Latest news with #TheOriginal
Scottish Sun
4 days ago
- Lifestyle
- Scottish Sun
I tested the best supermarket low alcohol booze – light & luscious winning wine was like pudding in a glass
Almost 40 per cent of the drinks we consume today are now a low- or no-ABV option THE LOW DOWN I tested the best supermarket low alcohol booze – light & luscious winning wine was like pudding in a glass Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ALMOST half of Gen Z never have more than one glass of wine a night, while a further 39 per cent rarely have more than one, new research shows. And three out of four Brits of all ages now say they are more conscious of their tipple levels. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 9 Drinks expert Helena Nicklin gives her verdict on lower ABV drinks Credit: Oliver Dixon 9 Almost half of Gen Z never have more than one glass of wine a night Credit: Getty Almost 40 per cent of the drinks we consume today are now a low- or no-ABV option. Luckily if you fancy a bevvie but want to cut down on your alcohol intake there's loads of non-boozy glugs to try. Many wine, beer and even spirits are now available in 'mid-strength' options for those who wish to cut down the units while still clinking a glass. But which lower ABV drinks deliver and which disappoint? Here, drinks expert Helena Nicklin gives her verdict. 19 Crimes Mid-strength Red 75cl, 7% ABV, £8, Sainsbury's - 2/5 WHERE do I start with this bottle of lower ABV red from the 19 Crimes brand? Well, on the plus side, this is indeed a lower alcohol wine at 7% ABV so it ticks the box for anyone who wants a glass of red, but less boozy. 9 19 Crimes Mid-strength Red 75cl scored 2 out of 5 Credit: Sainsburys However… it is also a great example of why you just can't simply de-alcoholise a normal wine and leave it. Why? Because it will taste unbalanced, acidic and cooked – just like this one. Add to that some fake-tasting vanilla and that's what you get here. Why Guinness tastes better in Ireland It's expensive too, as you are paying for the same name. Not the best! Small Beer: The Original 350ml, 2.1% ABV, £2.20, Majestic - 5/5 THE boys at the Small Beer brewery, located in South London, created this brand years ago with the sole aim of making properly drinkable, lower alcohol 'session' beers – so they had to be good. That's a promising way to start when you want to create something decent for drinkers who want lower booze levels to sip – and the results are super. 9 Small Beer: The Original scored full marks Credit: Majestic This perky Pilsner-style brew is light and hoppy, with lots of flavour. It is seriously refreshing and just right for a light buzz without the bad head. Well worth the few extra pennies, especially when compared to some other low-beer brands. Beavertown Satellite Super Session IPA 330ml, 2.8% ABV, £1.56 (£6.25 x 4), Sainsbury's - 3/5 BEAVERTOWN is a great brand for reliable beers of all shapes and styles. This brewery has a wonderfully creative image and this eye-catching can offers an IPA with a lot of flavour punch – from citrussy bitter hops to fresh florals, which make up for the lower ABV. 9 Beavertown Satellite Super Session IPA scored 3 out of 5 Credit: Sainsburys It might be too soapy and punchy flavour-wise for some drinkers, but traditional IPA drinkers should love it. What's great about this is you can just pick it up and chuck it in your trolley when you are in the supermarket and it won't cost you a fortune. So, it makes drinking 'low' easy and accessible. Summer in a glass! Mid-strength Val De Loire Blanc 75cl, 8.4% ABV, £7.75, Sainsbury's Taste The Difference - 4/5 SAINSBURY'S was the first supermarket to create its own range of mid-strength wines, and this tangy little number is lower on the alcohol – but to drink it's fab. Reduced-alcohol vino doesn't have the best reputation, but this one is made with the prettily perfumed, local grolleau gris grape variety from France's Loire region. 9 Mid-strength Val De Loire Blanc scored 4 out of 5 Credit: Sainsburys The Loire is known for its naturally lighter wines. In the glass, it delivers a tipple that is crisp, clean and fruity. Served well-chilled and you can hardly tell it's a lower ABV. A great bottle if you like the idea of a glass of proper wine in the evening or at a party but don't want a high booze count. McGuigan Mid Rosé 7% ABV, £4.50, Tesco - 5/5 THIS middle-strength rosé from Aussie winemakers McGuigan has been hit and miss in the past, but this year's version is the best so far – so this summer is the time to sip it. Slightly off dry, it comes across as very fruity with notes of summer fruit and strawberry jelly. 9 McGuigan Mid Rosé is perfect for poolside parties in the sun Credit: Tesco Light and luscious, it's perfect for poolside parties in the sun. Serve very cold with a handful of strawberries and it's practically pudding! A great way to enjoy a lovely glass of 'pool plonk' without going overboard on the alcohol. It's a nice daytime option too, if you are having a bottle with lunch. What's not to like? Quarter Proof Vodka Light 70cl, 15% ABV, £22.99 on offer, Amazon - 3/5 LOWER ABV spirits are becoming more common but opting for big brand 'low or no' versions of their bestsellers is not always your only option. The clue is in the name with Quarter Proof, a firm that makes spirits which are exactly that – one fourth of the ABV compared to the original mainstays. 