Books
Undramatic life of a literary also-ran
Malcolm Cowley never understood very much about literature
Too starstruck to see Marilyn’s faults
Only Some Like It Hot endures, though not because of anything Monroe does in it
When imitation is more then just flattery
An informative and entertaining history of plagiarism in its many forms
Cloaked Crusader
Richard I: valiant hero of Romance but also a perfidious, self-serving lord
The roots of hatred
Antisemitism, an ancient subject, has once again become a hot topic
Working with Woods
There have been too few honest explorations into the intrinsic link between woods and humans
Why nobody likes a smarty pants
Is it reasonable to conflate genuine intellectual endeavour with undue concern for supposed accuracy?
Paean to a green and pleasant land
The finest living example of that perennial English type, the countryman-writer
A high-speed tour of European History
Europe: A New
History by Roderick Beaton
Grin and bear it
Carelessness and frivolity sabotage any attempt at a serious discussion
Most Read
The Book of JO’B
James O’Brien’s aggressive incuriosity is becoming ever more embattled as his worldview crumbles
A failed war on fags
The black market has taken over the tobacco trade Down Under
Thank God for Brexit
The EU is a bureaucratic monster and Britain is better off out
I don’t trust the British state
British institutions simply are not functioning in the interests of the people they are meant to serve
The lonely death of Henry Nowak
We must draw lessons from a horrendous and disgraceful case
Whip smart
Threatening the whipping system would be alarmingly stupid
Cry sod Harry, England and St George
Why aren’t people proud to be English?
Where are all the ambitious Scots?
Whole sectors were once dominated by Caledonian migrants
This apology for a political comedy
Amusing as a war crimes trial, and seems to last twice as long
American strategy in Iran is wiser than it seems
President Trump’s intervention will leave the world safer than it was
A rare interview proved a delight
Eavesdropping on two intelligent people sharing a civilised conversation about interesting things
Class war in the upper house
The end of the Lords’ ancient
right to resolve peerage disputes
is the latest casualty of Labour’s
constitutional vandalism
The screaming spires
Oxford University must clarify where it stands on academic freedom
The case for compromise with Cuba
The strategic case for negotiating with Havana
Manchesterism is dead in the water
Andy Burnham already appears to have abandoned hope for meaningful change
Homage to Zaporizhia and Sumy
Horror continues in Ukraine — but the tide could be turning