Swingeing London by Richard Hamilton, showing Rolling Stone Mick Jagger in the back of a police car: a great modern history painting. Photograph: Serpentine
Saturday, 17 September 2011
THE seventh edition of the Marbella Classic poker series was won last weekend by a visitor from the beautiful Emerald Isle, Mr Thomas O’Shea. A highly delighted Thomas picked up a very handy €11,500 for his troubles after beating some of the local poker pros into submission, including last year’s series winner Julian Galan, Miguel Cortijo, Marco Palazon and the very charismatic Pedro ‘El grande’, Spain’s answer to super Mario. Congratulations must also go out to former Marbella Mob Poker founder member Sir Nigel Goldman. In his first European Poker Tour event two weeks ago in Barcelona, he managed to secure his expenses and a little bit more by getting a very respectable 66th place from a record starting field of 817. A nice cheque from the casino for €12k and a jolly decent stay in the fabulous Arts Hotel were just what the doctor ordered. Well done Sir N. Closer to home, the local games are just throwing up amazing hand over amazing hand. Not quite as dramatic as the back to back straight flushes a couple of weeks ago, but none the less very remarkable. How would you feel if you flopped quad tens only to have the monster overturned by a royal flush? Pretty sick eh, actually this is the second time in less than a week that poor Gary has come up against the 650,000 to 1 shot as last week his full house got done by the Royal flush of clubs. Last night his quads got beaten by a royal flush in, guess what? Clubs again!! To specifically hit a royal flush in clubs is a 2,598,960 to 1 chance. He had better buy his lottery ticket now as he’s got more chance of hitting the jackpot than what’s happened to him.
Des O'Connor is in Marbella topping up his tan. He’s only been here two days, but already he’s an improbable shade of mahogany. ‘Look at this,’ he says, flashing a generous glimpse of sun-burnished chest. ‘I only have to look at a travel brochure and I go brown. My neighbours see me and say: “Here he comes, the Singing Tan”.’ 'My wife has mentioned having another baby. But it would be a bit selfish of me at my age, even though I'm in reasonably good nick,' said Des O'Connor Here we have the measure of Des, 79, one of the nation’s best-loved entertainers: his capacity for self-mockery is matched by an irrepressible facility for fun. Inducing laughter in others is a compulsion. And in a world where vulgarity and foul-mouthed parody pass as comedy, Des’s brand of humour is remorselessly clean. He’s never said a word worse than ‘piddle’ during an act. He doesn’t go in for gratuitous insults. Once he made an unkind joke against Christine Hamilton, wife of the ex-Tory MP Neil, and felt so bad about it after he resolved never to be hurtful towards anyone again. Yet when his old friend Eric Morecambe routinely disparaged him on the Morecambe And Wise Show, he joined in the laughter. Each week, there would be a fresh assault on his voice.
Tourists come to know Marbella as one of the most sought after holiday destinations not only in Spain but throughout the European continent; now Apple choose the charming mediterranean town with the highest Millionaires concentration to host its most ambitious project in the Iberian Peninsula.
A series of rumors speak of the future opening of an Apple store in Marbella, something which has been discussed for months, but now with an added extra, since it would be the largest Apple store in Spain.
Recently, Apple opened two of its famous stores in Madrid and Barcelona and everything indicates that the next one will be located on the Costa del Sol, specifically in the shopping center La Cañada in Marbella.
The Apple Store in Marbella would have an area of 1700 square meters, which would make it the largest in the Spanish territory. Its inauguration is expected in November. Thus, Marbella will host the third Apple store in Spain.
