Best Of London - Jack Savoretti

Jack Savoretti: 50% English, 50% Italian, 100% Talent.
Jack’s wistfully romantic, often melancholic, songwriting has been compared to that of Simon & Garfunkel with some music industry insiders calling him the new Bob Dylan.

Being great friends with his sister Beatrice, I first met Jack when he was a scruffy 15-year-old poet… Since then, I have stood witness to his evolution into the husky, dreamy (and still pretty scruffy) acoustic singer/songwriter that he is today.

I love attending a Jack Savoretti gig – you cannot help but be totally charmed by his voice, music and bohemian cool. Need anymore convincing? Head to London’s Relentless Garage tomorrow night to see Jack perform - details below.

Currently living in West London with his beautiful wife Jemma and their one-month-old baby girl, Jack shares with us some of his London favourites…

My Pint – At The Cock and Bottle with a few good friends.

My Date Night – At home with my girls -The perfect night.

My Sunday Brunch – I like to go to The Crown, 30 minutes outside of London in the village of Bray, for the perfect Sunday Bloody Mary.

My Building – The house on Fosket Road where I grew up.

My Shop – I like to walk into Portobello Road’s Rough Trade and ask for really un-cool music and watch them all get worked up... They take being cool very seriously in there...

My London Extravagance – Daily life in general seems to knock the change out of my pockets in this town...

London's Best Kept Secret – A little Italian restaurant called Ida... Unlike most Italian restaurants outside of Italy, this one is the real deal.

My London Icon (Past or Present) – All the Black Cabbies that get you fired up before a night out, reassure you at the end of the night, and welcome you home after a long trip.

Below: Aloe Blacc's 'I Need A Dollar' performed by Jack Savoretti, We Were Evergreen and Sophie Delila who are all performing at London's Relentless Garage tomorrow night.

Click here for tickets for tomorrow’s gig - only a few left – Quickity Quick!!

www.jacksavoretti.com

Frieze Art Fair 2011

Regents Park saw the annual return of the Frieze Art Fair last week and when my friend asked me to go with her I leapt at the chance. I have always, for one reason of another, missed out on going so I had no idea what to expect…

When I arrived I found a huge showcase of commissioned art and design to explore from over 170 different contemporary galleries… Curated by Sarah McCrory, a massive, eclectic collection of eye-catching paintings, sketches, prints, sculpture and photography are displayed along several very long aisles (I wiiiish I’d worn trainers!!)

Right: Tracey Emin's 'And I Said I Love You!'

Here are some of the pieces which caught my eye:

Above: This amazingly dressed lady was unsurprisingly drawn to the chandelier of neon, multi-coloured bodies... How brilliant?!

Above: Jung Lee’s sculpture ‘Aporia’

Above L-R: Jim Lambe, Untitled and Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster's 'After'

Above L-R: Barnaby Hosking's 'Thoughts' and David Shrigley's 'Untitled (This is Nothing)'

Above L-R: Dawn Mellor's 'Kristen Scott Thomas' and Cornelia Parker's '30 Pieces of Silver'

Above: Sculpture by Tara Donovan

Above: Tracey Emin's 'You Made ME LOVE You'

'Thought Of You' - Animated short by Ryan Woodward (music by The Weepies)

"Everything that I said I'd do

Like make the world brand new

And take the time for you

I just got lost and slept right through the dawn

And the world spins madly on..."

This 2 minute little treasure of a short film, created by animator Ryan Woodward (‘Where The Wild Things Are’) came from his desire to unite several of his passions into one art piece; 2d animation, EFX animation, and contemporary dance. These three forms were combined to convey an intimate, complex relationship dancing along to The Weepies’ ‘World Spins Madly On’… The results are extremely powerful, evocative and affecting.

The meaning of the love story shown is open to each viewer’s interpretation...

I have a feeling that if there had been another sequence to this film we would have seen this girl standing up, dusting off her frock, and once again raising up her wings…
'You go Mama!' (I'm still trying to speak 'Kelly Rowland' - but not quiiiite pulling it off yet...)

Kate Moss - Beauty Secrets

In the lead up to the launch of her lipstick collection for Rimmel, super stylish supermodel Kate Moss shared some of her beauty secrets in an interview with The Sunday Times:

1. Red lipstick - "It's the ultimate shade. I wouldn't wear it during the day, but at night, or if it's a do, then it's good. Lipstick is the classic, iconic make-up, isn't it? You think of Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly, and it's always about the lips

2. Nude lips with smudgy eyes – for daytime.

3. Kohl pencil eyeliner – “I always use a kohl pencil as it's easier to manage. You can get really good liquid liners now that are easy to use and precise, but if it goes wrong, you still have to start all over again, not like with kohl, when you can smudge it out."

4. No time for brushes - "Make-up artists do that, but I wouldn't do it on myself. I don't use a lip liner or a lip brush: I just shove it on."

5. Blusher - "I can feel when I need it. I use a powder and then a cream blush over the top to get a bit of a glow."

6. No to lipgloss - "I've got a thing about sticky - it can't be sticky. [It's] from doing too many shoots when they get the wind machine out and my hair sticks to me. I get the fear."



7. Eyelash curlers - "I don't feel complete without them, it's one of those things. [The secret to a false last look is] curling and then tons and tons and tons of mascara."



