Alcohol
Charles Moore’s Notes: Jeremy Corbyn, fanatic
When Jeremy Corbyn says it is better to bring people to trial than to shoot them, he is right. So…
A soothing Negroni for la dolce vita
The first draft of the famous story was called ‘A Martini as Big as the Ritz’. That’s not true, but…
Siena shows that northern Italy is just better at getting drunk
The Indian summer was still fending off the mists and mellow fruitfulness. But the autumn term was about to begin;…
Giving up alcohol is not as much fun as I’d hoped
Two months ago, I set myself the target of losing 11 pounds in time for the Spectator’s summer party on…
Drugs, whipping, decomposing bodies and fighting in toilets: so that’s what Spectator readers get up to
Ninety-two readers (thank you!) sent accounts of their worst debacles on drink or drugs. I printed out each one and…
Jan Moir’s diary: In search of the female Viagra
Down here in west Cornwall, the days are long and summer is on the wing. Like the Tories in Scotland,…
Call myself a Low life? You lot put me to shame
The entries are crawling in on their hands and knees for the ‘drunkest I’ve ever been’ competition to win a…
Five more MPs making Malcolm Rifkind’s day rate
Golden league Some MPs who earn Sir Malcolm Rifkind’s rate of £5,000 a day: — Sir Tony Baldry (Banbury): £3,333…
The elderly are society’s new baddies
The gulf in understanding between the old and the young has widened with the news that the young are beginning…
Help me become an addict
When the White Queen told Alice she had sometimes believed as many as six contradictory things before breakfast, she spoke…
‘Rape is rape’ serves no one well, least of all rape victims
When Mary Jane Mowat remarked recently that rape conviction statistics would not improve ‘until women stop getting so drunk,’ the…
Why don’t more non-smokers try e-cigarettes?
I was waiting on an office forecourt recently puffing on an e-cigarette when a security guard came out. ‘You can’t…
Dear Mary: How to accept wine refills at parties without getting drunk
Q. At a drinks or a dinner party, when very attentive waiters are hovering, I tend to let them keep…
Narcotically-induced mischief in an urban wasteland
Fifteen minutes by rail from Paddington, Southall is a ‘Little India’ in the borough of Ealing. An ornate Hindu temple…
Please stop trying to raise my awareness
Once, campaigners and charities tried to fight social evils. Now they just tell us about them
Rod Liddle: Neknominations – this is what the internet is for
Wouldn’t it be boring if everyone behaved much as you behave? If everyone expressed themselves similarly? Let a thousand flowers…
When trolling pressure groups cause real harm
My grandmother, Nanny Nancy, is 99 and going strong. But it can’t be denied that while she’s all there mentally,…
Toby Young: Why I'm giving up drinking. And chocolate. And ice cream...
I’ve gone completely overboard with New Year’s Resolutions this year. I’ve sworn off three illicit substances — alcohol, chocolate and…
The most important gardening book of the year
I’ll own up at once. Tim Richardson and Andrew Lawson, the author and photographer of The New English Garden (Frances…
Letters: Nurses reply to Mary Dejevsky, and Iggy Pop’s sherry habit
Nursing standards Sir: I share Mary Dejevsky’s concern regarding the impact of tired, overworked nurses on the quality of patient…
In defence of binge drinking
The occasional alcoholic blowout is much to be preferred to steady, everyday drinking
