Category Archives: People

Barack Obama: what does he mean for the UK?

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Remember Remember the 5th of November… This old poem refers to Guy Fawkes, who was caught in the cellars of the Houses of Parliament with several dozen barrels of gunpowder on 5th November 1605.
But now Remember Remember the 5th of November, the day when the first black man has won the American Presidential Election: Barack Obama will be the new President of the United States, the change has come. Finally.

But what does it mean for the Europe? What will his election mean for the UK? The positive reaction from all sides are unanimous as Barack Obama could be the man of the revival. The UK and US have always had a good relationship, and now it can be strengthened by renovate common values of liberty. Future President Obama is a true ally of Britain and Europe, he knows the importance of working together to come through these difficult economic times and build a safer and more secure society for the future. Whereas British and European citizens couldn’t vote but the expectation on him is immense. And all the world has followed with great estimationthe political campaign and the election, because its outcome is vital to our future.

There are many topics, from the climate change to the global economy, and the new approach of Barack Obama will change the current situation for better. The Bush era is over. Tonight fireworks will flash in the sky over London, rich of meaning and hope for all the City, the country and the world.

5 news bites for your coffee break

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Here is a quick press review selected from the most interesting business news of the day:

  1. Pound Falls to 5 Year Low Against Dollar: the pound slid to the lowest level in more than five years against the dollar after the Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said Britain’s worst banking crisis since World War I is likely to push the economy into a recession – read more on bloomberg.com.
  2. Factory gloom ‘worst since 1980’: the slowdown in the UK economy is now spreading to sectors previously resilient to weaknesses in the banking and housing markets. The crisis is spreading into all sectors of business, affecting unemployment and inflation – read more on BBCNews.co.uk.
  3. Soaring art market returns to earth with a bump: the global financial crisis has finally caught up with the art world. Experts warn that things are likely to get tougher: what’s happened in the financial markets will also damage the art market because liquidity is tighter everywhere – read more on Reuters.co.uk.
  4. European business backed up: during this crisis, resultant cuts in jobs, production and investment, means companies must hunker down hoping to survive what they fear will be a ferocious reversal – read more on Ft.com.
  5. David Beckham will join AC Milan on loan in January: the English football player will move to Italy for few months at the beginnig of 2009, according to Adriano Galliani, the Italian club’s vice-president. Beckham wants to train and play with Milan, and Milan wants him: Beckham’s commercial value means full stadiums and read sponsors. Maybe not all rich men are crying – read more on Thetimesonline.co.ukthe English football player will move to Italy for few months at the beginning of 2009, according to Adriano Galliani, the Italian club’s vice-president. Beckham wants to train and play with Milan, a sentiment reciprocated by the Italians: Beckham’s commercial value means is nothing but good news for club merchandise and ticket sales – read more on Thetimesonline.co.uk

Googaholics Anonymous

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How many times have you stumbled home after a heavy night, hooked up to the net and then unleashed your woozy boozy mind via various emails only to wake in the morning to find you’ve declared your undying love for your boss? Okay, perhaps not your boss but it’s likely that you or someone you know has caused some web-based embarrassment due to alcohol.

Thankfully Google have come up with a solution that doesn’t involve joining AA: Mail Goggles.

Gmail users simply have to pick the days and times that they’re most likely to be inebriated then the next time they try to send an email in the allocated time they will be given a quick little maths test. 27÷3 may be easy enough to sober minds but to that of a drunkard it is none too simple.

There’s no news on other email providers adding a similar service but if this takes off there’s no doubt the others will follow suit, although bosses may be slightly concerned if they find the application on your Outlook.

All we need now is a version for our mobile.

The 5 best venues for events in London

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Hello! Are you looking for events in London? Would you like to organise an event here? Here you can find the 5 biggest and most famous venues in London:

  • Alexndra Palace – This is one of the most versatile and visually unique venues in London. It is set within 196 acres of glorious parkland, the Palace features an extraordinary blend of Victorian splendour, fascinating history and modern technology.
  • Barbican Centre – As the largest multi-arts centre in Europe it features art, film, music, theatre, dance and education all under one roof and under one creative direction. The Barbican comprises the 1,949 seat Barbican Hall, the 1,166-seat Barbican Theatre, the 200-seat Pit theatre, 3 cinemas, the 1,393 m² Barbican Art Gallery, a 2nd gallery; The Curve, 4,645 m² of foyers and public spaces, the Lakeside Terrace, a roof-top tropical conservatory, 7 conference suites, 2 trade exhibition halls, private function rooms and the 3 restaurants; Searcy’s, Waterside Café and Balcony Bistro.
  • Earl’s Court and Olympia – This a privately owned company and its owners have a clearly defined vision for the future – to create a landmark leisure attraction centred around the core business of exhibitions, conferences and special events. Earls Court and Olympia have been hosting events since 1886 and 1937 respectively and now receive over 2 million visitors annually and generate more than £1.2 billion in business and tourism income. 25,000 companies exhibit there each year.
  • ExCeL – This an international exhibition and conference centre, it is the host venue for a variety of events from award winning exhibitions and conferences to international association meetings, product launches, banquets, award ceremonies, sporting events and great days out. Situated in a stunning waterfront location, ExCeL London is located in the heart of London’s Royal Docks, within easy reach of central London.
  • Royal Horticultural Halls – Situated in the heart of London’s Westminster, the two Halls and the Conference Centre have all been used for a variety of events including: exhibitions, banquets, conferences, examinations, fashion shows, festivals and fairs.

