13th November 2013
In a few isolated towns in Abu Dhabi’s remote western region, women weavers are reviving a craft that was once central to Bedouin culture. Helena Frith Powell meets them and explains how, with the help of the Khalifa Fund, they are honing traditional s …
8th December 2012
When an online novel, Desperate In Dubai, hit the internet last year, it immediately attracted thousands of dedicated readers, all even more desperate than its characters to know what happens next. Helena Frith Powell talks to its anonymous author abou …
13th November 2012
Cherie Blair, the wife of Middle East envoy and former British premier Tony, is a power in her own right. A high-flying lawyer, she is now dedicating more time to her foundation, which helps women in the region achieve their potential. Helena Frith Pow …
8th November 2012
At 15 years old, the British diver Tom Daley is already a world champion and is the face of the 2012 London Olympic Games. Helena Frith Powell met the young star when he visited Abu Dhabi for the Laureus World Sports Awards. Tom Daley is a diving sensa …
Tim Butcher has joined a project that draws attention to the plight of young women across the globe by writing a story of abuse and degradation in Sierra Leone – where he went to banish some of his own demons. Helena Frith Powell reports. “Do you know …
Lewis Hamilton is a driven man, and knew when he was a young boy that he wanted to race for McLaren. The rest is history. Helena Frith Powell meets him When Lewis Hamilton first met Ron Dennis, then the team principal of the McLaren Formula One team, h …
The legendary cricket commentator Henry Blofeld is president of the Emirates Palace Gentlemen’s Cricket Club. He was here last week to cover a match between local England and Australia sides competing in their own Ashes at the Emirates Palace cricket g …
13th October 2012
She is one half of Egypt’s cinematic power couple, but Mona Zaki tries to shy away from the spotlight. Helena Frith Powell sits down for a rare interview with the national film star. For a woman who has become famous this year for being beaten by her h …
21st September 2012
Inès de la Fressange, the former French supermodel, shares her literary choices with Helena Frith Powell Inès de la Fressange was the original French supermodel. Born in the Var region of France in 1957, Inès Marie Lætitia Églantine Isabelle de …
13th September 2012
Whether by choice or necessity, more women are reversing roles with their husbands to become the main breadwinner for the household. Helena Frith Powell examines how the changed job landscape in the UAE has affected family dynamics. Ask practica …
11th April 2012
Sir Ronald Harwood CBE, 77, is a playwright, author and screenwriter who is most famous for his screenplays of The Dresser, The Pianist (for which he won an Oscar) and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. He was in the UAE last week for the Abu Dhabi Fes …
3rd March 2012
What does it take for a female to reach the pinnacle of her profession? And how does she handle the pressure once she’s there, plus balance family and career? With International Women’s Day coming on Thursday, we talk to seven success stories from arou …
17th February 2012
Ameera Al Hakawati’s Desperate in Dubai, a novel that’s been both banned from and reintroduced to the nation’s bookstores in recent days,reimagines the world we live in as a glossy chick-lit landscape. It’s hard to see this as our precise world – it is …
4th February 2012
The welcome Sadly, I arrived at the side door, so I stood outside like a moron for a few seconds thinking, “How does this door open?” (I have definitely been living in the UAE too long), before the freezing cold drove me inside. If you go to the main d …
1st February 2012
Ken Hom shares his Desert Island Book choices, with Helena Frith Powell Ken Hom is regarded as the world’s leading authority on Chinese cookery. The Chinese-American chef, author and television presenter learnt to cook from the age of 11 when he starte …
30th January 2012
We meet six spouses who have given up careers to follow their partner to the UAE. Expat life is challenging for couples, perhaps more so for spouses who give up a career to follow their partner. Lisa Burke meets six who have done just that and f …
25th January 2012
A unique and revitalising treatment at a top cosmetic clinic WHAT I TRIED Skin Tightening at the Kaya Skin Clinic. WHAT I EXPECTED Another day, another skin treatment. Surely if these things really worked no one would age at all? And skin tighte …
24th December 2011
The world’s greatest tennis player on why he won’t be hanging his racket up anytime soon By Helena Frith Powell Much has been made of Roger Federer’s grace on court. He has been admired for his elegance since he burst on the tennis scene in 2003 by win …
14th December 2011
Wisdom from one of the world’s leading hoteliers Sir Rocco Forte, 66, is one of the world’s leading hoteliers, with 13 hotels and resorts around the globe. The native of Bournemouth, England was in the capital this month for the launch of the Rocco For …
