Charting history
Charts, maps and tables: the British Library shows off its fact-rich publications in this small, thoughtful and free new exhibition
Long life
Why do supermarkets insist on moving everything about? Are they just keeping the staff on their toes?
Bridge
You’ve probably read about the English Bridge Union’s attempt to get bridge reclassified as a sport rather than a game…
Magnus force
As the World Championship qualifier (aka Candidates tournament) approaches its final rounds in Khanty-Mansisk, it is worth emphasising the Everest which…
No. 307
White to play. This is a possible variation from Mamedyarov-Topalov, Khanty-Mansisk Candidates 2014. The black king is rather exposed in…
De haut en bas
In Competition 2840 you were invited to provide an extract from the autobiography of a modern-day celebrity, ghostwritten by a…
2155: Poor Billy’s left out
The unclued lights (two must be paired) are of a kind, verifiable in Brewer. Across 10 Details from Britain…
to 2152: T20
Each letter of each solution and each unclued light has to be represented in the grid by its numerical position…
The diamond-ring theory of housing bubbles
We buy houses like we buy diamonds. That’s why they’re so stupidly expensive
The Tony Abbott I know and admire
My one-time nemesis continues to confound his critics, but there is a danger he will try to accommodate them
Our Watergate?
When we say the drama surrounding Arthur Sinodinos’s dealings at Australian Water Holdings brings back memories of Watergate, we do…
Diary
A rabbi, a Catholic priest and an Anglican minister all gathered for afternoon tea. No, it’s not the start of…
Australian notes
Until recently the anti-Israel BDS (Boycott Divestment Sanctions) movement was on its last legs in Australia. Few Australians had heard…
Key to defeat
New Zealand’s PM is overwhelmingly popular, yet he stands to lose this year thanks to a shocking electoral system
On the Contrary
Dame Gina Rinehart — for services to coal transportation, journalistic freedom and family law, we confer upon you this country’s…
