Life
The dark side of your local dog show
Over at the judging for Waggiest Tail, things were getting acrimonious. ‘That bloody woman,’ my new acquaintance muttered. We were…
The joy of getting lost in the Congo
Republic of Congo I’m sending this to you from the rainforest in Congo, surrounded by vast trees and jungle noises…
Spectator Competition: Wrong ’un?
In Comp. 3360 you were invited to submit a passage or poem in which a fictional villain offers their side…
Aussie life
According to Treasurer Jim Chalmers, increasing competition among supermarket giants will help deliver lower grocery prices. ‘If it is more…
Language
If you haven’t come across it before, let me introduce you to ‘linguistic engineering’. This useful expression has been around…
Watching the Euros final in Italy was a bad idea
There was not a Spaniard in sight, I was pretty sure of that. But I was surrounded by the enemy,…
Dear Mary: How do I keep my phone safe on the beach?
Q. My husband and I have just been on a wonderful long weekend abroad to a friend’s 60th birthday. We…
The intersectional feminist rewriting the national curriculum
The appointment of Becky Francis CBE to lead the Department for Education’s shake-up of the national curriculum is typical of…
Why Keely Hodgkinson is the one to watch at the Olympics
The Olympics have been creeping up on us through the forest of top-class sport this summer. But now they’re here,…
The hidden depths of ‘deep dive’
My husband has taken to crying out or braying ‘Haar, ha!’ at the wireless whenever he hears something particularly foolish,…
Spectator Competition: Pitch battle
In Competition 3359 you were invited to present an account of a historical event as football commentary. There were enough…
My shameful shortcut to perfect pesto
Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. It has been… too long since my last confession. Picture the scene. I…
Has there ever been a jockey like Oisin Murphy?
We are blessed these days with a rare stream of jockey talent including the likes of William Buick, Ryan Moore,…
Me vs the plumber
My one finished bathroom featured a sink so small I could only wash one hand in it at a time,…
