Tonight:
9°c
Upside of the downturn
Nick Curtis10.10.08
There are at least 10 good reasons to quietly enjoy the credit crisis even if the value of your house has crumbled and your bank is in Iceland. Here they are ...
Comfort food is back
After years of conspicuous consumption, we're witnessing the return of simpler fare: Herbert Berger, chef-patron of 1 Lombard Street directly opposite the Bank of England and known as "the City's canteen" reports a 30 per cent increase in sales of sausage and mash and soup compared to last year and Mayfair chef Theo Randall has created four new pizzas for Pizza Express.
The return of the midi
Hemlines drop in a recession and longer skirts are not only flattering as seen on Kelly Brook they work well with boots. Ideal for the approaching cold days, and especially good if you've been thriftily darning your tights.
Shorter working hours
No one wants to see brokers or estate agents twiddling their thumbs for 18 pointless hours a day. The credit crunch has killed the culture of long days and "presenteeism".
Dads on the school run
A by-product of the previous point. We particularly like the newly-downsized City Boy who delivers his lad to the gates in a Porsche bought with a bygone bonus.
Empty commuter trains
With fewer people desperate to get to their desks first thing in the morning, the rush hour is suddenly the hush hour. Trains home are quieter too, now after-hours boozing is beyond most wallets.
Staying in is the new going out
There's a wealth of new cookbooks on the bestseller lists as people embrace the idea of eating in. And even if we never open the damn things, we can still get a ready-prepped meal for two, including wine, for £10 at M&S and Waitrose, and eat it guiltily while watching Jamie's Ministry of Food. Or something on the 799 other cable and satellite channels available to hibernating UK residents.
Family values
Divorce rates are down. Who can afford it? But birth rates are at their highest since 1973. Well, what else are you going to do on those long evenings in, with the lights and heating turned off to conserve electricity? From bust to baby boom
Cheap beer
A pint of Greene King IPA costs £2.10 at London branches of JD Wetherspoon's... and it's staying that low until March. Coors Light is £2.39 and Lavazza coffee £1.09. Enough said.
Year-round sales
Still a quarter of the year to go till Christmas, but already M&S is offering 50 per cent off selected clothing, with House of Fraser and Debenhams giving discounts of up to 70 per cent on clothing and homewares. Laptops are going for a song as we embrace home-working and portfolio careers rather than naked careerism.
Keeping down with the Joneses
It's a relief, above all, to stop being aspirational and competitive with our friends and colleagues. If anything today, competitive thrift is the thing.
