Columnists
Twentysomethings: you won’t miss being poor. But you will miss not knowing what you’re doing
What I miss most about being very young is the cluelessness. It’s enormously liberating, cluelessness. The boundaries of life are…
How do I ever get speaking gigs? I’m guessing it goes like this…
To Brighton, to address a conference of property investors. Unusually, I find myself programmed alongside both Gerard Lyons, City economist…
The good old days when I had no idea what I was doing
What I miss most about being very young is the cluelessness. It’s enormously liberating, cluelessness. The boundaries of life are…
All I want for Christmas is another dose of the flu
Have you had the horrid bug that’s going round yet? I’ve got it now and I do hope you get…
Why scary fairy stories are the best
Moving house, stacking books in boxes, I came across a clutch of fairy books, Andrew Lang’s folk tales from around…
The rare joy of the commonplace book
Among the gifts that have come my way this Christmas season, none has given me pleasure more immediate or more…
The age of indecision
A recent email from Samantha Cameron started an intriguing debate in the Prime Minister’s social circle. It was an invitation…
The Spectator’s notes
Pope Francis is favourably compared to Pope Benedict in the media. I hope it is not being slavishly papist to…
The very model of a political Chancellor
Autumn Statements lack the drama and traditions of the Budget. Gladstone never delivered one, there is no Autumn Statement box…
Left-handed people are stupid (and everyone who worries about immigration is a bigot)
Thoroughly cheering news emerged this week that left-handed people are likely to earn between 10 and 12 per cent less…
Why tackle someone's argument when you can just pick a word and take offence at it?
Michael Gove was on BBC Question Time the other night, fielding questions about such contentious subjects as education, immigration and…
Cheap oil has finally arrived – and it looks like being a disaster
This oil price slump is turning into a ‘black swan’: one of those economic events that seem to come from…
Why argue when you can simply take offence?
Michael Gove was on BBC Question Time the other night, fielding questions about such contentious subjects as education, immigration and…
This Chancellor is a most political animal
Autumn Statements lack the drama and traditions of the Budget. Gladstone never delivered one, there is no Autumn Statement box…
Never mind the general election: Tories are already fighting the Europe referendum
It is quite normal in British politics for a political party to turn on itself after an election defeat —…
Easy divorce has been catastrophic for British children (and I say this as a divorcee)
Would you find it difficult to remain friends with someone if he or she suddenly revealed that they intended to…
Matthew Parris: the barbarism of the Twitter mob
Are we heading for a new barbarism? Is this the return of the 18th-century mob? Here are more questions than…
Forget corporate social responsibility: just do a proper job
A theme of this autumn has been conversations about corporate reputation and how it is guarded or lost. To name…
Signs that the virtual mob is starting to rule
Are we heading for a new barbarism? Is this the return of the 18th-century mob? Here are more questions than…
The Tories are preparing for civil war in the unlikely event of victory
It is quite normal in British politics for a political party to turn on itself after an election defeat —…
Meet the new Queen of Scots: Nicola Sturgeon’s unstoppable rise
‘She sold out the Hydro arena faster than Kylie Minogue,’ said one awestruck unionist of Nicola Sturgeon this week. Scotland’s…
We’re all sulky toddlers now – even when launching space probes
I wonder how long it will be before we actually crawl back into the womb? The average mental age of…
Patriotism isn’t uncivilised - it’s what makes civilisation possible
Is it racist to be patriotic? Is patriotism, by definition, small-minded and exclusive? When you strip away the onion layers…
Sorry, Anne Glover, but you were just too scientific for the Green Blob
The Green Blob which did for Owen Paterson has claimed another victim. Her name is Anne Glover and she was,…
Are the Qataris ready for the curse of Canary Wharf?
I’ve written before of a ‘curse of Qatar’ that might explain misfortunes attending the Gulf state’s UK investments, of which…
