Life
The funny side of being cancelled
Douglas Is Cancelled, the new drama series on ITV, should come with a trigger warning – for me, anyway. Watching…
Nairobi’s streets are fizzing with violence – and I’m glad to be home
Nairobi, Kenya Parliament and City Hall were burning under great columns of smoke and clouds of tear gas hung over…
We’re serviceless, stateless – and still off grid
You need a personal public service number to get married in Ireland, but in order to get one, you need…
Kiwi life
New Zealand in crisis Given the destruction the previous Labour government inflicted on this country, and the damage caused by…
Language
How are you enjoying dealing with the bureaucrats who run our lives these days? (I heard your answer, and you…
Italians are beautiful – but not on this beach
When Pope Francis complained recently about too much frociaggine (faggotry) in the Catholic Church, he certainly struck a chord in…
Can politicians really pivot?
‘That’ll be the old pivot again,’ said Amol Rajan on Today last week. He was interviewing Pat McFadden, who is…
‘An uneasy place’: Chez Roux at The Langham reviewed
The Langham is a Victorian Gothic hotel opposite the BBC in Portland Place. It’s an odd place: haunted house near…
A memorable Royal Ascot
You tend to like a jockey who has just ridden you a 16-1 winner, as Callum Shepherd did last Saturday…
You shouldn’t be afraid of steak tartare
Whenever I think of steak tartare, I can’t help but remember a heartbreaking passage in Nigel Slater’s memoir Toast. Slater,…
Dear Mary: how to rumble a snooper
Q. I like and get on well with my sister-in-law. My problem is that she is incredibly nosy and I…
The joy of my new allotment
I was pleasantly surprised when I got an email from the Acton Gardening Association last October telling me that a…
