God save the Queen: the monarchy has become more valuable than ever
Rarely has a public figure taken a promise so seriously as the vow that Her Majesty the Queen made on…
Portrait of the week: Jubilee celebrations, energy bill discounts and a trade deal with Indiana
Home The Jubilee for the Queen’s 70 years on the throne was marked by two days of public holiday, 16,000…
2555: 6 x 2 mixtures - solution
The paired unclued lights (2/25, 4/16, 5/28, 10/20, 13/17 and 15D/41) are anagrams of one another. First prize Trish Baldin,…
Letters: Who’s responsible for Putin’s rise if not Russians?
Russian misrule Sir: Your editorial (‘Sanction Schroder’, 21 May) laments that western sanctions may be harming ordinary Russians, given that…
Boris Johnson’s guilt
An ability to survive narrow scrapes has been one of Boris Johnson’s defining qualities. The pictures of Downing Street’s lockdown…
2554: Going, going... – Solution
The unclued lights were all extinct species. PTERODON was an acceptable variation at 5 Across. DODO was to be deleted…
Letters: The true state of Oxbridge admissions
Applying myself Sir: It was interesting to read David Abulafia’s rather damning critique of the Oxbridge admissions process (‘Who’s out’,…
Portrait of the week: Sue Gray reports, ScotRail slashes trains and monkeypox spreads
Home Sue Gray starched and ironed her report for publication after the Metropolitan Police wound up its own enquiries into…
Letters: Banning Russia’s culture only benefits Putin
Don’t ban Russia’s culture Sir: It is uncouth, illiterate and actually beneficial to Putin when theatres, opera houses and other…
Portrait of the week: Inflation’s 40-year high, Tory MP’s rape arrest and monkeypox in Britain
Home The annual rate of inflation, impelled by energy costs, rose to 9 per cent, its highest since 1982. Unemployment…
2553: Island alien - solution
The unclued lights when arranged as 12, 11, 43, 5, 24, 1D, 1A form Chambers’definition of MULLET at 30D. First…
Sanction Gerhard Schröder
From the start of the war in Ukraine, the democratic world has shown striking unity in the economic boycott of…
Letters: What happened to hymns in schools?
Disarming by default Sir: Underpinning Rod Liddle’s amusing article on use of nuclear weapons last week is the reassurance provided…
Solution to 2552: 😀
The emoticon which formed the title of the puzzle suggested George Smiley, Le Carré’s nemesis of MI6 moles, ordered as…
The problem with Macron’s vision for Europe
The Ukraine crisis has transformed international affairs, forcing countries the world over to rethink their alliances and interests. New patterns…
Portrait of the week: The Queen’s Speech, Sinn Fein surge and an £184m lottery win
Home The Prince of Wales delivered the Queen’s Speech at the State Opening of Parliament sitting on a throne next…
Read: Vladimir Putin's victory day speech in full
The following is The Spectator’s translation of Putin’s speech for victory day 2022. Most respected citizens of Russia, dear veterans,…
Can anything save Boris Johnson?
As Boris Johnson faced the possibility of a no-confidence motion earlier this year, a large number of Tory MPs decided…
Letters: an artist’s work shouldn’t be judged by how he leads his life
Wrong is right Sir: Having spent most of my working life in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), I never pass up an…
Portrait of the Week: pornography, ‘sulky livers’ and abortion
Home Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, announced £300 million more in military aid for Ukraine. Speaking by video to the…
2551: Madness - solution
The four-letter word was BAND. Unclued lights suggest bandicoot (7A),bandh (11), banda (41), bandana (1D), bandoneon (3), bandook (7D), bandar…