 020 7370 1927 Hill House International Junior School Hans Place 020 7584 1331 Knightsbridge School 67 Pont Street 020 7590 9000 Miss Daisy’s Nursery Ebury Square 020 7730 5797 More House School 22-24 Pont Street 020 7235 2855
Sussex House School 68 Cadogan Square 020 7584 1741 Thomas’s Kindergarten 14 Ranelagh Grove 020 7730 3596
EXCLUSIVE
LIBRARY Victoria Library 160 Buckingham Palace Road 020 7641 1300
MOTORING Belgravia Garage 1 Eaton Mews West 020 7235 9900
POST OFFICE
The Caledonian Club 9 Halkin Street 020 7235 5162
Post Office 6 Eccleston Street 08457 223344
FLORISTS
PRINTING & COPYING
Judith Blacklock Flower School 4-5 Kinnerton Place South 020 7235 6235
Printus 115a Ebury Street 020 7730 7799
Neill Strain Floral Couture 11 West Halkin Street 020 7235 6469
TRAVEL
David Thomas Master Goldsmith 65 Pimlico Road 020 7730 7710
Les Senteurs 71 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 2322
De Vroomen 59 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 1901
Mungo & Maud 79 Elizabeth Street 020 7022 1207
Erickson Beamon 38 Elizabeth Street 020 7259 0202
PharmacIES
Charles of Belgravia 27 Lower Belgrave Street 020 7730 5210
Kim Poor 53 Elizabeth Street 020 7259 9063
Walden Chemist 65 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 0080
The Market Quarter 36 Elizabeth Street 020 7824 8470
NEWSAGENT
Polishers
Mayhew Newsagents 15 Motcomb Street 020 7235 5770
F Bennett and Son 9 Chester Square Mews 020 7730 6546
JEWELLERS
PERFUMERY
Stationer
Carolina Bucci 4 Motcomb Street 020 7838 9977
Annick Goutal 20 Motcomb Street 020 7245 0248
Grosvenor Stationery Company 47 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 4515
Queen’s Gate School 133 Queen’s Gate 020 7589 3587
Bravo Travel 6 Lower Grosvenor Place 0870 121 3411
Specialty Shops BAKERIES Baker & Spice 54-56 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 3033 Ottolenghi 13 Motcomb Street 020 7823 2707
CIGAR SPECIALISTS Tomtom Cigars 63 Elizabeth Street 020 7730 1790
BOOKS Belgravia Books 56 Ebury Street 020 7259 9336
CONFECTIONERY Peggy Porschen 116 Ebury Street 020 7730 1316
B E L G R AV I A R E S I D E N T S ’ J O U R N A L
Pierre Hermé Paris 13 Lowndes Street 020 7245 0317 Rococo Chocolates 5 Motcomb Street 020 7245 0993
DELI La Bottega 25 Eccleston Street 020 7730 2730
GREENGROCERS
Pet accessories
Keencare Chemist 6 Lower Belgrave Street 020 7730 8747
029
savills.co.uk
1 A CHARMING MEWS HOUSE IN PRIME BELGRAVIA lowndes close, sw1 Drawing room ø dining room ø library ø kitchen ø master bedroom suite ø 3 further bedrooms (2 en suite) ø 224 sq m (2,408 sq ft)
Guide £6 million Freehold
Savills Sloane Street
Michael Berman & Co
Noel De Keyzer ndekeyzer@savills.com
Martin Berg martin.berg@michaelberman.co.uk
020 7730 0822
020 8346 5100
k
savills.co.uk
1 BELGRAVIA MEWS HOUSE IN A QUIET, PRIVATE LOCATION eccleston mews, sw1 Reception room ø kitchen ø master bedroom with en suite bathroom ø 2 further bedrooms (1 en suite) ø further shower room ø utility room ø balcony ø 140 sq m (1,503 sq ft) Guide £3.3 million Freehold
Savills Sloane Street
Michael Berman & Co
Noel De Keyzer ndekeyzer@savills.com
Martin Berg martin.berg@michaelberman.co.uk
020 7730 0822
020 8346 5100
savills.co.uk
