The Steeple Times

Tag: SW7

  • Breaking with Boris

    Breaking with Boris

    Breaking News – Rachel Johnson explains why she ditched the party of her Foreign Secretary brother Boris and defected to the Lib Dems

     

    On this morning’s Andrew Marr Show on BBC1, Rachel Johnson was interviewed about her decision to defect to the Liberal Democrat Party.

     

    Explaining her rationale for ditching the Tories and the party of her Brexit supporting Foreign Secretary brother, Boris Johnson, Rachel Johnson commented:

     

    “This is single issue election. We could be going over a cliff on a hard Brexit… Everything on the table from last June is now off the table. Business needs to stay in the Single Market. It’s all lose, lose, lose… A second referendum gives the country another go”.

     

    Answering a question about whether she plans to stand as a candidate herself, Johnson, a columnist for the Mail on Sunday, remarked:

     

    “This is my paper making mischief to embarrass me… [But I am] not ruling anything out”.

     

    Later, in the segment, she tempered this further by adding:

     

    “I am very tempted to campaign in my constituency of Kensington and Chelsea”.

     

    Given her comments, The Steeple Times urges Rachel Johnson to join with us to support Gina Miller’s Best for Britain tactical voting campaign and suggests she also throws her campaigning efforts behind the Liberal Democrats’ Annabel Mullin for Kensington and Louise Rowntree for Chelsea & Fulham.

     

    #BritainDeservesBetter #MakeJuneEndOfMay

     

    Breaking with Boris – Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson’s sister Rachel Johnson defects to the Lib Dems – The Steeple Times urges her to support Gina Miller’s Best for Britain campaign and Liberal Democrat candidates Annabel Mullin for Kensington and Louise Rowntree for Chelsea & Fulham
    Louise Rowntree (left) pictured with Matthew Steeples of The Steeple Times and Annabel Mullin in Chelsea last week
    Breaking with Boris – Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson’s sister Rachel Johnson defects to the Lib Dems – The Steeple Times urges her to support Gina Miller’s Best for Britain campaign and Liberal Democrat candidates Annabel Mullin for Kensington and Louise Rowntree for Chelsea & Fulham
    The Johnson clan – Stanley Johnson (far left) with his children: Rachel, Boris and Jo
  • Marked by Mice

    Marked by Mice

    Scott’s in Mayfair to reopen after closing due to a mice infestation; Montpeliano remains open in spite of receiving a Food Standards Agency rating of zero out of five

     

    Today, Scott’s restaurant in Mount Street, Mayfair reopens after having been closed for six days for what they called “a spring clean and revamp”.

     

    The restaurant, which is owned by bouffant haired Richard Caring, in fact, actually received a food hygiene rating of 1/5 – which indicates a “major improvement [is] necessary” – on 13th February and was especially criticized for standards of cleanliness and management of food safety. In particular, according to the Mail Online’s Shari Miller, the report highlighted: “During the inspection it was noted that there was a significant issue with mice activity throughout the premises”.

     

    Of this development at a restaurant loved by many, a spokesman for Scott’s told the Mail Online:

     

    “We are shocked that the council found a reason to reduce our rating despite 10 years with a spotless record”.

     

    “The issues identified were dealt with immediately and we pushed for Westminster Council to return and regrade us before we closed for a long-term planned refurbishment of the restaurant”.

     

    “We are more than happy for them to come back when we open as we are totally confident of retaining our five-star rating”.

     

    “[This was a] wake-up call… And a reminder that for us to maintain our exacting standards, we must put in our own intense checks on top of outside agencies”.

     

    Elsewhere, Knightsbridge’s Montpeliano retains a rating of zero on the Food Standards Agency website. Awarded the truly dreadful score on the 21st September 2016, this “garden style restaurant” opened in 1974 and describes itself as “the place to go for dressy, classic Italian cooking”.

     

    Marked by Mice – Scott’s restaurant at 20 Mount Street, Mayfair, London, W1K 2HE to reopen after mice infestation – Montpeliano at 13 Montpelier Street, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1HQ still open after receiving a Food Standards Agency rating of 0/5.Marked by Mice – Scott’s restaurant at 20 Mount Street, Mayfair, London, W1K 2HE to reopen after mice infestation – Montpeliano at 13 Montpelier Street, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1HQ still open after receiving a Food Standards Agency rating of 0/5.

  • A Serious Shed

    A Serious Shed

    South Kensington flat with ‘summer house’ shed for sale for £3.25 million

     

    An apartment in Malvern Court, SW7 has gone on the market for £3.25 million ($4.2 million, €3.9 million or درهم15.3 million). It comes with an extra one wouldn’t expect to find with a pre-war mansion block flat just by South Kensington Underground Station – a rather snazzy14’ wide shed described as a “summer house or office”.

