Brummell June

JUNE 2012

thE littlE black book for thE city

New frontiers city advENtUrErs / rUggEd tEchNology / rowiNg solo across thE atlaNtic raftiNg iN tasmaNia / Pilots’ watchEs with altitUdE / bikiNg aroUNd thE world

Breguet, the innovator.

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“1932” COLLECTION 80TH ANNIVERSARY

CONTENTS | BRUMMELL 09

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Cover illustration

by Scott Balmer 44

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Show Media Brummell editorial 020 3222 0101 Editor Joanne Glasbey Art Director Dominic Bell Associate Editor Henry Farrar-Hockley Chief Copy Editor Chris Madigan Picture Editor Juliette Hedoin Picture Researcher Rita Gormley Copy Editors Cate Langmuir, Ming Liu Fashion Director Tamara Fulton Creative Director Ian Pendleton Managing Director Peter Howarth

Contents 10

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Advertising & Events Director Duncan McRae duncan@flyingcoloursmarketing.com 07816 218059 showmedia.net brummell@showmedia.net Visit Brummell’s website for more tailor-made content:

Beaumonde 15

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brummellmagazine.net Colour reproduction by Fresh Media Group, groupfmg.com Printed by The Manson Group, manson-grp.co.uk Brummell is designed and produced by Show Media Ltd and distributed with Financial News. All material © Show Media Ltd. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, no responsibility can be accepted for any errors or omissions. The information contained in this publication is correct at the time of going to press. £5 (where sold). Reader offers are the responsibility of the organisation making the offer – Show Media accepts no liabillity regarding offers.

Foreword Defy the corporate Thought Police where they can’t get to you – chasing adventure when you escape the City Money no object A rare 16th-century map of the voyages of the great Elizabethan explorers

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News Bulgari’s luxurious new London hotel; hightech ties from Hermès; the best of art and design; and a loveable new Leica Motorcycling The veteran lone rider who inspired a generation of endurance bikers Technology Four pieces of tough tech kit, all with A* grades from the school of hard knocks Motor racing One of the coolest F1 drivers of the Sixties and Seventies, Jackie Ickx After the City The former corporate lawyer who founded hiking resource website Walkopedia

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Travel Rafting one of the world’s deadliest rivers, the fearsome Franklin in Tasmania Rowing Olly Hicks is the youngest solo oarsman ever to have crossed the Atlantic from the US; now he aims to be the first to row round the world Watches The latest interpretations of that classic of masculine style, the aviator watch City adventurers Extraordinary challenges taken on by remarkable men: meet three who combine physical and business exploits Motoring The Rolls-Royce Phantom was acclaimed as one of the world’s most beautiful cars.

So what is the verdict on the Series II? Style Casual wear and weekend bags to take you seamlessly from office desk to boat deck

By George Celebrating the pioneering tastemaster of the horological world, Marcus Margulies

foreword | BrUMMeLL

11

High risk, high reward Seeking challenges far from the madding crowd can be characterbuilding and leave you better equipped to deal with corporate culture words David Charters Illustration Brett Ryder

Nobody wants to be average, although a lot of people are. In the City it goes without saying that people are bright, hard-working and competitive. Precisely the sort of people who struggle when they are restrained, made to plod along in the slow lane. We are not good at being patient, and we hate quiet times. But in an industry still suffering from shell shock, where risk-taking – and risk-rewarding – is being reined in, where do we go to get that extra buzz?

The challenge is greater because at most firms – certainly the larger ones – there is a pressure to conform. ‘Characters’ are not as welcome as they once were. In an era where everyone can be sued by anyone for some real or imagined slight, the institutional tendency is to go large on blandness, safe and predictable conformity, political correctness and, if we are not careful, mediocrity.

Standing out from the crowd is by definition a departure from the norm, and somebody somewhere is bound to be offended. Quite where the right never to be offended actually came from escapes me. But send an ‘inappropriate’ email joke or carelessly surf the internet and you can be hauled up in front of the corporate Thought Police. You may not have done anything illegal. But the industry that very nearly drove the global economy onto the rocks now sets itself a higher moral standard than the law requires in this particular area of human interaction.

What paragons we work for.

Am I just a grumpy old man? Of course.

Because in ‘my day’ the PC Thought Police would have been laughed out of the building.

Courtesy, compassion and common sense – the three Cs – were deemed sufficient to govern our dealings with one another.

So if there is something amiss in the corporate culture of the major firms, it can either be tackled by the people being paid to lead – and tough decisions taken about

those who do not make the grade – or consultants can be commissioned to come up with an industry-standard best practice, then a raft of people hired to implement it and, bingo, we are covered. Blandness rules and management can put their feet up.

If all of this means that our working lives are less likely to provide the outlets we seek for exuberance, individuality and yes, sheer unreasonableness, than they were in the past, then what do we do?

In the Dave Hart novels, my City antihero does all the wrong things, mostly on his own time, although also on the firm’s, and inevitably pays a price… sort of. He should be a horrible warning rather than a role model.

My answer, in the era of Corporate Bland, is to get seriously away from it all. Not often, necessarily, but once or twice a year you should travel far away and do something utterly exceptional, outrageous and memorable. Something that can help define each year in your one unrepeatable life, and which you will remember long after you have forgotten you were top of the league tables in European M&A for the third year running.

Watching my kids floating in clear blue water over a coral reef in Sharm El Sheikh, 60ft down with scuba tanks on their backs, was amazing. But anyone can do that.

Watching them tumbling out of an aircraft at 15,000ft with free-fall chutes was pretty good, too, but not necessarily a great enough challenge (I am a tough dad).

We get a sense of who we really are when we leave our suits in the wardrobe and take off for somewhere totally different

Bungee-jumping over the Victoria Falls did do it. Watching the amazing bat migration at the Kasanka National Park in Zambia did it, too, and so did being charged by elephants.

Mike Pullen, a competition lawyer at DLA Piper, has just returned from a 700km dog-sledding trip in north Norway – not quite your average day at the world’s biggest law firm.

For £25,000 a former Royal Marine called Alan Chambers will take you overland to the North Pole. It is not easy and not everyone is up to it, but for those who are it is an incredible achievement. I am thinking about it. He got Charlie Dunstone there and surely I have to be fitter than him.

Or how about space (or at least edge-ofspace) travel with Virgin Galactic? Or a trip to the ocean floor following in the submersible wake of James Cameron? Surely that would put life on the trading floor in perspective.

The key in every case is to leave the comfort zone of everyday life, so that the normal hierarchy disappears and we get a sense of who we really are when we leave our suits in the wardrobe and take off for somewhere totally different.

The more I think about it, the more there is to do. This really is the best time to be alive.

And dreaming the dream puts a smile on my face that makes me (almost) forget the Thought Police from Compliance and Legal, ritually singing the song in town hall meetings, and signing more documents to confirm that I have read and understood the Corporate Book of Bland – sorry, I mean, the firm’s code of personal and professional conduct.

It is time to form an escape committee.

After all, if they managed to get out of Colditz, surely we can get out of where we are, too.

The Ego’s Nest, by David Charters, the fifth novel in the series about City anti-hero Dave Hart, is published by Elliott & Thompson, priced £6.99

bRUMMELL

MONEY NO OBJECT An extremely rare 16th-century map in which a Dutch cartographer celebrates English adventurers Words Joanne Glasbey

The fascination of old maps and prints lies in their unique ability to reflect the times of our ancestors. Their rarity is all the more appealing.

This late-16th century world map, depicting the voyages of Francis Drake and Thomas Cavendish, the first Englishmen to circumnavigate the globe, is for sale at rare map specialist Daniel Crouch.

The work of Jodocus Hondius (1563-1612), one of the leading Dutch cartographers of the time, this is one of fewer than 10 known examples of the map – two are at the Royal Geographical Society; another is in the British Library.

