At The Steeple Times we love steam trains and, courtesy of Rex Leyland, we featured a video of one in August on Kew Bridge.
Today, with thanks to our television personality and animal advocate campaigner friend Lorenzo Borghese, we feature a superb image of a locomotive in the forests of America. We’re yet to find out where this was taken so if readers know or indeed have travelled on this service, please do let us know.
The image, we feel, captures all that is stunning about this time of year and for this reason we make it The Steeple Times picture of the week.
The flexible £12.75 million former home of Tom Ford
Number 26 Gilston Road in London’s SW10 is a property that has been on and off the market repeatedly in recent years. On each and every occasion it has been promoted as the “former home of the fashion icon Tom Ford” and though he hasn’t lived there in years, it is still just as he left it.
Designer and film producer Tom Ford“The former home of design icon Tom Ford”: 26 Gilston Road, London, SW10 9SS
Situated at the end of a terrace on the corner of Priory Walk, one can see why the house appealed to the Texan born designer credited with turning around the fortunes of Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent. Hidden behind a high wall and hedging, 26 Gilston Road is private yet minutes from the restaurants of Old Brompton and Fulham Roads.
This 4-storey townhouse was sold in June 1997 for £2,250,000 and again marketed in 2009 for £8,500,000 through Aylesford. In the time since, it has been available to let at prices ranging from £5,500 to £7,500 per week, but is now back for sale at the extraordinary figure of £12,750,00 through Russell Simpson.
One of the reception rooms, just as Tom Ford left itAnother of the Tom Ford styled roomsA Tom Ford designed bedroomThe garden of the property is extremely private
What explains such a rise during a period of economic downturn? Well, it’s because developers Equilibrium have gained permission to “de-Ford” the house. As is now the trend in London, they have planned a total redesign. Their illustrations incorporate a new sub-basement and as a result the gross internal area will increase from just over 3,700 square feet to just under 5,300 square feet.
Equilibrium’s plans include a vast living-dining-kitchen with a study in the void over. The space is lit by a skylight.A cutaway shows the extent of the redevelopment plannedA view of 26 Gilston Road from the corner of Priory Walk
Whilst the layout Tom Ford, himself a graduate in architecture from Parsons The New School of Design, created at 26 Gilston Road was ideal for A Single Man; the new floor plan with 4 bedrooms is much better suited to a family. Ford and his partner, Richard Buckley, announced the birth of their son, Alexander, in September. Perhaps they should put in a bid.
A £15 million mansion fit for a self-made tycoon or an upwardly mobile WAG
While the youth of the Kings Road and Loughton have featured in the reality shows Made in Chelsea and The Only Way is Essex, their counterparts in Cheshire have yet to undergo the same social experiment. Having come across a fair few of their number though, I can only imagine their antics would result in television of comparable car crash proportions.
Wayne and Coleen Rooney and their home on Collar House Drive in Prestbury, East CheshireWarrington born Kerry Katona isn’t considered one of the “Cheshire set’s” finest exports
Cheshire itself is a county of contrasts: there’s the farming and hunting set and then there’s the new money. From the 1950s onwards an invasion of nouveau riche footballers and self-made business people came to Alderley Edge and Wilmslow and it is said that there are more Rolls-Royces per square mile here than anywhere else in the UK.
Though today’s Coronation Street actresses and Man United players generally favour brand new homes in Prestbury, the new wealth have not just consigned themselves to such. The likes of Take That’s Gary Barlow, for a time, owned Delamere Manor at Cuddington but sold it in 2005 due to his ever-growing commitments elsewhere. Equally, Neil Hamilton, whilst MP for Tatton, lived at The Old Rectory at Nether Alderley with his formidable wife Christine but when their days in politics came to an end, they too moved on. For a time, David and Victoria Beckham were the undoubted glitterati of this manor, but of those footballers still resident Wayne and Coleen Rooney are definitely now the best known.
