Plenty of Gold

Last year Whispers attended the Gold Ball held at the Darling Point home of Aussie Home Loans boss John Symond. One guest crashed to the floor perhaps overwhelmed by the lavishness of the Symond digs with it's sweeping harbour views.
Fortunately numerous doctors were on hand, as guests, and our patient quickly recovered to enjoy the evening. This year the Gold Ball which raises funds for the Sydney Children's Hospital in Randwick- Nicole Kidman is a patron- packed in over 400 guests at the Royal Hall of Industries in Moore Park and we are happy to report not one ball goer swooned and a massive $1.6M was raised for the kids. Our snap (below) shows nightclub mogul Justin Hemmes with John Symond on the right and Symond's wife Amber. Amber & John were married earlier this year and it's the second time round for both- Amber was married to former prime minister Paul Keating's son Patrick Keating (yes we were at that wedding too as out exclusive snap above right shows).
On the subject of Prime Ministers and kids- Justin held a fundraiser on Saturday night for Malcolm Turnbull at his magnificent Vaucluse pile The Hermitage (pictured above) and a bunch of children turned up correctly dressed and waving bundles of cash asking to be admitted so they could grill the PM over environmental matters. Sadly they were rejected.

photograph by Belinda Rolland

Oxford Street News

This wondrous lady above is the delectable Maxine Maurine Shield who holds sway at the famous Oxford Street gay nightclub the Midnight Shift. Maxi has just been announced as the Entertainer of The Year at the Diva (drag) Awards and quite right too. Maxi will also serve as Hostess at Madonna's tour next year as the Ultimate Door Bitch (but she's really very nice)
Below is X Factor judge Dannii Minogue who took a turn last Sunday at Justin Hemmes'  Beresford Hotel as Bingo Caller at Tranny Bingo. They raise funds for charity. No matter how much they try to kill of Sydney's nightlife with the restrictive Lockout Laws they can't keep a good woman down. Or a man. Or a tranny for that matter.

Scooping up Awards

 A popular member of the Sydney's bright young things and all round nice guy Alex Zobotto- Bentley has won a number of awards for design as our exclusive snap shows.
Zabotto-Bentley who is also regularly featured in best dressed lists has, along with his design team scooped the pools at the Sydney Design Awards for a number of projects that includes the Gold for Event Design March into Merivale 2015, an event we simply love which is part of uber nightclub mogul Justin Hemmes' Ivy nightspot. They also won the  Gold for Interior Design for @trumpsspa and Silver for Event Design for SBS Upfront Presentations 201. And what a handsome devil he is  !

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The Tap Gallery in East Sydney, the one venue Whispers had never wandered near has closed it's doors forever. As evidenced by a pile of furniture left on the footpaths outside the gallery and - true to the word of the director, paintings flung into a rubbish skip and piled up outside the gallery for passersby to pick through. Such is life  in the Art World.

Newtown wants Cate Blanchett

Newtown

Cate at the Sydney Theatre Company

The decline of Sydney's King Cross and the legendary 'Golden Gay Mile' of nearby Oxford Street is having unexpected consequences. Double Bay as we reported previously is becoming the location for smart nightclubs like Karim Gharbi's Casablanca and the Pelicano Bar.
But Newtown, the densely populated suburb much favoured by students at the nearby Sydney University is positively booming.
The main street is packed with restaurants of all stripes, coffee shops, gay hotels, smart and alternative boutiques along with second hand and designer furnishing stores.

Now an ambitious plan is underway to attract Oscar winner Cate Blanchett to a newly renovated theatre, The Hub which is ideally located slap bang in the centre of Newtown and directly opposite the subway station.

The Hub at various stages during it's lifetime

The property developing Vlattas family have invested $500,000 in refitting the 100 year old Vaudeville theatre that has done time as a porno cinema amongst it's varied and often sad life.
The Vlattas' are also part owners of the nearby Enmore Theatre, now the only live venue in the inner city.
Whispers attended the opening of Mel Spencer's Green Room bar next to the Enmore Theatre along with Russell Crowe and Danielle Spencer (and our favourite crooner Kamahl)
left : Kamahl with Adam Spencer at the Green Room
Chris Vlattas is hoping that Blanchett who has had such a stellar success with her Sydney Theatre Company productions will take up an offer to lease the 1500 seat Hub.
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The Seal Of Approval that Newtown is now a serious contender as the up and coming suburb for the smart young set surely must be the fact that Australia's most ambitious and successful nightclub entrepreneur Justin Hemmes has purchased the nearby Queen Victoria Hotel in Enmore for $11M. below Justin Hemmes & his new purchase

