In the 1960s in Sydney, Windsor Street in Paddington was the place to be. The Windsor Castle pub was packed nightly with it's many bars and live music in the beer garden. Gays & lesbians, heterosexuals, the legendary Push (Germaine Greer etc) all made their way there. Paddington was a working class suburb with a mix of immigrants who flocked to the cheap housing.
Lucio (right) celebrates with pals.
These days those once affordable terrace houses with their exotic French lace ironwork sell for over a million dollars. The Windsor Castle has become a vast private home and each house seems to boast a BMW or Mercedes.
Maria Venuti partied with Mickey Robbins
One establishment opposite the Castle that has lasted : Lucio's Restaurant serving classic Italian food. It stared life as the Hungry Horse art gallery before being taken over by Lucio in 1983. In it's early days it was a hangout for artists like John Olsen and Tim Storrier who sometimes paid their bills with works of art. Lucio probably has a small fortune hanging on his walls. These days Lucio Galletto OAM hosts all manner of guests from movie stars like Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig with celebs like Ricky Martin and Giorgio Armani dining there. And thirty successful years was a good enough excuse to hold a party.
******************************** One guest at Lucio's party was Leon Fink who owns the world famous Quay Restaurant , seen her in our snap deep in conversation with News Ltd honcho Piers Ackermann (left).
Leon is behind the push to takeover the most visable dining spot in Sydney- Bennelong at the Sydney Opera House.
With the lease up on the top restaurant and chef Guillaume Brahimi throwing in the dish cloth, Fink has a plan to instal top chef Bill Granger who is cutting up a storm in the UK.
The UK's most sensational newspaper (many say the most appalling) the Daily Mailhas taken a cue from the Social Shuttle (they often do) and given Australian ex-Vogue editor Kirstie Clements' book about her life and times in the fashion world a huge plug.
Launched in March, The Vogue Factor has been flying off local bookshelves and looks like being a hit in the UK as well.
Clements was editor of Australian Vogue for 13 years before being shafted for unknown reasons. She was hugely popular amongst fashion designers during her tenure and has now delivered a tome that lifts the lid on the local and international fashion world where she had a regular front row seat at the New York, London, Milan and Paris fashion shows and a direct line to the world's most famous designers. It's a rollicking read and you must try it!
****************************
Paula.....or is it Patti ?
A sharp eyed reader has pointed out the remarkable similarity between Melbourne based TV personality Patti Newton, wife of legendary TV host Bert Newton (and mother of troubled actor Mathew Newton) and the recently axed US TV celebrity chef Paula Dean. They could almost be sisters as our snaps show. Are they perchance distant cousins ? I think we should be told.
With Cate Blanchett's contract up at the Sydney Theatre Company her husband Andrew Upton has been re-appointed as Artistic Director but there are rumblings amongst the ranks with claims of nepotism.
Giorgio Armani with Cate at the STC
Upton and Blanchett jointly ran the STC producing critically acclaimed productions that received plaudits around the world including their A Streetcar Named Desire, directed by Liv Ullmann and staring Cate as Blanche DuBois being declared the best ever presentation of the play by the New York Times and the Washington Post.
The City News is reporting that local playwrights and actors are not happy and do not accept that the board of the STC has fully searched the world for a replacement for Upton.
" Are we seriously meant to believe after searching the globe for someone to replace Cate and Andrew the best possible person happens to be already working at the STC and it happens to be Andrew? " says an anonymous source .
Liv Ullmann,Cate & Joel Edgerton at the Sydney Streetcar premier
One of the complaints is about Upton's "black box" minimalist productions that feature black walls and street clothes rather than costumes and a preference for overseas' plays instead of local plays.
STC's General Manager Patrick McIntyre is quoted as saying " theSTC Board had always wanted Mr Upton and Ms
Blanchett to stay, and only looked for a replacement because “Cate and
Andrew … were contemplating moving overseas“When [this] changed, the Board asked Andrew if he would reconsider and
stay on … The Board absolutely believes he is the best person for the
job.”
When Blanchett and Upton took over in 2007 the STC was ailing financially and Blanchett was able to attract big time sponsors like Giorgio Armani who flew into town for two opening night performances and the critical acclaim the pair's productions have received have revived the financial fortunes of the Australia's premier theatre company.
They were financially devastated by the economic meltdown when their property empire went bust.
Now Sydney's high profile socialites Karin Upton Baker, the Managing Director of the fashion label Hermes and her husband Gary Baker have been summonsed to appear in court.
