When I was a child, I was given a tape recorder as a present. I taped everything. The radio (illegal). Me singing along to the radio (should have been illegal). And once, accidentally, my mother. ‘We can’t all live in Ravelston like the Browns,’ she’d said – an innocuous comment to me, but not to her. ‘Erase that,’ she commanded. ‘What if they hear it?’
‘They won’t hear it,’ I laughed. ‘How will they hear it?’ But my mother was adamant, so it was erased.
Ravelston was a posher Edinburgh neighbourhood than ours. The Browns had moved there from our street after Mr Brown got a promotion in the impenetrably opaque finance job that all men seemed to do. They’d recently invited us for lunch, and while they were still the same kind, down-to-earth people, their new house was fancy, with high ceilings, six bedrooms and a carp pond. ‘Thick skirting boards,’ my mother had noted, on the bus home. ‘And beautiful cornicing.’ Pause. ‘But a bugger to heat.’
I was reminded of this conversation as I watched Fleishman Is in Trouble, one of a slew of recent TV shows and films satirising the rich. The screen adaptation of Taffy Brodesser-Akner's novel is about many things, including the endless oneupmanship of wealth, and the unhappiness that lies beneath the outward trappings of the extremely wealthy. Too much is never enough, and never will be - a theme also explored in The White Lotus, which invites you to envy the characters' lifestyle and hate their entitlement but also to feel peculiarly sorry for them. Imagine drinking Veuve Cliquot at breakfast before nodding off on your sun-lounger, your diamonds glinting in the sun - yet still feeling empty inside.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة May 2023 من ELLE Singapore.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة May 2023 من ELLE Singapore.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
BRING ON THE Glow
Founding director of the Global Centre for Asian Women’s Health, Professor Cuilin Zhang shares why more should be invested in women’s health.
DEAR AGONY AUNT: What should I do?
The business of giving advice is booming, but who is qualified to offer guidance?
Harmony AMIDST THE HUSTLE
To cope with the relentless pace of corporate life, New York Times bestselling author Deepak Chopra unveils the keys to tranquility in the concrete jungle.
Follow THE GREEN PATH
Our pursuit of harmony with the planet is mirrored in the choices we make. We seek to adopt the best practices, drawing nourishment and inspiration from nature itself. Fortunately, the beauty industry is exploring promising avenues in this regard.
Embrace the Art OF JEONG
Creator of premium skincare brand Then I Met You, Charlotte Cho wants you to take a moment for yourself to connect with people… and your beauty products.
WHO'S THAT Girl?
For 2024, Dior proposes a new interpretation of its iconic Miss Dior—one that returns to the fragrance’s very roots in 1947. Natalie Portman shares her thoughts on the floral and fruity scent.
GO, GO, Gadget
From an AI-powered bespoke lipstick maker to at-home microdermabrasions, here are the latest gadgets for head-to-toe beauty to get your hands on.
STRAIGHT TO Perfection
From hot combs to keratin treatments and the craze on liquid hair, we take a look at hair straighteners of the past, present, and near future.
IN FULL bloom
Milly Carnivora is back with three new jewellery designs bearing the same hallmarks that made it a Dior classic.
Drab TO Fab
Reclaim your inner light with radiance-enhancing skincare and pigment-erasing treatments.