BlackRock Greater Europe has announced that it has been informed that Vincent Devlin, co-portfolio manager of the Company, will be stepping down as portfolio manager. Stefan Gries, a senior Director within the BlackRock’s European Active Equity team has been appointed co-portfolio manager alongside Sam Vecht, who retains principal responsibility for the Company’s emerging European portfolio. About Stefan Gries Stefan Gries joined BlackRock’s European equity team in 2008, after previous roles at Scottish Widows, Aberdeen Asset Management and Deutsche Bank. Stefan...

With a brazenly cocksure attitude, cult Belgian filmmaker Bavo Defurne’s disappointingly innocuous sophomore feature, Souvenir, begins with a credits sequence that plays against a lively backdrop of sparkling effervescence. Coupled with the starry-eyed score, composed by American pianist Thomas Lauderdale’s ‘Pink Martini’ music group, it’s a film that promises its audience plenty of fizz and flavour, but instead offers them something that’s flat and tasteless. A strong, seasoned performance from Isabelle Huppert is just about enough to make it all...

With the regular introduction of new mobile technology, you’ll probably end up replacing your smartphone every couple of years. But even the most cutting-edge designs can be upstaged by a cheaper model with the right accessories, which tend to perform two purposes: functionality and statement. Cover/Case Personalized cover designs are increasingly popular, whether you’re looking at a bunny-eared option or a branded cover to promote yourself or your interests. But the cover also performs a very important function in protecting...

Exciting times at NASA where plans to send a probe to Uranus or Neptune to study the gases that surround these neighbouring planets in our solar system have been announced. NASA wants to learn about the constituency of these icy giants somewhat neglected by science, so far from our sun, that solar power for any probe would be useless. The Uranus or Neptune probe would need a nuclear battery - in short supply due to treaties about plutonium enrichment. NASA hope...

A terminally ill five-year-old girl has ticked her “dream wedding” off her bucket list after a touching ceremony with her best friend. Brave Eileidh Paterson, who has the childhood cancer neuroblastoma, made the list after being told her condition was terminal. Little Eileidh ranked marrying her best friend Harrison Grier, aged six, as the most important thing she had to do before she died. Hundreds of well-wishers attended their fairytale “wedding” on the weekend — with some guests travelling hundreds...

A total of 79 people are either ‘dead or presumed dead’ after the blaze tore through the tower on Wednesday, in Grenfell Tower, West London The 2,500 word account of the horrific fire and rescue mission, shared by fellow firefighter Pete Drummond, will distress and upset many upon reading. It is a troubling account, but it illustrates the dangerous work firefighters can find themselves in, and how hard they will work to ensure as many people as possible are brought...

Employee morale is important for creating a positive work environment. High employee morale includes having a good attitude, feeling confident and satisfied. It is important for productivity levels in the workplace. Although as an employer you can’t decide whether your staff members have good morale, you can take action to influence it. Reward Hard Work Everyone likes their efforts to be noticed and it is even better if they are rewarded. Consider offering incentives like days out for employees who...

Spain is the holiday destination where you are most likely to fall ill or have their passport or money stolen, according to new research. Almost a quarter of all UK trips there end up in some kind of mishap. And France is the European ‘car crash capital’, while most activity-based accidents befall Brits in Austria. The holiday hazard hotspots emerged from a poll of 8,000 UK people by comparethemarket.com, who have created a ‘mishap map’ to highlight the tourist traps....

By Linda Marric 20th Century Women sees the return of Beginners (2010) director Mike Mills in one of the most ambitiously stylish and quirky pieces of filmmaking of recent years. Being no stranger to technical wizardry from his years in the music video industry, Mills offers his audience an exhilarating mishmash of authentic 1970s nostalgia mixed with dream-like sequences and real-life footage, with a killer soundtrack to boot. Set in California during the summer of 1979, 20th Century Women charters...