Dateline Monday 23rd February 2026

Good Monday morning I hope all is well with you and yours and that you are feeling a bit warmer today, warmer than last week. I am told that last week was really cold in the UK. Happily, I did not experience the cold weather as I was enjoying 28 degrees C of lovely warm sunshine whilst  attending the SITE Global Conference in Abu Dhabi followed by three days in Dubai on a site inspection with the TRAVCO DMC team the DMC MM and Company has had a representation relationship with since1999.

Whilst I was in the UAE, we had Valentine’s Day   as well as the start of Ramana oh and let’s not forget Shrove (Pancake Day) Tuesday and Ash Wednesday as well as the start of the winter Olympics a busy time.

Oh dear and I am sure you are going to guess what the next subject is going to be, yup Andrew Mountbatten Windsor previously known as HRH Prince Andrew and of course his nick name Randy Andy, clearly a pinpoint accurate nick name. Now please hear this I do not condone his associates / friends actions however here we have a guy apparently good looking in his 30s I guess, with a huge title and not short of cash swanning around the world rubbing shoulders with the high and mighty, rich and famous, powerful and privileged he didn’t have a “real job” no career progression opportunities of ever becoming King, especially when William and Harry arrived on the scene so what chance did he have? of course he was led astray, yes he should have known better, yes his advisors should have advised much, much better still he claims he did nothing wrong. He tried to stop the onslaught with a £12million pound payment and a BBC interview that only made things worse and to boot he is the only high-profile person being pursued and now arrested over misconduct in public office, he is being tried, convicted and sentenced to a very different life by the court of public opinion. Let the person who is free from sin cast the first stone or is adultery OK by a very high-ranking person in a very high public office and you totally know who I am talking about. That dear reader is enough controversy for one Monday morning e mail.

Congratulations Winter Olympics Team GB celebrating their best ever Winter Olympics with a medal haul of three golds, one silver and one bronze.

Congratulations to the BAFTA winners One Battle After Another it was the biggest winner at the 2026 BAFTA Film Awards, with six awards, including Best Film.

Congratulations to Hamnet it won the BAFTA for the Outstanding British Film

Finally, if you are observing Ramadan may I take this opportunity to wish you Ramadan Kareem

And that’s the view from my MM and Company desk for this week

MM and Company news update

Frankfurt and Abu Dhabi

The team and I at MM and Company have been told that Condor will launch daily flights between Frankfurt and Abu Dhabi on 1 May, using Airbus A330 aircraft, followed by daily services between Berlin and Abu Dhabi from 15 June, which will be serviced by Airbus A320 aircraft. The German carrier’s passengers will have access to Etihad's network beyond Abu Dhabi to the Middle East, Asia and Africa with a single check-in.

Both the DMCs we represent in Germany Cornerstone Meetings DMCs and TRAVCO DMC Dubai Abu Dhabi and Oman both DMCs see great opportunities in this increase in affordable air lift to both destinations. 

Greece

I have been told by Maria, Tina, Miltos, Fani and the team at Event Makers DMC Greece that Greece has a bank holiday today. As you may know I like to find out what their day off is all about,  I understand from Google and Wikipedia that it is Clean Monday today also known as Pure Monday, Green Monday or simply Monday of Lent is the first day of Great Lent throughout Eastern Christianity and is a moveable feast, falling on the sixth Monday before Palm Sunday which begins Holy Week, preceding Pascha Sunday (Easter)

The common term for this day, "Clean Monday", refers to the purification of the body in preparation to the Great Lent: first day of abstinence of non-fasting foods and, for those who are blessed and able to do so, also fasting from all kinds of food. Traditionally, as it happens in many Orthodox countries and traditions, people do a very strict fast, purifying themselves of all food until the Divine Liturgy on Wednesday, in a way that the Holy Body of Christ is the first nutrition that Christians will have during the Lent. Outside the Orthodox Church, it could be sometimes called "Ash Monday", by analogy with Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent in Western Christianity).  So now you know why Greece is on holiday. Maria will as always be checking her emails BUT if you need something from Greece either Athens or the Islands in a hurry please let me know I am certain we will be able to sort it for you

And that is about it for this Monday, you know as much as I know, wishing you an outstanding day and an awesome week ahead.