In a “grey area between old and new” sits Swettenham Hall at Swettenham near Congleton. This 12,590 square foot Georgian mansion dates to 1795 but since it was acquired by Brian Kennedy, a double glazing, home improvements and mobile telephone entrepreneur, the house has been given a total makeover. The colourful style he’s given the house can best be described as being akin to: “Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen meets Austin Powers.”
Swettenham Hall’s drawing room is decorated and furnished in a cacophony of coloursThe kitchen is painted in an equally vivid shade of lime greenA bedroom boasts a carpet that would make Austin Powers shout: “Yeah, baby, yeah!”The same carpeting continues into the wood paneled “gentleman’s study”At Swettenham Hall, bathrooms, equally, are far from neutral in their stylingMr Kennedy and his wife Christine employed Julian Bicknell Associates to design an impressive leisure wing in 2004
Swettenham Hall is most definitely a party palace and along with the addition of a leisure wing consisting of a swimming pool, Jacuzzi®, plunge pool, steam room and gymnasium in 2004, Kennedy has also constructed a 47ft by 44ft helicopter hangar complete with a retractable helicopter pad.
Standing in 100 acres of grounds, the house does seem a tad expensive at £15 million especially since that the adjoining former farm buildings were sold off and converted into eight homes in 1999. The driveway is partly shared with these homes and for those seeking the ultimate in privacy, this could indeed be an issue. It is perhaps why Swettenham Hall has yet to sell.
The former farm buildings next to Swettenham Hall were sold off and converted into eight homes by Egerton Estates and Watts Developments in 1999The proximity of Swettenham Hall to the neighbouring barn conversions is illustrated in this Google Earth map
Brian Kennedy is someone I hadn’t heard of until I came across Swettenham Hall but here is a fascinating man whose meteoric rise is frankly very clearly linked to windows. The son of a window cleaner from Edinburgh, this self-made tycoon started his career as a trainee manager at the Royal Bank of Scotland. He subsequently briefly worked as a trainee accountant but left when offered the chance to become youngest branch manager of Moben Kitchens at the age of 20.
At around this time, Kennedy acquired a stake in Farouche Kitchens and with a Rochdale born property entrepreneur named David Russell, he was transformed from a door-to-door salesman to a pioneer in direct sales. In 1988, when Farouche was sold, Kennedy netted circa £1 million. From here, this entrepreneur returned to his family’s roots by venturing into double glazing with Weatherseal Windows and then home improvements with Space Kitchens & Bedrooms.
In 1999, with the help of funds raised by private equity investors 3i, Kennedy paid £42 million for the well known brand Everest but sold part of his stake to the management for £63 million in 2003. In due course he added to his shareholding and then sold 21.5% of the company to Hutton Collins in a deal which valued the company at £150 million in 2007.
Ever the empire builder, Kennedy paid £29 million for a conservatory manufacturer named Ultrafame in 2006 and then also added another double glazing brand, Zenith Staybrite, to his portfolio in 2008. Many other business ventures followed but not being afraid to diversify, Kennedy formed Patrick Properties, whose portfolio is now valued in excess of £100 million, in 2002 and Kennedy Renewables, which specialises in wind energy, in 2009.
In the technology sector, a chance conversation in a Knutsford wine bar in 1995 led to him venturing into the mobile telephone market with a company named Genesis Communications. The business was sold to Dixons in 2002 for £31 million.
In January 2012, Kennedy merged his main Latium Holdings business with Jim Rawson’s Epwin Group to form Epwin Holdings. The merger resulted in a company with more than 2,500 employees and brands numbering Spectus, Swish, CET and Kestrel.
Of his success, Kennedy states:
“Business is common sense [and] dealing with people is common sense. I don’t think I have any particular flair. I think it is about common sense, taking the opportunity when it comes and hard work.”
Brian Kennedy’s wealth has allowed him to indulge many of his passions. A period of semi-retirement “drove [him] and [his] kids nuts,” but this Scotsman’s love of rugby resulted in him acquiring the Sale Sharks Rugby Club in 1999. He is said to have set the “club on a sound financial footing” and turned it into “one of the leading rugby clubs in Britain.”
