From its bustling metropolises to quaint villages, the UK offers diverse locations for luxury living. Spectacular residential properties range from historic country castles to cutting-edge city apartments. In this new series, The National showcases the best and most luxurious the UK has to offer.
Featured property
Seton Castle, Longniddry, East Lothian, EH32 0PG, £8,000,000/$10,545,112 (offers over)
Hail Mary
The modern Georgian Seton Castle was erected on the site of Seton Palace in 1789.
In its first incarnation Seton was regularly graced by Scottish aristocracy with Mary Queen of Scots a frequent visitor.
On one of these visits Mary somewhat scandalously played golf nearby.
Mary certainly couldn't have picked a better place to play golf. Seton is situated in East Lothian near the sea, an area so associated with the game that it has been given the moniker the "Golf Coast".
So if any keen golfers failed to purchase Cherry Hill, the Wentworth Championship course property featured in October, then Seton offers redemption. The pick of the panoply of courses which surrounds the castle is Open Championship host Muirfield, a mere Bryson DeChambeau seven iron away.
And if a love of golf is combined with a love of archaeology, then Seton is a nirvana as buried under the front lawn are the largely preserved remains of the original palace.
The Adam Family
Seton Castle in its current guise was designed by the acclaimed architect and designer Robert Adam using stone from the original palace.
The Adam family was to architecture what the Kanneh-Masons are to musical instruments. Robert's father William was Scotland's leading architect and his older brother, John, and younger brother, James, were also in the family trade.
It is a fair bet that anyone has made it in a particular pursuit when their name is used to describe a style or technique. The "Adam Style" revolved around the idea of architectural motion.
The usage is figurative though; there certainly isn't any danger of Seton Castle subsiding given it is built with incredibly thick walls.
Thick walls are a hallmark of Scottish buildings through the ages. When Scots first settled in Australia, they baffled natives with their penchant for girthy fortifications but it soon became clear that the method kept them as cool as it did warm.
So whilst Seton might not match the efficiency of this Bloomsbury eco-house, for a castle its energy conservation is outstanding.
Great Scot
In 2007 Seton was bought for £5 million, making it the most expensive house in Scotland.
It had been comprehensively renovated before the purchase but the current owners have done lots of additional work.
It's on the market with Savills and sales agent Jamie Macnab cites the "striking French oak flooring throughout".
His favourite feature, however, is the parterre courtyard, modelled on the gardens of the French renaissance.
It provides the perfect space in which to entertain and, for the more commercially minded buyer, Mr Macnab points out that it could easily be used to host functions and weddings.
Much is made of having a room with a view but anyone who buys Seton Castle could take this one step further.
"The views from the top of the castle looking over Edinburgh are incredible," says Mr Macnab.
He also highlights a medley of other beguiling features which you can see in the video at the top of the page and in the gallery below.
It would be remiss not to mention one particularly quirky feature bound to appeal to the discerning drinker. In one wing of the castle is an authentic cobblestoned tavern, an idyll for a post-work libation or three.
Seton Castle highlights
- Seven bedrooms and three separate self-contained cottages
- State-of-the-art gym, cinema, playroom and billiard room
- Huge double AGA kitchen and magnificent silk-lined dining room
- Working stables including a foaling stable
- 10,000-bottle wine cellar
- Sweeping spiral staircases
- Interior featuring array of silks
- Within 12 miles of Edinburgh and ideally located for some of Scotland's best schools, including Loretto
Seton Castle is on the market with Savills
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This gallery shows pictures of Seton in all its glory but if the life of a laird isn't for you, then here you can read why London is in high demand from Middle East buyers during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
UAE squad
Esha Oza (captain), Al Maseera Jahangir, Emily Thomas, Heena Hotchandani, Indhuja Nandakumar, Katie Thompson, Lavanya Keny, Mehak Thakur, Michelle Botha, Rinitha Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Siya Gokhale, Sashikala Silva, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish (wicketkeeper) Udeni Kuruppuarachchige, Vaishnave Mahesh.
UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – First ODI
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
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What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
FIXTURES
Nov 04-05: v Western Australia XI, Perth
Nov 08-11: v Cricket Australia XI, Adelaide
Nov 15-18 v Cricket Australia XI, Townsville (d/n)
Nov 23-27: 1ST TEST v AUSTRALIA, Brisbane
Dec 02-06: 2ND TEST v AUSTRALIA, Adelaide (d/n)
Dec 09-10: v Cricket Australia XI, Perth
Dec 14-18: 3RD TEST v AUSTRALIA, Perth
Dec 26-30 4TH TEST v AUSTRALIA, Melbourne
Jan 04-08: 5TH TEST v AUSTRALIA, Sydney
Note: d/n = day/night
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
If you go
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.
The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.
Simran
Director Hansal Mehta
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Soham Shah, Esha Tiwari Pandey
Three stars
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
