Land Rover Defender OCTA: Can an Off-Road Super SUV Really Conquer the City? July 15, 2026 | Sponsored With 635PS, Dakar-inspired engineering and a £147,000 price tag, the Defender OCTA is built for extremes – but does any of that make sense on urban streets? What is the Land Rover Defender OCTA and why is it gaining so much traction? Land Rover has a reputation for totally blinging out some of its models [...]
I saved hundreds watching a tribute band over the real thing July 15, 2026 Tired of spending hundreds on stadium gigs, Damien Gabet set off on a long, dark journey to Cheltenham to watch a System Of A Down tribute band. It might have been better than the real thing We can all recall a piece of music that, on first listening, irreversibly rewired our minds. I can vividly [...]
Everything’s going to sh*t. Here are 25 of the best dystopian novels July 15, 2026 The genre has roared back onto bookshelves and best-seller lists. Harry Owen asks why we keep returning to this bleakest of genres – and recommends some top dystopian fiction Dystopian fiction is once again lining the bookshelves of Waterstones. And is it any wonder? All good dystopia really hinges on its ‘plausibility’, the writer concocting [...]
50 years of hairdos: Meet the Dedicated Barber of Fleet Street July 15, 2026 Fleet Street barber shop Leonard & Michael is celebrating its 50th anniversary. We get a chop at one of the City’s oldest hairdressers, which has been nominated for Retailer of the Year at this October’s Toast the City Awards He’s the most dedicated hairdresser of Fleet Street, the man behind the barber shop that has [...]
Stunning Morgan Midsummer Coupe by Pininfarina revealed July 14, 2026 Morgan has unveiled a dramatic limited-production coupe, developed in collaboration with legendary Italian design house Pininafarina. The new Morgan Midsummer Coupe follows the roofless Midsummer roadster, launched in summer 2024. Just 50 examples of the convertible were made, but the fixed-roof Midsummer will be even rarer. Morgan plans to coachbuild just nine cars for selected [...]
Humble Grape is up for two Toast the City Awards: Here’s why July 14, 2026 We have launched the Toast the City awards 2026 and throughout the year we’ll be speaking to some of our amazing Finalists – today it’s Enya Buchenau, marketing manager at Humble Grape and Vivat Bacchus. To vote for your favourite Square Mile spots for the 2026 awards, from bars and restaurants to galleries and green [...]
Lamborghini Urus SE Performante is an even more super SUV July 14, 2026 Lamborghini has ramped up the power and aggression for its Urus SE SUV, with the launch of a new Performante version. Released 40 years after the original ‘Rambo Lambo’ LM002, the new Urus SE Performante is claimed to be the fastest SUV in the world. Like other Lamborghinis that have received the Performante treatment, the [...]
This is what proper British pub lock-ins used to be like July 14, 2026 If you’re under 60, you’re unlikely to have experienced a proper British pub lock-in. But there was a time when it was a cornerstone of a good night out, a rite of passage and a membership to an illicit club. Andy Blackmore tries to remember the good old days A few decades ago, this country [...]
McLaren 788HS debuts at Goodwood: It’s extreme July 13, 2026 Here’s our first look at the McLaren 788HS, a new British-built supercar and one of the stars of the 2026 Goodwood Festival of Speed. The V8-powered 788HS is an all-guns-blazing last hurrah for the 720S, 765LT and 750S model line, first introduced in 2017. Developed by McLaren Special Operations (MSO), the company’s in-house bespoke division, [...]
Why Theatre Deli is a City charity unlike any other July 13, 2026 We have launched the Toast the City awards 2026 and throughout the year we’ll be speaking to some of our nominees – this week it’s the amazing Bethan Screen, marketing coordinator from Theatre Deli. To vote for your favourite Square Mile spots for the 2026 awards, from bars and restaurants to galleries and green spaces, [...]