Year in Review
Heroes, villains and lessons in life
Intellectual history, sneered at in Oxford 40 years ago, is all the rage there now
Libyans, Parisians and London Irish
Dry-ish, spare, clear-eyed — rare in a world of literary bloat, sentiment and overstatement
The Critic books of the year
Reading highlights from our editors and contributors
The greatest shitshow on Earth
Hopes and fears at the end of 2022
Most Read
Gary Stevenson is wrong about wealth taxes
The popular economist is irritating, but more importantly he is mistaken
Tame Impala fails to impress
unconquered by a
taste of Crusader food
Why they hated Ann Widdecombe
Fair-minded people could agree or disagree with her opinions. Left-wing bigots hated her for not abandoning them
Ethnic minorities are abandoning Labour
It is not just Muslim voters who have been abandoning the Labour Party
How to fix the economy
A repentant ex-financial trader tells all
Homes for Ukraine — and everywhere else
Why were some non-Ukrainians far more likely to enter Britain under a scheme meant for Ukrainians?
The Middle Kingdom and the middle powers
China’s clash with Western power shattered its civilisational self-image. Europe is heading for a similar reckoning
Haskel’s challenge
Andy Burnham does not have much time to kickstart growth
Jolly boating weather
The Gondoliers, English Touring Opera, Hackney Empire
Babies need women
Leaving children with only men who are not their parents is foolish and dangerous
Vera, the doctor who defied Rasputin
A female surgeon in the chaos of Imperial Russia and the Soviet Union
The Ghost Dance of Rejoin
There is no real argument for rejoining the EU — and nobody makes one
Is football hooliganism fashionable?
As violence returns to Edgware Road, official insistence that two-tier policing is a myth looks increasingly difficult to sustain
The shape of a different Britain
Early modernist homes in Frinton-on-Sea capture a moment of confidence in a rapidly changing world
Fast cars fit for old-school stars
Speed and sophistication once shared the same side of the street
It’s what you Makerfield of it
Andy Burnham may yet stop Reform, but victory would raise almost as many questions for Labour as defeat.