If you like your hot hatch cocktail shaken and stirred, invest in a Renault Megane RS
IAIN ROBERTSON Both RS 300 and RS Trophy versions of the Megane have been under the surgeon’s knife, highlights Iain Robertson, in the process underscoring a pair of the...
Living with Vitara – Covid-19 report
IAIN ROBERTSON Modern motorcars are far more demanding of their owners than many of us might suspect, highlights Iain Robertson, as he contemplates the ‘cost’ of delayed MOTs,...
VW knows that if you wait long enough for a bus, three come at once and Clubsport GTi falls into the category
IAIN ROBERTSON Having been exceptionally critical of the ‘Golfate’, as Iain Robertson has christened the eighth generation of the popular German hatchback, following the RenaultSport Megane and Hyundai i30N,...
Volvo makes electricity an high-priced commodity in its new XC40 P8
IAIN ROBERTSON With the sole intention of making its mark, or yuan, reports Iain Robertson, Volvo loads-up its first EV version of the much-admired XC40 with every imaginable bell-and-whistle,...
Unpronounceable Ssangyong survives with revitalised Tivoli
IAIN ROBERTSON South Korean Ssangyong (just ignore the first ‘S’) has been US supportive, Chinese owned and riven with controversy since it was formed in 1986, highlights Iain Robertson,...
Taxi Noir: A Legend in Your Own Lunchtime
I’m not surprised to hear home workers complaining. The pleasures of working from the comfort of your own home can quickly become eroded by boredom. The social aspect of...
Explore Coventry’s War Memorial Park
Ann Evans continues to explore Coventry’s parks, join her at the War Memorial Park. Coventry’s War Memorial Park has been a popular place to walk, relax, exercise...
Latest BMW Mini connects the dots for spiciest Works variant yet
IAIN ROBERTSON Although BMW regards its 20 years old version of the Mini as an ‘icon’, Iain Robertson holds fast on the 61 years old Issigonis original for the...
Harry’s Ramblings Fleeting Celebrities
by Harry Pope Mary Berry smiled at me. Just the once, mind you, but it was memorable. At the time I had no idea who she was, it was...
Try to ignore the ‘schnozz’ on the latest BMW 128ti, as it is what lies behind it that matters most!
IAIN ROBERTSON Cyrano de Bergerac was a Gallic novelist, playwright and duellist, highlights Iain Robertson, yet he will forever be remembered for possessing a most sizeable nose, a factor...
Green Tomato Glut. Some Delicious Recipes. Part 1.
Remember how I showed you to grow tomatoes from tomato slices when all the garden centres were closed? We got around 56 tomato plants from a few seeds,...
Vauxhall prays that motorists’ lives will be mocked without a Mokka!
IAIN ROBERTSON Stymied by ‘lockdown’, the latest Corsa has enjoyed zero market wiggle-room before PSA Group’s insistent and unrelenting product planners weigh-in with the forthcoming crossover variant, about which...
Welsh Witterings: Coconut and Brazil Nut Curry – a Delicious Vegan Dish
This creamy Coconut and Brazil Nut Curry is perfect served with brown rice to soak up the creamy nutty sauce. A perfect quick and healthy dish and it...
SHELLY BEACH SNIPPETS No. 126 September, 2020.
Greetings from down under where a few State borders are being opened, South Australia and Queensland. Victoria is gradually recovering, and New South Wales is on track. The good...
What is a Gratin?
Gratin is the name of any dish that is topped with cheese, breadcrumbs, or a mixture of them both. It’s a very cheap, versatile dish that nearly always turns...
Dipping into VW Group’s enormous spare parts bins enables new Audi A3 hybrid development
IAIN ROBERTSON At a moment in time, when the automotive business is looking all shaky and EV charged, highlights Iain Robertson, it is heart-warming for fans of quality cars...
Despite the virus, Skoda testing continues with new Enyaq iV
IAIN ROBERTSON Snapped opportunistically as it piles on the proving miles, reports Iain Robertson, the next and possibly most important step in Skoda’s brand development has been revealed in...
MG elects for ‘conventional’ approach to its latest MG5 EV estate car
IAIN ROBERTSON Describing the atmosphere as ‘heavy with irony’, Iain Robertson reviews the new MG5 SW and appreciates its ‘compact Passat’ stance, mainly because it is NOT an SUV...
Harry’s Ramblings Facebook Forum
by Harry Pope I like Facebook, find it chatty and accessible, Twitter tends to be a little bit silly, and Linkedin is for professionals wanting to keep in contact....
Welsh Witterings: Quick Fix Chocolate Pudding
I love to finish a home-cooked meal with a home-made pudding, but with five children I often end up time poor and pudding can easily be a bridge too...
Karl’s Chronicles. Cairo Curiosities – Ten To Explore
Touchdown in Cairo and the immediate effect can be overwhelming at best. The city never seems to end, an ancient forest of concrete apartment blocks whose heat-weary occupants, watch...
