The Week
Barometer
Centenaries 2022 will see the 100th anniversary of: the BBC; Reader’s Digest; Ulysses by James Joyce; insulin treatment for diabetes;…
Letters
Wrong cure Sir: In referring to the UK as the highest-spending European nation in healthcare proportionate to GDP (‘Hospital pass’,…
Rethinking Penelope
Problems about the misuse of history, especially on subjects such as race and colonialism, have been running for a long…
Diary
I have not given up on my Build Back Boris campaign, which is the most pressing concern facing the UK.…
Johnson vs Johnson
It is two years since Boris Johnson achieved one of the most remarkable election victories in modern history. The large…
Portrait of the year
January The United Kingdom found itself in possession of a trade agreement with the EU. Coronavirus restrictions were tightened. The…
Party’s over
In normal circumstances, no one would care if staff in No. 10 held a Christmas party. But last year, Boris…
Diary
I was born and raised in Sheffield, a proud steel-making city which drew much of its energy from a sense…
Omicron variants
Time to settle the Great Omicron Question. First, there is no word omikron (and no c) in ancient Greek. Second,…
Letters
Flood relief Sir: In my lifetime there have been at least two major flood emergencies when the armed forces have…
Portrait of the week
Home Sajid Javid, the Health Secretary, said that the Omicron variant of coronavirus was spreading by community transmission in ‘multiple…
Portrait of the week
Home In a nervous response to the entry into Britain of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 — B.1.1.529 — the…
A classic defence
A teacher wanting to teach Latin has enquired whether it is worth doing because the subject has ‘such a bad…
Barometer
Thirsty work Sixty-one pub-goers on a night out in the Tan Hill Inn, 1,500 feet up in the Pennines in…
Diary
The last time I wrote for The Spectator’s diary slot, over the summer, theatres were tentatively beginning to turn their…
Salvation army
Last week, the government published its blueprint for how it intends to remodel the army. According to the plan, it…
Letters
The Waitrose test Sir: Like Rod Liddle, I live in the north-east of England — a little further north and…
Diary
Amsterdam These are dangerous times in the Netherlands. Anti-lockdown mobs have torched cars, thrown rocks and attacked the police.…
The cost of Boris
Earlier this week, the Conservative party sent an appeal to its registered supporters asking them to become members. ‘We’re delivering…
Game theory
The ‘globally outstanding’ University of Durham has plans to help its undergraduates who pay their way by prostituting themselves. Three…
Barometer
Red Peppa? In a rambling speech to the CBI, Boris Johnson praised Peppa Pig. Has she changed political sides? Peppa…
Letters
Peace project Sir: It was heartening to read your editorial on the peace which has reigned in Europe since 1945,…
Portrait of the week
Home Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, praised Peppa Pig in a speech to the Confederation of British Industry: ‘Who would’ve…
Asylum isn’t working
Emad Al Swealmeen, who blew himself up in a taxi outside the Liverpool Women’s Hospital, is not believed to have…
Words and deeds
Greta Thunberg and her supporters were loud in protest at COP26, but one wonders to what end. They demanded deeds,…