1 AN ELEGANT APARTMENT WITH PRIVATE GARDEN IN THE HEART OF BELGRAVIA ebury street, sw1 Entrance hall ø drawing room ø dining room ø kitchen ø master bedrom suite ø guest bedroom suite ø study/3rd bedroom ø guest cloakroom ø patio garden ø 201 sq m (2,167 sq ft)
Savills Sloane Street
Savills Knightsbridge
Christian Warman cgwarman@savills.com
Katie Rumbellow krumbellow@savills.com
020 7730 0822
020 7581 5234
Asking £2.59 million Leasehold
2778
MOORE CHELSEA IMPRESSIVE STUDIOS, 1, 2, & 3 BEDROOM APARTMENTS TO RENT IN CHELSEA
PLEASE CONTACT US FOR FURTHER DETAILS AND A TOUR OF MOORE HOUSE
www.moorehousechelsea.co.uk
277847_KF_KenChelseaMag_Sept12.indd 1
07/08/2012 12:45
VICTORIA ROAD, LONDON. W8 FREEHOLD FIVE BEDROOMS GROSS INTERNAL AREA: 3,660 SQ FT/ 340 SQ M
Price on Application Five bedrooms, Ball room, Double reception room, Kitchen/breakfast room, Roof terrace, Patio, Off street parking, Garage. An exceptional and beautifully presented double fronted low built period house located on one of the most desirable streets in Kensington. The property which has five bedrooms also offers a wealth of entertaining space including an impressive reception room nicknamed ‘the ball room’, double reception room/dining room, large kitchen breakfast room
and a wonderful roof terrace. In addition there is a study, three bathrooms, two of which is en suite, two cloakrooms, laundry room and and wine vault. Bedroom five is ideal for a teenager or house keeper as it has it’s own seperate entrance, kitchenette and shower room. Outside to the front of the property there are two off street parking spaces.
BELGRAVIA OFFICE 1 Motcomb Street, London SW1X 8JX +44 (0)20 7235 8861
belgraviaoffice@henryandjames.co.uk
henryandjames.co.uk
EATON SQUARE, LONDON. SW1X LEASEHOLD THREE BEDROOMS GROSS INTERNAL AREA: 1,625 SQ FT/ 151 SQ M
ÂŁ2,250,000 stc Entrance hall, Drawing room, Dining room, Master bedroom with en suite bathroom, 2 further bedrooms, Lift, Caretaker. Located in arguably one of the best locations in central London, this duplex three bedroom apartment of 1,625 sq ft is presented in excellent condition throughout, providing classic style and space with a very generous reception room overlooking the square. Accommodation is comprised of a spacious kitchen leading to dining room, two large bed-
rooms, one smaller bedroom/study and plenty of built-in storage. Eaton Square is situated between Buckingham Palace and Sloane Square, and is a moments walk from the international boutiques of Sloane Street. The two closest Underground stations can be found at Sloane Square and Victoria. JSA Beauchamp Estates.
BELGRAVIA OFFICE 1 Motcomb Street, London SW1X 8JX +44 (0)20 7235 8861
belgraviaoffice@henryandjames.co.uk
henryandjames.co.uk
CHESHAM STREET, LONDON. SW1X ONE BEDROOM UNFURNISHED
ÂŁ595
PER WEEK stc One bedroom, Bathroom, Kitchen, South facing balcony, Newly refurbished. A charming quiet and sunny one bedroom flat with a south facing private balcony located at the back of this well maintained period building in this prime Belgravia address. The property has been refurbished to a high standard and
comprises a separate modern kitchen, bathroom with a bath, double bedroom, a reception room with a feature fireplace and doors onto a balcony. The property is available unfurnished for a long term let.
