As David and Victoria Beckham continue their search for a new home in London, The Steeple Times suggests five of the best options
This morning, yet more “sources close to David and Victoria Beckham” were telling the press that they’re on the search for a London home. This unnamed individual stated that they need a “minimum of 10 bedrooms” (more…)
Why do the press continue to refer to the Duchess of Cambridge as ‘Kate Middleton’?
Two years ago yesterday, Catherine Elizabeth Middleton married Prince William. Euphoria reigned throughout the land and 26 million are said to have watched the ceremony in Britain alone.
The reasoning for Lord McAlpine’s libel action against Sally Bercow just does not stack up
Sally Bercow, the speaker’s wife, is a loudmouth. We don’t dispute that. There’s little she won’t say or do to keep herself in the public eye and whether draped in nothing other than a sheet in the Palace of Westminster or fooling around in the Celebrity Big Brother house, she comes across as a bit of a fool.
The current libel action against Mrs Bercow, though, just doesn’t make sense. It is an overreaction on the part of Lord McAlpine and rather reminds us of the case of Oscar Wilde and the Marquess of Queensberry.
Aldi’s £9.65 a bottle gin sees off premium spirits in a taste test
Gin, in its simplest form is effectively a neutral spirit plus juniper berries. Other botanicals, such as cassisa bark, saffron and grapefruit peel, are added and create the taste difference that distinguish Bombay Sapphire from Plymouth and Sipsmith from Martin Miller’s. Of course, the magic that sets a great gin apart from a bad‘un is a little more complex but though drinks industry “experts” bang on about this, does the layman really care?
Whether innocent or guilty of the murder she’s repeatedly been accused of, this American has made $4 million from her memoir deal with HarperCollins. The family of Meredith Kercher, the true victim in all of this, have rightly stated that they “do not believe anyone should profit from the murder” but Knox, whose conviction for calunnia stands, is therefore indeed proof that crime can indeed pay.
The latest in a series of bizarre comments from actor William Roache
William Roache MBE, who plays Ken Barlow in Coronation Street, is no stranger to controversy.
The grandson of a Freemason who was interested in hypnotism, theosophy and esotericism, Roache is a vegetarian and spiritualist who was photographed participating in Druid rituals in the 1970s.
Matthew Steeples bemoans an overused word
They’re everywhere: you’ll find them on magazine covers, on the television and at events. They stalk out the cameras, they behave badly and make utter fools of themselves. In fact, they’ll do just about anything to keep in the “media eye”. Allegedly, Lindsay’s one, Katie’s one and Justin’s one too. They’re forced upon us so much that they don’t even need surnames anymore. The “celebrity” is the force de rigueur and they and the word that describes them has spread like cheap margarine throughout the land.
At a book launch this week, a photographer I spoke with complained that he had become bored of tiresome and pointless individuals who consider themselves famous. The truly famous, instead, just want privacy. There are now, indeed, “celebrity stylists”, “celebrity chefs” and even our Prime Minister, David Cameron, has a “celebrity personal trainer”.
Fame used to be the reserve of the truly iconic. Frank Sinatra is, without doubt, deserving of the accolade, as are Marilyn Monroe, Michael Jackson and Madonna. The cast of The Only Way is Essex and Tulisa are not.
Please could someone just put the word “celebrity” back in its box?
The story of “fallen tycoon” Brian O’Donnell, the differences between bankruptcy in the UK and Ireland and an £11 million mansion
In these straightened times, the media in general and the Daily Mail in particular quickly latch on to stories about benefit scroungers living in luxury homes. They’re less quick, however, with the exception of the case of Grant Bovey (“Mr Anthea Turner”), to make reference to stories of bankrupt individuals remaining in multi-million pound mansions.
A most newsworthy example, though, has to be that of Irish property investor Brian O’Donnell and his psychiatrist wife Dr Mary Patricia “Pat” O’Donnell. Mr O’Donnell, who bought the Sanctuary Buildings in London for £170 million and paid $172.5 million for a 199,000 square foot property on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington in 2008, started his career as a solicitor and eventually founded his own firm, Brian O’Donnell & Partners, in 1999. In time, he and his wife diversified into property investment and at the height of his success, Mr O’Donnell was described as “the Celtic Tiger poster child”. With the recession, however, came problems and by 2011, they owed Morgan Stanley €457 million, Aareal €235 million, and the Bank of Ireland circa €75 million.
