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Editor-in-Chief: Kate Hawthorne Art Director & Director: Tim Epps Acting Editor: Dr Emma Trehane Head of Business Development: Dr Emma Trehane Business Development: Caroline Daggett, Antoinette Kovatchka, Architecture: Emma Flynn Art & Culture Editors: Don Grant, Marian Maitland Astronomy: Scott Beadle FRAS Ballet/Dance: Andrew Ward Bridge: Andrew Robson Business: Douglas Shanks Chess: Barry Martin Contributing Editors: Marius Brill, Peter Burden, Derek Wyatt Music: James Douglas Crossword: Wolfe: Dining Out: Edward Burns, David Hughes, Max Feldman Editorial: Polly Allen, Ione Bingley, Max Feldman, Owen Fulda Events: Polly Allen Fashion: Polly Allen, Lynne McGowan Feldman Reviews: Max Feldman Beauty: Jayne Beaumont I wish I had written that: Dudley Sutton Motoring: Don Grant, Owen Fulda News, Online Editor & Arts Correspondent: Max Feldman Poetry & Literary Editor: Emma Trehane MA Ph.D Political Editor: Derek Wyatt Business & Development: Ione Bingley Sub-Editor: Leila Kooros Travel: Cynthia Pickard, Derek Wyatt

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hither the future of the Labour Party? The polls for them have been dire for the past eighteen months and show no signs of improving. Corbyn’s abject leadership has extraordinarily led to a renewed interest in what was fast becoming another defunct party: the Lib Dems. They took Richmond from Zac Goldsmith (though to be fair they had held the seat from 1997-2010) and have done extraordinarily well in local council byelections too. Neither party though threatens the hegemony of the sitting Tories. This is not good for democracy at a critical juncture in the nation’s future. To make matters worse, Labour lost Copeland to them. This was the first time they had lost this seat since the party was formed. Corbyn has to stand down for the good of his party otherwise, it is doomed. Politics is about winning power: it is not a lifestyle option. This begs the question as to what

The Prince of Wales hosts a Gala Celebration

at Buckingham Palace for the work of The Royal College of Music

Editor-Kate and I were lucky enough to be invited by the Royal College of Music to the Royal Gala Concert, in no lesser surroundings than the State Ballroom, performed by the current

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online: www.KCWToday.co.uk happens to the middle ground in UK politics? When Tony Blair spoke at the Open Europe event three weeks ago he disappointed. He should have proposed a new political party, a version of the Gang of Four, which begat the Social Democrats. We have a one man party called ‘FarageUKIP’ or FUKIP for short whose sole raison d’être was to campaign to take us out of Europe. Well, it is time for a REMAIN party to fight to keep us in. It could work as Remain/Scotland, Remain/Wales, Remain/NorthernIreland and Remain/England. It would take seats across the board and it ought to fight the next by-election to test the water. As it is, aside from someone called Trump, Brexit continues to dominate the airwaves. The European cause will be tested with general elections in the Netherlands and France over the coming months. Attention is re-focusing on Marine Le Pen as she nudges ahead in the polls. Are the French about to shock us all by electing her? That would be seismic. The biggest problem facing us in the UK is not Brexit or the train strikes on the Underground and Southern Railways, though they are tedious and self serving, it is the future of the NHS. I hear the call for a Royal Commission but this would just be an excuse to kick the

decision making process into the long grass and past the next general election. The public is not that stupid. But if the Tories, who are taking soundings on a Royal Commission, do appoint one it will be a most cynical act. We have had different political parties spending £bb on reorganising the NHS to little or no effect over the past forty years. This just shows the lack of imagination there is in Whitehall and the scale of the problem. Not a single political party has come forward with a manifesto for a NHS that is fit for the 21st century. A pox on all of them. We want giants not pygmies. But it is the latter who fill the corridors of power at Westminster. When the NHS was formed in 1948 life expectancy for both sexes was in the early to mid 70s not the early to mid 80s as it is now. We knew little about cancer treatments or heart disease or psychotherapy. We certainly could not have anticipated stem cell research and replacement knees and hips. Fortunately, for all of us there have been the most profound scientific changes for the good over the past seventy years. The NHS is simply overwhelmed. It has indifferent leadership, appalling management, chaotic administration and yet somehow it struggles. Still, amazingly, we love it. But we all recognise it will tip

over if there is not a master plan for the next thirty years. So, here's a thought, why not give the NHS to the cities to administer? Let them become the hubs for the towns and villages in their hinterlands. Let them decide their own priorities and funding models. Let us have less NHS and more LHPSS, Local Health, Pensions & Social Services, under one body locally elected. The case must be made that we should be pay a little more on top of our NHS contributions to include care packages in addition to second pensions. We already do this with prescriptions, glasses and teeth. Why not poll the public on what else they would be prepared to contribute to? And then have a referendum. The nation needs to be involved. We know so far as the politicians are concerned they are hiding their intentions. We will still need to have single national centres of excellence for cancer, for heart, for neurology, for rare diseases et al but let the cities have the authority to decide how they want to structure health, pensions and social services for their own populations. It would be radical. There would have to be an agreement for national funding for a decade or so to allow the transition to bed in but it would be a different and what's more we would have voted for it.

students augmented by illustrious alumni. The musical theme appeared loosely to be British composers, composers with British associations, and also Bach. the subtext was to celebrate the vision of the RCM and its major projects, including plans for a redevelopment of its campus (also discussed in the Colin Lawson interview on page 13). Guests, supporters and young musicians joined the Prince of Wales to celebrate our local conservatoire, and the work it is doing to expand its reach and projects through its More Music Campaign. I’d like to pretend, to myself if no-one else, that I take these things in my stride, but it was hard not to be charmed by a magical setting. The tone of the evening, British music (and what wouldn’t be uplifted by a bit of Bach as well) in a quintessentially British setting, performed to world class standards, was set by the spine-tingling drum-roll that announced the National Anthem. If Sullivan’s overture to The Yeomen of the Guard has a time and place surely this was it, and such are the acoustics of the State Ballroom that the excellent orchestra really did bring out the best in the piece. The premier of a new orchestration of Ein Standen by Prince Albert the Prince Consort , (let’s see if I can get this right) HRH Prince

Charles’ great-great-great-grandfather, brought a nice personal touch full circle, given Prince Albert’s role developing the arts around his memorial, including of course the RCM. HRH Prince Charles was an engaging and effervescently enthusiastic host, completely at ease showcasing the importance of the RCM as an institution and demonstrating a rare sensitivity to music, and what it takes to be an elite musician. Quite rightly, he singled out the elegant brief cameos from Parry’s

Lady Radnor Suites as perhaps the surprise show-stealers, and that in the context of Bach’s divine Concerto for two violins in D Minor, Haydn Wood’s appropriate A state ball at Buckingham Palace, and some splendid Mendelsohn. Having spent a good twenty minutes chatting to virtually every member of the orchestra, HRH Prince Charles called over to me on his way out asking me what I thought. I promised him a good review. So here it is. James Douglas

Photograph © Paul Burns Photography

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he Government has revealed a new advertising campaign to raise awareness about minimum wage and the laws surrounding it ahead of the national living wage and minimum wage rise in April. The campaign comes a month after Sainsbury’s revealed that its new acquisition Argos had been illegally paying around 37,500 of its staff under the minimum wage prior to their takeover, and Debenhams was “named and shamed” on a Government list for underpaying 11,858 of its staff. A recent poll by the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) of workers paid less than £15,000 a year revealed that almost half of the respondents were unaware that tips could not be used to top up wages to meet national requirements and 69 percent did not know that travel time between appointments should be paid. The research also found that 57 percent of respondents do not know that having money deducted from their wages to cover the costs of their uniform is unlawful if it takes their earnings below the national minimum wage or national living wage. In light of this, the campaign highlights some of the most common examples when a worker may be underpaid the legal minimum in a bid to encourage workers to check their pay. The research forms part of the Government’s campaign that is designed to increase understanding about pay, especially among lower-paid employees. “We are determined to make sure everybody in work receives a fair wage and while most employers get it right, there are still a small number who fail to play by the rules,” said Business Minister Margot James. “This campaign will raise awareness among the lowest paid people in society about what they must legally receive. Anyone who thinks they may be paid less than the legal minimum should contact Acas as soon as possible.”

A search of 279 beaches around the UK has found that almost three-quarters of them were littered with tiny plastic "nurdles". The lentil sized pellets, which are used as a raw material for plastic products can cause damage to such wildlife as birds and fish, which eat them. Campaigners estimate that up to 53 billion of the tiny pellets escape into the UK's environment each year, during their manufacture and use. The nurdles are often spilt accidentally into rivers and oceans or fall into drains where they are

UK Citizens spending less on booze and cigarettes By Max Feldman

Britons are spending less on alcohol, smoking and drugs and more on eating out and hotels according to the latest figures on family spending. Weekly spending on alcohol, tobacco and narcotics fell below £12 for the first time since comparable records began in 2001-02, partly reflecting the decline in the number of people who smoke. Spending in this category has fallen by a third over the last decade according to the Office for National Statistics. On the other hand, households spent more than £45 a week on restaurants and hotels for the first time in five years in the year ending March 2016, fuelled by rising disposable income and high rates of employment. Average total spending, adjusted for inflation, was unchanged from a year earlier at about £529 a week, possibly reflecting weaker consumer confidence over the period, according to the ONS. Low income families continued to spend a higher proportion of their spending on food and energy compared with people on higher incomes. Weekly spending was highest in London, at £652.40, while at the other end of the scale, spending in the northeast was more than £200 lower, at £423.50. The ONS reported that the discrepancy was down to housing costs.

former mayor Boris Johnson revealed last year 433 primaries were exposed to dangerous levels of air pollution, but the new report shows the city's air to be deteriorating further. Now one-third of state nursery schools, nearly 20 per cent of primaries and 18 per cent of secondary schools in the capital are in areas where toxic levels of nitrogen dioxide directly threaten children’s health

Plastic ‘Nurdles’ discovered littered across Tens of thousands beaches By Max Feldman of London children

washed out to sea. Madeleine Berg of Fidra, a Scottish environmental charity which organised the hunt, said it showed action was needed, asserting that “We are asking the UK government to ensure best practice is in place along the full plastic supply chain, and any further nurdle pollution is stopped.”

exposed to toxic air By Owen Fulda

A study commissioned by the mayor of London Sadiq Khan has discovered that tens of thousands of children in the capital are being exposed to illegal levels of air pollution that risk causing lifelong health problems. More than 800 schools, nurseries and colleges in London are identified as being subject to levels of nitrogen dioxide that breach EU legal limits of 40 micrograms of nitrogen dioxide per cubic metre of air. Khan said the results were devastating and warned that it was the capital’s poorest children who were bearing the brunt of the air pollution crisis. He called for the government to introduce a clean air act and for a diesel scrappage scheme to take polluting cars off the road quickly. “It is an outrage that more than 800 schools, nurseries and other educational institutions are in areas breaching legal air pollution limits,” said Khan. “This is an environmental challenge, a public health challenge but also – and no one talks about this – it is fundamentally an issue of social justice. If you are a poor Londoner you are more likely to suffer from illegal air.” A report that was kept secret by

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Comedy gala raises over £80,000 for Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals charity

The Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals Charity (RBHC) were able to raise over £80,000 with their 100 Hearts comedy gala event at the Adelphi Theatre on February 26. The sold out show featured an all-star line up including performances from Harry Enfield with Paul Whitehouse and Rowan Atkinson with Angus Deayton as well as Jo Brand. The night drew to a close with Michael McIntyre manfully hobbling through the final act having sustained an injury playing football

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LONDON CLUBS AT HOME

The national advertising campaign, which will be carried on public transport, in shopping centres and other public places, is being rolled out ahead of the Government’s National Minimum and National Living Wage rates rising on 1 April. From 1 April 2017, the Government’s National Living Wage rate for those aged 25 and over will increase by 30p to £7.50 per hour. HMRC enforces the Government’s National Minimum and Living Wage law and over the next year will spend a record £25.3 million on making sure the country’s lowest paid people get the pay they are entitled to. “Paying the National Minimum Wage is the law; it’s not a choice. Employers must pay their workers what they’re entitled to and follow the rules,” said Jennie Granger, Director General for Customer Compliance at HMRC. “We will act to ensure ripped-off workers receive their proper pay and hardworking businesses are not losing out to dodgy dealers who cheat their staff.” The BEIS name and shame list that was released on February 15, called out 359 employers for underpaying workers nearly £1 million.

Photograph © Xander Casey

campaign launched by Government By Ione Bingley

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News Photograph © GeorgeTsiagalakis

Minimum wage awareness

March 2017

TRAFFIC WATCH

Tues March 7. 19:45 Fulham v Leeds United Tues March 7. 19:45 QPR v Barnsley Mon March 13. 19:45 Chelsea v Man Utd

Net immigration falls to lowest in two years By Ione Bingley

Tues March 14 Fulham v Blackburn 19:45 Sat March 18. 15:00 QPR v Rotherham Sat March 18. 15:00 Fulham v Wolves Sat April 1. 15:00 Chelsea v Crystal Palace

Pensioner incomes ‘outstrip those of working families’ By Max Feldman

Typical pensioner incomes after housing costs now outstrip those of workingage people, a new report suggests. The Resolution Foundation also says pensioners are more likely than their predecessors to be working, own a home and have generous private pensions. The think tank says growth in pensioner incomes has been coupled with weak income growth for working-age people. Pensioner households are now £20 a week better off than working age households, but were £70 a week worse off in 2001. However, the report, called As Time Goes By, adds: "This strong growth is not the result of a boom time for all pensioners, with most finding that their personal situation changes little from year to year. " It says while typical incomes across the pensioner population have grown by more than 30% since 2001, the typical income of someone who turned 65 in that year was only 7% higher by 2014. Lord David Willetts (an executive chair of the Resolution Foundation and former Conservative minister) said that the "triple-lock" pension policy of successive governments should be reviewed. The triple-lock guarantees pensions rise by the same as average earnings, the consumer price index, or 2.5%, whichever is the highest. "Of course there has to be some kind of framework for increasing the state pension," he told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme. "But the [triple-lock] is a very powerful ratchet pushing up pensions at a time when incomes of the less affluent half of working households are barely rising at all."

Net immigration to the UK fell by 49,000 between September 2015 and 2016 compared to the year before, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). While it was the first time in two years that the balance of people arriving and leaving the UK had dipped below 300,000, this was short of the Government’s 100,000 net immigration aim. The ONS also warned that it was too early to attribute the trend to the longterm migration impact of the Brexit vote, citing the seasonal migration of students starting the academic year in September. Total immigration was estimated to

be 596,000 of which 268,000 were EU citizens, 257,000 non-EU citizens and 71,000 British citizens. This included the highest level ever recorded of Romanian and Bulgarian immigrants at 74,000. The total emigration was thought to be 323,000 people, up by 26,000 on the year before. Of these, 128,000 were British citizens, 103,000 EU citizens and 93,000 non-EU citizens. There has been serious concerns voiced by several sector in recent months regarding access to ‘low-skilled’ migrant workers following the referendum result. Particularly in the British farming industry where the employment of seasonal migrant workers is key to their business model. Speaking in Tallinn, Estonia, the secretary of state for exiting the EU David Davis denied that Britain would suddenly restrict low-skilled migration after Brexit. “In the hospitality sector, hotels and restaurants, in the social care sector, working in agriculture, it will take time. It will be years and years before we get British citizens to do those jobs,” said Davis. “Don’t expect just because we’re changing who makes the decision on the policy, the door will suddenly shut. It won’t.” The government would choose to keep migration from EU countries such as Estonia, at least for a period, Davis claimed.

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Nicola Sturgeon has said a second independence referendum will become a “legitimate, almost necessary” step unless Scotland secures a special relationship with the European Union before article 50 is triggered. There is growing speculation Sturgeon will use her conference speech in Aberdeen later in March to confirm she plans to table a new referendum bill at Holyrood, or demand the UK

government gives Holyrood the powers to stage one. Sturgeon told the David Hume Institute on Tuesday the prime minister had to prove that Scotland would have a bespoke deal before she triggered Article 50 by the end of March. Sturgeon said that if May failed to do so, then “proposing a further decision on independence wouldn’t simply be legitimate, it would almost be a necessary way of giving the people of Scotland a say in our own future direction”.

A Swedish Electric Car Politician Wants Industry Boom To Give People in Norway 'Paid Sex Breaks' By Polly Allen During the Work Day By Max Feldman

Swedish workers should be given paid “sex breaks” by their bosses, a local politician has suggested. A councillor in the north of the country has suggested workers should be given a one hour break paid for by their employer in order to go home and have sex. The idea was proposed by councillor Per-Erik Muskos from the town of Övertorneå near Sweden’s border with Finland, where temperatures this week have reached below -10C. Mr Muskos said: "There are studies that show sex is healthy. I believe sex is a scarce commodity in many long-lasting relationships.

The electric car industry is experiencing a boom in Norway, with battery-powered or hybrid cars accounting for 29 percent of the country’s new car sales in 2016. Norway rewards electric car drivers with a series of financial incentives, including free parking in cities, free ferry and road tolls, waived purchase tax, and even the right to use bus lanes. An increase in charging stations, and their charging speeds, is set to encourage even more Norwegians to abandon highemission cars. Such perks have seen Norway become the country with the highest number of electric vehicles (known as EVs) per capita: 100,000, in a population of just 5.2 million people. The Norwegian government’s climate goals include having only EVs on sale by 2025.

By Polly Allen

Radio Poland and the Puls Biznesu daily have reported that Poland will launch a space strategy within its Responsible Development Plan. The Polish Space Strategy (PSS), recently accepted by the government, will include satellite technology to improve national security. Furthermore, the PSS predicts that, by 2030, Poland will generate three percent of European space sector turnover. In January, it was announced that Poland had increased its four-year funding budget for voluntary European Space Agency programs by a quarter. Beyond Polish government investment, home-grown businesses can capitalise on these developments. More than 300 Polish companies told the Puls Biznesu they would be willing to invest in the space technologies sector, which is said to be growing by four percent each year. Mateusz Morawiecki, Poland’s Minister of Development and Finance, has predicted the entire Responsible Development Plan could inject as much as 2 trillion PLN (Polish Zloty) into the country’s economy by 2020. At a news conference, Morawiecki admitted the PSS would also be useful for monitoring the country’s recent smog problem, as satellites could help track harmful emissions.

Giant LEGO building to open in Denmark By Polly Allen

Billund, the Danish town known as the home of LEGO®, will open a giant LEGO House on September 28. Designed by Danish architects BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) to resemble stacks of the instantly recognisable LEGO bricks, the attraction includes four colour-coded learning zones: red (imaginative), blue (cognitive), green (storytelling) and yellow (emotional). It will be aimed at both children and adults, much like the company’s second touring exhibition, called The Art of the Brick, currently stationed on London’s Southbank. LEGO was first manufactured in 1949 by Ole Kirk Christiansen, a Billund local. In 2015, the Brand Finance global consultancy named LEGO as the world’s most powerful brand. “LEGO House will enable us to offer both adult and young visitors the chance of stimulating their creativity and learning,” said General Manager of LEGO House, Jesper Vilstrup.

gathered in the streets of Madrid in solidarity. Earlier in February Catalonia's separatist government denounced reported plans by Madrid to close schools in the northeastern region and take control of the police to stop the contested referendum.

Europe’s biggest stock exchange merger collapses By Ione Bingley

Photograph © Deutsche Börse

Germany’s telecommunications watchdog has ordered parents to destroy or disable a “smart doll” because the toy can be used to illegally spy on children. The My Friend Cayla doll, which was voted one of the top 10 toys of the year in 2014, is manufactured by the US company Genesis Toys and distributed in Europe by Guildford-based Vivid Toy Group, allows children to access the internet via speech recognition software, and to control the toy via an app. But Germany’s Federal Network Agency announced this week that it classified Cayla as an “illegal espionage apparatus”. As a result, retailers and owners could face fines if they continue to stock it or fail to permanently disable the doll’s wireless connection. Under German law it is illegal to manufacture, sell or possess surveillance devices disguised as another object. According to some media reports, breaching that law can result in a jail term of up to two years.

of imminent second Independence referendum By Max Feldman

Poland set to launch space programme

Madrid determined to stop Catalan

independence referendum By Ione Bingley The Catalan government has promised to hold a “binding” independent referendum this year in response to a evenly split Catalan community with half willing to stay part of Spain and half eager for Catalonia to be recognised as an independent state. Madrid, however, is set on blocking the move putting Fransesc Homs of the Catalan Democratic Party on trial for holding an “illegal” referendum in 2014 that saw 89 percent of Catalans in favour of independence. During the trial, separatist supporters

Photograph © Frank Bloor

Photograph © Genesis Toys

that can spy on children By Max Feldman

Nicola Sturgeon warns

European News

Photograph © LEGO

German parents told to destroy doll

March 2017

the big winner from the deal is also said to have put the LSE on edge. It now appears that plans for the merger have collapsed as the LSE has also refused an EU request to sell their part of its Italian trading arm MTS, a move that has stunned the City and meant that the European Commission are highly unlikely to approve the deal. While Kengeter expressed his “regret” at the LSE’s move to kill off the merger, he was confident about Deutsche Börse’s future. “It is pointless to me to speculate on what the reasons behind our merger partner’s decision were,” Kengeter told an audience in Frankfurt. “We feel very well-prepared as a company for the future.” The commission has refused to comment before a deadline for delivering its formal verdict on 3 April. It is the third attempt to unite the two major stock exchange operators, following two failed attempts, in 2000 and 2005. Rumours have since begun to emerge that LSE has found a new potential suitor in ICE, owners of the New York Stock Exchange.

French Elections By Max Feldman

A year of negotiations towards a merger of the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and Deutsche Börse, Frankfurt’s Stock Exchange, has collapsed. The LSE has refused to allow Deutsche Börse to add new terms to the £21 billion deal following the Brexit vote amid an increasingly tense political climate with several eurosceptic MPs expressing concern over Deutsche Börse’s 54 percent stake. It had been agreed following the merger that the headquarters would be based in London, but, responding to German concerns after the referendum result, Deutsche Börse has since put forward plans, which the LSE has rejected, to create a dual-holding company, the second headquarters of which would be in Frankfurt with both supplemented by a joint-operating company. Deutsche Börse’s chief executive Carsten Kengeter has also worried bankers with reports that London could lose some key roles saying that the exchange would create 400 new jobs with 300 of them in Frankfurt. Furthermore, a report commissioned by Deutsche Börse published in January claiming that the German city would be

The upcoming French elections in April have drawn political attention from around the globe as a battle for the soul and future of the European Union. France as a nation has been the victim of years of economic stagnation and the bleak national mood (One poll last year found that French people are the most pessimistic on Earth, with 81% grumbling that the world is getting worse and only 3% saying that it is getting better.) has led to a situation where political outsiders are dominating the discourse. Five leading candidates will contest the first round of voting on 23 April. Unless one candidate wins more than 50% of the votes, the two leading contenders will then go through to a second round two weeks later on 7 May. The current President, Francois

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online: www.KCWToday.co.uk Hollande, a Socialist, is not seeking a second term and is the first French president to not to do so in modern history. Many of the issues facing France are economic; the state swallows 57% of the country’s GDP and over 10% of the population are unemployed (the eighth highest unemployment rate amongst the 28 EU member states). The French economy has made a slow recovery from the 2008 financial crisis and all the leading candidates say deep changes are needed. Another key issue is immigration and security, France has experienced some of the most high profile and deadly terror attacks on the European mainland forcing citizens to live under a state of emergency and exposing deep cultural rifts in the country with Europe’s largest Muslim community. Whilst at first the clear favourite looked to be the centreright candidate Francois Fillion, a shock scandal that accused him of paying his wife public money worth 1.5 million Euros for jobs that she did not carry out has left him at the bottom of the pack (after stating that he would step down, he has since insisted on staying in the race, claiming that he was the victim of a character assassination.) Instead he has been overtaken by Emmanuel Macron, a 38-year-old investment banker who was an economic adviser to President Francois Hollande before taking up the post of economy minister in 2014. Not only has he never been an MP, he has never stood for election. He is currently riding on a wave of voters hungry for change from the established system, but eager to avoid the perceived racism of Marine Le Pen’s Front National. Macron is staunchly protrade, pro-competition, pro-immigration and pro-EU, embracing cultural change and technological disruption. Pitching himself as a pro-globalisation revolutionary, he has made inroads with both the Left and Right. By contrast Ms Le Pen blames outside forces and promises to protect voters with a combination of more barriers and greater social welfare. She has effectively distanced herself from her party’s anti-Semitic past (even evicting her father from the party he founded), but she appeals to those who want to shut out the rest of the world. She decries globalisation as a threat to French jobs and Islamists as fomenters of terror who make it perilous to wear a short skirt in public and refers to The EU as “an antidemocratic monster”. She vows to close radical mosques, staunch the flow of immigrants to a trickle, obstruct foreign trade, swap the Euro for a resurrected French Franc and call a referendum on leaving the EU. Whilst it seems unlikely that Ms Le Pen will be able to clinch a victory, Russia has already been accused of launching a ‘fake news attack’ on Macron and Fillion is claiming that the charges against him are similarly false; no result should be assumed to be set in stone.

Ten attacks a day on migrants in Germany last year By Ione Bingley

Nearly ten attacks a day on migrants were recorded in Germany by the interior ministry in 2016. A total of 560 people were injured, including 43 children. Three-quarters of the attacks targeted migrants outside of their accommodation, while nearly 1,000 attacks were on housing. Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to open up Germany to people fleeing conflict and persecution has polarised the country and boosted hate crime. Germany is struggling with a backlog of asylum applications and there are fears about security following a series of terrorist attacks across Europe.

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he Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has launched a ‘fake news’ tracking page that emblazons a large, red ‘FAKE’ stamp on articles it deems untrue. The site has only denounced outlets in the US and the UK so far, including the New York Times, Bloomberg, The Telegraph, NBC News and the Santa Monica Observer. As the ministry’s spokeswoman Maria Zakharova explained to the Russian government’s own state-run RIA Novosti news agency, the site is intended to prevent the sharing of articles it believes are inaccurate. “Here we will make an example of such propaganda dumped by various media outlets, providing links to their sources, and so on,” said Zakharova. The site does not explain why Russia’s foreign ministry believes the articles are incorrect, it only provides the cryptic message: “This material contains data, not corresponding to the truth” and a link to the original article. According to a recent poll conducted by the Russian government, a quarter of the country’s citizens feel that no source of information, neither TV nor online, is trustworthy. US President Donald Trump has also launched a sustained attack against the media for peddling ‘fake news’ following his refusal to grant access to a recent press conference from several key global news organisations including the BBC, The New York Times, The Guardian and CNN, Trump took to twitter condemning the media as “the enemy of the people”. He has also confirmed that he will not be attending the annual White House Correspondents Association Dinner on April 29. Traditionally, the event is attended by the president and widely covered by the news media. The dinner is most well-known for its inclusion of a skit where the current president mocks himself for the amusement of the attendees. “The White House Correspondents

as they unveil vision of the network “at the heart of democracy” By Max Feldman

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has outlined a plan to let artificial intelligence (AI) software review content posted on the social network. In a letter describing the plan, he said algorithms would eventually be able to spot terrorism, violence, bullying and even prevent suicide. He admitted Facebook had previously made mistakes in the content it had removed from the website. However he claimed it might take years for the necessary algorithms to be developed. Zuckerberg argued that considering that sheer scale of data made up by the billions of messages posted on the platform each day, there was no way for humans to effectively oversee the data. “The complexity of the issues we've seen has outstripped our existing processes for governing the community,” he said. He highlighted the removal of videos related to the Black Lives Matter movement and the historical napalm girl photograph from Vietnam as “errors” in the existing process. Facebook was also criticised in 2014, following reports that one of the killers of Fusilier Lee Rigby spoke online about murdering a soldier, months before the attack. “We are researching systems that can read text and look at photos and videos to understand if anything dangerous may be happening. This is still very early in development, but we have started to have it look at some content, and it already generates about one third of all reports to the team that reviews content.”

Defend IsraelPalestine twostate system, says Abbas By Ione Bingley

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has called on the international community to defend the Israel-Palestine two-state solution in an address at the opening of the 34th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). His comments come after promises that US President Donald Trump made during his leadership campaign to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to the divided city of Jerusalem. Israel considers the city its eternal and indivisible capital and wants all countries to base their embassies there. Such a move could be destabilising because the

Photograph © Flora Veelenturf

Palestinians want to have the capital of an independent Palestinian state in the east of the city and the final status of the city is supposed to be determined via direct negotiations between Israel and Palestine. Jordan and Egypt, the only two Arab countries with peace treaties with Israel, have warned against the move, as have former President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State John Kerry, saying it could be explosive for the region. The Trump administration have since backed off the idea with Israeli officials saying that it was hardly mentioned in a 30-minute call between Trump and Israeli Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu in January. Abbas warned member states at the UNHRC meeting that Israel was in danger of moving towards an “apartheid” system in light of a new law passed that has legalised the building of dozens of Jewish-only settlements on private Palestinian land. “Palestine will remain the litmus test for this council … and whether it succeeds or not, will be crucial for the credibility of the human rights system throughout the world,” said Abbas. “We call for the establishment of a system that would guarantee an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital on the 1967 borders.”

The busiest land border in the Western hemisphere linking Mexico’s Tijuana with San Diego in California, the San Ysidro border crossing, has seen queues shrink to an all time low. Pedestrian and vehicular traffic has slumped since US President Donald Trump has taken office. The slowdown appears to be linked to reports that immigration officers have begun the implementation of a zero tolerance policy towards visa violations. There appears to be a change in attitude from border patrol officers towards green card holders commuting regularly between the two countries. Green card holders are meant to reside in the US, but many live in Mexico where living costs are cheaper, crossing the border to work in the US on a regular basis where wages are reportedly up to six times higher. With the recent detention of hundreds of Mexican immigrants, it looks like US officials are beginning to implement Trump’s campaign to expel illegal immigrants. The slow down at the Ysidro border could be the beginning of a serious shift in the flow of goods and people between the two countries if Trump is to follow through with promises to scrap or renegotiate the historic 1994 North America Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) that scrapped nearly all customs duties.

China to fingerprint all foreign visitors By Max Feldman

Mexico/US border activity at all time low

Photograph © Google

Facebook trialling AI

“Right now, we’re starting to explore ways to use AI to tell the difference between news stories about terrorism and actual terrorist propaganda,” Mr Zuckerberg said his ultimate aim was to allow people to post largely whatever they liked, within the law, with algorithms detecting what had been uploaded. Zuckerberg, who has played down claims of Presidential aspirations on several occasions, also mentioned how he hoped to place Facebook “at the heart of democracy” with plans to turn the social media site into one of the primary modes of communications between politicians and their constituents, even going so far as to hint at eventually allowing the capability for users to ‘vote from their Facebook newsfeeds’. Whilst most of this is planned for the future, Facebook have confirmed that they are trialling technology that uses artificial intelligence to identify members that may be at risk of suicide. The social network utilize algorithms that spot warning signs in users' posts and the comments their friends leave in response. After confirmation by Facebook's human review team, the company contacts those thought to be at risk of self-harm to suggest ways they can seek help. It has now developed patternrecognition algorithms to recognise if someone is struggling, by training them with examples of the posts that have previously been flagged. Talk of sadness and pain, for example, would be one signal, whilst responses from friends with phrases such as “Are you OK?” or “I’m worried about you,” would be another. Once a post has been identified, it is sent for rapid review to the network’s community operations team.

Photograph © Parker Incorporated

By Ione Bingley

Association looks forward to having its annual dinner on April 29,” confirmed President of The White House Correspondents Association (WHCA), Jeff Mason. “The WHCA takes note of President Donald Trump’s announcement on Twitter that he does not plan to attend the dinner, which has been and will continue to be a celebration of the First Amendment and the important role played by an independent news media in a healthy republic.”

By Ione Bingley

Photograph © US Customs and Border rotection

Putin and Trump lash out against ‘fake news’

International News Photograph © Andrew Shiva

International News

March 2017

China will begin taking fingerprints of all foreign visitors as it steps up security on its borders. The fingerprinting of foreigners will be introduced at Shenzhen airport in the south from Friday, and it will then be gradually rolled out at other entry points around the country, the Ministry of Public Security said in a statement on Thursday. All foreign passport holders aged 14-70 will have to give their fingerprints, without saying if other biometric data would also be collected. The ministry said the regulation would strengthen immigration controls and increase efficiency. The United States, Japan, Taiwan and Cambodia, among others, have similar requirements. While Chinese border posts do not generally have heavy duty entry formalities, most visitors need a visa, though many cities have visa-free deals for visits of a few days as part of efforts to boost tourism.

Pavement lights for ‘zombie’ phone users

Pavement lights have been installed at a pedestrian crossing in a town in the Netherlands to help smartphone users cross the road safely. The light strips catch the eye of people looking down at their devices and change colour to match traffic signals. The lure of games and social media has come “at the expense of attention to traffic”, said councillor Kees Oskam. But Dutch road safety group VVN said the idea “rewards bad behaviour”. "We don’t want people to use phones when they’re dealing with traffic,” said VVN of the Dutch Traffic Safety Association Jose de Jong. “People must always look around them, to check if cars are actually stopping at the red signals.” Similar pavement lights are being tested in the German city of Augsburg to help so-called ‘smartphone zombies’ navigate level crossings.

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk circumnavigating the globe. Google’s aim is to provide connectivity to the around four billion people in the world who do not have access to the internet, particularly those in difficult-to-reach rural areas. Rather than undertake huge construction projects to replicate connectivity networks in the developed world, the firm has instead experimented with beaming down connectivity from a network of huge, tennis-court sized balloons. The balloons float in the stratosphere around 11 miles high. By raising or lowering altitude, the balloons can be caught in different weather streams, changing direction. By using machinelearning algorithms, Google thinks it has cracked a way to predict weather with enough accuracy to make it possible to hover balloons over a relatively small area for a long period of time. Last last year the firm was able to keep a cluster of balloons over Peru for three months.

Japan’s government brings in overtime limit to stop people working themselves to death By Max Feldman

Google hails net balloon ‘breakthrough’

Congolese president cancels election over ‘High cost’ By Owen Fulda

Repeatedly delayed elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo face another obstacle after the budget minister said he doubted whether the country could find the £1.5 billion that the government claim is required to hold a poll this year. Joseph Kabila has been president since his father was assassinated in 2001, but Amnesty International claim those who oppose him are being rounded up and detained. The news comes 12 days after the death of Etienne Tshisekedi, a veteran politician whom analysts say was the only figure capable of unifying the DRC’s fragmented opposition to the President’s continued rule.

South Africans spend more on guns and security than police By Owen Fulda

By Max Feldman

Researchers at Google say they are “years closer” to rolling out a network of huge balloons to provide connectivity to rural areas. The companies X research lab, said it was now able to use machine learning to predict weather systems. It means the firm has far greater control over where its balloons go, making it possible to focus on a specific region, rather than

Japan is planning to bring in a cap on the amount of overtime a worker can do to cut down on the number of cases of “death from overwork”. Workers’ overtime will be restricted to around 60 hours a month with an increased limit of 100 hours for particularly busy periods. The working week in Japan is 40 hours but a recent government report revealed nearly one in four companies had employees who racked up more than 80 hours of overtime a month, whilst staff at one in 10 workplaces did an extra 100 hours of work every month. Campaigners have tried to challenge the nation’s culture of long hours since 24-year-old advertising worker Matsuri Takahashi killed herself after having worked up to 130 hours of monthly overtime.

South Africans spend more money on protecting themselves from crime than the national police force’s annual budget. The public spend 45 billion Rand per year on guns, guard dogs and private security, compared to the police’s budget of just 30 billion (£1.8 billion). One in 20 households contains a weapon, while twice as many employ private security. In 2015 civil rights group AfriForum reported that a total of 6,602 firearms were lost or stolen from South African police over a five years period. The nation has one of the highest violent crime rates in the world with 51 murders per day on average.

March 2017

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MARIUS BRILL’S

MEMEING OF LIFE

Meme: An element of a culture or system of behaviour passed from one individual to another...

Delete the elite?

Portrait © Jonnohills

ent is the traditional time to deny yourself your worst habits. I thought I’d give up double entendres; but it’s so hard. I always thought that the easiest thing to give up would be denial itself. But then, I had no idea how deeply in it I was. Turns out that most of my life I’ve been pretending to myself that the entire western world was just like my bubble: some bad eggs but mostly full of nice, intelligent, reasonable, liberalminded people with quasi-socialist values inspired to support egalitarian projects like paying tax, universal healthcare and legal access. The reality is I’ve been deeper in denial than Cleopatra’s sunken barge. It was merely a fantasy. It’s just that I happened to be fortunate enough to have been born in the peace between the Second and Third World Wars. A time when our scarred societies would do almost anything to avoid future conflict: be nice to old enemies, mutually assure destruction, help the vulnerable, have faith in secular morality, set up internationalist quangos and entangle every nation in globalised codependency. But, between the financial crash and the election of Trump, the veil, or burqa if you prefer less cultural appropriation in the cause of clichés, has gradually slipped from my eyes. Now it’s clear that the sort of good old-fashioned, self-centred, small-minded, nationalist fervour, that

did Oswald Mosely so proud, never left us. The likes of Brexit and Trump have reawakened those who have been failed, by that lust for peace and capital, in their prospects and, possibly, in their education. What’s more, their seething anger is aimed squarely at the precepts that have provided us with security for over 70 years. At last they feel legitimised to voice long supressed bitterness and release the gobs of war. Really. WWIII no longer seems quite as impossible as it once did. Europe divided, nationalism on the rise, bareback horse riding bare chested muscleflexing from expansionist Russia, a super militarised China and the chief strategist at the White House, Steve Bannon, convinced that, “We’re at the very beginning stages of a very brutal and bloody conflict ... If (we do) not ... fight for our beliefs against this new barbarity ... (it) will completely eradicate everything that we've been bequeathed over the last 2,000, 2,500 years.” The only thing more galling than some smug bastard saying “told you so” is a long line of despots, oligarchs, dictators, potentates and caliphs saying it. Transmoral types have been asserting for centuries that you cannot trust the hoi-polloi to make decisions. And we’ve known that too. Democracy in its purest sense would be mob rule, so every western democracy has been a fudge of some sort. A delicate balance between a figurehead, an elite club claiming to be the servants of the public and the public itself, who are only ever allowed to make the narrowest of democratic choices. But our Western Spring is having its own Lent, intent on purging itself

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

Opinion & Comment of ‘experts’ and shady ‘elites’, albeit by electing blatant ones instead. We’ll have none of those secretive dark deals between oligarchs anymore, just billionaires and hatemongers openly grabbing the spoils and crying fake news whenever they’re called on it. The City wrings its hands over Brexit but how many there were willing, even bankrolling, it? With instability comes fluctuating markets, the perfect rollercoaster for those hedgefunds who would spread bet on shares dipping and rising like a window-cleaner’s sponge in a 70s sex comedy. Clearly there are people in privileged positions who really shouldn’t be trusted. But ‘Elite’ as our hateword du jour, like all generalisations is only useful as a dehumaniser. A blunt instrument in argument and claiming they’re all the same makes no sense. History tells us we’ll never get rid of elites mainly because, when benign, they serve a vital purpose. Every revolution has simply replaced one with another. Societies need elites, and experts and specialists. In June last year we were all asked a bloody complicated question which I simply didn’t have enough facts to answer, nor did I have the time to truly examine it. But then that’s what I pay MPs to do. Now it seems that even they can’t grasp the specifics behind, or the consequences of it. We could have done with an educated ‘elite’ that we could trust, to take the time to examine it, study it, to understand and explain, instead of undermine and exploit. Yes, the system is broken and many ‘elites’ aren’t fit for purpose. Yes, we need to reform or exchange them. But to bundle everyone richer and more powerful than us in our social colonic is to not only throw the baby out with the bath water but the bath, chrome taps, Cranberry Lush, bath bomb and half a litre of TRESemmé as well. But then common sense is like deodorant, the people who need it most never seem to have it.

