Features
The truth about ninjas
One of my favourite scenes in Kill Bill, Quentin Tarantino’s black comedy martial arts film, is the meeting of Beatrix…
AI slop is flooding the zone
There are two accounts of the negative effects for humanity of the explosion of generative AI: one minatory, one trivial.…
Labour needs a sense of social justice
Clement Attlee, in the words of Winston Churchill, was a modest man with much to be modest about. Labour’s postwar…
The C of E’s tragic misuse of its sacred spaces
I am a priest in the high church tradition of the Church of England. The technical term is Anglo-Catholicism, but…
How the French right can still win
Dixmont, Yonne It has been a terrible year for the Le Pen family. Jean-Marie died in the first week of…
Beware the £5 coffee
It wasn’t until I received a notification from the Monzo app that I realised I’d spent nearly £10 on two…
‘Trump is a coward’: meet the US soldiers who served in Ukraine
The Ukrainians of Alabama are not the kind of lobbyists whose visits strike fear into pro-Trump politicians in Washington. They…
How Dr Seuss took on American isolationism
A cartoon is doing the rounds online, critiquing American isolationism and the reluctance to engage with the war in Europe.…
Is Simon Heffer a security threat?
Airport security was much on my mind last Friday afternoon. I had been due to fly from Heathrow to Zurich…
I’m ready to defend my Tesla from the mob
Occitanie, France In France, burning cars is practically a national sport. Almost 1,000 were set on fire on New Year’s…
The Boden Belt: the Lib Dems are the new party of the posh
The English social season has begun, kicking off with Gold Cup day. But this year, there is a new common…
Erdogan’s latest power move could backfire
Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has never been so weak – nor so strong. At home, he is facing the…
The curious language of coins
Lewis Carroll used to travel with purses divided into separate compartments, each containing the exact number of coins he’d need…
Will Trump join the strongman club?
The world’s most exclusive club, of presidents-for-life, is growing. It already includes Putin of Russia, Xi of China, Lukashenko of…
The weapon that could end America’s global supremacy
Two weeks ago, a bright light streaked through the night sky above Inner Mongolia. It was not an asteroid. The…
Trump’s tariffs ‘perfectly rational’
The plan to defeat the communists
What Five Eyes does – and doesn’t – see
In the famous ‘Rainbow Portrait’ of Elizabeth I her gown is embroidered with eyes and ears, a reference to her…
Bring back beef dripping!
For several years, a debate has raged (mainly on Twitter, now X) over whether animal fats are actually better for…
Survival of the hottest: evolution’s fun side has been long overlooked
The theory of evolution is dominated by the utilitarian logic of natural selection: adapt or die, survival of the fittest.…
The downfall of climate change poster boy Michael Mann
Even if you’ve never heard of Michael Mann, you will have felt his baleful influence on your energy bills. He…
Ukraine is just one part of Trump’s Great Game
Washington D.C. For Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, it’s a case of today Ukraine, tomorrow the world. In their much-hyped…
‘Austerity is back’: Inside Labour’s emergency budget
Dominic Cummings may have left Whitehall but his spirit lives on. Pat McFadden, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster,…
It’s time for Rachel Reeves to stop gambling
Next Wednesday Rachel Reeves will stand up in the House of Commons to deliver what she is calling her ‘spring…
Does China have Vatican City in its sights?
Last Sunday the Vatican released the first photograph of Pope Francis since his ordeal began. He was wearing a stole…
What modern Britain should learn from Charles I
Next week marks the 400th anniversary of the accession to the throne of Charles I. This moment began what was…
