Life
All together now
In Competition 2836 you were invited to coin collective nouns for the following: tweeters, hackers, hoodies, WAGS, environmentalists, bankers, MPs…
2151: Sources
Three theme words which must be deduced each suggest three unclued lights (including one of two words and ignoring one…
to 2148: Eighth of February
Unclued lights can each be abbreviated so that together they give the letters of FEBRUARY: FAHRENHEIT (19), EARTH (32), BASS…
What’s happened to Harriet Harman?
Watching Harriet Harman being interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg on Newsnight earlier this week was a strange experience. I felt as…
Battle for Britain
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How to give yourself a better chance
During the O.J. Simpson trial, the prosecution made much of the fact that Simpson had a record of violence towards…
Dear Mary
Q. One of my best friends, who knows I don’t have a great social life at university, has a brother…
Toast to a future wedding
Three of us, old friends, were meeting to arrange a marriage. The young couple have never actually met. Indeed, they…
Resilience
They were talking on the wireless about Brazilians in the flooded areas, or so I thought. Once the kettle had…
Toast to a future wedding
Three of us, old friends, were meeting to arrange a marriage. The young couple have never actually met. Indeed, they…
How to give yourself a better chance
During the O.J. Simpson trial, the prosecution made much of the fact that Simpson had a record of violence towards…
High life
Gstaad ‘On ne touche pas une femme, même avec une fleur,’ says an old French dictum, one not always adhered…
Low life
‘In my opinion,’ says Alistair Webster QC, author of the Liberal Democrats’ internal report into Lord Rennard’s droit de seigneur-style…
Real life
‘Quick, let’s slip one in the menu,’ said the builder, taking a leaflet from my handbag after we had paid…
Long life
Shirley Temple, who died last week at the age of 85, was the most successful child film star in history.…
On course for thrills
This year you don’t want to be a jockey’s valet. Never have their washing machines spun so vigorously. From every…
Bridge
Bridge players are a generous bunch — both with their expertise and their time. There are many charity events to…
Triumvirate
Three important tournaments concluded this month, for two of which (Gibraltar and Bunratty) I attended the awards ceremonies. I have…
no. 302
White to play. This position is from Keogh-Chevannes, Bunratty 2014. How did White’s massive central build-up transform into a winning…
Lonely hearts
In Competition 2835 you were invited to submit a profile for an online dating website for a well-known politician, living…
2150: Content
Each of thirteen clues contains a superfluous word. Initial letters of these words spell the first four words of a…
Solution to 2147: Amazing Performance
Taking one unchecked letter from each across solution gives EXTRAORDINARY RENDITION, whose victims, according to Chambers 2011, include TERRORIST SUSPECTs.…
A question of authority
A new book by a Swedish psychiatrist has just come out that I like the sound of. It’s called How…
Battle for Britain
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Flying boards and killer moustaches
You can trust the BBC to behave like a leaf blown by any breeze, but even that spineless leviathan (if…
