Why Armarium is the designer loan service which could solve all your summer occasion-dressing dilemmas
Tricia Gregory got her head around the borrowing economy way before most of us. As Ferragamo’s head of communications she was constantly lending beautiful dresses to celebrities. It seemed only fair to offer a similar service to every woman. So, in 2015, began Armarium, a clothes-rental service with an elevated difference.
For around 10 per cent of its retail price, customers can borrow a dress for four days. It will be luxuriously packaged up and – here’s a genius feature – sent to them wherever they are. “If she’s going to a big party in Mykonos and wants to pack light, we can send it there, and collect from there when she’s done” says Gregory.
Ed Miliband, the Labour leader, has backed down from a 1980s-style battle with the unions over their influence on his party.
Mr Miliband had been expected to campaign for a cut in the unions’ share of votes at the party’s annual conference from 50 per cent to around 40 per cent.
But following fierce resistance from the unions, Labour said yesterday that there would be a consultation on plans, with a possible decision due early next year.
It will involve the creation of a “registered supporters” scheme for people who are interested in the Labour Party but
Labour insiders hope that tens of thousands of people will sign up. Registration will not require any membership fee.
The announcement was due to form a key part of Mr Miliband’s speech at the conference next week in Liverpool.
It would have drawn comparisons with the former Labour leader Neil Kinnock facing down the Militant Tendency in the 1985 and his successor Tony Blair’s “Clause Four” victory over the Left in 1993.
There was relief among unions that Mr Miliband had decided not to pick a fight. One union source said: “We have a lot going on. We have got our pension dispute. We need to concentrate on why we are fighting this government.”
Instead, Labour said it would throw open future leadership elections to thousands of new “registered supporters”. The move will give people who do not pay to be members of either the Labour Party or its affiliated unions a say in the choice of future leaders. The plan was being considered by the party’s National Executive Committee yesterday and is expected to be approved by the party’s conference.
The supporters will be able to take part in future leadership elections, with their votes being counted in the unions’ section of the three-way electoral college. The other two sections are MPs and MEPs, and party members.
A Labour source said: “The aim is to show that Labour is outward-facing, talking to the public, trying to recruit members of the public, in contrast to the old image of decisions taken behind closed doors and in smoke-filled rooms.”
It is part of the Refounding Labour review written by Peter Hain, the former Cabinet minister, which was designed to make the party more outward looking.
The news came as research from the influential Fabian Society suggests that Mr Miliband had just a year to prove himself as a credible Prime Minister in waiting.
He was regarded as being a “good listener” but not as decisive or as good a communicator as the Tory leader David Cameron, according to the study.
Last night Baroness Warsi, co-chairman of the Conservative Party, said: “It’s no surprise Ed Miliband has failed to curb the unions’ power over Labour leadership elections and Labour conference.
“After all, he’s only Labour leader because of trade union votes, and his party is only solvent because of trade union money. This failure to reform Labour’s relationship with the unions is a real blow to Ed Miliband’s credibility.”
Palm beach: an impressive 14th-century castle that featured in the film El Cid overlooks the family-friendly sands of Peñíscola on Spain's Orange Blossom Coast
Round-the-clock raving and retching is not an obligatory feature of a summer holiday in a Spanish resort, despite what the papers say. It just depends where you go.
There is no shortage of remote villages where you would be lucky to come across another person, let alone a staggering lager lout, but what if you do want a bit of action, just not of the darkly tattooed, vodka-swilling variety?
One idea is to look at how the Spanish spend the summer in their own country. One of the most popular places is Peñíscola, on the Costa del Azahar, or Orange Blossom Coast. Such a delicious name sounds like a tourist industry invention, but it would be perverse to use any other. Stretching from Valencia to Catalonia, this part of the Mediterranean coastline is flanked by mile after mile of orange groves.
Peñíscola is no sleepy fishing village; the town is unashamedly devoted to tourism. Low-rise hotels and apartment blocks line the beach and there are dozens of pavement cafés and restaurants. But these establishments are aimed at several generations of Spanish families, who tend to go on holiday together, rather than gangs of teenagers.
Set on a rocky promontory, Peñíscola has steep cobbled lanes that wind past whitewashed houses with flower-filled balconies and souvenir shops. Averting my gaze from the last, I climbed to the impressive castle, built in the 14th century by the Knights Templar. Much restored, the castle - which featured in the epic film El Cid - is now used for exhibitions and concerts during the many festivals held in Peñíscola throughout the year.
With miles of gently sloping golden sand, Peñíscola's beach is perfect for families. Floating in the sea, I could see a range of mountains rising behind the line of hotels and apartment blocks. This was El Maestrazgo, one of the most sparsely populated areas in Spain.
The next morning I headed for Morella, a medieval walled town about 50 miles from the coast. I had been told that the approach to it would be dramatic, and I wasn't disappointed. I rounded a bend and saw what looked like a giant fluffy Yorkshire pudding plonked on a conical hill. As I got nearer, I could see that this surprising apparition was in fact the ruins of a castle built onto a lump of rock, although it was impossible to discern where one ended and the other began.
This area is known as Els Ports (The Gateways), because it is on the borders of the ancient kingdoms of Aragon, Valencia and Catalonia. During the centuries of conflict between the Moors and the Christians, Morella was particularly coveted because whoever controlled it had access to the Mediterranean from the inland territories, which was vital for trade. Although the hill is only about 3,000ft high, it is right in the middle of a vast valley, with a 360-degree view of the surrounding land.
You still enter Morella through one of the gates in the medieval walls. The cobbled streets loop around the hill in loose circles, linked by short flights of stone steps, which made walking around much easier on the legs.
Accordingly, Calle Blasco de Alagón, the arcaded main street, is virtually level. It gets its name from the man who finally brought the town back under Christian rule in 1232. The king, James I of Aragon, was so pleased that he granted the locals the right to hold a market on Sunday mornings, a tradition that continues to this day.
Morella is renowned for its brightly coloured blankets, although the craft is dying out fast. In medieval times almost every house had its own loom, to make use of the first-class wool spun from the fleece of the local sheep.
At Julian Garca's shop, I watched him at work on the loom used by his father and grandfather before him. The growth in tourism means he can just about make a living, but his children, inevitably, are not interested in learning his skills.
Another tradition, however, is going from strength to strength. At weekends people flock to Morella and the surrounding villages to sample the excellent local cuisine. Apparently, the locals have always been keen on lavish meals, sometimes excessively so.
In the 15th century, Vincent Ferrer - later canonised - came to Morella to try to resolve a thorny religious problem. A local man invited him to lunch and instructed his wife to serve the best possible meal. After some deliberation, she slaughtered her own son, roasted him and served him up to the horrified priest - who promptly brought the boy back to life.
Reading this legend in a pavement café almost put me off my own lunch, but I installed myself at Casa Roque, which specialises in dishes using the locally found black truffles. My request for something light was disregarded, as course after course arrived, culminating in what looked like an enormous sausage roll but turned out to be fillet of lamb in truffle sauce wrapped in pastry. A meal fit for a saint, you could say.
British Airways (0870 850 9850; www.ba.com) has flights to both Valencia and Alicante from £39 one way.
Hostería del Mar (0034 902 480600; www.hosteriadelmar.net) is a four-star Parador-style hotel overlooking the beach in Peñíscola with doubles from £85 in high season. The three-star Hotel Cardenal Ram (0034 964 173085 ) in Morella is a converted 16th-century palace, with doubles from £50.