Author Archive
Posted on January 19, 2012 - by Venik
Putin, Russia and the West talks to everyone but the man himself
Norma Percy’s BBC2 documentary is compulsive viewing for those who want to know what went on inside Russia for the last decade – even if Putin himself is absent Norma Percy is the pre-eminent political documentary filmmaker of our generation. She has set the gold standard in getting history’s movers and shakers to explain their [...]
Posted on January 19, 2012 - by Venik
Fake rock used to spy on Russians is part of a long game
Britain and Russia have used James Bond-style bugs and double agents to keep tabs on each other for years Spying, it is said, is the second oldest profession. Britain and Russia have spied on each other ever since the days of the Great Game centred on Afghanistan in the 19th century. According to MI5, Russia [...]
Posted on January 19, 2012 - by Venik
Orthodox Epiphany celebrations – Orthodox Epiphany celebrations – in pictures
According to believers, the Epiphany on 19 January marks the baptism of Jesus in the Orthodox Church. On this day water becomes holy and churchgoers cut holes in the ice of lakes and rivers to bathe in the freezing water Original article Share on bebo Blog this! Bookmark on Delicious Digg this post Recommend on [...]
Posted on January 19, 2012 - by Venik
Russia will block UN sanctions on Syria – video
Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, attacks western countries’ sanctions against Syria Original article Share on bebo Blog this! Bookmark on Delicious Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share via MySpace share via Reddit Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Subscribe to the comments on this post
Posted on January 19, 2012 - by Venik
Britain admits ‘fake rock’ plot to spy on Russians
Tony Blair’s former aide Jonathan Powell says UK was behind plot to spy on Russians with device hidden in fake plastic rock Britain was behind a plot to spy on Russians with a device hidden in a fake plastic rock, a former key UK government official has admitted. Jonathan Powell, former chief of staff to [...]
Posted on January 19, 2012 - by Venik
Facebook infections slow as Russian ‘Koobface’ gang is unmasked
Publication of a report by security researchers has seen the criminals behind a malware scheme delete their presence from the web – and cut infections online A Russian gang behind “Koobface”, the source of one of the most widespread computer malware, appears to have fled after security researchers, working with Facebook, released the names of [...]
Posted on January 17, 2012 - by Venik
The Russians are coming: is 2012 the year of the bear in film?
With only a fraction of the US’s screens, Russia is the seventh-largest global film market. And Hollywood expansion is forcing local cinema-makers to up their game It was a film with no lead actor that laid claim to the Russian box office last year. Vladimir Semyonovich Vysotsky, the immensely popular Soviet-era singer-songwriter, poet, actor and [...]
Posted on January 16, 2012 - by Venik
Abramovich, Berezovsky and the real story of Russia’s lost billions | Alexander Lebedev
The glitz of two squabbling multimillionaires grabs the headlines but distracts from the high price ordinary Russians have paid It has been bizarre to watch, from the safe distance of Moscow, how the British press has reported the court case between Roman Abramovich and Boris Berezovsky. All the classic ingredients of tabloid fare are there: [...]
Posted on January 15, 2012 - by Venik
Phobos-Grunt Mars probe falls into Pacific Ocean
Russian space agency had previously said that the stricken planetary rocket was most likely to fall into the Atlantic Debris from a failed Russian spacecraft fell into the Pacific Ocean far off Chile on Sunday, the state-run RIA news agency has quoted a Russian military official as saying. Pieces of the Phobos-Grunt craft, which never [...]
Posted on January 15, 2012 - by Venik
Electrician leads minority shareholder action against BP in Siberia
Andrey Prokhorov claims BP harmed its Russian joint venture TNK-BP by preventing alliance with Rosneft A lone electrician is pressing ahead with a multibillion-pound legal claim against BP with a hearing in Siberia. Andrey Prokhorov, a tiny shareholder in BP’s Russian joint venture TNK-BP, is fronting a minority shareholder action following the UK-listed firm’s failed [...]
Posted on January 15, 2012 - by Venik
Eva Zeisel obituary
Industrial designer known for her ceramic tableware, furniture, glass and lighting who arrived in the US in 1938 Eva Zeisel, who has died aged 105, was one of the most respected postwar product designers in North America. Her specialism was ceramic tableware but she also designed furniture, textiles, glass and lighting. Her remarkably successful career [...]
Posted on January 14, 2012 - by Venik
Rewind radio: Dying Inside; But They Are Only Russians; London Soundscape – review
Radio 4′s documentary about Britain’s ageing prison population made for sobering listening Dying Inside (R4) | iPlayer But They Are Only Russians (R4) | iPlayer London Soundscape (R2) | iPlayer New Year, new you! How depressing. So let’s sod the yoga and stretch the carb-slugged brain instead. Give it a gentle workout with a couple [...]
Posted on January 13, 2012 - by Venik
Man finds rifles and ammunition in firewood crates
Russian who had bought crates to sell as firewood found they contained Kalashnikov rifles, spare parts and ammunition A Russian villager discovered an arsenal of weapons and ammunition after buying wooden containers to sell for use as firewood. The unnamed truck driver had decided to make extra money by selling the cases, which he had [...]
Posted on January 13, 2012 - by Venik
The Strongman by Angus Roxburgh – review
With protests on the street, has the prime minister lost his grip? It was the moment when the worm turned. In November Vladimir Putin attended a martial arts fight at Moscow’s Olympisky stadium. When he took the microphone something extraordinary happened: there were noisy jeers and catcalls from the audience. (Kremlin spin-doctors tried to explain [...]
