Annabel's is a private members club at 46

Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Ke ...

in Mayfair, London. It was opened at 44 Berkeley Square in 1963 by

Mark Birley Marcus Oswald Hornby Lecky Birley (29 May 1930 – 24 August 2007), known as Mark Birley, was a British entrepreneur known for his investments in the hospitality industry. Early life Mark Birley was the son of Sir Oswald Birley (1880–1952), ...

and named for his wife

Lady Annabel Vane-Tempest-Stewart Lady Annabel Goldsmith (' Vane-Tempest-Stewart, formerly Birley; born 11 June 1934) is an English socialite and the eponym for a London nightclub of the late 20th century, Annabel's. She was first married for two decades to entrepreneur Mark B ...

. It was founded in the basement of the

Clermont Club The Clermont Set was an exclusive group of rich British gamblers who met at the Clermont Club, originally at 44 Berkeley Square, in London's fashionable Mayfair district. It closed in March 2018 and re-opened in 2022. Clermont Club is now temporar ...

, a private gambling club established by John Aspinall. Annabel's was one of the first nightclubs in London and was especially popular with the British aristocracy and the international jet-set in the 1960s and 1970s. It was revived by Birley's son and daughter in the 2000s and was sold by Birley with his other member's clubs to

Richard Caring Richard Allan Caring (born 4 June 1948) is a British businessman. He initially built a business, International Clothing Designs, supplying Hong Kong-manufactured fashion to UK retailers. After surviving the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, he div ...

in 2007. Annabel's closed at No. 44

in 2018 and was reopened later that year at No. 46, occupying the entirety of the Georgian townhouse.

1963-2007: The Birley Years at 44 Berkeley Square

Establishment and opening

In 1962 the

, a private gambling club catering to London's high society, was established at 44 Berkeley Square, a townhouse in the Mayfair district of London, in 1962 by John Aspinall. The house was built between 1742 and 1744 by

William Kent William Kent (c. 1685 – 12 April 1748) was an English architect, landscape architect, painter and furniture designer of the early 18th century. He began his career as a painter, and became Principal Painter in Ordinary or court painter, bu ...

for Lady Isabella Finch. The Clermont Club was one of the first private gambling clubs in London following the passing of the

Betting and Gaming Act 1960 The Betting and Gaming Act 1960 was a British Act of Parliament that legalised additional forms of gambling in the United Kingdom. It was passed on 1 September 1960 and came into effect on 1 January 1961. The Act Based on the recommendations of ...

. Aspinall suggested to his friend

that he start a piano bar in the extensive vaults and basement of No. 44. Birley himself had intended to start a club after being inspired by the piano bar of the

Carlyle Hotel The Carlyle Hotel, known formally as The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel, is a combination luxury apartment hotel located at 35 East 76th Street on the northeast corner of Madison Avenue and East 76th Street, on the Upper East Side of New York City. O ...

in New York. 6,000 tonnes of

London Clay The London Clay Formation is a marine geological formation of Ypresian (early Eocene Epoch, c. 56–49 million years ago) age which crops out in the southeast of England. The London Clay is well known for its fossil content. The fossils from t ...

were removed from the basement and garden at the rear of the house to create the principal rooms of the club. The dance floor of the club was the floor from the old kitchen of No. 44. Annabel's was linked to the Clermont Club upstairs by an internal staircase, which was subsequently blocked off by Birley. Birley blocked off the staircase due to his disapproval of Arab gamblers coming down into Annabel's from the Clermont Club in various states of "dress and disorder which jarred with the tone of the nighclub" as recalled by

Jonathan Aitken Jonathan William Patrick Aitken (born 30 August 1942) is a British author, Church of England priest, former prisoner and former Conservative Party politician. Beginning his career in journalism, he was elected to Parliament in 1974 (serving un ...