Philanthropy is something that Kennedy, a Jehovah’s Witness, has also dedicated his wealth to. Through his Brian Kennedy Trust, he has supported a number of charities and organisations but it is for his role as the main backer of Find Madeleine Fund that he has come to public attention. Of his reasoning for backing the missing child’s parents financially, he stated:
“In light of the quite literally incredible accusations against Gerry and Kate McCann, which are clearly exacerbating their emotional torture, I felt compelled to offer, along with other like-minded businessmen, financial support and the full logistical support of the Latium team. That support is principally our in-house lawyer Ed Smethurst and [official spokesman] Clarence Mitchell.”
Brian Kennedy was involved in the funding of a team that included Clarence Mitchell for the Find Madeleine Fund until 2009. Here Mitchell (standing) is pictured with Gerry and Kate McCann.An ex-lawyer and campaigner Anthony “Tony” Bennett is the former secretary of The Madeleine Foundation who has been involved in various legal disputes with Brian Kennedy and Gerry and Kate McCann
Kennedy’s donation attracted much press attention in 2007 in the weeks following Madeleine McCann’s disappearance and he continues to support them to this day. A very public spat involving him, Gerry and Kate McCann and a campaigner named Tony Bennett, who also was involved in The Madeleine Foundation, has been the subject of various legal actions. In October 2011, Mr Bennett was forced to publicly apologise to Mr Kennedy and separately an August 2009 Evening Standard article by Mark Hollingsworth “investigat[ing] the investigators,” was pulled because for “legal and editorial reasons.” In it, “someone who worked closely with [Kennedy]” was quoted as saying:
“He was appalled by the Portuguese police, but he also had visions of flying in by helicopter to rescue Madeleine.”
Angelina Jolie, another avid aviator, once commented: “Wherever I am I find myself looking out of the window wishing I was somewhere else.” We do not know why Brian Kennedy is selling Swettenham Hall, but Jolie is indeed one of the few with the resources to take these particular windows off his hands.
For more information about Swettenham Hall, Swettenham, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 2JZ, contact Edward Welton of Knight Frank on +44 (0) 20 7861 1114.
For more details about Brian Kennedy, go to: http://www.brian-kennedy.co.uk
For more details about the Find Madeleine Fund go to: http://www.findmadeleine.com and for information on The Madeleine Foundation: http://www.madeleinefoundation.org.uk/
Hugo Istay discovers Jimmy Savile’s most unlikely advocates: The Daily Mail
Here are some quotes from that bastion of the country’s morals, The Daily Mail. Apparently Jimmy Savile had been collecting ones like these for years to aid his defence should the proverbial hit the fan.
A screenshot of the somewhat “sexed-up” first version of the MailOnline article
A screenshot of the somewhat “toned-down” second version of the MailOnline article
He was going to kick off his case with:
“Elle Fanning looks all grown up at 14.”
And then follow up with:
“She may be only 14, but rising star Elle Fanning isn’t counting on her good genes or youth to keep her slim. Wearing black cropped spandex jazz dance pants and orange Nike trainers, the little sister of Dakota had obviously been letting loose in the dance studio as her usually silky hair was hanging down in a sweaty tangle.”
No sexual innuendo there, then.
Next, he’d add:
”Dressed in a satin babydoll-style top, black skinny jeans and patent peep-toe wedges, Elle looked mature beyond her 14 years.”
Or this:
“She has a maturity that belies her years, so sometimes it’s difficult to remember that Elle Fanning is only fourteen years old.”
And, if all else failed:
“The 14-year-old took to Instagram to share a photograph of her Halloween outfit and wasn’t afraid to flaunt her curves for the camera.”
He then planned to sum up with:
“So it wasn’t my fault M’Lud, I was misled and egged on by the Daily Mail.”
Maybe there should be a crime of journalistic paedophilia.
