Pietersen told he could return to fold – if he plays county cricket March 1, 2015 INCOMING England cricket chief Colin Graves has offered Kevin Pietersen an England lifeline after refusing to rule out an international return for the maverick batsman. South African-born Pietersen was sacked by England last February and was later released by Surrey, while the 34-year-old has not played a competitive game longer in format that Twenty20 since [...]
Dominant finish ensures Sullivan a winning return to South Africa March 1, 2015 ENGLAND’S Andy Sullivan toasted his second European Tour title in the space of eight weeks – and qualification for an Open Championship debut – at the Joburg Open yesterday. The 27-year-old, whose only previous win on the tour came at the South Africa Open in January, carded a superb six-under-par final round of 66 to [...]
Theatre review: Closer is going through the motions February 27, 2015 Donmar Warehouse | ★★★☆☆ Patrick Marber’s Closer, which debuted at the National Theatre in 1997, is a caustic, bitter, sometimes hilarious exploration of modern relationships and the perils of lust. Those parts of us we keep hidden away – petty jealousies, nagging doubts that the grass is greener somewhere else – are laid bare, opened [...]
Forensics: The Anatomy of Crime at the Wellcome Collection – art review February 27, 2015 Wellcome Collection | ★★★★☆ After a £17.5m rebuild, the Wellcome Collection reopens with another stomach-churning exhibition for the “incurably curious”. The Institute of Sexology made visitors blush with an extensive collection of risqué artefacts, while Death: A Self-Portrait chilled them to the bone with ghoulish exhibits. Forensics: The Anatomy of Crime has more in [...]
Film review: It Follows is terrific, horrific fun February 27, 2015 Cert 18 | ★★★★☆ The last decade hasn’t been kind to the slasher movie. Its heyday came in the late 1970s and early 80s, with John Carpenter’s iconic Halloween, which paved the way for the likes of Friday 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street. Then Wes Craven reinvigorated the genre with 1996’s Scream – a [...]
Theatre review: The Nether at the Duke of York’s Theatre February 27, 2015 Duke of York’s Theatre | ★★★★★ In the near future, the internet has evolved into the Nether, a construct of increasingly convincing fantasy realms, where ever more people choose to escape the costs or privations of the real world. A man known as Sims (Stanley Townsend), has created a private realm called the Hideaway. It [...]
Arsenal’s bumper wage bill triggers £13m jump in football costs February 27, 2015 Arsenal’s new sponsorship deal with Puma contributed to a £10m increase in turnover in the six months ended 30 November 2014. Total turnover rose 7.9 per cent from £137.9m to £148.8m thanks to “strong growth in commercial activity” which Arsenal said enabled it to spend more on players and wages. The club says [...]
Rangers admit James Easdale was paid while working for the club February 27, 2015 Rangers have conceded that former director James Easdale was paid during his time at the club, after previously stating that he received "not received any remuneration". Today the Scottish club has clarified that Easdale was paid director's fees between August 2013 and December 2013 "in accordance with his contractual entitlements", but added that these were all [...]
Chelsea shirt sponsorship revenue to rise 122pc as Premier League brand flexes its muscle February 27, 2015 Chelsea will have the second-biggest shirt sponsorship deal in Premier League history after reaching an agreement with Japanese tyre manufacturers Yokohama Rubber. The deal is thought to be worth around £40m a year for five years, representing a significant jump on their current £18m-a-year deal with Samsung. Only Manchester United earn more [...]
Theatre review: Tour de force Ralph Fiennes steals the show in Man and Superman February 26, 2015 Lyttelton Theatre | ★★★★☆ Whew, how he does talk!” So exclaims the commodore from Don Juan, listening in as Ralph Fiennes’ garrulous Juan debates with the Devil. The same applies to Jack Tanner, Juan’s descendant and the protagonist of this supremely wordy play. First performed in 1905, George Bernard Shaw’s Man and Superman may be [...]