Tag: Switzerland

Shawn Sullivan (AKA Shawn O’Suilleabhain and ‘The Putney Paedo’)

Putney based Shawn Sullivan fled America after being accused of abusing two girls aged 11 and 14 in the 1990s. He was subsequently convicted of sexually assaulting two 12 year old girls in Ireland in 1997 but then moved to London on an Irish passport. Sullivan then married a Ministry of Justice policy manager named Sarah Smith and after fighting extradition to the US claiming it would be a “flagrant denial” of his rights, has lived freely in the UK ever since. Of this monster, a neighbour remarked: “It is a pathetic joke and makes a mockery of the British justice system. He should be extradited and made to pay for his crimes. He manipulated and cheated girls out of their innocence… It is a disgrace and I fear for any children he will come across in the future.” Shame on our bankrupt lawmakers for continuing to protect this repugnant paedophile.

September 26, 2017
The Sound of Theresa

In taking three weeks off for a holiday with her ‘Garden Gnome’ hubby, Theresa May has shown where her priorities lie

Whilst orchestrating the most appallingly run election campaign in recent history, Theresa May waxed lyrical about her naughty moments wandering in wheat fields. Now, our Prime Minister, at a time when most would consider themselves lucky to get even a few days off, is jetting off a three-week jaunt with her beloved ‘Garden Gnome-like’ husband, Philip.

Described by the Mail Online as an opportunity to “help her recover from the election disaster”, the couple’s trip will take in northern Italy and the Swiss Alps. No doubt Mrs May will release her inner Heidi and yodel as she wanders and no doubt the hills will come alive to her rendition of The Sound of Music.

July 21, 2017
Best in Britain

EXCLUSIVE – “Nationally important” Grade II* listed Berkshire mansion in 130 acres for sale for £26 million; its interior is yet to be renovated

A Grade II* listed building capable of being reinstated as one of Britain’s finest country houses has just been placed on the market for £26 million.

Benham Park – formerly known as Benham Vallence – at Marsh Benham, near Newbury comes with around 130 acres of Grade II listed Capability Brown (1716 – 1783) designed parkland and currently extends to 27,620 square foot. It has planning permission in place to either revert to a truly epic single family mansion or to convert into a 100 bedroom ‘wellness centre’ to rival Champneys in Hertfordshire and Clinique La Prairie in Switzerland. The schemes proposed would provide between 50,000 and 140,000 square foot of accommodation and, already, businessmen Harry Marriott and Michael Fresson, owners since 2011, have restored the exterior of the building along with its gardens and park.

Built at the behest of the nobleman William Craven (1738 – 1791) to designs of the Fulham born architect Henry Holland (1745 – 1806) in 1774 – 1775, this fine neoclassical house was constructed from Bath stone and later altered by the extremely wealthy Sutton baronets during their tenure in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. The estate was sold for £1 million to the innovative computer manufacturers Norsk Data in 1983 and remained in the firm’s ownership until it was dissolved in 1992. It then became the offices of other technology companies until again being placed for sale for £6 million in 2010.

Benham Park in the era when it was used as offices; the modern buildings have now been demolished and the car park landscaped

The main mansion prior to renovation of its exterior

A view from another angle (after external renovation)

From the lake

And from its imposing entrance

One of several entrances to the estate

Another set of impressive gates

Should a buyer use the existing designs for a residential scheme, they would find themselves owning a house that would not only come with 12 reception rooms and 29 bedroom suites, but also one with a sports complex, a sculpture gallery, a 40-seat cinema and garaging for 50 cars. Aside from an existing 5-bedroom mill house on the estate’s 10 acre lake and a gate lodge, the proposals would add a further 8 additional ancillary houses also.

Of Benham Park, Crispin Holborow of selling agent Savills commented:

“[This] is a nationally important stately home so its sale presents a very exciting proposition for a future owner to oversee its transformation. The prospect of restoring a property of such magnificent proportions with excellent access to London has not arisen for many years, and we expect interest from potential buyers for either its reinstatement as a significant country residence or its repurpose into a world leading wellness centre”.

Those looking to extend the compound further have the option to purchase two separately owned properties that were formerly part of the estate. A house known as ‘Greenhouses’, for sale with Savills, is offered for £1.3 million and comes with 1.47 acres of land whilst Mill Bank House, which stands in 2 acres, is on the market through Strutt & Parker.

