Life
Very bad poems on the Underground
My husband was surprised by quite a bit when we travelled by Underground in London the other day. Although he…
Dinner with the editors
Moro (‘moorish’ or ‘sexist’) is a Spanish restaurant on Exmouth Market, near the bones of the old Guardian and Observer…
A Victor for the future
Just do it. The people who make trainers have been telling us to ‘Just do it’ for 25 years now.…
Commercial approach
British racing is such a quirky minefield that some were surprised when in 2011 the authorities chose Paul Bittar, a…
The week that tripled the size of my liver
Gstaad Walking into a dinner party for 50 chic and some not-so-chic people in a nearby village last week, I…
Watching car crash compliations with my grandson
My boy was downstairs cooking Sunday roast. Earlier, I had been clambering about on a woodpile, stepped awkwardly, and twisted…
My friend Denise doesn't know where London ends – just when it ends
The look on her face said it all. I can always tell my friend Denise is upset about something when…
I was forced on to the internet in the 1980s. I still don't belong there
With regard to modern technology, I find that people of around my age — by which I mean people in…
Bridge
To any player with even the smallest sadistic streak, squeezing your opponents is hugely satisfying. But there’s something even more…
Ukrainian knights
This week I pay tribute to the chess grandmasters from Ukraine, led by Vassily Ivanchuk, many times a candidate for…
No. 303
White to play. This position is from Moiseenko-Noah, Khanty-Mansisk Olympiad 2010. Even though the game is not yet out of…
All together now
In Competition 2836 you were invited to coin collective nouns for the following: tweeters, hackers, hoodies, WAGS, environmentalists, bankers, MPs…
2151: Sources
Three theme words which must be deduced each suggest three unclued lights (including one of two words and ignoring one…
to 2148: Eighth of February
Unclued lights can each be abbreviated so that together they give the letters of FEBRUARY: FAHRENHEIT (19), EARTH (32), BASS…
What’s happened to Harriet Harman?
Watching Harriet Harman being interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg on Newsnight earlier this week was a strange experience. I felt as…
Battle for Britain
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What the O.J. Simpson jury didn’t know (and schools should teach)
During the O.J. Simpson trial, the prosecution made much of the fact that Simpson had a record of violence towards…
The question that Dear Mary refuses to answer
Q. One of my best friends, who knows I don’t have a great social life at university, has a brother…
Toast to a young gun
Three of us, old friends, were meeting to arrange a marriage. The young couple have never actually met. Indeed, they…
Why does everything suddenly need 'resilience'?
They were talking on the wireless about Brazilians in the flooded areas, or so I thought. Once the kettle had…
Toast to a future wedding
Three of us, old friends, were meeting to arrange a marriage. The young couple have never actually met. Indeed, they…
How to give yourself a better chance
During the O.J. Simpson trial, the prosecution made much of the fact that Simpson had a record of violence towards…
My drug-addict friend needs medical help, not a prison sentence
Gstaad ‘On ne touche pas une femme, même avec une fleur,’ says an old French dictum, one not always adhered…
Lord Rennard's hand-brushing is nothing. I'll tell you what true violation is
‘In my opinion,’ says Alistair Webster QC, author of the Liberal Democrats’ internal report into Lord Rennard’s droit de seigneur-style…
Why is campaigning so thankless?
‘Quick, let’s slip one in the menu,’ said the builder, taking a leaflet from my handbag after we had paid…