Tres Rosas Polo offered the chance to try some horse riding as well as the opportunity to play a very popular sport called Polo. Polo is a team sport played on horseback and the players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a long-handled mallet. The traditional sport of polo is played at speed on a large grass field up to 300 yards in length, and each polo team consists of four riders and their mounts. Personally, I must admit I was a bit intimidated by the whole thing, since my only(and very brief) experience with horses was more than 10 years ago. Getting up the horse and heading to the field already raised a fair amount of adrenaline in me, but the peak was reached once my horse started to gallop. Let's just say it isn't as easy at it looks and for me the fear of falling was the biggest! Thankfully my horse, Todo, let my first experience be totally positive, even though I was not sure at all what I was doing. What they told me was that the horse can sense if the rider is insecure and totally in charge. That is the reason also why she didn't obey 100%. Nevertheless, riding the horse with the mallet in the right and leading the horse with my left hand made me feel like a polo player, even if it was for only 15 minutes! I definitely suggest this type of sport to anybody who loves to try something different and Tres Rosas Polo club is the right place to take up this interesting hobby that is played professionally in 16 countries!
Friday, 16 September 2011
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Thursday, 15 September 2011
Cole Haan Each season, the fashion industry hand picks their own musical muse — usually a star on the rise who ends up performing at every single industry soiree from New York to Paris and whose hit single is played at a number of the big ticket runway shows. This past February it was all about Adele and before that, Florence Welch. This time it's rapper/singer Theophilus London, and although he's still one of hip-hop's under-the-radar talents, he's quickly becoming fashion's musical darling of the moment. This week, London's not only been spotted front row at the Tommy Hilfiger Men's show, performing hits from his new album "Timez Are Weird" at Tommy's FNO party and hanging at Imitation of Christ and Carlos Campos, he's also promoting his new shoe collaboration with Cole Haan. Last night at their Soho store, London was on hand to mingle and perform, telling us that his new blue suede bucks were, "very cool." He continued, "it was fun to do, but I wish I made them for women. That's all I really care about is pleasing women, not so much men. Don't you want a pair?" London also weighed in on yesterday's somewhat shocking news that Kanye West will be showing his new collection during Paris Fashion Week, starting September 27th. When we asked what he thought about Kanye's move into the world of fashion design, he responded enthusiastically, "I think it's sick man, I totally back him. He actually emailed me this morning and invited me to the show, so I'm definitely going to hop on a plane in a couple weeks and be there for him. He's Kanye, he can do anything." We also suggested that it'd be amazing if he'd team up with Kanye and/or Jay-Z on his next album. "We'll see, I mean that'd be a dream come true. It's cool they even support me, but right now I'm just chillin." Though he was quick to claim his "chillin" status several times throughout our conversation, it doesn't appear that this guy's slowing down any time soon. With a fashion collaboration already under his belt, the attention of iconic designers and an open invitation to what's bound to be the most talked about show at Paris Fashion Week, London's got a swagger we'll be following all season long.
Having long passed judgement on the catwalk via the pages of Vogue, a leading magazine publisher is setting up its own fashion school in London. The Condé Nast College of Fashion and Design will open in September 2012, taking up to 300 students in its first year. With courses branded around its stable of monthlies and weeklies, its principal will be Susie Forbes, editor of Easy Living and former deputy editor of British Vogue. Last year, Condé Nast's British arm made £34.6m. It is thought the conglomerate's move into teaching may face hostility from the arts education community, with the capital already hosting the London College of Fashion and Central Saint Martins. Nicholas Coleridge, managing director of Condé Nast, said: "The reputation and authority of our brands puts us in a strong position to teach and inspire the fashion and decorating talent of the future."
He's in fashion: Robbie was at House of Fraser to launch his menswear label and its first collection
Fresh off a sell-out Take That tour, Robbie decided to turn his hand to fashion, launching his menswear label Farrell and its debut autumn/winter collection at House Of Fraser.
The fashion label is named after the singer’s grandfather, Jack Farrell, and has a preppy, mod type feel, consisting of cardigans, smart dinner jackets and long winter coats.
The Angels singer greeted the first 200 customers (with purchases) in person at the Oxford Street branch of House of Fraser.
Rob was not alone in his fashion endeavour – both his stylist Marcus Love and his hairstylist Oliver Woods collaborated with Williams on the collection. The pieces have so far been described as for men who like a ‘bit of snap’ in their wardrobe.
Stand-out items are a long blue military style coat, a £250 dinner jacket as well as various checked shirts and scarves.
