Christina is used to getting her own way, so when she wanted to host a party during last year’s MTV Europe Awards in the refined environs of Edinburgh’s No1 Royal Circus, the singer might have been surprised to have its smart Georgian front door metaphorically slammed in her face.
The 1823 original Playfair house ranks as one of the smartest addresses in Edinburgh, after a ten-year, £1million makeover by Mike and Susan Gordon which had Ewan McGregor and his uncle, Denis Lawson, enraptured when the pair filmed Solid Geometry in 2002.
Although well-heeled mere mortals can stay for £150 a suite, Mike Gordon generously threw open his doors to devotees of Hendrick’s Gin who duly launched their Victorian product in suitable style.
"We had to turn down Christina Aguilera when she wanted to throw a party here for the MTV awards," explained the affable host, Mike, over a Hendrick’s Martini.
"It was a big thing to turn down, but we had to be mindful of the amenity we have here and treat it accordingly. In fact, we don’t really do parties here, and tonight is more of a thank-you to Hendrick’s for all their help with the charity Leap for Meningitis.
"We found the property ten years ago and it had lain derelict after being a hotel. It has been a real labour of love to restore it to its former glory, not to mention around £1 million. It was the linchpin of the New Town and unique in the way it dovetails round North East Circus Place.
"We used to live here, but it has always been a very convivial place for gatherings of this nature. Otherwise, I own the Circus Café building and run the design-led Round the World shops in Scotland."
Among the guests was Oloroso’s head chef and owner, Tony Singh, who was enjoying a rare moment off nappy duty to celebrate the recent birth of his fourth child and third daughter, Harpreet.
"She was born three weeks ago and my wife and I are delighted," said Tony, who was sensibly sticking to the marginally less lethal Hendrick’s summer Grand Marnier cocktails.
"It has been quite tiring, but she’s very well behaved and now I suppose I’ll need to start saving for all the weddings. As far as the restaurant goes, we are about to launch the James Sankey Award next month to find the best young chef in the land, which also includes a trip to Australia."
James Sankay was the restaurant manager and co-founder of Oloroso, who died last year.
Among the luminaries from Edinburgh’s vibrant food and drink scene was the Opal Lounge’s manager, David Hall, who said his venue was looking at the possibility of staging comedy during this year’s Festival.
He said: "We’d be looking to get the likes of Bill Bailey along for early-evening comedy events from Sunday to Thursday just as something a bit different for our members and regulars. It is in the planning stages, though."
Blended with a twist of cucumber, Hendrick’s brands itself as an unusual gin, so the evening theme was burlesque circus amid the stone-flagged floors, marble bar-tops and baby grand piano, all complemented by state-of-the-art lighting and 1930s French advertising posters.
The show included a sneak preview of what is to come from the Whoopee Club’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival event, and included performances from Walter the Victorian Gentleman who whipped off his top-hat and tails to reveal fishnet stockings and black briefs.
Miss Immodesty Blaize went through a similar décolletage routine, ending up sporting her "amazing tassels" and not much else.
The Vicar Black and the salacious Delilah completed the colourful line-up.
Either way, there could be no doubting how well the gin went down, with the barmen doing their best to match demand from the assembled throng, and with stunning views over Royal Circus gardens there could be fewer more civilised ways of spending a warm summer evening.
(from: news.scotsman.com) |
