THE BRITS were out in force for BritWeek’s Downton Abbey party Friday night on a glorious California evening at the Fairmont Miramar hotel and bungalows in Santa Monica.
Guests of honor were the show’s creator, Gareth Neame, and actress Laura Carmichael, who stars as Lady Edith Crawley. Among other notables in attendance were BritWeek general counsel Paul J. Wright, popular television actor Mark Harmon and wife Pam Dawber, and Academy Award-winning filmmaker and noted graphic designer Arnold Schwarzman, OBE, who told us all about his latest upcoming documentary on Margate, to be titled Margate Paradiso…..
Guests sipped champagne, nibbled on canapes and enjoyed live 1920s music from Richard Halpern and this band, with many attendees dressed in vintage cocktail attire in homage to the wildly successful ITV costume drama. There were also plenty of pre-prohibition cocktails from Berry Brothers & Rudd and Fever Tree and food from the Fairmont’s own FIG Restaurant. A special vintage photo booth from Boots was on hand to capture the evening and there were a couple of gorgeous Jaguar motor cars on display, which drew an non-stop parade of admirers.
The event was all in a good cause (of course), with proceeds benefiting local charity Big Brothers Big Sisters.
