ROR was a British
interior design
Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. An interior designer is someone who plans, researches, coordin ...
company founded by Robin Cruikshank and
Ringo Starr
Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...
.
The pair had met when Robin Ltd., Cruikshank's company, aligned itself with
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developm ...
'
Apple Corps. Cruikshank designed furniture for Starr's new house, Round Hill on Compton Avenue in the Highgate district of north-west London.
The name of the company stands for Ringo or Robin.
The company was incorporated in 1968 with its offices on the top floor of the
Apple Corps headquarters at 3
Saville Row in the
West End of London
The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buil ...
. Starr owned 51% of the company to Cruickshank's 49%.
ROR's designs were placed on sale in the department stores of
Harvey Nichols
Harvey Nichols is a British luxury department store chain founded in 1831, at its flagship store in Knightsbridge, London. It sells designer fashion collections for men and women, fashion accessories, beauty products, fine wines and luxury f ...
and
Liberty of London.
The company closed in the mid 1980s.
One piece designed by ROR was the
grille of a
Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to:
* Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct
Automobiles
* Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated ...
car set into a stainless steel table. Starr had been inspired to create it after passing a car showroom near his house.
Notable projects
*A $10 million contract to design the interior of the Mushrif Palace in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
*Seeb Palace, Oman.
*The penthouse flat of the pornographer and property developer
Paul Raymond at Fitzhardinge House in Marylebone and his subsequent flat in Arlington House in Piccadilly.
Paul Willetts, Raymond's biographer, describes ROR's work for the Arlington House apartment as "gilt and silver" with a beige marble floor with mirrors in the lobby, dining room, bathroom and cocktail bar. Mirrors were also placed on the ceiling above Raymond's "vast troilism-friendly" bed.
*The top floor flat of
Harry Nilsson
Harry Edward Nilsson III (June 15, 1941 – January 15, 1994), sometimes credited as Nilsson, was an American singer-songwriter who reached the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. His work is characterized by pioneering vocal ov ...
at 9 Curzon Place in Mayfair. The bathrooms featured two etched glass mirrors, one of an oak tree and the other of a hangman's noose. This disturbed Nilsson who asked for it to be replaced.
References
{{Reflist
External links
A detailed blog on ROR with images 1968 establishments in England
Design companies of the United Kingdom
Interior design firms
Ringo Starr