The Numbers – Benham Park

1771 – 1774

William Craven, 6^th Baron Craven paid Capability Brown £7,150 for works to the house and grounds. This sum is the equivalent of £989,000 today ($1.3 million, €1.1 million or درهم4.7 million).

1982

Sold to Norsk Data for £1 million (the equivalent of £3.2 million, $4.1 million, €3.7 million or درهم15.1 million today) by Sir Richard Sutton (born 1937).

2010

Placed on the market for £6 million ($7.7 million, €6.9 million or درهم28.3 million).

2011

Sold to Harry Marriott and Michael Fresson for £5 million ($6.4 million, €5.7 million or درهم23.6 million).

2017

Benham Park placed on the market for £26 million ($33.4 million, €29.9 million or درهم123 million).

Separately owned estate houses

Mill Bank House – On the market for £1.4 million ($1.8 million, €1.6 million or درهم6.6 million).

Greenhouses – On the market for £1.3 million ($1.7 million, €1.5 million or درهم6.1 million).

May 29, 2017
A Fashionable Bargain

£39 million summer house on Lake Geneva that was designed by one of the architects of the Eiffel Tower to be sold at auction without reserve

Built in the Belle Époque style on the north shore of Lake Geneva, Château de Promenthoux is a 13,988 square foot house on a plot of 9 acres. It has been on the market for £38.8 million (CHF 50 million $49.9 million, €45.7 million or درهم183.5 million) but is now to be sold at auction on the 15^th June “to the highest bidder” by Concierge Auctions.

Couturier Jean Philippe Worth (1856 – 1926) commissioned Stephen Sauvestre (1847 – 1919), one of the architects of the Eiffel Tower, to build Château de Promenthoux as his summer house in 1896. The son of the “father of haute couture”, Charles Frederick Worth (1825 – 1895), opted for a building that featured Meillerie stone pillars and brick walls covered by dark wood and an interior dominated by parquet flooring, paneling, velvet wall coverings and soaring ceilings.

The private harbour of Château de Promenthoux can accommodate numerous boats and is protected by two jetties built of Meillerie stone blocks and an outside break-weather

Original owner Jean Philippe Worth and his architect Stephen Sauvestre

Current owner Linda Durand

Now restored “with modern amenities”, the 4-storey house has 7 imposing reception rooms, 8 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, 3 kitchens and separate accommodation for staff. It comes with a hydraulic lift, a gym, a sauna, the largest private harbour on Lake Geneva and also enjoys the most spectacular of views across the water.

Of why she is selling, current owner Linda Durand remarked:

The property has been in our family for almost two generations. I grew up here as a kid and then I remained in the property with my family and I raised my children here.

The property is a very large house that could be called a mansion, could be called a small castle. It’s so natural, it’s so remote, giving a big atmosphere of peace and quietness… Within just half an hour’s drive you can be skiing, sledging, cross-country.

The house is not a proper wooded house. Just the style it was given was the wood, which means the house was very safe. It is very solid, very, very well built… It was built as a family home but it could be used by an organisation for international purposes, for a consulate, by an embassy, a private club.

After discussing an auction, we decided it would be a different opportunity to sell the property in a certain time frame… We want to enable the property to continue to belong to someone in a certain time frame and not be on the market for maybe longer.

Situated within a district of Switzerland most famous for the production of white wine, Château de Promenthoux is 7.5 miles from Geneva and 27 miles from Lausanne.

May 13, 2017
Carina Reid

Thieving Chelsea based trollop Carina Reid was labeled “arrogant”, “extremely boorish” and a fraudster by a judge in May 2017. Often spotted in the now defunct La Brasserie restaurant, this tarty so-called beautician was jailed for three years in May 2016 and ordered to pay back £50,000 she’d falsely claimed in benefits a year later. Despite arguing she had no savings, taken no holidays and lived off free food from a mosque, somewhat dubious Miss Reid somehow managed to send £116,000 abroad to acquire property in Dubai in 2013/2014, paid £20,000 as a deposit for a flat in the Kings Road, SW3 and held savings of £180,000 in 19 separate bank accounts. Of this dishonest wench, Judge Douglas Marks-Moore remarked: “This is pie in the sky… You don’t listen to a word I have to say anyway. You have not got a hope in hell of getting an extension. You have been playing the system in my view”.

