The award for coolest real estate announcement of the week goes to Sir Richard Branson, who revealed the Virgin Galactic development and testing program has “advanced sufficiently to move the spaceline staff and space vehicles from Mojave, California, to its commercial operations headquarters at Spaceport America, New Mexico”.
This, Virgin Galactic says, “signals the final countdown” to a regular commercial spaceflight service for paying passengers.
As Branson put it: “New Mexico delivered on its promise to build a world-first and world-class spaceport. We are now ready to bring New Mexico a world-first, world-class spaceline.
“Virgin Galactic is coming home to New Mexico where, together, we will open space to change the world for good.”
More than 100 staff will make the 800-mile-plus move this summer, and judging by the otherworldly look of Spaceport America, they must be almost as excited as Diary is for EG’s impending switch to its new HQ in the City.
What’s on the box?
Diary is as obsessed with Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead and Stranger Things as the next semi-humorous magazine page, but even we have to wonder if the folks at One 77 Mortgages are spending a little too much time watching TV.
Only in February, they hit us with the eye-watering prices that various soap opera characters would have to pay to live in their fictional homes. And now those telly addicts are at it again!
This week – in an embargoed press release, to show they mean business – they left soapland behind to compare the values of “some of our most iconic on-screen homes in today’s market”.
If you want a bargain, Peaky Blinders is the show for you – a terraced house at The Shelby Parlour in Birmingham is a snip at £157,000, while Gavin and Stacey’s home in Trinity Street, Barry, would set you back £173,788. Edina’s Absolutely Fabulous des-res in Holland Park, west London, is at the higher end – that’s £2.25m, sweetie.
And the iconic address of Sherlock, 221b Baker Street, London, is expensive too (over £2.7m): elementary, that one. And then there is the biggie. Downton Abbey: £137m. Or, as they helpfully point out, only £13.7m for a mortgage deposit – as long as you earn £27.4m a year.
Just like with Monday’s massive GoT finale, Diary can’t wait to see what happens in the next episode of One 77’s TV property series.
Elevator pitch
From 221b Baker Street, we head down the road to Knight Frank at No.55, where JLL’s head of investor services and retail chairman Tim Vallance recently enjoyed a productive visit.
Hugely productive, in fact – and rather uplifting. As he tweeted: “Just discovered that if you press the buttons in the lift at 55 Baker Street (@knightfrank HQ) in the following sequence, they play the theme tune to Indiana Jones: 4-3-1-2 pause 5-8-7 #Awesome.”
Diary is left with several questions. How did Vallance discover this? How long did it take him to get to the floor he was going to? And what other combinations result in iconic movie themes? If you’re looking for Diary, we’ll be busy recreating Indy’s hat scene with the lift doors.
Just discovered that if you press the buttons in the lift at 55 Baker Street (@knightfrank HQ) in the following sequence, they play the theme tune to Indiana Jones: 4-3-1-2 pause 5-8-7 #Awesome @ellandi_mark pic.twitter.com/ghUoJv5Pn4
— Tim Vallance (@tpfv23) May 13, 2019
Feeling tipsy thanks to Tipi
Diary was delighted to take delivery of an alcoholic gift courtesy of Quintain’s Wembley-based build-to-rent operator, Tipi.
Tearing back the ring pull (we started with HomeTime, since you asked), we thought back to a piece EG ran two years ago on developers jumping on the microbrewery bandwagon. Back in 2010, the capital was home to just 13 breweries.
By 2017, that figure was approaching 100, most within Zones 2 and 3.
“Shrewd developers are now turning to start-up breweries in order to give their schemes ‘hipster appeal’, aid placemaking and give new communities pride in their locality,” we reported.
Good to see Tipi going one step further, with its own-branded brews. If we’ve missed other developers doing the same, please do let us know. (The best way is to send Diary a couple of cans, just so we can be sure…)
Strange bedfellows
Diary has a soft spot for Spurs but is married into a Liverpool family. So while considering which way to lean for the Champions League final, we had a browse at the discount replica kits at SportsDirect.com – only to have our attention stolen by something sparkly.
The bargain-heavy website is now stocking £200-plus light fittings from its stablemate in Mike Ashley’s empire, House of Fraser.
Now, at last, you can snap up a chandelier at the same time as replenishing your Karrimor boots and Everlast joggers.
In the name of science, Diary put the most expensive ceiling light in our basket to see what the site’s algorithm would recommend to us – and got an England T-shirt and a Sondico tracksuit.
Now that’s synergy. But if we buy the £75 stag’s head table lamp, will it come with an oversized HoF mug?