Public Lack of trust in Institutions has created Populism

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk

Photograph © John Handley

Opinion & Comment

March 2017

DUDLEY SUTTON’S I WISH I HAD WRITTEN THAT The Yellowhammer's Nest

By Peter Burden

By John Clare Just by the wooden brig a bird flew up,

Over the last half century the British public’s growing distrust in its institutions has led to a tendency to ignore advice and make choices based on short-term self-interest and incomplete information - a trend that has become known as Populism. During the last era of moral certitude in post-war Britain of the ’50s, when women were housewives and men wore hats, when PC Dixon patrolled Dock Green and Mr Brown went up to town on the eight-thirty-one, his bowler hat and tightly rolled umbrella symbols of his fiscal propriety, and every village church had its own vicar, the public still trusted the institutions - their politicians and policeman, clergymen and bank managers, teachers, judges and the Metropolitan Police, the BBC and the editor of the Daily Telegraph. It was in this period of shared righteousness that Prime Minister Harold Macmillan delivered a speech: “Indeed let us be frank about it most of our people have never had it so good,” he said famously. “Go around the country, go to the industrial towns, go to the farms and you will see a state of prosperity such as we have never had in my lifetime - nor indeed in the history of this country.” In the post-war boom, this was the truth; the people were inclined to believe and trust the Prime Minister. But during the next decade this a long-held confidence in the Ruling Classes began finally to unravel under the scrutiny of the satirists; the newborn Private Eye, Beyond the Fringe, That Was The Week That Was. John Profumo, Secretary of Sate for War, cavorted with Christine Keeler, whose other lover was a Russian spy; the Great Train Robbers pulled off their spectacular heist; former government minister, Lord Boothby was found hobnobbing with the Kray brothers. Public perceptions were being rapidly altered under an onslaught of cultural change: mini-skirts, Mods and Rockers, Liverpool Cathedral, the long hair and studied grubbiness of the Rolling Stones, the legalisation of abortion and homosexual acts, cannabis, the Pill, and the News of the World’s increasingly prurient revelations of the sexual activities of politicians, teachers, firemen

and vicars. All the old, protective layers of privacy were being peeled like onion skins from the personal lives of the formerly great and good. As the century progressed this uncovering increased and the public were becoming inured to the successive scandals. But the discovery that MPs had for years been topping up their meagre salaries with creative expense chitties came as a far bigger shock than it should have done, and significantly increased the public’s distrust. More genuinely shocking and indicative of serious moral malaise was was the banking crisis of 2008. It was by no means the first City scandal to affect Britain; the South Sea Bubble of 1702, the crisis of confidence in the Panic of 1772, when a run on British Banks caused twenty of them to go out of business; the speculative bubble of Latin American investment of 1825, when Scottish conman, Gregor MacGregor invented a Central American state, Poyais, into which thousands poured, then lost their money. And in 1932 Britain was caught in the wake of the Great US Depression. But these crises came and went and British bankers had developed a system, in the pragmatic interest of greater efficiency in which a man’s word really was his bond and which lasted more or less until the so-called Big Bang revolutionised the way the City operated and electronic confirmation of a deal replaced the human handshake. But the Credit Crunch crisis of ten years ago perhaps did more damage than had ever been done to the reputation of bankers and, more crucially, to the governments that claimed to regulate them, and the judiciary and police who failed to chastise them. It is almost incredible that it should ever have been allowed to happen, but few commentators or regulators waved warning flags, and when they did, they were ignored. The primary driving factor behind the crash was the Clinton administration’s policy that mortgage lending criteria should be lowered in order to accommodate people “who have historically been excluded from home-ownership.” This greatly relaxed the traditional safeguards against risky

lending in the subprime market, which was further encouraged when, during George W Bush’s first term, the US Federal Bank single-mindedly pursued a policy of creating a cheap dollar, in line with the wishes of the US exporting businesses’ lobby. Thus mortgage lenders who were buying their money very cheap were encouraged to lend it to subprime borrowers at five, even ten times the rate they were paying; like a greengrocer buying spuds at 5p/lb and retailing them at 50p/lb. It was outrageously profitable, and it was legal. Of course, there were risks, failures and repossessions, but the asset could always be sold to recoup the capital, as long as the by then heavily inflated housing market stood up. But in 2007 the Fed realised that they’d drastically over-egged the money supply, and tightened the reins. The well from which the lenders had all been drinking abruptly dried up. House prices crashed almost instantly, and the steady stream of repossessions became a torrent. That so many banks, including most British banks, became involved, either as principals, or secondary wholesale lenders was a direct result of opportunistic greed and atrocious financial judgment. Although as a result of the crash, a number of prominent American bankers were indicted by American courts, convicted and jailed for financial crimes, none of their British counterparts were, although Sir Fred Goodwin was stripped of his knighthood, poor chap! It’s shouldn’t be surprising that large swathes of the British public don’t trust the Institutions anymore, and will no longer take a lead from politicians and economic experts. Populism and Brexit have been a predictable, albeit unpredicted, result of this lack of trust.

Frit by the cowboy as he scrambled down To reach the misty dewberry—let us stoop And seek its nest—the brook we need not dread, 'Tis scarcely deep enough a bee to drown, So it sings harmless o'er its pebbly bed —Ay here it is, stuck close beside the bank Beneath the bunch of grass that spindles rank Its husk seeds tall and high—'tis rudely planned Of bleachèd stubbles and the withered fare That last year's harvest left upon the land, Lined thinly with the horse's sable hair. Five eggs, pen-scribbled o'er with ink their shells Resembling writing scrawls which fancy reads As nature's poesy and pastoral spells— They are the yellowhammer's and she dwells Most poet-like where brooks and flowery weeds As sweet as Castaly to fancy seems And that old molehill like as Parnass' hill On which her partner haply sits and dreams O'er all her joys of song—so leave it still A happy home of sunshine, flowers and streams. Yet in the sweetest places cometh ill, A noisome weed that burthens every soil; For snakes are known with chill and deadly coil To watch such nests and seize the helpless young,

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And like as though the plague became a guest, Leaving a houseless home, a ruined nest— And mournful hath the little warblers sung When such like woes hath rent its little breast.

March 2017

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Mahatma Ghandi

By Fredda Brilliant Tavistock Square

here are two statues of Ghandi in London, the other one by Philip Jackson being in Parliament Square, unveiled in 2015 by David Cameron, sharing it with two other incongruous flower-bed-fellows, Oliver Cromwell and Sir Winston Churchill. Churchill loathed the man and called him ‘a seditious Middle Temple lawyer, now posing as a fakir of a type well known in the East.’ The newer statue was welcomed by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but dismissed by Gandhi’s great grandson as ‘false worship.’ In Bloomsbury, Ghandi is in peaceful repose, sitting atop what looks like a stone chimenea or pizza oven. It was intended as a receptacle for flowers and floral tributes to the great lndian leader, but many devotees simply lay them on his lap. The reason for the siting of the statue in Tavistock is that it is but a stone’s throw to University College London, where he was studying law, before going on to lead India to independence from Britain in 1947. As it states on the plaque on one of the steps, the statue erected under the aegis of the India League by the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Committee. It was unveiled in 1968

March 2017

Feature

STATUES

Image © Stephen McKay

Statue & Blue Plaque

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by the then Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Harold Wilson, MP, and was placed there to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi in 1996 by the High Commissioner for India Dr L M Singhvi. The creator of the bronze sculpture was Fredda Brilliant, a Polish sculptor and actress, who was also a writer, singer and script writer. She was much-travelled and lived in Australia, New York, Russia and London. Whilst living in Moscow, she met and married Herbert Marshall in 1935, a lecturer and screenwriter. In 1939, the pair collaborated on a socialist film The Proud Valley, starring Paul Robeson, and she appeared in Robert Ardrey’s anti-fascist play Thunder Rock, first with Michael Redgrave, and then Albert Finney. The couple lived in India in the 1950s and 1960s, and while he made films for the government, she made sculptures of, amongst others, such Indian dignitaries as Jawaharlal Nehru, V K Krishna Menon and Indira Gandhi. Her list of sitters went on to include Buckminster Fuller, Muhammad Ali, John F Kennedy, Maurice Bowra, and Duncan Grant; quite a mix. Pablo Picasso invited her to his house in France and offered to sit for her, but she declined after he pinched her bottom. The couple went to live in America, when Marshall was offered a professorship in Soviet and East European studies at the University of Southern Illinois at Carbondale.They then returned to the UK where they lived in Henfield in Sussex, until he died in 1991 and she in 1999. Don Grant

Blue Plaque: Wing Commander Forest Frederick Edward YeoThomas

GC., MC., Legion of Honour, France, Croix de Guerre, Cross of Merit, Poland. 1902-1964 A Blue Plaque honouring Wing Commander Yeo-Thomas was erected by English Heritage at Queen Court, Guilford Street, Bloomsbury, London. It was unveiled by his niece, Carol Green in the presence of Mark Seaman, his biographer. Squadron Leader Lee Roberts represented the RAF. The Wing Commander, nicknamed ‘Tommy’ was a hero and his story is of enduring courage. He fought hard

against the forces of tyranny in World War 11 and suffered much at the hands of its perpetrators. ‘Tommy’ served in the RAF and was an agent in British Special Operations Executive (SOE). His code names were ‘Seahorse’ and ‘Shelley’. He had the tragic misfortune to encounter the Gestapo, who called him the ‘White Rabbit’. His special area was occupied France and Vichy. It took some time for the invaluable and brave SOE work to be recognised. ‘Tommy’ played a big part in getting more support for them and encouraged the Government to realise this war could not be won by traditional methods. ‘Tommy’ was the son of John YeoThomas, a coal merchant. The family

moved to Dieppe and ‘Tommy’ grew up speaking fluent French. This made him very valuable to the SOE. ‘Tommy’ fought with the Poles in the Polish Soviet war. He was captured by the Russians, but typically, even at a very early age, he avoided execution by escaping. Between wars he worked for Molyneux, a large Paris fashion house. I cannot imagine him there! In 1940, France having fallen to the Germans, ‘Tommy’ came to England as a translator for De Gaulle’s Free French Forces using his mastery of the French language. His SOE work necessitated his being parachuted into occupied France and his duty was to obstruct the German occupation. This involved meeting and dining with high ranking Nazi officials. He was parachuted into France again in 1944 and was captured in Paris where the Gestapo tortured him using sinister methods. His amazing courage and powerful, enduring spirit of survival overcame their cruelty. He steadfastly refused to give any information and had enough courage left to escape. He was recaptured and sent to Buchenwald Concentration Camp. There he took a great risk in helping others. 115 Allied Airmen were taken prisoner. He knew they would get better treatment by the Luftwaffe and succeeded in informing them of their presence. ‘Tommy’ escaped yet again. He was captured and taken to Stalag XX-B, a prisoner of war camp near Marienburg . He eventually reached Allied Lines in late 1945. In the post war years he was a key witness at the Nuremberg Trials when the atrocities and inhumanity of the Nazi Leaders were exposed to a shocked world. He was also a witness at the Buchenwald trial held at Dachau Concentration camp in 1947. ‘Tommy’ had always excelled in maintaining the morale of fellow prisoners and his devotion to duty never wavered during his lengthy service, when the threat of death was never far away. ‘Tommy’ was married to Lillian Walker and had two daughters. They separated but did not divorce. Later he had a long term partner, Barbara. Wing Commander Forest Frederick Edward Yeo-Thomas died in Paris aged 61 of a haemorrhage. He was cremated in Paris, repatriated to be interred in Pine Glade Garden of Remembrance in Brookwood Cemetery, Surrey. Commander Yeo-Thomas, his story was Courage. Marian Maitland

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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The Royal College of Music Providing world-class music in the heart of London By Kate Hawthorne

udwig Van Beethoven claimed that ‘Music is a higher revelation than wisdom and philosophy in their totality’. Many would agree but the practice of translating this essence and Art Form into a successful world-class conservatoire takes more than a formidable talent. It requires immense stature, knowledge and experience. To steer an International ship, through moving borders and boundaries, with a crew of the world’s most brilliant and creative minds, the Commander must also possess a propensity towards humour, humility and a forensic attitude towards responsibility. Enter Colin Lawson, Director of the Royal College of Music. The RCM, in the heart of the Royal Borough (founded in 1882) is an International Conservatoire for music education, performance and research housing the world’s finest musicians. The nurturing and education of such potential talent across such a diverse section takes profound dedication. Professor Lawson, CBE, read music at Oxford, is described as a brilliant world-class performer and played principal Clarinet in Britain’s leading period orchestras. Colin Lawson has recorded, toured, released several CDs of his work, and appeared as soloist in international venues and major concert halls throughout the world. As with his CV, and the letters after his name, there are too many achievements to mention. In 2016 he was appointed Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for services to music and music education. With the results of the EU referendum in June 2016, businesses were faced with uncertainty and turmoil and educational institutions beset with their own fears as to how this would affect their international standing, student intake, revenue, and future planning. Colin Lawson cast some light on the matter: “We had difficulty in the immediate aftermath of Brexit, with the uncertainty going forward as we rely on students to bring quality as well as fees. Half our student body is from outside the UK. Eastern Europeans start music as early as three and are playing eight hours a day by the age of 10. Their recruitment is essential and the quality of competition so high it helps maintain the highest of standards with UK and International students. We also have 75 EU staff and

"the stand against instant gratification where people won’t put their phones down to listen to a Mozart symphony let alone a Bruckner" rely on their continental perspective and collaboration on international research projects. Research projects help drive institutions forward financially and work together internationally on bids. It’s an essential part of our business beyond strictly musical boundaries; it’s pivotal to our growth and work and the broader context of performing, science, music and motherhood. However, now the UK Government has announced that EU students applying for 2017 entry will be eligible to apply for student loans and grants for the duration of their course. This eligibility will continue throughout their course, even if the UK exits the EU during that period. The RCM was founded on the principle that world-class music education should be available to anyone with the talent and potential to succeed, regardless of their background or personal circumstances. Throughout our 130 year history the College has upheld this ethos; welcoming, nurturing and training the best and most promising talent from around the globe. Nearly 50% of RCM students receive financial help and this is extended to our international students, ensuring that financial means are not a barrier to achieving musical excellence. We are rated number 2 in university rankings in Europe and number 1 in the UK. But, whilst this is important, what is more important is the stand against instant gratification where people won’t put their phones down to listen to a Mozart symphony let alone a Bruckner. We need to change this attitude.

Sport has a broader appeal than us. Why? Yes it’s good that Sport is so popular but music should at least be on the same level playing field in education. We need to change this and are constantly fighting to do so. We see a lot of potential going to waste in local schools. Good music has always been expensive to produce and for years has relied on patronage and sponsorship. We could bring so much more diversity of opportunity if properly funded. Our Sparks Junior programme provides proper tuition but it’s only for 30 people a year. If we want to continue training world class musicians we have to get them early, but it’s unfashionable to be training at this level, but not in Sport. We are competing against the American College scholarship system and free tuition in Germany. Having said that we have the huge advantage of London being a most attractive location. I am immensely proud of our diverse community of students and staff. Their exceptional talent and creativity makes a huge contribution to daily life at the RCM. RCM’s internationalism constantly reminds me that music is a language with the power to transcend borders and this inspires me to look beyond the uncertainty and focus on the RCM’s long-term vision; to continue to demonstrate our connections to Europe and the rest of the world, strengthen international partnerships and create opportunities for cultural exchange. Combining growth and sourcing funding is an eternal part of the College’s work. Our More Music Campaign was launched in February this year to raise £40 million pounds to support development of new state-of-the-art facilities. More performance spaces are essential to support more than 500 annual public events. To date we have raised 60% of the sum required. Our Amaryllis Fleming Concert Hall, will be completed with Flentrop currently building a bespoke new organ tailored to suit the space. Within the RCM complex a new museum will house our international collection of musical instruments, works of art, manuscripts and substantial historical research. A new

building by John Simpson will extend the language of the school building with an ultra-modern interior. We are providing 420 new rooms where students can live, rehearse and practice. With property prices at a premium and restrictions on playing music in residences, providing ‘sound practice space’ is a major challenge and consideration. Technology is a necessary and important part of our world. Livestreaming extends the reach of the College. Additional audiences provide income but the real value is bringing in the families, visitors and friends of students across the globe. The new technology allows remote creativity and interaction with our performers, musicians and academics and opens up greater opportunities and exposure for collaboration. Our live performance programme is extensive and is an essential part of our DNA. We have lunch time workshops for example which the public can attend free of charge in addition to our performance programmes throughout the year. Colin Lawson summarised his views with this message: “I give my assurance that the quality of the RCM’s training, our unrivalled performance opportunities and our support for and commitment to European students will never change. All of us at the Royal College will be working hard to ensure the RCM remains the number one choice for talented musicians from all over the world”. The responsibility for nurturing such potential talent across a diverse section of creative and sensitive individuals is one thing. The knowledge, challenges and the skill sets required to manage and enhance the world’s leading International Conservatoire takes remarkable courage, and a finely tuned musical and ſiscal baton. A rarity. A standing ovation for Professor Lawson! To view the Royal College’s Performance programmes visit www.rcm.ac.uk

March 2017

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Feature

March 2017

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Business & Finance

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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The demands will all change, so stay awake!

(with apologies to Billy Connolly) By Douglas Shanks

Westminster Abbey Institute’s Claire FosterGilbert By Ione Bingley

ow in its third year, the Westminster Abbey Institute has seen some of the biggest names in politics, the civil service and the judiciary pass through its doors to bravely voice their views on the value of ethics in decision-making. With the fiercely passionate Claire Foster-Gilbert at its helm, the Institute hosts two free and popular lecture series a year, aiming to, “revitalise moral and spiritual values in public life and public service”. The Institute also sees to the moral wellbeing of our politicians with its under-the-radar seminars for Government departments, MPs and peers, as well as providing a fellowship programme, which allows a new generation of civil servants to discuss the ethics behind policy making with Parliament Square’s lifelong members. Sitting on the south side of Parliament Square for over 1000 years, with the Houses of Parliament to the east, the treasury and Whitehall to the north, and the Supreme Court to the West, Westminster Abbey offers “a place of calm reflection to provoke thought and questioning about the nature of the good that we’re all trying to do around here, what it means and what the challenges are to it,” says Foster-Gilbert. The Institute insists that it has no interest in directly affecting legislation or policy-making, rather it aims to “create an atmosphere in which goodness can be supported and applauded and not be seen as a strange goal”. It provides a rare platform for public servants to consider choosing the most morally beneficial

course rather than, for example, the most financially advantageous. Resting on the conviction that the civil service is a vocation, rather than career choice, and that members, for the most past, enter with the hope of affecting positive change, the Institute hopes to coax the glowing embers of morality back into the fire of goodwill that first fueled their way to the sector. Foster-Gilbert is, however, careful to take into account the unavoidable fallibility of man and it is through this understanding that the Abbey’s rich religious tradition subtly informs the basis of what they do and why they do it. “The story of a divinity that became absolutely fallible as a human being to the point where he allowed himself to be killed, as God becoming man in Christ, is an extraordinary, mind-blowing concept that allows us to be fallible too, but also in the middle of that there is something enormous, like a spark of joy,” says Foster-Gilbert. “What we’re doing here is about making that available, without for one minute saying everybody has got to become a Christian in order to have it. It has got to be understood that what these public servants are doing is attending to their moral health and recognising that, like the rest of us, they’re fallible human beings and need help to stay good.” Westminster Abbey Institute has no problem finding speakers, or filling its sought-after seats, with the likes of William Hague, Rowan Williams, Mary McAleese, Baroness D’Souza, Peter Hennessy, Vernon White and Claire Foster-Gilbert stepping up to the challenge of debating the wider moral questions at the heart of the lecture series.

Integrity

With the each chosen theme emerging organically from the current mood and political climate, this season’s lectures will explore ‘Integrity’ and, while the institution insists that it “doesn’t start with definitions, but listens for good ones”, Foster-Gilbert was able to offer a

starting block. “Integrity means ‘one’, so there’s a unifying of the person who is working, what they’re doing, who they’re working with, and where they’re working. And, moreover, that the public, whom they claim to serve, are heard, and that what is offered by them is what’s actually needed.” The lectures seek to explore “a deeper understanding of what it means to be true to yourself and to the vocation that you feel called to” and to ultimately find out “whether the institutions that support the governing of the country hinder that integrity by being too stifling of the human spirit, or support it by being a custodian of goodness and integrity”. By raising awareness for the concept of integrity, Foster-Gilbert hopes to “have its sense of the importance restated”.

Past, present, future

With a degree in theology from Oxford and a career in medical and environmental ethics behind her, FosterGilbert has never been afraid of grappling with enormously deep and intricate questions. “Doing something like this at Westminster Abbey, and prior to that at St Paul’s Cathedral, I did become convinced that really thinking hard and well about what it is to be moral, to be good, has a spiritual dimension,” she says. “It’s not just about utilitarianly working out what the rationally right thing to do is, that’s not how human beings work, we work with our hearts as much as with our heads and what we believe determines how we behave, so the way we see the world determines the way

that we respond to it.” While Foster-Gilbert’s fervent belief in the essential goodness of those who live to serve is inextinguishable, she admits to moments last year when her convictions were been tested. “There is good and bad in all of us and I’m just aware of this tipping into such a fearful, defensive place that all we can do is fight for our own survival, and the sense of the human family caring for each other, and for the planet that we all depend on, would become impossible because we’re so busy defending our own.” “That’s what Trump and some of the Brexit narrative has been playing on. I didn’t hear anywhere in public a narrative of unselfishness. How can Britain be a better force for good in the world, in or out of the EU? That question wasn’t being asked and there was an assumption that people didn’t want to hear it.” Following the global fallout from Brexit and Trump, the autumn lectures are to bring with them the ambitious and timely theme of democracy in an attempt to address and investigate the fundamental moral dilemma at its heart. “MPs always have to have one eye on re-election because if you’re not elected, you’re not in there to make a difference, so you have to attend to the retaining of power and that is morally corrosive,” explains Foster-Gilbert. Opening the forum up to even braver themes, 2018 will see the institute tackle “the really intractable, complex global problems that can’t be solved at national level and what the individual and institutional response is to that”, like climate change and the large movements of people. While most of the lectures are open to the public on a first come first served basis with free booking available online, priority is given to civil servants. A book featuring the last three years of lectures will be available from June. For information and bookings visit: www.westminster-abbey.org/institute/ integrity

ith a stronger-than-expected economy post Brexit (my own powerfully pro-Union views, both United Kingdom and Europe, were never to do with the economy which is a red-herring), and indeed the perhaps surprising Conservative victory in Copeland, Mr Hammond may be tempted to leave well-alone in the forthcoming budget. I doubt he’ll do much about Inheritance Tax. While there was something deeply mean-spirited about the way the new reliefs are being phased in (and how sickening must it be to know that if a loved one had lived a few days longer one might have been so much better off ), the relaxations are

starting to make a material difference, a couple of years after they were first announced. Whatever the misty-eyed good intentions of the Socialists, death taxes are surely a most distasteful way of addressing social inequality. Others have more crystallised balls than mine, and I’m sure you’ll find plenty of useful speculation elsewhere. I know my own business partner tax-guru John Handley is gearing up for a technical monster of an article next month, so forgive me if I indulge myself with something of a tour d’horizon, to borrow a neat phrase lifted from Jimmy the Music’s page (second-hand as it happens; he nicked it from Le Carré). There seems to be a new pragmatism

within HM Customs & Revenue presumably emanating from the Treasury, since the arrival of Hammond, Mrs May and Financial Secretary to the Treasury Jane Ellison. They just seem business-like, and while there was an element of the silent assassin about the Prime Minister’s arrival in office, that’s an image that gets things done (c.f Jim Hacker’s delight in being described as “dictatorial”), and the cynic in her cosying up to Trump, I have been wondering in these columns if it might not be quite good news for the taxpayer, and their much put-upon agents. You’ve heard me banging on about the work my firm does in the field of what we call remedial tax, and what the revenue describes as “what we might

Plus ca change!

indispensable part of their armoury. They struggle to survive without it as, equally, do those who enlist the support of family offices. The concept of the family office originated in America to help administer the vast fortunes accumulated by the descendants of the fabled 19th C. industrial barons, such as Morgan and Rockefeller, Gould and Vanderbilt. The social demands of that gilded age meant their beneficiaries, typically, had neither the time nor the inclination to sully themselves with the minutiae of everyday life. Responsibility for the distribution of their dividends and maintenance of their living conditions was devolved to a select group of trusted retainers. These custodians, versed in managing money and the vagaries of wealth, were the forerunners of the multifaceted concierge services available today. The principal focus of such offices is overseeing the preservation and growth of capital for families of substance. But it encompasses so much more besides including, inter alia, advice on structuring trusts and similar entities, tax and domicile, legal jurisdiction, succession planning, philanthropy and aligning the collective interests of the client. The language of money, spoken or otherwise, has been transformed. In the financial sector, all the usual suspects offer an array of private banking and wealth management services. However, the creation of family offices is a step beyond and they fall into two

categories: single family offices (SFO) and multi family offices (MFO). The former normally handle the affairs of an individual family with a net worth of c £25,000,000 and upwards. There may be many competing issues to tackle at that level. The value of its assets may be tied up in an operating business, the beneficiaries of that fortune may have conflicting desires in realising it or perhaps a sudden liquidity event has the potential to change fiduciary status. Seasoned executives, with appropriate professional qualifications, are often hired externally to run SFO, although concerns about fees and investment returns have led to some families assuming greater personal involvement in their affairs over recent years. Nonetheless, the endless imposition of compliance, governance and due diligence requirements can overwhelm even the brightest minds. MFO are effectively a supercharged version of SFO, whereby a group of families pool their resources to provide economies of scale and access significant investment deals as a collective. They may be based in different regions and guided by different principles but, ultimately, they reflect a wish for the supervision of their affairs with likeminded people. Many such investments are mainstream and cautious, via the public markets, but those with a greater appetite for risk often lean towards, for example, private equity, impact investing and emerging markets. It is

The role of the family office By Howard Lewis

he language of family management acknowledges more than the mere need to communicate. The modern world brings many complexities, one of which is the abundance of choice. Families used to be largely concentrated in one place, engaged in similar activities, but nowadays are often dispersed far and wide through the ubiquity of both air travel and opportunity. As wealth generation has grown so exponentially over the past quarter century, the conventional checks and balances have required a more calibrated approach. An army of private advisors has emerged you never knew you needed. Some are designed to organise your finances, others your life, but their sheer multitude act as a reminder of the busy, complicated, international lives we all appear to lead. Once upon a time, they were called bankers, solicitors and accountants, but that is so very 20th century. Do keep up at the back! Nobody could have conceived of social media management as a serious profession five years ago, yet some people now regard it as an

regard as fraud”. Either we’re getting better at it, which I suppose is possible, or the revenue are becoming reasonable, or if that’s not the right word, ‘realistic’; given the personalities in government that in itself may not be an unrealistic view. It’s early days, but I was chatting to John earlier, and he brought my attention to the Chair of the influential Treasury select committee, Andrew Tyrie’s criticism of HM Revenue and Customs for its handling of legal disputes against film partnership tax avoidance schemes, saying they have led to financial distress for some investors. The issue of “financial distress” misses the point about the retrospective nature of the interpretation of legislation, and it’s just one bloke saying “wait a minute” (you need to imagine that in Billy Connolly’s voice, the accent of my childhood, try saying it without pronouncing the “t”s), but he’s relatively senior, and it’s at least a start, a move away from the hang-avoiders-legitimate-andotherwise brigades that have blighted the tax industry which by and large was peaceably going about its lawful business until Blair landed us with Brown (which in my opinion was his only, if all-damning crime). I’m conscious that this has fallen short of a rant; I’m sure the budget will enrage me in time for the next edition. Douglas Shanks is DSC Metropolitan Chartered Accountants temporarily mellowing partner the role of the family office to evaluate the appropriateness of that risk in the context of the wider family construct but, equally, provide a window onto the world. An international perspective is vital as, indeed, is a command of shifting cultural and societal trends. The consulting group EY suggests there are some 3,000 family offices in existence today, half of which have been formed in the past 15 years. This figure excludes the vast majority of wealth managed on behalf of Asian families, many of whom still grapple with the very idea of giving strangers their money! Family ties are deeply embedded in Asia. Honour, pride, loyalty, respect for tradition and a sense of place all play their part, as does a deep appreciation for the patriarch who started it. The Chinese and their Asian cousins do not share our short term horizons. That is how they forge their business dynasties! Moreover, they are not shy to travel to new countries and absorb new experiences. English as a language is now pursuing a parallel path to the United States as a nation. Each retains a seat at the top table but neither is completely dominant any longer, merely very important. However, English as a business language remains primus inter pares, albeit the Brexit vote suggests we are more insular in that regard than we might care to admit. It will be interesting to observe whether the Chinese model of financial management is colonised across the globe and what lessons we may learn.

Photograph © Troy Barnes

March 2017

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Tax Planning

No tax on dividends ≤£5,000 for individuals From April 2016, the Dividend Tax Credit has been replaced by a new taxfree Dividend Allowance of £5,000. This means you can potentially receive tax free dividend income from your investment properties.

No income tax when reinvesting profits to secure further properties You could grow a BTL portfolio more quickly within a Limited Company as there will be no income tax on the retained profit, thus allowing more cash to re-invest. Although corporation tax is payable on trading profits (20%; 2015/16; reducing to 17% by 2020), this is lower than the higher income tax rate.

By Tim Smith & James Joly

im Smith, a senior tax partner with RSM (Baker Tilly) UK advises on ‘Tax Planning’ actions to be put in place before 5th April 2017 in Part 1 of this article. Tim also advises clients of Moncrieff Joly, a Financial Management Consultancy Group, which includes a Family Office division for private clients. Managing Partner, James Joly, has contributed Part 2, setting out the advantages and disadvantages of ‘Using a Limited Company for Buy to Let properties.’

Part 1

Tax planning before 5 April 2017 As many personal tax reliefs and allowances are annual, it is important to review what can be done before 5 April 2017 to ensure you are fully benefiting.

Relief for pension contributions

Normally, full tax relief is available for those making gross pension contributions up to £40,000 each year but, since 6 April 2016, this allowance is tapered away for those paying the top rate of income tax, giving a maximum annual allowance of £10,000 for those earning £210,000 or more. However, relief can be carried forward for three years, so those with unused relief from 2013/14 who are caught by the new restriction should consider utilising brought forward relief before it expires on 6 April 2017. Contributions greater than £10,000 could be made and still attract full tax relief. In some cases, tax relief up to 60 per cent could be available for pension contributions. Pension contributions for other family members such as spouses and adult children should be considered, given recent changes that allow greater flexibility and the potential for an inheritance tax free pot for the next generation.

Enterprise investment scheme

With alternative funding of businesses, such as crowdfunding, growing rapidly, investors should

remember the generous enterprise investment scheme (EIS) and related seed-EIS (SEIS) reliefs. EIS can give 30 per cent income tax relief and SEIS 50 per cent income tax relief. Both give the ability to mitigate (defer (EIS) or partially exempt (SEIS)) tax on capital gains made on other assets and a capital gains exemption applies to the new shares subscribed for. If you are looking to invest in someone else’s business, these reliefs should not be overlooked.

£5,000 of dividend income and personal allowances

The new dividend allowance came in this tax year, allowing everyone up to £5,000 of tax free dividends. It is worthwhile ensuring that spouses and civil partners are maximising this allowance between them so that one partner is not paying tax on dividends while the other still has available dividend allowance. The generous annual personal allowance should also not be overlooked, where available, and couples should consider maximising use of this between them.

Non-domiciled individuals

Individuals living in the UK who are non-UK domiciled (non-doms) face a significant change in the tax regime that applies to them from April 2017. All non-doms in the UK, whether they have been claiming the remittance basis or not, should review their affairs before the new rules come in.

Personal investment companies (PICs)

Instead of holding investments personally, there are numerous advantages of using a PIC to retain and grow family wealth. The main benefit of a PIC comes through its use as a long term investment vehicle, enabling it to retain higher post-

tax profits which can be reinvested for quicker growth without high personal tax rates applying. Furthermore, it can allow for efficient family wealth protection and planning for income and inheritance tax purposes. The above comments highlight some key reliefs and allowances: For more information please contact Tim Smith Tax Partner at tim.smith@ rsmuk.com

Part 2

Using a Limited Company for Buy to Let Properties Should you set up a Limited Company for your Buy to Let properties?

There is not a straightforward answer to this question. For each case, the response could differ depending on personal circumstances, future intentions, and the availability of mortgage finance to Limited Companies for the purchase of Buy to Let properties. You should also be mindful that a Limited Company is required to file the accounts and financial status of the entire property portfolio with Companies House on an annual basis.

Advantages of using a Limited Company Higher tax relief From 2017 to 2020 the amount of Buy to Let tax relief individual landlords can claim back will be progressively cut from a maximum of 45% to 20% for top rate taxpayers. However, this change does not affect Limited Companies. Therefore, if you are a top rate tax payer, the tax payable via a Limited Company will be lower than tax on individual income.

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

Personal funds can be drawn back out of the company Any advances you make to your Limited Company (e.g. the mortgage deposit), you can draw back out of the company by way of Director’s Loan.

Disadvantages of using a Limited Company No Capital Gains Tax (CGT) allowance When the company sells a property, whereas individuals selling a property would currently have £11,100 CGT allowance. Indexation allowance is, however, available. Additional cost of running a Limited Company Such costs include the preparation of accounts, company tax and corporation tax calculations for HMRC, filing at Companies House, legal fees, and annual auditing if applicable. Higher mortgage rates Most lenders charge higher interest rates and fees for Limited Companies compared to Individual Buy to Let mortgages. Reduced choice of lenders and mortgages Many lenders do not offer mortgages to Limited Companies, and often if they do, the product range is much smaller. Should you Transfer from Individual name to Limited Company? It should be recognised that transferring existing properties from an individual name into a Limited Company structure may be more complex than purchasing new properties within. You would be liable to pay Capital Gains Tax and Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on the transfer, which tends to make this less desirable.

For more information and/or a preliminary exploratory meeting, please contact James Joly at jamesjoly@moncrieffjoly.com

Golden Years by Max Feldman

rom the ancient Egyptians to the modern U.S. Treasury, there are few metals that have had such an influential role in human history as gold. Being prevalent across the face of the globe, innumerable civilisations have been drawn to its beauty and rarity (In the present day approximately 2,000 tons of gold are created per year. To put that number into perspective, about 10,500 tons of steel are produced in the United States every hour.) and fixed their different currencies to the mineral’s star, going back as far back as the Paleolithic caves which are dated at 40,000 B.C. However the first firm evidence we have of human interaction with gold occurred in ancient Egypt around 3,000 B.C. Gold played an important role in ancient Egyptian mythology and was prized by pharaohs and temple priests to the point where the capstones of the Great Pyramids were made of solid gold. The Egyptian civilisation also produced the first known currency exchange ratio which mandated the correct ratio of gold to silver: one piece

of gold is equal to two and a half parts of silver. This is also the first recorded measurement of the lower value of silver in comparison to gold. Despite this well documented love of gold, they never used it as a bartering tool. Instead, most Egyptians used agricultural products like barley as a de-facto form of money. The first known civilization to use gold as a form of currency was the Kingdom of Lydia, an ancient civilization centred in western Turkey. Later on in history, the ancient Greeks viewed gold as a social status symbol and as a form of glory amongst the immortal gods and demigods. Mere mortals could use gold as a sign of wealth and also as a form of currency. This belief in the nearly godlike power of the precious metal proved one of the central pieces of connective tissue in societies both ancient and modern: that gold is a status symbol used to separate one class from another. From emperors to priests to the elites and upper middle class, those who held gold also tended to hold power. The European exploration of the Americas was fuelled in no small part by reports of the gold ornaments displayed in great profusion by Native American peoples, especially in Mesoamerica, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia. The Aztecs regarded gold as the product

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Business & Finance

March 2017

of the gods, calling it literally “god excrement” (teocuitlatl in Nahuatl), and after Moctezuma II was killed, most of this gold was shipped to Spain. Ironically however, for the indigenous peoples of North America gold was considered useless and they saw much greater value in other minerals which were directly related to their utility, such as obsidian, flint, and slate. One by one countries across the globe began to tie their currencies to the so-called Gold Standard in the form of bills (that mature into gold coin) and gold certificates (convertible into gold coin at the issuing bank) which added to the circulating stock of Gold Standard money in most 19th century industrial economies. In preparation for World War I the warring nations moved to fractional gold standards, inflating their currencies to finance the war effort. Post-war, the victorious countries, most notably Britain, gradually restored goldconvertibility, but international flows of gold via bills of exchange remained embargoed; international shipments were made exclusively for bilateral trades or to pay war reparations. The two World Wars wreaked havoc on the gold standard and world financial markets. Of course, it didn’t help matters that the Great Depression occurred in between those two wars. After these

decades of war and economic strife, world leaders came together in 1944 for the Bretton Woods Agreements. A system which made the previously unthinkable step of creating a gold exchange standard where the price of gold was fixed to the U.S. dollar. This was a radical experiment and it served to make the United States effectively the most powerful player on the world’s markets for decades. The U.S. dollar was chosen for the Bretton Woods system because the United States was easily the world’s strongest economy coming out of the Second World War. Unlike previously strong European nations, the United States did not have to repair infrastructure or fix towns that had been bombarded throughout the war. In 1944, gold was fixed at $35 per ounce for the foreseeable future. This system lasted basically unchanged until the early 1970s, where another war (the Vietnam War) caused the gold exchange standard to collapse. America’s budget was in ruins and in 1971, President Nixon unexpectedly decided to end the Bretton Woods system in a moment that sent deep shockwaves throughout the financial world Between 1971 and 1976, a number of attempts were made to salvage the Gold Standard. However, the price of gold continued to rise beyond what any currency could sustain. As a result the concept of the gold standard was reluctantly abandoned and Fiat currency now fills most monetary roles. Switzerland was the last country to tie its currency to gold; it backed 40% of its value until the Swiss joined the International Monetary Fund in 1999. Since the abandoning of the gold standard, gold has enjoyed a far more rocky relationship with the markets than some might expect. Over the past two decades, gold has gone through a number of major changes. August 1999 was a landmark moment in the price of gold as it dropped to a price of $251.70. This occurred after central banks around the world were rumoured to be reducing their gold bullion reserves and at the same time, mining companies were selling gold in forward markets. By February 2003, outlook on gold had reversed. Many viewed gold as a safe-haven after the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. Geopolitical tensions between 2003 and 2008 continued to elevate the price of gold and the global economic crisis increased the price of gold even further. After reaching a high of over $1,900 per ounce in 2011, gold has fallen to between $1,200 to $1,400 in recent years, however considering the potential for further economic crisis in the near future gold’s perceived value could return to its position of dominance.

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Legal

Can Britain remain a leading light in global research

LSGA and the Court of Protection

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Business & Development

By Ione Bingley

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

“she should never have been committed at all.” Hal Branch, Partner at LSGA Solicitors suggests “the case raises numerous issues about how the Court of Protection operates and how we treat people who refuse to comply with a court order when they believe that they are doing so in the best interests of the parties.” Mrs. Kirk is not the only person to be jailed by the Court of Protection in a dispute over a citizen’s life choices and we fear she may not be the last but hopefully Mrs Kirk’s case makes this much more unlikely.”

By Hal Branch

of medical products in the EU. The second big stumbling block is the impact that the cessation of research funding from the EU is likely to have on British science. MPs attending a health select committee meeting last month were warned by Professor David Lomas, speaking for UK university hospitals, that British medical researchers were already being “bumped off ” European Research Council (ERC) grant applications. “Previously having a British member would help you in your application to get funding … Now you are less than an asset, so we have had academics removed from grant applications,” said Prof Lomas. Prof Lomas’ own university, University College London, and Cambridge University are major beneficiaries of ERC grants, raising more funds this way than any other institute in the EU. He believes that it is essential that British patients are able to profit from the cutting edge research that the money currently allows. “If we don’t get the very best people we don’t drive the research and innovation where we punch above our weight. If we can’t attract the very best, we can’t lead in the innovations that will lead to patient benefits.” To top problems off, potential changes to Erasmus schemes, higher tuition fees and the rising cost of living has considerably reduced access to British universities for European students and would be researchers, and has already seen EU applications drop by seven percent on average, and as high as 14 percent at the University of Cambridge. The highest reduction is

reportedly in post-graduate applications that are key to British universities staying at the forefront of global research. In addition to reports of top academics pulling out of UK-based research following the Brexit vote, the move could prove to be the “biggest disaster” to higher education for many years, according to the Government’s education select committee. Perhaps the most worrying is the drop in international nursing applications where numbers have fallen by a quarter, adding strain to an already stretched NHS. “The seven per cent decline in applications of students from the EU after the referendum result should be seen as a warning that studying in the UK is a considerably less attractive option than it was 12 months ago,” said NUS Vice President Sorana Vieru. The dwindling access to European STEM talent is worrying both at the research and manufacture levels and is likely to have considerable knock-on effects commercially for a burgeoning British STEM industry. Stephen Cooper, UK head of industrial manufacturing at KPMG, highlighted the “appetite for new technologies” that exists in the manufacturing industry today, but warned that the lack of skilled workers and the increasing gap between supply and demand for STEM talent remains a concern. “Digital scientists, digital engineers, digital architects, cyber security engineers – none of these existed 20 years ago. Having access to the right skills and investment will be crucial to ensure Britain’s manufacturing sector unlocks its

full potential and remains fit to compete on the international stage,” he said. While Carlos Moedas, the EU Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, told the EuroScience Open Forum in Manchester that EU funding of research projects will “continue to be evaluated based on merit and not on nationality”. There are no such assurances after our official divorce from the EU in 2020. However, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury also announced a range of further assurances in relation to the EU funding that the UK currently receives. And minister for Universities and Science, Jo Johnson, addressing the Wellcome Trust, claimed “new, additional money beyond the £26.3 billion that the Government have already committed to science”, during EU funding agreements, would be made available for universities and firms after the move. The government is now under high pressure to follow through with its promises as the Brexit negotiations get underway if the UK is going to remain a leading light in the medical and STEM sectors. “The strength of our globally respected research base is an unparalleled strategic asset for the UK and we must continue to invest in it. With 0.9 percent of the world’s population, and 3.2 percent of its R&D spend, we produce 15.9% of its most important research output. The UK is home to 4 of the top 6 universities in the world. The output of this engine of new knowledge discovery is a constant source of potential commercial advantage,” warned Innovate UK.

