Updated May 17, 2013, 12.09 p.m. GMT with Italian TV report on Thursday’s incident involving Gandy and Le Bon’s Jaguar XK 120


Tullio M. Puglia

Jaguar is participating in this year’s Mille Miglia from May 16 to 19, 2013, fielding a total of 24 cars, including six from Jaguar Heritage Racing.
   Its team includes Le Mans winner Andy Wallace and Alex Buncombe, and luminaries such as Olympian Sir Chris Hoy, Michael Quinn, three-time Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis, actress Hannah Herzsprung, models David Gandy and Yasmin Le Bon, and Salvatore Ferragamo, the grandson of the famed designer, with whom he shares his name.
   The heritage models are three XK 120s and three C-types, while Jaguar will also field modern F-types, Lucire’s Car to Be Seen in for 2013.
   On the first day, Gandy and Le Bon, co-drivers of an XK 120, were pushed off the road by another competitor, but have begun again at the starting line on May 17. A brief Italian news report is embedded at the end of the article.
   Jaguar has previewed this year’s Mille Miglia with a short film, shown below, featuring Gandy, Le Bon, Buncombe, Murray Walker and, famously, Sir Stirling Moss and his 1952 co-driver Norman Dewis.
   Ferragamo is the Jaguar F-type’s Italian ambassador, a duty he also has with Relais & Châteaux worldwide. He was presented with an F-type 3·0 V6 S at the Castello di Gabbiano, in Mercatale Val di Pesa, near Firenze. His co-driver for the event is Michael Quinn, grandson of Jaguar founder Sir William Lyons.
   Bentley, meanwhile, says it will field two 4½-litre Supercharged Blowers, dating from the 1930s.

Tullio M. Puglia

A Lucire special promotion

Many of our female readers are already sold on ASOS, so it’s great to see the online retailer give the men some consideration.
   It’s started on an item of clothing that most men should have no trouble ordering online: denim. The two new videos promoting the ASOS Menswear Denim range—which has over 600 styles—are cheeky and should appeal to most men. It’s asking men to send them challenges, and ASOS will respond to the best ones using items from the range.
   The first video is a humorous look at how one can become a drummer—with ASOS skinny jeans, of course—while the second, on how to save a football team from relegation, requires ASOS denim shorts.
   Netizens are asked to submit a challenge to ASOS at its Twitter account at ASOS_Menswear, hashtagging denimchallenge, or via an email form at the end of its videos.
   Challenges could include a request for help to meet a girl, or freezing jeans, as the company.
   ASOS says it will reply back to the best challenges, each using a product from its denim line.
   The idea behind the humorous campaign is to spark a conversation.
   ASOS has also launched a competition to tie in with the campaign, opening the morning of May 10, and closing at 4.30 p.m. BST. The winner is the one who Tweets the best denim challenge, as determined by the judges—with humour and imagination the two criteria they are looking for. The winner takes home a denim item of their choice. Full rules can be found at ASOS’s website.
   ASOS was founded in 2000 in the UK, and was floated on the AIM at the London Stock Exchange the following year. It now carries over 50,000 branded and own-label lines, with 1,500 new product lines being introduced each week.

Post sponsored by ASOS

Kate Moss is the new face of St Tropez, the self-tanning brand, leading its first global advertising campaign.
   Two shots have been released: one of Moss in a white, one-piece swimsuit, and another in the nude.
   The campaign will be in print and online, and appear in point-of-sale materials from summer 2013. St Tropez is also encouraging users to use the hashtag offtosttropez on Twitter for a prize draw, which will include a holiday.
   The company has also issued a how-to video on how to get Moss’s tan in the campaign. Says Nichola Joss, St Tropez’s global tanning and skin-finishing expert, ‘To achieve Kate’s pool-side bronze for the shoot, the St Tropez Self Tan Bronzing Mousse applied with a St Tropez Applicator Mitt gives a natural-looking, streak-free result with a flawless finish. St Tropez Powder Bronzer perfects the look with a beautiful contoured effect and enhances the natural shape of Kate’s body.’
   The iconic supermodel says she has used the St Tropez brand since its inception.
   Michelle Feeney, CEO of PZ Cussons Beauty, the owner of St Tropez, said in a release, ‘As a global beauty brand with a heritage in tanning, St Tropez is now in 18 countries and women from Rio to LA are seeking the benefits of safe tanning. Kate’s fashion icon status is important to us but now her growing number of beauty campaigns proves that her appeal as a beauty icon resonates with confident women across all age groups globally.’