This Swiss born son of a printer has spent over £85 million buying up properties in the Henley-on-Thames area of Oxfordshire. Schwarzenbach also owns 123,000 acres in Australia, 26,000 acres in Scotland and has his own polo team, the Black Bears. This financier’s foreign exchange dealership, Interexchange, is the biggest in Switzerland and betting against the dollar has brought much success. He supposedly even named his Gulfstream G650 “George” as “ultimately it was Bush who paid for it.” Whilst Schwarzenbach’s Grand Hotel Dolder in Zurich wins plaudits galore. an investment in Mayfair’s Café Grand Prix was less successful. It is, however, for philanthropy and discretion that Schwarzenbach and his wife, a former Miss Australia, are known best.
In the autumn of 2012, an ITV1 series, Mrs Biggs, dramatised the life story of this headmaster’s daughter from Reigate, Surrey. In it, Sheridan Smith (pictured here with the real Mrs Biggs) portrayed a lady of steely reserve who is intelligent, articulate and courageous. The former wife of the Great Train Robber Ronnie Biggs has now built a new life for herself in Melbourne, Australia as an editor, publisher and journalist and on crime, her views are simple: “[It] doesn’t pay in any way, shape or form.”
On Friday 27th July, a boat sped up the Thames that was watched by an estimated 900 million people across the globe. That craft, a Bladerunner BR RIB 35, was piloted by David Beckham and also carried Bladerunner’s managing director Jeremy Watts and the Olympic torch.
David Beckham aboard the 2008 “Torchbearer” Bladerunner BR RIB 35The Olympic torch aboard the 2008 “Torchbearer” Bladerunner BR RIB 35 (Photo credit: Action Images)
The boat’s journey under Tower Bridge was accompanied by a crescendo of pyrotechnics and complete with gadgets that numbered four smoke emitting dummy rockets, a high pressure waterjet bar and dozens of LED lights, it formed a significant part of the Danny Boyle orchestrated display that opened the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Now, the very same “heavily customised” boat is available for sale and will be auctioned on the 3rd December by at Mercedes-Benz World Brooklands. A price guide of £250,000 has been set for what Bonhams call the “ultimate Olympic souvenir.”
For more details on the 3rd December 2012 Bonhams Collectors’ Motor Cars and Automobilia auction telephone +44 (0) 20 7447 7447 or go to: http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/20148/
The Steeple Times asks hotelier and chairman of Bespoke Hotels Robin Sheppard: “What’s on your mantelpiece?”
The Steeple Times shares “wit and wisdom.” What’s your guiding force?
Hunger.
“Don’t get even, get medieval” is, in our humble opinion, a great motto. What’s yours?
“While I breath, I hope.”
Kerry Katona was considered unacceptable in 2007. Who or what is unacceptable in 2012?
Piers Morgan.
Tony Blair misses being Prime Minister. What do you miss most in your life?
The ability to fit into non-elasticated trousers.
What might you swap all your wealth for?
I might swap it for anything. However, I would swap it for nothing.
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?
I think it’s a great shame that people no longer consider their bank manager to be a friend. We’ve lost the trust. It’s very different now to how it once was.
What phrase or word do you most loathe?
“At this moment in time”: What a waste of words.
In the UK, some people consider charity to “begin at home.” What’s your view and what causes do you personally support?
I am affiliated with the Guillan-Barre Syndrome Support Group.
The judge in “Law Abiding Citizen” states: “I can pretty do whatever I want” before being blown up whilst answering her mobile phone. What’s your view on the appropriate use of such devices?
Turn them off when you’re on the loo. Or at least try not to use them.
If you could fill a carriage on The Orient Express, who would be your fellow passengers?
Are we murdering or sightseeing? Either way, the answer’s probably family.
Hotelier Robin Sheppard
If you were unfortunate enough to end up on death row, what would be your last meal and where would you eat it?
Presumably I’d have to eat it in the prison I doubt they’d let me go on a picnic. I think I’d have spaghetti bolognaise with a robust Chianti.
What time is it acceptable to consume the first drink of the day?
Immediately after you finish work. Whichever time that may be.
A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?
Cup of tea.
Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?
If I remembered them, they can’t have been that much fun, can they?
Who is the most positive person you know?
My golf instructor. He’s always laughing whenever I take a shot.
What’s your most guilty pleasure?
Pork scratchings.
If a tattoo were to sum you up, what would it be of?