Vale John Hemmes

Left :  John & Merivale Hemmes at the opening of the Mr Chow Restaurant
Sad news today that one of Sydney's legendary fashion figures John Hemmes has died at age 83. John and his wife Merivale once were the King & Queen of modern fashion in Australia.
Today their  son Justin Hemmes rules over a nightclub empire with some of Australia's most fantastic night spots from the Establishment to the Beresford Hotel in Surry Hills.
Whispers has a life long history with the Hemmes. At the tender age of 18 we were hired to run a shop owned by their fierce (but friendly) business rival David Sheinberg whose father owned Sydney's Imperial Arcade and a string of fashion stores that were in competition with The House of Merivale, over seen by Merivale Hemmes and which presented Aussies with the very latest overseas fashion. John was always asking us to join his firm and although we declined, we have remained friendly with the family for decades,

John Hemmes was born in Surabaya, Java, Indonesia- his parents were Dutch and he was imprisoned in a Japanese POW camp as a teen before arriving in Australia with little money. Over the next 30 years he and wife Merivale built up a fashion empire. Today son Justin has continued this entrepreneurial spirit with an enviable restaurant and nightclub empire that employs around 5000 people in premises designed by his sister Bettina.

Another Hemmes' Winner

Peter Gilmore wields chopsticks at Mr Wong with Janni Kyritsis

You have to be quite brave to open up your brand spanking new restaurant to host the countries top foodies, chefs and restaurant owners representing 400 of Australia's best establishments but the Hemmes' family did just that last night for the 2012 Australian Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Awards.

John & Merivale Hemmes

Mr Wong is Justin Hemmes' new addition to his burgeoning $200M entertainment empire. Located in Bridge Street in the old Tank nightclub premises it's two floors of exquisite Chinese fare.

And there really was no surprise when the top gong went to Peter Gilmore, known for his "snow egg" dessert, as his restaurant Quay was crowned best restaurant.
Not satisfied with scooping up award after award around the world (Quay under Gilmore's stewardship is usually rated amongst the world's top eateries) this is third time Quay, which has a stunning views overlooking the harbour and Opera House has been named Australia's best eatery.

Justin Hemmes' Mr Wong

 AUSTRALIAN GOURMET TRAVELLER AWARDS
Restaurant of the Year - Quay, Sydney
Best New Talent - Alejandro Cancino, Urbane, Brisbane
New Restaurant of the Year - Momofuku Seiobo, Sydney
Outstanding Contribution to Hospitality - Janni Kyritsis, chef
Chef of the Year - Ben Shewry, Attica, Melbourne
Sommelier of the Year - Banjo Harris Plane, Attica, Melbourne
Regional Restaurant of the Year - Loam, Drysdale, Victoria
Maitre D' of the Year - Ainslie Lubbock, Pei Modern, Melbourne
Bar of the Year - The Everleigh, Melbourne
Wine List of the Year - Carlton Wine Room, Melbourne

Peter Gilmore's Quay

As for the food at Mr Wong, there really isn't any point reviewing the food-it's quite simply sensational. You just have to check out yourself.

Kevin Spacey Wins Big Time

Paul Ramsay

He's received rave reviews for his Richard III at the Lyric Theatre and  now actor Kevin Spacey has won over billionaire Paul Ramsay who parted with $200,000 for a pair of tickets for the closing night next Sunday with champagne after with Spacey. Ramsay also bid $100,000 at auction to play tennis for an hour with the Hollywood star.

Ramsay was at a Spacey's charity dinner at Justin Hemmes' Est Restaurant last week which raised $350,000 for the Kevin Spacey Foundation that supports young actors, directors, producers and writers in film and theatre.

Bachelor Ramsay, worth $1.5Billion with his nursing home empire and Prime Media which operates regional TV stations was a close friend of the late Johnny Baker who died last year.
When the pair met about 30 years ago Bakes said to Ramsay "I've got the contacts and you have the cash,we should travel together". 

Lady Sonia & Baker

And so they did every year with Ramsay funding lavish holidays around the world whenever Baker wasn't also accompanying the late Kerry Packer who loved to take Bakes on his private jet to keep him amused. Paul was also a pal of Lady Sonia McMahon who died shortly after Baker and he felt the loss of both friends deeply. Perhaps he has now formed a new bond with Spacey. They do have mutual interests.
Host of the dinner Justin Hemmes parted with $21,000 for harbour cruise for 20 and to play ping pong with Spacey

Next week : our exclusive on the London blogger who started  a Spacey Family Feud !

