Facing the music
Fishnet stockings and leather are not things you expect to come across on a building tour. So imagine Diary’s surprise when we popped our head around the door of the on-site cinema room at Exemplar’s Fitzroy Place, W1, to be presented with exactly that. On the big screen no less. To be clear, the writhing posse of scantily-clad women were performing in nothing more saucy that an unfortunately/hilariously timed music video on MTV. Embarrassing? A bit. Funny? Extremely. But ultimately Diary decided that until you have watched a Meghan Trainor music video with Dan Van Gelder, you just haven’t lived.
Under lock and key
Diary was alarmed this week at the Portman Square office of Invesco. Having nipped in for a friendly cup of tea and a chat, we noticed the meeting room was fitted with a latch – on the inside. Why, we wondered? One can only assume it is to stop counter-parties leaving when negotiations get a touch spicy. Or perhaps it’s just mind games – anything for a bit of an edge.
Charity begins at home
British Land’s Roger Madelin appeared to chime with a CBRE London seminar audience when he said he would not be able to sell his five-bedroom house because he fully expects his children to come back. It was a phenomenon which he joked was creating a slightly more efficient economy thanks to the housing crisis. “And eventually the buggers will move up North, which is part of the government’s strategy for all political persuasions,” he added, to loud applause from the audience.
A race against time in leeds
Who said EG Question Time lacked drama? Our Leeds event last week was every inch an adrenaline-fuelled, race-against-the-clock blockbuster as some of our panelists, audience members and reporters were delayed by more than two hours on their train journeys from London after a suspect being chased by police ran onto the tracks. A foot chase eventually saw the capture of the runaway – just in time to get all involved to the event on time.
Lovely weather for ducks
Hammerson welcomed a flurry of new, feathered tenants this week. A family of eight ducklings and a proud mother duck decided to make their nest on the roof terrace of the developer’s HQ. Given the height of their new-found home, it was decided that they would be safer on the ground and the RSPCA was swiftly called in to help with a relocation. Diary still wants to know how mummy duck managed to get them all there in the first place.
Hide and seek
When CBRE recently moved into its shiny new offices on Albyn Terrace in Aberdeen, the firm tuned in to its funky side and had a hand-drawn mural commissioned for the breakout area. The artist stuck to the brief of drawing a plan of the city centre, but with a twist. There are tiny pictures of each member of staff hidden in the streets and buildings. How many can you spot? Clue: managing director Derren McRae is loitering somewhere in the top left-hand corner.