10th December 2011
As a new feature film about Marilyn Monroe’s 1956 London sojourn premieres at the Dubai International Film Festival this week, Helena Frith Powell examines her legacy When I was 10, The Sunday Times magazine serialised Norman Mailer’s biography of Mari …
30th November 2011
The Swedish professional golfer shares his life’s wisdom The golfer Robert Karlsson was born in Sweden in 1969. He has won 11 European Tour titles and in 2008 became the first Swede to win the tour’s Order of Merit. He will defend his crown in the sea …
19th November 2011
We all know there’s a wide range of high-end restaurants to enjoy in the UAE, but who doesn’t also love home cooking? Five Abu Dhabi residents who know their way around the kitchen tell us what food products they keep on hand and what dishes the …
13th November 2011
Thirty-eight years ago, Randa Habib landed an interview with King Hussein of Jordan, a meeting that would change the course of her life. The veteran AFP news bureau chief talks to Helena Frith Powell about her life and her book on Jordan’s royal family …
8th November 2011
The number of female applicants to the Abu Dhabi police has doubled after a recruitment drive started in October. Helena Frith Powell gets rare access to see the latest cadets at their training school. Emirati women are perhaps not renowned for their l …
7th November 2011
The head of human development at Abu Dhabi media hub twofour54 offers her philosophies on life 1. Try to learn from all those around you, from the driver in your company to your colleagues, as well as the young. At some stage we all reach an age where …
2nd November 2011
The best-selling author’s choices are peopled with deeply conflicted characters taking on epic adventures, from the high seas to herding cattle across America With his books averaging sales of three million copies each, Wilbur Smith is one of th …
26th October 2011
The founder of Wally, the luxury yacht and motorboat manufacturer, shares his wisdom with M magazine Luca Bassani, 54, is the founder of Wally, the luxury yacht and motorboat manufacturer. A keen yachtsman, he has owned 25 boats and has been sailing fo …
22nd October 2011
An unlikely pair in Mysore, India, have taken up the fight against human traffickers and abusers By Helena Frith Powell Sitting across a table from these two softly-spoken, unassuming middle-aged men it’s hard to imagine them picking fights with pimps …
8th October 2011
Rafael Nadal is already one of the all-time greats of tennis. As he prepares to play here in Abu Dhabi, Helena Frith Powell speaks to the world No. 1 about winning and losing, and how his solid home base in Majorca makes him the most grounded of sporti …
1st October 2011
As his Dubai shop prepares to celebrate 10 years of business later this month, the designer Paul Smith talks to Helena Frith Powell about how he started in fashion, the Arab Spring, what makes a snappy dresser and why he almost refused a knighthood …
21st September 2011
Say goodbye to fine lines with Dysport Treatment WHAT I TRIED Dysport Treatment, an injection a bit like Botox, that wipes away wrinkles and frown lines. WHAT I EXPECTED Having already experienced the miracle that is Botox, I wasn’t expecting much from …
The former England rugby star reveals a few of his favourite things and places to Helena Frith Powell Jeremy Guscott, a former England rugby player, is considered one of the most thrilling centres ever to grace the game. His smooth running style and sp …
24th August 2011
Helena Frith Powell on how to survive the ordeal of sending the kids back to school. FEELING STRESSED? The American novelist and editor Edgar W Howe once said: “If there were no schools to take the children away from home part of the time, the insane a …
13th August 2011
Curl up with a good book this summer with some of M’s top literary choices 1. APPALOOSA (ROBERT B PARKER, 2005) Although the Boston author was more renowned for his Spenser series of detective novels, his terse, Hemingway-like prose and crackling Chand …
15th July 2011
Once the haunt of movie stars and royalty, the tiny island of Sveti Stefan off Montenegro’s coast has just reopened its doors to well-heeled guests. Helena Frith Powell explores In Norman Lewis’s Voices of the Old Sea, he recounts how a small Ca …
8th July 2011
From a media mogul to a jet pilot, M profiles 10 diverse, career-minded women from the UAE and across the region who have raised eyebrows excelling in their fields, challenging inequalities as they chart the course for a generation of educated and ambi …
Cheryl Parsons moved to Dubai from the UK in March 2005. After working as a radio news presenter for three years, she decided to become a yoga instructor. Since completing her training in India in 2008, Parsons has been teaching with Dubai’s Zen Yoga s …
6th June 2011
