The Steeple Times

Tag: friends

  • Davide Giardino – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    Davide Giardino – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    A 20-question interview with economist turned real estate investor Davide Giardino

     

    The Steeple Times shares “wit and wisdom.” What’s your guiding force?

    “The happiness and success of those closest to my heart.”

     

    “Don’t get even, get medieval” is, in our humble opinion, a great motto. What’s yours?

    “If you keep your destiny in mind, every moment in life becomes an opportunity to move closer to it.”

     

    Kerry Katona was considered unacceptable in 2007. Who or what is unacceptable in 2018?

    Technocrats – as at least populists are lying most of the time.

     

    Tony Blair misses being Prime Minister. What do you miss most in your life?

    A simpler life. I miss the routine of going to an office every morning. Am I crazy?

     

    What might you swap all your wealth for?

    Assets? Well, in all seriousness, good health for me, my family and my friends.

     

    Donald Trump was once a case of: “If you owe the bank a thousand, they close you down; but if you owe the bank a billion, you own the bank.” What’s your view on the state of the financial system?

    Who is richer and who is poorer from the latest financial crisis? You’ve got my answer…

     

    What phrase or word do you most loathe?

    “I am saying it for your sake.”

     

    In the UK, some people consider charity to “begin at home.” What’s your view and what causes do you personally support?

    Charity often substitutes for the lack of adequate government or international policy which is disappointing. I support a variety of causes including helping children born with congenital diseases and homeless children.

     

    The judge in Law Abiding Citizen states: “I can pretty much do whatever I want” before being blown up whilst answering her mobile phone. What’s your view on the appropriate use of such devices?

    Shut them off at night.

     

    Real estate investor Davide Giardino – What’s on your mantelpiece? A 20-question interview with Beverly Hills and Greater LA based economist turned real estate investor Davide Giardino.

     

    If you could fill a carriage on The Orient Express, who would be your fellow passengers?

    My twin brother, a bunch of friends, Isabelle Huppert, Glenn Close and probably Angelina Jolie.

     

    If you were unfortunate enough to end up on death row, what would be your last meal and where would you eat it?

    Bucatini with lobster (I always liked bucatini more than spaghetti), gâteau de pommes de terre (cooked the Neapolitan way), a large portion of figs and a torta caprese chocolate cake. I woiuld probably eat it at the Villa San Michele in Capri, Hotel Bel Air or Cliveden House – all places close to my heart for different reasons.

     

    What time is it acceptable to consume the first drink of the day?

    11am, though not every day.

     

    A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?

    A Negroni.

     

    Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?

    A dear friend of mine throws the most memorable dinner parties. I love how he always selects a group of diverse people who do not know each other, but will create an incredible energy together by the end of the night. It always helps that I’m always the guest of honour!

     

    Who is the most positive person you know?

    Maybe me.

     

    What’s your most guilty pleasure?

    Buying French pâtisserie and flowers for myself many times each week.

     

    If a tattoo were to sum you up, what would it be of?

    “I want it all.”

     

    If you were a car, what marque would you be?

    A vintage Fiat 500 with a new engine. They are so cute and practical and I don’t need a Maserati to compensate for a lack of personality or something else.

     

    Cilla Black presented Surprise, Surprise. Tell us the most surprising thing about you.

    I am still trying to figure myself out.

     

    What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?

    Fresh flowers.

     

    Davide Giardino is the founder of DGC-Luxury Homes and a licensed realtor at Rodeo Realty – Beverly Hills and Greater LA. He has extensive experience in the real estate advisory and investment business and previously was an economist at several global finance institutions. He describes himself as “a multi-lingual globetrotter” and holds a double degree from Bocconi and USC, an MSc in European political economy from the London School of Economics and a masters in finance from LBS.