‘For the price of a single mediocre Impressionist painting, one can obtain a truly world-class collection of atlases,’ Daniel

Crouch says. Prospects for rare map collecting are promising, he continues: ‘While maps have been somewhat ignored in comparison to their artistic counterparts, the number of collectors has started to grow. With a limited supply of maps on the market, the potential is clear.’

Crouch is exhibiting at the Masterpiece London fair (27 June to 4 July – details on page 16) where visitors can see exceptionally rare historic maps and atlases, including an unusual map of London from 1719 in which the population is defined by ‘what is eaten’, as well as an antislavery map from the turn of the 19th century.

Daniel Crouch Rare Books, 4 Bury Street, London SW1; crouchrarebooks.com

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A LASTING LEGACY THE ASTON MARTIN DBS ULTIMATE Seductively powerful and exquisitely finished, the award-winning DBS is the ultimate blend of performance and luxury. To celebrate the extraordinary qualities of this flagship model, Aston Martin announces the DBS Ultimate.

A celebration of design purity and dynamic excellence, the DBS Ultimate is a limited edition of 100 cars. It fuses together a luxurious interior, composing Obsidian Black diamond quilted leather, with unique exterior design detailing, creating an instant classic that is also a fitting celebration of this elegant luxury sports car.

Please visit www.astonmartin.com for more information or to arrange a test drive.

Official government fuel consumption figures in mpg (litres per 100km) for the Aston Martin DBS Manual/Automatic: urban 11.6/11.7 (24.3/24.2); extra-urban 24.1/26.8 (11.7/10.5); combined 17.3/18.2 (16.4/15.5). CO2 emissions 388/367 g/km.

NEWS | bEAumoNdE

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The five-star hotel with a silver lining, executive air travel and a satellite-controlled timepiece

Knot matrix The story goes that Hermès’s famous neckties were introduced in 1949 after a number of gamblers in Cannes were refused entry to the nearby casino for being improperly attired, and so headed to a nearby Hermès boutique in the hope of acquiring a tie. There were none, but the store manager was quick to remedy this, and a sartorial institution was born. This season’s stand-out collection? A paean to the digital age, with playful patterns referencing USB logos, keyboards and even binary code. £130, available in stores from July; hermes.com Suite style The vogue for Italian couturiers turned hoteliers looks set to continue with the launch of Bulgari Hotel & Residences London in Knightsbridge – a property notable not just for its restrained Roman finery but the fact it’s also London’s first purpose-built luxury hotel-build in 40 years. The company renowned for its elegant jewellery already has a beach resort in Bali, a hotel in Milan and restaurants in Tokyo, and its newly opened London outpost follows a similar aesthetic.

Throughout its 85 rooms and suites there are subtle references to the brand’s silversmith origins, with silk curtains employing signature Bulgari patterns and table lamps resembling silver candlesticks. As well as a lavish bar and restaurant (called, naturally, ‘Il Bar’ and ‘Il Ristorante’ respectively), there is an impressive spa and pool set over two floors, a private cinema, business centre and ballroom. bulgarihotels.com

Join the fold Bowers & Wilkins’s decision to branch out into headphone design in 2010 was an astute move, given the company’s prestigious track record in loudspeaker R&D and a growing demand for premium headgear. Now the British brand has introduced a third model – the P3 – to the range, and it’s their best yet. As well as folding for travel, the driver units have been repositioned to create a more uniform sound field, while the acoustic fabric and memory foam earpieces ensure no superfluous noise creeps in, but every last detail of the music reaches your ears. £170; bowers-wilkins.com

Sun worshipper Solar-powered watches are nothing new, nor are timepieces that convey the correct hour and minute in different time zones. Seiko’s new Astron family, however, has deftly combined these technologies to make the first-ever GPS watch. Using a solar energy GPS receiver built into the case, it recalibrates the time once a day by connecting to four or more orbiting satellites to ensure you can still be punctual, wherever there is daylight. From £1,750; seiko.co.uk

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beAuMonde | neWS

Another Masterpiece Already an established name on the international exhibition calendar, Masterpiece London returns to the South Grounds of The Royal Hospital Chelsea from 27 June until 4 July. Curating art, antiques and design from across the world, this year’s highlights include a bespoke World Championship-class motorbike from Shaw Speed & Custom, and a rare print of The Scream (alongside other works by Munch) at the Kaare Berntsen stand.

Tickets from £20; masterpiecefair.com

Power snap When Leica released the X1 late in 2009, it paved the way for a new category of camera that sits somewhere between a conventional compact and full-sized SLR, by combining a fixed-lens format with a generous image sensor and traditional, manual photography controls in a design small enough to fit in your pocket. Now the German marque has quietly ushered in the X2, which builds on its predecessor’s admirable qualities with an even larger 16MP CMOS sensor, greatly improved autofocus, a spring-loaded flash and an optional, top-mounted electronic viewfinder for framing subjects in bright environments. With its set focal length of 35mm (the preferred format of most photojournalists), its blend of portability, power and professional results truly has no equal. From £1,575; leica-camera.co.uk

Jet fair If you appreciate the appeal of private jets but abhor the nuisance of buying into flight credits or joint-ownership schemes, SHY Aviation could be just the air charter outfit you’ve been seeking. With access to some of the smallest, most remote runways in the world, as well as sailing and motor yachts, villas, chalets and supercars, their bespoke travel service is as flexible as your imagination. The company also has an up-to-date online listing of ‘empty leg’ flights at discounted prices for anyone willing to share spare cabin space, without compromising on the convenience and comfort of executive travel. shyaviation.com

Savile Heathrow The uncompromising restrictions of air travel mean taking your preferred washbag staples with you on the road can be a tiresome practice.

So our thanks to Savile Row barber Brent Pankhurst for developing a no-nonsense, head to toe shampoo that comes packaged in a stylish, hardwearing 100ml dispenser you won’t have to surrender at the security gate. The only thing better than the shampoo’s luxuriantly colognescented lather is the fact that each purchase comes with not one, but two bottles. £19; pankhurstlondon.com

18

beAumonde | motorbikes

Lone rider Motorcyclist Ted Simon’s latest book sends one lifelong fan on a journey of reminiscences about his biking guru

Anyone who is remotely interested in getting away from it all by motorcycle will probably have heard of Ted Simon. I first encountered him at the 1978 Earls Court Motorcycle Show as an impecunious 14-year-old. Tired of gazing at the latest, glittering ‘rice rockets’ from Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha that I never believed I’d be able to afford in a hundred lifetimes, I wandered off to the low-rent area around the edge of the exhibition hall, where I discovered a lone, curly-haired man sitting behind a trestle table piled with books.

Beside him stood a travel-stained Triumph Tiger motorcycle fitted with a set of bashed-up metal boxes that were decorated with a handpainted map depicting the journey from which Simon had just returned. Around the world. He had been away for four years, covered 60,647 miles on the road and 17,655 by sea, rail and ferry, and then written about his odyssey in a book called Jupiter’s Travels, which he was offering for sale at the show.

The fact that no one else seemed especially interested enabled me to strike up a conversation with Simon who, despite the fact that I lacked the £7.95 cover price, happily answered my barrage of questions about the bike, the

journey, the adventure and anything else that seemed remotely relevant. I left the stand with the official Jupiter’s Travels press release (signed) and a head full of inspiration – but had to wait until Christmas to get the book.

Jupiter’s Travels went on to become the overland biker’s bible and even kick-started Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman into organising their Long Way Round trip that encouraged thousands of people around the world to take up long-distance motorcycling.

But Simon has always been my biking guru, so it was with great delight that I met him again in 2001 when, at the nicely run-in age of 70, he decided to circumnavigate the globe once again. As part of his send-off, I interviewed him for national newspapers – and, of course, got him to inscribe my copy of Jupiter’s Travels.

