The Spectator: 16 February 2013
Bonfire of the Establishment
In September 1955 The Spectator’s political commentator, Henry Fairlie, coined a term to describe the way in which Britain works which has been used ever since. The ‘Establishment’, he said, was… Read more
16 February 2013
Home Findus frozen beef lasagne was found to be 100 per cent horsemeat, and Tesco frozen ‘Everyday Value’ spaghetti bolognese 60 per cent horse. French suppliers blamed a Romanian abattoir.… Read more
William Dalrymple
The Jaipur Literature Festival, which I help to direct, has in just six years grown like some monster from an Indian epic. Each year it doubles in size and we… Read more
The Stoic stiff upper lip
Last week, Stoics applauded the idea that the doctor might in certain situations give the patient a book, not a pill, on the grounds that thinking rationally solved all personal… Read more
16 February 2013
Militant humanists Sir: Thank God for Douglas Murray (‘Call off the faith wars’, 9 February). It is possible that I have been counting myself an atheist for longer than Richard… Read more
The horsemeat scandal shows the true extent of Europe’s power in Britain
There’s something gripping about a food scandal. The idea we could be inadvertently eating something taboo exercises a fascination on the public mind. But where has all the horsemeat in… Read more
16 February 2013
Pope Benedict is stepping down for conscientious reasons about which he will have thought deeply. But I still fear that his decision is a mistake. First, its manner was unfortunate.… Read more
The poor have been sold horse dressed as beef – and they should be compensated
Well at least — so far — no middle-class food has been found to contain large chunks of horsey. It’s all been in the junk they feed the chavs. It’s… Read more
How Twitter almost destroyed me
Last year, my old sparring partner George Monbiot got himself into a spot of bother. ‘Why not stick the knife in on your blog?’ various people suggested. But I didn’t… Read more
Another good idea goes the way of all wheezes
Coercing the long-term unemployed into work placements is not a stupid idea. Nobody thinks it is. And by ‘nobody’ in this context, I mean Iain Duncan Smith, the work and… Read more
Here’s my strategic review, Barclays: see shareholders right and the rest will follow
Antony Jenkins, the new-broom chief executive of Barclays, has the tone of a junior minister, not long in parliament, who finds himself promoted to high office after the big beast… Read more
Benedict’s reformation
Shock is probably the predominant emotion evoked by the decision of Pope Benedict XVI to resign at the end of February. Given that the last papal resignation took place 600… Read more
Benedict XVI in perspective
In March 2005, when it became clear that Pope John Paul II would soon die, Boris Johnson asked me to write a piece for The Spectator predicting who would be… Read more
Farewell, Independent on Sunday
On Tuesday the Culture Secretary Maria Miller announced to a breathless world the latest development in the Leveson saga. The government wants a royal charter to oversee a new press… Read more
Reshoring: how jobs came flooding back to America
It is 20 years since the US presidential candidate Ross Perot railed against globalisation, warning of a ‘giant sucking sound’ as millions of jobs left America and went to foreign… Read more
The west doesn't need Feng Shui
I used to hang around a group of friends who worked for a British events company. Their boss was a keen follower of Buddhism and all things Oriental and, since… Read more
Lars Hedegaard interview: ‘I may be killed if I write this’
The assassin came to his home dressed as a postman. When the historian and journalist Lars Hedegaard opened his front door, the man — whom Lars describes as ‘looking like… Read more
Where did all the sweet people go?
To say someone was ‘sweet’ used to be quite common in Britain. We didn’t just use the word to describe our mothers and grandmothers, but a wide range of people,… Read more
Latest blogs
- Sir David Nicholson to go: but will it change the culture at the top of the NHS? Isabel Hardman
- Scottish independence: it’s still (almost) all about oil. Alex Massie
- The Tory grassroots were feeling neglected long before ‘swivel-eyed loons’ claims Isabel Hardman
- Swivel-eyed loons are a feature of British democracy Rod Liddle
- Jeremy Hunt attacks Labour for A&E crisis Isabel Hardman
- Inflation falls: but will voters notice? Isabel Hardman
- Writers in a state of fear Nick Cohen