9 Quarter Proof Vodka Light scorred 3 out of 5 Credit: Amazon This lower-proof vodka grain spirit splits the critics – at just 15%, many ask why wouldn't you just pour a smaller measure of the proper stuff into your glass – but this has a tad more flavour than most vodkas. This means you don't feel too short changed. There's something luxurious about pouring from a proper bottle too. Worth a go if this is your tipple. Hayman's London Light Gin 70cl, 12.5% ABV, £18.99, Tesco - 5/5 IF G&T is your favourite tipple but you want to trim the ABV level of what you measure over ice then this is the spirit I would recommend. The gin masters at Hayman's came up with this light gin concept way before it was trendy and, honestly, it works brilliantly – and it's cheaper than regular gin, too. 9 Hayman's London Light Gin scored full marks Credit: Tesco The key here is doubling down on the juniper and botanicals so that when you mix it with tonic, you really have no idea that the ABV is lighter. You get all that gorgeous gin taste, it pairs perfectly and it's very pretty too. Pour this into your balloon glass and it'll hit the spot even for hardened gin connoisseurs. The pretty packaging also means it makes a great gift.
Hype Malaysia
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hype Malaysia
adidas' New 'Superstar, The Original' Campaign Features Global Superstars – & We're Here For It!
Created for basketball, adopted by the pioneers of streetwear, championed again and again by each generation, the Superstar is the original icon that made a journey from sports to culture. Having launched 'The Original' campaign earlier this year, the brand with the Three Stripes returns to present the next iteration of its new global platform: shining a light on the trailblazing influence of the Superstar. Drawing on the iconic silhouette's legacy of transcending cultural spaces, 'Superstar, The Original' campaign adopts a living stage as its backdrop. Offering a striking ode to both the original Superstar colourway and its stripped back iconicity, the scene is captured in dramatic high contrast black and white as a cast of heroes show off the magnetism of being an Original Icon. Directed by visionary photographer and filmmaker Thibaut Grevet, whose dreamlike aesthetic has revolutionised fashion and music imagery, the campaign brings together an unprecedented roster of cultural trailblazers who exemplify what it means to be an Original Icon – individuals who have defined their respective fields through innovation and authenticity. Legendary actor Samuel L. Jackson narrates the film, lending his distinctive voice to a narrative that spans generations of cultural innovation. The campaign stars a multi-generational cast of original voices: multi-award-winning songwriter and producer Missy Elliott, skateboarding legend Mark Gonzales, NBA sensation Anthony Edwards, Memphis multi-platinum powerhouse GloRilla, American Singer Songwriter Teezo Touchdown, global music icon JENNIE, and boundary-pushing model and actress Gabbriette. 'The Superstar has always been more than just a sneaker—it's a symbol of originality and a spark for cultural change,' said Annie Barrett, Vice President of Marketing at adidas Originals. 'From street corners to global stages, it's been worn by those who don't wait for permission to lead. This campaign isn't about looking back – it's about spotlighting a new generation of Originals who are building what's next, unapologetically.' The campaign unfolds in two chapters. First up, 'Pyramids,' a powerful teaser seeing Samuel L. Jackson reflect on enduring monuments to human achievement that withstand the test of time – drawing a parallel between these ancient structures and the lasting cultural impact of the Superstar. Following this, the second chapter, 'Clocks,' is a dynamic hero film that unites a complete cast of seven global cultural icons, making a singular, powerful statement about the Superstar's enduring legacy and its continued resonance across diverse cultures. At the heart of it all stands the Superstar, returning in two classic colourways alongside the iconic Firebird Tracksuit. The Superstar, with its enhanced padding in the tongue and collar – defined an influential era of creative expression in the late 90s, becoming the footwear of choice for artists, musicians, and skaters who pushed cultural boundaries. 'Complementing this silhouette, the Firebird Tracksuit has remained in the cultural spotlight since 1967, continuously embraced by style pioneers and musical innovators worldwide. It just takes one. Before there can be a thousand. Superstars are the ones who build crowds, instead of joining them.
