New Year’s Eve in London is the biggest night of the year with millions of people flocking to the centre of the capital to enjoy the nightlife and the top night clubs hosting their most extravagant celebrity parties.
Although 2009 has been much publicised as a bad year for the economy the best London clubs are still pulling out all the stops with VIPs expected to be arriving in limousines and enjoying the events, popping Champagne bottles, as they normally would during the festive season.
These are clubs regularly frequented by A-list celebrity clubbers such as P.Diddy, JLS, Girls Aloud, Jay Z, Kate Moss and Beyonce where entry is controlled by strict guest lists and the crowd is mostly made up of elite clubbers more used to gracing the pages of Tattler than The Sun.
James WJ Wilson, Director of Forbidden London Clubs, one of the leading promotion companies in London’s club-land believes the top bars and clubs have everything to look forward to as he forecasts a great Christmas and New Year in the West End.
“London is the most fashionable city in the world and despite Gordon Brown’s best attempts to derail the economy, the nightlife – bars, night clubs and restaurants – particularly at the top end of the market, are still performing well.”
“People are perhaps not spending at the same level as they were two years ago, maybe we’ve seen the last of the bankers splurging £30,000 on bottles of Cristal Champagne for now, but overall most of our clients are wealthy and still want to enjoy themselves. In my opinion there is no better place to do that than at the best events in London which are hosted by the top clubs and promoters.”
Lord Dave West, owner of the HEYJOCLUB in St James’s is well known publicly thanks to his Cherie Blair assisted battle against the smoking ban and his penchant for bright pink suits; he echoed this view.
“I own one of the top clubs (HEYJOCLUB) and one of the best restaurants (Abracadabra Russian Restaurant) in Central London and we are finding that the high-end customers we entertain are still enjoying spending their money on fine food and fine wines”
“Many of our best clients are Russian and the government has not managed to ruin everyone’s fun yet, they’re still spending.”
With Christmas and New Year’s Eve just round the corner and most companies still planning on rewarding their staff for what could be considered a difficult year, things are looking bright for the glamorous London clubs the VIPs and celebrities love.
The middle of the week - or as the our New York cousins like to call it, ‘Hump Day’ - will never be the same again as one of the top VIP nightclubs in London, Vendome - based on Piccadilly in Mayfair, launches Vendome Wednesday this week.
There will be live music from former Libertine and Babyshambles frontman Pete Doherty (the ex-boyfriend of model Kate Moss) and no stranger to rehab. Clubbers can also expect the best tracks from the London club chart from top DJs Kitt Proudfoot, Ollie Collins and Rich Stone.
If that wasn’t enough, there will be complimentary cocktails all night courtesy of Belvedere IX super premium vodka and no doubt plenty of bottles of fine champagne from the bar being popped and poured.
Coleen Rooney, wife of Premiership and England footballer Wayne Rooney, gave birth to a baby boy who was named Kai Wayne Rooney at 2:30pm on Wednesday.
The part-time television presenter and WAG’s son was born in Liverpool - the English city where she grew up - at an NHS hospital.
A spokesperson for the celebrity gossipmagazine headline grabbing couple said: “Mother and baby are both absolutely fine. Wayne and Coleen are thrilled with the wonderful addition to their family life.”
It has been widely reported in the London papers that Wayne Rooney plans to have his son Kai’s name tattooed on him - a trend amongst celebrities.
Bookies have already offered odds on whether Kai will follow in his father’s footsteps and make the Championship League but so far the best offer is 66-1. No doubt odds would be shorter if it was a question of playing the London club scene like Calum Best the son of a fellow Manchester United legend!
The oldest surviving music hall in the world - Wiltons - will play host to an exclusive Halloween party for gay London professionals on Saturday night.
The party has been arranged by Village Drinks, the leading social community group for gay professionals, which will host a Champagne reception and party in support of the Elton John AIDS Foundation at the architectural gem - now listed among the planet’s 100 most culturally significant endangered buildings.
Guests at the party will be treated to live entertainment from the famous drag act, the Globe Girls, and even get the opportunity to have their tarot read by a private psychic.
All guests at the party will be admitted for free to an after-party at London VIP club, Shadow Lounge and, on Sunday, will be admitted to the Elton John AIDs Foundation Halloween Revival Party at the Kensington Roof Gardens.
