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Last year, model and petrolhead Jodie Kidd was asked if she would ever join the line-up of Top Gear. “I couldn’t join those boys,” she insisted, “no, God no.” But here comes the U-turn.
The Londoner found Kidd at The Golden Shears bespoke tailoring awards party last night, and was just gearing up to ask her whether she’d like to jump into the driving seat of Top Gear when designer Betty Jackson strode over. “Please take over from Jeremy Clarkson,” she implored.
Kidd looked bashful. Her party companion told us that all her friends has been asking her to do it. But, under Betty’s questioning, Kidd began to relent. “I will try,” she said, with a glint in her eye.
“But would you really be up for it?” asked The Londoner.
“Why not? Yes!” said Kidd, as the veneer cracked. “I’m sure we can get two people to sign a petition.”
She’ll probably get a few more than that. Kidd is not only a highly successful model but also hosts Channel 5’s popular Classic Car Show, and last night was a judge for the young tailors’ prize at Merchant Taylors’ Hall in the City. She was already being tipped to take over from Clarkson last year, well before the cold meat platter came between him and his highly successful show.
“Jezza’s outspoken and opinionated but I’ve never had a problem with him,” Kidd said in 2014. “Even though I’m a better driver than him.” Kidd once held the record for the fastest time in Top Gear’s long-term feature Star in a Reasonably Priced Car, at 1.48 seconds on the programme’s own test track. Beat that, Jezza.
Baroness Jones is stepping down
Farewell, Jenny Jones. The Green Party former mayoral hopeful sits in both the London Assembly and the Lords. When The Londoner quizzed her about Lords work (for which she earns £2,000 a month when the House sits and takes seven to 10 working days away from Assembly duties), Jones’s press secretary let slip that the baroness is stepping down as an AM at the next election. Given the party’s stance on air travel, presumably she won’t jet into the sunset.
Purple revolution has yet to truly arrive
What happened to Nigel Farage’s reputation as a relaxed, off-message political outsider? The Ukip leader is throwing a knees-up at a Westminster bar tonight to promote his heavily self-promoted autobiography, Purple Revolution.
Farage’s election strategist Raheem Kassam emailed guests to let them know that while they’re welcome to take part in “an intimate conversation with Mr Farage over his book”, they can’t repeat anything they overhear.
“Information garnered at the event may be used for background,” writes Kassam, but “this is NOT a press event, therefore all conversations are considered off the record. Acceptance of this invite implies agreement of these terms.”
It seems Ukip has caught the spin-doctor bug. So much for a new style of politics.
All eyes on the miracle of Dior
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Fashion brand consultant Sydney Ingle- Finch, model Saffron Aldridge and journalist Mariella Frostrup came together at The Curzon Mayfair last night for the screening of Dior and I. The film follows Raf Simons’s attempt to create his first collection for the couture house in just eight weeks and — spoiler alert — he managed it.
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Simons became Dior’s creative director in 2012 when he replaced Bill Gaytten, who had stepped in after the dismissal of John Galliano following use of alleged anti-Semitic language. With Dolce, Gabbana and Galliano all sufferers of foot-in-mouth syndrome, it’s refreshing to see a designer who sticks to the sewing.
George is putting on his poker face
Is George Osborne the power behind the throne? He may have been booed at the Paralympics three years ago but in last night’s preview screening of Channel 4’s upcoming drama Coalition, he was given a star turn as a brilliant political operator and the brains behind 2010’s tense negotiations.
The Londoner asked the show’s writer, James Graham, how close the depiction was to real life. “Well, George — I’m calling him George, like he’s my mate — was very helpful,” said Graham, who did extensive interviews with key players from all the political parties. “He invited me to Number 11, which I loved. It’s well known that he enjoys the cut-and-thrust of politics and he had a bit of a twinkle in his eye when he was telling me some of these stories. He — like a lot of politicians — sees it as a poker game and I think that he was very pleased with some of the moves the Tories pulled to get into power.”
Self-confessed political junkie Mark Gatiss, who plays Labour’s prince of darkness Peter Mandelson in the drama that airs next Thursday, observed that the Coalition deal story was that of “the struggle for the crown: you can change the clothes and people don’t get killed as often but …”
With the next high-stakes game fast approaching, the Conservatives must be hoping that Osborne has another royal flush up his sleeve.
Faulks turns down The Londoner
When author Sebastian Faulks appealed for an office job to relieve him of the loneliness of his writing desk, The Londoner obliged with an offer. He turned us down. What about Prince Harry, set to leave the Army this summer? He’d join alumni including John Betjeman and Winston Churchill and would be a natural at reporting at parties, But he’d have to keep his shirt on. And his pants.
Farage is not a tit after all
Glancing through today’s Telegraph The Londoner’s ornithology correspondent was struck by the maps showing the distribution of Britain’s “national bird”, a vote for which is under way. Did they map on to political affiliations?
Minutes of Googling revealed it’s not the blue tit that is a natural Tory but the kingfisher, which barely shows in Scotland but has in recent years returned to some industrial cities. The escapee flocks of ring-necked parakeet (eats “fruits, berries, nuts and seeds” and not in the top 10) is native only to a corner of the South-East, just like the Greens. What about the puffin, above? It’s seen in coastal areas, mirroring Ukip’s voting strongholds on the South Coast, Cornwall and East Anglia. We’ve put a call into Bill Oddie but he’s not got back to us.
Apology of the day: Fraser Nelson of the Spectator tweets sorry to Lord Bates “for having fathered three children by an immigrant (my wife) — I hadn’t realised Tories frown on that kind of thing.”