New Opel/Vauxhall Astra saloon revealed - AUTOCAR.co.uk
Opel/Vauxhall has revealed this new Astra saloon – but the four-door is not destined for sale in the UK. The Opel Astra saloon will instead be sold in select western European markets, including Germany and Spain, where 'notchbacks' are popular, as well as Eastern Europe, Russia and Turkey.
The Astra saloon is offered with four petrol and three diesel engines. The most powerful engine is a 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol unit with 177bhp. The most frugal is a 94bhp 1.3-litre oil-burner with CO2 emissions of 99g/km and 76.3mpg.
Opel has also confirmed its new family of turbocharged four-cylinder 1.6-litre petrol engines will be launched in the new Astra four-door from early 2013.
The Astra saloon, sister car to the Buick Verano, is 4658mm long, 1814mm wide and 1476mm high. That makes it 239mm longer than a standard Astra five-door. The four and five-door models share the same 2685mm wheelbase, but the extra length allows for an increase of 90 litres in boot capacity. The 460-litre volume can be increased to 1010 litres by folding the 60:40 split rear bench flat.
Visually, the Astra four-door is identical to the five-door from the rear doors forward. The rear screen has a sharp rake to better integrate the boot. There’s also an integrated rear spoiler and an ‘inner wing’ shape for the rear lamps, an Opel hallmark.
The new model is set to make its public debut at the Moscow motor show in August.
London's ugliest buildings: your choices - Daily Telegraph
The Queen Elizabeth conference centre offends my eyes and the Shell building on the South Bank is equally brutal.
Martin Bartlett, by email
I know most of the buildings featured: it appears that you have chosen the some of the largest projects in recent history? In terms of the Blue Fin, you should go and have a look at what used to be there. And UCL Hospital? Surely Guys Hospital should be there instead?
Martin Garthwaite, by email
The One New Change shopping centre in the City would be my choice for inclusion in London’s ugliest buildings. Not for nothing is it referred to as “the turd”.
Bob Thompson, by email
Most modern buildings are just meaningless, incongruous, dysfunctional shapes, which date with amazing rapidity. If it’s not going to look good still in 500 years; don’t build it.
John Armstrong, by email
The Shard without a doubt is one of the ugliest buildings in London. The first view I had of this monstrosity was crossing the Thames when coming from Gatwick Airport. To me it looked like a giant prophylactic.
Why do all these buildings have to stick out like a sore thumb? Isn't it about time there were height restrictions? There should also be rules about modern "architecture" (if that is what they want to call it) complementing the surroundings in which they are being built.
S Cook, by email
I would add Portcullis House. Dark brown is seldom a good colour for a building and this is no exception.
Robert Cook, by email
A gentleman's London weekend - Daily Telegraph
A couple of doors away, James Lock hatters has been around since 1676. Hat sales, I'm told, have been on the increase in the past seven years with felt trilbys and tweed caps being the most popular. Next, I pop into J J Fox, the cigar specialist, which has also been in business since the late 18th century. Unusually, you can smoke there, either in the upstairs sampling lounge or the tiny museum downstairs which contains, among other items, a Chesterfield belonging Sir Winston Churchill (who would get through eight giant cigars a day). I lit up a delicate Tres Petit Lonsdale ("a good mid-morning cigar") and thought about lunch.
After exploring another of the street's treasures, the wine merchant Berry Bros & Rudd, and contemplating booking a tasting in the 300-year-old cellars, I wandered along to the very traditional Green's Restaurant and Oyster Bar where I tucked into half a dozen Fal and Rock.
For any country gentleman worth his salt, a shotgun is part of the essential kit. So I wound down Bond Street towards Holland and Holland, which has been making shotguns and rifles since 1835 and will make you look the part, too. Its technical adviser, Pat Murphy, took me through the crucial process of "gun fit" (fitting a gun to the purchaser), explained the types of guns on offer and told me why a pair can cost £190,000 (you realise why when you examine the engraving). But you have to wait two to three years for one to be made. As at Lobb's, there are still people happy to splash out on such extravagances – and not all of them are from abroad.
Such displays of wealth put me in need of a drink and since it was cocktail hour I headed for the Connaught Hotel where the "head mixologist", Agostino Perrone, explained the thinking behind the perfect drink. His knack is giving a new twist to classic drinks and he served me an invigorating gin martini with ginger essence and then concocted the best Bloody Mary I've ever had, using tequila.
After a heady taxi ride, dinner followed at the excellent Vinoteca in Seymour Place, inspired by the wine bars of Italy and Spain, which set me up for the evening's main event, gambling.
London has a long and chequered history of gaming – as the novelist Peter Ackroyd once observed, "the dissipations of the city act as great levellers". How true that was at the Empire Casino, where you can gamble 24 hours a day. It was just shy of 11pm as I entered the poker room for a brief lesson in Texas Hold 'Em, but the big and small blinds left me somewhat bamboozled and I left the high and low rollers to try my luck on the main floor with roulette and blackjack. Unfortunately it was not my night.
