The Kite Runner at Wyndham’s Theatre is competent and compelling but never really takes off January 12, 2017 If you weren’t content with only a book and a film, now The Kite Runner has been turned into a West End play. Fresh from a tour of the UK, this remarkably stripped back production could have done with a little beefing up now it’s found a stable home for a few months. The vast, [...]
La La Land review: Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone star in this giddy, joyous tale of young love in the big city January 12, 2017 The unanimous backslap that greeted La La Land at the Golden Globes last week has only reinforced the idea that Hollywood is head-over-heels, all-weekend-in-bed, marriage-and-babies in love with itself. And why not when it can churn out hits like this. La La Land is entirely deserving of its praise, and so much more than a [...]
Everton January spending set to reach £45m as Morgan Schneiderlin completes transfer from Manchester United January 12, 2017 Everton manager Ronald Koeman has hailed the signing of Morgan Schneiderlin after completing the £24m signing of his former Southampton midfielder. Schneiderlin’s move from Manchester United takes Everton’s January spending to £35m and they are expected to invest further on £10m Standard Liege forward Ishak Belfodil. “I’m very pleased because I know the player, I know [...]
Jonny Bairstow hopes heavy defeat acts as wake-up call for England ahead of one-day series with India January 12, 2017 England batsman Jonny Bairstow believes his side have had a wake up call after suffering a heavy defeat in their final warm-up clash prior to the start of the one-day series with India. Bairstow top scored for the tourists with 64 and opener Alex Hales made 51, although England slipped from 116-1 to 211-9 before [...]
Australian Open prize money 2017: How much can tennis stars win in Melbourne? January 12, 2017 Tennis stars will do battle for the second largest prize money reward in the sport's history when the Australian Open gets underway in Melbourne on Monday. A men’s and women’s singles champion prize of AUS$3.7m (£2.2m) is the most generous ever offered at the tournament and second only to last year’s US Open in size. This [...]
West Ham refuse to sell Dimitri Payet despite midfielder’s refusal to play for Hammers January 12, 2017 West Ham boss Slaven Bilic insists the club will not sell Dimitri Payet despite the France midfielder refusing to play in tomorrow’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace. Payet, a £10.7m signing from Marseille in 2015, is thought to be the subject of renewed interest from former side Marseille. The 29-year-old signed a bumper new [...]
Live By Night film review: Ben Affleck’s gangster epic can’t match its lofty aspirations January 12, 2017 For his fourth outing behind the camera, Ben Affleck sets his sights on the gangster epic, a genre that for many is the yardstick against which directorial greatness is measured. Returning once again to Boston (three of his four movies as director have been shot in the state where he grew up), Affleck also screen-writes, [...]
BU21 play review: London terror drama justifies transfer to Trafalgar Studios January 12, 2017 A plane explodes over West London. It’s been shot, we are told, by a handheld missile launched somewhere in Vauxhall. The wreckage kills hundreds, injures hundreds more, and reduces most of Fulham to rubble. Part of the force of Stuart Slade’s courageous, bitterly funny play comes from its plausibility – there is a sense, morbid [...]
Britons head into Australian Open on form as Johanna Konta and Dan Evans continue their march in Sydney January 12, 2017 British No1 Johanna Konta continued her encouraging preparations for next week’s Australian Open on Thursday by reaching only her third WTA Tour final at the Apia International in Sydney. Her progress capped a fine evening for British players at the tournament, after Dan Evans defeated a top-10 ranked opponent for the first time to advance [...]
Why the rise in footballers’ image rights values mean clubs and players are locked in contract negotiations for longer January 12, 2017 When David Beckham was asked in 2002 why his contract negotiations with Manchester United, which eventually took a year to complete, were taking so long, he was frank in his response. “It’s not the salary that’s a problem,” he admitted. “It’s just the image rights that needed a little perking.” Go onto any football social [...]