Below is a video of Spacey talking about his foundation;

Ita Bows Out

At the beginning of August when the Shuttle brought it's readers the exclusive story that publishing identity Ita Buttrose was considering a run for Sydney Lord Mayor, the mainstream media thumbed it's nose at the tale.

Ita Buttrose

"A fantasy "proclaimed one (who should know better considering the amount of scoops we have fed them) but sure enough, three weeks later the 2 Saturday broadsheets presented their "exclusive" stories on Ita's Town hall ambitions.

Buttrose had been approached by a well known businessman who represented many others who wished to break independent MP and Lord Mayor Clover Moore's stranglehold on inner Sydney politics. They had done the research and their polling reckoned Ita was a shoo-in for the job.

Town crier Graham Keating & Clover Moore sydneyindymedia.com.au

On the weekend Ms Buttrose announced that she would not be contesting the election, probably after a long hard think about the grind of the job with it's many brickbats and few bouquets as she was sure to win.

Which leaves the dog-collar wearing mayor Clover Moore a cinch to be re-elected. Although Moore has stumbled of late over the largely unused bike lanes and unsuccessful attempts to curb nightclub drinking hours, she is sure to romp home with no credible challenger on the horizon.

Meanwhile powerful shock jock Alan Jones continues his weekly brickbats directed at Moore but they are expected to have little affect with a largely North Shore and Southern Shire audience, none of whom vote in the mayoral elections.

This weekend a group of Oxford Street businessmen will be drowning their sorrows at Justin Hemmes' Beresford Hotel having seen their dreams of propelling Buttrose into office, crash and burn.

Justin Under Attack

While the compact Kings Cross club Beach Haus celebrated the opening of their Moet & Chandon bar (above) Australia's most successful night club entrepreneur Justin Hemmes has come under sustained attacks that bear all the hall marks of the infamous Australian "tall poppy syndrome".

Justin Hemmes

No-one has invested as much money as the young mogul in providing chic and luxurious premises for Sydney-siders to party in. To date an estimated $200M. Hemmes employs around 2000 staff and is regarded by those who work for him as a firm but fair and generous boss. There is a waiting list of hundreds of young hopefuls wishing to be employed by Justin's Merivale Group.

Starting with 2 hotels in the city, Hemmes bucked the trend and turned old style pubs into stylish and modern bars aided by his sister Bettina who is responsible for decorating all his premises.

Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman partied at his Slip Inn while the Crown Prince of Denmark, Frederick met his future bride Mary Donaldson there during the 2000 Olympics.

When he opened the elegant Establishment in lower George Street in a beautiful colonial Georgian building he introduced the city to a style not seen before.

Huge marbled floored bars that become packed after office hours, an award winning restaurant Est run by top chef Peter Doyle (picking up '3 Hats' again last week at the Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide launch) and a series of function rooms constantly in use with a nightclub Hemmesphere that became the place to relax for visiting international stars from Beyonce to Bono to actor Simon Callow.

In any other world class city Hemmes would probably be given a gold key to the city having almost solely revived central Sydney' dormant nightlife.

A party at the Ivy pool

Instead he has faced a raft of opposition from local police over exaggerated incidents that pale into insignificance when one considers he hosts tens of thousands of patrons every week.

Hemmes also came under the gaze of  Lord Mayor Clover Moore who donned a new hat as the head of the Anti-Fun Police and attempted to enforce strict drinking hours reminiscent of the dreaded 1950s "six o'clock swill" when pubs slammed their doors shut at 6pm each evening. Fortunately the outcry was deafening particularly as Hemmes had invested his family fortune in his city nightclubs

Hemmisphere

Three months ago Hemmes was held up at gunpoint in his recently purchased Surry Hill's pub . Outside a police car with 2 officers calmly watched as the armed raiders made their get away in a stolen BMW crashing into another car in the process.

A fortnight ago it is alleged his doormen bashed a patron in the cellar at Hemme's Ivy complex and mis-lead police whilst cleaners washed away bloodstains.

A few nights ago Hemmes distinctive black Rolls Royce Phantom was pulled over in Redfern and the driver was charged with drug possession. Yesterday a man claimed he had been assaulted by Hemmes at Ivy. Hemmes denies the charge and says CCTV footage backs him up.