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Two crew members have died in a fire on a cruise ship off the coast of Norway. At least a dozen people were injured, two seriously, as the blaze forced rescuers to evacuate more than 200 passengers from the ship, the Nordlys. The ship was sailing close to the port of Aalesund in western Norway when a fire broke out in the engine room. Police believe there was an explosion, but do not know what caused the blast. Some people were taken hospital for treatment for smoke inhalation. Television pictures showed clouds of thick black smoke rising from the ship after it was taken to Aalesund. The Nordlys, which belongs to the Hurtigruten company, was sailing northwards from Bergen to the Arctic circle when it caught fire. All 207 passengers were rescued. The ship can carry nearly 700 passengers. Some of the 55 crew members remained on board to help firefighters battle the blaze. "The fire is under control now but we have a problem with the ship taking on water so right now they are working on stabilising the vessel," a spokeswoman for the rescue services in southern Norway, Borghild Eldoeen, said. The nationalities of the passengers were not known, but most of the tourists on Hurtigruten ships are from Norway.
Wednesday, 14 September 2011
A Spanish judge has reopened an abandoned sexual assault case against a Saudi prince who is one of the world’s richest men, reviving accusations that he raped a 20-year-old model on a luxury yacht in the Spanish Mediterranean in August 2008.
Fahad Shadeed/Reuters
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz al-Saud in Riyadh.
The prince, Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, a nephew of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, is the largest individual stakeholder in Citigroup and, among his other major holdings, is the second largest investor in the News Corporation. Forbes valued his fortune this year at $19.4 billion, making him the 26th richest man in the world and the single richest in the Arab world.
The accuser did not go public, and the original complaint appears to have remained largely unknown. The case was quietly closed in July 2010 for what a judge on the Mediterranean resort island of Ibiza called a lack of evidence. But on appeal, a Spanish provincial court for the Balearic Islands, which has jurisdiction over Ibiza, ordered the judge to resume investigating and to summon the prince to appear.
The provincial court said the judge, Carmen Martín Montero, was on vacation and could not be reached for comment.
Heba Fatani, a spokeswoman for Prince Alwaleed’s investment arm, the Kingdom Holding Company, called the accusations “completely and utterly false.”
“The alleged encounter simply never happened,” Ms. Fatani said in a statement.
Ms. Fatani also said the prince was never in Ibiza in 2008 and provided pages of his calendar indicating that he spent time that summer in Paris; Cannes, France; and Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. He did not charter a yacht in Ibiza, nor did he take his own there, she said. Other people who spent time with the prince that summer can confirm his whereabouts, she said.
Prince Alwaleed first learned of the 2008 case on Tuesday, Ms. Fatani said, and his lawyers had not been informed about it.
Son of a gadfly senior prince, Talal ibn Abd al-Aziz, Prince Alwaleed has long been outspoken about expanding opportunities for women in the kingdom. The women who work in his Saudi offices are not segregated, nor do they have to wear the enveloping blackabayas — his royal stature keeps them out of reach of the religious police who enforce such measures.
The model, whose lawyer has identified her by only her middle name, Soraya, filed a police complaint in August 2008, saying the prince had raped her on the yacht after she was drugged. She said she had been invited to the yacht at an Ibiza nightclub.
The Balearic archipelago is one of the most popular vacation destinations in the Mediterranean and welcomes a flotilla of luxury yachts during the summer months.
According to a summary of a provincial court’s order to reopen the case, medical tests conducted by departments of Spain’s National Institute of Toxicology and Forensic Science turned up traces of semen and a sleep-inducing chemical, nordazepam, in her urine.
In the 2010 decision to close the case, the Ibiza judge said the forensic and medical tests had shown no signs of physical violence that could confirm a rape. The judge also questioned whether the sleep-inducing chemical found in the model’s body could have acted swiftly enough to induce a semiconscious state between the time she left the nightclub and reached the yacht.
Her lawyer, Javier Beloqui, said the tests supported her claim that her drink had been spiked and that she was sexually assaulted. He called on Prince Alwaleed to provide at least a DNA test in order to compare it with the traces of semen found.
Mr. Beloqui welcomed the decision to reopen the case. “Nobody was even questioned at the time,” he said, “which is unbelievable when you consider the seriousness of the crime and the evidence that has been gathered.”
