The new 911: the ultimate geek car September 23, 2013 This tech-heavy, street-legal racer will have petrol-heads panting with anticipation IT’S bonkers fast, isn’t it?”, says my co-driver as we climb out of the latest Porsche 911 Turbo S. We’ve been chasing Alex Riberas, one of Porsche’s junior drivers, around the race track at Bilster Berg, Germany, at appropriately blistering speeds. It’s a tricky circuit, [...]
Not convinced? September 23, 2013 TRY THESE INSTEAD Ferrari 458, £178,526 Ferrari’s most beautiful car in recent years is a step up price-wise (you can easily the spec the car to above £200,000), though you’ll be pleased to hear it comes with carbon ceramic brakes as standard. Powered by a 570bhp 4.5-litre V8 petrol engine, 0-62mph takes just 3.4 seconds [...]
Should we all just stay in bed? September 23, 2013 NASA is paying guinea pigs to work from their bed – but how productive can we be outside of the office? Melissa York investigates the pros and cons of homeworking THIS week, US space agency NASA announced it was looking for regular guys like you and me to join a special project. Hold on before [...]
Accessorise your desk September 23, 2013 Alex Dymoke chooses a selection of stylish and useful gadgets for kitting out your workstation Fellowes 90S Shredder £192.60 amazon.co.uk Time to address that bulging drawer full of confidential documents that you know you can’t just bin. This powerful professional shredder can destroy 18 sheets of paper at a time as well as old credit [...]
A fun but shallow spectacle September 22, 2013 THEATRE A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM Noël Coward Theatre | By Xenobe Purvis Three Stars THE Michael Grandage Company turns to Shakespeare with A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the fourth in a series of productions. The play, which has suffered a history of hackneyed interpretations, is given a contemporary twist in Grandage’s hands, set in the hedonistic [...]
An extraordinary, enchanting exhibition September 22, 2013 ART RICHARD SERRA: DRAWINGS FOR THE COURTAULD The Courtauld | By Joseph Funnell Four Stars BEST known as a small treasure-trove of impressionist/ post-impressionist masterpieces, there is something a little extra-ordinary going on at the Courtauld Gallery. Atop its spiralling staircase we are confronted with an enigmatic set of forms that comprise a new body [...]
Where to drink September 22, 2013 LONDON is most definitely on the move, with a plethora of openings across the city. For adventurous spirits, head to Islington, where new cocktail bar Hoxley & Porter launched last week. Fashioned to resemble a deluxe train carriage from the halcyon days of African exploration, the room is one of a kind, featuring a dark [...]
Fly away to the fantastical mountains of St Lucia September 22, 2013 There’s a lot of local charm beyond the idyllic beaches, azure waters and postcard sunsets, says Oliver Pickup WHAT connects Superman, Amy Winehouse, Oprah Winfrey, Blackbeard and Napoléon Bonaparte? No, it’s not my ultimate dinner party guest list – although that would be some karaoke line up. The link is that they have all been [...]
Film review: Rush September 20, 2013 AMID the resigned sighs of many Formula One fans throughout the world, Sebastian Vettel is currently cruising his Red Bull towards a drearily comfortable fourth straight world title. Two consecutive wins have put the relatively young German 53 points clear of Fernando Alonso, whose attitude towards his Ferrari increasingly resembles my own sentiment whenever I [...]
A right royal mess of a biopic September 19, 2013 FILM DIANA Cert 12a | By Daniel O’Mahony One star OLIVER Hirschbiegel’s film is an excruciating, tacky attempt to tell the story of the last two years of Diana, Princess of Wales’ life, starring Naomi Watts as the press-hounded princess. It revolves around her love affair with heart surgeon Hasnat Khan (Naveen Andrews) and the [...]