LORD MAYOR STEPS UP SECURITY FOR AMBASSADORS’ RECEPTIONS November 24, 2011 IT HAD to be the Queen. “No-one else has that level of police presence,” said one City observer when he noted a convoy of four police motorbikes and two impressive cars making its way towards the Walbrook Building in stately fashion. But no – it was Lord Mayor David Wootton, who had stepped up his [...]
The lightest dinner out in town September 26, 2011 Galoupet 13 Beauchamp Place, SW3 1NQ 0207 036 3600; www.galoupet.co.uk FOOD *** SERVICE **** ATMOSPHERE *** Cost per person without wine: £40 THERE is so much that is pleasing about Galoupet. It looks like the kind of place you’d find in one of those super-cool northern European cities like Malmo or Arrhus, frequented by thin-legged [...]
EXPANDED MAREX SPECTRON CALLS ON BORIS FOR BISHOPSGATE MOVE November 16, 2011 WE ARE positive about the outlook for our business, said broker Marex Spectron when it unveiled its 83 per cent boost in operating profits on Tuesday night. No charitable donations were paid out during the year to 31 March – just dividends to shareholders of £5.3m – but all that changed as of yesterday, when [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 9, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES WATCHDOG HITS FRENCH AUDITORS French auditors have been lambasted by the UK’s leading accountancy regulator for their performance during the Greek debt crisis. Stephen Haddrill, chief executive of the Financial Reporting Council, criticised the way French banks and insurers had been allowed by their auditors to post smaller losses on Greek government bonds [...]
A day on M15’s digital forensic specialist team October 5, 2011 AFTER graduating from university with a degree in IT, I spent eighteen months working in the finance sector. I enjoyed the work, which had good prospects, but I realised that I wanted to do something that offered me the chance to put my IT skills to use while making a real, tangible difference. When I [...]
THE IPHONE 4S October 5, 2011 Context is everything. Ad-man Martin Lindstrom published research this week claiming the sound of children laughing is the most “powerful”, “affecting” and “reassuring” sound in the world. But if you’re alone in an abandoned Victorian mental asylum, at night, with no torch, dizzy from an unexplained head wound… Different story, believe me. Such is the [...]
TAXI TYCOON RETURNS FOOT MESSENGERS TO SQUARE MILE STREETS August 17, 2011 HAS THE City returned to 1975? Foot messengers, once a familiar sight on the streets of the Square Mile before computers killed them off, returned this week to deliver documents by hand as “the most environmentally friendly couriers in town”. Harbottle and Lewis, SJD Accountancy and Maxxim Consulting all signed up for the service, which [...]
From hotels to hearty, classy bistros August 1, 2011 Bistro du Vin 40 St John Street, EC1M 4DL www.bistroduvinandbar.com FOOD *** SERVICE *** ATMOSPHERE *** Cost per person without wine: £35 IT’S hard to get excited about the name. If I didn’t know better, I’d bracket “Bistro du Vin” along with generic, naff, budget chains like Bella Pasta and Café Rouge, particularly upon learning [...]
A downhill struggle: a first timer’s ski odyssey September 25, 2011 AS a country, we are obsessed with what separates us. North-South; rich-poor; black-white; upper, middle or working class. I’ve always thought that skiing holidays, for the Brits at least, offer one of the most reliable dividing lines. Personally, I would do away the census and ask one question: have you been on a skiing holiday [...]
Edges smoothed on Swiss prices September 15, 2011 ORDINARY mortals find the cost of a single pizza in Switzerland staggering – friends reported having to pay SFR50 for one in Verbier a few weeks ago. Indeed, with the Swiss franc having appreciated by 20 per cent against the euro in the last 12 months alone, the Swiss economy has felt the effects on [...]