Five years ago, Dianne Reed barely survived a militant attack on her compound in Saudi Arabia in which 22 others died. Helena Frith Powell meets the American who moved back to the Middle East to prove that peace can win over violence What would you say …
25th May 2011
The French ballet dancer Sylvie Guillem CBE was a member of the Paris Opera Ballet and the Royal Ballet in London before branching out into contemporary dance. She shared her wisdom with us when she was in Abu Dhabi performing at the Abu Dhabi Festival …
13th May 2011
Helena Frith Powell meets the young female Emirati artists who have a keen sense of commitment to their nation and their history. Take six young women, all beautiful and clever, but with two things in common that may be even more crucial in shap …
8th May 2011
We had planned tea at the Qasr al Sarab. Happily the Swiss contingent was in charge of most of it, we just had to make a chocolate cake The rendezvous was at 11am outside the Grand Mosque. “At the VIP entrance,” said our Swiss friend. Not being a VIP, …
22nd March 2011
Float through any social event with M’s fast facts. This week, Helena Frith Powell looks at the life and works of the author Charlotte Brontë, who died on March 31, 1855 THE BASICS An English novelist and poet, Charlotte Brontë was born in 1816 …
11th March 2011
Fifty years on, Lady Elizabeth Anson’s party planning business remains an A-list choice, and no wonder. As Helena Frith Powell learns, the down-to-earth aristocrat, who is in the UAE to organize the Rolls-Royce Ball, is organised, animated and full of …
10th March 2011
With its designer spa and pretty Alpine setting, the Tschuggen Grand Hotel in the scenic resort town of Arosa is the perfect place for a rejuvenating break, says Helena Frith Powell A few hours into our Swiss holiday and I am beginning to feel l …
8th December 2010
Float through any social event with M’s fast facts. This week Helena Frith Powell tells us more about George Eliot, the English feminist author who died on December 22, 1880 WHO IS HE? Er, I think you mean, who is she? George Eliot is the pen name of t …
As Christians around the world celebrate one of the holiest days of their year we talk to three western women who have embraced Islam and how it has given them a fresh perspective on life. As Christians around the world celebrate one of the holiest day …
8th November 2010
There are only three roads out of Abu Dhabi. How hard can it be?” I told my husband and ferals happily as we left home one Friday morning aiming for the seaside town of Mirfa in Al Gharbia. “I think we head towards Mussafah and then we’ll see the road. …
A day out with children at the Aquaventure water park at the Atlantis hotel in Dubai requires more than one leap of faith The first, and best-known ride, is the Leap of Faith water slide that involves climbing to the top of a ziggurat and launching you …
Ronald Perlwitz, 39, is the director of studies for international languages and business, at the Paris-Sorbonne University, Abu Dhabi. Originally from Germany, he has lived in the capital for four years. He also gives the pre-concert talks at the Abu D …
Dr Jamal R Saadah is a consultant physician at the department of emergency medicine, Mafraq Hospital. Originally from the West Bank city of Ramallah, he is a US citizen and has been living in Abu Dhabi for a year, prior to which he lived in Dubai. …
16th October 2010
Ali F Mostafa, 29, was born in London and grew up in Dubai. A writer, producer and director, he made short films before his 2009 feature debut, City Of Life, broke box office records for an Emirati movie. He is now working on a new UAE-based film. No o …
8th October 2010
The life and times of the French fashion designer and founder of one of the world’s top fashion houses THE BASICS The French fashion designer and founder of one of the world’s top fashion houses, Christian Dior, was born in 1905 in Granville, a seaside …
13th September 2010
The expat ladies who lunch are feeling the credit crunch. With ‘hubbies’ losing their jobs, these women face losing their privileged lifestyles. Helena Frith Powell goes looking in the old haunts for the last of this endangered species. Never mi …
8th September 2010
A flourishing literary scene and a revolution in the way books are published have awakened the world to Egyptian writing. Helena Frith Powell goes to Cairo to meet Hamdy el Gazzar, one of the many young Arab authors riding on the crest of the wave. Wal …
13th August 2010
The French designer Agnès b has one film company, two art galleries, over 200 shops and 2,000 employees. But, she tellsHelena Frith Powell, her international triumphs are merely a means to more compassionate ends. Agnès b is wearing green. I am surpris …
8th August 2010
Sometimes when travelling with your children they ask questions that make you truly proud. This was not such an occasion. Helena Frith Powell visits Atlantis with her family Sometimes when travelling with your children they ask questions that make you …
