To the Berkeley Hotel in Knightsbridge, where The Londoner took our seat for the first Diarists’ Club of the Year, drinking champagne with Marcus Wareing, who opens his restaurant in the hotel in March, and talking Scottish independence with former Hebrides-based Ben Fogle.
“I think it would be so sad and ludicrous if the Scots decide to split off from us,” he said. “I love Scotland and the Union should be like a happy marriage between neighbours.” Admittedly, his plea was not quite on the same level as David Bowie’s but at least Fogle is part Scottish.
Across the table sat bonkbuster queen Jilly Cooper, who explained that even some in her inner circle have cast her overboard for racier reads. “Riders was rerun on TV recently,” she said. “I thought it was awful at first but I enjoyed it much more this time. We sat down to watch it and called over the family’s au pair but she was reading Fifty Shades of Grey. She said it was more interesting.”
