Clever, emotional – and well worth the hype I couldn’t get a table at Skof for ages: it was too full, too booked up and far too busy. It seemed there’d be no lightly set miso custard with hen of the woods mushrooms and dashi for me. Jersey royals cooked in chicken fat with pickled walnuts? I’d only be able to admire those from afar. It was like catnip: in the spirit of Groucho Marx, I want to be i...
Clever, emotional – and well worth the hype I couldn’t get a table at Skof for ages: it was too full, too booked up and far too busy. It seemed there’d be no lightly set miso custard with hen of the woods mushrooms and dashi for me. Jersey royals cooked in chicken fat with pickled walnuts? I’d only be able to admire those from afar. It was like catnip: in the spirit of Groucho Marx, I want to be inside any restaurant that doesn’t want me as a customer. Skof opened in Manchester in May 2024 and by February last year already had a Michelin star, so it’s no wonder that, with only 36 seats, spaces evaporate rapidly. This capacious one-time drapery warehouse could easily accommodate two or even three times that number of covers, but Tom Barnes, formerly of L’Enclume in the Lake District , is not that sort of chef. His restaurant’s name comes from his dad, Barney, telling him rather unceremoniously as a child to “scoff” his dinner. What would Barney have made of his boy’s ornate, complex pre-dinner snacks of chalk stream trout and golden beetroot tartlet, or broad bean, pike roe and shiso on a Spenwood cheese biscuit? Both are hugely scoffable, incidentally. Barney, now deceased, is remembered at the end of every meal via his favourite tiramisu, of which more later. Skof, like L’Enclume, is one of those intensely relaxed yet still ferociously fancy restaurants. Dress code is come as you are. Deodorant is a boon. As we ate, Aussie post-punk band Mental As Anything bled into Arctic Monkeys by way of Sam Fender , but then, bang, the first two courses proper arrived, each of them intricate and intentional: a soft, juicy Orkney scallop with barbecued kohlrabi and preserved tomato water, followed by that lightly set custard with truffle and mushroom dashi. Think of this custard as a quiche filling on steroids, and one that’s well worth garrotting people for in a buffet queue. Continue reading...
Magazine’s editor Michael Gove will welcome performer who described Conservative party leader as ‘iconic’ The American rapper Azealia Banks said she had been invited to the Spectator magazine summer party in London. The performer, known for her social media feuds with numerous celebrities including Nicki Minaj, Zayn Malik and Lana Del Rey, wrote on X on Saturday: “Ill be in London July 3 for @spec...
Magazine’s editor Michael Gove will welcome performer who described Conservative party leader as ‘iconic’ The American rapper Azealia Banks said she had been invited to the Spectator magazine summer party in London. The performer, known for her social media feuds with numerous celebrities including Nicki Minaj, Zayn Malik and Lana Del Rey, wrote on X on Saturday: “Ill be in London July 3 for @spectator.” Her message received a response from Michael Gove, the Spectator editor and former Conservative cabinet minister, who replied: “Looking forward!” The annual Spectator summer party is traditionally held in the garden behind the magazine’s offices in Westminster featuring prominent figures across UK politics, media and culture. In May, Banks and fellow rapper Minaj publicly supported the Conservative party leader, Kemi Badenoch. Banks wrote on X at the time: “Sorry i made fun of you guys in Britain, i rolled over and realized its actually no longer a laughing matter and I shouldnt be making jokes. I hope you all vote conservative and Listen to Kemi Badenoch.” In a later post, the 32-year-old said of Badenoch: “She is a star.” In April, Banks shared a clip of the Conservative leader speaking in the House of Commons on X, with the message: “Kemi Badenoch is f**king iconic. World leaders will respect her Professionalism alot more than goofball Nigel [Farage].” The artist is known for her forthright political views and on Saturday posted a link to an article entitled “Congress advances unprecedented U.S.-Israel military integration plan” and wrote on X: WE WON!!!!! PULL OUT OF NATO NOW!” The New York rapper won wide acclaim for her debut single 212 which appeared on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Continue reading...
