horology 2011

Like clockworkspecial watches issue / latest technological advances / building a collection

chic women’s timepieces / greg norman dives with sharks / the flying watch men

the little black book for the city

Watch in titanium ceramic, a new highly scratch-resistant material.Its unique colour and shine are obtained by the addition of titanium to ceramic and diamond powder polishing.

Self-winding mechanical movement. 42-hour power reserve. Water resistant to 200 metres.ww

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CONTENTS | BRUMMELL 09

Foreword

Appearances still matter, says David

Charters, so it’s worthwhile indulging in

a timepiece of quality... or, two

BeaumondeNews

The All Blacks meet Bulgari; a watch-

sourcing app; new boutiques and more

Technology

Revolutions in design and manufacture

promise a healthy future for the industry

One-stop shopHarrods’ new Fine Watch Room offers one

of the world’s biggest dedicated spaces

Fashion timepieces

How Dior and other haute couture houses

have raised their game in watchmaking

Watches for women

White creates a classic statement in the

finest timekeepers for women

Watch fair

SalonQP is more than a meeting place

for the horologically minded

After the City

Nick and Giles English abandoned the

daily commute to make a distinctly British

mark on the world of watchmaking

FeaturesCollecting

Failsafe foundation pieces for a classic

gentleman’s treasury of watches

Diving watchesAustralian golf legend Greg Norman comes

nose to nose with another great white shark

Watches for menSix of the finest – and most stylish –

examples of the watchmaker’s craft

Choosing a timepiece

Discover what the wristwatch you wear to

a meeting tells your colleagues about you

Style

As so often in life, the crucial edge comes

from the final detail, especially your watch

By George

King of complications Franck Muller

is horology’s hallowed maverick

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Contents

Brummell editorial: Show Media 020 3222 0101

Editor

Joanne Glasbey

Art Director

Dominic Bell

Associate Editor

Henry Farrar-Hockley

Chief Copy Editor

Chris Madigan

Assistant Editor

Sarah Deeks

Picture EditorJuliette Hedoin

Copy Editors

Cate Langmuir, Ming Liu,

Rupert Mellor

Fashion Director

Tamara Fulton

Stylist Pop Kampol

Creative Director

Ian Pendleton

Managing Director

Peter Howarth

Advertising & Events Director

Duncan McRae

duncan@flyingcoloursmarketing.com

07816 218059

showmedia.net

brummell@showmedia.net

Visit Brummell’s website for

more tailor-made content:

brummellmagazine.net

Colour reproduction by Fresh Media Group, wearefmg.com

Printed by The Manson Group, manson-grp.co.uk

Brummell is designed and produced by Show Media Ltd

and distributed with Financial News. All material ©

Show Media Ltd. Reproduction in whole or in part without

written permission is strictly prohibited. While every

effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information

contained in this publication, no responsibility can

be accepted for any errors or omissions. The information

contained in this publication is correct at the time of

going to press. £5 (where sold).

Cover illustration by Ben Newman

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FOREWORD | BRUMMELL 11

There are some situations where being just

30 seconds early – or even 10 seconds –

can matter a great deal. We’ve all been there.

Well, some of us have.

Timing, as they say, is everything. Comedians,

lovers and super-fast systematic traders all

know it. So important is it that an entire craft

has been established around it. In an age when

all of us carry electronic devices that, among

many other functions, can also tell us the time

to the second, we still wear watches.

For men in the City, your watch is one

of the few genuinely personal and distinctive

touches you can apply to what is otherwise a

working uniform of tailored suit and designer

tie (oh, and black shoes).

When you meet a stranger across a

conference table, one of the only potentially

meaningful clues you can look for to help

measure the man behind the suit, is the watch

on his wrist. Forget vulgar, flashy jacket linings

– the ‘I may look like a grey pinstripe on the

outside but when my jacket hangs open you can

get a tantalising glimpse of the real me’ shiny

turquoise or dazzling scarlet. Yeah, right.

And definitely forget red socks, or God

forbid, white ones. Waistcoats and bow ties

look contrived and self-consciously eccentric

and, far from impressing people with your sense

of individuality, are likely to get you dismissed

as a nerd. Watches, ties and possibly cufflinks

are where it’s at.

From a fashion perspective, the pendulum

has largely swung back from the dress-down

days when everyone was making so much

money that we could all relax in identical polo

shirts and chinos, and for fun – to show how

laid-back and funky we were – strap a brightly

One of the only potentially

meaningful clues you can look

for to measure the man behind

the suit is the watch on his wrist

coloured piece of plastic to our wrists. In these

more serious times we are concerned – quite

rightly – that if we don’t wear a suitable watch

clients might think we are not successful and

can’t afford one. In fact, there was a time, at the

height of the crunch, when a lot of people really

couldn’t afford one. At least not a proper one.

People often say that investment banking

is the triumph of form over substance, but

appearances do matter, never more so than

in hard times. A classic watch projects an

image of success; quiet, unflashy confidence;

taste and style. You may have none of those

qualities but, until people know you better,

there is a good chance they will be taken in

by first impressions, and for some of us that’s

worth quite a lot.

I wear two watches. I have a Patek Philippe

Calatrava for everyday work. It is refined,

stylish, subtle, the antithesis of bling, yet the

craftsmanship is superb and insofar as I meet

people who know their watches, it cannot fail

to get a nod of approval.

And, of course, I’m a sucker for the brilliant

advertising that tells you that you never actually

own a Patek Philippe, you just look after it for

the next generation. I really do like to think that

one day my son will wear it – though hopefully

not too soon. And last but definitely not least,

Appearances matter, and never more so than in hard times. A classic

piece of the watchmaker’s craft (or, better still, a number of pieces) is an

indulgence that will last, through times bad and good

Wrist

AnAlysis

it was a present from my most recent ex-wife,

so it comes with special memories.

For play, I have a Rolex Submariner, the

ultimate diver’s watch that can go deeper than

I would ever wish to. It is chunky, robust,

masculine, and has what in my case are purely

aspirational connotations as far as being an

action man on the beach or off the piste.

But I could easily have a dozen watches.

A lazy afternoon window shopping in Mayfair

could lead to four or five purchases, none of

which I’d regret. As indulgences go, let alone

vices, these are ones that will rarely haunt you.

In fact, compared to almost anything else

I could do that would cost as much money,

this really is pretty harmless.

Does this mean I think we are all shallow

and materialistic? Well, it might, but why else

do we work the hours we do and make the

sacrifices we have to? Not for the glory. If we

want the best it’s because we have put in the hours.

I have said (and written) before: compromise

is the enemy of achievement. The finer things

in life really should be ours. The City might be

keeping its head down while firms pursue a low

profile and try to defer to the unappeasable

green-eyed commentariat in the press and

our detractors in parliament, but I’ve had a few

successes this year and I’m spending again.

It feels good. And these things last. Art may

come in and out of fashion, hedge funds might

crash and burn, high-end clubs might soar and

fail, but a classic piece of craftsmanship on my

wrist will last. See you in New Bond Street.

