Vantage Magazine August 2015 by Runwild Media Group

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contents

Off to a good start

100

Scene

60 beauty update

10 to be, or not to be

35 wishlist

Benedict Cumberbatch talks Sherlock, family life and preparing for Hamlet

38 in focus

With photography collecting on the rise, Atlas Gallery director Ben Burdett ponders the future of the humble art form

18 YESTERDAY, TODAY

42 Mind mapping

AND TOMORROW As the BFI opens its retrospective of Vittorio De Sica, we look back at his many achievements

Collection

Style

Piaget’s new high jewellery line, Mediterranean Garden

26 jewellery trend

Explore the cerebral streets of NW3 in an exclusive extract from new book Uncommon London

Raise the bar with eye-catching gold accessories and striking crystal embellishments

Chantecaille protects wolves and Chanel plans its first spa

Interiors 67 wishlist

Bold animal prints from House of Hackney

70 GET INTO THE GROVE

Interior designer Martin Hulbert goes back to the drawing board at The Grove hotel

74 Curios & curiouser

We delve into the unusual world of the wunderkammer tradition

Health & Family

47 WISHLIST

23 wishlist

Hampstead welcomes the new Aeon Gallery and an opening exhibition by Jane MacLean

14 VIVE LA DIFFERENCE Michelin-starred chef-cumhotelier Alain Ducasse celebrates the 40th anniversary of Châteaux & Hôtels Collection

79 Wishlist

Karl Lagerfeld gets sporty

Petite Bateau celebrates the French seaside

48 style update

83 health news

Erdem turns nautical and Marni reinvents the Trunk bag

50 garden state

Food & Drink

Contrasting textures and bohemian prints lead for autumn

The Berkeley launches hula -hooping masterclasses

87 wishlist

Fashion meets food at the Burberry café

88 foodie favourites

Mark Sargeant's new brasserie

90 CHEF'S TABLE

Frankie Van Loo takes the lead at Social Wine & Tapas

Travel 93 WISHLIST Welcome to the Welcombe Hotel

96 DEUX EN PROVENCE

Exploit the new Eurostar service to Avignon for a weekend in the French countryside

100 A DESERT MIRAGE

We test-drive The Norman, Tel Aviv's hottest new opening

NOW RECRUITING

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From the editor

ife has never been busier for actor Benedict Cumberbatch. Having just become a parent for the first time with wife Sophie Hunter, he returned to work just days after the birth for rehearsals of the Barbican’s Hamlet, in which he will be playing the title role this month. But despite the dizzying fame, propelled by his starring role in Sherlock and an Oscar nomination for an outstanding performance as Alan Turing in The Imitation Game, the very likeable Londoner stays grounded. “I live very normally and I will continue to do so,” he says. “I don’t want to do anything that reinforces my awareness of being noticed or sense of being observed. Sometimes you might wish you were invisible but then you have to balance that with the knowledge that, as a performer, you’re going to be attracting attention and recognition by the nature of your profession.” Liz Parry reports on page 10. Foodies and chefs worldwide worship at the haute-cuisine altar of Alain Ducasse. But the Frenchman also has a taste for travel, and operates more than 520 properties across 16 countries, acting as innkeeper and president of the Châteaux & Hôtels Collection (while, of course, also putting his name above many a restaurant door). Lauren Romano is utterly charmed (p. 14). If you’ve left it late in the season to book a holiday, we have put together some chic choices. The food and wine is plentiful, the weather is guaranteed, and you’ll still be able to find fellow holidaymakers who don’t use ‘summer’ as a verb. Jennifer Mason jumps aboard the new Eurostar service to Avignon for a weekend in Provence (p. 96); Elle Blakeman is one of the first through the doors at the new Sol Beach House Ibiza (p. 98); and I don't quite know what to make of The Norman, Tel Aviv’s long-awaited answer to a ‘London-standard’ five-star hotel (p. 100). For something even more exotic, Karen Bowerman drifts from Mandalay to Bagan on board the Sanctuary Ananda luxury river cruise (p. 104). It’s so far removed from life in the capital, that they probably Kari Colmans wouldn’t recognise you Benedict, anyway. Editor

To Be, Or Not To Be, p. 10 Benedict Cumberbatch shot on location at The Stag, Hampstead. Photography by David Goldman, david-goldman.co.uk

Runwild Media Group Publishers of: Canary Wharf, The City Magazine The Kensington & Chelsea Magazine The Mayfair Magazine

A U G U S T 2 0 1 5 i ssu e 6 1

Editor Kari Colmans

Editorial Director Kate Harrison

Assistant Editor Lauren Romano Collection Editor Annabel Harrison

Production Hugo Wheatley Oscar Viney Jamie Steele Alice Ford

Contributing Editors Richard Brown, Olivia Sharpe

General Manager Fiona Fenwick

Sub Editor Jasmine Phillips

Executive Director Sophie Roberts

Features Writers Gabriella Dyson, Ellen Millard

Client Relationship Director Friday Dalrymple

Senior Designer Daniel Poole

Managing Director Eren Ellwood

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Benedict Cumberbatch is busy preparing for his latest role in Hamlet, but his new family is keeping him grounded. Liz Parry reports

rom his portrayal of the eccentric super-sleuth Sherlock Holmes to that of code-breaking genius Alan Turing in The Imitation Game, Oscar-nominated Benedict Cumberbatch CBE has proved that he is one of the most versatile and compelling actors of our time. Since landing the title role in Sherlock in 2010, the 39-year-old Londoner has been propelled to superstardom, becoming something of a cult figure and heartthrob along the way. The past few years have seen him steal the screen in a dizzying array of roles ranging from the genetically-engineered superhuman Khan in Star Trek Into Darkness to plantation owner Ford in 12 Years a Slave: all in spite of the fact that he can’t pronounce the word ‘penguin’. And the hectic schedule doesn’t seem to be letting up. After filming for the fourth series of Sherlock and

the Marvel Studios blockbuster Doctor Strange, he is now fully immersed in rehearsals for the Barbican’s production of Hamlet, in which he takes the starring role. And in amongst this whirlwind of activity, the actor has just become a first-time father with wife Sophie Hunter. Returning to work just days after the birth of his son, life, it seems, will be busier than ever for Mr Cumberbatch. “I can't seem to help myself,” he says, with a smile. “It’s been hectic [since] Christmas time when I was still doing press for The Imitation Game, filming Richard III [in TV mini-series The Hollow Crown, to be released next year], working on Sherlock Holmes. I suppose I should pace myself more but I find it impossible to turn down all the opportunities that are presenting themselves to me.” Despite his many achievements, the actor admits to still suffering the odd bout of nerves when it comes

“You have to face up to the reality of getting ready to actually play these parts and bringing the characters to life – and deal with all the expectations that come with that”

to preparing for a new role. “Sometimes you feel so elated when you learn that you're going to be playing an extraordinary figure like Alan Turing or prepare to play Hamlet in one of the greatest Shakespearean plays of all time,” he says. “But then you have to face up to the reality of getting ready to actually play these parts and bringing the characters to life – and deal with all the expectations that come with that. That's when your fear and doubts kick in and you push yourself harder so you can do your best work.” The English essayist Max Beerbohm famously wrote that the role of Hamlet is “a hoop through which every eminent actor must, sooner or later, jump.” And Cumberbatch is evidently very keen to make the leap as he prepares to take on this most coveted and complex of Shakespearian roles in a live performance that will be broadcast in cinemas and art centres around the world from this month, alongside juggling the emotional and physical demands of looking after a newborn baby.

“It's a role that I've been thinking about and wanting to play for many years,” he says. “I'm also reaching an age where my time to play Hamlet is running out and, luckily, I found a brilliant director, Lyndsey Turner, who has a bold new take on things. We've been discussing the production for the past year and I'm looking forward to our collaboration, especially since I believe she's the greatest director of her generation. “Hamlet has, as a lot of Shakespeare's characters do, wonderful insights into human nature and certain problems with the human condition – whether it is depression or anxiety, the idea of not being able to do something or being inactive, being powerless and how to treat that with humour, self-laceration, anger and action. And then this incredible journey to a point where he's just calm, where there's this very Buddhist ‘let it be’ quality to an acceptance of his fate.” Born and raised in London, Cumberbatch’s parents are the actors Timothy Carlton and Wanda

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Benedict Cumberbatch shot on location at The Stag pub, Hampstead. All photography by David Goldman, david-goldman.co.uk

Ventham, while his great grandfather Henry Arnold Cumberbatch was a famous British diplomat. He was educated at the prestigious Harrow School before studying drama at Manchester University and then continuing his studies at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Theatrical roles followed in the likes of Love's Labour's Lost, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Romeo and Juliet, as well as TV roles in Heartbeat and Silent Witness. But his big break came in 2004 when he played Stephen Hawking in the TV biopic Hawking, which earned him a BAFTA nomination. However, it was his portrayal of the brilliantly eccentric Sherlock Holmes that turned him into a household name and instant sex symbol, with a worldwide band of groupies – the self-proclaimed ‘Cumberbitches’ and ‘Cumberbabes’. “People are drawn to his brilliance as much as they are to his forbidding nature, and are willing to forgive his flaws,” he says of Sherlock.

“I never expected him to become such a popular figure, although I'm very appreciative of the attention I've received for the role. Sherlock wouldn’t be at all grateful or appreciative!” As a result, many a fan’s heart was broken when he settled down with actress and director Sophie Hunter. “If you have someone you love and you're devoted to them and it's a proper devotional love – as I do in my life – there's nothing better than that tonic,” he says. Indeed it seems that her support has helped to keep him grounded in the face of his superstar status. “First of all, you have your world between you and that person,” he says. “But also, being devoted to that person takes you away from yourself. There's someone more important. Not that that's a reason to be in a relationship, but it's a very healthy byproduct of it when you're doing such an obsessional job as acting can be.” The accolades have been coming thick and fast for Cumberbatch, having featured in the Time 100 Most Influential People list to Empire’s 100 Sexiest Movie Stars. However, a BAFTA win still eludes him, despite receiving six nominations, and he narrowly missed out on the Best Actor Oscar for The Imitation Game at last year’s Academy Awards. Although Cumberbatch is clearly enjoying the celebrity life, he displays a healthy attitude towards the transient nature of fame and still enjoys the simple pleasures of his London lifestyle, as well as the new familycentered ones to come. “I live very normally and I will continue to do so,” he says. “I don’t want to do anything that reinforces my awareness of being noticed or sense of being observed. I don't want to live in a bubble and so I still go shopping, running, and take the Underground as I did before. I enjoy going to restaurants with friends or browsing in bookshops and generally people are very respectful. Sometimes you might wish you were invisible but then you have to balance that with the knowledge that, as a performer, you’re going to be attracting attention and recognition by the nature of your profession. “I know all this attention won’t always be there,” he adds. “The risk of failure is always around the corner and I’ve found that it’s much better not to think or worry about it too much and simply enjoy the moment.” n

Benedict Cumberbatch stars in Hamlet at the Barbican from 5 August – 31 October hamlet.barbican.org.uk

Vive la DiffErence He might be better known for his constellation of Michelin stars, but Alain Ducasse also presides over a string of hotels that are a byword for charm and ingenuity. As the Ch芒teaux & H么tels Collection celebrates its 40th anniversary, Lauren Romano meets the chef to talk holidays, hospitality and how to be the host with the most

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ven my rusty textbook French can detect that Monsieur Ducasse has a few favourite catchphrases. Le charme is one of them, authentique is another, but his favourite motto, which seasons every sentence of his soupy, accented narrative like a generous twist of pepper, is la différence. La différence is what the Châteaux & Hôtels Collection, which Ducasse has been president of since 1999, is all about. Founded in 1975, the group is made up of 520 hotels and restaurants scattered across 16 countries, but mainly dotted around rural, rustic enclaves in France and Italy. Each has been selected for meeting a particular quota of allure and authenticity. The official tagline “Le charme, le vrai” – which translates into the rather less catchy “charm, real charm” in English – has a certain quality that’s hard to put your finger on. Thankfully the French have a word for that too and Ducasse and the team are well versed in finding a certain je ne sais quoi. “I want our guests to take away the souvenir of a different experience in a particular region,” Ducasse begins, speaking in a three-way dialogue with his publicist and the translator, while I listen on the sidelines. “These days everyone sits at their computer, types a destination into the search engine and is channelled to go to the same place,” he laments, rocking back into the sofa and crossing his arms over a pinstriped blue suit. “Cultivate. La. Différence,” he staccatos. “That is one of the main attributes of the collection. A lot of our hotels are actually more like guesthouses, so the sense of hospitality and the setting on offer is much more relaxed. It’s important not to be too formal,” he insists, all the while looking very much at home in the Bulgari’s opulent bar. Ducasse doesn’t exactly fit the fire and brimstone chef mould that I had been expecting, but perhaps I’ve just watched too many episodes of Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares. He is ambushed by a small group the moment he enters the room. Whether they are old acquaintances or simply bold, starstruck fans, he greets them warmly, chatting away until his assistant tugs on his sleeve and he takes his seat with a quiet “Bonjour” and a handshake. The French-born culinary great is a pensive sort; he elongates his sentences, labouring over responses until they seem to twist themselves into repetitive knots. But he soon warms up, interrupting at various moments in English as more thoughts float into his head. He has a lot to say and although there is plenty that I can’t understand, even though I try to follow his gallic patter in vain, his passion and conviction is not lost in translation. “It doesn’t make sense that the entire world should be the same. Everyone should preserve their identity, their culture, their tradition, their architecture,” he says. “When I travel I don’t want the same experience as

Left: Alain Ducasse © Heikki Verdurme This page, from top: Château de Vollore; Suite Bastidon at Bastide de Moustiers © Pierre Monetta; Villa Tolomei Hotel & Resort

before, I want a different experience. Each country, each region, each property must have their differences. This is the purpose of travelling, to live diverse experiences. “I went to Tennessee recently and stayed at a place called Blackberry Farm. It was extraordinaire,” he transgresses. “The farm, the river, it gives you the impression that you are in a John Wayne film. The American Dream, which is the stuff of movies, exists there too, in the middle of nowhere. It is different, original; someone has made a unique experience,” he leans in pointing a finger in that typically French way. “Our hotel group wants to tell a different story too,” he adds, back on track. With that he buries his head in the bright orange Châteaux & Hôtels Collection directory sitting in front of him on the table and begins looking for the latest property he has visited, riffling through the pages until he opens on Les Lodges Sainte Victoire in the countryside near to Aix-en-Provence. He laughs that he wants to create an orange link to all destinations that boast great hospitality, scattering his tangerine-toned books like Gideons bibles. But the hotel umbrella is not just in the business of pointing travellers in the direction of comfy beds; it also prides itself on championing authentic, regional cuisine and nurturing talented young chefs. There are 260 Tables de la Collection listed within its 2015 tome, something that Ducasse has certainly had a hand in. The first chef to be awarded a hat-trick of Michelin stars in three different cities, Ducasse holds 19 stars at the last count, with only the likes of Joël Robuchon trumping him (Ducasse’s contract with the European Space Agency on meals for Mars missions has taken his cuisine to infinity and beyond, though, so I doubt he loses any sleep on that score).

“It’s an obsession, a passion,” he says of his mentoring programme. “The most important thing is to transfer your knowledge every day.” His worldrenowned restaurants are hardly known for being bread and butter types of places, but he says that the food served in the collection’s eateries is “accessible” gastronomy. “I’m not just concerned with haute cuisine,” he insists, although I suspect that accessible on his terms still comes with a side order of foie gras. With his cool-headed, unhurried demeanour, which is at odds with his commitments (his assistant’s well-worn diary is the only reminder that our meeting is probably the first of many today), Ducasse is very much a success story. His professional acclaim has come relatively thick and fast, but there is a darker side to his prodigious output. He doesn’t mention it, but Ducasse is no stranger to starting from scratch and overcoming unimaginable hurdles. In 1984, not long after being awarded a second Michelin star, he survived a plane crash in the Alps that killed the five other passengers who were on board. A lengthy recovery process instilled him with great determination, and today he splits his time between his 21 restaurants and homes in Monaco and the south-west of France. He is also the innkeeper of three properties in the collection: La Bastide de Moustiers and L’Hostellerie de l’Abbaye de la Celle in Provence and L’Andana in Tuscany. It’s no surprise that his words of wisdom are: “work more, quicker, better”. Ducasse wants to take the notion of hospitality back to its roots and rolls out the oft carrot-dangled ‘welcome

I want our guests to take away the souvenir of a different experience in a particular region

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Left page: from top: Hotel Chateaubriand; Villa Tolomei; Château de Vollore; the sitting room at Le Mas de l’amarine © C.Moirenc This page: Bastide de Moustiers © D.Bordes

guests like they are your friends’ line, which I don’t doubt he tries to deliver. “The key to success is to love the customers and be generous,” he says. “Restaurants and hotels are the great pillars of civilisation and face-to-face interaction; they are the last sociable places in a world where lots of communicating is done over the web.” As for his own travels, Ducasse prefers short, unplanned breaks. He got the bug on a student trip to Spain, Morocco, Italy and former Yugoslavia. “If I didn’t make it as a chef, I wanted to be a traveller. Today I am both.” When I ask him where he plans to head next, he dithers. “My next journey? I feel like going to Italy,” he replies, clearly seeing no need to provide further justification. Looking to the future, the collection has recently expanded to the UK (the beautiful Headlam Hall in

Darlington has just been received into the fold), which provides an opportunity to discuss Anglo-French relations. “Actually, the French love visiting England,” Ducasse confides, without a hint of sarcasm. “We like eating roast beef. And the tunnel means we’re so close, so you’re going to be invaded by frogs! The English are in denial, they do not dare confess their love for the French, but they do, secretly, love us. It’s a very particular relationship.” When I confess I haven’t been to Paris for nine years he looks aghast. “My team will guide you to the best addresses, but you need to find a fiancée first, or a French lover,” he laughs. He met his own wife, Gwénäelle Guéguen, at Charles de Gaulle airport. “So you never know” he winks. “Bon voyage!” n

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n the church of Italian cinema there are several unassailable Gods, among them Roberto Rossellini, Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti and Michelangelo Antonioni. Of unquestioned parity for his greatest work, Vittorio De Sica is sometimes accorded lesser status these days, perhaps because, as a compulsive gambler, the huge debts he ran up often forced him to accept an involvement in inferior projects. This month, however, the British Film Institute (BFI) is running a major retrospective of his career at the South Bank, and the overdue refocusing of attention on his many triumphs both behind and in front of the camera should help restore some of the sparkle and substance that once automatically attached itself to his name. “We’ve been considering doing a De Sica retrospective for some time,” explains Geoff Andrew, the BFI’s senior film programmer and curator of the South Bank season. “Sadly, to many people he is remembered only as the director of Bicycle Thieves, and he deserves to be better known. A couple of

Yesterday, Toda With the British Film Institute running an overdue retrospective on the career of Italian cinema master Vittorio De Sica this month, Jack Watkins looks back at his many achievements both on and off screen

scene

years ago at a festival in Bologna, which specialises in unearthing rarities, some of his lesser known films were screened and, after seeing them, we thought that, since the material was available, the time had come.” When Bicycle Thieves was first released in 1948, it was acclaimed as an outstanding example of Italian neo-realist cinema. It topped the Sight & Sound critics’ poll for the greatest film of all time in 1952, and when the magazine reran the poll half a century later, it still came in at sixth. In 2005 the BFI consulted film producers, authors, critics and teachers to produce a list of 50 films to be seen by the age of 14, in an effort to encourage parents and schools to take movies as seriously as other forms of art. Bicycle Thieves was placed in the top 10. Andrew says they have made the film the highlight of the De Sica season, giving it an extended run, as “it holds up very well indeed”. He’s right, but what might capture the firsttime viewer most is its striking visual quality. Neo-realism was an experiment in the wake of the ‘Italian Spring’ after the fall of Mussolini’s Fascists, to confront the realities of everyday living for ordinary Italians enduring the post-war depression. For Bicycle Thieves, De Sica insisted on casting non-professional actors, turning down an offer to finance the film, which he had great difficulty raising money for, from Hollywood mogul David O Selznick, if he agreed to cast Cary Grant in the central role. Forsaking artificial studio sets for the outdoors, the film was shot in real locations throughout Rome, but it would be a mistake to take neo-realism for documentary even though, as Andrew says, the focus of the neo-realist films on people leading ordinary lives, affected by poverty, hardship and injustice, makes them easy to identify with. Bicycle Thieves was a fast- moving

y and Tomorrow Clockwise from far left: Production shot from Umberto D (1952); Portrait shot of Vittorio de Sica; The Earrings of Madame de... (1953); Miracle in Milan (1951); Bicycle Thieves (1948); The Gold of Naples (1954)