     

    Follow Davide Giardino on Facebook at @dgcluxuryhomes and on Instagram at @dgc_la

     

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  • Opening up Menéndez

    Opening up Menéndez

    Previously publicity shy Menéndez brothers both speak publicly about killing their parents in the wake of the success of NBC’s ‘Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders’

     

    Erik and Lyle Menéndez, the brothers convicted of murdering their allegedly abusive multi-millionaire parents José and Mary ‘Kitty’ Menéndez at their home in Beverly Hills, California in 1989, have generally been pretty quiet in the years since their conviction at their second trial in 1994.

     

    Now, however, in the wake of the immense success of NBC’s eight-part series, Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders, about the case Erik Menéndez has given his first interview since 2005 to A&E. Set to be screened in America on 30th November, The Menendez Murders: Erik Tells All will also include previously unseen photographs and new interviews with family and friends.

     

    In two trailers for the show, Erik, now 46, speaks through the phone from the Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, California and states:

     

    “I’m Erik Menéndez… I’m serving life in prison without the possibility of parole. I’ve heard many different versions of my life told in the media, and those stories are fictional. I think it’s time people hear the truth in my own words without the restrictions of a courtroom.”

     

    “From the moment after, I wanted to go back in time. It was so wrong. I didn’t want my parents dead – I just wanted the abuse to stop. Years and years of pain exploded that night in an unimaginable violence. It is my own personal hell.”

     

    “My only hope in speaking out is that people have a more complete understanding of the events that led up to my actions on the night of 20th August and really a fuller picture of what happened in my life.”

     

    “All I can hope for is that people will come to realise that the truth is not a simple one-line explanation that many people have tried to make it out to be. That really, that my life was unfolding of a complicated life that I lived that had all of these things that came into being and that led up to what is an ongoing and enduring family tragedy.”

     

    “The tragedy didn’t end on that night, as devastating as that night was. It didn’t end there for my family, and it continues on to this day, and that sadness is something that I am trying to make up for them and with my parents for the rest of my life. It will never end.”

     

    Opening up Menéndez – Erik and Lyle Menéndez go public – Previously quiet Menéndez brothers speak publicly about killing their parents in wake of success of NBC’s drama series about them.
    A photograph of José Menéndez with his sons Erik and Lyle on his knee; references have been made to the situation of José Menéndez’s right hand to be evidence of his highly inappropriate relationship with his children

     

    Elsewhere, on the @MenendezBrothers Facebook page this weekend, through an intermediary seemingly in his presence at the Mule Creek State Prison where he is housed in Ione, California, Lyle Menéndez participated in what appeared to be a live Facebook chat.

     

    Aside from sounding quite upbeat and referencing how his second wife (he has married twice since being imprisoned) had visited him earlier in the day, Lyle answered a question about which Spice Girl he liked most with the answer “Posh, of course!” and stated that “no one is good enough to play [me] for it be enjoyable” of “paddle tennis” in the prison. He shared news that he is “currently re-reading Shogun” as it is “a book centered [sic] around great patience and spirit under terrible circumstances” and in response to a question about what music he likes most added: “I like the stories that country music tells so for me it is most uplifting to listen to country music. It puts me in touch with my emotions. But I do like all sorts of music.”

     

    More tellingly, especially given he is likely never to leave prison during his lifetime, Lyle, in referencing a question about the unauthorised @FreetheMenendezBrothers Facebook page stated:

     

    “People have filled me in. We are not affiliated with it in any way. We have told people that writing letters to the governor right now is not helpful to our release and could actually be a detriment. We know that it is frustrating to people but these are serious legal matters that have very specific avenues that require serious legal planning. I know it is frustrating and that we cannot stop people, but what I am saying now are my wishes.”

     

    Plainly this statement shows that Lyle still has hope that he could actually be released and given that the allegations of appalling abuse and sexual assault by their parents seem to be finally attracting worthy examination also, it does indeed seem time that the severity of the duo’s sentences again be looked at.

     

    Follow The Steeple Times on Twitter at @SteepleTimes.

