Cycling firm Velusso offers premium biking trips in the Balearics. We geared up to take them for a spin January 20, 2017 Cycling holiday firm Velusso has grand designs on satisfying the needs of City cycling enthusiasts. Its aim: to combine a luxurious break with a darn good workout while providing snippets of what it’s like to be a member of the Olympic cycling team. The post-London Olympic cycling boom led to increasing numbers of cycling holiday [...]
New Builds: New homes on the market this weekend in London from Help to Buy in Chiswick to luxury flats in Holborn January 20, 2017 500 Chiswick High Road, Chiswick From £420,000 Twenty-five apartments are going on sale tomorrow as part of the Government’s Help to Buy equity loan scheme for first time buyers. With private outdoor space, a concierge and underground parking, it’s a relatively affordable opportunity to buy into Chiswick, a smart west riverside area that’s popular with [...]
British sports car maker Zenos has gone into administration January 20, 2017 The Norfolk-based manufacturer of lightweight sports cars, Zenos, has revealed that it’s entered administration – citing a downturn in sales for it ceasing trading. The start-up company has been punching above its weight since it launched the brilliant E10 in January 2015. Journalists raved about the £26,995 Lotus rival – but, ultimately, it wasn’t enough [...]
Jackie review: Natalie Portman leads an outstanding production about the creation of a political myth January 20, 2017 In Jackie, blood clings to the First Lady like it does to Lady Macbeth. It stains her powder-pink skirt-suit, congeals in her hair, splashes onto her face like tears. It horrifies and fascinates her; she wears it like war-paint, with something approaching pride. But no matter how many times she tries to scrub it off, [...]
Promises, Promises at Southwark Playhouse review: a badly dated comedy that’s a gilded celebration of lechery January 20, 2017 I can’t think of a more appropriate start to the Trump era than revisiting Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s 1968 Broadway hit – a breezy chronicle of workplace sexism in which Boys Will Be Boys, whatever the cost, and women are either brutalised angels awaiting Mr Right or mouthy broads lounging in the clutches of [...]
Lion review: Nicole Kidman’s tender performance lifts this true story about a missing boy Googling his way home January 19, 2017 By Hollywood standards, the story of Lion sounds relatively prosaic: a child gets lost, is adopted, and years later uses Google Earth to find his family. But the telling of it touches on so many heart-tugging topics that it’ll have anyone who’s ever lost a kid, found a kid, or even met a kid blubbing [...]
Split review: M Night Shyamalan twists again like it’s 1998 with this return to reform split personality movie January 19, 2017 Come on let’s twist again, like we did in the early 2000s. It’s been a long time since a new M Night Shyamalan film was greeted with excitement. With a miserable streak of flops including The Happening, The Last Airbender and Will Smith misfire After Earth, many had given up on the twist-loving film maker [...]
From Michelin-starred restaurants to an exciting calendar of events, Macao has it all January 18, 2017 Travelling on business or for pleasure, Macao makes a perfect addition to a trip to Asia. Just 40 miles from Hong Kong, Macao’s potent mixture of Portuguese and Chinese heritage, refined over more than 500 years – it’s been a Special Administrative region of China since 1999 – makes for an exceptional getaway, where the [...]
How to dance with the devils in Peru at the carnival that will score you more kudos than Rio January 18, 2017 Everybody has heard of Rio’s Carnaval; score extra points at your next dinner party by shaking your thing at Peru’s Virgin of Candelaria festival. Taking place in the mountainous city of Puno – 12,770ft above sea level – in the two weeks beginning 31 January, this Catholic celebration involves lots of traditional Peruvian masks, huge [...]
The best new hotel suites in Europe, from the reopened Ritz, Paris, to the spectacular Westin in Hamburg January 18, 2017 There are certain things one can expect from hotels at the top end of the market: flawless, personalised service; rooms with minibars, rainshowers and designer bath products; a supremely comfortable bed; free wifi and fine-dining. Most of us will have a favourite hotel in the cities we frequent – perhaps it’s The Connaught in London, [...]