THREE OTHER TOP COMMUTER RESTAURANTS March 1, 2010 CHAPTER ONE, BROMLEY, KENT It may be in Bromley, but with a Michelin star and four AA rosettes, Chapter One is on the same plane as London’s Pied a Terre and Cambridge’s magnificent Midsummer House. It’s very nicely done French food with creative ingredients – if you live near Bromley, lucky you. Farnborough Common, Locksbottom, [...]
Luxury comes to Abu Dhabi’s glorious desert February 28, 2010 THE Liwa Desert is in the area known as the Empty Quarter, and is the largest uninterrupted stretch of desert in the world. This vast area, which extends into the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Yemen, was made famous through the adventures of the late British explorer Sir Wilfred Thesiger who wrote about [...]
TRAVEL NOTES – UK EASTER BREAKS February 28, 2010 Cameron House, Loch Lomond Children can stay for free over Easter at Cameron House, one of the most splendid hotels in the British Isles. It occupies a grand 18th century country pile on the bonnie bonnie banks of Loch Lomond, and you can go sailing and fishing on the loch, take a sea plane trip, [...]
Traders turning to stars for answers February 28, 2010 I’M sitting in an opulent suite at the Four Seasons Hampshire with about 20 other people, sipping tea and nibbling cakes. We’re here in deepest darkest Dogmersfield, a former hunting park of Henry VIII, to find out what the future holds – and what the chaotic present means – from one of the world’s most [...]
My colleagues are canoodling in the boardroom February 28, 2010 DEAR VEXED: A couple of colleagues have recently got into a relationship and they are being really indiscreet about it – I actually stumbled in on them snogging in the boardroom the other day when I went in to get something. It’s making everyone uncomfortable. Is there anything I can do or is this one [...]
The Americans are coming to Battersea, and it’s no wonder February 25, 2010 WHEN do you know if an area is going up in the world? Normally an influx of luxury hotels and award-winning restaurants should be a good enough sign, but the arrival of the embassy of the world’s most powerful country might just trump those. The American Embassy may not be due to open in the [...]
BUYING February 25, 2010 Camilla Dell MANAGING PARTNER AT BLACK BRICK Q.Dear Camilla, I’m buying a property as an investment and want to split it up into three or four flats to rent out. What is the procedure and the order in which I need to do this? A.The first thing you need to consider is whether splitting the [...]
FOCUS ON: NOTTING HILL February 25, 2010 LINDEN GARDENS, W2 Price: £850,000 The best feature of this two double bedroom maisonette is its decked roof garden with views over west London. The flat is on the fourth floor of a period building in the heart of Notting Hill. The kitchen is fully fitted and the open-plan reception room allows for flexible living [...]
Travolta goes over the top in Paris February 25, 2010 Film FROM PARIS WITH LOVE Cert: 15 YOU certainly can’t accuse this action comedy of being slow – its 90 minutes whistle by in a hale of bullets, explosions, cars, bodies and dodgy wisecracks. So it should be entertaining, shouldn’t it? Well, whether you find it so probably depends on your tolerance both for John [...]
OUT OF WEEKEND February 25, 2010 FILM MICMACS AMELIE AND DELICATESSEN DIRECTOR JEAN-PIERRE JEUNET SERVES UP ANOTHER DAZZLING FANTASY. EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES ROPEY DRAMA WITH HARRISON FORD TRYING TO FIND A CURE FOR POMPE DISEASE. LEAP YEAR AMY ADAMS AND MATTHEW GOODE STAR IN THIS IRISH-SET ROM COM. DVD THIS IS IT The Wacko industry rolls on – let’s face it, this [...]