Tag: Switzerland

Rolls-Royce isn’t Rolls-Royce but it is Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce issues a press release to try and stop the media mistakenly saying they are Rolls-Royce; they want to highlight the difference between PLC and Cars

When you think of Rolls-Royce, you may think of handcrafted limousines made with the most exquisite materials. You might think of the royalty, heads of state and stars who’ve owned such vehicles, but one thing’s for sure, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, a “wholly-owned subsidiary of BMW Group (Munich)” now want to make very clear: They have nothing to do with the aircraft, ship and submarine manufacturers Rolls-Royce PLC.

In a press release issued on Thursday, Andrew Ball for Goodwood, West Sussex based Rolls-Royce Motor Cars pointedly remarked:

“Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has issued a statement in response to continuing media confusion and misreporting concerning its assumed or implied connection to Rolls-Royce PLC.”

“Media are kindly asked to note that images of Rolls-Royce motor cars, the black and silver ‘Double R’ logo, the ‘Spirit of Ecstasy’ (‘Flying Lady’) mascot, the Rolls-Royce Pantheon Grille and other related content are all signifiers of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars and its Brand.”

“The use of these images to illustrate stories relating to Rolls-Royce plc together with copy that unnecessarily confuses or conflates the two companies, is incorrect and leads to public confusion.”

Given “recent announcements” have led to the “media confusing and misreporting” the two, one thing’s for sure: A Rolls-Royce car is a Rolls-Royce car when it’s a Rolls-Royce Motor Car; when it’s not, it’s just not. “Now Jeeves, be a darling, go fetch the Toyota.”

Some quotes about Rolls-Royces

“Greatness takes time: It takes 13 hours to build a Toyota, but it takes 6 months to build a Rolls-Royce.”

Unknown.

“Wall Street is the only place that people ride to in a Rolls-Royce to get advice from those who take the subway.”

‘Most successful investor in the world’ Warren Buffett.

“At 60 miles per hour, the loudest noise in this Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock.”

‘Father of Advertising’ David Ogilvy CBE.

“When you are a rich man, you are proud to own a Rolls-Royce and when you are a poor man, you are proud to own a Renault.”

Charismatic footballer Eric Cantona.

“If a working-class Englishman saw a bloke drive past in a Rolls-Royce, he’d say to himself: ‘Come the social revolution and we’ll take that away from you, mate.’ Whereas, if his American counterpart saw a bloke drive past in a Cadillac, he’d say: ‘One day, I’m going to own one of those.’ To my way of thinking, the first attitude is wrong. The latter is right.”

Media tycoon Kerry Packer.

Pictured top: A selection of models currently available in Rolls-Royce Motor Cars’ current line-up.

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Rolls-Royce Motor Cars want to remind the world that they produce motor cars. They most certainly don’t want people thinking they produce flying hairdryers.

In October 2016, ‘The Steeple Times’ featured this 1926 Rolls-Royce Phantom I by Brougham De Ville. It has an interior inspired by Versailles and the interior was described as “like stepping inside a very fine Georgian manor house.”

In March 2017, ‘The Steeple Times’ featured this 1958 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud I drophead coupé. It was nicknamed ‘The Honeymoon Express’ given it seats just two and has an oversized boot capable of carrying a week’s luggage.

In August 2015, ‘The Steeple Times’ featured this 1973 Rolls-Royce Phantom VI by Pietro Frua. It was described as “the largest convertible ever built,” measured over 22-foot in length and took two years to build. The giant motor was originally owned by His Excellency Consul Simon van Kempen of Switzerland and Monaco sold for £442,546 including premium as part of The Frederiksen Auction in Denmark.

In February 2018, ‘The Steeple Times’ featured this special edition 1995 Rolls-Royce Flying Spur converted to an estate car from a Silver Spur III.

In September 2016, ‘The Steeple Times’ joined those describing the owner of this Rolls-Royce as having “the most vulgar numberplate in Britain.” The owner of ‘SH10W OF’ plainly is a person without an ounce of modesty in their entire being.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pndoAjymnMM

June 12, 2020
Grubby Story Time With Fergie & Friends

‘Randy Andy’s’ ex-wife Sarah Ferguson excels (again) in sharing videos of coronavirus bailout money grabber Sir Richard Branson’s son on her not so popular YouTube channel

You’d have thought Sarah Ferguson – ex-wife and live-in comedy sidekick of he who doesn’t sweat (unless he’s in the Woking branch of Pizza Express or allegedly grubbing around doing a bit of groping in the mansion of a now dead paedophile) Prince Andrew – would have kept her gob shut for once, but no, as ever, this weird whackjob just could not help herself.

