Marr

BIRMINGHAM – Oscar winner Cillian Murphy and other stars have descended on Birmingham for the Peaky Blinders movie world premiere, with England’s so-called second city in raptures over its signature show getting the Hollywood treatment. The Irish actor was joined by co-stars Tim Roth and Rebecca Ferguson, rockers Fontaines D.C. and a host of Premier League footballers for the glitzy March 3 unveiling of the hit TV series’ spin-off film. Murphy said that Birmingham – nicknamed Brum in Britain – was “the only place it could ever happen”, given the city was a “character” across the cult show’s six seasons from 2013 to 2022 and new big-screen offering. The Oppenheimer (2023) star said getting compatriot Barry Keoghan – who features for the first time in the gritty historical crime drama as his wayward son in the movie – was “always the only choice”. “I sent him a text on Father’s Day apparently – I’d forgotten it was Father’s Day! – and asked him did he want to be in it,” Murphy reve...

The first time I saw a Tesla Model S was also the first time I met Mr Elon Musk. It was 2011, and he had brought an early Model S to the West Side Highway in Manhattan, where we met to go for a drive. It did not strike me as a crucial meeting. In the course of my work as an automotive reporter, I met plenty of people shilling new cars. Back then, Mr Musk was just the founder of a company that merged with another company that became PayPal. Only the wonkiest of tech nerds might have recognised him by name. The sedan he brought that day was the opposite of the big-spoiler sports cars I was used to seeing, like the Porsche 911 GT3. Completely smoothed to maximise airflow, the Model S was simultaneously low-key and unique. When I first got inside, it felt weird that there was no sound or vibration to indicate that anything had switched on, but the car felt surprisingly fast as we headed up the highway. So fast, Mr Musk said, it could beat an Aston Martin. He claimed it would change...

Automakers are racing towards a key milestone on the long road to fully driverless cars: systems that let drivers take their eyes off the road – to shoot a text or peck away on a laptop – unless the car alerts them to retake control. Car companies for years have been enhancing driver-assistance systems, which automatically control speed and steering. Letting drivers tend to other things while behind the wheel could be a next step that helps automakers monetise their sizeable investments in autonomy. “We can start saving them time immediately and do it in a very affordable way,” said Mr Doug Field, Ford Motor’s chief electric vehicle, digital and design officer. Ford is planning to introduce an eyes-off system on affordable electric models starting in 2028. But there is a growing debate about whether the eyes-off technology – referred to in the industry as Level 3 autonomous driving – is worth offering at all. Some executives and industry experts say handing control back and fort...