The biog
Favourite hobby: taking his rescue dog, Sally, for long walks.
Favourite book: anything by Stephen King, although he said the films rarely match the quality of the books
Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption stands out as his favourite movie, a classic King novella
Favourite music: “I have a wide and varied music taste, so it would be unfair to pick a single song from blues to rock as a favourite"
For 30 years, quizmaster Phil Richardson had been hosting some of Dubai’s most popular entertainment nights, booking bands and supporting up and coming local talent.
Like some other self-employed residents of the Emirates, life came to a halt when the global pandemic spread in the UAE.
But instead of turning on his heel and heading home in the north east of England, Mr Richardson, who is in his 50s, was determined to stick it out and focus his attention elsewhere.
As the operations of his events and advertising company were temporarily put on hold, the idea to start his own radio station came up.
It proved the perfect solution to keep him busy during the stay-at-home period and feed his passion for rock and blues.
“It was always at the back of my mind that the UAE should have its own rock music station,” he said.
“I had thought about it for eight years and no one else was doing it.”
On Radio King, we ranked 2,458th. Now, we are in the top 60, and I want to be in the top 10
Mr Richardson’s father, a racehorse trainer, had always hoped that his son would one day become a jockey growing up in Darlington.
It was a passion for music that led him towards a career as another form of jockey, a DJ spinning records and hosting radio shows on Dubai FM.
A sideline in pub quizzes made him a familiar face and a staple of Dubai’s evening entertainment industry while talent spotting for emerging new acts.
“Through my business, we did all sorts of entertainment – from weddings to corporate events – and brought live acts over from the UK such as lookalikes and tribute performers,” he said.
"But our entertainment stopped pretty much overnight in early April.
“All our advertising stopped too, we just had no work.
“Everyday I was getting emails from random, unsigned international acts, some were absolutely fantastic.”
An eight-year stint as an on-air presenter on Dubai FM and then former Fujairah station Rock Radio UAE lit a fire of ambition that never faded.
When that wound up, a gap in the market remained for a station dedicated to rock music enthusiasts, giving hope to a long held ambition to host his own radio show.
After extensive research, Mr Richardson launched online from a cloud-based platform in France called Radio King.
The site already hosts some 2,500 radio stations, and when Mr Richardson signed up to broadcast his first show, RAK Rock Radio was born.
Most of this spare time was taken up compiling a music catalogue to suit his listeners.
Then he had to reformat all the music ready for the show’s debut broadcast in May.
In the early days, the show attracted just a handful of listeners but now it has an average of 500 people who tune in from the UAE, Oman, India and Germany.
The station features classic rock hits from Meatloaf, Scorpions, Queen, and The Who, as well as the best of rhythm and blues and country music.
The station hosts a morning, lunchtime and drive-time show as Mr Richardson insists the sky’s the limit if his early success is anything to go by.
“On Radio King, we ranked 2,458th,” he said.
"Now, we are in the top 60, and I want to be in the top 10.”
Although he admits it was risky starting a new venture at the height of a global pandemic, he encourages others facing uncertain times to do the same.
“There is no point sitting around worrying and fretting,” he said.
“If you are stuck at home – start something, learn something new or follow a long-held dream.
“My advice for anyone who has lost work during the pandemic is to think positively.
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“It is not easy, but we all have to believe in the future. It led me towards this opportunity with RAK Rock Radio.”
While event bookings and his advertising business are showing signs of recovery, Mr Richardson has high hopes for the UAE’s newest radio station.
"I have ideas where I would like it to go, it is crying out to be an FM station,” he said.
"It takes a lot of investment as it’s a different league so, ideally, we would love an investor to come in and take us to the next level.
"We are based in Ras Al Khaimah so we could use the radio station to boost RAK as a tourist destination. It has a lot to offer.
"I would love to take our show on the road; imagine doing an outside broadcast standing at the top of Jebel Jais with the zip line?
"What is more inspiring than rock hits belting out while preparing to take off on the world's longest zip line – perhaps while blasting out Meatloaf's Bat Out of Hell?"