. Birley named the club for his wife,

. After almost two years of preparations, the club opened on 4 June 1963, Birley having borrowed £175,000 () to establish the club. Lady Annabel herself said that was not fond of having the club named after her when it first opened but subsequently looks back " ... on irley'sdecision with pride and consider it the most tremendous compliment he could ever have paid me. Having a nightclub named after you is much better than being immortalised as a rose, which, unlike Annabel's, does not necessarily survive very long". The club became colloquially known by rich debutants as "the 'Bel's". Annabel's was launched by an opening night party on 4 June 1963. Annabel's only had a seating capacity of 225 people and became quickly overcrowded with Mark and Annabel Birley's friends and their relations. Lady Annabel later wrote that for " ... at least an hour it was bedlam. I had visions of oxygen masks and people being trampled to death" but " ... by the early hours of the morning the crowd miraculously began to melt away, and the rest of the night was magical". Annabel also accidentally insulted the American ambassador to the United Kingdom, David Bruce and the actor Peter O'Toole by telling them there was no room for them. Lady Annabel recalled that the guests on opening night " ... sounded like a roll call for the pillars of society". By 5am only Mark and Annabel Birley and

James Goldsmith Sir James Michael Goldsmith (26 February 1933 – 18 July 1997) was a French-British financier, tycoon''Billionaire: The Life and Times of Sir James Goldsmith'' by Ivan Fallon and politician who was a member of the Goldsmith family. His cont ...

and his girlfriend Sally Crichton Stuart remained on the dancefloor. Rival high society clubs to Annabel's in the 1960s included Siegi's and Les Ambassadeurs. Unaccompanied journalists were not allowed in Annabel's except for the gossip columnist

Nigel Dempster Nigel Richard Patton Dempster (1 November 1941 in Calcutta, India – 12 July 2007 in Ham, Surrey) was a British journalist, author, broadcaster and diarist. Best known for his celebrity gossip columns in newspapers, his work appeared in the '' ...

Design and decor

The entrance to the club was through a canopied staircase leading down from Berkeley Square. The canopy was decorated in blue and gold stripes. The staircase led to the lobby of the club, off which were the men and women's toilets. The men's toilets had a stock ticker machine. The women's toilets were staffed by Mabel James for many decades. The décor of Annabel's was designed by Birley and

Philip Jebb Philip Vincent Belloc Jebb (15 March 1927 - 7 April 1995), was a British architect and Liberal Party politician. Background Jebb was the son of Reginald Jebb and Eleanor Belloc. He was a grandson of the writer and Liberal MP Hilaire Belloc. He was ...

, with subsequent assistance from Nina Campbell. It was described by

Harry Mount Henry Francis Mount (born 1971) is a British author and journalist who is editor of '' The Oldie'' magazine and a frequent contributor to the ''Daily Mail'' and ''The Daily Telegraph''. Early life Harry Mount was born in 1971. His father, Sir ...

as having had a "cluttered, eclectic country house look". Plum Sykes described how "Birley's collection of horse and dog paintings and prints covered the walls top to toe; flickering candle lamps lit the tables while guests ate dinner seated on banquettes upholstered in red velvet; the cramped dance floor, almost an afterthought, was hidden at the back of the club and boasted only a couple of disco lights ... Guests felt more like they were at a party in someone's fabulous drawing room than in a London nightclub". Campbell had met Birley in 1965 when she was an assistant to John Fowler, who had decorated the interiors of the Clermont Club. Campbell told Birley that two vitrine units in the bar looked "too tacky" to which Birley responded "'If you think you're so clever, why don't you do them yourself?". Campbell subsequently lined them with a Chinese red silk and put examples of blue and red Imari porcelain on display. Birley was impressed and Campbell began collaborating with him on the decor of the club. The main sitting area of the club was down the corridor from the lobby with banquettes and sofas. A bar and the room known as the Buddha Room were subsequently created after the entry corridor became too crowded. The Buddha Room was dominated by a wooden Indian sculpture of the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

, bought by Birley from Barling of Mount Street. It was painted with a red lacquer and decorated with watercolours and paintings of the Ballets Russes by

Pavel Tchelitchew Pavel Fyodorovich Tchelitchew ( ; russian: Па́вел Фёдорович Чели́щев) ( – 31 July 1957) was a Russian-born surrealist painter, set designer and costume designer. Early life Tchelitchew was born to an aristocratic famil ...

