Columns
In defence of Picasso
‘Well, they can’t cancel Picasso.’ That was my optimistic take some months ago when a friend in the art world…
It’s springtime for Rishi
Two years ago when the Tories won the Hartlepool by-election at the local elections, the political mood was summed up…
My messiah complex
In June 1999, I described on this page jameitos, tiny, blind, albino crabs on the sea bottom in a cave…
Sanna Marin and the female leadership myth
It is with great sadness that I must report the departure of the world’s only female head of state who…
Why Democrats want Trump
Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg’s indictment of an even more prominent fat man seems a big win for Donald Trump,…
Is the English countryside racist?
I don’t know what your plans are for Easter. Mine generally include a nice walk in the English countryside. There…
Why Humza Yousaf is the Union’s best hope
After the narrow victory of the Brexit campaign in 2016, it was often said that the result would lead to…
The rule of lawyers
Have you had your fourth Covid booster jab yet? They are being very quiet about it these days. I used…
Beware the AI voice thieves
After years of blissful indifference, finally I’m scared of AI. I’ve been complacent, slept soundly beside my husband as he…
Our poor deluded MPs
They say that death and taxes are the only certainties in life. But I would add a couple more things…
Why No. 10 fears Boris’s banishment
Even now, months after he was forced to resign, Boris Johnson has a potency that no other British politician can…
Childcare: an inconvenient truth
Wyndham Lewis once said that ‘the ideas of a time are like the clothes of a season’ – but that,…
What I’ve learned from a lifetime of travelling
In the language of the Mapuche people of Patagonia, futa (I’m told) means ‘river’ and leufú means ‘big’. So Spanish–speaking…
The high price of low interest rates
You’ll recall that I’ve railed for years against zero interest rates, which transplanted a cancerous marrow into the very bones…
The joke is on America
I was brought up on Dan Quayle jokes. You know the ones – like the gag that the then vice-president…
Budget 2023: Restraint now, reward later?
The paradox of Rishi Sunak’s premiership is that even though he became Prime Minister because of the economy, it’s the…
The overuse and abuse of ‘fascism’
I would be very happy if I never had to hear the name Gary Lineker again. He was a vague…
Michelle Yeoh and Britain’s invisible East Asians
This week Michelle Yeoh became the first Asian to win Best Actress at the Oscars – and not by playing…
Why shouldn’t BBC staff express opinions?
There was a kind of peak BBC Radio 4 moment last week when the network put on a play called…
Why small boats are a big election issue
Rishi Sunak started the year with a speech announcing his five priorities. That was quickly followed by Keir Starmer, who…
What I make of Sue Gray
I am at a bit of a loss to understand the hoo-ha about the civil servant Sue Gray. She has…
Why ‘safe routes’ to asylum can’t work
I have never met Enver Solomon, the chief executive of the Refugee Council, but I have not the least doubt…
Despotic social controls cost lives
Look, I realise you don’t want to read this column. I’m unenthusiastic about writing it. For most of us, any…
Jonathan Coad and British TV’s most catastrophic interview
‘Coad. Coad.’ I wracked my brain. Distant bells began to tinkle as I turned the name over. As though performing…
Rishi’s new momentum
When Rishi Sunak appeared in the House of Commons to outline the details of his new agreement on the Northern…
