Money Category
Money in the news and how you are going to pay and pay and pay
How the BBC Affected The Forunes Of HBOS And Lloyds TSB
HBOS PLC, owners of the Halifax, and Lloyds TSB PLC are said toi be in advanced talks about a merger. We know this because the British Broadcasting Corp. says so.
Neither company would comment on what they called “market speculation.” BBC business editor Robert Peston said that the talks were “very advanced” and could be wrapped up this week.
A scoop? If so, a scoop in the financial markets that has not been confirmed. Which makes it a rumour. And rumours in the City can create problems, and fortunes.
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Posted: 17th, September 2008 | In: Money, TV & Radio | Comments (6)
Unravelling Allison Pearson’s Message For Lehman Brothers Sorority
ALLISON Pearson, of the Daily Mail, is discussing the impact of the Lehman Bothers “earthquake” and what investments bankers did to us when they never had it so good:
For years, investment bankers could outbid any family on a London house because they were always cash buyers. Flash Harrys and Jaspers with bonuses as big as their egos were happy to pay stupid money. So the property market duly went insane…
Who can afford those cray-zee prices?
Film studio Miramax has demanded that Allison Pearson return the $700,000 it paid her for rights to her novel I Think I Love You after the Daily Mail columnist failed to deliver the book. The novel, Pearson’s second following her successful debut I Don’t Know How She Does It, is about one girl’s infatuation with David Cassidy.
Pearson goes on:
The quality of British life became dangerously frayed. Kids unravelled.
Unravelling children. For shame! You’ve seen them, with their frayed fingers, unstitched heads and loose bits of digestive tract trailing behind them on a sodden grey pavement.
Pearson’s seen them. And she’s seen the kiddie unravellers at Lehman Brothers, once addressing the banks sorority:
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Posted: 17th, September 2008 | In: Money, Tabloids | Comments (8)
Kenneth Branagh Does The Credit Crunch
CREDIT Crunch news of the day: Kenneth Branagh’s play for today…
The play was an early one and is generally seen as a poor relative of the four classics of Chekhov’s too brief maturity. But it has acquired striking topicality on two counts. First, it deals with debt, and with relationships dominated by economic circumstance. Debtor and creditor are unable to engage in social or emotional transactions without the paralysing effects of unreturned money. This is credit-crunch Chekhov.
A decent ticket for Ivanov at London’s Wyndham theatre costs a credit-crunch busting £32.50, plus £1.50 booking fee…
Posted: 16th, September 2008 | In: Celebrities, Money | Comments (9)
Lehman Brothers’ Workers Save Jobs By Playing Bingo
YOU join us for another game of Tabloid Bingo. Today the tabloids are counting the numbers of bankers falling from the windows of Lehman Bothers’ offices.
DAILY MIRROR: “About 4,500 Lehman Brothers staff …may lose their jobs.”
They have chance…
DAILY MAIL: “Some 4,500 Lehman workers lost their job in Britain”
Damn!
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Posted: 16th, September 2008 | In: Money, Tabloids | Comments (4)
The Idiots Guide To The Lehman Brothers
LEHMAN Brothers bank collapses, proof that capitalism works and you’re never to big to go under.
Big news, then. But the red-tops have a problem: they need to make their readers understand what Lehman Brothers was. They do this by finding an easy point of reference and talking down to them in words of one syllable or fewer.
THE SUN (front page): “CRASH – BANG – WALLOP”
Jobs have been lost. Lehman’s hasn’t half a sixpence to its name. But what does it man? Well:
“Manchester Utd sponsor AIG could be next.”
That’s right. Man United fans might be forced to buy a new shirt. And with the season but a few weeks old. For shame!
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Posted: 16th, September 2008 | In: Money, Tabloids | Comments (8)
America Is In The Great Depression
WRITES Cheryl from the US:
It is a nightmare over here, trust me! Drive down the streets in very nice areas and Foreclosures signs going up right and left. Stock market took quite a hit today and some people are losing their life’s savings in one fell swoop. Gas went up the other day in some places by 89 cents more per gallon add-on to already outrageous prices even before Ike hit Texas! I was reading an article last week about the potential for suicides by people losing their homes. Trying to remember history but believe it was the Crash of 1929 or 32 that caused the multitude of people to kill themselves who lost everything and thus the Great Depression. Here is something from the news over here today but not the latest and it only worsens.
Posted: 15th, September 2008 | In: Back pages, Money | Comments (8)
Sky Has Changed Football More Than Any Billionaire Team Owner
SIMON Barnes, the Times’s Sports Columnist of the Year, is talking about Al Sugar, Manchester City and how football clubs have become rich man’s play things, as opposed to in those halcyon days of the minimum wage, when football clubs were, er, rich men’s play things.
Football is like a bird attached to a brick by a strong piece of elastic. The bird is flying skywards with all its might and there are only two things that can happen. Either the elastic will break or the brick will hit the bird up the arse. The bird is the billionaire owner, the brick is the supporters.
