Life
I was Oprah Winfrey’s hero
Gstaad Some of you may have noticed that I have not commented at all about the ongoing soap opera and…
‘Sacred space’ has become a crowded marketplace
‘This is the book that horses wish every equestrian would read,’ says the blurb for Sacred Spaces: Communion with the…
2495: Contrary - solution
Four unclued lights are places in Britain with MARY in their name. The remaining unclued lights can be linked with…
2498: Cross-country
The unclued lights are all non-words, but each can be resolved into a pair of thematic solutions. Across 1 Game…
Spectator competition winners: the novels you will never read
In Competition No. 3190 you were invited to submit the first paragraph of your least favourite type of novel. Sci-fi…
When the universe winks
I write this with a sunny feeling. That’s partly because spring is upon us, but mostly because I have just…
The true cost of Gordon Elliott’s crass stupidity
Thanks to Covid, there could be no spine-tingling roar at the Cheltenham Festival this year as the first race runners…
My thrilling rendezvous with the sausage lady
One day last week we did a wine run up to Manosque in the foothills of the Alps, leaving early…
Kiwi Life
Although it probably won’t, the recent kerfuffle over the brilliant works of Dr Seuss and other creators of children’s books…
Language
Is it just me, or have others noticed that heterosexual couples have lost access to the words ‘husband’ and ‘wife’?…
No. 644
White to play and mate in two moves. Composed by Philip Hamilton Williams, Birmingham Post, 1890. Answers should be emailed…
Nights – and wines – to remember in Paris
Some friends claim to be making marks on the wall to count the days until liberation. Ah, the forgotten delights…
Dear Mary: What should my wife and I do with the risque photos we took in our youth?
Q. I hesitate to bring you this problem, but I suspect it is not that uncommon. Early in our very…
Here’s a clue: we should all be doing cryptic crosswords
I was once asked by a previous editor of the Timeshow to increase sales of the paper. I was slightly…
The concrete truth about ‘Formica’
If I ever again accompany my husband to a medical conference in Spain, and want to tell my hosts that…
The Battle for Britain | 13 March 2021
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Lockdown is making a criminal of me
‘Have you had your jab, Margery?’ said one Surrey lady to another in the queue for take-away coffee at the…
How I learned to love audio books
According to a charity called Fight For Sight, 38 per cent of people who’ve been using screens more during lockdown…
My €25 Covid jab surprise
Around the time that poor M. Macron was casting televised aspersions on the AstraZeneca jab, I was offered one by…
The healing power of sweat
Laikipia In one of Kenya farmer Karen Blixen’s short stories, a character says: ‘I know of a cure for everything:…
2497: Scramble
Six unclued lights (three of two words) are of a kind, associated with the 16’s 11s, and overseen by 28.…
Armenian champions
In the 21st century, which country has won more international chess Olympiads than any other? Russia? USA? China? None of…
Tales from my private jet
Gstaad I was very sad to read of Rupert Hambro’s death. I didn’t know him well, but first met him…
2494: Back to front - solution
Unclued lights are from the ‘Looking Glass’ poem Jabberwocky. First prize Alison Peck, Mathry, PembrokeshireRunners-up Patricia Gibbs, Barrow upon Soar,…
Spectator competition winners: poems about favourite smells
In Competition No. 3189 you were invited to submit a poem about a favourite smell. This challenge certainly seemed to…