SGA has recently been involved in successfully defending Mrs. Teresa Kirk’s rights in a case that highlights the brutality of judgments that may be handed down by the Court of Protection. The Court of Protection deals with a variety of cases and has the power to make far-reaching rulings on almost every aspect of a citizen’s life, from compelling a person to use contraception to deciding whether a life-support system is switched off. In this extraordinary case, Mrs Kirk, who is 72 years old, was sentenced to six months imprisonment after she defied Devon County Council’s demands over the care arrangements for her elderly brother. Mrs. Kirk took the decision to move her brother, Manuel Martins, who suffered from dementia, to a Portuguese care home. Mr Martins was born in Madeira and Mrs Kirk believed that her decision to place her brother in the Portuguese care home was in his best interests. Mrs Kirk said about her decision “we

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n the lead up to the referendum, the Government’s science & technology committee noted that the UK’s membership of the European Union has a “wide-ranging influence” on UK science and research. “The UK’s level of engagement with EU funding programmes, for instance, is considerable. EU membership also has significant bearing on scientific collaborations, the mobility of researchers, regulatory frameworks and research and development (R&D) undertaken by businesses, to highlight just some of the interactions between EU membership and the vitality, or otherwise, of science and research in the UK.” It perhaps comes as no surprise then to find that the British scientific community is more than a little apprehensive about the future of their sector. Traditionally taciturn scientists have been stepping up to voice their worries, with the likes of lobby groups such as Scientists for EU becoming a mouthpiece for mounting concerns. The potential woes faced by British scientists and their respective industries have much in common with the general mood pervading every corner of British industry, from agriculture to finance. A third of UK manufacturers are planning to shift operations out of the UK, according to a recent KPMG report, with several large science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) based businesses looking to join the move. “While this might seem counterintuitive at a time when the low pound value is encouraging greater investment into the UK, businesses with interconnected pan-European supply chains may be planning for the possibility that the UK exits the EU Customs Union without an EU-UK Free Trade Agreement in place,” reads the report. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) regulatory body is one of the major science hubs that will be mainland-bound post-Brexit. EMA will be taking its 900 highly skilled workers with it and has already been inundated with attractive offers from savvy nations like Germany and Italy that have been touting for their business and are currently the two largest manufacturers

March 2017

remained close all our lives and I was not going to abandon him to state social workers in his last years. He would have become depressed in Devon without the sunshine. He loved the gardens and the warm weather where he lived.’ Following Mrs Kirk’s refusal to bring her brother back from Portugal, Mr Justice Newton, the judge presiding over the case, stated “I have no alternative but to pass a sentence of imprisonment”. Her family only learned that Teresa was being held at Bronzefield Prison (a maximum security prison, where Rose West was incarcerated) from a presumed

ex-inmate of the prison. Mrs Kirk’s imprisonment was also kept a secret from the public. LSGA secured the release of Mrs Kirk, following 7 weeks behind bars, by making an urgent application to the Court of Appeal. LSGA have most recently been successful in having the reporting restrictions in the case lifted. The head of the family court, Sir James Munby was highly critical of many aspects of how the case had been handled prior to LSGA’s involvement. Munby stated “Mrs. Kirk had been failed by the system” and that, in the circumstances

Hal Branch, Partner, LSGA

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ut with the old and in with the new, the first month of Spring brings with it the perfect moment to turn over that new leaf and learn something fresh. Reignite an old interest or embark on an untrod path, be prepared to be inspired. Unless specified, courses must be prebooked and are suitable for beginners.

Whirlpool Galaxy M51. © NASA

Cass Art

Pinwheel Galaxy M101. © NASA

Galaxy Hunting By Scott Beadle FRAS

y first really good view of a galaxy and the only one visible with the naked eye was in Scotland in 1987. We were sailing a beautiful 1930s motor yacht for my friend Martin (also the owner) up the east coast of England to the west coast of Scotland by way of the Caledonian canal. He met me in Inverness and we went for our customary fish and chips ashore, then sat on a bench seat overlooking the sea and just looked up at the heavens. It was a beautiful clear night, pitch black, no moon and the stars were just amazing. His eyesight was always better than mine and as we looked up he said, “what’s that fuzzy patch over there near that W shaped constellation”, which, if I remember rightly, he knew was Cassiopeia. It was Andromeda (M31) fuzzy

Andromeda Galaxy M31. © NASA

yes, but quite clearly different to the surrounding stars. I’d never really seen it before; it is considered to be the furthest observable naked eye object. The next day he appeared on board with a brand-new pair of Zeiss binoculars, “ I bought these for a better look”, he said. He was right, you could discern the elongated nebulous shape well enough, but that just left me wanting more and that meant buying a telescope to see more clearly its inherent structure, but also to search for more “island universes” further afield. Some amateur astronomers are happy enough looking at the Moon, the planets, or any one of the myriad astronomical curiosities relatively close to hand. Galaxy hunters range much further out, lured beyond the Milky Way by wild cosmological theories. We’re also driven by a profound scepticism. Scientists tell us that “island universes” exist out there, and we are compelled to see them for ourselves. When I finally had a telescope powerful enough to resolve its shape, I had no doubts as to what it was. Yet I understood how past observers could mistake Andromeda for one of the

Milky Way’s many nebulae. It took William Herschel’s 18.7 inch telescope, built in the 1780s, to suggest that the Andromeda nebula could be visually resolved into stars. Another 140 years slipped past before Edwin Hubble used Cepheid variable stars to measure the immense distance, thus identifying Andromeda as a galaxy similar to our own. Looking through a telescope is 50% vision and 50% imagination. The Hubble Space Telescope’s high resolution photos show countless galaxies out there, but that doesn’t make them any easier to comprehend. It’s almost impossible to grasp something 120,000 light-years across, containing a trillion solar masses, and found to be some 2.5million light years distant. Since then I’ve observed the face on spiral M81, 11 million light-years away, the Pinwheel galaxy (M101) and the Whirlpool galaxy (M51) even further out. I love collecting old and new astronomy books. In The Soul of the Night by Chet Raymo, he says; “The night sky is the hunting ground of the mystic and the philosopher, the scientist and the theologian”

Deep space is fertile ground for anyone drawn to abstractions. Every galaxy is one more piece of the jigsaw puzzle. Every new object is another clue to the great mystery of the universe. When Emmanuel Kant first wrote about “island universes” in 1755, few people took him seriously. In the 1920s Edwin Hubble proved him right. Now we revel in the reality of hundreds of billions of galaxies stretching from here to the outermost limits of the visible universe. Deep space is where nature unfolds in all its glory and it’s all there for anyone to see with or without a telescope. I can think of few things which bring greater pleasure than contemplating the universe whilst eating really good quality fish and chips on a bench seat under a dark, dark sky.

Islamic Geometry Workshop March 18 Monthly Islamic Geometry workshops return to Cass Art in Kingston. All are welcome, no experience is needed and all resources & materials are provided for attendees aged 14+. Using a compass and a straight edge, you will be able to produce beautiful patterns and transfer them to watercolour paper to decorate with watercolour pencils and paints. Step by step guides will be emailed to you to accompany all patterns taught at the workshop, so that you can reconstruct, tile it or give it a woven effect. Time: 10.30am - 12.30pm Tickets: http://www.samiramian.uk/ cassart Location: The Art Space, Cass Art Kingston, 103 Clarence Street KT1 1QY This workshop takes place on the first floor and there is no step-free access. Cost: £15 per workshop or £50 for 4 sessions Weekly life drawing Tuesdays and Thursdays Drop in and draw different male/female models every week at Cass Art Kingston store. A fun friendly class, suitable for all levels covering short and long poses. Expect a relaxed environment to liberate artistic growth, allowing unique styles to flourish in a stimulating atmosphere. Tuesday 10.30am - 1pm Thursday 6.45pm - 8.45 pm Location: The Art Space, Cass Art Kingston, 103 Clarence Street KT1 1QY This workshop takes place on the first floor and there is no step-free access. Cost: Tuesday £15, Thursday £12, dropin, no booking necessary

The Royal Academy of Arts

Sustenance for stargazers.

Revolution: Now! Weekend-long art history and theory course 25-26 March

This two-day art history and theory course explores the critical and lasting impact of the Russian Revolution on both artistic practice and individual artists, treating the Revolutionary period not as a historical curiosity but as a time of great innovation and lasting change. Time: 10am - 5pm Bookings: tickets.royalacademy.org.uk Location: The Reynolds Room, Royal Academy, Piccadilly Price: £340. This two-day course will include a course handbook, supporting materials and a visit to the exhibition 'Revolution: Russian Art 1917-1932', followed by expert-led discussion.

to learn to select, handle and maintain knives. Each knife has a specific purpose for which it is best suited. Learning to use each knife confidently and accurately takes a great deal of practice. Focusing on chicken-jointing and fish preparation you will learn to use the correct knife with confidence to undertake kitchen tasks that will no longer seem daunting.

The London Film School

City Lit

A-Z of documentary producing: from creation to distribution 25 – 26 March This 2-day course is designed to provide an overview of how to produce broadcast factual programmes or series’, and independent productions. Starting with the early stages of how to develop an idea, the course will take participants through development, treatment presentation, budgeting, scheduling, legal and compliance issues to the finished product and then onto festivals and selling into the international market. Time: 10am - 6pm Bookings at: http://lfs.org.uk/workshops/ lfs-workshops/248/z-documentaryproducing Location: 24 Shelton Street, WC2H 9UB Price: £275

Leiths School of Food and Wine

Sri Lankan street food 18 March & 23 Sept Learn to make the authentic Sri Lankan street food that has made London restaurants like Hoppers a sell-out success. Leiths teacher, caterer and blogger Georgie Soskin will give you a thorough introduction to Sri Lankan cooking, talking you through how to make coconut milk from fresh coconuts, and using spices and trendy new ingredients like Maldivian fish flakes to their best advantage. Bookings at: www.leiths.com/classes/srilankan-street-food Phone: 020 8749 6400 Time: 10am - 14.30pm Location: 16-20 Wendell Road London, W12 9RT Price: £155 Knife Skills - Chicken and Fish 30 March, 25 May, 30 July & 29 Sept The first lesson in a cook's training is

Bookings at: www.leiths.com/classes/ knife-skills-chicken-and-fish Time: 10am - 14.30pm Location: 16-20 Wendell Road, London, W12 9RT Price: £155

Christie’s Education

-isms: Art for the modern world 8 March – 24 May, Wednesdays The course aims to explore and map out the many schools, styles and movements of modern times. Starting in the mid19th century, the weekly sessions will trace the developments and emergence of the many –isms at the turn of the century. Each session will include time for group discussion and will be followed in the afternoon with a gallery visit to The National Gallery, Tate Gallery or The Courtauld Institute of Art or a behindthe-scenes visit to one of Christie’s specialist departments.

A taste of London beer 14 March & 3 April Learn how to appreciate beer and understand the different styles that are available in the UK market – including the latest trends in London. You will taste a wide range of styles including ale, bitter, lager and craft beers, in addition to finding out how different types of beer are made.

Bookings at: www.christies.edu/london/ courses/isms-art-for-the-modern-world. aspx Time: 10am - 2pm Time: 0207 752 2025 Location: Christie's South Kensington, 85 Old Brompton Road, London, SW7 3LD Price: £620 (individual session £80)

Bookings at: www.citylit.ac.uk/courses/ataste-of-london-beer/ubr03-1617 Time: 12.00pm - 13.30pm Location: Keeley Street Covent Garden London WC2B 4BA Price: £49

Chelsea College of Arts

A taste of creative writing 25 March Give creative writing a try on this fun and supportive one-day course. Ideal if you want to express yourself but need help in getting started. Guided exercises will encourage you to experiment and unlock your imagination. Bookings at: www.citylit.ac.uk/courses/ataste-of-creative-writing/hw446-1617 Time: 10.30am - 5.30pm Phone: 020 7831 7831 Location: Keeley Street Covent Garden London WC2B 4BA Price: £59 (concession £24) Abstract drawing 12 March – 2 April Exchange realistic depictions for exciting new visual experiences using mark making, line, form, colour, texture and much more. Enjoy a series of practical exercises that explore different approaches to abstraction, working in new ways and making it work for you. Bookings at: www.citylit.ac.uk/courses/ abstract-drawing Time: 10.30am - 4.30pm Phone: 020 7831 7831 Location: Keeley Street Covent Garden London WC2B 4BA Price: £229 (concession £140)

Illustration: drawn to digital 20-23 March & 7-10 August In today’s creative visual climate, digital processes are prevalent and the hand of the artist within the work can sometimes be lost. This experimental course will introduce you to new ways of working, where you will combine old and new technologies, bringing together the handmade and the digital. Bookings at: www.arts.ac.uk/chelsea/ courses/short-courses/search-by-subject/ illustration/illustration-drawn-to-digital/ Time: 10am - 16pm Location: Atterbury St, SW1P Price: £599

Kensington and Chelsea College

Introduction to print making 20 March This Introduction to Printmaking course is a practical studio based programme and combines structured teaching and informal workshop time. You will gain a good overview of the printmaking media and grounding in a wide range of techniques such as Drypoint, Collagraph, Lino cut, Monoprinting, Etching and Photo-Etching. Bookings at: http://www.kcc.ac.uk/ course/16tle005/ Time: Mon 2pm – 5.50pm Location: Chelsea Centre Hortensia Road London, SW10 0QS Price: £315

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‘Is Brexit bad?’ asks the Small One. ‘Yes’ says the Eldest, before I have a chance to answer. ‘Why?’ ‘Because it’ll be such hassle to go on holiday.’ The Eldest trots out American Mom’s favoured contribution to the Brexit debate. Considering most of their holiday destinations are far outside the borders of the EU, I can’t work out why this is the aspect of the complex political situation she chooses to focus on. ‘Is that the only bad thing?’ The Small One looks up at me, unconvinced. It’s 8am on Saturday morning and American Mom is away for the weekend; in Gloucestershire, not Europe. The Small One is developing a habit of establishing the

conversation at breakfast. ‘Not quite,’ I say, hoping he doesn’t press me further. After a particularly charged discussion in the pub last night I am Article 50d out. I wonder if he is going to insist on highbrow talk for the whole two days. The Middle One appears and immediately turns her nose up at the scrambled eggs. ‘I don’t like eggs,’ she says as she begins massacring an avocado. ‘Too eggy.’ The Eldest rolls his eyes and helps himself to more. There has been much deliberation on what to do this weekend but it seems we have reached a compromise that suits all parties. The Small One’s favourite colour is green and his best friend is Irish, which means the St Patrick’s Day parades excite him more than Christmas. The Middle One is going through a multi-coloured phase, which coincides perfectly with the Holi Festival party hosted by one of her Indian school friends. The Eldest is the only one who’s being flaky about his choice. His recent ascension into teenagedom has left him incapable of making decisions. Luckily, he also lacks the energy to argue with anyone else’s so there is no protest to either of his sibling’s choices. St Patrick’s Day is a great success. The Small One doesn’t wash the Shamrock transfer off his cheek for the two days following and begs me to ask American Mom if he can go and stay in Ireland with his friend’s family when he’s old enough, because ‘Irish people are really fun.’ The Holi Festival has the same effect on the Middle One, whose rainbow t-shirt now takes pride of place on the wall of her bedroom. A trip to India is on the cards if she does very well in her Common Entrance. Even the Eldest smiled for the duration of both events. I have to admit that the pessimist in me is quietened to see members of the next generation with nothing but love reaching beyond the Brexit bubble.

Schools in England are facing the first real-terms cuts to their funding since the mid-1990s, a leading thinktank has warned. Spending per pupil is to fall 6.5% by 2019-20, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), although it added that school funding had been well protected over the past two decades. Sixth-formers have been facing a continuing squeeze on budgets, with spending per further education (FE) student falling by 6.7% between 201011 and 2015-16 and a further drop of 6.5% expected over the next few years. It means that funding for 16- to 18-yearolds is no higher than it was almost 30 years ago. The IFS study examines education spending for different age groups (from early years to universities) over a number of years. It found that the biggest spending increases over the past 20 years

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spearheaded by MPs from all parties, who derided the previous guidance, put in place in 2000, as hopelessly out of date for the realities and dangers of the modern online world. Until the new ruling, schools not under the control of the local authority were under no obligation to provide sex education of any sort, beyond a brief focus on the mechanics of conception in Biology. In a statement, education secretary Justine Greening claimed that

the previous statutory guides also “fails to address risks to children that have grown in prevalence over the last 17 years, including cyberbullying, ‘sexting’ and staying safe online.” Sex education is compulsory only for secondary school pupils in local authority-run schools. Now all secondary schools, including academies, private schools and religious free schools, must make the age-appropriate sex and relationship education mandatory. The

Department for Education will work with teachers, parents and safeguarding experts to develop age-appropriate content for all key stages. Parents will continue to have a right to withdraw their children from the lessons. Schools will have flexibility in how they deliver the subjects and they can develop an approach that is “sensitive to the needs of the local community” and religious beliefs. The British Humanist Association said the announcement was a step in the right direction, but added that the government should ensure children in faith schools were not deprived of age-appropriate sex and relationships education. The BHA’s chief executive, Andrew Copson, said: “A child’s access to accurate, evidence-based and relevant information, designed for the simple purpose of keeping them safe, should not be dependent on their religious or nonreligious background, nor on the type of school to which they happen to have been sent. It should be clear to everyone that either all children have a right to this education, or no such right exists.” A YouGov poll from Barnardo’s children’s charity earlier this year found 74 per cent of 11-15 year-olds said they would feel safer if they were taught about sex and relationships in school. Whilst a further 94 per cent said they agreed it was important for them to understand the risks and dangers of being online in order to stay safe.

have been on schoolchildren in England, with £4,900 currently spent on each primary school pupil and £6,300 spent per secondary student. In both cases, this is around double, in real terms, the amount spent in the mid-1990s. But the report shows that school spending is now falling and will drop by 6.5% over the course of this parliament. “This will be the first time schools have seen real-terms cuts in spending per pupil since the mid-1990s,” it says. The IFS says that protections for school budgets over the last parliament mean that spending per pupil will still be similar to 2010 levels. It notes that the introduction of the national funding formula, which will redistribute money to schools in a way that ministers say will be fairer, is the “largest shakeup in school funding in England for at least 25 years”. The IFS report warns that 16-18 education has been “the biggest loser from education spending changes over the last 25 years”, adding: “It experienced larger cuts in the 1990s than other sectors, smaller increases during the 2000s and is currently experiencing the largest cuts. This long-term squeeze in resources is a major challenge for the sector as a whole.” Further education spending per student was 45% higher than secondary school spending in 1990 and will be around 10% lower in 2019-20. Luke Sibieta, one of the report authors and an

IFS associate director, said: “Over the next few years, both further education and schools are due to experience cuts. “For schools, this comes on the back of very significant increases over the last few decades. For FE, this comes on the back of tight funding settlements for decades that will leave spending per student the same in 2020 as it was in 1990. The lack of priority given to FE by successive governments in spending settlements does not seem sustainable.”

A Department for Education spokesman said: “School funding is now at its highest level on record at more than £40bn in 2016-17 and the IFS has shown that by 2020 per pupil spending in schools is set to be at least 70% higher in real terms than it was in 1990. “We are transforming post-16 education and investing £7bn to ensure there is a place in education or training for every 16 to 19-year-old who wants one.”

choolchildren are to be taught about sex and relationships in lessons beginning from the age of four. In a long anticipated move by the government sexual education has been made compulsory in Secondary Schools, whilst primary school children will be taught about the importance of healthy adult relationships. However there has been some controversy over the fact that faith schools have been allowed a potential opt-out in that they will still be allowed to teach “in accordance with the tenets of their faith”. Politicians and charities have welcomed what amounts to the most radical overhaul of sex and relationship education in decades, but some secular campaigners expressed concern about the opt-outs that could be available for faith schools, with accusations that the loophole will end up leaving some students vulnerable. The press for the change was

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Dudley Sutton’s Drawing Competition: The winners A joyful decision to have to make, such was the response. These are my final selections. • The first was full of energy and we get two crocodiles for the price of one. • The second made me laugh so I included it, even though it concerned a nearby hyena rather than a crocodile. • The third was bold and full of fun.

Pure as the driven snow Max Feldman wraps up warm as he heads to the land of the ice and snow to discover why Iceland’s teenagers are so clean living

eyond the fact that Scandinavia is apparently teaming with serial killers hunted by stern emotionally distant detectives wearing sensible jumpers (at least if prestige television is anything to go by) our frozen cousins’ social programs are often looked up to with a kind of jealous awe. There’s a general sense that there’s just something inherently wholesome about the Hygge-prone Scandinavians (once again, fictional serial killer excluded) that makes them cut out for socialist paradises in a way that us binge-drinking Britons somehow don’t have the psychological complexion for. This is of course nonsense; however there are certainly aspects of the Scandinavian model that should be examined to see if they have any application on this side of the cliffs of Dover. Of particular interest to educators and parents (particularly as heavy government cuts are set to come down on our own educational sector) is Iceland. In the late 90s Iceland’s youth were less culturally informed by hygge than by their own Viking ancestry, with a reputation as some of the heaviest drinking teens in Europe (a hotly contested title at the best of times), but the last twenty years have seen a sober revolution in their teens, which has seen Icelandic youth making a sharp U-turn from drunk and disorderly to currently topping the European table for cleanestliving teens (which admittedly sounds like a contradiction in terms). Surveys show that the percentage of 15- and 16-year-olds who have admitted been

drunk in the previous month plummeted from 42 per cent in 1998 to 5 per cent in 2016. The percentage who have ever used cannabis is down from 17 per cent to 7 per cent. Those smoking cigarettes every day fell from 23 per cent to just 3 per cent. Clearly something unusual was happening to explain such a cultural shift and indeed the epicentre of this cultural youthquake is a government program called Youth In Action which simultaneously managed to step radically outside of the box in regards to educational thinking whilst relying heavily on evidence and peer review to help dictate policy direction. Youth In Action has its origins with a school questionnaires for 14-16 year olds sent out to every school in Iceland circa 1992 which was filled with questions like “Have you ever been drunk? Have you tried cigarettes? Do you have a close relationship with your parents? What kind of activities do you take part in?” The questionnaire was then repeated in 1995 and 1997. The results of these surveys were alarming. Nationally, almost 25 per cent were smoking every day, over 40 per cent had got drunk in the past month.

However the data provided meant that the government were able to focus into the minutiae of the differences between the teens who had abused substances and those who didn’t. The central factors which were shared by the sober teens boiled down to participation in organised activities (generally sports) three or four times a week, feeling involved in school, a larger amount of time spent with parents during the week and not being outdoors in the late evenings. Using the survey data and insights from a radical new national plan was introduced that developed into the modern version of Youth in Iceland. It became illegal to buy tobacco under the age of 18 and alcohol under the age of 20, and tobacco and alcohol advertising was banned. Links between parents and school were strengthened through parental organisations which by law had to be established in every school, along with school councils with parent representatives. Parents were encouraged to attend talks on the importance of spending a significant quantity of time with their children rather than occasional “quality time”, on talking to their kids about their lives, on knowing who their kids were friends with, and on keeping

their children home in the evenings. Most importantly (and most radically) was a law, still in effect, that was passed which forbade children aged between 13 and 16 from being outside after 10pm in winter and midnight in summer. State funding was increased for organised sport, music, art, dance and other clubs, to give kids alternative ways to feel part of a group, and to feel good, rather than through using alcohol and drugs, and kids from low-income families received help to take part. In Reykjavik, for instance, where more than a third of the country’s population lives, a Leisure Card gives families 35,000 krona (£250) per year per child to pay for recreational activities. Between 1997 and 2012, the percentage of kids aged 15 and 16 who reported often or almost always spending time with their parents on weekdays doubled (from 23 per cent to 46 per cent) and the percentage who participated in organised sports at least four times a week increased from 24 per cent to 42 per cent. Meanwhile, cigarette smoking, drinking and cannabis use in this age group plummeted. The question is whether this approach could successfully be imported abroad; Iceland has a total population of 323,000 with an effectively negligible homeless problem compared to the United Kingdom’s 64.1 million inhabitants and a far more diffuse culture which may resist blanket attempts to impose restrictions on their children’s activities. Regardless of these issues of scale, there have been recent attempts to export the program (creatively entitled Youth In Europe) which have begun to meet with limited success, Bucharest, for example, the rate of teen suicides is dropping alongside use of drink and drugs. In Kaunas, the number of children committing crimes dropped by a third between 2014 and 2015. However for countries such as Britain, the plans require a symbiosis between the state and parents and an ability not to rankle at government proscribed morality that in many ways simply does not exist. Whilst Iceland may have hit on a system that works, it would require a great deal of cultural change before many would accept that it would work here.

Well done and thanks for all your entries. Dudley Sutton

Top right: The winner. Aweis Warsame. 7 years Right, Second: Antoine Noordpool. 7 years Above,Third: Shuaib Barkzaei. 8 years All entered by The Doorstep Library

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March 2017

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It Can’t Happen Here By Max Feldman

In our Literature page, we look back on great works of literature realised in the current month, for March, Max Feldman chronicles the collapse of the American dream into fascism and fear with Sinclair Lewis’s 1935 cautionary tale: It Can’t Happen Here

ocked by the continuous shockwaves of Trump’s tempestuous presidency, it feels almost nostalgic to remember a time about a decade ago when politics could be safely ignored without the fear that you might miss the announcement of World War III and Brexit wasn’t even a reptilian twinkle in Nigel Farage’s beady eyes. The world’s current status RE: Hell and Handcart means it’s impossible for even the most wilfully ignorant citizen to ignore the headlines screaming out

dire warnings in 100 point type. Even so there is still a tendency towards complacency, there’s no way that America could slide from its position of de-facto leader of the Western World to a home for authoritarian terror. However It’s exactly this kind of liberal complacency that Sinclair Lewis (the first American author to win a Nobel prize) had in his sights with his 1935 scorched earth political parody It Can’t Happen Here which details how a clownish, proudly anti-intellectual and anti-immigrant populist candidate was able to seize on public dissatisfaction with the status quo, become president and steadily transform America into a Fascist nightmare. Sadly the central difference between Trump and the fictional dictator Buzz Windrip is that Windrip is implied to have a level of superficial competence far beyond anything the current leader of the Free World could aspire too. Lewis wrote the novel because he was afraid of the meteoric rise of

Louisiana senator Huey Long, a wildman fighter for social reconstruction (who ran his state like a King) who looked set to potentially unseat President Roosevelt in 1936. Whilst Long was assassinated before the election, Lewis’s novel remains a powerful warning about populist politics potential to place in chains the very people who fall prey to its promises. Whilst Windrip runs on a quasi-socialist platform (promising a free $5000 dollars a year for every “real American family) and is more interested in rapid militarisation than late night twitter storms, there are some unnerving parallels between this dreamed up-dictator and our current orange overlord. Like Trump, Windrip sells himself as the champion of “Forgotten Men,” determined to bring dignity and prosperity back to America’s white working class. Windrip loves big, passionate rallies and rails against the “lies” of the mainstream press. His supporters embrace this message, lashing out against the “highbrow intellectuality” of editors and professors and policy elites. Rather more alarmingly (and with Windrip’s tacit encouragement) they also take out their frustrations on blacks and Jews. The novel even features a Steve Bannon equivalent, a coldly brutal ex-newsman named Lee Sarason. It is Sarason, not Windrip, who actually writes most of Windrip’s more apocalyptic, racist campaign promises

and who rather worryingly eventually overthrows Windrip and seizes power himself. Sarason believes in propaganda, not information, openly arguing that “it is not fair to ordinary folks, it just confuses them, to try to make them swallow all the true facts that would be suitable to a higher class of people.” Through a combination of Sarason’s cynical race-baiting machinations and his own combination of deception and ugly charisma, Windrip ascends to the presidency while the nation’s liberals tremble. It’s only after the inauguration, though, that It Can’t Happen Here takes a truly dark turn, thankfully not one that (currently) corresponds with reality: Upon moving into the White House, Windrip immediately declares Congress an “advisory” body, stripped of all real power. When members of Congress resist, he locks them up without the slightest semblance of due process and begins the process of re-imagining the US as the Corporate States of America, where Big Business reigns supreme and unchallenged. The novel was written at feverish speed and in some ways serves better as polemic than literature but its seasick and horribly familiar vision of what happens when a culture allows self-congratulatory complacency to distract itself from clear and present constitutional dangers have rarely been as prescient or as biting. It Can’t Happen Here shows that it can indeed happen here, but only if you let it.

has been engineered to maximise general happiness with a focus on free love and a state-proffered happiness drug that would have Winston Smith from 1984 thinking he’d died and gone to heaven. However whilst superficially a hedonistic environment, it soon becomes clear that this is no place to live: if you cannot feel pain, can you ever truly feel joy?

Atwood (1985)

Fahrenheit 451: Ray Bradbury (1953)

Dystopian Fiction By Max Feldman

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

Poetry

1984: George Orwell (1949)

It’s impossible to discuss fiction of this sort without mentioning what amounts to the keystone novel of the entire genre. Grim and depressing, Orwell’s tale of the grinding misery of life in a world where the all-powerful state is always watching and ready to punish the slightest deviation with instant unpersoning will never not feel unnervingly plausible.

Continuing our theme, this month KCWToday are taking a look at the best fiction about the darker paths that the future could take. Each one a Brave New World: Aldous Huxley palpable warning to be vigilant (1932) At first glimpse the dystopia against the worst impulses of presented in Brave New World seems almost idyllic, every aspect of social life ourselves as a species.

The ultimate dystopia for this era of fake new and anti-intellectualism, Bradbury described an American society where all books are burned and intellectual thought is illegal. Even more alarming a read now than it was sixty years ago, it’s a dark mirror to a potential endpoint for the current war on truth. Brilliantly, in a triumph of irony, when it was first released, the book itself was banned for ‘questionable themes’.

The Handmaid’s Tale: Margaret

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Ozymandias,

written in 1817 by Byron’s friend Percy Bysshe Shelley representing an alternative view of Romantic poetry. The poem, which is one of Shelley’s most famous and anthologised, is a blatant political rant. Unlike most of his work, which is more focused on beauty, love, expression and the imagination, Ozymandias focuses on the evils and damaging effects of political power and the image of Ozymandias’s ruined statue a reminder of the dangers of man’s arrogance, self-importance, and ultimate insignificance over the course of time. I met a traveller from an antique land, Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand, Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things, The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed; And on the pedestal, these words appear: My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings; Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair! Nothing beside remains. Round the decay Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare The lone and level sands stretch far away.”

Perhaps more fitting to a potential President Pence rather than Trump, Atwood’s vision of a totalitarian Christian theocracy that has usurped the US government and instituted a forced breeding system that sees fertile American women enslaved retains its power to chill in a portrait of the Patriarchy triumphant.

The Road: Cormac McCarthy (2006)

Potentially one of the bleakest in its genre (which is certainly saying something), McCarthy offers a harrowing vision of a post-apocalyptic world beset with cannibal gangs where anything resembling hope has died. However the beautiful and tender relationship between father and son that makes up the core of the narrative is proof that however grim and hopeless the surroundings, some faint glimmer of humanity will always survive.

HIS MONTH’S POETRY page sees the return of some of the English Romantic poets and a selection of verse by Byron, Keats and Shelley. In a completely different vein we have a poem written by Roger McGough. She Walks in Beauty written in 1814 by Lord Byron is one of his most famous works and a staple of the Romantic poetic tradition. The poem was included in Hebrew Melodies, a collection of poems that the poet had intended to be set to traditional Jewish tunes, which explains the rhythmic pace of the poem and its musicality. The unnamed lady in question is purported to have been Anne Wilmot, the young wife of Byron’s cousin, Sir Robert Wilmot. The poem is unique in as much as it side-steps common love poetry which tends to dwell on physical ideas of beauty and instead finds its power in how the subject possess beauty. It is her guiltlessness, peacefulness and goodness to which Byron attributes this beauty and that transcends the given norms. The contrast between the dark and light only goes to amplify the radiance of this ‘nameless grace’.

Image © Toby Brook

Literature

March 2017

Finally, we have John Keats’s, the Adonis, of Shelley’s poetic hall of fame and master Romantic sonneteer. Here we offer up one of Keats’s finest sonnets, On Seeing the Elgin Marbles which at one and the same time symbolises mortality and immortality. Keats, who died of tuberculosis at the age of 25, knew of his impending death at the time of writing the poem. The marbles themselves represent the highest achievements of mankind. The objects are somewhat of a contradiction for Keats for as much as they survive their creators, they too are subject to decay and displacement over long periods of time.

On Seeing the Elgin Marbles

My spirit is too weak--mortality Weighs heavily on me like unwilling sleep, And each imagin'd pinnacle and steep Of godlike hardship, tells me I must die Like a sick Eagle looking at the sky. Yet 'tis a gentle luxury to weep That I have not the cloudy winds to keep, Fresh for the opening of the morning's eye. Such dim-conceived glories of the brain Bring round the heart an undescribable feud; So do these wonders a most dizzy pain, That mingles Grecian grandeur with the rude Wasting of old Time--with a billowy main-A sun--a shadow of a magnitude.

In case of rain don French beret

Photographs © Tim Epps

In case of beret vend des oignons En cas des oignons shed bitter tears In case of tears produce silk handkerchief In case of handkerchief magic white rabbit In case of rabbit bake into pie In case of pie set before king In case of king long may he reign In case of reign don French beret By Roger McGough

Compiled and edited by Emma Trehane MA, PhD.

The beret, with poem inscribed by Roger was auctioned at the Chelsea Arts Club for charity

She Walks in Beauty By Lord Byron (George Gordon) She walks in beauty, like the night

Of cloudless climes and starry skies;

And all that’s best of dark and bright Meet in her aspect and her eyes;

Thus mellowed to that tender light

Which heaven to gaudy day denies. One shade the more, one ray the less,

Had half impaired the nameless grace Which waves in every raven tress, Or softly lightens o’er her face;

Where thoughts serenely sweet express,

How pure, how dear their dwelling-place. And on that cheek, and o’er that brow, So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,

The smiles that win, the tints that glow, But tell of days in goodness spent, A mind at peace with all below, A heart whose love is innocent!

March 2017

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Dining Out Photograph © David Hughes

Dining Out

March 2017

selected ingredients. It’s a bit tedious going into tiny detail 8 times over, so I’m going to crack on, but if you can enjoy the majority as I did, then it’s ‘mission accomplished’ for the kitchen. First up was Cauliflower & Cheese which was universally praised at the table, and got us off to a good start. Next, the versatile scallop that has in

recent times been paired with everything from Spanish Chorizo to burnt cauliflower. Tonight it’s sitting on a celeriac purée, surrounded by delicate chunks of apple and coated with black Perigord truffle. One of our number thought the truffle a little too prominent, but I didn’t agree. It was delicious, and things have to be pretty bad for there to be too much fresh truffle! After a quick top up on the wine, the next plate arrives bearing a quenelle of Catalonian Romesco, a disc of cod, butter milk sauce and a slither of baby gem lettuce. We are here to be entertained as much as fed, but a coin of cod seemed just a bit too arty. Browning the top had also dried it a touch, but the flavours were good. My companions were in two

minds about the naming of the next course, Cep & Trumpet Risotto. We all loved the bite of the rice, and it was a nice enough thing, but the usually prominent flavours of Cep and Trumpet were elusive. As if to answer this criticism, out came an indisputably excellent portion of beef rump, shredded Oxtail wrapped in cabbage and confit of oyster mushroom. Good enough to tempt even an ardent vegetarian, every plate was completely cleared. Time for cheese, but with a bit of a spin, melted vintage cheddar with a cube of caramelised apple. Dish number 7 is a palate cleansing Granny Smith apple & Spiced Honey Granita, paired with a Monbazillac pudding wine. None of us have tried a spiced honey granita before, but it gets a universal thumbs up. To finish our evening we have a Frozen Yogurt with Rhubarb & Graham Cracker, a symphony of bubble gum pinks and cracker crumbs that somehow everyone finds room for. Go for: an entertaining night out where your conversation will often be drawn back to the food and wine. Recommended. Back off: if you are looking for rustic plates and hearty portions

were swiftly forgotten. I opted for the Moules Marinière for my starter and was rewarded with a plate that practically groaned under the sheer quantity of seafood. The mussels were just the right level of creamy and my only real problem with the dish was that there just wasn’t any practical way for me to eat all of them, reducing me to the shame of palming them off onto my guest with feigned magnanimity (In my social circle showing weakness this early in a meal means surrendering equal amounts of one’s main and dessert; a fate worse than death). When he wasn’t snacking on my Moules Marinière, my companion has opted for Twice Baked Gruyère Soufflé which he jealously guarded, but going by

his various expressions of ecstasy it was the perfect opener (either that or he was having a stroke). For the mains we were both too nervous to ask whether the Hippo cheeseburger was made from a bona-fide beast of the savannah and opted for some rather more recognisable fare. I tucked into a Crispy Pork Belly served with root vegetables and apple sauce that could have turned Morrissey into a raging carnivore, guarding the meat from the roving grasp of my companion with the steely eyed determination of a man fully prepared to stab his dining companion with a fork. Suitably chastened he elected to sample the Salmon, Lentils, Spinach and Watercress which he was fiercely

protective of, so I could only sneak small tastes when he was otherwise concerned with his wine. Thankfully this was a fairly regular event. As such I can report back that it was delightfully flavourful and rich and going by his doleful look at his empty plate I sense that his only regret was that there wasn’t more of it. We ended up closing with a decadently rich White Chocolate Cheesecake and we practically had to be rolled back into the rain by the end of the night. With prices evening out between £12-14 for the main The Colton Arms is something of a steal, it’s well worth a trip down the backstreets (but perhaps load up Google Maps just in case!)

The Bingham, Richmond By David Hughes

Valentine Warner Pop-In Parabola restaurant at the Design Museum By David Hughes

The Bingham is a 15 room boutique hotel situated on a beautiful stretch of the Thames with a terrace and rolling lawns. Bookings on 020 8940 0902

The Colton Arms

Photographs © Hippo Inns

he main body of the Design Museum is all soaring space and grand scale, but Parabola brings things down to a more intimate level. The ceilings comparatively low, and the kitchen takes up one end of the room, and the well-stocked bar the other. Rather than be tied to any one style or chef, there’s a series of residences sponsored by Verve Clicquot that started with Rowley Leigh last November, and currently stars Valentine Warner until 31st of March. The style is very much Supper Club, a less primped version of a tasting menu that does without the attendant flights of amuse bouche and flamboyant serving procedures. You can go food only at £45, or surrender to the inclusive cocktails and wines at £65. The first drink was a Hepple Gin Martini, billed as “Valentines very own gin” Madame’s blood/gin ratio had been falling for some hours, so I had no choice really, and it did seem to revive her. I’m not sure if this treatment is clinically proven, but it has been mentioned that it saw the Queen Mother to just under a 102 years of age. M has stated she intends to continue with clinical trials for the foreseeable future, so I’ll keep you posted. Having bedded down the gin it was time to be introduced to the Yellow fin tuna tostada with chipotle, a pleasingly fresh arrangement of avocado, sweet deep fried tiny red onion ringlets, chopped onion and tuna perched on a

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Andrew Cole’s Supper Club

ne of the joys of living in London is the mighty Thames snaking its way through our midst. In central London it’s bound by high embankment walls, and although picturesque, it always feels just a little too turbulent and dangerous to mess with. Go a bit further upstream however, and grassy banks run down to the peaceful, tree strewn margins that Richmond’s Bingham Hotel looks out on to. Andrew Cole billed his Supper Club as a small plates tasting menu, which to me just makes it a tasting menu, but hopefully with a decent number of people to fill the tables. After a couple of house speciality cocktails, we had 8 plates of amuse-bouche to bowl-food sized portions, so quite comfortable over the course of the evening. With such compact portions you can turn up the flavour a notch or two, and I’m looking forward to concentrated hits of beautifully presented and expertly

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By Max Feldman

187 Greyhound Rd, West Kensington, London W14 9SD

flatbread. The smokiness of the chipotle was present throughout, and it was a better dish than you would find in most specialist Mexican establishments. A second appetiser of Curried chicken livers, cucumber salad and crème fraiche was subtle, silky smooth, and successfully laced with a few toasted and flaked almonds. Along comes a sommelier who clearly loves his job; the Barbera d’Asti 2014 is served with due reverence, and he gives out a little bit of info about the estate. Naturally, I’ve completely forgotten which side of the hill the grapes came from, but it’s great to see such genuine enthusiasm. M loved her Octopus with cannelloni beans and red wine, mine was a touch salty, but beautifully cooked. For mains there was a choice, so we went for one of each and shared. Confit rabbit with French fries and mustard salad, and a Bollito misto with mustard

fruits and salsa verde. A 2015 Crozes Hermitage Blanc from Paul Jaboulet was paired with the rabbit, and an Old Vine Carignan Maule from Garage Wine Co in the Maipo Valley was poured for the Bollito Misto. The rabbit was the slightly daintier of the two dishes, and the vegetal complex nose of the Crozes was at its best lancing through the roasted cuts with a dash of salsa verde. The Bollito is a hearty, rustic number that includes a thick slice of tongue that I loved. This is not a plate for the faint hearted. There’s lots of simple (but perfectly cooked) meat, and the wine to go with it is a big, highalcohol rugger player of a drink. To cleanse the palate and close off the evening, dessert is a Pink grapefruit and Campari granita. It looked a little large at first, but it all went down without any pain save slightly chilled teeth. The generously poured Hepple Negroni that

came with it helped on that front, and convinced me that the extra £20 for the drinks was a dam fine investment! The Design Museum, 224-238 Kensington High Street, W8 6AG reservations online or 020 7940 8795

The Colton Arms has clearly heard of the beaten track, but the Fulham pub is far enough off it that it’s probably never laid eyes on it. My dining companion and I are not overly blessed with senses of direction (or indeed any sense come to think of it) so what should have been about a five minute journey from Baron’s Court station to The Colton Arms ended up being a fairly humiliating fifteen minute trek, which took in every single direction save for the right one. Finally arriving at the door with our spirits suitably dampened (not a metaphor, adding to our blues was the all-pervasive rain) my companion and I were not in the best of moods to enjoy much of anything, dining or otherwise. It’s a tribute to the cosy atmosphere of The Colton Arms that once ensconced in the conservatory style dining area all-dampness and faulty-map reading induced threats of bodily violence

Photograph © David Hughes

March 2017

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Dining Out By David Hughes

ard to believe, but I drove past twice before I figured out the walkway full of restaurants was actually Isabella Street. When I finally parked, a fox strolled nonchalantly through some railings, giving me a “So you found it then” look as it passed by on its evening stroll. Nature is infinitely adaptable it seems, and Mr Fox now likes to dine with the rest of us. Thai Silk advertises a Bangkok inspired Street Food menu, and directly imports around 80% of the ingredients to give it authenticity. If you are food miles obsessed, this may cause some pain. If you like your Thai to be Thai, and not a look-alike from Peckham, it’s happy days. As you enter, a huge gold Buddha head, eyes closed in contemplation, looks down from the far wall. Being less ethereal, I decide to contemplate the drinks list, then order a beer. Won Tons, minced Spring Rolls, Tempura Prawns and Tempura Veg all hit the table in record time, along with the inevitable sweet chilli dip. All very

By Tim Epps

e three were to meet on the Fulham road with a plan to go to a restaurant, selling only pork. Since one of our party was Iranian I questioned my colleague. I needn’t have worried. The restaurant was firmly shut. Where to go now? We tried another restaurant round the corner, which was usually peopled by infidels and hedonists. Shut too, since Allah was plainly taking a hand! We suddenly remembered a Sicilian restaurant on the bend of the Kings Road that had had good reports from our Editor and was unlikely to offend. All this is a preamble to the main event. Greeted with enthusiasm (especially the women) by the ebullient Bucci we started to relax. My colleague commented on the music and suddenly we were treated to an enthusiastic master class of 80s music controlled from a smart phone through the restaurant sound system. We discovered there were some 5 different versions of Love of the Common People (I preferred Springsteen). Good job we were the first to arrive! We ordered our meals from a board and a menu stuffed with classic Italian

street, and to a decent standard, but no breaking of ground here. The dishes were a bit too inoffensive, and it didn’t feel like the chefs had clicked into high gear yet. In marked contrast, the Mixed Seafood sizzled with interest; the enticing pile of squid, whitefish, mussels and scallops was bold on the lemongrass and chilli, and laced through with racemes of blackened green peppercorn and baby corn, and topped with flecks of dill. I thinks it’s pretty much illegal for a Thai (Sicilian) favourites. Suddenly the place filled up and people began to surround us encouraged by the good natured staff and all greeted personally by our cheerful new friend Bucci. The atmosphere took off and our smiles broadened still further at our beautifully prepared starters and mains and an honest, delicious Sicilian house wine. Sometime in the proceedings we sent a picture of the Editor’s favourite, the succulent liver, to her, just to get a dig in! Was the food good? You bet! Was the whole evening fun. You bet! Want a good time? Go to Frantoio, you won’t be disappointed, in fact you’re welcome; good music, good food, good fun, good friends; (oh, and there was décor and good linen, but I only remember the rather nice painting done of our host, Bucci and his friends). No desserts, (diet, what diet?), but a shared Irish (Sicilian?) coffee rounded us off nicely. As we rolled happily out into the night, in the spirit of the way the evening began, we noticed that the door of the Moravian churchyard was open so we sneaked in and took in the tranquillity of that corner of Chelsea forgotten by time, but obviously not by the Almighty, for a few brief moments. A calming end to a thoroughly good evening. Frantoio 397 King's Rd, Chelsea, London SW10 0LR T: 020 7352 4146 www.frantoio.co.uk

Decanting: The decent thing to do. “Wine improves with age. The older I get, the better I like it” Anon.

