C@M@E> A NEW WAY OF LIVING FOR BELFAST welcome TO THE FIRST EDITION OF BELFAST’S NEW LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE, TQ LIVING. Few people who have visited Belfast in the last few years can have failed to notice the massive changes in the city. Residents and visitors now have a huge range of shopping and leisure options - refl ected in our fi rst CONTENTS edition which includes an overview of the economy from leading University of Ulster economist Mike Smyth as well as contributions from Michael Deane of the Deane’s restaurant group, designer Una Rodden and former 04 EXCITING TIMES FOR BELFAST 36 BRIGHT COLOURS ARE IN Ireland rugby international Tyrone Howe amongst others. Belfast’s Social Scene has never been better according to Colour is back. ! e future for fabric and Growing up in Belfast, the city was synonymous with the shipyard that engineered and built ships like showbiz correspondent Maureen Coleman furnishings is bright according to Gary Bramble of Seagreen Gala Mill RMS Titanic and her sister ships, the Olympic & Britanic. ! e 30,000 jobs associated with shipbuilding were 06 THE TITANIC ARC the lifeblood of the city. Architect John Fitzgerald looks at the 21st century design 38 LIGHTENING YOUR LIFESTYLE Sadly, the glory days of shipbuilding have gone, but in their place we have a tremendous opportunity in Titanic behind Titanic Quarter’s fi rst residential development Will technology change our lives? David Brunnen, Quarter to celebrate our heritage at the same time as literally building upon the success of our past. In the next 15 to one of the UK’s leading experts on new technology, 20 years our vision is to breathe new life into 185 acres of central Belfast. In the process, we will create a new shared 10 SPRING INTO SOMETHING NEW thinks that those living in Titanic Quarter will be space - a new community consisting of high quality residential developments such as the Arc, as well as a hub for Direct Wine Shipments is a must for Northern Ireland’s among the fi rst to fi nd out hi-tech jobs, the home of Belfast Metropolitan College and a major tourist, retail and leisure destination. wine lovers - Wine Club Manager, Susan Rees, suggests With one mile of waterfront, Titanic Quarter (co-promoted by Titanic Quarter Ltd and Belfast Harbour some European tipples to whet your palate 40 TITANIC BEER Ireland’s oldest independent Brewer, Hilden Brewery, Commissioners) is one of Europe’s largest urban waterfront development schemes and it also includes some 14 NORTHERN IRELAND IS ON THE UP & UP of the most impressive maritime heritage in the world. is launching a new series of beers inspired on Belfast’s Economist Mike Smyth explains why the fundamentals historic quarters – Titanic Quarter is fi rst in line Already, over 1,000 people are employed within Titanic Quarter, working for blue chip fi rms such as of Northern Ireland’s economy are so attractive Citi, GE Healthcare and Microsoft. ! ese are exciting days for Belfast and while the current ups and downs 42 TITANIC DISHES WITH A MODERN TWIST of the international markets may 18 A DESIGNER IN BELFAST Jason More, Partner & Chef at Belfast’s latest eatery, be making investors rather queasy, Fashion predictions from the Donegal-born and Belfast- No. 27 Talbot Street, puts a modern twist on some Titanic Quarter is a 20-year project based designer, Una Rodden recipies from the Titanic’s last evening menu – we’re here for the long haul. 22 NEW TRENDS IN FOOD 44 TITANIC’S DOCK Almost 100 years after the Titanic Michael Deane, proprietor and Executive Chef of set sail, we have the determination Titanic Quarter and the area surrounding it is seeped Northern Ireland’s only Michelin Star restaurant in the history of shipbuilding and maritime adventure, to create something that will capture looks into the future the imagination of all those who live, including the last place on earth where the Titanic rested on dry ground work or visit Belfast. 26 THE BEST SMALL CITY IN EUROPE ! is is a growing and developing Belfast’s renaissance is well underway. Dave Pennick, 48 CONNECTED HEALTH publication, and we welcome President of the Belfast Chamber of Trade & Commerce Belfast’s citizens will be pioneers of telemedicine in your comments, suggestions and talks about how his home city has changed for the better Europe according to business developer Eoin Lambkin contributions. I hope that you fi nd 30 OPEN SPACE & THE PUBLIC REALM something within it that interests 50 TINSEL TOWN COMES TO TITANIC QUARTER International architect and Titanic Quarter master Who would have thought that Belfast would become you, or even better still, captures planner, Eric Kuhne, stresses the importance of your imagination. Europe’s new, in vogue fi lm