May 12, 2017
A Happy House

Berkshire country house named “Gays” for sale

Not connected with the LGBT community in any way, but in fact named after a man named John Gays, “Gays” at Holyport, near Maidenhead in Berkshire dates to around 1456 and is currently for sale for £5.95 million ($7.36 million, €6.88 million or درهم27.05 million).

Gays or John Gays House, Langworthy Lane, Holyport, Maidenhead, Berkshire, SL6 2HN, England, United Kingdom

Also referred to as “John Gays House” and offered to the market by Christie’s Real Estate, this 12,482 square foot “bijou old world residence” stands in 20.75 acres and is predominantly built of red brick elevations with attractive sash fenestration, under a tile roof. It is Grade II listed, dates to the Tudor period and also includes later Queen Anne, Georgian, Victorian and 20^th century additions.

Less than 30 miles from central London, Gays has been owned by a Swiss family for 20 years according to Country Life and includes 6 reception rooms, a conservatory, a master bedroom suite with 2 bedrooms, a bathroom and 2 dressing rooms, 6 further bedrooms and 5 further bathrooms. In addition, the property also comes with a 2-bedroom lodge cottage, a 2-bedroom staff cottage, an indoor swimming pool, wine store and 4-car garage.

Aside from a large lawned garden with an irrigation system, a lake adjoins the house and there is also an orchard with apple and pear trees. A stable block, a manège and paddocks stand beyond whilst a 1-kilometre long sand and rubber chip horse exercise track circles it. The Duke of York, it transpires, borrowed these facilities in the late 1990s for his own horses.

January 22, 2017
A Catty Catastrophe

‘Bride of Wildenstein’ got her claws out in New York; her boyfriend learns a lesson about playing with cats

Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes once remarked: “Those who’ll play with cats must expect to be scratched” and now, it seems, 76-year old plastic surgery obsessive and feline lookalike Jocelyn Wildenstein’s boyfriend has ended up getting exactly that.

The former wife of the now deceased billionaire Alec Wildenstein – and the lucky recipient of £2 billion ($2.5 billion or €2.4 billion or درهم‎‎9.2 billion) and £79.5 million a year ($100 million or €94.6 million or درهم‎‎367.3 million a year) for 13 years after their 1999 divorce – was arrested early Wednesday after gouging her boyfriend’s face with her nails and stabbing him twice in the chest with her scissors at the Trump World Tower apartment they’ve shared for the last 13 years.

Jocelyn Wildenstein’s mugshot following her arrest on Wednesday 7th December 2016

An injured Lloyd Klein in New York this week following Jocelyn Wildenstein attacking him

Mr Klein tweeted a picture of himself with Donald Trump in November and congratulated him on his victory over Hillary Clinton; he has over 5,000 followers on Twitter

Swiss born Wildenstein, née Périsset, appeared in court later in the day charged with felony assault charges in the second degree. She is accused of inflicting injuries with a weapon against 49-year old Canadian couturier Lloyd Klein and allegedly poured hot wax over him, “went for his face with her nails” and “grabbed some scissors and stabbed them twice into his chest”. The cat-like woman is to said to have been provoked into the violent frenzy after Klein allegedly failed to “pay her enough attention” after an evening meal, according to an unnamed source who spoke with the Mail Online.

The source spoke of what happened at length and commented:

“She can blow up anytime, anywhere and absolutely no reason. He says she is a truly beautiful person when she’s on her best behavior. But when flies into one of her incredible rages – look out”.

“… He was very scared, he asked her to calm down but she just got angrier and angrier and threatened to kill him”.

“Lloyd just pushed her inside [a walk-in closet in their Manhattan apartment] o get her to calm down. He told her this couldn’t be happening and this was wrong but he didn’t lock her up [as she claimed at the time]”.

“She started calling her agent, calling 911, calling security, calling anyone she could to say she was being attacked and held prisoner”.

“But when the cops arrived it was patently obvious that she could have opened the door herself”.

“By now Lloyd’s face was all scratched and swollen, he had two scissor stabs to his chest. The police took one look at the blood and realized he was the victim”.

“He knows it will happen again if they live under the same roof. Lloyd is very private and focused on protecting his image and his brand but Jocelyn gets a kick out this”.