On Saturday, in spite of stories circulating about the pugnacious pair being sued for £6.7 million after not stumping up what they owe on a £20 million Swiss ski chalet (as only these spendthrifts could be expected to do) and yet more tawdry revelations about Prince Andrew inappropriately paying £355,927 to his former private secretary via his PACT charity (strange that that shares a name with that of their “charity tin rattling” mate Baroness Meyer’s now-deservedly-also-closed-down “venture”), Sarah Ferguson decided to take to YouTube.

Here, on her not especially popular channel (she has just 2,500 followers), she shared a video of the son of one of the most loathed individuals of the coronavirus lockdown, Sir Richard Branson, strumming on a guitar and reading a story (it must have been hard for him to sit on a very expensive private island doing that whilst daddy was out begging for yet more millions of public wonga).

Sarah Ferguson seems to think reading stories to children on YouTube will help redeem her reputation; the investors and creditors owed millions quite rightly think otherwise.

As part of her crassly titled “Fergie & Friends” (does she actually have any left?) stories series, Sam Branson read from a book titled: I Am Human: A Book of Empathy. Somewhat laughably, the tale about “finding my way and choosing my path” (something Fergie most definitely isn’t terribly good at) had only received 12 likes on YouTube by Monday morning and given any chance of forgiveness for the ‘Duchess of Dork’ – whom also is facing legal actions from Chinese investors whom she took over £500,000 from – is all but over, she’d perhaps have done better to have parked this particular episode.

Also last week, self-declared “spokesperson, best-selling children’s author, businesswoman, wellness advocate, producer and global humanitarian” (is there anything she can’t turn her money snatching hands to?) Ferguson joined LinkedIn. God only knows why she took such a course of action as frankly no one in their right mind would employ this train wreck. Frankly, instead, the well-known toe sucking wastrel would have done better to have simply done something else: She should have given up on the idea of ‘work’ (not that she knows what such even is) and taken ‘Randy Andy’ and retired together Sotogrande. If she did that, perhaps poor old ‘Brenda’ might get out of supposedly once again having to pay off yet more of the on-off couple’s bills and the non-sweater could save a dime and enjoy yet another freebie on the golf course.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzFslpUsGyc

May 11, 2020
Bonded to a Short Lease

Eaton Square apartment in a Grade II* listed building that has been home to both Bond star Sir Roger Moore and aristocrat-who-went-missing Lord Lucan for sale for staggering sum given it is on a lease of just 15 years

Best known for playing the British secret agent James Bond in seven feature films from 1973 to 1985, Sir Roger Moore KBE (1927 – 2017) once remarked: “I enjoy being a highly paid actor.” He added: “It’s easy to sit in relative luxury and peace and pontificate on the subject of the Third World debts,” though in his various homes in such places as London, Monaco and Switzerland, he certainly illustrated that he took the bit about opulence seriously indeed.

Now, someone with aspirations to live like “the definitive Bond” has the opportunity to purchase an apartment in an Eaton Square building where not only he resided, but one that was also a childhood home of the most famous aristocrat to go missing ever, the 7^th Earl of Lucan (born 1934, last seen alive in 1974, declared dead in 2016).

John Bingham, better known as ‘Lucky’ or Lord Lucan, is said to have returned to London from wartime exile in New York in February 1945 with his siblings to find: “As they walked past their home at Cheyne Walk, they realised the whole building had been bombed. Their other family home at 22 Eaton Square had no windows due to the blow of a bomb and rationing was in full swing.”

The apartment available now has windows complete with actual glass in-situ and is situated in what was once a single-family residence. It extends to 927 square foot and consists of a reception room with open plan kitchen, two bedrooms, one bathroom and one shower room. There are wooden floors throughout and the space has air conditioning also.

The fourth floor flat at 22 Eaton Square is offered by estate agents Ayrton Wylie at a price of £795,000 ($1 million, €914,000 or درهم3.7 million) or the equivalent of £53,000 per year ($66,700, €60,900 or درهم244,800 per year). Its lease expires on the 23^rd February 2035 and an annual service charge of £6,779 per year ($8,526, €7,791 or درهم31,313 per year) is payable also.