And the Sky in which it flies is the big money broadcaster which has done more to change football than any multi-millionaire, billionaire or trillionaire…
Not that Barnes notices. The Times is, incidentally, owned by the same company that owns Sky TV…
Posted: 15th, September 2008 | In: Back pages, Broadsheets, Money | Comments (8)
Oragsms Guranteed At Turkey’s New Aquapark
TOUGH times in the travel game.
Package tour operators going bust.
But in Turkey, there is fun to be had at the Bodrum Aquapark.
Fun for all the family.
Something for the kids. Something for the mums and dads, grandmas, grandpas….
Posted: 14th, September 2008 | In: Money, Photojournalism, Strange But True | Comments (2)
How Green Is My Wadi: Abu Dhabi And Dubai Battle Over Environment
SAYS Abu Dhabi’s Dr Sulaiman Al Fahim, Manchester City’s very own Al Sugar, in the Star:
“Of course I want to build great teams. But the greatest legacy we can leve our children is not just trophies but eco-friendly societies they can live in.”
Mewnwhile over in Dubai:
South African hotelier, Sol Kerzner, will be celebrating the launch of his new Dubai resort with a party so extravagant, that it will be seen from space, claim its organisers.
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Posted: 14th, September 2008 | In: Money | Comments (4)
Rupert Murdoch On the Importance Of Journalism
RUPERT Murdoch. Publishing genius. Here he tells Esquire readers about how journalism captivated him:
I finished college at twenty-two. I was going to do six months training on Fleet Street, which was the mecca of competitive journalism. I sat in on the Daily Express, and I enjoyed it so much, I thought, I gotta have a job here, just to learn. And I did that for four or five months. It was one of the happiest experiences of my life. I was living in a friend’s sitting room in London — which in those days was filthy from the pollution — and watching the editor and learning to be a journalist.
There was paper rationing in Britain in those days, and they couldn’t produce more than an eight-page broadsheet. And they treated every day like it was life-or-death competition. They would put up a one-page critique of the paper every day. “We had 156 stories today, and the Daily Mail had 164. Never let that happen again.” Everything was boiled down to two paragraphs or so. Brevity was important. Facts had to be right. And it was exciting. As a journalist, you felt as if you were right at the center of events.
Why does Anorak exist? To try to replicate some of that buzz in choosing stories that are not led by PR, spin and advertisers…
All George Clooney’s Films Flop, But Kidman Is Box Office Hell
GEORGE Clooney. All his films are box office disasters:
Last year’s Michael Clayton brought in less than $50 million in American receipts. Good Night and Good Luck’s fared little better, grossing just five times its $7 million budget. Syriana, the cerebral thriller set all around the world, grossed $50,824,620 domestically, just 824 grand more than its production cost. The Good German? $1.3 million in the States. And earlier this year, Leatherheads, Clooney’s biggest flop to date, brought in just $40,666,628 worldwide after being produced for $58 million.
Ocean’s 11 did quite well… But, his films aren’t all box office gold. But neither are Nicole Kidman’s:
Nicole Kidman is the most overpaid celebrity in Hollywood, US business magazine Forbes said.
The Hours actress, who won an Oscar in 2003, topped the magazine’s second annual list of most overpaid stars, taking the top spot from fellow Australian Russell Crowe.
Kidman’s films were estimated to only earn one US dollar (57p) for every dollar the 41-year-old actress was paid, compared with eight US dollars (£4.57) a year ago.
The Invasion, a remake of the 1956 classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers, lost 2.68 US dollars (£1.53) for every dollar earned by Kidman, who was reportedly paid 17 million US dollars (£9.7 million) for her role.
Forget the hype. Why not use a new actress and make the film better?
Posted: 12th, September 2008 | In: Celebrities, Money | Comment
Rebranding Estate Agents As Property Artists
ESTATE agents are the vertitable scum of the earth. But no more.
Now they are property artists working in property studios.
What odds this year’s Turner Prize being won by a compoact and bijou artist’s pink shirt and mathing socks?
Spotter: Clive Davis
Posted: 12th, September 2008 | In: Money, Photojournalism | Comment
Amy Winehouse Finds Demons In The Farmhouse
AMY Winehouse is going to “battle her demons” in a “secret country retreat”.
Of course, the countryside is where demons live and the real fear is that Londoner Farmhouse, story, Winehouse, will merely be exchanging her old demons for new ones called Seth.
To prevent Winehouse from making a terrible move, the Sun gives clues to the secret hideaway in the hope that someone will gazump our Amy.
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Posted: 11th, September 2008 | In: Celebrities, Money, Tabloids | Comments (3)
Daily Express To Be Edited By Robots
THE Daily Express and Sunday Express move one step closer to being written and edited by monkeys.
News is that subs are being sacked in favour of a new editorial system called Woodwing.
