| 18 August 2010
Financial Times columnist Mrs Moneypenny has, quite aptly, chosen to host her celebration of wealth in a shop that sells overpriced appliances to those who live a lifestyle few people will ever experience. I'm only here for the free champagne. As we walk into the 'kitchen' where the show takes place, the woman behind me announces she has already finished her drink – now that's the kind of rich people I can relate to. Mrs M asks the audience who has read her column and the hands shoot up across the room. I sit quietly, since I'm the kind of liberal lefty whose experience of aspirational living stretches only as far as hoping to one day be able to buy a bed-sit in Leith. The show is made up of anecdotes about flying on Concorde and lectures on hedge funds, interspersed by cooking demonstrations from the hired help.
We are constantly reminded of how much everything costs to the point where it seems like this is just one long advertising campaign. Everything is for sale. Mrs M is proud of the fact that she sent her children to boarding school and was able to 'outsource' their upbringing, referring to them as 'cost centres'. As she drones on about Asprey brooches and £420 shoes I have to remind myself that this isn't satire - this woman is real.
The show gives you a glimpse into a lifestyle of money and excess. It may be terrifying but at least rich people are generous with the refreshments.
Assembly @ AGA Showroom, 5-29 Aug (not 9, 16, 23), times vary
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