     

     

  • Trendifying Theresa

    Trendifying Theresa

    George Freeman MP denies he wants to create a Tory version of Glastonbury; imagining Theresa May boozing with Liam Gallagher definitely would be hard

     

    Theresa May, Dizzee Rascal and Liam Gallagher would certainly make for unlikely bedfellows but now a Conservative MP, George Freeman, wishes to replicate Jeremy Corbyn’s success in such company at Glastonbury and in September will host his own festival in Norfolk.

     

    Former biotechnology entrepreneur Mr Freeman, chairman of Mrs May’s policy board, asked: “Why is it just the left who have all the fun in politics?” and has received support for what he calls a “friends and family event” and a “cross between Hay-on-Wye and the Latitude festival” from a number of sponsors and venues.

     

    Expected to be called the “Conservative Ideas Festival,” the event was remarked on by one unnamed fellow MP as: “Very trendy” but needing “a lot of expensive booze” for him to attend. One might argue seeing Mrs May drunk in one of her beloved wheat fields might amuse many, but in reality this idea sounds nearly as bad as when the party put William Hague in a baseball cap at a theme park in 1997. Theresa, a word of advice: Don’t do it.

     

    Trendifying Theresa – Mrs May should not attend Tory Glastonbury – George Freeman MP denies he wants to create a Tory version of Glastonbury; imagining Theresa May boozing with Liam Gallagher definitely would be hard.

  • Sandra Howard – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    Sandra Howard – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    A 20-question interview with Sandra Howard – novelist, former model and wife of Conservative politician The Rt. Hon. Lord Howard of Lympne

     

    The Steeple Times shares “wit and wisdom”. What’s your guiding force?

    Seeing the upside of life and what’s to laugh at.

     

    “Don’t get even, get medieval” is, in our humble opinion, a great motto. What’s yours?

    Perseverance pays.

     

    Kerry Katona was considered unacceptable in 2007. Who or what is unacceptable in 2017?

    Kim Kardashian’s bottom.

     

    Tony Blair misses being Prime Minister. What do you miss most in your life?

    Talking to my mother – She was a sage and a wonderful rock.

     

    What might you swap all your wealth for?

    A continuing, happy, healthy marriage.

     

    Donald Trump was once a case of: “If you owe the bank a thousand, they close you down; but if you owe the bank a billion, you own the bank”. What’s your view on the state of the financial system?

    That’s too taxing for my ‘small bear’ financial brain. Well above my pay grade.

     

    What phrase or word do you most loathe?

    “At the end of the day” and I’m not mad about: “You know what?” (Jeremy Corbyn’s favourite phrase).

     

    In the UK, some people consider charity to “begin at home”. What’s your view and what causes do you personally support?

    It should begin at home and continue overseas. I’d hate to see our foreign aid budget cut. I support Addaction (to help people off drugs), Youth Epilepsy and Hospice UK.

     

    The judge in Law Abiding Citizen states: “I can pretty much do whatever I want” before being blown up whilst answering her mobile phone. What’s your view on the appropriate use of such devices?

    They rule our lives, sometimes for better and frequently for worse.

     

    If you could fill a carriage on The Orient Express, who would be your fellow passengers?

    All my closest (bridge-playing and witty) friends.

     

    If you were unfortunate enough to end up on death row, what would be your last meal and where would you eat it?

    Fresh crab, Dover sole, some delicious smelly cheese and a ripe mango. I’d eat it on Grand Anse Beach in Grenada, slipping in a last swim in that glorious clear sea.

     

    What time is it acceptable to consume the first drink of the day?

    A Buck’s Fizz at breakfast isn’t a bad start to the day.

     

    A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?

    A cup of tea.

     

    Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?

    Other peoples’ – I’m a mess of nerves when giving one of my own.

     

    Who is the most positive person you know?

    My husband – Most of the time.

     

    What’s your most guilty pleasure?

    A day (or more) entirely to myself to write in peace and privacy, not doing any of all the stuff, emails etc. that gets in the way.

