Life
Christmas quiz
Weird world In 2017: 1. Police discovered thousands of what kind of plant growing in a disused nuclear bunker…
After many centuries, the triumph of ‘hi’ is complete
A book that changed my way of looking at the world was The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren. It showed…
It’s all shootin’, fishin’ and trufflin’ when lads and dads go out to play
Earlier this year I wrote a defence of driven shooting and ended by saying I hoped my children would have…
Less women’s sport might sometimes be more
The credit sequence for the tennis flick Battle of the Sexes has this very British warning: ‘Contains occasional scenes of…
The Battle for Britain
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It’s survived universal suffrage and two world wars: restaurant Rules reviewed
Rules looks as if it voted for Brexit, and now finds itself inside an eternal Christmas Eve, where it is…
Design everything for the disabled and you can’t go wrong
About 30 years ago, BT introduced a telephone handset with enormous keys. It was intended for people with serious visual…
Found in a friend’s cellar — the wines of a lifetime
In longevity, great wine can march with human life. Creating (better still, maintaining) a fine cellar really is a compact…
Dear Mary solves problems for Vince Cable, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Lord Archer and Ruth Davidson
From Sir Vince Cable MP Q. I have an unfulfilled ambition to win a national title for ballroom dancing in…
This time last year I was radiating optimism; what a difference a year makes
As the song almost says, what a difference a year makes: 2017 is not over yet, but it’s been a…
How a human body burns
I took a dab of antiseptic gel and rubbed my hands together. ‘Alone tonight, sir?’ said the charming head waiter.…
My horse is a cross between Hannibal Lecter and Reggie Kray
While the vet was checking Gracie, I asked him to take a look at Tara, the old chestnut hunter. Just…
The dark side of horse racing
Spotting Mark Grant’s name on an Ascot racecard, I remembered a dashing young mop-haired rider I first encountered some years…
Bridge
The year is drawing to a close and this is my last column before Christmas. May I wish you all…
Books of the year
The English Chess Federation has awarded its Book of the Year prize to Timman’s Titans: My World Chess Champions by…
Puzzle
White to play. This position is from Timman-Short, Tilburg 1990. Can you spot Timman’s classic finish? We regret that this…
Shipping lines
In Competition No. 3027 you were invited to submit a poem inspired by the Shipping Forecast. Life-saver, lullaby, poetic…
2339: Interesting
Cryptic indications in four clues are incomplete; in each case, the part not indicated is supplied by a 1D (two…
to 2336: IRRELEVANT
The action that results in 6, 10, 29D and 30 is HAIR-RAISING (7, defined by 5). RAISING A HARE (39)…
The subtle art of showing off at work
This has been an interesting year for me. Back in January, I took up a full-time job as director of…
The Battle for Britain
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Why Ben Stokes should be picked for Perth
And so to a cloudy, chilly Adelaide, more like London in October than Australia in the early days of high…
Mary solves your problems: What do you say when a screaming child is ruining your lunch?
Q. My wife and I were having lunch in our local bistro. A boy of about two was wandering around…
Henrietta: a casual restaurant with formal food for people wearing hats
Henrietta is a restaurant in a boutique hotel on Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, around the corner from the actors’ church…
Syndromes: they have made their escape from the medical world
‘You must have Tired Old Woman Syndrome,’ said my husband as I fell back into an armchair with a sigh…