A lot of my friends ask me whether they should decant a wine before they drink it and in almost every instance I say yes. Most people believe that the point of decanting of a wine is to remove any sediment that has built up in the bottle, but that is only half the story. The principal reason to decant is to awaken a wine by exposing it to oxygen. When a wine has a cork inserted, it goes into semi-hibernation and although the wine still ages in the bottle, it does so at a reduced rate as the cork, while porous, prevents excess air reaching the wine. When the cork is finally pulled the best way to bring a wine back to life is to maximise the amount of oxygen it receives. Hence so many decanters have a large flat bottom, maximising the surface

restaurant to produce anything but perfect rice, and nobody was going to jail here. M’s Beef & Green beans was clearly produced by a man for whom “hot” meant a touch of the blow torch. It takes a bite or two to adjust after such mild starters, but once you get into it, even the offbeat addition of a few crinkle-cut carrots seemed to fit the dish. This felt a lot more like authentic street-food cooking; bold dashes of fresh chilli & herbs, and with a minimum of primping. Desserts were a colourful boat of ice cream, fruit and green pancake. The most traditional Thai desserts are usually formed from a combination of sticky sweet rice, banana, mango and coconut, but who cares; ice cream is pretty universal these days, and it’s a welcome balm. Thai Silk sits in the middle of a solid line of eateries situated just 5 minutes from Waterloo Station, and only a couple of minutes from Southwark underground, so ideal for visiting one of the many theatres, galleries and attractions in the area. Friday nights, and the last Thursday of the month are DJ nights, and for those that missed The Voice auditions, there’s a couple of private rooms for hire for Karaoke.

Photographs © David Hughes

Lifestyle & Fashion

Thai Silk

God moves in mysterious ways

March 2017

Edward Burns www.bgvintners.co.uk

Nightingales & ghosts

Berkeley Square W1 By Lynne McGowan

That certain night The night we met There was magic abroad in the air There were angels dining at the Ritz And a nightingale sang in Berkeley Square... As sung by Vera Lynn, 1940

his lozenge shaped London Square quartered into four lawns and surrounded by plane trees the size of sequoias is more than just a romantic or restful haven in the heart of Mayfair. It would have been a very different square back in the 1800’s bustling with squawking hawkers parading their wares and braying aristocrats spilling from dinners and balls into the horse drawn carriages. Berkeley Square has always been filled

with the phantoms of past residents, family members, friends and lovers kept alive by the many brass plaques on memorial benches lining the paths. The engraved words offering solace and comfort for the living, private sentiments aired in a public place. Somewhat eerily, it continues to have a thrilling reputation for ghosts; no 50 is reputed to be the most haunted house in London housing a locked up lunatic screeching into the night and a jilted lover wandering around by flickering candlelight. No 44, now the Clermont Club is said to be home to a bewigged apparition resplendent in a green uniform seen flitting up and down the stairs. Famous for being the most desirable residential area in London in the 18th century, merchants were quick to serve the wealthy. Berkeley Square usefully housed a coffee shop, apothecary and tailor as well as a carpenter, draper and candlestick maker. The Pot and Pineapple was one establishment set up by an Italian pastry cook but later became the famous Gunter’s dishing up delicacies for the ladies. The square’s origins were humble, a couple of carpenters entered into an agreement with John Berkeley (1st Baron Berkeley of Stratton) in 1675 to transfer farmland and further develop his estate. The first houses completed

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in 1738 on the east side were built with bricks made from clay dug up on the spot and were called Berkeley Row, the west side followed a few years later and most of those original houses remain today. A few link-extinguishers can still be seen flanking doorways reminding us of the times when coaches and sedan chairs prevailed. Naturally rats infested the square but so too did robbers and footpads; highwaymen operating on foot. It could be a perilous business alighting from one’s carriage to attend a ball only to be confronted by a masked man pointing a pistol. Berkeley Square Balls have famously filled the square with hue and cry but so

Thai Silk 94-95 Isabella St, SE1 8DA, reservations on 020 7928 5111 area between the wine and air. Aeration of the wine helps bring out the complexity of the wine as well as softening it, but it also helps reduce the level of sulphites in the wine (lessening any potential hangover!) I should also mention that pulling a cork and leaving it for a couple of hours achieves nothing since none of the wine is exposed to the air. The only time I advise not decanting is with a wine over five decades old, when sometimes the swift exposure to air will shock the wine and leave it hollow. We recently opened two bottles of St Julien’s immensely quaffable Chateau Gloria 2005 at our Chelsea office, decanting one and not the other. After two hours we tasted the pair with a customer, who loved both bottles but rated the decanted bottle considerably higher, describing it as the better wine of the two. A simple example of why it is worth making the effort to decant. At the end of the day a decanter gives you and your guests a sense of occasion, making even an ordinary wine seem special, so even if you do not have a glass decanter a jug will do the job just as well!

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

Photographs © Lynne McGowan

has The Berkeley Hunt, the oldest pack in the country with the Master and huntsmen sporting the distinct yellow livery coats of the Berkeley family. Many political bigwigs were neighbours to the fashionable including Horace Walpole at No. 11, Winston Churchill lived at No. 48 as a child and Robert Clive of India bought No. 45, later committing suicide in 1761 following a depressive episode. Ironically, Benares, the much praised Michelin star Indian Restaurant is located exactly opposite Clive’s old house. No nightingales were spotted the last time I was in the square, too chilly for them yet snowdrops and crocuses peeped out into the sunshine and the same mighty trees looked down with wise beneficence. During my meander around, I was attracted to a tarnished bench plaque sitting on the south side near the marble statue, it read, ‘In loving memory of William Gilbert, a gentle man and a scholar who never tired of London’. A moving tribute to a square and a city.

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Lifestyle & Fashion

bhuti

Whole Body Wellbeing. By Cynthia Pickard

wasn’t sure what to expect when I arrived at bhuti for a Candlelit Yoga class but I found there was definitely a soothing effect to be experienced from the semi darkness and the fragrance of intricately perfumed candles as the class members relaxed on their yoga mats in the lofty glass-fronted studio. bhuti is an Eco Well-being Escape in the heart of riverside Richmond and the session was hosted by bhuti founder, Samantha Trinder. I thought my pathetic attempts at ‘The cat’ and ‘The dog’ would be partly hidden from view in the dim light, but Samantha’s eagle eyes spotted me and gently helped me into the correct yoga positions. Samantha is the dynamo responsible for the success of The Bingham her family’s revamped hotel in Richmond. Four years ago she trained as a yoga teacher and has now also applied her talents to opening this unique venue, bhuti. As well as offering every style of yoga including Vinyasa, Hatha, Iyengar,

Drowning under a surfeit of stuff?

Photograph ©Judy Mercer

Help is at hand By Judy Mercer

All storage begins as a temporary solution. Whether it’s a need to declutter, lack of space, downsizing property, but not possessions, or taking a short-term contract abroad, we all think it won’t be for long and will sort our stuff out soon. But months and years can pass by very quickly, and the value of our possessions can be surpassed by large, yearly storage bills. Enter Sort My Storage. A few years ago, with a background in art and antique storage and transportation, I was asked to assist a couple who had been storing their

Kundalin and Ashtanga yoga, there’s yoga for kids, aromatherapy yoga and restorative yoga. There’s a wide choice of other fitness classes such as Pilates as well as hi-tec holistic spa treatments, ten kinds of massage, grooming, facials and spa days all aimed at de-stressing and relaxation and all using natural ingredients. Complementary therapies include homeopathy, naturopathy, acupuncture and colonic hydrotherapy, even Tarot and astrology readings. (Astrologer Debbie Frank assured us that 2017 will be a better year for us than 2016 and Librans will fare especially well. You heard it here.) As well as special events and workshops there is a relaxation lounge possessions for some time after downsizing from their country estate to a smaller in-town residence. Boy, did they have storage, £120,000 a year kind of storage, everything from valuable paintings, to old clothes. I sold items at auction, donated three truckloads to charity, filled a few dumpsters and significantly reduced their yearly bill. There have always been hoarders, but in 21st century consumer society people are running out of space and less willing to throw things out, often feeling it ‘may come in handy’ one day. Items are saved for the ‘kids’, but the kids just don’t want brown furniture, nor do they want Staffordshire Dogs or Willow pattern dinner sets. They would rather have comfy, modern Italian sofas and plain white dinner sets. The average storage time is around 38 weeks, but over a third run into 2 years. Many people put items into storage, never look at it again, and are surprised when they find out what they have. With the storage companies being paid by direct debit it is easy to put off making any decisions and just box it up to deal with later, out of sight out of mind. Some possessions are irreplaceable treasures and must be safely stored, but it is important not to be emotional about storage. I photograph and catalogue all items creating a distance between you and your possessions, so you can decide what to keep and what to let go of using your head, rather than your heart.

for members and a great walk-in organic vegan cafe. Our yoga session was followed by a delicious meal created by bhuti's in-house nutritionist, Cicely Brown, in bhuti's organic, vegan kitchen, serving up gluten and sugar free dishes. Don’t be put off by the sound of these restrictions, there was nothing missing, I really enjoyed the roast peppers stuffed with buckwheat, mushrooms and artichokes, sticky roast sweet potatoes, parsnips and onions with tamari and molasses and a multi-coloured house salad with an electric yellow house dressing. The Kali Fire cocktail created from beetroot, apple, carrot, ginger, turmeric and grapefruit was the most satisfying alcohol replacement I have

come across, and I could feel it was obviously going to be doing me no end of good! This particular combination of providing all these beneficial effects acting on both the inside and the outside of the body, in delightful surroundings a mere stone’s throw from the river in Richmond, is a positive winner. Classes and treatments are available seven days a week, various levels of membership offer different facility options, or just drop in. bhuti’s 100% organic café is open from 8am-5/6pm also serving Fair Trade coffees, breakfast, soups and snacks. The shop sells a wide range of the products used in treatments, as well as yoga clothing. be@bhuti.co 03304 003 108 50 Hill Rise, Richmond, TW10 6UB

PAYING A FORTUNE IN STORAGE FEES? Had things in storage for years and years & not sure what to do with it all? SORT MY STORAGE will sort, catalogue, & consolidate precious possessions, (Art/antique expertise) dispose of unwanted items reducing the cost of storage Storage solutions for: divorcing couples, deceased relatives, ex-pats living abroad

Tel: +44 783 329 1412 Email: sortmystorage@gmail.com

www.sortmystorage.com

Photographs © Samantha Trinder

Lifestyle & Fashion

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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Unique & individual style launches

All frames are crafted by hand in the company’s dedicated factory in Cadore, Italy, from the finest Italian acetate and high-grade metals featuring hand-rivetted hinges. The importance of the artisanal creation of each pair of glasses remains one of the essences of the brand, with each frame taking four to six weeks to produce. This manufacturing process, with 42 tailored steps by expert frame makers, gives each frame its unique character.

ritish luxury eyewear brand Cutler and Gross will launch the new Spring/Summer 2017 collection this month at the flagship store in Knightsbridge, the original and first location that the brand opened back in 1971.

CUTLER AND GROSS is a name that has been whispered within style and fashion circles ever since. Its unique and individual style has attracted some of the most significant names in the fashion industry, collaborating with design houses such as Comme Des Garçons and Maison Martin Margiela through to creative icons including Victoria Beckham and Bella Freud. With a long-established heritage, frames designed by the brand have graced many a famous face, from David Hockney to Rihanna, Kate Moss and many more.

John Stephen, ‘King of Carnaby’, preserved in print to mark 60 years of Carnaby’s heyday By Polly Allen

It’s no understatement to say that Stephen created Carnaby Street: together with his business partner, Bill Franks, he launched 15 different shops and gave it enduring street cred. With the Swinging London concept now 60 years old, one graphic artist has uncovered Stephen’s archive to remind us of his genius. Odysseas Constantine is the man behind Art & Hue (artandhue.com), a Sussex-based company specialising in graphic prints using the Pop Art-esque halftone technique. He admits it took “a year's worth of detective work and research” to find the copyright holder for the John Stephen Estate archive, but the hard work paid off. “It was wonderful to discover the image of the King & Queen of Sixties fashion together,” Constantine says of one of his favourite prints: Stephen with Mary Quant. Another personal favourite is Trecamp, starring one of Stephen’s distinctive models, future Rocky Horror star, Peter Hinwood: “Hinwood appeared in swimming trunks on the walls of a dressing room in the first women’s shop

The inspiration for the new Spring/ Summer collection comes from the tension between the fast pace of technology and the natural world, and is underpinned by a bold, provocative campaign shot by globally-renowned portrait photographer Platon. A longstanding collaborator and friend of the brand, Platon’s award-winning portfolio includes work for the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, Vogue and GQ, as well as portraits of some of the world’s most powerful leaders. The new collection comprises 12

models, each available in three colourways. Within the range are six new styles and six classic and iconic styles from the archive that have been reinterpreted with contemporary detailing, manufacturing and new lens technology. The highlight of the collection is a limited-edition pair of sunglasses, the 1249, which comes in a classic navy blue with a real gold plated metal frame and flat gold lenses. Each frame is numbered and stamped individually in a limited production run of 200, which will be available at Cutler and Gross Knightsbridge.

on Carnaby Street, Trecamp.” Aged 18, Stephen moved down from Glasgow to work at Moss Bros, Covent Garden, in 1952. He then progressed to the much edgier Vince Man Shop, in Soho’s Newburgh Street, where a young Sean Connery was a clothing model. However, Stephen wanted his own business. The first shop was His Clothes (originally at 19 Beak Street, later 5 Carnaby Street), selling flamboyant kilts, velvet blazers, skinny trousers, ruffled shirts and kaftans: customers embraced this ‘peacock revolution’. Other shops followed, like Domino Male, Drugstore, Lord John, Male West One, Mod Male and Teenshop; his rock star models included Mick Avery and Jeff Beck. Stephen’s empire gradually spread across London, to Brighton, and eventually worldwide. It wasn’t until 1966 that Time magazine coined the phrase ‘Swinging London’, but this part of town had long been cool thanks to Stephen. ‘When I first saw Carnaby Street, it felt like a film set,’ Barbara Hulanicki wrote in 2010. Celebrities of the day, from the Rolling Stones and the Who to Cliff Richard, flocked to Stephen’s shops. Stephen’s low price points, which also appealed to the public, were accompanied by clever in-store quirks. “Young people didn’t want to dress or shop like their parents in dull department stores… He introduced young shop assistants the same age as

the customers, and loud contemporary music,” says Constantine. “He created the first lifestyle ‘concept’ stores, and early on, he recognised the importance of celebrities. “His success meant that cars struggled to drive through the crowds; the world wanted to swing their shopping bags down Carnaby Street. The Greater London Council gradually closed the street to cars from 1967 and made it fully pedestrianised by 1973.” Stephen didn’t wear his creations, preferring a plain white shirt and a simple suit. Instead, his indulgences included cars, holidays and trips to the Ivy with Prince, his white German

Photograph © Cutler & Gross

March 2017

Readers of Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today are invited to attend the exclusive new collection launch event at Cutler and Gross, 16 Knightsbridge Green on 22nd March. To register your interest, please contact: pr@cutlerandgross.com.

16 Knightsbridge Green London SW1X 7QL T: 020 7581 2250 shop@cutlerandgross.com/cutlerandgross.com

www.adandyinaspic.com

Shepherd dog. As the 70s took hold, copycat retailers flocked to Carnaby, and Stephen publicly floated his retail empire in 1972. Three years later, it closed, and the archive was donated to the V&A. Stephen went on to other retail projects, such as Francisco-M, and later helped bring designer label Lanvin to the UK. Stephen died in 2004 and was warmly remembered by the British press, yet his legacy is largely forgotten today, save for a plaque at 1 Carnaby Street. As Constantine puts it, “We all owe a debt of gratitude to John Stephen for creating the modern menswear industry and affordable fast-fashion.”

Lifestyle & Fashion FA S H I O N DIARY Fashion Week Calendar MarchSeptember 2017 The ‘Big Four’ fashion weeks, New York, London, Milan and Paris, may take the lion’s share of press coverage, but did you know there are a whole host of fashion weeks held around the world? Places like Berlin, Prague and Tokyo are making their mark, and deservedly so; meanwhile, the public can actually buy tickets to selected events in Vancouver and Copenhagen, granting privileged access to these cities’ trendsetters. Here’s where your fashion radar should be tuned for the next six months…

March 1st-19th March Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival vamff.com.au - @VAMFF 3rd-8th March Toronto Men’s Fashion Week tomfw.com - @TOM_FW 9th-12th March ModaLisboa, Lisbon modalisboa.pt - @modalisboa 9th-14th March Toronto Women’s Fashion Week tw-fw.com - @TW__FW 12th-17th March Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Russia, Moscow mercedesbenzfashionweek.ru/en @MBFWR 17th-23rd March Shenzhen Fashion Week, China mbfashionweek.com/designers/fashionshenzhen - #szfw 17th-24th March Mercedes Benz Prague Fashion Week mbpfw.com/en - @MBPFW_OFFICIAL 18th-26th March Cracow Fashion Week, Krakow cracowfashionweek.com @CracowFashionW

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

lakmefashionweek.co.in @LakmeFashionWk

20th-26th March Vancouver Fashion Week vanfashionweek.com - @VanFashionWeek

11th-17th September Vienna Fashion Week mqvfw.com @FashionWeekVie

23rd-25th March Reykjavik Fashion Festival, Iceland rff.is - @RFF_IS

15th-19th September London Fashion Week londonfashionweek.co.uk @LondonFashionWk

September

18th-24th September Vancouver Fashion Week vanfashionweek.com @VanFashionWeek

23rd March-1st April Western Canada Fashion Week, Edmonton westerncanadafashionweek.com @WCFashionWeek

20th-27th September Milan Fashion Week milanomodadonna.it/en @cameramoda

28th March-4th April (plus 6th-8th April for Luxury Designer Pop-up) South Africa Fashion Week, Cape Town safashionweek.co.za - @safashionweek 31st March-2nd April Warsaw Fashion Week warsawfashionweek.eu #WarsawFashionWeek

@OfficialGFW 9th-12th June London Fashion Week Men’s londonfashionweekmens.com #LFWMENS

21st-25th June Paris Men’s Fashion Week modeaparis.com - @FFCouture 17th-20th June Milan Fashion Week Men’s milanomodauomo.it/en @cameramoda 29th June-2nd July Fashionclash Festival, Maastricht fashionclash.nl - @FASHIONCLASH1

July

7th-13th April Shanghai Fashion Week shanghaifashionweek.com @Shanghai_FW

Date TBC Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam fashionweek.nl/en - @fashionweeknl

14th-19th May Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, Sydney mbfashionweek.com/australia 16th-20th May Arab Fashion Week, Dubai arabfashionweek.org - @arabfashionweek 20th-27th May Malta Fashion Week, Valletta fashionweek.com.mt - @MaltaFashion

June 4th-7th June Graduate Fashion Week, London graduatefashionweek.com

13th-16th June Pitti Immagine Uomo, Florence pittimmagine.com @Pitti_Immagine

April

May

What to wear now By Polly Allen

17th-24th September Mercedes Benz Prague Fashion Week mbpfw.com/en @MBPFW_OFFICIAL

23rd-26th March Lviv Fashion Week, Ukraine lvivfashionweek.com - @LvivFW

27th March-1st April Hera Seoul Fashion Week seoulfashionweek.org #SeoulFashionWeek

Fashion report: Now and next

7th-15th September New York Fashion Week nyfw.com @nyfw

23rd-26th March West Coast Cooler Fashion Week, Belfast belfastfashionweek.com @BELFASHIONWEEK

2nd-6th July Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week modeaparis.com - @FFCouture 4th-7th July Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, Berlin mbfashionweek.com/berlin @MBFWB 10th-13th July New York Men’s Fashion Week cfda.com #NYFWMENS

August 9th-11th August Copenhagen Fashion Week copenhagenfashionweek.com - @CPHFW 16th-20th August Lakmé Fashion Week, Mumbai

22nd-29th September Western Canada Fashion Week, Edmonton westerncanadafashionweek.com @WCFashionWeek 23rd-24th September Vancouver Kids Fashion Week vancouverkidsfashionweek.com @VFWKIDSHOW 26th-29th September Lviv Fashion Week, Ukraine lvivfashionweek.com @LvivFW 28 September-5 October Paris Fashion Week modeaparis.com @FFCouture Compiled By Polly Allen

March 2017

Lifestyle & Fashion

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18th-26th March iD Dunedin Fashion Week, New Zealand idfashion.co.nz - @iDfashionwk 20th-25th March Amazon Fashion Week, Tokyo amazonfashionweektokyo.com/en @AmazonFWT

25th-26th March Vancouver Kids Fashion Week vancouverkidsfashionweek.com @VFWKIDSHOW

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Photograph © Jenny Packham

March 2017

Photographs © Cefinn

pring/Summer 2017 is already shaping up to be a memorable season for the style set. Samantha Cameron’s fashion label, Cefinn (cefinn. com), has received a warm reception from consumers and retailers who’ve admired her eye for smart dressing. The initial 36-piece collection is reassuringly minimalist and ageless; however, Cefinn only goes up to a size 14. We’d like to see a diverse spectrum of sizes, please. Whether you’re experiencing March sunshine or April showers, natureinspired jewellery completes your outfit this season, as seen at Christopher Kane (christopherkane.com) and Monica Vinader (monicavinader.com): think minerals, crystals and foliage aplenty. Look to Dublin-based Chupi (chupi. com) for elegant pieces cast from found objects, such as hawthorn twigs, leaves and shells; for a bespoke necklace or ring featuring gemstones, ammonites or Baroque pearls, see Samira Jafari (samirajafari.com). Lily Kamper’s column necklaces, featuring on-trend malachite and azurite, are proving popular (lilykamper.com). As for the see-now-buy-now brands, Ralph Lauren’s runway collection in mid-February was a sea of cream, gold and taupe, but his Swarovski crystal

bracelet was a stand-out piece, treated to mimic tarnished or mercurised Venetian glass (ralphlauren.co.uk). Team it with a military wool made-to-order cape by Burberry (uk.burberry.com).

Next season’s trends

At the time of going to press, we’re mid-way through Fashion Month, and Autumn/Winter 2017 trends have started to emerge. Victoria Beckham (victoriabeckham.com) and Joseph (joseph-fashion.com) both championed masculine tailoring through longline blazers and jackets, paired with relaxed fit trousers. Conversely, black floral prints were a highlight at Kate Spade (katespade.co.uk), Simone Rocha (simonerocha.com) and Angelo Marani (angelomarani.com). The most cerebral references came from Erdem (erdem.com), who drew on his Turkish heritage to celebrate Turkish culture through the ages. It’s not often you can say your outfit was inspired by an Ottoman military campaign in the late 16th century. Gucci’s collection, called The Alchemist’s Garden, was just as imaginative (gucci.com/uk), featuring old-fashioned flora and fauna prints, references to William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and of Experience, and ‘remote worlds’, as imagined by creative director Alessandro Michele, who called it an ‘anti-modern laboratory’. For the first time, the men’s and women’s collections were shown together. Baby blue could replace Pepto-Bismol pink as the ‘It’ pastel shade. Jenny Packham (jennypackham.com) used this hue on velvet, lace, PVC and plaid in her Autumn/Winter 2017 collection, accessorised with British classics like pearls, neck scarves and court shoes. Her main reference point was Her Majesty the Queen, so there was also a Corgi t-shirt on the catwalk. Mulberry (mulberry.com/gb) clashed tweed, plaid and lace detailing in a similarly eccentric British-inspired show, with flashes of baby blue, mint green and lilac; Temperley London (temperleylondon. com) picked up the same blue and lilac, too. Meanwhile, models at Prabal Gurung (prabalgurung.com) sported pale blue slicks of high pigment eyeshadow, paired with neutral make-up. In a poignant tribute, Pantone teamed up with a range of British designers to create Nicoll Blue, a new shade commemorating the designer Richard Nicoll, who passed away unexpectedly in October 2016. “The visual presence of Nicoll Blue throughout the main fashion week venue is a way to remember and celebrate a great London friend and to convey our respects and eternal gratitude to his family,” said Sarah Mower, the British Fashion Council’s Ambassador for Emerging Talent. Labels adopting the colour included Roksanda, via a showstopping silk jersey dress (roksanda.com), and Nike, with a pair of limited edition hi-tops (nike.com/uk).

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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The next generation of Skincare

by Jayne Beaumont

You may know that a lot of vitamins and supplements are difficult for the gut to absorb and in fact, a great percentage just pass right through us. So any improved way to get them into the body’s system is going to be welcomed. Just last year, a Swedish company developed the use of a technology that originated in Colorado University known as Film Technology FFT TM. The film looks rather like rice paper and is cut into small oblong shapes. These you put into your mouth, one on each side of the inside of your cheeks. This is a very absorbent area of the body and full of tiny blood vessels so the ‘paper’ dissolves within a few minutes and whatever is imbued in it disipates into the blood stream. The product, the first of many the company will produce, is called Reserol . It contains the anti-oxidant Resveratrol, 99% of which is lost through normal digestion. Certainly an excellent example

with which to launch this technology! Resveratrol is a plant polyphenol that is now used widely in the health and beauty industries as it has a number of profound biological effects medically and is uniquely useful in decreasing levels of inflammation and modifying age-related gene expression. Hence, it is anti-aging! It noticeably improves the skin’s elasticity and depth of wrinkles, reduces agespots as well as generally smooths the appearance of the skin. It improves not only the face but the backs of hands are also rejuvenated! Red wine contains Resveratrol so there is a high concentration of it in red grapes. Nevertheless, you would have to drink a lot of wine to get the same affect as taking Reserol and that would not be good for the liver! Certainly, it is infinitely better to absorb it by using these thin filmstrips each containing 20mg of Resveratrol. Patented and handcrafted in Sweden, they come in small packets within a box that will last a month as long as you take 2 films, three times a day. In the Spring, the company will be offering Vitamin C and E using the same technology continuing its mission to ‘improve global health by offering proven compounds combined with an innovative delivery to the body’. It is an excellent way forward to ensure we get the most out of what we take in. Reserol is available monthly or by subscription from: www.reserol.com

BEAUTY TIPS from the Beauty Editor As we’re mid-ski season and the sun is getting stronger, here are a few suggestions for protecting your skin. • Take a strong sunscreen with you! A very strong 30 or 50 SPF. The closer you get to the mountain’s summit, the more UV you are exposed to. It’s 6-8% greater UV intensity per 1000ft. • Protect your neck and chin! After smoothing on your sunscreen, add an extra layer to this area. As the sunlight bounces off the snow, it increases your UV exposure by 40% hitting this area first! • In case it’s very cold, you need to protect against frostbite. Apply Vaseline to exposed skin. It acts as an insulator keeping body heat trapped behind the balm instead of seeping through the skin, leaving it at risk • Avoid hot showers! Hot water can strip your skin of its natural oils, leaving you parched. Quick, warm showers are fine! • Cut back on alcohol especially up the slopes as high altitudes are extremely dehydrating. One shot is enough up there! • And drink plenty of water. It hydrates your body and your complexion!

March 2017

Events Kensington & Chelsea Today Events

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March 2017

Events

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the Royal Borough

December 2014 / January 2015

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

EV EN TS Selling, letting, management, refurbishment, surveying and valuation

B RO M P TO N , C H E L S E A , E A R L S C O U RT, H O L L A N D PA R K , N O RT H & S O U T H K E N S I N G TO N , K N I G H T S B R I D G E , N OT T I N G H I L L

March/April 2017

DANCE

Ends 11th March Mother Africa: Khayelitsha My Home The Peacock Theatre Celebrated dance group Mother Africa brings its latest dynamic show to the Peacock, combining acrobatics and live music. Tuesday-Saturday at 19:30; Saturday matinees at 14:30; Sunday at 14:00 and 18:00. Tickets £15-38 Portugal Street, Holborn, WC2A 2HT 020 7863 8222 sadlerswells.com @sadlers_wells Ends 14th March The Sleeping Beauty Royal Opera House After a Christmas break, the Royal Ballet’s stunning performance of The Sleeping Beauty returns to the Royal Opera House.

15th-18th March James Cousins Company: Rosalind The Place Shakespeare’s As You Like It is retold by a company of Korean dancers and artists, with a modern spin on the tale. Starts 20:00. Tickets £12-18.17 Duke’s Road, WC1H 9PY 020 7121 1100 theplace.org.uk @ThePlaceLondon 16th-17th March Company Chameleon: Witness Double Bill Trinity Laban A blend of dance styles merge to create a powerful piece, Witness, on the topic of mental health. This is followed by a shorter performance of Words Unspoken. Starts 19:30. Tickets £12-16. Laban Theatre, Laban Building, Creekside, SE8 3DZ 020 8463 0100 trinitylaban.ac.uk @TrinityLaban 16th-24th March Mixed Programme: The Human Seasons/ After the Rain/New Crystal Pite Royal Opera House Revisit David Dawson’s first Royal Ballet work, 2013’s The Human Seasons, inspired by Keats’s poetry. Next up is After the Rain, a one-act piece by Christopher Wheeldon, with music by celebrated

24th March Margam Rich Mix A solo Bharatanatyam performance; a style of Indian dance that evolved in the temples of southern India in the 19th century. With live Carnatic music accompaniment. Starts 19:30. Tickets £12-15. 35-47 Bethnal Green Road, E1 6LA 020 7613 7498 richmix.org.uk @RichMixLondon 6th April There is Nothing More Public Than Privacy Blue Elephant Theatre A Truefitt Collective presents two pieces inspired by loneliness, particularly in women, and how their public and private feelings collide. Starts 20:00. Tickets £5-7.50. 59a Bethwin Rd (entrance in Thompson's Avenue), Camberwell, SE5 0XT 020 7701 0100 blueelephanttheatre.co.uk @BETCamberwell

EXHIBITIONS 9th-28th March Colin Davidson: Jerusalem Oliver Sears Gallery in London Dublin-based gallery Oliver Sears once again creates a pop-up exhibition space in Fitzrovia, this time showing the unforgettable work of Colin Davidson. The Jerusalem series comprises largescale portraits of people who live or work in Jerusalem. Their different faiths, backgrounds and lifestyles mirror the complexity of the city. Monday-Saturday, 10:00-17:30. Free entry. 33 Fitzroy Square, W1T 6EU 00353 87 6995117 oliversearsgallery.com @osearsgallery 9th March-18th June The American Dream: Pop to the Present British Museum An all-encompassing tour of American art over the last 60 years. Featured artists include Jasper Johns, Ed Ruscha, Wayne Thiebaud and Kara Walker. Great Russell St, WC1B 3DG Daily, 10:00-17:30; Friday, until 20:30. Last entry 80 minutes before closing. Tickets £8-16.50. 020 7323 8181 britishmuseum.org - @britishmuseum Ends 12th March Book Illustration Competition Longlist 2017: Mansfield Park The House of Illustration Head to the South Gallery at the House

RHS

LONDON

8th-11th March Julie Cunningham & Company Double Bill Barbican Critics’ Circle Award-winning Julie Cunningham turns her attention to gender and identity in these two interlinked pieces, the first inspired by Greek mythology and set to the sounds of Kate Tempest, the second featuring the music of Anohni. Starts 19:45. Tickets £18. Silk Street, EC2Y 8DS 020 7638 8891 barbican.org.uk @BarbicanCentre

Starts 19:15. Tickets £5-130. Limited availability. Bow Street, Covent Garden, WC2E 9DD 020 7304 4000 roh.org.uk -@royaloperahouse

Estonian composer Arvo Pärt. Lastly, award-winning choreographer Crystal Pite brings her first Royal Ballet production, set to the music of Górecki, to the Royal Opera House. Starts 19:30, except 19:00 on 18th March. Tickets £3-50. Bow Street, Covent Garden, WC2E 9DD 020 7304 4000 roh.org.uk @royaloperahouse

SHOWS

Late Tue 28 Mar 6–9pm

RHS Spring Plant & Orchid Show Late Tue 28 Mar, 6–9pm Wed 29–Thu 30 Mar, 10am–5pm

Royal Horticultural Halls St James’s Park London Victoria Public £6 (advance) / £9 (on door), RHS Member £5, Late £5 to all

rhs.org.uk/londonshows

of Illustration to see the best new book cover designs for Jane Austen's classic novel, Mansfield Park. Part of an annual competition organised in conjunction with The Folio Society. Tuesday-Sunday, 10:00-18:00. Last entry 17:30. Tickets £4-8.25 (covers all exhibitions). 2 Granary Square, King’s Cross, N1C 4BH 020 3696 2020 houseofillustration.org.uk @illustrationHQ Ends 12th March Undressed: A Brief History V&A The evolution of underwear design from the 18th century to the present day, with over 200 examples highlighting innovation, fashion and luxury. Timed entry Saturday-Thursday, 10:0016:15; Friday until 20:15. Tickets £5-13.50. Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL 020 784 2000 vam.ac.uk @V_and_A Ends 12th March Hair by Sam McKnight Embankment Galleries Trace hairstylist Sam McKnight’s 40-year career through photographs, magazines, and original catwalk outfits from Westwood and Chanel, as well as commissioned wigs and hairpieces. Monday-Tuesday, Saturday-Sunday, 10.0018.00 (last entry 17.00); Wednesday–Friday, 11.00-20.00 (last entry 19.00). Tickets £10.50-13.00. Somerset House, Strand, WC2R 1LA 020 7845 4600 somersethouse.org.uk @SomersetHouse 15th-19th March The Chelsea Antiques, Art & Design Fair Chelsea Old Town Hall, King’s Road, Chelsea, London SW3 5EE Times: Wednesday 12noon-8pm. Thursday, Friday & Saturday 11am-6pm, Sunday 11am-5pm. www.penman-fairs.co.uk Ends 18th March Abbas Akhavan: Variations on a Garden David Roberts Art Foundation Studio Iranian-Canadian artist Abbas Akhavan works across multiple media, including sculpture, photography and video installations. Thursday-Saturday, 10:00-18:00; TuesdayWednesday by appointment only. Free entry. Symes Mews, 37 Camden High Street, NW1 7JE 020 7383 3004 davidrobertsartfoundation.com @DRAF_London Ends 18th March House Work Victoria Miro Gallery Marc Chagall, Karen Kilimnik, John Kørner, Grayson Perry and Tal R are among those featured in this group show, tackling the theme of home for artists working from the 1920s onwards. Tuesday-Saturday 10:00-18:00; Monday by

appointment only. Free entry.14 St George Street, Mayfair, W1S 1FE 020 3205 8910 victoria-miro.com @victoriamiro Ends 19th March Gavin Turk: Who What When Where How and Why Newport Street Gallery Gavin Turk’s first major solo exhibition in fifteen years, featuring 70 artworks cherrypicked from his 26-year career; a must-see for fans of conceptual art. Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00-18:00. Free entry. Newport Street, SE11 6AJ 020 3141 9320 newportstreetgallery.com @NPSGallery Ends 19th March Retracing Ribeiro Burgh House A look at the work of Indian-born painter Lancelot Ribeiro, who studied at St. Martin’s College and lived in Hampstead. Wednesday-Friday and Sunday, 12:00-17:00. Free entry. New End Square, NW3 1LT 020 7431 0144 burghhouse.org.uk @BurghHouse1704 23rd March-7th April Tom Cardwell: Bad Patch Wimbledon Space Combining watercolours and oil paintings, Tom Cardwell celebrates the ‘battle jackets’ worn as status symbols by heavy metal fans, littered with band logos, badges and other customised elements. Monday-Friday, 10:00-17:00. Free entry. Wimbledon College of Arts, Merton Hall Road, SW19 3QA 020 7514 9705 events.arts.ac.uk @UniArtsLondon 23rd March-18th June Howard Hodgkin: Absent Friends National Portrait Gallery Dive into the expressive world of Howard Hodgkin, a leading British painter known for his distinctive brushwork and unusual portraiture. Timed entry, Saturday-Wednesday, 10:0016:45; Thursday-Friday, until 19:45. Tickets £3-12.50. St. Martin’s Place, WC2H 0HE 020 7306 0055 npg.org.uk @NPGLondon 23rd March-18th August People Power: Fighting for Peace Imperial War Museum Learn what it really means to be a pacifist by exploring over 300 objects connected to peace movements, from banners to anthems, including photographs of anti-conscription marchers in 1939, CND paraphernalia and the women of Greenham Common. Daily, 10:00-18:00. Tickets £5-10.Lambeth Road, SE1 6HZ 020 7416 5000 iwm.org.uk - @I_W_M Ends 26th March Australia’s Impressionists National Gallery Charles Conder, Tom Roberts, John Russell and Arthur Streeton are four of Australia's

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www.royalalberthall.com/beyond Call: 020 7589 8212 best-known Impressionist artists, yet this is the first time their work has dominated a UK exhibition, and many of the paintings on show have never been seen in the UK before. Daily, 10:00-18:00; Friday, until 21:00. Last entry 45 minutes before closing. Tickets £4-7.50. Trafalgar Square, WC2N 5DN 020 7747 2885 nationalgallery.org.uk @nationalgallery Ends 26th March Handel’s Performers Foundling Museum Celebrating the best-known performers of Handel’s music in the 18th century, including a painting of soprano Anna Maria Strada and a print of musician John Hebden. Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00-17:00; Sunday, 11:00-17:00. Tickets £2-10.25. 40 Brunswick Square, WC1N 1AZ 020 7841 3600 foundlingmuseum.org.uk @foundlingmuseum Ends 26th March Luc Tuymans: Glasses National Portrait Gallery Selected Tuymans portraits featuring sitters wearing glasses. Daily, 10:00-18:00; Thursday-Friday until 21:00. Free entry. St. Martin’s Place, WC2H 0HE 020 7306 0055 npg.org.uk @NPGLondon

/RoyalAlbertHall @RoyalAlbertHall

1st-9th April The Friends of Holland Park Art Exhibition The Orangery, Holland Park An extra-special 35th anniversary edition of The Friends of Holland Park’s annual art exhibition. This year's featured artist is Olivia Chalmers, who specialises in botanic art, and is a former student of the Harrow School of Art. Saturday 1st April, 13:00-18:00; Sunday 2nd–Sunday 9th April,10.30 -18:00. Free entry. Ilchester Place, Kensington, W8 6LU 020 7243 0804 thefriendsofhollandpark.org Ends 2nd April Helen Johnson: Warm Ties ICA Solo exhibition from the Australian artist, exploring connections between Britain and Australia via large-scale paintings. Daily, 11:00-18:00; Thursday until 21:00. Entry (to all exhibitions) is £1. The Mall, SW1Y 5AH 020 7930 3647 ica.org.uk - @ICALondon Ends 2nd April Robert Rauschenberg Tate Modern Preceding Warhol and Emin, Rauschenberg was the original Pop artist. Using performance, found objects, newspapers, mass, popular and trash imagery, he produced witty, thought-provoking paintings and large-scale pop art prints exploring fame and culture.