Celebrity gossips have whispered that Chelsea and England footballer Frank Lampard is smitten with 2008’s Strictly Come Dancing contestant and TV Presenter Christine Bleakley after flirting with her in at Amika nightclub in Kensington, London, last Saturday.
Frank and Christine arrived with a group of people from Strictly Come Dancing including Zoe Lucker and Joe Calzaghe and the dancers Aliona Vilani and Nicole Cutler. They all sat together at a table in the VIP area with Frank next to Christine.
Frank reportedly bought at least three bottles of fine Champagne - possibly Cristal or Dom Perignon - from the bar for the group even though he hardly drank himself.
The couple stayed for a lock-in until 4.30am, but it’s not known if they left in a limousine, London taxi or Mr Lampard’s motor together or if the England midfielder scored. Bleakley, 29, was reportedly first wooed by the Premiership footballer in September at the Pride Of Britain awards.
A Playboy fraudster who spent a night splurging £140,000 on Champagne at top London night clubAmika in Kensington has been jailed for scamming credit card companies out of £1.6m in the pursuit of a luxury lifestyle.
Eamon Zada ran a credit card cloning factory from his Notting Hill flat, obtaining the kind of money required for a life like a millionaire celebrity. When police carried out a search they found a highly sophisticated device which intercepts credit card details from phones.
The team behind London celebrity VIP hangouts Mahiki, Whiskey Mist and The Punch Bowl pub in Mayfair is to open a new bar in the City of London next month.
Kanaloa, the latest venture by Nick House and Piers Adam, aims to break the mould of the male-dominated Square Mile by specifically targeting women. There will be several female-friendly house rules including; free entry for women, complimentary manicures, massages and makeovers. Kanaloa has been given a tropical island-inspired theme, with a long black bamboo bar surrounded by carved wooden pillars as a centre-piece.
The Champagne and cocktails list has been overseen by Papa Jules - the creator of the signature Mahiki rum - while best UK bartender in 2008, Rich Hunt, has been recruited as bar manager. The food will be Pan-Asian inspired.
Nick House said: “Piers and I have both worked in the City and we felt there was a real need to create a sense of escapism and fun in an area that historically hasn’t had the benefit of high quality bars and night clubs.”
Former Baywatch celebrity Pamela Anderson was spotted with a mystery “rock star” last Tuesday night at VIPMayfair bar Whiskey Mist, just off Hertford Street.
The “rock star” in question was called “Alan”, the latest star of the Doritos Guitar Hero TV advertisement, who also took her on a shopping spree around the capital. Anderson was helping Alan, who is seen in the adverts aspiring to be a rock star, to achieve that status by being the sexy blonde rock chick on his arm as part of the promotion.
Earlier that day, she also visited the New Wimbledon Theatre where she will make her pantomime debut this Christmas as the genie in Aladdin.
But a source at the club, which is frequented by Premiership footballers and Prince Harry, said the 42-year-old actress didn’t even have a drink.
But at least she has a A-lad-in her life, even if it is “Alan”…
Formula One World Champion racing driver, Jenson Button, celebrated his win with magnums of Champagne and Belvedere vodka at one of the Best London clubs, Jalouse in Mayfair, on Wednesday night.
The 29 year old hit the dancefloor when internationally famous DJ, Bob Sinclar - who was playing at the exclusive club in Hanover Square to celebrate its first birthday, played a track in honour of the driver’s victory.
Jenson ended the celebrations at 3am, heading home alone as his girlfriend, model Jessica Michibata, is away in Japan on a photo shoot.
Expect the second round of celebrations to begin when Jess - who the Champion dedicated his title to - returns!
The England football team were in high spirits as they celebrated their 3-0 win against Belarus at Wembley Stadium on Wednesday night at one of the best London Clubs.
With WAG Victoria Beckham at home in LA, Premiership footballer David Beckham, headed to top London night club and celeb haunt Bungalow 8 with a friend.
An inside source said: “As soon as David arrived in the club he was ushered to his table with his male pal but soon after he was surrounded by women who were all vying to get his attention.”
Beckham partied until 3am despite his 7am flight back to LA. I hope he remembered to book a taxi to take him to the airport before bed!
