Eat, drink, sleep, repeat: London’s best dog-friendly restaurants Life&Style Last week Franco Manca announced that they have become ‘dog friendly’. This a welcome turnaround for the restaurant group that turned away a guide dog from one of their venues in 2018. Fortunately, this shameful incident led to my meeting with Dave Kent, the blind gentleman who required his trusty friend Chad to lead him [...]
Founder of whisky investment firm Hackstons tied to notorious ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ wine scam Investing A high-flying salesman who made millions during his time at a business that was subsequently exposed as a notorious wine scam is now running a West End whisky investment firm having changed his name, City AM can reveal. Alphie Valentine, 41, is the co-founder and director of Hackstons, whose flagship store opened in Knightsbridge in [...]
Ministers to be questioned on alleged Palestinian militant who crossed Channel Ministers are facing questions over reports an alleged Palestinian gunman illegally crossed the channel on a small boat. According to the Mail on Sunday, Abu Wadee is a former key member of a militant group who has called for the slaughter of all Jews and posed with AK-47s. Wadee, who is believed to be in [...]
Brits spent almost £1bn this Valentines Day March 5, 2025 Brits spent almost £1bn on flowers, gifts, and at-home meals this Valentine’s Day as shoppers sought to create a special occasion at home rather than splashing out at a restaurant. According to the latest NIQ Till Tracker, £962m was spent on food and gifting on Valentine’s Day, with the biggest growth in spending on flowers, [...]
Why The Gallivant is a wine-lover’s happy place February 25, 2025 Oh, The Gallivant, how I love you. I would say “let me count the ways” but there would be too many for this column’s wordcount. Despite my loving almost any excuse for a celebration, Valentines Day has not cut the proverbial mustard enough times and it has lost its lustre. Going out means sitting elbow [...]
Valentine’s day in 2025: Expensive dinners, cheap gifts and ‘bruv dates’ February 14, 2025 In case it wasn’t already clear by the availability of restaurant tables in central London this February 14th, Brits are ditching expensive gifts in favour of meals out with friends or partners this Valentine’s Day. It seems decades of films and songs have encouraged both singletons and those in relationships to get out of the [...]
Mad About The Boy: Bridget Jones returns with more of the same February 12, 2025 While she may be heralded as an icon of the late 90s, it appears every decade has needed Bridget Jones. The success of Helen Fielding’s novels led to a big screen adaptation and sequel in the 2000s, before 2016 saw star Renee Zellweger return in Bridget Jones’ Baby. Now, nearly 25 years on from the [...]
The Debate: Are growth and net zero incompatible? February 12, 2025 Are growth and net zero really star-crossed lovers, or can they find a happy marriage? We get two writers to hash it out in this week's Debate.
7 of the best Valentine’s Day events in London (whether you’re loved up or not) February 7, 2025 Valentine’s Day events in London for friends, lovers and everyone in-between Valentine’s Day is about as Marmite as it gets – as well as excluding people not in relationships, the schmaltzy day piles pressure on couples by suggesting they need to put on a big show of affection for their partner to prove their love. [...]
The most romantic restaurants in the City February 6, 2025 I’ve never met the intrepid Mr Gordon Ramsay, yet our lives have been semi-entwined for over two decades. During his initial peak in the noughties, as I began my own career, I recall my first experience dining in his The Londoner restaurant in NYC, where a maitre d’ complete with Dick Van Dyke accent greeted [...]