The Ego’s Nest, the fifth novel in the Dave Hart

series about life in the City by David Charters,

is published by Elliott & Thompson, price £6.99

Words David Charters Illustration Brett Ryder

NEWS | bEAumoNdE 13J

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A classic watch reborn, a surprising sporting partnership and a nifty way to avoid wind-ups

Flip Reverso To honour the enduring appeal of

Jaeger-LeCoultre’s classic Art

Deco timepiece the Reverso, three

new versions have been created by

the Swiss watchmaker in the year

of its 80th anniversary. The Grande

Reverso Ultra Thin, modelled here

by brand ambassador and

Hollywood actress Diane Kruger,

the Grande Reverso Duo and the

Reverso Répétition Minutes à

Rideau all pay tribute to the original

design of 1931. And the charm is in

the story. Invented for polo players

whose watches could not withstand

the impact of the game, the

Reverso’s neat mechanism allows

the case to flip over, thereby

protecting the glass and revealing

a metal back – proof that logical

engineering and great style never

go out of fashion. This time around,

the reverse of the watch can be

personalised via an online service,

which offers buyers a broad range

of details, illustrations and finishes.

jaeger-lecoultre.com

App turn The next time you’re in a luxury watch boutique

wishing you could call on some impartial expert

advice to make an informed purchase, the

solution could be in your pocket – or your

phone, to be precise. The Watch Enthusiast app

(available on iPhone and Android handsets, as

well as the iPad 2) is a critical buyers’ guide

comprising almost 1,600 watches from 85

different brands, with each model awarded

a rating based on a number of criteria from

design credentials to value for money. It also

includes detailed photos, videos and useful

background information on each manufacturer.

£13.49; thewatchenthusiast.com

Sphere factor What do you get when you assign five years

of R&D to creating a timepiece inspired by

a famous seafaring explorer’s compass?

The Zenith Christophe Colomb Equation of

Time, naturally. The centrepiece of this watch,

a 75-piece limited edition, is a prominent glass

globe that houses a gyroscopic gimbal; its

purpose is to keep the all-important escapement

completely horizontal at all times. The result?

Consistently accurate timekeeping – whatever

the angle of your watch arm. Just don’t call it

a tourbillon. £154,000; zenith-watches.com

Retail detail

The watch business is booming

in London, as Rolex, Omega and

Hublot all open new stores in

the capital. Rolex has launched

a boutique at One Hyde Park, the

Knightsbridge landmark, with

an on-site watchmaker. Official

Olympic timekeeper Omega’s

latest location is in Westfield

Stratford. And where better for

Hublot’s new store than New

Bond Street? Designed by Peter

Marino, the boutique is worth

a visit for the artwork alone.

rolex.com; omegawatches.com;

hublot.com

Wish list

An exciting new arrival in

Burlington Arcade is Almar,

launched by watch magnate

Marcus Margulies. The boutique

will stock timepieces from some

of the most important watch

houses in the world, including

Audemars Piguet, Blancpain,

de Grisogono and Piaget. But

here’s the interesting bit – the

store will sell models that are no

longer in current collections,

and will therefore be discounted

by a minimum of 30 per cent,

with some models reduced in

price by as much as 70 per cent.

Almar offers the opportunity to

purchase the watch that you

wish you’d bought when it first

launched. A must for the address

book of any savvy collector.

020 7493 1409; almarwatches.co.uk

NEWS | bEAumoNdE 15

black beauty You would be forgiven for thinking that an Italian

fine-jewellery house and rugby union’s new

world champions might not have a lot in

common – but in the case of Bulgari and the

New Zealand All Blacks, you may be surprised.

Both were born in 1884, and in 1905, as Rome

saw Bulgari open its iconic boutique, the Kiwi

team competed in the Northern Hemisphere

tour that gave rise to the All Blacks legend.

Historical similarities aside, this partnership is

built on shared values of technical excellence,

style and resistance. A special-edition Bulgari

Endurer Chronosprint All Blacks launches the

partnership, and elegant design merged with

cutting-edge performance is sure to make this

very special timepiece a collectors’ favourite.

£9,350; bulgari.com

The complete wind-up A mechanical winder is a handy

accessory for anyone who owns

one or more automatic watches.

By rotating your wristwatch a set

number of revolutions per day,

these devices keep its power

reserve ticking over, so you don’t

have to wind and reset it time and

again. Our favourite example

emanates from Geneva-based

SwissKubik, whose 10-cubic

centimetre winders come in a

number of colours, finishes, and

configurations to meet your

horological needs.

From £425; jurawatches.co.uk

Street smart Touch-screen technology is commonplace in smart phones and tablets, but, courtesy of Swatch’s new collection Swatch Touch, you can expect to see it on a wrist near you soon. This sporty collection presents a unique LCd with a touch-screen zone operated by finger taps and sideways scrolls in place of push buttons. Available in five colours – black, white, turquoise, pink, purple –plus a camouflage print, this stylish watch combines Swatch’s Swiss-made quality with canny digital innovation. £100; swatch.com

As mechanical watches go, many would argue that Abraham-Louis Breguet did not leave much to be discovered. Throw in the achievements of Harrison, Ellicott, Arnold, and a few other British geniuses two or more centuries ago, and the mechanical watch was pretty much perfected.

So, when George Daniels – aka the World’s Greatest Living Watchmaker – convinced Omega in 1999 to put his co-axial escapement, rejected by the rest of the industry, into production, it marked the most significant design advance since Mudge, another English genius, invented the lever escapement in the 1750s. Daniels’ design uses virtually no lubrication, erasing one of the few flaws in the centuries-old technology, and co-axial movements now power nearly all automatic Omegas.

Such technological leaps are rare. More likely to grab the attention of enthusiasts, pundits and manufacturers are new materials. For watchmakers, silicon has almost magical properties: eliminating the need for lubrication; immune to extremes of temperature; and shapeable with incredible precision. It is as if all of the craft’s curses disappeared simultaneously.

From pioneering applications by niche brands such as De Bethune and Ulysse Nardin, to more potentially mainstream applications from the likes of Omega, silicon is revolutionising movement design. Patek Philippe, one of its staunchest supporters, recently upped the ante by increasing the number of silicon components used in its latest movements.

Patek’s latest silicon-enhanced advance is the GyromaxSi balance wheel, made of gold and the silicon derivative Silinvar, which the brand calls ‘the final piece in a puzzle’. It joins the other recent advances, Spiromax and Pulsomax, in an ensemble Patek dubs the Oscillomax. Protected by 17 patents and/or patent applications, this triumvirate brings together every Patek silicon component engineered so far.

Silinvar sprang from research begun in 2001, when discussions between the Centre Suisse d’Electronique et de Microtechnique (CSEM) and Ludwig Oechslin – now curator of the Musée International d’Horlogerie in La Chaux-de-Fonds,

THE TIME MACHINE

Some of the most exciting recent advances in watchmaking marry revolutionary materials with traditional construction

Switzerland – led to trials with silicon balance springs. The material is hard, antimagnetic, lightweight – some 3.6 times less dense than conventional balance materials – corrosion- and shock-resistant, and uniform in its mass distribution, making it a watchmaker’s dream.

