Is it cruel or kind to sign someone off work for anxiety?
Each batch of new statistics reveals the scale of Britain’s mental health crisis. This week, we learnt that the number…
Trump targets Iran’s ‘crown jewel’ in massive US bombing raid
The United States has carried out what President Donald Trump described as one of the most powerful bombing raids in…
Labour’s lawfare has broken British army morale
A French soldier was killed on Thursday evening in the Erbil region of Iraq. In announcing the death of chief…
Scottish devolution has failed
When the Scottish parliament was established in 1999, it was intended to represent the best of modern governance. The Labour…
Are the chips down for AI thanks to Iran?
While Americans anxiously watch the price of gasoline tick higher as the war in the Middle East squeezes the global…
Chaharshanbe Suri in the Iranian Soul
Chaharshanbe Suri is one of the ancient Iranian festivals, celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday of the year,…
Pride of lionesses
National pride matters. And symbols or displays of national pride carry huge significance. That is the lesson of the brave…
Brown study
The war in Iran has produced a classic example of the practice of politicians twisting the meaning of words which…
Satirical notes
Lovers of fine writing and challenging ideas are devastated at the news of the Ayatollah Khameini’s sudden death in Tehran.…
Uncanny mutations
Isn’t it odd the way we can start watching a streamer in absolute disgusted disbelief only to discover that we’re…
Aussie life
I’ve probably enjoyed as many long lunches as any old adman, and in the 1980s and ’90s may well have…
Language
Are our governments guilty of ‘menticide’? This uncommon word is recorded from 1951, in which year it first appeared in…
How the poor survived in ancient Rome
Those for whom the welfare state does not provide as much welfare as they would like might care to reflect…
‘We don’t know what’s going on or why we’re doing this’: how Trump’s Iran gamble backfired
‘Donald Trump is a complicated person with simple ideas,’ said Kellyanne Conway, the former White House senior counsellor. ‘Way too…
Will books soon become extinct?
I am glad that Radio 4 is producing a series called How Reading Made Us, presented by the subtle, super-literate…
