Britain
Anger? Yes. But in another country, leaving the EU would mean bloodshed
What is really dividing Britain?
Why local radio is thriving
It’s 50 years since the first local radio stations were launched by the BBC in yet another instance of the…
I’m a Bake Off judge, but it’s not cake making Britain fat
The UK’s obesity crisis is worsening. Drastic action is needed
Let’s just admit it: the French are simply better than us
Let’s admit it: the French do so many things better than us
Did my father predict the populist revolts of the last year?
I’ve just made a programme for Radio 4 about the populist revolts that swept Britain and America last year. Were…
Theresa May is fighting a war on two fronts - any mistakes could be fatal
Theresa May is fighting a war on two fronts, and there is no room for mistakes
The romance – and importance – of independent bookshops
Oh dear. Usually writers who contribute to these diaries start with something like, ‘To Paris. To launch my novel at…
Would Britain have become half so great without George III?
Before he died aged 44 (probably of a pulmonary embolism, poor chap), Frederick, Prince of Wales, compiled a list of…
Why Donald Trump looks like just the friend Britain needs
Donald Trump has pledged to reward Britain for leaving the EU, and the signs are promising
From the archive: the destiny of these little islands
From ‘Engage the enemy more closely!’, The Spectator, 30 December 1916: Britain was never more vigorous than she is now:…
The seven moments that lost the referendum for Remain
If any of the following had happened, Remain could have won
Happiness is being a Mormon
Here we go again, my 40th Christmas column in a row, and it seems only two weeks ago that I…
If you’re not about mob rule, Nigel, don’t call out your mob
If you’re aiming to refute the suggestion that you can’t comprehend the difference between mob rule and the rule of…
Theresa May's passage to India
When a Prime Minister flies off abroad with a few business-leaders it is seldom worthy of comment. Such trade missions…
How bad is Mark Carney’s relationship with Theresa May?
How bad is Mark Carney’s relationship with Theresa May?
Maps are as much about art – and lies – as science
Maps reveal the psychology of their creators as much as they describe topography, says Stephen Bayley
First Brexit became thinkable. Now it becomes doable
Birmingham Checking in to my hotel room on the 18th floor, for the Conservative party conference here, I opened the…
For the first time in my life, I feel ashamed to be British
Before even writing this I know what response it will meet. Some who fought for Leave on 23 June will…
The dangerous illusion of European identity
European identity Sir: Alexander Chancellor (Long life, 18 June) echoes the widely accepted view of the European Union as a ‘bulwark…
If I wanted to create a superstate, I wouldn’t start with Europe
If Geert Hofstede’s name is familiar to you, it might be from pop-science articles explaining a spate of Korean airliner…
France is now the sick man of Europe
It is a long time since the term ‘sick man of Europe’ could be applied to Britain. France is now…
Cameron's sinister purge of the posh
Should employees be judged by their parents’ income?
Britain really is ceasing to be a Christian country
A landmark in national life has just been passed. For the first time in recorded history, those declaring themselves to…
Why the Republicans are even more divided than they look
Republican party schisms Sir: Jacob Heilbrunn astutely analyses the predicament Donald Trump creates for America’s neoconservatives (‘Lumped with Trump’, 14…
Inside the Tories' EU dogfight
The Brexit campaign has only just started to demonstrate its strength