     

    Offered by Knight Frank, the 1,571 square foot 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom lateral ground floor apartment has a good sized reception room, a dining kitchen and a utility room and is directly adjoined by a private landscaped garden with a water feature. It is held on a lease with approximately 99 years remaining and is subject to a service charge of £8,000 per annum ($10,300, €9,400 or درهم37,700 per annum).

     

    Residents of this portered block also have the right to apply for access to the communal gardens of Onslow Square.

     

    A Serious Shed - £3.25 million flat in Malvern Court, SW7 – South Kensington apartment with ‘summer house’ shed for sale for £3.25m. Ground floor lateral flat is on with Knight Frank.A Serious Shed - £3.25 million flat in Malvern Court, SW7 – South Kensington apartment with ‘summer house’ shed for sale for £3.25m. Ground floor lateral flat is on with Knight Frank.A Serious Shed - £3.25 million flat in Malvern Court, SW7 – South Kensington apartment with ‘summer house’ shed for sale for £3.25m. Ground floor lateral flat is on with Knight Frank.A Serious Shed - £3.25 million flat in Malvern Court, SW7 – South Kensington apartment with ‘summer house’ shed for sale for £3.25m. Ground floor lateral flat is on with Knight Frank. A Serious Shed - £3.25 million flat in Malvern Court, SW7 – South Kensington apartment with ‘summer house’ shed for sale for £3.25m. Ground floor lateral flat is on with Knight Frank.A Serious Shed - £3.25 million flat in Malvern Court, SW7 – South Kensington apartment with ‘summer house’ shed for sale for £3.25m. Ground floor lateral flat is on with Knight Frank. A Serious Shed - £3.25 million flat in Malvern Court, SW7 – South Kensington apartment with ‘summer house’ shed for sale for £3.25m. Ground floor lateral flat is on with Knight Frank.

  • K&C Doesn’t Care

    K&C Doesn’t Care

    As 50% of care homes in Kensington & Chelsea are rated “inadequate”, we suggest this reflects what the area has become: A money park for the selfish rich

     

    A society that does not care for its elderly is, as the Pope pointed out in 2015, a “perverse society” and bizarrely, it has just been revealed, Britain’s richest borough, Kensington and Chelsea, has some of the worst care homes in the country.

     

    A study by the charity Independent Age found that Kensington and Chelsea falls within the five worst areas in the United Kingdom for its percentage of care homes rated “inadequate”. It found that one was even infested with mice and another “put residents at risk from poor management of medicines”. Out of ten care homes in the borough, five were rated poor.

     

    On Tuesday, Andrew Kaye, head of policy and campaigns at Independent Age, told the MailOnline:

     

    “It definitely surprised us to find affluent areas among those with poor rates, but this shows older people who pay to enter care homes, as well as those who are funded, are losing out”.

     

    “This might be because of staff vacancies, difficulty recruiting, or a lack of support. It is unacceptable that some older people are forced to choose a care home that is unsatisfactory”.

     

    In an area where basement flats sell for upto £5 million and houses and flats go for upto £250 million, it is shocking that so little effort is being put into taking care of the old and infirm. It is a reflection on the priorities of our society and yet another sad indication of what the money park that is the Royal Borough has become.

     

  • 81 Miles From New

    81 Miles From New

    1996 Mercedes-Benz SL500 that has been driven just 81 miles and stored in a Knightsbridge garage since new to be auctioned for 1,000% more than a normal example of its age

     

    A Mercedes-Benz with a difference is to be auctioned on its twenty-first birthday on 12th April. The car to be offered is an SL500 that effectively has covered an average of just 3.9 miles per year during its lifetime and it is presented in “virtually new condition”.

     

    Offered by Coys of Kensington, the Imperial Red with Mushroom leather two-seat roadster was bought from Normand of Mayfair and was only recently recommissioned after spending the vast majority of its life locked in a Knightsbridge garage.

     

    Of the time warp car, Chris Routledge, CEO of Coys of Kensington, remarked:

     

    “This is a car with a fantastic story. Purchased as a birthday present and driven only 81 miles before the [female] owner lost the keys and never drove it again. It even comes with a letter written by the owner’s butler verifying its mileage and its provenance”.

     

    “Had she not lost the keys and used it regularly, we estimate it would now be worth between £5,000 to £7,000 ($6,200 to $8,700, €5,900 to €8,200 or درهم22,800 to درهم31,900), but the fact that it has kept such a low mileage and has not been driven in more than twenty years makes it worth between £45,000 and £55,000 ($56,000 to $68,000, €53,000 to €64,000 or درهم205,000 to درهم251,000)”.