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March 2017

Events

Sunday-Thursday, 10:00-18:00; FridaySaturday, 10:00-22:00. Tickets £15-18.50. Bankside, SE1 9TG 020 7887 8888 tate.org.uk/visit/tate-modern @Tate Ends 4th April Transfashional Lab Austrian Cultural Forum London What connects fashion with art, and where do the two disciplines merge? An exhibition co-curated by the Austrian Cultural Forum, the Polish Cultural Institute in London and the London College of Fashion. Monday-Friday, 09:00-17:00. Free entry. 28 Rutland Gate, SW7 1PQ 020 7225 7300 acflondon.org @ACF_London Ends 17th April The Remarkable Life Story of Emma Hamilton National Maritime Museum Hamilton was an international beauty, best known for being Lord Nelson’s mistress, who went from rags to riches and back again. View over 200 objects connected to her, such as paintings by Sir Joshua Reynolds and Sir Thomas Lawrence, and letters between Hamilton and her lovers. Daily, 10:00-17:00 (last entry 16:00). Tickets £6.30-12.60. Greenwich, SE10 9NF 020 8312 6565 rmg.co.uk/national-maritime-museum @nmmgreenwich

Ends 21st April Designology London Transport Museum We often take for granted the design processes behind our everyday journeys: the signage, the tickets and the decor that becomes commonplace. Here's a chance to revisit these often-overlooked icons, and learn about the future of transport design, such as driverless vehicles. Monday-Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 - 18:00; Friday, 11:00-18:00 (last entry 17:15). Tickets £11.50-17.50, valid for one year with unlimited visits.Covent Garden Piazza, WC2E 7BB 020 7379 6344 ltmuseum.co.uk @ltmuseum Ends 23rd April Adventures in Moominland Southbank Centre Part of the Nordic Matters season, this exhibition for adults and children delves into the ongoing success of the Moomin books, written by Tove Jansson. Extra evening off-peak sessions (Wednesday-Friday) are for adults only. Timed ticket sessions run hourly, MondayFriday, 14:00-18:00; in 15-minute intervals on weekends and holidays, 10:00-18:00; adult off-peak sessions, Wednesday-Friday, 19:00, and Thursday-Friday, 20:00. Tickets £12-16.50.Upper Ground, London SE1 9PX 020 7960 4200 southbankcentre.co.uk @southbankcentre Ends 28th April One Family, Three Cities, Six Years of War:

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online: www.KCWToday.co.uk britishmuseum.org @britishmuseum

A Family of Artists During the War and the Holocaust The Wiener Library for the Study of the Holocaust and Genocide Focusing on the family of illustrator Franciszka Themerson, who was alone in London during WWII, whilst her husband (a writer and film-maker) was in Southern France and other relatives were trapped in the Warsaw Ghetto. Themerson’s 9-yearold niece, Jasia Reichardt, escaped the Ghetto and went into hiding until 1946, when she was reunited with her aunt and uncle. Monday-Friday, 10:00-17:00; Tuesdays until 19:30. Free entry. 29 Russell Square, WC1B 5DP 020 7636 7247 wienerlibrary.co.uk @wienerlibrary

NW3 5SX 020 7435 2002 freud.org.uk @FreudMusLondon

020 7611 2222 wellcomecollection.org @ExploreWellcome

Ends 14th May Eduardo Paolozzi Whitechapel Gallery A huge retrospective devoted to the Godfather of Pop Art. The 250 works on show will demonstrate his talent in different media, including sculptures, textiles, paintings, collages and screenprints. Tuesday-Sunday, 11:00-18:00; Thursday until 21:00. Tickets £11.95-13.50. 77-82 Whitechapel High St, E1 7QX 020 7522 7888 whitechapelgallery.org @_TheWhitechapel

Ends 1st May Memorial: A Tribute to Taxidermy Horniman Museum Ethical taxidermist Jazmine Miles-Long responds to the Horniman’s collection through new works. Each piece will be displayed alongside its museum counterpart. Daily, 10:30-17:30. Free entry. 100 London Road, Forest Hill, SE23 3PQ 020 8699 1872 horniman.ac.uk @HornimanMuseum

Ends 19th May Jo Brocklehurst: Nobodies and Somebodies The House of Illustration Jo Brocklehurst’s raw illustrations of youth and club culture are brought to life. The show is co-curated by Brocklehurst’s muse, Isabelle Bricknall. Tuesday-Sunday, 10:00-18:00. Last entry 17:30. Tickets (covering all exhibitions) £48.25.2 Granary Square, King's Cross, N1C 4BH 020 3696 2020 houseofillustration.org.uk @illustrationHQ

Ends 28th June Scaling the Citadel: The Art of Stanley Lench Bethlem Museum of the Mind Though Lench was a formally trained artist who had sold some of his paintings to New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, he never became a household name. This exhibition explores the effect of mental illness on Lench’s vivid work. Wednesday-Friday 10:00-17:00, except public holidays; also, first and last Saturday of the month. Free entry.Bethlem Royal Hospital, Monk’s Orchard Road, Beckenham, Kent, BR3 3BX 020 3228 4227 museumofthemind.org.uk @bethlemmuseum

Ends 7th May Full Circle & Recycle 21st Century Swedish Textiles Fashion and Textile Museum The head of the Swedish textile design collective 10-gruppen presents 10 of the best Swedish textile artists who upcycle their materials. Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00-18:00; Thursday until 20:00; Sunday, 11:00-17:00 (last entry 45 minutes before closing). Tickets (covering all exhibitions) £6-9.90. 83 Bermondsey Street, SE1 3XF 020 7407 8664 ftmlondon.org @fashiontextile Ends 7th May Josef Frank: Patterns-FurniturePainting Fashion and Textile Museum Multi-disciplinary artist Josef Frank, a major part of the Swedish Modern movement, is remembered in this comprehensive show. Frank’s work appeared on lighting and furniture and in various interior design projects. Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00-18:00; Thursday until 20:00; Sunday, 11:00-17:00 (last entry 45 minutes before closing). Tickets (covering all exhibitions) £6-9.90.83 Bermondsey Street, SE1 3XF 020 7407 8664 ftmlondon.org @fashiontextile Ends 7th May Temporarily Accessioned: Freud’s Coat Revisited Freud Museum Artist and researcher Paul Coldwell exhibits at the Freud Museum for the second time, showing mixed media pieces inspired by Freud’s exile from Vienna in 1938 and his experience of moving to London. Wednesday-Sunday, 12:00-17:00. Tickets £4-8.20 Maresfield Gardens, Hampstead,

Ends 4th June America After the Fall: Painting in the 1930s Royal Academy An eclectic mix of famous paintings from a transformative decade in American history. One highlight is Grant Wood’s iconic American Gothic, which has never been displayed beyond the USA. Timed ticket sessions every 15 minutes, Saturday-Thursday, 10:15-17:15; Friday until 21:15. Tickets £8-13.50.Burlington House, Piccadilly, W1J 0BD 020 7300 8000 royalacademy.org.uk @RoyalAcademy Ends 11th June Wolfgang Tillmans: 2017 Tate Modern It’s the first time Tillmans has staged an exhibition at the Tate, and he’s pulled out all the stops, with a huge portfolio of his work. Expect a mixture of photography, film, projections, music and other multi-media projects. Monday-Sunday, 10:00-18:00; FridaySaturday until 22:00; tickets £10-12.50. Bankside, SE1 9TG 020 7887 8888 tate.org.uk/visit/tate-modern @Tate Ends 25th June Electricity: The Spark of Life Wellcome Collection The story of electricity in all its guises, from Frankenstein’s monster to the use of electrotherapy. Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00-18:00; Sunday, 11:00-18:00; Thursday until 22:00. Free entry. 183 Euston Road, NW1 2BE

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Ends 27th August Where the Thunderbird Lives: cultural resilience on the Northwest Coast of North America British Museum Discover artefacts from the people of the Pacific Northwest Coast, whose culture spans 9,000 years, and immerse yourself in their legends and legacies passed down through the generations. The Thunderbird, one of the Northwest Coast Peoples’ most important spiritual figures, takes centre stage. Daily, 10:00-17:30; Friday until 20:30. Last entry 80 minutes before closing. Free entry. Great Russell Street, WC1B 3DG 020 7323 8355

Ends 3rd September The Art of the Brick South Bank, Upper Ground Following a successful show in 2014 at the Old Truman Brewery, LEGO® artist Nathan Sawaya returns to London, this time with DC Comics as his theme. Sawaya has used almost 2,000,000 LEGO bricks to create sculptures of classic DC figures, such as Batman, Wonder Woman and The Joker. Timed tickets, daily, 10:00-17:00; Thursday until 19:00; Friday until 18:00. Tickets £11-16.50.Corner of Upper Ground and Cornwall Road, SE1 9PP 033 3247 0620 aotbdc.co.uk @artofthebrickdc FILM AND PHOTOGRAPHY 9th-19th March 19th London Asian Film Festival Various London venues Tongues On Fire presents a strong programme of screenings and talks, highlighting the continual power of Asian cinema. Look out for Chalk N Duster, which explores the private education sector in India, and Lipstick Under My Burkha, following the lives of four young Indian women. Times and prices vary - see website.Venues include Harrow Arts Centre, Regent Street Cinema, The Courthouse Hotel and the V&A. 020 8961 8908 tonguesonfire.com

FAIR

@TonguesOnFire 9th March - 29th May Gillian Wearing and Claude Cahun: Behind the Mask, Another Mask National Portrait Gallery The photographs of two powerful female artists, Claude Cahun (a dramatic presence in the 1930s) and Gillian Wearing (a contemporary success story), can be seen together for the first time, drawing deep parallels between their work and their motivation. Timed entry, Saturday-Wednesday, 10:0017:30; Thursday-Friday until 20:30. Tickets £4.25-12. St. Martin’s Place, WC2H 0HE 020 7306 0055 npg.org.uk @NPGLondon

range of films will be screened, including the Soviet Russian silent film Aelita, the Bollywood romantic thriller Om Shanti Om, Sci-Fi classic Barbarella, and experimental pieces like Sergei Parajanov’s The Color of Pomegranates and French art cinema film Last Year in Marienbad. Times vary. Tickets £5-15. Venues include Curzon Cinemas, The Hoxton Hotel and the Prince Charles Cinema. Contact individual venues or see eventbrite. com for booking information fashioninfilm.com @FashionFilmFest

10th March - 3rd April Five Finnish Photographers Purdy Hicks Gallery Three generations of Finnish photographers will take over the Purdy Hicks Gallery: discover work by Ulla Jokisalo, Sandra Kantanen, Milja Laurila, Anna Reivilä and Santeri Tuori. Monday-Friday, 10:00-18:00; Saturday, 11:00-18:00. Free entry.25 Thurloe Street, South Kensington, SW7 2LQ 020 7401 9229 purdyhicks.com @PurdyHicks

13th-19th March London Book and Screen Week 2017 Various London venues Marvel at the very best book adaptations on the big screen, crossing all literary and film genres. The 20th anniversary of the publication of Harry Potter, and a Q&A and screening with Terry O’Neill, are just two of the highlights. Times and ticket prices vary - see website. Venues include Bush Hall, Charlotte Street Hotel and St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel. See the website or eventbrite.com for booking information londonbookandscreenweek.co.uk @LBandSW

11th-26th March Fashion in Film Festival Various London venues This year’s festival theme is Wearing Time: Past, Present, Future, Dream. A diverse

16th March London Overground Screening London Transport Museum See the documentary by Andrew Kötting that brings to life Iain Sinclair's book,

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Events body, through film, photography and audio. Tuesday-Sunday, 10:00-18:00; Wednesday, until 21:00. Free entry. Arkwright Road, NW3 6DG 020 7472 5500 camdenartscentre.org @camdenartsctr

Ends 18th March Ruud van Empel Beetles + Huxley The Dutch contemporary photographer is profiled for the second time at Beetles + Huxley. His work, using digital manipulation and referencing Dutch Old Masters, is even more engaging up close. Monday-Saturday, 10:00-17:30. Free entry. 3-5 Swallow Street, W1B 4DE 020 7434 4319 beetlesandhuxley.com @Beetleshuxley

27th March Red Desert (Il Deserto Rosso) Italian Cultural Institute A screening of the award-winning 1965 domestic drama, centred on Giuliana, a frustrated and vulnerable housewife with rapidly deteriorating health. Shown in Italian with subtitles. 19:00-21:30; free event. 39 Belgrave Square, SW1X 8NX 020 7235 1461 icilondon.esteri.it/iic_londra/en @iiclondra

Ends 24th March Enrique Metinides Michael Hoppen Gallery Metinides was a child prodigy of photography in his native Mexico City, becoming an assistant to a crime photographer when he was just 13 years old. See his remarkable reportage here. Monday-Friday, 09:30-18:00; Saturday, 10:30-17:00. Free entry. 3 Jubilee Place, SW3 3TD 020 7352 3649 michaelhoppengallery.com @michaelhoppen1 Ends 24th March Roger Ballen: The Theatre of Apparitions Hamiltons Gallery Inspired by pictures he found in an abandoned women’s prison, Ballen has created a multi-layered group of images. He blends drawing and photography for an end result resembling cave paintings. Monday-Friday, 10:00-18:00; Saturday, 11:00-16:00. Free entry. 13 Carlos Place, W1K 2EU 020 7499 9493 hamiltonsgallery.com @HamiltonsGall Ends 26th March Joachim Koester: In the Face of Overwhelming Forces Camden Arts Centre Danish artist Joachim Koester delves into the last 12 years of his multidisciplinary work, which repeatedly focuses on the

March 2017

Events

London Overground. Sinclair will also discuss the film and the book with filmmaker John Rogers. 19:00-21:00. Tickets £8-10. Covent Garden Piazza, WC2E 7BB 020 7379 6344 ltmuseum.co.uk @ltmuseum

22nd March Kennington Bioscope Presents: Il Fuoco The Cinema Museum Il Fuoco (which translates as The Fire) is a 1916 silent film taken from the archive of the Museo Nazionale del Cinema in Turin. This romantic thriller will be reimagined with live accompaniment, and preceded by a series of short films. Seating is limited, so tickets must be requested via kenbioscope@ gmail.com. Starts 19:30. Tickets £5. 2 Dugard Way (off Renfrew Road), Kennington, SE11 4TH 020 7840 2200 cinemamuseum.org.uk @CinemaMuseum

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30th March - 9th July You Are Looking at Something That Never Occurred Zabludowicz Collection Explore the power of photography in all its forms, from spur-of-the-moment street shots to carefully composed long exposure pieces. The line-up includes Anne Collier, Richard Prince, Cindy Sherman and Sara VanDerBeek. Thursday-Sunday, 12:00-18:00; free entry.176 Prince of Wales Road, NW5 3PT 020 7428 8940 zabludowiczcollection.com @Zabludowicz_Coll Ends 31st March Martin Parr: Swans, Gloves, Roses and Pancakes Tower Bridge This exhibition shows photographer Martin Parr is still at the top of his game, with snapshots behind the scenes at some of London’s strangest events, such as the Gloves Ceremony at the Royal Courts of Justice. Daily, 09:30-17:00. Tickets £6.30-9.00 (covering entire site). Tower Bridge Road, SE1 2UP 020 7403 3761 towerbridge.org.uk @TowerBridge 1st April Tunde’s Film National Theatre Part of the Bright Young Tings season,a screening of playwright and director Tunde Akoli’s 1973 film, co-written and directed by Maggie Pinhorn. To be shown at the Cottesloe Room. 18:00-19:30; tickets £3-5. Upper Ground, London SE1 9PX 020 7452 3000 nationaltheatre.org.uk @NationalTheatre 7th-9th April BFI and Radio Times Television Festival BFI Southbank Television has arguably raised its profile over the last few years, with bigger budgets, sensationalised scripts and an audience with the desire to binge-watch an entire series over a weekend. The BFI celebrates the latest in TV at this acclaimed festival,

White. Sunday-Thursday, 10:00-18:00; FridaySaturday, 10:00-22:00. Tickets £13.1016.50.Bankside, SE1 9TG 020 7887 8888 tate.org.uk/visit/tate-modern @Tate

Festival of Classical Music

FEATURING ARTISTS INCLUDING

NIGEL KENNEDY

WITH SPECIAL GUESTS ROBERT PLANT & JEAN-LUC PONTY

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From the London Contemporary Orchestra in the Loading Bay to exploring gender roles in Indian Music, enjoy 12 days of events throughout the Royal Albert Hall

Call: 020 7589 8212 royalalberthall.com /royalalberthall

including panel discussions with the likes of Maggie Smith, and the cast and creator of Line of Duty. Times and ticket prices vary. Belvedere Road, South Bank, SE1 8XT 020 7928 3232 bfi.org.uk @bfi Ends 8th April Jimmy Nelson: Before They Part II Atlas Gallery More than 30 of Nelson’s new works will be displayed. His photojournalism speciality is documenting tribes around the world, including those in French Polynesia and China. Monday-Friday, 10:00-18:00; Saturday, 11:00-17:00. Free entry.49 Dorset Street, W1U 7NF 020 7224 4192 atlasgallery.com @ATLASGallery Ends 15th April Bright Young Tings National Theatre A series of former NT Art Director Michael Mayhew’s photographs, in the Lyttleton Lounge, celebrate the contribution made by black actors to the theatre industry. Don’t miss the specially commissioned works by Cherelle Sappleton which accompany the archived images. Monday-Saturday, 09:30-23:00. Free entry. Upper Ground, London SE1 9PX 020 7452 3000 nationaltheatre.org.uk @NationalTheatre

@royalalberthall

Ends 22nd April Making Jamaica: Photography from the 1890s Autograph ABP Over 70 images from the Caribbean Photo Archive will be on show, including photographs by Valentine & Sons from an Awakening Jamaica committee project in 1889. Alongside these artefacts, view a new commission by Ingrid Pollard. Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, 11:00-18:00; Thursday, 11:00-21:00; Saturday, 12:0018:00. Free entry. Rivington Place, EC2A 3BA 020 7749 1240 autograph-abp.co.uk @AutographABP Ends 30th April Secret Cinema: Moulin Rouge Secret Cinema Secret Cinema returns with screenings of Baz Luhrman's Moulin Rouge, to be shown at an undisclosed London location. Guests will receive dress code instructions and venue details after booking. Times and prices vary - see website. Venue TBC - within Zone 2 020 7739 6055 secretcinema.org - @secretcinema Ends 7th May The Radical Eye: Modernist Photography from the Sir Elton John Collection Tate Modern Elton John has been a passionate collector of photography for many years. Now the public has the chance to see a selection of his 1920s-1950s prints, from the likes of Man Ray and Margaret Bourke-

Ends 11th June Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize The Photographers’ Gallery Photographers from across the world compete for a £30,000 prize, awarded to the best contemporary work or exhibition of the past year. Monday-Saturday, 10:00-18:00; Thursday until 20:00; Sunday, 11:00-18:00. Tickets £2.50-4 (covering all exhibitions), or free before 12:00. 16-18 Ramillies St, W1F 7LW 020 7087 9300 thephotographersgallery.org.uk @tpgallery Ends 11th June Roger Mayne The Photographers’ Gallery The first retrospective of British photographer Roger Mayne (19292014) since 1999, featuring images of London, Sheffield and Nottingham, plus his installation piece, The British at Leisure. Monday-Saturday, 10:00-18:00; Thursday until 20:00; Sunday 11:00-18:00. Tickets £2.50-4 (covering all exhibitions), or free before 12:00. 16-18 Ramillies St, W1F 7LW 020 7087 9300 thephotographersgallery.org.uk

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk @tpgallery Ends 28th August Edmund Clark: War of Terror Imperial War Museum Blending photographs, videos and documents, Clark demystifies the War on Terror and exposes the realities of Guantanamo Bay, control orders (a form of house arrest) and prisons such as Abu Salim in Libya. Daily, 10:00-18:00. Free entry. Lambeth Road, SE1 6HZ 020 7416 5000 iwm.org.uk - @I_W_M Ends 10th September Wildlife Photographer of the Year Natural History Museum Nearly 50,000 submissions from worldwide photographers were whittled down to a selection of just 100. Find your favourite nature photography moments of 2016, including those by children and teenagers, and determine what makes a great image of the world around us. Daily, 10.00-17.50 (last entry 17:30). Tickets £6.50-13.50. Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD 020 7942 5000 nhm.ac.uk @NHM_London MUSIC 10th March Gary Ryan Royal Albert Hall (Venue: Elgar Room) Classical guitarist Gary Ryan was awarded the prestigious Fellowship of the Royal

College of Music in 2013. At this lunchtime concert, you’ll see why. Starts 12:30. Tickets £12.50, with unreserved seating. Kensington Gore, SW7 2AP 020 7589 8212 royalalberthall.com @RoyalAlbertHall 11th March London Supersax Project: Celebrating the Genius of Charlie Parker Ronnie Scott’s The London equivalent of the Grammy award-winning Supersax group presents a tribute to Charlie Parker. Line-up TBC. First house, 18:00; second house, 22:30. Tickets £30-45. Limited availability. 47 Frith Street, W1D 4HT 020 7439 0747 ronniescotts.co.uk @officialronnies 15th-24th March Partenope English National Opera Handel’s comedy opera returns to the stage, with set design inspired by Man Ray. Conducted by Christian Curnyn and directed by Christopher Alden. Starts 19:00. Tickets £12-125. London Coliseum, St Martin’s Lane, WC2N 4ES 020 7845 9300 eno.org @E_N_O 16th March Evan Parker with Jacob Anderskov’s Kinetics

Vortex Jazz Club Renowned jazz improviser Evan Parker teams up with Danish jazz improvisers from the ILK Collective. Expect a spellbinding performance with Modernist twists. 20:00-23:00. Tickets £12. 11 Gillett Square, N16 8AZ 020 7254 4097 vortexjazz.co.uk @vortexjazz 17th March Norwegian Chamber Orchestra with Leif Ove Andsnes Cadogan Hall Leif Ove Andsnes, the acclaimed pianist, is joined by the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra to play works by Grieg, Mozart and Profokiev. Caversham Room, 5 Sloane Terrace, SW1X 9DQ 020 7183 7323 cadoganhall.com @cadoganhall Starts 19:30; tickets £18-42. 20th March Music and poetry from the Zweig Collection British Library An evening blending the music and literature mentioned by author Stefan Zweig in his manuscripts, which are held by the British Library. Balzac and Bellini meet Keats and Mozart, brought to life by Ilona Domnich (soprano), Simon Wallfisch (baritone) and Simon Callaghan (piano). An accompanying exhibition will be on show until 11th June. 19:00-20:30. Tickets £7-10. 96 Euston Road, NW1 2DB

March 2017

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Events 01937 546546 bl.uk @britishlibrary 23rd March Words and Jazz Vortex Jazz Club The March instalment of Vortex’s monthly poetry and jazz event, curated by Nicki Heinen. 20:00-23:00. Tickets £8. 11 Gillett Square, N16 8AZ 020 7254 4097 vortexjazz.co.uk @vortexjazz 24th March Chris Thile Wigmore Hall Mandolin player Chris Thile, who also hosts the radio show A Prairie Home Companion, will play a mixture of original and classic pieces. Starts 19:30. Tickets £15-37. 36 Wigmore Street, W1U 2BP 020 7935 2141 wigmore-hall.org.uk @wigmore_hall 28th March London Astrobeat Choir Performs Talking Heads Jazz Cafe Paying tribute to the afrobeat influences of two prominent Talking Heads albums, Remain in the Light and Speaking in Tongues, the Astrobeat Choir will be led by Edd Bateman. 19:00-23:00. Tickets £10. 5 Parkway, Camden, NW1 7PG 020 7485 6834 thejazzcafelondon.com @TheJazzCafe 29th March Guitarrísimo: Sones y Flores Eduardo Martín & Ahmed Dickinson Cárdenas St. Peter's Church (on behalf of Instituto Cervantes) Two Cuban guitarists present their unique blend of Yoruba chants, rock, funk, rumba and slap bass. Afterwards, enjoy a free glass of wine from Wines of Spain. Starts 19:00. Tickets £10-14 in advance, or £14-18 on the door. 119 Eaton Square, SW1W 9AN 020 7201 0750 (Instituto Cervantes) stpetereatonsquare.co.uk - londres. cervantes.es/en @Instcervantes 30th March Vivamus Chamber Choir Swiss Church The Vivamus Chamber Choir performs pieces by Faure, Frank Martin and Carl Rütti. Starts 19:30. Tickets £5-23. 79 Endell Street, WC2H 9DY 020 7836 14 18 swisschurchlondon.org.uk @SwissChurchLond 4th-5th April Mulatu Astatke Jazz Cafe Ethiopia’s best-known jazz musician, Astatke has also become globally influential, collaborating with the likes of Duke Ellington, being heavily featured in the Jim Jarmusch film Broken Flowers, and also being sampled by hip-hop and rap

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March 2017

Events musicians such as Nas and Kanye West. 19:00-23:00. Tickets £22.50. 5 Parkway, Camden, NW1 7PG 020 7485 6834 thejazzcafelondon.com @TheJazzCafe 5th April Cendrillon Leighton House Museum Opera Prelude (operaprelude.com) revives 19th century singer and composer Pauline Viardot’s retelling of Cinderella. 19:00-21:00. Tickets £40 (including a programme and a glass of wine). 12 Holland Park Road, W14 8LZ 020 7602 3316 leightonhouse.co.uk @RBKCLeightonH 6th April Iranian Music Refined and Recharged SOAS Saeid Kordmafi, on the santour, and Saeid Kordmafi, on the tombak, will perform a range of classical-style Iranian pieces, including improvised sections. 19:00-21:00; free, but pre-booking essential. Brunei Gallery Lecture Theatre 020 7637 2388 soas.ac.uk @SOAS 7th-9th April Bach Weekend Kings Place The extensive programme includes cantatas, concertos, fugues and preludes, and St. Matthew Passion with the London Bach Singers. Times and prices vary. 90 York Way, N1 9AG 020 7520 1490 kingsplace.co.uk @KingsPlace Ongoing Classical Season 2016-2017 Southbank Centre The season continues with stellar events, such as The Best of John Williams: From ET to Star Wars and Beyond (1st April) and The Music of Today: Bent Sørensen (6th April). Times and prices vary. Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX 020 7960 4200 southbankcentre.co.uk @southbankcentre Ongoing - every weekday Lunchtime Concert St. Martin-in-the-Fields Catch a free lunchtime concert every weekday at 13:00, including cellist Razvan Suma and pianist Rebeca Omordia (20th March), the Junior Royal Academy of Music (3rd April) and Isbilia Quartet (4th April). Starts 13:00. Free entry. Trafalgar Square, WC2N 4JH 020 7766 1100 stmartin-in-the-fields.org @smitf_london TALKS 7th March Christie’s Lates - Handpicked: Artists Selected by the Saatchi Gallery Christie’s South Kensington An evening inspired by Christie’s upcoming contemporary art sale offered in support

of the Saatchi’s Gallery’s free entry and education programme. Art critic and curator Patricia Ellis will host a panel discussion on modern patronage with contemporary artists Noémie Goudal, Ryan Mosely and Sigrid Holmwood. Christie’s specialists will lead tours of the Handpicked preview and stop by the Handpicked pop-up shop for a free Handpicked tote bag with every purchase of the auction catalogue. 6.00-8.30 pm Free entry. 85 Old Brompton Road, London SW7 3LD 020 7839 9060 christies.com/lates #ChristiesLates @ChristiesInc

THE LECTURE CLUB

be informed

SPRING PROGRAMME

All Lectures 6.30 pm – 8.30 pm. £15 Entrance on the door or pre-book online and print your ticket for £12. Wine and Refreshments included.

MARCH 7TH

MICHELLE MCGRADE:

“THE EMOTIONAL ROLLER-COASTER OF INVESTING”

MARCH 14TH

PROFESSOR NICK LOWE:

“FACE AND SKIN REJUVENATION WITHOUT SURGERY”

APRIL 18TH

CARRIE BROOKS –

LIFE COACH - AGEING WELL “TIME OF OUR LIFE!“

APRIL 25TH

MICHAEL MORRIS FRANKS,

PARTNER WILLIAM STURGES LLP: “MR TURING I PRESUME”

MAY 2ND

ALASTAIR PLUMB OF CHRISTIE’S

“THE AUCTION WORLD TODAY“

KIRILL KALININ - OWNER MAY 9TH 10th and 24th March; 7th and 21st April “INTRODUCTION TO ORIGINAL VINTAGE POSTERS” Lunchtime Talk: Gender in Advertising VENUE: 9 ILCHESTER PLACE, LONDON W14 8AA Museum of Brands, LECTURES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE. PLEASE CHECK THE LATEST SCHEDULE ON Packaging and Advertising WWW.THELECTURECLUB.COM Learn how gender has been FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @thelectureclub portrayed in adverts since Victorian times. Part of a programme of events marking and following International Women’s Day (8th March). Starts 14:00. Free entry with museum ticket V&A Learn about the set designs and models (£5-9). collected by the V&A from Sondheim's 111-117 Lancaster Road, Notting Hill, bloodthirsty musical, Sweeney Todd. W11 1QT Harriet Reed, Assistant Curator of Theatre 020 7243 9611 & Performance, hosts. museumofbrands.com 13:00-14:00. Free and non-ticketed. @MuseumofBrands Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL 020 784 2000 11th March vam.ac.uk @V_and_A Believe in Yourself Inner Space at Westminster City 16th-17th March Hall A daytime programme of short inspirational Daunt Books Festival Daunt Books talks aimed at women. Marylebone 11:00-13:00; arrive at 10:30 to choose your As usual, the Daunt Books Festival has sessions. Free, but registration essential. a packed itinerary. Participating authors 17 Floor, 64 Victoria Street, include Philip Hook, Philippe Sands, SW1E 6QP Anne Sebba and Elif Shafak; there will 020 7836 6688 also be music by the Bookshop Band and innerspace.org.uk @inner_space Cavendish Winds. Events are priced individually, or buy a festival pass for £45. See website. 14th March 83 Marylebone High Street, An Evening of Adventure with Michael W1U 4QW Palin & Guests 020 7224 2295 Wild Frontiers at the Royal Geographical dauntbooks.co.uk @Dauntbooks Society Johnny Bealby, CEO of Wild Frontiers 20th March Adventure Travel, introduces Michael The Orchestras of Auschwitz Palin in conversation with fellow explorers The Wiener Library for the Study of the Benedict Allen and Spike Reid. The trio Holocaust & Genocide will recall their travels in the Hindu Kush This Constella OperaBallet project region of Pakistan. Proceeds from the event remembers the Sunday concerts held in will support the Kalash people through the Auschwitz-Birkenau by the orchestras of Wild Frontiers Foundation. prisoners. Find out more about the project’s 18:00-20:30. Tickets £20, via Eventbrite. development from its team, and learn about 1 Kensington Gore, SW7 2AR its original score element in remembrance 020 7591 3100 of Sir Martin Gilbert, the Holocaust rgs.org@rgs_ibg historian. 18:30-20:30. Free but ticketed. 29 Russell Square, WC1B 5DP 16th March 020 7636 7247 ‘A Movie for the Stage’: Set Design and wienerlibrary.co.uk Sweeney Todd @wienerlibrary

21st March The Diva and the Divas: Tosca and the Women Who Have Sung Her Cadogan Hall Opera Prelude (operaprelude.com) introduces Becca Marriott (soprano) and Natalie Burch (piano), who will discuss the representation of Floria Tosca and her portrayal by operatic greats such as Maria Callas and Hariclea Darclèe. Caversham Room, 5 Sloane Terrace, SW1X 9DQ 020 7183 7323 cadoganhall.com - @cadoganhall 10:30-12:30; tickets £25. 22nd March Why Do We Still Play Board Games? V&A (Venue: Lydia & Manfred Gorvy Lecture Theatre) Catherine Howell, curator at the V&A Museum of Childhood, encourages us to think about the enduring appeal of board games, even in a technology-obsessed society. 13:00-13:45. Free and non-ticketed. Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL 020 784 2000 vam.ac.uk @V_and_A 23rd March To Cure All Ills? Wellcome Collection An hour-long discussion, led by author Caroline Rance, on the medical cures touted by unqualified people, often known as ‘quacks’, with little interest in patient wellbeing. 18:00-19:00. Free entry.

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk 183 Euston Road, NW1 2BE 020 7611 2222 wellcomecollection.org @ExploreWellcome 25th March Music as Therapy in the 19th Century Asylum Bethlem Museum of the Mind Edward Elgar spent five years as bandmaster of the Worcester County and City Asylum, composing music to aid patients in their recovery. Dr. Rosemary Golding, of the Open University, talks about the trend for music to play a part in treatment for acute mental health conditions. Starts 14:00. Free but ticketed. Bethlem Royal Hospital, Monk’s Orchard Road, Beckenham, Kent, BR3 3BX 020 3228 4227 museumofthemind.org.uk @bethlemmuseum 27th March Slavoj Žižek Interviews Ralph Fiennes The School of Life Slavoj Žižek, the respected Hegelian philosopher, Lacanian psychoanalyst and author, talks to award-winning actor Ralph Fiennes. Part of the series at The School of Life. 19:00-21:30. Tickets £30. Emmanuel Centre, 9-23 Marsham Street, SW1P 3DW 020 7833 1010 theschooloflife.com @theschooloflife

28th March Democracy and the Arts in Europe: Artists in a Global World Rich Mix A varied panel discussion on the potential impact of Brexit on the arts and culture sector. Panellists include Jo Glanville, director of English PEN, and Munira Mirza, an adviser on the arts and philanthropy. Starts 19:00. Tickets £5-7. 35-47 Bethnal Green Road, E1 6LA 020 7613 7498 richmix.org.uk @RichMixLondon 28th March Everest Rescue: Les Binns talks about his dramatic rescue on Mt Everest. Peak Dynamics at the Royal Geographical Society British war veteran Les Binns recounts his physically and mentally challenging rescue of a fellow climber on Mount Everest, during a snowstorm. A portion of proceeds from the event will be donated to the Army Benevolent Fund. 18:45-20:45. Tickets £26-34, via Eventbrite. 1 Kensington Gore, SW7 2AR 020 7591 3100 rgs.org @rgs_ibg 29th March Misty Moon Presents the Legendary Dudley Sutton Phoenix Artist Club An evening in conversation with muchloved actor (and KCW poetry editor) Dudley Sutton, perhaps best known for his television roles in Lovejoy, Smiley’s People and Skins. Starts 20:30. Tickets £16. 1 Phoenix Street, WC2H 8BU 020 7836 1077 phoenixartistclub.com @phoenixartistcb 1st April English PEN Modern Literature Festival Rich Mix More than 30 English writers will pay tribute to their overseas peers who are listed on the Writers at Risk programme, facing oppression for their creative output. Sessions from 14:00-15:30, 16:00-17:30 and 19:30-21:30. Free but ticketed. 35-47 Bethnal Green Road, E1 6LA 020 7613 7498 richmix.org.uk @RichMixLondon 2nd April Mensheviks and Bolsheviks 1917-1923 Conway Hall The Mensheviks, who were the ‘losing side’ in the Russian Revolution, will be under the spotlight in this lecture, led by historian Frances King. 11:00-13:00. Tickets £2-3.25 Red Lion Square, WC1R 4RL 020 7405 1818 conwayhall.org.uk @ConwayHall 4th April Stargazing: An Introduction to the Night Sky Foyle’s

Tom Kerss and Radmila Topalovic, two astronomers from the Royal Observatory, will discuss what makes stargazing such a fascinating hobby, and how you can get into it as a complete novice. 19:00-20:00. Tickets £5-8.107 Charing Cross Road, WC2H 0DT 020 7437 5660 foyles.co.uk @Foyles 6th April Spinsters, Hecklers and Lingerie Chelsea Physic Garden An interactive talk focusing on the history of flax, and its connection to various words we use today. Hosted by Zoe Burt and Kate Poland. 18:00-19:00. Tickets £17 (including a glass of wine). 66 Royal Hospital Road, SW3 4HS 020 7352 5646 chelseaphysicgarden.co.uk @ChelsPhysicGdn THEATRE 1st March-3rd June The Miser Garrick Theatre Lee Mack, Griff Rhys Jones, Mathew Horne, Katy Wix and Andi Osho star in Molière’s comedy, adapted by Sean Foley and Phil Porter. Previews from 1st March. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Wednesday and Saturday matinees start 14:30. Tickets £15-87.50.Charing Cross Road, WC2H 0HH 0330 333 4811 nimaxtheatres.com/garrick-theatre @NimaxTheatres 2nd March-15th April Limehouse Donmar Warehouse Steve Waters’ new play is a fictionalised account of four Labour politicians (Bill Rodgers, Shirley Williams, Roy Jenkins and David Owen) meeting as their party is in crisis. The cast includes Roger Allam and Tom Goodman-Hill. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Thursday and Saturday matinees start 14:30. Tickets £10-40. 41 Earlham Street, WC2H 9LX 0844 871 7624 donmarwarehouse.com @DonmarWarehouse 8th-25th March Made in India Soho Theatre This new play, written by Satinder Chohan and directed by Katie Posner, is set in a Gujarati surrogacy clinic. It explores issues of motherhood and birth through the eyes of three very different women. Starts 19:15. Tickets £17-19. 21 Dean Street, W1D 3NE 020 7478 0100 sohotheatre.com @sohotheatre 16th-25th March Rounds Blue Elephant Theatre Follow the escalating stresses of six junior doctors in this timely play, balancing comedy and drama to tell the story of the NHS’ overstretched next generation. Starts 20:00. Tickets £7.50-12. 59a Bethwin Rd (entrance in Thompson's

March 2017

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Events Avenue), Camberwell, SE5 0XT 020 7701 0100 blueelephanttheatre.co.uk @BETCamberwell 17th March-10th June Don Juan in Soho Wyndham’s Theatre David Tennant, Adrian Scarborough and Gawn Grainger bring Patrick Marber’s modern update of Molière’s play to the West End. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Saturday matinee at 14:30. Tickets £10-150. Charing Cross Road, WC2H 0DA 0844 482 5120 delfontmackintosh.co.uk @DMTWestEnd 24th March-24th June The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? Theatre Royal Haymarket Edward Albee’s 2002 tragi-comedy sees Damien Lewis and Sophie Okonedo return to the stage, directed by former Royal Court Artistic Director Ian Rickson. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Thursday and Saturday matinees at 14:30; no performances 29th May -3rd June. Tickets £15-150.18 Suffolk St, SW1Y 4HT 020 7930 8800 trh.co.uk @TRH_London Ends 25th March I’m Gonna Pray for You So Hard Finborough Theatre Halley Feiffer’s black comedy, which won an Outer Critics’ Circle Award in 2015, explores the theatrical world through ambitious actress Ella and her playwright father. Dare she read the critics' reviews of her off-Broadway debut? Tuesday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Saturday and Sunday matinees at 15:00. Tickets £14-18. 118 Finborough Road (above the Finborough Arms), Earl’s Court, SW10 9ED 0844 847 1652 finboroughtheatre.co.uk @finborough 28th-29th March Letters to Myself Camden People’s Theatre What would you tell your younger self if you could? Becci Sharrock’s comic play, based on real letters from participants, looks at the lessons we’ve learned as adults and the decisions we made as teens. Starts 19:15. Tickets £10-12. 58-60 Hampstead Road, London, NW1 2PY 020 7419 4841 cptheatre.co.uk @camdenPT 28th March-22nd April Incident at Vichy Finborough Theatre The first professional production of Arthur Miller’s play for half a century takes a noholds-barred look at evil and bureaucracy in Nazi-occupied France. Tuesday-Saturday, starts 19:30; from 8th April, Saturday matinees at 15:00; Sunday matinees at 15:00. Tickets £14-18. 118 Finborough Road (above the Finborough Arms), Earl’s Court, SW10 9ED 0844 847 1652 finboroughtheatre.co.uk

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Events @finborough 29th March-22nd April Posh Pleasance London An all-female cast, including Game of Thrones' Hannah Murray, tackles Laura Wade's hugely successful play, which was later adapted for the screen as The Riot Club. Starts 19:30; matinees at 14:30. Tickets £17.50-25.00. Carpenters Mews, North Road, Islington, N7 9EF 020 7609 1800 pleasance.co.uk @ThePleasance 30th March-13th May The Lottery of Love Orange Tree Theatre The French comedy, Le Jeu de l’amour et du hasard, translated by John Fowles and transposed to Regency England, is directed here by Paul Miller. Monday-Saturday starts 19:30; Thursday and Saturday matinees at 14:30; check website for exceptions. Tickets £15-25. 1 Clarence Street, Richmond, Surrey TW9 2SA 020 8940 3633 orangetreetheatre.co.uk @OrangeTreeThtr Ends 1st April A Midsummer Night’s Dream Young Vic A new production of Shakespeare’s classic comedy sees director Tim Hill-Gibbins team up with renowned designer Johannes Schütz. Monday-Saturday starts 19:30; Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 14:30. Tickets £10-36. 66 The Cut, Waterloo, SE1 8LZ 020 7922 2922 youngvic.org @youngvictheatre Ends 1st April a profoundly affectionate, passionate devotion to someone (-noun) Royal Court (Venue: Jerwood Theatre Upstairs) Playwright debbie tucker green (whose name and play title is always presented in lower case) brings yet another arresting drama to the Royal Court, this time focusing on three couples. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:45; Thursday and Saturday matinees at 15:00. Tickets from £12. Limited availability. Sloane Square, SW1W 8AS 020 7565 5000 royalcourttheatre.com @royalcourt Ends 2nd April My Brilliant Friend, Parts 1 and 2 Rose Theatre Kingston Publishing sensation Elena Ferrante’s quadrilogy has been adapted for the stage as a two-part play, by April de Angelis. Niamh Cusack and Catherine McCormack play the two protagonists living in post-war Italy. Part 1 starts at 14:30, with a 20-minute interval, then a two-hour break until part 2 at 19:30. Alternatively, each part of the play can be seen separately. Tickets £11-81. 24-26 High Street, Kingston, KT1 1HL 020 7492 0810 rosetheatrekingston.org @Rosetheatre

6th-8th April The Class Project Camden People’s Theatre How does your birthplace affect your class? And what about the places you live in afterwards, or the places you wish you belonged? Rebecca Atkinson-Lord’s debut solo show, The Class Project, explores thorny issues of identity, social mobility and education. Starts 19:15. Tickets £10-12.58-60 Hampstead Road, London, NW1 2PY 020 7419 4841 cptheatre.co.uk @camdenPT

Ellen McDougall's version of the Shakespearian tragedy blends period and modern references, including updated swear words and slurs. The director believes the racism and inequality featured in the play are still huge problems for society to overcome. Tuesday-Wednesday, Friday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday matinees at 14:30; Sunday matinees at 13:30. Tickets £10-62. 21 New Globe Walk, SE1 9DT 020 7401 9919 shakespearesglobe.com @The_Globe

Ends 8th April Hamlet Almeida Andrew Scott takes the title role in the unforgettable Shakespearian tragedy, with Juliet Stevenson as Gertrude. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:00; Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 13:30. Tickets £10-38. Limited availability. Almeida Street, Islington, N1 1TA 020 7359 4404 almeida.co.uk @AlmeidaTheatre

Ends 29th April Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead Old Vic 50 years after Tom Stoppard made his name with this witty play, the Old Vic revives it with a stellar cast, including David Haig, Joshua McGuire and Daniel Radcliffe. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 14:30. Tickets £12-65.The Cut, SE1 8NB 0844 871 7628 oldvictheatre.com @oldvictheatre

8th April National Theatre Connections: Extremism Jacksons Lane A challenging new play for young people, written by Anders Lustgarten, to explore issues of tolerance, religion and fear. 269a Archway Road, Highgate, N6 5AA 020 8341 4421 jacksonslane.org.uk @jacksons_lane Starts 19:30. Tickets £5. Ends 16th April The White Devil Shakespeare's Globe Theatre (Venue: Sam Wanamaker Playhouse) A Jacobean revenge tragedy is transformed into a dystopian nightmare. Directed by Annie Ryan, the play will be performed by candlelight. Monday and Thursday starts 19:30; Sunday at 18:30; Tuesday matinee at 14:30. Tickets £10-62.21 New Globe Walk, SE1 9DT 020 7401 9919 shakespearesglobe.com @The_Globe Ends 17th April Twelfth Night National Theatre (Venue: Olivier Theatre) Shakespeare's romantic comedy of mistaken identity hits the National just after Valentine’s Day, starring Tamsin Greig as Malvolia (in an additional twist, Malvolio has become a woman). Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Saturday (and selected Wednesday) matinees at 14:00. Tickets £15-65. Limited availability. Upper Ground, London SE1 9PX 020 7452 3000 nationaltheatre.org.uk @NationalTheatre Ends 22nd April Othello Shakespeare's Globe Theatre (Venue: Sam Wanamaker Playhouse)

Ends 29th April Travesties Apollo Theatre Tom Stoppard’s play transfers from the Menier Chocolate Factory for a 12-week West End run. Patrick Marber directs, and Tom Hollander and Freddie Fox are among the cast. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 14:30. Tickets £20-71.50.31 Shaftesbury Avenue, Soho, W1D 7EZ 0330 333 4809 nimaxtheatres.com @NimaxTheatres Ends 17th June Stepping Out Vaudeville Theatre A revival of the musical comedy, directed by Maria Friedman and starring Amanda Holden, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Tamzin Outhwaite. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 14:30. Additional matinees and schedule changes from 20th March - see website. Tickets £20-69.50.404 Strand, WC2R 0NH 0330 333 4814 nimaxtheatres.com @NimaxTheatres Ends 21st October Dreamgirls Savoy Theatre It's taken 35 years, but the Tony® awardwinning musical about a Motown-esque girl group has finally crossed the pond. Starring Amber Riley as Effie White. Monday-Saturday, starts 19:30; Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 14:30. Tickets £20-145. Strand, WC2R 0ET 0844 871 7687 dreamgirlswestend.com @DreamgirlsLDN

March 2017

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CLASSICAL AND MODERN CHINESE PAINTINGS 15 May 2017

CONSIGNMENTS WELCOME Deadline: 10 March 2017

Chiswick Auctions is the only London auction house to host a dedicated sale of Chinese painting. It is the leading centre for the sale of Chinese paintings in the UK and offers free non-obligation valuations.

