Paris remained in combative mood on Saturday. As two impressively coiffed models on the Jean Paul Gaultier catwalk staged a convincing catfight, scrapping in heels and tearing down each other's fluffy up-dos - all to the sound of El Tango De Roxanne - a predatory, aggressive show roared to a halt, rounding off a day of uncompromising shapes and intimidating colours.
The mood at the show was already keyed up, as guests had arrived to a roaring Peta protest - the French Vogue editor-in-chief Carine Roitfeld receiving an especially violent jeer for her white Chewbacca-style coat. So when the curtain was raised to reveal a set piece of one model on a chaise longue in a red silk dress fringed in black, surrounded by other girls wearing lean masculine trouser suits and slicked-back hair, it was clear that drama would ensue.
Those tuxed-up models strode down the catwalk with a Latin menace, swaggering in their elegant menswear, followed by a parade of femmes fatales wearing slinky frocks, strong-shouldered coats with leather-strapped bodices and exquisitely tailored black dresses, marked by mesh "X" cutouts. Gaultier ran out to acknowledge the cheers carrying a huge bunch of long-stemmed red roses, reflecting the high-octane passion of the show.
Earlier in the day, Loewe's staging had been a more civilised affair than the push-and-shove chaos of many of the Paris events. Held in a small baroque university hall, the collection was shown in three sittings to fit all the interested parties into the tea-party-style setting, as guests sat on tables of three nibbling delicate little sandwiches and pastries.
In spite of the decorous introduction, though, Stuart Vevers' collection for the Spanish brand was not exactly shy and retiring. Strong dresses, coats and suits in flawless, glossy leather were created with highly disciplined tailoring and combined with starched white shirts and black polo necks. Showcasing the biggest strength of Loewe - the leather - allowed little room for the fluid draping seen elsewhere so far this season, instead playing up the sharp cropped trousers, neatly punctured dresses and skirts and richly gathered folds of leather and wool belted tightly at the waist. Beautifully simple coats, with rounded shoulders and clean lines, featured cropped sleeves met by long, butter-soft leather gloves, and glossy ponyskin in black and purple added velvety, silken texture. Best of all, the knee-length boots, with their blockish wooden heels, called to mind the flamenco and riding boots of southern Spain, reinforcing those Velasquez aesthetics.
Commes des Garçons, too, used a military theme, if extrapolated in their customary manner to the point where it was barely recognisable. But as tightly fitted cropped great coats opened out over huge tartan or chequered blanket skirts, the khaki and navy shades, the pocketed, double-breasted shapes and the heavy-duty fabrics were all reminiscent of those too-tight uniforms of soldiers photographed in the early 20th century.
The Colombian designer Haider Ackermann harked back even further, with chain-mail-style studding riffing through his simple, almost medieval shapes and pared-back shades. Softly draped dresses in fluid, dip-dyed fabrics were subtler than the ruched swathes of Mad Max-style drapery in previous collections, while edge was added by his trademark sharp-shouldered cropped leather jackets.
Still, there were one or two rays of sunshine breaking through this stormy season. Jeremy Scott punctuated black minidresses with primary-coloured structural sworls around the shoulders and skirts and graphic prints and polka dots perfectly calculated to appeal to his hip, poppish, music-industry crowd, which included Beth Ditto, Peaches Geldof, Kanye West and his fellow British designer Gareth Pugh. Bright red, yellow, green, blue and orange all featured on block-coloured stiffly structured coats, dresses and suits, and one coat was entirely covered in an assortment of brightly coloured buttons, pearly queen style.
Also striving for optimism, Tsumori Chisato went out in a direction of her own with a gorgeously whimsical collection based on the night-time cityscape, but without the implied urban edge. In her own naively fantastical style, shooting stars and moons glistened in pretty prints that were also influenced by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's children's tale The Little Prince. Ballooning golden harem pants, ruffled collars and cuffs and Pierrot eye make-up enhanced the fairy-tale magic, yet the individual pieces remained exquisitely wearable in fluid silks and soft, icy shades.
These flights of charming fancy may not have the bristling energy of the gothic looks elsewhere, but they are a pleasing sliver of hope in the face of some seriously aggressive power-dressing.
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Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Tips on buying property during a pandemic
Islay Robinson, group chief executive of mortgage broker Enness Global, offers his advice on buying property in today's market.
While many have been quick to call a market collapse, this simply isn’t what we’re seeing on the ground. Many pockets of the global property market, including London and the UAE, continue to be compelling locations to invest in real estate.
While an air of uncertainty remains, the outlook is far better than anyone could have predicted. However, it is still important to consider the wider threat posed by Covid-19 when buying bricks and mortar.
Anything with outside space, gardens and private entrances is a must and these property features will see your investment keep its value should the pandemic drag on. In contrast, flats and particularly high-rise developments are falling in popularity and investors should avoid them at all costs.
Attractive investment property can be hard to find amid strong demand and heightened buyer activity. When you do find one, be prepared to move hard and fast to secure it. If you have your finances in order, this shouldn’t be an issue.
Lenders continue to lend and rates remain at an all-time low, so utilise this. There is no point in tying up cash when you can keep this liquidity to maximise other opportunities.
Keep your head and, as always when investing, take the long-term view. External factors such as coronavirus or Brexit will present challenges in the short-term, but the long-term outlook remains strong.
Finally, keep an eye on your currency. Whenever currency fluctuations favour foreign buyers, you can bet that demand will increase, as they act to secure what is essentially a discounted property.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Graduated from the American University of Sharjah
She is the eldest of three brothers and two sisters
Has helped solve 15 cases of electric shocks
Enjoys travelling, reading and horse riding
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Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
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Guns N’ Roses’s last gig before Abu Dhabi was in Hong Kong on November 21. We were there – and here’s what they played, and in what order. You were warned.
- It’s So Easy
- Mr Brownstone
- Chinese Democracy
- Welcome to the Jungle
- Double Talkin’ Jive
- Better
- Estranged
- Live and Let Die (Wings cover)
- Slither (Velvet Revolver cover)
- Rocket Queen
- You Could Be Mine
- Shadow of Your Love
- Attitude (Misfits cover)
- Civil War
- Coma
- Love Theme from The Godfather (movie cover)
- Sweet Child O’ Mine
- Wichita Lineman (Jimmy Webb cover)
- Wish You Were Here (instrumental Pink Floyd cover)
- November Rain
- Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden cover)
- Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door (Bob Dylan cover)
- Nightrain
Encore:
- Patience
- Don’t Cry
- The Seeker (The Who cover)
- Paradise City
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Results
STAGE
1 . Filippo Ganna (Ineos) - 0:13:56
2. Stefan Bissegger (Education-Nippo) - 0:00:14
3. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:21
4. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:24
5. Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana) - 0:00:30
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 4:00:05
2. Joao Almeida (QuickStep) - 0:00:05
3. Mattia Cattaneo (QuickStep) - 0:00:18
4. Chris Harper (Jumbo-Visma) - 0:00:33
5. Adam Yates (Ineos) - 0:00:39
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Nancy 9 (Hassa Beek)
Nancy Ajram
(In2Musica)
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