BELGRAVIA OFFICE 1 Motcomb Street, London SW1X 8JX +44 (0)20 7235 8861
belgraviaoffice@henryandjames.co.uk
henryandjames.co.uk
WEST HALKIN STREET, LONDON. SW1X THREE BEDROOMS FURNISHED
ÂŁ1,800
PER WEEK stc Three double bedrooms, Two bathrooms, Open plan kitchen and reception area, Porter, Lift. This fantastic bright penthouse apartment in this highly sought after portered period building is located on one of Belgravia’s prime streets. The property has been recently redecorated in neutral tones, fitted with new carpets and furnished in an elegant, contemporary style. This light,
split-level maisonette accessible with lift has a large master bedroom suite, two further double bedrooms, a second bathroom, a modern open-plan kitchen and a reception room. The property is available furnished. Access to Belgrave Square communal gardens by separate negotiation.
BELGRAVIA OFFICE 1 Motcomb Street, London SW1X 8JX +44 (0)20 7235 8861
belgraviaoffice@henryandjames.co.uk
henryandjames.co.uk
SOLD Caroline Terrace, Belgravia SW1 • 3 Bedrooms
• Kitchen
• 2 Bathrooms (en suite)
• Garden
• Separate WC
• Approx. 1,585 sq ft (147.2 sq m)
• 2 Reception rooms
Guide price £3,500,000 Freehold For more information call Robert Lewis on 020 7306 1620 or email rlewis@waellis.co.uk
“ A charming four storey house situated in this quiet and elegant street close to Sloane Square” W.A.Ellis LLP 174 Brompton Road London SW3 1HP
waellis.co.uk
Eaton Mews South, Belgravia SW1 • 5 Bedrooms
• Fully fitted kitchen
• 3 Bathrooms
• Garage parking
• Guest cloakroom
• Approx 1,961 sq ft (182 sq m)
• Double reception room
£2,000 per week Furnished
For more information call David Mills on 020 7306 1630 or email dmills@waellis.co.uk
“ A spacious mews house arranged over three floors situated in a central Belgravia location close to Elizabeth Street” W.A.Ellis LLP 174 Brompton Road London SW3 1HP
waellis.co.uk
Eaton Terrace, Belgravia SW1 • 6 Bedrooms
• Utility room
• 4 Bathrooms
• Terrace & garden
• 3 Reception rooms
• Garage parking
• Kitchen / breakfast room
• Approx 3,340 sq ft (309 sq m)
£3,500 per week Unfurnished For more information call Charlie Woods on 020 7306 1630 or email cwoods@waellis.co.uk
“ A wonderful family house spread over six floors in this sought after street in the heart of Belgravia” W.A.Ellis LLP 174 Brompton Road London SW3 1HP
waellis.co.uk
Upper Belgrave Street, Belgravia SW1 • 2 Bedrooms
• Kitchen/breakfast room
• 2 Bathrooms
• Study
• 2 Dressing rooms
• Courtyard
• Double drawing room
• Approx. 2,713 sq ft (252 sq m)
“ An impressive ground and garden maisonette with a magnificent double reception room”
Guide price £5,950,000 Leasehold with 116 years remaining
For more information call Simon Godson on 020 7306 1610 or email sgodson@waellis.co.uk
W.A.Ellis LLP 174 Brompton Road London SW3 1HP
waellis.co.uk
EATON PLACE, SW1
EATON PLACE, SW1
A beautifully refurbished ground and lower ground floor duplex apartment in a stucco-fronted building in the heart of Belgravia, with good access to Sloane Square, Knightsbridge and Victoria.
A beautifully presented lower ground floor apartment with its own private paved garden and located close to all the facilities of Sloane Square and Knightsbridge.
3 bedrooms, 2 en suite bathrooms, en suite shower room, 2 receptions.
2 bedrooms, 2 en suite bathrooms, 2 reception rooms.