The dire state of roads has provoked pothole vigilantes and become a political flashpoint from Manchester to Manhattan. How did we get here? Sitting in St Albans crown court, waiting for his case to be called, Derek Bennett’s anger momentarily gave way to a sense of disbelief. “I mean, there’s rape and murder cases going on,” he says. “I couldn’t believe I was there, with this stupid subject.” Ini...
The dire state of roads has provoked pothole vigilantes and become a political flashpoint from Manchester to Manhattan. How did we get here? Sitting in St Albans crown court, waiting for his case to be called, Derek Bennett’s anger momentarily gave way to a sense of disbelief. “I mean, there’s rape and murder cases going on,” he says. “I couldn’t believe I was there, with this stupid subject.” Initially, neither could the judge, whom Bennett says remarked that such issues were surely a matter for the magistrates. But Bennett, a 68-year-old construction consultant who has spent decades navigating building rules and regulations, had read the law carefully. Section 56 of the UK’s Highways Act 1980 clearly states the “highway authority or other person” responsible for a road in Britain is liable to maintain it, and should it fall into “disrepair”, a member of the public may apply for a crown court order to fix it. The other crimes would just have to wait. Bennett was here about potholes. Continue reading...
Local leaders are optimistic investment and regeneration plans will help make ‘ocean city’ an appealing place to live Plymouth may only have been rebranded as “Britain’s ocean city” in recent years, but its role as a centre of UK defence can be traced back to the 16th century thanks to its strategic location on Devon’s south coast. Sir Francis Drake set sail from Plymouth on his circumnavigation o...
Local leaders are optimistic investment and regeneration plans will help make ‘ocean city’ an appealing place to live Plymouth may only have been rebranded as “Britain’s ocean city” in recent years, but its role as a centre of UK defence can be traced back to the 16th century thanks to its strategic location on Devon’s south coast. Sir Francis Drake set sail from Plymouth on his circumnavigation of the globe and it was here the Pilgrims finally departed England for America on board the Mayflower. In more recent decades, a dependence on the defence sector no longer seemed an asset, as spending cuts and the loss of dockyard jobs forced the city with a proud maritime history to square up to a new foe: economic uncertainty. Continue reading...
Would you want this to become sexual? If the answer is yes, then think about what might be holding you back I don’t know whether I am in love with my friend or not. We hang out a lot, because we work together in the same university. My feelings developed over many months and it took us a long time to fit with each other as we do now. I don’t find him perfect ; I sometimes don’t like his behaviour,...
Would you want this to become sexual? If the answer is yes, then think about what might be holding you back I don’t know whether I am in love with my friend or not. We hang out a lot, because we work together in the same university. My feelings developed over many months and it took us a long time to fit with each other as we do now. I don’t find him perfect ; I sometimes don’t like his behaviour, especially when we are with other people. However, I want to be with him a lot: I imagine going on holiday with him and doing things together. We do have physical contact sometimes – just things like touching arms . I appreciate that and have deep affection for him . So I wonder if this could be love or if I am mistaking great friendship with love just because he is a guy . I do not know whether he is a friend, almost like a brother, or more than that. Continue reading...
Twin threats from east and west have clearly made the bloc more appealing – but its rule-bound institutions need urgent attention Giant butter mountains, wine lakes and an apocryphal EU ban on bendy bananas formed the mythological backdrop to Britain’s 2016 Brexit referendum debacle. Yet while many Vote Leave claims were exaggerated, inaccurate or blatantly untrue, the EU’s capacity for laying its...
Twin threats from east and west have clearly made the bloc more appealing – but its rule-bound institutions need urgent attention Giant butter mountains, wine lakes and an apocryphal EU ban on bendy bananas formed the mythological backdrop to Britain’s 2016 Brexit referendum debacle. Yet while many Vote Leave claims were exaggerated, inaccurate or blatantly untrue, the EU’s capacity for laying itself open to ridicule is undiminished 10 years on. Take the strange case of the whingeing EU commissioners, annoyed that their officially provided electric vehicles cannot manage the time-consuming 280-mile journey between Brussels and Strasbourg without stopping to recharge. This important issue, first reported by Politico , raises vital questions. Do these highly paid bureaucrats really need chauffeur-driven “company cars”? Surely they could catch a train, or fly, or cycle. EV use is mandatory for road trips. The vehicles are supplied in line with the EU’s Green Deal emissions-cutting policy, which commissioners might be expected to support, not carp about. So why is the commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, allowed a petrol engine? The biggest question of all is why make these tedious Brussels-Strasbourg journeys in the first place? Simon Tisdall is a Guardian foreign affairs commentator Continue reading...
