Lynn Barber

Tom Bower pulls his punches with his life of Boris Johnson

24 October 2020 9:00 am

The Prime Minister may have lost his bounce –but perhaps that’s no bad thing, says Lynn Barber

When sexism was routine: the life of the female reporter in 1970s London

19 September 2020 9:00 am

This book made me almost weep with nostalgia, but heaven knows what today’s snowflakes will make of it. Fleet Street…

Natalie Wood’s death remains a mystery

25 July 2020 9:00 am

Are all children of famous parents told they must have a book in them? Since Allegra Huston’s wonderful memoir Love…

Trick or treat: the pros and cons of being hacked

18 July 2020 9:00 am

The pros and cons of being hacked

Pointless but beautiful – and good for going to sleep to: Monument Valley reviewed

27 June 2020 9:00 am

I was going to write about Monument Valley, and I suppose I will eventually, but first I have to write…

Splashing the cash at VIP nightclubs is now the favourite recreation of the rich

20 June 2020 9:00 am

The spectacular extravagance of the VIP nightclub ‘experience’ could be the last bonfire of the vanities, says Lynn Barber

Why do they call it a game? It is servitude: Nintendo Switch’s Animal Crossing reviewed

23 May 2020 9:00 am

Lynn Barber picks up a Nintendo Switch for the first time

Unspeakably prolix and petty: will anyone want to read John Bercow’s autobiography?

15 February 2020 9:00 am

In his autobiography, John Bercow takes his peerage as a given. But that might be scuppered by accusations of bullying, says Lynn Barber

A lovable, impossible man: Bryan Robertson, gifted curator and Spectator critic

18 January 2020 9:00 am

Andrew Lambirth claims that Bryan Robertson was ‘the greatest director the Tate Gallery never had’; but on the evidence of…

‘I’ve had two totally successful marriages’: Stanley Johnson interviewed

21 December 2019 9:00 am

If anything could make me feel sorry for Boris Johnson, it’s meeting his father, Stanley. Before we met, he sent…

Burnt out at 27: the tragedy of Janis Joplin

21 December 2019 9:00 am

Janis Joplin hated the word ‘star’, but she loved the trappings. As soon as she made serious money she bought…

A life apart: an interview with Frank Field

2 August 2019 9:33 pm

Frank Field has announced today that he is forming the ‘Birkenhead Social Justice Party’ to stand at the next election.…

‘Panto pays better than being an MEP’: Ann Widdecombe interviewed

13 July 2019 9:00 am

We could all forget about Ann Widdecombe for the past nine years while she was doing Strictly Come Dancing and…

Naomi Wolf is holed below the waterline

15 June 2019 9:00 am

What is it about Naomi Wolf that inspires such venom? Perhaps that she’s American, brash, media-savvy and not averse to…

Andrew Adonis, a master of social media – and a model of social mobility

4 May 2019 9:00 am

The news over Easter that Lord Adonis, the counterweight to nominative determinism, was standing as a Labour Remain MEP was…

A woman of some importance: prolific writer Charlotte Bingham revisits the 1950s

The world according to Charlotte Bingham, Spies and Stars reviewed

2 March 2019 9:00 am

Charlotte Bingham has had an extraordinary writing career. She wrote her first book, Coronet Among the Weeds (newly republished by…

A life apart: An interview with Frank Field

15 December 2018 9:00 am

Frank Field was given a standing ovation when he won The Spectator’s Parliamentarian of the Year award two weeks ago.…

Getting the sack was a shock but not a surprise

20 October 2018 9:00 am

It was a shock but not really a surprise. I came back from holiday at the beginning of August to…

Why I’m bombarded with ads for funeral insurance and knitted animals

16 December 2017 9:00 am

This year began badly with the death of Alexander Chancellor, former editor of this magazine. He was the most fun…

A president in the family

12 December 2015 9:00 am

This time last year I was running around excitedly telling all my friends that I had an African president in…