Welcome to the BlogTour for The Bespokist Society Guide to..London. Today you are in for something a little different. The Bespokist Society is the exception to the rule when it comes to guide books. It is the kind of inside info you just know your friends are going to be gagging to hear about, and please do not miss the excellent Q&A with The Bespokist Society and the people behind the idea.
About the Authors
Who are we?
A social collective with a passion for the curated and the bespoke. Current chairman is Tommy Sponge.
Where did it begin?
Like the impressionists who forged an artistic movement in the fin de siecle coffee shops of Paris, The Bespokist Society began in a biospheric winery in Norbiton in 2013.
Jez Tapano
Born : Easter Island
Lives : Plaistow
Favourite drink : Messy Monk IPA
Favourite food : Heritage carrots
Favourite hangout : Vine n Vinyl of course!
Nastya Petrov
Born : Vladivostock
Lives : Harrow on the Hill
Favourite drink : Dagenham Gin on the rocks
Favourite food : Rare breed walrus
Favourite hangout : Nina Saviceu gallery
Follow @TheBespokist on Twitter
Visit bespokistsociety.com
Buy The Bespokist Society Guide to...London
As the first travel book produced by the hugely influential Bespokist Society, this handy guide takes you to a London you’ve never seen: a London of challenging Etruscan restaurants, edgy branding parlours, emoji hotels and hidden Icelandic communities; a London where 8-ply toilet paper is a thing.
On the way, meet an eclectic band of inspiring Londoners - from scriveners to socialites via urban wordsmiths and coffee preachers - and see why London is now the global epicentre of Bespokist consciousness, community and culture.
The Q&A is just as amusing as The Bespokist Society Guide itself...please enjoy:
When did you realise that we all need this particular type of guide, especially anyone living in or visiting London? I think the trigger was when our chairman, Tommy Sponge, went into WH Smiths in Norbiton and was unable to find any guide book showcasing genuinely bespoke destinations! He wrote a furious letter to the Chairman of WH Smiths but in the end decided that the Bespokist Society needed to write its own guide.
Have you got any inside tips on catching The Yeast Extractors before the Marmite sandwiches are sold out every morning. Damn those Wilmots they’re elusive to say the least.
We know that there are whole internet chat rooms where fans use complex, randomised logarithms to predict the next truck location. Unfortunately without success. The problem is that there is really no substitute for a Marmite sandwich from the Yeast Extractors. Tommy Sponge tried to make his own version at home recently and the results were disastrous!
There is a pretty pricey FREE membership tag to join the society. I don’t do cheques, would you take payment in the form of 449 newly polished pennies? You are forgetting that membership also entitles you to restricted view seats at See it, Say it, Sorted The Musical!
Unfortunately we don’t accept newly polished pennies but we would be delighted to offer you one of our bespoke payment plans personally tailored to your needs (*55% APR **your home is at risk if you do not keep up payments)
With such a vast variety of Bespokist venues to visit and the number rising by the minute I would love to know where TBS is headed next? A guide to Edinburgh, Newcastle or perhaps even over the water to mainland Europe? Think of the places you might find in Amsterdam…sorry I meant to say the places you will definitely find in Amsterdam. We’d love to. For us Peterborough is probably the natural next destination with its huge range of micro-vineyards and bespoke spinneries.
The Bespokist Society is the brainchild of Nastya Petrov and Jez Tepano the following questions are for you:
How did the idea for this guide and the society come about? What was/is your inspiration? Hate to break it to you but Nastya and Jez aren’t real! I was inspired by modern life in general but in particular reading ridiculous menus featuring foraged things I hadn’t heard of. I also remember walking past a very trendy place in Soho and being completely unsure whether it was a shop, office, gallery or restaurant. Not sure the people inside knew either.
Is the play on the acronym BS intentional?
Definitely! The name of The Bespokist Society actually came because I wanted to use BS as the initials!
I have to tell you my main concern is someone reading the Bespokist Guide and actually looking forward to trying out some of your well-described venues, although that says more about them and kind of makes your point for you. Yes, quite a few people do think the places are real. Which I find quite funny.
Is the book/guide intended as a tongue-in-cheek type or is the BSG your way of pointing a big finger at the shallow ‘I would like to buy the Emperor’s new clothes’ mindset of 21st century society? I wanted to keep the book light-hearted and message-free but I do think that 21st century earnestness needs a bit of a poke.
Will there be a sequel or is there something equally as droll on the horizon? We’re going to do an update and launch a new edition for Christmas. But I also want to create a spoof cookbook : Etrusci – The Cookbook, featuring delicious recipes and lifestyle tips from 500BC.
Thank you for answering all of my questions!
The Guide is a tongue-in-cheek sarcastic swipe at society and our sense of self-importance. If taken with the pinch of salt, as it is intended, then this is a really amusing read. If you take yourself too seriously you can ask The BS for specific details on how to find the venues. Please take pics and post to social media, I can't wait to see and read all about it.
That's my main concern, someone reading the Bespokist Guide to London and actually looking forward to trying out some of these well-described venues, although that says more about them and kind of makes the point of the book.
Unfortunately the 21st century has created something akin to the yuppie version of the hippy, a version mixed with the characteristics of an eco-warrior, health fanatic and overall saviour of the earth. I mean that in the nicest way possible, but one does get the feeling that it is sometimes more about appearances and less about saving the planet.
I just don't get the urge to drink coffee made from poop, eat grasshopper tacos (yes that's a thing), drink mushroom coffee (also a thing), or sniff ancient woolly mammoth faeces (hopefully never a thing). However there are a lot of people, who are always looking for the latest fad or following the latest craze, who might just enjoy it.
This is the perfect gift for friends with an unusual sense of humour or perhaps as coffee table book and an ice-breaker. It will certainly get conversations going, especially if some of your friends get excited about visiting one of the venues.
Finally, albeit reluctantly, I have to admit I would probably go looking for a few of those venues too.
Buy The Bespokist Society at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.
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