Life
Real life
The last time I bought a set of tyres in south London I came away not quite knowing whether I…
Vote ‘leave’ and stop the blurring of Britain
I don’t remember the last European referendum being nearly as dramatic as the current one. In 1975, we were being…
Vote ‘leave’ and stop the blurring of Britain
I don’t remember the last European referendum being nearly as dramatic as the current one. In 1975, we were being…
The 5 per cent of people who get to decide everything
What happens when 95 per cent of people like something, but 5 per cent of people prefer something else? You might think…
Bridge
Over the years, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking, and canvassing opinion, about what to lead from AKxxx (or…
Britain’s determination to kill itself makes my blood boil
Gstaad The locals here in the beautiful Saanen valley are split over the migrant crisis. Switzerland does not belong…
My afternoon with the French Foreign Legion
In the Foreign Legion’s Museum of Memory at Aubagne, near Marseilles, I examined the kit, weapons and uniforms from the…
Victorian south London plumbing is pure evil
My upstairs neighbours are terribly nice, but too naive to be allowed to renovate their flat in peace. The two…
I rallied to the call of the newly created Independent — and never regretted it
It had been many years since I had seen anything of Andreas Whittam Smith, but he popped up on the…
Inside the mind of a racehorse trainer
There are now two Kings of the Marlborough Downs. Leading jumps trainer Alan King has long trained top horses at…
Bridge
Pierre Zimmermann, Monaco’s uber-sponsor, has put another unmissable, thrilling tournament in the calendar. The first European Winter Games gave those…
Rocky 14
The 14th Tradewise tournament at Gibraltar ended in a triumph for the American grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura. Naka, as he is…
No. 396
White to play. This position is from Anna Muzychuk-Salem, Gibraltar Masters 2016. How did White conjure up a decisive material…
Valentine’s triolet
In Competition No. 2935 you were invited to submit a Valentine’s triolet. A famous example of the triolet is Frances…
2248: In the stars
In the clues, the 9 stars represent omitted words (one of which is a dialect variant of another). Those 9…
To 2245: Fair and square
Corrections of misprints give A GRECIAN URN. The POET (23) reporting its message (perimeter + 4 30) is KEATS (42). First…
Emma Thompson’s wrong about the EU and cake
At first glance, Emma Thompson’s intervention in the Brexit debate earlier this week didn’t make much sense. Asked at the…
Battle for Britain
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The angry young bowler who could take the West Indies back to the top
In the north of Antigua, just by the medical school, is a neat little cricket ground. It was a bit…
Dear Mary: How can I teach my boyfriend to put the lids back on?
Q. I love my boyfriend but he has a terrible habit I was unaware of before he moved in. If…
Sartoria: the home of Savile Row’s men who lunch
Sartoria is a pale grey restaurant on Savile Row. As evidence that this is London’s destination street — if menswear…
Does creaky voice make you a female yuppie – or an updated Vicki Pollard?
My husband, not surprisingly, finds it extremely annoying. It, in this instance, is the use by women of creaky voice.…
Battle for Britain
Got something to add? Join the discussion and comment below.
Rocky 14
The 14th Tradewise tournament at Gibraltar ended in a triumph for the American grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura. Naka, as he is…
No. 396
White to play. This position is from Anna Muzychuk-Salem, Gibraltar Masters 2016. How did White conjure up a decisive material…
