Innehållsförteckning för October 2024 - Issue 96 från The Rake

It was a bucolic day in Geneva, so I made my way to my garage to start my old Norton Commando and take it for a spin through the neighbouring municipality of Cologny. Suddenly an enraged woman in her late twenties appeared before me. You’ll have to imagine the following diatribe in Swiss-French-accented English. She brushed her hair out of her face and said something along the lines of, “Ugh, your motorcycle is so loud, and it smells like gasoline. It is so annoying to listen to it. You are destroying the environment with your stupid gasoline engine. You are a pig. An eco-terrorist pig.” While amusingly jarring at first, the moment has since made me think of the reason Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond decided to end…

Not long ago, Georgia Fanshawe, a scion of the Guinness dynasty, was recalling her first trip to the Caribbean. “It was 1974, and we were on our way to Mustique,” she said. “We stayed overnight in Barbados at Oliver Messel’s house, Maddox. We had dinner by candlelight in his beautiful garden. There were monkeys running about in the branches above us. After dinner, Oliver suddenly emerged through the undergrowth. He kept vanishing and reappearing, wearing different masks and theatrical headdresses as he danced among the palms. I remember it being terribly exciting, but also slightly sinister.” It’s fitting that Messel should have placed himself, Puck-like, at the centre of such an arresting tableau. For decades he had been the master of mise-en-scène, whether designing costumes and sets for the opera…

Jason Arday is genuinely inspirational. You may not recognise him, and nor will you find a self-aggrandising social media page for him. This is not his way. He goes about his business quietly, and it was only a chance meeting between us at Huntsman that made this article a possibility. For those who are unfamiliar: Jason is a professor of sociology of education at Cambridge University. He is one of the youngest people to have been made a professor at Cambridge, beaten by only three other young achievers, including Stephen Hawking. An achievement all the more impressive because his childhood was not straightforward. Jason is autistic, and his ability to speak was stunted until he was 11 years old; it was not until he was 18 that he could read…

If this issue of The Rake is all about design, let’s talk about the drink that comes in the most beautifully designed glass of all time — the martini. To me, the martini glass is the world’s classiest vessel for transporting alcohol from the mixing glass to your mouth. Gorgeously impractical (have you ever tried to navigate a party with an overfilled one?) and timelessly evocative, its V-shape signals cocktail victory for every imbiber who holds one in their hand. As Rake readers, I’m sure each of you have an order you recite to the bartender with a specificity rivalled only by your coffee order to your local barista. Up with a twist, up with olives, stirred, shaken, dry, extra dry, wet, dirty, filthy — everyone has their preference. And…

If you are anything like me, you will know (and lust after) Breguet for their classic dress watches with coin-edged cases and engine-turned dials. But the brand that has given us so much, thanks to its namesake founder, Abraham-Louis Breguet, is also a seriously competent pilot’s watch specialist — which is still something of an insider’s secret. The connection between Breguet watches and aviation is deeply rooted in the brand’s history and family legacy. This relationship began in the early 20th century, driven by two key factors: technological innovation, in which Breguet developed special functions for pilots in timing flight segments; and family ties, where Louis Charles Breguet, a descendant of the company’s founder, was a pioneering aircraft manufacturer. Over the years, Breguet have been associated with some genuine rockstars…

In Rule, Nostalgia: A Backwards History of Britain, Hannah Rose Woods argues that nostalgia is a central part not just of Great Britain’s story but the human story at large. I went to Goodwood Revival in September, and emerged somewhat encouraged that this is indeed the case. Despite the fairly unrelenting rain and the sea of umbrellas, you’d have thought it was the tailgate party for a Taylor Swift concert, or what one assumes will be the vibe for next year’s Oasis return. This was no niche community, it was not cosplay: there was an energy wrenched from every attendee’s soul, and a soul that ties itself to the past is indistinguishable from our approach to the present. We may dress differently most days of the year, but Goodwood Revival…

Nico Mirallegro’s assuredness is infectious. It’s not braggadocio but a quiet confidence in what he’s doing and knowing he’s on the right track. He talks of patience and waiting for the right gig, but also of channelling negative thoughts into positivity, which will benefit him and his career. He’s still a realist, though. “Everyone is shit-scared when they first get on set,” he says. “It’s like, ‘How is this going to work? Am I going to deliver and hit all the moments? How’s this conversation in the scene going to play out?’ So the nerves are still there, but I think I’ve tried to ground myself and have an element of conscious control within the performance, which then adds to helping create characters.” It’s a technique that has helped him…

