Life
Low life
I went from the first yoga session of the New Year to the pub. I felt ever so noble. The…
Real life
Just the three resolutions for me. I am keeping it simple. Number one: no more boyfriends. The definition of insanity…
Long life
The date of this issue of The Spectator is 4 January 2014, which also happens to be my 74th birthday.…
Bridge
What is the purpose of bidding? It’s how partners describe their hands to each other in order to reach the…
Vale Vishy
Viswanathan Anand, the 15th world champion, suffered a complete meltdown in his title defence against Magnus Carlsen towards the end…
No. 295
Black to play. This position is from Kramnik-Anand, Nice 2008. Both sides have dangerous-looking attacks. Can you spot Anand’s brilliant…
That was the year that was
In Competition 2828 you were invited to submit a retrospective verse commentary on 2013. Reasons to be cheerful are, apparently,…
2143: Revising geography
The unclued lights are broadly of a kind (33 differs from the others, though 33K would have been more appropriate,…
to 2141: Megacant
The unclued lights are examples of super slang listed on pp 7/8 in the Word Lover’s Miscellany section of Chambers…
Join my campaign to save the country
This is going to be the year I do my Flash Gordon routine and launch a campaign to save the…
Dave
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Luddites in the kitchen
I enjoy reading reviews of kitchen gadgetry. Clever new kitchen products are often under-appreciated. Many rituals around food preparation are…
Dear Mary
Q. I travel internationally two or three times per month for work, often with one or two colleagues. While the…
The great white Burgundy disaster
We agreed that it was the gravest crisis facing mankind. It has led to dashed hopes, widespread grief and a…
Roll
If Manchester University is to be believed, last year saw a creeping advance of effete southern language into the gritty…
The great white Burgundy disaster
We agreed that it was the gravest crisis facing mankind. It has led to dashed hopes, widespread grief and a…
Luddites in the kitchen
I enjoy reading reviews of kitchen gadgetry. Clever new kitchen products are often under-appreciated. Many rituals around food preparation are…
High Life
This Christmas our thoughts need to be with our fellow Christians who are being threatened in the Bible lands. No…
Low Life
Christmas shopping in Waterstones, I came across a memory card game called We’re Going on a Bear Hunt. I snatched…
Real Life
A very cross letter arrives from someone who wants to tell me I’m a ‘silly woman’. ‘You are a silly…
Long Life
This is the season of goodwill when one should think about people less fortunate than oneself and wish them better…
Wild Life
Laikipia In the cattle rustlers’ camp, I know as I write this that the warriors are sharpening their blades, staring…
Hennessy Day highlights
You don’t realise how much your pleasures mean until you are denied them. It was wonderful to get back on…
Bridge
Autumn 2013 has been the single worst season of my bridge career. Actually, do I have a bridge career? Doesn’t…
Christmas Quiz
Set by Christopher Howse