Troubles began for the pair when they failed to purchase every apartment in a Bondi block with spectacular views over the beach. They had planned to turn the 1920's style flats into luxury condominiums.
As property values rocketed, the remaining tenants demanded multi-million dollar prices for their unconverted flats directly opposite the uber smart Bondi Icebergs restaurant, favourite watering hole of the likes of Oprah Winfrey and Paris Hilton.
Elizabeth Bay Duplex
The liquidator of Baker's company Montpelier seized the block to re-pay finance companies but some of the flats have been selling for up to two million dollars less than the Bakers paid for them.
Now that liquidator has summonsed both to appear in the Supreme Court in February 2011.
Karin is battling to remain in her sumptuous Elizabeth Bay duplex that has hosted some of Sydney smartest parties for celebrities like Giorgio Armani and Elle McPherson. The pair owe $18M to the finance company Perpetual and Challenger Managed Investments who are trying to evict them from the house before it is sold by private treaty.
gone!
The pair have already auctioned their fleet of sleek black cars that were housed in the heated garage of the duplex that boasts a turntable and an elevator into the living area.
Amongst them was Karin's favourite vintage Pagoda style Mercedes along with a Bentley Continental and a Rolls Royce Phantom all with distinctive XXX number plates.
Update :after a polite slap across the wrists from the awards committee we must point out that 'Streetcar' and Paul Charlier has been nominated in the Sound Event section. ********************************* In a puzzling move actress Cate Blanchett has been completely overlooked in the nominations for the most prestigious Australian theatre awards, the Helpmann Awards.
Liv Ullmann, Cate & Joel Edgerton
The awards are named after one of the world's greatest ballet stars, Sir Robert Helpmann who was born in a remote country town in South Australia in 1909. When his mother noticed his tendency to dress in her clothes and dance about with great agility, his parents actively encouraged his artistic talents. Eventually he became one of the most renowned dancers appearing in and choreographing ballets from London and New York to Moscow.
Sir Robert Helpmann
At the announcement for the award nominations which will be presented at the Sydney Opera House on September 6th, Cate's "A Streetcar Named Desire" didn't receive a mention. Streetcar was not only an artistic success in Sydney, Blanchett's production which was directed by Liv Ullmann and starred Cate and Joel Edgerton in the main roles was hailed throughout the USA when it toured there as one of the all time great productions of Tennessee Williams' play, earning the Sydney Theatre Company a much needed $3.5M in profit.
As Artistic Director since 2008 Blanchett, along with her husband Andrew Upton has been guiding the fortunes of the Sydney Theatre Company ( STC) and has revived the company with a number of noted talents for it's 12 productions each year including Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Steven Soderbergh and William Hurt.Cate was also responsible for attracting designer Giorgio Armani as the theatre companies major sponsor.
The Helpmann Awards , one motto being "ensuring the Awards are the most prestigious awards in the industry and the highlight of each Season." ironically has nominated a host of artists who trained at the STC including Neil Armfield and Robin Nevin.
# trivia moment : In 2007 the Social Shuttle attended the premiere of the film 'I'm Not There' at the then new Sydney Theatre Company Theatre in which Blanchett gives a stunning performance as Bob Dylan.
After introducing the movie with a small speech stating she had not yet seen the film, Cate Blanchett left the stage and took a seat next to the Shuttle with Upton and proceeded to narrate various anecdotes to her husband as the film ran. A woman sitting behind reached over and tapped her on the shoulder and said "could you please keep the noise down-I'm watching Cate Blanchett on screen and can't hear a word she is saying !"
## Channeling Mystic Meg earlier tonight we advised 4 paparazzi not to bother attending a function at the State Theatre which would feature Don Spencer, father-in-law of Russell Crowe who was expected to attend. "Our crystal ball says he won't be there", we said. Russell and wife Danielle can always be relied on to support Don in his ventures. And so it came to pass as the following tweet says:
Got that flu coming on feeling?Both our boys were sick last week, so bound to happen.Need an early night,not a late one on the giggle juice.3 hours ago ******************** At tonight's Young Chef Awards (not to be missed-buckets of Bollinger and fine food) the Shuttle happily informed Federal Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson MP that despite the doom and gloom mainly emanating from the Murdoch media in their campaign to bury Prime Minister Julia Gillard, that Labor will be returned or govern with a 3 seat majority but that could be made up of independents/Greens.. I think we made his night. And that too will come to pass. Trust me.
One guest at Lucio's party was Leon Fink who owns the world famous Quay Restaurant , seen her in our snap deep in conversation with News Ltd honcho Piers Ackermann (left). 