He had been away for four years, covered 60,647 miles on the road and 17,655 by sea, rail and ferry

Simon completed his second biking odyssey in around three years and wrote of his adventures in Dreaming of Jupiter, published in 2007. Now, he has a new book, Rolling Through the Isles, an account of his journey around Britain by threewheeled Piaggio scooter in the summer of 2009.

In it, he revisits the old haunts of his youth: the home he shared in Swiss Cottage with his German immigrant mother; his primary school in Chelsea; Trench Hall in Shropshire where he was a wartime evacuee; Barrow-in-Furness where he held down his first job in journalism.

The locations are hardly as exotic as those in Jupiter’s Travels, but Simon, now 81, is such a great writer, so observant and so open-minded that, just as he made me want to motorbike around the world 34 years ago, so he has made me want to saddle-up and explore Britain.

For now it’s a temptation I’m going to resist but when he visits England from his California home this month to promote the book, I’ll be riding out to say hello. Wherever he is.

Rolling Through the Isles (Little, Brown, £20); also available as an e-book. For more on Ted Simon, his books and his charitable foundation, visit jupitalia.com Words Simon de Burton

Upon arriving as a youngster in the U.S. with just a few dollars in his pocket, Thom Richard had just one dream: to fly aircraft. A seasoned pilot who has clocked up more than 9,000 flight hours, he now lives his passion to the full – in particular by taking part in the famous Reno competitions at the controls of Precious Metal, the most legendary of all race planes. His next challenge is to set the world speed record and to win Reno. On his wrist is the Chronomat, an ultra-sturdy and ultrareliable instrument powered by a high-performance "engine", a 100% Breitling movement. For Thom Richard, it is quite simply the world’s best chronograph.

5-YEAR BREITLING WARRANTY £6740*

For your nearest stockist in Great Britain and Ireland telephone 020 7637 5167

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"WHEN YOU FLY A RACING PLANE PROPELLED BY A 3200 HP ENGINE, YOU NEED THE SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE OF THE WORLD’S BEST CHRONOGRAPH."

20 beAumonde | technology

Tough stuff From a freeze-proof camera to a Kevlar-plated phone, no scenario is too intimidating for these rugged wonders olympus tough tg-1 camera A common defect of hard-wearing cameras is that – in order to bolt on all that body armour without transforming them into breezeblocks – they compromise on image quality. Olympus’s latest 12MP sharpshooter, however, delivers high-quality photos in all conditions. And when they say ‘all conditions’, in this instance they really mean it. The camera not only operates at -10°C but is also waterproof to a generous 12m – easily enough depth for the most ambitious of snorkelers. Other globetrotterfriendly specifications include GPS, electronic compass and full HD video. It is also decidedly elegant to look at. £360; olympus.co.uk

Philips the tread headphones Headphones – like sunglasses – come in for a lot of unintended abuse. Which is why Philips has devised The Tread, an innocuous-looking in-ear design that doesn’t buckle under the pressure. Powered by 9mm drivers that deliver a healthy torrent of bass and treble, the fittings are cast from a rubber and aluminium alloy so hard-wearing you can tread on them without inflicting irreparable damage – hence the name.

Equally well conceived are the cable (which remains largely impervious to tangling and stretching) and the connecting jack, which uses the same tough materials as the earbuds.

From £35; philips.co.uk

dell latitude e6420 Atg laptop Dell’s ATG (All Terrain Grade) range is aimed at a working environment that is somewhere between convention centre and war zone. At first glance there aren’t too many clues to its hardened credentials – except perhaps the Bond-inspired attaché carry handle. Yet with its Tri-Metal chassis, magnesium alloy base, sealed LCD screen and a spill-resistant keyboard, it’s designed to cope with the unexpected. Inside there is a choice of Intel dual- or quad-core processors, up to 750GB of storage and myriad mobile connectivity options.

The 14in display, meanwhile, doubles as a tablet touchscreen. From £1,150; dell.com/uk

motorola Razr maxx smartphone The era of the slim-but-durable handset is finally here. Named after Motorola’s iconic clamshell phone, the new Razr Maxx is, on paper, an impressive beast, fitting a Super AMOLED 4.3in screen in a 8.99mm-thick design that boasts the longest talk time of any smartphone (17.6 hours). Added thrills include email encryption, a dual-core processor and up to 48GB of storage. But the best thing about this phone is its build quality, from the screen – hewn from toughened Corning Gorilla Glass – to the Kevlar-fibre backplate and a waterrepellent film that protects its delicate circuitry.

Price varies with contract; motorola.com

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34 beAumonde | motor rAcing

Jack flash Jacky Ickx, one of motor racing’s legends in the Sixties and Seventies, on cars, watches and where you’ll find him celebrating the sport’s golden years

‘The best thing about my motor racing career is that I survived it,’ says Jacky Ickx of the remarkable 20 years he spent driving everything from Lotus Cortina saloons to Ferrari F1 cars. ‘Racing during the Sixties and Seventies was, quite simply, an extremely dangerous occupation and I feel lucky to have come through it.’

Belgian-born Ickx is 67 now but looks as fit as a fiddle and is always impeccably turned out, whether he is demonstrating a historic race car or performing his duties as VW group’s global ambassador. In motorsport circles, he remains a legend: he won the 24 Hours of Le Mans a record-breaking six times between 1969 and 1982, racked up eight Formula One wins and 25 podium finishes, and completed the gruelling Paris-Dakar rally no fewer than 13 times – on one occasion with his racing driver daughter, Vanina.

Nowadays he is still to be found behind the wheel on regular occasions, but invariably at events that celebrate motor racing’s golden years, such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed or the Monaco Historic Grand Prix. Another is the Mille Miglia, in which he competes every other year with fellow car enthusiast Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, the co-president of watch and jewellery house Chopard. ‘That relationship has become something of a brotherhood,’ says Ickx. ‘I first

met the family more than 22 years ago after buying a Chopard bracelet. There was something wrong with it, so I took it back and met Karl-Friedrich. We both love cars and we both love watches, and a friendship developed which led to us becoming Mille Miglia co-drivers.’

Scheufele, meanwhile, has commemorated his racing hero in a series of limited-edition Jacky Ickx chronograph wristwatches. The latest model, the Jacky Ickx Edition V, is limited to 2,000 examples and takes its design cues from Le Mans, most notably featuring a 24-hour subdial and a case inscribed with ‘6/24’ in honour of Ickx’s half dozen victories.

But Chopard is not the first watch brand to realise the marketing potential of one of the greatest drivers of the Sixties and Seventies.

When racing Formula One for Ferrari during the early Seventies, the Heuer company’s Jack Heuer approached Ickx about making a watch with his name on it. ‘It was the first time they had actually made a watch carrying a driver’s name,’ recalls Ickx. ‘The piece in question was called the Jacky Ickx Easy Rider and, because it was meant to attract a younger breed of buyer, it was presented in a box that looked like a miniature replica of my crash helmet.’

Being engaged by Ferrari in 1968 was a key moment, says Ickx; another was in the previous year, when he was chosen by Ken Tyrrell to drive a Matra Formula Two car in his first Grand Prix at Germany’s notorious Nürburgring circuit. In the race, he overtook 12 F1 cars and had made his way up to fifth place before being forced to retire with suspension failure. But the drive gained him promotion to F1, in which he debuted at Monza in a Cooper-Maserati. ‘Together with Spa Francorchamps,’ says Ickx, ‘the Nürburgring Nordschleife was always my favourite circuit.’

Today, however, the mild-mannered Belgian cites the genteel surroundings of the Goodwood Revival as one of his top places to watch historic racers being used in anger. ‘It is almost like being part of a Cecil B de Mille movie,’ says Ickx. ‘I love the way everyone dresses up and gets into the spirit of the event... It’s motor racing at its most perfect.’