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film, directed with what Andrew describes as “an austere beauty”. The visual poetry of the dawn scenes of cyclists on the way to work; the expressive use of long shot and the sense of motion; the bikes sweeping through the frame, live long in the memory. Bicycle Thieves wasn’t the first De Sica neo-realist film, and the BFI is also showing the often overlooked Shoeshine, another neo-realist classic, which came out in 1946. The contribution of novelist and scriptwriter Cesare Zavattini cannot be underestimated. “He more or less came up with the idea of what neo-realism should be,” explains Andrew. “He worked on 26 scripts with De Sica, including early gems which we’re also screening like Doctor Beware (1941) and The Children Are Watching Us (1943), as well the most famous neo-realist works, and even the later films up until the late hit The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (1970).” De Sica’s Miracle in Milan (1951), the second of what might be termed the trilogy of his most outstanding neo-realist movies, was adapted from a Zavattini novel, and De Sica often claimed he made it in homage to his great friend. With a more fantastical air, it uses special effects, and is a film of great warmth

From top: Umberto D (1951); Miracle in Milan (1951)

“I can’t imagine anyone not being profoundly affected by the end of the film” and humour. The good cheer may be piled on a little thickly for the taste of some modern viewers, but though Andrew agrees, he adds that while “watching the film recently for the first time in many years, I actually liked it a lot. I had forgotten how funny and original it is.” The third masterpiece was Umberto D (1951), De Sica’s personal favourite. While not quite having the visual scope of the previous two films, it must surely rate among the most profound, unsentimentalised character studies of life and relationships, and old age and loneliness ever made. Carlo Battisti, in real life a university professor, plays a retired civil servant, a man of personal gentility living in poverty, whose only real companion is his dog. As Andrew says, “One of the great things about the film is the way De Sica refuses to make him especially likeable, but still insists that we sympathise with him as a fellow human being. I can’t imagine anyone not being profoundly affected by the end of the film.” In his own right, De Sica seems to have been a man of immense charm. He’d originally been a debonair leading actor and sophisticated comedian, and the BFI season includes, Il Signor Max (1937), one of Italian cinema’s “white telephone” films, so named for their upper and middle class settings, the white phones being a symbol of affluence. In silver-haired middle age, he’d make appearances in films like the comedy The Millionairess (1960). The latter was a star vehicle for Peter Sellers and Sophia Loren. She was another regular

collaborater with De Sica, in films with a sparklier style than those of his neo-realist peak, notably in movies like Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (1963) and Marriage Italian Style (1964), in which her co-star was Marcello Mastroianni. Yet Andrew retains greatest affection for The Gold of Naples (1954), the first of the De Sica-Loren films. “Given the city it is set in, it’s perhaps unsurprising that it’s not one of the glossier movies. It consists of six stories, ranging from the comic to the very moving, about a number of different characters. Loren is terrific in the first story as a flighty young wife, and De Sica gives a very nice turn as a gambling addict. But then he was a great actor as well as a major director, as anyone will know if they’ve seen The Earrings of Madame de (1953), directed by Max Ophuls, or Il Generale della Rovere (1959), directed by Roberto Rossellini.” De Sica’s mutability across a long career may have led some critics to downgrade his achievements, but that seems unfair. The BFI’s list of films for the season extends to 17, with a further two awaiting confirmation, and all of them are worth seeing. If that doesn’t earn him a place in the pantheon, what does? n

Running throughout August, whatsonbfi.org.uk

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collection

wish list

PURE SHORES Unveiled just a few weeks ago at Cap Estel on the French Riviera, Piaget’s new high jewellery collection, Mediterranean Garden, takes us down a nostalgic path that recalls a stellar period of the maison’s history: the free-spirited 1960s and ‘70s, when international jetsetters and celebrities would attend Yves Piaget’s glamorous parties on the Riviera. The pieces bring to life the luscious floral gardens of the resort, not to mention the iconic Piaget Rose. Two jewellery techniques characterise the collection – twisted goldsmithing and marquise-cut stones – the former of which has been illustrated in a spectacular gold cuff featuring a magnificent 14.82-carat oval-cut black opal at its centre (perfectly capturing the coast’s shimmering, deep blue waters), as well as emeralds, tourmalines and diamonds.

Radiant Azur cuff bracelet, POA; piaget.com

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jewellerynews Garden State

Fink Again With so many now on the scene, there aren’t many rising jewellery designers who really excite us; however Nana Fink is one of the few who does. The Basel-based jeweller successfully launched her debut collection in 2011 and her name has quickly spread across the Channel, with her pieces landing in London at Paul Smith’s Mayfair flagship boutique not long after. Her third collection, available this summer, is named Adorée and, true to Fink’s individual style, brings together both vintage and contemporary elements to create timeless pieces, on this occasion drawing on designs from the 1880s through to the 1930s. The collection, encompassing bangles, earrings and rings, utilises a mixture of metals, in particularly gold and silver variations, with prices ranging from approximately £1,200 to £1,700.

In a dazzling display of craftsmanship and exquisite precious gemstones, Bulgari’s latest high jewellery collection, Giardini Italiani, sees the romantic gardens of the Rinascimento (Italian Renaissance) immortalised in a series of 100 one-of-akind pieces. The gardens’ geometric hedges and vibrant flowerbeds have been evoked through the floral jewel motifs and colourful stones, while the collection’s standout piece, Love’s Paradise (as worn by Carla Bruni at the launch in Florence last month), featuring a magnificent 125.35-carat sapphire at its heart, conveys the true romance of an era in which artists would attempt to explore new concepts of nature and art through their work.

Giardini Italiani collection, POA Available at all Bulgari UK boutiques

Adorée collection, available at Paul Smith, 9 Albemarle Street, W1S nanafink.com

String to Her Bow

Cutting Edge

Having worked for the likes of De Beers and the Sotheby’s jewellery department, it’s fair to say that Vania Leles is an authority on fine jewellery. Having founded Vanleles Diamonds in 2010, which has opened its first boutique in Mayfair, the store houses the five core collections, including Lyla’s Bow and Enchanted Garden, along with a bridal range and bespoke pieces. You can bank on only the finest quality, ethicallyminded diamonds and gemstones.

Last year saw Tiffany & Co. enter into an exciting new age of design with the launch of its contemporary Tiffany T collection, created by newly-appointed design director Francesca Amfitheatrof. A year later and the distinctive, graphic symbol has evolved further into two new pieces, exclusive to Tiffany’s new boutique in Selfridges.

“Tiffany T is an icon of a new era, a vision of simplicity and sculptural modernity. The latest combination of sterling silver and black ceramic in the wide contoured cutout cuff and ring exude power and confidence” 24

Tiffany T cutout cuff and ring in sterling silver and black ceramic, POA Exclusive to Selfridges

Vanleles Diamonds By appointment only 174 New Bond Street, W1S; vanleles.com

www.urvashilondon.com

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Designers are pushing the boundaries of how to wear fine jewellery, giving rise to ear cuffs, finger rings and choker necklaces 1 Rose gold-plated five-finger ring, £190, Eddie Borgo, net-a-porter.com 2 White diamond and rose gold ring, £3,835, Ileana Makri, matchesfashion.com 3 Gold earring, POA, Loewe, loewe.com 4 Olympia mid-finger diamond ring, £2,299, Carbon & Hyde, farfetch.com 5 Pearl hinged choker necklace, £210, Eddie Borgo, matchesfashion.com 6 Lady Borealis 18-karat gold diamond ear cuff, £3,600, Venyx, net-a-porter.com 7 Rose gold-plated Swarovski crystal ear cuff and stud earring, £230, Ryan Storer, net-a-porter.com 8 Diamond and pink gold mini ear cuff, £480, Elise Dray, matchesfashion.com 9 Silver and gold vermeil Quill cuff, £600, Shaun Leane, shaunleane.com 10 Vine ear cuff, £3,350, Diane Kordas, net-a-porter.com 11 Eternal circle ear cuff, £1,290, Woodbury, farfetch.com 12 Delphine gold-tone necklace, £520, Chloé net-a-porter.com 13 Izel 14-karat gold diamond earring, Lito, £2,100, net-a-porter.com 14 Portico cuff, £195, Lulu Frost, matchesfashion.com 15 18-karat rose gold diamond ear cuff, £1,720, Anita Ko, net-a-porter.com 16 Horn cuff, £6,190, Diane Kordas at Harrods, harrods.com 17 Silver and gold vermeil crossover finger Quill ring, £200, Shaun Leane, as before 18 Starburst cuff, £7,245, Diane Kordas, matchesfashion.com 19 Heartbeat 18-karat rose gold diamond ear cuff, £1,030, Diane Kordas, net-a-porter.com 20 Open Shield ring, £4,480, Diane Kordas at Harrods 21 Koko open ring, £640, Selin Kent, farfetch.com

ELIZABETH STREET ELIZABETH STREET SW1 SW1 Bespoke fine jewellery We invite you to visit our website www.devroomen.co.uk 59 Elizabeth Street, London, SW1W 9PP +44 (0)207 730 1901

LUCK be a lady Born into a family of goldsmiths, Carolina Bucci was always destined for career greatness. Olivia Sharpe speaks to the jewellery designer as she celebrates her family business’s 130th anniversary with a new collection, Superstellar

arolina Bucci is a fortunate lady indeed. Born into a family of Italian goldsmiths, it was serendipitous, perhaps, that she didn’t consider doing anything but jewellery design: “I always knew it was something I wanted to do. It wasn’t imposed on me by any means but it never even occurred to me to do anything else.” Now a successful jeweller, she has by no means forgotten her roots. The Bucci family business was founded in Florence in 1885 and this year is its 130th anniversary; to celebrate, Carolina has created a collection entitled Superstellar. Having launched her company in 2007, Superstellar’s celestial theme seems apt given Carolina’s meteoric rise to success. And yet, the idea was actually conceived after she witnessed the astonishing annual Perseid meteor shower last August (the collection therefore, unusually, has its own birthday: 10 August 2014). As though she was being sent signs from above, Carolina began seeing stars everywhere, from Mario Schifano’s ‘60s artwork to Jasper Johns’ flag paintings. The star-studded range perfectly captures this natural phenomena through the explosion of dazzling gemstones on the random array of pieces, ranging from shield pinky rings, chokers and ‘life’ pendants. It was these pendants, based on diamond gauges, that Carolina designed first and include holes that have deliberately been left empty so that clients can customise them with their chosen stones. In many ways, Superstellar pays tribute to Carolina’s heritage. Several of the pieces have been made using the family’s vintage silk thread and the jeweller has also created a new Lucky bracelet (an iconic design of the Carolina Bucci house that is reinterpreted every year) to feature a miniature balloon charm. However, the jeweller has ensured that her own DNA has not been eclipsed. She has always wanted to “push the limits” in order to create something new and exciting; as she puts it: “If everyone were to make the safe version, it would be pretty boring.”

Many of the Superstellar pieces therefore possess unconventional qualities, in particular the pearl necklaces. The jeweller last included pearls in the Nana collection eight years ago and she was initially reluctant to revisit them, finding them to be a challenging material: “They have a preconception of being very proper and traditional,” she explains. “So it was hard trying to capture a world where pearls are cool, fun and not traditional, while still not disrupting their form.” Carolina purposely used freshwater pearls because of their irregularities and imperfections, mixing the grey and white hues in a “non-symmetrical way” and punctuating them with multi-coloured pavé stars. The versatile pieces can be worn in a number of different fashions, either long, short or, in the case of the pearl scarf, tied around the neck with a knot. While her family wouldn’t think twice

“Ultimately, it’s about creating nice jewellery. That’s the first thing that should attract people”

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about incorporating a traditional clasp into the design, Carolina was adamant about the matter: “I hate clasps,” she states, vehemently. “My family has always made traditional 18-karat jewellery so what I have created is quite foreign to them.” For the first time in years, the collection features chokers too, which arrive in two different sizes and are reversible. Finally, the range’s diamond studs are being sold separately, to be worn as single pieces or combined with others to encourage a mix-andmatch approach. This passion for trying new things relates back to Carolina’s childhood when she would experiment in her family workshop. “I was always fascinated by the process of making jewellery. As early as my teens whenever I was given a gift by my parents I would say, ‘I love it’ but in turn think to myself, ‘how can I change it?’ That has been my nature from the very beginning.” Carolina has always stood firm in creating jewellery that she wants to wear, something that is “fun but fine”. Having never been allowed to wear costume jewellery growing up, her jewellery is in some ways a rebellion against this, but at the same time retains its timelessness. “Wearing jewellery isn’t about being seasonal. It’s something that constantly

evolves and expands as part of your personal collection.” Sitting opposite Carolina, I cannot fail to notice her eye-catching gold necklace, consisting of her favourite pieces from all her collections to date, including the Scarab charm, an owl from the Lucky collection and the newest addition, the Superstellar Drop pendant. Since launching her iconic Lucky bracelets 13 years ago, Carolina has often been struck by talismanic symbols, but she assures me that she is by no means spiritual. “Ultimately, it’s about creating nice jewellery. That’s the first thing that needs to attract people.” While fortunate in her upbringing, she insists her career was never handed to her on a plate. “I was lucky to be born into a family of jewellers, yes. But we were three kids and we were never pushed into being involved in the business. From an early age, my father would make me work for it and have me do sketches for him.” At 21, Carolina went off to New York to study at the Fashion Institute of Technology and having already done the preliminary groundwork, she was resolutely set on the path that she wanted to take and so would avoid taking certain classes, such as learning how to use CAD design, believing that it would be of no use to her in the long run. “I knew it wasn’t something that interested me. I was very focused and good at bargaining so my tutor would let me skip certain classes. I think there are some amazing techniques out there but they’re just not for me.” Her refusal to use modern techniques when designing extends to her personal life; despite having an iPhone, Carolina admits to favouring her paper diary. When it comes to the future of Carolina Bucci, the possibilities seem infinite. The jeweller is currently focused on growing her presence globally with more retail outlets, but when it comes to London, Motcomb Street will remain the sole flagship. She is also working on a new project which, while keeping specific details close to her chest, she hints will be under a separate umbrella from the Carolina Bucci brand. It will have a “different attitude and price point” but will still possess “the same spirit”. Carolina’s determination to create her own signature aesthetic when it came to her eponymous jewellery brand has evidently paid off. She tells me how one of her favourite moments recently was when she was at a friend’s house and a lady there spotted one of her necklaces and, not knowing who she was, exclaimed how it was “very Carolina Bucci”. “It goes back to how I think designers should be,” she comments. “You should always make something that screams ‘you’ – that is recognisable, like an artist. When that happens I feel like I have done my job.” n

Superstellar collection, available from August Carolina Bucci, 4 Motcomb Street, SW1X 020 7838 9977; carolinabucci.com

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watch news String THEORY Music provides the inspiration for many of Raymond Weil’s creations, accounting for relationships with the Royal Albert Hall and, since 2008, the Brit Awards, where each winner receives a watch as a prize. The company recently unveiled its first tourbillon, the Nabucco Cello. The timepiece pays homage to the instrument via hands that are formed in the shape of a bow, a bezel grooved with the five lines of the musical stave, and four tiny strings that are stretched across its dial. Skeletonised and measuring 46mm in diametre, it’s the family-owned brand’s most serious, and certainly most striking, watch to date.

Parmigiani’s Pièce de résistance Haute horology specialist Parmigiani Fleurier has produced a £500k wrist watch. How does the brand justify the price tag? By incorporating four of the most revered complications in timekeeping into an 18ct, white gold watch that’s been hand engraved and enamelled in microscopic detail. The Tecnica Les Carpes de Sandoz is a tribute to sculptor Edouard Marcel Sandoz, founder of the notfor-profit Sandoz Family Foundation, parent company of Parmigiani Fleurier. Behind a hinged, double caseback, a 586-component calibre powers a minute repeater, a tourbillon, a perpetual calendar and a chronograph. Not only will the watch chime the hours, quarter-hours and minutes of the day, it will also only require one adjustment every century.

Tecnica Les Carpes de Sandoz, £554,135, Parmigiani Fleurier, 97 Mount Street, W1, parmigiani.ch

one to watch Allun Michaels, store manager at Fraser Hart in Brent Cross, selects his watch of the month:

“The North Flag is the latest release from Tudor, and the big news is that it features its first ever in-house movement. An impressive 70 hour power reserve and chronometer certification means it can stand toe to toe with any of the world’s most prestigious watches” 32

Nabucco Cello Tourbillon, £27,500, Raymond Weil, raymond-weil.com

Recalling an icon Spotting Clooney sporting a vintage Omega Constellation in his latest sci-fi blockbuster, Tomorrowland, Vantage was reminded of another Omega classic re-imagined earlier this year. Loyal to its original incarnation, the new Speedmaster ’57 has to be one of 2015’s best-looking chronographs, especially when paired with a brown leather strap. The watch’s selfwinding mechanism can be viewed through its scratch-resistant, sapphire-crystal caseback. It’s available now for £5,620.

Speedmaster ‘57, £5,620, Omega, omegawatches.com

North Flag, from £2,430 Fraser Hart, Brent Cross, 020 8732 8459 BrentCross@fraserhart.co.uk @FHBrentCross

paris / sepTeMBer 4-8, 2015 / january 22-26, 2016 paris nord ViLLepinTe

Born and raised WiTH Maison&oBjeT peTiTe friTure, aT M&o sinCe 2010

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WWW.Maison-oBjeT.CoM

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COSTA DEL SOUL This month Hampstead welcomes new art gallery Aeon Gallery, established by local resident Alex Costa, the son of Villa Bianca founder Angelo Costa. Recognising that Hampstead was slowly losing its artistic and intellectual heritage, Costa set out to increase the number of galleries in the area, and to promote contemporary artists. Its first exhibition is a collection of paintings by Hampstead regular Jane MacLean, whose dusty-toned, atmospheric portraits have previously been shown down the road at the former Gallery K.

Until 29 August, 20B Heath Street, Oriel Court, NW3, aeongallery.com

Touching Light by Jane MacLean, oil on canvas

local

update

different strokes Thompson’s Marylebone has kicked off its annual summer exhibition which will focus on painting and sculpture specifically. It will be welcoming for the first time the brush strokes of Mary Tempest – whose colourful work has been selected for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition three times – as well as London-centric city and landscape paintings from Robert E Wells (pictured). New sculptures include evocative bronze figures from Carol Peace and sea-coloured glass and limestone models from Eros, oil on canvas, Robert E Wells Johannes von Stumm.

Until 31 August, 15 New Cavendish Street, W1G thompsonsgallery.co.uk

©C.Totman

SUMMER LOVING ON THE FRINGE This year marks the 10th anniversary of Camden’s Fringe Festival, and it’s celebrating by offering the biggest line-up of productions the event has ever seen. Comedy, music and theatre performances will be held across north-west London, including Conversations From The Web, a play that sees four friends discover the consequences of social networking, looking at how our careers, relationships and ideas are shared online.