British singer Cheryl Cole has flown to Afghanistan to visit U.K. troops serving in the war-torn country. The Girls Aloud star made her way to the country's Helmand Province on Tuesday night (13Sep11) to surprise servicemen and women. Cole underwent special training to prepare for the hostile environment she will tour during her visit, which marks 10 years of British operations in the country. Her morale-boosting trip is being filmed as part of the annual Pride of Britain Awards, which will air on U.K. TV next month (Oct11). A source tells Britain's Daily Mirror, "Cheryl's amazed by the courage of all those serving our country. When she was invited to go out to see them in Afghanistan, she immediately said 'yes'. "She thinks it's such a great cause and they deserve all the recognition they get." Cole has largely been out of the public eye since she was fired from the U.S. version of The X Factor earlier this year (11).
Richard Hamilton, the most influential British artist of the 20th century, has died aged 89. In his long, productive life he created the most important and enduring works of any British modern painter. This may sound a surprising claim. We have our national icons and our pop celebrities. But neither Francis Bacon nor Lucian Freud nor Damien Hirst has shaped modern art as Hamilton did when he put a lolly with the word POP on it in the hand of a muscleman in his 1956 collage, Just What is it that Makes Today's Homes So Different, So Appealing? Hamilton has a serious claim to be the inventor of pop art: this collage is a visionary, yet ironic, manifesto for a new art that would be at home in the modern world. For him, in a postwar Britain of austerity measures, pop was a utopian ideal. Big, fast cars were the metal angels of a smooth, beautiful future. I have been driven by Hamilton in his huge, sleek car. The experience was like stepping into one of his paintings. He drove me to his house, a modern dream home decorated with the works of Marcel Duchamp – or rather, Hamilton's own replicas personally approved by the maverick dadaist chess player. Hamilton's second great influence on the art of today was his championing of Duchamp at a time when the Frenchman's subversive philosophical art was largely forgotten. One of Hamilton's masterpieces is his replica of Duchamp's Large Glass, in Tate Modern. was an intellectual. He did not go for the guts, but the brain. His art is thoughtful, uneasy, even as it celebrates the power of technology. It also became increasingly political. He confronted issues from the Irish Troubles to both Iraq wars in works that dropped the cool mask for outright engagement, making him even more of a meaty and serious proposition. Swingeing London, pictured above, in which Mick Jagger in lurid green jacket is enclosed in the back of a police car, shielding his face against the media glare, is a great modern history painting. So is Hamilton's portrait of IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands. These works analyse the way images are made, yet their intellect is saturated with outrage and compassion. Hamilton saw our future coming. He even designed a computer as a readymade artwork in the early days of digital. He saw and accepted the way technology changes the human condition. Yet he cared about, and fought for, the human ghost in the machine. That is what makes him a great artist.