. A private dining room was to the right, established in 1970 from the former mews building of No. 44. The walls of the private dining room were filled from floor to ceiling with wine bottles. The main dining room of the club lay beyond the entrance hallway with the dance floor at its back. The dining room was distinguished by its vaulted ceiling and numerous tables with red and green velvet chairs, each table set with lamps and Limoges china with a flower-pattern. The dining room had a large bar to one side. The supporting pillars of the basement were covered with an antique brass which caused atmospheric reflections contributing to the intimate ambience of the club. Each room had a log fire. Lady Annabel wrote that Annabel's felt more like a set of "luxurious private sitting rooms than a club". It was decorated with numerous and valuable oil paintings, drawings and photographs with many vases of flowers. The artworks were by many notable artists including Léon Bakst,

H. M. Bateman Henry Mayo Bateman (15 February 1887 – 11 February 1970, Mgarr, Malta) was a British humorous artist and cartoonist. H. M. Bateman was noted for his "The Man Who..." series of cartoons, featuring comically exaggerated reactions to minor and u ...

Edwin Landseer Sir Edwin Henry Landseer (7 March 1802 – 1 October 1873) was an English painter and sculptor, well known for his paintings of animals – particularly horses, dogs, and stags. However, his best-known works are the lion sculptures at the bas ...

and

Alfred Munnings Sir Alfred James Munnings, (8 October 1878 – 17 July 1959) was known as one of England's finest painters of horses, and as an outspoken critic of Modernism. Engaged by Lord Beaverbrook's Canadian War Memorials Fund, he earned several presti ...

. Some of the artworks in the club had been inherited by Birley from his father, the society portrait artist

Oswald Birley Sir Oswald Hornby Joseph Birley (31 March 1880 – 6 May 1952) was an English portrait painter and royal portraitist in the early part of the 20th century. Early life and family Birley was born in New Zealand to Hugh Francis Birley (1855–19 ...

. A painting by John Ward of founder members of the club was commissioned to mark the 20th anniversary Annabel's and hung in the dining room of the club.

Later years

Following the success of Annabel's Birley opened the private members clubs

Mark's Club Mark's Club is a private members' club and restaurant in Mayfair, London, UK. Established in 1972, it has hosted many fashion events and been patronised by members of the British establishment. Location The club is located in a townhouse at 46 ...

in 1972, Harry's Bar, in 1979, the

Bath & Racquets Club The Bath & Racquets Club is a private members gym and squash club at 49 Brook's Mews in London's Mayfair district. The club has 300 members and is the most expensive private gym club in London. It was established by Mark Birley in 1989. Birley s ...

in 1989, and

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...

in 2001. Birley placed sandbags outside the club as a precaution against terrorist attacks following the

IRA Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

's bombing of Scott's in nearby Mount Street in 1975. A set of linocuts of scenes from Annabel's by the cartoonist

Nicholas Garland Nicholas Withycombe Garland OBE (born 1 September 1935) is a British political cartoonist. Early life Garland was born in Hampstead, London. His father was a doctor and his mother a sculptor. He was the second of six children: he had three brot ...

was privately published by Birley in 1985, with a forward by

Lucian Freud Lucian Michael Freud (; 8 December 1922 – 20 July 2011) was a British painter and draughtsman, specialising in figurative art, and is known as one of the foremost 20th-century English portraitists. He was born in Berlin, the son of Jewis ...

. Sarah Ferguson and Diana, Princess of Wales went to Annabel's disguised as police officers a few days before Ferguson's wedding to Prince Andrew in July 1986. The social comentator

Peter York Peter York (born Peter Wallis; 1944) is a British management consultant, author and broadcaster best known for writing ''Harpers & Queen's'' ''The Official Sloane Ranger Handbook'' with Ann Barr. He has worked as a columnist for ''The Indepe ...

said that someone once described Annabel's as being where the "middle-aged meets the Middle East" and that it had represented the "high point of aspiration" in the 1980s but that it was unsustaniable if it only catered to

Sloane Rangers In the United Kingdom, a Sloane Ranger, or simply a Sloane, is a stereotypical upper-middle or upper-class person, typically although not necessarily a young one, who embodies a very particular upbringing and outlook. The Sloane Ranger style i ...

