Cebu & Boracay paradise with flair March 25, 2012 HAVING recently visited nearby Malaysia, I thought I had a fair idea of what to expect from the Philippines. A bustling Asian melting pot where a hotchpotch of cultures, religions and cuisines collide in the middle of the Indian ocean, right? But stepping off the plane at our first stop – Mactan Island in Cebu [...]
FOCUS ON: CHALFONTS, BUCKS March 22, 2012 THE COTTAGE Price: £700,000 Situated in on the edge of the village, this three bedroom property forms part of an 18th Century home, divided in 1977 to form three residences. Contact www.knightfrank.com or 01494 675368 STOCKINGS HOUSE Price: £1.7m This five bedroom house is situated on the edge of Coleshill, on Bottrells Lane, a quiet [...]
SELL March 22, 2012 MANAGING DIRECTOR OF KAY & CO, CENTRAL LONDON ESTATE AGENCY Q. I am selling my house for £5m but the buyer’s survey report has shown that the roof needs some work and they want me to fix it between exchange and completion. The buyer’s surveyor is saying that they should allow up to £25,000 to [...]
PROPERTY NEWS March 22, 2012 GROSVENOR RENTS SHOW BUOYANT MARKET Property giant Grosvenor says it has secured a record rental price of £93 per sq ft for a prime property on Green Street in Mayfair, smashing the average area price of between £63-£65 per sq ft. The firm said the new tenants of the triplex apartments are European including one [...]
Revisit the very swinging 60s March 22, 2012 DANISH STYLE SOFA £449 FROM MADE This olive green Scandinavian-inspired sofa will add an air of effortless cool to your living room. made.com 60S STYLE PHONE £99 FROM JOHN LEWIS In an age of mobile phones, all landlines are pretty retro. Go the whole hog with this bright orange number. johnlewis.com CHROME ARMCHAIR £325 FROM [...]
The Master and Margarita: Surreal, nightmarish and brilliant March 22, 2012 THE MASTER AND MARGARITA | The Barbican | ★★★★★ Cowardice is the worst sin” is a phrase often repeated in Mikhail Bulgakov’s hallucinatory satire The Master and Margarita. And cowardice is certainly not an accusation that can be levelled at Complicite’s production – it is a bold, cacophonous, at times baffling play that never flinches [...]
GOING OUT March 22, 2012 The new Cinnamon Club Soho opens this week on the old Bar Red site on Kingly street. This is the third establishment from executive chef Vivek Singh who brought you the original Cinnamon Club in Westminster and the more contemporary Cinnamon Kitchen in the City. This time they have a younger, cheekier outlook and are [...]
Battle Royal comes to America in this terrifying post-apocalyptic thriller March 22, 2012 Film THE HUNGER GAMES 12A **** Every year in post-apocalypse North America, the Capitol of the nation of Palem forces the outer districts to send two teenagers as “tributes” to The Hunger Games. Half punishment for a failed up-rising, half reality show, The Hunger Games are an annual televised fight to the death where the [...]
Gangster saga hits right note March 22, 2012 Film WILD BILL Cert: 15 **** THIS isn’t your average East End gangster saga. Wild Bill is an impressively subtle, no-nonsense debut from first-time director Dexter Fletcher, centring around Bill Hayward (Charlie Creed-Miles), a troubled guy coming out of prison, trying to live the good life while still tangled up in his murky past. It [...]
Navy SEAL film plays like a bad recruitment video. These guys may deserve a great movie but this ain’t it March 22, 2012 Film ACT OF VALOUR Cert: 12A * Starring active duty US Navy SEALs alongside a smattering of actors, this fictionalised version of real operations follows the Bandito Platoon on a straightforward mission that leads to a terrorist conspiracy of unimaginable proportions. Following extensive interviews with the troops, directors Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh took five [...]