Goodwood Revival takes place 14 to 16 September; chopard.com Words Kip Springer

CORBIS

fAmous belgiAn Main picture: Ickx with his Ferrari 512 in June 1970, training for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Right: Chopard’s Jacky Ickx Edition V watch

H A C K E T T. C O M

E S S E N T I A L LY B R I T I S H

SLOANE STREET • JERMYN STREET •

KING STREET, COVENT GARDEN

WESTFIELD, WHITE CITY • BISHOPSGATE

• REGENT STREET

• EASTCHEAP • CABOT PLACE, CANARY WHARF

24 beAumonde | After the city

Walk of life Work as a corporate lawyer and ‘neurotic perfectionist’ was ideal training for William Mackesy’s current task: identifying the world’s 100 best walking routes

Ex-lawyer William Mackesy confesses to being an ‘over-enthusiastic walker’. He grew up hiking in Wales and Scotland and literally walked out of the City. Though he still happily consults for Hong Kong law firm Deacons (‘I am incredibly lucky: they are very flexible,’ he says), Mackesy’s life now revolves around painting and his next hike.

Of his earlier times at Linklaters and Clifford Chance, Mackesy claims it was ‘fear that came with increasing responsibility’ that brought focus, and he reckons the experience turned him into a ‘neurotic perfectionist’ – but this helped transform his passion into a budding internet business. ‘I began wondering how best to identify and list the world’s best walks,’ he says from his Cotswolds home. In 2008 he launched Walkopedia, now featuring over 500 walks, from mighty Himalayan treks to a stroll through Venice. ‘You should see my rating

system,’ says Mackesy, chuckling over the complex set of data he uses to quantify how satisfying a walk is. ‘Tragic ex-lawyer or what?’

William credits his wife Alexandra for ‘kicking’ him into Walkopedia and describes her as a ‘lateral thinker, inspiration and mountain goat.’ At the heart of the site is Mackesy’s project to walk the world’s 100 best routes himself.

‘My main worry is physical collapse before I get around to all 100 of them,’ he says. ‘I am an overweight asthmatic of 52 with dodgy knees.’

Looking back, it was not straightforward walking out of the City: ‘You can get into this prosperity and “what else would I do?” trap. You really have to want to jump to beat the stasis.

But a self-help book my sister rather pointedly gave me confirmed my instinct for change with the immortal line: “Some of the unhappiest people on the planet are (American, admittedly) corporate lawyers in their 50s.’

Today Mackesy reckons he is nearly half way through completing the top 100 walks. This year he has already hiked Tasmania’s Overland Track and is also going to walk Greece’s monastic Athos peninsula, as well as the Lake District and the Cairngorms at home.

Mackesy describes Walkopedia as ‘proudly uncommercial’ though his ultimate aim is to commercialise the site’s content. He is cautiously optimistic: ‘Visitor numbers are steadily increasing and the site is attracting sporadic but unsolicited press attention. The Los Angeles Times online and San Francisco Chronicle wrote about us and [travel and nature presenter] Kate Humble named Walkopedia one of her favourite websites last year so we must be doing something right! We’re not exactly Facebook but I am confident that the content will be exciting enough to become “walk porn”.’

While out walking for a decade now Mackesy has also been painting, and in May had his first ‘nearly solo’ show in Oxford. ‘Cézanne said – and I paraphrase - that a key attribute of a successful artist is a powerful organising mind.

Sadly I can’t claim that, but years of corporate lawyering must have helped,’ he says.

Mackesy’s real pleasure in Walkopedia is a sense of insouciant post-City freedom: ‘We’re spending no one’s money but our own and have no VCs breathing down our necks. It’s a true labour of love and my big problem is how to limit the time I spend on the site as it gets in the way of my painting. Walkopedia has new projects sprouting like a hydra – if I’m not careful, it could suck up every minute and everything else gets neglected.’

Asked if he would change anything about his time if he had it again, Mackesy is thoughtful: ‘City earnings bought a degree of freedom but I probably breached the only-one-life rule. I perhaps should have ploughed my own furrow earlier. Lack of awareness and courage at 20 is almost as damaging as recklessness. If you are lucky enough to have a dream, don’t hang about. But – and this is the lawyer in me speaking – make sure it’s more than a fantasy before you embark on it.’ walkopedia.net Words Charlotte Metcalf Photography Ivan Jones

Available at: Chester Barrie, 19 Savile Row London W1 Austin Reed Regent St, John Lewis Oxford St House of Fraser – City, Reading & Guildford

travel | BrUMMell 27

Fresh and wild Much of Tasmania’s western wilderness can only be accessed via its network of rivers, but paddling them is not for the fainthearted Words Ian Belcher Photography Anthony Cake

Naked terror focuses the mind. Sharpens the senses. As I balance on a precariously sharp rock above a thundering torrent to help haul our raft around an impassable rapid, the laconic Tasmanian river guide points to a wave-lashed tree stump. ‘That’s where the last dude died,’ he says casually. ‘Hold on tight.’

The last dude was not the only dude. Nor was the dude before that the first. The Franklin, one of many savagely wild rivers that writhe through south west Tasmania’s wilderness like a nest of vipers, has extracted a high price from humans wanting to taste its lush beauty, extreme isolation

and raw adrenaline. It has claimed the lives of eight kayakers and a river guide – the only commercial rafting death – over the past 30 years.

But remote tragedy is not the Franklin’s main claim to fame. It is also an environmental cause célèbre, with next year marking the 30th anniversary of a fight to prevent the area being developed for hydroelectricity. In 1983, as demonstrators marched through Australia’s cities, protesters in small boats blockaded the remote building site. More than 1,200 were arrested and almost 600 jailed – one of the biggest acts of civil disobedience in the country’s

history – before a high court victory ended the construction of the dam.

So I am not just rafting a river; I am rafting an icon. A launch-point sign lists the cause of fatalities, stressing that we might face Grade 6 white water: the Galactico of rapids. ‘Not sure of your abilities?’ it warned. ‘Do not go on.’

I am not sure of mine. But I do know about those of our guides, Josh and Antho. Two highly experienced, drily witty Tasmanians, they list hazards that sound like expensive plumbing disasters – stoppers, undercutters, boils – but save star billing for sieves: wedged logs that pin

28 BRUMMELL | tRavEL

LUsh BEaUty Previous page: Going over one of the rapids in the Grand Ravine.

This page, from left: Starting out, before the river widens; the view at the end of day two

humans like teabags. ‘A cubic metre of water weighs a tonne,’ explains Josh. ‘We can’t always pull you out.’

Suitably chastened, our eclectic group of Brits and Aussies drift off along a shallow tributary. On the first night, we all sleep on a dry ledge beneath a rocky overhang. Feet away, chunky blobs of rain play percussion on huge leaves. Interesting. Heavy downpours on the spongey plains above the valley can cause chaos, raising the river by six metres in a single night, according to Antho. ‘One group was trapped for five days,’ he recalls over our pasta supper. ‘Full flood produces standing waves the height of two-storey houses.’

Not this trip. The Franklin is feeling benevolent, providing gentle white water to ease us through Descension Gorge, where the first attempt to paddle the river ended in concussion and near drowning in 1952. Our day finishes more successfully, sunbathing on rocks beyond a serene quartzite canyon. At dusk the current turns coal black with a creamy froth from nearby rapids – a river of Guinness.

Ten hours later I am hallucinating about a pint. I’m parched, with screaming muscles, and it’s nothing to do with the river. Instead I am hiking. This being the Franklin, however, it’s a shocker: a nine-and-a-half hour round trip to the 1,446m summit of Frenchmans Cap. There are leeches, blisters and stretches so steep we use tree roots as ladders. The reward is an epic view of verdant ridges rippling towards the west coast.

There is just one exit on the whole 110km. If something goes wrong, you call a chopper – otherwise you are alone for 10 days But there is no time for poetry. Day four takes us under a cable and past a helipad – remains of what would have been the first of three aborted dams. It seems an ugly intrusion. There are 5,000-year-old Huon pines, a duck-billed platypus that bobs up when I am on the portable loo, and a gorgeous campsite, dubbed Club Franklin, with a dazzling glow-worm light show.

