The Spectator

Letters | 21 November 2013

No middle way Sir: Ask not whether Iran wants to negotiate with us; ask whether we want to negotiate with them (‘Diplomatic meltdown’, 16 November). Now that Syria has agreed to get rid of its chemical weapons, an opportunity has arisen to achieve a WMD-free Middle East. Iran would be the first to agree, given

Barometer: How many of today’s Ukippers voted Tory in 2010? 

Brave new words ‘Selfie’ was declared to be Oxford Dictionaries’ ‘word of the year’. It hasn’t, however, yet been added to the Oxford English Dictionary. These are some of the words which have been added over the past year (and which have been around a surprisingly long time): Bag woman, n; Campsite, n; Grey zone, n;

Is addiction a disease?

Tonight, the Spectator will host a debate on the motion: ‘Addiction is not a disease’.  Damian Thompson, Theodore Dalrymple and Dr Aric Sigman will lock horns with Trinny Woodall, Dominic Ruffy and Vic Watts to decide whether addiction is a medical condition or a pattern of immoderate behaviour. The extraordinary story of Reverend Flowers is likely

Spectator writers’ Christmas book choices

Byron Rogers Rhys Davies by Meic Stephens (Parthian, £20). This is the first full-length biography of the grocer’s son from the Valleys who, in the course of a long and industrious life spent mainly in London (where guardsmen were), wrote over 100 short stories and 20 novels and was hailed as the Welsh Chekhov. Helpfully,