Ben Widdicombe

Feb 27, 2025 | townandcountrymag.com | Ben Widdicombe

A London billionaire industrialist recently convened a dinner at his mansion. The president of an oil-rich nation was invited, but the biggest surprise the host got was the intrusion into his tony abode of a most unexpected guest: a taster. A taster is the member of a VIP’s advance team who is tasked with going into well-appointed kitchens with a chemical kit to detect the presence of poison. The billionaire was somewhat taken aback by the cameo, but he was mortified by what happened next.

Feb 27, 2025 | yahoo.com | Ben Widdicombe

A London billionaire industrialist recently convened a dinner at his mansion. The president of an oil-rich nation was invited, but the biggest surprise the host got was the intrusion into his tony abode of a most unexpected guest: a taster. A taster is the member of a VIP’s advance team who is tasked with going into well-appointed kitchens with a chemical kit to detect the presence of poison. The billionaire was somewhat taken aback by the cameo, but he was mortified by what happened next.

Dec 10, 2024 | robbreport.com.au | Ben Widdicombe |Belinda Aucott

Ben Widdicombe waxes on the unexpected places we find joy at Christmas time. The poshest shop in the small mountain town where I live has a sign above the door saying “Joyeria.”Other local -erias mostly sell what they say they do: the gelateria sells gelato, the cafeteria sells coffee, and the pasteleria sells pastries. The joyeria, on the other hand, sells $22,000 earrings and men’s watches so encrusted in chunky glitz that they look like bait being devoured in a crab pot.

Nov 24, 2024 | townandcountrymag.com | Ben Widdicombe

For a certain type of very wealthy person, death is the ultimate affront to the ego. Call it the Ozymandias Complex. Like the legendary pharaoh, Rupert Murdoch may soon find out that even his vast legacy could be erased, if not by the whims of history then by those of his own family.

Jun 24, 2024 | robbreport.com.au | Ben Widdicombe |Belinda Aucott

Beware, the arch-enemy of the gringo nana-napper. Recently I decided to head for the hills—literally. In January, 26 years after this Queenslander moved to New York City, I sold my apartment there and started building a house in the Mexican mountain town of San Miguel de Allende. If you want a lifestyle change that forces you to reconsider the relative value of time, a move from Manhattan to regional Mexico will do it.