Q&A: Does it help if you are mad?
What's the best hat for the heat? There's nothing finer than a Panama. Ironically, these titfers come from Ecuador, not from Panama. They are made from the plaited leaves of the toquilla straw plant. It is said that the very best Panama can hold water and when rolled up be passed through a signet ring. They are woven by hand and known as Montecristi, after their town of origin, and can cost thousands of dollars. However, they are under threat from cheap Chinese competition.
That's out of my league. What else is there? Carrefour in Abu Dhabi is selling very natty polyester hats for Dh14 (US$3.80).
Why are hatters mad anyway? You're referring to the famous scene in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland with the Mad Hatter's tea party. It is commonly thought that hatters went mad due to their use of mercury when making hats. Best stick to a Panama.
A bowler, busby, capotain, caubeen, gat or ghutrah: it has well been said that if you want to get ahead, get a hat. But which to pick? Should it be a kepi, montera, porkpie, shtreimel, songkok or taqiyah? John F Kennedy, though in many ways an admirable fellow, is credited with causing the decline of hat wearing.
While it is an urban myth that he was not wearing a hat for his 1961 inauguration as US president, he was known as "hatless Jack", preferring to flaunt his locks and not appear an "old hat".
Hats became old hat, but they are coming back in fashion. I am not talking about the north Americans who wander around at all times in baseball caps, but the fedoras, trilbies and panamas that you see being worn by a youthful crew.
It is noticeable that the crowd at sporting events such as Wimbledon, Roland Garros and Lord's are often sporting them. Perhaps it's an awareness of the ageing effect of the sun.
But where to buy one? For my money, there is no finer hatter than Bates, Gentlemen's hatter of St James's, London. Lock's may be better known, but Bates' shop in Jermyn Street was magnificent. It used to have a stuffed cat displayed in a glass case (apparently the beast wandered into the shop in the 1920s and died a few days later, where it has remained ever since.)
I once bought a panama there and took it to Turkey, where I swapped it for a carpet. Other customers included Tom Jones, David Bowie, Peaches Geldof and Charlie Hoblyn, the city financier. Eric Clapton called it "the best hat shop in the world, bar none".
But the world of hatters were maddened a year or so ago when the Crown Estate, which owns the properties, decided to redevelop that end of Jermyn Street. Mr Bates found a temporary home at 73 Jermyn Street with Hilditch & Key, the shirtmaker, an arrangement that has since become permanent. You can now also buy hats at their branch in Paris in the beautiful arcade opposite the Tuileries Gardens, a civilizing influence on the French and not a beret in sight.
Top 5: Best-selling hats
1 Tweed cap
2 Racing felt
3 Trilby
4 Fedora
5 Panama
Source: Bates
The Quote: Live your life, do your work, then take your hat. Henry David Thoreau, US author and philosopher
rwright@thenational.ae
Company%20Profile
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
The%20specs
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Scoreline
Swansea 2
Grimes 20' (pen), Celina, 29'
Man City 3
Silva 69', Nordfeldt 78' (og), Aguero 88'
The five pillars of Islam
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The%20Letter%20Writer
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
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Checks continue
A High Court judge issued an interim order on Friday suspending a decision by Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots to direct a stop to Brexit agri-food checks at Northern Ireland ports.
Mr Justice Colton said he was making the temporary direction until a judicial review of the minister's unilateral action this week to order a halt to port checks that are required under the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Civil servants have yet to implement the instruction, pending legal clarity on their obligations, and checks are continuing.
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
All about the Sevens
Cape Town Sevens on Saturday and Sunday: Pools A – South Africa, Kenya, France, Russia; B – New Zealand, Australia, Spain, United States; C – England, Scotland, Argentina, Uganda; D – Fiji, Samoa, Canada, Wales
HSBC World Sevens Series standing after first leg in Dubai 1 South Africa; 2 New Zealand; 3 England; 4 Fiji; 5 Australia; 6 Samoa; 7 Kenya; 8 Scotland; 9 France; 10 Spain; 11 Argentina; 12 Canada; 13 Wales; 14 Uganda; 15 United States; 16 Russia
The biog
Full name: Aisha Abdulqader Saeed
Age: 34
Emirate: Dubai
Favourite quote: "No one has ever become poor by giving"