Sydney once had the most corrupt police in the Southern hemisphere, routed out at great personal sacrifice by an imported British police commander who, for his efforts and success was forced from the country by a series of cowardly and false attacks from shock jocks and politicians.

It comes as no surprise Justin Hemmes has been spotted in New York City in recent months checking out premises. His talents would be snapped up in the USA. They would roll out the welcome mat.
It would serve the good burghers of Sydney right if they forced the man who has done more to brighten Sydney life to flee abroad to a city that would appreciate his talents.

Hemmes New York Move

Tom Waterhouse & Hodo at the Cosmo bash

One happy looking couple at Wednesday's Fun Fearless & Female awards sponsored by Cosmopolitan Magazine were bookmaker Tom Waterhouse and his new bride Hodo Vakili.

 The pair have just returned from their Italian honeymoon after marrying on the Mediterranean island of Sicily in front of two dozen family and friends who jetted in for the nuptials.

Tom, who at 29 has now become Australia's top bookmaker and is a regular at the race tracks in Melbourne and Sydney told the Shuttle that his new online betting business is going gangbusters and he and Hodo plan to buy a home in Melbourne where he is increasingly spending more time.

No word yet on whether we can expect a Waterhouse junior any time soon but the couple say they're working on it !
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Hotel and nightclub entrepreneur Justin Hemmes who has a $200M empire employing over 3000 people is planning to expand to the Big Apple next year and has been spotted checking out locations in the trendy Soho area of Lower Manhattan.

Although Hemmes has said he plans to first open a restaurant based on his successful Potts Point Lotus, our New York spy says the nightclub mogul was seen inspecting a building in Tribeca that was large enough to contain a hotel and restaurant complex.

Justin Hemmes-headed for New York City

With a swag of smart boutique hotels including the Establishment and Ivy complex and several pubs around inner Sydney, Hemmes seems to have the golden touch. Where he goes the punters follow and much of that is down to his talented sister Bettina Hemmes who designs the decor in all his nite spots.

Top New York photographer Patrick McMullan, an editor on Vanity Fair and corespondent for a swag of US magazines like Ocean Drive, Interview and New York Magazine says there is already a buzz in NYC about Hemmes who has been seen at several smart parties in recent months.

As no function in the city that never sleeps is complete without McMullan and his attendance at a party is a guarantee of social success, when Patrick starts mentioning your name, you know you have it made !

Just so Justin can get in a Big Apple mood-here's young Liam Burrows who blew away the audience last week on Australia's Got Talent with his version of New York New York. Perhaps Justin should invite him to sing at the opening of his new US nite-spot !

Tales Of The City # 1

Adam Williams

When So You Think You Can Dance's Adam Williams posted a message on his Facebook page about the annoying $168 parking fine he picked up a few weeks ago after leaving his car at Taylor's Square for a just a few minutes, he identified a growing frustration that is building in the inner city of Sydney- and Lord Mayor Clover Moore could pay a price.

Word comes to the Shuttle that a group of Oxford Street businessmen on the Golden Mile between Whitlam Square and Paddington Town Hall are planning to actively oppose Moore's re-election plans and help drum up support for other candidates.

The business, nightclub and restaurant heart of Sydney  has been Clover Moore's domain as the MP for the Sydney electorate and as Lord Mayor. Her support comes from young professionals and the huge gay and lesbian community. But that support is waning with many disaffected voters viewing Moore as someone who is consolidating power for power's sake and pushing her unpopular ideas of how the city should be.

Clover Moore

One of those ideas-the ugly bike lanes that have sprung up all over the city leaving already narrow roads with even less space and ugly concrete barriers taking up even more space. They are hardly used except by a handful of cyclists.

To promote the lanes Moore took to a bike herself and promptly fell off and broke her wrist. Then it was discovered that she has not one, but two much coveted free car parking spots near the Town Hall.

That Moore's army of parking wardens are viewed as heavy handed is rubbing salt into the wounds. Drivers are paying exorbitant fines for a myriad of infractions. Evening parking limits of 2 hours are  believed to have driven out dozens of small in-expensive restaurants to outer regions leaving places like Kings Cross and Oxford Street, once pleasant dining areas depressingly sleazy with fast food outlets that become a haven for hundreds of drunks in the early hours.

The Golden Mile, Oxford Street is now deserted until around 10pm when thousands of teens flock to the many gay nightclubs and pubs. There is nothing in between.

