Whisky wonderland September 1, 2013 Scotland’s Jura may be remote, but it sure knows its drink THE Edinburgh Festival may finish today, but there’s still reason to head north of the border. Richard Paterson, Master Blender for the past 40 years at Glasgow-based whisky producer Whyte & Mackay (makers of Jura whisky), is a third generation whisky man who has [...]
Review: Bulgari Hotel September 1, 2013 Zoe Strimpel checks in for a slice of the high-life THE name Bulgari conjures images of diamonds and decadence – it’s appropriate that its first UK hotel is in that home of international wealth, Knightsbridge. Its probably only a matter of time until the Gucci Hotel opens up on Sloane Street, or Fendi launches a [...]
How to make your fitness regime stick August 26, 2013 HOW TO MAKE THOSE FITNESS GOALS STICK Autumn can be a bit like the New Year when it comes to fitness goals. Well intentioned as you were at the start of the summer, you now realise there’s been more barbecued burgers than beach volleyball over the last couple of months. Before you start making a [...]
Review: What Maisie Knew August 23, 2013 FILM WHAT MAISIE KNEW Cert 12A Four Stars Maisie is six years old and already more emotionally mature than her flaky, dysfunctional parents. Her saucer eyes are wise – and sad – beyond her years. We stumble with her from scene to scene, placed in her shoes, trying to work out exactly what [...]
Theatre review: The Picture of Dorian Gray August 22, 2013 THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY | ★★☆☆☆ | thealchemicorder.com The location of The Alchemic Order’s production of The Picture of Dorian Gray is so secret I almost couldn’t find it. Eventually, on ringing the bell of an unassuming Greenwich townhouse, I was greeted by a moustachioed man in Victorian butler’s attire, who ushered me into [...]
Sun, sea and history in Sardinia August 22, 2013 The small town of Santa Teresa di Gallura on the northern tip of Sardinia held significant strategic importance for various Italian and Sardinian rulers over the ages. Traces of its history can still be spotted in the surrounding towns and villages, although today the economy is supported almost entirely by tourism. Santa Teresa’s population explodes [...]
Travel review: The Four Season’s Hotel George V in Paris August 22, 2013 I have a confession to make. I don’t like Paris and I don’t find Paris romantic. On the contrary I find it dirty, crowded and unsympathetic in every way. But I have family in Paris, so I often find myself there. On this particular occasion, it was my father’s 70th birthday. He’d summoned three generations [...]
Where to drink August 22, 2013 If the Notting Hill Carnival isn’t your cup of tea, there are plenty of interesting venues across London at which to drink away the bank holiday. In Fitzrovia, for instance, the perennially popular Sanderson is keeping its courtyard terrace fresh with an especially a la mode pop-up. Named Sanderson Green, it’s serving laid-back, haute fast [...]
Review: Rock Lobsta at Mahiki August 20, 2013 RESTAURANT 1 Dover St, Mayfair, W1S 4LD Tel: 020 7493 9529 FOOD Four Stars VALUE Three Stars ATMOSPHERE Three Stars Cost for two with drinks: £100 Once upon a time I worked for a newspaper in Bermuda called the Mid Ocean News. I say “worked” – we didn’t actually do very much. Every Friday we’d [...]
Mix it up: That’s not a Papa Doble…. I’ll show you a Papa Doble August 20, 2013 DESPITE the growing popularity of cocktails, many Y-chromosome-carrying homo sapiens still consider mixed drinks too effeminate for public consumption. It wasn’t always thus. Just read the stories of Ernest Hemingway: “Papa”, in his life and in his deeply autobiographical writing, makes modern models of masculinity look like 17th century foppishness. But the good work of [...]