The following morning, after a bacon sandwich at the Riding House Cafe, I had an appointment at Sotheby's. One of the better secrets of London is that you can duck into the auction house (even without the family heirlooms) and view the exhibits of a forthcoming auction – and there's an excellent café, too. I had a preview of February's Contemporary Art Auction, with works by Gerhard Richter, Damien Hirst and Lucian Freud, all of which sold well, a few days later.
Just up the road at Oxford Street, House of Fraser's menswear department has enjoyed a revamp, with a clubby lounge (complete with a small library containing a copy of Debrett's Guide for the Modern Gentleman, as well as a television) where you can have a suit made up or engage a personal shopper.
It used to be said that a man was defined by his clubs and so for my final indulgence, I visited the RAC on Pall Mall, founded in 1897, for an invigorating "exfoliation massage". I left reassured that London remains a city that really is anything you want it to be – and for one weekend I had enjoyed a lifestyle that Beau Brummell might have appreciated.
A gentleman's address book
St John Hotel (020 3301 8069; stjohnhotellondon.com); doubles from £150.
Vinoteca (020 7724 7288; vinoteca.co.uk); The Riding House Café (020 7927 0840; ridinghousecafe.co.uk); Green's Restaurant and Oyster Bar (020 7930 4566; greens.org.uk).
James Lock (020 7930 8874; lockhatters.co.uk); Lobb (020 7930 3664; johnlobbltd.co.uk); Berry Bros & Rudd (0800 280 2440; bbr.com); JJ Fox (020 7930 3787; jjfox.co.uk); Holland and Holland (020 7499 4411; hollandandholland.com); House of Fraser (0844 800 3752; houseoffraser.co.uk).
Sotheby's (020 7293 5000; sothebys.com); auctions in Bond Street include European paintings on June 11 and Finest and Rarest Wines, June 12-14.
Royal Automobile Club (020 7747 3365; royalautomobileclub.co.uk); non-members are admitted for massage treatments only – from £34 for 30 minutes.
Gentlemen's Tonic at Gieves & Hawkes (020 7432 6441; gentlemenstonic.com); a standard wet shave costs £35.
The casino at the Empire (020 3014 1000; thecasinolsq.com).
Police plea after four die in crash - Belfast Telegraph
Wednesday, 6 June 2012
A Volkswagen Passat and a Vauxhall Astra collided on the A39 at Cannington, near Bridgwater, Somerset, at around 2.30pm on Tuesday.
A spokesman for Somerset Police said a 68-year-old man travelling in the Passat died, while a 73-year-old woman, a 59-year-old woman and a 76-year-old man travelling in the Astra were also killed.
Police are appealing for witnesses to contact the collision investigation unit on 101.
The accident follows another fatal crash in which three men were killed when their car careered into trees before rolling down an embankment near Oxford.
The men, aged 57, 39 and 31, were in a blue Mercedes E Class estate when the crash happened on the A4074 at Sandford-on-Thames at about 9.50pm on Monday.
Two other passengers, both women, aged 37 and 29, were injured and taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.
Two of the men who died, the 57-year-old and the 39-year-old, were believed to be US citizens. No other vehicles were involved.
A spokesman for Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service said they were called to Tuesday afternoon's crash after reports that three people were trapped.
They used hydraulic cutting equipment to remove the roof of one of the vehicles so the casualties could be reached by ambulance staff.
London house prices diverge sharply - Financial Times
June 6, 2012 9:38 pm
London 2012: Great Britain name powerful rowing squad - BBC News
Great Britain have named 48 rowers in the squad for the London Olympics, with four places still to be decided.
Remaining selections in the men's and women's eights will be finalised "in due course", said a Team GB statement.
Katherine Grainger“There is a sense that the upcoming home Games will be on a different scale to anything we've ever seen before”
Britain will compete in 13 of the 14 rowing events at Eton Dorney, with the men's four and men's lightweight double scull defending titles.
The host nation hopes to improve on the record haul of six medals that saw them top the rowing medals table in Beijing.
"We go to the start in London ready to defend our status as the leading rowing nation from Beijing but we are under no illusion as to how tough winning medals, especially gold medals, will be at this Games," said David Tanner, GB Rowing Team performance director.
As expected, Andrew Triggs Hodge, Tom James, Pete Reed and Alex Gregory will attempt to win a fourth consecutive gold medal for Britain in the men's four, following in the footsteps of Sir Steve Redgrave, Sir Matthew Pinsent and James Cracknell among others.
The crew have won both World Cup races this year but were pushed hard by Australia in Lucerne last time out.
"I'm thrilled to be part of the biggest British team ever at our London Olympics," said Reed.
"I have been training for this all my life one way or another. I am a proud lieutenant from the Royal Navy, a proud Olympian and a proud Briton. I'm racing to win."
Anna Watkins and Katherine Grainger are firm favourites in the women's double scull, with Scot Grainger looking to win a first gold after taking silver at the last three Games.
Britain row to Beijing glory
"It's been an incredible honour and privilege to be part of the past three Olympic Games and, as wonderful as they have all been, there is a sense that the upcoming home Games will be on a different scale to anything we've ever seen before," said Grainger.