Patek Philippe has continued to find new uses for it. In 2005, the company was first to present a Silinvar escape wheel that required no lubricant, eliminating a major weakness in mechanical watches. The next year, it launched the Spiromax balance spring with improved isochronism, which affects accuracy. And in 2008 came the Pulsomax, the first escapement made entirely from Silinvar. And more silicon- based progress is on the way, ‘particularly in increasing reliability, power reserve and the energy efficiency of the movements, allowing for ever smaller mechanisms and components,’ explains Jean-Pierre Musy, the brand’s technical director.

The need to tackle purely mechanical challenges continues to inspire radical solutions. TAG Heuer, which recently developed a watch that replaced gears with microscopic drive belts, has developed the MIKROTIMER Flying 1000 Concept Chronograph, which throws down the gauntlet to electronic timekeeping.

It has long been held that no mechanical device can match electronics’ speed and precision. For decades, the most critical timing has been managed using computers, optical sensors and other aids lacking springs, gears, levers and bearings. This did not stop TAG Heuer from attempting something previously possible only with electronic devices: to produce the world’s first-ever mechanical chronograph capable of measuring and displaying one thousandth of a second – making it 125 times more accurate than most existing mechanical chronographs.

Quartz may have dealt a serious blow to the mechanical wristwatch back in the Seventies, but the patient recovered and is in robust health, as these developments show. Now, when will the industry point out how much more environmentally friendly mechanical watches are than those powered by batteries? Words Ken Kessler

BRUMMELL | TECHNoLogy16

Investingin futures Embracing high-tech materials,

traditional watchmakers are

powering the craft’s most radical

revolution in many decades

Portuguese Perpetual Calendar. Ref. 5032: One thing at IWC always remains the same: the desire to get even better. Here is one of the finest examples, with the largest automatic movement manufac-tured by IWC, Pellaton winding and a seven-day power reserve. The perpetual calendar has displays for the date and moon phase as well as the year in four digits until 2499. In short: a watch that has already written the future. Mechanical IWC-manufactured movement | Pellaton automatic winding system |

7-day power reserve with display | Perpetual calendar | Perpetual moon phase display | Antireflective sapphire

glass | Sapphire-glass back cover | Water-resistant 3 bar | 18 ct red gold | IWC. Engineered for men.

IWC Portuguese. Engineered for navigators.

Jubi lee Place, 45 Bank Street, London, E14 5NY. Telephone: 020 7538 2332

4–6 South John Street, L iverpool. Telephone: 0151 708 1140

28 St Ann’s Square, Manchester. Telephone: 0161 834 0217

www.davidmrobinson.co.uk

what’s in storeWatches exclusive to

Harrods’ new Fine Watch Room include, from far left,

the Zenith El Primero Striking 10th; Vacheron

Constantin Patrimony Contemporaine; Blancpain

Carrousel Sapphire; and IWC Portuguese Tourbillon

Hand-Wound Squelette

beaumonde | ultimate boutique18

If you’re in the market for luxury watch shopping,

a stroll down Bond Street does the job efficiently

– it is the UK HQ for many watchmakers, and their

boutiques are a cog’s throw apart. However, for

the convenience of finding the top names under

one roof, including unique brands and dedicated

boutiques, head for the Brompton Road.

Harrods has doubled the size of its previous

departments to make two new dedicated haute

horology and haute joaillerie rooms covering

more than 1670sq m – the world’s largest such

retail space. The Fine Watch Room offers a

well-curated selection of innovative, interesting

and covetable timepieces in a contemporary

environment designed by Eva Jiřičná, and there

are 13 own-brand boutiques, among them UK

firsts for Vacheron Constantin, IWC, Panerai

and Richard Mille. In the centre, three circular

counters display more high-end names, including

those already at home in Harrods, such as Cartier,

Van Cleef & Arpels, Chopard and Boucheron.

In the Fine Jewellery Room, meanwhile, a

Piaget boutique opens later this month. ‘We’re

making a distinction between the two spaces,’

explains Abigail Rainer, director of accessories

and fine jewellery. ‘Although both sell watches,

the Fine Jewellery Room focuses on brands whose

creativity draws on a high-jewellery heritage and

the Fine Watch Room on the “purist” watchmaker,

for whom technical innovation is paramount.’ The

addition of new arrivals John Isaac, Philip Stein,

Bremont, Frédérique Constant and Roger Dubois

As befits its motto ‘All things

for all people, everywhere’,

Harrods this month launches

the world’s largest retail space

dedicated to luxury watches

Room atthe top

takes the number of brands to 35. They take in

the gamut of the world’s best watches from the

classic to the innovative to the futuristic, with

more complications, tourbillons and other bells

and whistles than either a casual enthusiast or

a connoisseur could shake a rotor at.

To mark the opening, several limited-edition

pieces have been created. Vacheron Constantin

has produced 10 of its Patrimony Contemporaine

watches with an engraving of the Harrods building

on the reverse and, similarly, there are just 10

of Zenith’s El Primero Striking 10th in platinum.

Eight of IWC’s 25 skeletized and hand-decorated

Portuguese Tourbillon Hand-Wound Squelette

in red gold will be available at Harrods. Other

exclusives include Blancpain’s Carrousel Sapphire

in tantalum and Breguet’s Queen of Naples on

a ruby-set bracelet. Corum, meanwhile, has

created a new Golden Bridge Automatic in rose

gold and Jaeger-LeCoultre will showcase

a number of limited-edition high complications.

As Harrods is a theatre of retail, expect a few

multidisciplinary events: ‘While watchmaking is a

serious subject, we want our clients to have fun,’

Rainer says, ‘Our new Fine Watch Room is located

above the wines, spirits and cigars departments.

I can foresee clients combining an evening viewing

of new watch collections with a wine tasting or

bespoke dining experience.’ It’s a one-stop shop

of the highest order.

harrods.com

words Joanne Glasbey

beAumonde | CouTuRIeR WATCHeS20

It strikes me that even the most metrosexual of

European gents seem somewhat shy about

wearing a fashion-house wristwatch, preferring

to stick with more manly dial names such as

Rolex, TAG Heuer, Omega and so on. In other

parts of the world, however – notably South

East Asia – males are proud to sport a watch

adorned with a name that might seem more

at home on the lining of a well-cut suit.

The reason for their enthusiasm is that

they have cottoned on to the fact that the term

‘fashion watch’ no longer refers only to those

tinpot, battery-powered, badge-engineered

efforts that emerged from the bad old days

when licensing agreements were ten a penny.

Nowadays, the best fashion watches have

genuine horological credentials. The brands

are well and truly back in charge and, with

standards to uphold, they ensure that their

timepieces are made in Switzerland, not China;

that they contain mechanical movements, not

quartz ones; and that they are not just about

fashion but innovation and imagination, too.

Look, for example, at the Hermès Temps

Suspendu, which features a mechanism that

appears to suspend time; Dunhill’s Black

Diamond Classic with a meteorite dial, and

Ralph Lauren’s daring Slim Classique Square,

With men’s timepieces that

now boast a host of genuine

watchmaking credentials,

fashion houses have upped

their horological game

Fashion

forward

leading the way in the return to small-sized men’s

dress watches with a case just 27.5mm wide.

Louis Vuitton, too, has upped its horological

ante with its stunning Voyagez and Volez men’s

chronographs in round Tambour cases, while

the latest tailoring firm to get its name stamped

on a wristwatch dial is Ermenegildo Zegna,

which has joined forces with the revered house

of Girard-Perregaux to create the new

Monterubello collection in ‘three-hander’ and

chronograph guises.

