Blue skies and balmy weather draw eclectic crowd to polo masters

Hosted at Hurtwood Park Polo And Country Club - a venue established by former Who drummer Kenney Jones - this weekend's polo masters was inevitably going to draw an eclectic mix of guests. And, true to form, enjoying the chukka action alongside the sport's aficionados were Ingrid Tarrant and Esther Rantzen as well as Brendan Cole and London party circuit regular and property heir Jacobi Anstruther-Gough-Calthorpe.


Ingrid Tarrant

Mingling with fellow glitterati - many of whom enjoyed a Dom Perignon VIP reception and sumptous four-course lunch after being helicoptered in for the final - was Princess Beatrice. The 19-year-old gap year intern showed off a tan acquired on a recent Caribbean holiday in a flattering white sundress teamed with ballet pumps and dark sunglasses. Looking equally stylish was Chris Tarrant's ex, colourful in an off-the-shoulder print affair.


Brendan Cole

Also catching up on the first High Goal event of the polo calendar was TV host Esther, who had taken an Out Of Africa approach to her outfit, matching a leopard print top to the band on her hat.

Other famous faces taking in the polo action under the weekend's gloriously blue skies were former Celebrity Big Brother star Danielle Lloyd, her gal pal model Sophie Anderton, Strictly Come Dancing star Brendan Cole and keen polo player and model Jodie Kidd.


Sophie Anderton

Wet and wild
A world ocean day benefit


Michelle Trachtenberg

Bellinis, seafood canapés, and tubs of moisturizer with a $1,300 price tag. Such was the high-end fare at La Mer's Wednesday-night party celebrating World Ocean Day—what do you mean it's not already circled on your calendar? The beach-themed soirée, set on the Rockefeller Center rooftop, benefited (to the tune of a $100,000 donation) ocean advocacy group Oceana. Despite such boldfaced beauties as Michelle Trachtenberg, Rosario Dawson, and Alek Wek, the most popular girls in the room were two models bearing jars of Crème de la Mer for guests to sample. "That was a czar-size scoop," said Rufus Albemarle, rubbing a royally hefty dollop on his face and then (inexplicably) on his ankles. Later, the well-moisturized earl caught up with Amber Valletta, an old pal from the nineties party circuit in Milan. "I wouldn't say Amber was wild," he mused. "I'd say she was classically bold." Responded the willowy supe, "I wasn't morally compromised then. That came later."

—Evelyn Crowley


Amber Valletta, Andrew Sharpless, and Maureen Case.

Pass the Caviar
gagosian, koons, and co. descend on moscow


Moscow Art Center
Inge Theron and Ella Krasner.

"I've been in five cities this week," said Larry Gagosian. "So I'm ready to do it up tonight." The blue-chip art dealer had come to the right place. For the grand opening of Moscow's Center for Contemporary Culture, a cavernous space dedicated to new art, Dasha Zhukova and Roman Abramovich had spared no expense. An international swarm of artists and jet-setters—a group ranging from Charlotte Casiraghi to Jeff Koons—was treated to mountains of caviar, a 1:1 guest-to-waiter ratio, and a private concert by none other than troubled chanteuse du jour Amy Winehouse. "I think I even saw the bodyguards bobbing their heads," smiled one fan after Winehouse's stellar performance. The only reveler who didn't cut loose, it seems, was Zhukova herself. The hostess knocked back just one shot of vodka during dinner, and then only because she couldn't refuse. "I was next to Jeff Koons," the Russian beauty explained. "It would have been rude not to do a shot with Jeff Koons."


Joseph Bakstein and Dasha Zhukova

—Derek Blasberg

Art Appreciation Society
Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton Fête Prince


Alice Eve

"If I collected myself, this is what I'd collect!" declared Richard Prince of the contents of his exhibition Continuation, which opened at London's Serpentine Gallery on Tuesday night. Artists, collectors, local glitterati, and a sprinkling of European aristocracy and oligarchy lined up to hear Prince talk about his favorite paintings. The artist also expounded on his cheerfully professed practice of "appropriating, pirating, and stealing," before all moved on to a glammy dinner thrown by Louis Vuitton and fashion's own Mr. Appropriator, Marc Jacobs.


Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.

The cross-generational mix of guests, including Charlotte Casiraghi, Claudia Schiffer, Joely Richardson, and Larry Gagosian, chatted up a storm in the hydrangea- and peony-filled tent, whose walls were emblazoned with Prince's "After Dark" series. Among the night's hot topics was an incredible crystalline chunk of emerald green and gold hanging around Jacobs' neck. "I went shopping for a swimsuit today and came back with this," the designer laughed of his new bijou, a significant work crafted by the late jeweler Andrew Grima. "It's a woman's piece. I wondered, 'Can I wear it?' Then I thought, 'Why not? I can wear what I like!' "


Lily Cole, in Louis Vuitton.

