How the Civil Service was the ruin of Keir Starmer
A weak and indecisive prime minister delegated too much to Whitehall
The knife and the bone
After war and repression, Iranian dissidents believe the regime’s reckoning is near — but Tehran’s influence reaches far beyond its borders
What if the AI bubble bursts?
Arguing that an AI bubble is a good thing reeks of techno-optimist complacency
Israel does not run U.S. foreign policy
There is nothing wrong with questioning foreign influence — but that influence has been overstated
In partial defence of Steve Bray
You can’t blame the pro-EU irritant for making British politics undignified
Reform should not abandon free markets
Nigel Farage should stick to his liberal guns against the forces of collectivism
The last thing Labour needs
The revival of the Terminally Ill Adults Bill threatens to consume a party already struggling to hold itself together
Why Brexit was right
Bad decisions have been made since we voted to leave but we were still right to leave
The tears of Keir’s
It was an anticlimactic end to an unconvincing premiership
Britain’s housing crisis is a crisis for veterans
We have to make the system more able to house our heroes
What difference does he make?
Andy Burnham is not the answer to our woes because Burnhamism is not replicable
The decline of British food culture
The products of social media virality and high street homogenisation leave the ambitious diner as cold as a neglected jacket potato
Two false dawns
Anger can furnish a movement with energy, but not with votes
Scotland’s biggest legal scandal
Hundreds of men could have being denied their right to a fair trial because of a justice system that rules important character evidence inadmissible
Dear Prudence
A reflection on the Tory Party’s historic suspicion of interventionism
Jorge Luis Borges
A giant of Spanish letters who was forged by childhood exposure to his father’s vast English library
Beware the British ICE
Mass deportation of Muslims will not solve antisemitism, but feed feelings of alienation
The testing of Giorgia Meloni
Italy’s first woman PM has proved a pragmatic conservative who has brought stability to her country
What makes an American?
What characterises a US citizen in the 21st century, beyond abiding by the country’s laws and supporting its constitution?
No Keirs, only dreams now.
With the prime minister on his way out, even his own MPs have discovered a fondness for him
What has Labour learned?
Pinning the failures of the government on Keir Starmer alone will not work
That viral Reddit post does not say a lot about society
Don’t confuse your caricature of your outgroup for the real thing
Can Russell T Davies write “terfs”?
In Tip Toe, Russell T Davies is more nuanced than one might expect — much to the dismay of gender ideologues
The intractable problems pulling modern Britain apart
When does upholding free speech become an act of self-sabotage?
The errata of history
Misprints are just one in a catalogue of literary disorders
DeepMind delusion
The superstar Demis Hassabis is on a mission to create a God-like superintelligence
Eulogy for rural life
A growing sense of gloom pervades Starmer’s Britain
Confessions of an aging pop queen
Madonna once assured us that being an adult woman was something to aspire to
Facing demons
On the highs and lows of demonic infestation
The spy chief who sold us Blue Nun
Raise a glass to a long life, very well lived
Digging for gold
La fanciulla del West, Opera Holland Park
The praises of a neglected vegetable
Summer calls for cold cucumbers
Rewatching a TV show from a lost world
In River Cottage, a chef escaped to Dorset from London in search of the good life
Unusual summer reds
Think exotic spices, maraschino cherries and curly shoes
Hurry hurry to Chop Chop
Gambling on Cantonese cuisine