Category: Journal

  • If cannabis is the answer, what is the question?

    This column originally appeared in DFNI* Late last year, United States Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell described the production of industrial hemp as a “bright spot” for America’s embattled tobacco farmers. It was a marked shift for the man who, in 2014, told a radio station that legalising marijuana would be “giving up”. But the…

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    Spoiler Rules Version 2.0

    A few years ago I wrote about my Madden’s Laws on Spoilers. It was a fairly simple directive for what is and isn’t acceptable regarding sharing spoilers on social media in public. Like everything else in the world, things have become rather more complicated since then. The influx of blockbusters and’must-watch’ TV has muddied the…

  • Size does matter

    This column was originally published in DFNI* Are the days of giant boxes of cigars fading? It is starting to look that way, if the latest murmurings from the industry – and the latest releases – are anything to go by. Before you panic, the products themselves are not getting smaller; cigars are still being…

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    The launch of Method & Madness Gin – VLOG

    The craft gin segment is booming today – and now there is a new player in town. Irish Distillers, who are the Pernod Ricard-owned outfit responsible for Jameson Irish Whiskey, launched their new gin just outside Cork in Ireland recently and I tagged along with a few other journos to try it out. A bit…

  • Wolf & Badger opening party for LFW – VLOG

    I took a trip to the new Wolf & Badger store in Coal’s Drop Yard for a party to mark the launch of LFW. #style

  • Is craft tobacco the future?

    This column was originally published in DFNI* Can you imagine flying to a country just to buy a product in duty free? That is the latest development in the cigar market and it could herald a coming change in the way tobacco companies compensate for the barrage of challenges they face on a seemingly weekly…

  • 9 to 5 Promo: Behind the scenes

    It’s video time! Last weekend I stepped out and about in Epsom – in the freezing cold – to shoot the promo videos for Epsom Players’ 9 to 5 The Musical. It involved plenty of walking in and out of lifts, posing in front of signs and trying to master automatic doors. Here is a…

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    To Do @ 32

    Today I turned 32. I’m told (by my boss about two hours ago) that 32 is “a good one”. It’s like 27 apparently. I’ll keep you posted on that. Anyway, last year I posted my list of 31 Things I’ve Learned, so it only seems appropriate to fashion that into a set of principles going…

  • The Chinese are coming

    This column was originally published in DFNI* It seems almost lazy to write about the importance of Chinese shoppers for any section of the duty free industry these days. You can hardly move for hearing about how Asia Pacific is driving growth, or the Chinese shoppers are the key to success in the current market.…

  • Donald Trump is trolling us all – and he’s winning

    The cameras pan through a palatial mansion into a vast dining room decorated in gold. In the centre stands a grinning figure with a mop of blonde hair and a badly-tied red tie, presiding over an enormous table piled high with burgers and pizzas. “I bought it all myself,” he declares proudly. This, dear readers,…