All Films

The world will be focused on Beijing this August and, if all goes to the Communist Party's plan, we will be overawed by the glittering lights and maximalist construction of a building boom whose bill runs into tens of billions of yuan.  Monocle's Asia Bureau Chief Fiona Wilson visited the city to find out if this is nation-branding folly on a gargantuan scale, or the starting pistol of the Chinese century.

Featuring the haunting photographs of Shinichi Ito, our Asia bureau chief, Fiona Wilson, reports from Yubari, the Japanese coal city that lost 90 per cent of its residents after its mines closed and the city councillors went on a disastrous spending spree.

Al Rifai - the 'Rolls-Royce of nut companies' - is famous throughout the Middle East for its perfectly roasted pistachios and giant cashews. Now the Lebanese company has opened a Swedish HQ as it attempts to break into the European market with its premium products. Monocle travels to Helsingborg to see how heir apparent Moussa Al Rifai Jr is developing this iconic family business.

Albam, a British fashion start-up, is keeping costs down without turning to factories in China for help. Founded by entrepreneurial fashion outsiders James Shaw and Alastair Rae, the duo's first shop is a breezy, airy space that shows their collection of menswear and accessories.

Less is more is the concept for Bildschöne Bücher, a small bookshop in Berlin that has grown out of the highly successful website 25books.com. Proprietor Bodo von Hodenberg, a former sales director of Taschen, takes a curatorial approach to bookselling, highlighting exceptional books in photography, art and design.

Zimbabwe is a country on the brink of economic collapse. With inflation running out of control, the supply of food, fuel and electricity is dwindling. Posing as tourists, Monocle reports from a country where international journalists are banned.

Swiss retailer Coop has opened a supermarket just outside Zürich for the discerning shopper. Not only is the company promoting provenance and sustainability with its products, but it is also building stores that raise the bar for green architecture. Monocle editor in chief Tyler Brûlé talks to Jürg Peritz, Coop's head of marketing and purchasing, about selling Swissness and why it's time to let in the daylight.

Every night the TransAsya Express departs from Istanbul heading for Tehran. It takes three days and two nights to reach its destination, time enough for you to leave the European lifestyle of western Turkey far behind. Saul Taylor took the train as far as Van in the Kurdish corner of the country. This is the story of Monocle's journey on the slow train east.

Editor-in-chief Tyler Brûlé presents the first edition of The Monocle Review. On this programme we highlight Narcotecture in Herat, a cosier version of Davos at Tällberg, a rock festival with a difference in Japan and a high-voltage tour of the Frankfurt Auto Show.

A must-listen for the party season, sleek German sleighs, a whiff of spring and a euphonious robot make it into our Christmas wishlist. Here's what we want in our oversized stocking.

What are the global travel brands that will act as a reference over the year ahead? With our first Special Edition Monocle reports on the elements that are ignored by more traditional surveys.

In Jan, Slovenia will take on the rotating EU presidency. It is a massive challenge for a country of just two million inhabitants. Tobias Grey toured the country on the eve of its grand mission.

Tokyo Designer's Week has become an annual fixture in the creative calendar, with the city literally taken over by exhibitions, events and parties. Monocle explores the shops and galleries of Aoyama, Harajuku and Shibuya to report on the art, the design and, of course, the impossibly fashionable Tokyo crowd.

The Royal Cafe in Copenhagen has given birth to a new culinary phenomenon: Smushi - traditional Danish smørrebrød with a contemporary sushi twist. The idea was created by "gastronaut" Rud Christiansen, who talks to Monocle about the concept that has Asia's retail groups lining up to get a piece of the action.

Many Russian cities might seem like they are at the end of the world, but Murmansk really is. Following the break-up of the USSR, the city and its naval base went into decline, but the riches offered by its Arctic location are now promising a revival. Our correspondent Shaun Walker reports.