How long can a long lunch last before it ceases to call itself a lunch? For four years on the trot now, Gentleman’s Journal has reserved the first Friday of August to test that conundrum to its very limits. We are proud to say that this year we may well have outdone ourselves — as this particular Long Summer Lunch lasted, in effect, an entire weekend. Do they hand out Olympic gold medals for general carousing?
Victor Alli, Ed McVey, Ben Radcliffe and Rahi Chadda
Things began, as things like this really ought to, in an Italianate garden overlooking the lake at Blenheim Palace. On a pale gravel path below the golden towers of the stately home, a very long table was laid out in wild flowers and fragrant Jo Malone candles. A cool breeze floated off the surface of the water, cleverly counteracting the unseasonably hot sun which we’d made sure to book-in ahead of time. One would think one had been teleported to the shores of Lake Como — perhaps Clooney might pop up at any minute among the vol-au-vents.
Instead, a pair of Thunder Aviation helicopters had been commandeered to ferry the great and good of London over to the grounds — spilling out guests like Victor Alli, Jonah Hauer-King, Ed McVey, Harrison Osterfield, Sheyi Cole, Luke Pasqualino, Ben Radcliffe, Victor Kunda, Che Lingo, Kit Price, and Daniel Fletcher — while a veritable armada of Bentley Bentaygas, in every colourway imaginably, scooped up the rest. They were met almost instantly by groaning trays of champagne from Billecart-Salmon, as well as vast, beading jeroboams of Domaines Ott rosé. The Sax Man himself pumped out bonhomie from a stage by an ornate fountain, much to the amusement of its pedigree ducks. A huge barbecue kept things ticking over nicely — the bearnaise budget was pushed to breaking point— with excellent salads, grilled prawns, huge hunks of ribeye steak, and some lovely chicken, all capped off by an old fashioned or three thanks to WhistlePig. Those looking for further entertainment were thrilled to learn that the Little Car Company was on hand as usual — its dinky, ingenious replicas of classic supercars zipping around the green undulations of the Blenheim parkland. We nearly lost a promising young actor to a rose bush.
Max Hurd
Callum Mullin
Francis Bourgeois
Then the herding of exquisitely dressed cats began, as the fleet of Bentleys took to shuttling guests into Wilderness Festival, just a short ten-minute trot up the road at Cornbury Manor. Things get a bit fuzzy in my notes at this point. But soon enough, it was back to Estelle Manor, the truly excellent hotel and club, for a nightcap and, yes, why not, another little night cap, if you’re offering.
The Manor, in fact, became very much ‘HQ’ for the weekend’s operations. Guests found that the cold plunge in the beautiful Eynsham Baths did a wonderful job at blowing out any unaccountable cobwebs from the evening before, while the sun-drenched pool area recalled a sort of Tuscan fever- dream all afternoon. (It’s said that the tinkling of ice cubes could be heard as far away as Chipping Norton.) As the golden-hour light descended, one was put in mind of a sort of inverse Hotel California. You can check out anytime you like — but why on earth would you want to?
Bentley Bentaygas in the Great Court
Victor Alli
Bentley Bentayga
Bentley Bentayga
Munya Chawawa
Kit Price
Zak Maoui and Rahi Chadda
The Long Summer Lunch overlooking the lake
Gustav Holst Stuge and Eleanor Wellesley
Sheyi Cole, Munya Chawawa, Chris Crosby and Carlo Gino
Eric Underwood, Brogan Fussell and Sabrina Percy
Thunder Aviation landing at Blenheim
Domaines Ott rosé
WhistlePig
Bottles of Billecart-Salmon were served
Constantin Rojahn
Billecart-Salmon champagne
Gustav Holst Stuge and Eleanor Wellesley
Harrison Osterfield
Luke Pasqualino
Tom Taylor
Charlie Van Straubenzee, Rupert Gorst and Tom St Aubyn
The Sax Man
Francis Bourgeois
Luca Faloni
Manon Dave
Che Lingo
Harry Collett
Ed McVey
Elijah Horne and Reuben Larkin
Francis Bourgeois
Perry Pearson and Rupert Gorst
Sascha Von Bismarck
Kate Boden, Claire Cockrell and Sophie Lane
Jonah Hauer-King
Callum Mullin
Jason Patel
Munya Chawawa
Tega Alexander
Victor Alli
Ciinderella Balthazar
Rosi Walden and Luca Faloni
Grace Hodge and Harry Gozzett
Joe Kennedy
Sagar Radia
Eric Underwood
Betty Bachz
Carlo Gino, Sheyi Cole, Yannick Konan, Victor Kunda and Kit Price
Kit Price
Sheyi Cole
Rahi Chadda
Carlo Gino
Victor Kunda
Daniel Fletcher
Harrison Osterfield
Ben Radcliffe
Betty Bachz
Daniel Fletcher, Yannick Konan and Betty Bachz
Joe Kennedy
Constantin Rojahn and Lawrence Van
Yannick Konan
Sagar Radia, Munya Chawawa and Jason Patel
The Little Car Company
The Little Car Company
Bentley
Thunder Aviation
Wilderness festival
Wilderness festival
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