I would not be ashamed, either, to don one

of Chanel’s hugely successful J12 watches,

originally designed by the brand’s late artistic

director Jacques Helleu. The line’s Marine dive

watch that appeared last year is entirely

covetable – and wearable – as is this year’s

J12 Chromatic, with a shimmering, metallic

case made from the new, diamond powder-

polished material ‘titanium ceramic’.

Strangely, however, it is the brand that

might be regarded as having the most feminine

agenda that is offering some of the most

interesting – and masculine – men’s watches.

I refer to Christian Dior, or simply ‘Dior’ as

its watches are labelled. Frankly, I do not know

many blokes who would not shy away from

wearing the Dior name on their wrists but, if

you can cast macho prejudices aside, you will

find a range of interesting products.

The watch line was introduced back in

2004 when Hedi Slimane was the brand’s

artistic director. He created the first Chiffre

models, which were available as a simple,

time-only automatic; a chronograph with

an ETA movement; and the range-topping

Irreductible, powered by one of Zenith’s superb

El Primero movements. The latter gave the

pieces instant kudos, and Slimane’s design

signatures, such as asymmetrical cases and

mismatched push-pieces, were interesting

and genuinely original.

The Chiffre Rouge collection has been a

strong seller for Dior ever since and has grown

to include a nifty dive watch, white and yellow

gold versions of the Irreductible and, introduced

last year in an edition of 100 examples (which

quickly sold out), the T01, an extremely clever

time zone watch with a revolving satellite subdial

that enables local time and those in eight different

cities to be read simultaneously.

This year, the limited-edition party piece is

the Chiffre Rouge M01 in which the automatic

winding weight, usually found at the back of a

watch, forms part of the dial. This time, 200 will

be made, costing £5,700 apiece.

The entry-level man’s watch from Dior,

meanwhile, remains the simple, £2,000, 36mm

automatic, which is now available with a variety

of dial colours, including a pleasingly retro

shade of ‘golden sand’ – although, for £1,200

more, you could have the 38mm A02

chronograph in deep blue.

The question is, are you man enough to

wear such a stylish timepiece?

dior.com

Words Simon de Burton

GRAnd deSIGnS The mechanical and style credentials of dior’s Chiffre Rouge A02 chronograph should satisfy any man

EL PRIMERO by Zenith, inventor of the

high-frequency self-winding chronograph

ZENITH, THE PIONEER SPIRIT SINCE 1865

www.zenith-watches.com

EL PRIMERO TOURBILLON

pale & interestingClockwise from near left: J12 29mm, £6,725, Chanel; chanel.com. Women’s 38mm GraffStar, price on application, graff; graffdiamonds.com. H Hour PM, £5,600, Hermès; hermes.com. Léman Moon Phases, £18,590, Blancpain; blancpain.com. Possession, £8,050, piaget; piaget.com

stylist’s assistant Fay Lamchaiprasert

BrUMMell | woMen’s watCHes22

There is nothing quite like a touch of white

to brighten up a winter wardrobe. These

sparkling women’s watches will make

a statement this season, pure and simple

WOMAN

IN WHITE

photography Bruce Anderson styling Pop Kampol

beAumonde | wAtch FAIR24

Celebrating its third year with

a bigger venue and many more

brands, watch fair SalonQP is

more than just a meeting place

for the horologically minded

Show

and tell

Jo

hn

Qu

inte

ro;

Ke

n K

es

sle

r

experience,’ says Gurney. So they have.

SalonQP, now in its third year, is a horolophile’s

dream. As an indication of demand, 2009’s

inaugural event saw some 26 brands show their

wares, drawing 2,000 visitors; this year, 42 brands

will be there, with 6,000 visitors expected.

Having outgrown its original location at

Number One, Marylebone, the event is hosted

this year at the prestigious Saatchi Gallery,

Duke of York’s HQ, King’s Road, SW3, between

10 and 12 November, and presents the latest

from the sporty likes of Panerai and TAG Heuer,

and revered masters such as A Lange & Söhne

and Jaeger-LeCoultre, as well as offering a

platform to intriguing young brands – Meccaniche

Veloci and Nomos Glashütte, for example. It

seems SalonQP is right on time.

‘There wasn’t enough interest a short while

ago to warrant such an event, but in the UK that

interest has blown up over the past decade,’

explains Gurney. ‘Before then, a watch was far

less meaningful than it is today. You would meet

someone wearing great shoes, a fantastic suit

and a plastic watch. You don’t see that often

now. It’s partly self-fulfilling: there is more

media interest, more shops and so on. But it’s

also because people are generally much more

interested in what they consume.’

The UK industry has changed too, Gurney

says. Traditionally anonymous, the people

behind the timepieces – Roger Smith, George

Daniels and other great British watchmakers

– are now applauded. As the industry has

grown, smaller niches have also become viable,

with better, more accessible technology

allowing new brands to emerge. Making its

debut this year, SalonQP’s new independents’

gallery reflects this, showcasing brands such

as the young English company Schofield.

‘The fact is, there is a lot more to say about

watches now: the craft, the extreme technology,

the designs, the brands, the history,’ points out

Gurney. ‘There’s so much about watches to

be interested in.’ This also provides a range of

entry points for those looking to get into the

subject. SalonQP may draw serious collectors

– they are the ones poring over the exclusives

the event often features, from last year’s

unveiling of Cartier’s iD One concept watch to

a new piece from hot British brand Bremont.

But, with exhibition, lecture and watchmaking

masterclass components, it also serves as an

educative experience for the casual enthusiast

ready to upgrade his plastic timepiece.

One thing visitors may not want to try on for

size is John C Taylor’s Chronophage clock – ‘an

engineering marvel’, says Gurney – which will

be on display. It is a pendulum-driven clock with

a silicon brain that allows the clock to slow down,

stop and even run backwards, although quite

why this is desirable might only be appreciated

by hardcore watch buffs. The top of the clock is

also home to a giant, fanged insect that appears

to eat time. Yes, it is crazy. It is also three metres

high. And who has the wrist for that?

salonqp.com

words Josh Sims

Imagine the world’s best watch shop. It would

sell not only the obvious brands, but smaller,

more esoteric ones too. There would be no

pressure to buy – in fact, looking around would

be more like visiting an expertly curated

exhibition of the latest models. And it would not

just be a chance to check out some fantastic

new tourbillon in a glass case – the man who

designed it would be there to tell you all about it.

When James Gurney launched QP magazine

in 2003 – it has just celebrated its 50th edition

– he did so to provide the UK with a market-

leading specialist title all about watches. ‘But

that intention – to capture as much as we can

about what’s exciting in watches – can only go

so far. We wanted to deliver that in a live

About FAce

This picture and centre: SalonQP brings together enthusiasts with industry professionals. Bottom: Daniels London is one of many UK brands gaining long overdue recognition

beAumonde | After the city26

In an industry dominated by centuries-old Swiss

craft, an English luxury watch brand launched

less than five years ago is a rarity. Even more

unusual is the success and cult following that

Nick and Giles English, founders of Bremont,

have quickly garnered.

