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Glastonbury is proof that music is a cut-throat business

AS THE clocks changed a couple of weeks ago and spring is upon us, I watched with interest this week to see one of the UK's leading music festivals, Glastonbury, sell more than 100,000 tickets within 24 hours. Read

Anniversary for a computer that created IT landscape

CAST your minds back a little over 25 years. If you were working for a business then, what sort of IT systems and support were at your disposal? If you were at school, college or university, what part did computers play in your studies? Read

Matt Johnson: Liverpool One will soon show its economic potential

ANOTHER countdown clock is running towards one more of our city's momentous milestones – the opening of Liverpool One. Read

The biggest building in the world - done in just four years

I CAUGHT a clip from Beijing on BBC News 24 yesterday and it made me stop in my tracks. The wraps had come off the biggest building in the world and the cameras were there to let the rest of us see inside. Read

Matt Johnson: The good ship Merseyside makes progress in heavy seas

THOSE who take on huge tasks have been known to liken their efforts to turning round a super tanker in an ocean. Read

Matt Johnson: Headline-grabbing gimmick - or well-researched solution?

I'M SURE I wasn't the only person to stare in disbelief at my radio on Monday morning, after hearing an item about McDonald’s being able to serve up A-Levels. Read

Matt Johnson: Is Britain open for business at any price?

I'VE given up trying to read our Prime Minister's body language in front of the camera. If his mannerisms, voice patterns and facial expressions tax the talents of Rory Bremner, what chance do the rest of us stand in trying to read between the lines on his forehead? Read

Matt Johnson: So, after the celebrations, where does the city go from here?

SO, WHERE do we go from here? Following last weekend's spectacular European Capital of Culture opening events, and the interest they generated around the world, it's a question starting to occupy the thoughts of many here in Liverpool. Read

Matt Johnson: Never mind the policies, Barack’s got a winning personality

PAY attention at the back. The world's most powerful nation is in the throes of selecting and electing a new leader. Read

Matt Johnson: Culture capital opportunities must be seized

SO HERE we are. Liverpool IS European Capital of Culture. Read

Matt Johnson: Keep pace with the digital revolution or ignore it at your peril

IF YOU'VE battled your way through a stint of Christmas shopping in recent days, braving crowded streets and stores, you may find recently published surveys at odds with the evidence of your own eyes and ears. Read

Matt Johnson: Heseltine’s role in regeneration is only now understood

TARZAN and a big bear at Albert Dock in the space of less than a week. This was not for a film crew shooting a remake of Jungle Book or such like, but for two separate yet related events, which speak volumes for the way Liverpool and Merseyside have progressed in recent years. Read

MATT JOHNSON: Can we leave a ‘small’ carbon footprint in spending frenzy?

ON YOUR marks, get set, go! Like it or not, we are once again on the starting blocks for the annual spending frenzy, which every year appears to play a larger part in the season’s festivities up and down the country. Read

Matt Johnson: Government takes away entrepreneurs’ wish list at its peril

AS A former Member of Parliament for the old Huyton constituency once said, a week is a long time in politics. Read

Matt Johnson: Reading figures a national disgrace

ANOTHER week, and another policy from Her Majesty's Opposition. This week, the Tory spotlight is shining in the corners of the education system. Read

Matt Johnson: Why can’t supply meet demand in Father Christmas’s workshop?

HERE, as they say on University Challenge, is your starter for ten. What do the following manufactured products have in common? Read

Matt Johnson: From Big Dig to Big Gig - we need to keep sight of the ’08 prize

PEOPLE embarking on home improvements before the start of the festive season populate the aisles of our DIY stores these days. Read

Matt Johnson: Africa deserves help to make most of internet possibilities

IT'S the things we take for granted we end up missing the most. In business, for example, as long as the technical kit behind the scenes, or at the end of some fibre-optic carriageway, runs as it should, few people pay much attention other than those whose responsibility it is to keep everything working. Read

Matt Johnson: Tales of a forgotten country

THE nation’s media has often referred to Liverpool as the basket case of the UK. With friends like that, I guess we aren't always on the look-out for enemies. Their comments – now happily consigned to history as the city demonstrates better political stability, regeneration and investment – returned to my mind last week in Africa. Read

Matt Johnson: Wealthy pioneers gave basis for art first

MANY reminders of how pioneering industrialists put their hands in their pockets, to help what they thought were worthy causes, populate our landscape. Read