Monocle Weekend
Edition: Saturday

New York is a city encircled by water and its metro system is set on making better use of its surrounding seas with the Citywide Ferry Service. Construction of the new fleet has just begun: the 26-metre boats are currently being made in Louisiana and Alabama and will each hold 150 passengers as well as storage space for bikes, buggies and wheelchairs. The Big Apple will soon be adding 21 ferry landings around the city to ensure that the modern fleet can smoothly connect areas such as Bay Ridge, Soundview, Astoria and Rockaway to Wall Street and parts of Midtown via six routes spanning nearly 100km of waterways. Operator Hornblower expects the ferry system to deliver an estimated 4.6 million passengers per year once it launches in summer 2017.

Giorgio Armani is the big mover and shaker at the spring/summer 2017 edition of Milan Fashion Week. Yesterday morning Italy’s king of couture sent models down a shiny black runway in tailored jackets and shorts in shades of grey, purple and blue; it’s the first time in years that he hasn’t closed the week, which ends on Monday. His reasons for the schedule swap are clear: he’s tired of editors and buyers skipping his show to head to Paris and frustrated with the National Chamber for Italian Fashion for not scheduling more headliners on the final day. The move will have a big impact on Milan: without a marquee name to see the week out the event will trickle to a close and now the entire fashion pack – as opposed to just a chunk – will be boarding planes to France early.

The BBC has set its sights beyond the pond with the expansion of its Canadian coverage through this week’s launch of a local homepage and bureau (even as domestic news outlets are slashing jobs). The 5.6 million Canadians who use the BBC’s digital service can now expect a more targeted online experience thanks to the new Toronto bureau, which is manned by three journalists and headed by editor Jessica Murphy. Funded by the BBC’s commercial division, expect more stories on Canadian icons such coffee chain Tim Hortons and prime minister Justin Trudeau, as well as reports about Syrian refugees in the country and investigative pieces that range from getting to the bottom of the Canadian accent to hard-hitting stories about the unsolved murders of aboriginal women.

Ever wondered about revving up your own food truck or penning a cookbook? How to get a restaurant off the ground or what it takes to distil your own gin? Join Tyler Brûlé and Monocle’s hospitable editors on Wednesday 28 September for an evening of drinks, dining and discussion. Panellists include The River Café founder Ruth Rogers, journalist Alice Lascelles and budding restaurateurs Nemanja Borjanovic and Melody Adams (behind the Basque beauties Donastia and Lurra). Hungry for more? Join us for a few trade secrets and insight into the future of food, as well as a signed copy of our latest book and delectable delights from the lauded London chef Tom Oldroyd. Head to monocle.com for more information.

Actor and writer Simon Callow discusses the emergence of the gay-best-friend character and how it has promoted diversity on screen. Plus: film-maker Rachel Lang on the role of Strasbourg’s architecture in her feature debut Baden Baden, a recap of Rome’s Live Cinema Festival and the blazing colours of Joan Crawford’s wardrobe as seen in 1954’s Johnny Guitar.

The Monocle Travel Guide to Tokyo will navigate you through some of our favourite corners of this vast metropolis. Expect to fall in love with dazzling food, sumptuous shopping and the most courteous residents you’ll ever meet. Published by Gestalten, it is available now at The Monocle Shop.