Life
Bridge | 4 June 2022
In honour of Her Majesty the Queen’s awe-inspiring Platinum Jubilee, I have not one but two hands, illustrating the power…
When flying was fun
On the BOAC VC10 flights to Nairobi, the pilots would invite children like me up to sit in the cockpit…
No. 705
White to play. Giri-Praggnanandhaa, Chessable Masters 2022. A game from the preliminary stages. What did Giri play to induce resignation?…
The Battle for Britain | 4 June 2022
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Rob Burrow is in a league of his own
What a privilege the other night to see Rob Burrow, the Rugby League legend, win Autobiography of the Year at…
Spectator competition winners: Platinum Jubilee poems from Kipling and A.A. Milne
In Competition No. 3251, you were invited to submit a poem to mark the Queen’s platinum jubilee in the style…
Aussie life
I’m starting this column on the eve of the election, so you have me at a disadvantage. But not much…
Language
News reports tell us there has been a small furore over a list of ‘derogatory and offensive terms’ included in…
Tiger bites man
Viswanathan Anand left the spectators in awe at the Superbet Rapid earlier this month. The ‘Tiger of Madras’, as he…
2554: Going, going... – Solution
The unclued lights were all extinct species. PTERODON was an acceptable variation at 5 Across. DODO was to be deleted…
2557: Heroes
Clockwise round the grid from a point to be determined run the names of four knights (2,5,5,5,5,8,5,3) followed by what…
Spectator competition winners: sonnets on Mammon
In Competition No. 3250, you were invited to submit a sonnet to Mammon. It was ‘Epigram for Wall Street’, attributed…
No. 704
Black to play. Bacrot-Anand, Bastia Rapid 2001. A spectacular blow from Anand prompted Bacrot to resign. What did he play?…
Beware the wrath of middle-class homeowners
‘Apocalyptic’ food shortages, gas and electricity bills soaring, wages not keeping pace with inflation… it’s beginning to look like we’re…
The Battle for Britain | 28 May 2022
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The village parking wars have taken an ugly turn
The dynamics of the village can only be understood with reference to what’s happening to the parking. Unless you study…
Bridge | 28 May 2022
For those of us who are prone to anxiety before playing in big tournaments, there are plenty of self-help books…
Dear Mary: Should house guests pay to charge their electric cars?
Q. My wife’s father, who she adored, has died and she is to be his sole beneficiary. She intends to…
The perfect pairing of books and wine
In the West End of London there is an alley which insinuates its way between the Charing Cross Road and…
Why sat navs are a conversation killer
When my daughters learned to drive, I suggested they take their tests in automatics as driving manual cars would soon…
The strangeness of station names
In Kyiv they have voted to changethe names of some metro stations. Heroes of the Dnieper is to become Heroes…
Welcome to post-truth America
A couple more weeks in the Bagel and then on to dear old London. I’ve had a very good time…
Poor prize money is killing British horseracing
Seeing Fully Wet win the European Breeders Fund Maiden Stakes at Goodwood on Saturday was a genuine source of pleasure,…
The art of oncology
The main side effect of the six-month course of chemotherapy was ‘fatigue’. The main side effect of the three-monthly hormone…
Aussie life
The education of the young is an essential component for the transmission of culture from one generation to the next.…
