Life
Mighty Magnus
The world champion is back on form. After winning the overall laurels in last year’s Grand Tour, and taking first…
No. 395
White to play. This position is from Van Wely-Carlsen, Wijk aan Zee 2016. Carlsen had a lucky escape in this…
Now we are rich
In Competition No. 2934 you were invited to submit a poem suitable for inclusion in Now We are Rich. You…
Your problems solved
Q. I recently rediscovered a wonderful 22-year-old godson. He came to shoot for the first time and was a marvellous…
Game show
A few years ago, a distinguished cove in the diplomatic service was made High Commissioner to Australia. To prepare himself…
High life
Gstaad I had the rather subversive idea of offering a six-figure sum to Oriel College, Oxford. On one condition: that…
Long life
I am sure that the Queen disapproves of litter as much as anyone else, but she’s hardly ever exposed to…
Long life
I am sure that the Queen disapproves of litter as much as anyone else, but she’s hardly ever exposed to…
Low life
The hotel reception was lit by three gloomy low-wattage light bulbs. It should have been six but the management was…
Low life
The hotel reception was lit by three gloomy low-wattage light bulbs. It should have been six but the management was…
Beware
My husband pointed with his stick, which he carries not to steady himself but to cudgel pedestrians out of his…
Real life
After the £1,100 quote from the vet in London I drove down the A3 and out the other side of…
Would I break my neck for a bit of TV fame?
Not long ago I was asked if I wanted to participate in a Channel 4 reality show called The Jump.…
Would I break my neck for a bit of TV fame?
Not long ago I was asked if I wanted to participate in a Channel 4 reality show called The Jump.…
Tax me more, but don’t touch my dishwasher
There was a big fuss a year or so ago about a book by a French chap called Piketty about…
Wild life
Nairobi Nairobi’s old avenues were designed to be wide enough for a wagon and several span of oxen to U-turn…
Bridge
It’s got to be the most bizarre news story of the year: last week, no fewer than 50 Thai police…
High life
Athens Viewed from Mars, this is a sunny, peaceful city. Up close, however, things ain’t what they used to be.…
Low life
Denis was my guide to and from the new out-of-town Lidl superstore at Salernes in Provence. I drove. The road…
Real life
If these speed awareness courses get much more entertaining and informative they might become a dangerous incentive to break the…
Second thoughts
Racing Life is all about judgment and I got one thing right at Cheltenham last Saturday after the overnight rain.…
Bridge
The Brits have done brilliantly in Icelandair’s annual bridge festival in Reykjavik and this year was no different. The winners…
Irresistible force
Alexander Alekhine was one of the immortals of the chessboard — world champion from 1927, when in an epic war…
No. 394
White to play. This position is from Alekhine-Flohr, Bled 1931. White has a positional advantage but can you spot the…
Woe is me
In Competition No. 2933 you were invited to submit a blurb for a misery memoir. Thanks to Tom Dulake for…
