Eastern lights: Asia’s sleepless city August 15, 2010 A BRILLIANT meeting of East and West, it offers an unforgettable introduction to the Orient, and is the perfect place to explore a different culture while taking in the rugby at the Hong Kong Sevens (and, for the sports-mad, the golf at the Hong Kong Open Championship and the horse-racing at Happy Valley). Or just [...]
Rugby and more: Hong Kong Sevens August 15, 2010 THE end of March marks the time when the rugby nations come to town for three days of non-stop action on the pitch at the Hong Kong stadium near Happy Valley. Off-pitch it’s a non-stop party in the stands, where crowds of supporters from around the world decked out in all manner of fancy dress [...]
Forget yachts, try tweeds and guns August 12, 2010 AMONG the UK’s high-earners, some race cars, others sail yachts and others engage in the age-old tradition of country sports. And with the grouse shooting season kicking off yesterday, keen field sportsmen might be tempted to invest in a shoot of their own. Shooting estates don’t often come on the market and usually come with [...]
FOCUS ON: HAMPTON August 12, 2010 CHURCH STREET £750,000 A pretty, three-bedroom cottage in Hampton’s old village quarter, close to Hampton Court Palace and the Thames. Contact Tredinnick &?Bower on 020 8979 9922 or visit www.tredinnickandbower.co.uk MARLBOROUGH ROAD £1.25m A characterful detached house built in the 1930s in the Arts and Crafts style within half a mile of the area’s most [...]
LETTING August 12, 2010 CEO of online lettings agent www.upad.co.uk Q.My first ever tenant is nearing the end of their first six-month fixed tenancy. Should I get them to sign a new agreement? A.It’s entirely your choice whether you sign a new Assured Shorthold Tenancy?(AST) agreement or not. If you don’t, the tenancy becomes a “statutory periodic tenancy”. This [...]
PROPERTY NEWS August 12, 2010 SOLD! THE UK’S MOST EXPENSIVE HOME A penthouse in One Hyde Park, the lavish development in Knightsbridge, has entered the record books as the most expensive residential property in Britain – and, according to some estimates, the world – having been sold for £140m. The six bedroom apartment is spread over two floors with bullet [...]
Shyamalan’s new fantasy is anything but fantastic August 12, 2010 Film THE LAST AIRBENDER Cert: PG ASTITLES go, “The Last Airbender” is more likely to induce guffaws than the awe and wonder intended. Not as many guffaws, though – for British audiences anyway – as the numerous times characters in the film refer to the mystical fraternity of, well, “benders”. To be honest, anyone who’s [...]
GOING OUT August 12, 2010 August is the quietest month for clubs and so openings are thin on the ground in the West End. Last week however saw the launch of one of the biggest new venues in London (yes, Camden is in London) with a distinctly African theme. Shaka Zulu (www.ahaka-zulu.com) is Stables Market’s new destination restaurant, nightclub and [...]
OUT THIS WEEKEND August 12, 2010 FILM FIVE EASY PIECES Starring Jack Nicholson, one of the greatest films of the Seventies, on re-release. THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES Argentine thriller that won this year’s Best Foreign Language Oscar. LE REFUGE Perverse romantic drama by auteur director Francois Ozon. DVD THE BLIND SIDE Sugar-coated social drama with Sandra Bullock on Oscar-winning form. [...]
Let the game begin August 11, 2010 THE City can seem a pretty quiet place at this time of year – for the action, you need to head to the countryside. “Glorious” August 12 being the start of the game season, keen shots will today be filling their hip flasks, pulling on wellies and heading up in their droves to the high [...]