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TimesLIVE
a day ago
- Automotive
- TimesLIVE
The MINI Cooper S fights for its identity in a changing world
It has been more than two decades since the Hollywood remake of The Italian Job hit screens. Revenge-based storyline and Charlize Theron aside, most car fans will agree the real star of the show was the reinvented MINI. The leading role did a great deal for the cool factor of the British hatchback, shortly after it had been re-birthed by German custodians, BMW. Though the millennium MINI looked like a copy of the original, albeit modernised, it shed the humble economy car essence of its progenitor and was instead a bona fide premium offering: a junior, front-wheel drive BMW of sorts. Even at that time critics lamented that the reincarnated MINI was costly and, relatively speaking, not so miniature. Criticisms that could still apply today. Time to give it a break though, because it is unrealistic to expect any modern interpretation of an original to stay completely faithful to the practical aspects — and dimensions — of its ancestor. In real-world terms, even the purists might agree that thick A-pillars, deforming crumple zones, more airbags than one has fingers and intelligent semi-autonomous driving features provide peace of mind for driver and occupants. Driving a classic Mini in the contemporary world, you would not want to be on the receiving end of a Datsun Go that did not pull up in time. Since that first BMW-made MINI came about in 2000, the portfolio has expanded to include variants of nearly all shapes and sizes. You now have SUV options such as the Countryman and in-between, crossover shapes such as the Aceman. There was also a Mini Roadster. The traditional three-door hatchback format continues to form part of the range in 2025. What a nifty thing it was to see in our basement parking. Parked next to my Countryman SE long-termer, the three-door MINI looked diminutive. But when parked next to a genuine A-segment budget car, the MINI's girth and generous footprint is significant. Opening one of its heavy front doors, you find entry is akin to slinking behind a low-slung sports car's wheel. The access height might reveal the weaker parts of your back structure, especially in the frigid air of winter, as I learnt. This exercise seemed much easier the previous time I tested a three-door Cooper several years ago. Chalk it down to age. In a world of Chinese crossovers with aggressive lines and angry gazes, the doe-eyed, rounded look of the MINI three-door is friendly and endearing. Design-wise, the Mini is mentioned in the same company as icons such as the Porsche 911, Volkswagen Transporter or Ford Mustang — with distinctive aesthetic personalities that cannot be replicated. The new Cooper is modelled on futuristic executions shown in concept cars from yesteryear, such as the 2011 Rocketman. It is minimalistic and digital. There is an expansive dashboard surface. The slim front pews are positioned inches above the ground — no SUV-like 'commanding view' here. Right in the middle of the fascia is an oversized central touchscreen display. There are a few remaining elements of physical switchgear, including a toggle for driving modes. That element will see infrequent use as you are likely to want to keep the Cooper S in its sportiest Go-Kart setting. This also changes the ambient mood lighting to an appropriately racy hue of crimson. Blasting through Los Angeles tunnels and empty waterways like Charlie Croker's gang was a much nicer fantasy than the reality of dodging Egoli's potholes, splashing through flowing sewage. Our city's road surfaces vary from not-so-bad to bad and it is an environment that hardly flatters the firmly-sprung MINI, on its optional 40-profile, 18 inchers. A set of 215/45/17 wheels are standard fitment. The Cooper S retains the frantic character of a city mouse that slugged spilt energy drink, champing at the bit, goading its driver into seizing gaps and keeping that 2.0 l engine in the peak of its power band. There are no shifter paddles to manually slice through the ratios of its seven-speed, dual-clutch automatic, but there is a setting marked 'L' on the gear selector nib, which engages a more dynamic shifting characteristic, holding the gears for longer. Acoustically, the turbocharged, four-cylinder unit is as characterful as can be expected — within the constraints of emissions regulations. It has a buzzy, eager note from within the cabin, delivering enough shove to launch the three-door from standstill to 100km/h in a claimed 6.6 seconds. It is remarkable how tidily the MINI handles. Even mid-corner, the driven (front) wheels are never flummoxed by the foot-flat summoning of the entire 150kW/300Nm output — almost no 'torque-steer' to speak of. The Cooper S is an entertaining, fun compact that likes to be grabbed by the scruff of its neck. Though I could not help but think about how the SE model (that is the electric one) delivers the same level of agility and swiftness but with a more effortless, silent nature typical of responsive electric powertrains. Never thought I would have found myself more partial to the latter sensations — could be that living with the quiet, zero emissions Countryman SE has altered my worldview. Still, there is a price advantage, having the standard three-door Cooper S over its electric SE counterpart. The petrol engine model costs R646,395 compared with the battery-powered model, which is R802,000. These prices are before options. As a newer generation of drivers embrace electric technologies, the hallmarks of what defines a performance car are changing — with less emphasis on sounds, vibrations and other aspects that offer a visceral connection between driver and machine. It is good that MINI wants to pander to both camps (for now, anyway) with a traditional Cooper S and the progressive Cooper SE, rather than forcing its fans to pick a side.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Burglars clean out father-son jewelers, snatch heirlooms, 'a lifetime's worth of work'
