David Suchet Opens the Celebrations for the Grays of Westminster Book Launch

The distinguished actor and keen photographer David Suchet O.B.E. (world-famous for his portrayal of Hercule Poirot) was the guest speaker at a glittering book launch on 5th May at Sir Terence Conrans restaurant, Quaglinos, in St. Jamess, London. The evening was held to celebrate the release of the book In the Company of Legends by Gillian Greenwood, a history of the legendary Nikon only dealer Grays of Westminster.

London, England May 17, 2004 -- The distinguished actor and keen photographer David Suchet O.B.E. (world-famous for his portrayal of Hercule Poirot) was the guest speaker at a glittering book launch on 5th May at Sir Terence Conrans restaurant, Quaglinos, in St. Jamess, London. The evening was held to celebrate the release of the book In the Company of Legends by Gillian Greenwood, a history of the legendary Nikon only dealer Grays of Westminster.

Gray Levett, co-founder of Grays of Westminster, warmly welcomed the guests and told stories of its modest beginnings from a tiny room in a basement flat with no money and no stock to what it is today. He also explained that when they took the pivotal decision to go exclusively Nikon, the announcement was met with almost universal derision. However, it became the best decision they had ever made; they immediately doubled their turnover and this past year they were 19.8% up with new Nikon sales on the previous record-breaking year!

Garry Coward-Williams, editor of the Amateur Photographer magazine, gave a welcoming address and described the sort of service that he had experienced from Grays of Westminster on a first-hand basis when he was seeking a hard-to-find and now long-discontinued accessory. This obscure object of desire was located with the minimum of fuss and with their usual courteous and old-world attention.

David Suchet reiterated similar thoughts on the Grays experience and gave a humorous account of the time he had called Gray from a Poirot film-set and had spoken to him in character as the Belgium sleuth. He described himself as an old-fashioned man who finds it a joy to always be looked after so well by Grays of Westminster and to be treated with exceptional warmth and interest combined with a vast knowledge of the Nikon system.

Among the sixty odd guests were Michael Bond, creator of Paddington Bear, Graham Hancock, (best-selling author of Fingerprints of the Gods and Heavens Mirror), Heather McGlone (editor Daily Mail Weekend magazine), William Cheung (editorial director Archant Specialist), Peter Bargh (publisher ePhotoZine), Darron Hartas (former editor Master Photographer), Terry Hope (editor BPI News), Jeremy Gilbert, Kevin Jordan and Mark Fury of Nikon U.K. Ltd, Brian Judge and Mike Sherry of Sky Photographic, the film director Jason Figgis, the Brothers Quay, two of the world's most original filmmakers, photographer Bruce Fleming (former official photographer to Jimi Hendrix), photographer Simon Marsden and Simon Stafford (technical editor Nikon Owner), as well as a herald from the College of Arms.

Grays of Westminster is not simply a famous Nikon camera shop; it is to many photographers around the world an institution. The Grays of Westminster name has become a byword for excellence. Grays of Westminster In the Company of Legends is a glossy hardcover book and is introduced by the celebrated society photographer Richard Young. It is an unusual and striking portrait of a unique shop. It tells the fascinating story of Grays of Westminster's development from its modest beginnings as a mail order company to its present glittering incarnation.

Find out why Stanley Kubrick, David Suchet, the Duchess of York and so many others entrusted their Nikon needs to Grays of Westminster.

Price: 25.00. Hardcover: 144 pages, 62 colour illustrations, 43 black & white illustrations 274 x 196mm. ISBN: 1-897802-21-8 Publisher Hove Books

For further details contact: Grays of Westminster on 020-7828 4925 (international +44 20-7828 4925)

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