Issue: April 2026
A below-par Riley is still better than most
The Palm House by
Gwendoline Riley; My Death by Lisa
Tuttle; Still Talking by Lore Segal
Self-inflicted misery
Super troupers
Leaving it all in the ring
The great British bullfighting hopeful, Alexander Paul
Grin and bear it
Carelessness and frivolity sabotage any attempt at a serious discussion
Food pairing is folly
A warning against trying to match wine to dish
No bullshit government
Tom Jones grills the shadow minister for
policy renewal about the plans of a
future Tory administration
Legal curiosities
The pursuit of justice in small or atypical jurisdictions has sometimes led to some unusual legal quandaries
The dark side of the White House
As in ancient Rome, power politics are always a promising arena for drama
Classic is back
Why contemporary art may be losing ground
An elusive eatery
Total failure, redeemed by souvlaki and chips at the kebab stand
Most Read
American strategy in Iran is wiser than it seems
President Trump’s intervention will leave the world safer than it was
Saint Nicola
Nicola Sturgeon wants sympathy for her husband’s crimes—but after years spent avoiding awkward questions, her latest reinvention may be the hardest sell yet.
The lonely death of Henry Nowak
We must draw lessons from a horrendous and disgraceful case
Rewatching the English
English identity has become too surreal and discomfiting to define
A failed war on fags
The black market has taken over the tobacco trade Down Under
Paris cinema
There are no songs or movies about Paris in the winter
The Islamic identity crisis
V.S. Naipaul was prophetic on the struggles between Islam and modernity
How EDI corrupts public life
It compels people to accept falsehoods in the name of equality
Against the scolding mob
MPs have helped to create the puritanism that is now coming for their drinks
Will we miss Mahmood?
Shabana Mahmood has been a voice of sanity in the Labour Party
Scotland’s cold and durable fire
John Swinney is proving that in politics what matters most is simply showing up
UnappEaling comedy
A “loose, loose reimagining” of Kind Hearts And Coronets does not really work
Suicide of an author’s credibility
Matt Goodwin has done the causes that he represents no favours with his new book
Why people smuggling means profits
People smuggling is one of the few functioning markets left in the UK
Prosthetic, pathetic, human
Angela de la Cruz’s playful and ghastly art touches a raw nerve
Britain must maintain its cultural inheritance
We should not allow our masterpieces to disappear overseas