Life
An elegy in Burgundy
It was a sort of wake. An old friend’s father had died, and some of us were helping him and…
Diffuse
It’s funny how people hardly know what they are saying. I read recently of diplomats going to Riyadh ‘to diffuse…
An elegy in Burgundy
It was a sort of wake. An old friend’s father had died, and some of us were helping him and…
Adam Smith vs the measurebators
Gandhi would test his resolve by sleeping between two naked virgins, an avenue not really open to me, as my…
High life
When I hear the words Sykes-Picot I more often than not feel like punching an Englishman or a Frog —…
Low life
On Saturday night I went to Charlie’s 69th birthday party. What a gaff he’s got. The rather snooty description of…
Real life
The vet arrived at the stable yard wearing his customary grin. He is the happiest man I know. Of course…
Long life
At the time of the armistice of September 1943, when the kingdom of Italy formally transferred its allegiance from the…
Winning ways
The one sight I was determined not to miss at Royal Ascot was that of the Queen from over the…
Bridge
I’m not trying to pretend it will make up for the drubbing England took in the World Cup, but if…
Blitzkrieg
Chess, unlike football, appears to confer little or no home advantage. In a recent article for Kensington & Chelsea Today,…
No. 320
White to play. This position is a variation from Mamedov-Carlsen, World Blitz 2014. Here White played 1 hxg5 and Carlsen…
Ground work
In Competition No. 2853 you were asked to incorporate the following words (they are real geological terms) into a piece…
2168: History exam
Each of twenty-two clues contains a superfluous word. Initial letters of these words spell three specimens of 5; these are…
to 2165: Not far off
According to Fred HOYLE (24), SPACE is ‘only an hour’s drive away if your car could go straight upwards’ (10…
Has my negative charisma doomed free schools?
This isn’t a headline I was expecting to read: ‘Free schools could be a bigger negative for the Tories than…
Battle for Britain
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England’s World Cup: the post mortem
Iran, eh: who knew? Last time I checked it was the great Satan, locking up its own people, stamping out…
Dear Mary
Q. How, in a party context, can one avoid answering what used to be called ‘nosey’ questions without being rude?…
Dinner with the paparazzi
Here then is Gatsby’s house, after an invasion by the Daily Mail. It is called the Chiltern Firehouse. It is…
Isis
‘This’ll make you laugh,’ said my husband, looking up from the Daily Telegraph. For once he was right. It was…
Dinner with the paparazzi
Here then is Gatsby’s house, after an invasion by the Daily Mail. It is called the Chiltern Firehouse. It is…
England’s World Cup: the post mortem
Iran, eh: who knew? Last time I checked it was the great Satan, locking up its own people, stamping out…
Winning ways
The one sight I was determined not to miss at Royal Ascot was that of the Queen from over the…
High life
As everyone who has ever joined a club knows, Pugs is the world’s most exclusive one, its members ranging from…
