Category: OPULENCE & SPLENDOUR

Luxury and the arts From houses to cars and from Hockney to van Dyck, a profile of the best and the worst

  • Picture of the week: A bevy of Cygnets

    Picture of the week: A bevy of Cygnets

    Spotted in the vicinity of Park Lane

     

    Blatant displays of wealth are not uncommon in Central London. One individual we reported on spent £7.2 million on a number plate and another is selling a 45-bedroom residence for £300 million. This week’s picture of the week shows two Aston Martin Cygnets in separate locations in the vicinity of Park Lane.

     
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  • Chanel – A brief history

    Chanel – A brief history

    Katusha Fletcher takes a brief look at the history of the iconic brand Chanel

     

    For a certain type of woman there is one label coveted above all others, Chanel. Founded by Gabrielle “Coco” Bonheur Chanel, daughter of an unwed laundress and street peddler, in early 20th century Paris, the House of Chanel epitomises effortless, understated style.

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  • Dark discoveries

    Dark discoveries

    A review of ‘Star Trek Into Darkness’ by James Murphy

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  • The best view in London or an expensive way to live in London’s ‘naffest’ square?

    The best view in London or an expensive way to live in London’s ‘naffest’ square?

    The sale of a £16.95 million duplex penthouse in Trafalgar Square

     

    Trafalgar Square is a place that most Londoners avoid. It’s a place for pigeons, protestors and tourists and though millions travel through it daily, most don’t tend to stop. In an article for The Guardian titled “Why I hate London’s Trafalgar Square”, the author Will Self went as far as to label it “one of the most crap urban public spaces in the world”.

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  • A Northern Downton

    A Northern Downton

    The sale of one of the North of England’s finest Georgian homes

     

    Julian Fellowes’ Downton Abbey has undoubtedly led to a revival in interest in English country houses both in Britain and America and now with the sale of Burrow Hall in the Lune Valley in Lancashire, there is an opportunity to acquire one of the North of England’s finest Georgian residences.

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  • Rolling with a Winner

    Rolling with a Winner

    The sale of Michael Winner’s Rolls-Royce Corniche III

     

    “Calm down dear… It’s only a Rolls-Royce” might have been what the late Michael Winner stated when he took delivery of one of many Rolls-Royce’s he owned during his lifetime. Now, one of them, a black 1992 Rolls-Royce Corniche III convertible is for sale at a price of £69,950.

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  • A sneak preview of the best car of 2013

    A sneak preview of the best car of 2013

    The Steeple Times shares some of the first images of Holland & Holland’s new bespoke Range Rover with our readers

     

    The Steeple Times and many of our readers love the new Land Rover Range Rover. Now, there’s an opportunity to go one better and purchase a special version adapted by the Land Rover Bespoke team in conjunction with the gunmaker’s Holland & Holland.

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  • Plated

    Plated

    30 of the best number plates sighted by Matthew Steeples

     

    Our readers and followers love the number plates spotted by our editor Matthew Steeples.

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  • Oiling up brings the Karma a Destino

    Oiling up brings the Karma a Destino

    Could a V8 engine save the Fisker brand?

     

    Yesterday, FoxNews.com asked: “Can the internal combustion engine save the electric car?” and answered: “In the case of the Fisker Karma, it just might be”.

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  • Lord of the Bond

    Lord of the Bond

    The sale of a £400,000 castle owned by a man who was an inspiration for the creation of James Bond’s nom de plume Sir Hilary Bray, Bt and for many elements of 007’s character also

     

    Count Robin de la Lanne-Mirrlees (1925 – 2012) is largely thought of as the man whose persona Ian Fleming “borrowed” to create James Bond’s assumed identity, Sir Hilary Bray, Bt. Now, following on from his death last year, there is an opportunity to buy one of his many properties, Inchdrewer Castle, and the title that goes with it, Baron of Inchdrewer.

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