It is peaceful. Calm. Too calm. The next day’s threatening growl heralds the start of the Grand Ravine. Over six snarling kilometres the river drops 150m. Is there anything we should know? I ask Antho. ‘Nothing,’ he replies. ‘Other than that it turns boys into men.’

Or gibbering wrecks. Each rapid is studied for form and force. Too lethal and we carry, or portage, our gear over boulders alongside the torrents. It’s exhausting, often nerve-wracking, but each explosion of white water is the storm before the calm, with millpond stretches, including Serenity Sound and Transcendence Reach.

Cleary the Franklin has enjoyed multiple baptisms, with each christened landmark having staged its own tragedy or comedy. Thunder Rush

sucked a raft over the main fall with the guide screaming, ‘Get down. We’re all f***ed.’ It took an hour to locate his shocked, soaking team. At least they lived. At the Cauldron a group watched their guide die, pinned against a sieve with his arm sticking out of the water. ‘They rafted on for five days,’ said Antho. ‘There was no other way out.’

It drove home our isolation. There is just one exit on the whole 110km. If something goes badly wrong, you call a chopper – otherwise you are alone for 10 days. No one knew that better than the emaciated Victorian convicts who escaped Sarah Island, the brutal west coast penal colony, some resorting to cannibalism to survive.

There is no such trauma today. Despite the odd angry outburst – Big Fall killed two kayakers and ABC Log ‘popped a dude’s skull’ – the Franklin now widens, relaxes and offers ethereal visions. At Rock Island Bend, a huge sculpted rock drips with myrtle and dappled sunlight. Divine does not do it justice.

After the aboriginal cave of Kutikina, the southernmost habitation on earth during the last ice age, we float into the placid Gordon River and spot ragged holes in the forest. They are the legacy of roads bulldozed for the dam and the site of the 1983 protest: memorials to the people who saved the historic, moody and astonishingly beautiful Franklin.

Audley (01993 838 810; audleytravel.com) offers 19 days in Tasmania including the 10-day Franklin raft, four-day Bay of Fires hike, flights and transfers, from £4,810pp

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Open waters Seafarer and Guinness World Record holder Olly Hicks wants to row around the world, solo – and insists he’ll remain sane doing it words Arabella Dickie Portrait Desmond Muckian

When Olly Hicks’s father handed his 14-yearold son a newspaper clipping of a rower who had perished crossing the Atlantic Ocean, he had no idea that it would spark the young boy’s life-long obsession with the sea. ‘I was fascinated,’ says Hicks, ‘and read more and more about similar trips until I stumbled across a tale of two Norwegian fisherman who in 1896 crossed the Atlantic in a rowing boat.’

Nine years later, aged 23, Hicks set off on exactly the same route – earning a Guinness World Record for not only being the first person to row solo from America to the UK, but also the youngest to row any ocean solo. The 4,040-mile voyage from New Jersey to the Scilly Isles was hampered by some of the most extreme weather conditions in the Atlantic in over a century. ‘Often it was too rough to row, and I just had to cling on for life as my 24-foot boat was tossed from the tops of 70- and 80-foot waves.’ In September 2005, after 124 days at sea, Hicks landed on the British coast ‘as sane as when I’d set off’. However the remarkable achievement did little to quench his thirst for adventure, and he decided to try and conquer one of the last unbroken records in the arena of ocean-going feats: to row, single-handed, around the world.

In January 2009, after two years of preparation and fund-raising, Hicks set off from Australia on the Virgin Global Row. The mission: to cover 18,000 miles in 18 months, from Tasmania, around Antarctica, through the treacherous Southern Ocean, one of the most violent stretches of water on the planet, devoid of shipping lanes and beyond helicopter rescue range. He was to spend the winter in South Georgia before returning full circle to Tasmania. A few months into the voyage however, there was a glitch with the boat.

LEagUE of his own Above: Hicks’s boat crossing the Tasman Sea. Hicks (right) wears: trench coat, £1,295; shirt, £225; and tie, £125, all Burberry

‘It was an excellent sea boat – surviving three hurricanes no problem,’ says Hicks, ‘but a design flaw meant it didn’t make progress fast enough, and the mission was aborted in New Zealand after 96 days.’ Hicks has since been working with acclaimed naval architects to design a new two-tonne boat – costing in the region of £200,000 – and, with the necessary funding, aims to reattempt the Global Row in December of this year. The journey is the ultimate test of mental and physical strength in isolation. But for Hicks, the solitude out at sea is of little concern: ‘Some people talk about loneliness but loneliness has negative connotations, whereas solitude for me is

a state of contentment. Rowing the Atlantic I was perfectly happy listening to my iPod or reading books, particularly adventure short stories by the likes of [Ernest] Shackleton. Plus you’re never truly alone; the wildlife is breathtaking. On any given day I would see killer whales breaching, pods of dolphins, Portuguese men-of-war, sea turtles and albatross. And I would have my own private light show from the bioluminescent plankton at night.’ Some curious visitors were less welcome. ‘Occasionally sharks would circle, and one actually attacked the back of my boat before I drove it away with a spade.’

There were humorous moments as well, one involving a navy ship that Hicks spied half way through his voyage and radioed to ask if they could give him any supplies. ‘I think the guys on board were pretty amused with the whole situation but were nevertheless generous with their offerings, lowering down a bag of duck breasts, Camembert cheese and red wine, as well as 400 cigarettes and some rather raunchy lad’s magazines. I lived like a king for days after.’

Although the intrepid adventurer still holds down a job as a headhunter in the City and insists he is happy with the contrast – ‘it’s healthy to juggle both; I’d get bored doing only one thing all the time’ – it is all too apparent that his heart lies out at sea. ‘I’m a very simple man, and so is the ocean,’ he agrees. ‘I love the expanse, the simplicity of life, the beauty. The sea offers up a different view every day; seascapes that no one else will ever see again because they’re constantly changing. And crossing it is the most humbling experience.

No one can ever say they conquered the sea – it is the sea that decides to let you through.’

For more information on Hicks’s Global Row and his fund-raising, visit globalrow.com

rowing | BrUMMELL

I’m a very simple man, and so is the ocean... No one can say they conquered the sea – it’s the sea that decides to let you through

31

32 BrUMMeLL | WaTChes

The aviaTors From left to right: ALT1-WT World Timer, £3,995, Bremont. Navitimer Cosmonaute, £6,060, Breitling. Pilot Big Date Special, £5,100, Zenith.

C8 Pilot Mk II - U-2 Vintage, £415, Christopher Ward. B-42 Stratoliner, £2,805, Fortis. Vintage WW2 Regulateur Heritage, £4,300, Bell & ross

Flight time Soar to the heights of innovation and style with six pilots’ watches that take their design cues from the skies, and beyond Words Simon de Burton Photography Andy Barter

34 BRUMMELL | WATCHES

Bremont ALT1-WT World Timer Young watch brand Bremont – owned by aviation-mad brothers Nick and Giles English – has attracted the attention of military pilots from around the globe. In 2010, the company was commissioned to produce a world time chronometer for the various crews who fly C-17 Globemaster transport planes – and now the watch has been developed for civilian use as the ALT1-WT. Featuring 24 locations corresponding to different time zones, it has an additional hour hand which works in conjunction with a 24-hour inner bezel. Each one is delivered with both a leather strap, a NATOstyle nylon alternative and a tool with which to change them. £3,995; bremont.com

Breitling Navitimer Cosmonaute The special ‘Cosmonaute’ version of Breitling’s legendary Navitimer pilots’ watch first appeared in 1962 when it was made for astronaut Scott Carpenter’s trip into space at the controls of Aurora 7. The 24-hour dial was designed to make it easy to differentiate between day and night during the trip, which lasted five hours and saw Carpenter reach an altitude of 164 miles at a maximum velocity of 17,549mph. It was only America’s second manned space mission and, to mark its 50th anniversary, Breitling has created 1,962 special-edition Cosmonautes which remain faithful to the original in having a manual-wind movement. The Aurora 7 insignia is engraved on the back of the 43mm case. £6,060; breitling.com

Zenith Pilot Big Date Special Zenith has chosen this year to rekindle a relationship with aircraft that dates back almost to the dawn of powered flight when it made cockpit instruments for pioneer aviators.

