Little shop fetches a huge price
A TINY newsagents which sold for £1million has become Scotland’s most expensive commercial property by square foot.
The shop on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile has been sold to a private investor, achieving a Scottish record of £3871 per square foot.
It is currently occupied by J&S newsagents, who pay £18,100 a year for rent of its 258 square feet. The lease is due to run out in 2034.
The 18th-century listed building also doubles as a tourist shop selling See You Jimmy hats, fridge magnets and an array of tartan trinkets.
Gail Hunter, regional director of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors Scotland, said: “Being on the Royal Mile, in the heart of Edinburgh and on a key tourist trail, this property really is all about location, location, location.” AL PACINO never made her an offer she couldn’t refuse and her romance with Warren Beatty went off without a hitch.
Screen legend Diane Keaton has dated a few of her co-stars but never tied the knot – and she reckons it’s probably because of her mother.
The 71-year-old Annie Hall and Godfather star admitted: “Of course I was tempted to get married but mercifully I didn’t.
“I don’t think I’m marriage material. I got used to my mother being my assistant, in a certain sense.
“She was always helping me do what I wanted to do, so I didn’t really want to be a wife.
“In those days – I was born in 1946 – I didn’t really want what a woman’s role was. I think instinctively something in me knew, ‘Gee, that isn’t really what I want. I want someone to help me get what I want …’
“That’s what my mum represented, she was a unique mother.
“Everything I wanted to do, she tried to help me and they were all my ideas.
“I remember I went out and I sold earrings around the neighbourhood because I wanted to get money and she made the earrings.
“She facilitated, she was my first assistant in the grand scheme of things. I loved her dearly.”
Diane became a mother herself at 50, when she adopted daughter Dexter. Five years later, she adopted her son Duke.
She said: “You know, it’s a little old. It’s sort of like I should have been a grandmother and I was by myself, so it was a big task to take on.
“Of course, I wouldn’t have it any other way, ever, but I do think there are certain things that are probably best younger.
“How do I know how long I’m going to live? Of course, I’ve been lucky so far, it’s 21 years later and my daughter Dexter is 21.
“Motherhood does change everything.”
She was married to the Godfather in one of her first film roles and got her big break in classic 1977 romantic comedy Annie Hall, written, directed and co-starring her former boyfriend Woody Allen.
Diane has loved
I wish I’d been less hesitant and more assertive. But I’m happy with what I have
DIANE