Life
Why I admire Isabel Oakeshott
I’ve been gripped by the Telegraph’s Lockdown Files. The 100,000 WhatsApp messages on Matt Hancock’s phone, handed to the paper…
Spectator competition winners: politically correct versions of works by unreconstructed male writers
In Competition No. 3289, you were invited to provide an extract from a politically correct version of a work by…
The case against a cashless society
‘We don’t take cash,’ said the boy behind the counter in Pret after I tried to hand him a £5…
My life in a lunatic asylum
I can see why rock stars and other impetuous celebrity types accidentally top themselves with drug cocktails. When you are…
Language
When US President Joe Biden addressed Congress and gave his ‘State of the Union’ address he was (at times) greeted…
Kiwi life
To be an award-winning commentator, the late Alexander Cockburn held, you really need to have a bit of a thing…
Spectator competition winners: sonnets on embarrassing ailments
In Competition No. 3288, you were invited to supply a sonnet on an embarrassing ailment. To make space for as…
In defence of chicken tikka masala
Chicken tikka masala has become something of a joke. When, in the late 2000s, it was topping lists of the…
Too perfect for Instagram: Cédric Grolet at the Berkeley reviewed
The Cédric Grolet at the Berkeley lives in the shiniest hotel in Knightsbridge, though I prefer the Mandarin Oriental, because…
A Test match for the ages
Readers of a certain vintage might be familiar with the work of J.A. (Charles) Cuddon, a teacher at Emanuel School…
The brilliance of Lime Bikes
I was disappointed to learn that the authorities are planning to crack down on dockless bikes and electric scooters. Westminster…