     

    If a tattoo were to sum you up, what would it be of?

    A black cat – I think I’ve had lots of luck in my life.

     

    If you were a car, what marque would you be?

    A Mini Cooper is about my marque – fast, but I hope not flashy.

     

    Cilla Black presented Surprise, Surprise. Tell us the most surprising thing about you.

    I’m a passionate supporter of Liverpool Football Club.

     

    What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?

    Family photos, a pair of china cockerels and a vase of lovely lavender freesias.

     

    Sandra Howard has quickly established herself as a successful author and journalist. She has written six novels; her latest, ‘The Consequence of Love’, is published on 13th July. She was, in the 1960s, a leading photographic fashion model and lives in London and Kent.

     

    Follow Sandra Howard on Twitter at @howardsandrac and like her page on Facebook at @sandrahoward76.

     

  • Louise Rowntree – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    Louise Rowntree – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    A 20-question interview with public affairs and communications consultant and Liberal Democrat candidate for Chelsea & Fulham Louise Rowntree

     

    The Steeple Times shares “wit and wisdom”. What’s your guiding force?

    Treat others the way you want to be treated.

     

    “Don’t get even, get medieval” is, in our humble opinion, a great motto. What’s yours?

    You’re not living unless you take risks.

     

    Kerry Katona was considered unacceptable in 2007. Who or what is unacceptable in 2017?

    Theresa May.

     

    Tony Blair misses being Prime Minister. What do you miss most in your life?

    Time to ‘mong’.

     

    What might you swap all your wealth for?

    Being the fastest swimmer in the world.

     

    Donald Trump was once a case of: “If you owe the bank a thousand, they close you down; but if you owe the bank a billion, you own the bank”. What’s your view on the state of the financial system?

    It was going quite well in Britain until Brexit.

     

    What phrase or word do you most loathe?

    “How are you?” instead of “hello”.

     

    In the UK, some people consider charity to “begin at home”. What’s your view and what causes do you personally support?

    With three children, a small business and the General Election, I am conscious that I don’t do enough to help out in the local community currently. Locally, I’m ambassador for the Fulham Cricket Club – which gives free cricket training to children whose parents wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford it, and has linked up with a number of charities including Hammersmith & Fulham Refugees Welcome. More generally, I donate (a modest sum) to Save the Children each month.

     

    The judge in Law Abiding Citizen states: “I can pretty much do whatever I want” before being blown up whilst answering her mobile phone. What’s your view on the appropriate use of such devices?

    My late father always said: “You can tell who’s important. They’re the ones without a phone”. When on a train take calls in the corridor, try to avoid taking them when with others but – if you must – ask permission first. Never put your phone on a table if with others.

     

    If you could fill a carriage on The Orient Express, who would be your fellow passengers?

    Vincent Cassel, Nancy Wake (‘The White Mouse’), Ian Hislop, Michelle Obama, Mick Jagger, Amy Schumer, Guillaume Canet, Diana Ross, Jimmy Fallon and the entire cast of Saturday Night Live.

     

    If you were unfortunate enough to end up on death row, what would be your last meal and where would you eat it?

    Chinese dim sum, on a boat on the River Thames going through Chelsea and Fulham.

     

    What time is it acceptable to consume the first drink of the day?

    Any time, as long the occasion fits and you can handle your drink.

     

    A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?

    A Negroni, but in a glass, not from the bottle.

     

    Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?

    Ours: Because my husband DJ’s and we always have to threaten to call the police at 4am.

     

    Who is the most positive person you know?

    Jessica Arora: Fashion guru, co-founder of NotSuchAModelMum and a good friend.

     

    What’s your most guilty pleasure?

    Eating a whole box of salt and vinegar Pringles whilst drinking wine in bed and watching American TV series’.

     

    If a tattoo were to sum you up, what would it be of?