     

    “What happened with the keys remains a mystery but the car comes with new keys for the new owner”.

     

    81 Miles From New – 1996 Mercedes-Benz SL500 that has covered just 81 miles since new to be auctioned by Coys of Kensington at their Spring Classics 2017 sale on 12th April with an estimate of £45,000 to £55,000 ($56,000 to $68,000, €53,000 to €64,000 or درهم205,000 to درهم251,000) 81 Miles From New – 1996 Mercedes-Benz SL500 that has covered just 81 miles since new to be auctioned by Coys of Kensington at their Spring Classics 2017 sale on 12th April with an estimate of £45,000 to £55,000 ($56,000 to $68,000, €53,000 to €64,000 or درهم205,000 to درهم251,000)

  • Narrow in Knightsbridge

    Narrow in Knightsbridge

    Tiny 2.5-foot deep Knightsbridge “corridor house” sells for £810,000 at auction

     

    Yesterday, at an auction in London, a 2.5-foot deep (at its minimum) and 3-foot deep (at its maximum) mews house sold for £810,000 ($1 million, €936,000 or درهم3.7 million) despite being nothing more than a very long corridor.

     

    Extending to 275 square foot in total and 65-foot long, 1B Ennismore Gardens Mews needs “complete refurbishment” but has potential for a first floor extension. The single-storey freehold property, which was owned from the 1950s to 2010 by a lady named Linda Wildoner, is certainly one of the smallest houses in Knightsbridge and could definitely be described as a curiosity.

     

    Narrow in Knightsbridge – 2.5-foot wide house sells for £810,000 –Tiny, 2.5-foot deep “corridor house” 1B Ennismore Gardens Mews, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1HX sells for £810,000 ($1 million, €936,000 or درهم3.7 million) at Savills auction
    Linda Wildoner (1916 – 2010) outside 1B Ennismore Gardens Mews, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1HX with Sir Martyn Poliakoff CBE (born 1947)

     

    Miss Wildoner, an Austrian who moved to London after the Second World War to take care of Sir Martin Poliakoff and his family, died in 2010 and yesterday’s sale was carried out at the behest of her executors.

     

    Of this extraordinarily weird property, Chris Coleman-Smith of auctioneers Savills told the Mail Online:

     

    “You see narrow houses, but this is something completely different… It is on a prime, crème de la crème mews on Knightsbridge. It is a superb, picturesque mews. One of the top addresses”.

     

    “It is very basic and will need a complete refurbishment. It is brilliant. It is weird and wonderful and I’ve not come across anything like it. Someone will create something fantastic here. In a cobbled mews in Knightsbridge it is a great opportunity”.

     

    Narrow in Knightsbridge – 2.5-foot wide house sells for £810,000 –Tiny, 2.5-foot deep “corridor house” 1B Ennismore Gardens Mews, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1HX sells for £810,000 ($1 million, €936,000 or درهم3.7 million) at Savills auction Narrow in Knightsbridge – 2.5-foot wide house sells for £810,000 –Tiny, 2.5-foot deep “corridor house” 1B Ennismore Gardens Mews, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1HX sells for £810,000 ($1 million, €936,000 or درهم3.7 million) at Savills auction

  • An Expensive Blank Canvas

    An Expensive Blank Canvas

    Repossessed Knightsbridge flat for sale for £5.25 million in spite of being a complete wreck

     

    Originally built in 1870 with a façade created from the Portland stone from the original Blackfriars Bridge, 33 Ennismore Gardens was converted from a single-family home to six flats in 1947.

     

    In 1998, an additional mansard level was created to house an additional apartment and now the top three floors of the building are available instead as a single unit for £5.25 million ($6.6 million, €6.1 million or درهم24.1 million).

     

    Listed by Knight Frank on behalf of P. Mayo MRICS and A. Kisby MRICS of Allsop LLP acting as joint fixed charge receivers, the 2,732 square foot space on offer has previously had planning permission for a 4-bedroom apartment complete with 3 reception rooms and even, a little more exotically, what was termed a “cocktail room”.

     

    The Grade II listed, leasehold maisonette is currently presented in what the selling agents term “shell condition” – i.e. a total wreck – and “requires complete refurbishment”. Most of its internal walls and fittings have been removed and the resulting property offered is probably better described as “a very expensive blank canvas”.

