A credit crunch movie that doesn’t hate bankers January 9, 2012 IF you had to guess where J.C. Chandor’s sympathies lie, you’d probably go with “anti-banker”. Had I met him without having watched a pre-release DVD of Margin Call, his art-house credit crunch thriller, I’d take one look at his skinny jeans, luxuriant black hair and air of New York cool and think: no way is [...]
ON FILM: BANKER MOVIES MADE SINCE 2008 January 9, 2012 Capitalism: A Love Story Michael Moore wouldn’t let something like the credit crunch go by without a stab at the system that has created global prosperity, and so we have his 2009 “documentary” in which he skewers the “casino mentality” of Wall Street and indicts capitalism as a whole. Tiresome. Too Big To Fail Based [...]
High-end house prices on the rise in London January 8, 2012 TOP-END house prices in London have kept rising despite global economic uncertainty, according to data seen by City A.M. Properties worth between £5m and £10m grew in value by 3.5 per cent in the year to the end of September 2011, research from Investec reveals. Houses worth between £1m and £2m increased in value by [...]
Lettings agency put up for sale January 8, 2012 A LETTINGS agency that plans to attract ex-City workers and bankers to expand its network of franchises has announced its intention to float on the Alternative Investment Market in a listing that will raise £8m including £3m in new money. Belvoir Lettings, which runs 142 franchised offices across the UK will be valued at around [...]
Be amazed by Africa’s stunning wilderness January 8, 2012 WE set off from London hotly anticipating both the serenity of the Mozambican beach and the rugged landscape and heart-pounding thrill of hunting (seeking not shooting) big game in the Tanzanian bush. It’s a trip that perfectly encapsulates the word “safari” – “long journey” in Swahili – for it takes in seven flights, five boat [...]
TRAVEL NOTES January 8, 2012 Bag a bargain trip to the Emerald Isle Bag a bargain trip to Ireland with a winter sale from Aer Lingus, which is offering flights to the Emerald Isle from just £19.99. For those heading further afield, you can fly to the States from as little as £199. The sale covers flights running from now [...]
The crooked and the odd in a slice of Gothic Americana January 8, 2012 THE DEVIL ALL THE TIME BY DONALD RAY POLLOCK Harvill Secker, £12.99 *** DONALD Ray Pollock was born in Knockemstiff, a ghost town in Ohio. Growing up and leaving high school early, Pollock was a truck driver and laborer at a local factory. Then, upon turning 50, he had “one heck of a midlife crisis”. [...]
Tearing your hair out over a man? It’s time to regain control January 8, 2012 HELPS SOLVE YOUR WORK-LIFE PROBLEMS DEAR VEXED: I met a guy at a Christmas party and we’ve seen each other a few times. I really like him but he’s playing it cool. Now I can’t stop thinking about him. When I get like this, I really struggle to concentrate on anything else – and have [...]
Sackings, cash and lust in Danish drama January 8, 2012 FALLING SIDEWAYS BY THOMAS E KENNEDY Bloomsbury, £17.99 *** A NATIVE of Queens, New York, Kennedy adopted Copenhagen nearly 30 years ago when he was offered a job for the Danish Medical Association, which he kept for 28 years. Struggling artists come in all forms, though, and Kennedy’s lifelong ambition to novelise at last came [...]
What is in store for 2012? January 5, 2012 From initial reservations about the strength of the property market at the start of the year to the unexpected uplift in house prices as the year progressed, 2011 was not an easy year to predict. Against a continuing environment of uncertainty, we ask the experts what they think we have in store this year and [...]