Simi Valley business owner Jonathan Youssef raced to his modest jewelry and repair shop on Memorial Day morning, fearing the worst. The business owner next door had called him just after 6 a.m. to say that burglars had broken into their coffee and candy store and also breached Youssef's establishment, 5 Star Jewelry & Watch Repair. His father and the shop's founder, 71-year-old Jacoub Youssef, had already reached the store located inside a strip mall. The safe appeared intact. Jacoub tried to reassure his just-arriving son — and perhaps himself: "They didn't open the safe." But Jonathan wasn't so sure. 'It was like a movie, like 'Ocean's Eleven' or 'The Italian Job,'' said Jonathan Youssef, the store's co-owner. 'I couldn't believe it, but I told my dad to open the safe.' The patriarch did so, only to find gold bullion, customer jewelry, decades of savings and other items missing. 'It was a lifetime's worth of work — of struggle — gone, just gone,' Jonathan Youssef told The Times on Tuesday evening as he fought back tears. 'Everything we owned and, worse, family heirlooms of our customers are gone. It's unthinkable.' Simi Valley police received a call at 6:33 a.m. from the Youssefs. Senior Officer Casey Nicholson said an unknown number of burglars gained access to Dr. Conkey's Candy & Coffee shop next door through the roof. Nicholson did not confirm how the burglars moved into the jewelry and repair shop, noting that the crime was still under investigation. Surveillance footage provided to KTLA showed burglars crawling on the floor. Jonathan Youssef said detectives told him the burglars spray-painted security cameras as they entered Dr. Conkey's. They then spent about three hours cutting through both walls and about eight inches of his 5,000-pound safe. They cut a crate-sized hole and seized everything inside. 'They were no slouches, and this wasn't their first rodeo,' Jonathan Youssef said of the burglars. 'They knew where the cameras were, how to evade detection and what equipment to use to get into the safe.' Jonathan Youssef estimated his store lost between $2 million and $2.5 million in personal inventory — gold bullion, silver bars, white gold and platinum pieces, cash, multiple high-end Rolex, TAG Heuer and Omega watches, center-stone diamond engagement rings and more. 'It was store merchandise and the accumulation of a lifetime's worth of work for my dad,' Jonathan Youssef said. 'He's been devastated over the loss.' Jonathan Youssef said his father had been 'too distraught' to speak with the media. The elder Youssef emigrated to the United States from Egypt in the early 1970s as a 19-year-old. He's owned several other small businesses and handed over the jewelry store, which he opened 25 years earlier, to his son in 2015, Jonathan Youssef said. They had just decided to reduce store hours as his father neared retirement; Jonathan had purchased a sign Monday reflecting the change. 'He was slowly dwindling his hours away from the store until his actual retirement at the end of the year,' Jonathan Youssef said. But those plans are now in flux. Read more: In cinema-style heist, tunneling thieves steal millions in gold, jewels from downtown L.A. store The younger Youssef said his store couldn't afford to insure what was in their safe, so it's a total loss. The only part that is covered by insurance is the damaged and ultimately ineffective safe, Jonathan Youssef said. 'My father doesn't want to retire now," the son said. "He wants to work to help recoup some of these losses." The younger Youssef estimates the store is in the red several hundred thousand dollars because of the loss of jewelry belonging to roughly 100 neighborhood customers. He said the store's main business was not selling jewelry, but altering and repairing it. 'Those are the irreplaceable items that are difficult to accept,' Jonathan Youssef said. 'I could care less about our inventory.' Since news broke, customers have turned the store into a de facto memorial site, Jonathan Youssef said. 'I've had ladies coming here and crying about their stolen engagement rings or grandma's diamond earrings,' he said. 'There was a guy who screamed in my face about his wife's wedding ring, and it just hurts. It's rough.' Read more: Long Beach man who bragged about crime on Instagram pleads guilty to $2.6-million jewelry heist Kathi Van Etten, chief executive and president of the Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce, said the burglary shocked the neighborhood. 'It's so hard because this is such a safe community and you don't expect these types of things to happen,' she said. 'And they did everything right, from having security and taking precautions.' Van Etten said some chamber members had reached out to her to ask how they could help. She said some were planning to bring meals to the Youssefs. 'This is the type of community where people stick together and help each other,' Van Etten said. The younger Youssef said he'd been sustained by community members who had delivered well wishes and hugs since shortly after the burglary. One of his top customers created an online fundraising campaign, hoping to raise $20,000 to help defray some of the losses. The fund has nearly hit $18,000 as of Wednesday afternoon. 'My family is grateful to Simi Valley, to our community, for everything,' he said. 'We have an obligation to this community, and we're not going to rest until everyone who lost something is compensated.' Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