‘We’re really proud of what we’ve achieved,’

says younger brother Giles. 'I opened up The

Sunday Times a few weekends ago to see a big

interview with Hugh Laurie, and I suddenly

realised he was wearing a Bremont. He hadn’t

been given it – he must have gone into a shop

and bought it. That was lovely to see.’

Founding a British watch company was

never originally part of the brothers’ plans.

A plane crash in 1995 killed their father, Euan

English, and left Nick with more than 30 broken

bones. This horrendous accident served as the

As they take on the world’s

watchmakers, Bremont’s

Nick and Giles English are

ticking all the boxes

Words Sarah Deeks

Photography Ivan Jones

Brand of

brothers

catalyst for the business, as Nick and Giles

decided to leave their City jobs to pursue their

shared lifelong passion for watches.

‘It’s easy to get on the Tube every morning

and go to work, and before you know it find that

four or five years have gone by,’ says Nick. ‘It

can take something of real magnitude to push

you over the edge, and make you take a risk,’

adds Giles. ‘I think we both realised that we

weren’t going to go any great distance in the

City, so it wasn’t a difficult decision to leave

our jobs. But it was a big jump.’ Nick, who

worked in accountancy at PwC, and Giles, who

was in corporate finance with Williams de Broë,

still talk about their time in the City with some

reverence. ‘Working in finance was a very good

background for setting up our own company,’

maintains Giles. ‘The professionalism and

discipline is incredibly valuable. It’s a bit like

doing National Service!’

After five years in development, Bremont

launched its first watch in 2007, as the industry

sat up and took notice of a British brand that

specialises in mechanical watches. And

although they cannot claim a watchmaking

heritage, engineering is in their blood.

‘The mechanics of a watch are what

fascinate us,’ enthuses Giles. ‘Our father was

an aeronautical engineer, and he spent his life

building things. As children we spent six months

living on a boat he built, and we still fly a plane

he built, too.’ They also have a thing or two to

say about so-called Swiss tradition. ‘The Swiss

watch industry is powered by marketing,’ says

Giles. ‘A lot of watch brands haven’t been

around for 300 years. They were around for

200 years, defunct for 90, then resurrected.’

Nick asserts that this was never the path for

Bremont. ‘We could have bought a brand name,

and said we’d been around since 1782. But

anyone who knows about watches would see

straight through that. We didn’t want to create

a bogus history; we wanted to be ourselves.’

The English brothers have certainly done

that. Bremont watches have become firm

favourites with those in the know; not only for

their aviator-inspired style and carefully

selected materials, but also for the level of

engineering and development that goes into

making them. A labour of love indeed.

bremont.com

time With the fAmilyNick English (left) and brother Giles put careers in the City behind them to create great British watches

The Regent Beau Brummell

Titanium set with ideal cut diamonds

113A Jermyn Street, Mayfair, London, SW1Y 6HJ

www.backesandstrauss.com

ROYAL OAK OFFSHORE DIVER

Designed and developed for deep-sea exploration, the Royal Oak Offshore Diver is equipped with

a dedicated divingscale on an inner rotating dial ring and meets the demanding criteria of the

Swiss watch industry diver’s watch norms. Water-resistant to 300 metres. Stainless steel case.

Proprietary selfwinding calibre 3120, all parts finely decorated; oscillating weight engraved with

the AP monogram as well as the Audemars and Piguet family crests.

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A QUEST FOR DEPTH.

LEOPARD

For a list of Hublot stockists in the UK, please telephone

0207 343 7200 or e-mail info@timeproducts.co.uk

Hublot TV on: www.hublot.com

COLLECTABLE WATCHES | BRUMMELL

Collecting watches is not a hobby. It’s a hunger, and if you’re not careful it can become an obsession. I don’t call myself a collector as the word carries such a cultural payload, implying intellectual rigour and academic study. So while Charles Saatchi is a collector, I am not. But buying a timepiece need not be as daunting as curating your own horological Saatchi Gallery. The big benefit of watches over art is that you can wear a watch – while you can go swimming in your Rolex I wouldn’t recommend taking a dip with a Tracey Emin strapped to your wrist. On the following pages is a purely subjective wardrobe of masters old and new…

Presenting the cornerstones

of a classic gentleman’s

wristwatch collection

Timekeepers

Words Nick Foulkes

31

BRUMMELL | COLLECTABLE WATCHES32

AUdEMARS PigUETRoyal Oak The octagonal profile of the

pumped up Royal Oak

Offshore models has become

a familiar sight wherever

playboys gather, from Costa

Smeralda to St Tropez. But

the original Royal Oak was a

thin two-hand watch on a steel

bracelet and next year it

celebrates its 40th birthday.

It’s a hugely important watch

in that it started the trend for

the oversized luxury steel

sports watch with integral

bracelet that now typifies

the top end of sport-luxe

timekeeping. It is supremely

wearable too – if you’re after

a watch that can take you from

beach to boardroom, this is it.

audemarspiguet.com

HUBLOTKing Power Oceanographic 48mm 4000 Hublot watches are functional

but fun, and this combination

of technicality and good-times

styling comes from Jean

Claude Biver, an industry

legend who first revived

Blancpain, then revved up

Omega and now finds himself

running Hublot. Coining the

mission statement ‘the art of

fusion’, Biver has made Hublot

the reference point when it

comes to rugged horology that

makes use of the latest tech in

materials. With this model, he

also holds the current depth

record with a piece that can

withstand the pressures of life

4,000m underwater.

hublot.com

A. LAngE & SöHnEdouble Split In 19th-century watchmaking,

Lange was a name to drop

alongside the great houses of

Switzerland, but the DDR

years rather dented its

reputation for high-quality

timepieces. Undaunted, after

the Wall’s fall, the founder’s

great-grandson Walter Lange

picked up where his forebears

had left off. Today A. Lange

& Söhne (A. Lange and Sons)

is the reference for high-end

German watchmaking and its

quality ranks it alongside the

best in Switzerland. The

Double Split is a great watch

that can time two separate

events that might start

simultaneously but end up

to half an hour apart. Truly

a superior timepiece.

alange-soehne.com

JAEgER-LECOULTREgrande Reverso Ultra Thin Tribute to 1931 The watch that can be flipped

over on the wrist was a

typically functional product of

the Art Deco period. Inspired

by polo players whose fragile

watch glasses kept breaking,

this was the watch behind the

spectacular revival Jaeger-

LeCoultre enjoyed in the late

20th century. Today there are

dozens of different iterations

in the Jaeger line-up,

including some very ritzy

complications, but for a watch

that looks as good on the

wrist as in a museum you’ll

find it hard to beat this year’s

80th-anniversary model.

jaeger-lecoultre.com

FACE TO FACEClockwise from top left: Audemars Piguet Royal Oak; Hublot King Power Oceanographic 48mm 4000; A. Lange & Söhne Double Split; Jaeger-LeCoultre Grande Reverso Ultra Thin Tribute to 1931