. In the wake of the collapse of Lloyd's of London Birley banned members from paying on credit. The club was seen as stuffy and old fashioned by the late 1990s with its heyday in the 1970s and 1980s. After suffering a decline in his health and mobility Birley bought his two children, Robin and

India Jane Birley India Jane Birley (born 1961) is a British artist and businesswoman. Her father, Mark Birley, opened the private member's club Annabel's, named for her mother, Lady Annabel Goldsmith, in the early 1960s and Birley ran the club with her brother ...

into the management of the club for the first time. The siblings co-managed Annabel's in the years before Birley's death in 2007. Robin ran the company and India Jane, responsible for the look and decoration of the club, redesigned and relaunched Annabel's with Robin in 2003. Their changes led to the arrival of a younger crowd to the club and the revival of its popularity. Annabel's marked its 40th anniversary in 2003 with two dinners attended by 125 founder members among 320 guests hosted by Mark Birley and Lady Annabel Goldsmith.

Barry Humphries John Barry Humphries (born 17 February 1934) is an Australian comedian, actor, author and satirist. He is best known for writing and playing his on-stage and television alter egos Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson. He is also a film pr ...

wrote and performed a special song about Annabel's on both nights in character as

Dame Edna Everage Dame Edna Everage, often known simply as Dame Edna, is a character created and performed by Australian comedian Barry Humphries, known for her lilac-coloured ("wisteria hue") hair and cat eye glasses ("face furniture"); her favourite flower, t ...

. Queen Elizabeth II visited the club in 2003 for a dinner to celebrate the 70th birthday of her

Lady of the Bedchamber Lady of the Bedchamber is the title of a lady-in-waiting holding the official position of personal attendant on a British queen regnant or queen consort. The position is traditionally held by the wife of a peer. They are ranked between the Mis ...

Virginia Ogilvy, Countess of Airlie Virginia Fortune Ogilvy, Countess of Airlie, Royal Victorian Order, DCVO (née Ryan; born February 9, 1933) is a former Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Elizabeth II. It was the first time that the Queen had been in a nightclub since she was married. The Queen drank a gin martini (without lemon). Belinda Harley's book about Annabel's was published in 2006. In 2004 India Jane became pregnant and Robin paid former London police officers who claimed to be private detectives more than £400,000 from the accounts of Annabel's in exchange for false information about her then partner, and the father of her child, Robert Macdonald. The investigation was to establish whether Macdonald had a financial motive behind his relationship with India Jane. Mark Birley fell out with Robin following the revelation. Mark Birley sacked Robin from the management of his clubs after the fall out from the affair. Robin subsequently said that he felt he was "acting in the best interest of my sister ... My father was too ill at the time to have any additional worries". Macdonald later received an official apology from Robin and had all his legal bills paid with an additional cash settlement. Robin apologised to his sister and admitted that he had been mistaken in pursuing the investigation. India Jane Birley soley managed the club in 2006 after her estrangement from her brother and left the management of her father's clubs after their 2007 sale.

Music and entertainment

Annabel's was one of the first nightclubs in London to replace their live band with a

discothèque A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

. The club was seen as the embodiment of the emerging spirit of Swinging London of the 1960s with its dance floor and DJ, standing in contrast to older clubs like the The 400 Club where a small dance orchestra would play medleys from Cole Porter and other composers of the

Great American Songbook The Great American Songbook is the loosely defined canon of significant early-20th-century American jazz standards, popular songs, and show tunes. Definition According to the Great American Songbook Foundation: The "Great American Songbook" i ...

. Lady Annabel described the early days of Annabel's as a " ... sophisticated place that reflected the youthful spirit of the new decade and the more upmarket end of flower power". In the early 1960s ''

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

'' magazine would publish a 'Top 20' of the most requested songs played at Annabel's. Birley would go to New York City to get the latest records from

Sam Goody Sam Goody was a music and entertainment retailer in the United States and United Kingdom, operated by The Musicland Group, Inc. It was purchased by Best Buy in 2000, sold to Sun Capital Partners in 2003, and filed for bankruptcy in 2006, clo ...

