Life
Bridge
Susanna and I don’t play on the same team very often, but once a year Fiona Hutchison puts together a…
Fischer favourite
A favoured line of the great Bobby Fischer was to meet both the French Defence (1 e4 e6) and the…
no. 547
White to play. This position is from Fischer–Myagmarsuren, Sousse Interzonal 1967. How did Fischer conclude his attack in fine style?…
Cringe benefits
In Competition No. 3091 you were invited to submit toe-curlingly bad analogies. This is an idea shamelessly pinched from the…
2401: Sign here please
The unclued lights are of a kind and all have to be ignored in the completed grid. Across 1 …
to 2398: All steamed up
The unclued lights are the names of FAMOUS STEAM TRAINS including the pairs at 14/15 and 17/30. First prize Jenny…
Jordan Peterson and mob rule at the University of Cambridge
On Monday, the vice-chancellor of Cambridge university, Stephen Toope, issued a statement defending the decision of the divinity faculty to…
The Battle for Britain
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The uncountable problems with innumerate Brits
Alevels, from the perspective of a ‘choice architect’, are a disaster. While pupils are free to pick and mix freely…
Dear Mary: how do I stop my minister giving sermons about Brexit?
Q. I belong to a religious congregation whose minister is politically minded. Every time I attend a service, I am…
Three Tories gather for a convivial, and consolatory, glass of wine
Three tribal Tories had gathered for a convivial glass, and also a consolatory one. One quoted Huskisson’s verdict after Goderich’s…
Coining a phrase does not mean stealing it
My husband has been doing something useful but criminal for the past two years. He reads the sports pages, mostly…
I’m back in New York: the city that’s perennially offended
New York Goodbye, snow-capped peaks; hello, swampy brown East River. So long, fresh alpine air; greetings to choking diesel…
After ten weeks spent caring for my mother, I had to relearn the art of conversation
I said my goodbyes and went outside with my trolley bag to wait for the taxi. While waiting, I looked…
Professional villagers won’t rest until they have eliminated mud from the countryside
‘Don’t touch anything sharp. Don’t saw anything or drill anything or sand anything,’ said the builder boyfriend as he left…
Bridge
It’s exceptionally rare to pick up an 11-card suit. You might think it would happen at least once in a…
Family silver
The World Team Championship in Astana, Kazakhstan, finished last week with a victory for Russia but with an outstanding team…
no. 546
Black to play. This position is from Sasikiran-McShane, Astana 2019. Black’s queen is attacked, his knight is vulnerable and b7…
The big reveal
In Competition No. 3090 you were invited to submit a recently discovered lost poem by a well-known poet that makes…
2400: Unclued
All unclued entries are, unusually, not all unclued; all are different and there are no proper nouns. A repeated cryptic…
to 2397: Obit V
Albert Finney, a fine ACTOR (13), died on 7 February 2019. His legacy includes SATURDAY NIGHT (10) and SUNDAY MORNING…
Farringdon’s Quality Chop House is macabre, but at least it has character
I love the drug of television, which is slightly less awful than the drug of social media because the conversation…
Does a dark lantern give out light?
‘Does a dark lantern give out black light?’ asked my husband as if in delirium. He was reading a book…
Why the LGBT health panel isn’t diverse enough
On Monday, the government announced that Penny Mordaunt, the Minister for Women and Equalities as well as the Secretary of…
The Battle for Britain
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