Contact: Lazarus Halstead asian@chiswickauctions.co.uk +44(0)20 3110 0604 London, W3 8BL chiswickauctions.co.uk

Qi Baishi (1864 - 1957) Garden Balsam and Butterflies,1944, hanging scroll, 101 x 36cm.

Sold £48,800, 14 November 2016 Compiled by Polly Allen

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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March 2017

Arts & Culture

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk

Gas. Edward Hopper. © Museum of Modern Art, New York

America After the Fall

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

Vanessa Bell. Studland Beach. Verso: Group of Male Nudes by Duncan Grant c.1912. © The Estate of Vanessa Bell courtesy of Henrietta Garnett. Tate

Royal Academy: Sackler Galleries Until 4 June 2017 Admission £13.50 www.royalacademy.org.uk

dentist), and his po-faced wife (actually his sister) against a weatherboarded farmhouse with a Gothic window. More po-faced women in his softfocus Daughters of the Revolution, with Emmanuel Leutze’s Washington Crossing the Delaware on the wall behind, and

a bony hand holding an ancestral willow-patterned tea-cup, to emphasise hereditary values. His narrative painting of The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere depicts his romanticised ride through the night to warn the inhabitants of rural Massachusetts of the advance of the British. In a bird’s-eye view of a sleepy village, the lone horseman gallops past, waking households in his wake and prompting people to spill out of their houses in their nightshirts and into the street, while more horsemen with lanterns are seen a long way off down the undulating road. Death on the Ridge Road is a cartoonish painting of an accident about to happen, depicting a careering truck browsing a hill, and about to run into an out-of-control automobile slewing across the road. The lighting is menacing and dramatic, with storm clouds gathering in the distance and deep shadows in the foreground. The catalogue states that the painting was first owned by Cole Porter, whose wife’s ex-husband was the first American to kill someone in an auto crash. This is simply not true as any Google search will testify, but why let the truth get in the way of a good story? His rural landscapes are a delight, particularly Young Corn and Fall Plowing, owned by the tractor manufacturer John Deere, featuring an old-fashioned, horse-drawn plough. The Fleet’s In! by Paul Cadmus is a raunchy view of sailors out on the piss, carousing with well-upholstered ladies in clingy dresses and a gay man offering cigarettes, and caused a sensation when it was first displayed at a Washington gallery in 1934 and was censored, as it showed up the US Navy in a bad light of depravity. With more than a whiff of irony, the Navy now owns the painting. Altogether more sinister is Joe Jones’s

American Justice, showing a half-naked negro girl lying dead at the foot of a tree, while a dog howls at the noose hanging from it and a group of ghostly Ku Klux Klansmen stand in a circle, with a house ablaze in the background. John Steuart Curry’s Hogs Killing a Snake is an oddity, a darkly violent depiction of a pack of wild boars biting and trampling a snake in a whirl of action, reminiscent of Peter Paul Rubens. The stars of the show are possibly the most familiar to Britsh eyes, namely Gas and New York Movie by Edward Hopper. Gas shows a single man adjusting the pumps in the forecourt of a Mobil gas station at dusk. In New York Movie a lonesome, bored usherette stands in the wings, while Frank Capra’s film Lost Horizons plays to two lonely people in the audience. The exterior of the cinema is the subject of Reginald Marsh’s Twenty Cent Movie, is all about sex, with girls in seductive clothes parading in front of a barrage of posters with such headlines as ‘Stripped Bare’, ‘Dangerous Curves’, and ‘Joys of the Flesh.’ His In Fourteenth Street shows a bustle of cavorting people pouring out of the El station like a swarm of bees following the queen, while Philip Evergood’s Dance Marathon has all the street-life energy and vivacity of an Edward Burra Harlem painting, but with all the energy and vivacity sucked out of it, with the exhausted dancers hanging onto each other like they are clinging to the wreckage. This a well-curated and intelligent show, bringing some previously unfamiliar paintings to British art lovers, and underlines the fact that, once again, the four Sackler Galleries are the perfect venue for a show of this size and standard. Don Grant

William H Johnson, Street Life, Harlem, 1939 Collection of Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation

ompared to the very busy galleries downstairs, full to overflowing with vibrant Russian art, this is a quiet backwater in comparison, although it does contain some dark and violent images. America After the Fall really means America after the Crash, and charts painting in the 1930s. ‘All human life is here’, as Anthony Burgess said, adding ‘but the Holy Ghost is somewhere else’, from the bustling city scenes to the rolling hills of New England, and from smoking chimneys of the American industrial landscape to the homely interiors celebrating Thanksgiving, as in Doris Lee’s preNorman Rockwell view of the American dream of domestic bliss and Beryl Cookian bustle. Grant Wood is well represented, with his iconic American Gothic, featuring the humourless, blank features of the farmer (posed by his

Vanessa Bell

Dulwich Picture Gallery Until 4 June 2017 Admission £14 dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk

oo-er, those Bloomsburys. What a bunch of nutters, egg-heads, daubers, wordsmiths, lesbians and cocksmiths. Vanessa Bell is probably as well known as a Bohemian free-spirit, with her loose, extramarital relationships with Roger Fry and Duncan Grant, the predominantly homosexual father of her daughter, as she is a painter. She was surrounded by lofty literary and artistic talent and sparkling wit, but was a formidable painter and printmaker herself. She married the critic Clive Bell, and had two sons, but had an open marriage with him, and their ménage à trois, first at Wissett Lodge in Suffolk, and then at Charleston, in Sussex, included David ‘Bunny’ Garnett, who eventually married Vanessa and Duncan’s daughter Angelica.The affable

and charming Grant had not only been the lover of Lytton Strachey, politician Arthur Hobhouse and of the economist John Maynard Keynes, but also of her brother, Adrian. Grant, a conscientious objector, worked on the land in the First World War. to avoid conscription. Clive Bell made a heavy pass at Virginia, and often brought his mistress, Lytton’s cousin, Mary Hutchinson to stay at Charleston. Henrietta Bingham, the daughter of the US Ambassador to Britain, had lesbian flings with the painter Dora Carrington and the psychoanalyst Alix Strachey, as well as with Bunny. Carrington was ‘lesbianised’ by Vanessa’s sister Virginia Woolf, who had confessed to Vanessa that she was having an affair with Vita SackvilleWest, which shocked her deeply. Apparently buggery was acceptable to Bloomsbury, but affairs between women was, to her, beyond the pale. ‘But do you really like going to bed with women’ she said, ‘And how’d you do it?’ Carrington was pursued by Mark Gertler, C R W Nevinson, David Garnett, Albert Rutherston, Aldous Huxley and Ralph Partridge, who she married in1921, whilst having deep relationships with

Lytton Strachey, Stephen Tomlin and Gerald Brenan, but she preferred women. This maelstrom of sexual encounters and relationships was going on all around Vanessa Bell, who continued to paint bold portraits of her friends, including Virginia Woolf, who described her’s as ‘rough eloquence’, Roger Fry and Strachey, as well as landscapes and still lifes, while looking after three children, running the house and being the calming mother-figure at its centre. She was one of the first British artists to experiment with abstraction, and she was influenced by Vuillard, Bonnard and the Symbolist painter Maurice Denis, whose theories contributed to the foundations of Cubism; a style she later incorporated along with Fauvism, but always returning to figuration. A portrait of her daughter, awkwardly sitting in the library at Charlston, is a wonderful patchwork of textiles, books and slabs of colour. Her spare, tranquil landscape of the pond at Charlston was the first painting she did when she moved there, and stayed until she died in 1961, aged 81, still with Duncan Grant. In 1912, alongside such illustrious names as Picasso and Matisse, Bell exhibited her work in the influential

Second Post-Impressionist Exhibition at the Grafton Galleries, London, a landmark show organised by Roger Fry. With Fry, Bell and Duncan Grant co-founded The Omega Workshop, an artists’ co-operative for decorative arts that operated between 1913 and 1919, making rugs, textiles and clothing, and they would design and print side-by-side on numerous projects, often working in muted tones.Her painting of Studland Bay, on loan from Tate, is anything but, with a nod towards Matisse, emphasising colour, shape and line rather than subject, in an exercise Clive Bell and Roger Fry, called ‘significant form’, and it is a gem. Tents and Figures is another bold, strong painting on a four-fold screen, with four naked bathers amongst a pyrimidal confusion of geometric shapes. The Other Room, painted in the late thirties, is pure Matisse, even down to the vase of flowers and the gaily-patterned fabrics, a late response to the French modernists she admired so much. This is a long overdue exhibition, in fact, the first retrospective ever held in Britain of Bell’s work, and it is well worth the ten minute journey from Victoria. Don Grant

March 2017

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A New Museum at Charterhouse. London

Photographs © Lawrence Watson

Charterhouse. Charterhouse Square. London. EC1 M 6AN Opened 27th January 2017

founded there in 1371 by the Carthusian order. The name, ‘Charterhouse’ is an anglicisation of their name, La Grande Chartreuse It was one of the largest Carthusian Monasteries in Europe and was dissolved in 1537 during the English Reformation. Charterhouse put up a resistance resulting in the Prior, John Houghton being hanged, drawn and quartered. Ten Monks were sent to Newgate prison, where nine starved to death and one was executed three years later. They were known as the Carthusian Martyrs. Fragments remain of the Monastic period, but the remaining building was developed after 1545 into a courtyard house. At first it was rented by the Bassano family, musical instrument makers. Henry V111 stored hunting gear in the church. The house was then bought by Sir Edward North (later Lord North,) who demolished the church and added the Great Hall and Great Chamber. Queen Elizabeth I used the house during preparations for her Coronation and held Privy Council there. There was further Royal association when James I

March 2017

Arts & Culture

harterhouse is a little known site in London where Vanitas, a cherub, adorns the tomb of Thomas Sutton, whilst blowing golden bubbles which represent the vagaries of life and luck. Faith, Hope and Charity stand by accompanied by images of peace and plenty. The site of Charterhouse is a complex of historical buildings located on the City of London's Northern border, close to Smithfield Market. It dates back to the 14th century. The Chapel houses the tomb of Thomas Sutton, benefactor and philanthropist and the Charity he founded there still exists today. This historical gem, Charterhouse, dating to an age when ‘the old city’ was packed with parish churches, several monasteries with grounds, ponds and orchards and thriving busy life, has opened its doors to the public for the first time. A new Museum has been created revealing its history. Museums housed in historical buildings have their exhibits enhanced and give an atmosphere of living history. This site was a burial plot for victims of the Black Death. A Monastery was

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used the Great Chamber to create 130 new Barons before he was crowned. When Lord North died, Thomas Howard purchased the property and renamed it Howard House. He lived there under house arrest due to his plotting to kill Mary Queen of Scots. He was executed for his collusion in the Ridolfi Plot. Thomas Sutton then acquired the house. He was a philanthropist from Knaith, in Lincolnshire, who had made a fortune in coal. He endowed an almshouse on the site and a school for poor boys. The almshouse was to house up to eighty 'Brothers' chosen from old sea captains, maimed or disabled soldiers, failed merchants, the shipwrecked and others suffering calamity. Today a community of ‘Brothers’ still live at Charterhouse who benefit from Thomas Sutton’s Charity. James 1 became the first Royal Governor. Great names, such as Wellington, Gladstone and Cromwell were all Governors too. The School, named Charterhouse, moved out of the premises to Godalming in 1872. Among its pupils in London were Thackeray, Wesley and BadenPowell. Their names are recorded on plaques in the old cloisters. The school prospered and became one of England’s leading Public Schools. The new Museum was opened in partnership with the Museum of London and there is a new learning centre for schools, families and universities. It is all funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. Entrance to the Museum and Chapel is free, but the Brothers’ tours are highly recommended to show the house, how they live, the Great Chamber and the Great Hall and several artefacts from the past. They will also show visitors the charming garden, set out as an English country garden dominated by an ancient mulberry tree. It is said to be a cutting of Milton’s mulberry tree in Christ’s College, Cambridge, which was planted in 1840. The Museum is curated by Cathy

Ross, starting with the present day and working back in time. It gives a good insight into the history of Charterhouse. The first exhibit is the famous ‘Tudor chair’, a hybrid made up from different periods. The videos on the walls are mercifully silent and give a good idea of the Brothers' life today. From the school is a facsimile of the ‘Black Book’ or ‘flog blog’ recording misbehaviour which earned the punishment of ‘swishing’ There is a description of a ‘14 cutter’ lashing written by an observing pupil. Graffiti on a desk shows names of hated monitors heavily scored. Much display space is wisely devoted to Thomas Sutton and his charitable work. Do not miss the Bible printed in 1620, a good collection and chalices and notice the painted wooden statues as it is amazing how the paint has survived through the ages. The displays end with the skeleton of a young man lying on a gravel bed surrounded by lights. Apparently his teeth contained a chemical which scientists say provides the evidence that he died from the Black Death.

An important part of your visit is the Chapel.

The Chapterhouse of the Monastery survived the Dissolution and was converted into a small chapel for use by the occupiers of the house. It is open to the public for services and viewing. The language of the 17th century Book of Common prayer is used. The Chapel is panelled and has the wonderful aroma of old wood and musty books, a joy to academics. The North aisle and Tuscan arcades were designed by Francis Carter. Windows face Chapel Court, the site of the original 1349 church. Thomas Sutton’s tomb dominates the North aisle and it was designed by Nicholas Jansen, Edmund Kinsman and Nicholas Stone. It is heavily carved with images representing his charitable work. The attractive Cloister was built in 1614 during the conversion of Howard House. The space was designed by Francis Carter. Plaques and tablets record families and servants who lived on the premises. A visit is very rewarding, so much history is part of this site, the ‘old city’, Black Death, Dissolution of the Monasteries, Martyrdom, Royalty, Nobles, Schools and Almshouses. The charitable work of Thomas Sutton lives on today. The Bell, cast by Thomas Bartlett in 1631, tolls everyday for all those associated with Charterhouse in the present and the past. Marian Maitland. Charterhouse: T: 020 3818 8873 Open Tuesday to Sunday: 11 am to 16.45 pm www.thecharterhouse.org

David Hockney Tate Britain Until 29 May 2017 Admission £19.50 tate.org.uk

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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Right: Portrait of an Artist. (Pool with Two Figures),1972. © Lewis Collection. Below: Breakfast at Malibu, Sunday,1989. © The Robert A Rowan Collection.

he media has become preoccupied with who ‘Britain’s Greatest Living Artist’ is. After Francis Bacon died in 1992, the hollow crown was perched precariously on Lucian Freud’s head until he died in 2011, and this was was then followed by an interregnum, while various art critics bandied around names like Sir Anthony Caro, Sir Howard Hodgkin and Frank Auerbach. The new director of Tate Britain, Alex Farquharson said that ‘Hockney is without doubt one of Britain’s greatest living artists’. He is certainly one of her most popular, and has entered the realms of a ‘living national treasure’, jostling with Alan Bennett, David Attenborough and The Queen for cosy comfort on the sofa, with a cup of tea and a Bourbon biscuit in front of the three-bar electric fire. Mr and Mrs Clark and Percy (1970–71) is not just an iconic image of the 1960s and 70s, it is also one of the Tate’s best-selling postcards, and it came fifth in a BBC poll to find ‘The Greatest Painting in Britain’, as well as being the only twentieth-century image to make the list. Top of the post-card list is Lucian Freud’s Girl with a White Dog, which recently ousted Ophelia by Millais. We can only surmise that the ‘greatest living’ accolade would not amount to a pile of beans in Mr Hockney’s sense of achievements and self-worth, having already turned down a knighthood. He paints ‘what I want, when I want and where I want’, and he maintains that ‘most artists work all the time . . . especially good artists. . . I mean, what else is there to do?’ He is a quietly witty man, with

a blunt Yorkshire edge, who has a reputation for being outspoken about art, about sexual politics and about freedom to choose, particularly about his passion for smoking. He also has a great sense of history and place, and is as knowledgeable about art as many critics. He has recently published the modestly-titled A History of Pictures with Martin Gayford, art critic for The Spectator. This exhibition covers the sixty years he has been experimenting, innovating, discovering and practicing his craft in a multitude of mediums that include pure painting, drawing, printmaking, photography and photocollage, experiments in coloured fax paper, theatre set design and posters, as well as film and books.He is constantly on the move and, as soon as he has embraced and mastered the latest digital technique, he shifts to another, but never losing sight of previous directions. His innovative ‘joiner’ montages from the eighties, such as Pearlblossom Highway 1986, informed

the paintings he subsequently made of the Californian landscapes surrounding his Hollywood house. In the 1990s, his abstract works influenced the manner in which he painted the Grand Canyon and, subsequently, the Yorkshire Wolds, where he grew up.These were a large part of the big 2013 show at the Royal Academy, which attracted over 700,000 visitors, underlining his populace appeal. ‘I’m interested in ways of looking,’ he says. ‘Everybody does look, it’s just a matter of how hard they’re willing to look.’ The drive to communicate what he sees has pushed Hockney to explore many different means of image-making, often by utilising new technology and materials. The exhibition is mainly laid out chronologically, apart from the first gallery, where there is an overview of his work, in the early galleries, one is confronted by some very familiar images, of which even Hockney says, ‘many seem like old friends to me now. We’re looking back over a lifetime, and I hope, like me, people will enjoy seeing how the roots of my new and recent work can be seen in the developments over the years.’ The earliest works include the overt homoerotic Doll Boy, The Most Beautiful Boy in the World and We Two Boys Together Clinging from 1960-01, and Cleaning Teeth, Early Evening (10PM) W11, with a pair of priapic tubes of toothpaste, from the following year. The oil paints he used then in such paintings as Flight into Italy-Swiss Landscape and The Hypnotist are as vibrant today as they were sixty-odd years ago, and when he experimented with acrylics in the mid 1960s, with his views of America from California and Arizona to the Rockies, the colours became richer and deeper. Throughout this period, and into the seventies, he continued to draw and etch, and one skill he has never mislaid, forgotten or compromised, is

that of draftsmanship. and the lesson that drawing is a way of looking more intently. He also believed that ‘the joiners were much closer to the way we actually look at things, closer to the truth of experience’. Paintings of natural environments have formed a significant part of Hockney’s artistic life, from Californian terrains to rural English landscapes, whose scale is awesome. One, Bigger Trees near Warter, measuring 12m long by 4.5m high is not in the exhibition, although some smaller ones of trees and woodland in the Wolds and Hawthorn Blossom near Rudston, measuring 3.6m. and 4.8m. long, are made up of smaller canvases, very much like his earlier joiners. ‘Trees are like faces’, he explains. ‘Everyone is different. Nature doesn’t repeat itself. You have to observe carefully; there is a randomness’. In four serene and beautiful films, made up of nine video cameras attached to the front of a Volvo Estate, which was then driven slowly down a track through Woldgate Woods, the four seasons unfold and reveal themselves on 36 synchronised monitors. He really pushed the boundaries with his iPad drawings, which have an unnatural and unreal quality, which is ‘clever’, but not that appealing, and his 2015 version of The Card Players is a photographic drawing printed on paper, whatever that means, mounted on Dibond, an aluminium composite sheet, with his original acrylic painting hanging on the wall behind the men, alongside Pearlblossom Highway 1986. All very confusing. His paintings of the gardens surrounding his home are simplified down to bold and brash brush-strokes, but they are ultimately impish FUN, which is what Mr Hockney is all about, and always has been about, right from his days at the Royal College, sixty years ago. Don Grant

March 2017

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March 2017

Arts & Culture

BALLET

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

BY EMMA FLYNN

Giselle

A triumphant night of classical ballet presented by ENB.

Brazilian Brutalism:

Architect Paulo Mendes da Rocha receives the 2017 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture

B Lauretta Summerscales as Giselle and Xander Parish as Albrecht in Giselle © Laurent Liotardo

Courland. Hilarion, a gamekeeper, is also in love with Giselle and finds out that she is lovestruck with Albrecht. On finding his sword he realises Albrecht is not a commoner but a nobleman and calls the hunt party back to the village. Bathilde reveals her engagement to Albrecht. Broken hearted Giselle loses her mind and dies suddenly stunned by the betrayal. Rising as a ghost from her grave in Act 2 she is forced by the Queen of the Wilis, Mythra, to convince Albrecht to dance throughout the night until he dies. On the brink of death, Albrecht is saved by the arrival of dawn, breaking the power of the Wilis who must return to their graves. With a lasting embrace of love Giselle also returns to her grave leaving Albrecht alone with his grief. Cojocaru brings all her experience to lead this spell-binding love story from beginning to end. She brings a delightful yet mysterious cocktail of emotions to

the fore that grabs the audience, Albrecht and Hilarion in equal measures. Her purity, fragility and innocence backed with steely classical technique makes the audience feel part of the action. Brilliantly acted! Sometimes it’s a quick coy glance down or a loving look with a twinkle in the eye. Every moment has a meaning in her portrayal of this character that Cojocaru has made her own and will be remembered for decades to come. Hernández was a good Albrecht but at times it felt safe and calculated. He danced with stunning classical line and high leaps in the last act. Bufalá gave a good account of Hilarion with credible acting skills. Lauretta Summerscales danced with a radiance and assurance and at times a spirited sensual presence commanding her Wilis to drive and force the men to dance to death. Her jetés take flight like a galaxy of stars with mesmerisingly soft lunar landings that can only be described as cosmic! Rina Kanehara and Cesar Corrales danced a crispy clean and energetic peasant pas de deux in act 1. Two days later Lauretta Summerscales, Xander Parish and Michaela De Prince also had debuts in the roles of Giselle, Albrecht and Mythra, Queen of the Wilis respectively. Once again the audience was treated to a special night of ballet from these young rising stars. Summerscales and Parish gave a hypnotically refreshing and youthful account of the lead roles. Summerscales

is growing in stature as a ballerina. Like Marinela Nuñez across the road at Covent Garden, Summerscales radiates the joy of dance whenever she sets foot on the stage to perform. Parish should be applauded, and he was at the curtain calls, for his soaring leaps in Act 2 as he was commanded to dance to his death. With his super long limbs he gave us a Russian masterclass of how to devour one of the UK’s largest stages for classical ballet. Parish left The Royal Ballet as he was only allowed to hold a spear in the corps de ballet. Since joining The Marinsky Ballet he has come on in leaps and bounds. Returning as a Principal Guest Artist, Parish demonstrated his inner core strength and polished technique when executing soaring double assemblé taking off like a panther in full flight with deliciously soft landings in fifth position. It has to be the Russian training. Parish will, in time, develop his youthful acting skills as he gets more performances under his belt. Michaela De Prince, guesting from Dutch National Ballet gave a powerful account of Queen of the Wilis. The dark atmospheric lighting failed to do justice to the superbheight od Michaela De Prince’s jetés. Once again the corps de ballet should have a special mention as they have played a major role to keep ENB at the very top of the premiere league with total engagement from the peasants, royalty and Wilis. A triumphant night of classical ballet presented by ENB.

razilian architect Paulo Mendes da Rocha has been named as the 2017 recipient of the Royal Gold Medal for architecture, after winning both the Praemium Imperiale prize and the Venice Architecture Biennale Golden Lion last year. Described by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) as Brazil’s most celebrated living architect, Mendes da Rocha, 88, was awarded the medal in a ceremony on the 31st January. Given in recognition of a lifetime’s work, the Royal Gold Medal is approved personally by The Queen and is given annually to a person or group of people who have had a significant influence ‘either directly or indirectly on the advancement of architecture’. Paulo Mendes da Rocha is known for a particular style of Brazilian brutalism, combining raw concrete with huge sections of glazing, light wells and open walls. Over the past six decades, through a bold use of simple materials, light and form, he has consistently produced buildings with a deep understanding of the poetics of space. For him, architecture is a tool to modify space and landscape, in order to meet both social and aesthetic human needs. Through this two pronged approach to design, he is considered largely responsible for the modernisation of Sao Paulo, substantially aiding the city’s revitalistion through his numerous notable cultural buildings. Speaking about the award, RIBA President and chair of the selection committee Jane Duncan said: “Paulo Mendes da Rocha’s work is highly unusual in comparison to the majority of the world’s most celebrated architects. He is an architect with an incredible international reputation, yet almost all his masterpieces are built exclusively in his home country. Revolutionary and transformative, Mendes da Rocha’s work typifies the architecture of 1950s Brazil, raw, chunky and beautifully ‘brutal’ concrete… Paulo Mendes da Rocha is a world-class architect and a true living legend.” Expanding on this, architect John McAlsan, wrote in his Gold Medal

Top: Patriarch Plaza sideview © Nelson Kon Middle: Museu Brasiliero da Escultura © Nelson Kon Right: Ginasio Paulistano Athletic Club © PMDR archive

citation: “Paulo’s international stature, which has been considerable for decades, arises from a remarkable and sustained combination of architectural originality, social concern, and educational work.” Whether a home, church, art museum, or public plaza Mendes da Rocha architecture has been guided by a sense of responsibility to the inhabitants of his projects as well as to a broader society. Mendes da Rocha’s work and its acclaim also saw him receive the Pritzker Prize, architecture’s equivalent of the Nobel, in 2006. The 2016 medal was presented

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk

BRICKS AND BRICKBATS

BY ANDREW WARD

ollowing hotly on from ENB’s latest triumph with Khan’s provocatively reimagined version of the romantic classic Giselle the company is back performing the very same ballet. But this time it’s the traditional version produced by Mary Skeaping for the company in 1971. This production is perhaps as close as it gets to the original created in 1841 by Jean Corralli and Jules Perrot and later revised by the all-time god of classical ballet, namely Marius Petipa. Skeaping keeps virtually all of Adolphe Adam’s original score with a couple of additional solos added by ballerinas over the years to show off their technique. Namely in 1932, Petipa created a solo for Olga Spessitseva in act 1 with the express purpose for Giselle to thank Bathilde for the neckless. The series of hops en pointe have tested ballerinas ever since not least by our very own Alicia Markova who welcomed the opportunity to put her mark on this iconic moment in the ballet! The composer of this solo has been attributed to both Drigo and Minkus with historians and musicologists not in agreement! Before curtain up on the opening night there was a buzz in the audience with an air of excitement and expectation. It was a night of firsts! Alina Cojocaru’s first ENB performance as Giselle in this production and likewise for Isaac Hernández and Fernando Bufalá in the lead roles of Albrecht and Hilarion respectively. Cojocaru had previously made Giselle a signature role having performed the role numerous times with The Royal Ballet over many years. This gothic romantic love torn tragedy is set in a German Rhineland village. Skeaping’s choreography and David Walker’s cleverly designed sets create the perfect atmosphere for the peasants to celebrate the grape harvest with gusto and style. The story is like most love tales simple, but with intriguing twists. Giselle, a peasant girl, falls in love with Albrecht an aristrocrat in disguise who is already engaged to Bathilde the daughter of Prince of

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to Zaha Hadid shortly before her unexpected death, making her the first woman ever to win the Royal Gold Medal in her own right. Other recent recipients of the accolade include Frank Gehry (2000), Norman Foster (1983) and Frank Lloyd Wright (1941); Oscar Niemeyer (1998) is the only other Brazilian architect to have received the honour. “After so many years of work, it is a great joy to receive this recognition from the Royal Institute of British Architects for the contribution my lifetime of work and experiments have given to the

progress of architecture and society,” said Mendes da Rocha. “I would like to send my warmest wishes to all those who share my passion, in particular British architects, and share this moment with all the architects and engineers that have collaborated on my projects,” he added. Born in 1928 in Vitória, Brazil, Mendes da Rocha began his career in São Paulo. He established his office in 1955 and completed one of his most important projects, the Athletic Club of São Paulo, two years later. A minimalist concrete UFO, the building was intended as a pure expression of the means of enclosure, lifted from the ground to shelter the gym below and maintain views of the landscape. This was followed by a large number of predominantly public buildings in the city including Saint Peter Chapel (1987), the Brazilian Sculpture Museum MuBE (1988), Patriach Plaza (1992-2002), the renovation of Sao Paulo’s oldest fine arts museum, Pinacoteca do Estado gallery (1993) and the FIESP Cultural Center (1997). Another of his most celebrated works, the Brazilian Sculpture Museum, was in fact born out of the desire to have no building at all. Locating the museum’s galleries underground, the site was instead conceived as a public square and sculpture garden, with 60-metre long suspended concrete beam providing a canopy above. When asked why he didn’t design a more conventional museum building surrounded by a sculpture garden, he replied: “It would hide the things that happen there, and the city would be excluded in some way.” Socially considered, Mendes da Rocha’s works are also technically rigorous. His father was an engineer and designer of hydraulic works and port facilities, which greatly informed Mendes da Rocha’s education and passion for infrastructure. This is evident in his raw concrete forms, which regularly capture the language of flyovers and dams. Despite Mendes da Rocha’s international reputation, there have been just a few examples of his work outside his home country; Brazil’s pavilion at Expo ’70 (Osaka, Japan) and Portugal’s National Coach Museum (Lisbon, 2015). His Brazilian pavilion was an awe-inspiring display of his engineering skill; an immense concrete slab floating over an undulating landscape, supported at only three points where the landscape rose to meet the structure. Whilst temporary, the pavilion embodied what Mendes da Rocha saw as the “founding trait of architecture”, as an “instrument for configuring the land”. “Many decades after being built, each of his projects have resisted the test of time, both stylistically and physically,” said Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena and the board of directors who awarded Mendes da Rocha with the Golden Lion for lifetime achievement. “This astonishing consistency may be the consequence of his ideological integrity and his structural genius”.

March 2017

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Arts & Culture

Duncan Grant, Venus and Adonis © Tate

Winter Pictures For Sale

at the Works On Paper Fair Royal Geographical Society. Exhibition Road London SW7 2QJ 9th-12th February. 2017

This unique Fair was organised by Hodgson Events Ltd and a large selection of pictures were on sale at varying prices. Forty specialist art dealers presented drawings, watercolours and original prints from Early, Modern and Contemporary Styles. Pictures included Paul Maze’s The Lancer's Uniform in pastel, which is priced at £4,500, Giorgio Morandi’s Grande Natura Morta Circolare Con

Bottiglia e Tre Oggetti, a hand signed etching, priced at £40,320 and William Gear’s Two Heads in watercolour, charcoal and gouache, priced at £5,800. A Loan Exhibition from the Eton College Collection was on view in the Fair which provided the opportunity to see some of the finest works from the Classic period of English Watercolour painting. These pictures are rarely exhibited and no other school has such a fine collection. Works by John Constable, David Cox, Thomas Gainsborough and JMW Turner were displayed. A large watercolour by Julius Caesar Ibbetson showing figures skating on the Serpentine was on view. This picture was first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1796. Also on display was a work by Alexander and John Robert Cozens which is interesting because Alexander taught drawing at Eton College in the 1760’s. The Exhibition also presented Turner’s Chateau d'Arques near Dieppe which was first published as an

Ditchling where Eric Gill and David Jones lived in the Catholic community and West Dean home of the surrealist Edward James. The Exhibition reveals an unexpected network between Serge Chermayeff, Eric Ravilious, Moholy-Nagy. Henry Moore and John Piper. They may well have shared views on Socialism, but their work was very different and the Exhibition displays some striking sculpture, architecture and new forms of photography and film. Dr Hope questioned why the countryside, charming villages and seaside towns of Sussex attracted many Modernist artists in the early 20th century. They formed communities there and sometimes lived in domestic and sexual life styles which were considered bizarre at the time. It is possible the artists were escaping or seeking a retreat. Maybe it was easier to flout convention in Sussex than elsewhere. The idyllic Sussex scenery certainly inspired them, but there was tension among themselves and anxiety in their work. They seemed to challenge the pastoral, rustic atmosphere and some saw horrors in scenic beauty spots. They

engraving. Celebrated Art Historians gave talks in the renowned Ondaatje Theatre twice a day during the Fair. Eminent speakers included Dr David Boyd Haycock, Frances Spalding. Andrew GrahameDixon, Henry Little, Phillippa Martin and Anne Desmet. Simon Wallis and

Opening Times: Mon: 10 am-4. 30 pm Tuesday. Closed. Wed: 10 am- 9.00 pm Thurs: 10 am- 4.30 pm Fri: 10 am- 4.30 pm Sat: 10 am- 4.30 pm Sun: 11 am- 4.30 pm. Two Temple Place. London WC2R 3BD www.twotempleplace.org T: 020 7836 3715

Tim Sayer also spoke. These talks provided a splendid opportunity for academic discussion and debate. The Royal Geographical Society was an excellent venue for this unique Fair which has been very popular and successful on previous occasions. Marian Maitland.

