Glimpse the Big Five in Zambia’s beautiful (and quiet) savannah November 21, 2010 WE’RE sitting in the back of an open-topped jeep, manoeuvering our way over some rough terrain. The sherbet pink sun set around half an hour ago and already it is dark, the night sky inky black. Fannuel, our guide, has spotted something. He veers off the track and gingerly pulls up to the crest of [...]
Investing your love in bricks and mortar November 18, 2010 1 BUDGET Before you start the fun stuff – househunting – make sure you have covered the boring stuff: finances. Work out how much you can afford to put towards mortgage repayments each month, based on your joint net income, and joint outgoings. If, like Kate and William, you are thoroughly modern and are already [...]
Local bragging rights can go to the Gunners November 18, 2010 ARSENAL vs TOTTENHAM TOMORROW, 12.45PM, SKY SPORTS EVERYONE was writing off Arsenal’s title credentials when they lost at home against Newcastle a fortnight ago, but two consecutive away wins and some dropped points by their rivals have seen them close the gap on Chelsea to just two points. They are normally very strong at the [...]
Red Rose set to continue momentum November 18, 2010 ENGLAND vs SAMOA TOMORROW, 2.30PM, SKY SPORTS DARE we say that Martin Johnson’s grand plans to mould England into contenders for the 2011 World Cup are finally taking shape? The scintillating attacking display against the Aussies last weekend suggests so, but we must wait until after tomorrow’s match against Samoa to gauge if that was [...]
News Corp warns Cable over Sky deal November 17, 2010 NEWS Corp’s European boss James Murdoch has called on regulators to back his firm’s £7.8bn bid for BSkyB or risk losing its investment in the “world leader” digital TV operation. Business secretary Vince Cable has asked media regulator Ofcom to investigate whether the takeover would harm “media plurality”. The European Union could also launch a [...]
BETWEEN MURDOCH AND A VERY HARD PLACE November 17, 2010 FINALLY! A chance for harried BSkyB chief executive Jeremy Darroch to let his hair down: the Sky Christmas party – or “Winter Reception” – invites have been issued, the balloons blown up, the goose cooked. And it will be a well-deserved rest. The Capitalist hears that Darroch has had a stressful few weeks in the [...]
Cowell reigns but ITV lacks The X Factor November 16, 2010 HIT show The X Factor helped push ITV to revenue growth of 11 per cent, driven by strong advertising sales. A 30-second slot during the final of Simon Cowell’s talent show will set advertisers back an astonishing £200,000. Overall TV advertising revenues for the third quarter rose 16 per cent year-on-year, narrowly beating the market, [...]
Cridland to be CBI chief November 14, 2010 JOHN Cridland is expected to be named the new director-general of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) today, according to Sky News. The CBI confirmed it would be announcing its new director general this lunchtime but refused to say who had taken the top job. However, Cridland is the current deputy director general and has [...]
Just 50,000 sign up to BT’s sports package November 11, 2010 BT yesterday announced its Sky Sports offering has limped to just 50,000 subscribers since its launch this summer. Chief executive Ian Livingston admitted the firm has a “lot more to do” but reiterated BT’s long term committment to the project. He said: “Around 10 per cent of our BT Vision subscriber base is now taking [...]
Wallabies’ talented backs can give visitors the edge November 11, 2010 ENGLAND vs AUSTRALIA TOMORROW, 2.30PM, SKY SPORTS AGAINST the All Blacks last weekend England showed signs of promise without quite managing to set Twickenham alight, but most impressive was Martin Johnson’s reaction to his side’s performance. He acknowledged that his side shone in fits and starts but maintained that good rugby in fits and starts [...]