The City Council's much vaunted plans for Taylor's Square that are trotted out almost yearly never materialise. International designers have been consulted and say Taylor's Square, on one of Sydney's major routes from the airport into the city via Oxford Street could become a broad boulevard reminiscent of the great cites with the square a haven for outdoor cafes and grand statues. Instead it gets dirtier, dustier and more depressing every year. A sad attempt at a 'fountain'-water spurting from a dozen jets on one side of the square is popular with thirsty dogs but few humans.

William St-even the hookers have fled

Former Prime Minister Paul Keating's call for William Street leading up to Kings Cross to be transformed into a mini Champs Elysee has fallen on deaf ears. The glitzy boutique Royalty Prussia is the only retailer to have taken up the challenge. Luxury auto showrooms like Ferrari have fled to the inner west. Even the once colourful transvestite hookers who populated the street around mid-night have fled.

Many residents and business groups are asking just what has been gained by having Moore as both local MP and Lord Mayor. As an independent she gains no support from either the Liberal or Labor Party who would both like to see her gone and who prefer to concentrate their resources on the outer suburbs where their support is strong.

All this is infuriating around 30 local inner city businessmen who feel Moore has betrayed them over her much talked about plans to regenerate Oxford Street and it's many small alleyways into smart cafes, art precincts and so on. It's all been a miserable failure according to them.

Last week the multi-millionaire nightclub owner Justin Hemmes found himself with a pistol held to his head as two balaclavered thugs robbed his newly purchased Excelsior Hotel in Surry Hills. The bandits were so emboldened that they ignored the fact that the pub was packed at the time and their get-away car parked next to a police car outside. They fled with the loot while the coppers looked on.

Justin Hemmes

A distressed Hemmes and his father John Hemmes can be seen in this video arguing with police about the incident. Hemmes who has invested something like $200M in various nightclubs and pubs including the Ivy complex in the city was furious when Moore and police wanted to impose strict drinking hours and curtail his operations earlier last year.
They backed down on that one and Hemmes says the problem is rather one of few police on patrol in a city that now operates 24 hours of the day. Rather than trying to dictate to tens of thousands of young people just what hours they should start and end their partying, authorities and Moore should be curtailing the handful of troublemakers rather than make everyone suffer because of a few. Hemmes says he feels safer walking the streets of New York rather than Sydney.

Five years ago Clover Moore was the unchallenged Queen of Sydney but her crown is tarnished, some say beyond repair. Is it any wonder many are fuming over a report in City Hub newspaper earlier this year where Moore was spotted drink in hand on the footpath at Harbour City Bears art show for the Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras. Other galleries, bars and cafes who put a foot wrong end up with fines for thousand of dollars for similar infractions.

Seen in The City :

outside St Mary's Cathedral

at Star City

Justin Drops Natalie Imbruglia for Younger Model

Courtney Chircop

 Now that Natalie Imbruglia is back in the UK after a brief romance with Sydney nightclub king Justin Hemmes, a new girlfriend has appeared on the scene-top model Courtney Chircop. 

Hemmes, said to be worth around $500M with his burgeoning hotel and nightclub empire that employs over 2000 people, met 20 year old Courtney at a dinner party 2 weeks ago and she accompanied him to the  wedding of the L.J. Hooker real estate empire heir, Januz Hooker at Ulhuru last week.

Justin Hemmes

Friends say the 2 were all over each other at the wedding reception and once back at their hotel, didn't surface for 24 hours until their flight back to Sydney.

Courtney was discovered on the 2008 TV reality show Make Me A Supermodel and thus, she has become one with Elle McPherson's agency Chadwicks snapping her up. 

And a scandal that cropped up during the show didn't affect her career. It surfaced  that she and 2 other girls at the snooty West Australia high school they attended had tried to sell a mobile phone sex tape video.

"As soon as it happened I was over it the next day and it hasn't held me back one bit " says Courtney.

Match of The Day





Getting up close and personal at last night's Pure Blonde beer launch at The Ivy was owner Justin Hemmes and Natalie Imbruglia. A rumour has been going around for a week now that the two were an item and the body language said it all.

Any snapper who neared the pair were soon shooed away-you can do that when you own the place and just about every other smart Sydney nightspot. No-one wants to run foul of Justin.

The couple spent about 40 minutes at the launch before retiring upstairs to Ivy's Italian eatery Uccello along with a small entourage.