Bohemia Village Voice

Back to normal - Clive collecting books outside Bookmans Halt prior to shutting up shop on Saturday.

Clive Linklater has played host to a Vogue magazine fashion shoot at his shop, ‘Bookman’s Halt’ in Bohemia Road. The extraordinary incident happened a few weeks ago, and was recounted by Clive: “I was sorting out some books, when this car pulled up outside and a couple of chaps asked if they could look round the shop – with a view to using it as a backdrop for a fashion shoot.”

Clive agreed and the visitors took a lot of Polaroid shots to show other members of their team. “They later returned – there were eight of them altogether, including the model herself, – all crammed into the back of my shop.” Why on earth did they want to use his shop? “Apparently they were here in Bohemia looking for ‘unspoilt St Leonards’ locations,” said Clive.

BOWLER

Who was the model? “I can’t remember her name, but she appeared in Vogue this May. She was 6’2” and wore a bowler hat in some of the shots. And when she walked down Bohemia Road, she brought the traffic to a halt. I was told the pictures will appear in August in the Italian edition of Vogue,” said Clive. Why was she walking down Bohemia Road? “The team were here all day and she wanted to use the loo, so my daughter Sarah took her to my house in Salisbury Road.” Where did she change her clothes between shots? “In the back of the shop.” Did you close the shop for the day? “Oh, no, I stayed open for business – I just said ‘Excuse me, but we’re doing a photo shoot for Vogue’ – as if it happened every day.” Why do think your shop was chosen? “I was told that there aren’t second-hand bookshops in Italy like mine, they’re all quite posh.” So was the team Italian? “No, they were English, from London in fact. They explained that they do all of their work on a speculative basis and only get paid for about

one third of the work they do – but that pays for the rest.” Was it a profitable day for Clive? “They gave me a bottle of Champagne.”

BLACK UMBRELLA

Why did it take a team of eight to take a few pictures? “I don’t know, but one of the team was a hairdresser who just seemed to stand around all day – he was only asked once to help – he just flicked a lock of hair from the model’s face.”

incident [photo: Vogue Italy]

What sort of pictures were taken? “They needed a long black umbrella for one shot and my daughter Sarah popped into town to get a cheap one for them – it was for a shot in the shop doorway. But most of the pictures were taken in the back of the store. I was told they’d send me some of the pictures – but none have arrived yet.”

• Clive Linklater, Bookman’s Halt, 127, Bohemia Road, Bohemia Village.

 

Was Liz Hurley the model in question? It would explain the traffic stopping incident.