Life
Real life
‘You certainly gave us a run for our money,’ said the village elder, serving us with what appeared to be…
High life
A poor little Greek boy writing about cricket etiquette is like Harry Sussex lecturing on discretion, but never mind. As…
Aussie life
It used to be joked that Australia risked becoming the fifty-first state of America. But having enjoyed a family holiday…
Language
We all know what ‘dictation’ means – speaking words aloud for someone to write down. Once every office had its…
If you thought Lord’s was rowdy…
Shouldn’t we all just calm down a bit after Lord’s? Once prime ministers decide to intervene, you know things have…
Futurism
In Competition No. 3306, you were invited to submit a poem about procrastination. Procrastination looms large in Out of Sheer…
Museum pizzas
As the government withers this column falls to ennui and visits Pizza Express. As David Cameron, who left the world…
Vanilla ice cream
I could map out my life geographically and temporally in scoops of ice cream. From the oyster delights handed over…
Debunking debanking
As I sat down to write this column, an old friend let me know he’d just been ‘debanked’. That is,…
Wild life
The Farm, Laikipia Outside the nightjars were calling and a zebra brayed in the valley. The constellations were still bright…
Real life
When I received an email from the Co-op telling me they had made a mistake with my car insurance, and…
High life
Gstaad There are lurid rumours circulating around this Alpine village that an international literature symposium has taken place, with some…
Aussie life
Amanda Stoker’s willingness to talk about her bottom has given David Van the distinction of becoming Australia’s first real subject…
Language
I have written here in the past about the expression ‘weaponised words.’ There are many examples: ‘fascist’, ‘Nazi’ and ‘hard-right’…
Super Tuscans
In Fellini’s La Dolce Vita, the hopes embodied in the title dissolve into grimness and black irony. It was all…