8. Factor 50 - "I was a real sun-worshipper - I loved it, boiling and lying out there. But now I don't do that… Now I have factor 50 - I had never put on factor 50 in my life!"



And now a sneaky peak inside Kate’s Washbag...

* PENHALIGONS BLUEBELL EAU DE TOILETTE (50MLS) RRP £58.00
* JELLY PONG PONG JELLY FLUSH RRP £12.00
* RIMMEL LONDON SOFT KOHL IN JET BLACK RRP £2.99
* RIMMEL GLAM'EYES RRP £7.19
* CREME DE LA MER MOISTURISING CREAM RRP £95.00
* DERMALOGICA OVERNIGHT CLEARING GEL RRP £28.90
* BOOTS EXPERT BABY SENSITIVE WIPES RRP £2.03
* JO WOOD TULA EXFOLIATING SALT SCRUB RRP £24.00
* PHILOSOPHY KISS ME RRP £10.00
* KIEHL'S CREME DE CORPS BODY LOTION RRP £27.00
* JAMES BROWN HAIR REVIVING DRY SHAMPOO RRP £7.14
* NARS BODY GLOW RRP £44.00
* CLARINS BLUE ORCHID FACE TREATMENT OIL RRP £33.00
* DR HAUSCHKA ROSE DAY CREAM RRP £23.95
* LAURA MERCIER UNDERCOVER CONCEALER NO4 RRP £26.00
* ELIZABETH ARDEN 8 HOUR CREAM RRP £25.00
* CLINIQUE ALMOST LIPSTICK IN BLACK HONEY RRP £16.00
* SHU UEMURA EYELASH CURLERS RRP £20.00.

The Minotaur at The Old Vic Tunnels

On Monday night I went to the Old Vic Tunnels for the opening night of 'The Minotaur' - a unique collaboration of theatre, visual art, film and food to coincide with both the Frieze Art Fair and the London Restaurant Festival.

The Lazarides Galleries, the influential group who represent emerging international artists who defy convention, have collaborated with Kofler & Kompanie (the pioneers of PRET A DINER, Europe's most celebrated pop up restaurant) to transform the Old Vic Tunnels into an alternative cultural space featuring a labyrinth gallery of cutting-edge artwork and film alongside creative cuisine from Michelin-starred chefs.


The exhibition takes inspiration from the ancient Greek legend of 'The Minotaur' and Steve Lazarides commissioned several exciting and innovative artists to each create their own interpretation of the classical myth. Highlights of the exhibition included art and installations by Robert del Naja “3D” (from Massive Attack), David Choe (who was commissioned by Mark Zuckerberg last year to paint the new Facebook offices) Conor Harrington, Antony Micallef, and Jonathan Yeo.

Art aside, what also really excited and amazed me was the venue itself. The vast, maze-like Old Vic Tunnels, hidden beneath the deepest, darkest depths of Waterloo Station, is the most unique and atmospheric venue I have seen in a very long time. Acquired by The Old Vic in 2010 the mystical, dimly lit, arches have since been used for a plethora of art, music and theatre events.

Tickets to 'The Minotaur' exhibition: £5.
A three course meal at PRET A DINER including entrance to the exhibition: £75.

Showing until the 25th of October.

Happy Birthday Jack Savoretti

Last night we celebrated singer songwriter Jack Savoretti’s birthday in the best possible way; a small, intimate gig filled with friends and family at Soho House.

With a 3 week old baby daughter newly on the scene, the rather sleep deprived Jack Savoretti proved to be a real rock’n’roll Daddy by still, effortlessly, providing his audience with an enthralling mixture of his older, emotive ballads followed by his latest, more bluesy, foot tappin’ songs.

Below: ‘Come Shine A Light On Me’ - One of my favourite songs by Jack and I love this montage video created by Maria Armengou. (Look out for Jack’s beautiful wife Jemma.)

Happy Birthday Papa Sav! xx

The National English Ballet Theatre

Note to self: Never stand next to ballerinas… You will feel like an Oompa Loompa...

Last week I attended a fundraiser in aid of the New English Ballet Theatre held at BAFTA. The dinner and auction were followed by an elegant performance by some of the 16 beautifully costumed dancers who have already joined the company.

NEBT was founded by choreographer and artistic director Karen Pilkington Miksa in the wake of huge cuts in funding for the arts in the UK. This ambitious venture will help to nurture and promote the careers of young, highly trained ballerinas whilst bringing brand new and exciting works to the stage.

Above: Joining in, putting my best sparkly ballet foot forward...


To donate to the company, or even ‘adopt’ a ballerina please go to the NEBT Just Giving page.

Sienna Miller's East African Mission

Last month actress Sienna Miller visited the Dolo Ado camps in eastern Ethiopia in her role as global ambassador for the International Medical Corps.

After overseeing their emergency nutrition programmes and meeting many of those gravely affected by the severe drought and famine, Sienna is now calling for greater attention to the current humanitarian crisis in East Africa, “Without immediate humanitarian intervention, more than 390,000 children are at risk of starvation.”

In some areas of Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia, a child is dying every six minutes and support is urgently needed to help the millions of people facing starvation in the already strained refugee camps.

For more information about this urgent appeal please go to the International Medical Corps website - you could, by donating some much needed money, help them deliver lifesaving nutrition and other basic supplies.