    A rowan tree: I’m a descendant of Vikings who invaded York over a thousand years ago and took their name from the local rowan tree – which morphed into ‘Rowntree’: Rooted, earth, strong, proud – it sums up both my Yorkshire ancestors and me.

     

    If you were a car, what marque would you be?

    A Lada: Old fashioned, rare, traditional and scrubs up surprisingly well with a bit of polish.

     

    Cilla Black presented Surprise, Surprise. Tell us the most surprising thing about you.

    I was taught how to fight at the age of five, but thankfully have only once had to.

     

    What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?

    A Mappin & Webb clock my late father was given when he retired from the bank he ran, a couple of Delft vases from a Belgian flee market, a Limoges egg which belonged to my late grandmother, and my son’s Grade 2 Music Theory certificate.

     

    Louise Rowntree is a lawyer-turned-public affairs and communications consultant who grew up in Chelsea and lives in Fulham. She is married to Raphael, a Belgian lawyer, has three sons and is standing as the Liberal Democrat for Chelsea & Fulham in the 2017 General Election.

     

    Louise worked for several years in Brussels – where she ran Hill & Knowlton’s Trade & Competition department. In 2012 she founded her own, niche, consultancy Rowntree & Associates and moved back to London soon after. She has personally advised heads of state, ambassadors, ministers, multinationals, NGOs and law firms.

     

    Follow her on Twitter at @louise_rowntree.

     

    Photograph by Micki Scupin Rogers.

     

  • Warring Ward

    Warring Ward

    Champagne swiller Dawn Ward “at war” with one-time friend and fellow WAG and cast member of ‘The Real Housewives of Cheshire’ Leanne Brown

     

    Yesterday, The Sun on Sunday reported that a favourite of all at The Steeple Times, Dawn Ward, is “at war over a £500,000 loan”.

     

    43-year old Mrs Ward, whose attempts at interior design at her naff Cheshire mansion have left it lingering on the market at the overly ambitious price of £12 million since 2015, is said to have borrowed the cash from Leanne Brown, a fellow footballer’s wife, in 2013 and hasn’t paid it back.

     

    Dawn Ward and Leanne Brown
    Dawn Ward (right) and Leanne Brown in happier times

     

    A “source” close to 40-year old Mrs Brown and her husband, Wes, 37, told The Sun on Sunday:

     

    “Dawn asked to borrow the cash. They agreed, but with interest payable after six months”.

     

    “It seems to them she took advantage of their kindness and has no intention of giving it back”.

    “They spoke to solicitors and sent a legal letter spelling out their intention of taking her to court”.

     

    “Leanne and Dawn used to be great friends, so it is a shame things have reached this point”.

     

    “But her failure to pay back the loan has really soured their friendship, and now they feel they have no choice if they want to see their money again”.

     

    “The tension between the pair during filming is palpable. Last week tempers flared [on the set of The Real Housewives of Cheshire] again and a glass was smashed”.

     

    A spokesperson for champagne obsessed, Prosecco hating Mrs Ward, whose 2016 conviction for assault also made headlines, remarked:

     

    “We have been friends for years and have completed many business deals together and everybody is aware that money is owed on both sides. We have tried to arrange a meeting to clear this up but the offer has not been accepted”.

     

  • Picture of the Week – Nutter meets Nutter

    Picture of the Week – Nutter meets Nutter

    Donald Trump held a meeting with one of the few “celebrities” willing to be seen in his company

     

    On Tuesday morning, at around 9am, Donald Trump met with the rapper Kanye West at Trump Tower in Manhattan.

     

    After the 15-minute meet West – who was recently hospitalised after having a nervous breakdown – and Trump posed for photographs in the building’s lobby. To the assembled audience, the President-elect remarked:

     

    “We’re just friends, just friends. He’s a good man. Going well. Long time. We’ve been friends for a long time. Life, we were discussing. Man, you take care of yourself, I’ll see you soon”.

     

    West refused to take questions and simply said:

     

    “I just want you to take my picture right now”.