The brand wowed the crowds at this year’s Baselworld show when it unveiled the audacious Montre d’Aeronef Type 20, a limited-edition, 57.5mm giant of a wristwatch based on an old pilots’ model of the Thirties. More appropriate for every day wear, however, is the new Pilot Big Date Special, which is inspired by a Zenith chronograph from the Sixties and uses the legendary El Primero movement. It can be ordered on a thick, leather strap or a delicious mesh link bracelet. £5,100; zenith-watches.com

Christopher Ward C8 Pilot Mk II - U-2 Vintage Entrepreneur Christopher Ward is enjoying considerable success with his eponymous UK watch brand which sells direct via its website – so cutting out the middle man and keeping prices low.

The C8 Pilot MK II watch takes inspiration from one of the most famous aviation watches of all, IWC’s B-Uhren of 1940, yet costs a fraction of the price. This ‘U-2 Vintage’ version differs from the standard C8 in having a 44mm, black, PVD case (instead of plain steel) and comes with the same Swiss-made, ETA movement that you will find in many watches costing 10 times the price. A chunky, hand-stitched strap in ‘distressed’ leather adds to the classic aviator look – and all for £415; christopherward.co.uk

Bell & Ross WW2 Regulateur Heritage In typical Bell & Ross style, this beautifully executed retro-look regulator takes inspiration from the instrument panel of a wartime military aircraft. Based on a Forties observer’s watch, it has a ‘pastry cutter’ bezel designed for ease of use with a gloved hand and an extra-large ‘onion’ winding crown mounted on the left side of the gunmetal-finish case. The regulator display – in which the main dial is used only to display the minutes while a small subdial shows the hours – is designed for maximum clarity, and the swivelling strap lugs enable the watch to be worn over the cuff of a flying jacket. This is certainly one of the coolest new watches to emerge this year. £4,300; bellross.com

Fortis B-42 Stratoliner Fortis this year celebrates 100 years with a series of limited editions, one of the best of which is this black, PVD version of its B-42 Stratoliner chronograph which will be made in, predictably enough, 2,012 examples. The Stratoliner watches, named after the Boeing transport aircraft, first appeared in 1962, the same year that Fortis watches were tested for the US space programme. The brand made its first pilots’ watches shortly before the outbreak of WWII and, as of 1994, a Fortis chronograph has been issued as standard equipment to every Russian cosmonaut. The brand was also the official watch supplier of 2009’s Mars 500 simulated space mission. £2,805; fortis-watches.com

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neil Laughton ←

Adventure capitalists For some, the thrill of the deal is enough. Others need danger with their adrenaline shot, an epic feat that will get them ready to return to work transformed Words Eloise Napier illustration Elisabeth Moch

Winston Churchill was once overheard saying, ‘The most exhilarating experience in life is to be shot at without result.’ The stock reaction to this is to think: they made ’em tough in those days.

But actually, Churchill had a point.

Modern life is so sanitised, so remarkably dull thanks to the insidious supremacy of the Health and Safety generation, that few of us get to experience that unmistakable thrill of forging into a danger zone and dancing through to the other side. It isn’t helped by the fact that convention presupposes that long hours spent glued to a desk will help career prospects; escape seems impossible.

However, a successful life in the City can undoubtedly be combined with Indiana Jonesstyle adventures. You just need the oomph – and the finances – to pull them off. The star at this is Glencore chairman Simon Murray.

A former French Foreign Legionnaire, who has climbed Everest, he became the oldest man to trek unsupported to the South Pole, aged 63.

There is a new wave of City adventurers following in his ski tracks. Between them, they prove that anything is possible…

When it comes to adventure, it’s difficult knowing where to start with this former Royal Marine and SAS officer. In 1994, after more than a decade in the armed forces, Laughton completed a postgraduate business diploma and started up OPL, an office-design business, from his dining room with an investment of £2,000. Seventeen years later, OPL had a blue-chip client list including Goldman Sachs, Rolls-Royce and Diageo, and a turnover of £40m. Laughton sold the business in 2011 to Balfour Beatty for £8m.

Meanwhile, entering civilian life had barely made a dent in Laughton’s saga of adventures.

He was climbing Everest in 1996 when the mountain was hit by its worst storm in a century.

Eight people were killed in the space of 24 hours; the tragedy was immortalised by Jon Krakauer’s classic book, Into Thin Air. Since then, Laughton has completed the ‘7 Summits’ challenge (climbing the highest mountain on every continent), trekked on skis to both Poles, motorcycled across the Atlas Mountains, and piloted a flying car from London to Timbuktu.

‘It wasn’t boring making the transition from the armed forces to everyday working life,’ he explains, ‘because the adventures provided me with spice and variety; they stopped me getting stuck in a rut. But the business career was always there to keep me on the ground financially.’

Organising each trip could take up to two-and-a-half years of planning: ‘I would do a day’s work in the office, but instead of going home in the evening, I’d spend two or three hours on expedition planning.’

The benefits, both professionally and personally, have been myriad. ‘When you are developing client relationships, it helps if you have done some interesting things because you stand out more,’ explains Laughton, adding, ‘Personally, I’ve been stretched in good ways and my leadership, communication and general life skills have improved.’

Since selling OPL, Laughton has set up the Business Leadership Academy, which runs bespoke leadership and management training programmes. He is also on the point of launching a new airline, making trips between Brighton City Airport and Paris.

Despite having survived the sort of adventures that most of us can only gasp at on the Discovery Channel, Laughton is as proud, if not more so, of Project New Horizons, a charity that he helped set up a few years ago. It takes up to 100 disadvantaged kids each year on a six-month developmental programme that ends with an extreme expedition. ‘The results we are getting are extraordinary,’ says Laughton.

‘Of last year’s intake of 36 young people, 90 per cent were either in employment or back in education three months later.’ The greatest challenge he faces now, he says, is fund-raising. neillaughton.com

City advEnturErs | BruMMELL 37

Ewen Cameron → When Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, one of her courtiers, Sir Robert Carey, leapt onto the first of many horses and galloped tirelessly up the Great North Road to Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh to deliver the news to James VI of Scotland. The journey took less than three days – lightning speed in those times – and Carey’s action was instrumental in securing the English throne for James over various other claimants.

Fast-forward just over 400 years and Ewen Cameron, a director of a property company and a former partner at a City firm of commercial property solicitors, is appointed to Her Majesty’s Body Guard. A largely ceremonial position, it is a great honour to become one of its 32 members and Cameron felt that it provided an opportunity to find a challenge.

‘I was reading up on The Body Guard’s history and the one thing that really stood out was Carey’s great ride,’ says Cameron. It was the ignition point for the solicitor to stage his own version of the Great North Ride, not to tip off a likely royal heir, but to raise funds for charity.

Teaming up with Major Neil Cross of the King’s Troop, Cameron spent a year planning the trip. The logistics were immense – between them, they would need 160 horses; every inch of the route had to be recced and an army of helpers was essential to make sure each horse arrived at the designated place on time. As Cameron puts it: ‘I had walked, driven or cycled every inch of the way; I now know where every gate is between London and Edinburgh.’

The difficulties of the trip should not be underestimated. Prince Charles summed it up succinctly in a letter of support to the pair: ‘This is one of those rare challenges that with the advance of time and technology has not become any easier – and nor, I doubt, has the potential problem of saddle sores…’

However, the Great North Ride, in March 2011, went seamlessly and the pair arrived in Edinburgh 86 hours after leaving London. And averaging 14 hours in the saddle each day, Cameron indeed ended up with a hand-sized saddle sore. ‘I was really well treated by our vet,’ he says cheerfully. ‘Although I think I was the first of his patients to answer back!’ All in all, the adventure raised £60,000 for two military charities.