Furnished £2,950 per week
Furnished £1,950 per week
LOWNDES LODGE, SW1
BURTON MEWS, SW1
A newly decorated 1 floor apartment, with resident porter and lift, wonderfully located adjacent to all the facilities of Motcomb Street and Knightsbridge.
Conveniently located in this cobbled mews close to the shopping, restaurant, transport and entertainment facilities of Sloane Square, Elizabeth Street and Victoria.
2 bedrooms, en suite bathroom, en suite shower room, reception room.
2 bedrooms, bathroom, reception room.
Unfurnished £1,350 per week
Part Furnished £775 per week
st
BELGRAVIA 020 7824 7900 belgravia@johndwood.co.uk
Belgravia Residents Journal Sept.indd 1
www.johndwood.co.uk
09/08/2012 13:52
Belg
EATON SQUARE, SW1 A highly desirable 2nd floor portered apartment, with lift, in this prime central London garden square. 4 bedrooms, dressing room, 3 bathrooms (2 en suite), drawing/dining room, reception room, kitchen/breakfast room, cloakroom, lift, garage, private communal square gardens. Lease to 2073 Guide Price £7,800,000
4 bedrooms, en suite bathroom, 3 shower rooms (1 en-suite), reception room, dining room, study, media room, cloakroom, gymnasium, wine cellar, roof terrace, garage, mews parking. Freehold Guide Price £4,995,000
BELGRAVIA 020 7824 7900 belgravia@johndwood.co.uk
13:52
Belgravia Residents Journal Sept.indd 2
D
R GEN E FO
IONS AT R
A discreetly situated mews house rebuilt to the highest standards behind its period façade.
TRUSTE
GROSVENOR GARDENS MEWS NORTH, SW1
140 Years of Property
18
72 - 2 012
www.johndwood.co.uk
09/08/2012 13:53
Knight Frank
Eaton Terrace, Belgravia SW1 Immaculate Belgravia family home
A superb Belgravia townhouse presented in immaculate order. The house has a good balance of living and entertaining space. Master bedroom with en suite bathroom, 3 further bedrooms, 4 further bath/shower rooms (1 en suite), drawing room, reception room, kitchen, dining room, study, laundry room, garden. Approximately 264 sq m (2,843 sq ft) Freehold Guide Price: ÂŁ6,200,000 (BGV120075)
KnightFrank.co.uk/Belgravia belgravia@knightfrank.com 020 7881 7722
Knight Frank
Grosvenor Gardens Mews North, Belgravia SW1 Luxury mews house in Belgravia
Spectacular five bedroom mews property. Master bedroom with en suite bathroom and dressing room, 2 further double bedrooms with en suite bathrooms, 2 further bedrooms, family bathroom, reception room, kitchen/breakfast room, dining room, sitting room, media room, 2 guest cloakrooms, utility room, secure underground parking. Approximately 431 sq m (4,650 sq ft) Available furnished ÂŁ7,950 per week (BEQ135249)
KnightFrank.co.uk/Lettings belgravialettings@knightfrank.com 0207 881 7730
81 Elizabeth Street, Eaton Square, London SW1W 9PG T: 020 7730 9253 F: 020 7730 8212 E: reception@bestgapp.co.uk www.bestgapp.co.uk
Over 100 years experience in Belgravia
EATON Place SW1 An immaculately presented and newly designed ground floor flat with the latest technology situated in a white stucco fronted building, in the heart of Belgravia.
Leasehold 112 years remaining
Price on Application
* Drawing Room * Kitchen * Master Bedroom with en-suite Bathroom * Bedroom Two, Shower Room * Resident Porter
ESTATE AGENTS, SURVEYORS AND PROPERTY CONSULTANTS 81 Elizabeth Street, Eaton Square, London SW1W 9PG Tel: 020 7730 9253 Fax: 020 7730 8212 Email: reception@bestgapp.co.uk www.bestgapp.co.uk Over 100 years experience in Belgravia
EATON SQUARE SW1 A fabulous third floor lateral apartment, six windows wide situated in the centre of the favoured northern terrace overlooking the square gardens. Refurbished to exacting standards, to include audio visual and air conditioning throughout, to provide excellent entertaining space that is separate from the bedroom accommodation.