shoot location, attracting space in urban design Tom Hanks, Lord Attenborough and Tim Robbins Thank you. among others 34 TAKING BELFAST BY STORM MIKE SMITH Belfast may be the unlikely home of, arguably, the CEO, TITANICNIC QUARTERQUARTER LTD 52 RAVENHILL BUZZ UK’s best Ice Hockey team, but Todd Kelman, General ! ere’s no better way to kick start a Friday night in Manager of the Belfast Giants, explains how the sport is Belfast than watching Ulster at Ravenhill, the home of indicative of the new Belfast local rugby. Rugby international Tyrone Howe doesn’t TITANIC HOUSE, QUEEN’S ROAD, TITANIC QUARTER, BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND need any convincing T: +44 028 9076 6300 W: www.titanicquarter.com Lightbody (Snow Patrol) pictured at the Belfast Fate Awards Coleraine born actress Jayne Wisner (Sweeney Todd) & Gary hen the fi rst phase of residential properties at Titanic the Northern Ireland calendar, attracting a host of stars to Quarter were released late last year, house-hunters snapped these shores. And the Go Awards, also launched last year, Wup over 400 apartments. Interest in the ambitious Arc are set to take place again this autumn. In the dark days of scheme was described at the time as “phenomenal”, with the the troubles, promoters had their work cut out trying to EXCITING TIMES vast majority of potential buyers based in Northern Ireland. entice big name acts to perform here. But just look at the It is estimated that when the multi-billion pound Titanic artists who have insisted on playing the Odyssey Arena in Quarter is completed with its high spec city centre living and recent years, Bruce Springsteen, Justin Timberlake, Dolly FOR BELFAST its vibrant mix of restaurants, cafes and hotels, over 20,000 Parton and Westlife are all regular visitors and this year BY MAUREEN COLEMAN people will live and work there making it a community all of alone, acts like Kylie Minogue will grace the stage in the its own. Like Liverpool, London, Newcastle and Glasgow, city once more, her fi rst time here in almost 20 years. Belfast’s exciting waterfront redevelopment has helped put Muse, ! e Killers, ! e White Stripes, Pink and Christina it on the map as one of the UK’s hot spot destinations, even Aguilera have all played here too and our music venues, warranting a mention in the Lonely Planet as a city well from the King’s Hall to Katy Daly’s are packed out with worth a visit. It’s no coincidence that Belfast’s property boom happy punters throughout the week. Belfast is now home to has taken place against a backdrop of peace and prosperity, many festivals, such as the two-day Tennents Vital, which and at a time when the city’s social scene is healthier than attracts tens of thousands of rock fans each August to the it’s ever been. It seems that hardly a week goes by without compact Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival, transforming the a new pub, club or restaurant opening in Belfast. area into a mecca for musicians and artists. ! e city now boasts luxury hotels like the Merchant Once it was considered a rare occurrence if a well known and Malmaison, award-winning restaurants such as Shu, celebrity was spotted on our streets. ! ese days, it’s not Deane’s, Cayenne and Roscoff , classic bars like ! e Duke unusual to bump into a Hollywood A-lister dining out in of York and the Spaniard, and style bars like the Apartment one of the city’s best eateries or enjoying a bit of sight-seeing and Cafe Vaudeville. And while new bars like the Warehouse during a break from fi lming. Last year alone, Meryl Streep, spring up from week to week, life is breathed back into Tim Robbins, Bill Murray, Tom Hanks, Shirley MacLaine, older venues, like the Lifeboat, currently enjoying a surge Lord Richard Attenborough, Mischa Barton, Liam Neeson of popularity with Belfast’s young trendsetters. Pete Postlethwaite, Sir Ben Kingsley and Donald Sutherland And who ever thought we’d have not one but three all visited Belfast with many promising to return to this awards bashes held each year to celebrate everything that’s bright, buzzing city. Indeed, Shirley MacLaine had such a good about our hospitality and entertainment industries? ball in Belfast while shooting the movie ‘Closing ! e Ring’, ! e Big Buzz Awards have been on the go now for several she revealed that she was hoping to buy a holiday home years, but the Fate Awards, only launched in 2007, are fast here. Maybe she’ll put her name down when the next batch becoming one of the most talked about social events of of Arc apartments are released to the public! Ruby Wax at the Belfast Fate Awards TQ LIVING 5 THE TITANIC ARC JOHN FITZGERALD OF ROBINSON MCILWAINE ARCHITECTS, DESIGNERS OF THE ARC, EXPLORES THE CONCEPTS BEHIND THE DESIGN.