Primer time
The Motive and the Cue breaches the inviolable sanctity of the rehearsal room. The play, set in New York in…
A feast for the ears
Sir Hubert Parry was upgraded from knight bachelor to baronet by King Edward VII in 1902, and my goodness he…
The end is in sight
Plan 75 is a dystopian Japanese drama about a government-sponsored euthanasia programme introduced to address Japan’s ageing society. Aged 75…
Early birds
As the owner of a radio alarm clock, I could theoretically start listening to the Today programme before I’m even…
Sad-face emoji
Whether by accident or design, the mathematical theme of Ed Sheeran’s previous album titles (+, ×, ÷ and = respectively)…
No laughing matter
As stage directions go, the The Magic Flute opens with a zinger. ‘Tamino enters from the right wearing a splendid…
An eye for the absurd
Come for the satire, stay for the one-liners, and take succour from the hope Walter finds in a world where everyone needs an angel from time to time
Pie in the sky
Frieda Hughes adopts an unfledged orphan bird, regarding him as ‘a magical creature’ – but few others find him so engaging
Human and divine
Attendance is in serious decline, but our churches have much to offer, especially in times of crisis, and we neglect their crumbling fabric at our peril
True intellectual happiness
Nikhil Krishnan provides many amusing vignettes of Isaiah Berlin, A.J. Ayer, Gilbert Ryle and others in the heyday of linguistic philosophy
The view from on high
Sixteen-year-old Kit floats free from her body at night and circles invisibly over family and friends – not always liking what she sees
Communing with an ancestor
Ian Marchant, diagnosed with cancer in 2020, takes comfort from his ancestor’s diary (1714-28), recording a full life as farmer and mainstay of his parish
A nasty piece of work
Moving among the rich of Long Island, an upmarket prostitute grows increasingly desperate as her many misdemeanours are exposed
Horror and high romanticism
David Grann returns to the greatest sea story ever told: of Captain Anson’s piratical feat, and ‘the mutiny that never was’ aboard the Wager
The great exhibitionist
Antonia Fraser describes an intelligent, independent woman, whose penchant for cross-dressing reflected her yearning for the freedom only men enjoyed
IDAHOBIT: Victorian schools add another activist event to the calendar
Victorian schools celebrating the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT) set for May 18 prove, yet again, how…
Where is the Voice of the Forgotten People?
Julia Banks, former Liberal member for Chisholm, says the party is over for the Liberals. Writing in the Saturday Paper, she…
The Dutch farmers’ stand against green tyranny
‘The whole point of bureaucracy is to reduce the possibilities of your life to the greatest possible degree when it…
All of a sudden, ivermectin is safe again
Has anyone else noticed a pattern around the Covid-related restrictions of the past three years? Each infringement felt like a…
How prisons teach inmates that crime pays
John Major is wrong when he suggests only violent offenders should be automatically locked up – and as a non-violent…
Prince Harry’s phone hacking muddle
Prince Harry is no stranger to demanding that everyone, everywhere should mind their own business and give him privacy –…
Shrinking GDP shows how stagnant the economy has become
The UK economy shrank by 0.3 per cent in March, as ongoing strike action continued to take its toll. But the fall…
Unrest is growing in Macron’s febrile France
Across Europe the numbers are soaring. In Britain, net migration figures are expected to near one million when the figures…