That festival in Edinburgh.
If you were a car, what marque would you be?
A monster truck.
Cilla Black presented “Surprise, Surprise.” Tell us the most surprising thing about you.
I’m an only child.
What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?
A handful of birthday cards.
Robin Sheppard is a classically trained hotelier and chairman of Bespoke Hotels. He is also managing director of Alfresco, designed the iconic bottle for Ty-Nant mineral water and is the author of A Solitary Confinement (2007).
In his role as Downton Abbey’s Lord Grantham, this actor warned that “scandals” always have a habit of coming out. He graduated in Theology at Cambridge but, according to Adam Helliker of the Daily Express, Bonneville wasn’t especially keen to show Christian compassion towards Lord Archer at a party at The Cadogan Hotel when it was requested that the pair be photographed together.
Christian Huhnt takes his first foray into the world of supper clubs
I don’t usually find myself in the east of London. It’s not because I don’t like it but simply because it’s just an awful journey to get there from where I live. Eventually, though, a “secret” was able to convince me to make this long journey. This “secret,” I was told, could only be revealed to me if I “attended” it. Of what, you may ask, am I am rambling on about? I am talking of something called: “The Secret Supper Club.”
Next, you’ll be asking: “What the heck is a ‘supper club’?” Well, in essence, a “supper club” is essentially a dinner in the company of a bunch of total randoms. It is a bit like blind dating, although you get to speak to many more people than just the one opposite you. As I had heard and read so much about supper clubs, I became very curious about attending one. Normally these gatherings happen in someone’s own home without any professional help, but the one to which I was invited was quite something else.
Lime&Tonic’s Secret Supper Club
This particular supper club is on another level. It is run by Lime&Tonic, an international firm of event planners and costs just £35 per head. Lime&Tonic made their philosophy to: “Save the world from boredom” according to its co-founder Stefan Cordiner and in the London supper club they operate I certainly found plenty that fascinated.
The major idea of Lime&Tonic’s take on the supper club is to make new contacts. In this case it was as far reaching as it could get. We were 14 in total. None of us knew each other beforehand, but almost everyone came as a couple or with a friend. What, I realised, made it particularly special was how wide an array of people came: Where else would a pharmaceutical product developer from Birmingham have dinner with an F-15 pilot from the US?
The “un-restaurant,” as it is also referred to by Lime&Tonic, happens every month at a “secret venue,” but never a private residence. The location is revealed to the attendees one day before the event. It’s usually held in a venue with a “unique feel” but wherever it may be, the focus is on somewhere with “authentic charm.”
Suspense and surprise is the order of the day here as the “secret menu” is not revealed until guests sit down at the table either. On arrival we were told that our chef for the night was Paul Hannagen, a good-humoured young Irish professional who established his own catering operation, Cuisson, in August 2011. His passion for his craft was infectious.
The one element of “surprise” that I found hard to deal with was the “bring your own” wine policy. Without knowing what would be served, how could I know what alcohol my wine buff companion ought to choose?
The food itself, though, was delightful. We started with some small ‘lollipops’ stuffed with chicken liver and chunks of apple as an amuse-bouche. This was followed by a ham that had been cooked for 36 hours and served in a “British farmer’s style” with mini-cauliflower, sliced carrots, a rocket salad and a truly wonderful chutney. For a main we were served salmon, cooked “hot and cold” on one side only at 44.5°C in basil oil served with marinated prawns, mashed potatoes and broccoli. It was a great dish but perhaps a little more salt could have made it perfect. The final course, equally, was a delight: chocolate fudge with Baileys ice cream and salted caramel. I was in heaven.
In general, Hannagen’s approach to slow cooking and his use of local produce reminded me very much of that of Jason Atherton at Pollen Street Social. I was therefore not surprised when he later told me that Atherton was his mentor. He did a great job and my companion and I agreed that he deserves huge success.
The meal over, we ended up downing Patrón XO Cafe shots together while happily exchanging numbers. Though I may have been sceptical in the beginning, this concept is brilliant. I am very much looking forward to attend the next Secret Supper Club soon.
