RENT February 16, 2012 HEAD OF RENTALS AT AYLESFORD INTERNATIONAL Q. I’ve recently come into the market for a buy-to let property and noticed that there are quite a few new developments nearing completion in 2012 – should I look to purchase a flat in a modern development or consider a converted flat in an older building? A. Whether [...]
Scottish house price dip means good value buys February 16, 2012 SCOTLAND: land of hunting, shooting, fishing…and fortified castles set amid hundreds of acres selling for less than £3m, the cost of a mere flat in certain parts of London. As Jamie Macnab, of Savills’ Edinburgh office, says: “Someone said to me once that four square miles of London is worth more than the whole of [...]
FOCUS ON: PUTNEY February 16, 2012 Roehampton Lane Price: £2.5m Detached, gated six bedroom house with four bathrooms, three reception rooms, kitchen/breakfast room, two cloakrooms, two balconies, an extensive garden, off-street parking and garage. Contact putney@hamptons-int.com Enmore Road Price: £2m Semi-detached family house with a wealth of period features, a west facing garden and gated off-street parking. Features five bedrooms, drawing [...]
THE LONDON BAROMETER February 16, 2012 There’s little doubt the market has potential with the highest number of buyers registering for 12 months. It seems the domestic market is picking up quickest with lower/middle level flats selling at last. The higher end is proving a little stickier in early 2012 as foreign buyers, driving prices north, pause for breath. Perhaps the [...]
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Twee February 16, 2012 Film EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE Cert: 12A ** by Steve Dinneen Tragedy can have a powerful effect on popular culture, be it on a local scale (the Smiths singing about the Moors murders; Terrence Malick’s Badlands on the Starkweather-Fugate killing spree) or as a reaction to global events (Japanese Manga’s fixation on nuclear holocaust; [...]
The revolution is now being televised… but will it be 3D? February 15, 2012 If I had a pound for every year I’d been told 3D was going to hit the mainstream, I’d have £3. And that’s not to be sniffed at in these troubled times. Last week George Lucas was the latest big name to throw his weight behind the format, saying the difference between 2D and 3D [...]
Pinterest is yet another glorious way to waste time February 15, 2012 Pinterest is the geek-fix de jour. What was a promising picture-based social network last year (TechCrunch rated it as the best startup and Time listed it in its top 50 websites) has entered the mainstream. Even the US military has got an account, presumably so it has somewhere to post its pictures of abused enemy [...]
OUT OF OFFICE February 15, 2012 NIGHT OUT CONCIERGE SERVICE Exclusive members only concierge service Innerplace is hosting a pop-up night at the Purple Bar at the Sanderson every Thursday this month, where in-the-know staff will be on hand with iPads to help plan your night ahead through their network of contacts and encyclopaedic knowledge of London nightlife. Or, alternatively, you [...]
Stylish descent into darkness February 15, 2012 WAITING FOR SUNRISE BY WILLIAM BOYD Bloomsbury, £18.99 **** Boyd is that rare breed of storyteller who manages to write books that are both thematically rich – nuanced and historical – and red-bloodedly gripping. The screen has a serious crush on him: his 2002 novel Any Human Heart led to an adaptation freshly garlanded by [...]
OUT OF OFFICE February 15, 2012 SHECHTER DOUBLE BILL IN PARIS If you happen to be visiting Paris this month, do not miss what we think is the greatest contemporary dance show on in Europe this year. Israeli choreographer Hofesh Shechter’s exquisite double bill includes The Art of Not Looking back – made for the female dancers of Schecter’s company – [...]