Is Austin Butler a movie star?
From our US edition
Might he be the next Brad Pitt? Or something better?
Alexander Larman
Alexander Larman is an author and the US books editor of The Spectator.
Friday
Thursday
The style and influence of Giorgio Armani
When I was younger, I once saw an Armani overcoat in the window of the company’s store in London and vowed that I would do everything I could to buy it. It seemed to me the quintessence of sophistication and style, being a beautifully cut, long, dark coat that flattered its wearer’s body shape and
Tuesday
In praise of Tony McNamara
From our US edition
The Roses and Cruella clearly show that he is the maestro at creating dialogue
Monday
Is it possible to learn anything new about the royal family?
Another week, another round of royal revelations. Following swiftly on from the publication of Andrew Lownie’s bestselling denigration of the Duke and Duchess of York – Entitled, there is now another tell-all account of the royal family: Valentine Low’s Power and the Palace. It has recently been serialised in the Times (appropriately enough, given that Low is that newspaper’s royal
Saturday
Is Taylor Swift's love life too good to be true?
After years of dating effete Englishmen, Taylor Swift has finally found her man. The singer is engaged to Travis Kelce, that rugged all-American specimen of manliness. Their announcement has united the United States in joy: even her former nemesis Donald Trump rather surprisingly described the forthcoming union as taking place between ‘a great guy [and]
Wednesday
Is Jack White washed up?
From our US edition
The White House seems to think so
With Love, Meghan 2 is just as ghastly as season one
Like death and taxes, the second instalment of With Love, Meghan has come around again, sloughing into view to the usual chorus of disapproval and confusion. The news recently broke that Netflix has deigned to allow Harry ‘n’ Meghan another five years of deciding not to make their future projects. In light of that, this
Tuesday
Does Virginia Giuffre have the power to finish off Prince Andrew?
There’s an old saying that revenge is a dish best served cold. The late Virginia Giuffre has gone a step further by serving up her final helping of vengeance against Prince Andrew by publishing her sure-to-be-revelatory memoir, Nobody’s Girl, from beyond the grave this October. Giuffre collaborated with the American writer Amy Wallace on a 400-page book
Wednesday
The greatness of Bob Odenkirk
From our US edition
It took a few decades, but he’s finally achieved the prominence he deserves
Tuesday
I actually feel sorry for Prince Andrew
‘Many would have preferred this book not to be written, including the Yorks themselves.’ So Andrew Lownie begins his coruscating examination of the lives of Prince Andrew and Sarah ‘Fergie’ Ferguson, which has excited significant media attention due to its scandalous revelations. Lownie, a historian and literary agent, has pivoted away from an earlier, more
John Boyne and the bitter truth about the Polari Prize
The news that the Polari Prize for LGBTQ+ writing is not to be awarded this year after outrage that the novelist John Boyne was included on the longlist represents one of the more head-scratching reversals that the world of books has seen in a considerable time. Boyne’s novel Earth was selected on merit, but the
Monday
Alien: Earth is unfriendly and brilliant
From our US edition
What makes the show distinctive, and will undoubtedly account for its interest over future weeks, is its marriage between human consciousness and android bodies
Terence Stamp bent the Swinging Sixties to his will
There are two famous images of the late Terence Stamp, one taken from one of his films, the other from a photoshoot by Terry O’Neill in 1963. In the first, he is shown in his regimental outfit, in character as the dashing but weak Sergeant Troy from the 1967 adaptation of Far From The Madding
Sunday
God save the great British pudding!
There are certain names of puddings that, if whispered to an Englishman of a certain age, will bring back near-Proustian reveries about their childhood. Rhubarb crumble. Bakewell tart. Sticky toffee pudding. The most naughty-sounding of them all, spotted dick. These, and many more, are often dismissed with the sobriquet ‘nursery food’, but in fact only
Saturday
There’s nothing worse than male trouser trouble
First, there was the bizarre tale of the poor unfortunate man who, after dropping his trousers on the District line near Upton Park, was set upon by an outraged gang, beaten and then forcibly expelled from the Tube. And then, just a day or so before, the perpetually beleaguered Gregg Wallace caused a similar degree
Friday
King Charles's poignant VJ Day reminder
It has been one of the hallmarks of King Charles’s reign so far that, when he makes a commemorative or ceremonial address, especially when he is remembering Britain’s wartime victories, he usually manages to hit the correct note. He has become very adept at persuading even the most dyed-in-the-wool republicans that he is the right
Wednesday
Zach Cregger’s Weapons is a new kind of cinema
From our US edition
Turns out adults are still interested in more than the usual banal superhero slop
Tuesday
The truth about Meghan and Harry's renewed Netflix deal
It is important for any self-respecting writer to admit when they get it wrong. So it is with an element of contrition that I must report that, despite my confident belief that the dynamic duo themselves, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, would not have their lucrative Netflix deal renewed, such an event has, indeed,
Is it safe to be conservative in Hollywood?
From our US edition
Gina Carano’s settlement with Disney may have big consequences
Saturday
The strange life of Lindsay Lohan
From our US edition
The Freaky Friday star has lived more in one life than most people could in ten