Actress Helen Flanagan (formerly of Coronation Street, where she played Rosie Webster) is the top-placed Briton on FHM’s Sexiest 100 Women list, thanks to reader votes. Mila Kunis topped the poll, voted via fhm.com, followed by Rihanna. Flanagan found herself in third place in the list of international celebrities.
   Rounding off the top ten—and showing how FHM’s largely British reader base often voted in their own—were Michelle Keegan, Kelly Brook, Kaley Cuoco, Pixie Lott, Kate Upton, Cheryl Cole and Georgia Salpa. Tulisa Contostavlos just missed out on a top-10 placing, in 11th.
   Our colleagues at ITN caught up with her in a very low-cut black gown at the party announcing the list, but presumably the volume prevented Flanagan from hearing the first questions posed to her.
   Once tuned in to the interviewer, the 22-year-old Mancunian actress got through her questions more quickly.
   Flanagan says that she has an obsession with Angelina Jolie and also regards eighth-placed Kate Upton as being sexy.
   She also notes that she is ‘socially shy’ and would prefer a gentleman with manners to a ‘bad boy’.
   Flanagan leapt from 47th place in last year’s poll.
   The full list can be found at www.fhm.com/girls/100-sexiest-women.
   Our second video features Emily Atack, Keeley Hazell, Jorgie Porter and Laura Whitmore.

Look out for the Body Shop’s Mothers’ Day gift packages. Lucire tried the White Musk shower gel and body lotion, a subtle scent of one of the Body Shop’s favourites. It’s an attractively packaged duo with a matching shower scrunchy. This would be a lovely treat for a travel gift when you just want a bit of pampering that’s a bit more than the hotel freebies, retailing at NZ$23. (Custom wrapping paper for Mothers’ Day is also available.) If white musk isn’t your scent, try the Japanese Cherry Blossom, a floral fragrance. There are several gift packages in this range: shower gel, body lotion, and hand cream. Most of the Body Shop’s top sellers have a gift package to suit your budget and your nose; Madagascan Vanilla Bean, Moringa Flower and my favourite, the Shea Pamper pack—anything with pamper in the title works for me.
   The Body Shop is also all about eyes with the launch in May of 21 new eye colours. I particularly liked that they can be used both wet and dry, so when you want a defined line or depth of colour, use them wet; for that smouldering or smoky look, layer or blend them. There are shades in this range for all eye colours, moods and occasions. You can have the subtle hues of Caramel Flirt, which is much more than a nude—it has a lovely shimmer without being glitzy; or Sugar Gaze to give a lustrous highlight. Moonlight Kiss can be used as a liner or a smoky evening look, and for a young or more frivolous look, check out Berry Cute—think of a berry smoothy. Blueberry Night pairs wonderfully with Midnight Flirt. If you’re feeling earthy, the matte of Fig Leaf combined with the pearly Sweet Pea will fill the green tones beautifully.
   Retailing at NZ$21 per mono eyeshadow, the Colour Crush range is produced in Italy from high-quality pigments and Community Fair Trade Oils to the Body Shop’s high standard of sustainability and quality. The individual clear pack is compact and enables you to see exactly what you’re buying.—Linden Sprunt