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May 1, 2020
Lawrence Stroll (born Lawrence Strulovitch)

Montreal born “archetypal billionaire,” “fashion mogul” and “Ferrari fanatic” Lawrence Stroll arranged £536 million of funding to save Aston Martin, much of which came from his own very, very deep coffers, in early 2020. Without him, the firm that has manufactured James Bond’s favourite motorcar since 1913 would likely have gone bust for the eighth time after a disastrous flotation “that left the city shaken, not stirred” in 2019. According to Bloomberg, he’s famous for “[taking] over a brand that’s either niche, or in trouble, or both, and beef it up for half a dozen years. Then exit with a tidy profit,” but given his personal interest in both vintage and F1 cars (he led the consortium that bought the Force India F1 team in 2018) this “petrolhead” may allow passion to rule profit for once. Father of two Stroll is based in Geneva and has homes in London, New York, Quebec and on Mustique. He counts Michael Douglas and Sarah, Duchess of York amongst his friends and once remarked of people complaining about his cars and helicopters: “I can appreciate that some people are opposed to noise. And I can understand their desire for tranquillity, in which case they should not move in next to racetracks, airports or ski hills.”

April 21, 2020
A Grand Old Man’s Grand Old Merc

1967 Mercedes ‘Dictator Car’ limousine owned until 1993 by the first President of Ivory Coast to be auctioned after being restored at vast expense

Félix Houphouët-Boigny (whom claimed to be born in 1908, but was more likely born in 1905, and died in 1993) was known variously as ‘Papa Houphouët’ (‘The Old One’), the ‘Sage of Africa,’ the ‘Farmer President’ and the ‘Grand Old Man of Africa.’ Westerners, more simply called him: ‘HB.’

The first President of Ivory Coast and ruler from 1960 to 1963 was considered “politically moderate” and under him the country “prospered economically.” His tenure was referred to as the “Ivorian miracle” and with growth, this larger-than-life leader moved the capital from Abidjan to his hometown, Yamoussoukro, in 1983. There he built not only an international airport, but also, at an extraordinary cost of the equivalent of £629 million ($780 million, €713 million or درهم2.9 billion) today, the largest church in the world, the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace of Yamoussoukro.

“Well-loved first President of Ivory Coast” Félix Houphouët-Boigny (1905 or 1908 – 1993).

Félix Houphouët-Boigny travelling in one of his Mercedes-Benz ‘Dictator Cars’.

Aside from the usual ‘perks’ purchased by leaders of his time – including homes in France, Italy and Switzerland – Houphouët-Boigny was known for his love of shiny metals. In 1983, he declared: “People are surprised that I like gold. It’s just that I was born in it.” With his ‘Françafrique-style’ of diplomacy, Houphouët-Boigny liked to travel in style also and now one of his fleet of cars is to be sold at auction in June.

The car to be offered by RM Sotheby’s is a 1967 Mercedes-Benz 600 Pullman with six-doors. It is one of five delivered to Ivory Coast at that time, unusually has no door handles on its middle doors and is fitted with air conditioning and an intercom also. Presented in its original colour combination of black lacquer with a natural coloured leather interior and brown carpets, the car left Africa after the death of Houphouët-Boigny in 1993. It was then exported to Germany and in the time since has been subject to restorative work costing some £88,000 ($109,000, €100,000 or درهم401,000) in 1994 and between 2013 and 2014 also. The auctioneers note that “the car is equipped with a replacement engine of the right type and that a second engine of the right type comes with the purchase.”

Twice married Houphouët-Boigny was said to be worth somewhere between the staggering sums of £5.7 billion and £8.9 billion ($7 billion and $11 billion, €6.4 billion and €10 billion or درهم25.7 billion and درهم40.4 billion) on his death. His funeral was attended by 7,000 people and subsequently Ivory Coast’s economy declined rapidly. A religiously grounded civil war followed and still today, what was previously a prosperous land remains “severely damaged.”

RM Sotheby’s will sell the ex-Félix Houphouët-Boigny Mercedes-Benz 600 Pullman at their Essen sale on behalf of its current owner, Dr Urich Speicher. The event runs from 24^th to 27^th June and an estimate of £220,000 to £247,000 ($273,000 to $306,000, €250,000 to €280,000 or درهم1 million to درهم1.1 million) has been set.