Richard Hamilton pictured last year. Photograph: Richard Saker
Tuesday, 13 September 2011
Individuals included on The Olive Press's “Expat 100” list ranged from little-known historical figures such as Amelia Loring, the grandaughter of a former British consul who founded Málaga's botanic gardens in the 1850s, to modern-day celebrities such as Sean Connery, who lived for many years in Marbella. Top of the list was Chris Stewart, ex-drummer of the British band Genesis, whose books about life on his Andalucian farm have, the newspaper said, “completely changed the perception of Andalucia as a region, as well as encouraging thousands to visit". Mr Stewart said that he was "flattered and privileged" to have been given first place. “I’m a huge fan of multiculturalism and the presence of foreigners here has really helped the region,” he added. Stewart was closely followed by the American author Washington Irving, who is credited with rediscovering Granada’s Alhambra palace, Prince Alfonso de Hohenlohe-Langenburg, the Bavarian-Spanish playboy who transformed Marbella from a tiny village into a thriving tourist destination, and Joan Hunt CBE, the British founder of the cancer hospice Cudeca, on the Costa del Sol. Less famous characters who also made the list included Canadians Scott Abbott and Chris Haney, who invented the game Trivial Pursuits while in Nerja, and Betty Molesworth Allen, a New Zealand expat who became an expert on Andalucia's flowers and plants. Readers generally responded positively to the choice of expats on the list, which was compiled with help from the British consul in Málaga, a judging panel of prominent local expats, and readers who sent in nominations. Opinion was divided however over the exact ranking order, with one reader complaining that there was an over-prioritisation of "fame and celebrity". Top 10 influential expats in Andalucia
Europe's biggest urban shopping centre opened on Tuesday in a deprived area of east London where it will act as the gateway to the 2012 Olympics. Westfield Stratford City, which has risen from derelict wasteland in one of the poorest areas in Britain, houses more than 300 shops, 70 restaurants, a 14-screen cinema, three hotels and Britain's largest casino. Hundreds of people queued outside the £1.45 billion mall before the doors even opened on and 100,000 people were expected to turn up on the first day. The Australian owners of the centre are confident they can defy the retail gloom as the British economy stutters. Westfield's sister site in Shepherd's Bush, west London -- previously the biggest shopping centre in Europe -- opened in the depths of a recession in 2009 yet attracted 23 million visitors in its first year. The giant Stratford site is a cornerstone of the Olympic Park and spectators arriving for next year's Games will have to walk through the shopping centre to reach the sports venues. A high-speed train will bring 25,000 Olympics spectators an hour to Stratford International station where they will be greeted by a row of shops and restaurants. Crucially for an area with unemployment levels far above the national average, the centre has created 10,000 new jobs. Local politicians believe it is another part in the jigsaw of regeneration which they hope will create a thriving community once the Olympic flame goes out. "Westfield represents more than just bricks, mortar and fabulous shops and restaurants, it has been instrumental in helping us to transform the lives of our residents by providing them with employment and jobs that they can turn into fulfilling and rewarding careers," said Robin Wales, the mayor of the borough of Newham. But the site's proximity to the Olympic park has required additional security precautions. The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) said it will be operating checks on vehicles entering the public car park at the shopping centre until the Games end in September 2012. Paul Deighton, LOCOG chief executive, said: "With Westfield so close to the Olympic Park and with vehicle access to it directly accessed from the park, it is an obvious and important part of our security plans. "We will make the checks as quick and unobtrusive as possible -- we are confident that shoppers will recognise the need for us to be vigilant and carry out these checks."
Monday, 12 September 2011
investigation is under way into a forest fire which destroyed four homes and 400 hectares of land on the Costa del Sol. The blaze – which affected parts of Mijas, Marbella and Ojen – saw more than 300 people evacuated from their homes after starting at around 8.30pm on Sunday evening in the Entrerrios area of Mijas. Andalucia’s Councillor for the Environment Jose Juan Diaz Trillo, suggested the fire had been started deliberately, before confirming that nobody had been injured. Around 300 firefighters from across Andalucia were hampered by high winds as they tackled the blaze, which caused the temporary closure of part of the A7 highway. Residents of La Mairena and La Bugancilla urbanisations were evacuated and parts of Calahonda were also briefly affected, although residents are now being allowed to return to their homes. Around 260 firefighters are involved in dampening down the fire, which is understood to have affected 900 hectares in total.
Sunday, 11 September 2011
It is the biggest private yacht in existence and comes with a missile-detection system, two helipads, a luxury spa, swimming pool and a miniature submarine.
But when you're Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, only the most ostentatious displays of wealth will do.
His latest baby is the Eclipse, a 557-footer reported to have cost a staggering £300million.
Eclipsing the opposition: Roman Abramovich's new yacht slides out of the ship-yard in Hamburg, Germany. It comes with a raft of features including two heli-pads, a pool and a missile-detection system
As it glided out of the Blohm & Voss shipyard, in Hamburg, Germany
The Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, will bring back Patrimonial Tax at next Friday’s cabinet meeting, following a request to do so from the Socialist candidate for the November General Election, Alfredo Pérez-Rubalcaba. A Royal Decree will be used, and no new law will be needed to reactivate the tax, although the new tax will be modified so as not to affect the middle classes. However press reports indicate that Rubalcaba is not entirely happy with the tax which will result, although it is the only option which can be introduced so quickly. The new Socialist manifesto was to promise that Patrimonial Tax would become a state controlled and not regional tax as present. Even so Rubalcaba considers the re-introduction of the tax as ‘just’. It is expected to generate 1.4 billion €.
