Books
Inside Number 10
Jack Brown showcases hidden heroes, the history of the building and the famous figures who have passed through
The anarchy lacks context
Dalrymple’s Anarchy says more about about a selling machine somewhat different to the East India Company
Hidden London
Hidden London’s evocative photos of dereliction will fascinate commuters and tourists alike
In defence of the US nation
Richard Reinsch reviews The Case for Nationalism by Rich Lowry
Closet hippy of the SAS
Billingham is tight-lipped about his time in the SAS. His work afterwards provides the funniest anecdotes
The all-round smart cookie with a tin ear
Sontag’s influential pieces are rather fewer than this book’s breezeblock dimensions might suggest
Brexlit and the decline of the English novel
Literature’s outraged elitists chose smug contempt over real insight
Sissy porn and trans dirty laundry
Louise Perry reviews Females by Andrea Long Chu
Sharing the pleasure in poetry
James Booth reviews ‘Somewhere Becoming Rain: Collected Writings on Philip Larkin’
A keen nose and sharp prose
David Womersley reviews Waugh on Wine by Auberon Waugh
Anatomy of a populist cynic
As Spain’s national-conservatives get outflanked by “Alvise”, Europe’s “new right” would do well to watch the fringes, too
Walking a tightrope
It is not easy for Jeremy Hunt to toe the government line without falling off
The return of non-crime hate incidents
Labour are attacking free speech through the back door
Earworms — some Profane, mostly Sacred
Hymns can be as catchy as popular music
Vicarious pleasure
On the enduring allure of celebrity cast-offs
Graham Topman: festival organiser
Roll up, roll up, it’s time for another festival of arts, ideas and Graham (mostly Graham)
The BBC can be a drag
The priorities of its reporting, especially on gender issues, can be absurd
From austerity to the Swinging Sixties
Two books by David Kirby and Robyn Hitchcock are the equivalent of two albums’ worth of their authors’ holiday snaps
Disaster zone
It’s a big job says Keir Starmer, and it’s not our mess we’ll be clearing up
Being economical with the truth
The Invisible Doctrine: The Secret History of Neoliberalism (& How It Came to Control Your Life). By George Monbiot and Peter Hutchison
Is Starmer the anti-Thatcher?
He does not have the right ambition and imagination
