World
Putin crowns himself president of Russia again
As expected, following a three day ‘vote’, Vladimir Putin has once again crowned himself president of Russia. As of 9…
Princess Kate, photographs, and the great thirst for significance
When Photogate, or Kategate, or whatever we end up calling it, first became news, I remember taking one look at…
Meet the Russians in Serbia who voted against Putin
Today, Russians in Serbia are heading to the polls to cast their vote and protest against what many see as…
We need to talk about war
‘Don’t mention the war!’ Remember that? Today, war seems nearly all that European leaders want to talk about. The prospect…
How was the puberty blocking scandal ever allowed to happen?
Remember when Irish singer Róisín Murphy was set upon by the mob last year? Her crime: she criticised puberty blockers…
An ex-German diplomat’s withering verdict on Berlin’s ‘flawed’ Russia policy
Arndt Freiherr Freytag von Loringhoven couldn’t have had a worse start as Germany’s ambassador to Poland. Germany’s fraught historical legacy…
What the rise of Islam means for Putin’s Russia
The term ‘Russians’, which the world likes to use for the 144 million citizens of my country, is often a…
The trials and tribulations of Orthodox Lent
The Russian Orthodox Church, which I converted to in 2018, has disgraced itself in the years since. Its Patriarch Kirill…
Women need nemeses
My nemesis is a student at another university. She has not always been my nemesis. We were friends until I…
British politics has a democracy problem
Vaughan Gething, the victor in the Welsh Labour leadership contest, will now become Wales’s first black First Minister. It is…
Vaughan Gething’s very British victory
Something happened today which, if it were any other country, would be seen to be remarkable: Vaughan Gething, the new…
Will Penny Mordaunt be the next prime minister?
Could Penny Mordaunt lead the Tories into the election? This is the talk this weekend after several papers splashed on…
How Putin will rig the Russian election
Pity the poor political technologists, as Russia’s professionals in the dark arts of spin, propaganda, gerrymandering and outright ballot box…
Will France’s Olympians embarrass Macron?
France host England tonight in the final match of the 2024 Six Nations. ‘Le Crunch’, as this fixture has come…
Hamas blew Gaza’s golden opportunity
Whatever else the arguments concerning the Gaza War, none is more wrong-headed than the suggestion that Gazans were living in…
The price we’ll pay for citizens’ assemblies
Citizens’ assemblies will transform Britain. That’s the promise made by activists from groups like Extinction Rebellion. Labour has also mooted…
How did this London townhouse become the world’s greatest research centre?
If you were asked to name the world’s greatest research centre in terms of discoveries per square yard, the answer…
Don’t bother avoiding microplastics
They’re everywhere, it seems: in the oceans, the fish, the soil, our drinking water, our vegetables, our grains and cereals,…
Tokyo’s toilets aren’t that great
What is the world’s best city in which to be caught short? You can imagine a lively discussion on this…
How to sell The Spectator
No foreign power will ever be allowed to buy a UK newspaper or magazine: that’s the upshot of this week’s debate…
How Ozempic fattened up Denmark’s economy
It’s official: weight-loss wonder drug Wegovy (also marketed as Ozempic) makes US celebrities shrink but makes the Danish economy grow. This…
Porn project received thousands of pounds of Scottish taxpayers’ cash
Good heavens. Just when you think events north of the border can’t get any more ridiculous, they do. Now it…
It’s time to declare Putin an illegitimate president
For the next three days, Russians are heading to the polls supposedly to choose the country’s next president. Except we…
What America should heed from Julius Caesar’s assassination
It being the Ides of March, I thought it might be worth reflecting briefly on the most famous event that…
Rishi Sunak rules out general election in May
Rishi Sunak has finally confirmed what most MPs already knew: there won’t be a May general election. Speaking to ITV…