Life
Bridge
Bridge is obviously another casualty of the coronavirus. Clubs have closed their doors; tournaments have been cancelled; championships have been…
The turf
The socialite MP Chips Channon once noted in his diaries his feelings about an after-lunch snooze in parliament’s Library: ‘It…
Real life
The most exciting place on earth I have ever been to is the village where I live. And I don’t…
High Life
No use datelining any more, I’m here for the duration. Even the ski lifts have been ordered to close: chiuso,…
Bad boys of the Six Nations
Sadly it looks as though the 2020 Six Nations may have to go down with an asterisk and an explanation…
Wild life
Africa ‘Ah, Africa,’ the French scientist sighed contentedly. This was 1995 and all around us was an Ebola epidemic…
Real Life
The game was up when I put on a pair of size 14 jodhpurs at the country store and they…
puzzle no. 595
Black to play. Tomashevsky–Lomasov, Nutcracker Battle of the Generations, Moscow 2020. A position with a surprising twist. Tomashevsky has just…
2448: Issues
Four pairs of unclued lights (17/5, 22/27, 29/31 and 8/26) form anagrams of the titles (one hyphened, three of three…
Solution to 2445: in other words II
41/1A/10 is MISQUOTATION. 1D/24/33, 15, 34, and 38/16D are examples of common misquotations. First prize Dianne Parker, Dover, KentRunners-up Vincent…
High life
Gstaad Rumours about the virus are flying around this village. First there was talk of a hotel being temporarily…
The Battle for Britain
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Bridge
Just back from Monaco, the tiny principality famously dubbed ‘a sunny place for shady people’ by Somerset Maugham. Pierre Zimmermann,…
Low life
The greater the enervation, it is said, the greater the appreciation of a work of art. There was no place…
Grave thoughts
In Competition No. 3139 you were invited to submit a four-line verse epitaph for a well-known person, living or dead.…
Dry cake in a red-brick crab
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and it sits like a red-brick crab on the…
Chess borders
In the 1800s, several chess matches were conducted by telegraph. Modern technology ought to make long-distance matches easier than ever,…
Cartoonists have a right to free speech
I’m no fan of Steve Bell, the Guardiancartoonist. I can’t say I’ve ever laughed at one of his squibs, which…
dear mary your problems solved
Q. How can I stop a member of the household from glutting out on the chocolate supply I have stockpiled?…
2447: No small matter
One clued light can be associated with ten unclued ones. Ignore accents. One solution is an IVR. Across 4 Thrills…
The Battle for Britain
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No more Spanish eggshells
It is time to begin with an apology, and hope. In the course of these columns, I have already admitted…
My night in A&E
I wish I shared the Prime Minister’s confidence about the ability of the NHS to cope with coronavirus. ‘I have…
High Life
Gstaad I shoulda been a weatherman: no sooner had I announced snow to be a Gstaad rarity than it…
The Turf
Every time the Cheltenham Festival looms, I recall a remarkable experience. It was already 25 years since Dawn Run’s recovery…