From Greenwich Mean to Eastern Standard, the art fêting continued as painter Francesco Clemente unveiled his new portrait series, "The Sopranos," at Lincoln Center's Gallery Met. The eight-work collection features famous sopranos like Renée Fleming and Deborah Voigt in the costumes they'll wear for the upcoming Met season. So were any of the operatic divas actually divas in the Naomi Campbell sense? "What a naughty question!" chastised Clemente, who added diplomatically, "They were all challenging in their own way." Post-cocktails, guests made their way up to a VIP dinner hosted by Max and Lubov Azria and Vogue contributing editor (and Gallery Met director) Dodie Kazanjian. "Isn't it delightful to be at the Met and not have to watch an opera?" joked Fran Lebowitz. Nearby, burlesque performer Exceed Eternal attempted to lure Sante D'Orazio and gal pal Manon von Gerkan to his explicit, and explicitly named, performance at the Box. "You really have to see it to understand it," explained Mr. Eternal. Therein lies the essence of art in general, n'est-ce pas?


Yves Carcelle, Jonathan Newhouse, and Sue Whiteley.

Match Point
A Toast to the Maria Sharapova/Cole Haan Union



Maria Sharapova and Nastia Liukin

Last night, Vogue cleared out the Gramercy Park Hotel's Rose Bar to host a cocktail soirée in honor of Maria Sharapova's collaboration with Cole Haan. As it happened, the party coincided with Roger Federer's U.S. Open final match, and since it's no secret that many a Vogue staffer is an avowed Federer-phile, party chitchat was less hemlines and It bags, more volleys and backhands. "I'm trying to get my iPhone to download the game," confided senior accessories editor Filipa Fino, who shared hostessing duties with fellow Vogue-ette Sylvana Soto-Ward. After the Swiss champ secured the title, Anna Wintour dropped by, on her way to the night's other big win—the Marc Jacobs show.


David Neville and Marcus Wainwright.

Sharapova, meanwhile, talked with the likes of Erin Fetherston and Malin Akerman about her gig as spokesmodel and design consultant for the new Cole Haan Sporting line. Asked why such a disproportionate amount of her countrywomen dominate both the catwalk and the sports arena, the Russian beauty shrugged, "We get good genes." As if on cue, Moscow-born gold-medal gymnast Nastia Liukin sauntered by.


Zani Gugelmann and Katie Lee Joel.


— Darrell Hartman

Stars put their best foot foward to honour shoe king Manolo Blahnik



"He really loves women, he's a gentleman and that's a very rare thing these days," says Lucy of the Canary Islands-born fashion icon.

It was a very well-heeled group of people who turned out to celebrate with top shoe designer Manolo Blahnik this week as he received a prestigious Rodeo Drive Walk Of Style Award.

Celebrating a career that spans more than 30 years, friends and family joined the shoe king for a glamorous party in Beverly Hills. The gong marks his contribution to fashion and entertainment and he now has a plaque on the exclusive shopping street, alongside the likes of Giorgio Armani and Tom Ford.


Fellow fashion designer Nicky Hilton admires a pair of spotty Manolo boots at the bash

“I haven't yet digested it totally but it's a great honour,” says the stylish Spaniard who now lives in London.

Among the stars – all sporting the master's footwear, of course – paying tribute were Charlie's Angels actress Lucy Liu, fellow designer Kathy Hilton and Lizzie McGuire star Hilary Duff.


The Charlie's Angels star wore a beautiful pair of black Manolos embellished with jewelled details

"He's so chic and sophisticated he's lovely," praised Lucy, who teamed her "Manolos" with a stunning black-and-white Giambattista Valli frock. "It's who he is and he puts it all in his design, into his shoes."

Fashion Week heats up Toronto
Day two pendulum swings from playful clothes for kids to menswear for the jet set

Meredith St John, canada.com



The tents at Nathan Phillips Square were overflowing for day two of L'Oreal Fashion Week. Moving through the crowd proved almost chaotic as press, industry and public tried to get a glimpse of the Spring 2009 collections from both upcoming and well-established designers.



Youngsters trotted down the runway in distressed denim, industrial style hoodies and bright colours for Diesel Kids. Many were barefoot and donning leis. The playful clothing was a stark contrast to the shades of black, grey, nude and white for Joeffer Caoc. A member of Canada's Group of Seven -- not of landscape painting fame, but Fashion Design Council of Canada appointee -- Caoc is known for the artistic and architectural elements of his designs. A beautifully draped asymmetrical nude dress featured a gold silk panel while several dresses made of sheer muted fabrics were matched with horizontal black and white stripes of sequins. Abstract pen and ink drawings added to the tri-colour black, grey and white dresses.