Revolution: Russian Art 1917-1932

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

n his book about The House of Wittgenstein, A Family at War, Alexander Waugh succinctly describes the extraordinary scrimmage of nations roused to action in the name of honour in the immediate aftermath

for events were proceeding at a horrifying pace’. In the midst of all this, Russia was having its own inner turmoil, with poverty widespread, the nation teetering on the brink of economic ruin and the army struggling against Germany. In February 1917 revolution broke out and Tsar Nicholas abdicated, bringing 300 years of feudal rule to an end. A second revolution in October saw the Bolshevik Party under Vladimir Lenin replace the Provisional Government and Civil War soon followed. The exhibition brings together the art produced during those years of radical upheaval, through painting, sculpture and some electrifying film, as well as ceramics, textiles and posters. The avant-garde is represented by Marc Chagall, Wassily Kandinsky, Kasimir Malevich, Lyubov Popova, Alexander

Chagall and Kandinsky, as well as the celebtrated bass opera singer, Feodor Chaliapin, who believed that ‘liberty had been turned into tyranny, fraternity into Civil War, and equality meant stomping on anyone who dared raise his head above the level of the swamp.’ The first gallery is named Salute the Leader and features many images of Lenin, including the enigmatic portrait of Lenin in Smolny by Isaak Brodsky, with a dust-sheeted empty armchair opposite the leader, another of him in his coffin by Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin and a stiff portrayal of Joseph Stalin in 1927, again by Brodsky. Man and Machine celebrates the physicality of the workers in painting and a series of graphic black and white photographs. The great Social Realist Brodsky appears again with the dramatic Shock-worker from Dneprostrol,

of the Sarajevo assassination. ‘On 31 July 1914 Germany declared war on the Russians, who were mobilising troops in Serbia’s defence: France, in honour of its agreement with Russia, moved against Germany; Germany, to protect itself against the French, invaded Belgium, whereupon the British (who had not the slightest interest in the Serbian quarrel) declared war on Germany in defence of Belgium’s neutrality. On 5 August Austro-Hungary declared war on Russia: on the 6th Serbia on Germany; and the day after that, Montenegro declared itself against the Austro-Hungarians and the Germans. On the 10 August France declared war on Austro-Hungary and on the 12th Great Britain did the same. By the 23rd Japan, thousands of miles away, had pitched in against Germany with the immediate effect that Austro-Hungary, in honourable defence of its ally, declared war on Japan. On 28 August, two short months after the Sarajevo shootings. Austro-Hungary declared war on Belgium. More countries would follow,

Rodchenko and Vladimir Tatlin, while Social Realists represented by Isaak Brodsky and Alexander Deineka toiled alongside, until Stalin decreed that art belonged to the state and not to the individual, and should express Soviet ideology. For a few brief years, the earth tilted and the traditionalists and the avant-garde were swept along in a wave of post-Revolutionary euphoric fervour. Art in Russia was in a state of flux. The RA has taken as its starting point the major exhibition at the State Russian Museum in Leningrad in 1932, curated by the prominent art critic Nikolai Punin, which represented fifteen years of diversity and contrast, where art and politics were inextricably intertwined. A few months after Stalin’s death in 1953, Punin, who was in a civil union with the famous poet Anna Ahkmatova, died in the Gulag camp of Vorkuta, after spending the four last years of his life locked up for so-called anti-Communist activities. Many artists, poets, composers and writers fled Russia, including

1932, depicting an heroic man on a gantry with a naked torso. Shock workers were those that performed especially arduous or urgent tasks. The apportionment of food coupons was determined by the number of calories each category of worker required, and the Suprematist painter Malevich constantly argued for more, so art could now be valued in food coupons. Deineka painted young, fresh-faced, shoeless girls in scanty shifts, working in a textile factory or constructing new workshops. In the Brave New World section, a giant Bolshevik, by Boris Kustodiev, strides through the city, higher than the snowcapped onion domes, red flag aloft, with the collective masses milling around his feet. Konstantin Yuon’s New Planet is an extraordinary composition, with dozens of tiny, black figures gesticulating at enormous spheres in the sky, split by jagged shafts of light. Deineka’s Defence of Petrograd (previously St Petersberg) depicts strong, determined soldiers march past the viewer, while the wounded help

Royal Academy Until 17 April 2017 Admission £18 www.royalacademy.org.uk

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Boris Kustodiev, The Bolshevik State Tretyakov Gallery Moscow

he magnificent, Neo-Gothic mansion built on Victoria Embankment by William Waldorf Astor is currently the venue for an eclectic exhibition of Sussex Modernists’ work. Paintings, furniture, photographs, poetry and sound installations are on view.

sought to represent the world in a new light. There are one hundred and twenty exhibits which include Mae West's Lips Sofa looking slightly incongruous in the stairwell at Two Temple Place. Eric Gill's Divine Lovers shows religious iconography mingled with eroticism and sensitively blended into sculpture. There are several works by Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant and an excellent nativity scene where Sussex farmhands acted as models. It is wonderful to see works of John Piper, especially the View of Chichester Cathedral. This comes from the Piper Estate/IDACS 2016. The Exhibition provides a great opportunity to see some paintings of Pablo Picasso. Glass cabinets contain some interesting exhibits from Edward James and Peggy Angus. One can sense the political unrest of the period from Sketch of a Reclining Nude by Angus. The Nude is reading The Crisis of Capitalist Culture smiling mysteriously. This work has never been exhibited before. Dr Wolfe has gathered many interesting exhibits which help us to explore the Modernist legacy of intellectualism and optimism, but the attraction of Sussex for the Modernists still remains a mystery. Marian Maitland

David Jones, Madonna and Child in a landscape. Trustees of the David Jones Estate

Two Temple Place. London WC2 3BD Until 23rd April 2017

The Exhibition is created by the Bulldog Trust charity and nine Sussex Museums. It is curated by Dr Hope Wolfe, Lecturer in Modernist Literature and Co-Director of the Centre for Modernist Studies at the University of Sussex. She visited many Museums, Galleries and Artists’ homes seeking loans for the Exhibition. Some regional Museums have fine collections of Modernists’ work. Her visits included Townes House Art Gallery in Eastbourne, Pallant House Gallery in Chichester, Sussex Museum and Galleries, Brighton Museum and Art Gallery and Ditchling Museum of Arts and Crafts. Her visits to Artists’ homes included Charleston, home of Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant, whom the Bloomsbury set often visited. Farley House Farm in Muddles Green near Chiddingly, home of Roland Penrose and Lee Miller who often entertained Picasso, Miro and Lazslo Moholy-Nagy. She also visited

Arts & Culture

Picture reproduced by permission of the Provost and Fellows of Eton College

Sussex Modernism: Retreat and Rebellion

March 2017

each other across a bridge above. Cultural Heroes has a number of stylish photographs by Moisey Nappelbaum of the composers Dmitri Shostakovitch and Sergei Prokofiev, the poets Alexander Blak and Anna Ahkkmatova, the writer Maxim Gorky, with the film-maker Sergei Eisenstein by Man Ray. Punin is portrayed by Kasimir Malevich in a flamboyant outfit, while he has his own gallery, which replicates his own hanging of the 1932 exhibition, including his infamous Black Square, hung high up in a corner, where an icon would have been traditionally placed. As the peasants still made up 80% of the population, a large section of the exhibition is given over to paintings depicting rural life in Stalin’s collective farms, supplemented by posters, photographs, printed textiles and, surprisingly, porcelain. Trains were decorated with bright images and slogans, and sent into the vast countryside to educate the illiterate populace with the propaganda of Communism. The writer Alexander Samokhvalov said ‘revolution demands slogans, symbols and posters’, and many were made by artists who shared its political beliefs. Some artists clung onto a romantic view of Old Russia, with Konstantin Yuon painting Cupulas and Swallows and The Day of Annunciation in 1922, and Mikhail Nesterov spending the decade leading up to the October Revolution painting his ambitious Russia (Soul of the People), which was meant to embody the ‘Russian ideal.’ Following two years of famine in 1932 and 1933, during which time millions died, due entirely to the abject failure of agricultural collectivisation, Stalin feared civil unrest from within and embarked on a series of vicious and brutal purges, which saw the arrest, imprisonment, torture and execution of countless thousands of early heroes of the Revolution, artists, writers, intellectuals, peasants and even members of the army. This exceptional exhibition tells this turbulent story, in an episodic way that is both absorbing and revelatory. An American reporter Lincoln Steffens visted Petrograd in 1919 and wrote to a friend, ‘ I have seen the future, and it works.’ One wonders what he would have thought fifteen years later? Or even a hundred? Don Grant

Sergey Burylin Tractor, State Russian Museum

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Feldman MAX

REVIEWS

Moonlight

Director: Barry Jenkins Running Time: 111 minutes

fter the echo-chambered shitstorm that was the #Oscarssowhite scandal, it would have almost been a miracle if Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight, a throbbing, emotional howl tracing the life of a poor, gay black man didn’t take home the Best Picture. Moonlight took home the statuette, (though not before a further shitstorm where La La Land was accidentally awarded it), not just just providing the Academy with some much needed artistic credibility, but is also one of the best films of a year that’s already been frontloaded with some extraordinary cinema. In the immediate post-Boyhood landscape, it was hard to imagine that a director would attempt to step-on Richard Linklanter’s time-lapsed toes with a film that followed such a similar coming of age arc for at least a couple of years. But Moonlight’s beautiful and sensitive approach manages to do effortlessly with three distinct actors what Boyhood pulled off with one; the three actors who portray main character Chiron at different stages of his life might not look the same but their performances lock together like a flipbook: any missing pieces would bring the whole portrait crashing down. Chiron is the son of a crack addict mother (an unrecognisable Naomi Harris, who amazingly shot all of her scenes in under a week whilst she was playing Moneypenny in Spectre) growing up in the avid night-blue wastelands that lurk behind the glitz of the Miami strip. Jenkins, returning to feature filmmaking some seven years after Medicine For Melancholy, adapted the script from a short, autobiographical stage play called In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue,

rearranging its nonlinear plot into three distinct chapters. Both he and the play’s author, Tarell Alvin McCraney, grew up in the Liberty City housing projects, where Moonlight is set, their shared background seems crucial to the film’s vital specificity. Moonlight is obsessed with cycles, even from it’s opening shot where a camera obsessively swings around a car on a street corner. Cycles of crime, drugs, poverty envelop Chiron like the links of a chain, whilst Moonlight may be an intensely personal story, its concerns are perennial. As the film begins the primary relationship we see Chiron build is with Juan (Mahershala Ali), the drug dealer who discovers young Chiron (Hibert) hiding in a vacant building and starts looking after the boy. A viewer might doubt the man’s motives (is he grooming another kid for the corner?) were it not for the great paternal warmth Ali conveys, especially during the deeply moving scene where Juan and his girlfriend ( Janelle Monáe) talk to Chiron, with honesty and without judgment, about his sexuality. The question of what it really means to be a man hangs over Moonlight, and Jenkins gets into the expectations put on boys (and that boys put on each other) to act, talk, and feel a certain way, to always fight and to never cry. The film jumps, in its second chapter, into the social battleground of high school, where Chiron (now Sanders, playing a chronically self-conscious teen) weathers harassment from his peers, who can tell he’s different from them. But he also gets closer with Kevin ( Jharrel Jerome), introduced as a young boy in the previous segment, and the film shows how their bond, a friendship teetering on the edge of something more, is both defined and threatened by what they’ve been taught about masculinity. By the third chapter Chiron has developed into a fearsomely muscular young man who bears more than a passing resemblance to Juan and that blurring of character proves key to the film’s final act. Moonlight reaches for big insights on identity, race, culture, and sexuality, but never at the expense of the small, heartrending character study at its centre. Jenkins has done more than just expand and rearrange his source material; he also gives it an urgent cinematic rhythm, a heartbeat.

Arts & Culture

March 2017

The Girls

Phoenix Theatre Playing until 22nd April

Sleater-Kinney

Sleater-Kinney Live In Paris

Describing something as ‘a great reunion album’ tends to be as backhanded a compliment as describing an acquaintance’s plastic surgery as, “barely noticeable.” If you can tell at a glance, it probably wasn’t worth it. Yet in 2015 Sleater-Kinney managed to defy that particular piece of damning faint praise by unleashing an album No Cities To Love that could only be described as great with a capital G; accept no substitutes, and the newly released Sleater Kinney Live In Paris recorded during the victory lap tour for that album should serve as a perfect introduction for casual listeners and anyone not aware of the band’s impact on the last two decades of indie rock. For the uninitiated Sleater-Kinney are a three-piece all-girl ensemble who rose from the ashes of the Riot Grrrl movement in 1995 armed with a furious twin guitar attack. The band, always critical darlings, if never a household name, unleashed a string of classic albums between 1996-2006, each more nuanced than the one before, anchored with fiercely polemical views on gender and politics and tied together with a sly sense of humour. They also delivered balls (ovaries?) to the wall rocking that kicked most of their better known (and male) peers up and down the street. After 2006’s The Woods (a career highlight) the band unexpectedly called it a day, leaving indie rock drowning in a quagmire of beards, acoustic guitars and overly sensitive young men that we are still trying to claw our way out of to this day. Sleater-Kinney explosively returned

with No Cities To Love in secret over the course of 2014, less of an album than a breakneck ride of 10 white-knuckle songs that simultaneously felt densely packed and ready to explode, many of which get pride of place on Live In Paris. The live album comes with a taut feel that belies its thirteen-track running length. Choice cuts from No Cities to Love seemed to have been plucked specifically for their urgency whether snarling at the high cost of low prices of the simmering opener Price Tag or the never-more-danceable Surface Envy being cases in point, and the approach to the rest of the back catalogue follows a similar tack. 1997’s Dig Me Out was an almost exclusively breakneck affair, so it’s no surprise to see both the title track and Turn It On included, but more gripping still is Start Together , the opener from The Hot Rock that set the tone for that album’s nervy atmospherics and is even tenser in its live form, with Corin Tucker’s vocals battling hectic overlapping guitars for prominence. Live In Paris finds Sleater Kinney tearing through their back-catalogue like a rabid wolf, frenzied but never sacrificing their pop sensibility, with the kind of brio that bands half their age would give their eye teeth for. The obvious downside of being a band with serious history, however, is that fans who prefer the old stuff are probably always going to be a given. Considering that Sleater-Kinney were playing fan favourites like Little Babies, Words and Guitar and You’re No Rock and Roll Fun on the 2015 tour their absence on the album feels a little hard to explain, when placed next to some of the selections from No Cities To Love. This is a minor gripe though. Live At Paris’s quicksilver assault and witty lyrics should draw in the old fans and serve as the perfect primer for the neophyte.

or the professional cynic the very idea of The Girls, a technicolour bright musical version of Calendar Girls co-written by Gary Barlow, might be enough to bring one out in hives. However even those who wear cynicism like a uniform might grudgingly have to acknowledge that even if The Girls just wants to have fun, it’s able to wring out some unexpected poignancy along with the toe-tappers. Barlow’s co-author Tim Firth also scripted the film and the play, so you could be excused for wondering whether artistic fatigue was in danger of creeping in by this third instalment, but Firth seems to have been positively energised by the challenges of giving a musical remodelling to the by now familiar real-life story of the group of middle-aged Yorkshire women from the local Women’s Institute who raised over 5 million for charity by stripping off for a nude calendar. With an ingenious set constructed from rolling hills made out of greenhued cupboards, which spin and conceal

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a number of hidden doors, the actual stagecraft proves a delight. This is vital in building audience investment in the lives of the close-knit community during a first half which can initially seem overlong, but on reflection is perfectly pitched to earn the emotional catharsis of the far zippier second half. The musical’s order of events are dramatically shifted around from both the play and the film with events now culminating in the notably uproarious nude photoshoot, which certainly makes for a dramatic ending (if causing the first half to feel a tad stretched, as mentioned before). In addition, new subplots have sprung up to help fill the gap, with pride of place taken by the teenage trials of the Larkin-spouting son of one of the eponymous Girls, whose hilariously inept seduction of a newly transferred female student could probably have been extended into an entirely separate spinoff musical on the strength of its comedy. The Girls wisely makes the tragic death of Annie’s ( Joanna Riding, a stand-out) husband its dramatic centre, which enables a light touch of melancholic pathos to suffuse what could otherwise be an unbearably frothy

approach. Riding’s two stand out songs Kilimanjaro and Scarborough are deeply heartfelt explorations of loss of a kind that might come as a surprise after the feel good flair seemingly promised by the opening pæan to all things about Yorkshire (the creatively named Yorkshire) but it’s this balance of no-holds barred show-biz stomp coupled with the emotive undertones of less conventional subject matter (let’s face it, cancer isn’t the easiest subject to turn into an allsinging all dancing extravaganza) that seems to point towards The Girls proving a big hit with West End audiences.

When the climatic photo-shoot takes place, the musical manages to leap over any feeling of grubbiness and succeeds in becoming surprisingly empowering. Coming down hard on ageism without being didactic about it, The Girls succeeds in serving as the very best of this kind of popcorn entertainment whilst flavoured with that vital hint of something more. It certainly can’t be held up as high art but if you are prepared to meet The Girls on their level it’s hard not to agree that they can hold their own against any of the other musical big boys in the West End.

self-titled album in his discography (after his 2008 eponymous debut), seemingly because its 10 tracks offer a complete portrait of his many capabilities. But Ty Segall is more than just an easy entry point into his imposing catalog. The new album shows Segall has not only mastered several, stylistically divergent strains of rock, he’s becoming ever more adept at seamlessly stitching them together. Segall’s mischievous zeal is the glue that ultimately holds this album’s disparate pieces together, particularly when they collide in the same song. Bulldozing opener Break a Guitar forges a holy communion between Big Star melody and Black Sabbath brawn, and its cocksure attitude spills over to the

stripped-down follow-up, Freedom, a scrappy, acousticpowered number that recalls John Lennon’s frantic Abbey Road curio Polythene Pam. But that’s not the only move Segall has cribbed from the second side of that Beatles classic. Freedom immediately gives way to an epic sequel, Warm Hands (Freedom Returned), a 10-minute multi-sectional suite that ricochets between warped glam-folk, protometal ferocity, sneering British Invasion swagger, overdriven fuzz-punk, and a jazzy guitar jam that attempts to out-Santana the Stones’ Can’t You Hear Me Knocking. It’s the most ambitious, audacious piece of music Segall has ever produced, but he whisks through the song’s train-like structure with such manic glee that this colossal track ultimately feels as brisk and economical as a seven-inch single. Given that it’s dropped early on in the No. 3 slot, Warm Hands (Freedom Returned) casts a long shadow over the rest of the album. In its wake, even the sludgy stomper The Only One and the wild, glass-smashing roadhouse raveup Thank You Mr. K feel a bit rote in comparison. But Segall wisely balances his most epic gestures to date with his

most intimate, as Ty Segall’s back half yields the prettiest, most pristine pop songs he’s ever written: Orange Color Queen is a mash note to his girlfriend rendered in T. Rex’s mystic-lady language; the piano-rolled Papers wraps the album’s catchiest chorus around a cluttered-desk scene straight out of a late 60s Kinks album. And on Take Care (to Comb Your Hair), Segall shrewdly builds a deceptively hippy-dippy folk song into a Who-sized barrage of fingerslicing windmill strums and kit-toppling drum rolls, effortlessly bridging the troubadour and trouble-maker sides of his personality. Of course, Segall can’t help but follow up these handsomely packaged songs with Untitled, which is really just a foursecond blurt of guitar noise that closes the album with all the subtlety of a fart let out in the most crucial moment of a wedding ceremony. But that throwaway gag nonetheless serves as a reminder of Segall’s most essential quality: his refusal to settle. Rather than chart a typically linear course from raw to refined, Segall has constructed a discography more like a zig-zagging thrill ride liable to careen off into any direction. And whether it’s the jarring track-to-track juxtapositions or within the shape-shifting songs themselves, Ty Segall shows that, nearly a decade into the game, the only predictable thing about Segall is his ability to continually surprise.

Ty Segall: Ty Segall

Back in the ’60s, when bands like the Rolling Stones were averaging three new albums a year, they’d also drop quickie compilations along the way to summarize a particularly prolific period (or just cash-in on more casual fans). As someone who aspires to a ’60s Stones ideal (in terms of both his sheer level of output and his ever-evolving garagerock aesthetic) Ty Segall is also wont to drop the occasional summary collection that allows the average listener to play catch-up. Except Segall is so restless and relentless, of course, that these compilations actually comprise all new material. In the fall of 2012, Segall dropped Twins, an eclectic album that took a tasting-menu approach to the three aesthetically discrete albums that immediately preceded it. Likewise, Segall’s new album feels like a sampler of what he’s been up to in the halfdecade since: the melancholic acoustic meditations of Sleeper, the classicist craftsmanship of Manipulator, the Marc Bolan séances of T Rex, the diseased, dementoid psych-punk of last year’s Emotional Mugger. Ty Segall is the second

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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Arts & Culture Classical and Modern Chinese Paintings 15 May 2017

t has been three years since the V&A’s blockbuster exhibition of classical Chinese paintings but the capital’s reputation as a go-to place for Chinese paintings may be set to continue with London’s first ever dedicated sale of Chinese paintings. The sale will be held at Chiswick Auctions, West London, which has already established a strong reputation in the field. The watery landscapes which make up the primary genre of ink paintings are often considered to be inaccessible to a Western audience, and yet the prices achieved in UK auctions have never been so strong. Indeed Chinese painters have been less interested in direct pictorial representation for much longer than artists of the West. Thus many works will attempt to evoke an emotional response in the viewer through a combination of brushwork, shading, calligraphy and poetry.

Neural Architects Unicorn Publishing 136pp. £30. ISBN 978-1-910787-48-9

The president of Stanford University Marc Tessier-Lavigne states rather vauntingly that ‘the whole idea was to design the building from the inside out’. Is that not how all buildings are designed? The architect Ian Ritchie professes to not doing any preliminary drawings, preferring to use mind-maps and poetry to establish the parameters. ‘My architecture starts in the space I create in my mind,’ he cooed. This book tells the story of how the Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neuroscience was designed and built in Howland Street, off the Tottenham Court Road in London. It has to be said that in spite of the self-congratulatory tone of the design process, it is quite a pleasing building from the outside, at least on a dingy evening in February, where it exuded an inner glow. Above the colonnaded walkway hang row upon row of rectangular flags, or ‘pixels’ as Ritchie calls them, inspired by the pennants that used to hang in the 40 kilometres

Paintings typically come in the form of hanging scrolls which are unrolled and displayed on a wall, and hand scrolls which are unrolled gradually, right to left, along a flat surface. Many works are now framed for the convenience of display and storage. Works often bear the signature or red seal mark of an earlier artist and part of the fun of studying Chinese paintings for connoisseurs is deciphering how close a painting is to the work of the original artist. Perhaps one of the most accessible areas of Chinese are the works of Chinese modernist painters working during the 20th Century. At the same time as Matisse and Picasso were transforming Western art, artists like Qi Baishi and Zhang Daqian were transforming the hallowed traditions of Chinese ink paintings. The artists now have annual global sales which rival their Western counterparts and hold an important and increasingly acknowledged place in World Art. A work by the artist Qi Baishi, dubbed the ‘Chinese Picasso’, from the collection of esteemed journalist David Chipp (1927-2008), will be offered in the Classical And Modern Chinese Paintings Sale at Chiswick Auctions on May 15th, 2017. The painting is from the collection of David Chipp (1927-2008), former editor-in-chief at Reuters and the Press Association, and the first Western

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Arts & Culture journalist in Communist China, where he was Reuters’ correspondent between 1956 and 1960. Whilst at a party, Chipp inadvertently stepped on the toes of Chairman Mao, the notorious leader and founder of the People’s Republic of China from 1949 to 1976. His published memoirs recollect that the leader was greatly amused by the incident, a tribute to Chipp’s charming and personable manner. In his memoirs, Chipp mentions that his translator “encouraged me to buy paintings by the 93-year-old Qi Baishi. These proved a great investment”. Indeed, the last Qi Baishi painting sold by Chiswick Auctions fetched £48,800 (including premium) in November 2016. Lazarus Halstead, Head of Asian Art commented “The painting is not only an important work in its own right but it also bears testament to Anglo-Sino relations at a time when few Westerns were allowed to visit, let alone live in China.” Provenance, the history of what has happened to a painting since it was first created, is a key consideration of successfully selling Chinese paintings from the Modern and Classical periods. The sale will be on view for the week up to the 15th May and is open for consignments. If you have a painting and would like a free valuation please get in touch before the 10 March 2016. www. chiswickauctions.co.uk of elegant colonnades in Bologna, and feature pages from the score of J S Bach’s Musikalisches Opfer (Musical Offering) on one side, and UCL’s eleven Nobel prizewinners on the other. On the back of the building, the same lamellar device is used as a screen, but ice-white, which moves and ripples in the wind. The facade is a series of undulating vertical waves, punctuated by triple-glazed windows that actually open. The book is also puntuated with spurious pictures of neurons and neural circuits, alongside photographs of other laboratories across in the US. Some will find the ‘cluttered’ lab at the Salk Institute, where Joseph Salk discovered the vaccine that so nearly eradicated polio worldwide, more appealing than the squeaky-clean white work-stations in the SWC. How soon before the neuroscientists introduce a framed photograph of their children or a postcard from a friend or a model of a Star Wars Stormtrooper onto their desks? The building certainly does brighten up an otherwise dull street, particularly as the building for the Structural Civil and Building Services Engineers for the SWC, Ove Arup, is across the road, with its phoney ducting, described by one observer as ‘an alien parasite sucking the life out of an office block’. One question remains; who would buy this book? Architects, designers or neuroscientists? It’s a no-brainer. DG

Electricity: The Spark of Life Wellcome Collection Until 25 June 2017 Free admission www.wellcomecollection.org

or an exhibition about electricity, I am afraid this just lacked spark. I could go on and say it didn’t really turn me on, but there were enough diverse objects and some fine film clips to just about galvanise the visitor. In spite of the neo-brutalism pylon-like steel cabinets, it had an old-fashioned look, falling back on the things-in-glasscases school of display. One contained a copy of a science-fiction book called The Coming Race, written in 1871 by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Lord Lytton, who coined the phrase ‘the pen is mightier than the sword.’ In the novel, the plot centred around a superior race of people, the Vril-ya, who derived their powers from an electromagnetic substance called ‘Vril’. Bovril added that to the Latin for ox, namely bos, and came up with the famous beef extract in the 1870s. One grotesque press ad shows two oxen strapped uncomfortably into electric chairs with the caption ‘Bovril by Electrocution’, which the company

Lonely Courage By Rick Stroud Simon & Schuster 296pp. £20 ISBN: 978-1-4711-5565-9

Rick Stroud has been buiding up a small arsenal of true stories from the Second World War, if not to rival Ben McIntyre, certainly to fire a warning shot across his bows. He wrote no less than three with Victor Gregg, Rifleman, King’s Cross Kid and Soldier Spy, followed by a fascinating account of camouflage in the Western Desert, The Phantom Army of Alamein, then Kidnap in Crete, about the capture of a German General by Patrick Leigh Fermor from the Special Operations Executive and the Cretan resistance. In this tale, he focuses on seven of the 39 brave women agents who were trained by the SOE and infiltrated into occupied France to help and organize the Resistance against the Nazis. Stroud uses an episodic narrative technique to draw the reader in, threading many different strands, which eventually are woven together to produce a coherent story, like a patchwork quilt. There are a bewildering number of names to remember, and the author has made it easier for the reader by trying not to mix real names with code and field names.

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk patently thought would enhance their product through the novelty of electricity. Alongside is a photo of an electric chair from Sing Sing Prison, New York, and a 2 minute clip from James Whale’s 1931 classic film Frankenstein. The exhibition is notionally split into three core sections; generation, supply and consumption. In Supply: Wiring the World is a ten minute film called Berlin: Symphony of a Great City by Walter Ruttman, showing many aspects of the effects of electricity, from shop windows to stage shows and neon signs to trams. Another extract shows the moving boardwalk at the Paris World Fair in 1900, made by Thomas Edison. In Consumption: The Silent Servant is another 2-minute film clip, this time from Buster Keaton’s The Electric House, which is as mad as it gets. Apart from book illustrations, a pair of ‘rayographs’ by Man Ray and an Underground poster for Lots Road Power Station, there is not a great deal of art, something the Even so, the detail, at time, is so dense, one wonders how Stroud can possibly know every single event, from lighting a cigarette, to crossing the road, to what was said in a Gestapo interrogation, but the stories rattle along at a pace. Three things emerge whilst reading this book, the first being the extraordinary courage these women displayed, in some cases, right up until their capture and subsequent torture and death. The second is the incompetence shown by some of their British masters back in SOE headquarters in Baker Street, particularly by Col Maurice Buckmaster, whose ineptitude was only matched by his stubborness. On one occasion, an agent Gilbert Norman had been captured and the Germans carried on transmitting as though he was still at liberty. When a decoded message arrived, it was noted that the transmitting hand had been ‘stilted’, and the secret security check had been omitted. He ordered a message to be sent, in spite of loud protests from his staff, reading, ‘You have forgotten your double security check. Be more careful in future’. The Germans were thrilled and showed the message to their prisoner at the Avenue Foch, who was both amazed and angered at his crass stupidity, as they carried on using his radio transmittor. The third factor to come out, is the shear brutality of the occupying forces and how disgracefully they treated their captors. One of the most famous agents featured by Stroud is the young and stunning

Wellcome had become relied upon to provide in previous shows. One of the three commissioned works of art is a zoetrope installation featuring origami animals made from folded electricity bills, but, as it involved intense strobe lighting, the only effect it had on this visitor was to make him dizzy. Electricity

has become such a part of our everyday life and is a component in virtually everything we do, including the function of our brains and the structure of the atom. This show goes some way to tell how ‘the great invisible’ has been viewed over the years, but it needed more charge. Don Grant

Violette Szabó, immortalised in the book and subsequent film Carve Her Name with Pride. The cryptographer Leo Marks, who clearly appreciated female beauty, was smitten with her, and gave her, for encryption, his moving poem

‘The life that I have Is all that I have And the life that I have Is yours. The love that I have Of the life that I have Is yours and yours and yours. A sleep I shall have A rest I shall have Yet death will be but a pause. For the peace of my years In the long green grass Will be yours and yours and yours. . .’ He also took a shine to Noor Inayat Khan, a delcate and slender woman, who was the first wireless operator to be infiltrated into occupied France, and who was awarded the Croix de Guerre and

the George Cross, as was Violette Szabó. After the war, Marks wrote Between Silk and Cyanide, which was critical of the leadership of SOE, which had been described as ‘a mixture of brilliant brains and bungling amateurs’. There is one quotable throwaway line in this absobing book. Some German officers went to meet Picasso, described by their Fuhrer as a ‘degenerate artist’, and coming upon a reproduction of Guernica, asked him who did it. Picasso replied, ‘You did.’ Don Grant

March 2017

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Travel

Valencia: Futurism & Tradition

Costa Rica: the country for all seasons

Travel

Cynthia Pickard

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk

by Derek Wyatt

arcelona is one of Spain’s most visited cities, but just down the coast to the south, Valencia offers its own unique alternative architectural experience. Due to the city’s more compact size, it’s easy to see most of the delights on foot; a lot can be covered in a short stay of a few days, but go for longer and you can take advantage of the long sandy beach stretching the length of the city, ideal for hot summer days, and there’s a good public transport system for getting around town and to outlying areas. You might be surprised to find that Spanish isn’t the first language spoken here; Valenciano is a dialect of Catalan, signage is written in Catalan too. The Turia River that used to bisect the town was re-routed after a dramatic flood and the old riverbed has been converted into a 9 km long park. One of the highlights of my visit was the extraordinary architecture of the futuristic City of Arts and Sciences designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava that includes a planetarium, an opera house and a science museum. I then went back in time to the 15th century; Lonja de Los Mercaderes, known as the Merchants’ Market or the Silk Market was a forum for banking and commerce in the late Middle Ages. With its mix of Gothic and Renaissance architecture and its unique twisted columns it has justly won its place as a World Heritage Site. The central square of Valencia is the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, from here we wandered through streets and narrow walkways resplendent with creative graffitied wall art to the Mercat Central, a fine example of Modernist architecture housing a profusion of air-dried hams, fruit and vegetables and decorative architectural details. The equally lovely Mercado Colon built in the Art Nouveau style has been converted into an area of bars and restaurants. Next to the Central Bullring is the main train station, Estacio del Nord, another exceptional Modernist design still covered throughout by original Art Deco tile work. Valencia is a paradise for restaurants goers, and claims to be the original home of the paella. The Albufera is a rice growing area; its lake and wetland area, an hour from the city, is a haven for birds and wildlife. Go to El Palmar village to try the traditional version of the paella, here made with rabbit or chicken and beans, or in the centre of Valencia, book

March 2017

a table at Casa Carmela in the Malvarosa district. Snails, mussels and horsemeat are all used in the local cuisine; another peasant dish is All i pebre; eels with potatoes paprika and garlic. Fish now comes from the Atlantic and the price has soared. There are some great upmarket venues including three from international chef Ricard Camarena; try his Central Bar in the Central Market. There’s Mexican and Japanese, the option of fusion at Seu Xerea and for an excellent choice of wines, Tasca Montana in Cabanyal, the old fishermen’s area. A huge variety of atmospheres and prices including the funky La Cooperative del

Mar where you pick your can of fish from the shelves and have it opened up and served with a salad, then on to bars such as La Paca bar in Calle Rosari which will give you a drink and a tapa for 2 euros. There is still a lot of traditional food in Valencia, look out for horchatarias; bars selling Horchata, a milky drink with a very particular taste made from crushed tiger nuts. Then there are bakeries displaying breads baked with olives, nuts, vegetables or fish inside. A few days in Valencia will give you a taste, but you will find yourself wanting to come back for more.

e travelled to San Jose in Costa Rica by BA; the flight was delayed by 90 minutes as the fuel gauges did not match (the recent crash in Columbia was a thought but not spoken) so understandably we had to wait for them to be rectified. The flight was packed and given it should have left at 08.30 most people must have started out around 02.00 or so to arrive at an already heaving Gatwick. Still it is such a better experience than Heathrow. The flight was ten and a half hours.....which in cattle class is hard going....no internet, not a single film worth watching, no games to play, rubbish wines and indifferent food. This is not the BA we once knew. It feels like the airline equivalent of Debenhams. We arrived just after three in the afternoon local time (a six hour time difference); customs was a struggle with two planes arriving within five minutes. As ever there were not enough staff or booths and it took a further hour to clear. Finding the Avis car rental desk was a nightmare. It was not at the airport....... and no-one could tell us in our GCSE Spanish where it was, which was two miles away! Naturally, there was no signage at the airport and somewhat tired we floundered. Eventually, by luck and gesticulation we made our way to Avis where naturally, dear reader, they could not find our details even though I had them on my iPhone with all their references et al. This was another wasted hour and another crappy service company just wanting to skin you. Someone will do an Uber on hire cars some day soon and modernise the whole process with a single card which both pays for the experience and opens the car. After all this is what the Oyster card is morphing into. The process is a scam. You hire a car for £500 in the UK but by the time you have paid for the insurance and satnav at the rental desk, it has doubled and that’s just for a week! Maybe a UK insurance company could offer a deal to insure us for a week to drive a rental car overseas for £100. It is a £multi billion business waiting to happen. We set off for our hotel exhausted but strangely exhilarated. This was a first for both of us. Six miles down the road in San Jose we found all the roads blocked which confused us and of course our Mrs Waze. We went round and round and round. This was not the start we would have wished. It felt as if the sun had set on us; we were completely in the dark.

We spotted a taxi and with good grace we followed him to our destination: the Hotel Grand De Oro. I awoke the next day feeling poorly and so, given we would be up in the mountains today and tomorrow and then a long way from life on a beach, I called a doctor. He said he would be at our hotel by ten and arrived just before midday. In fifteen minutes, I had lost $200 to his fee. Finally, we set out for Nepenthe, a small hotel, high up in the hills close to Lake Arenal about 160 miles away. It took us longer than we could have anticipated and we were grateful that the weather was warm and the roads quiet and largely free of potholes. I was tired and nearly five hours of driving added to my general feeling that we should have just gone straight to the beach! The wish for a 4x4 began to dominate our conversation as it took nearly fifty minutes to make our way off the ‘main’ road by the Arenal, a huge man-made lake, for us to reach our destination. It was barely five miles but the dirt track made it more difficult in our car as we bounced from side to side. Our eco-style lodge was cold and uninviting. This is not what we planned. We settled for supper a mere 100m down the road as

we did not fancy any more driving (well I didn’t). On Monday we woke to torrential rain... buckets of it......I guess we should have been a tad smarter given we were actually in a rain forest. We managed a Butterfly centre, saw some monkeys and parrots and simply lusted after the sun. Gratefully, we drove next to Playa Azul on the Pacific coast where we had hired a five bedroom house with three bathrooms, an infinity pool and a cook courtesy of Airbnb. (In 2006, just under one thousand people used Airbnb this last year, nearly 2m have hired a house or rooms in a house). En route and a dozen calls later, we wore out Avis’s patience and swapped our car for a 4x4 at Budget. It was the best decision we made all holiday! Whilst we were keen to see the animal and bird life here in Costa, we really just wanted to be by the beach with our children. Our families live in Seattle, New York, Pimlico and Brixton and had travelled via LA and Houston to Liberia a small town in the north of Costa and from there to Playa Azul. The road system was impressive and though Highway 190 remains unpaved for 20 miles or so, it was an easier drive than Arenal.

It would be hard to describe the house we rented. There was not another one in our sight lines as we looked over the pool to a wondrous beach with waves crashing around us. We were not its only inhabitants. We were joined by the pelican fly pasts (the Black Arrows) on the hour every hour, the iguana competitions to see which one of them could climb up the palm trees the fastest, the humming humming birds and the extraordinary vultures, parrots and butterflies. And at night the frogs took a free dip. Aside from playing Pandemic or Piquet we read, caught up with the gossip, ate, swam, walked and played in the sea or simply slept. Day after day after day we chilled. Chilled champagne, chilled Chilean whites and plenty of mixers. Of course we talked endlessly about Brexit and Trump and of Obama whose eight year presidency has been so quickly forgotten, plus naturally, the end of the world as we understood it. There was one wondrous surprise when my daughter’s boyfriend proposed to her on our last night. Hooray. All too soon planes were dispatched to take us home. Except. Except we were heading next to Havana for the New Year to join the celebrations of the 58th year of the Republic. I had previously been to Venezuela, Ecuador, Brazil and Argentina so Costa Rica was a first. I cannot recommend it enough. The countryside people are friendly, helpful, kind and generous. The animal and bird life is fantastic and on the Atlantic side there’s a chance of seeing cougars and jaguars. On the Pacific coast, there is sailing, snorkelling and surfing, but be wary of the riff tides if you swim. Most of all remember that 4x4!

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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Health Specialist physiotherapy in the heart of Chelsea

isling Finn, women’s health physiotherapist at The Lister Hospital and Chelsea Medical Centre, both part of HCA Healthcare UK, talks about her role and some of the conditions that she treats. What are some of the main conditions that you see in your clinic?

As a physiotherapist specialising in women’s health I see a wide range of conditions, from pelvic floor problems to pain associated with pregnancy, to women who would like to learn more about exercising safely during pregnancy and after giving birth. I also see women pre-and post-gynaecology surgery, as well as patients who have bladder or bowel urgency or incontinence, prolapses, or have had a caesarean section.

What sorts of symptoms prompt people to come and see you?

Patients who are pregnant or postnatal often report pain in their pelvis, lower back or hips. Some women have PGP (pelvic girdle pain) which can cause pain around the pelvic area or in the lower back which might be worse when walking, going upstairs or standing on one leg. With patients who are having pelvic floor problems, they might report feeling a heaviness or a pulling down in that area, particularly at the end of the day or while lifting something heavy, which could indicate a pelvic organ prolapse. Other women complain of leaking when they cough, sneeze or laugh and/or bladder urgency. Patients who have had a recent surgery or a tear with childbirth might report a painful or sensitive scar or have pain around that area, which we can treat with massage techniques.

Do you see lots of pregnant women in your clinic?

I do see many patients who are pregnant or who have recently given birth. It’s a time when your body undergoes lots of changes so it’s important to listen to it and seek help if you do have pain. But it’s not all about women who have had babies. Pelvic floor problems such as pelvic organ prolapse, bladder/ bowel

urgency and/or incontinence can happen at any age and can also affect women who do a lot of physical activity as well as post-menopausal women.

What sort of treatment do you advise?

For women who have lower back pain or PGP during pregnancy it’s really important to work to activate the pelvic floor muscles and to build up core strength, so we advise patients on mobility and strengthening exercises, posture correction, or even using aids such as a maternity support belt, and we also perform manual therapy techniques. In patients who have pelvic floor problems, our work may involve educating them on how to strengthen their pelvic floor muscles, or others who have a very tight pelvic floor may require breathing and relaxation exercises. For people who have bladder urgency or incontinence we would work on bladder re-training techniques along with information and advice on fluid and dietary intake.

Where should people go for more information?

Visit www.thelisterhospital.com for more information on the women’s health physiotherapy services we offer, or to get in touch about an appointment contact us at physio.lister@hcahealthcare.co.uk, or T: 020 7824 8041.

Health

March 2017

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk

The body needs an MOT

"Would the costs of a body MOT be hazardous to my health and would the benefits of the information make the investment worthwhile?"

Kate Hawthorne looks at the benefits of visiting the Advanced Screening Centre

aving been through various health checks, house moves, different GPs and hospital visits over the last few years I was concerned that all the information pertaining to my health would be impossible to track when needed. With different specialists treating only individual parts of my anatomy, and the various data housed in different places, there was no full record of my overall health to support individual medical issues as and when they occurred. But would the costs of a body MOT be hazardous to my health and would the benefits of the information make the investment worthwhile? This was overridden by a quest for peace of mind and supported savings accrued from some serious self denial! An appointment was made with the Advanced Screening Centre at the Harley Street Clinic. The first appointment was with a

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seamless. The whole process took two visits and were within a two-day period to suit my diary. Once completed, I returned to see the GP and was presented with my own ‘health folder’. This contained all the results; detailed blood tests, CDs of all the scans and a summary of advice, recommendations of lifestyle and medication to support the results. The factors that were highlighted from the diagnostic procedures would not have been picked up from normal health checks and would have been left undiscovered and untreated. The ‘health folder’ forensic records on each part of the body, together with the summary, addressed the remedial action required now and for the future.

The Result

GP who takes you through your family history to assess any relevant genetic and health related information. This is followed by a thorough examination, from tip to toe, and a detailed discussion about health fears, current conditions and medical history and from this a decision as to what diagnostic screenings would be most appropriate. We selected a Bone Density Scan, a pelvic MRI, a Mammogram, and a chest screening. I was also given a separate eye test, a respiratory examination, skin, neck, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and

neurological examinations as well as a full set of blood tests. The whole process was conducted pleasantly and efficiently, and no waiting time. The only unfortunate glitch was my decision to hear classical music in headphones during the Pelvic Scan, which resulted in Wagner’s most tempestuous score accompanying me through the tunnel. The surrealness of this untimely performance did help me to see the humour of the situation however, and the rest of the appointments were peaceful and

their unique groups of specialists that work across several different medical disciplines for the treatment of each individual case. “Our Multidisciplinary Teams mean that patients’ care and treatment plans are assessed by a network of the most qualified and experienced clinicians in medicine,” says Sullivan. “Whether it’s diagnosing hard-to-detect cancer cells or using the most advanced techniques to treat previously inoperable cases, our expertise and innovative techniques enable us to offer a world-class service across all our treatment areas.”

