Poor little rich girl: the extraordinary life of Yoko Ono
Her background was one of privilege and she married one of the most famous men of our time but the Japanese artist suffered her fair share of grief and misfortune
Never fully comes to life, alas: Mr Burton reviewed
Mr Burton is a biopic of Richard Burton’s early years and an origins story, if you like. It stars Harry…
Metal for people who don’t understand metal: The Darkness at Wembley reviewed
Midway through their thoroughly entertaining show at Wembley Arena, the Darkness played a song from a decade ago called ‘Barbarian’,…
Wonderfully intimate: The Drawings of Victor Hugo, at the RA, reviewed
You feel so close to Victor Hugo in this exhibition. It’s as if you are at his elbow while he…
The liberating force of musical modernism
It’s Arvo Part’s 90th birthday year, which is good news if you like your minimalism glum, low and very, very…
The National Trust’s plans for Clandon Park are a travesty
In April 2015, a fire raged through Clandon Park, destroying much of the 18th-century Palladian mansion’s prized interiors. Contrary to…
Play Putin at his own game by ‘nightmaring’ his world order
There’s a delicious Russian verb that derives from the criminal underworld: “koshmarit,” literally “to nightmare someone.” It usually denotes how…
Proxy voting for new moms makes motherhood look like weakness
In recent days, babies have taken center stage at the US Capitol, carried by their congresswoman mothers advocating for a…
In defence of the Norfolk mega pig farm
The ‘blockers’ who have so offended Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have, for the moment, scored another success in thwarting…
Ex-Tory MSP joins the Lib Dems
The Scottish Liberal Democrats aren’t best known for their ability to grab headlines – but today the spotlight is on…
China hits back against Trump’s tariffs
Donald Trump has sown the wind – and now America must reap the whirlwind. Beijing has today announced plans to…
Could France’s GB News be shut down?
France’s media regulator, Arcom, has been asked to investigate the right-leaning news channel CNews over its coverage of Marine Le…
Will the markets make Trump see sense on tariffs?
This week Donald Trump declared ‘Liberation Day,’ unveiling a barrage of tariffs that had been trailed as correcting unfair trade…
Starmer’s skills adviser founded failing school
There’s a new man about Whitehall. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has appointed Oli de Botton – ex-adviser to David Miliband…
Are Islamist gangs in control of Britain’s most secure prison?
HMP Frankland, in Durham, is supposed to be one of the most secure jails in the country. The category A…
They think it’s all over for President Yoon – it is now
Yoon Suk Yeol, elected South Korea’s president in 2022, has been removed from office. The Constitutional Court in Seoul has…
Labour council tells staff to take ‘privilege’ test
If you thought progressive politics couldn’t get any worse, think again. It transpires that the Labour-led Westminster city council is…
Please be quiet
America’s political leadership is sensitive to criticism. We know this. High-ranking individuals within the Administration have told us. This has…
The truth about Israel’s ‘bloodlust’ in Gaza
Are we being lied to, or at the very least misled, about what’s going on in Gaza? It increasingly seems…
Trump can’t ignore the stock market carnage forever
As it turned out, the only thing Liberation Day was actually liberating anyone from was their money. In the wake…
Trump has finally ditched Macron for Marine Le Pen
It’s official, the bromance between Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron is over. It had always been a rocky relationship but…
Nato needs to prepare for America’s withdrawal from Europe
Mark Rutte, the Nato secretary general, has a reputation for genial flexibility and an ability to evade trouble. During his…
