Margaret Thatcher
The most powerful man in classical music
When Margaret Thatcher imagined perfect power, she thought of the orchestral conductor. ‘She envied me,’ said Herbert von Karajan, ‘that…
Charles Moore’s notes: The anti-EU camp need to be sure what No means
It is natural to assume that, if a majority votes No in the referendum on Britain’s EU membership, we shall…
The last Europe vote, 40 years on
Forty years on The forthcoming EU referendum has rekindled memories of the in-out Common Market referendum of 1975. But it…
What to drink when you're on a cloud of post-election euphoria
Most of my friends are still on a cloud of post-election euphoria. There is one exception: those involved with opinion-polling.…
This election has made me understand how it felt to be a lefty under Thatcher
On the weekend of 25 April 2015 I started to believe that the party I supported might not win an…
The art of political biography remains in intensive care if Giles Radice’s latest book is anything to go by, says Simon Heffer
With the odd exception — I think principally of Charles Moore’s life of Margaret Thatcher — the genre of political…
Another enemy within: Thatcher (and Wilson) vs the BBC
In a ‘Dear Bill’ letter in Private Eye, an imaginary Denis Thatcher wrote off the BBC as a nest of…
Want more diversity? Hire groups, not individuals
If I were to give you a budget to choose your perfect house, you would quickly have a clear idea…
The Heckler: how funny really was Spitting Image?
Hold the front page! Spitting Image is back! Well, sort of. A new six-part series, from (some of) the team…
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…
EastEnders wanted to show Thatcher’s Britain. These days it would make Maggie proud
How EastEnders became a positive reflection of Tory values
Even the people who make political adverts aren’t sure they work
It is a common prejudice about modern politics that it is all focus groups and spin, all public relations and…
Don't believe the gloom-mongers: deflation will be good for Britain
Campaigning in Putney in 1978, Mrs Thatcher famously took out a pair of scissors and cut a pound note down…
Without childhood traumas, how did Alan Bennett ever become a writer?
‘So — take heart,’ said Alan Bennett, sending us out from his play, Cocktail Sticks, on a cheery note. The…
All you’ll ever need to know about the history of England in one volume
Here is a stupendous achievement: a narrative history of England which is both thorough and arresting. Very few writers could…
Richard Madeley’s diary: Forgetting Tom Conti’s name, and other harrowing experiences
Oh God, it’s happened again. Another evening where I’m surrounded by people I know personally or have interviewed, and I…
Mark Amory's diary: Confessions of a literary editor
Until recently I used to claim that I had been literary editor of The Spectator for over 25 years; now…
A fitting exit for the self-publicising Lady Warsi
At the impressive Westminster Abbey vigil to mark the centenary of the first world war on Monday night, there was…
You can't spin yourself into authenticity – as Ed Miliband is finding out
For a politician to draw attention to his own deficiencies is a desperate attempt to curry favour with the electorate…
My tax avoidance tip – win literary prizes!
David Cameron is said to want a woman to be chairman of the BBC Trust, now that Chris Patten has…
Death brings out everyone’s inner Mary Whitehouse
Shortly after Bob Crow’s death was announced on Tuesday, Nigel Farage sent the following tweet: ‘Sad at the death of…
Behind the scenes at Spitting Image
If Margaret Thatcher is remembered by many more as a caricature than as her actual self, then blame Spitting Image.…
Nigel Lawson's diary: My secret showdown with the Royal Society over global warming
The long-discussed meeting between a group of climate scientists and Fellows of the Royal Society on the one side, and…
Conrad Black’s farewell to the British press
The astonishing level of enthusiasm over the birth of the new prince goes far beyond the pleasure that people naturally…