3-30 August, various venues, camdenfringe.com

With the sunny weather finally kicking in, many a weekend will be spent lounging on Hampstead Heath. For those sick of sunbathing, head to Golders Hill Park Bandstand throughout August to hear music by the London Saxophone Choir, the Nicola Emmanuelle Quartet and the London Metropolitan Brass. For some family time, join in the fun at the annual Summer Fair over the bank holiday weekend, and keep the kids busy at the Explorer Skills workshop, the Rookie Rangers Wildlife Club and Waterworld.

Summer Fair, 29-31 August, East Heath Pre-book Explorer Skills (4 & 6 August, £5) and Rookie Rangers Wildlife Club (5, 12 & 19 August, £10), on 020 7332 3773, and Waterworld (21 August; over 5s only) on 020 7482 2116

scene

ANIMAL KINGDOM No summer is complete without a trip to London Zoo, and this year there’s a host of new activities to keep you amused. Two attractions in particular bring guests closer to the animals; In with the Lemurs and, for the brave amongst you, In with the Spiders, Europe’s only walk-through arachnid enclosure. Budding artists can show-off their painting skills at the Animal Art Workshop, a five day event involving conservation poster-making and exhibition designing, while the annual Little Creatures Family Festival will be back from 31 July to 2 August with guest star Andy Day from CBeebies.

Animal Art Workshop for children runs from 17–21 August, 10am-4pm, £350 per child for full five day course, ZSL London Zoo, zsl.org

Alex Gaumond and Laura Pitt-Pulford in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Photo Hugo Glendinning&Feast Creative

SEVENth heaven Heralding from the Golden Age of movie musicals, don’t miss the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre’s Seven Brides for Seven Brothers adaption this month, directed by Rachel Kavanaugh. Based on the 1954 film of the same name, whereby a backwoodsman brings a wife home to his farm in 1850s Oregon – and his six brothers decide that they want to get married too – the story was originally adapted for Broadway in 1978. With a score that includes Bless Your Beautiful Hide, Goin’ Courtin’ and Sobbin’ Women, this is one for all the family.

Ricky the Rockhopper ©ZSL

In with the Lemurs at ZSL London Zoo ©ZSL

Runs until 29 August, tickets from £25, openairtheatre.com

Aleko, 1956, Marc Chagall

FOOD FOR THOUGHT If you’re still buzzing from Regent Street’s Summer Streets event, you’ll be pleased to hear that the iconic shopping destination still has more to offer this summer, this time in the form of a food festival. From 3-9 August, shoppers will be gifted with a wristband that will give the wearer access to discounts, bespoke cocktails and exclusive menus at Regent Street’s bars, restaurants and hotels. Elasticated waistbands at the ready…

Discover Food and Wine, 3-9 August, regentstreetonline.com

COLOUR CODED

Hotel Cafe Royal

Gilden’s Arts Gallery explores Marc Chagall’s vivid use of pigment this month in a new exhibition, Marc Chagall: Visions and Colours. The collection of paintings charts the development of his recognisable style from the beginning of his career to his later postwar lithographs. His Russian and French heritage come to the fore in his works, which are simultaneously bright in composition yet eery in their subject matter. Inspired by folklore, the Old Testament and the Parisian avant-garde movement, head to Hampstead to admire Chagall’s mystical paintings up close.

21 August – 30 October 74 Heath Street, NW3, gildensarts.com

focus Once overshadowed by the more established mediums of painting and sculpture, collectors are now in bidding wars to snap up the works of sought-after photographers. Lauren Romano learns what’s in store for the future of the photo with Ben Burdett the director of Atlas ©Julia Burdet Courtesy of Atlas Gallery Gallery, Ben Burdett

hotography is definitely having a moment, but it wasn’t always so. “When I got interested in the medium in the 1970s it really was a nonexistent field in terms of London galleries,” says Ben Burdett, director of Marylebone’s Atlas Gallery. “The first dedicated photography auction wasn’t until the mid-70s at Sotheby’s and it was purely devoted to rare, 19th-century photographs.” Having set up shop in 1994, Burdett has seen the demand for photography rocket and today the specialist gallery deals in 20th-century and contemporary snaps. “It’s become an extremely popular thing to collect, partly because it’s relatively inexpensive,” he explains. “If you want to buy a good Picasso you have to spend well over £100 million, but you can buy a Masterpiece of photography and have change for £1 million.”

As Burdett’s growing pool of devotees prove, collecting isn’t reserved for retired Christie’s staff or those with an encyclopaedic knowledge of art: anyone can give it a go. “It’s a very accessible medium,” he says, “A lot of people know what they like with photography; it’s much easier to form an opinion on.”

colour saturation Buying art in general has become a completely different field to what it used to be, and having a signed, limited edition print on your wall is now considered an asset in the same way that a classic car or a rare vintage stocked cellar would be. “Even 20 years ago it was still relatively eccentric, almost aristocratic, to be an art collector,” Burdett smiles.

scene From L-R: Systematic Collapse R to G, 2013, Niko Luoma; London, 1949, Ernst Haas; After Van Dongen, 1959, Norman Parkinson © Norman Parkinson Archive; Road Sweeper, London, 1949, Ernst Haas; Lace cyanotypes vintage cyanotype print c.1890; Rayogram, 1959, Man Ray; Randomized Unfold IV, 2014, Niko Luoma; BO. Mulato, 2011, Adam Jeppesen; Portrait of Tina Modotti, 1921, Edward Weston; RADIUS #2, 2011, Niko Luoma

“You had to know what you were buying to be taken seriously. Now it doesn’t matter who you are.” Photography collecting is certainly serious business. Atlas’ most expensive sale was a £250,000 Man Ray (although the gallery also stocks more affordable prints from the £200 mark), but soughtafter works can go for a few million at auction. “A lot of people look at a photograph and think, it’s just an image transferred chemically onto a piece of paper, so how can that be worth a million pounds? There aren’t brushstrokes – it hasn’t had direct human contact with a creator, but each piece captures a singular moment in time, which I find fascinating.” A contentious issue for most collectors is that age-old question: Do you buy something you love or something that you think will make a good

investment? Burdett is firmly in the emotive camp. “People who buy really expensive works of art are often led by advisors and don’t necessarily buy things that really speak to them; it’s all about having a Basquiat on the wall just to say you own one. You should listen to your heart because the photo is going to hang in your home. And what’s the point of having something that you don’t understand or feel anything for?” The walls in Burdett’s house are filled with a mixture of seascapes and vintage childrens’ photography. “There are loads of photos that I wish I owned,” he says. “I love the work of Paul Strand, Irving Penn, Man Ray... there are too many to name.” But photography isn’t just about the big name pros any more; for better or worse, an army of smartphone amateurs is making its mark on the medium. Thanks

scene From top to bottom: Kazakh: Altantsogts, Bayan Olgii, Mongolia, 2011 © Jimmy Nelson; One Day in March, 2006, Niko Luoma; Child, London, 1951, Ernst Haas

to the onslaught of generation Instagram, you can’t even tuck into your toast these days without someone trying to take a picture of it. But whether this surplus of photos will ever make it into albums that you can flick through on a rainy day is another matter. “We’re all the same. I’ve got a whole drawer full of memory cards but I have no idea what’s on any of them. Twenty years ago you would have everything in plastic packets, with the negatives. It’s really sad,” Burdett admits. “Having said that, I’ve just come across a new app that I’d never heard of before. It lets you turn photos into postcards that you can send to someone. The idea of being able to store images that were taken on a digital camera or phone in an analogue way is a hugely untapped market.”

future perspective An unseen collection of photographs by Ernst Haas, a pioneer documentary photographer of the mid-20thcentury, has been a recent exhibition highlight for the gallery. The 90 photographs, taken in the aftermath of the Second World War, offer a photojournalist’s view of London in recovery. It might sound like a rare find (the photos were discovered hiding in an old box by Haas’ son) but Burdett believes that relics like these have a knack of turning up. “When we were curating collections documenting the Cuban Revolution and apartheid in South Africa there were boxes of prints that had been stuck in a cupboard somewhere.”

Ben and the team also track down specific images for clients. “We had to look for a photograph of actor Clark Gable’s [AKA Mr Hollywood] Mercedes for someone once because he was the new owner of the car.” Back to the 21st-century and Atlas is excited to represent rising star Niko Luoma whose large, abstract colour works are causing a stir. “His work sells to people who have never seen it before and just look at it and love it, but it is also popular with collectors of photography and contemporary art too. He’s going to be very big. ” Luoma was among a number of photographers whose work was displayed by Atlas at the inaugural Photo London in May. The fair, which brought together 70 galleries and collectors specifically devoted to photography in the capital, was a long time coming for Burdett who does the rounds of the international art fairs – from New York to Miami, Hong Kong to Shanghai. “China is the market to watch,” he reveals. “There is virtually no indigenous photographic record of the country from the 1940s through to the mid-60s because everything was destroyed in the Cultural Revolution. Now it’s the opposite; when we do these fairs in Shanghai everyone has a camera and is obsessed with photography. I have never seen so many cameras in one place. “The London art scene is also on fire,” Burdett enthuses. “It is really vibrant here and the audience is so multi-national that everything sells. I’d class the capital as one of the three big art centres of the world, together with New York and Hong Kong.” Accordingly, Atlas is stepping up its pace to meet the rising demand of both emerging and established collectors. It will end the summer season with an exhibition of 20thcentury black and white photography, while behind the scenes Burdett hopes to develop the contemporary side of the business, which could, he hints, involve an expansion overseas. Photography’s moment in the limelight doesn’t look like it will be ending anytime soon. n

49 Dorset Street, W1U, atlasgallery.com

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mind

mapping Acclaimed author and editor Michael Fordham has released an unusual travel guide titled Uncommon London, exploring the idiosyncrasies of the capital’s streets through personal anecdotes. Here, psychoanalyst Rael Meyerowitz takes a pensive stroll through the cerebral streets of NW3 in this exclusive extract

Freud’s desk, photography by Tereza Zelenkova

efore approaching me, Michael Fordham, editor of Uncommon London, said he had been bemused by and curious about the fact that so much psychoanalysis seems to take place in and around NW3, London. He spoke of ghosts and haunting, going on to wonder whether this location might be considered the ‘ground zero’ of psychoanalysis. He then asked me to reflect on how I, as a psychoanalyst and a teacher of Freud, might understand why so many of the practitioners of psychoanalysis, and some of its major institutions, have come to congregate in the area. I was certainly struck by his thoughts about ghosts and his use of the words ‘ground zero’, with their ominous resonance with 9/11. Was I perhaps being asked to reflect, amongst other things, on some disaster having befallen psychoanalysis, or on its pending, or at least potential, demise? Many of the early practitioners and patients of psychoanalysis were Jewish and from a newlyemancipated background. Much as Freud himself was determined, and worked hard to ensure, that his science should not limit itself by remaining rooted in this parochial seedbed, it must be acknowledged that even now psychoanalysis continues to attract a disproportionate number of Jewish adherents. Thus, it is surely no coincidence that London (and the same is true of certain American cities) accommodates both its psychoanalytic community and a significant proportion of its Jewish citizens in the self-same geographical neighbourhoods, namely, in this instance, NW3 and its environs; the various surrounding suburbs of north-west London. Let us embark on a short walk in NW3, starting from the Freud Museum, the house at 20 Maresfield Gardens in Hampstead where Freud spent his final

Freud’s couch, photography by Tereza Zelenkova

months after having escaped with his family from Nazi-ruled Austria in 1938. One can still view Freud’s original couch, the rooms in which he worked and wrote (set up just as they were at Berggasse 19 in Vienna), filled with his vast collection of antiquities and other memorabilia from an illustrious career. Proceeding down the slight slope of the street, staying on the same side, one passes the Anna Freud Centre at number 12, a venerable psychoanalytic institution bearing the name of Freud’s daughter and professional heir apparent, now somewhat down on its luck, struggling to survive, but still the symbolic home – the virtual birthplace – of child psychoanalysis and psychotherapy.

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The street curves around to the left and meets the long and leafy Fitzjohns Avenue on the other side of which stands the 60s-built concrete edifice of the Tavistock Centre, another now-beleaguered neighbourhood bastion where against-the-odds battles are being fought to maintain an original mission: to bring the therapeutic lessons and benefits of psychoanalytic thinking to the general populace as served by the National Health Service. It is a corner graced by a seated statue of the founder of psychoanalysis himself. This sculpture, by Oscar Nemon, shows an aging Freud, leaning forward, as if trying attentively to catch the fleeting, nuanced, unconscious meanings of a patient’s words. A typical, characteristic pose of Freud’s has been admirably captured: left elbow out at a sharp angle to his body, left fist jammed into his side. There he sits: thin, grey, craggy, slit-eyed, defiant and impervious, pugnacious as well as prognathous, these last epithets a reference not only to the cancer of the jaw which plagued his later years but also to the dogged, street-fighting stamina of the man, his ferocious capacity to defend his discovery against its many detractors. The statue was first unveiled in 1970 but then stood for almost 30 years in an obscure setting behind the Swiss Cottage Library, a couple of hundred metres down the road. Does the fact that this powerful stone image of Freud, left languishing for decades in an unseen, inaccessible spot (albeit in a nominally public and scholarly place) not suggest something about how Freud was, is, and may always be seen – or not – by the populace at large? Does his concealment not precisely expose something about how difficult his truths and revelations are for us, how unwelcome a messenger he is, how we would rather not know the news that he dredges up from the unconscious depths of our minds, of the disturbing wishes, anxieties and moods that seethe there? Freud occupies even his newer, more prominent spot in NW3 in a somewhat ambiguous, incongruous way. On the one hand, we see him raised high above the pavement and seated on his massive granite plinth, his name carved in large capitals, seeming now to loom and brood loftily over all he surveys in an elevated, superior, arguably arrogant fashion. On the other hand, it is because he is not at eye level that it is surprisingly easy for pedestrians to walk right past him without even noticing his presence. Indeed, he seems almost to retreat or withdraw from prominence, dwarfed by the cover of the tall trees above him, hiding amidst the shrubs and bushes that form his backdrop. Even if you approach with the very intention of getting a closer view of him, a rather unnecessary and badly-placed hedge all but cuts him off from sight, except for a meagre glimpse via a narrow gap in the greenery. He also seems to have been placed at rather a far remove from the entrance to the Tavistock itself, as if statue and institution are somewhat at odds with

or dissociated from one another. To my mind, both the contradictory or paradoxical attitudes that this statue of Freud embodies and the ambivalence and ambiguity that its whereabouts and placements seem to bespeak, provide an objective correlative of the fate of Freud’s psychoanalytic legacy, both in the world at large and within the metropolis of London. It is interesting to reflect on the fact that for almost half a century, the Institute of Psychoanalysis which, until very recently, was the only body accredited by the International Psychoanalytic Association to train psychoanalysts in this country, had a very central London location, at Mansfield House on New Cavendish Street, W1. Perhaps too many of the psychoanalysts trained there took the centrality thus conferred on their science too literally or too much for granted; felt a bit too entitled about both psychoanalysis per se and the British version of it. It was as if London, not content to be one of the cities that ‘saved’ psychoanalysis, gave it a home and a new lease on life after the war, came to view itself as the very centre of psychoanalysis worldwide. I am wary of such hubristic claims and am rather pleased to have been in the first class of analysts to train not at Mansfield but at Byron House, in Maida Vale; its current, less central location. Now that the Institute of Psychoanalysis is no longer located in Central London, psychoanalysis can remind itself that it is not (and never really was) central in London or anywhere else, and will have to keep working to earn its place in the public eye. I would contend that, as privileged and prosperous a locus as it might be, the little stretch of Maresfield Gardens and the particular geographic spot where our earlier stroll culminated, and where Freud now sits, is an apt epicentre for psychoanalysis in London. Freud’s statue was eventually moved there on the 14th September 1997. This date happened serendipitously to coincide with the very week of my arrival in London to begin my psychoanalytic training, in the course of which I was also shortly to begin work as an honorary therapist at the Tavistock. It was here that I saw my first patients and first learned to think and work psychoanalytically. And here I still work today, watched over by Freud’s presence on the corner. n

Freud occupies even his newer, more prominent spot in NW3 in a somewhat ambiguous, incongruous way

An extract from chapter Are we there yet? in Uncommon London, Michael Fordham, £29

 a little history  Uncommon London editor Michael Fordham studied Anthropology at University College London and has been a writer and editor for the likes of The Face, Dazed and Confused, Esquire, The Guardian and The New York Times. Chapter author Rael Meyerowitz is a local psychoanalyst and teacher of Freud.

At the

HEART of the matter

Annabel Harrison speaks to Kat Gordon after the launch of her debut novel, The Artificial Anatomy of Parks, a family drama about “a journey of love to loss and back again”

hen I transcribe this interview, it sounds as though we’re characters in a film with the most rousing of soundtracks. We were due to meet in a café in the vicinity of Waterloo station – not glamorous, just convenient – but the sun is shining brightly so we decamp to the Jubilee Gardens on the South Bank. However, our arrival isn’t the timeliest; the International

Military Music Festival is taking place and the Dutch contingent has just launched into its drum-heavy opening number. At times we’re almost drowned out but it feels fitting to be in the (literally) beating heart of London when discussing a novel set here, and written by an author who has lived here all her life. Kat Gordon’s debut novel, The Artificial Anatomy of Parks, tells the story of Tallulah (‘Tallie’) Park; in the present day, now 21 years old, her life revolves around the repercussions of her father’s heart attack and subsequent time spent in the Marylebone Heart Hospital. Various windows into the past ensure that Tallie’s childhood – in Battersea and then Shropshire – is also unravelled, a tapestry of family secrets and tragic events given levity with a healthy dose of humorous dialogue and vibrantly drawn characters. The lens is firmly focused on the Park family, a world of “sniping aunts, precocious cousins, emigrant pianists and lots of gin, all presided over by an unconventional grandmother”. So did the title or idea come first? “The process was very organic,” Kat replies. “It was the third week of my Creative Writing MA and I was due to hand in ten pages on Monday but the weekend came around and I still hadn’t thought of anything. Two of my friends who are nurses were talking about the heart one evening and it was so fascinating – I had no idea that if you cut out a heart it can, in theory, continue beating – and I knew right then that I wanted to use the body as a metaphor for my characters’ emotional experiences. So I picked my friends’ brains, wrote ten pages and handed them in on the Monday.” I should mention at this point that I have known Kat for a decade now, as we had the fortune to cross

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paths while reading English (her) and Classics (me) at Somerville College at Oxford, so I can say with authority that if anyone was destined to be an author, it’s Kat. Our rooms were opposite each other in halls and it wasn’t uncommon, night-owl that she was, to come back from an evening out to find her sitting on her bed at 2am, labouring over an essay. Kat laughs when I mention this. “Oxford helped me to write to a deadline! When you get an agent and editor, you really need to be on top of that. I learnt how to write cleanly because I didn’t have time to write a long essay and then cut it down.” When talking about literary influences, Kat is quick to answer. “In terms of coming-of-age narratives, I have to mention Harper Lee and Kate Atkinson – I read Behind the Scenes at the Museum when I was younger and loved it; it’s a family drama with such eccentric characters. I also love Karen Blixen (or Isak Dinesen, depending on which name she is using); her writing is so beautiful and lyrical.”

“If you enjoy Kat’s debut novel, the next one, set in Africa, has already been written” These same words could be used to describe Kat’s book cover, designed by Simon Levy Associates. “The benefit of being with a small, independent publisher like Legend is that they have a lot of time to work with you,” Kat points out. “I was shown three covers – although I don’t think this is the same for all authors – and I liked elements of all three, so I asked for those to be combined.” She confesses that she found naming her book the most difficult element of the process and it was her editor who suggested The Artificial Anatomy of Parks. “I really loved it because it worked on so many levels. Anatomy is a very close look at the structure of something, and this story is a very close, detailed autopsy of the Park family. It’s got a lot to do with dissection and at the beginning of my book, the family are all living disassociated lives.” In the midst of this family dissonance, Tallie’s father has a heart attack and thus the action is anchored in Marylebone. “The London Heart Hospital is very important to the plot although sadly it’s no longer there; it has moved to Barts, which is now a centre of excellence and all the specialists have gone there too. It was still in Marylebone when I was writing the book; it’s where Tallie’s father has worked all his life and where he is taken when he has his heart attack. Tallie spends almost the whole of the present day narrative at that hospital, waiting for calls from there – and walking through the streets of the local area.”

