Life
Puzzle No. 706
White to play and mate in 3. Composed by Sigmund Franz Josef Lehner, 1864. There are several ways to give…
Turkey
Turkey has told the UN it wants tobe called Türkiye. Even when it is written in capitals, it would still…
2559: Platinum upgrade
Reading clockwise around the perimeter are six theme words, in random order, one of which starts in square 38. The…
Not everything has to be a trade-off
‘It is vital that we see a return to face-to-face meetings to foster the dynamic collaboration that creates breakthrough ideas.’…
Battle for Britain
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Toasting the Queen
It was an extraordinary weekend. The various spectacles had something for all tastes: pageantry on Horse Guards; solemnity in St…
Real life
If I could ban one question ever being asked of me again it would be: ‘Are you on WhatsApp?’ I…
Dear Mary: Your problems solved
Q. As a mildly famous professional cook, I agreed to judge a children’s cake-baking competition at the summer fête of…
Bridge
I recently spent a long weekend in Lillehammer in Norway. Apparently it’s very charming, but frankly I have no idea:…
Low life
‘But you look so well!’ How many times have I heard that lately. Kindly meant by most, but for a…
The turf
In the absence on her Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty, such an avid Derby attender in the past, and following…
Vita and vino
For Christmas Caroline bought me a ‘Deluxe GiftExperience’ at Chapel Down, the UK’s leading winery. I say ‘me’, but it…
High life
Southampton, Long Island These are peripatetic times for the poor little Greek boy, up to the Hamptons for some sun-seeking…
Sorry effort
In Competition No. 3252, you were invited to write a letter of condolence on the mis-fortune of an acquaintance which,…
Aussie life
In last Saturday’s Weekend Australian, Professor Peter Sutton, an internationally recognised anthropologist and linguist, wrote ‘Indigenous identity has become such…
Language
‘Bike shedding’ was coined by British historian and author C. Northcote Parkinson, famous for his book Parkinson’s Law (1957), but…
Low life
I’ve often wondered whether Her Majesty the Queen glances through The Spectator from time to time. And if she does,…
Dear Mary: Your problems solved
Q. In order to raise money for a worthwhile cause, I have agreed to open my garden for the first…
2558: Blonde, 78
Unclued lights can be grouped into three triplets, each associated in a different sense with a keyword to be discovered,…
Nice
‘That’s nice,’ said my husband, taking a Nice biscuit with his coffee. It was his little joke. The biscuit is…
Wishful drinking
I fancy myself as a bit of an oenophile and during the lockdowns, when my local branch of Majestic was…
A tea fit for a Queen
I went to a garden party at Buckingham Palace once. It is coloured in my memory like childhood. There are…
Solution to 2555: 6 x 2 Mixtures
The paired unclued lights (2/25, 4/16, 5/28, 10/20, 13/17 and 15D/41) are anagrams of one another. First prize Trish Baldin,…
A rising star
Ding Liren took first place at last month’s Chessable Masters, the fourth event in the 2022 Meltwater Champions Tour. But…
Real life
If you want to understand Surrey, look at the house names. Keepers’ Copse, Meadow View, Weavers, Highfields… What do all…
