Six Nations 2016: Vindicated Eddie Jones hails his England captain Dylan Hartley as a “likeable rogue” after Grand Slam triumph March 20, 2016 England head coach Eddie Jones has hailed “likeable rogue” Dylan Hartley after his decision to appoint the controversial hooker captain was vindicated by a first Six Nations Grand Slam since 2003. Jones also used his first media appearance since Saturday’s title-clinching 31-21 win in France to predict that his own perfect start was just the [...]
Australian Grand Prix: Fernando Alonso escapes 200mph crash as Nico Rosberg beats Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton in first race of season March 20, 2016 Double world champion Fernando Alonso admits he was lucky to survive a spectacular 200mph smash at the Australian Grand Prix, where Lewis Hamilton was beaten by Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg. Alonso’s McLaren was sent twirling through the air when he hit the Haas of Esteban Gutierrez on lap 17 and lost all four tyres and much [...]
Chinese investment in football continues as Freestyle Football receives £180,000 March 18, 2016 China's growing interest in football has extended beyond even traditional forms of the beautiful game. Freestyle Football Limited, the commercial arm of freestyle football's governing body, has received a £180,000 investment from the Shanghai XiaoYuan Culture Communication Corporation for a 10 per cent stake. The firm owns schools in China, Australia and Cambodia and has an agreement [...]
Six Nations 2016: Billy Vunipola on course to shatter England records in Grand Slam decider v France March 18, 2016 England’s task on Saturday is simple: beat France in Paris and crown a first Six Nations title in five years with a first Grand Slam since 2003. Should they do so, Eddie Jones’s men could be forgiven for paying little heed to the championship stats as they crack open beers in the Stade de France [...]
Six Nations 2016: England predicted to beat France and win grand slam according to complex mathematical formula from insurance group QBE March 18, 2016 England will win the grand slam by the finest of margins on Saturday – that's according to insurance firm QBE who have devised a complex formula to predict the outcome of Six Nations matches. QBE's rugby predictor has correctly forecast 9 of 12 results so far this tournament and came within two points of the [...]
Tottenham Hotspur 1, Borussia Dortmund 2 (Agg: 1-5): Pochettino urges Spurs to achieve “big things” in Premier League after European exit March 17, 2016 Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino brushed off a predictable European exit and urged his side to achieve “big things” in the Premier League after being outclassed by Borussia Dortmund. Trailing 3-0 from the first leg, Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang chalked up his 35th goal of the season with a clinical double before a well-beaten Spurs replied [...]
Football betting: Noisy neighbours Manchester City to deafen Manchester United in derby March 17, 2016 There is more than bragging rights at stake as Manchester City host Manchester United on Sunday. Beyond the search for superiority in the playgrounds and pubs of the north west, this match could prove key in the final Premier League shake-up. City, in fourth, are four points above their rivals and know victory could go a [...]
Miss Atomic Bomb is an explosive night out that will make the audience fallout of the theatre in a glow March 17, 2016 St James Theatre | ★★★☆☆ Miss Atomic Bomb has suffered from theatre critics’ love of mean-spirited puns, with some suggesting it failed to detonate and others, less inventively, just saying it bombed. These assessments are overly harsh; though nobody would call it a blast, there’s a critical mass of enjoyable material here, such that after it [...]
Jane Horrocks’ love letter to post punk and new wave is a brilliant vanity project March 17, 2016 Young Vic | ★★★★☆ Jane Horrocks’ If You Kiss Me, Kiss Me is the kind of midlife crisis I hope I have one day. The star of The Rise and Fall of Little Voice and Absolutely Fabulous has been recording music with producer Kipper, because why the hell not? And why not perform it at [...]
Tom Hiddleston shines in High Rise, a stylish adaptation of JG Ballard’s architectural dystopia March 17, 2016 Dir. Ben Wheatley | ★★★★☆ "Later, as he sat on his balcony eating the dog, Dr Robert Laing reflected on the unusual events that had taken place within this huge apartment building during the previous three months.” The opening sentence of JG Ballard’s High Rise is up there with the English literary canon’s very best. It’s all [...]