It is clear that Kat enjoyed bringing her characters to life and developing their back stories. Kensington is where Tallie’s aunt lives because “I thought that was perfect for Gillian’s character; she is very proper, well put together and enjoys the finer things in life”. Despite my assumption, having read and immensely enjoyed the book, that Tallie would be Kat’s favourite, she has a soft spot for the grandmother. “Matilda loves Murder She Wrote – as do I! She’s spiky and feisty and has some one-liners that I really enjoyed writing. She has a great relationship with Tallie and is a nice person at heart but she’s interesting too.” Could Maggie Smith play her, if a film were made of her book, I ask? “I’d love her to!” Before our time is up, we move on to discussing poetry and I ask Kat if she has any favourites that really resonate with her. Her choice is pertinent; “Keats and his On First Looking into Chapman’s Homer, which is all about reading something that really speaks to you, and moves you. I was blown away by the poem and how much what he is talking about is now my feeling and understanding too.” If you enjoy Kat’s debut novel, the next one, set in Africa, has already been written. I think it would be wonderful if Kat pursued her plan-B career as a sideline, given how much the people of Hampstead love their pets: “Maybe I would be a professional cat photographer!” n

The Artificial Anatomy of Parks by Kat Gordon, Legend Press, £8.99, available from Daunt Books

www.wtrlondon.com 0207 243 3776 188 Westbourne Grove, W11 2RH

style

wish list

BECAUSE HE’S KARL Karl Lagerfeld certainly seems like a funny kind of fish; on the one hand designing breathtakingly beautiful couture gowns and, on the other, conceptualising capsule collections covered with cats. We’re not sure how we feel about every piece in his latest Sports City range for online retailer Zalando (there’s something of the oldschool Kappa about the ‘K’ logo) but we can certainly get on board with the sporty Audrey skirt (£145, pictured). For a touch of summer fun, pair a ‘gangsta-style’ Choupette-emblazoned T-shirt with jeans or shorts.

zalando.co.uk

STYLE Update AHOY THERE, SAILOR Erdem cites an abundance of references as inspiration for its new collection: Luchino Visconti’s Death in Venice; Diane Arbus’ Identical Twins; Tina Barney’s The Europeans; and 1960s Japanese graphic magazines. Its pre-fall offering is a mismatch of nautical kitsch, snappy blazers and androgynous knits, with a smattering of florals thrown in for good measure. In a maritime palette of navy blue, ecru, crimson and black, Erdem pushes the boat out with its range of preppy cum sailor-chic apparel, and buoy do we like it.

erdem.com

on your bike If you’re ready to embrace your inner biker but can’t quite stomach a Harley, why not opt for Kenzo’s new pre-fall range instead? The Bike Collection is rich with dark leather and silver stud embellishment worthy of a true Hells Angel. The capsule collection comprises suede, calfskin and Italian leathe shoulder bags, backpacks and wallets in classic navy, black and khaki green shades. The line is in stores this month, with a second wave set to hit the shelves at the end of August in a brighter colour scheme of cornflower blue and sunny yellow.

From £265, kenzo.com

BREAK WITH TRADITION As tempting as it is to follow Saatchi & Saatchi art director Matilda Kahl’s example and wear the same outfit every day, we’d much prefer to have a wardrobe full of timeless pieces to keep things simple. Enter Giorgio Armani and its latest women’s wear range that epitomises classic design. The New Normal collection is rich in black blazers, charcoal grey suits and leather accessories designed to stand the test of time.

giorgioarmani.com

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HEART AND CRAFT This August Harrods celebrates luxury craftsmanship with a month-long event, Made With Love, which will honour craft through pop-up stores and consultations. Stella McCartney and Chloé have designed limited edition pieces, while Anya Hindmarch, Louis Vuitton and Mulberry will offer monogramming services and artisans from and Salvatore Ferragamo will be on hand to share trade secrets.

IN THE NUDE

Bag, £1,365, Chloé. Made With Love runs throughout August at Harrods

Christian Louboutin is expanding its illustrious Nudes Collection to feature two additional shades, Deepik and Dorissima. Stating “Nude is not a colour, it’s a concept”, Louboutin's extended line now ranges from fair to rich chestnut. Originally launched in 2013, the five-strong collection aims to help more women find their perfect shade of nude. If you can’t find the right colour for you, don’t worry – there are plans to add more hues in 2016.

From £425, christianlouboutin.com

girl power This season, Agent Provocateur pays homage to the renowned photographer Helmut Newton with its new collection, All Woman. Emulating a love for powerful women, the latest line of lace separates and silk nightgowns takes inspiration from Cindy Crawford, Lara Stone, Sophia Loren and Kim Basinger – four women who embody Newton’s philosophy. Embrace your inner Crawford and opt for the Sonia, a corset with laminated panels, or take a leaf out of Loren’s book and celebrate her golden era with the Vera corset (pictured), a pearl-trimmed gown with ribbon lacing.

From £75, agentprovocateur.com

TRUNK IN LOVE

EYE TO EYE With so many creative juices flowing through the fashion industry, trying to stay ahead of the curve is quite a challenge. Fortunately for Prada, it has struck upon an innovative way to introduce its new eyewear collection. Partnering with six illustrators, the fashion house has created a digital runway featuring animated models wearing the latest range of sunglasses. Prada Raw Avenue showcases illustrations by Carly Kuhn, Megan Hess and Judith van den Hoek, among others, whose unique designs bring the accessories to life on the virtual catwalk.

If good things really do come in small packages, Marni is on to a winner with this compact version of its signature Trunk bag. Possessing all the things we loved about the original but in a petite size, the tiny tote comes in a variety of leathers and colours, including a special edition version inspired by the Marni AW15 collection, comprising black calfskin with pastel flowers crafted from python leather.

From £890, thecorner.com

raw.prada.com

GARDEN

STATE It's all about the eclectic look as we transition into autumn. In true globetrotter spirit, mix contrasting textures and bohemian prints with bold outerwear and girlish shapes Photography / Dominic Nicholls stylist / Elizabeth Hoadly

Brocade coat, ÂŁ520, Paul & Joe, paulandjoe.com

ABOVE Brown faux-fur coat, £995, REDValentino, redvalentino.com; Floral cloud brocade Pandora dress, £675, Markus Lupfer, markuslupfer.com; Diorama bag in silver micro-cannage metallised calfskin, £2,150, Christian Dior, dior.com

RIGHT Peyton ornate mini dress, £895, Vilshenko, netaporter.com; Multicolour plain faux-fur gilet, £590, Zadig & Voltaire, zadig-et-voltaire.com

ABOVE White faux-fur coat, £1,295, DLUX, avenue32.com; Checked embellished dress, £4,450, Antonio Berardi, antonioberardi.com; Twin flower ring, £410, and Twin flower cuff earrings, £875, both Jade Jagger, jadejagger.co.uk

LEFT Allena coat, £838, DVF, dvf.com; Micro Be Dior bag in black creased patent leather, £1,800, Christian Dior, as before; Casanovella shoes in nappa/glitter sirene and patent leather, £675, Christian Louboutin, christianlouboutin.com

ABOVE Green Embroidered Wool Dress, £550, REDValentino, as before; Look 32 embroidered ‘trompe l’oell’ burgundy and beige sequin top, £3,900, Christian Dior, as before

RIGHT Embroidered checked camel wool dress, £4,900, Christian Dior, as before; Blue patent Ivon boots, £565, Laurence Dacade, laurence-dacade.com

HAIR & make-up: Freya Danson Hatcher using L'Occitane, Mac and Bumble & bumble photographer's assistant: Inna Kostukovsky Stylistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Assistant: Ellie McWhan MODEL: Livia @ M+P Models Shot on location at: the Welcombe Hotel, Spa and Golf Club, Stratford-upon-Avon, menzieshotels.co.uk

Basic instincts Photography / Ian walsh styling / Vanissa Antonious

From L-R: Prada mule, £550, Prada, prada.com; Maggie May bootie, £675, Tabitha Simmons, tabithasimmons.com; Secret Agent leopard print clutch bag, £121, DVF, dvf.com; Gold bucket bag, £755, Salvatore Ferragamo, ferragamo.com; Box clutch bag, £995, Jimmy Choo, jimmychoo.com; Red Barcelona shoulder bag, £1,525, Loewe, loewe.com; Abbot Too leopard print ankle boot, £339, DVF, as before

style

beauty Update HEAVY METAL This season YSL Beauty welcomes Pretty Metal, a new line of metallic shades and bold eyeliners. Featuring the Cassandre logo reworked, the limited edition Couture Palette Collector in Metal Clash comprises five shades that can be blended together to create a bold look, or used alone for a more subtle feel. Also in the collection is Couture Kajal, a three-in-one kohl, eyeliner and eyeshadow, a brow shaper mascara and a range of lip colours.

Couture Palette Collector in Metal Clash £42.50, yslbeauty.co.uk

GOOD HAIR DAY Whatever your hair type, chances are you’ve called on John Frieda’s miracle products for help. Whether it’s a spray of Frizz Ease to tame curls or a dose of Luxurious Volume for an instant boost, his are the go-to remedies for tired tresses. This year the brand’s Marylebone salon is celebrating its 40th anniversary, so pop in to treat your split ends to some TLC.

PUTTING ON THE RITZ “Le Ritz c’est ma maison,” Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel once said of the Parisian hotel, where she took up residence for 34 years in what is now known as the Coco Chanel Suite. Said to be the inspiration behind the No 5 bottle, the hotel was a firm favourite of the style icon, so it comes as no surprise that it will soon be home to the world’s first Chanel spa. Set to reopen later this year, the hotel will unveil ‘Chanel au Ritz Paris’, a day spa entirely dedicated to the illustrious brand. Here’s hoping the Ritz London will follow suit.

ritzparis.com

75 New Cavendish Street, W1W

NU KID in town Primrose Hill residents, there’s a newcomer to add to the beauty contacts list. NuYu on Princess Road, set up by sisters Sam and Jo, does both hair and skin treatments – from microdermabrasion to Botox via facial fillers – and we popped in this month to test out the salon side of the offering. The focus is on quality not quantity; just three people can be accommodated at any one time on old-school brown leather swivel chairs and stylist Gav was super friendly, delivering a fabulous wash, cut and blow-dry in no time.

From £47.50, NuYu, 9 Princess Road, NW1, 020 3204 2020; nuyulondon.co.uk

style

In the bag Our pick of the latest must-have handbag essentials 1. Always one to stand up for a good cause, Chantecaille has unveiled its latest philanthropic collection, a limited-edition range aimed at raising awareness for the protection of wolves. Comprising rose-pink blusher and a trio of eyeshadows in AW15 inspired colours, five per cent of the profits from each palette will go to the Conservation Northwest group.

£65, Chantecaille, Liberty, Regent Street, W1B 2. Deborah Lippmann’s new nail varnish collection features four shades inspired by the Sahara with earthy tones that evoke the desert’s terrain. Featuring light khaki, camel, pebble grey and mauve, the neutral line is new for summer but can be worn all year round.

£16 each, Deborah Lippmann, harrods.com 3. Diptyque has just reopened its Marylebone store, and what better excuse to pop in for a look around than the launch of a new fragrance? Florabellio blends the sharp scents of salt and sea fennel with sweet apple blossom and osmanthus, while notes of coffee and sesame add a unique edge to the refreshing summer scent.

£58, Diptyque, 68 Marylebone High Street, W1U 4. Judging from the success of Guerlian’s Terracotta Bronzer – one of which is sold every 20 seconds – we predict this limited edition version will receive a rather warm welcome. Inspired by smooth sand, the silky powder blends two shades that work together to complement a tan, so you can use it all summer long.

£47.50, Guerlian, guerlain.com 5. Banish dark circles with Elemis’s new Pro-Radiance Illuminating Eye Balm. Made with Bird of Paradise flower and apricot kemal oil, the formula works to gradually reduce the appearance of dark circles and puffiness, all the while softening the appearance of lines.

£34, Elemis, elemis.com 6. Ex Nihilo only launched a year ago, but it’s already made waves in the olfactory world. Starting with eight fragrances, customers can adapt their chosen scent using the brand’s osmologue machine – one of only two in the world can be found in the Harrods’ branch – as well as the bottle itself.

From £55, Ex Nihilo, harrods.com

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JÂGERBOB Move over Alexa Chung, there’s a new perfectly-coifed bob in town. Stylist to the elite and the man behind Chung’s tousled locks, George Northwood’s gift with the scissors has inspired many an It-girl wannabe to chop off her TOWIE-length mane. A trip to Northwood’s Bob Bar will see you practically transformed into the lady herself, while those after something a bit different can opt for a bob à la Margot Tenebaum, Jennifer Lawrence, or Rosie Huntington-Whitely – just don’t let the paparazzi catch you on the way out.

From £75, The Bob Bar in association with RedKen, 24 Wells Street, W1T, 020 7580 8195, georgenorthwood.com

Hair-raiser With drop-in hair bars on the rise, Ellen Millard lets her mane down on a crawl across the capital at the best four spots for a day-to-night sprucing

our women walk into a bar and come out with completely different hair styles. Don’t worry, this isn’t the start of a cheesy oneliner, it’s the latest grooming trend to hit the capital. And unlike dip-dying, crimping and ‘plopping’ (that’s a curling technique, to you and I) it’s one we’re willing to get on board with as a practical solution to bad hair days. Like most ‘why didn’t I think of that’ ideas, the hair bar concept originated in New York, where Drybar founder Ali Webb created a $20 million business armed with just a hairdryer and a handful of bobby pins. Discover the secret to fast glamour as we take you on a crawl of the capital’s best hair bars, sure to banish tired tresses without encroaching on your post-work drinks.

style

ROOT BEER While ‘split hair’ has been touted as the next big thing, it’s not something we’ll be sporting any time soon (think Cruella Deville meets My Little Pony). But if it does appeal, then head down to Hari’s Salon and ask for the ParT-ee treatment at the T-Bar. Not for the faint hearted, the express touch-up sees roots doused with coloured hairspray and glitter gel, a look we imagine won’t go down well at the office summer party. That being said, the skilled set of root-masters at Hari’s can’t be beaten when it comes to refreshing locks veering towards the two-toned trend, a speedy solution to those pesky dark partings.

From £40, 223 King’s Road, SW3, 020 7349 8722; harissalon.com

BUCKS FRIZZ

BRAID BREEZE If you’re looking to mix things up, but haven’t got the bottle for a complete overhaul, The Braid Bar is the place to go. The small team of pigtail specialists took up residence in Selfridges earlier this year, and are sticking around until the end of summer. Select your plait of choice from The Braid Menu – we recommend the Claudia, a Heidi-esque halo, or the Linda, a bun-braid cocktail – and get creative with hair chalk, charms and pompoms for a hairstyle with a twist.

We all know someone who looks photoshoot ready 24/7 (the one you try not to stand next to). If you have one such friend, you’ll be pleased to hear we’ve discovered the secret to their success. The Blow Bar – an American concept brought to the UK and Brit-ified – has an army of savvy stylists yielding hair dryers and a list of eight styles that can be recreated in a speedy 30 minutes. Who’s ready for their close up now?

£25 for 30 minutes, 249-251 Regent Street, W1B, 020 7495 3175; theblowbar.com

From £10, Selfridges, 020 7318 2408; thebraidbar.co.uk

style

Aman about town Kari Colmans enjoys an unrivalled afternoon of prenatal pampering at The Connaught’s Aman spa

e have reviewed the positively dreamy Aman spa at the Connaught in these pages before; the first in London from the distinguished Aman resorts brand, and the only facility to be built outside one of its own-name hotels. The Asian-inspired design offers quite a contrast to the more ornate Edwardian lobby above it; true, it is rather compact (as some critics have lamented) but this is central London, after all. In addition to the variety of therapies, the spa boasts a stunning cascading granite water wall in a romantically-lit swimming pool, and a mini fitness studio with Technogym equipment. The phrase ‘small but perfectly formed’ definitely springs to mind. Who wants space for hordes of naked Germans strutting around anyway? However, it’s really the service that sets it apart, as is so often the case with top hotels: no amount of style can make up for

substance. And this time I’m here to review the maternity offering; something you never give much thought to until your own feet can no longer fit into a pair of boxfresh Jimmy Choos, purchased especially for the summer wedding season. I start off my afternoon of ‘me time’ (“enjoy it now…” even people I barely know like to tell me with glee) with a half an hour mediation class, offered free every lunchtime by spa manager René Van Eyssen, who would be a credit to any establishment, anywhere in the world. Officially, it is there for the hotel staff to come and unwind on their lunch hour, but anyone is welcome, as long as you book ahead (and yes, it really is totally gratis). Dotted sporadically around a large double treatment room, some on beds, others on chairs, René and a couple more cross-legged on the floor, it is anything but intimidating as these things can be: I’m not required to chant or “ommm” once. After a light lunch upstairs in the hotel’s casual Espelette restaurant – where I spot Pharrell being papped on Mount Street as I guzzle my burrata – I head back downstairs for a spot of lemongrass tea as I wait for René to collect me once more and whisk me back to the beautiful double treatment room (with its own changing area and bathroom) for my 90-minute Pregnancy Nurture Treatment. It starts with

a soothing foot soak as the large stones at the bottom of the bowl massage my feet, followed by a gentle back exfoliation scrub and massage as I lean against the bed face first, seated on a stool, supported by a carefully constructed mountain of pillows. It is incredibly comfortable for my expanding midriff, more so than other similar solutions I’ve experienced in the last few months, such as lying sideways or face-down with a midsection hole cut into the bed. A relaxing full-body massage to stimulate circulation follows, and then a facial; it is so heavenly that I manage to leave my mental checklists behind and drift off to sleep, something that seems to elude me by night-time. As well as having a pair of angel’s hands, René also advises me on supplements and food to eat that may help me during the next few weeks. The treatment is by far the best of its kind that I have yet to sample, and while yes, the spa isn’t quite as imposing as more recent and spacious openings, the service is unrivalled. And when you live somewhere like London, a capital saturated with proclamations of ‘unrivalled luxury’, you soon realise that service is the only thing that separates the charlatans from the masters. n

It is so heavenly that I manage to leave my mental checklists behind and drift off to sleep

Pregnancy Nurture Treatment, 90 minutes, £160 Carlos Place, W1K

“the fitness guru viewed by the entertainment industry as the 4th emergency service” The S und ay Tim e s , St y le M a g a zin e

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interiors

wish list

ANIMAL HOUSE We’ve got a bit of a thing for wacky wallpaper: in the right space, it can transform a room from cookie-cutter grey marl to a Pinterest hit. House of Hackney’s new Wild for Wildlife conservation series, inspired by the animal world, synthesises art deco references and classic toile du jouy prints with the brand’s love of nature. We love this cheeky Menagerie Troop print in parakeet green (pictured) as well as the giraffe and zebra motifs for a feature loo. What’s more, five per cent of the proceeds will be donated to the international wildlife charity, Born Free Foundation, to support its conservation and animal welfare work around the globe.

£128 per roll, houseofhackney.com

Interiors inspiration

INTO THE WOODS Textile designer Vanessa Arbuthnott takes inspiration from the great outdoors. From wildflowers and meadow flora to seaside shells, her fabrics, oilcloth and wallpapers are adorned with calming patterns and motifs in muted, earthy tones. Curtains, blinds, cushions and quilts can be made-to-measure, but anyone who fancies themselves a dab hand with the sewing machine can order fabric by the metre.

