Mark Hix heads to Norway to fish for cod and cook up a storm May 8, 2018 I’ve just been on a whistle-stop trip to Norway with fellow chef Valentine Warner, staying in a village called Holmen on the ridiculously beautiful Lofoten fishing islands to the north west of the country. Holmen and the surrounding villages – like much of Norway – are all about cod. Lining the roadsides are big wooden [...]
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle wedding 2018: Pubs minister urges revellers to celebrate Royal Wedding at their local April 14, 2018 It has not been the best start to the year for the UK’s pubs. Snow had a severe impact on business during February and March, while tax hikes which came into effect this month are set to add to the pressure forcing 18 pubs to close every week. But Jake Berry, the minister responsible for [...]
The table of two is a restaurateur’s worst nightmare. Our resident chef Mark Hix wants Valentine’s Day diners to team up February 13, 2018 Today, in case you needed a last minute reminder, is Valentine’s Day, the one day of the year on which we are bound by law to exchange flowers, chocolates and those little bears holding love hearts with insufferably twee phrases embroidered on them. Perhaps like me you try to avoid the whole ordeal. Or perhaps, [...]
Alibaba: Sales during online retail bonanza Singles’ Day hit new record as they smash $25bn mark November 11, 2017 Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has said its Singles’ Day sales hit $25.4bn (£19.2bn), smashing its own record from last year. The shopping bonanza’s sales surged past last year’s total just after midday local time, hitting a record $18bn (£13.6bn). Singles’ Day, held every year on 11 November, is the world’s biggest online shopping event that [...]
Chris Hohn’s Children’s Investment Fund has stepped up its bid to end the €8.5bn Safran-Zodiac deal March 20, 2017 Sir Chris Hohn’s activist hedge fund has stepped up its campaign to halt an €8.5bn (£7.4bn) takeover. And now, it’s getting personal. The Children’s Investment (TCI) Fund has written to the board members of Safran, the aircraft engine maker that has agreed to buy plane-seat maker Zodiac, threatening to sue them personally if the deal goes [...]
Twitter’s Jack Dorsey under pressure to entice advertisers after robot revelation March 19, 2017 Pressure is mounting on the boss of Twitter after research indicated the number of automated accounts on the platform was nearly double company estimates, according to reports. Analysis released this week by the University of Southern California estimated 15 per cent the entire population of Twitter accounts were managed by robots, much higher than the 8.5 [...]
Budget 2017: Alcohol duties set to rise as the chancellor makes no changes to planned increases March 8, 2017 Alcohol duties are set to rise as Philip Hammond today said he will make no changes to "previously planned upratings". The duty rates on beer, cider, wine and spirits will increase with inflationary rises, or 3.9 per cent. The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) said the rise will cost pubs around £125m. Brigid Simmonds, chief executive [...]
Twitter’s troll crackdown:It’s going to start identifying abuse without it being reported March 1, 2017 Twitter has two new weapons in the battle against trolls: not only is it going to start identifying abuse before it is even reported – but it will allow users to mute certain keywords. No more "snowflake" jibes for Twitter users… Abuse is the social media giant's Achilles heel – trolling has been responsible for [...]
Another Southern rail strike is going ahead: RMT announces 24-hour walkout next week February 15, 2017 The RMT union has announced a fresh 24-hour strike on Southern rail will take place on Wednesday 22 February in the long-running staffing dispute. Conductors will strike for 24 hours between 00:01 and 23:59, after fresh talks broke down yesterday. Read more: Days lost to strike action soared 89 per cent last year Mick Cash, RMT [...]
Jack Dorsey gave Twitter a really expensive Valentine’s Day present February 15, 2017 Twitter founder Jack Dorsey celebrated Valentine's Day with a big confidence boost for the social network. Dorsey bought just over $7m (£5.6m) worth of Twitter stock – and of course, tweeted about it, using the romantic hashtag #LoveTwitter. #LoveTwitter https://t.co/fELbw0ska7 — jack (@jack) February 14, 2017 The Twitter boss, who also founded (and is, controversially, chief executive of) payments company [...]