A Fun Jaunt through London Clubland
Seth Alexander Thévoz, London Clubland: A Companion for the Curious
Little, Brown Book Group. $27
The six words of the title was my first reaction upon closing Seth Thevoz’s London Clubland: A Companion for the Curious. To read this work was as delightful as the first bite of a club fry.
To Americans, British clubs have always been seen as unbearingly stuffy, costs ungodly amounts of money and possess a well-pedigreed membership to where one’s breathing might disturb their fellow club member. Thevoz does little to dispel this, but rather highlights that there isn’t a single universal standard for a British club.
Thevoz, much like writers of this publication, laments being asked to recommend a club or “rank” a club. Yours truly shrieks when someone says that he “reviews clubs” for this publication as if we run a Zagat for American Clubland.
Unlike American clubs, which are often categorized by function, British clubs are organized by a more complex array of affiliations that are familiar to Americans, such as dining clubs, university clubs, professional and military clubs (such as the Army and Navy and Calvary and Guards clubs), and less familiar such as the aristocratic clubs and the Pall Mall Clubs, or the vast clubhouses that line the iconic street in St. James, central London.
The broader array of club categories stretched across London’s 607 square miles (yes, we will not write in kilometers here) provide an unlimited opportunity for countless quirks and personalities to form in these spaces. Perhaps, even more than on our side of the pond.
The book is divided into two parts. The first being a detailed directory of London clubs with background information, reciprocity details, and notes on culture, membership personalities. A gem in each of these are the “what they want you to know” and “what they probably don’t want you to know” sections which never cease to simultaneously inform and entertain readers. The following portion of the book are brief chapters about club culture, such as membership dues (which the Brits seem to call “subscriptions”), hosting guests and the etiquette of conducting a reciprocal club visit.
Thevoz’s own humor, at times self-deprecating, shows up throughout the work. He boldly shares facts that many clubs surely wouldn’t want in print, debunks myths that clubs tell themselves and even has a chapter titled, “Conversations That Bore Me”.
The best of these being, “What’s the very best brand of champagne/cigars?” This was followed by a request for how to find the very best brand on discount.
It’s safe to say that picking up this book and sharing it with your American club pal will be the antidote to dull conversations. Not only will you realize that the Brits and the American club cats have more in common than we previously realized, but you will also discover your dream vacation.
Reader, take this as a promise: as soon as the opportunity arises, I will spend a period of no less than 10 days jaunting through London Clubland at the hospitality of friends and my respective reciprocal lists. Mr. Thevoz’s book will serve as my guide — and it should be yours as well.