Life
When brave is better than good
Oskar Morgenstern grew up in Vienna, John von Neumann in Budapest. Clearly the same Austro-Hungarian intellectual spirit which gave rise…
Wild life
In bed Safety measures — I’ve never been good at them, so inevitably I inhaled and got soaked by the…
High life
Like the late Christopher Hitchens who only discovered his Jewish roots once he had moved to New York in the…
Low life
I couldn’t find the house so I called the number again. Instead of the man I’d spoken to previously, this…
Real life
Just when I thought I couldn’t possibly fight any more battles, a pink planning notice is pinned to the lamp…
Long life
One curious fact about Sir George Christie, who died last week, aged 79, was that he always cut his own…
Twelve to Follow
In sport, winning is everything. Come second and only your parents and the dog remember. Most readers will have forgotten…
Bridge
The Schapiro Spring Foursomes, held in early May in Stratford-upon-Avon, is one of the great tournaments and this time it…
In training
In my column of 26 April I suggested that the new world champion Magnus Carlsen was in need of some…
No. 314
White to play. This is a variation from Caruana-Radjabov, Gashimov Memorial, Shamkir 2014. The advanced White c-pawn gives him an…
Double celebration
In Competition No. 2847 you were invited to submit a poem celebrating a famous duo. You wheeled out a colourful…
2162: Stand in
In each of eleven clues the definition part contains a superfluous letter. These letters, in clue order, spell a three-word…
to 2159: Wine, woman & song
The three groups associated with EMPEROR (24) were MOTHS (1A, 25D, 39), PAPER SIZES (9, 16A, 44), and PENGUINS (13,…
A lesson in humility
I went to a meeting at Penguin earlier this week to discuss ‘publicity opportunities’ for my forthcoming book. Chance would…
Battle for Britain
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A real winner
Sport is all about streaks, winning and losing, though whether one of the gloomiest runs in world sport — England’s…
Dear Mary
Q. An architect is overseeing some builders at my house. She is a perfectly nice woman but has a maddening…
End of the rude
Wong Kei is a mad Chinese restaurant on Wardour Street, Chinatown. Until recently it was considered the rudest restaurant in…
Marylebone
‘Take a trip to Marylebone station,’ chanted my husband. ‘Do not pass Go. Do not collect £200.’ I had been…
End of the rude
Wong Kei is a mad Chinese restaurant on Wardour Street, Chinatown. Until recently it was considered the rudest restaurant in…
A real winner
Sport is all about streaks, winning and losing, though whether one of the gloomiest runs in world sport — England’s…
Twelve to Follow
In sport, winning is everything. Come second and only your parents and the dog remember. Most readers will have forgotten…
High life
For some of you younger readers the name Schmuel Gelbfisz will not ring a bell. Yet back in the Thirties…
Low life
As Sharon stooped to pour boiling water from the kettle into two mugs, I studied her back and wondered what,…
Real life
You know you’ve been irreversibly sucked into the ninth circle of horse-owning hell when you find yourself perusing an equine…