We decided to let the ferals loose on KidZania for a day at Dubai Mall while we browsed around the bookshop and had a long lunch ‘One of the things about travelling with kids,” said my husband, “is that once in a while you’ve just got to get rid of the …
13th July 2010
Helena Frith Powell tests the Scuderia 250 Supercar Club, the first and only high-end sports car club in the Middle East WHAT WE TRIED: The first and only high-end sports car club in the Middle East. For info, email info@scudiera-250.com or visi …
13th March 2010
Charming personal embroideries by rural Pakistani women that now adorn chic handbags and purses will be on display at Al Bastakiya Art Fair in Dubai. Helena Frith Powell reports. The embroidery is flawless and the image charming. It is of a little girl …
14th February 2010
Finding a partner for life is a formidable task. But help is at hand, whether from your closest relatives, singles groups or even the Merchant of Marriage. He calls himself Dubai’s celebrity matchmaker, the one and only “Merchant of Marriage”. W …
8th February 2010
Amit Chaudhuri has earned acclaim for his novels about family and belonging. Helena Frith Powell visits him in his home base of Kolkata, the focus of his next work. Amit Chaudhuri does not much like travelling. He finds the day before he is set to leav …
6th February 2010
Ria Haffar is an interior designer turned yoga teacher. She is half-Lebanese and half-Czech and has lived in Abu Dhabi for 14 years with her daughter Iona. 1. Live life without expectations. This is the most important thing I have learnt. If you expect …
13th December 2009
Princess Michael of Kent has several jobs, including author and gallery representative. Helena Frith Powell meets her in Abu Dhabi to talk art, family and trial by tabloid. Princess Michael of Kent has an eye for art. “I studied art history,” she says …
13th November 2009
Helena Frith Powell meets Henning Mankell, the Swedish crime writer, ahead of his visit to the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair and explains what lies beyond doom and gloom that characterise his books. The Swedish language consists of a relatively sma …
Thirty years ago, women in the UAE would have hardly left their homes. Times have changed. Helena Frith Powell meets some of the women making the most of both their careers and family life in a careful balance between opportunity and tradition. The thi …
17th October 2009
Imprisoned, exiled and accused of blasphemy, Nawal el Saadawi’s fighting words have for decades polarised opinion in her Egyptian homeland. Helena Frith Powell talks to the writer about a lifetime spent pressing for equality and pushing the traditional …
13th August 2009
In a rare interview, Dolce and Gabbana speak to Helena Frith Powell about their pursuits of perfection and the ‘real women’ they design for Fashion duo Dolce and Gabbana, possibly the most famous ever, has been making stars look like stars for o …
The National Rehabilitation Centre offers those with drug and alcohol problems a chance to transform their lives. Helena Frith Powell reports on how a new facility is helping the fight against addiction in the UAE. Hidden away behind a bakery somewhere …
13th July 2009
Businesses offering to make you look your best are more popular than ever, but, how young is too young to enter into salon culture? By Helena Frith Powell My stepdaughter Julia’s first visit to Abu Dhabi was a great opportunity for a manicure. N …
13th April 2009
There is something compelling about wrapping a scarf with jingly bits around your hips – the minute you tie the knot you are overcome with an overwhelming desire to wiggle. There is something compelling about wrapping a scarf with jingly bits around yo …
6th March 2009
While the clothes of Paris Fashion Week are the topic on every fashionista’s lips,, Helena Frith Powell explains how to get in touch with your inner Frenchwoman. There is an expression used to describe French women when they really are perfect: French …
17th November 2008
One of these bags costs Dh2,650, the other just Dh120 – the decision should be easy. But what would a cheap imitation say about you? Helena Frith Powell reports. For three weeks Claire has been waiting to buy a new handbag. She finally gets paid and, n …
13th November 2008
Mark Twain, the American writer, was rarely at a loss for words. But the sight of a belly dancer named Little Egypt in full flow at the World’s Fair in 1893 did not just render him speechless, it led to a suspected heart attack. Thankfully for both of …
27th October 2008
3rd October 2008
Can chewing really change your life? Doctor Harald Stossier thinks so. Sitting in his consulting room at the Viva Mayr clinic on the shores of Lake Wörthesee in southern Austria, he explains that just by chewing more (and making another few simple chan …
12th March 2001
M magazine presents its list of 50 novels – some classic, some offbeat, some old, some new – that, should you devour them all, will allow you to call yourself truly well-read ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN (1884), MARK TWAIN WHY The author uses authent …