Cameron managed to organise and complete the ride without eating into any corporate time: ‘I didn’t get round to telling my fellow partners until a few days beforehand, when I mentioned it might be a good marketing opportunity. Typical over-cautious lawyers, they just asked, “What happens if something goes wrong?”’

He summarises: ‘Being a lawyer is fine financially, but it does lack a bit of excitement.

I find that sport and a bit of travel, well off the beaten track, is an excellent antidote.’ greatnorthride.co.uk

38 BRUMMELL | city advEntURERs

Roger Weatherby ↑ There are few chief executives who can claim to having completed one marathon, let alone the five-in-seven-days of the hair-raising Marathon des Sables. But this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Roger Weatherby’s adventures.

Chief executive of Weatherbys Bank since 2000, he is also a member of the Jockey Club.

Horses have been a passion throughout his life and in 1996, after having spent 11 years at Cazenove, he rode across Spain unaccompanied.

A subsequent break for a Masters in Finance at the London Business School was followed by two months riding solo through Pakistan’s northern frontier province – the heartland of the 19th century’s ‘Great Game’. Despite being armed with only ‘an idiot’s guide to Urdu’, he crossed four mountain ranges without a hitch: ‘Like all these things, when you go to the poorest parts with the poorest terrain, you find the people there are the most generous anywhere.’

He still smiles when he recalls a letter from the British military attaché in Pakistan, which arrived just as he was leaving for his flight. ‘It said, “Whatever you do, don’t do this trip. It’s too dangerous!” It was too late by then, so I just rolled the letter up and threw it away!’

In 2005, Weatherby and four friends completed an epic trip to the South Pole, replicating the last 200 miles of Robert Falcon Scott’s 1912 expedition, not just in choice of route, but also in terms of equipment. ‘We had reindeer sleeping bags, woollen underwear and tweeds covered by old-style Burberry macs. Our sledge and skis were exact replicas of the ones they used.’

Surprisingly, the clothes turned out to be more effective than their modern counterparts, unlike the sledge. ‘It was very, very heavy and really hard to move. On the worst days, we didn’t travel more than a mile an hour.’

When they got to the Pole, they each put a hand on the marker and walked round it, managing to achieve the seemingly impossible – to walk round the world in eight steps.

The adventure raised just over £400,000 for three charities. The team is planning another trip next year to travel to the North Pole. The benefits personally have been long-lasting, as Weatherby explains: ‘It gives you an opportunity to come back refreshed and full of new ideas. You value your life, your family and everything around you. It’s so much better than simply lying on a beach.’

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Photograph by Brett using a Leica M9 with Noctilux-M 50mm f/0.95 ASPH. 1/1500s ISO 160

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motoring | BrUmmELL

Royal blue The Côte d’Azur makes for the perfect setting to test the new Rolls-Royce Phantom II Words Simon de Burton

One of my favourite features of the modern Rolls-Royce Phantom has always been the largely pointless but utterly beguiling power reserve indicator. The Phantom doesn’t have anything so vulgar as a rev counter, but the power reserve indicator gives you an idea of how hard the 6.75-litre, V-12 engine is working.

Driving the latest Phantom up the winding roads of the Route Napoléon, which stretches from Antibes to Grenoble, it was amusing to observe that, at 50mph, a mere five per cent of the available grunt was being used – according to the gauge, at any rate. That means there was approximately 430 horsepower in reserve and that the Phantom Series II makes progress in exactly the way that Sir Henry Royce would have demanded: effortlessly.

The Phantom caused a mild sensation when it was first unveiled nine years ago, with its rearward-opening ‘suicide’ back doors and an appearance that was simultaneously refined

41

and somewhat aggressive, with the legendary radiator grille dominating the front and, for a 2.9 ton car, a strangely neat and squat rear end.

For many, it remains the best-looking car in the ‘super premium’ segment, bar none.

So it must have been with a certain degree of trepidation that the Rolls-Royce design team set about trying to make it better.

Understandably, the changes are not so radical as to be instantly apparent. The most obvious is that the distinctive, round lamps set low in the front wings (which I’ve always rather liked) have been replaced by a set of rectangular, full-LED headlamps with fully adaptive functionality, meaning they point around corners and get brighter or dimmer according to the conditions.

The very observant might even pick up on the fact that the lines of the body are slightly softer and that there is a new, one-piece radiator grille on the drophead and coupé

42 BRUMMELL | MotoRing

BRigHt iDEA The new, adaptive LED headlamps point around corners and brighten or dim according to conditions

models, in place of the multi-part one of old.

The saloon, meanwhile, gets a revised rear bumper and there are three upgraded wheel designs across the range. Inside, the old and decidedly archaic satnav has been replaced by a state-of-the-art version with a huge, 8.8in screen with 3D views. It’s linked to a sophisticated all-round camera system which takes some of the trauma out of manouvering the mammoth, 19-foot barge.

There is also Wi-Fi connectivity and a Harman Kardon sound system which, if you close your eyes, is good enough to fool you into thinking that you’ve exchanged the Phantom’s interior for the Royal Box at the Albert Hall – albeit with rather more comfortable seating.

But the most important change is hidden beneath the car’s skin. It’s the substitution of the old six-speed gearbox for the very latest eight-speed ZF transmission, which is linked to an all-new differential specifically designed for the Phantom II. The main question, however, is what’s it like to drive? It’s certainly a valid one since, in the grand scheme of things, only a tiny fraction of the world’s population will ever find themselves behind the wheel of a Rolls-Royce - which is why I felt doubly lucky not only to be given the opportunity to try one, but to try one in exactly the sort of surroundings where such a car seems most at home: the Côte d’Azur.

For its launch base, Rolls-Royce chose the suitably high-level Cap Estel hotel in Eze which, over the decades, has hosted the great and the good ranging from The Beatles to David Niven. Its one drawback for automobile purposes, however, is the long, narrow, steeply sloping and serpentine driveway which, when

Seating can be adjusted to such perfection that, at one point, I nearly pulled over to have a snooze in the Riviera sunshine one is put in charge of £300,000-plus worth of Phantom for the first time, presents itself as something of a challenge.

Having made my ascent at a recordbreakingly slow speed – but with wheel rims and paintwork unscathed – it was time to head north towards the perfume-making town of Grasse to experience that Rolls-Royce cliché of ‘waftability’ to the full. And I can confirm that it’s definitely still there.

This car, as you might expect for the money, is simply delightful to drive. I chose to stick with the coupé version for the day, largely because I love the two-door look and because this particular car was fabulously finished in Azurite blue with a plain aluminium bonnet.

Just so Côte d’Azur, wouldn’t you agree?

From the inside, it’s easy to feel utterly invincible thanks to the superbly appointed cabin, which really is uncannily quiet. Yet, despite its plutocratic overtones, the Phantom is strangely quaint and endearing with its oldfashioned gear selector mounted on the steering column, its thin-rimmed, large-diameter wheel (which annoyingly obscures the gear indicator), and heavily overstuffed seating which can be adjusted to such perfection that, at one point, I felt an overbearing desire to pull over and have a snooze in the Riviera sunshine.

The antidote to this was to wind down the window, notch-up the Harman Kardon stereo and drive in a manner for which Rolls-Royces were probably never designed: hustling fast between the Route Napoléon’s many switchbacks as though it were a sporting two-seater of half the size. And, to my surprise, the Phantom performed superbly.

The handling seemed absurdly sharp for such an enormous machine and, although a degree of body roll was evident, it was far from being the yacht-like yaw one might expect from a car ostensibly built for comfort over speed. Gear changes from the new eight-speed box are smooth and almost imperceptible – although there did seem to be a momentary lag between applying the accelerator and initial take-off. This was explained by the fact that the amount of torque applied to the gearbox is deliberately limited from standstill to protect its anti-friction coating.

