I recreated all my favourite TV tropes, from crawling through pipes to being two kids in a trenchcoat
At the close: FTSE storms over 6,000 in shock four day nine per cent rally as share prices stay volatile February 17, 2016 The FTSE 100 has smashed through the 6,000 barrier, less than a week after falling to lows of just over 5,500. The top share index closed at 6,030.32, up 2.9 per cent on the day, adding over nine per cent in the last four trading sessions. The rebound comes amid recent extreme market volatility across Europe's stock markets, [...]
Saudi-Russian pledge to freeze oil production may be smoke and mirrors February 16, 2016 Stop press!! Saudi Arabia and Russia have agreed to freeze oil output!! At first glance, the remarks at today's meeting in Doha were hugely significant, coming both from the notoriously stubborn leader of the Opec cartel and one of the largest non-Opec producers in the world. Opec members Qatar and Venezeula, who were also at [...]
EU drops sanctions against Belarus in a bid to bolster support against Russia February 15, 2016 The European Union today lifted nearly all sanctions on Belarus, including against controversial President Alexander Lukashenko, in a move widely seen as part of the West's political strategy to strengthen its allies against Russia. Asset freezes and travel bans on 170 individuals and three companies were lifted, but the EU's foreign ministers decided to maintain [...]
Premier League fantasy football: Five transfer suggestions including Jose Fonte, Benik Afobe and James Milner February 13, 2016 Fantasy football players, it's time to get serious. The business end of the season is in sight. Are you deploying a second wild card to revamp your squad for the final straight? Or are you inspired by the Premier League-leading "tinkerman" and revamp your squad with some fresh blood for those in flagging form? Here's [...]
The End of Longing review: Could Matthew Perry’s new West End play BE any more like Friends? February 12, 2016 The Playhouse Theatre | ★★★★☆ It’s unfair to judge someone’s work based on a project they were involved in many, many years ago. But Matthew Perry, writer and star of new West End play The End of Longing, mentions Friends in the very first sentence of his programme notes, so he’s kind of asking for it. [...]
27-mile M6 Toll motorway to be put up for sale by its consortium of banker owners February 12, 2016 Britain's only toll motorway – a 27-mile stretch of free-cruising, uncongested motoring delight – has been put up for sale by its owners, City A.M. understands. It's thought the owners of the M6 Toll, which runs between Cannock and Coleshill in the West Midlands, want to take advantage of a jump in the number of [...]
London mayoral election 2016: Sadiq Khan has danced into the lead over Zac Goldsmith for London mayor, but how important will voter turnout be on 5 May? February 9, 2016 In three months’ time London will have a new mayor, ending the eight year era of Boris. Sadiq Khan may well be in the box seat with both pollsters and bookmakers at present, but the Tooting MP has a delicate dance to perform until voters head to their local polling places on 5 May. Khan’s [...]
Markets around Europe are tumbling on disappointing Chinese currency reserves February 8, 2016 Markets around Europe have plummeted following what started out looking like a good day. The FTSE 100 is down by nearly two per cent and at pixel time is at 5,744.05. It opened up this morning but has been unable to hold onto early gains. The blue chip index is now just 100 points off from becoming [...]
It’s Hillary v Rubio: The race for the White House has finally become clear February 8, 2016 Iowa, as ever, was full of surprises. On the surface, the most amazing thing about the state’s 2016 caucus was how easily conservative senator Ted Cruz beat his fellow Republicans, and what a nail-biter Democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders engaged in. But beyond these surface atmospherics, Iowa did its traditional job: it winnowed out [...]
FTSE 100 ends the week lower as European markets are hit by weak US jobs data February 5, 2016 After another tumultuous week on the markets, the FTSE 100 it 0.86 per cent lower, at 5,848 points, after weak US jobs data weighed on global markets. Other European markets followed suit, with the Cac falling 0.6 per cent to 4,200 points, while the Dax dipped 1.1 per cent to 9,286 points. The biggest fallers included [...]