World and Olympic champions Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter will defend their men's lightweight double scull title, while Helen Glover and Heather Stanning are currently the world-leading women's pair.
Greg Searle will get the chance to go for gold in the men's eight 20 years after he won the coxed pairs title in tandem with his brother Jonny and tearful cox Garry Herbert in Barcelona.
Searle, 40, returned to the sport in 2010 having last competed at an Olympics in Sydney 12 years ago.
Only seven rowers have been named in the men's eight, leaving the door open for Constantine Louloudis to be named as stroke despite having missed both of this year's World Cup regattas with a back injury.
A world under-23 champion, it is hoped Louloudis could give Britain the edge after they pushed world champions Germany hard in Belgrade and Lucerne over the last month.
Ten rowers have been named for the women's eight, with selectors likely to use the upcoming Munich World Cup to assess their options once again before making the final decision.
Team GB rowing squad:
Men's Pair - George Nash, Will Satch
Men's Four - Alex Gregory, Tom James, Pete Reed, Andrew Triggs Hodge
Men's Eight * - Richard Egington, James Foad, Matthew Langridge, Alex Partridge, Tom Ransley, Mohamed Sbihi, Greg Searle, Phelan Hill (cox)
* one further rower will be added at a later date
Men's Single Scull - Alan Campbell
Men's Double Scull - Bill Lucas, Sam Townsend
Men's Quadruple Scull - Charles Cousins, Stephen Rowbotham, Tom Solesbury, Matthew Wells
Women's Pair - Helen Glover, Heather Stanning
Women's Eight * - Jo Cook, Jessica Eddie, Katie Greves, Lindsey Maguire, Natasha Page, Louisa Reeve, Emily Taylor, Victoria Thornley, Annabel Vernon, Olivia Whitlam, Caroline O'Connor (cox)
* Eight from the ten rowers listed will be confirmed as racing in the eight. The two rowers not racing in the eight will be selected as reserves.
Women's Double Scull - Katherine Grainger, Anna Watkins
Women's Quadruple Scull - Debbie Flood, Frances Houghton, Beth Rodford, Melanie Wilson
Lightweight Men's Four - Chris Bartley, Peter Chambers, Richard Chambers, Rob Williams
Lightweight Men's Double Scull - Mark Hunter, Zac Purchase
Lightweight Women's Double Scull - Katherine Copeland, Sophie Hosking
UPDATE: Condolences offered after four die in A39 collision in Cannington (From Bridgwater Mercury) - bridgwatermercury.co.uk
Breaking news UPDATE: Condolences offered after four die in A39 collision in Cannington
1:20pm Wednesday 6th June 2012 in News By Newsdesk
CONDOLENCES have been offered to families of the four victims who died in a crash on the A39 in Cannington yesterday afternoon (June 5).
A fourth victim has died following a collision involving a VW Passat and a Vauxhall Astra at around 2.30pm yesterday.
Somerset County Council Leader, John Osman, said: “This is a dreadful tragedy and my heartfelt condolences go to the family and friends of all those involved.
“I would also like to pass on my thanks to those members of the emergency services who have worked so hard over the last 24 hours.”
Five people were travelling in the vehicles. A 68-year-old man travelling in the Passat has died. A 73-year-old woman, a 59-year-old woman and a 76-year-old man travelling in the Astra have also died.
Two people died at the scene with three others taken to hospital, two of which later died. One casualty was airlifted.
Police confirmed the third fatality shortly after 5pm yesterday.
The road has now re-opened after being closed for around six hours while police carried out an investigation.
Officers closed the road both ways between Blackmore Lane and the main road and traffic mounted as drivers have been diverted between Charlynch.
Six ambulances, a doctor, police and firefighters were called to the scene.
Resident Nicola Puddy, who lives near the A39, said she and her neighbours were shocked and upset by the crash.
She said: “I’ve never seen so many emergency vehicles. There is a massive amount of police presence and we’ve seen an RAF helicopter at the scene. Things have quietened down now, but I think it will be some time before the roads will be open.
“My neighbours and I are shocked by it. It’s fairly upsetting to think there have been deaths near your house. My thoughts are with their families. It’s awful.”
Charlynch Road resident Alli Baldwin said she had been stuck in traffic for over an hour and had to walk home with her two dogs while her husband stayed behind. She suggested drivers take alternative routes. She said: “It’s complete gridlock. I was stuck for about an hour, despite living in Charlynch Road.
She said some motorists were becoming angry and recommended people turned off at Splatt Lane to go through Spaxton.
Leathea Stephenson, joint landlady at The Globe Inn, said: “People said they’d seen a helicopter and lots of police and ambulance vehicles in the area.
“The roads have become gridlocked because the main road is closed. People are saying even the back roads are getting very busy."
For further information, keep checking this website.
Did you witness the accident? Call our newsdesk on the out of hours mobile on 07816-169323 or the newsroom on 01278-727960.
Officers are appealing for anyone who was in the area at the time and witnessed the collision to contact the collision investigation unit on 101. Alternatively, call the charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800-555111 or via www.crimestoppers-uk.org
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