Life
Dear Mary: how can I get out of a Christmas party?
Q. I belong to a fairly intimate private club which is the one reliable oasis of calm and civility that…
The Battle for Britain | 27 November 2021
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I’ve become a social pariah – just for having children
When Caroline and I got married in 2001, having four kids was not only fashionable, it was the socially responsible…
A small victory in a bad year: José Pizarro at the RA reviewed
Piccadilly is losing its patina of dirt, its cadaverous character. It is overpriced and over-renovated,a meeting place for luxury goods.…
The Kushner conundrum
Gstaad I have two special girlfriends, Lynne and Fiona, the ladies who guard The Spectator’s entrance against the outraged #MeToo…
Bridge | 27 November 2021
Succumbing to your emotions at the bridge table can be fatal. Whatever you’re feeling, get a grip! Easier said than…
A feast of feelgood emotion
Ascot’s image is all champagne and fascinators, high society and high rollers. Said Art Buchwald: ‘Ascot is so exclusive that…
2534: Off-pitch
Eight unclued lights (four of two words) are of a kind. Across 1 False prophet faces interjection, perhaps (12,…
Poor Ole wasn’t cut out for Man U
Manchester United have ended up with a temporary coach before they look for an interim manager. Haven’t we heard that…
There is a new and deadly threat to the countryside
Surprise, surprise. The person who had the shield taken out of the street light so it shone back into my…
Should we ramp down ramping down?
Language change outdoes nonsense, just as misbehaviour outdoes satire. In Through the Looking-Glass Alice mentions to the Gnat that, where…
The joy of French hospital food
After checking me in, the receptionist, who was wearing an overcoat, said: ‘There is no heating in the hotel. The…
The world championship
‘Time to say Dubai,’ tweeted Magnus Carlsen, like some wry Bond villain, when he learned that the Russian Ian Nepomniachtchi…
No. 681
White to play. Erigaisi–Liem, Tata Steel Rapid, 2021. Here 1 Rxf6? Qd1+ sees White getting mated on the back rank.…
Spectator competition winners: ‘O scintillate, bright orb celestial! Gleam’ (‘Twinkle, twinkle, Little Star’)
In Competition No. 3226, you were invited to rewrite, in pompous and prolix style, any well-known simple poem. The seed…
2531: Villainy - solution
The unclued lights are VILLAINS encountered by James Bond. First prize Ian Skillen, Cambuslang, Glasgow Runners-up Liz Knights, Walton Highway,…
Aussie Life
You know the royals are in trouble when a prominent member of Australians for Constitutional Monarchy writes an article suggesting…
Aussie Language
It’s that time of the year again—when dictionaries around the world start announcing their chosen ‘Word of the Year’. First…
2533: Monday’s Child
A nine-word phrase (in five unclued lights, two used twice) opens a work for 1A (three words) by 8 (two…
Battle for Britain | 20 November 2021
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How are you meant to pronounce Uranus?
I had thought there were two pronunciations of Uranus. My husband, still capable of distinguishing the anatomical from the planetary,…
The key to happiness? Getting behind the wheel
A friend of mine recently visited a company in Europe which plans to manufacture human-carrying, pilotless drones. These would be…
My moment of madness in the opticians
Foolishly I chose new specs in the village optician’s after a long lunch: a rather outré design that I might…
The joy of being cancelled
New York I’ve never met anyone called Othello, certainly not in Venice nor in Cyprus, but perhaps there are men…
Is there such a thing as a human right to night?
The street lamp as bright as the Dog Star is back to its full glare outside my house. I won…