3 days ago
- Los Angeles Times
Burglars clean out father-son jewelers, snatch heirlooms, ‘a lifetime's worth of work'
Simi Valley business owner Jonathan Youssef raced to his modest jewelry and repair shop on Memorial Day morning, fearing the worst. The business owner next door had called him just after 6 a.m. to say that burglars had broken into their coffee and candy store and also breached Youssef's establishment, 5 Star Jewelry & Watch Repair. His father and the shop's founder, 71-year-old Jacoub Youssef, had already reached the store located inside a strip mall. The safe appeared intact. Jacoub tried to reassure his just-arriving son — and perhaps himself: 'They didn't open the safe.' But Jonathan wasn't so sure. 'It was like a movie, like 'Ocean's Eleven' or 'The Italian Job,'' said Jonathan Youssef, the store's co-owner. 'I couldn't believe it, but I told my dad to open the safe.' The patriarch did so, only to find gold bullion, customer jewelry, decades of savings and other items missing. 'It was a lifetime's worth of work — of struggle — gone, just gone,' Jonathan Youssef told The Times on Tuesday evening as he fought back tears. 'Everything we owned and, worse, family heirlooms of our customers are gone. It's unthinkable.' Simi Valley police received a call at 6:33 a.m. from the Youssefs. Senior Officer Casey Nicholson said an unknown number of burglars gained access to Dr. Conkey's Candy & Coffee shop next door through the roof. Nicholson did not confirm how the burglars moved into the jewelry and repair shop, noting that the crime was still under investigation. Surveillance footage provided to KTLA showed burglars crawling on the floor. Jonathan Youssef said detectives told him the burglars spray-painted security cameras as they entered Dr. Conkey's. They then spent about three hours cutting through both walls and about eight inches of his 5,000-pound safe. They cut a crate-sized hole and seized everything inside. 'They were no slouches, and this wasn't their first rodeo,' Jonathan Youssef said of the burglars. 'They knew where the cameras were, how to evade detection and what equipment to use to get into the safe.' Jonathan Youssef estimated his store lost between $2 million and $2.5 million in personal inventory — gold bullion, silver bars, white gold and platinum pieces, cash, multiple high-end Rolex, TAG Heuer and Omega watches, center-stone diamond engagement rings and more. 'It was store merchandise and the accumulation of a lifetime's worth of work for my dad,' Jonathan Youssef said. 'He's been devastated over the loss.' Jonathan Youssef said his father had been 'too distraught' to speak with the media. The elder Youssef emigrated to the United States from Egypt in the early 1970s as a 19-year-old. He's owned several other small businesses and handed over the jewelry store, which he opened 25 years earlier, to his son in 2015, Jonathan Youssef said. They had just decided to reduce store hours as his father neared retirement; Jonathan had purchased a sign Monday reflecting the change. 'He was slowly dwindling his hours away from the store until his actual retirement at the end of the year,' Jonathan Youssef said. But those plans are now in flux. The younger Youssef said his store couldn't afford to insure what was in their safe, so it's a total loss. The only part that is covered by insurance is the damaged and ultimately ineffective safe, Jonathan Youssef said. 'My father doesn't want to retire now,' the son said. 'He wants to work to help recoup some of these losses.' The younger Youssef estimates the store is in the red several hundred thousand dollars because of the loss of jewelry belonging to roughly 100 neighborhood customers. He said the store's main business was not selling jewelry, but altering and repairing it. 'Those are the irreplaceable items that are difficult to accept,' Jonathan Youssef said. 'I could care less about our inventory.' Since news broke, customers have turned the store into a de facto memorial site, Jonathan Youssef said. 'I've had ladies coming here and crying about their stolen engagement rings or grandma's diamond earrings,' he said. 'There was a guy who screamed in my face about his wife's wedding ring, and it just hurts. It's rough.' Kathi Van Etten, chief executive and president of the Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce, said the burglary shocked the neighborhood. 'It's so hard because this is such a safe community and you don't expect these types of things to happen,' she said. 'And they did everything right, from having security and taking precautions.' Van Etten said some chamber members had reached out to her to ask how they could help. She said some were planning to bring meals to the Youssefs. 'This is the type of community where people stick together and help each other,' Van Etten said. The younger Youssef said he'd been sustained by community members who had delivered well wishes and hugs since shortly after the burglary. One of his top customers created an online fundraising campaign, hoping to raise $20,000 to help defray some of the losses. The fund has nearly hit $18,000 as of Wednesday afternoon. 'My family is grateful to Simi Valley, to our community, for everything,' he said. 'We have an obligation to this community, and we're not going to rest until everyone who lost something is compensated.'