Testament to their cutting-edge approach, The Harley Street Clinic were the first hospital in the Britain to offer Cyberknife treatment, the only radiosurgery system that uses advanced robotics to treat tumours anywhere in the body. They were also one of the first health centres to offer the Rosa Robotic System allowing their neurosurgeons greater precision and safe navigation during brain surgery. “While we offer pioneering new treatments and advanced technologies, our key focus is always centred on ensuring that everyone who visits The

Peace of mind and a gratefulness that this information would prevent undetected problems developing in the future, and that my current medical issues will now be addressed. In a perfect world, this service would be on our excellent but fading NHS system. In a perfect world, our NHS doctors would have the time and facilities they need to treat their patients. It is why such dedicated, brilliant people turn to this profession. We need to support them to receive whatever they need. www.advancedscreeningcentre.co.uk

The Lister Hospital is a private hospital located in the heart of Chelsea. It has been providing care and treatment for over 30 years. Our service is bespoke to your medical needs with access to the capital’s leading specialists and treatments. We want you to feel like family from the moment you walk through our door. Call now to book an appointment:

020 3733 0253

www.thelisterhospital.com

Harley Street Clinic “outstanding”

among London’s private hospitals By Ione Bingley This year saw Harley Street Clinic rated “outstanding” by the Care Quality Commission, making them the first private hospital in London to lay claim to this impressive accolade. The hospital puts it down to their world-class intensive care units that are central to their specialist services, allowing the hospital to offer the latest technology and advanced care to patients requiring complex procedures, many of whom are children and babies. “Our Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, the largest in Europe, is the bedrock of our children’s hospital, which is one of the largest, most vibrant and innovative centres for paediatric medicine in Europe,” says Chief Operating Officer at The Harley Street Clinic, Clare Sullivan. With a focus on cardiology, neurosciences and oncology, the 103bed hospital is celebrated for its tackling of the most complex patient cases. Sullivan believes this success is due to

Harley Street Clinic receives the very best, high quality, patient centred care in modern facilities,” says Sullivan. “Our staff culture is steeped in compassion and individualised care, whilst our medical facilities are among the most advanced in the world.” While the Harley Street Clinic does predominately offer private treatment, they do work closely with Chain of Hope, a charity set up by world renowned heart surgeon Sir Professor Magdi OM, offering heart surgery and treatment to children from overseas. www.theharleystreetclinic.com

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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in this day and age, why bother? (Part 2) By Dr Tony Hughes

ell, apart from the value in laying down memory and wiping the plate clean for new memory acquisition, about which I spoke last time, what else do scientists know about this strange state called sleep which takes up to a third of our lives? Are there not more profitable ways of spending one’s time or is it indispensable? We surely all know the problems of a few poor nights’ sleep; irritability, limited attention, general malaise, often low mood; though, interestingly, sleep restriction is sometimes tried for depressive illness with a degree of success, though dependent on the individual. Long term poor sleep, termed ‘chronic’ insomnia is associated with increased risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, heart problems. This doesn’t mean you are going to have these problems if you have poor sleep, it just means it appears to increase the likelihood. And notice the words

Medical centre makes annual £1million donation to NHS By Ione Bingley

A unique medical centre said to “represent everything positive about privatisation” has been making £1m donations to the NHS annually for the last 12 years. Neurology and Neurosurgery specialists Queen Square Private Healthcare is owned by the charitable arm of the University College London Hospitals (UCLH) trust. It is the only business of its type in the UK that operates on a not-for-profit

March 2017

Health

Health Sleep, perchance to dream…

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‘associated with’; this doesn’t mean it is definitely causal; it’s just they often ‘go together’. Sleep is also used for homeostasis; that is allowing the body to return to equilibrium. There is a circadian rhythm which is a rhythm through the 24 hours, with variations for example in hormone levels. Scientists at Surrey University over the last 10 years or so have been working with white blood cells (called bloodromics!) and have demonstrated up or down regulation of genes involved in repair and immune responses; so right down at the gene level there is progress in understanding. We may recall a couple of years ago in the press there was considerable coverage of studies in mice demonstrating changes in the size of the ‘canals’ in the brain containing fluid similar to lymph that allow convective exchange and clearance of debris. Others studies showed build up of tau protein and amyloid, both relevant to dementia in sleep deprivation. A question one is always asked is ‘What do dreams mean?’ Even this has been contested in the scientific world; some even suggesting dream sleep is unnecessary. There are new studies recently, however, reporting that during REM (dream) sleep memories are also consolidated during this phase. Clearly, some dreams amount to ‘cognitive litter’ of no consequence. However, there are also dreams that represent all the things model, with all surplus income going back into the UCLH charity through Gift Aid donations. Located on the site of the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN), off Great Ormond Street, Queen Square Enterprises (QSE) has now donated in excess of £25m to the Trust since its establishment in 1985. “There’s a huge demand for private medical intervention … to aid treatment for potentially life-threatening conditions. QSE has set up a system whereby we can reduce the demands placed on the NHS, while at the same time providing income back to the NHS through Gift Aid donations,” said QSE Chairman of the Board Graham Faulkner. Most of the money donated to UCLH by QSE goes straight to capital projects. Their grants directly led to the opening of the Neuromuscular Complex Care Centre, located at the NHNN, in 2014. Jodee Cooper, CEO of QSE, believes their business model is a shining example of a private-public partnership. “We’re able to plough our profits straight back into the UCLH Charity. The charity then uses that for the direct benefit of NHS patients. Our Gift Aid dividend has not only upgraded operating theatres, we’ve paid for wards to be created, and we’ve introduced new services to the NHNN,” she said.

Freud spoke of all those years ago; suppressed desires, emotions, impulsions that can valuably be explored in psychotherapy; though this is usually now in a much broader context than at that time. There are many causes of poor sleep. One to watch out for is sleep apnœa, often in heavy people liking a tipple who snore. Ask the partner to watch out particularly in the later hours of the night when dream sleep occurs to see if breathing seems to stop, typically a pause followed by a big snort! In which case sleep studies should be undertaken. If there is sleep apnœa there are methods of helping, one of which is CPAP with a machine that gently increases the intake of air past the collapsed airway. This really can be transformative making patients feel refreshed sometimes after years of misery, helping weight loss even. Chronic insomnia can be hard to treat as the habits have been deeply ingrained. To a certain degree it depends on the patient’s willingness to break this. A

P form of ‘tough love’ involves restriction of sleep in order to increase sleep efficiency i.e. the percentage of the time spent in bed actually asleep. This is achieved with a form of CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) adapted for sleep treatment (CBTi) incorporating many of the ideas of general CBT. It is evidently necessary to explore the background issues also to see if there are other remediable causes, as it is usually not just a case of treating the sleeplessness on its own. Dr Tony Hughes GP at Princess Grace Hospital Consulting Rooms 47, Nottingham Place W1U 5LZ www.sleeptreatment.co.uk

chelsea private clinic

Non-surgical Facelift (thread lifts) If you would like to reverse the signs of ageing, a revolutionary non-surgical face lift called the ‘thread lift’ may well be the best possible option outside surgery. This treatment uses absorbable threads to lift and rejuvenate your facial skin, resulting in a fresh, youthful appearance. These treatments target specific areas of the face and are recommended to lift and contour brows, crows feet, cheeks, nasolabial folds and marionette lines, jawline and neck area. The procedure lasts between 1 and 2 hours. AFTER

DR. KATE ALEXANDRA BISHOP Dr Kate Alexandra Bishop not only offers anti-wrinkle injections and dermal fillers at Cosmetech but now also the UK’s leading non-surgical facelift, the Princess Lift® PDO (LFL - Lead Fine Lift). It is a premium lifting thread which is absorbed after proliferating collagen by stimulating fibroblast.

“I couldn’t be happier with the result” Gillian Taylforth

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020 7565 0333 *T&Cs apply. This article must be presented to redmeme your 10% discount. Valid until March 31st (one voucher per person). Cosmetech, Chelsea Private Clinic, The Courtyard, 250 Kings Road, London SW3 5UE

3fivetwo.com

PART OF THE 3FIVETWO GROUP BECAUSE LIFE MATTERS

rostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK, with over 40,000 new cases diagnosed every year. It often causes no symptoms, but men who are worried about it can request a prostate specific antigen (PSA) test. Your doctor will explain the pros and cons of this, as an abnormal level isn't specific to prostate cancer (it can also indicate urine infection or inflammation of the prostate), and many men have unnecessary invasive tests as a result. If your doctor does suspect cancer, the usual next step is to take tissue samples through a rectal biopsy, but there are problems with this; the needle might need to be pushed through the prostate several times to find cancerous tissue, and there is a risk of infection. Transrectal biopsies can also find cells that look like cancer but do not grow or spread in the vast majority of cases. These mean that men commonly die with prostate cancer, not from it. However, many men have unnecessary treatment ‘just in case’, when these socalled cancers can be safely watched for

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A major advance in prostate cancer diagnosis

cosmetech

BEFORE

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years via active surveillance. Also, once a man is diagnosed with prostate cancer, and advised to have treatment rather than active surveillance, the entire prostate is treated with radiotherapy or surgery. Both cause damage to surrounding tissue, which leads to side-effects. 5-20% of patients can become incontinent, and 30-60% suffer from impotence. So the benefits of invasive treatment need to outweigh the risks, but there is only a 5% improvement in survival over giving no treatment at

Helping you take care of yourself World class clinical care in west London Kensington’s Bupa Cromwell Hospital offers an exceptional healthcare resource for Londoners. Whether using private health insurance or ‘self-funding’, our world-renowned services are available to everyone, and just a five minute walk from Kensington High Street, Earl’s Court or Gloucester Road. private GPs with walk-in appointments the latest diagnostic technology, with no waiting times and quick results London’s leading consultants, with appointments available at short notice tailored health screening packages to suit every need Women’s Health Centre with female-only specialists Call us on 020 7460 2000 or email contact.centre@cromwellhospital.com to discuss your healthcare needs.

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all for those with medium to high risk cancers. Things are finally changing for the better. We can now find significant cancers in the prostate by carrying out an MRI scan. If the MRI is clear then men can avoid a biopsy altogether, and if they do need a biopsy (to confirm a cancer flagged up on the scan), they can have a MRI guided biopsy through the skin rather than rectum. This is more accurate, can be done under local anaesthetic and sedation, and has a lower

risk of infection. If cancer is found, many men can now benefit from 'focal therapy' treatment, which has a far lower risk of side-effects as only the tumour is targeted, not the whole prostate. Focal therapy can use a number of energy sources to destroy the cancerous tissue precisely. Men return to normal activities 2-4 weeks after treatment, whereas recovery from surgery and radiotherapy can take over three months. Advanced imaging, and less invasive biopsies and therapies mean men will have fewer and better biopsies, and treatments that have a lower rate of sideeffects. So, the outlook for men who are worried about prostate cancer, and those who are then diagnosed, is improving significantly. I have been working with Bupa Cromwell Hospital and Bupa's London Health Centres to create a new patient pathway for prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment, available whether you have health insurance or are self funding. This provides a seamless journey from the first abnormal PSA result through MRI, biopsy and treatment as required. For more information about this see www.bupacromwellhospital.com/ prostate. Professor Hashim Ahmed, Consultant Urological Surgeon, Bupa Cromwell Hospital

March 2017

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By Owen Fulda

alaria’s devastating impact could be dramatically reduced after scientists from the

March 2017

Motoring

Health

Malaria vaccine sparks new hopes of control

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University of Tübingen in Germany created a vaccine that, in limited trials, offered 100 percent protection against infection for at least 10 weeks after the final dose. The Tübingen study involved 67 healthy adults, with the best immune response shown in a group of nine people that received the highest dose of the vaccine three times at four-week intervals. At the end of the trial, all nine individuals had 100 percent protection from the disease.

“By vaccinating with a live, fully active pathogen, it seems clear that we were able to set of a very strong immune response,” said study leader Benjamin Mordmueller. “The researchers analysed the bodies' immune reactions and identified protein patterns which will make it possible to further improve malaria vaccines,” explained co-author Professor Peter Kremsner. Additionally, subjects who received lower concentrations of the vaccine dose still show some protection against infection, with one-third or two-thirds of vaccinated people demonstrating immunity, depending on the dose. No severe human side effects were found during the trial, with the frequency of adverse reactions to the vaccine the same for those who received a placebo. Malaria was the reported cause of 429,000 deaths in 2015 with 212 million new cases in that year alone. Children under the age of 5 accounted for around three quarters of global malaria-related deaths in 2015 and it is estimated that a child dies from malaria every 30 seconds. Mosquitoes carrying the deadly malaria parasite have existed alongside humans for thousands of years with the disease appearing in documented reports as early as 2700 BC. Mosquitoes are known carriers of several serious diseases and are responsible, more recently, for the Zika

virus epidemic of 2015/16 that was linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains, a disorder known as microcephaly. Malaria’s long history includes many historic attempts to defeat it. Quinine, a substance derived from the bark of the cinchona tree, has been considered an effective method against malaria since the 1600s. After the role of mosquitoes in malaria transmission was understood, scientists focused on controlling the mosquitoes themselves, known as vectors. They hypothesised that that by killing the vector, they could halt the cycle of infection. Consequently, DDT and other insecticides came into fashion in the mid-1900s and have been used ever since. Mosquito nets hung over beds to protect sleeping people from bites are another prevalent form of control that is extremely cost effective. The development of several different anti-malarial drugs has changed the way travellers view malaria-endemic countries and the risk associated with them. In fact due to the aforementioned measures, estimated deaths from malaria fell 13 percent, from 755,000 in 2000 to 655,000 in 2010. Cases of the disease continued to fall, although less dramatically, from 223 million in 2000 to about 216 million in 2010, but have failed to fall much further in recent years.

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From the Back Seat Part 40

By Don Grant

had recently passed my driving test and was eager to drive anyone anywhere in anything. Standing in for dad, who was away in America, I volunteered to drive my mum Eba in her little red drophead MGB to a Grade II listed Georgian pile set in 12 acres of parkland in Essex for a summer party given by a very glamorous motor racing couple. It was alleged that the house had been won in a game of cards in the 19th century by our host’s grandfather. They had quite a lavish life-style, with an apartment in Mayfair, fast cars and holidays in the Alps and the Caribbean. He was a talented and successful racing driver, becoming the British and European Saloon Car Champion and ended up driving GT40’s at Le Mans and AC Cobras all over the world. He was a friend of dad’s and I had met her before, first at the Doghouse Club caravan at Goodwood, when she drove an enormous Ford Galaxie station wagon, which she referred to as her husband’s estate car, into the paddock, reversing the beast into an impossibly small space. I then watched her perform in a Doghouse Ball cabaret at the Savoy, dressed up as a schoolgirl with shorts, freckles and bunches. My heart fluttered. Eba, who was one of the organisers and perfomers asked whether I would help her take her tombola prizes up to her room, which I dutifully did. She was elegant, sophisticated, so very welcoming, very, very beautiful, and way out of my league. I had never met someone who was so captivating and poised. She was also ten years older than I was. When she learnt that I was an art student, she showed me some of their paintings and asking my opinion of them. What can one say about a Canaletto, or, come to think of it, six of them? I wrote her a thank-you letter on behalf of me and Eba, and somehow slipped in a surreptitious invitation to have dinner. At this stage of my life, I was deeply impressed with anything French. I put this down to the influence of dad and his technical editor, John Bolster. I went to see Truffaut and Godard films playing at the Everyman Cinema in Hampstead. I tried to smoke like Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo, except the Gauloise fell out of my mouth when I tried to puff and speak at the same time. I played Juliet Greco and Francois Hardy records relentlessly. I wore black polo-necked jumpers. I read Le Grand Meaulnes, Camus and Sartre,

"and later that week, when she took delivery of a Porsche 911 Targa, with the registration BOO800, in homage to a character from Yogi Bear, she suggested that we take it to Switzerland for a skiing holiday."

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as well as the poetry of Baudelaire and Verlaine. I went to France whenever I could, mostly to Paris, where I had friends, which was made easier by ‘borrowing’ my dad’s Townsend Ferry season pass, which the company had issued to him, if he mentioned their name in an article whenever he crossed the Channel. When I heard that Bolster’s favourite restaurant in London was Le Cellièr du Midi in Hampstead, and I took her there on our first date. Because it was in the basement of a large house in Church Walk owned by the Temperance League, they did not have a license, so customers took their own, and added a modest corkage to their bills. On a student grant, it was a struggle to make ends meet, but I had a weekend and holiday job driving a Victoria Wine van, delivering booze, and I was able to pay my way, and buy wine at a discount. However, this was my treat, even though I knew, and she knew that I knew she knew, it was easy enough for her to pay for everything. The evening seemed to go in the right direction, and later that week, when she took delivery of a Porsche 911 Targa, with the registration BOO800, in homage to a character from Yogi Bear, she suggested that we take it to Switzerland for a skiing holiday. It wasn’t as though they were in the throes of a blissful marriage; in fact they were living separate lives and shaping up for a divorce, so I had little hesitation in saying yes. I borrowed some Swiss francs from dad, explaining who I was going with. He was never judgemental about having an affair with a married woman. She was running the car in and she drove us steadily down to Lydd to board a Silver City Bristol Freighter plane to Le Touquet. I took her to Roger La Grenouille, in the heart of Saint Germain de Près, a restaurant that Bolster and dad frequented. It was better than I expected, with every scrap of wall space being taken up with old photographs, posters and paintings, tables with white linen occupied by furtive couples and a menu written on a blackboard at the far end of the restaurant, which one had to read through opera glasses. My date was most impressed that I knew of such an off-beat and eccentric place. After a night in Paris, she drove south for about 150kms, where, on a long stretch of road, there was sound of someone shaking an Oxfam tin from the back of the car. We pulled in and I peered into one of the carburettors and noticed a fine, white powder in the opening. A piston had vaporised. We managed to limp into Auxerre, where she organised a Porsche dealer to pick it up and take the horrid thing away. We stayed one night in a dingy hotel, and set off next morning on the Trans-Europe Express with all our luggage, to Martigny, where we got a taxi up to Verbier. She was a particularly competent skier. I, on the other hand was not, although I made up for having no style at all by having no fear either. It became her mission to get me to ski properly. After a few knee-trembling moments before launching myself down Mont Gelé and Tortine, I felt I had cracked it. At least, I was soon able to keep up with her and follow her pert bottom down through the trees in fine powder. The bar bill we ran up was more than the hotel, and she had to get a racing driver friend Jo Bonnier to send some money up from Lausanne. The Porsche, which had been taken back to Paris for repair, was delivered by a middle-aged woman, who had run it in on the way down. I was given a chance to drive a Porsche at last, and soon realised that this was the life. Sunglasses, a beautiful woman at one’s side, skiing tan, driving down mountain roads under a crisp Swiss regulation blue sky. What deep joy to feel this wonderfully balanced car do exactly what one wanted it to. We zoomed back to Paris for another mischievous night, before heading back to England. A few weeks later, we were in Kitzbuhel in Austria,where she ‘loaned’ me her personal ski instuctor for the afternoon, who taught me more in three hours than I had learnt in three weeks. He took me down the awesome Hahnenkamm run, which they use in the downhill championships. That alone was worth the trip. Our little fling was fun while it lasted, but as is the way of the world, the fire had gone out, and so, that was that. After we separated, so did they and they sold their magnificent house to some friends and years later it was sold again, it being turned into a hotel and restaurant, and a favourite venue for Essex couples to get married. In 2007, a fire broke out, not in a bedroom, but in the kitchen, and it was burnt to a crisp, and with it, all the family portraits, that displayed the characteristic family trait, a prominent nose, as well as photographs and documents relating to the history of the house. Luckily, the Canalettos had been equally divided at the time of the divorce.

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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Motoring Formula 1 ushers in a new season By Owen Fulda

y the time the 2017 Formula One season gets underway on March 26 at the Australian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton will have been stewing on last season’s disappointment for over four months. Hamilton suffered a series of mechanical failures last year as he endured a frustrating campaign which saw him finish second overall. Following team mate Nico Rosberg’s shock retirement upon winning the 2016 F1 Driver’s Championship, the stage seems set for Stevenage-born Hamilton to claim his fourth World title this year. The popular German Grand Prix at Hockenheim has been dropped from this year’s F1 calendar while the European Grand Prix will once again take place in Baku, Azerbaijan. In something of a fixture clash, the British Grand Prix is set to take place at Silverstone on July 16, the same day as the men’s Wimbledon final. Dutch prodigy Max Verstappen is the most likely challenger to Lewis, although the 19-year-old Red Bull racer might be advised to tone down his aggressive driving strategy if he is to avoid points deductions. Mercedes have dominated the Constructors’ Championship over the past three years, winning by almost 300 points on each occasion, and with Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas now partnering Hamilton they are favourites once again. Red Bull Racing led by Team Principal Christian Horner will hope to rival the German team, but with Ferrari still a long way back in terms of straight line speed, the Constructors’ Championship again looks set to be another two-horse race.

March March 26: Melbourne, Australia. 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Nico Rosberg.

April April 9: Shanghai, China. 2016 Pole Position: Nico Rosberg. 2016 Winner: Nico Rosberg. April 16: Bahrain, Bahrain 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Nico Rosberg. April 30: Sochi, Russia 2016 Pole Position: Nico Rosberg. 2016 Winner: Nico Rosberg.

May

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March 2017

Motoring May 14: Barcelona, Spain 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Max Verstappen. May 28: Monte Carlo, Monaco 2016 Pole Position: Daniel Ricciardo. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton.

June June 11: Montreal, Canada 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton. June 25: Baku, Azerbaijan 2016 Pole Position: Nico Rosberg. 2016 Winner: Nico Rosberg.

July July 9: Spielberg, Austria 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton. July 16: Silverstone, United Kingdom 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton. July 30: Budapest, Hungary 2016 Pole Position: Nico Rosberg. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton.

August August 27: Spa-Francorchamps Belgium 2016 Pole Position: Nico Rosberg. 2016 Winner: Nico Rosberg.

September September 3: Monza, Italy 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton. September 17: Singapore, Singapore 2016 Pole Position: Nico Rosberg. 2016 Winner: Nico Rosberg.

October

Hamilton wants to ‘spice up’ F1

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LONDON’S ROLLS-ROYCE & BENTLEY SPECIALIST established 1977

By Owen Fulda

Formula One has long faced criticisms of being a ‘high-speed procession’, and now its biggest draw, Lewis Hamilton, has voiced his agreement. While testing his new car in Barcelona, the Mercedes driver spoke candidly of his desire for the race format to be mixed up, if F1 is ever to rival football in global popularity. “With the way these cars are, with the continued direction in design which makes it difficult for us to overtake, we’ve got to come up with some different races,” said Hamilton. “Maybe every other race is a different scenario?” “When we get to Monaco we can’t just do the same race format because nobody can overtake there. Maybe they need to spice it up and do something different. Maybe have a sprint race? There are lots of ideas but I’m not going to share them.” The implementation of the Drag Reduction System (DRS) in 2011 made overtaking somewhat easier for drivers, but more needs to be done to stop viewers switching off after the start of a race. After Bernie Ecclestone stepped down as chief executive of the Formula One Group, new owners Liberty Media

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have installed a dynamic duo of Chase Carey and Ross Brawn to ensure the future wellbeing of the sport. Brawn recently suggested that F1 could reintroduce a non-championship race to experiment with new formats and ideas if such an event could be made commercially viable. The last non-championship race was held at Brands Hatch in 1983 and won by Keke Rosberg, the father of 2016 world champion Nico, in a Williams.

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October 1: Sepang, Malaysia 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Daniel Ricciardo. October 8: Suzuka, Japan 2016 Pole Position: Nico Rosberg. 2016 Winner: Nico Rosberg. October 22: Austin, USA 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton. October 29: Mexico City, Mexico 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton.

November November 12: Sao Paolo, Brazil 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton. November 26: Abu Dhabi, UAE 2016 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton. 2016 Winner: Lewis Hamilton.

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December April/May2016 2011/ January 2017

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Sport Sports Calendar By Owen Fulda

he lack of a football World Cup or Olympic Games this year means the spotlight has shifted to other sports. Andy Murray will attempt to defend his 2016 Wimbledon title and hope to achieve French Open glory on the clay of Roland Garros. Britain’s heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua, gold medalist at London 2012, takes on Wladimir Klitschko in what could be a legacydefining fight. England’s cricket team have a busy schedule with visits from Ireland, South Africa and the West Indies alongside the Champions Trophy. Usain Bolt and Mo Farah return to the Olympic stadium for the IAAF Athletics World Championships in June for what may well be the Jamaican sprinter’s last ever race. From the Synchronised Swimming World Championships to the enormously anticipated British and Irish Lions tour of New Zealand, there’s a wealth of sport to look forward as 2017 gallops on.

March 14-17: Cheltenham Festival (Horse Racing) Cheltenham

May 6: Kentucky Derby (Horse Racing) Louisville, Kentucky May 5: Ireland vs England 1st ODI Bristol May 7: Ireland vs England 2nd ODI Lord’s May 13: European Champions Cup Final (Rugby Union) Murrayfield, Edinburgh May 16: NBA Conference Finals TBC May 20 - June 11: FIFA U-20 World Cup South Korea May 24: Europa League Final Friends Arena, Sweden May 24: England v South Africa 1st ODI Headingley, Leeds May 27: FA Cup Final Wembley Stadium May 27: England v South Africa 2nd ODI Ageas Bowl, Southampton May 28 - June 11: French Open (Tennis) Roland Garros, Paris May 28: Indy 500 Indianapolis Motor Speedway May 29: England v South Africa 3rd ODI Lord’s

April 2 Cambridge v Oxford University Boat Race River Thames, London

June 1: England v Bangladesh, Champions Trophy The Oval

April 6-9: The Masters (Golf ) Augusta National, Georgia

June 3: Champions League Final Millennium Stadium, Cardiff

April 15-May 1: World Snooker Championships Crucible Theatre, Sheffield April 27-29: NFL Draft Philadelphia, Pennsylvania April 23: London Marathon London April 28: Anthony Joshua v Wladimir Klitschko Wembley Stadium May 5-21: Ice Hockey World Championship Cologne/Paris

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

Sport

March 29-April 2: World Figure Skating Championships Helsinki, Finland

April 8: Grand National, Aintree, Liverpool

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June 3: Isle of Man TT Isle of Man June 6: England v New Zealand, Champions Trophy Sophia Gardens, Cardiff June 6: England v Australia, Champions Trophy Edgbaston, Birmingham June 13 - 16: Summer X Games Minneapolis, Minnesota June 15 - 18: US Open (Golf ) Erin Hills, Wisconsin June 17-18: Le Mans 24 Hour Le Mans, France

June 17-27: America’s Cup (Sailing) Bermuda June 17-July 2: FIFA Confederations Cup (Football) Russia

August 9-26: Women’s Rugby World Cup, Ireland August 10-13: The PGA Championship (Golf ) Quail Hollow, Charlotte, NC

June 21: England v South Africa, 1st T20 Ageas Bowl, Southampton

August 28-September 3: Judo World Championships Budapest

June 22-25: Aegon Championships (Tennis) Queens Club

August 28-September 10: US Open (Tennis) Flushing Meadows, New York City

June 23: England v South Africa, 2nd T20 Taunton, Somerset

September 2: T20 Blast Finals Day Edgbaston, Birmingham

June 25: England v South Africa, 3rd T20 Sophia Gardens, Cardiff

September 10: Great North Run Newcastle upon Tyne

June 22: Royal Ascot, Ladies Day Ascot Race Course

September 23-October 1: Rowing World Championships Sarasota, USA

June 24: All Blacks vs British & Irish Lions (1st Test) Eden Park, Auckland

September 24: NFL International Series Baltimore Ravens vs Jacksonville Jaguars, Wembley Stadium

July 1: All Blacks vs British & Irish Lions (2nd Test) Westpac Stadium, Wellington

September 27-October 9: World Gymnastics Championship Montreal, Canada

July 1-23: Tour de France France/Germany July 2-16: All England Tennis Championships Wimbledon, England July 6-10: England v South Africa, 1st Test Lord’s July 8: All Blacks vs British & Irish Lions (3rd Test) Eden Park, Auckland July 14-18: England v South Africa, 2nd Test Trent Bridge, Nottingham July 14-16: World BMX Championships Bordeaux, France July 14-22: Synchronised Swimming World Championships Budapest, Hungary July 27 - 31: England v South Africa, 3rd Test The Oval July 20-23: Open Championship (Golf ) Royal Birkdale, Southport August 4-13: World Athletics Championships Olympic Stadium, London Aug 4-8: England v South Africa, 4th Test Old Trafford, Manchester

September 30: AFL Grand Final (Aussie Rules) MCG, Melbourne October 1: NFL International Series New Orleans Saints vs Miami Dolphins, Wembley Stadium October 7: Super League Grand Final (Rugby League) Old Trafford, Manchester October 22: NFL International Series Arizona Cardinals vs Los Angeles Rams, Twickenham Stadium October 26-December 2: Rugby League World Cup Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea October 28: NFL International Series Minnesota Vikings vs Cleveland Browns, Twickenham Stadium November 7: Melbourne Cup (Horse Racing) Melbourne

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk

Six Nations

happen again Eddie Jones will have a Plan A, B and C in place. England should be too strong for Scotland but with nothing to play for but pride the Irish, buoyed by St Patrick’s Day on 17th March, will offer the toughest resistance. They have already shown they can raise their game for an important fixture having defeated the All Blacks in Chicago back in November (a first ever win for the Irish). I count myself lucky that I have a couple of tickets for Aviva Stadium which should see an epic finish to this year's competition. International sides have started to take England's form seriously. It did seem at one time as if both France and Wales would beat them this season but the team has found hidden reserves at critical points in both games. I think that is a bonus with the two toughest fixtures still to play. The game rugby fans play in pubs throughout the world is how many of their side would make the All Blacks current team (they won the World Cup in 2011 and 2015). For England, there is probably only one, Mario Itoje, who could press a claim but he has been a little off the pace since coming back from injury in December. This shows you how far England has to travel to be serious contenders in Japan to win the 2019 Rugby World Cup. The forwards are beginning to settle though the front and back rows still have much to prove. In the backs, Ford is susceptible in defence but reads the game well. I expect there will be changes on the wing and at fullback for the Scottish fixture.

By Derek Wyatt

an England win back to back Six Nation championships? If they beat Scotland they will have established a record - 18 - consecutive wins in a row in International rugby without having to play New Zealand. To be honest there have not really been any surprises in the Six Nations Championship to date (Round 3 completed: two rounds to go). Okay Scotland beating a below par Wales for the first time for a decade is worth mentioning in dispatches but a Scotland which beats England at Twickenham on 11th March would be seismic. England have yet to find their best form of last year though they are the only side which can win the Grand Slam. To do this they must beat the aforesaid Scots and then travel to Dublin the following week for a difficult game against Ireland. It is rare to win back to back Grand Slams (there have only been five since the championship started) and England did it last in 1991/2. Ireland are never easy at home. The Italian Job Lot which saw them avoid rucks in the game against England bamboozled us all. England took far too long to find an alternative. They were caught on the hoof which suggests a lack of on field leadership. No doubt should it

Men’s Six Nations Rugby Matches March 2017 The Six Nations Championship is without doubt the world's greatest rugby tournament. Each year the collective fans of six proud nations – England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales – share in the passion and excitement of this feast of rugby. Some of the rivalries in this tournament date back more than 140 years, which simply adds to the sense of occasion.

WEEK 4

Friday 10th March 2017

Wales v Ireland at Principality Stadium, Cardiff 8:05pm

Saturday 11th March 2017

Italy v France at Stadio Olimpico, Rome 1:30pm England v Scotland at Twickenham Stadium, London 4:00pm

WEEK 5

Saturday 18th March 2017

Scotland v Italy at BT Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 12:30pm France v Wales at Stade de France, Paris 2:45pm Ireland v England at Aviva Stadium, Dublin 5:00pm All kick-off times GMT

Women’s Six Nations Rugby Matches March 2017

ROUND 4

November 27-29: Davis Cup Final (Tennis) TBC

11th March 2017

Wales v Ireland Cardiff Arms Park 11:30am

11th March 2017

England v Scotland The Stoop, Twickenham 1pm

December 1: Russia 2018 World Cup Draw Moscow, Russia

12th March 2017

December 14 - January 2: World Darts Championships Alexandra Palace, London

ROUND 5 www.six-nations-guide-co.uk

Italy v France Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi 2pm

17th March 2017

Scotland v Italy Broadway Stadium 6.30pm Ireland v England Donnybrook, Dublin 8pm

18th March 2017

France v Wales Stade Amedee Domenech, Brive 8pm

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

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Crossword & Bridge Across

This is the Fifty Fourth Wolfe Cryptic Crossword. Joanne Heys of CR8 by email was last month’s winner, congratulations. Please let me have any comments or suggestions you may have and remember if you haven’t totally finished the whole crossword still send it in as the first correct or substantially correct answer picked at random will win a prize of a bottle of Champagne kindly donated by Lea and Sandeman send your grids either by post to Wolfe, at Kensington and Chelsea Today 80-100 Gwynne Road London SW11 3UW or scan it in and send by email to wolfe@ kcwtoday.co.uk. www.leaandsandeman.co.uk/Fine-Wine. 106 Kensington Church St, London, W8 4BH. T: 020 7221 1982. Contact Sandor. 1

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9 Polo cap may be an American malternative. (7) 10 Ask 14 down before Australian pick up poison to the environment. (7) 11 Reportedly do wrong on him but means the same. (7) 12 Read poems as if put in a new place (7) 13 Victory or follows the heir. (9) 15 Nine in the french sea goes well with gin. (5) 16 By laying off their risks they surround the field. (7) 19 Lawyer reportedly shouldn’t spill the beans. (7) 20 I fret about restoration. (5) 21 Its normal if drunk to get you kicked out of the church. (6,3) 25 Left in a trance mixed in the middle. (7) 26 If out the cars no good but still applauded. (7) 28 Knock up or say goodbye for now in rodent. (3-1-3) 29 Type of water that’s neither vegetable nor animal. (7)

Down

1 London business college is after blackcurrant product. (6) 2 Thus about US coin cut to produce the prettier route. (6) 3 Made yarn like a web. (4) 4 Froths like wild horses approaching the beach. (6) 5 Tasty item produced for Eve. (8) 6 Dark Callas to take the arrested to the

Monthly Bridge Tip for Intermediates

East

Pass

6♥

Dbl

5 10

CHESS

By Barry Martin

What’s your angle?

station. (5,5) 7 Sus extra tithes over and above the norm. (8) 8 Is reason confused about feeling organs. (8) 14 They sound as if they choose to speak of voters. (10) 16 Roads foundation materials describe blue films. (8) 17 Describe clearly about it to be sure. (8)

o bid and make a small slam, only one trick can be lost. However it most definitely does not follow that a defender holding two aces should double a small slam. Assuming the opponents have not lost their senses, they are likely to have a void somewhere; one (or more) of those aces may not win a trick. That said, you have to feel sympathy for this month’s East who, holding no less than three aces, watched his opponents bid and make a small slam: North

West

omen’s world tournament chess and women's chess worldwide has significantly improved over the years, yet recently it has become embroiled in gender politics, particularly female gender politics. Women have been antagonised to the extent that much social unrest has been unleashed in many parts of the world, not least by the election of Donald Trump as president of the USA. It is fair to say that several of the recent disturbances in chess are not down to the female chess players themselves, but are the result of negligence by the organisers in the Women’s World Chess Tournament being played in Tehran, Iran, as I write this column, and a lack of perception by the organisers in the Tradewise Tournament, Gibraltar, earlier in February. These incursions into the practice of playing chess with the hot issues the subject of which are currently global and defined by female gender subjects, is highly relevant at this time. More’s the pity that the organisers, including FIDE the governing body who had enough time to filter out the obvious problems that playing a world championship in Iran would throw up, didn’t get their act together for whatever reasons! I feel that the distraction such difficulties throw up for women chess players is a pity since it involves spending precious time, energy and frustration on top of that needed for the game itself. For example, the reigning 2016 USA’s Woman’s Champion Nazí Paikidze took action when FIDE announced that the WCC would take place in Iran, where ‘morality laws’ stipulate that women, even in foreign chess competitions outside of Iran must wear hijabs and restrict contact with men. She decided to boycott the

18 Perhaps suit male ape. (8) 22 The Queen came about flowering from a common stem. (6) 23 Reportedly excellent honey collector is marvellous. (6) 24 Ten odd lessons hold what you use to be sensible. (6) 27 Primarily a child nearing eighteen often suffers from this. (4)

CLASSIFIED ADS

with Andrew Robson

♠ K7542 South Deals ♥ K76 None Vul ♦— ♣ KQJ76 ♠ Q J 10 8 ♠ A963 N ♥3 ♥ 98 W E ♦ Q9532 ♦ AJ74 S ♣ 985 ♣ A32 ♠— ♥ A Q J 10 5 4 2 ♦ K 10 8 6 ♣ 10 4

South 4♥ All pass

West led ♠Q, and dummy plus East played low, declarer trumping. Correctly resisting the temptation to trump diamonds, declarer realised that by far the easiest route to 12 tricks was to draw trumps then - assuming a two-one split - establish clubs by knocking out ♣A. He cashed ♥QJ, then led ♣10. East ducked his ♣A, then won ♣4 to dummy’s ♣J. Three of declarer’s diamonds went on the long clubs, and one was ruffed. Doubled small slam made. West’s opening spade lead was normal, but you as declarer would have had a rather more nerve-wracking ride on an opening diamond lead. One of several winning lines is to ruff, cross to the ten of trumps, then lead the ten of clubs (East ducking), and a club to the jack and East’s ace. East has to play the ace of diamonds, or you simply draw his second trump with dummy’s king, then run winning clubs. But you ruff the ace of diamonds, and throw your remaining small diamond when the third club stands up. Slam made. ANDREW’S TIP: Do not double a freely bid small slam on the basis of holding two, even three, aces.

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This is the fifty fourth Wolfe Cryptic Crossword

March 2017

Kensington, Chelsea & Westminster Today

online: www.KCWToday.co.uk competition, and last autumn announced her boycott and protest on social media forming a Change.org.petition that raised 16,800 signatures, ‘asking FIDE to relocate the championship, or, at least make wearing a hijab headscarf optional with a guarantee that female players would not face discrimination’. This also has implications for international travel, it seems, as having an Iranian stamp in your passport may bar you entry into the USA. Paikidze stated that by participating ‘she would have to submit to oppression designed’ specifically for women’. She continued this would set the wrong example ‘for young girl players interested in chess’, and ‘cements the status quo in the man, and freezes any change possible....’. A spokesperson for FIDE when pressed, stated they were ‘reviewing all possible solutions for the players’ comfort’. However, this complacent attitude was picked up by other top players and resulted in further dissension and flight with Yifan Hou the reigning world woman’s champion excluding herself from the playing list. She was followed by the other heavy hitters of the chess world including Koneru Humpy, Irina Krush, and Mariya Muzychuk who were eventually informed they were only going to be allowed to compete if they wore a hijab in keeping with Iranian law. The event running from February 11th to 3rd March was to feature 64 players, but apart from the dissenters, was down to 63 at its outset as one qualifier died. The last 8 players through to the quarter finals were; Anna Muzychuk v Antoaneta Stefanova, Alexandra Kosteniuk v Ni Shiqun, Ju Wejun v Tan Zhongyi,and Harika Dronavalli v Nana Dzagnidze, with their seedings 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 38. Yifan Hou in deciding not to defend her crown in Iran led her to declare that the Gibraltar Tradewise Open Tournament would be better for her, as the competition would be tougher amongst the men, of a higher caliber, and the draconian laws enforced onto women in Iran and the female-gender issues could be left behind. This however was not to be the case, as she was drawn against 7 women adversaries out of 10 rounds, and playing in the final round she resigned after 5 moves in protest against the ‘..unbelievable and weird pairings throughout the event having drawn seven women..’. She stated, ‘It makes me really, really upset, not just for me but for the other women players’. One review put it, ‘A major chess event ended in farce after the world’s best

female grandmaster threw a game after continually being made to play against other women!’ Our own country's most outspoken pundit on women’s chess who also played in the tournament finishing 12th commented,‘Hou Yifan’s last round game will go down in the annals of chess history and will long be remembered as the quickest loss ever made by a Grandmaster’, and GM Stuart Conquest, director of GB Chess, said the Yifan game was ‘the biggest crisis’ in the 15 years of the tournament. The founder of the Tradewise Tournament, Gibraltar, Brian Callaghan in defending the pairings said ‘... these things come out of a machine.. and aren't made by people... clearly nothing was going on....sometimes the odds fall that way!’ In all fairness to the organisers it has gone a good way to encourage female players to participate in its Open annual event and many of the world’s leading female players have done just that. But times have changed and with the best intentions of the organisers' the machine’s pairings should have been noticed and reviewed. It is the perception that matters, and in many females’ minds there is the perception that the status quo in gender politics is still too heavily weighted in favour of the male of the species, and as a topic is now very much at the top of any agenda-list requiring corrective action. The stamping out of gender semantics that place women into inferior positions, or any action that implies women are inferior to men are not to be tolerated. But the situation has overall become better. Let me finish on this issue with a quote taken from Leonore Gallet’s The Feminine Viewpoint, which was in response to an inquiry from Edward Lasker, earlier last century, ‘I don’t consider it possible for any woman, though, to become a chess master. She won’t be able to keep her mind on the game long enough without letting her thoughts wander. When she thinks of

a beautiful move she is liable to think also about how beautiful she looks in making it. Then there is that sale she saw advertised. Oh, and so many other things. You always say chess trains one to concentrate. I don’t believe a word of it! As I commented above, ‘it’s all a question of perception.’ Hikaru Nakamura won the event for the third year running after winning a tiebreak against David Anton who also finished on 8 points. Michael Adams finished 5th 7.5 pts and David Howell 10th 7 pts. The following game between Hikaru Nakamura and Maxime Lagarde in the tenth round is this issue’s puzzle. The 34 moves ended in a victory for white and shows Nakamura’s very precise use of his white squared Bishop. We join the game with his tempting black to throw safety to the wind and risk all in a cavalier charge, which he did. Unfortunately, white had seen further and black’s King was now put to flight, what was white’s next move? Answer upside down below.

Answer: 18. Bxc6+, tempting black to take the pawn on c4 with the idea of freeing up the c-file for black’s pawn on c5 and was a germ of an idea, but this also free’s up the protection on d7 which white duly capitalises on, and which starts the black’s king rout as he cannot retreat to the back rank without loosing his rook on b8 and check mate! 18.... Ke7. 19.Rb3, Bxc4. 20. Rd7+, Kf6. 21. Rf3+, Kg6. 22. Rd6+, Be6. 23. Be4+,Kh5. 24. Ra6, Rb2. 25. Rc3,Rc8. 26. Bf3+,Kg5. 27. h4+,Kf5. 28. a4,Rc7. 29.Ra5, Bd7. 30. Rcxc5+taking out black’s hopeful pawn, Rxc5. 31. Rxc5+, Ke6. 32. Ra5, Rb4. 33. Ra6+, Ke7. 34. a5, and black can’t now defend his a-pawn, resigns.

Note: The 135th Varsity Chess Match between Oxford and Cambridge is at The RAC Club, Pall Mall, Saturday 11th. March

March 2017

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