Category Archives: London

2025 ➤ No telling how often I fell in love at Maggie’s…

Maggie Jones’s, Princess Margaret, Restaurants, British food , roast beef, Maggie JonesMaggie Jones’s, Princess Margaret, Restaurants, British food , roastbeef, Maggie Jones’s Restaurants Restaurant,

Reopening today: Maggie’s which gained its name from Princess Margaret back in the Swinging Sixties. Photo by Shapersofthe80s

❚ BEST NEWS OF THE WEEK is to hear of the return of a legendary restaurant… The place I grew up in when eating out was cheap and cheerful, and the one that confirmed my taste for classic British farmyard food was Maggie Jones’s which closed over two years ago following a fire. Now it reopens after a total gutting and returns with all those baskets and flowers and rural tools hanging from the ceilings, but best of all those high-backed wooden booths guaranteeing privacy for you and your loved one(s).

Which is why, soon after its opening in 1964, Princess Margaret popped in routinely from nearby Kensington Palace, using the name Maggie Jones for anonymity – being wife to Anthony Armstrong Jones at that time, later created Lord Snowdon. There she established a celebrity haunt for her circle of aristos and socialites such as Peter Sellers and various extra-marital lovers as her marriage unravelled. Most recently it has been owned and managed for more than two decades by Christine and husband Greg. – Welcome back.

Maggie Jones’s, Princess Margaret, Restaurants, British food , roast beef, Maggie JonesMaggie Jones’s, Princess Margaret, Restaurants, British food , roastbeef, Maggie Jones’s Restaurants Restaurant,

Classic farmyard fair: the traditional Maggie Jones’s menu returns

➢ Find Maggie Jones’s at 6 Old Court Place, off Kensington Church Street, London W8 4PLL

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2025 ➤ Love is in the air once more for Jon and George

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At the Waterloo Imax: Princess Julia HRH interviewing the editor of the doc Paul Carlin. The huge band shot on-screen is by Derek Ridgers. This photo by Shapersofthe80s

❚ DESPITE NOT BEING A FAN of Me-Me-Me George O’Dowd, I found the compelling new TV documentary Boy George & Culture Club an astonishing revelation on every level at its premiere this week in the Waterloo Imax cinema. The sheer quantity of picture research that had gone into it was self-evident in a fast-moving edit which combined brisk video clips with stills photography, especially from Andre Csillag’s archive (plus the odd shot from myself, including the first snap of drummer Jon Moss kissing George.)

All 90 minutes proved riveting as they reminded us that a key hit such as Karma Chameleon made number one on the US Hot 100 in 1984. It also took several moments for my guest and I to recognise Jon as he settled onto a sofa before the camera. Of course all members of the Culture Club band have reached old-age – Jon is 68 and Mikey and Roy all looked it! Impressive to hear so much love being expressed by everybody for everybody else, given the turbulence of Jon and George’s romance which parted the band after five years.

Surprising shots that emerged from a rummage through Jon’s archive revealed several prominent scars on his right cheek – a lover’s quarrel perhaps? No, according to an insider these came from two separate car accidents, and Jon proves to be such a gentle man, we might even hope this doc brings the band back together. No official release date but rumours are that TV might screen it this side of Xmas.

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2025 ➤ The New Romantics history book currently turning heads

Photography, fashion, clubbing, exhibitions, Social trends, Swinging 80s, Youth culture, newbook, New Romantics, Blitz Club, Blitz Kids,

Nightlife Rebels: my new book published September 2025

❚ DURING THE SWINGING 80S two seasoned eye-witnesses watched Britain’s young ignite a glittering New Romantics revolution… As a Fleet Street journalist I explored their intriguing carnival of style-setting cults across Britain, Paris and New York, while straight-up photographer Derek Ridgers captured the libertines in their dark dens.

Our new illustrated hardback NIGHTLIFE REBELS reveals the candid history of the Blitz Club’s hedonists who insisted “One look lasts a day”. It has gone on sale in the shop outside the Blitz Club exhibition at London’s Design Museum. Alas, it is not available online, only in this shop. We hope to broaden availability soon. Contact us at Nightlife.Rebels@shapersofthe80s.com

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2025 ➤ Finally a candid insight into the glittering New Romantics revolution

Photography, fashion, clubbing, exhibitions, Social trends, Swinging 80s, Youth culture, newbook, New Romantics, Blitz Club, Nightlife Rebels, Blitz Kids, Derek Ridgers, Kim Bowen, David Johnson, John Maybury,

Contributors to Nightlife Rebels: Derek Ridgers, Kim Bowen, David Johnson and John Maybury. (Photo by David Jenkins)

❚ DURING THE SWINGING 80s two seasoned eye-witnesses watched Britain’s young ignite a glittering New Romantics revolution… Myself David Johnson as a Fleet Street journalist explored their intriguing carnival of style-setting cults across Britain, Paris and New York, while straight-up photographer Derek Ridgers captured the libertines in their dark dens.

Our new illustrated hardback NIGHTLIFE REBELS reveals the candid history of the celebrated Blitz Club’s hedonists who insisted “One look lasts a day”. Featuring unseen photos, stats, a unique timeline and Who Really Was Who.

Last week the book’s four chief contributors gathered for a team picture at London’s Design Museum where an exhibition about Blitz culture runs for six months and our book is on sale in its shop – The Design Museum

WHAT EACH OF US SAYS ABOUT THE 80s

“Some nights it was like walking into Hieronymus Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights” – Photographer Derek Ridgers, top left

Photography, fashion, clubbing, exhibitions, Social trends, Swinging 80s, Youth culture, newbook, New Romantics, Blitz Club, Blitz Kids,“A full night-time economy flourished around these clubs where graphic designers, artists, deejays, writers, producers and musicians of every kind refined and developed their skills by working with club-owners” – Stylist and costume designer Kim Bowen, former Queen of the Blitz, second left

“In the shabby Blitz wine bar on Tuesdays precocious 19-year-olds presented an eye-stopping collage, posing away in wondrous ensembles, emphatic make-up and in-flight haircuts. This spectacle shouted newness” – Journalist David Johnson, third along

“Being photographed served as a kind of affirmation that your particular ‘look’ set you apart as a somebody” – Video artist John Maybury, and former Blitz star, pictured right

Photography, fashion, clubbing, Social trends, Swinging 80s, Youth culture, newbook, New Romantics, Blitz Club, Blitz Kids, David Johnson, Design Museum, Blitz Club exhibition,

There’s our book on the second shelf at the Design Museum: Dare we assume the two lads thumbing through the options might have been Blitz Kids back in the day? (Photo by Shapersofthe80s)

➢ Previously at Shapersofthe80s: Here’s an extravaganza of a show to confirm the Blitz Kids’ place in history

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2025 ➤ Champagne all round!

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Finalists at last night’s gathering at Champagne Charlie’s

❚ VIRTUALLY AT THE LAST MINUTE I decided to have an 80th birthday party yesterday at Champagne Charlie’s for a selected number of good friends from my adult years, most of whom had never met each other before. The whole evening was more fun than any of us imagined and it didn’t occur to us to start taking photos until quite a few guests had left. So here we see the 22 stalwarts who knew how to enjoy a premiere cru Champagne for three hours. No am not going to name them all but as you can tell, they’re a rum mix. And they probably say the same about me.

Marcel Duchamp, birthday cake

Where life starts: My mentor Marcel Duchamp

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