Lampshade, sofa and cushion fabrics from £46 a metre, vanessaarbuthnott.co.uk

A joint effort

Crystal maze Renowned crystal maker Lalique has released a 36 piece collection, which will be available exclusively at Harrods until the end of this month. Inspired by the sun-drenched Languedoc region in the south of France, this new series of colourful vessels and ornaments revisits original designs by René Lalique from 1929. Modelled on Mediterranean plants, the brand’s iconic chiselled crystal cactus leaves remain, while vases will be available in three different designs and four different colours, including a new bronze shade.

Vases from £590, available exclusively at Harrods until 31 August

Things are getting graphic at Joined & Jointed this summer with the launch of a new retro line of seating. The celebrated collective of designers and artisans has teamed up with Kirkby Design to produce a number of made-to-order upholstered armchairs and sofas in four statement woven designs, all inspired by the world of computer games. Choose from Arcade, Boost, Signal and 8-bit to add a playful touch to your lounge or games room. Joysticks at the ready.

Trident armchair (pictured) from £915, joinedandjointed.com

interiors

take it outside The countdown to the end of the summer is on, so make the most of the outdoor dining opportunities before autumn arrives and we all retreat hastily back inside. The Linen Works’ latest collection of crisp cream and duck-egg blue tablecloths, napkins and throws add a relaxed sense of occasion to even the most casual of dinner parties; just add a few lanterns and a bottle of something chilled. And for an impromptu picnic, roll up this beautiful throw and pack the matching cushions to be the envy of all park-goers.

Tablecloths from £125; printed throws from £185; printed cushion covers from £59.50, available from Harrods and thelinenworks.co.uk

Snooze control Hästens has been making beds since 1852, so it has the business of catching 40 winks down to a fine art. If the warmer weather is keeping you awake, take a look at the brand’s recent summer releases. Swap your heavy duvet for an eco-light deluxe version, designed to keep you cool and comfortable, and accessorise it with a cover from the new 300 thread-count Herbarium range, which features eye-catching prints and a light-weight satin feel. Other seasonal essentials include a travel pillow in bright blue check filled with squishy duck down, which can be easily flattened and packed in your carry-on.

Bed linen from £110; travel pillow £90 66-68 Margaret Street, W1W, hastens.com

not so taxing

Mood diffuser

Taxidermy is all the rage (see our Curious and Curiouser feature on page 74 for further inspiration) but if you don’t fancy having Bambi or Skippy on your wall, local artist Deborah Partington has an ethical alternative. Made from torn up strips of watercolour paper, painstakingly stuck and sewn together, her intricate bird sculptures are mounted on hard wood and encased within glass bell jars. Marvel at the latest collection of blue jays and owls up close at London Contemporary Art in Bloomsbury, or contact Deborah directly for specific commissions.

From the rich orris, patchouli and smoky labdanum of Morocco to the Mediterranean zing of lemon zest, basil and grapefruit, you can bring your holiday back home with you thanks to the latest range of fragrances from Lilou et Loic. The elegant collection of glass room diffusers has been specially developed to create long-lasting layers of scent, while the collection of signature candles, made from the finest mineral wax, create an additional ambiance.

Reed diffusers, £55, lilouetloic.com From £450, available at London Contemporary Art, 32 Store Street, WC1E, deborahpartington.com

Get into the

grove

From Coworth Park to Barnsley House, Martin Hulbert is behind the décor of some notable rural retreats, but this summer he is returning to the Hertfordshire hotel where it all began. Lauren Romano meets the interior designer to discuss getting back to the drawing board at The Grove

“I

t’s supposed to be a secret,” Martin Hulbert begins in mock bemusement as it transpires that my main line of questioning – the redevelopment of the Grove hotel – is classified information. He laughs goodnaturedly. “We tend to keep things quiet when they’re new, that’s all. I don’t actually know when it will be announced, we haven’t really talked about it to be honest,” he confesses as I pull up a chair around the kitchen table in his open-plan, first-floor studio. The whole set up, with comfy sofas and bright abstract canvases on the wall, could be mistaken for Hulbert’s home but the des res address is, in actual fact, the Bermondsey HQ of his acclaimed, self-named interior design firm, which he heads up alongside fellow director Jay Grierson. “As a creative space this feels like home and we like to encourage that way of working,” he says. Hulbert has earned some serious bragging rights; he designed the elegant art deco spa for the Dorchester hotel; the Monaco outpost of the Nobu chain; and his Middle Earth meets Little House on the Prairie (a colleague’s words, not mine) Treehouse Suites at Chewton Glen won him the International Interior Design award 2012. But the softly spoken designer doesn’t like to make a fuss. “When my career started 25 years ago I worked for various people, spending weeks on end on cruise ships. I learnt a lot and enjoyed it, but gradually I began to do my own thing.

And then I got a project called the Grove, as you know,” he winks. “That was the first time a client came to me and asked what I wanted to do, rather than saying, ‘we think we’d like a Ralph Lauren look,’ which is what normally happens.” Set in 300 acres of undulating Hertfordshire countryside, the five-star country retreat was once the home of the Earls of Clarendon, but it was in a sorry state when Martin and Jay first clapped eyes on it. “A dilapidated shell with a chicken run outside and some old pre-fabricated buildings, that’s what the site looked like back then. It was derelict – when you went inside you could see the sky because the roof had fallen in,” he recalls. “We started from scratch and it just took off. I had no idea at the time that it was going to be that good – and we didn’t understand what that could mean for us.” Twelve years on and although they’re a bit cloak-and-dagger about the details, Martin reveals that the pair are heading back to the hotel to create a new pavilion in the garden and refresh the interiors here and there. Contemporary country chic is the word that springs to mind when I think of The Grove, although I imagine that turn of phrase isn’t one that he uses when brainstorming. The Hulbert look is all about channelling a tailor-made, individual finish. “I avoid what I consider to be fashionable, but I always try to add a fun factor,” he says, referring to the wall of keys

“And then I got a project called the Grove. That was the first time a client came to me and asked what I wanted to do”

interiors

Clockwise from top left: Artbar at Abbey Hotel; the study at Barnsley House ÂŠ Mark Bolton; Allium Restaurant at Abbey Hotel; The Abbey Hotel; the gardens at Barnsley House; the bar at Barnsley House; the entrance hall at Coworth Park ÂŠ Richard Booth

interiors

behind the reception desk. “Those were all sourced from junkshops. The irony is there aren’t any keys in hotels anymore because everyone uses those swipe cards.” Coworth Park, Barnsley House, Cliveden House, Chewton Glen, the Abbey Hotel; if you’re looking for a boutique British pad, chances are Martin and Jay have it covered. But it doesn’t stop there. Between them, the to-do list includes a contemporary villa on the outskirts of Moscow, designed to show off the owner’s prized art collection, and a beautiful villa in Tuscany, which has been six years in the making and is framed around a maturing garden. Also in the pipeline is a private villa on a Robinson Crusoe-sounding Caribbean island. “It’s like another world,” Jay says, “with peacocks casually strutting around in the background. It’s hard not to invent excuses to go back. We do have to pinch ourselves sometimes.” At the moment, much of the pair’s energies are focused on two boutique hotels in Cartagena, Colombia, housed within crumbling Spanish colonial buildings in a UNESCO heritage site. “Every project has a hurdle; you think you’ve learnt everything after 25 years in the business, but you haven’t,” Martin laughs. “All the materials are shipped in by donkeys on these winding cobbled streets because they’re not wide enough for lorries. And everything is handmade – there’s not a machine in sight, even the beams are lifted into place by hand. It’s fascinating so you just let it go and accept that that’s just how it is. And, of course, this is all done in 40 degree heat.” When the rooms you design win awards it must be impossible not to critique other hotels that fall short of the mark. “I’ve become more sympathetic,” Martin says diplomatically. “I understand what the designer must have been through to create it. Clients never say ‘spend as much as you want’. Even when you’re working with huge sums of money, there’s still a budget. We don’t

run around a place saying you should do this or that. It’s about building a relationship and getting to know them and what they need.” His favourite hotels aren’t the ones with the most stars either. “It’s always important to know where you are in the world. I actually have a soft spot for little hotels like Barnsley House. In January I went to Bequia in the Caribbean and stayed in an old fortress on a sugar plantation. It was delightful, very understated – we almost had the place all to ourselves.” Martin is forgoing a summer holiday for a Christmas break when he hopes to set off to his favourite hotspot, Manuel Antonio National Park in Costa Rica. Or Guatemala, El Salvador or Sri Lanka… “I’ve always picked quite adventurous destinations!” he laughs. Jay is also shunning summer sunshine, albeit more reluctantly, for DIY at his Crouch End home. “It’s very hard designing for yourself,” he admits. “If in doubt, white walls are the best. I’m lucky that my partner is quite open-minded and happy to let me get on with it.” “My house is designed but it’s an evolving home; it’s constantly, subtly changing,” Martin says of his Sussex Downs abode. “It’s got a huge garden, which is my escape. I don’t have any neighbours except some cows. It’s idyllic, I don’t want to leave it, but I can decamp here if I really need to.” And now that the secret is out about the Grove, I’m guessing there’ll be a room with his name on it there too. n

martinhulbertdesign.com

Above: Artbar at Abbey Hotel Below, left to right: The reception at Coworth Park © Richard Booth; art work at Abbey Hotel; the Secret Garden suite at Barnsley House

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Curios

What do seashells, dead birds, and clockwork instruments all have in common? Gabriella Dyson delves into the unusual world of the wunderkammer tradition and explores how itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s making an interiors comeback

Coral collection from Lâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Objet

interiors

curiouser

Fruit Looters wallpaper, £300 per roll, Timorous Beasties, timorousbeasties.com

Illustration from Cabinet of Natural Curiosities, £12.99, taschen.com

ome people get their kicks by collecting stamps. Others have a soft spot for Jimmy Choos. But for 17th- and 18th-century kings and archdukes, it was all about twoheaded sheep, clockwork automata and the stuffed remains of exotic specimens. Wunderkammer – or cabinets of wonder to you and I – were small collections of extraordinary objects that attempted to categorise and explain the natural world. While television shows like Hoarders and Storage Wars have led many of us to recoil at the prospect of obsessive collecting, the wunderkammer tradition was once all the rage for the upper echelons of society. And it’s making a stealthy comeback. Last month, as part of its 35 year anniversary, Taschen rereleased Albertus Seba’s Cabinet of Natural Curiosities Andy Palmar cushion, £135, Kristjana S Williams Studio, within its Bibliotheca Universalis range. kristjanaswilliams.com Albertus Seba was a renowned collector of curiosities and his work, which archived his vast and awe-inspiring collection, is widely held to be one of the 17th- and 18th-century’s greatest natural history achievements. Amassing hundreds of oddities and wonders from the far corners of the globe, this Amsterdam-based pharmacist successfully recorded his findings in a series of colourful, detailed illustrations, which are now available Illustration from Cabinets of for everyone to enjoy. Curiosities by Patrick Mauriès, £29.95, thamesandhudson.com In his day Seba was something of a trendsetter, sparking a collecting frenzy among Europe’s societal crème de la crème, who were keen to accumulate objects that would provoke a sense of wonderment. Following in his footsteps, they created small exhibitions in their own homes and housed everything from exotic shells and jewels to stuffed animals, preserved body parts and recently developed scientific instruments. To the modern eye it’s fair to say that these specially designed rooms pushed the acceptable limits of taste. The stuff of fairy tales (and nightmares for some) featured highly in many assemblages. If you were to have glimpsed into the cabinets of Russian emperor Peter the Great, then you would have come face to face with crudely sewn ‘mermaids’ alongside the alleged remains of dragons and other rare and Coral centrepiece, misunderstood deformities. from £1,770, L’Objet, l-objet.com Elsewhere in Peter’s collection there were teeth belonging to a singer and a tablecloth maker (both personally extracted by the emperor himself) and the bones of a giant footman. According to Wolfram Koeppe, author and curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the wunderkammer tradition “underlined a sovereign's mighty status” and marked his power over the known world. “The rarer an item, the more attractive it appeared, be it a colossal giant's

Jay cushion, £85, Timorous Beasties, timorousbeasties.com

Tropical birds, £3,450 , Ayre & Co, ayreandco.com

Mulga Parrot, £200, Ayre & Co, ayreandco.com

Illustration from Cabinets of Curiosities by Patrick Mauriès, £29.95, thamesandhudson.com

Ink Forest cushion, £135, Kristjana S Williams Studio, kristjanaswilliams.com

interiors

Illustration from Cabinet of Natural Curiosities, £12.99, taschen.com

At Sea Cushion, £135, Kristjana S Williams Studio, kristjanaswilliams.com

Bespoke letter set commissioned by Fortnum & Mason, Timorous Beasties, timorousbeasties.com

Coral letter opener and coral magnifying glass, both from £75, L’Objet, l-objet.com

bone or a precious jewel.” Therefore, the more bizarre your compendium, the more impressive it became. Koeppe continues “the Renaissance was also an age of exploration, a period of rapidly expanding horizons of knowledge and the constant attempt to achieve the seemingly unachievable.” In this sense, the wunderkammer tradition helped to validate sensory experience several hundred years before Google image search was on hand to help. During Seba’s time, new organisms had to be physically seen, held and experienced to be believed. Collecting was a means by which to prove your knowledge – and physical evidence that you weren’t ripe for the loony bin when claiming possession of an otherworldly object. Indeed, Seba openly admitted that he had been doubtful of the existence of the three headed hydra at first, but later became convinced of its reality after a first-hand encounter with the beast (truth be told, it was actually a narwhal tusk, but that’s not quite as exciting). For better or for worse, this unique tradition has declined over the centuries and where it does still exist – in museums and the homes of the eccentric – its deeper meaning has largely been forgotten. However, trend-setters will have noticed the influence of the natural world creeping back into our homes. Many of this year’s most Black crowned crane, £2,000, Ayre & Co, exciting interior design trends have taken ayreandco.com a cue from the wunderkammer tradition. Add a colourful, tropical print cushion to your living room courtesy of Kristjana S Williams. The natural world and all of its wonders provided an endless source of inspiration for the designer’s exclusive Liberty collection. Her design process involved layering nature upon nature in order to emphasise “the symmetry in all things living” and each cushion features Kristjana’s own universe of botanicals and animals. Similarly home décor specialists Timorous Beasties found inspiration for many of its recent collections from the natural world, as well as the work of naturalists and scientific illustrators such as Maria Sibylla Merian. The study of plant life and flowers gave the team the opportunity “to exploit a broad spectrum of vibrant colour,” producing wallpapers and soft furnishings that even Seba would have marvelled at. Others are following in the footsteps of the fashion crowd by purchasing their very own roadkill from Ayre & Co taxidermy, but if that makes you squeamish, you can always invest in some statement coral bookends from L’Objet instead. However, if you decide to build your own cabinet of wonders, remember that the key to nailing this look is to dare to be bold. Adopt Peter the Great’s philosophy that ‘more is more’ when it comes to all things wondrous. n

Exotic Birds by Robert Clarke, £2,500, Ayre & Co, ayreandco.com

Cabinet of Natural Curiosities by Albertus Seba, Irmgard Musch, Taschen Books, £12.99, taschen.com Quotations from Koeppe, Wolfram, “Collecting for the Kunstkammer” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000

#MINIHARRODS

Join Mini Harrods for fun and rewards Mini Harrods is all about making Harrods even more fun for our tiniest visitors. Membership is free and includes invitations to exciting events in-store, great competitions, an enewsletter, and a 10%-off day during your childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s birthday week.*

Join today at harrods.com/miniharrods

Art workshop All mini Monets can set their imaginations free at a hands-on art workshop. Artists-in-training will have the chance to decorate a canvas with their favourite summer scenes, from a picnic in the park to sandcastles at the beach. Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th August Harrods Rewards, Third Floor RSVP to miniharrods@harrods.com by Sunday 9th August**

Terms and conditions apply; for full details of this offer, please contact the Customer Loyalty team at rewards@harrods.com or 033 3300 1234.

** Places are limited and offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Recommended age for participants is between five and 10 years old. Terms and conditions apply.

fa m i ly

wish list

BON VOYAGE Isn’t it ironic that when the whole of France vacates for August, half of Britain infiltrates its shores. See that you’re suitably dressed for the occasion with Petite Bateau’s new Ports of Call range, as it nods to a handful of France’s most beautiful seaside destinations: Saint-Jeande-Luz, Le Cap Ferret, Trouville-sur-Mer, Port-Cros, Carnac and, of course, Paris. The range boasts six customised ‘coats of arms’ (brandishing a very petite bateau) and half a dozen exclusive limited edition T-shirts for women, men and children.

70 Marylebone Road, W1U

nurserynews SAVING GRACE Ever since it opened its store on Regents Park Road, Elias & Grace has been a go-to for designer childrenswear. This season the trendy shop welcomes new brands Minnetonka, Billy Bandit and Sticky-Fudge, among others, to its collection of fashionable kids clothes, where Marni, Chloé and Little Marc Jacobs can be found alongside the brand’s own label, Miller. Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the Primrose Hill boutique is a staple for local mums and dads.

158 Regents Park Road, NW1 eliasandgrace.com

ZEN MOMENT Everybody knows that travelling with a new-born in tow is no picnic – how can somebody so small need so much stuff? Luckily BabyZen has found a way to ease the load with its ZEN stroller, a stylish pram that can fold down to just 25cm. Claiming to be the only full-sized stroller that can fit into the trunk of a small car – no need to replace your Mini – the buggy is equipped with a carrycot/ bouncer ideal for newborns.

£849, babyzen.com

Prints charming We can’t get enough of Poco Nido’s quirky prints. Founded by footwear designer Catherine Lobley in 2011, the brand began with the Mini Shoe, designed to be an alternative to the limited number of styles on the high street. Fast-forward five years and Poco Nido now sells a whole range of footwear, as well as clothes and accessories. The new summer styles include an adorable Billy Goat’s Gruff print in red, a pink and blue owl pattern and a delightful flamingo design.

From £9, poconido.com

fa m i ly

WOAH NELLY

winter Best Summer winners Activities

Rachel Powell’s bold designs have left us wanting to redecorate every room in the house with her playful prints. The latest addition to the collection is this delightful Nelly wallpaper, featuring an elephant print available in black and blue. The Scandinavianinspired design is a simple way to add a splash of colour to your little one’s bedroom, and would make a great feature wall in a nursery or playroom.

Keep your kids amused this summer holiday with our top activity picks

£55 for 10 metres, racheljpowell.com

Show time

ANIMAL CHARM Our favourite children’s illustrator Sir Quentin Blake has come together with Joules to create a five-piece collection featuring his charming designs. As vice president of Farms for City Children, Blake has themed the collection around farmyard animals, decorating the waterproof jackets, wellington boots, babygrows and T-shirts with his unique drawings. What’s more, five per cent of all profits will go towards the charity, which gives city kids the chance to experience life on a working farm in the heart of the British countryside.

TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL Wave goodbye to squashed sandwiches and leaking juice carton disasters with these super-cute cool bags, featuring Little Miss and Mr Men designs. Great for picnics in the summer and school packed lunches come September, these fun bags are wipe clean and fully insulated to keep your children’s food fresh all day long.

£7.95 each, wildandwolf.com

This August sees the 18th annual Kids Week – which is actually a month long – giving children under 16 the chance to visit West End shows, workshops and activities completely free when accompanied by a full fee-paying adult. With shows to suit all ages – from Matilda the Musical to Les Misérables – there’s plenty to keep your little ones occupied this summer.

Kids Week runs from 1-31 August, kidsweek.co.uk

From £14.95, joules.com

Adulthood Venture west this summer and discover KidZania, a new role-play experience in Westfield London. Offering kids the chance to live out their dream job, they will have the opportunity to test 60 different roles, including a police officer, a fire fighter and a chocolatier. Each activity will involve getting to grips with life skills such as financial literacy and team work. Learn how to count the cash at the bank, grasp the basics of brushing, flossing and dental care at the dentist or find the next big scoop at the KidZania newspaper.