Bustle by Shawn Hewson and Ruth Promislow -- Bay street lawyers with a passion for fashion -- offered menswear for the jet set. The runway had a photograph of an airport hanger displayed above the models who sported tailored jackets and shorts, trench coats, fitted pants and of course Ray-Ban aviators.
Models wear clothing from the Diesel kid collection, during the Toronto Fashion Week at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto.

Another member of the FDCC's group of seven, David Dixon, was last night's closing show. The coordinates for Umtata, the birthplace of Nelson Mandela, were projected on the far wall which then faded into an African landscape complete with deep shades of orange and the silhouettes of Marula trees. 'Walk to Freedom' featured rich textiles such as floral chiffon, hibiscus silk print, glass alligator organza and bold accessories like black chunky beads and thick porcupine leather belts.

While Dixon shut down the tents in Nathan Phillips Square, the well-heeled crowd made their way to the Brant House. The House was packed for an after party that doubled as a celebration of Betsey Johnson's 30th anniversary. International models Taryn Davidson, Kori Richardson and Amanda Laine fashioned Johnson's signature flamboyant party dresses and channeled the designer's spirit giving rock hands, sticking out their tongues and blowing kisses as they walked down the runway.



The excitement continues today in the tents with Andy the Ahn and Thien Le and off-site at Spice Route for Shinan Govani's "Shinanigans" and Atelier for the Dior Fragrance Lounge.

Kylie is joined by 2,000 celebs at £20m 'freebie of the century' in Dubai

By Richard Simpson



The credit crunch may be biting in Britain, but there was little sign of parsimony in Dubai last night.

The world’s rich and famous gathered for the most expensive private party ever thrown - costing some £20 million - to open Atlantis Palm Jumeirah, a £1 billion resort on a man-made island shaped like a palm tree in the Persian Gulf.

Two thousand film stars, popstars, supermodels and billionaires were flown in from around the world for the all-expenses paid one-night party with many of them staying for four days.
Kylie Minogue

Show stopping showgirl: Kylie Minogue dazzled during her 45 minute set at the star-studded opening of the Atlantis Palm Jumeirah last night.

What credit crunch? Kylie is said to have scooped a £1.5million paycheck for the 10 song performance

The highlight last night was a one-off gig by Kylie Minogue and her 113-strong dance troupe on the beach.

Apart from getting a free holiday, Miss Minogue was also paid £1.5million for a 10-song 45-minute medley of her hits – which works out at some £33,333 a minute.

The gig was followed at midnight local time by a 1million-rocket firework display with 100 computer-guided rockets costing £7million which was seven times bigger than the largest display to date - for the Beijing Olympics.

They were no ordinary fireworks of course – each one being a radio-controlled 27-inch shell with an on-board microcomputer to direct its flight.

The display, which was visible from space, was also filmed by a squadron of helicopters hovering at 12,000ft and beamed on giant TV HD screens on the beach.

Miss Minogue, 40, arrived at the lavish party dressed in a pink and black floral chiffon gown with flowing train and her blonde hair in a curly short hairdo.
Atlantis Hotel

No expense spared: A spectacular light show beamed over the Atlantis Hotel

Speaking on Sky News, just two hours before she was due to go on stage, an excited Kylie said: 'It's staggering. I guess more is more here and they have done a great job. My room's very nice.

'It's a different set list to the tour I'm doing at the moment. It's an edited show especially for tonight.'

The 40-year-old star remained tight-lipped about how much she was earning for her set, she said: 'I can't tell you how much pocket money I get, it goes straight in my piggy bank.'




Working the room: Natalie Imbruglia mingled with Agyness Deyn and hell-raiser Rhys Ifans at the bash


Star power: Jermaine Dupri and Janet Jackson enjoy a chat with Sir Richard Branson

Speaking about the hotel's potential, she added: 'I think there's a lot of people who love this kind of thing you get sun and everything you could wish for. My crew and dancers have been having a great time.'

Guests included filmstars such as Robert De Niro, Charlize Theron, Denzil Washington, Mischa Barton and Lindsay Lohan, supermodels Agyness Deyn, Petra Nemcova and Yasmin Le Bon, musicans Janet Jackson, Lily Allen and Shirley Bassey, sports legends like Michael Jordan and Boris Becker and some local royalty - the Royal Family of Dubai.

Somehow Britain’s most successful freebee chasers, Vanessa Feltz, the Duchess of York and Tamara Beckwith even managed to mingle among the stellar crowd, though organizers did drawn the line at the ubiquitous Jordan and her husband Peter Andre.


Brit pack: Pop star Lily Allen looked her glamorous best in electric blue, while her bronzed new pal Lindsay Lohan opted for a little black dress

Both were refused access to the resort to film their TV series there.

Other couples at the bash included model-of-the-moment Agyness Deyn and her boyfriend Albert Hammond Jnr of The Strokes and fellow model Daisy Lowe and her beau Will Cameron.