Rachel´s Wandering´s in Spain – Still Masked, Breathless and a Grandma
Compulsory mask wearing still has not got me beaten. Every opportunity, opening the office door or car door, and it is whipped off! I’m not as quick to...
It’s all about the ‘schnozz’, as far as BMW’s new M3 and M4 are concerned
IAIN ROBERTSON Having focused earlier this year on the changing face of BMW, Iain Robertson believed that familiarity with the Munich firm’s much-altered grille outline and the slow but...
Love ’em, or loathe ’em, you can’t avoid ’em – Anatomy of the SUV
IAIN ROBERTSON Treated literally, the Sport Utility Vehicle is an horrendous misnomer, writes Iain Robertson, possessing some elements of all-wheel drive, on a hiked-up, family-orientated platform that ought to...
It’s All Happening at Hatton and Gaydon
Whilst things are changing on a daily basis due to Covid-19, three Covid – safe events are planned for the coming weekends around Warwick. Ann Evans has...
Evidence Democrats/Globalists Are Using Illegal Immigrants And Germ Warfare Upon ‘The Masses’ In The Streets Of The Western World To Bring In Their ‘Orwellian Hellscape’
– ‘Operation Moonshot’ And The Implementation Of The ‘Global Police State’ Are Now Fully Underway By Stefan Stanford – All News Pipeline – Live Free Or Die...
Sometimes, being ‘disagreeable’ can reveal con-jobs and skulduggery
IAIN ROBERTSON Realising that he is hardly alone in questioning the premature return-to-work strategy being exercised almost wholesale across the UK motor industry, Iain Robertson is concerned about other...
Isuzu D-Max XTR (Colour Edition) makes purpose work
IAIN ROBERTSON Introduced originally as a ‘concept’ by International Motors Group, the official importer of Isuzu pickup trucks to the UK market, Iain Robertson is only too delighted to...
Survival forces Suzuki into strategic alliance with Toyota for Swace
IAIN ROBERTSON Things are tough at present across the entire motor industry but, writes Iain Robertson, the deal between Suzuki and Toyota was struck long before the pandemic did...
Next-generation Audi A3 saloon benefits from substantial character injection
IAIN ROBERTSON With deliveries hoped to commence this summer, reports Iain Robertson, Audi’s latest compact 4-door has become more mature and markedly less of a niche-filler than its predecessor,...
Welsh Witterings: 5 GOLDEN RULES TO SETTING UP AN ARTISAN DRINKS COMPANY – TIPS AND ADVICE TO MAKE IT PAY
Thinking of Setting Up An Artisan Drinks Company? Here Are Some Tips And Advice The artisan or craft drinks market today has grown. There was a time when the...
HELP FOR THE WARWICKSHIRE WILDLIFE TRUST
The Warwickshire Wildlife Trust gets a helping hand from the National Lottery. Ann Evans has the details. Since the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown began, Warwickshire Wildlife Trust has...
Genesis – The car you almost certainly never promised yourself
IAIN ROBERTSON Despite teasing British motoring journalists for the past decade, reports Iain Robertson, Genesis, the luxury arm of Hyundai, has been shaping up in other new car markets,...
Book Reviews
IAIN ROBERTSON There has seldom been a more apposite time to highlight the latest automotive books worth reading than now, states Iain Robertson, and you can order copies direct...
Recognition of great design does no harm to Mazda’s fine repute
IAIN ROBERTSON At a time when the motor industry is free thankfully of mainstream mundanity, Iain Robertson is utterly delighted that his tip-for-the-top from May 2019, the new...
New Merc S-Class confounds critics, rivals and customers but it should not be a surprise.
IAIN ROBERTSON Every time Daimler-Benz launches a new version of its most prestigious S-Class, it would be fair for Iain Robertson to state that its technological mandate is not...
A Day Out At Wisley Gardens
It was like walking into a scene of a period drama. Maybe one of our beloved Jane Austen’s movie sets: expansive lawns, landscaped gardens, the sun casting shadows. Ladies...
SHELLY BEACH SNIPPETS No. 125 August, 2020.
Patricia Newell-Dunkley – Photographs Reginald J. Dunkley Greetings from down under where the weather has turned arctic for the last month. Heavy snow has been falling and Tasmania has...
While not exactly ‘same again’ for Lotus, Evija evinces a familiar supercar style
IAIN ROBERTSON Norfolk-based sportscar manufacturer, Lotus, is promising customers of its cut above electric hypercar an intriguing experiential programme, highlights Iain Robertson, of an order that is sure to...
The Sensual Appeal of I.C.E. and Automobilia
IAIN ROBERTSON From the Sound of Silence to the Art of Noise, the tactility of textiles to the aroma of weathered hide, even tangential taste, Iain Robertson cites sight...