“The remarks about her facial features don’t worry her. She likes a good scandal”.

Here, indeed, is a cat that needs to be caged: Jocelyn Wildenstein should be locked up for her and everyone else’s safety.

Catty Quotes:

“Artists like cats; soldiers like dogs” – Desmond Morris

“The problem with cats is that they get the exact same look on their face whether see a moth or an axe murderer” – Paula Poundstone

“I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals” – Winston Churchill

“Cats have a scam going – you buy the food, they eat the food, they go away; that’s the deal” – Eddie Izzard

“Mad women and cats. The two always end up together” – Unknown

Jocelyn Wildenstein through the ages:

December 9, 2016
Emir Bahadir – What’s on your mantelpiece?

A 20-question interview with 25-year old New York based BHDR real estate brokerage and development firm founder Emir Bahadir

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

My driving force is being able to bridge the gap between international investors and local markets. Being a member of the fifth generation of my family, my guiding force is maintaining the business standards set forth by my ancestors.

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

‘More is more, work smart not hard’ and ‘Well done is better than well said’.

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

This is relative depending on the realm of the industry you are in. Two of the things that I find unacceptable are dishonesty and lack of communication.

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

I miss my high school days when I had no responsibility and was surrounded by intellectual people. Maybe this has a lot to do with my young age and my active business life, even then. I feel I never got to be reckless after graduating from high school in Switzerland and became very responsible and focused instead.

What might you swap all your wealth for?

I would swap my wealth for helping end hunger and poverty throughout the world. Most people don’t have awareness of what the world’s real needs are.

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?

Based on that comment, that statement is truthful. Based on that statement, today the banking system is changing for the better. I believe in the short-term we will see a lot of improvements.

What phrase or word do you most loathe?

I used to think: “The worst thing in life is to end up alone”. It’s not: “The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel alone”. The reason why I hate this phrase is because it is so true.

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

Charity does start at home. Growing up, my parents emphasised the importance of charity and then it became a way of life, a routine. I have volunteered in Zambia to help build schools and teach kids. Whilst there, we also took 500 mattresses to the schools in different tribes. Today, my family’s foundation helps hundreds of children with scholarships to study and become successful members of their communities.

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?

There is always a risk using any kind of technology regardless if it is security based or not. However, I think there is a strong need for technology, especially with the fast pace of the business world these days.

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

Benjamin Franklin, Steve Jobs, Abraham Lincoln, Mozart and Picasso.

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

I hope that won’t be my reality ever. However, to answer your question, I would like to eat the judge who sentenced me to death.

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

Lunchtime usually is the time to start. However, at weekends, noon bellinis are acceptable.

A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?

A martini; a very, very dirty martini.

Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?

I do enjoy my own parties because I pay so much attention to the details prior. It means that, during the event itself, I can put all my energy and efforts into entertaining my guests.

Who is the most positive person you know?

My grandmother is one of the most positive people I know and my COO, Tanya, always calms me down when I get a little wound up.

What’s your most guilty pleasure?

Eating chocolate late at night.

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

Even though I have a tattoo of the OHM sign, it does not really sum me up. I wish it did. My other one, Dum Spiro Spero (When I Breath I Hope), would be the one to describe me. I tend to hope and dream and work hard to make my dreams come true.

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

A Bentley – Fast and furious, yet classy and comfortable.

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

That I am humble and relatable to is a surprise to most people. Considering my background and my current motivation to succeed on another level, people don’t expect it.

What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?

I have a small sculpture by Jeff Koons.

Emir Bahadir is a 25-year old entrepreneur based in New York. He was educated at the American School in Switzerland and New York University. Bahadir is the founder and CEO of the BHDR real estate brokerage and development firm, invests in tech startup firms and is also an art collector.

Follow him on Instagram at @emirbahadir and use his own hashtag, #bahadiring

October 18, 2016
Wally of the Week – Zipporah Lisle-Mainwaring

Neighbour-from-hell Zipporah Lisle-Mainwaring steps up her campaign to annoy her neighbours in Kensington (more…)

April 26, 2016
Daniela Zahradnikova

The 42-year old ex-girlfriend of 86-year old New York art collector Henry Buhl was christened a gold-digger after she sued him for £1.1 million ($1.5 million) after claiming that he had said he would provide for her “for the rest of her life”. (more…)

March 28, 2016