Throw an A-list PARTY in your back garden
She’s a fixer to the stars, from Jagger to Johnny Depp, and organises some of the most lavish bashes on Ibiza. Now, she reveals how you can...
THe list reads like a set of impossible challenges: book villas for Mick Jagger, sort out discreet suppers for George Clooney, arrange a massage for Johnny Depp and organise a 40th birthday party where Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell and Madonna can all shimmy on a white rose-strewn dance floor while Kanye West DJs.
Yet Serena Cook has done them all — and more. For the past 18 years the British fixer to the stars has been concierge and party planner extraordinaire on the ‘White Isle’ of Ibiza.
It’s a role that has her chartering boats for 150 people at a moment’s notice, booking tables at unbookable restaurants and generally managing the sky-high expectations of those with sky-high net worth.
‘I’m constantly having to up my game,’ says Serena, 46. ‘But throwing a good party is in my genes. My mother and my grandmother were both hostesses with the most, with extremely high standards. They taught me that entertaining is all about thoughtful little details.’
And A-list clientele certainly expect lots of those. One bride decided 24 hours before the big day that she wanted live monarch butterflies released at the end of the ceremony — despite the fact you can’t get them in Ibiza. (‘ We sourced 80 from Portugal and they were transported by DHL — they emerged from their chrysalises upon delivery.’)
Another wanted a birthday cake that was an exact replica of a Hermès Birkin bag. (‘It was flown in on a private jet from London.’)
There are some limits, though. The most outlandish request was for dancing bears and lion cubs for a Cirque Du Freak party (‘I said no!’).
According to Serena, who set up her events and expert concierge business Deliciously Sorted in 2002, the key is the ability to tailor everything to a client’s specific desires. She is now sharing the secrets of experience to help us all sprinkle stardust on summer bashes.
While rarely an issue for back garden parties, in her job discretion is a high priority.
Three years ago, Serena arranged the celebrity wedding of the year for actors Alicia Vikander and Michael Fassbender at a members-only boutique farmhouse hotel. The only detail Serena will share is that she employed 18 security guards to keep out the paparazzi. Serena has jaw- dropping villas, rock- star venues, chefs, drivers, masseurs, beauticians, hosts, butlers, waitresses and DJs at her disposal – as well as a ‘brilliant team’ of 20 experts. But although her most expensive event cost £1 million, she insists that a good party is more about letting your ‘ imagination sparkle’ than spending big bucks. Inventiveness is more important midpandemic — when we’re more likely to be hosting and sticking close to home. Here, she shares her secrets for bringing A- list glamour to any party . . .