Notch has scored another high-profile cover girl with actress Priyanka Chopra. Chopra talks about why she hates singing live and her concern for her father’s health, and gives advice to her younger sister Parineeti Chopra. The magazine can be found via www.notchmag.com, or through its presences on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
   We’re absolutely loving One Luv’s latest jewellery collection, Through the Eyes of Yves Saint Laurent, comprising miniature glasses. They are a tribute to the late designer’s trade-mark eyewear, and actually open and close like real specs. The designs are available in 18 ct gold-plated, or can be had with rose gold, silver or black. They retail for A$70, come with a long belcher chain, and measure 45 by 40 mm when open. If you’re a discerning fashionista, or you know of one, then we think these are the cleverest jewellery item for discerning fashionistas that we’ve seen in ages. There’s more at www.oneluv.com.au.
   In travel news, the Cranleigh Boutique has launched a distinctive boutique house in Bowness-on-Windermere in the Lake District, with appointments and gadgets galore. The décor is not what most of our non-UK readers might associate with Britishness—it’s more over the top of what you’d typically find in our pages.
   However, the three-storey house, called the Hideout, impresses on the toys and amenities. It features a cocktail bar, a super-sized air spa bath for two with underwater lighting, a 65-inch hidden cinema screen, a three-dimensional smart TV with internet and Apple TV access, Sono’s music, and Netflix movies (with 150 DVDs). The first floor has a king-size four-poster bed and luxury bedding, while the third floor has an open-plan cinema lounge, fully equipped kitchen, a 55-inch Sony smart 3D TV with a Blu-Ray DVD player, Bose surround-sound system, mood lighting and balcony.
   Cranleigh Boutique owner Stephen Hargreaves’ aim was to create the best accommodation experience for two people in the UK. It retails at between £400 and £500 per night, with a two-night minimum stay. It can be booked by the night all year except for weekends. Additional services including continental breakfast and daily maid are available, as well as free use of luxury leisure facilities. More can be found at www.thecranleigh.com/property/111/the-hideout.aspx.
   Finally, in the main part of the site, we’ve gone Parisian: Lola Saab looks back at the prêt-à-porter collections for autumn–winter 2013–14, while Stanley Moss checks out two very different boutique hotels. Jack Yan writes about the BMW 3-series Touring launch between Auckland and Paihia, while Sopheak Seng checks out Wellington label Mondegreen’s latest collection. Elyse Glickman headed to the pre-Oscar suites, while Eva Mendes launched a collection for Vogue Eyewear in Los Angeles.

A Lucire special promotion

Today, Lucire has come full circle. One of the earliest stories on the web for our group was on the Renault Clio’s Nicole and Papa campaign, created in the early 1990s by Publicis. The Clio, which was the first Renault to hit the best sellers’ lists consistently in the UK, was sold with a cheeky campaign featuring two characters—Nicole, a young French lass, and Papa, obviously, her father. Those were the only two words uttered in the majority of the commercials, with the exceptions of ‘Maman’ and ‘Bob’, the final referring to comedian Bob Mortimer.
   The last Nicole and Papa TVC, released when the Clio II was launched in 1998, saw Nicole finally walk down the aisle, about to marry Vic Reeves (a.k.a. Jim Moir) when she finally decides, at the last minute, to run off with Bob Mortimer instead.
   It’s hard to believe that Nicole and Papa entered the British consciousness 20 years ago, in a series which also marketed French flair and the belief that the French have a better lifestyle than the British.
   The Clio is still with us, but it’s much larger than before. Now on its fourth incarnation, the latest Clio is more expressive and sporty in looks, thanks to the work of Laurens van den Acker. It’s on the previous model’s platform, albeit heavily revised, and that’s a good thing. In the stories we did on the Clio—both publisher Jack Yan and travel editor Stanley Moss took Clio 3s around France and New Zealand—we found it one of the most capable superminis, a small car with a big-car feel. In fact, we found it better for cruising New Zealand’s South Island than the Holden Commodore, which we tried around the same time.
   Clio IV features an 899 cm³, three-cylinder engine, but it’s turbocharged, developing more than 90 PS—those are the sorts of eco-friendly, yet powerful, specs that you can expect from the French these days. Renault claims a combined 88·3 mpg from the Energy dCi 90 engine. Archrival Peugeot similarly has three-cylinder units for its 208, the Clio’s closest rival at home, though the entry-level engine here is actually a 1·1 four which develops 75 PS. An RS model appears in 2013, getting 200 PS from a turbocharged 1·6, continuing the tradition of pocket rockets from Clio—Lucire photographer Doug Rimington once owned a Clio RS 182, which proved to be an able and taut sports hatch.
   The great thing is that Clio IV has the looks to match its ‘va-va-voom’ nature. The new model’s styling conveys everything that Nicole and Papa tried to do: that when you get a Clio, you’re getting a dose of French flair. But wait, there’s more: ‘va va voom’ includes a sense of passion, something which van den Acker’s styling attempts to do. This isn’t a dull little hatch in the domestic appliance mould: Clio IV is emotive, and even sexy. They’re not words you tend to hear in the B-segment.
   To show just what Renault means, the company has come up with two videos, one for unsuspecting male test drivers who come to a corner and are surprised at what happens when the ‘va va voom’ button is pressed, and the other for female test drivers.
   And to bring things full circle, Nicole and Papa make an appearance, uttering the lines that made them famous. It does seem that the years have not been kind to Nicole and Bob, because there’s no sign of Mortimer, as Nicole has found herself a new man.
   But isn’t that just what we expected?

