Life
The turf
It takes a little bit of magic to train any racehorse. It takes plenty of magic to keep a 13-year-old…
Time to think about holidays
Having returned from a fortnight’s break, I wonder if we get holidays all wrong. In northern Europe, the custom is…
Dire
‘Dire?’ said my husband. ‘It’s something chronic.’ He was putting on his idea of an Estuary accent, in a manner…
Solution to 2570: Short story
Arthur C. Clarke (31/45) said that Ernest Hemingway (35/12) won a bet from fellow writers for the shortest story: FOR…
2573
22 5 42 14 25 31: 29-40, 10-26. Across 1 Hidden by grass, squad joined after separation (8) 9…
Days of passing
There have been few more momentous weeks in British history, or indeed in world history. This commentator must plead guilty.…
Larkin about
In Competition No. 3266, you were invited to reimagine one of Philip Larkin’s poems in the style of a poet…
Puzzle no. 720
White to play and mate in two moves. Composed by Edith Baird, for The Chess Amateur, 1923. Answers should be…
Bridge
It’s tough trying to recall every card that the opponents have played when you’re in the middle of a tricky…
Pique or cheat?
In the third round of the Sinquefield Cup in St Louis, Magnus Carlsen was beaten by 19-year old Hans Niemann,…
The Battle for Britain: Michael Heath
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What Charles shouldn’t do
One of the most regrettable trends of the past few decades is the creep of politics into every aspect of…
Aussie life
What is it about Daniel Andrews, quasi-dictator of Victoria? He runs what Tony Abbott last week called ‘the worst government…
Language
The word ‘sovereignty’ is recorded as part of the English language since at least 1340 – a very old word…
All the world’s a cricket pitch
So farewell to cricket’s The Hundred tournament, or what seemed by the end to be beefy South Africans in ‘Butterkist’…
Dear Mary: Your problems solved
Q. We have made available our mews cottage – 30 yards from our main house – to a woman with…
Real life
The ladies in the bank now wear badges telling you to Be Kind and not do anything that might upset…
Now I know how social justice warriors feel
I went to the O2 on Sunday night to see the comedians Dave Chappelle and Chris Rock. Chappelle, who survived…
Fine diner
Electric Diner is from the Soho House group, which has done terrible things to private clubs, luckless farmhouses, domestic interior…
Corn
‘Wha, wha?’ said my husband in a slack-jawed way, throwing over a copy of the Guardian, as though it was…
The Battle for Britain: Michael Heath
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Bridge
When was the last time you made a doubled slam – a slam that could and should have been defeated…
High life
Gstaad There’s a fin de saison feeling around here, but the restaurants are still full and the sons of the…
Chess speaks for itself
‘Plug the fucking laptop in!’ Hans Niemann, the lively 19-year-old from the US, was left fuming – understandably – after…
Low life
In Frederic Manning’s classic Great War novel, The Middle Parts of Fortune, the shattered battalion shambles out of the line…
