Virgin Media pledges fibre broadband expansion to one million premises by 2019 April 27, 2016 Virgin Media has announced that it will be rolling out fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) broadband for one million homes and businesses over the next few years. The plans are part of Virgin Media’s £3bn expansion to grow its overall network by four million premises by 2019. Rivals BT and Sky are currently trialling FTTP or deploying it in smaller [...]
Kojawan restaurant at the Hilton Metropole is like a retro-futuristic art gallery in the sky April 26, 2016 Andrew Baggs overcomes a fear of high restaurants to thoroughly enjoy this Asian fusion izakaya Food | ★★★★☆ | Value ★★★★☆ | Vibe ★★★★☆ | Hilton Metropole, 225 Edgware Rd, W2 1JU Tel: 020 8088 0111 | Cost for two with wine: £140 I have, over the years, learnt to read the restaurant warning signs. There is an inverse relationship between [...]
UK house prices: Hundreds of thousands of homeowners who bought in 2007 are still stuck in negative equity April 25, 2016 Average house prices in more than half of UK towns and cities are still below 2007 levels, new research has claimed, trapping hundreds of thousands of people who bought at the top of the market in negative equity. Around 1.5 million property transactions were completed at the top of the market before the banking collapse [...]
As the world prepares for the Chelsea Flower Show, we meet up with the young superstars of landscape architecture April 25, 2016 Harry and David Rich, 28 and 25 Although not involved with the London shows this year, Welsh brothers Harry and David Rich already have a clutch of medals from three successive years at Chelsea. Having grown up with a love of gardening, it’s no surprise the siblings both decided to go into landscape design. Their [...]
A third of Londoners think cash will disappear within the next 10 years April 25, 2016 One-third of Londoners think that cash could disappear altogether within the next 10 years, according to a poll released today. Across the country as a whole, a big majority – 73 per cent – of people do not expect to be using cash themselves five years from now. The One Poll/Starcom research says that people [...]
Chinese consumers are changing their habits rapidly as luxury has suffered a slow death and online takes off April 24, 2016 Beijing is awash with restaurants, but locals Cherry and Andy Ho haven’t bothered going out to eat for months. The proliferation of Groupon-style coupons and deals means it’s easier to have food delivered. It’s half the cost, with no delivery charge – great for consumers, but not so good for some traditional businesses. Indeed, this was among [...]
National Golf Month kicks off this week, so here’s our guide to teeing off in central London April 24, 2016 For all its swanky bars and tourist attractions, central London is in dire need of a golf course. City workers are rarely seen carrying golf clubs in the Square Mile – many well-heeled workers either go through up-market travel agents or shell out for expensive memberships at clubs in the Home Counties to get their [...]
Property of the Week: This novel loft conversion doubled the living space at 28 Nottingham Place in Marylebone April 22, 2016 You’ve heard of wealthy homeowners digging down into their basements, but have you ever seen them build up? The owners of the fourth floor apartment at 28 Nottingham Place, a period building in the heart of Marylebone, have decided to do just that and increase their living space from 680sqft to 1,219sqft at the drop [...]
London construction activity slows as Brexit uncertainty and planning delays hit growth April 20, 2016 London's construction market suffered a sharp slowdown over the quarter, despite recent government efforts to encourage more housebuilding and deliver more homes across the capital. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' construction market survey found that private housing workloads rose at their slowest pace since fourth quarter of 2012, with only 20 per cent more of those working in the [...]
Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur: this is how to come out on top in a title race – and how to let it slip April 19, 2016 Suddenly pressure is mounting on Leicester in this, the most exciting Premier League season yet, after they dropped points against West Ham on Sunday and Tottenham cut their lead to five points 24 hours later. I can relate to the experience of both teams from my playing days at Everton, where we won the Division One [...]