Here’s a round up of all the rumours about the John Lewis Christmas ad November 4, 2016 The internet is going wild about when an ad will hit TV screens. That’s right, the John Lewis Christmas ad cometh – and before it’s even out, the mums of cyberspace have been speculating about what it will be like, even though it will be played on tellyboxes ad nauseum until Christmas day arrives. Read more: [...]
Meet Tim Peake, the British astronaut who’ll spend Christmas day in space November 6, 2015 Tim Peake, the UK's only current official astronaut, is heading up to the International Space Station (ISS) for Christmas. Due to launch on 15 December, major Peake will spend six months in space conducting various experiments, such as growing proteins for drug research and using an electomagnetic levitating device to study new metals. But he [...]
Christmas sandwiches tested: which have been naughty and which are nice November 8, 2016 We filled a basket with the first crop of Christmas sandwiches – find out which ones we thought worthy of your lunch money and which to avoid like the Grinch. Pret Christmas lunch ★★★★☆ Too much going on here – piles of slightly-too-dry stuffing and a clumping of fillings in the middle. But saved by [...]
Day of the Mifids: Controversial EU Mifid II regulations for the asset management industry finally kick in January 3, 2018 A long-awaited regulatory shake-up, touted as the biggest to hit financial markets since the 1986 “big bang”, has finally rippled through the City and across Europe today. The second Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (known as Mifid II) has already cost top global banks and asset managers $2.1bn (£1.5bn), a study from the Boston Consulting [...]
Here are all the rail and station closures in London over Christmas October 31, 2016 Brace yourselves, commuters. There have been many headlines about incoming Christmas travel chaos, and now Network Rail has announced major station closures as an extensive programme of rail improvements goes ahead, it looks like there'll be a few more yet… Read more: Could Network Rail have to go cap in hand to the government? Rail [...]
Christmas day 2015 is looking more and more likely to be a white Christmas as bookies slash their odds October 22, 2015 Everybody dreams of a white Christmas, don’t they? This year, it’s become far more probable that’s what the UK is going to get. The Met Office says “for most parts of the UK, Christmas is right at the beginning of the period when it’s likely to snow. Looking at climate history, wintry weather is more likely [...]
European stocks stand up to terrorism November 1, 2017 London. Manchester. Brussels. Paris. Nice. Copenhagen. Stockholm. Normandy. These are just a few of the European cities struck by terrorists in recent years. Attacks are sadly becoming increasingly frequent, and whenever they occur, people speculate about the potential market and economic impact. It is impossible to know where or when terrorists will strike next, but [...]
No-el delivery: Christmas shutdown on the cards as union votes in favour of Royal Mail strikes October 3, 2017 A key hurdle preventing a Christmas shutdown of Britain’s postal service was today removed as Royal Mail’s main union backed industrial action. The Communication Workers Union (CWU), which represents 110,000 postal staff, today voted in favour of strike action with 89.1 per cent approval for the motion. Some 73.7 per cent of the membership voted [...]
It’s premature to talk about the end of Alastair Cook’s England captaincy – bowing out after revenge Down Under and reaching No1 Test ranking would be a more fitting farewell December 7, 2016 It would be fitting for Alastair Cook to continue as Test skipper, lead England to Australia next winter and right the wrongs of the previous tour Down Under, when we were mercilessly whitewashed. I have seen it argued that if England lose the fourth Test against India, which starts on Thursday, then Cook should relinquish [...]
Focus On Pimlico: Twenty per cent cheaper than its neighbours and still central, house prices are increasing in SW1P November 23, 2017 Pimlico must be pretty quiet at the weekends. It’s been London’s pied a terre hotspot since the mid-Noughties, meaning many of its inhabitants escape the area for their country retreats every Friday night. “A third of homes sold in SW1V so far this year have been bought by a second home owner, more than anywhere [...]