     

    We share that image here and highlight it for what it truly is: An image of a nutter with another nutter.

     

  • Nuno Goncalves – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    Nuno Goncalves – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    A 20-question interview with executive chef Nuno Goncalves of 12 Hay Hill in London’s Mayfair

     

    The Steeple Times shares “wit and wisdom”. What’s your guiding force?

    I am as stubborn as you can get. If I set my mind to something, I won’t stop until I achieve it. It’s what keeps me going.

     

    “Don’t get even, get medieval” is, in our humble opinion, a great motto. What’s yours?

    Don’t leave for tomorrow what you can do today; life is too short for time wasting.

     

    Kerry Katona was considered unacceptable in 2007. Who or what is unacceptable in 2016?

    Boris Johnson leading the Leave campaign: It was clearly part of his political game to get to 10 Downing Street.

     

    Tony Blair misses being Prime Minister. What do you miss most in your life?

    A social life: It’s what you sign up for when you become a chef.

     

    What might you swap all your wealth for?

    A tranquil and peaceful life, surrounded by family, good friends, good food and, of course, good wine.

     

    Donald Trump was once a case of: “If you owe the bank a thousand, they close you down; but if you owe the bank a billion, you own the bank”. What’s your view on the banking crisis?

    Over-optimistic greedy bankers lending to over-optimistic under-achievers.

     

    What phrase or word do you most loathe?

    Ignorance.

     

    In the UK, some people consider charity to “begin at home”. What’s your view and what causes do you personally support?

    In my opinion it is everyone’s social and moral responsibility to help the less fortunate when possible. I support the British Heart Foundation; they are a fantastic organization helping people with heart disease all over the UK.

     

    The judge in Law Abiding Citizen states: “I can pretty much do whatever I want” before being blown up whilst answering her mobile phone. What’s your view on the appropriate use of such devices?

    They are a necessity in modern life, but at the same time reduce their user’s awareness of what surrounds them. Mankind is becoming a prisoner of its own evolution.

     

    Nuno Goncalves – What’s on your mantelpiece?
    Nuno Goncalves

     

    If you could fill a carriage on The Orient Express, who would be your fellow passengers?

    My wife, son, close friends and family, my team, Boris Johnson, Jeremy Clarkson, Barrack Obama and Donald Trump.

     

    If you were unfortunate enough to end up on death row, what would be your last meal and where would you eat it?

    Probably my wife’s spaghetti Bolognese at home.

     

    What time is it acceptable to consume the first drink of the day?

    Whatever time it’s necessary to get you through the day.

     

    A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?

    Coffee.

     

    Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?

    As long as there is a party, I’m not really bothered.

     

    Who is the most positive person you know?

    Probably me.

     

    What’s your most guilty pleasure?

    Chocolate and wine: In that order.

     

    If a tattoo were to sum you up, what would it be of?

    Probably an atomic bomb mushroom cloud, but you do not want me to go off.

     

    If you were a car, what marque would you be?

    A Mercedes-Benz.

     

    Cilla Black presented Surprise, Surprise. Tell us the most surprising thing about you.

    Hard on the outside but soft on the inside.

     

    What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?

    A portrait of my wife and I; it reminds me of how we used to be. Time flies.

     

    Nuno Goncalves was born in Portugal and grew up in Toronto. He has worked at the Corinthia Hotel and Galvin at Windows and is now executive head chef of Shaun Rankin’s London restaurants and oversees the dining room at business members’ club 12 Hay Hill in Mayfair, London.

     

    Follow him on Instagram at @nunogoncalves84.

     

     

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  • Merry Christmas 2015

    Merry Christmas 2015

    The Steeple Times wishes readers a very Merry Christmas 2015 (more…)

  • Todd Traina

    Todd Traina

    Todd TrainaSan Francisco born film producer and lover of lunches at Chateau Marmont Todd Traina is a graduate of Connecticut College. (more…)