11 DAYS OF LONDONERS: Day 10 – Nick English, co-founder of Bremont Watches
Editor’s note: A few months back, we announced that former Editor of GQ Australia, Mike Christensen, was to be our first European Editor. In this series, ‘11 Days of Londoners’, Mike will be sharing the stories of a few notable local collectors, starting on Day 1 with King Nerd, and with a stellar lineup still to come. Lastly, you might ask, why 11 days? That, friends, will become clearer over time … There may be British watch brands with a richer heritage, but none has claimed the attention and respect of the watch world quite like Bremont. In the space of just 12 years, brothers Giles and Nick English have become the movers and shakers of British watchmaking and even inspired many others to follow suit. Here, Nick reflects on his own special relationship with watches that would go on to shape his working life. The story behind the watch you are wearing today It’s based on an event that happened in Giles’ and my life just over 25 years ago. Our father used to own an ex-RAF Battle of Britain Memorial flight Mark XIX Spitfire. After his passing in 1995, this remarkable Spitfire, which had been in continuous RAF service since 1944…
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Being a superstar athlete clearly has its perks. Sure, there is glory within achievements and success found in their respective sport, but if you become such an anchoring presence to a team, such as NBA player James Harden, it also means you receive quite the hefty payday. Harden, who has reportedly amassed more than $224,000,000 during his career, can clearly afford to spoil his friends with gifts, and lucky for rapper Lil Baby he did just that for the musician’s 26th birthday. Filmed in Las Vegas last week, during the birthday celebrations and shenanigans, it was revealed James Harden really values his friendship with Lil Baby – who he gifted a Prada bag, $100,000 in cash, and a $200,000 Richard Mille watch. A total expense of around $300,000! In the video obtained by TMZ, Lil Baby exclaims: “Prada bag ’cause he Prouda’ me.” They also note that inside the bag “was a bunch of honey bun pastries — surrounded by a ‘honey bun’, which is slang for $100,000 IN CASH!!!!” But those were not the only two items inside. The gift we watch enthusiasts are most focused on was the $200,000 Richard Mille watch he pulled out from within the Prada…
Skeleton dials are not necessarily everyone’s cup of tea, but the gearheads and engineers among us go crazy for the transparent aesthetic. They allow the wearer to see the internals of their watch throughout the day without having to flip the watch over to take a peek. When done right, it becomes a fascinating city of gears beneath the crystal that is sure to raise intrigue with any eye it catches. This year has had some pretty neat skeleton releases, so we have compiled 8 of the best skeleton dials of 2020 for your pleasure. Swatch x 007 ²Q While the transparency of a skeleton dial can command high price tags, the Swatch x 007 ²Q is a welcome exception. This will appear in the upcoming No Time To Die film this April on the wrist of Q, who is the man behind all of 007’s amazing gear and tech we see the agent use throughout the film. As a character who serves as the developer and keeper of techonolgy bestowed upon Bond it makes sense he would wear a skeletonised watch – as well as wear a cost-effective one at that, considering all the shenanigans and gear tests going on…
Even after such a strong year for Hublot, and after getting up close and personal with the Black Magic version here, the new Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Meca-10 Titanium still intrigues me with its intricately woven industrial micro-architecture. Even as the Big Bang series is getting close to becoming an industry standard for large, open-worked luxury sports watches, there is always something new to discover, and for me the tonneau-shape is king. A case for the renaissance of titanium? With the arcing tidal movements of fashion, titanium seems to be enjoying a new rise in popularity, even in slim, polished dress watches. But the strong Hublot language of wrist-worn engines still feels like the material’s true sweet spot. The lightness is still every bit as surprising as the ceramic-cased Black Magic version of the Spirit of BB, but even more so with the heavy industrial tool sensation I get from the texture of metal. As soon as I try it on with the soft-striated rubber strap, the sensation is surprising: the combination of lightness and an air of indestructibility is tangible. I’m not pretending it is a slim watch, but that’s exactly why we love these big machines from…
Have you ever wondered what racing cars and auction rooms have in common? In a 2006 publication, neurosurgeon Dr Eric Watkins published evidence that a Formula 1 driver can experience a pulse in the neighbourhood of 200 beats per minute during a race. According to the US Centre for Disease Control, this heart rate approaches, if not exceeds, the maximum heart rate for the typically aged Formula 1 driver. In this way, both race cars and auction rooms have a similar effect on those inside them, with hearts racing if you’re gripping a steering wheel or a paddle, a fact that gives an insight into the name of an upcoming Phillips “Racing Pulse” auction in New York. This name is a natural choice for the Phillips Watch Department. Arguably their most well-known sale of a watch took place in 2017 when the hammer dropped on the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona “Paul Newman” lot previously owned by Paul Newman. The engraving on the back, “DRIVE CAREFULLY ME”, was a reminder from Mr Newman’s wife to take care during the car races in which he competed. That watch achieved a then world record for a watch sold at auction, at more than $17…
