Politics
Why we need ideology in politics
‘Studying history at Balliol,’ writes Chris Patten, ‘I knew that the one thing which made me uneasy was a grand…
Chris Patten: ‘wearing red feathers (and a Hula-Hula skirt)’
My old friend Richard Ingrams was said always to write The Spectator’s television reviews sitting in the next-door room to…
Why hard Brexit is bad for horse racing
Having spent three quarters of my life covering politics and the other quarter following racing, I am often asked what…
The view from the doorstep
You have probably been hearing a lot about doorsteps recently. Politicians love to demonstrate how much they care about ordinary,…
The strange cases of Mr Justice McCardie
Justice McCardie was anything but a conventional High Court judge. He left school at 15 and was called to the…
Why targeted political advertising is not to be trusted
When you get into a taxi, there’s usually a framed sheet of paper describing what you pay for your trip:…
Europe’s elite rightly feel extinction breathing down their necks
Allahu Akbar! Greetings from Samsun, where Turkish protestors — their eyeballs spinning in orgasmic Islamic rage — tried to set…
Labour third behind Tories and Ukip among working-class voters, says poll
Home The Queen opened a new National Cyber Security Centre in London. Britain’s contribution to Nato has fallen below the…
Why more and more priests can’t stand Pope Francis
Questions are increasingly being asked about the Pope’s judgment and state of mind
How to put a positive spin on this bizarre year
This is going to be a positive, optimistic column. I promise. Because, look, let’s be honest, I’ve been a bit…
Will I be the only right-winger in the village?
‘Right, this is it,’ I said to the builder boyfriend. ‘I am going to knock on the door of next…
Would BBC1’s The Missing blow it in the concluding episode – like so many thrillers before it
BBC1’s The Missing has been one of the undoubted TV highlights of 2016. Yet, even thrillers as overwhelmingly thrilling as…
Theresa May's missing opposition
Oppositions don’t win elections — governments lose them. This has long been the Westminster wisdom. But the truth is that…
Real politics blossoms outside the conference hall
Perhaps it’s age, perhaps disillusion, or perhaps party conferences really aren’t what they used to be, but I have struggled…
Lights, camera, politics: the triumph of showbiz over argument
How statecraft became a branch of reality television
Michael Gove, evil mastermind? I don't buy it
I’m writing this from the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham where the mood is buoyant, to put it mildly. Everyone…
A broad-left anti-Tory pact will never work. Here’s why
I appeared on Radio 4 with Shirley Williams recently and as we were leaving I asked her if she thought…
Is Boris without a philosophy? No, he’s worse than that
Against Boris Sir: In discussing my attitude to Boris (‘The Boris-bashers should be ashamed’, 27 August), Mary Wakefield is too kind —…
Theresa May: heir to Brown
Standing outside No. 10, our newly chosen — though not elected — Prime Minister decided to address the country directly.…
A filthy Noël Coward, snotty Frog, mad Swede and Maggie: Edinburgh Festival Fringe roundup
Plus: Geoff Norcott, a refreshingly brilliant new comedic voice, whose ascent Beeb censorship will impede. See him live at the Underbelly
The true queen of the Eighties wasn't Thatcher – it was Delia, according to the Beeb
Proof that someone has really made it as a TV historian comes, I would suggest, when they join the likes…
Is More United just the Lib Dems in disguise?
The dog days of July probably aren’t the best time to launch a new political movement, but then the people…
History shows us that children are no asset for a prime minister
When you are recovering from a stroke, you spend much of the time asleep. But when you are not sleeping,…
Help! I’ve started really caring about politics
Once upon a time, I didn’t really care about politics. Not viscerally. Growing up in a political family, I suppose,…
Tony Blair is top rotter in James Bloodworth’s The Myth of Meritocracy
‘Your old man’s barking!’ I remember hissing indignantly at my then best friend Toby Young way back in the 1980s…
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