Arrival review: This is Close Encounters for the Interstellar generation November 10, 2016 Language is both a bridge and a barrier in Arrival, a film in which a dozen gargantuan alien ships appear around the world and cause global existential upset. These obsidian-black sentinels hover metres above the earth, silent, still and towering, and in an effort to figure out the intentions and nature of their occupants the [...]
Why it’s time to stop drinking prosecco November 10, 2016 Three years ago, when I was just starting out with this column, I boldly predicted the rise of prosecco in the hearts of the British quaffing classes. And oh how it has turned out to be true. Clever marketing, combined with the British love of cheap fizz, has propelled prosecco relentlessly up the wine charts. [...]
Restaurateur Mark Hix reminisces with artist Gavin Turk about the glory days of the YBAs ahead of his upcoming show at Damien Hirst’s Newport Street Gallery November 10, 2016 I’ve converted a couple of veggie artists over the years, tempting them with tasty cuts of rare beef – Tim Noble and Mat Collishaw spring to mind – but I suspect Gavin Turk is a lost cause. Gavin, one of the original YBAs, has been veggie for over five years and went full-vegan last year; [...]
Edinburgh’s quality of life key to attracting talent from across the globe November 10, 2016 | City Talk They say home is where the heart is: where we feel comfortable, safe and free to explore our interests and dreams. Home can be four walls and a roof, a familiar serene landscape or a vibrant city. Home is good for the soul, but interestingly, recent research has also begun to explore the strong correlation [...]
Eight of the best winter gins: Remember, gin isn’t just for summer, it’s for Christmas, too November 10, 2016 At this time of year, we mistakenly relegate gin to the back of the drinks cabinet. The ubiquitous gin and tonic is a summertime staple, but what can you do to turn it evergreen? Gin, like that other popular translucent tipple vodka, is traditionally distilled in cold countries, after all, and can be made from [...]
Hitman Season One review: There’s nothing in gaming that’s quite so deviously inventive November 9, 2016 Globetrotting assassination might sound like hard work, carrying all those bodies around and avoiding being spotted, but in the crime-ridden world of gun-for-hire Agent 47 it’s a surprisingly creative profession. Fun, even, if you can call choking, shooting, crushing, exploding, stabbing, incinerating and pulverising your various targets enjoyable. Square Enix’s episodic experiment has wrapped up [...]
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare limps into outer space, but its generic sci-fi stylings are anything but stellar November 9, 2016 This year’s Call of Duty takes place in a war-torn vision of the future that, given the current political climate, seems entirely too achievable. Mankind has successfully mastered space travel, colonising the planets of our solar system using our fleet of cool spaceships. But despite our advanced technology, infinite resources and superfast iPads, we’re still [...]
Interiors: Don’t own any art? Make your own. We explore a growing trend for framing beloved objects November 9, 2016 Bringing our homes alive with personality and creativity isn’t just about hanging pictures on walls, especially if we don’t own a Warhol or a Hirst. It’s now de rigeur to think inside the box and display meaningful physical objects in box-frames, or mount prized items, such as decorative scarfs, LP covers or birthday cards, so [...]
Lord Stuart Rose interview: Former M&S boss opens up on the ill-fated Stronger In campaign and his 10,000 bottles of wine November 9, 2016 Lord Rose of Monewden knows how to do things in style. In the space of a 45-year business career he managed to navigate his way through more boards, bids, bust-ups and blow-ups than seems possible in a single lifetime, collecting a knighthood, then a peerage and a comfortable fortune on the way. More to the [...]
Gordon Ramsay interview: Michelin stars, overtaking the French and why his new restaurant, Le Pressoir d’Argent, is something special November 9, 2016 “If I’d tried to open this restaurant 15 years ago, I’d have been shot, hung upside-down and had my bollocks put in that thing over there, the pressoir d’testicle.” Finally, I thought. So measured – serene even – was the Gordon Ramsay sitting opposite me, I’d started to wonder if his famously filthy lyricism had [...]