- 09:01
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For a woman who has just spent £1 million on a bath tub, Tamara Ecclestone is remarkably likeable. The daughter of Britain’s fourth richest person, billionaire Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, slinks across the lobby of Beverly Hills’ grandest hotel, the Peninsula. But she is seemingly oblivious to the open-mouthed stares that follow her perfectly tanned-and-toned body clad in a tiny black romper suit. As she curls up on a luxury sofa in the lobby, it is clear that even in a town used to excess, Tamara and her equally flamboyant sister Petra, who recently dominated the headlines with her extravagant £5 million wedding complete with a private performance by the Black Eyed Peas, have set tongues wagging. For years, Tamara, 27, and Petra, 22, remained pretty much under the media radar. By all accounts, they were kept on a tight rein by their 6ft 2in mother Slavica, who worked hard to escape her tough, penniless upbringing in the Croatian port of Rijeka and was determined to keep her girls grounded. But after becoming fixtures on the London social scene, the two Ecclestone girls have become embroiled in an extraordinary – and outrageously expensive – display of trans¬atlantic sibling rivalry that even the most creative Hollywood scriptwriter would be hard-pressed to dream up. First, younger sister Petra splashed out £91 million – in cash – to buy the 57,000 sq ft Los Angeles hilltop mansion of the late Dynasty creator Aaron Spelling three months ago. Then, two weeks ago, Tamara was maid-of-honour at Petra’s breathtakingly ostentatious wedding at the medieval Castello Orsini-Odescalchi outside Rome. The scale of the nuptials was mind-blowing. Petra’s Vera Wang dress cost a reputed £80,000, the evening entertainment alone – including the Black Eyed Peas, Alicia Keys, Andrea Bocelli, DJ David Guetta and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – cost more than £3 million. Eric Clapton played for the couple’s first dance and Formula 1 driver Jean Alesi drove the bride’s vintage Rolls-Royce. Even the fireworks display saw £100,000 go up in smoke. Perhaps tellingly, among the guests were another pair of unimaginably wealthy and high-profile siblings, Paris and Nicky Hilton. As elder sister, Tamara was a suitably gracious bridesmaid. But it is clear she feels the need to catch up in the publicity stakes. She arrived in LA last week with an entourage including Katie Price’s hair and make-up man and blithely announced that she would be perusing homes ‘starting at the £100 million mark’. She also embarked on a series of meetings at major Hollywood studios in a bid to promote her upcoming show Tamara Ecclestone: Billion Dollar Girl (which starts in the UK on Channel 5 on November 4). And she is telling all who will listen that she recently ‘dispatched’ five minions on an expedition ‘up the Amazon’ to gather crystal that will be used to create a state-of- the-art bathtub in her £47 million London home. Splashing out: Tamara is spending £1m on rock crystal from the Amazon to make a bath similar to this It was a story, I venture, that is surely a tabloid fabrication? She looks askance. ‘No, it’s completely true. They’ve gone to find this crystal which will be turned into my bathtub. It’s costing £1 million because I’ve got to reinforce the floor and I’ve had to pay for everyone’s travel and the hauling back and polishing of the crystal. ‘But I spend a lot of time in the bath so it’s worth it.’ Little wonder that one Hollywood producer told me: ‘The whole town is talking about these girls. ‘There is nothing that Hollywood loves more than money, vulgarity and ambition. And these two have it in spades.’ It is a charge Tamara, who still looks impeccable despite starting her day at 5am to appear on America’s top-rated Entertainment Tonight show, rolls her eyes at. ‘Listen, people will always try and make something of the rivalry between me and my sister,’ she tells me. ‘We are siblings and we fight and compete like any sisters would. ‘But we are very close. Of course there is competition between us but it is healthy competition. There is room in this town for both of us.’ I ask her about reports that she stomped out of a Japanese restaurant earlier in the week after a row with her sister over who ‘got’ to LA first? Sibling rivalry: Tamara says that the relationship with Petra is like that of any sisters - and while the do disagree and there is competition, they are both still close Tamara shrugs: ‘We’d had a drink. Yes, there were a few words. I went outside to have a cigarette, which is something I only do when I’m drinking. I was in a bit of a bad mood. The Press saw that and blew it up into something it’s not.’ Are they at war? She says: ‘You’ll have to ask Petra about that. She’s in New York at Fashion Week. There’s certainly no problem between us as far as I am concerned.’ As she speaks it is obvious that, despite her daddy’s billions, Tamara has a steely determination to succeed on her own merits. She credits her 80-year-old father, the son of a humble fisherman who started out working in a gasworks before building a £2.4 billion fortune as the Formula 1 supremo, for keeping her ‘grounded’. 'My father started with nothing and is a self-made man. No matter what I do with my life I can never match his accomplishments.' Tamara explains: ‘My father started with nothing and is a self-made man. No matter what I do with my life I can never match his accomplishments. He is someone that even now, at 80, loves what he does and is still making deals and making money, and he enjoys it. He raised me to appreciate money and not to take it for granted. ‘I was raised to want to work for a living. The idea of just sitting around or going shopping every day appals me. I want to accomplish something in my own right. ‘Dad taught me to always go for the deal. When you are rich, people try to take advantage of you. I got a deal on the flights over here. My mother flew easyJet recently. Relationship: Tamara has been with stockbroker Omar Kyhami for 18 months - and says they have discussed marriage and children ‘We are a family that likes a bargain. I love the fact that I can spend ten quid and get my nails done in LA at a little corner shop rather than at an expensive salon.’ She says her mother Slavica, who acrimoniously divorced her 5ft 4in father in 2009 after 24 years of marriage, pounded home the message: ‘Mum cooked for me and my sister every night. My father would come home and we would have dinner together, as a family, at 6.30 every night. ‘Both my parents came from humble beginnings. Yes, we had money but it was never something we took for granted. ‘Dad would drop us at school and Mum would collect us. They came from nothing and were determined not to spoil us. I had to work for my pocket money, walking the dog and picking up his poop. We were never surrounded by servants. When we wanted things we were never just given them. Money wasn’t easy.’ In person Tamara is charming. She speaks in a modulated but not super-posh voice. But it’s hard to credit the down-to-earth credentials of a woman who would blow £1 million on a crystal bath. She insists, repeatedly, that she and Petra were raised to appreciate the value of money. ‘We were never spoiled. We were never given too much,’ she says. So what, then, has precipitated this sudden rush to compete in a multi-million-pound house property contest? Perhaps their parents’ divorce, with all the bitter recriminations, has affected the girls’ judgment? ‘The divorce was the hardest thing ever,’ she concedes. ‘Dad has a new girlfriend [Fabiana Flosi, a Brazilian 49 years his junior] but Mum is enjoying being single. I don’t think she will date anyone for a while. ‘She’s enjoying being free. I’d never thought of the money [rivalry] starting after that. But maybe it did.’ Tamara says she finds Los Angeles, with its endless sunshine and endless positivity ‘liberating’. ‘I’ve been here before but only to Disneyland,’ she says with a grin. ‘I’ve totally fallen in love with the place. People here don’t judge you or have any jealousy about money. 'In England, there is a certain negativity. Here everyone is positive. There isn’t so much jealousy here. I’d rather have a fake smile than a nasty stare.' ‘In England, there is a certain negativity. Here everyone is positive. There isn’t so much jealousy here. I’d rather have a fake smile than a nasty stare.’ Her boyfriend of 18 months, stockbroker Omar Kyhami, arrives at the table. He is in charge of the house-hunting which will begin in earnest in the morning. ‘We’re not going through a broker,’ he says. ‘When people hear the Ecclestone name they automatically add a zero to the price. We are looking at a place in Beverly Hills in the morning which has 27 acres and isn’t even on the market. ‘We are looking at houses which aren’t officially for sale. When you get to a certain level, you don’t want to deal with brokers. The people we are talking to don’t want any publicity. The house we are looking at will make Petra’s house look like a guest house.’ Tamara squeals: ‘No! You shouldn’t say that!’ Role model: Tamara, pictured in 1998 on a skiing holiday, says her parents kept her 'grounded' and were determined not to spoil her, despite their wealth Omar adds: ‘We’re going to do it in a way that isn’t a disaster. The house we are looking at hasn’t been on the market for years without selling.’ (The Spelling house was on the market for three years before Petra bought it.) ‘That other house [Spelling’s] was a disaster. We’re doing it properly.’ Tamara is clearly smitten with her slightly indiscreet boyfriend: ‘We’ve been together for 18 months and we’ve rowed and it’s all on camera. We have talked about marriage and children but that’s something my sister, even though she is much younger, has always had clearer views on. ‘This was her year for getting married. I wouldn’t do anything to try and muscle in on that. I want to have a career and make something of myself. I have earned my own money and I like the feeling it gives me. When you buy something with your own money it means more.’ 'I desperately want to have a career. I feel I have something to prove. I want to accomplish something on my own and build my own business.' Does it worry her that she will be able to afford a £100 million-plus home in Hollywood only thanks to Daddy’s billions? ‘No, not at all.’ How does it work? Does her father simply sign a cheque? ‘No, no, it’s far more complicated than that. You get into trust funds and such. When I bought my place in Kensington (for £45 million) it’s in an area that is super-rich. ‘I talked to Mum and Dad and they agreed to finance it because even if I never live there it’s a good investment. Neither Petra nor I would be allowed to buy anything that was a dud.’ I ask what is the worst thing that has ever happened to her. ‘My parents’ divorce, without question,’ she says. ‘I didn’t see it coming. I thought they would work things out. I think my mum decided. She wanted to be free. It was a real shock. I cried a lot. ‘When you have money, people think life must be perfect. But I still have the same issues as anyone else. I wake up and feel fat and ugly. I feel insecure. I row with my boyfriend. We have family problems.’ Producer Melanie Leach, the managing director of TwoFour, the company behind Tamara’s TV show, had cameras following Tamara for six months. ‘She is someone who is so different from what you expect,’ said Leach, who also made Harry’s Arctic Heroes, the recently broadcast programme about Prince ¬Harry’s Arctic expedition.‘People have a certain expectation of what Tamara is like and, of course, she lives in a different world. The first show has her taking her five dogs to the Harrods day spa. It costs hundreds of pounds and the dogs are getting their nails painted pink. Luxury: Tamara has access to a wide range of spectacular cars, including this convertible Rolls Royce, a Mercedes 500 and a Ferrari - plus also flies using a private jet ‘But there is another side of Tamara that is deadly serious and very ambitious. We have been taking meetings with some of the biggest people in Hollywood and I have never seen such a reaction. Tamara has something that people just relate to.’ Tamara insists she wants to be seen as ‘normal’ yet she has five cars at her disposal in LA, including a black convertible Rolls-Royce, a Mercedes 500 and a Ferrari. She also casually mentions she is flying to Las Vegas this weekend in a private jet. Tamara says: ‘I have a strong built-in b-s detector. I know who my real friends are and I like to think I’ve not become cynical. Of course, some people want to be my friend because of the money. But the people I have around me are a tight-knit group. ‘I desperately want to have a career. I feel I have something to prove. I want to accomplish something on my own and build my own business.’ That’s why in LA she has maximised what she calls her ‘publicity potential’. Lunch at the Ivy – where paparazzi stalk the pavements – was followed by dinners at Madeo, Katsuya, STK and Boa . . . all high-profile hang-outs. As the Rolls arrives to take her from her £2,000-a-night hotel suite, I ask her: ‘Do you have any idea how much your lifestyle really costs?’ She smiles and says: ‘Yes, I think I do. Well, not really, not exactly. But I am not stupid. I have a good idea of my income and outgoings and, yes, I definitely know what things cost. ‘I will make it. Just watch me. Money isn’t everything.’
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