Review: The astonishing new Tesla Model S July 8, 2014 Some have already judged the first bespoke effort from cutting-edge American electric carmaker Tesla as the second coming of the automobile. But can the Tesla Model S possibly justify the hype? It’s certainly a lot of pressure to heap on a premium executive saloon. Yet Tesla chief executive Elon Musk appears to be one of [...]
Restaurant review: Blanchette July 2, 2014 Blanchette, 9 D'Arbly Street, W1F 8DR Tel: 020 7439 8100 Food: ★★★★☆ | Value: ★★★★☆ | Atmosphere: ★★★★☆ There's a little cinema in Soho where journalists go to see movies for free before they’re released. It’s one of the perks of the job and it fills the time nicely between eaves-dropping on your voicemails and pestering the [...]
Big Benz: a no frills Mercedes crossover July 1, 2014 It took some time to convince my wife that she should be driving something a bit more “off-road”. She didn’t buy into the whole mums-in-their-Range-Rovers thing, and would have been happier with a posh saloon. Now she’s one of the legions to have bought into the crossover genre and swears by her Kia Sportage. Everyone [...]
John O’Groats: Scotland’s tip top scenic spot June 27, 2014 If ever there was a place where the buildings should huddle together for warmth it was here, but the roughly strewn archipelago of bungalows stand apart from each other, slightly standoffish in their brown pebbledash. John O’Groats is a strange place, twinned in everybody’s imagination with another strange place, Land’s End. I asked drinkers in [...]
Review: Shangri-La at The Shard June 27, 2014 Every major city from Toronto to Tokyo has its share of castles in the sky, towering hotels offering panoramic views. But waking up to the sun rising over the Square Mile – the Gherkin and the Cheese Grater rising out of the morning fog – must be among the most impressive. My room was on [...]
From plates to plinths: David Shrigley set to transform Soho’s Sketch and Trafalgar Square June 26, 2014 David Shrigley is best known for his pithy sketches; surreal, misanthropic depictions of modern life. His work straddles the worlds of fine art – he was nominated for the Turner Prize last year and will be the 13th contemporary artist to show his work on Trafalgar Square’s fourth plinth – and pop culture, with books [...]
London style: Iconic British looks from the brands behind London Collections June 26, 2014 Our exclusive Morning Wire Bespoke photoshoot celebrates some of the most iconic looks by the brands who exhibited their wares at the menswear showcase, from 1960s mod-inspired styles to the grimy punk borrowed from the late 1970s. Brilliant fashion minds such as Lou Dalton take these genre classics and reimagine them for a new generation; [...]
Chef Jason Atherton touches down in the City’s Tower 42 June 26, 2014 Three years ago, Jason Atherton bet the house on Pollen Street Social. Literally: he remortgaged his home to fund it, stumping up 75 per cent of the cash out of his own pocket, money saved from more than two decades cooking everywhere from the world famous elBulli in Catalonia to the fiery environs of [...]
Beautiful things June 26, 2014 Limited edition walnut projector This limited edition walnut projector is part of a “time-capsule” concept album by US composer Deru This stunning carved walnut handheld projector is one of only 500 available. It was designed as part of a multimedia project by Emmy-award winning American composer Deru. The unit will house a “time-capsule” collection of [...]
Google Glass hits UK: what to expect June 25, 2014 They’re here! And they makes you look just as daft as we thought they would! Google Glass augmented reality specs – a computer you wear on your face, including a camera and personal organiser – have finally hit shelves in the UK – but only for early-adopting geeks rich enough to fork out a cool £1,000. [...]