. Many notable entertainers subsequently performed live at Annabel's including

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry CBE (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established a distinctive image and sartorial style: according to ''The Independent'', Ferry an ...

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

, Diana Ross,

The Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successf ...

, and

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939) is an American-born Swiss retired singer and actress. Widely referred to as the " Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue before ...

. Annabel's DJ for more than 20 years was Cass the Gas. Other notable entertainments at the club included fashion shows from the Italian designer Valentino, a

Brazilian Carnival The Carnival of Brazil ( pt, Carnaval do Brasil, ) is an annual Brazilian festival held the Friday afternoon before Ash Wednesday at noon, which marks the beginning of Lent, the forty-day period before Easter. During Lent, Roman Catholics and s ...

with topless dancers and samba musicians and a fortnight of

Dixieland jazz Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ...

with food from the

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

restaurant Antoine's and music from the

Preservation Hall Jazz Band The Preservation Hall Jazz Band is a New Orleans jazz band founded in New Orleans by tuba player Allan Jaffe in the early 1960s. The band derives its name from Preservation Hall in the French Quarter. In 2005, the Hall's doors were closed for a p ...

Notable staff

Birley was known for his loyalty to staff and many of the employees of Annabel's worked for him for decades. The Maître d of Annabel's for many years was Louis Emanuelli, who had been hired from the restaurant

Mirabelle Mirabelle plum (''Prunus domestica'' subsp. ''syriaca'') is a cultivar group of plum trees of the genus '' Prunus''. It is believed that the plum was cultivated from a wild fruit grown in Anatolia. Description The mirabelle is identified by ...

. The singer Shirley Bassey was banned for several years from Annabel's after assaulting Emanuelli.

Peter Stringfellow Peter James Stringfellow (17 October 1940 – 7 June 2018) was an English businessman who owned several nightclubs. Early life Stringfellow was born in the City General Hospital, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, on 17 October 1940, to Elsie Bowers a ...

was refused entry to Annabel's after attempting to bribe Emanuelli with £100. Frank Sinatra changed in the cloakroom at Annabel's after performing at the Royal Albert Hall and asked Emanuelli what he thought of him to which he replied that he thought he was the "greatest Italian since Mussolini". The attendant in the women's lavatory, Mabel James has been described as a "psychotherapist and a shoulder to cry on for legions of women". She had been recruited by Birley from Wilton's restaurant on

Jermyn Street Jermyn Street is a one-way street in the St James's area of the City of Westminster in London, England. It is to the south of, parallel, and adjacent to Piccadilly. Jermyn Street is known as a street for gentlemen's-clothing retailers. Hist ...

. Mabel was particularly keen that all women would wash their hands after visiting the toilet, and would stand next to the basin with a towel and fill it with warm water. She would then update Lady Annabel with her weekly list of women who had and hadn't washed their hands.

Minimum wage law breach

Annabel's was the subject of a notable legal case Annabel's (Berkeley Square) Ltd v Revenue and Customs Comrs which ruled that the business had not paid its staff the minimum wage and had attempted to use tips to hide this.

Membership

The club was founded in 1963 with 500 members who paid 5 guineas a year for life membership of the club. 69 founder members were alive at the time of the club's 2018 move to 46 Berkeley Square. The original members continue to pay £5 a year to the present day. In 2005 Annabel's had 9000 members with membership fees of £750 a year (). Guests were banned from buying drinks at the club. Annabel's had 7,000 members in 2009. The membership of Annabel's since its relocation in 2018 has been designed to be equally split between genders. In 2018 the club had 1,000 members and a further waiting list of 14,000 prospective members. Separate tiers of membership fees exist for people aged under 27, under 35, and over 35. The identities of the membership committee of Annabel's have always remained secret. Lifetime memberships of Annabel's at 46 Berkeley Square were available to 100 people, known as Legacy members. The membership is inheritable by their children. A quarter of Legacy members are from the United States. The first 100 members of the new Annabel's were personally chosen by

and received a special key. In 2022 prospective members were invited to apply online with a letter of recommendation from a member. The annual subscription is £3,250 with a joining fee of £1,750.