African fintech unicorn Moniepoint was founded in 2015 and has grown into one of the continent's standout success stories. From powering payments for small businesses to building critical financial infrastructure, the company has scaled rapidly and earned its place among Africa's most valuable tech firms. Bloomberg's Jennifer Zabasajja spoke to Felix Ike, the company's co-founder and CTO, about Mo...
African fintech unicorn Moniepoint was founded in 2015 and has grown into one of the continent's standout success stories. From powering payments for small businesses to building critical financial infrastructure, the company has scaled rapidly and earned its place among Africa's most valuable tech firms. Bloomberg's Jennifer Zabasajja spoke to Felix Ike, the company's co-founder and CTO, about Moniepoint's journey from startup to unicorn, and what it takes to build at scale in Africa's fast-evolving tech landscape. (Source: Bloomberg)
“I cannot come to you,” Katie Williams was told, seconds after her Grab driver had accepted her request for a ride in Canggu. “I cannot come to you. You need to come meet me.” Williams, an Australian tourist in her mid-thirties, explained through the app that her elderly parents struggled to walk very far in the hot Bali sun. The driver’s reply was blunt: “It’s too dangerous. I cannot come.” After...
“I cannot come to you,” Katie Williams was told, seconds after her Grab driver had accepted her request for a ride in Canggu. “I cannot come to you. You need to come meet me.” Williams, an Australian tourist in her mid-thirties, explained through the app that her elderly parents struggled to walk very far in the hot Bali sun. The driver’s reply was blunt: “It’s too dangerous. I cannot come.” After two more cancellations, she eventually relented and paid a local driver twice the original...
For much of the past two years, consumer sentiment has been trending worse. The combination of high inflation, high interest rates, and a K-shaped economic trajectory that has left many households struggling to keep up has done significant damage to consumer confidence. Now, that confidence level is reaching new lows. The University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment Index, which has tracked how Ame...
For much of the past two years, consumer sentiment has been trending worse. The combination of high inflation, high interest rates, and a K-shaped economic trajectory that has left many households struggling to keep up has done significant damage to consumer confidence. Now, that confidence level is reaching new lows. The University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment Index, which has tracked how Americans feel about the U.S. economy since 1978, fell to 44.8 last month. That's the lowest reading ever since the survey was first produced. Continue reading
向王宁“示爱”几个月，段永平加上了王宁的微信，也拿出了百亿身家，把自己“买”成了泡泡玛特的第二大股东。 5月25日，段永平通过其控制的H&H International Investment Limited买入982.32万股泡泡玛特普通股，与其一致行动人合计持股比例5.69%，成为仅次于泡泡玛特创始人王宁（持股约44.85%）的第二大股东。以5月29日收盘价173.40港元计算，段永平持股部分市...
When Scottish doctor Alexander Fleming accidentally discovered the first antibiotic in 1928, he changed the course of history, extending global life expectancy by decades and saving millions of lives on the battlefield and beyond. But humanity’s dependence on his discovery has fuelled a modern crisis: antimicrobial resistance, or AMR. Decades of overuse and misuse of the drug have allowed “superbu...
When Scottish doctor Alexander Fleming accidentally discovered the first antibiotic in 1928, he changed the course of history, extending global life expectancy by decades and saving millions of lives on the battlefield and beyond. But humanity’s dependence on his discovery has fuelled a modern crisis: antimicrobial resistance, or AMR. Decades of overuse and misuse of the drug have allowed “superbugs” – bacteria that have mutated to survive antibiotic treatments – to evolve. According to a 2014...