London house where Herman Melville wrote Moby-Dick goes on sale January 27, 2025 The former Blue Plaque home of American author Herman Melville, where he wrote early drafts of Mody-Dick in the late 1840s, has gone on the market for £9m. The five-bedroom, four-storey townhouse on London’s Embankment housed Melville for two separate periods of the 1800s, and the nearby wharf served as inspiration – along with his [...]
Waterstones: Return to the office helps profit almost quadruple January 21, 2025 The return of employees to offices in major UK city centres helped profit almost quadruple at Waterstones during its latest financial year. The bookseller cited the trend of the return to work as a key factor in its pre-tax profit surging from £11.2m to £42.9m in the 12 months to 27 April, 2024. In newly-filed [...]
How can UK businesses prepare for Trump? Remember how he thinks January 21, 2025 The best approach to dealing with Trump? Resist the hysteria and remember how the President thinks, writes Michael Martins.
Waterstones plans dozens more UK stores as it mulls possible London or US IPO January 6, 2025 Waterstones boss James Daunt has said he plans to open dozens more bookshops this year in the UK, along with considering a potential flotation in London or New York. He told the Financial Times it would be “logical” to look at an initial public offering of a consolidated combination of Waterstones and Barnes & Noble [...]
How to write a wedding speech: A pro speechwriter’s top tips December 28, 2024 Have a role to play in the nuptials of a friend or family member? Professional speechwriter Alex Dymoke gives his advice on how to write a wedding speech, including managing nerves, getting the right tone and making it as personal as possible. The other day, at a birthday drinks at a musty little pub in [...]
The best books of 2024: From Sally Rooney to Boris Johnson December 12, 2024 Okay, that headline is ever-so-slightly misleading – while many of the entries on this list are indeed among the best books of 2024, others earn their place by virtue of being emblematic of their time (Boris Unleashed), zeitgeist-capturing (Bad Girls of Ancient Greece) or simply so utterly bonkers we felt they earned a spot (The [...]
‘It’s about confronting death’: The people paying authors to write their life story December 9, 2024 How do you want to be remembered? It’s a question humans have asked since time began, but have you ever paused to think about it – I mean really think about it? Who do you want to be remembered as, which stories do you want your grandchildren to hear? When you’re dead and gone and [...]
Best gifts for 2024: Our bumper Christmas Gift Guide of 44 must-buy presents November 29, 2024 It’s time to get serious about your presents, whether you’re looking for the best gifts for mum, top presents for dad or filling up a stocking for the rest of the family, we have you covered, from fashion to technology, fashion, fragrance and spirits. Check out our incredible annual gift guide, complete with links to [...]
In defence of wasting time October 3, 2024 Pleasure-focused pastimes such as reading fiction are being sacrificed for productivity-boosting pursuits. Anna Moloney, in repose, defends idleness.
Prince Harry’s best-selling memoir Spare drives sales at book publishing giant September 25, 2024 The success of Prince Harry’s best-selling memoir Spare helped drive sales at book publishing giant Random House, it has been revealed. The business, which is part of the Penguin Random House group, saw its turnover jump by 13.2 per cent to £262.3m in 2023, helped also by the Board of Lunch series which focuses on [...]