HMV’s last stand has new toys but not much future December 19, 2011 SIX years ago, David Cameron famously taunted Tony Blair in the House of Commons by saying “He was the future once”. And at that point, ahead of Christmas 2005, the HMV Group seemed to have a future. Annual profits were still well over £100m, the age of digital downloading seemed a distant threat and HMV’s [...]
Santa’s red coat hides true Christmas magic December 19, 2011 THIS Christmas, my wife and I plan to watch a DVD of The Polar Express with our baby. It is a well-crafted, charming and magical film that we first saw in 2004. As we came out of the cinema into a cold, snowy Christmas Eve she asked if I’d enjoyed it. “Yes”, I said, “but [...]
RAPID RESPONSES December 19, 2011 US independence I greatly enjoyed Matt Ridley’s article on shale gas [In America, the shale gas revolution is creating jobs and growth. It can here too, last Thursday]. I believe it to be an important part of the USA’s strategy for becoming self sufficient in energy once more. The implications of America weaning itself off [...]
Hitting the right note at 34 December 19, 2011 Restaurant 34 34 Grosvenor Square, W1K 2HD Tel: 020 3350 3434 FOOD *** SERVICE ***** ATMOSPHERE ***** Cost per person without wine: £50 YOU missed Bill,” my companion informed me as I sat down to dinner at 34, the new restaurant from Richard Caring’s Caprice Holdings Group. “Bill Clinton,” he clarified. Like fellow Caprice outposts [...]
For turkey, try out a Nebbiolo December 19, 2011 IF you are roasting a Turkey this Christmas, I direct you to my earlier article on Thanksgiving (still available on the City A.M. website) – for more exotic meats read on. Duck, Goose and Pork are, let’s not mince words, fatty. What they need is a wine with a whack of acidity to cut through [...]
FOOD & BOOZE NEWS December 19, 2011 MONTHLY ART AT SUDA THAI Covent Garden’s Suda Thai restaurant (pictured left) is hosting monthly art installations to showcase work from up-and-coming artists. Kicking off is industrial designer Kijtanes Kajornrattanadech, whose Trace of Shadow collection is on display now. Following on in January will be a selection of works from award-winning photographer and columnist Oat [...]
Banks hit by Vickers as North Korean leader dies December 19, 2011 The FTSE 100 was solid this morning but the festering Eurozone crisis continued to sap confidence in riskier assets and banks were down as the government confirmed that they would be hit with the full impact of the Vickers Report. But the agenda was dominated by the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, sparking [...]
Ocado issues profit warning December 19, 2011 British online grocer Ocado said its full-year earnings were on track to rise by at least a quarter after an easing of supply bottlenecks at its main distribution centre helped weekly deliveries hit a new record. But Ocado, which mostly sells the products of high-end supermarket chain Waitrose, said underlying earnings for the year to [...]
HMV losses widen December 19, 2011 Entertainment retailer HMV, grappling with waning demand in its core CD and DVD markets, posted wider first-half losses and warned it faces a battle to stay in business. The 90-year-old group, famous for its Nipper the dog trademark, said it had adequate resources to continue trading for the foreseeable future. “However, the economic environment and [...]
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il dies December 19, 2011 North Korean leader Kim Jong-il died of a heart attack while on a train trip, state media has reported, sparking immediate concern over who is in control of the reclusive state and its nuclear programme. A tearful television announcer dressed in black said the 69-year old had died on Saturday of physical and mental over-work [...]
