{"id":83889,"date":"2025-05-08T06:22:17","date_gmt":"2025-05-08T06:22:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/83889\/"},"modified":"2025-05-08T06:22:17","modified_gmt":"2025-05-08T06:22:17","slug":"graydon-carters-guide-to-london-maison-francois-anderson-sheppard-and-collecting-canoes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/83889\/","title":{"rendered":"Graydon Carter’s guide to London: Maison Fran\u00e7ois, Anderson & Sheppard and collecting canoes"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"STYLE\"<\/p>\n

Graydon Carter, whose new book is out now, has never owned a flat in London; these are his favourite spots when he visits from New York.<\/p>\n

Greenwich Village. I\u2019ve lived in New York<\/a> for almost half a century. Our current apartment is about 200 feet from my first apartment. I know, a distinct lack of imagination.<\/p>\n

Where do you stay in London?<\/p>\n

We used to love the Draycott, just off Sloane Square. No spa or proper dining room. And the bathroom showers were tortuous. But it was charming, filled with books, and the rooms had gas fireplaces. Nina Campbell had done the interiors. It was sold recently and went through a renovation that stripped it of all its charm.<\/p>\n

Where was your first flat in the city?<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve never owned a London flat \u2014 my loss.<\/p>\n

I was fired from the Evening Standard by fax by the editor Paul Dacre. I couldn\u2019t really blame him<\/p>\n

Graydon Carter<\/p>\n

What was your first job in London?<\/p>\n

I did a column for this paper once. It was about the goings on in New York. I was fired by fax by the editor Paul Dacre. I couldn\u2019t really blame him. The column wasn\u2019t particularly good.<\/p>\n

Where would you recommend for a first date?<\/p>\n

A walk along the Embankment. It\u2019s peaceful and you get a sense of the vast history of the city as well as the bustling newness of it.<\/p>\n

Which shops would you visit to buy presents?<\/p>\n

I do believe that the Anderson & Sheppard haberdashery shop is about as perfect as perfect gets. I also love Anya Hindmarch\u2019s little village of shops in Chelsea.<\/p>\n

My wife and I love to split a pasta starter and then a branzino<\/p>\n

The best London meal you\u2019ve had?<\/p>\n

At the River Caf\u00e9, with my wife, our youngest son Spike and his wife Pip, and two dear friends, Lucy and Mark Cornell. My wife and I love to split a pasta starter and then a branzino.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The River Cafe in Hammersmith<\/p>\n

Courtesy <\/p>\n

What would you do if you were Mayor for the day? <\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Allow smoking in restaurants.<\/li>\n
  2. Outlaw any car worth more than \u00a3100,000.<\/li>\n
  3. Switch driving lanes to the right side.<\/li>\n
  4. Force the owners of the Draycott to restore the hotel to its former self.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Who is the most iconic Londoner?<\/p>\n

    Gussie Fink-Nottle from the Jeeves novels. Or Admiral Nelson. Maybe Tony Hancock.<\/p>\n

    \"'Jeeves<\/p>\n

    Richard Garnett as Augustus ‘Gussie’ Fink-Nottle and Hugh Laurie as Bertie Wooster in the 1990 ‘Jeeves and Wooster’ TV adaptation<\/p>\n

    Rex Features<\/p>\n

    I happen to love restaurants. So somewhere to eat. And drink.<\/p>\n

    Where do you exercise in London?<\/p>\n

    I don\u2019t. I know, shameful.<\/p>\n

    Have you ever had a run-in with a London police officer? <\/p>\n

    Where do you let your hair down?<\/p>\n

    Not really enough hair to let down anymore. Also, you must think that I\u2019m a much younger person than I am.<\/p>\n

    What\u2019s your biggest extravagance? <\/p>\n

    It used to be Anderson & Sheppard suits. Now it\u2019s brightly coloured Herm\u00e8s handkerchiefs. I\u2019ve downsized.<\/p>\n

    What\u2019s your London secret?<\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    Dishes at Maison Francois<\/p>\n

    Steven Joyce<\/p>\n

    What\u2019s your favourite work of art in London?<\/p>\n

    What are you up to at the moment for work?<\/p>\n

    I have a memoir called When the Going Was Good to promote. And organising and editing the next issues of our weekly news, features and arts dispatch, Air Mail<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    I have five canoes of varying size. All of them made by the Old Town Canoe Company in Maine. One of them is a hundred-year-old war canoe that can hold 12.<\/p>\n

    Which podcast are you currently obsessed with?<\/p>\n

    The Rest is History and The Rest is Entertainment.<\/p>\n

    Your favourite grooming spot?<\/p>\n

    If I ever do decide to experience a professional shave, I\u2019d probably go to Taylor on Jermyn Street.<\/p>\n

    What apps do you depend on?<\/p>\n

    Nothing too exotic. Uber and Google Maps. I\u2019m hopeless with directions.<\/p>\n

    Si Newhouse, my old boss at Cond\u00e9 Nast. No man who held so much sway over the minds and tastes of the upper reaches of civilisation ever wore his influence more lightly. He was like a second father to me. And I adored him.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Graydon Carter, whose new book is out now, has never owned a flat in London; these are his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":83890,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[748,393,40430,4884,40431,257,280,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-83889","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-graydon-carter","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-jermyn-street","13":"tag-london","14":"tag-restaurants","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83889"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83889\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/83890"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}