Life
Language
Social psychologist Irving Janis coined the term ‘groupthink’ in 1971. So, let’s see if I can break that down, and…
Picture perfect: Locatelli at the National Gallery reviewed
I feel for Locatelli, the new Italian restaurant inside the National Gallery, whose opening coincides with the 200th anniversary of…
I’ve rekindled my love affair with England
Late spring. Sitting in the armchair in the living room, I was chilly and disconsolate. My middle daughter was seven-and-a-half…
Let straight white men write novels!
About 15 years ago, I tried to interest my literary agent in a state-of-the-nation novel set in 21st-century London. My…
Dear Mary: How can I get through a long, exhausting wedding?
Q. When I have an arrangement to meet a certain friend for lunch she sometimes turns up with a streaming…
The sorry demise of Windies cricket
The tub-thumping atmosphere in the Long Room at Lord’s was so raucous late on Monday afternoon as India and England…
How to spot a troublesome Airbnb review
The guest who thought our farm was in the town centre was very cross indeed. She got out of her…
Where did ‘husband’ come from?
‘Am I housebound?’ asked my husband as I was discussing with him the complicated history of the name for his…
Labour is risking the future of racing
The only political party with a serious chance of winning office I will ever vote for again is the one…
Spectator Competition: Some like it hot
For Competition 3408 you were invited to write poems about heatwaves. This comp was inspired by the weather! In the…
Aussie life
If you want to get a rough idea of where Australians stand on a particular issue, commission a report by…
Language
Is ‘de-escalate’ in the running to be the Word of the Year for 2025? Or (as seems more likely) the…
Dear Mary: How do we handle staying with friends with very different political views?
Q. We are going to stay with some old friends who we haven’t seen for a couple of years as…
Why driving at 80mph won’t save you time
The device you see on this page is called a ‘paceometer’ and was devised by behavioural scientists Eyal Peer and…
My sober assessment of the fat jabs
It was my friend Alex who tipped me the wink. I bumped into him at a party earlier this year…
Are Reeves and Starmer really in ‘lockstep’?
‘She and I work together, we think together,’ said Sir Keir Starmer of Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer.…
Wine to pass the cricket Test
What to drink while watching cricket? Beer or even Pimm’s for the village green, but I think that a Test…
Are my cattle ready to compete?
Kenya My cattle sensei Mark revealed that my Boran bulls aren’t gaining enough masculine growth after weaning because they’re only…
