Friendship
Alan Clark’s wines were as remarkable as he was
Où sont les bouteilles d’antan? For that matter, où sont les amis with whom one consumed them? These autumnally melancholic…
Nick Elliott and a life worth drinking to
The English language has immense resources, but the odd weakness. What, for instance, is the translation for ‘Auld lang syne’?…
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…
In search of kindred spirits: An Absence of Cousins, by Lore Segal, reviewed
When Ilka Weisz, a young refugee from Vienna, accepts a teaching post in smalltown Connecticut, she struggles to make friends in the close-knit academic community
Next time, I’m swimming to Calais
Friends in Calais invited me to their baby’s birthday party. He’s a year old. They suggested an overnight stay and…
My (surprisingly) decent proposal
‘Like being chained to a lunatic.’ That’s how a man feels in relation to his libido. And the lunatic latches…
A study of isolation: The Late Americans, by Brandon Taylor, reviewed
A group of students in Iowa City meet in bars and seminar rooms, but, separated by class, race and wealth, their connection is only fleeting
Friendships and rivalries in the golden age of Oxford philosophy
Nikhil Krishnan provides many amusing vignettes of Isaiah Berlin, A.J. Ayer, Gilbert Ryle and others in the heyday of linguistic philosophy
Dear Mary: How do I get my friends to leave after a dinner party?
Q. We have made available our mews cottage – 30 yards from our main house – to a woman with…
Why your more successful friends will drop you
How success kills friendships
Dear Mary: How can I find out whether old friends fancy each other?
Q. How can I find out, without making things awkward, whether one of my close male friends fancies one of…
Dear Mary: Can I ask our hosts to look for my husband’s tooth in the flowerbed?
Q. My 74-year-old husband was having drinks in the garden of some young clients when he bit down on an…
Dear Mary: How do I stop a mutual friend giving my contact details to a man I don’t like?
Q. Everyone was divine at a very jolly lunch I attended in the Cotswolds with the exception of one person,…
A twist on the American classic: The Sidekick, by Benjamin Markovits, reviewed
On the cover of The Sidekick, just below a broken basketball hoop, a quote from Jonathan Lethem suggests Benjamin Markovits…
The close friend I never really knew
I have just read an extraordinary new book. It’s by a close and old pal whom I’d count as one…
A podcast with real emotional heft: Philippa Perry’s Siblings in Session reviewed
Have you ever taken a piece of advice? I’m not asking a rhetorical question. Have you ever once in your…
Mismatched from the start: One Day I Shall Astonish the World, by Nina Stibbe, reviewed
First the bad news: Nina Stibbe’s new novel does not feature Lizzie Vogel, the engaging narrator of the trilogy that…
Male friendship is in crisis
The decline of male friendship
Dear Mary: What’s the etiquette of tipping takeaway delivery drivers?
Q. Rory Sutherland recently wrote about high-end takeaways (Wiki Man, 19 February). In the last London lockdown, I was fortunate…
Dear Mary: How do I stop my new friend leaving me broke?
Q. Recently I started hanging out with a new friend. We are both in our twenties, single, and usually go…
Dear Mary: How do I tell my friends that napkin rings are the height of naff?
Q. Three weeks ago I banged my head on the lower branch of our near neighbours’ tree, which I couldn’t…
Can I really be turning 80?
A princess of Hanover wrote in her diary: ‘My 30th birthday. There must be some mistake.’ Substitute 30th for 80th…
Dear Mary: How can I stop unexpected visitors using my loo?
Q. I treat myself to a manicure every ten days. It’s a 30-minute appointment and the girl I use is…
Dear Mary: Do I have to display my friend’s awful painting?
Q. A long-standing artist friend, whose work now commands high prices, has sent me out of the blue a present…
