Life
Puzzle No. 640
White to play and mate in two moves. Composed by Theodore Herlin, Schachzeitung 1852. Answers to be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk…
Knights before bishops
In 2005 Steve Jobs gave a commencement address at Stanford University. The late Apple CEO kicked off with a story…
Wild life
Malindi, Kenya I’ve learned that mourning must be tackled ever so gently. As a younger man, when friends were killed…
Low life
Seven bells. Pitch dark still. I descend the creaking wooden stairs in the darkness, let the dog out, make tea…
Kiwi Life
Dear Australia, I would like to formally offer an apology on behalf of New Zealand. I have no authority to…
Aussie Language
The North American Scrabble Players Association, has issued a list of 236 banned words – all deemed to be ‘offensive…
Ticking the boxes
The Compass Group boast of serving 5.5 billion meals a year, so you might think they would be good at…
to 2489: Fade away
All the unclued lights can be linked with PETER, 35/38 is the paired solution. First prize Gerry Fairweather, Layer Marney,…
The BBC is failing the Test
Michael Vaughan might disagree but — putting aside 2005 and all that — was there a more thrilling and satisfying…
Where’s my bloody peerage?
Watching Lord Hannan of Kingsclere being introduced in the House of Lords on Monday was a bittersweet moment. On the…
Dear Mary
Q. I was instrumental in finding some much-needed work for a local retired secretary/PA when I recommended her for the…
Grim
‘Thus I refute Bishop Berkeley,’ said my husband, multitasking by kicking the stone and slightly misquoting Samuel Johnson at the…
Laughter lines
In Competition No. 3184 you were invited to tell a joke in verse form. This challenge, suggested by a reader…
Real life
The kitchen tap began dripping as if it knew perfectly well that this would land me in a predicament whereby…
Double Dutch
Are you not entertained? The climax of this year’s elite Tata Steel tournament was as riveting as it was vulgar.…
2492: Little man
Unusually this week, one unclued light includes the theme word which can also be linked with all the other unclued…
Puzzle no. 639
White to play. Giri-Wojtaszek, Wijk aan Zee 2021. On his last move, Black waited with 48… Ba1-b2, yielding White a…
The Battle for Britain
Got something to add? Join the discussion and comment below.
Bridge
The American professor Martin Seligman is one of the most influential psychologists in the world. Known as the father of…
High life
Gstaad Imagine a beautiful, sexy woman, an Ava Gardner or a Lily James, with a wart on the end of…
The turf
Dry January it wasn’t and I am not referring to the trainers who normally undergo an annual abstinence but who…
Low life
I was tipped off to meet a white Hyundai at a French motorway toll rest area at 2.30 p.m. (I…
Aussie Life
Has any speech by an American politician ever received more attention in the Australian media than Joe Biden’s inauguration speech?…
Aussie Lingo
Every other day some minor celebrity complains of being ‘trolled’ on social media. The answer is to get off social…
Remembering Kavalek
‘I began my escape from the communist Czechoslovakia 42 years ago, on Sunday, September 1, 1968. According to Wikipedia, I…