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Business Standard
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Standard
Jane Birkin's original Hermes bag sells at auction for 7 million euros
Sketched out on an air sickness bag, the first Birkin bag that gave birth to fashion's must-have accessory sold for a record 7 million euros (about $8.2 million) at auction in Paris on Thursday. The huge amount which drew gasps and applause from the audience crushed what auctioneer Sotheby's had said was the previous record for a handbag. That was $513,040, for a White Himalaya Niloticus Crocodile Diamond Retourne Kelly 28. Now, the original Birkin bag, named after the actor, singer and fashion icon that Herms created it for the late Jane Birkin is in a new league of its own. The bidding started at 1 million euros ($1.17 million) and quickly became stratospheric. The Paris fashion house exclusively commissioned the bag for the London-born star in 1984 branding it with her initials J.B. on the front flap, below the lock and delivered the finished one-of-a-kind bag to her the following year, the auction house said. The subsequent commercialized version of Birkin's bag went on to become one of the world's most exclusive luxury items, extravagantly priced and with a yearslong waiting list. A fashion accessory born of a chance conversation The bag was born of a fortuitous encounter on a London-bound flight in the 1980s with the then head of Herms, Jean-Louis Dumas. Birkin recounted in subsequent interviews that the pair got talking after she spilled some of her things on the cabin floor. Birkin asked Dumas why Herms didn't make a bigger handbag and sketched out on an airplane vomit bag the sort of hold-all that she would like. He then had an example made for her and, flattered, she agreed when Herms asked whether it could commercialise the bag in her name. There is no doubt that the Original Birkin bag is a true one-of-a-kind a singular piece of fashion history that has grown into a pop culture phenomenon that signals luxury in the most refined way possible. It is incredible to think that a bag initially designed by Herms as a practical accessory for Jane Birkin has become the most desirable bag in history," said Morgane Halimi, Sotheby's head of handbags and fashion. The bag became so famous that Birkin once mused before her death in 2023 at age 76 that her obituaries would likely say, Like the bag' or something. Well, it could be worse," she added. Seven design features set The Original apart Sotheby's said that seven design elements on the handcrafted all-black leather prototype set it apart from Birkins that followed. It's the only Birkin with a nonremovable shoulder strap fitting for the busy life and practicality of the singer, actor, social activist and mother who was also known for her romantic relationship with French singer Serge Gainsbourg and their duets that included the steamy 1969 song Je t'aime moi non plus (I Love You, Me Neither). Her bag also had a nail clipper attached, because Birkin was never one for long painted nails, Sotheby's said. The bag that Herms handmade for her, developed off its existing Haut A Courroies model, also has gilded brass hardware, bottom studs and other features that differ from commercial Birkins. Birkin's casual, breezy style in the 1960s and early 1970s long hair with bangs, jeans paired with white tops, knit minidresses and basket bags still epitomises the height of French chic for many women around the world. The prototype has twice changed hands When Birkin chatted to Herms' Dumas on the Paris-to-London flight about what her ideal handbag would be, she'd been in the habit of carrying her things around in a wicker basket, because she felt handbags in the 1980s were too small, Sotheby's said. She was travelling with her young daughter, Charlotte, and complained that she couldn't find a bag suitable for her needs as a mother, Herms says. Herms later gifted her four other Birkin bags. She kept the prototype for nearly a decade, before auctioning it for an AIDS charity in 1994. It was auctioned again in 2000 and has since been in private hands, Sotheby's said. More than just a bag, the Birkin has evolved from a practical accessory to become a timeless cultural icon," the auction house said. Its presence spans the worlds of music, film, television and the arts," it added. "It is a red-carpet staple, a fashion magazine mainstay, and a coveted piece in the wardrobes of celebrities, artists and stylists.
The Guardian
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
What if every artwork you've ever seen is a fake?
