Family
Farewell to my dear friend Richard, the very best of us
I heard the shocking news last week that one of my oldest friends — Richard Edwards — had died suddenly…
Meal kits are a recipe for mayhem
Caroline was pretty heroic during the first lockdown. She’s used to having no children to deal with between the hours…
A dog is not just for lockdown
The Dogs Trust charity received 114 calls on 27 and 28 December from people wanting to offload their puppies. No,…
The wonderful ghosts of Christmas past
Seances, trikes and the miracle of tinfoil
The unlikely Schindler who saved my wife’s family
As I gaze at my four children on Christmas morning, clambering on to the bed with their stockings, I will…
We don't want pandemic novels – we want gentle escapism
I’m often asked when I’ll write a pandemic novel. I’m not sure I’d ever be tempted, though the backdrop of…
My kids think my move into the garden shed means divorce
I’ve moved out of my home. No, Caroline and I haven’t broken up. It’s just that we’re having the house…
Dear Mary: Will my friend be offended if I buy her an XL dress?
Q. My son has moved his girlfriend into our fairly small house for the second lockdown. I am grateful for…
What lockdown means for families with disabled children
What lockdown means for families with disabled children
My Aunt Beryl’s zinc-lined trunk revealed extraordinary family secrets
Bexhill-on-Sea My Aunt Beryl taught me to love books and paintings. When I’m at a loose end in London, lonely,…
Today’s undergraduates are customers – and the customer is always right
If you’re looking for a sign of the academic times, you could do worse than consider the image, published in…
She was just a damn cat – and I loved her
I’ve never dug a grave before. But that was how I spent my Sunday afternoon. Three feet is awfully deep…
The antibody test that proved my wife wrong
Back in April, The Spectator ran a feature in which the partners of regular contributors wrote about what it was…
Unfortunately our new puppy is not just for lockdown
Will the huge surge in demand for puppies and kittens during lockdown lead to a lot of abandoned pets when…
In the Covid era, age isn’t just a number
When I told my seven-year-old granddaughter, over Zoom, how much I missed being with her, I added: ‘Maybe it won’t…
Lockdown used to be the norm for new mothers
I laughed when my Spanish midwife mentioned in passing that in Latin American countries they have a custom for new…
Salman Rushdie: ‘The implausible has become everyday’
Salman Rushdie on writing in the Age of Anything-Can-Happen
Our puppy has no respect for the two-metre rule
Since the beginning of the lockdown, Caroline has been congratulating herself for having bought a puppy ‘just in time’. She…
The world of make-believe is stranger than we realise
Last summer, in the bc era, I took my then three-year-old to a new group play session: ‘Lottie’s Magic Box.’…
Isolation forces us to work out what really matters
In tough times, people often discover their dauntlessness
Quarantine with our new puppy will send me barking
When the news leaked at the weekend that the government was considering telling those aged 70 and over to self-quarantine…
Life under lockdown: Italy is being consumed by panic
Italy is being consumed by panic
Having a baby is like joining a cult — full of other, more capable mothers
When you’re not a mother it’s hard to imagine what motherhood is like. Anyone you know who becomes one assures…
Dear Mary: Should I tell my friend that his expensive lunch made me ill?
Q. I see a lot of two of our grandchildren because they live in our London house. We are centrally…
Deborah Orr rages against her small-town upbringing
Unlike a lot of people in the media, I didn’t personally know Deborah Orr, but I know many who did,…