In a letter to the downtrodden, group managing editor Ian Parrott (all his own words) says the system will allow the paper to “revolutionise the way pages are written and edited and therefore reduce costs”.
(Image: Beau Bo D’Or Website)
He goes on to blame that ever-present excuse: my dog ate it, Miss. No, it’s the credit crunch, dummy:
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Posted: 11th, September 2008 | In: Money, Photojournalism, Tabloids | Comments (4)
Nike Wants You To Jump Into The Tunnel
JUMPING into the tunnel is forbidden – so Just Do It, say Nike…
Spotter: Tom Mayhew
Posted: 10th, September 2008 | In: Money, Photojournalism | Comments (6)
EDF Energy Sells You Not Electricity But The Brand
EDF Energy has increased its marketing spend by 25%.
According to comparison site uSwitch, the average increase in the cost of gas has been 28%, while electricity prices have shot up by 20%.
Says EDF:
EDF defended its spending hike, saying energy had ‘moved from being a commodity to being a brand’
You’re not being fleeced for electricity. Your buying into the brand…
Posted: 9th, September 2008 | In: Money, Online-PR | Comments (8)
Peaches Geldof Is A Un-Provocateur
PEACHES Geldof is the new celebrity arse of Agent Provocateur, the knickers shop. Says a spokesperson for the brand (that’s AP not PG):
“She’s hot, young and of the moment. She’s got an edginess about her and we like the face of the firm to have that hint of danger. We’ve no doubt she’ll be a huge success.”
Danger…!
Posted: 9th, September 2008 | In: Celebrities, Money | Comments (12)
Spare Change For The Assassination of Geroge Bush
SPARE any change for the assassination of George Bush? It’s the George Bush Death Cult.
Every President and would-be President needs one…
Posted: 9th, September 2008 | In: Money, Photojournalism, Politicians | Comments (7)
Credit Crunch: Too Fairy Cuts Costs And Death By Crunch
CREDIT Crunch news of the day:
“Tooth fairy gives less during credit crunch”
The credit crisis has claimed its latest victim – the tooth fairy – Daily Telegraph
The average amount left under a pillow for a tooth has dropped from £1.22 to 87p in the past six months, according to research. Says one fairy: “It’s the transport costs.”
“CREDIT CRUNCH IS KILLING US”
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Posted: 8th, September 2008 | In: Broadsheets, Money, Tabloids | Comments (11)
Yoghurt For Dogs
IT’S yoghurt. It’s for dogs…
Posted: 8th, September 2008 | In: Money | Comments (2)
Amy Winehouse Does The Credit Crunch: Heroin Better Than Whiskey
AMY Winehouse is beating the credit Crunch by buying 48 bottles of Jack Daniels whiskey.
The Sun says organisers of the Bestival were “Stunned” that Amy ordered two cases of the beverage.
Bestival is, we learn, staged on the Isle of White, and the fear is surely that with oil prices surging, the ferry company or airline transporting Winehouse will go bust and Amy will be trapped forever on the rock.
The Sun solicits “a source” to say: “Whiskey is better than heroin – but not 48 bottles of the stuff.”
Indeed, Old Mr Anorak assures us that heroin beats whiskey hands down. Given the option of 48 bottles of imported booze or a bag of good quality British smack, Sun readers can now make more informed choice.
Posted: 5th, September 2008 | In: Celebrities, Money, Tabloids | Comments (4)
Credit Crunch: Cambodian Rats Bite Back
CREDIT Crunch news of the day: Rat meat in demand as inflation bites.
The price of rat meat has quadrupled in Cambodia this year as inflation has put other meat beyond the reach of poor people, officials said on Wednesday.
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Posted: 4th, September 2008 | In: Money | Comments (9)
Master Kong Con: Chinese Bottled Water Is Polluted Tap
IN China, the Master Kong bottled water is on sale. It’s dee-lish-ooos.
The TV advert says the mineral water, sold in Beijing for 1.5 yuan a bottle, is made of “high-quality water source” (优质水源).
The “high-quality water source” is also known as tap water. But there is a twist: you have to boil the wonder product before it”s safe to drink.
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Posted: 4th, September 2008 | In: Money, Online-PR | Comments (14)
We Sell Tasteless Coffee
MORE ‘tasteless coffee’, sir. And some ‘sick joke tea’ for madam..?
Spotter: Catherine Woody
Posted: 4th, September 2008 | In: Money, Photojournalism | Comment (1)
Credit Crunch: Cats And Dogs Are Cheap Protein
CREDIT Crunch news of the day: Credit Grrrunch:
“Hard–up owner put their pets to sleep to save cash”
In the oven, on 220 degrees C or gas mark 4. You reared your dog, and you need the cheap protein…
Sick cat and dogs are being put down because their credit crunch-hit owners cannot afford the vets’ bills, a survey has found.
Grim news for pets. But not everyone’s a loser:
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Posted: 4th, September 2008 | In: Money, Tabloids | Comments (6)