Many years ago, I met a man in a pub in Bloomsbury who said he worked at the British Museum. He told me that every single item on display in the museum was a replica, and that all the original artefacts were locked away in storage for preservation. I was shocked and challenged him. It surely could not be the case that millions of annual visitors to the British Museum were encountering and experiencing not tangible, concrete treasures of human history, but the shallow simulacra of replicas. I may have even used the term 'fraud'. Yet on my way home that night, I began to question my own experiences at the British Museum. I wondered what it meant if the Greek water jar I had been so moved by, depicting a woman who may have been Sappho bent over a scroll, had in fact been a worthless copy. Did that make the experience any less real? Later, Googling, I discovered that none of what the man had told me was true. The artefacts in the British Museum are original, unless otherwise explicitly stated. It was the man who claimed to work there who was a fake. So began my years-long fascination with the question of fakes, and the way we feel in their presence. If that Greek water jar had been a fake, I could never have known just by looking with an inexpert but appreciative eye. Would it devalue my overwhelming sense of connection to the past in the moment I saw it? This is one of the questions that led me to write my new novel, The Original, about fakes and the people who fall for them. Following a female art forger at the end of the 19th century, the book is about making and believing in fake art, fake stories, and fake people. I wanted to think, in the story, about the experience of being duped, because we live in a world that feels, at times, increasingly fake. Thomas Hoving, the former director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, has suggested that about 40% of artworks for sale are fake. Yan Walther, chief of the Fine Arts Expert Institute, puts the figure at 50%. Last month, debate over the authenticity of Rubens' Samson and Delilah, bought by the National Gallery for £2.5m in 1980, reignited. The painting, dating from 1609 or 1610, was lost for centuries, and since arriving at the National Gallery has been subject to repeated controversies surrounding its authenticity. Are the brushstrokes too rough, the colours too unusual? Is the composition too different to copies of the original that were made at the time it was painted? Speaking to the Guardian, the former National Gallery curator Christopher Brown, who oversaw its original acquisition, appeared to suggest that the gallery itself had been responsible for replacing the painting's backing board, so destroying evidence about the painting's real age and provenance (he later went back on this statement) which sparked suspicion the Gallery may have covered up a fake for decades. The National Gallery responded by saying: 'Samson and Delilah has long been accepted as a masterpiece by Peter Paul Rubens. Not one single Rubens specialist has doubted that the picture is by Rubens. A full discussion of the panel was published by Joyce Plesters and David Bomford in the Gallery's Technical Bulletin in 1983, when Christopher Brown was the Gallery's curator responsible for the picture. Their findings remain valid, including their unequivocal statement that the panel was attached to a support before the picture was acquired by the National Gallery.' This latest controversy follows a study conducted a few years earlier, during which an AI analysis of its brushstroke patterns found there was a 90% probability the painting was fake. I visited the painting after that story broke, having by then developed a slight obsession with questions of authenticity. It was the autumn of 2021 and we were all still adjusting to existing in the world beyond lockdowns. Seeing a painting in the flesh felt novel; the colours vivid: Delilah's illuminated neck, Samson's gleaming muscles, the shadowed scissors at the moment his hair is cut. The texture of those questionable brushstrokes was exhilarating. I stood in front of the painting and I wanted it to be real because I liked it so much. A 2014 study published in the journal Leonardo tested how the belief in authenticity of art shapes our perception of it. Participants were shown paintings labelled either originals or, erroneously, copies, then asked to rate their experience. Paintings that were labelled as copies were consistently rated as less moving, less well-made, less well-composed and the work of less talented artists. It's a stark example of the extent to which our experience of art is moulded by the story we are told about it: the value we place on authenticity trumps reason, perception, our own eyes. A copy is automatically worse, even when it's not really a copy. This same quirk of human impulse comes up in all sorts of other contexts. There are those expert sommeliers who are unable, under study conditions, to tell the difference between cheap and expensive wine. So-called 'dupes' of high-end fashion items are a part of the clothing industry's ecosystem; the internet is full of videos of vox pops in which people fail to identify, when faced with two near-identical outfits, which one cost tens and which thousands of pounds. Human beings are pretty inept at understanding our world without context, without story. As you wander through the Museum of Art Fakes in Vienna, an institution dedicated to showcasing the art of forgery, what strikes you most is how unconvincing it all is, how hazy and dilapidated the fakes look. The colours look wrong. The materials look cheap. The brushstrokes look lazy and the way the paint adheres to the canvases seems insubstantial. But then, how could these pieces look otherwise, housed as they are in the Museum of Art Fakes? Removed from this cheapening context, Han van