15 years of the London Eye… in pictures March 9, 2015 It was a pretty epic aim to build the largest ferris wheel in Europe and London's tallest viewing point at 135m tall – no small feat of engineering. Here’s how it looked in 1999 before being raised. It weighed 1,500 tons and back then, was still known as the Millenium Wheel. That first attempt to [...]
Doping in cycling: Why middle-aged businessmen are embracing performance-enhancing drugs – and scaring the pros March 9, 2015 If a professional is taking a drug, what are they likely to be? Cocaine? Alcohol? According to a new Cycling Independent Reform Commission (CIRC) report into the state of international cycling, that depends on if the businessman's a cyclist. EPO (Erythropoietin) has been the drug of choice for elite athletes across the world. It has powered [...]
The Mencap Step Up Challenge: Charity runners conquer 1,672 steps to top of the Walkie Talkie March 9, 2015 Sundays are normally reserved for lazing around the house, doing chores or spending the afternoon in the pub. But not for the energetic fundraisers who ploughed through a charity fun run in the City yesterday. The Mencap Step Up Challenge saw participants run up three of the capital’s tallest buildings – ending with a dash [...]
Cheltenham Festival fever hits the City again March 8, 2015 PATRICK CALLAGHAN REPORTS FROM UNIBET’S CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL PREVIEW EVENT AT THE BREWERY HAVING been treated to some belting stories from Arsenal legend Paul Merson, the last guest interviewed at the Unibet-sponsored City A.M. Long Lunch on Friday afternoon, those that ventured downstairs after for the Cheltenham Festival Preview were in good spirits. Chaired by Channel [...]
General Election 2015: Miliband signs up to three debates, promises to face an empty chair if Cameron won’t attend March 7, 2015 Ed Miliband has promised to attend all three scheduled televised debates, with or without the Prime Minister. During a speech in Edinburgh, the Labour leader made it clear he was willing to debate, against an empty chair if necessary, whilst simultaneously refusing to be drawn on David Cameron’s challenge to rule out a coalition [...]
General Election 2015: Broadcasters will push ahead with debates March 6, 2015 Broadcasters will defy the prime minister and push ahead with three televised debates, even if David Cameron doesn’t attend. The Conservative leader has said he will appear once to face at least six other leaders, but not a second with the same format or a third against the opposition leader, Ed Miliband. This week Cameron [...]
Londoners set to benefit most from parking ticket “grace period” March 6, 2015 Driving in London is often described as something akin to a nightmare – from traffic jams, to sky-high parking prices and pushy motorists. But there's finally a bit of good news for the capital's understandably frazzled drivers. Drivers will get a ten-minute window after a council parking ticket runs out before they can be fined [...]
2015 General Election TV debates in doubt as scrapping over line-ups and schedules rumbles on March 5, 2015 A serious of election television debates between party leaders is looking increasingly unlikely, as the impasse between political parties and broadcasters deepens. On Wednesday, David Cameron made it clear that he didn’t want a one-on-one debate with Ed Miliband, just a week before the election. Later that evening, Downing Street head of communications Craig Oliver [...]
MLS strike avoided after talks go into injury time March 5, 2015 AMERICA’S most eagerly anticipated Major League Soccer season to date is set to kick off tonight after the threat of strike action was averted just 48 hours before the first match. Four days of negotiations between the players’ union and the league finally resulted in a new collective bargaining agreement and avoided a humiliating delay [...]
Alastair Campbell on winners: Are there any left in the Labour party? March 5, 2015 When the political satire In The Loop came out in 2009, the Culture Show did a segment in which the critic Mark Kermode watched the film with Alastair Campbell. Afterwards, a sourfaced Campbell delivered his verdict: “I didn’t find it terribly funny.” Kermode said he had sympathy with any representation of politics as venal and [...]