Vivienne Westwood
Fashion designer, political activist
She continues to be Britain’s foremost maverick fashion designer after more than 40 years. She’s an avid campaigner for animal rights, human rights, and a supporter of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
Matt Peacock
CEO, Streetwise Opera
Streetwise Opera are the charity that help homeless people get back on their feet via the medium of opera. “We’re not about making people into musicians, the success for us is about people making tangible changes, so the confidence that you have after coming to one of our sessions might mean that you want to pick up the phone to an estranged family member, or that you put your name on the housing list or you go and have a meeting with the education and training worker” says CEO and founder Matt Peacock.
Kate Moss
Top model
Everybody loves Kate, and so do we. Why? She’s capable of changing dramatically from shoot to shoot and makes you want to buy whatever product she’s advertising. She exudes charisma and is unabashed about her party lifestyle, who wouldn’t want to hang around with her?
Sandra Schembri
CEO, House of St. Barnabas
In 2013 the House of St. Barnabas opened this non-profit private members’ club in the heart of Soho, where all monies are invested into a programme that trains homeless people in hospitality. Interview skills and CV workshops are part of the training, which aims to boost confidence and get people back into employment. Meanwhile the club itself is housed in a beautiful Grade I building, and has all the trappings their members would expect, with the added bonus that they’re helping a good cause. We applaud Sandra for running this unique operation. \n\nYinka Shonibare MBE
Artist
Yinka’s most prominent work so far has been “Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle”, commissioned in 2010 to appear on the fourth plinth of Trafalgar Square. Like so much of his work, the theme of the piece is colonialism and race; the ship is a replica of the HMS Victory, the sails of which are made from Indonesian batik, a traditional African patterned fabric sold by Dutch traders. Yinka’s work serves as a reminder of Europe’s colonial past, while making us question whether our attitudes have really moved on as much as we think.
Jodie Harsh
DJ, producer and promoter
London’s favourite drag queen started gay club night Room Service in 2010, which quickly became a hit with celebs like Stephen Fry, Pet Shop Boys and Roisin Murphy. She’s since exported the night to Paris, Tokyo and New York among others, and all while wearing fabulous Terry de Havilland shoes. Check out what she said when we asked her how she’d rule London for a day.
Daphne Guinness
Model, photographer’s muse, heiress to the Guinness fortune
One of the most stylish women in the world today, Guinness’ wardrobe is the stuff of fairytales, quite literally, as she favours fantastical creations by Alexander McQueen whom she was close to before his death. Since the passing of her good friend Isabella Blow, Daphne has ensured her collection of clothes is accessible to fashion students and enthusiasts. “I’m going to put together now a show of my friend’s clothes who died and I’m going to do that online so that people in New Zealand can see it because they might not be able to get to Central St. Martins” she said in 2012. Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore! at Somerset House was a highly acclaimed retrospective that ended in March 2014. Daphne has also talked about starting a mental health foundation in honour of her friends, who both committed suicide.
\n\nMark Francis-Vandelli
Reality TV star, society columnist
As well as being the best dressed man on Made in Chelsea, he’s our favourite character for his acerbic wit which has just a hint of bitchiness. Among them are gems such as “I once knew someone who had a sleeping bag, and the moment I found out, that friendship was over.”
Danny Boyle
Film director, screenwriter, producer
He first wowed us in 1996 with his adaptation of Trainspotting, and cemented his place as one of Britain’s top directors with 28 Days Later, The Beach and Slumdog Millionaire. His opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympics, where his depictions of the NHS and the industrial revolution filled viewers with pride, is still talked about almost two years on.
Robert Webb
Comedian, actor, writer
He may not be in the spotlight quite as much as his comedy partner David Mitchell (since David became the media’s go-to guy for opinions on anything and everything) but Webb’s response to Russell Brand’s rabble-rousing Newsnight speech about starting a “revolution” eloquently tore his argument apart.
We also like…
Nigel Harman for his super camped-up impression of Simon Cowell at the National Television Awards.
The Horsemeat Disco troupe for hosting London’s friendliest gay disco party every Sunday at the Eagle for the past decade.
Chris Morris for poking fun at Shoreditch hipsters in Nathan Barley before the rest of London was aware of them, and then managing to muster sympathy for the hapless terrorist bombers in his film Four Lions.
