Everyone has settled in extremely well to London life. I guess it’s not difficult to do if you”re living in the middle of Chelsea. We are in a tiny street just off the King’s Road, where the houses are painted various pastel shades. In fact opposite is the fictional home of George Smiley from the spy books. Every morning we have a breakfast of blueberries, strawberries and raspberries followed by poached eggs on toast. All food comes from either M&S or Waitrose, both of whom do a marvellous home delivery service.
I am not going to the gym, but rather exercising by housework. It is possibly not as effective as the gym, but can be tough. For example, if the home delivery service is not available I carry the shopping home, very good for the biceps, and the dishwasher needs emptying at least twice a day, which involves lots of bending, not to mention carrying the bin bags out. I do miss my maid (s), but to be honest, life here is so good I think I could even get used to the ironing. Possibly.
Yesterday was a typically lovely day. We went to the V&A to the fashion exhibition there, had coffee outside with a friend (yes, a crazy English friend whose idea of a summer’s day is one where it is only spitting with rain not pouring). Then the girls and I walked to Knightsbridge via a vintage (well, charity) shop where I picked up a great handbag for nothing, followed by an encounter with Graham Le Saux (former Chelsea player, see pic). After a quick stop at Zara and Top Shop we took the bus back home for lunch and an afternoon of work.
So many things have struck me about being here but I think the main one is how NICE everyone is. Everyone from the man at the tube station who activated our Oyster cards (one of the greatest ever inventions) to the shop assistant in Scribbler, to the cashiers at M&S, to the chemist on Sloane Street who listened patiently to all the children’s extremely minor ailments, to the lovely hotelier at Woodlands Park Hotel in Surrey who told us the entire Chelsea squad would soon be traipsing through reception. Here is Leo with Gary Cahill.
I am loving every minute of life here, even though it rains constantly. Maybe I am in such a good mood because I don’t have to go to the gym any more? But I think it has more to do with being home. And bumping into Chelsea players on a regular basis.
Copyright: Helena Frith Powell 2012
London Living
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Helena Frith Powell was born in Sweden to a Swedish mother and Italian father, but grew up mainly in England. She is the author of eleven books, translated into several languages including Chinese and Russian. She wrote the French Mistress column The Sunday Times about life in France for several years. She is a regular contributor to the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, The Times, Daily Telegraph, Tatler Magazine and Harper’s Bazaar.
Helena has been the editor of four magazines, including M Magazine, a supplement for the Abu Dhabi-based National Newspaper and FIVE, a high-end fashion glossy, also published in Abu Dhabi. Helena was also editor-in-chief of 360 Life, a quarterly glossy magazine published with the Sports 360 Newspaper in Dubai, part of the Chalhoub Group.
Helena contributes regularly to UK-based newspapers and magazines and holds a Masters in Creative Writing from the University of Cambridge. She is working on a thriller set in Sweden as well as a novel about the relationship between Virginia Woolf and Katherine Mansfield called Sense of an Echo.
In 2022 her short story The Japanese Gardener came second in the Fish Publishing Short Story Prize. One of her stories was also shortlisted for the Bridport Short Story Prize. When she’s not writing, she works as a headhunter for the media and entertainment industry for the Sucherman Group.
Helena, who was educated at Durham University, lives in the Languedoc region of France with her husband Rupert and their three children.
Bibliography
More France Please, we’re British; Gibson Square 2004
Two Lipsticks and a Lover 2005; Gibson Square (hardback)
All You Need to be Impossibly French; (US version of above) Penguin 2006
Two Lipsticks and a Lover; Arrow Books (paperback) 2007
Ciao Bella Gibson Square; (hardback) 2006
Ciao Bella Gibson Square; (paperback) 2007
So Chic! (French version of Two Lipsticks) Leduc Editions 2008 (also translated into Chinese, Russian and Thai)
More, More France; Gibson Square 2009
To Hell in High Heels; Arrow Books 2009 (also translated into Polish)
The Viva Mayr Diet; Harper Collins 2009
Love in a Warm Climate; Gibson Square 2011
The Ex-Factor; Gibson Square 2013
Smart Women Don’t Get Wrinkles; Gibson Square 2016
The Arnolfini Marriage; Amazon Kindle December 2016
Smart Women Don’t Get Wrinkles (paperback); Gibson Square spring 2018
The Longest Night; Gibson Square spring 2019
Hi Helena – Glad you’re enjoying your time in London. Would you ever consider moving back here permanently?
Hi Louise if I could have my job here, and my husband could have his job here, in a flash!
Have a happy holiday in Europe! We did have some sun earlier, let’s hope the sunny days are here again.
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