TRAVEL NOTES February 26, 2012 New palatial property in Marrakesh The Oetker Collection – which includes Le Bristol in Paris and the du Cap Eden Roc on the Cote d’Azur – is to unveil a deeply seductive new property, Le Palais Namaskar. Set in 50,000 sq m of Balinese-inspired scented gardens and designed by Philippe Starck protégée Imaad Rahmouni, the [...]
REVIEW: Rampart February 24, 2012 Film RAMPART Cert: 15 **** by Steve Dinneen The LAPD doesn’t get the easiest of rides from its local film studios. Rarely is there a film espousing its values as the saviour of the American people. Rampart, though, takes this to a whole new level. Woody Harrelson’s David Douglas Brown is as corrupt as they [...]
The buzz is coming back to Monaco February 23, 2012 IN its 1950s heyday, Monaco was a place of high European glamour and refinement, reigned over by Grace Kelly. Very much the rich – and royal – man’s St Tropez, it is now known more for its oligarch traffic jams, Formula One racing, casinos and cruise ship embarkation point. But a range of tax breaks [...]
FOCUS ON: STRATFORD, LONDON February 23, 2012 RICHFORD ROAD Price: £340,000 A four bedroom period conversion spread over four floors with front bay windows and access to private gardens. Go to www.foxtons.co.uk ANGEL LANE Price: £350,000 A twelfth floor, two bedroom flat in a modern high rise. Located a stone’s throw from the Underground and other transport links. Go to www.foxtons.co.uk CASPIAN [...]
SELL February 23, 2012 Managing Director of Kay & Co, central London estate agency Q. I want to sell my flat and it has 76 years left on the lease. Should I extend it first? A. Provided you have owned your flat for two years under Chapter II of Part 1 of The Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development [...]
PROPERTY NEWS February 23, 2012 LONDON OFFICE TAKE-UP POSITIVE Central London office take-up has seen a positive start to 2012 despite figures being below December levels. With some 840,000 sq ft transacted in January, take-up was 38 per cent higher than the same time last year, according to research by global property adviser CBRE. Docklands saw the largest increase, with [...]
Blood, sand and oil in Arabia February 23, 2012 Film BLACK GOLD Cert: 12A *** A battle has finished and dead bodies litter the sand, rotting in the unforgiving sun. The victor, Sultan Nesib (Antonio Banderas) demands the sons of the loser, Sultan Amar (Mark Strong), as hostages. Amar agrees, as insurance against future war. Finally, both agree that the wasteland on which they [...]
GOING OUT February 23, 2012 The big launch this week takes place on the site of recently closed Merah on Wells Street, Fitzrovia, an area getting livelier by the week. Project aims to offer the consummate VIP experience for House Music aficionados. Following a multi-million pound refurbishment and with Luca Maggiora (previously of Luxx) at the helm, this 400 capacity [...]
Jacobean tale of incest is a 21st century triumph February 23, 2012 Theatre ‘TIS PITY SHE’S A WHORE Barbican **** by Steve Dinneen JOHN Ford’s Jacobean tale of incest and revenge is dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century in this highly stylised and deliciously sinister production. The forbidden love between Giovanni and his sister Annabella is portrayed as a tender but doomed affair – similar [...]
How to find the next crop of cyber security experts February 22, 2012 Hacking group Anonymous rose from obscurity last year to become a household name. Earlier this month it intercepted a phone call between the FBI and UK police discussing, ironically, the fight against cyber crime. The audacious hack was the latest in a string of high profile attacks targeting governments, police forces and corporations across the [...]