Wales Online
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
BGT's Amanda Holden gives huge update on future of show
BGT's Amanda Holden gives huge update on future of show Exciting news for fans of best friends, Amanda Holden and Alan Carr as they may exciting announcement on social media. Amanda makes an exciting announcement with her best friend on Instagram. (Image: Getty Images ) Best friends Amanda Holden and Alan Carr are back together for an exciting new project. They have announced on social media that filming has begun on the third series of the renovation projects, and this time they are heading to Corfu. The Greek Job follows their previous BBC series', The Italian Job and The Spanish Job, which have been a massive hit with audiences. Their previous builds cost just one euro, or 85p and ended up selling for hundreds of thousands. So, what can we expect from this series? Amanda posted a picture on Instagram of the pair wearing baseball caps that read, "off my t*ts on Aperol Spritz". For the latest TV and showbiz gossip sign up to our newsletter . The caption of the picture read: "And so it begins!!! Me and @chattyman -We're in #Corfu -let's build a house!!!! #Amanda&Alan our big fat Greek renovation!! THE GREEK JOB" Content cannot be displayed without consent The duo have been busy buying and revamping properties overseas, as well as having plenty of laughs and sangrias. The first series documented their acquisition of a two-bedroom house in Tuscany for merely one Euro (85p), known as "Casa Alamanda", which they later sold for about £187,777. Article continues below In the second series, the pair shifted focus to Spain, snapping up a property in Moclín, Granada, for the same bargain price of 85p, and it has recently been sold to a buyer from Wales for an undisclosed sum after being advertised on Rightmove for around £210,000. Recently the BGT judge had hinted at a possible shake-up for the show on Alan's podcast, Life's a Beach podcast, she said: "I think it should be my Big Fat Greek Renovation, first of all." Alan agreed, suggesting he was unhappy with the show's title. He said: 'I don't like the Greek Job. It's just job, it sounds cr**.' Amanda however concluded the pair would have to air their concerns with bosses at the BBC. She concluded: "It's not good. I think we should argue with the BBC about that." You can read more here. Speaking to the BBC, Alan said: "Greece is always my 'Go To' place for holiday fun, so it will be strange for me to be packing a hard hat, drill and paint roller in my suitcase instead of my usual suntan lotion and budgie smugglers. "After the success of Sicily, Tuscany and Andalusia I think Greece is the perfect next step for some Alamanda magic, with its rich history and culture and let's not forget the delicious food and drink, it feels like it's already gearing up to be an unforgettable summer." Content cannot be displayed without consent Amanda had previously shared on Instagram: "I couldn't be happier to announce that Alan and I are going to be doing a fourth series of Amanda and Alan. We're so excited to be spending another summer together bashing down walls in one of our favourite places ever." You can read more here. It hasn't been announced when the series will be on our screens, but Alan and Amanda's Greek Job will be an eight-part series and will air on BBC One and the BBC iPlayer. Article continues below
Indian Express
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Jewel Thief joins Bollywood's continuing struggle to make a good heist film
It's sacrilege that Jewel Thief, starring Saif Ali Khan, Jaideep Ahlawat, Nikita Dutta, and Kunal Kapoor, shares its name with perhaps the most iconic heist film ever made in India, Vijay Anand's Jewel Thief. The OG Jewel Thief, whose cast included Dev Anand, Ashok Kumar, Vyajayanthimala and Tanuja, blended characteristics of a conventional heist film with elements of a crime thriller. As I watched the new Jewel Thief, which is strangely both loud and lackluster, I couldn't help but wonder why Bollywood has not been able to make a crackling heist story. A stylish, slick entertainer like an Ocean's 11, or an intense, violent interpretation like Reservoir Dogs. While we have made remakes like Kaante, or taken inspiration from Hollywood films like Fast and Furious for the Dhoom series, there are very few Bollywood heist films that are rooted in an Indian milieu or have relatable characters and motivations. There are a few exceptions, like Aankhen (2002), which was based on the Gujarati play Aandhlo Pato and Special 26, which was based on an actual incident that took place at a jewellery store in Mumbai. But others like Happy New Year, Players (a remake of The Italian Job), Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga, or Crew are just some examples of how we have struggled to adapt the heist film to an authentically Indian context. Heist films are typically placed under the umbrella of crime films and follow the different stages of planning and executing a seemingly impossible