KidZania at Westfield London, london.kidzania.com

3 million people in the UK are diagnosed with a digestive disorder, every year.

we offer a wide range of investigations and treatments for gastric and stomach conditions. our state-of-the-art endoscopy Centre has been awarded full Jag accreditation; the first private hospital in central london to receive such an accolade.

Call our team today

www.thewellingtonhospital.com

020 7483 5000

health&fitness

health & fitness

Hello Handsome Following a successful capsule collection launch at the start of the year, new Australian swimwear label We Are Handsome has gained a serious gym bunny following – including Miranda Kerr and Rhianna no less – in a very short space of time. For its late-summer drop (available now) the brand has expanded on its colour-popping graphic printed capsule range, with a variety of stylish yet techy pieces. Eat, sleep, gym, repeat.

From £55-£135, wearehandsome.com

You Spin Me Round If you’re bored of the gym and yoga makes you yawn, head to The Berkeley for a feel-good fitness kick. The hotel has launched a series of hula-hooping masterclasses, which take place in the open air around the rooftop pool to a pop-tastic soundtrack, with the greenery of Hyde Park as the panoramic backdrop. HulaFit founder Anna Byrne will lead you through a work-out to tone your core muscles, starting with basic ‘waist hooping’ and progressing to moves that sound like they belong in a Beyoncé video, burning up to 600 calories an hour in the process.

As Good as it Gets You can barely power walk three paces in Marylebone before stumbling upon a quinoa and kale café cum all-day juicery. Yet following the success of its first site in Chelsea, The Good Life Eatery has chosen our favourite postcode for its second outpost. With healthy takes on power breakfasts, you’ll find signature dishes including eggs benedict with saffron-yoghurt hollandaise, Paleo waffles and acai smoothie bowls: a taste of California in the West End. Awesome.

69 Marylebone Lane, W1U

Classes every Wednesday, £65, 12-1pm until 28 October Wilton Place, SW1X

Lemon

Cabbage

Tangarine

Fish Olives Carrots Orange

Broccoli Kale

Onion

Apple

health promotion

Beyond thekale Whether it’s a full colon-to-liver detox, juice cleanse, or a diet consisting of nothing but cabbage soup, Danielle Maw, specialist dietitian at The Wellington Hospital, breaks them down, and answers that all – important question: do they provide enough nutritious value?

Several health claims have been made regarding detox and juicing diets, suggesting that they are ideal for rapid weight loss, improving digestion, eliminating toxins, increasing energy levels, decreasing cellulite, boosting immune function and giving you with clearer skin. Based on such claims, who wouldn’t want to try it for themselves?

stop. When you lose weight rapidly, it is mainly water, and the body’s store of carbohydrates, which are lost instead of fat stores. Balanced is best While decreasing fat stores and increasing lean muscle mass is scientifically proven to be beneficial for maintaining weight loss, this can be achieved by following a balanced diet, engaging in regular exercise and staying well hydrated. A balanced diet means keeping sugary foods and drinks (and alcohol) to a minimum, avoiding high-fat foods and basing meals around:

Eliminating waste The body is a complex and well-developed system using chemically controlled organs to continually process and eliminate waste products from our bodies. Alcohol, medications, bacteria, by-products from the digestion of food and drinks and chemicals from pollution are all toxins and waste products that • Fresh fruits and vegetables – aim for at least the liver, kidneys and gut work hard to excrete. five a day Dietetics at Unfortunately, there are no miracle cures to • L ean meats, such as fish, vegetarian-based The Wellington eliminate these toxins from our bodies; so if protein sources (i.e. tofu, quorn), beans Hospital we over indulge in alcohol and fatty foods, and pulses Danielle Maw is a specialist dietitian at for example, then our body has to work extra •Q ualifier: carbohydrates (i.e. pasta, rice, The Wellington Hospital. The dietetics hard to remove the waste products. potatoes) – preferably wholegrain varieties, teams offer expert services to both inpatients where relevant and outpatients. For more information, or to arrange an outpatient appointment for a • Low-fat dairy products Fibre and sugars range of dietary advice and treatment, Fruits and vegetables are usually the key please visit thewellingtonhospital. As you can see, juicing and detox diets can be very ingredient in detox and juicing diets. They com/dietetics restrictive, making it difficult to sustain for a long are essential in our daily diet as they contain period of time. These extreme diets also lead to a lack a wide variety of vitamins, minerals, fibre and of intake of important nutrients such as protein and fibre, antioxidants. However, when fruits and vegetables which are essential in optimising health. Many of the health are juiced, the fibre is extracted during the process, which claims made regarding detox and juicing diets are generally misleading is not ideal, as fibre helps us to feel full and is required to maintain and are not based on scientifically proven evidence. a healthy colon. Juices can be fairly high in sugar and calories and so can contradict the weight-loss health claim, and be misleading Supplementing a balanced diet for people wanting to lose weight. Juicing can be used as a way to supplement a balanced diet with additional fruits and vegetables, which may be particularly beneficial Calories and fat stores for those who struggle to meet the government recommendations Severely restricting your calories and the intake of specific nutrients to of at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. By following a promote rapid weight loss can be detrimental to your health. It can lead balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle, which includes engaging in to the loss of muscle mass, and can leave you feeling dizzy and tired with regular physical activity, drinking less alcohol, staying well-hydrated poor concentration levels. This can all affect your mood too. Also, eating and getting adequate amounts of sleep, really are the best choices this way is not sustainable over a long period of time, which means that you are very likely to regain any weight previously lost as soon as you to maintain optimal health.

For further information or if you would like to arrange an appointment at The Wellington Hospital, please contact the Enquiry Helpline on 020 7483 5000 or visit thewellingtonhospital.com

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food&drink

wish list

MAC OUT It’s already pretty easy to spend an entire morning at the beautiful Burberry flagship on Regent Street – and now that you can refuel while indulging your retail whims, there’s really no reason to ever leave. The all-day café, called Thomas’s, offers a menu of British classics from afternoon tea, to lobster with chips and bridge rolls, as well as the finest seasonal produce from small farmers and artisan suppliers from around the UK. Light salads include Sutton Hoo chicken, garden vegetables with quail’s eggs and an Isle of Wight tricolour, while more meaty mains are confined to a Barnsley lamb chop or wild sea trout. The exciting eatery is set within a brand new gifting space, which houses a seasonally updated edit of present ideas, as well as an assortment of homeware finishing touches, including throws, blankets, cushion covers, candles and games.

121 Regent Street, W1B

Foodie favourites Seafood and eat it Coastal cuisine is having a bit of a moment. With the recent opening of US heavyweight Milos on Regent Street last month, Bouillabaisse is also getting in on the action, just up the road in Mayfair. Inspired by “first hand conversations with fishing communities around the globe”, founder Kurt Zdesar, who launched Chotto Matte in 2014 and brought Nobu to London, is committed to upholding sustainable fishing practices. Chef Jordan Sclare (whose CV covers Restaurant Gordon Ramsay and the aforementioned Nobu) will be serving up the likes of Hebridean barbecued langoustines; snow crab cakes with salsa verde; lobster and white fish ravioli; and of course, a signature bouillabaisse of prawns, seabass, clams, mussels, gurnard and lobster. Kurt is set to open further restaurants this year, with sites confirmed for other concepts on Mortimer Street, Chiltern Street and Wimpole Street. Watch this plaice.

4 Mill Street, W1S

Welcome to the Borough Having first made a name for itself in the foodie heartland of Borough Market, Borough Kitchen has just made a second home in Hampstead. Catering to both the amateur and refined home cook, it sells a range of premium crockery, kitchenware, linens and electrical goods, and is as keen to share its recipes with its shoppers as it is to receive snaps of your family around the table for its website: a great one for wedding lists.

1 Hampstead High Street, NW3

We Need to Talk about Megan’s

Eat Like a Greek

St John’s Wood isn’t exactly a haven for culinary endeavours, so a new neighbourhood opening is always exciting. With a sister restaurant on the King’s Road, Megan’s is an independent restaurant under the auspices of Becky McKevitt, a sommelier and restaurateur who hails from the Salt Yard Group. Set in a beautiful listed building and boasting an outside terrace strewn with fairy lights, breakfast covers homemade muffins and famous house platters, while the dinner time service focuses on fresh meat and fish cooked on a charcoal grill.

The sound of the ocean lapping on the beach; the warmth of the Mediterranean evening air. Neither of these is available at the Greek restaurant OPSO, but a mouthful of the lamb shank and lemongrass orzo brings you pretty close. Be prepared for your diet to go out the window; the meze helpings of squid, feta and fava beans are certainly generous. And for a wistful nod to the summer, try the Sicilian-style Lemon Tree Mojito, designed by the awardwinning mixologist Giannis Petris.

120 St John’s Wood High Street, NW8

10 Paddington Street, W1U

food&drink

Restaurant Review

All mapped out

Lauren Romano gets into a fork fight at Mark Sargeant’s new cartography-inspired brasserie

fter being spat out of Piccadilly Circus tube, only to realise that I’m on the wrong side of the road from my usual compass point – the Mr Ripley’s Believe it or Not sign – it’s every man, woman and tourist for themselves. Swept along towards Wardour Street, not even Citymapper can calibrate an alternative route through the crush fast enough. Cartographers Robert Morden and Philip Lea must have had it tougher, though. The plotters were the first to map out the rabbit warren that is Soho way back in the 17th century. Michelin-starred Mark Sargeant certainly knows how to navigate his way around a kitchen, but it stands to reason that he must appreciate a good A to Z too. After all, he’s named his latest venture after the pair. Morden & Lea’s brasserie-style dining and freshlypainted seaside blue façade looks rather conspicuous among the dumpling dens and noodle bars on the fringes of China Town. Split over two floors, downstairs is a relaxed, no-reservations space for anyone who wants to grab a broad bean, pea and pecorino tartine, or a crab sausage roll from 11am until late. Upstairs is a more elegant affair, with a fixed-priced dinner menu (£35 per person for three courses) cooked by head chef Daniel Mertl who

arrives via stints at Chez Bruce, The Savoy and La Gavroche. We take our seats under the glass atrium, admiring the tan leather booths, clusters of bright artwork and the 50 shades of oatmeal colour scheme, as we sip jasmine tea-infused Wardour St Spritz cocktails. There is nothing on the menu that I couldn’t eat. Last suppers are made of things like glazed Goosnargh chicken wings with potato dumplings and girolles or miso Cornish mackerel with oyster dressing. In the end we settle for cumin roast quail. Tender gamey morsels of quail skirt a smoky baba ganoush-style aubergine purée, with polenta chip batons the same orange as Captain Birdseye’s fish fingers that turn out to be much more appetising than they look. A plate of pot roast loin of Dingley Dell pork turns out to be wafer thin, almost translucent, and not the Sunday roast style fare that we expected, but tasty all the same. Accompanied by an anchovy mayonnaise and shavings of pickled

Upstairs is a more elegant affair, with a fixed-priced dinner menu

summer vegetables, it’s a sort of carnivore’s version of a salad, and a light and utterly flavoursome one at that. Our mains are similarly faultless. I don’t think my fillet of cod with black rice, chorizo, courgettes and baby squid can be topped, until I try my friend’s loin of Romney Marsh lamb – a rich, salty mélange of crispy breast, glazed potatoes and field mushrooms, which is so good a fork fight breaks out. A ceasefire lasts while we finish the last of an excellent Chilean Pinot Noir, which goes equally well with both the fish and meat, but fork-on-fork conflict resumes when pudding arrives. This time I have the upper hand. The Gyspy Tart is practically trending on the restaurant’s Twitter page, so I decide to see what all the fuss is about. It resembles a mousse-like treacle tart and tastes like the most delicious, slightly burnt, Crunchie. Apparently it’s frothy texture means it only lasts three hours before sinking, although there’s no danger of that happening here. I practically roll out of our booth: dinner is definitely worth every penny of its £35 price tag. Next time you’re lost in theatre land, hunt out Morden & Lea – it’s putting this stretch of Soho back on the culinary map. n

17 Wardour Street, W1D

chef’s

table

Having diced, broiled and blanched under Jason Atherton’s watchful eye for the last four years, Frankie Van Loo is now heading up the famous chef’s latest opening, Marylebone’s Social Wine & Tapas. He tells Kari Colmans about his favourite dishes and admits to the occasional cheeky Domino’s pizza

food&drink

ooking is something that I’ve always done. My eldest brother worked as a chef for about four or five years, so I think that’s probably how I was first introduced to it. When I was at school I worked part time as a chef in a local restaurant up in Yorkshire – that’s where I’m from. I cooked my first meal at the age of 16, but I don’t remember what it was. However, when I was 18 I did the cooking for my uncle’s wedding. Looking back, it was pretty brave, although it was mainly a cold buffet. I did make trifle for dessert though. I started working with Jason about four years ago. I did a couple of years at Pollen Street Social, and then I moved across to Soho when we opened the Social Eating House. I was there for two years and now I’m here. I’ve learned so much from him and continue to do so as part of a chef’s partnership. Your skills as a chef develop by observing other people’s cooking styles and techniques. You also learn how to organise a kitchen. Jason’s business mind is very sharp – he has opened more than a dozen successful restaurants in four years – so you learn that side of things too. The menu we designed at Social Wine & Tapas blends traditional Spanish elements with more modern European style cooking, but then there are also some Asian influences too. Jason has a few restaurants over in Asia – Singapore, Shanghai and Hong Kong – and I’ve been over to Hong Kong about four times now. We see the style, techniques and flavours that they are using over there and we bring them back with us and introduce

“I think that the food scene in London is one of the best in the world because it’s such a diverse city with a lot going on” them to the food that we do over here. I’ve also spent a lot of time in France, Austria and Melbourne. My favourite dish on the Social Wine & Tapas menu is probably the slow-cooked hen’s egg with oxtail dashi and creamed potato. Also the crème Catalan from the desserts – I really like that dish. The broccoli salad with the pear and air-dried tuna is also a winner, as is the carrot dish with walnut pesto. I think that the food scene in London is one of the best in the world because it’s such a diverse city with a lot going on, so we don’t often have to look outside of it for influences. You can go to small restaurants that aren’t well known but are doing something completely different. Apart from Jason’s restaurants, there’s a French place in Mayfair that I like to eat in called Le Boudin Blanc. On my days off I still cook at home for my girlfriend. But when you’re cooking all week at work it’s quite nice just to do something simple. We eat a lot of fresh fish and salads. But if she’s at work, I may just order a Domino’s. n

Social Wine & Tapas, 39 James Street, W1U

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wish list

A Warm Welcombe No summer season would be complete without some alfresco dining and the English countryside is the perfect place to do it. The Welcombe Hotel is a picturesque, Jacobean-style country house retreat close to the historic town of StratfordUpon-Avon, complete with four-poster bedroom suites, an 18-hole championship golf course, and a 2 AA Rosette award-winning restaurant. We suggest trying the Summer Garden Afternoon Gin Tea (ÂŁ29.50pp), which includes a refreshing Hendricks gin and tonic, presented in a china tea pot over ice and lemon, alongside luxury finger sandwiches, miniature open rolls, freshly baked scones and delicate sweet treats, as well as loose leaf tea or coffee.

Luxury summer countryside escape to the Welcombe Hotel, from ÂŁ125pp (based on two sharing); includes overnight stay, breakfast, use of spa and golf club facilities and Summer Garden Afternoon Gin Tea for two; menzieshotels.co.uk

TRAVEL in style HOT SPOT in August

Bath, UK Celebrate the natural beauty of England in the heritage-filled spa city of Bath For those seeking a cultural getaway without the hassle of boarding a plane, Bath is the ideal destination. Famed for its Georgian architecture in warm, honeyed tones of oolitic limestone, the regal city oozes period charm. And of course, no visit would be complete without a trip to the Roman Baths, constructed in 70 AD when the area was founded on top of natural springs. Today, spa seekers can still lap up the mineral-rich waters like their toga wearing ancestors did at the Thermae Bath Spa. But it’s not all about relaxation; the Bath Folk Festival (8-16 August) will host a lively showcase of internationally acclaimed acts alongside local talent at venues across the city. Step back in time at The Royal Crescent Hotel & Spa, which boasts Georgian allure and 18th-century decadence at every turn. As first impressions go, the hotel is rather majestic: standing grand at the centre of John Wood the Younger’s curved terrace of houses, it overlooks a stretch of lawn with a view of Bath and beyond. The Grade I-listed hotel has 45 bedrooms and suites, a croquet lawn and an awardwinning restaurant, Dower House. There’s also a beautiful spa too, so you can enjoy some pampering without venturing too far from your room.

From £265 a night for a classic double room, royalcrescent.co.uk

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Me time Famous for its portfolio of impressive rooftop spaces – including ME London’s popular Radio Rooftop Bar – ME by Meliá has unveiled its second sky-high watering hole at the hotly anticipated ME Milan Il Duca. Situated in the city’s fashion and design district and occupying a building originally designed by the late architect Aldo Rossi, this is the brand’s first Italian outpost, with 132 luxurious rooms. Tradition is sidelined for a contemporary feel and this filters down from the décor to the hotel’s culinary offerings. Enjoy a juicy fillet steak with parmesan truffle fries from STK Milan followed by a night cap at the alfresco bar.

Rooms from £225 a night, mebymelia.com

Maxximum impact

winter Escape winners from it all 

SHORT HAUL



Holding the fort When it comes to R&R, a former military fortress might not be the first destination that springs to mind, but in spite of its drawbridge and bunkers, Cap Rocat is the most romantic of hideaways. This summer sees the launch of three secluded new suites: the Sentinels. Carved into the rock, the former surveillance towers overlook the Bay of Palma and offer guests total privacy. Enjoy the uninterrupted views from the secluded terrace and plunge pool without another soul in sight.

Rooms from £640 a night, caprocat.com

With a 400-metre stretch of private beach and a vast pine forest skirting the Taurus Mountains to explore, Maxx Royal Kemer Resort has plenty of space for guests to stretch their legs in the Turkish sun. Officially completed at the beginning of the summer, the resort hopes to redefine the all-inclusive concept, with 11 bars, numerous restaurants serving up everything from sushi to steak, a traditional hammam and a sports academy where you can learn to fly-board, parasail, scuba dive, paraglide and plenty more besides.

All-inclusive packages from £335 a night, maxxroyal.com 

LONG HAUL



Peace and quiet

Grapes of wrath Get to grips with wine in all its guises at Six Senses Douro Valley, where tastings are complemented by grape-based treatments at its 24,000 sq ft spa. Guests can enjoy vintages paired with Portuguese tapas before retiring to the meditation nests dotted around the green slopes of the spectacular UNESCO World Heritage valley. If that’s not enough to have you nodding off, then Six Senses’ first European outpost also has a roll call of wellness experts; we recommend the popular yogic sleep program, followed by a night cap in the Wine Library.

Nelson Mandela’s former residence has opened as a retreat. Situated in the serene and unspoilt Shambala Private Game Reserve, The Nelson Mandela Centre for Reconciliation has six double bedrooms, an indoor pool and a large outdoor deck with views of the rugged wilderness. Unwind while your stay is taken care of by your own private chef, butler and team of guides, who can arrange activities such as night time game drives and stargazing trips.

