If you aren’t already familiar, Nicky Haslam ― an interior designer and socialite, of the “interior designer and socialite” class ― shares a tongue-in-cheek list of things he sees as “common” every year.
Selfridges then prints the old Etonian’s list onto a £50 tea towel, providing a failsafe Christmas gift for “napkin vs serviette” debaters nationwide.
This year, the swirling font spelt society snubs for lovers of WhatsApp, rescue dogs, and luxury cinemas.
So, I thought I ― a woman whose family tree could spread over half a forest before spurting a single leaf among the pages of Debrett’s, and who still thinks Vienetta is a bit posh ― would see how his theories held up.
Here’s my top, and bottom, five entries.
He got me with these:
Just handy, isn’t it?
People do sometimes live in Scotland for reasons other than Edinburgh uni, shooting, and reeling.
Does dinner mean lunch? I can’t remember. Either way, I’m afraid he’s right.
Yum! You know?
Maybe I’m just fond because my own pedigree is so poor.
As for where he got us wrong, I reckon some entries are hated across the divide:
No normal person wants to watch a twitching father-to-be drool in hopes that the sad sponge under Playdoh-like fondant is blue. Not even commoners.
The only people who like paying £25 to be shushed during an all-adult screening of Paddington are the shushers themselves.
The surely “common” (read: fellow state-educated Irish person) Saoirse-Monica Jackson said it better, and first, though.
I’m not sure what it is or why I should hate it, but if it’s on his radar, I’m willing to bet a lot of the parents suddenly have a lot of passionate thoughts on VAT.
The peasants demand a food truck revolt too. Sitting and real plates ― the great equalisers.
Other entries from this year’s list included:
