Mortgage lending subdued August 18, 2011 Mortgage lending shows no sign of picking up, according to the latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). Gross new lending, for both house buyers and those remortgaging, fell by one per cent in July to £12.6bn. That was also six per cent down from the figure for July last year. The CML [...]
Savills profit rise fuelled by resilient London property market August 18, 2011 British property broker Savills said global economic volatility would curb activity in Europe and Asia though markets for the best properties remained resilient. Prime London residential property was a safe haven for investors amid the current economic turmoil, which had created a two-tier British market, Savills said. Values for the best property in Hong Kong [...]
Glamorous war reporter’s memoir of danger and love August 17, 2011 GHOSTS BY DAYLIGHT BY JANINE DI GIOVANNI Bloomsbury, £16.99 JANINE Di Giovanni is statuesque: a voluptuous brunette, she seems to tower over most of her peers. She seems larger than life but this is not just a physical thing: for twenty years she reported on the world’s grizzliest wars, returning again and again to Bosnia, [...]
The death of chivalry? Men aren’t paying for dates anymore August 17, 2011 DEAR VEXED: I am confused. As a recently single woman, I’ve been dating quite a lot. Seven out of ten times the man doesn’t pick up the tab on the first date. Is this because they’re chumps or because they don’t know if I’ll see it as infringement on my feminine liberation? Marsha, 29, human resources [...]
OUT OF OFFICE August 17, 2011 “I DON’T LIKE MONDAYS” AT THE HILTON PARK LANE What better way to get over the start of the week than a Sunday night spent in the lap of luxury, with in-room treats of popcorn and Prosecco and a selection of films. Monday morning will begin with a continental breakfast delivered to the room and [...]
The gastropub kings with their sights set on the City August 17, 2011 IF you’re the sort of person who appreciates London’s classier pub offerings, the chances are you’ve been a customer of Tom and Ed Martin. The brothers, a pair of gangly good eggs who exude bonhomie and serious business ambition in equal measure, are the operators of an impressive number of the capital’s upper echelon public [...]
The sociable way to barbecue August 17, 2011 ONCE again, this summer’s been a dud for barbecue weather. We’re still holding our hopes out for the rest of August though – at time of writing, the weekend looks like a possible scorcher, and we may yet make it to one last bank holiday of sunshine. Fingers crossed. If by some miracle that does [...]
Westminster gets some cocktail class August 17, 2011 WITH half of London on holiday there aren’t many launches right now, but there are a few noteworthy openings that warrant investigation. First up, Roux at the Pembury. Located in master chef Michel Roux’s Roux at Parliament Square restaurant in Westminster, this beautifully refurbished bar offers MPs and punters alike a classy conceptual cocktail menu [...]
Eco-warrior pipe dream gets real August 16, 2011 LEONARDO DiCaprio has one. In fact, diCaprio has the first production Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid sports car ever built. And he paid for it. That one of the world’s biggest film stars is driving the world’s most eco-friendly sports car is perhaps not so surprising. But the man that built it is car designer Henrik [...]
CAR TALK August 16, 2011 PRIUS PLUG-IN Toyota is introducing a plug-in version of its Prius hybrid electric car at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. The Prius Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) has an extended EV (electric power only) range – of up to 12.5 miles – and can achieve 128 mpg and has CO2 emissions of just 49g/km, [...]
