Life
Boris Johnson’s human shield
At a Conservative party conference fringe event last Sunday, Lord Bethell, a health minister, was asked where he thought Britain…
Rich pickings
Pity the gilded restaurants of Mayfair, if you can: they are dying. Some have reopened; they ache on like men…
Dear Mary
Q. I am running out of suitable responses to a friend who now has the slightest possible connection to one…
Bonk
I take it personally that a word I practically saw being born is now unrecognised by people almost old enough…
Football without the crowds is a winner
The Liverpool defence might have decided in a rare show of togetherness to demonstrate what the word ‘appalling’ means, and…
Aussie Life
It is the season of hyperbole. Conservative columnists are finding parallels for Dan Andrews’ pandemic policy in Mao’s Great Leap…
Kiwi Life
It’s true what they say about ill winds. The coronavirus pandemic was a perverse blessing for New Zealand Prime Minister…
Solution to 2474: Love Me Do
In George Orwell’s 1984 WINSTON SMITH (31/3) worked for the MINISTRY of TRUTH (43/21). The MINISTRY of LOVE (43/34) got…
Real live chess
It is nigh on seven months since I sat opposite a flesh and blood opponent, so I expected to feel…
The art of saying no
In Competition No. 3168 you were invited to compose a response on the part of a well-known writer to an…
Puzzle no. 624
White to play. A variation from L’Ami–Caruana, Bundesliga 2020. Caruana avoided this position, where White can force a quick mate.…
2477: Rendezvous
The unclued entries, all across, are unconnected words from Chambers. Each requires a letter added to render them thematic, and…
High life
Gstaad It is not exactly a stop all the clocks occasion, let alone cut off the telephone, but I’ve finally…
Low life
Feeling oddly confident, clairvoyant even, I entered a bar to place a bet on Sunday’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.…
Real life
The pile of fly-tipping was dumped in the night as usual, right against the five bar gate. I arrived to…
The turf
Wetumpka Racing? When your yard is running at a handsome strike rate of 40 per cent wins to runs you…
Bridge
The Alt Invitational is a prestigious online teams tournament held every fortnight or so, packed with world-class players. It’s not…
The Battle for Britain
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Hats off to Laurence Fox
From the moment I started criticising the government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis people have been urging me to start…
Viva España
It had been a long and no doubt fractious sea voyage. The crew would have signed up for a variety…
The road to new realities
Here’s the quandary. How in future can we make the kind of rapid advances we have made during the Covid…
Dear Mary
Q. Many years ago I was asked to officiate at a funeral for a family I did not know. As…
What ho
In the First Act of Othello, just as things are getting interesting, the audience hears someone calling from offstage: ‘What…
Kiwi Life
What has happened to the West, ignoring the lessons of history? Sweden, for example, long regarded as one of the…
Wild life
Bexhill-on-Sea My Aunt Beryl taught me to love books and paintings. When I’m at a loose end in London, lonely,…
