to 2383: Flagged
The unclued lights are presenters of BLUE PETER: individually at 39; pairs are 3/2, 7/22, 15A/15D, 15A/17, 25/14, and 32/31,…
It’s a bad deal – whichever way you look at it
During last year’s general election campaign, Theresa May declared that ‘You can only deliver Brexit if you believe in Brexit’.…
Portrait of the week: Moment of truth for Theresa May’s Brexit deal
Home Theresa May, the Prime Minister, defended a 500-page technical draft of the agreement on withdrawal from the European Union.…
Have wildfires really got worse over the years?
Hard bitten A British tourist died after contracting rabies from a cat bite in Morocco. Whatever happened to the prominent…
Trial and punishment
From ‘The Kaiser’, 16 November 1918: What is to be done with the Kaiser? For the question must certainly be…
Letters: Art is as important as history in the remembrance of the past
Hearts as well as heads Sir: Simon Jenkins suggests we should stop remembering and start forgetting about the first world…
Books of the year – part two
Daniel Swift I feel as though I came late to the Sarah Moss party. Nobody told me she was this…
to 2382: A pointed remark
The quotation is 10/11/39. Remaining unclued lights are all daggers. First prize G. Snailham, WindsorRunners-up Lynne Gilchrist, Willoughby, New South…
What the UK can learn from the US midterms
Donald Trump can, at the very least, claim to have killed off political apathy. Americans this week voted in greater…
Portrait of the week: The US midterms, Theresa May’s Brexit plan and London’s murder rate
Home Theresa May, the Prime Minister, set off for St Symphorien Military Cemetery in Mons, from which she was to…
How many restaurants have actually gone bust?
It is cricket The use of a baseball expression, backstop, for possible arrangements over the Irish border could upset some…
Giving thanks
From ‘Thanks be to God’, 16 November 1918: The thought that filled the mind of the nation on Monday, and…
Tony Abbott is wholly misplaced about WTO Brexit
Hubris and nemesis Sir: Douglas Murray’s assessment of Angela Merkel’s decision to stand down as German Chancellor (‘Europe’s empty throne’,…
Books of the year – part one
Andrew Motion Short stories seem to fare better in the US than the UK, and among this year’s rich crop,…
to 2381: Step changes
The word ladder connecting UNITED and STATES goes: UNITES (1D), URITES (18), WRITES (7D), WHITES (34), WHILES (30A), WHALES (7A),…
The NHS must reform – or it will become obsolete
Since the Budget, economists have pointed out that Britain is turning into a health service with a government attached. The…
Portrait of the week: Hammond ‘ends austerity’, Angela Merkel resigns and Leicester City’s owner killed in helicopter crash
Home Austerity was ‘finally coming to an end’, Philip Hammond, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, said in the Budget. He…
Does using social media affect children’s mental health?
On the wagon A ‘caravan’ of several thousand Central American migrants was reported to be travelling through Mexico towards the…
Letters: American vitriol, chess politics, Desert Island Discs, rude horse names
Political vitriol Sir: Vitriol and incivility seem to be everywhere in politics just now. In the last issue (27 October)…
to 2380: Dedover
The unclued Across lights are US state capitals and the unclued Down ones are the states. The title refers to…
What is the point of Philip Hammond?
What is the point of Philip Hammond? Most chancellors have an agenda, but it’s hard to discern any purpose or…
Portrait of the Week: the Brexit march, Nick Clegg’s new job and the murder of Jamal Khashoggi
Home Theresa May, the Prime Minister, found herself in another crisis over Brexit. Backbenchers whispered that 48 letters were being…
Letters: The Irish problem (again), Desert Island narcissists, and the smoking French
Irish problem Sir: What James Forsyth calls ‘the EU plan’ to keep Northern Ireland in the customs union after Brexit…
to 2379: Shocking
The word is ‘pink’. Definitions of the eight headwords are: CARNATION (9), STAB (43), CHAFFINCH (22D), SMALL SAILING SHIP (41/1A/13),…
Modern family: how Meghan and Harry helped firm up the monarchy
Whether it was intended so or not, the decision by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to choose Australia as…
