Icons, Designers, Artists: Who Made Chelsea?

Join our expert panel as they discuss who most shaped Chelsea’s identity and continues to define it today.

About the event

Chelsea has long been home to figures who shaped art, literature, music and fashion. But who left the greatest mark, and who continues to embody the spirit of Chelsea today?

Our panel will explore how Chelsea’s past continues to shape its present and future. Each panellist will champion one individual they believe best represents the essence of Chelsea. At the end, you will get a chance to vote for your preferred champion to determine the winner.

Geoffrey Matthews will chair the discussion.

• Paul Trynka will highlight Brian Jones, founder of the Rolling Stones, who began as a slide guitarist but went on to sing backing vocals and play a wide variety of instruments on stage and in the studio

• Heather Tilbury Phillips will discuss Dame Mary Quant; the British design icon whose Chelsea shop transformed the fashion of the 1960s.

• Paul Gorman will turn to Nigel Waymouth, designer and artist, who co-founded the influential boutique Granny Takes a Trip.

• Kira Charatan will focus on George, 5th Earl Cadogan, who played an instrumental role in reshaping Chelsea’s architecture and built environment

• Matthew Sturgis will consider Oscar Wilde, who famously lived and wrote in the area.

Additional information

This event is eligible for our 20% ticket bundle discount.

Book tickets to three or more different events across the festival and you can save 20%. Tickets must be purchased in the same transaction and the discount will automatically be applied within the basket.

About the speakers

Paul Gorman is a British author, journalist and curator. His books include The Life & Times of Malcolm McLaren, The Story of The Face: The Magazine That Changed Culture and Granny Takes A Trip: High Fashion & High Times, which is published this month.  His work has appeared in publications including GQ, The Daily Telegraph, Mojo, and Vice. Alongside his journalism, Gorman has written and directed for television and film, and launched the fashion label ‘The Look Presents’ in collaboration with Topman. As a curator he has staged exhibitions on music, fashion, media and design in the UK, Europe and the US, including retrospectives on David Bowie, Barney Bubbles, Lloyd Johnson and Malcolm McLaren and the 2018 Somerset House show about cutting edge publications, PRINT! Tearing It Up.

Heather Tilbury Phillips was Director of Global Marketing at Mary Quant Limited in the 1970’s. She contributed to the Fashion and Textile Museum’s ‘Swinging London:  A Lifestyle Revolution’ exhibition and book featuring Terence Conran and Mary Quant. Heather was appointed Advisor to the V & A resulting in the outstandingly successful international Mary Quant exhibitions, as well as the accompanying book celebrating Mary Quant’s achievements 1955-1975 and was Associate Producer on Sadie Frost’s film ‘Quant’.   She continues to liaise with curators, other relevant organisations and international media.

Paul Trynka is a British author and rock journalist. From 1999 to 2003, he served as an editor of the music magazine Mojo. He has also been editorial director at Q and editor of International Musician. In 2004, he oversaw Dorling Kindersley’s collection of Mojo Special Limited-Edition issues on the Beatles. His writing has appeared in The Independent and Classic Rock, and he has contributed pieces on music, fashion, design, and travel to publications such as The Guardian, Elle, and Blueprint.

Matthew Sturgis is a British historian and biographer. A graduate of the University of Oxford, he has written widely as a critic and journalist and the author of several acclaimed biographies. His 2018 book Oscar: A Life was praised by reviewers as a definitive study of Wilde, described by The Guardian as “tremendous” and by the Evening Standard as “sympathetic and insightful,” setting it apart from earlier accounts of Wilde’s life.

Geoffrey Matthews is the Secretary and Chief Executive of the Chelsea Arts Club. He is a Director of National Theatre Enterprises Limited, a Trustee of the South Square Trust arts education charity and a Governor of St Paul’s Girls’ School. After reading Classics at Cambridge, Geoffrey completed a short service commission in the Irish Guards; he worked as a management consultant at McKinsey and as a Director of SRU Limited; was Managing Director of the National Gallery’s retail and publishing company; and was Project Private Secretary for TRH Princes William and Harry.

Kira Charatan has spent over two decades immersed in the historic archives of the Cadogan family and estate, uncovering rare treasures such as the Hon. Sir Edward Cadogan’s unpublished First World War diaries and photographs; leading to her co-authoring ‘Under Fire in the Dardanelles’ (2005). Her research has informed major publications including Cadogan and Chelsea: The Making of a Modern Estate (2017), Dan Cruickshank’s Built in Chelsea (2022), and Tamsin Perrett’s The Cadogan Family (2024). A seasoned spokesperson on Chelsea’s storied history, a frequent contributor to notable publications, and a passionate storyteller of Chelsea’s past, Kira brings history vividly to life with insight, curiosity, and flair.