The Levi’s 501 of watches, just like the classic denims, a Rolex gets better with age and there are plenty of styles to choose from. Personally, i would always go for a vintage sports model, but other aficionados tick the boxes with an Explorer ii with orange second hand aka the ‘Steve McQueen’, or a ‘Paul newman’ daytona. given that this is Rolex, it’s excusable to go for a bit of bling and take a gold watch on a gold bracelet – try an early gMT 1675 in 18-carat gold (watch the beginning of Easy Rider very carefully and you’ll see a prototype example gracing Peter Fonda’s wrist). interested? danny Pizzigoni of Watch Club (watchclub.com) on Royal Arcade, just off Old Bond Street, will sort you out. rolex.com

Rolex

Vintage GMT-

Master 1675

Born in the air, defined in the cockpit, created in England, realised in Switzerland: Bremont mechanical chronometers are made by professionals to exacting standards... for the rest of us.

bremont.com | facebook.com/TestedBeyondEndurance | twitter.com/BremontWatchCom

ALT1-C/CR

BRUMMELL | COLLECTABLE WATCHES

PATEk PHiLiPPECalatrava 5119 In the watch world, the

Calatrava cross that is the

mark of this storied family-

owned brand arouses the

same sort of passions as

Ferrari’s prancing horse. Its

legendary ‘You never own a

Patek Philippe…’ ad campaign

and domination of auction

rooms’ upper reaches have

made its watches investment-

grade products – if only the

world’s financiers had

invested in Pateks, perhaps

we wouldn’t be in such trouble

today. If you don’t quite have

the $800,000 or so needed

to start the bidding on a first-

series 2499 from the late

Fifties, why not start with an

elegant Calatrava 5119, with

a clous de Paris bezel?

patek.com

BREgUETClassique 7137BA/11/9V6 Breguet’s rise marked the

culmination of the 18th-

century tradition that saw

watchmakers not as creators

of mechanical toys, but as

scientific researchers. If there

was a problem to do with

timekeeping, Abraham-Louis

Breguet, also a master

salesman, could be relied

on to come up with a raft of

solutions. Breguet popularised

the tourbillon, but it is

guilloche engraving that is

its most recognisable visual

signature, and this watch

features a lovely example.

breguet.com

giRARd-PERREgAUxTourbillon with three gold bridges Girard-Perregaux is one of

those recherché brands that

makes only 20,000 or so

watches a year and is seen

on discriminating wrists only.

In 1992 the firm was taken

over by Luigi ‘Gino’ Macaluso,

who was a towering figure in

the watch world – an architect

and former rally champ, too.

Alas, he died in 2010, but

his legacy is the portfolio of

classic watches that bear his

name. This model is based on

a 19th-century pocket watch,

and as well as a technical

tour de force is that rare thing:

a watch that can be recognised

across a crowded room.

girard-perregaux.ch

VACHEROn COnSTAnTinHistorique 1954 ArondeVacheron Constantin has

always been there – in 2015

this firm will be an incredible

260 years old. Vacheron can

minute-repeat and tourbillon

with the best, but for heritage,

its back catalogue is second

to none. In recent years the

brand has taken the

commendable step of

revisiting its past, and this

watch from the Fifties, a

surprisingly racy period in

watch design, is a true beauty.

If you are after a big statement

then cross this off your list –

this is a recondite, individual

and sophisticated timepiece

that demands similar qualities

from its wearer.

vacheron-constantin.com Nick Foulkes is the editor of

Vanity Fair On Time

OnES TO WATCHClockwise from top left: Patek Philippe CaIatrava 5119; Breguet Classique 7137BA/11/9V6; Girard -Perregaux Tourbillon with three gold bridges; Vacheron Constantin Historique 1954 Aronde

Richard Mille is one of the people who defined the direction taken by luxury watchmaking in the 21st century: a futuristic aesthetic executed in avant-garde materials – carbon nanofibre is something he’s particularly fond of. Although Mille is best known for the tonneau case shape, it’s his straight-sided RM 017 that is particularly appealing – extra flat, as is the trend these days, and available in titanium, white gold or red gold. richardmille.com

RichaRd Mille

RM 017 Extra Flat

Tourbillon

34

Information: Bell & Ross UK +44 207 096 08 78 . information@bellross.com . e-Boutique: www.bellross.com

Pocket Watch VINTAGE PW1 49 mm

Wristwatch VINTAGE WW1 45 mm - Alligator strap

Caliber rM 021

“AERODYNE”

Manual winding tourbillon movementBaseplate of honeycombed orthorhombic

titanium aluminide / carbon nanofiberPower reserver: circa 70 hours

Torque indicatorPower reserve indicator

Function selectorVariable inertia, free sprung balance

Fast rotating barrel (6 hours per revolution instead of 7.5 hours)

Winding barrel teeth and third-wheel pinion with central involute profile

Barrel pawl with progressive recoilModular time setting mechanism

fitted against the case backFree sprung balance with overcoil

Wheel based time setting system (back of the movement)Closure of the barrel cover by excentric screws

Ceramic endstone for the tourbillon cageCentral bridge in rigidified ARCAP

Spline screws in grade 5 titanium for the bridges and case

a r a C i N G M a C H i N e O N T H e W r i S T

www.richardmille.com

At one time, golfer Greg Norman had two nicknames: one he liked and one he could have lived without. He relished being known as the ‘Great White Shark’ and flinched when people called him ‘Unlucky’ Greg Norman. Both nicknames have their origins on the pro golf circuits that were his trophy-hunting grounds for more than 30 years.

The phenomenally gifted Norman certainly doesn’t think he has been dealt a bad hand by fate. ‘Listen,’ he says, ‘I was born lucky. I was brought up in paradise, although I maybe didn’t appreciate that at the time. We lived on the edge of the Coral Sea and the Great Barrier Reef. There were white sandy beaches, clear coastal waters and pristine rainforest. We rode bareback along the beach with the dogs, surfed and camped out under the stars. Life was about having fun. It was there I had my first encounters with sharks, in Nelly Bay, when I was spearfishing and they would come over to take my catch. If you have a two-metre shark coming towards you, you let it eat whatever is on the end of your spear.’

So how did he get named after the fish that used to steal his lunch? ‘The Great White Shark thing started in 1981 when I was leading The Masters,’ he says. ‘The media didn’t know who I was or anything about my background and started asking questions about the unknown, blond-haired Aussie with an

DRIVE MASTER

Years before his aggressive game earned him the ‘Great White’ tag, Greg Norman was taking lessons from sharks in his native Queensland, Australia

aggressive style of play who used to swim and dive with sharks. Headlines along the lines of ‘Great White Shark To Win The Masters’ suddenly started appearing in the press. And the name stuck.’ Not that he minded: a decade later, he created and copyrighted the shark logo that has been his trademark ever since.

Does he still dive? ‘You bet. We live in Florida now, but I probably go back to Australia three or four times a year. I always try and get up to the Barrier Reef and go out with the family on a boat. We all do it; in fact, my daughter is a qualified divemaster. I have only really got into trouble once, at Riding

GREG NORMAN | BRUMMELL 37

Greg Norman earned his

‘Great White Shark’ nickname

on the golf course. But does

he have the nerve to go nose

to nose with his namesake?

Words Robert Ryan

Water

hazard

© O

me

ga

Rock, one of my favourite spots in the Bahamas. I had damaged part of the regulator on an outcrop and my air ran out. I was 25m down. You mustn’t panic. Kick slowly. Don’t rise faster than your bubbles. I got the minor effects of the bends, but I didn’t have to go through re-compression. Nothing like that has ever happened to me since. But you have to respect that things can go wrong down there.’