From £3,794 a night for up to 12 people, zulucamp.co.za

Rooms from £210 a night, sixsenses.com

deux en

provence With a new direct Eurostar service from London St Pancras to Avignon, Jennifer Mason enjoys a weekend of peace and quiet in the beautiful French countryside

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’ve always loved the south of France. Something about the rolling hills, the craggy cliffs, the olive groves and grape vines, the fields of blooming lavender and the gentle hissing of cicadas in the evening spell out relaxation in a manner unlike other parts of the world. However, I often find the rigmarole at both ends of a short flight a particularly stressful start to a mini-break. Thankfully, a solution has recently been presented in the form of a new direct Eurostar service from London St Pancras to Avignon. It might take around six hours, but no change is required in Paris and it’s a smooth ride all the way (especially if you’re travelling in Standard Premier). As the train pulls into Avignon, the sun is out and it’s a warm and beautiful day. We’re headed for the Domaine de Manville hotel just outside the city, a veritable palace set in 100 hectares of the Alpilles National Regional Park in the heart of Provence. Restored by heritage architect Mireille Pellen, the hotel embraces the timeless feel of a French domaine while including modern accents like industrial steel walkways and metal-framed glasshouses – two seemingly contrasting elements that somehow work. The suite boasts a similar mélange; deep, rich hues are balanced with the crisp white sheets on the enormous bed and glossy metallic fixtures in the sumptuous bathroom. It’s all I can do not to succumb for an afternoon nap, but instead my partner and I opt for a bike ride in the beautiful surrounding countryside. As neither of us are golfers (making us rather the odd ones out) we instead decide to try out the hotel’s electric bicycles that guests can borrow to help them navigate the hilly locale. Although these feel rather precarious as we explore (the eco-responsible golf course is hewn into the landscape so as to blend in with the local habitat), once we’re out on the open road, zooming along with relatively little effort is huge amounts of fun. Followed by a couple’s treatment in the spa, it’s an invigorating way to end our first day. Unsurprisingly, food takes centre stage here. Currently seeking its first Michelin star, head chef Steve Deconinck and his team at The Restaurant use locally sourced, seasonal ingredients and take their inspiration from the Alpilles mountain range and Provence. At Le Bistrot things are a little more low key – hearty Provençal classics and sharing dishes sustain hungry golfers as they take a midday break. The most visually stunning dining location at Domaine de Manville treats those who rise early enough for breakfast, though. The Winter Garden, with its bold architecture, accessorised with touches of shabby-chic and vintage French glamour, is the perfect setting for a classic petit déjeuner. One of the must-see attractions for those staying in the region is the nearby town of Les Baux-deProvence. Perched high atop the rocky Alpilles, the earliest remains of this picturesque village date back

to the 10th century and it boasts the traditional small squares, well-shaded terraces, narrow streets and small shops you’d expect from a medieval settlement. Visitors can even explore the original castle ruins, which offer unmatched views across the countryside and even practical and dramatic demonstrations of medieval weaponry. It’s certainly the first time I’ve seen a traditional trebuchet fired. Not far from the village is one of the most unusual and inspiring art exhibitions you’ll find anywhere in the world. The Carrières de Lumières (Quarries of Light) are a unique set of rooms carved into the rock where, each year, art displays are broadcast onto the walls. The chilled, cavernous spaces provide welcome relief for hot and bothered tourists affected by the summer heat, and this year’s exhibition, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael: Giants of the Renaissance showcases some of the most famous works of art, blown up digitally, set to classical music and projected onto the interior walls of the quarry in an atmospheric lightshow. It’s a magical experience, the perfect way to round off our weekend in Provence, and certainly gives me something to daydream about on the train ride back to London. n

The hotel embraces the timeless feel of a French domaine while including modern accents

Les Baux- de-Provence © Jennifer Mason

 NEED TO KNOW  Eurostar London St Pancras to Avignon: fares from £89 return in Standard Class and £189 in Standard Premier. To book, call 03432 186 186 or visit eurostar.com Stay at Domaine de Manville from €250 per room per night based on two sharing on a B&B basis. To book, call +33 (0)490 544 020 or visit domainedemanville.fr

It’s all so

QUIET While often the preserve of the party set, Ibiza can also be a great place for some R&R. Elle Blakeman visits the new Sol Beach House on the sleepy coast of Santa Eulalia to enjoy a different side to the Spanish island

ntil now, a beach house was never on my things to buy if I win the lottery list. A driver, a Primrose Hill mansion and a 24/7 personal trainer with the ability to follow me around and knock an almond croissant out of my hand at ten paces... these were my top three. However, having visited the new Sol Beach House on the quiet, pretty coast of Santa Eulalia, I may need to rethink. Like most of Ibiza, this place has embraced the hippy-meets-luxe brand of travel that keeps people returning every summer to stock up on healing massages and sunset Instagrams and enough peace and goodwill to see you through till Christmas, when you are legitimately allowed to get it from alcohol. While Ibiza is of course known as the world’s party island, its roots lay in the unspoiled beauty and the spirituality of the island, all the things that drew the party set over in the first place. Es Vedrà, the island’s famous rock formation, is said to be the third most magnetic place on earth (after the north and south poles) and many believe that this is what gives Ibiza its inherent otherworldliness. Sol Beach House is for the people who are more interested in exploring this side of the island. Taking it’s cue from sister hotel the ME Ibiza, just a few minutes

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up the coast, the bright and welcoming lobby is almost spa-like, with flowing white linen curtains and giant mirrors. An old-fashioned welcome sign greets you as you walk in, placed next to a water jug filled with blood oranges with another sign telling you to ‘Enjoy Every Drop’ (note the capitals). Over the next few days I come to see that signage is a key part of the décor here; I am constantly reminded to ‘Slow Down’, ‘Seize The Day’ or ‘Head For The Beach’ and start to feel like I’m in a retirement home where I can’t be trusted to remember anything (especially when I see the 8ft signs declaring ‘fork’ ‘knife’ and ‘spoon’ in the dining room). But by the end I decide that it is all part of the Sol Beach House’s charm. However, unlike the ME Ibiza, which feels like a place to top up your tan and crash between parties (more than a little aided by the adjacent Nikki Beach and its resident DJs), the Beach House lives up to it’s name, with an airy, unrushed atmosphere that promises true R&R. While most hotels on the island are flanked by other party hotspots, and full of I-got-in-at-8am-revellers

(this is Ibiza after all), the Sol Beach House is carved into a jagged piece of coastline at the very edge of the bay, so that all you hear at night are the waves crashing against the rocks. There’s a decidedly wholesome vibe, and everywhere you look there are orange trees and cherry tomato plants or bikes that you are encouraged to use (another sign!) to explore the unspoiled area around it. There is no fancy spa, but you can book a fantastic – and relatively inexpensive – massage on the beach under a pretty gazebo in a fallen pine tree. Should you be the sort that also requires the fancy spa – and I am – there is the brilliant Aguas de Ibiza Hotel & Spa just a stone’s throw away, where you can book in for a Clarins treatment (outstanding) and make use of the many various pools in the ‘spa circuit’, a phrase I loved for it’s implied hardship. A couple of hours of water jets, steam rooms and cold plunge pools and you will feel like a new person. The rooms at Sol continue in this wholesome vein and each is designed to feel like your very own private beach house – all painted white decking and bookshelves stacked with intriguing sounding titles that you’ll never read (The Death of Common Sense anyone?). Huge beds overlook the ocean below, while our outdoor porch even comes complete with an exercise bike (which goes completely unused, but I like knowing it’s there). The bathroom – containing a tub you could swim in – is separated from the bedroom only by glass, meaning that you can enjoy the sea view even while bathing (and also that you will soon be on very close terms with whoever you are travelling with). Despite the stylish rooms, true to the ME formula, there is a definite encouragement to spend time outside, with two large pools, each surrounded by striped coffee-and-cream hued daybeds and several outdoor ‘living rooms’ – complete with sofas, coffee tables, lamps and rugs – giving the effect of a chic London member’s club, only without the social media bores. At night we sip Rioja in one of the outdoor living rooms, listen to the waves roll in and watch the twinkling lights from the parties across the coast, content in the knowledge that we will probably feel a lot better in the morning than most of the other islanders… n

The rooms at Sol continue in this wholesome vein and each is designed to feel like your very own private beach house

Rooms at Sol Beach House from €190, melia.com

The Norman has been billed as Tel Avivâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s long-awaited answer to a London-standard five-star hotel, but Kari Colmans isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t quite sure what to make of it

mirage

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A DESERT

nlike other popular holiday destinations – the Caribbean, the Far East, Western Europe – nobody could ever claim to frequent Tel Aviv for the charm of its most expensive hotels. Because that’s not why people spend their precious spring and summer holidays in this buzzing, still very much burgeoning city. You put up with long-established chains that are average at best, because at the end of the day, Israel is like a second home. You will yourself to turn a blind eye to the Soviet-chic swimming pools, the lack of in-house lunch on a Saturday (except cholent of course – exactly what you want in the heat) and the surly demands for a tip from the waiter whom you’ve managed to flag down after an hour of frantic waving while he smoked his rollie and glowered directly at you behind his Oakleys, before eventually pointing in the direction of the cooler (you’ll only get that kind of brown-nosing at the five-star hotels, mind). And you’re pretty sure he didn’t mean to give you the finger. So when news hit Hampstead Heath at the tail-end of last summer that a proper, London-standard luxury property had opened its doors in the heart of Israel’s most vibrant and cosmopolitan city, people got very excited indeed. Will there be pool service? Will I be able to get bacon with my full English? Will someone come and move my parasol… for me? Well, kind of. First, the good stuff. Décor guru David d’Almada (who was behind the interior design of The Arts Club) has a tasteful and unique flair, which certainly makes The Norman feel like a Mount Street or Avenue Montaigne-standard establishment. Set across two historic buildings, the duck-egg blue art-deco frontage wouldn’t look out of place in Miami, and sitting outside having breakfast on the hotel restaurant terrace, it’s as if you’ve been transported from the Dover Street members’ club’s serene, mirror-and-tile garden to somewhere far more exotic. Tables are nicely spaced out, framed by benches with mushroom-coloured cushions, and it’s a pleasure

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Upstairs on the rooftop deck and the dark, twinkling infinity pool and soft beds to kick back and enjoy a full à la carte breakfast in the soft morning sun without having to gear yourself up for a bunfight at the egg station or, if you’d prefer, inside at the equally good-looking restaurant with its dove-grey walls and smart mirrored bar. In fact, the breakfast menu is one of the best I’ve seen, and by the end of my week-long stay, I have tried everything at least once: French toast with braised nectarines and crème fraîche; crêpes filled with cooked apple, yogurt and hazelnuts; and a range of regional egg combinations (with or without treif). Juices are varied and enticing, and the warm brioche rolls served before mains are worth fighting over (although the lunch offering at the same restaurant is not so inspiring, and I walk past it every day without stopping to eat once). The only issues arise when you ask for anything out of the ordinary: “Do you have avocado?” I enquire every morning for four days until the English manager (who also hails from the aforementioned members’ club) makes it his business to go over the road and purchase one in the land of milk and avocados; “Do you have a table in the shade?” – I can spot four – to which I get a non-commital mumble about VIPs from the waiter. Back upstairs, and d’Almada’s sophisticated vision is omnipresent from the sleek common areas to the Library Bar and the bedrooms. Housed in a Classic Suite, the blush leather headboard and hanging lights are so pretty

that I want to take them home, but the size of the space is a bit of an issue. The bathroom (a shower cubicle, toilet and sink) is crammed into a capsule too small to fit more than one person at a time, and it’s a squeeze trying to step out of the shower without knocking over our stacked up toiletries due to an absence of storage space. Bedroom drawers are sparse to the point where I have to empty the mini bar tray out onto the corner desk in order to use it for my smalls, and the whole room ends up looking a tip in the space of five minutes, but there is nothing to be done. Even the far larger and grander Corner Suite lacks simple spaces for clothes, although it does benefit from an enormous sink-in bathtub, and a lustrous strawberries-and-cream palette, complete with a fun, flapper girl-inspired feather light. Upstairs on the rooftop deck and the dark, twinkling infinity pool and soft beds are a veritable mirage in comparison to the heaving beach or other vast hotel pools at the David InterContinental, Dan Panorama or Royal Beach. But with around 15 loungers to accomodate 50 rooms (only four of which face the pool and can be manoeuvred in or out of the sun) you can’t even blame the Germans for the kind of earlymorning bed-snatching that ensues. There are no waiters or pool boys present and as a result, the well-established economy for schtipping and chupping takes a frantic plunge. And this isn’t just a seating problem: on my first day, I ask the only non-guest present at the pool (a charismatic lifeguard) how one is supposed to obtain a drink. He signals that I’m to go down the steep flight of stairs to the ‘wellness centre’ (a room with a massage table and a small gym) and retrieve a bottle of water myself. How about a juice, I enquire? No juice up here or after breakfast hours. Fruit plate? Head shake. “We have sushi?” he offers me, the pregnant lady at 10:30am, desperate to quench

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are a veritable mirage in comparison to the heaving beach or other vast hotel pools my thirst. “I’d like something more along the lines of a lemonade to be honest.” He snorts. “You want me to get you a Big Mac too?” In the end, my husband dashes over the road to the coffee shop, which then leads the lifeguard to chastise us in front of the entire pool area for bringing outside food in. “I’m just saying, it is very poor taste,” he laments. When I reply that it was under his instruction, he clarifies that he meant me to go out, and eat out, before returning. A Mexican wave of jaws drop around the pool. He is later given a talking to and smiles by way of an apology (“I was having a joke”) and we are told that the lifeguards (for the minuscule and very shallow pool) are hired via an agency, and don’t actually work for the hotel. But considering he sits there all day doing nothing but working on his tan (next to an extra chair for his feet while paying guests are turned away), a permanently stationed waiter or towel fluffer really wouldn’t hurt. However, not all staff are so gruff, and there are a handful of helpful members who fall over themselves to make up for the embarrassing shortfalls of their peers. A particularly apologetic Scouser and two Israelies ply us with complimentary juices and platters (which of course you can get if you put your foot down, a tactic we perfected in the end) when they get wind of the pointless refusals for things that of course they can accommodate if not from one kitchen, then from another. As for the rest of the culinary offering, the pool-side menu boasts a minute taster of the Dinings restaurant, or a compact room service selection. Marylebone’s Dinings has an almost cult-like status for its everchanging Spanish and Japanese specials, and it’s a family favourite for birthdays. As a place to spend an evening, the Tel Aviv outpost is far more luxurious, with a smart inside space and an atmospheric outside terrace. Here,

the service is exactly what you’d expect; razor-sharp attention to detail, all smiles and helpful nods. The menu offers a range of Japanese flavours, but with less of the fusion plates for which the London outpost is renowned. That’s not to say it isn’t as good, but it’s not the same, or even similar, focusing on classic rolls, new-style sashimi and tartare tacos (which you do get at the original). The menu also encompasses a number of dishes prepared in the open kitchen such as lobster tempura and grilled sweet chilli and miso-marinated black cod, which is one of the best I’ve ever had. On the night we visit, they prepare two unique and tailored tasting menus just for us, which is a fantastic way for guests to get a varied sampling of the menu, and a route I’d highly recommend. They ask for any dietary requirements, and we go for a raw, seafood and foie gras-laden banquet with all the goodies for my other half, and a fully vegetarian or cooked range for me. Nothing is too much trouble, and each dish is better than the last, all of which keep coming until we hold up our white napkins in surrender. If the service and attention to detail executed here were extended elsewhere, then there wouldn’t be a bad word to say. So is The Norman the answer to our Tel Aviv holiday prayers? It could be. The food is exemplary, (providing you want what is on the right kind of menu, served by the right kind of waiter, at a convenient time). And bar the lack of drawers for your drawers, the common areas, bedrooms and restaurants are all designed beautifully. The pool is also very striking, there’s just a lack of space, especially during the peak May-July abroad wedding season; for beds, for staff, for anyone wanting to spend a full week horizontal catching the rays by day. Although I’m not sure what can be done about that now. But when all is said and done, it really just comes down to service, and a ‘computer says no’ attitude that has mired any past attempts at reaching the truly five-star holy grail. And until that small but integral hurdle is conquered, the desert will remain dry. n

Rooms at The Norman from £240 a night, thenorman.com

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A river runs through it Karen Bowerman drifts from Mandalay to Bagan on board the Sanctuary Ananda luxury river cruise, absorbing the beauty of golden pagodas and the saffron silhouettes of praying monks

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f we were going to be stranded on a sandbank, then we might as well be stranded in style. That’s how I saw it, anyway, when word went round that we were going to be “dumped on a dune" for dinner – my turn of phrase, of course. The crew of the Sanctuary Ananda, the latest luxury river boat to be launched in Myanmar, would never have said (or done) such a thing. Rather, as evening fell, they led us, cocktails in hand, from the boat’s balmy sundeck, down a torch-lit gangplank, complete with red carpet, onto a sand bar lit with lanterns. It was the final evening of our four night cruise along the Ayeyarwady, Myanmar’s main river, and it seemed everyone, and everything, was pulling out all the stops. As I stepped onto the sandbank, transformed by the crew into an island dining room, gold stupas (mound-shaped meditation buildings) gleamed across the water, a laser show at a distant temple sent lights shooting into the sky and directly above hung a brilliant blood moon, crimson and colossal, as if it had been plucked from afar and set with precision to form the centrepiece of our exclusive tableau. “What’s wrong with being stranded?” It glinted, teasingly. “Surely things can’t get much better than this?” Squid and chicken browning on a barbecue, prawns and soft shell crab sizzling in a wok and an array of salads including spicy beef, and green papaya and shrimp, all laid out on linen-covered tables, seem to suggest that, somehow, things could. We dined by candlelight, the Ayeyarwady flowing silently around us. My first stop on Sanctuary Retreats’ cruise from Mandalay to Bagan was Sagaing, where the hills looked as if they’d erupted in gold pagodas (buddhist temples). My guide, Tin Mi, took me to Soon U Ponya, an important shrine. “We’re a devout country,” she said. “All of us are Buddhists. Our bedtime stories are Buddha’s stories, his works and his teaching.” Next to us a teenage monk, his shaven head bowed, slipped

his hand into his saffron robe. “We’re Buddhists but also tourists,” he added, pulling out an iPad to take a photo. That evening we visited U Bein Bridge for sunset. It’s the longest teak bridge in the world, snaking 1.2km over Lake Taungthaman. As a boatman rowed us across the water, traditional music, tinkling like wind chimes, echoed from the shore. The sun dipped below the bridge’s slatted walkway, playing hide and seek among its ancient stilts; a bicycle, the pleat of a monk’s robe, a camera bumping against a tourist’s chest, all became silhouettes. The sky turned lilac and gold, and Tin Mi offered us champagne. The next day, my personal butler delivered early morning tea “steeped for exactly five minutes” to my suite. (There are 21 on board, all with views of the water). I sat outside and watched the Ayeyarwady come alive. Women, wrapped in traditional longyis (sarongs) did their washing; youths, bent beneath sacks of grain, offloaded boats; a tug shunted a barge of teak logs down the river. As the morning drew on, I slipped away for a glorious massage at the spa, and then considered a cocktail. “I can make whatever you like,” the bartender, Lal Muan, said, eager to please. In the end I chose a glass of rosé from vines grown near Myanmar’s Lake Inle: perfect for sipping in the sun.

