Labradoodle
The Spectator
Thursday
Lab
Shoes 5
‘Time to put my Jeffrey Campbell shoes back into hibernation.’
Scrub
‘Oh my God, Janice, what did I tell you about using too much body scrub!’
Pole
Spectator letters: All Things Bright and Beautiful, oligarchs and school fees, and Songs of Praise
Times past Sir: ‘Imagine,’ says Hugo Rifkind in his excellent piece on the power of Google (29 November), ‘that there was one newspaper that got all the scoops. Literally all of them.’ We don’t have to imagine: such a newspaper existed, a couple of centuries ago, and Hugo works for its descendent. The Times of the
When a cricket ball cost Britain an heir to the throne
A fatal shot The sad death of Australian batsman Philip Hughes was a reminder that a cricket ball can kill. A blow on the cricket field may even have cost us an heir to the throne. — One of the earliest suspected victims was Frederick, Prince of Wales, the son of George II, who is
George Osborne’s ambition deficit
When George Osborne first became Chancellor, he asked to be judged on his ability to reduce the deficit. He does not make that request any more. This year’s deficit is almost three times higher than the £37 billion he originally planned, but he understandably glossed over this point when delivering his Autumn Statement. He has
Portrait of the week | 4 December 2014
Home The government spent days announcing how the Autumn Statement would allocate funds. ‘Frontline’ parts of the National Health Service would get an extra £2 billion for the time being, £750 million of it diverted from elsewhere in the Department of Health budget. Another £1.1 billion from bankers’ fines would go to support GPs. Labour said
The Spectator at war: Good taste and good breeding
From The King at the Front, The Spectator, 5 December 1914: It is impossible for the ordinary Englishman not to be delighted with the good taste and good breeding as well as the sincerity with which the King has acted throughout the war. Burke bade us so to be patriots as not to forget we are
From the archives | 4 December 2014
From ‘The Honourable Spy’, The Spectator, 5 December 1914: Decency is violated by the military spy when he becomes, for instance, a naturalised subject of a foreign power only to betray his adopted country. No such charge of dishonour can be brought against the German spy Lody who was shot at the Tower. He spied,
Favourite cocktails from Matthew Parris, Jeremy Clarke, Martin Vander Weyer and more
We asked our writers to write about their favourite cocktails, from aperitifs to nightcaps, all the way through to the hangover cures. Here’s what they said. Matthew Parris The Iron Lady For years in the 1980s I tried to develop a cocktail to be called the Iron Lady. There were problems: the signifier for iron
Wednesday
Lesson of the Autumn Statement? Boldness is best
Here is a preview of the leading article from this week’s Spectator, out tomorrow, on George Osborne’s Autumn Statement: When George Osborne first became Chancellor, he asked to be judged on his ability to reduce the deficit. He does not make that request any more. This year’s deficit is almost three times higher than the
Full text: George Osborne’s 2014 Autumn Statement
Mr Speaker, Four years ago, in the first Autumn Statement of this Parliament, I presented the accounts of an economy in crisis. Today, in the last Autumn Statement of this Parliament, I present a forecast that shows the UK is the fastest growing of any major advanced economy in the world. listen to ‘Osborne’s Autumn
The Spectator at war: The waste of war
From The Waste of War, The Spectator, 5 December 1914: The destruction which the Germans have wrought in the towns and villages they have occupied is a net loss to the world. Before the war began these aspects of war had impressed the minds of many writers even more than now appears to be justifiable.
Tuesday
The Spectator at war: The King at the front
From NEWS OF THE WEEK, The Spectator, 5 December 1914: THE King has been at the front during the past week, and as we write is still there. Indeed, it was stated in Friday’s newspapers that the visit, which has proved eminently satisfactory from every point of view, is likely to be further prolonged. We
Monday
The best and the worst of Gordon Brown
Tonight Gordon Brown announced he will stand down as an MP at the next election. Current political leaders have been paying tribute, with Ed Miliband calling his old boss a ‘towering figure’, while David Cameron said he was ‘someone dedicated to public service and has worked very hard for other people’. Even those who worked with
Saturday
The Spectator at war: The great game
From The Spectator, 28 November 1914: Professional football is something worse than an excuse for young men who refuse to do their duty. It is actually an incentive to them to continue their lives in the ignoble ordinary way, because the very continuance of the games suggests that everything is going on as usual. In
