Actor Sir Stephen Fry dines at Row on 5, gets a trim at Geo F Trumper and wants to fill the city with penny farthings

I used to see Diana Spencer about the place. Then she got married and moved away

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Home is…

Mostly a mix of the capital and Norfolk. In Norfolk since I was seven and in London since I left university.

Where do you stay in London?

Well, on the rare occasions that I have to stay in a hotel (the house is being fumigated or the roof re-slated perhaps) I tend to go for Claridge’s. To my mind it remains the finest of the old-style, five-star establishments. I’ve noticed that it isn’t cheap, so it remains a treat. Deco at its best. Service at its best.

Where was your first flat in London?

I shared a two-bedroom flat in Draycott Place, just off Sloane Square, in the early 1980s. Having Peter Jones and Partridges round the corner was an exquisite thing. Sloane Ranger territory. I used to see Diana Spencer about the place. Then she got married and moved away.

What was your first job here?

Well, same as it is now really. I started with sundry bits and occasional bobs for BBC radio and TV. Then a series for Granada: we met up (Hugh Laurie, Emma Thompson, Ben Elton, Robbie Coltrane and I) in the assistant producer’s house in Notting Hill, and in the Granada HQ in Golden Square. The series was shot in Manchester though.

Where would you recommend for a first date?