Awkwardly for German tennis legend Boris Becker, his ex-fiancée Sandy Alessandra Meyer-Wolden was also in attendance, just weeks after they announced their break-up.
Dubai celebrates the landmark Grand Opening of Atlantis, The Palm Resort, and the Palm Jumeirah

Spectacular: The multi-million dollar firework display


Pyro-tastic: The fireworks light up the sky of Dubai

On Becker's arm was his ex-girlfriend Sharlely Kerssenberg, who he split up from shortly before he began dating Meyer-Wolden in August.

Trinny Woodall was non-committal about her assessment of the fashion highlights of the evening: 'everyone looks amazing' she said.

Dame Shirley Bassey walked into the party as the DJ played her song Diamonds are Forever.

'I banned them from playing my songs- I am leaving now,' she joked.

But the sentiment of the evening was best summed up by Richard Branson who said on the red carpet: 'This party was obviously planned before the recession took hold three months ago. This will be the party of the decade and it'll be the last party of the decade probably.'


Party girls: Jade Jagger,37, and Trinny Woodall, 44, looked glam in virginal white

Maxi moments: Mischa Barton, 22, went for a floral one-shouldered maxi dress, while Yasmin Le Bon, 44, opted for sophisticated brown satin


Oscar-winning style: Academy Award winner Charlize Theron and actor boyfriend Stuart Townsend

Of course, with such a select crowd being at Atlantis for up to four days, there were issues over which celebrity should get which suite.

Oprah Winfrey bagged the most exclusive £25,000-a-night suite high up on a bridge suspended between the resort’s two towers.

Yet when she pulled out, the scramble for the suite was eventually won a man many Britons may have never heard of – Shahrukh Khan – who is apparently the ‘Tom Cruise of Bollywood’ and as such the most famous filmstar in Middle East.

Robert De Niro – a partner in the Nobu restaurant chain which has a site in the resort - had to make do with a £15,000 presidential suite.

That left filmstars Lindsay Lohan and Charlize Theron with £10,000 a night Lost Chambers suites submerged alongside one of the world’s largest aquariums in the depths of the Atlantis resort, each with a truly jaw-dropping bedroom view of 65,000 sharks, rays and fish.


Ex factor: Boris Becker brought his ex-girlfriend Sharlely Kerssenberg, and awkwardly his ex-fiancee Alessandra 'Sandy' Meyer-Wölden was also in attendance, just two weeks after being dumped by the tennis ace


Making a statement: Mary-Kate Olsen's 5'1" frame was swamped by her over-sized dress, while Dame Shirley Bassey dressed in a leopard-print gown

No one paid for an air ticket to get there. The travel bill alone was estimated to be £3 million. Yesterday, the starry crowd spent the day riding camels, stroking dolphins and trying out the resort’s giant waterpark.

A cocktail reception last night was followed by dinner on the beach, Miss Minogue’s show and they the fireworks.

Though Dubai is mainly a ‘dry’ country, there was not much evidence of that at the soiree with some 1,000 bottles of Veuvre Cliquot champagne being thrown back.

All of that drink was presumably needed to wash down the 1.7 metric tonnes of lobster that was eaten, 4,000 oysters, 3,000 kilos of smoked salmon and 5,000 portions of the best sushi – all prepared by 500 chefs and served by 1,000 waiters.


Chowing down: Robert De Niro and his wife Grace Hightower enjoy the lavish spread

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Model couples: Agyness Deyn and Strokes musician Albert Hammond Jr were 'black and blue', while Daisy Lowe cuddled up to Will Cameron


High society: Sarah Ferguson added a touch of silver to her black ensemble, and socialite Tamara Beckwith showed off her baby bump in a jade lurex dress

Shortly before midnight local time, Miss Minogue swung onto stage amid thunderous applause in the first of two bespoke Jean Paul Gaultier outfits – a black and gold pant suit.

The set included hits On a Night Like This, Love At First Sight, Step Back in Time, Can’t Get You Out of My Head and I Should Be So Lucky.

During the gig, a colossal sea dragon puppet snaked its way through the crowd.

Immediately after Kylie came off stage came an awesome firework display designed by Grucci, the team behind the Beijing Olympic fireworks.


The spectacular Palm Jumeirah in Dubai is all man-made and shaped like a palm tree

More than a million fireworks were launched in nine minutes from from 716 locations including 50 points along the 17km crescent of Palm Jumeirah, 226 floating pontoons stretched across 46km of water outlining the fronds of The Pal, 40 spots along the 5.5km monorail outlined Palm Jumeirah’s trunk, from 400 balconies on the south facade and all rooftop surfaces of Atlantis, The Palm.

The hotel caused controversy last month when environmentalists campaigned for it to release a whale shark from its aquarium.

The 13ft whale shark, nicknamed Sammy, was the star attraction in a huge tank in the lobby of the luxury hotel.