We all know the proverb about mankind’s cordial pact with his canine companions. But what was the catalyst in history that led to the less pithy quote from which the saying derives — King Frederick II’s 1796 deathbed declaration that, “The only, absolute and best friend a man has, in this selfish world, the only one that will not betray or deny him, is his dog”? Of course, there have been several important moments — perhaps thousands. The earliest comes 45,000 years ago, when sapiens forging north through Europe befriended wolves who alerted them to encroaching rival hominid groups in return for being allowed to scavenge the bones left behind by their hunting exploits. Another is the Agricultural Revolution 35,000 years later, when dogs were bred with characteristics favourable to…

Dunhill without a bespoke offering would be like a Pimm’s sans mint, strawberries and cucumber. In theory you get a glass of something cold and refreshing but something — the crucial element — is missing. Dunhill’s bespoke element makes them a British icon. So, when Simon Holloway moved from Purdey to its sister brand to take over its creative direction, there was plenty of excitement. My views on his opening collection, shown at the National Portrait Gallery, is already on the record — I was full of praise and adulation for someone finally tugging at Britain’s cultural assets by making clothes exciting and sophisticated. Now, I am convinced of Dunhill’s continued success with the hiring of Will Adams. Will was the former head cutter at Kilgour, and has spent his…

As Breitling celebrate ‘140 Years of Firsts’, the Swiss watchmakers have unveiled their latest achievement: the calibre B19, the company’s first exclusive perpetual calendar chronograph movement. This technological marvel makes its debut in three limited-edition timepieces, each representing one of Breitling’s iconic collections: the Premier, the Navitimer and the Chronomat. It’s fair to say that the Chief Executive, Georges Kern, not only successfully simplified Breitling’s offering when he arrived (land, sea and air), but has continued to innovate technically while reducing sizes in line with current trends. This new calibre may be his crowning achievement thus far. A new chapter in watchmaking history The calibre B19 combines a full calendar and moonphase with the brand’s signature chronograph functionality. Its most impressive feature is its ability to automatically correct for months…

There used to be a magazine called Finch’s Quarterly Review. Before I go on I must declare an interest: I used to be the Managing Editor of FQR under the direction of the great Nick Foulkes. It was a masterpiece of kinds, and its design, by Tristram Fetherstonhaugh, was witty, tasteful and irresistible to look at. It was a template for high publishing, a level above the competition, and a constant source of inspiration for magazines like The Rake. The sense of excitement at seeing such an elevated and carefully curated magazine was similar to the feeling I had when Nick gave me an early copy of Swans, his book by Assouline. The term ‘coffee-table book’ seems a bit pusillanimous with regards to Assouline, but if you’re not familiar, consider…

The sight of a snowflake can freeze the blood if you drive a classic car in the U.K. In these parts, a road touched by snow or ice means only one thing: the grit spreaders will be out. But when those who oversee Britain’s highways say ‘grit’, what they really mean is salt. And salt, as any classic-car fan will tell you, is the seed of the devil himself. It sneaks its way into a car’s nooks and crannies, hides beneath the slightest of paint imperfections, makes a home in chrome… and then comes the thing that Neil Young sagely observed ‘never sleeps’: rust. But in St. Moritz, the winter playground of the super-rich and the unlikely hub of one of the world’s most active collector car scenes, the sight…

eric ray davidson Eric Ray Davidson is a Los Angeles-based photographer whose career in editorial and portraiture spans more than 20 years. His vivid work has been featured in magazines such as Variety, GQ, L’Officiel Hommes and Men’s Health, and earned him the admiration and respect of Hollywood. In what we hope is a deft and strategically positive move, Eric has teamed up with The Rake for the first time, to shoot Michael Keaton at The Peninsula hotel in New York for this issue’s cover and accompanying interview (page 104). amberly valentine Amberly is a British photographer and creative director who lives in Indonesia and, through her work, explores some of the remotest places in the world. Commissioned by global brands and magazines, she blends fashion with the spirit of…