That realisation did not cause a moment's hesitation, however, when we asked Norman to go nose to nose with his namesake – Carcharodon carcharias, to give it its full scientific name – to test Omega’s new Seamaster Planet Ocean Chrono watch. ‘We went to the Neptune Islands in South Australia’s Marine Conservation park,’ he says of the trip, ‘where some of the footage of real sharks in Jaws was filmed. There are only a couple of dive outfits you can go with nowadays, because the great white is a protected species, as it should be. And it has certainly recovered strongly – we had six or seven circling us, big ones, too.’

Did he regret his mission at any point? ‘Absolutely not. Even though I’d seen great whites up close before, it’s still a pretty

astonishing feeling to be in the water, face-to-face with them. I was very lucky to get that opportunity.’

There is that word again. The alternative nickname came from a string of near-misses and unfortunate breaks on the greens (such as his cruel 1996 defeat at the US Masters by Nick Faldo) and there is a feeling that he never quite achieved his full potential out there. In fact, he still appears in top-10 lists of unluckiest sportsmen. Ask him about it now, and he is sanguine. ‘Obviously, there are some things I wish had gone differently. But, like a shark, you have to keep moving forward.’

Remember, this is a man who has won 91 professional titles (including two Open Championships and 20 wins on the US PGA tour), was world number one for 331 weeks, owns a successful global golf-course design business, a clothing line, a restaurant and a thriving wine label, is reputed to be worth many millions and has former US Presidents and business moguls on speed dial. To paraphrase another high-achieving Aussie: I should be so unlucky. Seamaster Planet Ocean Chrono by Omega, CHF6,600; omegawatches.com

WHITE KNUCKLE RIDE

Clockwise from above: Great White meets great white; Greg Norman on the boat to Australia’s Neptune Islands; Omega’s Seamaster Ocean Chrono; Norman in action on course

BRUMMELL | GREG NORMAN38

GIRARD-PERREGAUX Full calendar

Pink gold case, sapphire case back,

Girard-Perregaux automatic mechanical movement.

Full calendar with date, day of the week,

month and moon phase indicators.

London 165 SloAnE StREEt +44 (0) 20 7752 0246

Paris 50 RUE PIERRE ChARRon +33 (0) 1 47 20 72 40

CannEs 50 boUlEvARD DE lA CRoISEttE + 33 (0) 4 93 68 47 73

www.arije.com

class of 2011From left: Villeret Vintage Pulsographe, £30,100, Montblanc; montblanc.com. Vintage Rally collection, £2,280, frédérique constant; frederique-constant.com. Classique Retrograde in white gold, £15,600, Breguet; breguet.com. Rose gold Capeland, £12,990, Baume & Mercier; baume-et-mercier.com. Radiomir 42mm in steel, £4,400, Panerai; panerai.com. Imperiale collection self-winding movement in 18ct rose gold, £14,980, chopard; chopard.com

Classic and elegant, these luxury watches combine

innovation and beautiful design for perfect timekeeping

Photography Tif Hunter styling Pop Kampol

Finest

hours

MEN’s WaTcHEs | BRUMMEll 41

BRUMMELL | hoRoLogicaL tRiBEs42

It’s 9am sharp on a Monday and the six partners of private equity fund Lever Ridge Byatt are having their monthly get together to decide what to snap up next. The problem is, most have more or less lost interest in business – well, there’s no fun in it now, not like it was in Brown’s ‘boom not bust’ economy when everyone thought the cash would keep on flowing and it was considered dereliction of duty not to replace your Aston Martin with a new one every three months.

No, things just aren’t the same, what with ‘QEII’ bumping up inflation and the feeble pound making overseas buyouts a bit pricey. And as for those silly new rules about having to tell the Revenue what you’ve got in your Swiss bank accounts… well, I ask you.

No wonder everyone has looked at his watch half a dozen times by 9.10 and, distracted by their choice of timepiece, allowed his mind to drift off to a place he’d rather be.

Henry is longing to be back home at his Oxfordshire pile, checking out the little beauties in his motorhouse. His collection of classic cars has proved to be one of the best investments he’s ever made, especially the four Ferraris. His personal favourite is the 750 Monza which is now worth the thick end of £2m – not a bad return on the 50 grand it cost as a basket case back in the early Nineties. He used it to take part in the legendary Mille Miglia – a 1,000-mile dash across Italy for classic cars in which every driver is given a special Chopard ‘MM’ chronograph. According to Henry’s, this bloody boring meeting has now been running for 13 minutes and 23-and-three-tenths of a second.

Patrick has made enough money to be able to indulge in all the expensive hobbies he could wish to pursue - but his schooling at Gordonstoun gave him a taste for the rugged outdoors and caused him to develop a passion for mountaineering. He spends most of his time these days in central and southern Asia

No wonder everyone has looked

at his watch half a dozen times

by 9.10 and, distracted by his

choice of timepiece, drifted off

among the great peaks of the world - he’s made his way up Everest, K2 and Cho Oyu and, since he’s back in Europe for a spell, thought he might have a go at some climbs in the Alps. While passing through the airport, he was rather tickled to discover the Montblanc pen company also makes some rather fine watches, so he bought the Vintage Pulsographe in rose gold to remind him of life at 15,000ft.

Gary joined the fund after making a mint on the trading floors during the ‘loadsamoney’ years of the early Eighties – and he’s been letting everyone know about it ever since. Not for him the low-key approach, he believes in living the moment and flashing the cash, so he wears all the best labels, drives an acid-green Lambo and lives in a Candy & Candy penthouse. He’s struggling to keep awake in this meeting, not just because it’s so dull but because he emerged from Boujis only about two hours before it started – and the dazzling glint from his limited edition Backes & Strauss Beau Brummell

wristwatch is not doing his emerging headache any favours. Maybe 347 ideal-cut diamonds is a bit over the top even for Gary in the daytime, and he should reserve it for evening wear.

Clifford is the old stager among the group, having come up through the City ranks in the traditional way, reached the status of chairman and then taken early retirement in his early fifties - having, of course, secured a useful string of directorships and consultancy roles to ensure his handsome pension pot need never become too depleted. His desire to spend his latter years amid sun and sea led to him buying

Fairly or not, the watch you wear says a lot about you. Through it you can express

reliable judgement, claim dazzling success or suggest you’re climbing K2 next week

Words Simon de Burton illustration Brett Ryder

Which watchare you?

a magnificent yacht, which he has expensively crewed with a team of six tanned and muscular 20-somethings who have brought Clifford and ‘A Minimis Incipe’ (‘From The Smallest Beginnings’) a considerable measure of success at classic races in the Med and Caribbean – at the last of which he won the Panerai Luminor

Submersible Regatta wristwatch, which, as the meeting drags by, is making him long for the feel of spray on his sea-weathered face.

Gordon studied engineering and always expected to end up as a small cog in a big machine, perhaps designing cup-holders for Audi or girders for futuristic buildings. But as luck would have it, his idea for a new type of lid for bottled water went down a storm with all those people who are obsessed with perpetually re-hydrating and now he’s virtually swimming in cash. He’s still fascinated by the mechanics of things, however, so his Breguet Classique

Hora Mundi wristwatch and its instant-jump time-zone display system with synchronised date, day and night and city indications is keeping him pleasantly distracted from the mind-numbing proceedings of the meeting.

