Life
Will my French guests get revenge for Agincourt?
The French couple did not speak much English so I rattled on in my best French, thinking I was doing…
2762: Keys of the Kingdom
The unclued lights are a small fraction of almost 800. Across 12 Oilmen rail about petroleum product (7,3) 13…
The dangers of policing misinformation
When Steve Reed, the now ex-communities secretary, unveiled his social cohesion ‘action plan’ earlier this year, he promised to publish…
Don’t feel sorry for Argentina
It keeps on happening, the passing of sporting titans. First Garfield Sobers and now Kevin Keegan, a couple of the…
How to write your own Burnham thinkpiece
As seen in the New Statesman ‘A garlic naan for every curreh, and a sofa for every telleh,’ says the…
How Rio helps us Johnsons find love
My youngest son, Oliver, has asked me to make a speech at his wedding. I am very flattered even to…
A toast to my good health
Rachel Johnson’s raillery is reminiscent of Beatrice and Benedick, in the early phase, but with no danger of a predestinate…
Dear Mary: how can I tell my fellow bridesmaid that her speech is waffling?
Q. A few years ago friends from New Zealand came to stay with us for what they said would be…
Spectator Competition: Feverish
Competition 3459 invited you to submit a passage that lavishly depicted a heatwave. The entries accumulated languorously, replete with detail…
What makes an ‘old boys’ club’?
In 1969, The Spectator’s leading article appeared on the cover. The first of that year was headed ‘The Old Boys’…
Aussie life
One of the least neglected protocols of elite sport is the obligation of the national coach to answer the question…
Language
One classic bit of the Aussie verbal culture (with us for many years) is the expression ‘beyond the black stump’.…
I’m sick of ‘plastic’ football fans
Last week I watched a clip of Ian Wright explaining why it meant so much to him, as a black…
‘I hope Keir Starmer comes for the pints, not the food’: The Pineapple reviewed
It’s a Saturday afternoon and I’ve just walked into The Pineapple in north London, thus becoming the 4,825th journalist to…
There is no car more beautiful than an Aston Martin
The oddities at the Penzance Rotary Club Classic Car & Bike Show included a golden thing that looked like the…
Spectator Competition: Resignation
Comp. 3458 invited you to submit a fictional character’s stepping-down letter. A new light was cast on various figures, from…
Dear Mary: How should I have dealt with a seat thief?
Q. When guests are leaving our house they sometimes ask: ‘Would you like me to strip my bed?’ The truthful…
