Life
Chelsea carnivores
The Maze Grill is on a sinister street in Chelsea, between a small Tesco — a boutique Tesco? — and…
High life
Wow, what a week. London may be bad for one’s health, but it sure makes it fun on the way…
Long life
The 1960s were already more than halfway over when I realised that I was living through what was supposed to…
Long life
The 1960s were already more than halfway over when I realised that I was living through what was supposed to…
Low life
After hitting me with the cancer diagnosis, the urologist offered me the choice of a longer life in exchange for…
Low life
After hitting me with the cancer diagnosis, the urologist offered me the choice of a longer life in exchange for…
Matajudíos
A village has changed its name because it seemed offensive. But I think the villagers were under a misapprehension. The…
Real life
Here is what I thought happened. I thought that as I tided my store room at the stables I put…
Kyrgios is surely just what tennis needs
Well thank heaven for Nick Kyrgios. The lavishly inked, blinged and barbered Aussie is quite one of the most thrilling…
True grit and pushy parents
I took my three boys for a cycle ride in Richmond Park on Sunday. Under normal circumstances, this would have…
True grit and pushy parents
I took my three boys for a cycle ride in Richmond Park on Sunday. Under normal circumstances, this would have…
Dettori’s double
Eclipse was one of the most remarkable racehorses ever. Sired by the then undistinguished Marske, whom mares could visit for…
My big embarrassing Greek royal wedding
Tempus sure fugit, and how. Twenty years ago, on Saturday 1 July 1995, monarchs from around the world descended on…
Praise, insults, posh gin – and other perils of the book launch
Rachel Johnson, in last week’s Spectator diary, says that her husband says she only writes a book in order to…
House-hunting in Cobham has driven me to the verge of insanity
This much I know, I never want to live in an ‘executive home’, and neither do I want to live…
First I cursed the Calais migrants — then I thanked them
The Eurostar train descended gently into the Channel Tunnel, went halfway along it, and then stopped. There it remained for…
Bridge
I had no idea until last week that Burt Lancaster was a passionate bridge player. I found out after meeting…
Magnus toppled
Last week, world champion Magnus Carlsen suffered a devastating defeat in the first round of the Stavanger super tournament when…
No. 369
White to play. This is from Anand–Hammer, Stavanger 2015. White is a pawn up with a good position and his…
Court report
In Competition No. 2904 you were invited to take as your first line ‘There’s a breathless hush on the centre…
2218: Fab!
The unclued lights (two of three words and two of two words) can be preceded by the same word and…
To 2215: IVOs
The unclued lights include at least four Os (IV Os), and other clued solutions contain two or three. OROONOKO at…
Giving up alcohol is not as much fun as I’d hoped
Two months ago, I set myself the target of losing 11 pounds in time for the Spectator’s summer party on…
Battle for Britain
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A better way to be charitable: just give money
Seven years ago I wrote here about a site called Kiva.org. I had met the co-founder of this charity when…
