Leon undergoes comprehensive evolution for revitalised Seat
IAIN ROBERTSON Provided with an early opportunity to review the latest Seat Leon, Iain Robertson admits that it took a ‘double-take’ to appreciate that it is a completely new...
Malta Diary Entering the Lenten period – a time for sackcloth and ashes? It used to be – but no longer … memories of the past
ALBERT FENECH e/mail – Facebook: My Blog: Today is Ash Wednesday. Carnival activities of boisterous merriment came to an abrupt end at midnight...
Drawn to T-Roc R? VW might have a less trendy, less costly option to consider.
IAIN ROBERTSON You cannot blame carmakers from wanting to make a buck, states Iain Robertson, but trendiness carries invariably a premium and, with T-Roc R running just shy of...
CRUFTS HERO DOG AWARDS
Photos courtesy of the Kennel Club Voting is now open for Crufts Hero Dog Awards in their Friends for Life competition. Ann Evans has the details. The Kennel...
Gareth Butterfield tests the posh and pretty Range Rover Velar
I CAN remember the days when, if you walked into a Land Rover Showroom you’d have a choice of the Defender or a Range Rover. Simple, clear-cut options that...
“Courtyard Paris Gare de Lyon”, a room with a breathtaking view – Meanderings through France n° 209
By Annick Dournes & Frédéric de Poligny The Courtyard Paris Gare de Lyon hotel is the very first Parisian Courtyard by Marriott address and this first...
Origami ID.3 may have insufficient identity for the VW brand
IAIN ROBERTSON As the biggest car company in the world, Volkswagen has a notional responsibility to lead the new car market, opines Iain Robertson, although he is concerned that...
Merc indulges in diesel with its latest GLE/GLC plug-in hybrids
IAIN ROBERTSON In a genuine case of ‘if Merc doesn’t know better, nobody will’, writes Iain Robertson, its latest hybrid development relies on diesel as its core resource, while...
A Place to Stay, Ibis, Southampton
If you’re considering a pre or post cruise stay in Southampton, then do have a look at the Ibis. Its location is very good for the cruise terminal and...
Malta Diary Ruts hewn in stone surfaces part of the National Heritage of the Maltese Islands Used for planting grape vines and olive trees since prehistoric times
ALBERT FENECH e/mail – Facebook: My Blog: Malta and Gozo have a Superintendance for National Heritage, a Government entity that at surface...
Taxi Noir: Brewing Up a Storm
As I sit at my PC typing this, the wind is howling outside. We’re advised not to venture out unless our journeys are essential. The port of Dover is...
THE MAD MUSEUM
Photos by Rob Tysall, Tysall’s Photography Ann Evans introduces us to a museum that runs like clockwork – Stratford upon Avon’s MAD Museum. If you or...
Trevor’s Wildlife Week. WRAS Rescuers Called Out to check Bat Box After Fallen Tree in Hailsham.
East Sussex Wildlife Rescue & Ambulance Service (WRAS) rescuers were called out to check on a Bat Box after the oak tree it was located in fell across the...
Wrapped up in the Cotswolds House Hotel & Spa
It’s a cold January weekend and I’m wrapped up in a warm woollen coat. Quite fitting really as I’m in the heart of the Cotswolds, once a rich trading...
Being a cruise ship lecturer
by Harry Pope It’s a great life, lecturing on cruise ships on a topic that is close to my heart – entertainment. I speak about the great British comics...
With new 3-Series Touring, BMW polishes an untarnished and popular model
IAIN ROBERTSON Popularity counts for a lot in today’s new car scene and the BMW 3-Series Touring, of which over 500,000 examples of the previous iteration found contented homes,...
Gareth Butterfield tests the Toyota Corolla, Toyota’s new British-built stunner
THE Toyota Corolla bears the best-selling badge in the world. We might not have seen a new one pootling around the UK for a long time, but this genuinely...
A city-break in Paris side by side with Napoleon
By Annick Dournes & Frédéric de Poligny When Napoleon took power as France First Consul in 1799 he already knew that he wanted Paris to become the most beautiful...
Steve’s Sojourns: The Azores, Portugal’s Atlantic gem.
Put quite simply the Azores are stunning. I had never visited before and I guess like most people I only knew about them from the weather forecast with the...
Malta Diary Maltese blood in the US Washington White House? Could well be! Maltese diaspora rootin’ ‘n tootin’ for Pete Buttigieg
ALBERT FENECH e/mail – Facebook: My Blog: Most of the world has now heard of Pete Buttigieg, the Democrat striving to win...
