Diary
I’m a fighter, not a quitter
‘Ring out the old, ring in the new…’ This was the year I discovered that one of my ancestors had…
In Mumbai, everyone asks about Rishi and Boris
Mumbai is my kind of town, a party town. In my first weeks living here, I was out most nights…
The Westminster Wag to watch
Surely charity is about helping others, not massaging your own ego? Ed Sheeran’s boycott of Band Aid is yet another example of…
Get ready for Elon Musk’s sex robots
My old mucker Donald Trump’s return to the White House has predictably sent the woke brigade into hysteria. From posting…
Nigel told me he’s the new Boris
Last week I arrived in London from the Cotswolds just in time to witness the collective meltdown from everyone around…
The night I was turned away from the Ivy
How the mighty can fall. I was overwhelmed by the approbation I had received for my one-woman show, Behind the…
My bid to be chancellor of Oxford
I have spent the past couple of weeks in Oxford rediscovering the art of conversation while campaigning for election as…
The OnlyFans model, the milkshake and me
What better start to a Monday than to attend Westminster Magistrates’ Court? I was there for the trial of the…
My problem with the American election
In an ideal world, I wouldn’t have chosen an election year for my American book tour. It’s not that I…
My plans for The Spectator
Shortly after Boris Johnson was selected as the Conservative candidate for Henley, he invited me to lunch at The Spectator.…
The magic of The Spectator
Not since South Park Elementary’s election campaign between a Giant Douche and a Turd Sandwich has an election bedevilled me…
The best podcasts to fall asleep to
‘Yous!’ a train cleaner in rubber gloves says as we arrive at Liverpool Lime Street. ‘What are yous doing here?’…
I’m engaged!
I slept only between the hours of 5 and 6 a.m, thanks to self-induced terror tactics. My son Adam stayed…
A new chapter for The Spectator
For the past year or so, I’ve been involved in selling The Spectator as well as editing it. A long…
What’s gone wrong at the National Theatre?
Now we have a Labour government, it would be nice to feel repertory will return to the National Theatre. It…
Do I have too many friends?
Can one have too many friends? I asked myself this question as we prepared yet another dinner party for ten…
Trump misses Biden
Chicago Everyone in the Democrats’ Convention centre – a bleakly corporate sports stadium on the edge of Chicago – is…
Does it matter if Trump is weird?
Would-be veep Tim Walz has opened Pandora’s box with his use of the W-word to characterise Donald Trump and his…
The rise of the competitive book list
I’m a hopeless technophobe. I dislike the stylish laptop I’m using and its subdued pad pad pad. I still long…
Things can always get worse for the Tories
Before migrating to Wiltshire where I will be for August, I had a friendly dinner with a clutch of Conservative…
The mystery of Melania Trump
While everybody at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee was preoccupied with Donald Trump’s triumphal story after the assassination attempt…
The curious life of a foreign minister’s wife
The Polish constitution delineates no role for the foreign minister’s wife. In fact, the foreign minister’s wife is not mentioned…
My future as a reality TV star
Magpies have long been thought to be birds of omen. I am not superstitious. Yet during the election campaign I…
Brexit has helped the EU
There was hardly an election poster to be seen on the roadside during a two-hour drive from London to the…
I lost to Harry Kane at darts
Gareth Southgate has always been a man interested in life outside the football circus. When he played for England, I…