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April 1, 2020
Morons of the Moment – Mortimer and Jacqueline Sackler

Self-entitled drug flogging billionaires Mortimer and Jacqueline Sackler were rightly roasted by ‘Guest of a Guest’ for their (latest) bleating email

Mortimer D. A. Sackler is a spoilt berk from a family who have galleries named after them. This drip and his ghastly oik of a wife, Jacqueline, hang out with royalty and are part of one of America’s richest dynasties, but there’s something utterly grating about them: They constantly moan.

In July, Jacqueline wrote to her lawyers. In her pathetic missive, this tedious tepid woman whined about the £9.98 billion ($13 billion, €11.99 billion or درهم47.74 billion) the family had gained from flogging dodgy pharmaceuticals including OxyCotin as having destroyed “our work, our friendships, our reputation and our ability to function in society.” She bleated: “And worse, it dooms my children. How is my son supposed to apply to high school in September?”

Now, according to Guest of a Guest, Jackie and her hubby have “been increasingly blacklisted by the upper crust” in New York. “Aren’t they just the worst?” they asked in an email to subscribers. With even the Met museum refusing to take any further donations from them, this vacuous pair have flogged their “ritzy Upper East Side townhouse” and fled to “winter term” it (their words, they wouldn’t come from anyone else, after all) in Gstad, Switzerland.

According to the site, the duo emailed friends and told them: “We would love to see you either in Gstaad, if you are here or nearby, or elsewhere in Europe (taking advantage of the ease of travel here vs ours in NYC).”

A spokesman for this pair of pillocks then followed up to announce that anyone suggesting they were siphoning off funds to Switzerland might be telling untruths and announced: “They fully intend to return to the US in the near future.” Guest of a Guest quite correctly responded: “Here’s hoping they don’t!”

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February 14, 2020
Mrs Simpson Farmed in Mayfair

Mayfair “farmhouse” where Mrs Simpson began her affair with the then Prince of Wales for sale for 147% more than it was marketed for in 2012

Last marketed at a price of £4.75 million ($6.04 million, €5.30 million or درهم22.19 million) in 2012 and offered for sale in 2005 at an undisclosed sum also, a house where the then Mrs Simpson began her affair with the then Prince of Wales is again for sale.

Rebuilt in the early 1900s by a Mrs M. Strakosch in “the Gothic style,” Farm House – or 22 Farm Street as it is more simply known – stands on the site of a farmhouse that predated the development of Mayfair.

Entered through a large oak front door that feature the heads of the twelve apostles, the half-timbered house Mrs Strakosch commissioned featured Flemish linenfold paneling and 17^th century doors. Though much of this has now gone, a number of Jacobean and medieval features remain and what is now offered is described as “the perfect space for modern entertaining.”

Farm House, 22 Farm Street, Mayfair, London, W1J 5RQ – For sale for £11.75 million

Gloria Swanson, Gloria Vanderbilt and Thelma Furness

Farm House includes three reception rooms, two kitchens, six bedrooms, four bathrooms, two terraces and a garage. It extends to 4,564 square foot over four floors and was home to the Swiss born Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness (1904 – 1970), the twice married mistress of the then Prince of Wales and later King Edward VIII between 1930 and 1934, during their relationship.

Furness, whose twin sister Gloria (1904 – 1965) became a Vanderbilt and was also the maternal grandmother of the American news anchor Anderson Cooper, at this time, was friends with Wallis Simpson. She introduced her American friend to the prince at her country house, Burrough Court, near Melton Mowbray, first in 1931 but then became supplanted in his affections in 1934.

With their relationship approaching its end, Furness embarked on a short affair with Prince Aly Khan whilst in America and whilst there allowed Simpson to live in her Farm Street home according to the actress Gloria Swanson (1899 – 1983). Later, in her autobiography Silent Boulevard, Swanson wrote:

“Lady Thelma Furness had a charming house on Farm Street, where her friend Wallis Simpson has kept the Prince of Wales company while Thelma was away in the States.”

Swanson, whilst pregnant, and her then husband Michael Farmer subsequently rented Farm House from Furness and of their time there wrote: “The house was empty for the moment, so we settled in to wait for the baby and see old friends.”

Knight Frank now seek £11.75 million ($14.95 million, €13.12 million or درهم54.90 million) for Farm House. Reportedly, according to a 2012 Mayfair Times article, the property comes with deeds that specifically mention that it still has a “right of way for sheep.”

