Stamp duty land tax changes, which were announced in last November’s Autumn Statement, will amount to a stealth Cupid tax, warn tax experts February 7, 2016 Valentine's Day is on the horizon but recent tax regime changes mean that it might not feel like love is in the air for those couples planning on purchasing property after 31 March. The Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) has warned that couples could unwittingly find themselves subject to government's new three per cent surplus charge on stamp [...]
Valentine’s Day 2016: Have a romantic weekend getaway within walking distance of your office February 7, 2016 Nothing says “romance” like a bottle of European sparkling wine at a bar overlooking your office. There’s Valentine’s packages for both millennials and traditionalists on offer in the swanky hotels of London’s financial quarters, so there’s no need to leave your desk at all this weekend. In Liverpool Street, the Andaz hotel has given “Netflix and [...]
Tesco comes to single shoppers’ rescue this Valentine’s Day with a new way to find The One when Tinder hasn’t worked February 6, 2016 Every multinational retailer’s favourite celebration of love is coming up. But if you’re still on the hunt for that special someone to share Valentine’s Day with, forget Tinder and other dating apps. This year, there’s a new way to find the one: through your shopping basket. Tesco has lent a hand to shoppers looking for [...]
The weirdest things left in London’s cabs February 5, 2016 First we had prosthetic legs left on the Tube, now it's stuffed animals forgotten in the back of taxis – Londoners are apparently a forgetful bunch. What was I saying? A taxidermy fox, £5,000 cash and a gold tooth are among the most bizarre items to have been left behind by passengers in the back of [...]
Football betting: Manchester City to test Leicester’s fairytale title bid February 4, 2016 It is not a surprise to see Manchester City involved in potentially title-deciding six-pointers at this stage of the season. However, it is positively shocking for one of those contests to come against Leicester. The Foxes have been the standout story of the campaign. After beating Liverpool 2-0 on Tuesday, Claudio Ranieri’s side lead the Premier [...]
Valentine’s Day 2016: Groupon lets London singles take their Tinder game to a new level by projecting photo on Piccadilly Circus billboards February 3, 2016 Are you a Londoner unlucky in love? Are you cool with your face shining out from the city’s famous lights? One "lucky" singleton will have a giant photo of themselves splashed across the Piccadilly Circus billboards for half an hour on Valentine’s Day, courtesy of Groupon. Passers-by who take a fancy to the brightly-lit Londoner will be able [...]
City lovebirds flock to skyscrapers and cable cars for Valentine’s Day bookings February 1, 2016 Valentine's Day is now less than two weeks away, and you’ve only just realised, haven’t you? Securing a restaurant with a view might be hard this year, as the Square Mile’s skyscrapers are already fully booked. Saturday 13th February is the big day for London’s lovebirds, as many venues won’t be open on Sunday. Jason Atherton’s City Social in [...]
Has House of Fraser lost the plot? Its Twitter account has come over all tired and emoji-nal February 1, 2016 House of Fraser's social media managers seemed to be feeling the love this morning when Twitter users thought someone had hacked into the retailer's account. The store began posting a string of emojis and artistically Photoshopped snaps of celebrities… Don’t worry John we’ve got your fairytale ending right here! @ChelseaFC #DeadlineDay #PrincessJohn pic.twitter.com/EHlfaBSSHY — House of Fraser (@houseoffraser) February [...]
Oscar Pistorius found guilty of Reeva Steenkamp’s murder as manslaughter conviction overturned December 3, 2015 Oscar Pistorius has been found guilty of murder after his previous conviction of manslaughter was overturned. The Paralympian "ought to have been convicted, not of culpable homicide, but of murder", judge Leach said this morning. The original ruling was "confusing and flawed", he said. Pistorius killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day 2013, after shooting [...]
Black Friday UK 2015: Bargain bonanza signals a never-ending sales season with Cyber Monday, Panic Saturday and Manic Monday to name a few November 26, 2015 Sales periods have sprung up around the world that give shoppers the bargains they crave while allowing sellers to offload old stock or generate footfall. But retailers face a period of discounting that could undermine the advantages they used to bring. In America, it is Black Friday, while in Europe January sales have kept cash tills [...]