Meridian Writers’ Group
LONDON – The
world’s oldest family-owned magic shop is nearly as hard to find as Diagon
Alley.
Davenports Magic Shop is
in a dead-end passage of the Charing Cross Shopping Arcade, a grimy
subterranean mall that funnels people to the Charing Cross tube and rail
stations. The shop shares its cul-de-sac with Davys of London Wine Merchants
and a sleeping street person.
An unpromising location, but
Davenports has built its reputation to the point where even its move here (in
1984) couldn’t hurt it.
“We don’t rely on passing
trade,” says Betty Davenport. “Magicians find out where we are. We could be up
a tree in Hyde Park and they’d still find us.”
Betty is the
granddaughter of Lewis Davenport, who started the shop in 1898. “He earned his
living performing magic acts,” says Betty. “At the turn of the century it was
possible to work 52 weeks a year, a different hall every week.”
Betty’s father George
took over the business in 1926, then Betty became its proprietor in 1960. Like
her father, she was a magician, but stopped doing shows the year she began to
run the store. “If you don’t keep it up, you lose confidence,” she says. And
when you have children, the time to practice magic goes poof.
Betty’s two sons tend the
shop now. Bill sees to the day-to-day operation. Both he and his younger
brother, Roy, are magicians — the fourth generation. Bill had just done a
lunchtime show the day I visited. Roy was performing in Norfolk.
If Harry Potter were to
wander into Davenports he could buy a wand, just like in Diagon Alley, but it’s
not what most people come for. The big sellers here have to do with
sleight-of-hand or “manipulation” as it’s known in the trade.
Manipulation, says Betty,
“is the branch of magic which takes the most practice and is the most difficult
to do.” If you come into her shop as a novice, asking where to begin, she’ll
start you out with “something easy,” either the Svengali Deck (£6) or the
Floating Credit Card (£12.50).
The next step would be
the Cut and Restore Rope Trick (£5.50, including 10 metres of rope) and the
Rising Card Trick (£15).
From there, the sky’s the
limit. “It’s very addictive,” says Betty. For the hooked there’s
Willane’s
Complete Methods for Miracles
(£13.50), full of tricks to stretch and develop a magician.
Most of Davenports’
clientele is male, but the variety is extraordinary. The day I visited it
ranged from Goth teens to a 77-year-old peer of the realm. (“In England there
are several lords who do magic,” says Betty.)
Real-life magicians don’t
have a Voldemort to contend with, but there are dangers. The bullet trick, for
example. An audience member marks a bullet, which is then shot at the magician,
who catches it with his teeth and displays it.
“Normally, the performer
is in no danger at all,” says Betty. But it has been fatal. And if it does go
wrong, do you die of a gunshot wound?
“Um, yes.”
ACCESS
For more information on
Davenports Magic Shop visit its website at
www.davenportsmagic.co.uk
.
For information on travel
in Britain go to the Visit Britain website at
www.visitbritain.com
.
PHOTO CAPTION
The serviced apartments of 51 Kensington Court cost less than a moderately
priced central London hotel, are larger, better appointed—and quieter.
PHOTO CREDIT
John Masters/Meridian Writers’ Group
Serviced apartments just the trick to beat pricey London hotels
By John Masters
Meridian Writers’ Group
LONDON – The first part of this quote is famous: “When a man is tired
of London,” Samuel Johnson said in 1777, “he is tired of life.” The rest is
less well-known. “For there is in London,” it goes on, “all that life can
afford.”
And there’s the rub. In the 21st century London, more than ever, has “all
that life can afford.” The question is, can you afford London? It’s the most
expensive city in Europe and just behind Tokyo for top world honours.
Hotel costs in particular can seem over the moon to visitors, especially
once they see how small the room is they’ve paid so much for.
One alternative is the serviced apartment. You’re usually not so close to
the West End or the City, but still in a very nice neighbourhood and just a
short Tube ride from the business, entertainment and historical districts.
Serviced apartments usually don’t come with the full raft of proper hotel
amenities — no room service or restaurant, a limited front desk, no pool
or business centre — but do have en suite kitchen facilities, laundry
and, best of all, adequate space.
After years of staying in hotels I tried one, 51 Kensington Court, and was
impressed. It cost about two-thirds what I’d have paid for a double room in a
moderately priced hotel near Covent Garden, had more space, much nicer
appointments and was quieter. It could have slept four for the same price as
two, so the savings can be even greater if you have close friends.
The five-storey, red-brick building is conveniently sited, comes with a
history and has interesting neighbours. The High Street Kensington Tube station
is a five-minute walk, and you pass a Marks & Spencer with its excellent
food hall, perfect for provisioning, on the way.
The house was built in 1850. The Aga Khan owned it until about 20 years
ago, when it was converted into 11 apartments. There are four studios, two one
bedrooms and five two bedrooms. Numbers 9 and 10 can be connected to make a
three-bedroom, two-bathroom suite.
A stroll through the neighbourhood turned up interesting items. The tall
homes on secluded Kensington Court, most with wrought-iron balconies, were all
built about the same time — a street of adjoining Victorian mansions.
Today, many have been taken over by businesses, turned into apartment hotels or
become foreign embassies. Right next door to 51 Kensington Court, for example,
is the educational section of the Iranian embassy. Down the block are the
missions of The Gambia, Mongolia, the Azerbaijan Republic and the Republic of
Belarus.
The main shopping avenue, busy Kensington High Street, is a block away, but
if you go in the opposite direction, down Kensington Court, you come to
Thackeray Street, whose assortment of shops runs from tailor to art framer,
with several real estate agents thrown in.
It also has the Montparnasse, a lovely little French café that’s fine for
breakfast or at the end of a long day. So if you do tire of London, you’ll
always have Paris.
ACCESS
For more information on 51 Kensington Court visit its website at
www.kensingtoncourt.co.uk
.