Such tiresome mechanical details are, however, unlikely to trouble the average Phantom buyer, who will probably be more interested in the optional extras, which are extensive: a choice of 44,000 paint colours, ‘night sky’ head lining, a cocktail cabinet beneath the boot floor. If you can name it, you can probably have it (although Rolls-Royce does employ a team of uncompromising taste police).

But even if you go for the ‘standard’ model, you can still be assured of relative exclusivity – the entry price of £283,750 will see to that.

The Rolls-Royce Phantom Series II is on sale now, with first deliveries due in September. Saloon, £283,750; Coupé, £333,130; Drophead Coupé, £352,720; Extended Wheelbase, £357,850; rolls-roycemotorcars.com

Now available in Barbour stores and selected stockists, visit www.barbour.com to find out more.

Steve McQueen™Licensed by Chadwick McQueen and The Terry McQueen Testamentary Trust, Represented by GreenLight. Photography by Francois Gragnon.

style | BRUMMell 45

Smart moves Contemporary tailoring, stylish accessories and an adaptable bag to pack it all in is everything you will need to go from work to play Photography Neil Gavin styling David Waters

flight club Previous page, left: Jacket, £620, and scarf, £115, both Prada. Trousers, £175; boots, £610; and belt, £300, all louis Vuitton. Bag, £469, Emporio Armani.

Sunglasses, £180, gucci Previous page, right: Nylon jacket, £795, Dunhill. Shirt, £247, louis Vuitton. Scarf, £112, Prada. Sunglasses, £220, Jil Sander Right: Jacket, £1,130, Prada. T-shirt, £18, cOS. Trousers, £175, Dunhill.

Belt, £300, and shoes, £630, both louis Vuitton.

Holdall, £360, hackett.

Sunglasses, £220, Jil Sander Below: Jacket, £350, and bag, £120, both hackett.

T-shirt, £39, toast. Trousers, £69, cOS. Scarf, £115, and sunglasses, £190, both Prada Opposite: Jacket, £650, and shirt, £495, both louis Vuitton. Trousers, £69, cOS. Shoes, £230, bally. Bag, £860, and sunglasses, £190, both Prada

StylE | bRuMMEll 47

48 BrUMMell | Style

holding pattern Jacket, £699, and shirt, £247, both louis Vuitton. Trousers, £69, CoS. Boots, £369, emporio armani. Ostrich bag, £6,442, Zagliani.

Sunglasses, £220, Jil Sander grooming Liz Daxauer at Caren Model Harry Gilliam at Next photographer’s assistant Holly Malone Stylist’s assistant Emma Lamp STOCKISTS DETAILS ON PAGE 50

THE 4.8 LITRE PLUS 8

Photo courtesy of Magic Car Pics

The new Morgan Plus 8 makes use of technology from the aircraft industry to achieve an unladen weight of 1150kgs. This makes the car the lightest V8 passenger car in the world. One of the stiffest in its class; The aluminium chassis braces the mighty BMW V8 coupled to a six speed manual or automatic gearbox. With a truly coachbuilt body handcrafted onto this, the car can then be built bespoke to your taste down to the last detail.

Superbly responsive, the car is the ideal companion on country and urban roads. You can have all the fun possible in a car with a clear conscience that impact on nature is kept at a minimum.

For more information please visit www.morgan-motor.co.uk Car pictured: 4.8litre Morgan Plus 8. Fuel economy: 25.2mpg (Combined) CO2 : 269gr/km. Price: ÂŁ71,000+VAT

50 BRUMMELL | BY GEORGE

Time lord Horological hunter and futurologist Marcus Margulies marks the 10th year of his London store with an exhibition of very special watches

The worrying thing is that I have known Marcus Margulies for about 20 years. The reassuring thing is that he remains much as he was 20 years ago: still as irascible, just as unpredictable and perhaps even more mischievous.

As with everyone who has a little bit of character, he polarises opinion, but even his fiercest detractor would concede that he has a passion for watches and what is more, this passion is bastioned and bolstered by a fierce independence of spirit and a lively curiosity, which, while tempered by the wisdom that comes with three score years and 10, is undimmed.

It is this combination of passion, curiosity and independence that makes him a brilliant salesman. Margulies is simply too impatient and too easily bored to want to try and sell you something that he himself would not wear. Put quite simply he does not want to waste the time.

He knows quality, he salutes ingenuity, he celebrates individuality and he will not waste time with ‘tyre-kickers’.

To the uninitiated he may seem abrasive and if your retail experience requires the validation of fawning sales staff, then do not cross the threshold of his eponymous palace of glass and steel on Bond Street. However, if you like to learn and to laugh, and you catch him on a good day, then you will fall under the tutelage of one of the most cultivated and engaging men you are likely to meet inside, or for that matter outside, the watch industry.

Margulies has long passed that point in his life where he cares what other people think. In fact, I suspect it never really mattered that much, and instead he enjoys the supreme luxury of dealing only with people and things that interest him. And if he is interested, then he stands a better chance of interesting others. It is this unquenchable intellectual curiosity that has enabled him to assemble one of the world’s great selling collections of watches.

If you are after the status timepiece that communicates your net worth in the simple semaphore of brand recognition, Bond Street has plenty of doors open to you, but once you have got that out of your system and done your apprenticeship, then give Margulies a call. First, he has spent a lifetime as a horological truffle hunter and has a nose for what is different and interesting – he brought Franck Muller to the UK; he advanced Jean Claude Biver the money to make his first collection of gold watches with Blancpain, and today he offers the most exuberant and unexpected of timepiece treats and treasures from the likes of super-boutique brands Urwerk and Greubel Forsey.

But as well as being a horological futurologist par excellence, he is also a student of the past and it is thanks to his collection of vintage pieces that I got to handle my first Dino Falcone, or strap a New York Cartier Maxi Oval from the early Seventies to my wrist. Whether it is the supercomplications of Audemars Piguet in the early 20th century, or the recondite beauty of Piaget’s stunning ‘slave bangle’ wristwatches of the late Sixties; the multiple tourbillons of Greubel Forsey or the hi-tech high watchmaking of Richard Mille, you can always count on Margulies to have an opinion.

Now, one does not necessarily have to agree with an opinion but, when it comes to watches, you are unlikely to meet anyone whose opinions are quite as strong, or anything like as well informed, as Margulies’.

To mark the store’s 10th anniversary and Marcus Margulies’ 70th birthday, there will be an exhibition of ‘unique masterpieces’ from 3 July to 2 October at Marcus, 170 New Bond Street, London W1S 4RB; marcuswatches.com Words Nick Foulkes

Stockists Bally bally.com Barbour 0191 455 4444; barbour.com Burberry 0800 279 4998; burberry.com Canali canali.it Chanel 020 7493 5040; chanel.com Chester Barrie 0207 439 6079; chesterbarrie. co.uk COS 020 7478 0400; cosstores.com Dunhill 0845 458 0779; dunhill.com Emporio Armani 020 7823 8818; armani.com G Star shop.g-star.com Gieves & Hawkes 020 7434 2001; gievesandhawkes.com

Gucci 020 7629 2716; gucci.com Hackett 020 7939 6865; hackett. com Harrods 020 7730 1234; harrods.com Jil Sander jilsander.com Louis Vuitton louisvuitton.com Neil Barrett neilbarrett.com Pal Zileri palzileri.it Prada prada.com Smythson 0845 873 2435; smythson.com Toast 0844 557 5200; toast.co.uk Victorinox 020 7647 9070; victorinox.com Zagliani 020 7235 4124; zagliani.it

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XXX OLYMPIAD

LONDON

2012 OMEGA has been the Official Timekeeper at 25 Olympic Games. A partnership forged on the shared desire to record for future generations the valiant attempts of the young men and women of the world to go faster, reach higher and be stronger.