Leasehold 15 years
ÂŁ5,500,000
* Wide Entrance Hall * Drawing Room * Dining Room * Master Bedroom with en-suite Dressing Room and Bathroom * 2 Further Bedroom Suites * Porter
Sloane Street, Knightsbridge, SW1 This three-bedroom apartment of approximately 1,980sq ft (184sq m) is located on the third floor of a mansion block with a resident caretaker, lift and security.The accommodation includes a double reception room with period features, a large kitchen, three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a guest WC and utility room.The entrance of this 19thcentury building is moments from Harrods, Hyde Park and the amenities of Knightsbridge.
Price: ÂŁ4,950,000, subject to contract Leasehold: 135 years +44 (0)20 7225 6509 Nicholas.shaw@harrodsestates.com
KNIGHTSBRIDGE OFFICE: 82 BROMPTON ROAD LONDON SW3 1ER T: +44 020 7225 6506 MAYFAIR OFFICE: 61 PARK LANE LONDON W1K 1QF T: +44 020 7409 9001
HARRODSESTATES.COM
EATON SQUARE, Belgravia, SW1 A stunning three / four bedroom lateral apartment situated on the second floor across two substantial stucco-fronted buildings on the preferred north side of London’s most exclusive garden square. Beautifully refurbished to the highest standards, this elegant apartment benefits from generously proportioned and high-ceilinged reception room and bedrooms with direct views of the private communal gardens. Resident porter, lift, security and access to the square gardens and tennis courts.
Price ÂŁ10,950,000 Leasehold 64 years +44 (0)20 7225 6508 Shaun.drummond@harrodsestates.com
KNIGHTSBRIDGE OFFICE: 82 BROMPTON ROAD LONDON SW3 1ER T: +44 020 7225 6506 MAYFAIR OFFICE: 61 PARK LANE LONDON W1K 1QF T: +44 020 7409 9001
HARRODSESTATES.COM
www.ayrtonwylie.com +44 (0) 20 7730 4628 (sales)
Belgravia, Knightsbridge, Chelsea
GrahaM terrrace, swI
This excellent wider than average house was built approximately 12 years ago and has recently been extensively refurbished and designed to the highest standard.
AccommodAtion And Amenities
5 bedrooms • 5 bathrooms/shower rooms • 3 reception rooms, Kitchen/ breakfast room • Swimming pool • Gymnasium • Air conditioning Private parking • Roof terrace • 5,434 sq ft / 505 sq m.
shAre of freehold £15,950,000 16 Lower Belgrave Street, Belgravia, London SW1W 0LN
JSA Savills +44 (0) 20 7730 0822
sales@ayrtonwylie.com
a
lls 22
m
www.ayrtonwylie.com +44 (0) 20 7730 4555 (lettings)
Belgravia, Knightsbridge, Chelsea
Grosvenor Gardens Mews north, swI
A beautiful, interior designed, 5 bedroom townhouse in close proximity to Eaton Square, which benefits from private allocated parking with direct access to the property.
AccommodAtion And Amenities
Master bedroom with ensuite bathroom • 3 further bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms • Further bedroom/study • 2 reception rooms • Dining room Kitchen/breakfast room • Secure allocated parking.
