Society

By any standards Mary Soames was one of the most remarkable women of her era: close confidante (possibly the closest) to Winston Churchill throughout the second world war, dedicated political wife, one of the most outstanding British ambassadresses sent to Paris, successful (against all reckoning) chairman of the National Theatre, and — later in life — a prize-winning author. She was also one of only three non-royal Ladies of the Garter in recent British history, and a Spectator contributor to boot. All this went hand in hand with a reluctance to talk about herself, and — except on rare occasions — about the war, and the father whom she adored

One of the surprises in the Queen’s Speech is something called the Draft Governance of National Parks (England) and the Broads Bill. Unless you live in a National Park or the Norfolk Broads, you may struggle to muster enthusiasm, but the reason this surprise is an interesting surprise is that it tells us something about the way the Coalition works. This bill, which will provide direct elections to National Park authorities in England, was, as I understand it, an important Lib Dem policy and a Coalition commitment. I’m told that Nick Clegg requested it, and this legislation may well have taken the place of a Forestry Bill to establish a

Angela Merkel has reportedly blinked in the row over Jean-Claude Juncker’s candidacy for president of the European Commission and is now mooting IMF boss Christine Lagarde. The Reuters report cites two French sources who say the German Chancellor has asked France whether it could put forward Lagarde. If this is true, then it does explain or at least justify the very bullish tone that government sources took this morning when briefing Coffee House about the prospect of Juncker being blocked. And it would be a good sign that David Cameron is indeed getting his way if Merkel was prepared to raise the idea with François Hollande. But it would be

I hadn’t seen a Ken Loach film in years because I got sick of his schmaltzy sexism but yesterday decided to give him another try and popped along to see his latest, Jimmy’s Hall. Set in 1930s Ireland, it tells the true-life story of self-educated, community-serving James Gralton, who enraged the Catholic church and the local land owners by setting up a community centre that served as a meeting place for ideas and, God forbid, dancing. Perhaps he’s returned to form, I thought on my way to the cinema, and produced something gutsy like Cathy Come Home or Kes. These story lines usually warm my cynical old heart, so I approached Jimmy’s Hall

Just over a week ago a gunman opened fire at the Jewish museum in Brussels. Four Jews – including two Israeli tourists – were killed, shot in the face and throat. The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said immediately after the killings, and before a suspect had even been identified: ‘This act of murder is the result of constant incitement against Jews and their state. Slander and lies against the State of Israel continue to be heard on European soil even as the crimes against humanity and acts of murder being perpetrated in our region are systematically ignored. Our response to this hypocrisy is to constantly state the truth.’ It looks

The latest challenge, to supply a poem in praise or dispraise of the BBC, fell on somewhat stony ground. The entry felt a bit flat and you seemed to be lacking any real conviction either way. Roger Theobald’s opening lines pretty much reflected the general mood: ‘To praise or dispraise: well, if that’s the question,/ The record is too mixed to be quite sure…’ An honourable mention goes to Jerome Betts for his pithy four-liner — ‘Beeb, overstaffed and overspent,/ At which the licence-payers cavil,/ How sad to witness your descent/ From Reithian heights to Jimmy Savile.’ — and to Frank McDonald and Ray Kelley. Basil Ransome-Davies romps home with

Lord, grant me strength. And serenity. Further evidence emerges that supporters of Scottish independence are losing their minds. Yesterday Iain Macwhirter was in full Can we no do anything right? mode; today it’s the turn of Joyce Macmillan to wallow in self-pity. Again, you see, the problem with Scotland is that it is full of Scottish people and, golly, some of them hold nasty, inconvenient, dismal views. They are the enemy within. That may sound nastily conspiratorial but, hell, it’s not my view. To wit: On Monday morning, as the final Euro elections results were being confirmed, I made my way up to the NHS outpost in Lauriston Place in Edinburgh for

Although world champion Magnus Carlsen clearly secured first place in the Gashimov Memorial tournament, he did not have things all his own way. Indeed, just before the halfway point he lost two consecutive games and appeared to be in a state of collapse. However, in the style of his hero Emanuel Lasker, Carlsen struck back to score a magnificent 4 out of 5 points in the second half. This included his razor-edge win against his chief rival Fabiano Caruana.   This week, a selection of critical positions from this important event.   Caruana-Carlsen: Gashimov Memorial 2014   The first impediment to Carlsen’s victory parade came in the following position when