Where Do You Go? with David Carter
The interior designer tells us about perfect cappuccinos, antique markets and Spitalfields by candlelight
Every now and again we like to ask people for their personal take on London. We get them to tell us the places in the city that they turn to for different reasons: the spots that excite them, inspire them, make them feel calm, happy or just make them want to spend money. We call it ‘Where do you go?
For July’s edition of WDYG? we spoke to David Carter (above) about leaving London for France (and then coming back again), the rise of the ‘Instagram restaurant’, and where to find London’s most miserable shoppers.
P.S. You can find all the previous editions of WDYG? right here.
Who are you?
My name is David Carter. I have worked as an interior designer for almost 30 years, but I also ran a hotel, organised some of London’s most acclaimed events and parties, and dabbled in many other things that are probably of little or no interest to most of you.
Why should we trust you?
I wouldn’t! London is different for everyone, and we all have to find our own way of making sense of it. Find your own London. There is one waiting just for you.
The 40 Winks hotel was such a beautiful and unusual corner of London. Can you just give us your personal, potted history of 40 Winks for people who weren’t lucky enough to experience it?
40 Winks opened in 2009. We cheekily described it as the world’s first micro boutique hotel, and our rather grandiose plan was to revolutionise the hospitality industry by offering an immersive and emotionally engaging experience that was very different from the bland uniformity found in more conventional establishments. I think we succeeded.
When Covid came along, we had to close, and after almost two years of lockdowns and travel restrictions, I decided that it was pointless trying to carry on.
Do you still own the building? Are there any plans for it?
I sold the building and moved to France. The plan was to start something new there. I have always been interested in the idea of running a school. Not a conventional school, but one dedicated to teaching the art of happiness. We regularly had guests describing their stay at 40 Winks as a life changing experience, so the aim was to really focus on that. Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy living in France, and am now back in London.
I am still undecided about what to do next, but let’s see what happens!
You’ve been an interior designer of a quarter of a century now, you must have worked on some incredible London properties and spaces. Do you have any favourite projects that stick out to you?
Interior design projects are like love affairs. Always very intense while you are involved with them, but they all end with you having to hand the keys back.
Are there any that people could go and see (without breaking into a private residence)?
I principally specialise in high end residential projects so sadly they are not accessible without a crowbar. I did design a very cool bar and restaurant in Moscow, but my clients had to close it because of the political situation there.
You will have seen countless design trends come and go in London. What’s your take on the maximalist, ’made for TikTok’ restaurant and bar interiors we’ve been seeing or the past few years?
I was invited along to one yesterday. I hated it. Does it matter that they’re made for selfies if they’re done well? Not if they have thought about all the other important stuff you expect to find in a good restaurant like the food and the service. If these are less important than simply creating a fun backdrop for a selfie, then my advice is to choose somewhere else to go.
Is there one London property or space you would love to decorate? A dream project?
Mr Carter’s School of Happiness? Or, while I am waiting for that to happen, perhaps a pavilion for the Serpentine Gallery.
Okay, on to the usual questions… Where do you go to have a great time?
I love spending time at markets. My regular haunts are Spitalfields on Thursdays when they have the antique market, Portobello on Fridays for the vintage clothes market and Columbia Road on Sundays for flowers and curios.
Where do you go and always end up spending too much money?
If it’s my money, probably all the above. If it someone else’s money, like one of my interior design clients, I might be somewhere like PAD London or the Decorative Antiques Fair in Battersea.
Where do you go that can never close down, because if it does you might cry?
The Wolseley restaurant in Piccadilly. I have been going since it opened.
Where do you go to cheer yourself up?
Harrods in Knightsbridge! Not to buy anything, but just to see how miserable everyone else there is.
Where do you go to be alone?
Don’t move to London if you want to be alone. It’s not possible.
Where do you go to impress someone?
Scott’s in Mayfair (above).
Where do you go that's within walking distance of your house?
Gail’s bakery for my daily bread.
Where do you go when you can afford it?
Where do you go to be romantic?
Dennis Severs’ House in Spitalfields. They have wonderful candlelit tours.
Where do you go if you want to feel comfortable?
A Curzon cinema. Best seats in London.
Where do you go if you want to switch off?
Bed.
Where do you go to get inspired?
The V&A or the newly reopened National Portrait Gallery.
Where do you go to think?
Flat White in Soho or Allpress in Shoreditch. Much easier to think with a perfect cappuccino.
Find more information on David here, or follow him on Instagram.
5 little bits
Boris Johnson called the ULEZ expansion “an odious, unjustified tax on driving” this weekend, while promoting his Daily Mail column on the subject. This is the same scheme he called “an essential measure to help improve air quality” when he introduced it in 2015. Meanwhile the BBC has tried to summarise everything we learned from last week’s ULEZ court action (although, the section under the heading ‘What’s the issue with the cameras?’ begins with the very un-BBC phrase “Don't get me started…”).
The Guardian has seen the new artist tenant survey that’s due to published later this week by Acme (“the largest provider of permanent cheap studios in England”), and it’s not good news. Almost a third of the London artists surveyed said they would likely be forced out of London within five years, just under half said they cannot afford to pay into savings or a pension plan, and “only 12% of those surveyed said they can support themselves solely through art.”
Over 25,000 people took part in the Trans+ Pride march for trans equality and justice on Saturday. Pink News has collected some of “the most joyful, hilarious and powerful placards” from the day (‘It’s Raining Them’ is a personal favourite).
Camden Council has visited Idris Elba’s King’s Cross wine bar, Porte Noire, for a spot check ... and left it with a one-star hygiene score. According to the council’s website, the ‘hygienic food handling’ needs ‘major improvement’ as does the ‘management of food safety’.
Meanwhile The Good Food guide has just published its guide to Britains’s best local restaurants. The London section includes spots in Crouch End, Shepherd’s Bush, Kew and Blackheath.
Bonus link because it’s paywalled: The FT’s Jimmy McIntosh has written an impassioned love letter to The Tarmon pub on the Caledonian Road, calling it “the type of bacchanalian, absurdist boozer full of warmth, wit and mild jeopardy that is gradually disappearing from the capital’s nightlife scene.”