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January 6, 2019
Oliver Ouboter – What’s on your mantelpiece?

A 20-question interview with Oliver Ouboter; the co-founder of the imminently launching innovative Swiss ‘bubble car’ – the Microlino

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

Passion.

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

Just do it! (Thanks Nike).

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

SUVs.

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

Having the curiosity of a child.

What might you swap all your wealth for?

My family’s health.

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’s as fucked up as the Donald himself.

What phrase or word do you most loathe?

‘Trivial’ as in German nobody uses it and most people don’t understand it. I loathe ‘trivial’ for being a ‘non-trivial’ word to describe something ‘trivial.’

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

I support mainly environmental causes. It is not that I think that humans deserve it less, I just think sending money to developing countries won’t solve the problem and is just an easy fix for many people to feel good about themselves.

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?

Try to use it less, fail miserably in doing so and then tell yourself you’re gonna do better next year.

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

My family and Barack Obama and Steve Jobs and Nelson Mandela if they were still alive.

Oliver Ouboter pictured with a Microlino (as featured in ‘The Steeple Times’ earlier this month) and his brother Merlin and father Wim.

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

A special home-made roast.

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

It depends on the situation.

A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?

A Negroni of course.

Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?

Parties of friends that I don’t spend too much time with. There are always new people to get to know.

Who is the most positive person you know?

My dad.

What’s your most guilty pleasure?

Chocolate of course. I’m Swiss.

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

It would be a Kickscooter, of course.

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

What a question: I’d be a Microlino!

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

I cannot operate a washing machine but that’s not surprising though.

What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?

Big companies and governments. They are slow and inefficient in dealing with global warming.

Oliver Ouboter is the co-founder of a start-up alongside his father and brother that has developed a small electric city-car named Microlino. He is considered one of the best guinea pigs as his dad invented the world-famous Kickscooter in 1999.

Follow Microlino on Twitter at @microlinoworld, on Facebook at @Microlino.car and on Instagram at @microlino_official

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August 27, 2018
The Bubble is Back

New electric Swiss ‘bubble car’ expected to launch in December; 7,200 orders have already been placed for the £10,800 Microlino

The Swiss are known for their chocolate and cuckoo clocks but now they might add something new to their roster: cars.

Expected to launch in December and limited at first to the Swiss market, the two-seat, electric Microlino is a quadricycle vehicle that pays homage to the design of the BMW Isetta ‘bubble car’.

With a supposed 7,200 orders placed already, the Microlino has a top speed of 56 miles per hour and a range of 75 miles. It can be charged using a domestic power socket in four hours and will be manufactured by the Italian company Tazzari EV.

Described as priced “less than a car, but a bit more than a motorbike,” the surprisingly spacious Microlino will be sold for £10,800 ($13,700, €12,000 or درهم50,400).

Pictured top: The creators of the Microlino, brothers Merlin and Oliver Ouboter, with a prototype of their new vehicle.

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August 18, 2018
A Cut Cost Chalet

Britain’s weirdest home for sale for a sum 61% lower than the £13 million sum asked for it in 2016; it has been repossessed and comes with a 69-foot long indoor beach

In October 2016, The Steeple Times featured what could quite possibly be Britain’s weirdest home. Offered then for £10 million, The Chalet at East Molesey in Surrey has now been repossessed and is being marketed for just £5 million – or a sum 61% lower than its initial asking price of £13 million in August 2016.

Now marketed by Savills on behalf of LPA Receivers, the Grade II listed chalet was imported from Switzerland in 1882. It includes an indoor 69-foot man-made beach filled with 40 tonnes of sand, a dining room with an especially vulgar 18-seat Swarovski crystal table and a kitchen with just what any budding Mary Berry couldn’t live without – five Gaggenau fridges.

Extending to 5,478 square foot in total, The Chalet also comes with a number of private moorings on the River Thames.

The Chalet, Hampton Court Road, East Molesey, Surrey, KT8 9BP – The Numbers

March 2018 – £5 million ($6.9 million, €5.6 million or درهم25.3 million).

October 2016 – £10 million ($13.8 million, €11.2 million or درهم50.7 million).

August 2016 – £13 million ($17.9 million, €14.6 million or درهم65.9 million).

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March 4, 2018