Giles made his money at a sufficiently early age to still have enough functioning grey matter to enable him to achieve his boyhood dream of learning to fly planes and helicopters. Now, he enjoys the jet-set life to the full, with his own Robinson R44 chopper for commuting between his Battersea penthouse and Cornish manor house, plus a VLJ (that’s Very Light Jet) for the longer trips to his villa in Antibes and the chalet in St Moritz. All his aircraft are equipped with the latest avionics, but Giles would never leave home without his Breitling Navitimer watch (as promoted by plane-mad John Travolta) with its nifty circular slide rule for navigational calculations. So, instead of paying attention at the meeting, he’s got his head in the clouds trying to work out how much fuel it would take to fly the Robinson from Cannes to St Tropez at 130mph into an eight-knot headwind.

BRUMMELL | StyLE44

hand SELEctEdThis page: Ballon Bleu PG watch, £14,500, cartier; cartier.com Navy two-button suit, £2,190, Ermenegildo Zegna. Shirt, £75, and green and blue striped tie, £59, both thomas Pink

Opposite: Portofino hand-wound eight- days watch, £13,500, IWc; iwc.com Two-button suit, £970, canali. Shirt, £110, hackett. Shoes, £890, angelo Galasso

The suit is sharp, the shirt crisp and the leather on the shoes burnished.

Now it’s down to the final touches, particularly the slickest of watches

Photography Bruce Anderson Styling Pop Kampol

The last detail

BRUMMELL | styLE46

pockEt acEsTop: Carrera Calibre 16 Heritage Automatic Chronograph 41mm steel and gold watch, £3,450, taG Heuer; tagheuer.com Coat, £649, Emporio armani. Shirt, £195, Ralph Lauren. Cufflinks, £109, Brooks Brothers

Bottom: Tourbillon pocket watch RM 020 with titanium chain, £328,000, Richard Mille; richardmille.com Black tourmaline two-button suit, £1,935, Bottega Veneta. Charcoal grey waistcoat, £249,

Emporio armani. White and green shirt, £75, thomas pink

Opposite: Captain Winsor watch, £6,300, Zenith; zenith-watches.com Jacket, £1,075, alexander McQueen.

Shirt, £95, paul smith. Cufflinks, £650, angelo Galasso. Trousers, £305, Ralph Lauren. Briefcase, £740, Bally

BRUMMELL | styLE48

sLEEVE NOtEsTop: Millenary self-winding watch in white gold case, £23,680, Audemars Piguet; audemarspiguet.com Double-breasted suit, £895, DAKs. Jumper, £540, Alexander McQueen. Constellation T touchscreen phone, £4,300, Vertu

Bottom: Vintage BR 123 Original watch in satin steel with black dial, £1,600, Bell & Ross; bellross.com Black two-button suit, £1,120, Alexander McQueen. Red jumper, £165, Pal Zileri. White shirt, £275, Burberry.

Suit-stripe cufflinks, £95, Paul smith

styList’s AssistANt Fay Lamchaiprasert

FaShiOn STOCkiSTS DeTaiLS On page 50

Contac. Argento Fine Producs T. 020 7722 24 38 . www.frederique-constant.com

Live passionyourwih Maxime Manufacure

BRUMMELL | BY GEORGE50

Famed for the ingenuity of his mechanical complications, Franck Muller is both maverick and master watchmaker

Second

to none

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Well no, in the sense that the epicurean pleasure derived from a fine mechanical watch is shared by many. And yes, in that in the watch industry, a little madness (or genius, subject to the jury’s verdict) goes a long way.

Among the visionary architects of the current fascination with haute horlogerie is Franck Muller, a man universally acknowledged as one of the greatest living exponents of the art of traditional watchmaking – and as one of its saviours.

Muller, 53, hails from the Swiss watchmaking Mecca of La Chaux-de-Fonds, trained at the prestigious École d’Horlogerie de Genève (Geneva School of Watchmaking) and made his name in the Eighties restoring top-end complicated watches for collectors and auction houses.

At the time, the watch industry was on its knees – because of the influx of cheap quartz movements from the Far East – and watch brands were frequently going under, taking their tools, their people and their expertise with them.

In 1983, Muller presented his first watches – complicated pieces that appealed to a clientele still hungry for elite craftsmanship, unsatisfied by mass-produced offerings from mainstream brands. Inspired by their success, he created ever more complex watches, inventing bizarre movements with functions no one had ever seen before.

His zany Crazy Hours timepieces, for example, display the hours in the wrong order around the dial. Where an hour hand would normally progress serenely around, on a Crazy Hours watch it points to the correct time by skipping around the face. Such an unconventional watch is not for everyone, not least given the potential for confusion, but there’s no denying its unique artistry or the brilliance of the mind behind it.

Because of this, Elton John once called Muller the Picasso of watchmaking, while others refer to him as the rock star or enfant terrible of the industry. He’s more commonly known as the ‘Master of Complications’. Each moniker applies – Muller’s current collection is typified by the large, fruity Arabic numerals on the dials of many of his watches (mostly in the conventional order), oversized square or tonneau-shaped cases, and the remarkable complications housed inside them. At one point, Muller’s career-defining Aeternitas Mega 4 was the world’s most complicated watch. With 36 complications, including an equation of time and a 1,000-year calendar, it cost $2.7m.

Not every Franck Muller carries an astronomical price tag, mind. His dual-time travel alarm clock is one of the few Muller creations powered by a quartz movement. Featuring the familiar dancing coloured numerals on the dial and weighing enough to suggest most buyers are more likely to use it as a table clock (or ask someone else to carry their suitcases), it’s available for £2,500. Franck Muller’s timepieces are available

at Marcus Watches, 170 New Bond

Street, London W1; 020 7290 6500;

marcuswatches.co.uk

Words Robin Swithinbank

The luxury watch industry is full of eccentrics – it could be no other way. Think about it. First, there’s the money. To create a mechanical watch from scratch costs millions and there is never a guarantee you’ll make it back. Then there’s the time-consuming fiddliness of putting one together. You could write an epoch-defining novel in the time it takes to assemble and test the hundreds of tiny parts that make up a grande complication model.

And for what? To make a device that tells the time, a quotidian job that was simplified years ago by the introduction of highly accurate, battery-powered quartz. Logic dictates you’d have to be slightly mad to even contemplate going into the traditional watch business, right?

BRiGHT AnD EARLY Franck Muller’s signature

dancing coloured numerals now feature on this

dual-time alarm clock

Linear-winding automatic movement, 18K red gold

case with sapphire crystal sides and back.

Hand-engraved gold version of the first CORUM

automatic baguette-shaped movement.

+44 (0) 1932 574 674 • info@corumwatches.co.uk • www.corum.ch

H E R M È S S E L L I E R – H E R M È S H O R L O G E R

ARCEAU GRANDE LUNESteel case, mechanical self-winding

movement, moon phases, alligator strapCrafted by Hermès watchmakers in Switzerland

www.hermes.com