Life
Bridge | 9 July 2022
In one respect, it would be so much easier to play a game like poker or chess than bridge; if…
Aussie life
Perhaps we could pay tribute to the US Supreme Court’s courageous decision to remove an entitlement to wholesale abortion that…
Language
Is it time to revisit how we define the word ‘racism’? Early in the 20th century the settled definition became…
2559: Platinum upgrade - solution
The perimeter, starting at square 38, yields six of the CITIES created to commemorate the Platinum Jubilee: DONCASTER, MILTON KEYNES,…
Spectator competition winners: poems about imperial measures
In Competition No. 3255, you were invited to submit a poem about imperial measures. Brian Bilston’s terrific poem ‘The Empire’s…
No. 709
White to play. Miles-Pritchett, Lloyds Bank Masters 1982. Tony Miles found a powerful counter to the queenside threats. What did…
Maximum mischief
Forbidden things have a secret charm – that delicious paradox applies to the chessboard just as it does in life.…
2562: Clear view but no vowels
The cryptic title of this week’s crossword leads to a five-letter representation of the theme. The unclued lights include two…
Dear Mary: How do I get a party invitation from the friend who thinks I snubbed him?
Q. I have heard news of a forthcoming party which I would really love to attend. The problem is that…
Pub food, Disney-style: the George reviewed
The George, Fitzrovia, was Saki’s local, and a pub for men talking about cars when Great Portland Street was called…
Dominic Raab and the problem of ‘distraction’
Dominic Raab blamed distraction forBoris Johnson’s woes when the Tories failed in two by-elections last week. ‘Hehas track records as…
The long and the short of it in Africa
Kenya As late as the 1920s, it was believed that Africa’s tropical sun would boil a European’s brains. ‘The direct…
Is any sporting event more brutal than the Tour de France?
That great Frenchman the Marquis de Sade would have been justly proud of the Tour de France had he lived…
A journey backwards through my journals
I’m looking backwards: old journals, old photographs, old notebooks. What strikes me above all is the vigour and energy I…
In praise of the London sense of humour
London As speaker at a posh dinner given by Jonathan and Jake Goedhuis, best UK wine merchants by far, and…
The day I got heckled at Speakers’ Corner
Monday was the 150th anniversary of Speakers’ Corner and, in the hope of drumming up some publicity for the Free…
Bridge | 2 July 2022
Rubber bridge is a game that happens to suit me very well: you can come and go as you please…
The Battle for Britain | 2 July 2022
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How I got one over on the chat bot
‘Your service contract has been completed,’ said someone or something from British Gas, in the chat box on its website.…
Aussie life
It’s too soon to say whether President Biden’s response to the carnage in Tulsa, Uvalde and Buffalo (‘For God’s sake,…
Language
We live in a world that seems to have largely abandoned punctuation – those small marks between words that help…
The joy of Royal Ascot
In a disintegrating country, stuck for the moment with a Prime Minister who can’t see the difference between a proliferation…
The Battle for Britain | 25 June 2022
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Will my kitchen be designated a ‘safe space’?
As the father of four children who will be entering higher education in the next few years, I’m worried that…
Dear Mary: Must I call my new partner my ‘boyfriend’ when we’re in our seventies?
Q. My girlfriend and I have started using a personal trainer for some joint sessions at our local gym; the…