robbery. There may be smaller crimes or cons as a part of the larger plan and preparation for the grand heist. Usually, a team leader or alpha comes up with the idea of stealing a bank, robbing rare jewellery or cracking open an uncrackable safe. The motive can be personal, like vengeance, or recovering an item that was lost from an earlier heist, a fondness for breaking the law, good old greed, or the desire to commit one last crime before retiring with the loot. ALSO READ | Saif Ali Khan says he hated himself on the first day of Jewel Thief shoot, was 'nervous and lost': 'I don't know what I'm doing sometimes' Once the goal is set, it's time to build a team. Some old associates and some new recruits, each with a unique skill, are brought together by the leader to successfully complete the heist. In an article for the BBC, writer Anne Billson credits Akira Kurosawa's film Seven Samurai (1954) for popularising the 'assembling of the team' trope that is now an integral part of heist films. Bilson writes, 'The film launches into the mother of all 'assembling the team' sequences, now an obligatory part of so many action and heist movies.' In The Italian Job (2003), the team planning to steal gold bars from a safe in Venice has a computer expert, a fixer, someone skilled in opening safes, an explosives expert and a getaway driver. In Ocean's 11, given the requirements of the heist, the team includes an acrobat, an elderly con man, and a pickpocket who are crucial to the plan's success. In our very own Dhoom, the good guys form a team to track down the thieves. Super cop Jay (Abhishek Bachchan) has to recruit Ali (Uday Chopra), a street racer with a garage owner, to crack a case involving bank robbers who escape on motorcycles. But as it often does in life, even the best laid plans can go wrong or fail, leading to chaos, cat and mouse chases, bloodshed and infighting within the team. In the iconic Reservoir Dogs and its adaptation Kaante, the thieves find themselves in a 'Mexican standoff' and end up shooting each other dead. Though the heist is successful, suspicion and greed lead to murder and mayhem after the robbery. In Dhoom 3, Abhishek Bachchan manages to create a temporary rift between the twin Aamir Khans, Samar and Sahir. The two have been stealing from different branches of the Western Bank of Chicago to avenge the death of their father, who died by suicide because the bank wouldn't give him more time to repay a loan. Sahir and Samar are chased by the police after their final heist, but they die together instead of facing separation. ALSO READ | Saif Ali Khan on working with Jaideep Ahlawat in Jewel Thief: 'I was reminded how much an actor can commit to creating a character' Interestingly, till 1968, the Motion Picture Production Code in Hollywood prevented the glorification of criminals and did not allow criminals to go unpunished. It was only after the code was removed that filmmakers could start experimenting with characterisation or focus on different aspects of the heist itself. So, while Reservoir Dogs focuses on the violent aftermath of the heist, Heat, starring Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, begins with a heist gone wrong that sets the group of thieves on a far more violent path than they anticipated. No discussion about heist films can be complete without a mention of the cool nicknames and code names used by the team of thieves to avoid implicating themselves to witnesses or bystanders. Whether it's calling each other by numbers in Aankhen, or naming team members by cities like Tokyo, Berlin and Helsinki in Netflix's hit series Money Heist; concealing identities or adopting false names adds a layer of drama and intrigue to the film. Perhaps what makes heist films popular is the element of daredevilry and audacity that the common man aspires to but can very rarely act on. The group of thieves in such films is very rarely a bunch of super villains or murderous psychopaths. They are regular-looking men and women who can blend into the crowd and even have regular day jobs before they get a chance to use their skill set to earn a lot more money than they ever thought possible. India, with its gaping economic disparities and a love for drama reel and real, is a great environment to set a heist film in. Sadly, we always end up playing on the same tropes of stealing gemstones from a museum or artefacts from exotic foreign locations. Jewel Thief, circa 2025, could have been a mildly entertaining film if it had not been so determined to simply rehash ideas from every film already made. From CCTV camera blind spots, red beams of light protecting exotic foreign jewels, to underground tunnels conveniently located under museums, it's all been there, stolen that. Let's stop paying hat tips to Mr. Vijay Anand by using his name as the thief's alias and instead study how fabulously he reimagined the heist film in an Indian context. We deserve better than Saif Ali Khan and Jaideep Ahlawat in bad hair and makeup, mouthing dialogues that make Abbas Mustan seem like Scorsese.