A common refrain among creatives has it that, if your work pleases all who consume it — or even most — you’ve failed. Unequivocal applause from a majority of subjective individuals, the reasoning goes, can be inspired only by banality. It makes sense. What becomes of progress if the instinctively avant-garde, cowed by fear of negative reactions, fall into line with the regular troops? Cultural stagnation must surely result when human expression goes A.W.O.L. on its role as a driver of social evolution. Imagine the French Decadent poets of late 19th century Paris ditching their ‘épater le bourgeois’ in favour of ‘apaiser le bourgeois’; the Harlem Renaissance of the pre-war years being tamed into a rallying cry for acquiescence; or Jimi Hendrix’s rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner at Woodstock reimagined…

The Visionary sees the world not through the sometimes dire prism of the news cycle but through an imagination that gives rise to opportunities for love, creativity and beauty — the currencies the human experience thrives on. This is not to say the Visionary is an armchair general, his optimism formed exclusively in a cosy bubble. Research is required, so the Visionary is well travelled and has tasted every dish, seen every film and read every book. People like him are infuriating, in that they tend to be the ones who can predict which cigars will age best. Still, that means that over a game of backgammon (at which, of course, he is brilliant), the humidor is well stocked with otherwise unsourceable goodies. The Visionary is a lateral thinker who…

At the beginning of the 20th century you knew you had made your mark when powerhouse publications like Harper’s Bazaar tipped the capuchon in your direction. For Coco Chanel it was not so much a case of muted approval but a dizzying gush of infatuation. As early as 1915, the publication declared that, “The woman who hasn’t at least one Chanel is hopelessly out of fashion”. By the end of the 20th century, being name-checked in The Simpsons was a more accurate barometer of cultural cachet. Chanel spanned both. The nexus of the 1996 episode Scenes from the Class Struggle in Springfield is a pink and black Chanel suit in the mode of Jackie Kennedy. Bought by Marge on sale for $90, it impresses an acquaintance to such a degree…

In the late 18th century there was a movement in the affairs of men’s style called the Great Male Renunciation. It signalled the rejection of embellished and impractical modes of clothing to indicate status and wealth. In Britain, the impact of this movement was in some ways smaller than in countries such as France, where you could find yourself guillotined as a member of the ancien régime. However, in other ways it was the turning point that made Britain the world’s most significant exporter of style, taste and sophistication. For it was then that the archetype of the English country gent was created; it was then that heavier, more austere tweeds became (and thereafter remained) a motif of Victorian Britain. The watch would belatedly follow suit. Pocket-watches would be thinner…

If you were born in the eighties, like me, you were a child of Back to the Future. With that film came all the recognisable cultural touchpoints of the decade — the gilets and the hightop trainers, Huey Lewis and the News, the hairstyles, and, of course, the DeLorean. What’s more, Back to the Future introduced kids of the eighties to the 1950s, perhaps the most creative, optimistic and culturally potent era of modern history, when America made the post-war playbook all about them, and through architecture, fashion and automobiles showed that something beautiful could emerge from the horrors of the previous decade. In the fifties, concepts were reborn; audaciousness was rewarded. From colour schemes and materials to styles, it was a time for experimentation, and the chaos of creativity…

“They have a deep passion for what they do. They have a deep hunger for success, and they’re driven by a vision.” To call Deepak Chopra an authority on what makes leaders effective would be a tepid understatement. The 78-year-old Indian-American philosopher and alternative medicine guru has authored dozens of New York Times bestsellers whose overarching theme is human effectiveness, and he was named by Time as one of their top 100 influencers of the last century for his work in the field. His list of close friends and collaborators includes the most renowned spiritual figures in the world (the Dalai Lama) as well as pop-culture giants past (George Harrison, Michael Jackson) and present (Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, J. Balvin), and his social media following has reached 20m. In short,…

Like many protagonists from classical mythology — Oedipus, Achilles and Sisyphus spring to mind — the inventor, architect and sculptor Daedalus is best known for a single legend. His story is told by the Roman poet Ovid in the narrative poem Metamorphoses, and sees Daedalus collecting seagull wings from a Cretan beach, affixing them to osier wood branches with beeswax, and taking flight from the island with his son, Icarus, only for the latter to plummet into the sea having ignored his father’s warnings not to fly too close to the sun. But there’s more to Daedalus, a descendant of the royal family of Cecrops (the mythical first king of Athens), than this metaphorical warning against hubris. Dig a little deeper, and a man who, according to Plato’s Dialogues, created…