Dress code

The male dress code at Annabel's under Birley was for a dark suit and tie. Earlier nightclubs had insisted on black tie. The only person granted an exception to the rule by Birley was

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

were once forbidden entry to Annabel's as they were not wearing shoes and George Harrison was refused entry in 1966 after he arrived "...heavily bearded, wearing a polo-necked sweater and a thick scarf" with

Patti Boyd Patricia Anne Boyd (born 17 March 1944) is an English model and photographer. She was one of the leading international models during the 1960s and, with Jean Shrimpton, epitomised the British female look of the era. Boyd married George Harri ...

and Eric Clapton. Prince Andrew, Duke of York was also once barred from entry to Annabel's after wearing jeans with an open necked shirt. Birley relaxed the dress code in 2002, no longer requiring male guests to wear a suit and tie. The rule was quickly reimposed however as Birley described in an article for ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''The ...

'' that he had " ... overlooked the simple truth that the British have no tradition of casual clothes. We seem to have a uniform for everything: weddings, births, funerals, racing, shooting, hunting, fishing, dancing, dining in the City, attending concerts ... Consequently on those occasions when we are invited to use our initiative, it is invariably a disaster". Birley described how "sights of almost Gothic horror appeared nightly" and that the change was detested by staff and members alike. The present dress code at Annabel's was devised by

Derek Blasberg Derek Charles Blasberg (born April 22, 1982) is an American journalist, socialite, author, and television personality who works in the fashion industry. As of 2018, he is the head of fashion and beauty partnerships at YouTube and is a senior staff ...

in 2017, and has been perceived as

tongue-in-cheek The idiom tongue-in-cheek refers to a humorous or sarcastic statement expressed in a serious manner. History The phrase originally expressed contempt, but by 1842 had acquired its modern meaning. Early users of the phrase include Sir Walter Scot ...

. Blasberg's rules prohibit "Cheap, ill-fitting suits. Denim that is holey or deemed distressed. Shoes that women can't walk in. Hats at night. Sunglasses at night, even if they’re prescription. Nipples on women. Nipples on men, especially. Dirty fingernails. Cargo pockets. Spikey hair. Men in shorts. Women in shorts. Exposed bra straps. Visible panty lines. 'Sports bras'". Blasberg is particularly excised about couples who wear matching clothes as it is "annoying and gimmicky" but intends his list to "encourage individuality and fabulous party dressing, and step back from being binding or overly prescriptive". Jeans and trainers are prohibited after 7pm and jackets must be worn by men everywhere except the dance floor.

2007 sale to Richard Caring

Mark Birley sold Annabel's and his other private members clubs

, Harry's Bar, the

and

to the entrepreneur

for £95 million shortly before his death in 2007 after a year of negotiations. Caring's company Caprice Holdings owned the London restaurants

The Ivy The Ivy is a British restaurant which is known for being popular with celebrities. It is located on West Street near Cambridge Circus in London, opposite the Ambassadors and St Martin's theatres, making it a popular restaurant for theaterg ...

Le Caprice Le Caprice was a restaurant in London's St James's St James's is a central district in the City of Westminster, London, forming part of the West End. In the 17th century the area developed as a residential location for the British aristocra ...

and J. Sheekey at the time of his purchase of Birley's clubs. Upon his death in 2007 Mark Birley left the majority of his estate valued at £120 million and his possessions to India Jane to be kept in trust for her son, Eben, in his will. Birley wrote a letter to India Jane explaining his reasoning behind his will. The letter said that he had sold his clubs to protect them from his son, Robin. A previous will had divided his estate equally between India Jane and Robin, with India Jane additionally receiving her father's house and possessions. The will was challenged by Robin Birley; he initially received two bequests free of tax for £1 million and £5 million. This was subsequently increased to £35 million following an out-of-court settlement. Caring initially planned to reopen Annabel's in the basement of the building next door to No. 44 and convert the rest of the house into an all day members club. Many long established members of Annabel's subsequently joined the Mayfair member's club 5 Hertford Street, established by Robin Birley in 2012. Annabel's was the subject of the 2014 documentary film ''A String of Naked Lightbulbs'', directed by Greg Fay and produced by Ridley Scott. An auction of the contents of Annabel's at Christie's in November 2018 realised more than £4 million.