The sun dipped below the bridge’s slatted walkway, playing hide and seek

Karaweik Palace, Yangon

A bagan temple

The terrace on the Sanctuary Ananda

The Luxury Suite

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At Mingun, we moored right next to the riverbank, thanks to Sanctuary Ananda’s extremely shallow hull. Our guides encouraged us to try the local transport; it was an unusual taxi rank: a row of ox carts, pimped for the ride. They have curved roofs for shade and matting for comfort, and looked as if they would have been better suited to pioneers in the Wild West. But they are daubed with the slogan ‘Taxi=taxi’, in case there is any doubt. My driver, whose grin reveals missing teeth, bumped me all the way to the local temple and back, his two oxen never quite getting into sync. I started a conversation about suspension but abandoned it, although my guide, Myo, did his best to translate. “What would you like to do now?” he asked afterwards, when he realised we had time to spare, “Taittinger’s being served on board.” Much to his astonishment, I asked if we could bump around again (it was a novel experience). “Whatever you wish,” he said, gesturing to the driver. “I am here to please.” Over the next couple of days we sailed leisurely and ate sumptuously; meals included butter fish wrapped in banana leaves and an exquisite green curry. We visited a cheroot “factory” in Pakokku where women sat among tobacco leaves, rolling cigars; a lacquerware workshop in Myinkaba and a jaggery where a man scoots up a toddy palm to collect sap to make sugar for sweets. On our last morning, we disembarked at Bagan and flew to Yangon to be met by our guide, Goldene in an eye-catching 1940s Chevrolet. It comes with a liveried hostess who emerges, genie-like, to offer juice and candies and who popped out first at every stop to thoughtfully position a stool. We enjoyed an exclusive lunch with Ma Thanegi, the former personal assistant of Aung San Suu Kyi, the pro-democracy opposition leader, at the famous Strand Hotel (Rudyard Kipling, Mick Jagger and David Rockefeller are all former patrons) and spent the evening at Shwedagon pagoda. There, discovering I was born on the day of the guinea pig, Goldene took me to a rather endearing statue of the creature, which I dowsed with water in thanks. Finally, as darkness fell, my small group was invited to light the oil lamps at the foot of the golden stupa. It’s a special honour granted to pilgrims, but it was clear we could give it as much or as little spiritual significance as we like. As such, it is an approach which seems to typify that of the Sanctuary Ananda; everyone wants to make sure we enjoy ourselves, whatever way we please. n

 NEED TO KNOW  A six night trip with Abercrombie & Kent including a four night cruise on Sanctuary Ananda from Mandalay to Bagan costs £2,095 per person, including international flights and accommodation in Yangon. abercrombiekent.co.uk; sanctuaryretreats.com

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Property Listings See below for estate agents in your area

Arlington Residential 8 Wellington Road NW8 9SP 020 7722 3322 arlingtonresidential.co.uk

Hanover Residential 102 St John’s Wood Terrace NW8 6PL 020 7722 2223

Laurence Leigh 60 Queens Grove NW8 6ER 020 7483 0101 laurenceleigh.com

49 Welbeck Street W1G 9XN 020 8128 0675 hanover-residential.com

Marsh & Parsons 35 Maida Vale W9 1TP 020 7368 4458

Aston Chase 69 / 71 Park Road NW1 6XU 020 7724 4724 astonchase.com

ian green residential 28 De Walden House Allitsen Road, NW8 020 7586 1000 iangreenresidential.com

27 Parkway NW1 7PN 020 7244 2200 91 Salusbury Road NW6 6NH 020 7624 4513 marshandparsons.co.uk

Globe Apartments 45 Chiltern Street London W1U 6LU 020 7034 3430 globeapt.com

RUNWILD MEDIA GROUP

108

Savills 7 Perrin’s Court NW3 1QS 020 7472 5000 15 St John’s Wood High Street NW8 7NG 020 3043 3600 savills.co.uk

savills.co.uk Knight Frank 5-7 Wellington Place NW8 7PB 020 7586 2777

Hamptons International 99 St John’s Wood Terrace NW8 6PL 020 7717 5319 21 Heath Street NW3 6TR 020 7717 5301 hamptons.co.uk

PHILLIPS HARROD 85-87 Bayham Street NW1 OAG 0207 1234 152 phillipsharrod.com

79-81 Heath Street NW3 6UG 020 7431 8686

Parkheath 208 Haverstock Hill NW3 2AG 020 7431 1234

55 Baker Street W1U 8EW 020 3435 6440

8a Canfield Gardens NW6 3BS 020 7625 4567

60 Salusbury Road NW6 6NP 020 3815 3020

192 West End Lane NW6 1SG 020 7794 7111

2c England’s Lane NW3 4TG 020 3815 3350 knightfrank.co.uk

148 Kentish Town Road NW1 9QB 020 7485 0400 parkheath.com

TK International 16-20 Heath Street NW3 6TE 020 7794 8700 t-k.co.uk

If you would like to appear within the property pages of VANTAGE, contact Friday Dalrymple, property manager, on 020 7987 4320 or f.dalrymple@runwildgroup.co.uk

Vantage P R O P E RT Y

showcasing the

finest HOMES & PROPERTY from the best estate agents

Elegant & exclusive The latest prime properties

Image courtesy of Parkheath

Tennyson Road, Queen's Park NW6 Traditional three bedroom house with garden for sale Located in the heart of Queen's Park, is this very attractive family house with traditional features. 3 bedrooms, bathroom, reception room, dining room and kitchen. The house benefits from a beautifully maintained garden. EPC: D. Approximately 113.5 sq m (1,222 sq ft). Freehold

Guide price: £1,200,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/queenspark queenspark@knightfrank.com 0208 022 5466

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/QPK150076

Vantage - July - Queen's Park

08/07/2015 17:41:18

Keslake Road, Queen's Park NW6 Four bedroom house in exceptional condition for sale Located on one of the most sought after streets in Queen’s Park is this newly refurbished, end of terrace house. 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, double reception room, open plan kitchen/dining room and garden. EPC: D. Approximately 190 sq m (2,055 sq ft). Freehold

Guide price: £2,250,000 KnightFrank.co.uk/QPK150071

KnightFrank.co.uk/queenspark queenspark@knightfrank.com 0208 022 5466

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

Vantage - July - Queen's Park

08/07/2015 17:41:18

St. Pancras Chambers, Kings Cross NW1 Unique triplex Penthouse in St. Pancras Chambers The development is located for transport links from Kings Cross St. Pancras and Eurostar services to Europe. Master bedroom with en suite bathroom and dressing room, 2 further bedrooms with en suite bathrooms and dressing rooms, living room, games room, cinema room, dining area, kitchen, guest WC, leisure facilities, concierge, private parking. Approximately 286 sq m (3,077 sq ft). Leasehold

Guide price: £6,550,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/st-johns-wood stjohnswood@knightfrank.com 020 7586 2777

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/SJW150170

5.35 St Panrcas Chambers - Vantage August 2015 -v2

06/07/2015 16:14:14

Marlborough Place, St John's Wood NW8 Low built detached five bedroom house Located on one of the prime roads on the west side of St John's Wood. On the market for the first time in 27 years, with a beautifully landscaped garden and sitting behind a gated wall. Master bedroom with dressing room and en suite bathroom, 4 further bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, sitting room, reception, dining room, kitchen/breakfast room, garage, off street parking for 3 cars, garden. EPC: E. Approximately 368 sq m (3,959 sq ft). Freehold

Guide price: £9,000,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/st-johns-wood stjohnswood@knightfrank.com 020 7586 2777

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/SJW140238

17 Marlborough Place - Vantage August 2015 -v6

07/07/2015 18:05:46

Chamberlain Street, Primrose Hill NW1 Four bedroom family home Situated in the heart of the Village lies this immaculately presented town house. The property has excellent light and entertaining space throughout with an attractive garden to the rear plus a south facing roof terrace. 4 bedrooms (1 with en suite and terrace), family bathroom, kitchen/dining room, reception room, study, garden. EPC: C. Approximately 231.34 sq m (2,487 sq ft). Freehold

Guide price: £3,850,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/belsizepark belsizepark@knightfrank.com 020 8022 5461

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/BSZ150030

Vantage August 2015 Chamberlain Street

10/07/2015 13:58:50

Chalcot Gardens, Belsize Park NW3 Imposing Arts & Crafts detached period house Offered for sale is this unique period house, built in 1883 by a leading Arts and Crafts architect. The house is located centrally in Belsize Park in an exceptional, secluded private road. Master bedroom with en suite bathroom, 6 further bedrooms, family bathroom, shower room, drawing room with balcony, garden room, studio, kitchen/breakfast room, front and rear gardens, private parking. EPC: E. Approximately 383.2 sq m (4,125 sq ft). Freehold

Guide price: £6,500,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/belsizepark belsizepark@knightfrank.com 020 8022 5461

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/HAM130280

Vantage August 2015 Chalcot

10/07/2015 14:03:32

RUDGWICK TERRACE ST JOHN’S WOOD NW8 FREEHOLD £5,750,000 JOINT SOLE AGENT

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A substantial end of terrace five bedroom freehold house (336sq m/3,619sq ft) arranged over four floors and presented in excellent condition throughout, benefitting from a private rear garden and off-street parking for three cars. The property is situated on a private road just off Avenue Road, moments from the open spaces of Primrose Hill and Regent's Park, and close to St John's Wood High Street with all its fashionable shops, restaurants and St John's Wood Underground Station (Jubilee Line).

ACCOMMODATION AND AMENITIES Principal bedroom with en-suite bathroom & dressing room, bedroom 2 with en-suite shower room, 3/4 further bedrooms (1 with en-suite shower room), TV room/ bedroom 6, family bathroom, shower room, dressing room, fitted kitchen, dining room, reception area, utility room, guest cloakroom, air conditioning, balcony with staircase leading to garden, 2 terraces, rear garden, off-street parking for 3 cars. EPC=C.

10/07/2015 15:47

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astonchase.com

WARWICK AVENUE LITTLE VENICE W9 FREEHOLD £11,995,000 JOINT SOLE AGENT

15:47

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6 9 – 7 1 PA R K R O A D LO N D O N N W 1 6XU 020 7 7 24 47 24

A Grade ll Listed, white Stucco fronted home (454sq m/4,890sq ft) with extremely well planned accommodation, a lift servicing three floors and a separate lock-up garage situated in Warwick Place. The property has a 95' garden with direct access to the communal gardens, which includes the use of a tennis court and children’s play area. Warwick Avenue is located moments from the amenities of Clifton Road, the picturesque Regent's Canal and Warwick Avenue Underground Station (Bakerloo Line).

ACCOMMODATION AND AMENITIES Principal bedroom with en-suite bathroom & dressing room, study/children’s bedroom, 4 further bedrooms, en-suite bathroom, shower room, reception room, drawing room, kitchen/breakfast room, conservatory, dining room, self-contained guest apartment/staff accommodation with separate bathroom & kitchen, 2 guest cloakrooms, utility room, boot room, 95' garden, patio area, 2 balconies, roof terrace, lift servicing 3 floors. EPC=D.

10/07/2015 15:47

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10/07/2015 10:56

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A STRIKING, ARCHITECTURALLY DESIGNED AND NEWLY CONSTRUCTED 2,469 SQ FT MODERN HOUSE, DISCREETLY POSITIONED AT THE END OF A PRIVATE COBBLED MEWS.

Goldhurst Terrace is superbly located close to the amenities of both West Hampstead and the Finchley Road, including Finchley Road Underground Station (Jubilee & Metropolitan Lines).

goldhurst terrace

nw6

The double height reception and kitchen space is designed around a private courtyard garden, and therefore benefits from an abundance of natural light and stunning aspects through the house. Interior designed and finished to the highest standard, the house features a wealth of modern amenities and is perfectly designed for modern living.

ACCOMMODATION & AMENITIES Principal bedroom with dressing room & en-suite bathroom // 2 further bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms // Study // Double height reception room incorporating dining area // Fully fitted Hacker kitchen with Siemens appliances // Guest cloakroom // Secure off street parking for 1 car // Private courtyard garden // Future proofed for full Crestron control // Sonos sound system with Bowers & Wilkins speakers // CCTV door entryphone system // Underfloor heating // Dinesen Douglas Fir flooring

10:56

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FREEHOLD ÂŁ2,795,000 JOINT SOLE AGENTS

10/07/2015 10:55

Steeles Mews South NW3 ÂŁ1,900,000

A superb newly refurbished mews house with terraces and courtyard, in the heart of Belsize Village.

1370 sq ft/127 sq m 3 bedrooms plus study 25â&#x20AC;&#x2122; reception Terrace and balcony Private parking, i think the one with Contact Belsize Park Office 020 7431 1234

South Hampstead 020 7625 4567 nw6@parkheath.com

Belsize Park 020 7431 1234 nw3@parkheath.com

West Hampstead 020 7794 7111 192@parkheath.com

Kentish Town 020 7485 0400 kt@parkheath.com

Property Management 020 7722 6777 pm@parkheath.com

Head Office 020 7794 7111 headoffice@parkheath.com

www.parkheath.com

Eton Avenue NW3 £2,750,000

Within a distinguished residence at this select address, a spectacular raised and lower ground floor maisonette with south-facing garden.

1680 sq ft/155 sq m 3 double bedrooms Elegant 23’ reception Bay-fronted kitchen/diner 80’ south-facing garden Contact Belsize Park Office 020 7431 1234

South Hampstead 020 7625 4567 nw6@parkheath.com

Belsize Park 020 7431 1234 nw3@parkheath.com

West Hampstead 020 7794 7111 192@parkheath.com

Kentish Town 020 7485 0400 kt@parkheath.com

Property Management 020 7722 6777 pm@parkheath.com

Head Office 020 7794 7111 headoffice@parkheath.com

www.parkheath.com

ST JOHN’S WOOD NW8 A

NEWLY

DECORATED

THREE

FLOOR

HOUSE

PROVIDING BRIGHT ACCOMMODATION OF CIRCA

2,230 SQ FT / 210 SQ M AND CONVENIENTLY LOCATED WITHIN A SHORT WALK OF THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN LOUDOUN ROAD, ST JOHN’S WOOD HIGH STREET AND UNDERGROUND STATION.

4/5

BEDROOMS,

BATHROOMS,

STUDY/

BEDROOM 5, RECEPTION ROOM, DINING AREA, NEWLY INSTALLED KITCHEN/BREAKFAST ROOM, GUEST CLOAKROOM, PATIO, OFF STREET PARKING BEHIND

ELECTRONICALLY

OPERATED

GATES.

TENANTS FEES APPLY. PLEASE ASK FOR MORE INFORMATION.

AVAILABLE FOR RENTAL AT £2,500 PER WEEK

PRINCE ALBERT ROAD NW8 AN

EXCEPTIONAL

DUPLEX

PENTHOUSE

APARTMENT OF 2,600 SQ FT / 242 SQ M SET OVER THE NINTH AND TENTH FLOORS OF THIS PURPOSE BUILT BLOCK. NEWLY REFURBISHED TO A VERY HIGH STANDARD THE APARTMENT BENEFITS FROM SECURE UNDERGROUND PARKING AND A LARGE SOUTH EAST FACING TERRACE WITH SKYLINE VIEWS OF CENTRAL LONDON AND STUNNING VIEWS OVER REGENT’S PARK.

3/4 BEDROOMS, 3 BATHROOMS, SHOWER ROOM, BEDROOM 4/STUDY, PRINCIPAL RECEPTION ROOM,

2ND

RECEPTION

ROOM,

KITCHEN/BREAKFAST

ROOM, GUEST CLOAKROOM.

GUIDE PRICE: £8,000,000 AVAILABLE FOR RENTAL AT £3,750 PER WEEK

Clive Court, Maida Vale, W9 An exceptionally spacious three double bedroom family apartment (2311 sq ft / 215 sq m) situated on the third floor of this mansion style portered block with passenger lift. This bright apartment features a spacious reception room, separate dining room, playroom, beautiful kitchen/ breakfast room, principal bedroom with dressing area and en-suite bathroom, two further double bedrooms, a further bathroom, guest cloakroom and separate utility. The property is offered in excellent decorative condition and features two balconies and lovely parquet flooring. Clive Court is ideally located only a short walk from the fantastic array of local amenities in Clifton Road and St Johnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Wood.

Joint Sole Agent ÂŁ2,375,000 Leasehold

Greville Place London, NW6 An elegant six bedroom Grade II listed house built in 1819 with an expansive and mature south facing private garden, benefitting from a separate guest annex located on this tree lined road off Abbey Road. The main house offers a master bedroom suite with dressing room and bathroom, three further bedrooms and two bathrooms, a large kitchen breakfast room, three reception rooms, guest cloakroom, double garage plus further off street parking and a beautiful south facing rear garden. The guest/staff annex comprises of a kitchen breakfast room, reception room, two bedrooms both of which have en suite bathrooms and separate entrance.

Joint Sole Agent ÂŁ7,950,000 Freehold

West End Office

St Johns Wood Office

49 Welbeck Street, London, W1G 9XN

102 St Johnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Wood Terrace, London NW8 6PL

enquiries@hanover-residential.com hanover-residential.com

info@hanover-residential.com hanover-residential.com

020 7486 9665

020 7722 2223

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property

Breaking new ground Headed by two of London’s most experienced rental experts Adam Phillips and Simon Harrod, the team at Phillips Harrod has built up an extensive network of contacts. Here, Adam explains the ethos behind the new company

How did Phillips Harrod come about? It’s quite a funny story actually, as Simon and I had in fact been in direct competition for a number of years. Although at the time we both worked for different high-end property agents in Regent’s Park, there was a mutual respect there. Over time, we started to conduct business together and subsequently became friends. With more than 20 years combined experience between us, we acknowledged each other’s ambition to set up an agency dedicated to rentals at the top of the market. We both recognised that we would be better as a force together rather than as competitors. How would you sum up the company? We are not the average high street agent specialising in all areas of the market; rather, we are focusing intently on specific areas where we have specialist knowledge and a proven track record. Since our inception we have completed numerous transactions in excess of £2,000 per week. So whether it be renting and managing your property, home search, asset management or portfolio building, our service is impeccable. And of course, client and customer satisfaction is our main priority. Your main focus is on the north-west London area. Did you both grow up around here? The principal areas in which we operate are Hampstead, Belsize Park, Primrose Hill, Regent’s Park, St John’s Wood, Maida Vale (including Little Venice), Marylebone and Mayfair, although we do in fact have a stunning penthouse to let on Lancelot Place, just opposite Harrods. We were both born and bred in the area and are a product of its education and social system. We both love the calm and suburban community, surrounded by hills and parks, while still being close to all the action that the city brings.

How does the profile of the tenant in Marylebone differ from that of Primrose Hill, for example? Where NW1 turns in to W1, the enquiries are definitely more about location than anything else. It’s an obvious thing to say, but the profile of the tenant looking in Primrose Hill is more likely to be someone looking for a more family-friendly home and environment. A Marylebone tenant, for example, may be more driven by the feel of the hustle and bustle of central living and is prepared to concede on accommodation. We have first-hand experience of this as we have recently rented a house in Primrose Hill to an international family of five and in Marylebone we have just rented an apartment to a family of three. How has the local area changed in the last few years? It’s become more cosmopolitan with the influx of international renters and buyers: indeed, it has become a very popular choice. There are many peripheral pockets within the area that have improved due to the surge in demand and the need for high-end housing and convenient amenities. Hopefully these pockets will continue to grow and develop with the expat communities becoming entrenched in domestic life in London. For example, we have been working with an American family who we’ve just rented a house to in St John’s Wood (pictured). What are your market forecasts for the year? We’re very pleased with 2015 so far. It has been an important year for us as a new business in the high-end rentals market. We’ve put everything into getting Phillips Harrod off the ground and established within the market place. Whatever your political alliances may be, I think the property market spoke both prior and post the elections earlier this year. The uncertainty surrounding mansion tax caused a bit of a lull in the lead up to the elections. But since the Conservative Party was re-elected, confidence has been restored, demonstrated by the recent positivity in the market which we expect to continue. What are your plans going forward? We plan to keep moving, to keep letting property efficiently and to diligently serve the public. Reputation is everything, so as long as we keep working hard, then hopefully Phillips Harrod will continue to flourish. n

For any enquiries contact 0207 1234 152; info@phillipsharrod.com; phillipsharrod.com

127

Aberdeen Court W9 ÂŁ2,000,000 A bright and spacious three-bedroom apartment, ideally located only a short walk from the fantastic array of local amenities in Clifton Road and superb transport links. EPC=D

Little Venice: 020 7993 3050 sales.lve@marshandparsons.co.uk

Bristol Gardens W9 ÂŁ1,900,000 A beautifully presented three-bedroom maisonette benefitting from a sunny terrace and communal gardens, ideally located close to Warwick Avenue and Paddington stations. Share of Freehold. EPC=F

Little Venice: 020 7993 3050 sales.lve@marshandparsons.co.uk

Pratt Street NW1 ÂŁ950,000 A beautiful two-bedroom property that has been refurbished to the highest standard and located moments away from Camden Town, Regentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Canal and Primrose Hill. EPC=C

Camden: 020 7244 2200 sales.cam@marshandparsons.co.uk

Grade II listed, stylish and minimal throughout Matching people and property in London for over 150 years.

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