£7,950 per week lettings@ayrtonwylie.com
Chelsea Fulham & Parsons Green Kensington & Holland Park Knightsbridge, Belgravia & Mayfair Notting Hill & Bayswater West Chelsea & South Kensington
Sales 020 7225 3866 Sales 020 7731 7100 Sales 020 7938 3666 Sales 020 7235 9959 Sales 020 7221 1111 Sales 020 7373 1010
Lettings 020 7589 9966 Lettings 020 7731 7100 Lettings 020 7938 3866 Lettings 020 7235 9959 Lettings 020 7221 1111 Lettings 020 7373 1010
City Office Professional Valuations UK Commercial & Residential Residential Investment Property Management
020 7600 3456 020 7318 5039 020 7629 7282 020 7318 5196 020 7052 9417
struttandparker.com
Eaton Place | Belgravia | SW1 1,140 sq ft (105.9 sq m)
A spacious two bedroom lower ground floor apartment close to Sloane Square and Knightsbridge. Entrance hall | Reception room | Master bedroom with en-suite bathroom | Second bedroom | Shower room | Kitchen | Patio garden Asking price ÂŁ1,350,000 Leasehold
Strutt & Parker Knightsbridge 020 7235 9959 JSA Ayrton Wylie 020 7730 4628
Scan this QR code with your camera phone to read more about this property. Free QR code readers are available to download from our website at struttandparker.com/qrcode
Eaton Square | Belgravia | SW1 1,347 sq ft (125.1 sq m)
An exceptionally elegant maisonette arranged over the raised ground and first floors, on what is regarded as the best address in London. Entrance hall | Reception room | Kitchen | Dining room | Two bedrooms | Two bathrooms | Guest cloakroom | Balcony | Direct lift access | Caretaker | Access to communal gardens Asking price ÂŁ1,500,000 Leasehold
Knightsbridge 020 7235 9959
Scan this QR code with your camera phone to read more about this property. Free QR code readers are available to download from our website at struttandparker.com/qrcode
Chelsea Fulham & Parsons Green Kensington & Holland Park Knightsbridge, Belgravia & Mayfair Notting Hill & Bayswater West Chelsea & South Kensington
Sales 020 7225 3866 Sales 020 7731 7100 Sales 020 7938 3666 Sales 020 7235 9959 Sales 020 7221 1111 Sales 020 7373 1010
Lettings 020 7589 9966 Lettings 020 7731 7100 Lettings 020 7938 3866 Lettings 020 7235 9959 Lettings 020 7221 1111 Lettings 020 7373 1010
City Office Professional Valuations UK Commercial & Residential Residential Investment Property Management
020 7600 3456 020 7318 5039 020 7629 7282 020 7318 5196 020 7052 9417
struttandparker.com
Belgrave Mews North | Belgravia | SW1 1,121 sq ft (113 sq m)
A beautifully refurbished one bed mews house situated in this quiet and secluded mews with the benefit of a garage. Reception room | Kitchen / breakfast room | Master bedroom with en suite bathroom | Cloakroom | Garage ÂŁ1,200 Furnished
Knightsbridge 020 7235 9959
Scan this QR code with your camera phone to read more about this property. Free QR code readers are available for download from our website at struttandparker.com/qrcode
struttandparker.com
A new batch of potential buyers has just arrived. As Knightsbridge and Belgravia remain the prime destinations for overseas property investment, it continues to attract a wealth of international buyers. In the last six months, 75% of our registered buyers and tenants were from overseas. If you want to market your property now or would like to talk about how we can help you, do call either Charlie Willis, head of sales or Nina McDowall, head of lettings. 66 Sloane Street, London SW1X 9SH. Call 020 7235 9959 or email Knightsbridge@struttandparker.com today
Chelsea Fulham & Parsons Green Kensington & Holland Park Notting Hill West Chelsea & South Kensington
3460 International Ad A4.indd 1
Sales 020 7225 3866 Sales 020 7731 7100 Sales 020 7938 3666 Sales 020 7221 1111 Sales 020 7373 1010
Lettings 020 7589 9966 Lettings 020 7731 7100 Lettings 020 7938 3866 Lettings 020 7221 1111 Lettings 020 7373 1010
11/05/2012 15:52