2018 to present: 46 Berkeley Square

Exterior of Annabel's, 22nd September 2021

Annabel's closed at No. 44 in February 2018 and reopened in late 2018 at

46 Berkeley Square 46 Berkeley Square is a house on Berkeley Square in the Mayfair district of London, England. The house was used as offices, including the London headquarters of the Chase Manhattan Bank, for several decades. It has been the site of the private mem ...

, two doors down from No. 44. The new Annabel's is set over 26,000 square feet throughout the entirety of the 18th-century townhouse of No. 46. The creation of the new Annabel's cost £55 million. It has four restaurants and seven bars for members. Other amenities include a cigar salon and two private dining rooms. The basement nightclub has been recreated with several rooms. Annabel's is open from 7 am for breakfast and closes some 21 hours later. The club is dog friendly and offers the use of a dog walker to its guests.

Design and decor

The interiors of Annabel's at No. 46 were created by

Martin Brudnizki Martin Brudnizki is a Swedish interior architect and product designer, based in both London and New York. Career Born in Stockholm, Martin Brudnizki moved to London in 1990. to study Interior Architecture and Design at American University in Lon ...

's design studio. He had previously created interiors for Caring's Sexy Fish and 34 Mayfair restaurants and updated the interior of

. Brudnizki was inspired by Caring's "quintessentially British" love of dogs and gardens and modelled the interior design around "animals and gardens, flora and fauna". The

interior design Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. An interior designer is someone who plans, researches, coordi ...

of Annabel's is noted for its

maximalism In the arts, maximalism, a reaction against minimalism, is an aesthetic of excess. The philosophy can be summarized as "more is more", contrasting with the minimalist motto "less is more". Literature The term ''maximalism'' is sometimes associ ...

. In an article for ''Vogue'' about Annabel's reopening

Plum Sykes Victoria Rowland (née Sykes; born 4 December 1969), known both professionally and socially as Plum Sykes, is an English-born fashion journalist, novelist, and socialite. Early years and antecedents Victoria Sykes was born in London, one of ...

wrote that "For a tiny elite, this is the London aesthetic of now—out-and-out gilt-trimmed maximalism" and that "a Birley inspired joie de vivre has exploded into the decor". Brudnizki said that he wanted to create " ... a home within a town house that was fresh for the greatest party of the season ... You can wear all your jewellery, your evening bag, your fur stole ... its party time when you walk in". In his book ''More More More'', Lawrence Llewellyn Bowen wrote that people were "gobsmacked" at the new Annabel's because "What was once a Sloane safe space with politically dodgy, days-of-the Raj print chintz was now decked out like a tart's boudoir ... It was as if a museum of bad taste and interior design cliches had been gloriously and unrepentantly gussied up into a blancmange of high-kicking snogtastic naughtiness" but concluded that "it was, and remains, an enormous success". The entrance hall is notably more minimalist in its design in comparison with the other rooms of the club. Brudnizki has likened the aesthetic effect of it to a

palate cleanser A palate cleanser is a neutral-flavored food or drink that removes food residue from the tongue allowing one to more accurately assess a new flavor. Palate cleansers are often used between tasting wine or cheese or other strong flavors. Pickled ...

. It is dominated by a grand staircase and two candelabras and features richly decorated plasterwork of fruit and flowers. The candelabras were made by

Baccarat Baccarat or baccara (; ) is a card game played at casinos. It is a comparing card game played between two hands, the "player" and the "banker". Each baccarat coup (round of play) has three possible outcomes: "player" (player has the higher score ...

in 1915 for the Russian emperor Nicholas II and were formerly owned by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

film studio. They appeared in the films '' A Star Is Born'' (1954) and '' Paris When It Sizzles'' (1964). In the entrance hall of the club hangs the 1937 painting ''

Girl with a Red Beret and Pompom ''Girl with a Red Beret and Pompom'' is a 1937 painting by Pablo Picasso. It hangs in the main reception area of the private member's club Annabel's in Berkeley Square in London's Mayfair district. The painting depicts Picasso's lover Marie-Thé ...