The 5 best pubs for a good English brunch

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Sunny Friday and the mind is running away from business towards the weekend… It’s time to take a break – have a look in Time Out to find some fresh ideas and discover a new part of London.

Time Out has just published the results of the Time Out Eating & Drinking Awards 2008. Similarly we thought we’d compile a list of 5 great pubs where you can have a good English Brunch:

  1. Princess Victoria (Shepherds Bush) – It’s a new pub, born to win its customers with the freshest and tastiest ingredients from the market close-by: freshly baked bread, cheese, wine, sausage and mash. Perfect!
  2. Founders Arms (South side of the river very close to Blackfriars bridge) – It offers the usual Young’s range of drinks and pretty decent food but its location is what makes this place popular: it has a large terrace with seats and tables by the river, there are no major roads nearby and there’s an amazing view.
  3. The Punch Bowl (Mayfair) -It’s “the Madonna and Guy Ritchie” pub that boasts flowers and hanging baskets outside, whilst inside there’s dark oak paneling, candles wedged in champagne bottles and artwork that ups the nostalgia ante. Food and wine are excellent and the location maintains that this is a classy place (even if Madonna’s name’s in there somewhere).
  4. Monkey Chews (Camden Town) – This little hidden bar is in the residential area of Camden. The antique furniture contributes to this atmospheric and unique establishment that serves high quality food. Whilst the menu lacks depth, everything is cooked to perfection in the open kitchen.
  5. The Trafalgar (Chelsea) – This trendy pub on the Kings Road may not appear to be anything special from the outside, but inside it’s huge and aimed at making their customers feel as comfortable as they can. The food’s great, not cheap of course but then you pay fro the location!

Have you eaten at any of these restaurants? What others haven’t we mentioned that you’d recommend?

Happy Birthday TimeOut London! 40 years of young news

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September 1968 – September 2008: Time Out celebrates its fortieth anniversary. Tony Elliott was just a Keele University student when he launched Time Out with the £70 his aunt gave him for his twenty-first birthday. Now he is sixty-one and the chairman of a multimillion-pound empire. To celebrate this success the main story this week covers the forty most famous Londoners in this anniversary edition (today in the shops for £2.95).

Time Out is quite simply the best resource to find out what’s going on in London. It’s a weekly listings magazine, famous for its cultural reference value with listings for film, theatre, fashion, literature, restaurants, clubs, parties, festivals and events – tailored to each city. It expanded from the London edition to cities across the globe. It has established a worthy online presence to provide its readers with news and useful information that constitutes twenty-three different city editions.

You can find Time Out everywhere: London, Chicago, New York, Paris, Beijing, Dubai, Istanbul, Tel Aviv, Cyprus, Moscow, Athens, Singapore, Saint-Petersburg, Bucharest, Almaty, Jerusalem, Kiev, Mumbai, New Delhi, Abu Dhabi, Sydney, Shanghai and Barcelona, and from 2008, also in Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong. Every edition is unique and rich with event listings, complemented by articles, typically featuring celebrities appearing in one of the listed events.

40 years, 52 covers per year and 86,000 copies for about 374,000 readers every week: Happy birthday Time Out!

Time management – Randy Pausch: life and death

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Managing time effectively is a key skill for improving productivity in a business environment, and for achieving success in personal life. But it is an area often overlooked where small changes to established practices may produce dramatic and far-reaching results. There are many books available which claim to teach one how to manage their time effectively, but these are often poorly written, condescending, and talk a great deal of theory, without ever going into any depth as to how you can apply the theory to real life situations.

This leads us on to the point of this blog entry. Professor Randy Pausch was a leading researcher in the field of human-computer interaction, and wrote several groundbreaking programs designed to inspire an interest in computer programming in young people, especially girls.

In September 2006 he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He underwent many procedures to attempt to fight the disease, which were unsuccessful. In August 2007 he was informed that he had three to six months of “good health left.” His old University, Carnegie Mellon, had a long standing tradition of inviting an academic to give a lecture at the beginning of the semester as if it were their ‘Last Lecture’. Randy was in the unique position of being able to give the lecture for real; he was facing death as he gave it. He chose to speak about time management. The lecture is a striking example of the strength of human spirit. Randy is upbeat, positive, and humorous throughout. He also offers some sage, practical advice which is easy to apply to everyday life about how to manage your time more effectively. Randy died on July 25, 2008; a full six months later than doctors predicted. Two months earlier, speaking at the Carnegie Mellon graduation ceremony, after delivering a short speech, he carried his wife off stage to wild applause.

Randy was a unique individual, and his courage, wisdom and teaching serve as an example to us all.

Randy Pausch Lecture: Time Management