     

    An Expensive Blank Canvas – Flat 4, 33 Ennismore Gardens, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1AE – Repossessed shell maisonette for sale for £5.25 million ($6.6 million, €6.1 million or درهم24.1 million) through Knight FrankAn Expensive Blank Canvas – Flat 4, 33 Ennismore Gardens, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1AE – Repossessed shell maisonette for sale for £5.25 million ($6.6 million, €6.1 million or درهم24.1 million) through Knight Frank An Expensive Blank Canvas – Flat 4, 33 Ennismore Gardens, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1AE – Repossessed shell maisonette for sale for £5.25 million ($6.6 million, €6.1 million or درهم24.1 million) through Knight Frank An Expensive Blank Canvas – Flat 4, 33 Ennismore Gardens, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1AE – Repossessed shell maisonette for sale for £5.25 million ($6.6 million, €6.1 million or درهم24.1 million) through Knight Frank An Expensive Blank Canvas – Flat 4, 33 Ennismore Gardens, Knightsbridge, London, SW7 1AE – Repossessed shell maisonette for sale for £5.25 million ($6.6 million, €6.1 million or درهم24.1 million) through Knight Frank

  • Not So Roomy

    Not So Roomy

    Small, single room in South Kensington to be sold for £150,000 at auction

     

    A single room in South Kensington is to be auctioned for the staggering sum of £150,000 ($184,000, €172,000 or درهم675,000).

     

    Curiously offered with a “reserve price not to exceed” that sum, the 205 square foot space is on the lower ground floor of 30 Queen’s Gate Gardens and held on a lease with 113 years remaining. It can be accessed from the main ground floor or entrance or via the lower ground floor entrance, has an external window and appears to have a rather large hole bashed in one of its walls.

     

    Auctioneers Allsop will sell what could be one of the most expensive cupboards in London on 30th March at The Cumberland Hotel in Great Cumberland Place, W1H. The agents emphasise a key selling point in stating: “There is no liability towards the building’s insurance or service charge” with this property.

     

  • A Serpentine Summer House

    A Serpentine Summer House

    Serpentine Galleries summerhouse originally installed in Kensington Gardens for sale – it’ll cost you a bit more than what you might find down at B&Q

     

    Each summer, since the year 2000, the Serpentine Galleries have commissioned what they term a ‘pavilion’ to stand alongside their original gallery in Kensington Gardens. These have varied from the sublime to the ridiculous but whilst most have been thought provoking, in 2016 the project was extended to include four summer houses next to the nearby 18th century Queen Caroline’s Temple.

     

    One of these creations, designed by a Nigerian architect named Kunlé Adeyemi, is now for sale and available for delivery to a new location. It is described as a “one-off piece of art-meets-architecture” by selling agents The Modern House and by its designers as “an inverse replica [and] tribute to [Queen Caroline’s Temple’s] robust form, space and material, recomposed into a new architectural language”.

     

    Constructed from prefabricated building blocks assembled from rough sandstone, Adeyemi’s design was conceived as a tea house that “might have grown out of the ground”. It is all about “eating, resting and playing” but at £95,000 ($116,000, €110,000 or درهم427,000) plus VAT at 20% it is quite the polar opposite of the kind of summer house most people might purchase down at B&Q.

    A Serpentine Summer House – Serpentine Galleries summerhouse originally installed in Kensington Gardens for sale – it’ll cost you a bit more than what you might find down at B&Q – For sale through The Modern House for £95,000 ($116,000, €110,000 or درهم427,000) – Designed by Kunlé AdeyemiA Serpentine Summer House – Serpentine Galleries summerhouse originally installed in Kensington Gardens for sale – it’ll cost you a bit more than what you might find down at B&Q – For sale through The Modern House for £95,000 ($116,000, €110,000 or درهم427,000) – Designed by Kunlé Adeyemi A Serpentine Summer House – Serpentine Galleries summerhouse originally installed in Kensington Gardens for sale – it’ll cost you a bit more than what you might find down at B&Q – For sale through The Modern House for £95,000 ($116,000, €110,000 or درهم427,000) – Designed by Kunlé Adeyemi

  • The Pret Prayer

    The Pret Prayer

    A new addition to the South Kensington neighbourhood in October 2016, the Pret Prayer likes to get his mat out in front of all and sundry in Pret A Manager in Old Brompton Road, SW7. He also likes to paint and listen to his radio – on full volume, of course. He then joins the Pret Sleeper and dozes off.

     

    The Pret Prayer – Pret A Manger, 15 Old Brompton Road, South Kensington, London, SW7 3HZThe Pret Prayer – Pret A Manger, 15 Old Brompton Road, South Kensington, London, SW7 3HZ