'' by

Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

of his lover

Marie-Thérèse Walter Marie-Thérèse Walter (13 July 1909 – 20 October 1977) was a French model and lover of Pablo Picasso from 1927 to about 1935 and the mother of their daughter Maya Widmaier-Picasso. Their relationship began when she was seventeen years old; he ...

. The painting was renamed 'Annabel' by the club's staff. A unicorn suspended from a hot air balloon hangs in the centre of the staircase.

Nightclub

The nightclub of Annabel's is located in the basement of No. 46. The nightclub comprises the Jungle Bar and the Legacy Bar, a main Nightclub space and male and female bathrooms. The nightclub has

de Gournay de Gournay is a British company known for its hand-painted wallpapers. History The company was founded by Claud Cecil Gurney in 1986, in the basement of his family's home. The company takes its name from the medieval French spelling of the Gurney ...

wallpaper and is lit by palm trees made from glass and brass. The wallpaper depicts elephants and maharajas in one room and jungle scenes in another. The Legacy Bar is for members that have lifetime membership of Annabel's. It has a floor of green

agate Agate () is a common rock formation, consisting of chalcedony and quartz as its primary components, with a wide variety of colors. Agates are primarily formed within volcanic and metamorphic rocks. The ornamental use of agate was common in Anci ...

with walls of antique mirrors. It is decorated with paintings by Marc Chagall, Amedeo Modigliani, and

The Garden Room

The Garden Room at Annabel's is a restaurant with a gilded ceiling with roses painted by Gary Myatt with walls of mirrored panels. Myatt's designs were inspired by the gardens at

Levens Hall Levens Hall is a manor house in the Kent valley, near the village of Levens and south of Kendal in Cumbria, Northern England. History The first house on the site was a pele tower built by the Redman family in around 1350. Much of the prese ...

in Lancashire. The tulip chandeliers are made by the Sogni di Cristallo in Murano, Venice. An outside terrace courtyard garden with fig and orange trees that seats 120 is accessed from the Garden Room. It has a retractable roof manufactured by

Waagner-Biro Waagner Biro is a Vienna-based group of companies formerly part of the same group which have developed into separately owned, independent companies operating in steel and mechanical engineering. Collectively, the companies have about 1000 employees ...

Bathrooms: The Powder Room and ''The Loos on the Mews''

The Powder Room, one of the women's bathrooms at Annabel's, is situated on the top floor. It has a ceiling of silk pink roses. It features oyster shell shaped washbasins carved from marble with gold taps shaped like swans. One member reportedly asked if they could host a dinner in the room causing Plum Sykes to write that "There's nothing more glamorous than supper in the loo ... if the loo looks like this one". With over 575,000 likes, The Powder Room was the second most popular toilet on Instagram in 2019, behind only the futuristic eggs of Mayfair restaurant Sketch. Annabel Sampson wrote in ''

Tatler ''Tatler'' is a British magazine published by Condé Nast Publications focusing on fashion and lifestyle, as well as coverage of high society and politics. It is targeted towards the British upper-middle class and upper class, and those interes ...

'' that if the Powder Room was a cake " ... it would be a splendid, seven-tiered red velvet gateau with rippled icing like classical drapery". The other prominent bathroom, the ''Loos on the Mews'' were opened in 2019 and are decorated in a jungle and rainforest theme with four million pieces of mosaic of trees and exotic birds. The men's bathroom features a crocodile shaped washbasin made from a piece of green onyx weighing 500 kg. Brudnizki said of the ''Loos on the Mews'' that the "jungle and animal motifs add to the playful spirit of the place ... offering members a similar sense of escapism to the rest of the Club".

Notes

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1963 establishments in England 1963 in London British companies established in 1963 Buildings and structures in Mayfair Nightclubs in London Private members' clubs