Notes on…
The rise and fall of mink
Mink keeps you warm. That’s a most acceptable bonus, but its prime function is status. This week, however, the focus…
How political is your fruit and veg?
I recently bought some quinces in our local farmshop as part of my new policy of investing heavily in right-wing…
The haunting stories of Britain’s ‘bog bodies’
Some believe that All Hallows’ Eve is adopted from a much older Celtic holiday, Samhain, that marked the change from…
The joy of drinking alone
Thanks to a combination of night-time curfews, social-distancing rules, pubs closing, restaurants failing, the ‘rule of six’ and compulsory mask-wearing,…
Winkles
For the first time in 30-odd years, many Brits have started eating winkles again. Unable to holiday abroad this summer,…
Has Covid killed off Punch and Judy?
They’re one of the country’s most famous married couples. You just need to spot his colourful jester outfit and the…
Box clever: the surprising history of signal boxes
Petersfield signal box is in the wrong place. Or at least it is now. When it was built in the…
Why crowds are so pleasing
London, writes Dr Watson in the first Sherlock Holmes story, is ‘that great cesspool into which all the loungers and…
Could Trump save the capital letter?
Irrespective of whether Donald Trump ends up being a two-term president, surely no modern political figure has done more to…
From fist-bumps to bows: how to avoid shaking hands
The government wants us back in the office — catching trains, buying sandwiches and actually seeing colleagues and clients rather…
The bliss of proper bread
I cannot claim the gift of prophecy, but early this year — before lockdown panic-buying and the warnings of a…
The problem with pretty floral face masks
Now that we must all wear face masks, it is hardly surprising that they have started to become a fashion…
The joy of an illegal rave
Every time I read that Britain’s anti-coronavirus measures are being jeopardised by a ‘small minority of senseless individuals’ holding illegal…
Why Florence’s ‘wine windows’ are making a comeback
Stroll around Florence and you’ll notice little ornate openings embedded in the walls of Renaissance palazzos. They look like doorways…
The rise and fall of amusement parks
August, as usual, will be the busiest month for Britain’s amusement parks — which is odd when you consider that…
The curious history of Britain’s last circus building
Guess which theatre is the first to open to the paying public post-Covid? Not Lloyd Webber’s London Palladium, where small…
The 747 was the last moment of romance in air travel
I felt a genuine pang when British Airways announced that it was retiring its fleet of Boeing 747s, the largest…
Mugs game: what does your cup say about you?
Rishi Sunak found himself in hot water last week, though fortunately it was not too hot. Just the right temperature,…
How dangerous are cricket balls?
The Prime Minister recently blamed the delay in the resumption of amateur cricket on the ball itself, calling it ‘a…
Online chess is the ultimate lockdown sport
How have you been filling these listless homebound hours we’ve been given by the government? I’ve been frittering them away…
Where’s the fun in football without the fans?
Football is back — but the fans aren’t. Covid means that clubs have to play their games behind closed doors.…
Was Baden-Powell a Nazi sympathiser?
Police were no match for the Black Lives Matter mob that pulled down a statue of Edward Colston last week…
The festival where Henry VIII and Francis I made their peace
This week marked 500 years since the beginning of the two-week festival of jousting, feasting and general splendour that came…
Nothing brings people together like a coach holiday
Amid all the Covid-19 coverage, it’s hardly surprising that the collapse of a coach-tour operator last week didn’t make too…
From ABBA to Pet Shop Boys: how bands got their names
You wouldn’t have thought that Starbucks’s pricing policy could influence rock history, but that’s what happened. In the early 1990s,…
