Life
How to increase your home’s value – with a sandwich
It is a tenet of neo-liberal economics that there is no such thing as a free lunch. This is obvious…
Spectator competition winners: famous poems in reverse
In Competition No. 3309, you were invited to compose a poem starting with the last line of any well-known poem…
Relief Rally put the Ascot heartbreak behind her at Newbury
‘God it’s hot,’ said a Newbury waitress escaping into the lift from rain-soaked crowds jostling in the bars last Saturday.…
The problem with posh dog food
Having loaded the last sack of working dog food in Surrey into my car, I slammed the trolley back into…
High life
Now that Wimbledon is over, a few thoughts about youthful brains showing traces of horse tranquillisers, angel dust and cannabis,…
How I incurred the wrath of my iPhone
As I sat down to dinner in a lovely old country pub my reservation was cancelled by my iPhone, which…
Aussie life
Standing on the banks of the Swan River the skyline tells you how Perth retains observable links with its regional…
Language
Some trendy new expressions will probably have the lifespan of a fruit fly (for the scientifically minded, that’s between 30…
French tomato tart: a simple celebration of summer
Last year, we grew tomatoes for the first time. And we did so with our characteristic enthusiasm, lack of knowledge…
I’m a holidaymaker… get me out of here!
Reading about all the travel chaos, I began to regret my summer holiday plans. Wouldn’t it have been more sensible…
The Battle for Britain
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Cricket, tennis and the Women’s World Cup: what a summer
Great sport needs great rivalries, and that is why anyone with a pulse must celebrate being in the throes of…
Dear Mary: Should I tell my boss I swiped his champagne?
Q. I have got myself in a pickle. My boss was given a bottle of Louis Roederer Cristal by a…
Big Little Bavaria on Thames: Bierschenke bierkeller reviewed
I am not sure the vast Bierschenke bierkeller in Covent Garden is successful, even if it is skilful: I worry…
Vape
Last year, Oxford Languages’ word of the year was goblin mode. Apparently 300,000 voters decided upon it, but I haven’t…
Bridge
Bridge isn’t a game you can master quickly. Quite the opposite: with every new level you reach, another looms above…
Blitz
Nine wins in a row. What are the chances? That’s how Magnus Carlsen began on the first day of blitz…
Puzzle no. 761
White to play. Rapport-Caruana, Grand Chess Tour Rapid, Zagreb 2023. Caruana’s last move, 61…Bd6-e7, was a decisive mistake. Which move…
Travellers’ tales
In Competition No. 3208 you were invited to submit a short story whose first or last line is: ‘“Is there…