Meegeren's Vermeers, once pronounced 'the finest gems of the master's oeuvre', appear lovely, almost otherworldly. To emerge from the Museum of Art Fakes and head straight into Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum to view works by Vermeer and Rubens is an upending experience: you feel so certain, looking at those paintings, that you're in the presence of originals. Then you think about how they might appear if they were displayed in the unassuming basement gallery of the Museum of Art Fakes, and that certainty begins to fade. It's striking that we have turned to AI to help us solve our authenticity questions (where humans err, artificial intelligence can distil brushstroke patterns to mere data points) when AI is simultaneously creating fakes at a rate previously unimaginable. Our online world is littered with photographs of people who don't exist, articles recommending books that have never been written, videos of imaginary places. Even as we learn to spot the tell-tale glitches of an AI-generated image (too many fingers, those terrifying misaligned teeth, an Escher-like impossible quality to the structure of buildings, furniture, bodies), AI improves and outpaces us again. It's embarrassing to admit to having felt a rush of interest or pleasure at a video of, say, a lamp-lit hillside village in the rain, only to realise it's a nonsense, empty fantasy, and worse: twee. To realise you have fallen for an AI-generated image, song or essay, untouched by a human mind, is to feel at once less human and horribly, vulnerably human: foolish and naive. Human fakes, when contrasted with the emptiness of AI, start to seem quite affecting: the mischief of them, the skill and the audacity of the endeavour. Even the art market, on occasion, agrees: the works of prolific forger Tom Keating, who produced thousands of fakes in the 1950s, 60s and 70s, are now collector's items in their own right, to the extent that fakes of Tom Keating fakes began to appear too. Perhaps it's no wonder that such forgeries can move us, designed as they are to do just that, to be paintings of paintings and at the same time, blank canvases upon which we project all the things we want to care about and experience when we look at art. When I think back to my conversation with the man in the pub years ago, it strikes me that there is something wonderful in having believed him. Perhaps there is beauty in embracing the lessons taught by fakes, that what we bring to art is our human selves: subjective, easily bamboozled, ready to be moved. The man who entertained himself one winter's night by telling a silly lie to a credulous stranger, inadvertently led me instead to something true. The Original by Nell Stevens is published by Scribner (£16.99). To support the Guardian, order your copy at Delivery charges may apply.
Scoop
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
70000TONS OF METAL Announces Destination Change + Initial Lineup For 2026 Sailing
70000TONS OF METAL, The Original, The World's Biggest Heavy Metal Cruise, has announced a change in the destination for its 2026 voyage. The upcoming edition of the festival at sea, taking place from January 29 to February 2, 2026, will now sail from Miami, Florida to Nassau, the Bahamas aboard Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas. Originally planned to return to Labadee, Haiti, the decision to reroute the journey was made out of an abundance of caution and with the well-being of all Sailors, artists, and crew as the top priority. "While Labadee has been a great port of call on past sailings, we are closely monitoring the evolving situation in Haiti and its surrounding regions," said Andy Piller, Skipper of 70000TONS OF METAL."Ensuring the safety and comfort of our Survivors is non-negotiable. With that in mind, we've made the proactive decision to change course for 2026. Nassau provides a welcoming alternative that allows us to maintain the world-class experience our Sailors expect — both on board and ashore." Now headed to the vibrant port of Nassau, the Bahamas, Sailors can expect a fresh destination without compromise: a gateway to Bahamian culture, historic charm, and lush tropical beauty. While the port has changed, the signature 70000TONS OF METAL experience remains: 4 days, 60 bands, 4 stages (including the iconic Pool Deck Stage, The World's Biggest Open Air Stage Structure to Ever Sail the Open Seas), artist-hosted activities, the incomparable All Star Jam, and unparalleled fan access to bands in an environment where music and community reign supreme. The 70000TONS OF METAL crew remains committed to delivering an extraordinary, unparalleled experience for every Sailor. Coupled with the news of a new destination, the 70000TONS OF METAL Crew have announced the initial lineup for the 2026 sailing. The first 27 of 60 bands who will deliver amazing performances are: AMORPHIS BEAST IN BLACK DARK TRANQUILLITY DØDHEIMSGARD ELUVEITIE EREB ALTOR FIREWIND GAMA BOMB GROZA HAGGARD HARAKIRI FOR THE SKY HEATHEN HIRAES HIRAX HOUR OF PENANCE INSOMNIUM KAMELOT ORDEN OGAN PERSEFONE RHAPSODY OF FIRE SATURNUS SEVEN SPIRES SKELETAL REMAINS TÝR VIO-LENCE WIND ROSE XANDRIA …And 33 more! Visit and follow the @70000tons social media channels for the upcoming Public Sales announcement for 70000TONS OF METAL 2026, featuring a lineup of top metal bands and exclusive performances and events. About 70000TONS OF METAL 70000TONS OF METAL is The Original, The World's Biggest Heavy Metal Cruise. With ten consecutive sellouts since the inaugural voyage in 2011, this extraordinary and unique floating festival now sails on board some of the largest luxury passenger vessels in the world. Featuring 60 Heavy Metal bands from around the globe performing across four stages, 70000TONS OF METAL is home to The World's Biggest Open Air Stage Structure to Ever Sail the Open Seas.
