Margaret Thatcher

Still life in the old slogan: Maurice Saatchi’s famous 1978 poster was adapted three decades later when the unemployment figures were announced in March 2009

Even the people who make political adverts aren’t sure they work

14 February 2015 9:00 am

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

24 January 2015 9:00 am

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?

10 January 2015 9:00 am

‘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

13 December 2014 9:00 am

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

22 November 2014 9:00 am

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

20 September 2014 9:00 am

Until recently I used to claim that I had been literary editor of The Spectator for over 25 years; now…

You can't spin yourself into authenticity – as Ed Miliband is finding out

2 August 2014 9:00 am

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!

17 May 2014 9:00 am

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

15 March 2014 9:00 am

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

8 March 2014 9:00 am

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

30 November 2013 9:00 am

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

3 August 2013 9:00 am

The astonishing level of enthusiasm over the birth of the new prince goes far beyond the pleasure that people naturally…