Find out more from or book a test drive at the Renault website. Renault’s Twitter account can be found here, and its Facebook here.

Sponsored by Renault

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The Jameson Empire Awards took place at the Grosvenor House, a J. W. Marriott Hotel, in Park Lane in London at the weekend, with Sam Mendes, Dame Helen Mirren, Daniel Radcliffe, Martin Freeman, and Jennifer Lawrence among those honoured.
   Other VIPs included Sir Ian McKellen, Jenna-Louise Coleman, Kevin Spacey, Mark Strong, Vanessa Kirby, Beth Tweddle, Ellie Goulding, Alexandra Roach, Edgar Wright, Robert Sheehan, Johnny Vegas, Michael G. Wilson, Jonathan Ross, Nick Park, Sam Claflin, Laura Haddock, Tom Riley, Laura Whitmore, Maia Dunphy, Mariella Frostrup, Rickie Haywood Williams, Melvin O’Doom, Dexter Fletcher and Blake Harrison. Ed Byrne was host.
   The Empire Awards, which celebrate the best movies of the previous year, are judged based on an international public vote.
   Mendes picked up three awards for the James Bond film Skyfall, including the Empire Inspiration award presented by Jameson Irish Whiskey, as well as Best Film, presented by Sky Movies, and Best Director, presented by Monitor Audio.
   The Hobbit: an Unexpected Journey won two awards, for Best Sci-Fi or Fantasy Film, presented by MediCinema, and the Jameson Best Actor award, presented by Rebecca Hall, which went to Martin Freeman.
   Sightseers was Best British Film, presented by Trésor Paris.
   Dame Helen Mirren took home the second Empire Legend award, presented by Tom Hiddleston, for her career, which has seen films such as The Queen and Hitchcock. Director Danny Boyle won the Empire Outstanding Contribution award, for his films, including Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire and Trance.
   Daniel Radcliffe won the Empire Hero award, presented to him by director James Watkins.
   Jennifer Lawrence, who was not present at the awards, thanked audiences from location in Hawai‘i, after winning Best Actress, presented by Citroën, for The Hunger Games.
   Tom Holland won Best Male Newcomer for The Impossible, presented by Entertainment Tonight, while Samantha Barks won Best Female Newcomer for Les Misérables.
   Ted won Best Comedy, presented by Magic 105.4; Headhunters won Best Thriller, presented by Vue Entertainment; and Dredd 3D picked up the Art of 3D award, presented by RealD.
   The Jameson Empire Done in 60 Seconds short film award was won by Philip Askins, for his remake of Blade Runner. Tom Hiddleston, Edith Bowman, Alex Zane, Joanne Froggatt, Bauer Media CEO Paul Keenan and Empire editor-in-chief Mark Dinning served on the judging panel.
   The Awards will be televised on March 30 at 8.30 p.m. on Sky Movies in the UK, and repeated the following night at 7.30 p.m. on Sky Movies Showcase. To celebrate the awards, US readers can download Empire’s US edition for Ipad free from now through March 27.

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Daniel Radcliffe on the Frankenstein remake