The Week
On the cards
Back when Boris Johnson was on a mission to stop identity cards being used in Britain, he made a very…
No time for losers
Every red-blooded Englishman has believed that exercise in the open air is the finest prophylactic against popery, adultery and the…
Diary
The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee pageant was officially launched last week, with a splashy press call in the Raphael Court of…
Portrait of the week
Home England expects everyone to wear masks in crowded places, Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, said in a televised address,…
Letters
Save the parish Sir: The Revd Marcus Walker eloquently describes the crisis that has taken hold in the Church of…
Barometer
Space cadets Richard Branson joined a test flight on his Virgin Galactic craft to the edge of space, to promote…
Best behaviour
The Prime Minister is urging citizens not to throw caution to the winds when lockdown ends on 19 July but…
The bigger picture
There are two certainties whenever England’s football team plays; one that is long-established and the other a recent phenomenon. Players…
Letters
Treading the boards Sir: As a teacher, I was sorry Lloyd Evans did not include school productions in his excellent…
Portrait of the week
Home Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, said that if a review of coronavirus restrictions on 12 July allowed, then on…
Opening time
A charge repeatedly made against Boris Johnson over the past 16 months is that he has ‘ignored scientific advice’. But…
Barometer
Mask crusader Who first wore a medical face mask? — The beaked outfits worn by plague doctors aside, the first…
Diary
I’ve been amazed by the response to my decision to leave my band, Mumford & Sons. The article in which…
Diana’s strange monument
The recently unveiled funerary monument of Princess Diana prompts comparison with Greek and Roman archetypes. To many, Diana was a…
Letters
Excess demand Sir: Liam Halligan (‘The house mafia’, 26 June) treats us to an exposé of the shoddy products of…
Portrait of the week
Home A lively game of hunt the issue followed the resignation of Matt Hancock as Secretary of State for Health…
Teach first
Aswitch of personnel at the Department of Health this week has brought a welcome change in the government’s tone. No…
Barometer
Isolated cases Large numbers of people are still being ordered to self-isolate in spite of having been vaccinated — 137,560…
A word to the wise
The delicious hypocrisy at the heart of today’s cancel fraternity is that it is strongly opposed to censorship. Romans grappled…
Diary
It turns out that if there’s one thing more expensive than making theatre, it’s not making it. Empty buildings haemorrhage…
Portrait of the Week
Home The government contemplated its promised Planning Bill, blamed for contributing to the astonishing victory for the Liberal Democrat Sarah…
Barometer
Royal waves Does any other country have a royal yacht? — The Queen of Denmark uses HDMY Dannebrog, a 260ft…
The wrong track
Under what circumstances can a government restrict the liberty of the people? An example was given last year: in a…
Letters
The good doctors Sir: Not all GPs are currently ‘Dr No’ (12 June). I phoned my surgery at 9.30 the…
Athens and the EU
The EU has regularly been likened to the Roman Empire. But its current direction suggests that the Athenian Empire (478-404…
