The hard-core soft-top July 7, 2009 IF this road test ends abruptly, it is because I’ve been skewered by a BAE Hawk T1A aircraft flown by one of the Red Arrows display team, which as I am writing are rehearsing for the first day of the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Or the even more earsplitting Eurofighter Typhoon, which is now overhead [...]
How a 30-minute workout can help you beat the jet lag blues July 6, 2009 HUMANS were not built to cross multiple time zones in metal tubes flying at 600 mph. Then again, we weren’t built for a lot of the things we do and enjoy – were foie gras and chocolate fondant on God’s mind when He created our digestive systems? I doubt it. Jet lag is particularly disruptive, [...]
LONDON Where to revive July 6, 2009 Mandarin OrientalGo for the Ginger Ritual. This jet-lag busting treatment uses a finger pressure technique, whereby the therapist applies pressure to the body’s shiatsu points to stimulate the flow of energy. Ginger-infused hot towels over the kidneys and a deep massage boosts lymphatic flow and helps relieve the pain of cramped joints. 1 hour and [...]
OUT OF OFFICE July 6, 2009 SMIRNOFF BLACK SCREENINGSAnyone who fancies a cocktail with their classic film should head along to the Smirnoff Black Screenings at Chelsea’s Bluebird, which returns after a sell-out 1950s Hollywood series last year. The series offers 9pm big-screen showings of classic films – including Alfie and Casino Royale – in celebration of the silver screen’s most [...]
It’s vulgar and brash but perfect for a big old all-American blowout July 6, 2009 PLANET HOLLYWOOD60HAYMARKET, SW1Y 4QXTel: 020 7437 7639www.planethollywoodlondon.com FOODSERVICEATMOSPHERECost per person without wine: £20 WHEN I think of Planet Hollywood, I think of family-themed nights – sticky floors, screaming babies, hassled staff. But London’s new PH, a revamped affair just down the road from the old one, is trying to go for a different demographic. “Our [...]
OTHER AMERICAN RESTAURANTS July 6, 2009 HARD ROCK CAFEBelieve it or not, this is the original Hard Rock Cafe, and has now spawned over 140 others all over the globe. The recipe is pretty much the same wherever you go – American food, guitars on the wall and rock (not always of the hard variety) pumping out of the speakers. 150 [...]
Arabian ark an eccentric but brilliant getaway July 5, 2009 TWO cheetah brothers bask in the sunshine, panting as they stretch their lean bodies gracefully in the heat. Giraffes munch lazily on foliage while nearby a sand gazelle with her young jumps among the trees. The only sound to pierce the silence is the peacock’s call. I am lost in the scene until my driver [...]
WILDLIFE WONDER ARABIAN ORYX July 5, 2009 The Arabian oryx once roamed the Arabian peninsula in large herds covering thousands of kilometres as it followed the rains. But the animal, a species of antelope which has a white coat which helps it keep cool in the desert heat and large distinctive horns in both the male and female, was hunted to extinction [...]
Open air culture July 5, 2009 NOW that we’ve been experiencing the kind of clear blue skies and sunshine that put the last few summers, erm, in the shade, we’ve got to enjoy it. Summer in the city means making the most of its open spaces, and in this day and age, that means a whole lot more than plonking down [...]
Depp does the time but the film’s a crime July 2, 2009 FilmPUBLIC ENEMIESCert: 15 AFTER all the Terminators, Transformers, gory horror flicks and kids’ cartoons, it should be refreshing to sit down for a blockbuster that’s actually aimed at adults. Michael Mann, director of films such as Ali and Heat, has crafted a handsome-looking crime epic about the famous Thirties bank robber John Dillinger, with plenty [...]