Charles Rennie Mackintosh house to be extended.
Photos courtesy of 78 Derngate and Rob Tysall Changes coming to the famous Charles Rennie Mackintosh house, 78 Derngate, Ann Evans reports. Following on from...
A real feel of Elizabethan splendour
By Ann Mealor Taking the time to read up just a little about the history of Billesley Manor will reap genuine reward. This 16th century Elizabethan manor house in...
Steve’s Sojourns: Walking in Madeira and the Canary Islands
I have always been a keen if not dedicated walker and cruiser so when I saw the Ramblers Walking Holidays Trip to Madeira and the Canary Islands with Fred...
Driving abroad post-‘Brexit’? There’s nothing to worry about, for the moment.
IAIN ROBERTSON If you were concerned about the impact of the UK departing the EU political construct, while understandable, writes Iain Robertson, mainly due to a distinct information shortfall,...
Malta Diary Carnival – time to let your hair down or is it just an excuse for wanton revelry? To be correct or incorrect – that is the question nowadays
ALBERT FENECH e/mail – Facebook: My Blog: In a couple of weeks’ time Malta and Gozo will be celebrating their Carnival weekend –...
Under-fire Land Rover proves that it can over-endow in tech terms
IAIN ROBERTSON Over the past few months, Land Rover has responded to its critics by introducing the remarkable new Defender, highlights Iain Robertson, which is armed with advanced technology...
78 Derngate
Photos by Rob Tysall, Tysall’s Photography Tucked away in Northampton is a gem of a house that is totally unique. Ann Evans goes along to visit 78 Derngate. ...
Rachel´s Wanderings in Spain 15 El Caminito del Rey – The King´s Walkway
Once known as the world´s most dangerous walkway, the caminito – which means little walkway – and it was little. The old path was built as a narrow path...
Beachy Head
by Harry Pope Nature has her own way of weeding out the weakest, but sometimes people have to be protected from themselves for their own good. Eastbourne’s Beachy Head...
Volkswagen recalls its past more judiciously these days
IAIN ROBERTSON Although the German car-producing giant, Volkswagen, may have been ‘in denial’ for five-and-a-half decades post-WW2, highlights Iain Robertson, at the turn of the New Millennium, it faced...
Malta Diary The British Royal Navy and its impact on the Maltese Language HMS DEE and HMS DON still part of today’s Maltese tongue after almost 145 years
ALBERT FENECH e/mail – Facebook: My Blog: The French Mediterranean Fleet on its way to the Battle of the Nile toward the...
Taxi Noir: Back 2 Skool
I’ve been trying to get out of the cab game for some time. To this end I’ve been working towards becoming a Health & Safety Adviser. I gained the...
Doll’s House Delight
Photos by Rob Tysall, Tysall’s Photography. Doll’s houses and miniature world is a fascinating one – not for tiny tots, but for grown-ups as Ann Evans reveals. Did...
63rd BFI London Film Festival Review
By Dr Ricky Ghosh Dastidar The 63rd BFI London Film Festival took place recently, featuring a total of 233 screenings. This comprised 28 World Premieres, 12 International Premieres and 32 European Premieres. Many of the world’s most...
Bouncing Bomb Speaker
by Harry Pope The year was 1963, I was a 16 year old still at school with a part time job in a local hotel as barman, waiter, and...
Malta Diary Carding, combing, spinning and weaving in the Maltese Islands – all on death row?
ALBERT FENECH e/mail – Facebook: My Blog: I was not a spinner, nor a weaver, but back in the 1970s...
A Rather Unusual Telephone Box
Photos by Rob Tysall, Tysall’s Photography It sounds bizarre but Ann Evans went along to Stratford-upon-Avon to see the unveiling of a telephone box! The work of...
Gareth Butterfield hangs on for dear life to the fast and furious Renault Megane RS Trophy
THERE’S a certain list of criteria a hot-hatch must meet these days. If a car hasn’t got 300bhp, it doesn’t seem to cut it, and if it doesn’t have...
Steve’s Sojourn’s : Allier France
Cradle of the Bourbon dynasty the department of Allier, in the Massif Central in the most northerly part of the Auvergne, is famous for its landscapes. Its also has...
Nimes boasts its Roman heritage – Meanderings through France n° 207
By Frédéric de Poligny & Annick Dournes Nimes is a French southern town created in ancient times by the Roman invaders. At only a few miles away from...