Which books regularly top the UK bestseller list at Christmas and is there a way to predict it? December 20, 2018 First came Black Friday, then its online equivalent, Cyber Monday, but few outside the publishing industry are aware of its bookish brother, Super Thursday. Usually in the first week of October, the annual event marks the release of big money hardbacks in the run up to Christmas. This year saw 544 new hardbacks released, up [...]
If you’re not into wine and beer, here are the Christmas spirits we think you should stock up on over the festive period December 19, 2018 Whether you’re looking for a gift, throwing a party, or fortifying yourself to spend time with your family, the festive period is a peak time for boozing. Here are some suggestions to get you in the Christmas spirits: Appleton Estate Rare Blend 12 Year Old Jamaica Rum Christmas and rum go together like pirates and rum. [...]
Whisky makers warn of damage in store in no deal scenario December 19, 2018 The makers of Scotch whisky have issued a warning to MPs that a no deal Brexit scenario would strike a damaging blow to the £4.5bn industry, which is the UK's biggest food and drink export. The Scotch industry, which supports 40,000 jobs across the UK, is particularly sensitive to the fall out from a no deal Brexit because 90 per [...]
Minicab and Uber drivers to lose exemption from congestion charge December 19, 2018 Minicab and Uber drivers will no longer be exempt from the £11.50 congestion charge from April next year, Sadiq Khan announced today as part of his push to curb pollution levels. TfL expects the changes to reduce the number of private hire vehicles entering the congestion zone each day by up to 8,000, a 44 per cent drop from current levels. [...]
What goes with Christmas? Your festive dinner wine woes solved December 19, 2018 To paraphrase the famous French proverb, a Christmas dinner without wine is like a day without sunshine. A recent survey showed our average spend on a bottle for Christmas dinner increases by 45 per cent, and you can double that if it’s a gift. So it’s clear that we like to put a bit of [...]
Forest Bar + Kitchen in Blackhorse Road review: London’s ‘cave scene’ has birthed a gem in E17 December 19, 2018 Have you heard of the cave scene? No, it’s not not an obscure sexual kink, nor a spelunking society. It is, in fact, the new big thing in eating and drinking. It’s essentially a bunch of hip young restaurateurs and oenophiles reclaiming the term “wine bar”, which had been tarnished by memories of 1980s couples [...]
From bottling in Battersea to viniculture in Tooting, you barely have to venture outside your house to find a winemaking scene December 19, 2018 There are many ways people imagine exploring wine country. In a Fiat 500, driving across the hills of Tuscany with sunglasses on noses and Alanis Morissette in ears; touring the Languedoc by train, sipping crisp Saumur from Tours all the way to Paris. And these days, back home in England, where from Kent all the [...]
Working Lunch review: Harry’s Bar is a glitzy Italian with a rosemary and olive oil ice cream that’s worth the trip alone December 18, 2018 Harry’s Bar 30-34 James Street, W1U WHAT? A glitzy Italian restaurant inspired by the original Harry’s Bar in St Mark’s Square, Venice. Thankfully, you won’t be charged €22 for a Bellini here and they’re just as scrumptious. Part of Richard Caring’s Caprice Holdings Group – which also runs the Ivy Brasseries, J Sheekey and Sexy [...]
You’ll soon be able to charge your car at the pub, as long as you stick to the Diet Coke, but London’s electric vehicle infrastructure is still in need of some juice December 18, 2018 One of the country’s leading pub chains has announced it’s planning to roll out electric vehicle charging points to boozers up and down the country. For Londoners, it’s jarring enough to be reminded that pubs outside the M25 even have their own car parks, let alone ones that will soon dispense a fleet of perfectly silent [...]
Office Space: Behind the scenes of the Soho headquarters of games developer King, the creators of Candy Crush December 18, 2018 The bright yellow King logo above the entrance to a London office on Wardour Street must trigger some kind of Pavlovian response in the pedestrians who pass by it every day. King is the studio responsible for Candy Crush, which is less a game than a global phenomenon. Since its launch in 2012, games in [...]