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Normal People
Sally Rooney, Faber & Faber
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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South Korea
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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)
info-box
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Happy Tenant
Started: January 2019
Co-founders: Joe Moufarrej and Umar Rana
Based: Dubai
Sector: Technology, real-estate
Initial investment: Dh2.5 million
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 4,000
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Scoreline
Swansea 2
Grimes 20' (pen), Celina, 29'
Man City 3
Silva 69', Nordfeldt 78' (og), Aguero 88'
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,200m
Winner: Shafaf, Sam Hitchcott (jockey), Ahmed Al Mehairbi (trainer)
5,30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,200m
Winner: Noof KB, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: The President’s Cup Listed (TB) Dh380,000 1,400m
Winner: Taamol, Jim Crowley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
6.30pm: The President’s Cup Group One (PA) Dh2,500,000 2,200m
Winner: Rmmas, Tadhg O’Shea, Jean de Roualle
7pm: Arabian Triple Crown Listed (PA) Dh230,000 1,600m
Winner: Ihtesham, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner: AF Mekhbat, Antonio Fresu, Ernst Oertel
EMILY%20IN%20PARIS%3A%20SEASON%203
%3Cp%3ECreated%20by%3A%20Darren%20Star%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Lily%20Collins%2C%20Philippine%20Leroy-Beaulieu%2C%20Ashley%20Park%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%202.75%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Day 1, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Dimuth Karunaratne had batted with plenty of pluck, and no little skill, in getting to within seven runs of a first-day century. Then, while he ran what he thought was a comfortable single to mid-on, his batting partner Dinesh Chandimal opted to stay at home. The opener was run out by the length of the pitch.
Stat of the day - 1 One six was hit on Day 1. The boundary was only breached 18 times in total over the course of the 90 overs. When it did arrive, the lone six was a thing of beauty, as Niroshan Dickwella effortlessly clipped Mohammed Amir over the square-leg boundary.
The verdict Three wickets down at lunch, on a featherbed wicket having won the toss, and Sri Lanka’s fragile confidence must have been waning. Then Karunaratne and Chandimal's alliance of precisely 100 gave them a foothold in the match. Dickwella’s free-spirited strokeplay meant the Sri Lankans were handily placed at 227 for four at the close.
SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201.5-litre%204-cylinder%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20101hp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20135Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20Six-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh79%2C900%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Building boom turning to bust as Turkey's economy slows
Deep in a provincial region of northwestern Turkey, it looks like a mirage - hundreds of luxury houses built in neat rows, their pointed towers somewhere between French chateau and Disney castle.
Meant to provide luxurious accommodations for foreign buyers, the houses are however standing empty in what is anything but a fairytale for their investors.
The ambitious development has been hit by regional turmoil as well as the slump in the Turkish construction industry - a key sector - as the country's economy heads towards what could be a hard landing in an intensifying downturn.
After a long period of solid growth, Turkey's economy contracted 1.1 per cent in the third quarter, and many economists expect it will enter into recession this year.
The country has been hit by high inflation and a currency crisis in August. The lira lost 28 per cent of its value against the dollar in 2018 and markets are still unconvinced by the readiness of the government under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to tackle underlying economic issues.
The villas close to the town centre of Mudurnu in the Bolu region are intended to resemble European architecture and are part of the Sarot Group's Burj Al Babas project.
But the development of 732 villas and a shopping centre - which began in 2014 - is now in limbo as Sarot Group has sought bankruptcy protection.
It is one of hundreds of Turkish companies that have done so as they seek cover from creditors and to restructure their debts.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More coverage from the Future Forum
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Countries offering golden visas
UK
Innovator Founder Visa is aimed at those who can demonstrate relevant experience in business and sufficient investment funds to set up and scale up a new business in the UK. It offers permanent residence after three years.
Germany
Investing or establishing a business in Germany offers you a residence permit, which eventually leads to citizenship. The investment must meet an economic need and you have to have lived in Germany for five years to become a citizen.
Italy
The scheme is designed for foreign investors committed to making a significant contribution to the economy. Requires a minimum investment of €250,000 which can rise to €2 million.
Switzerland
Residence Programme offers residence to applicants and their families through economic contributions. The applicant must agree to pay an annual lump sum in tax.
Canada
Start-Up Visa Programme allows foreign entrepreneurs the opportunity to create a business in Canada and apply for permanent residence.
The biog
Favourite hobby: taking his rescue dog, Sally, for long walks.
Favourite book: anything by Stephen King, although he said the films rarely match the quality of the books
Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption stands out as his favourite movie, a classic King novella
Favourite music: “I have a wide and varied music taste, so it would be unfair to pick a single song from blues to rock as a favourite"
