Life
My hundred-year-old-horse
‘This isn’t so bad,’ said my friend, as we knelt at my old mare’s side as she lay on the…
How I rewilded the African bush
Laikipia My two Jersey bulls Halcyon and Hosanna were grazing happily on the lawn in front of the house…
Bridge
For most bridge players, defence is the hardest part of the game. Not only do you need to visualise declarer’s…
Man made
This year’s Isle of Man Masters, sponsored by Chess.com, could claim to be the strongest ever open chess competition. The…
no. 530
Black to play. This is from Cornette-Jumabayev, Isle of Man 2018. Black’s next move led to an overwhelming material advantage.…
Brief lives
In Competition No. 3072 you were invited to supply a short verse biography of a well-known figure from history. …
2383: Flagged
The unclued lights, one of two words, and the others when paired are of a kind. One individual unclued light…
to 2380: Dedover
The unclued Across lights are US state capitals and the unclued Down ones are the states. The title refers to…
I like the idea of meritocracy as much as my father hated it
Last week I spoke at an event at Nottingham University to commemorate the 60th anniversary of The Rise of the…
The Battle for Britain
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Rugby union vs league – or Barbour-clad southerners vs the whippet brigade
Leader in the clubhouse for top rugby try by an Englishman in 2018: Oliver Gildart. Oliver who? Oliver Gildart, only…
Dear Mary: How can I face the friends who warned me that my girlfriend would dump me?
Q. Previously a long-term and content single man, earlier in the year I began a relationship with a wonderful girl,…
Like Soho House in the country – but marginally less hateful: The Pig at Combe reviewed
The Pig at Combe is a restaurant in a country house hotel in a valley in Devon. I actually went…
Getting on – and falling off – the wagon
Radio 3 tries to distract listeners from music by posing little quizzes and hearing quirky details of history from a…
Requiem for New York
New York In the dark she still looks good. The mystery and magnetism linger until dawn, then you slowly…
My first world war obsession
My reactionary first world war reading jag continues. The literature is vast, but so is my capacity and fascination. I…
Bitless and scared witless: a dangerous new left-wing cult
Just when you thought there was nothing more for women of the left to nonsensically oppose, I bring you news…
The dirtiest racehorse names
Watching whip-thin jockey George Baker, just short of six feet, greeting his mounts used to make me think of the…
Bridge
Vytas and Erikas Vainikonis, father and son bridge enthusiasts, are the generous hosts of one of the best five days…
Condottieri
The recently concluded European Club Cup, held at Porto Carras in Greece, resembled late medieval Italian warfare — populated by…
no. 529
Black to play. This position is from Carlsen-Ding Liren, Porto Carras 2018. Black tried 1 … Nxg4 here but Carlsen…
Accentuate the negative
In Competition No. 3071 you were invited to supply a demotivational poem. This was your opportunity to come up…
2382: A pointed remark
Three unclued lights make up a nine-word quotation. Remaining unclued lights are of a kind. Across 1 Norway blocking…
to 2379: Shocking
The word is ‘pink’. Definitions of the eight headwords are: CARNATION (9), STAB (43), CHAFFINCH (22D), SMALL SAILING SHIP (41/1A/13),…
Science is on the side of the trans activists
Some interesting scientific research on gender differences was published last week. Two social scientists studied the preferences of 80,000 people…