The year is coming to a close (thank heavens) and there is a brighter horizon to look forward to in the coming months. However, there is value in reflecting on this past year, with the Time+Tide team coming in strong with amazing content throughout the doom and gloom – some of which you may have even missed! I took a deep dive into our archives and found the written content that struck a note with me this year, and have assembled my five favourite articles of 2020 for your viewing pleasure. INTRODUCING: The MB&F Legacy Machine Perpetual EVO is a new haute horlogerie player in the sports watch market – Thor Svaboe My favourite Norseman is always commended internally by the entire Time+Tide cast for his incredibly detailed descriptions of watches. Like the rest of us on the team, he lives and breathes watches – with his passion for all things horological shining through in each passing sentence. Thor, however, is a breath of fresh air in the sphere of watch media. Very few authors compose content like Thor. He is a pièce unique when it comes to putting the pen to paper, or fingers to the keyboard, as you…
Buying a pre-owned watch can be full of dangers. The watch might be fake, or not have all of the original parts, and it can be very hard to know all that — unless you have the original documentation of the watch. But even if these original papers have remained with the watch all these years, there is an increasing risk of fake papers that are forged to match the watch you’re interested in buying. The response to this problem by the LVMH watch brands has been to use blockchain records to ensure no counterfeiting happens. But Hublot has taken it a step further, partnering with an artificial intelligence company to create a system that uses a phone camera to recognise every individual Hublot watch that will be sold in the future. You read that correctly – every individual Hublot. Hublot has been working with KerQuest for the last three years to develop this technology, with that time being spent in research and development to find a way to specifically identify each individual Hublot watch. They focused on the materials used in the watches and — in part thanks to the improvements in phone camera definition over the last few…
There are three reasons to gift your child a smartwatch. One, it is a great way to introduce your kid(s) to the horological world and get them going early on their love for a timekeeper on the wrist. The second reason is timing; the holidays are almost here. The third reason is, having done some research this week, they’re actually very handy for lots of reasons, from safety to communication to the ways that they can encourage a healthier lifestyle. Since the birth of the category, which the Swiss have no doubt dreaded in its world domination, smartwatches have become a fan favourite among wrists of all ages and sizes due to their extensive capabilities, ease of use, and capacity to accessorise. Just in case you were pondering if now was the time to gift a smartwatch to a child in your life, we have assembled a list of five popular choices for smartwatches for kids in 2020. 321OU Smart Watch The 321OU Smart Watch is an attractive enough entry watch into the smartwatch category. It is quite clear the watch takes inspiration in its form from the Apple Watch, the highest selling watch worldwide, and yet is effectively a…
Editor’s note: A few months back, we announced that former Editor of GQ Australia, Mike Christensen, was to be our first European Editor. In this series, ‘11 Days of Londoners’, Mike will be sharing the stories of a few notable local collectors, starting on Day 1 with King Nerd, and with a stellar lineup still to come. Lastly, you might ask, why 11 days? That, friends, will become clearer over time … If you’re going to drop out of university, you’d hope it was for a good reason. What if that reason was launching the career of 16-year-old Tinie Tempah when you were 21? That’s exactly what Dumi Oburota did, which started his days in the music business, where he still remains with a joint venture with Warner Music in London. He’s also one of the best-dressed gents on the planet – if you’re ever wondering what to look for this season, just check out his Instagram account. The story behind the watch you are wearing today I am wearing a Casio G-Shock x Bamford, which was given to me on my birthday by Tinie [Tempah]. We love what the Bamford team do with their watches. George is a good friend and this…
Truth be told, a lot of watch writing is often a bit dry, technical and, well, dull. Time+Tide’s Contributing Editor Luke Benedictus takes a different approach. In the latest issue of Good Weekend, the Saturday magazine inserted into The Age and Sydney Morning Herald, Luke offers a word of warning to any vintage-watch obsessive who’s about to splash the cash. As usual, Luke considers the subject from an unorthodox angle. “Obituary writers were traditionally hailed as the masters of euphemism,” he writes. “The squeamish reluctance to speak ill of the dead prompted the use of tactful doublespeak where ‘bon viveur’ was code for ‘alcoholic’ and ‘notable vivacity’ implied nymphomania, while ‘tireless raconteur’ meant a crushing bore you’d try to avoid at parties. “Yet such verbal chicanery is now eclipsed by the vintage watch trade, which has elevated the art of understatement to staggering heights. A watch dial faded by sun damage is knowingly described as ‘tropical’. Old diving watches are hailed if they have ‘ghost’ bezels (translation: heavily discoloured). Dial patina makes a watch more ‘collectable’, despite being a sign of decay. “What’s more, in a shameless act of successful marketing spin, such features even raise a watch’s price. These…