Catherine Ostler

Friday

Catherine Ostler

Catherine Ostler, Paul Wood, John Power & David Whitehouse

From our UK edition

22 min listen

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Catherine Ostler, the former editor of Tatler, ponders the drama of the courtroom as she travels around the Kent countryside; following the news of the ceasefire with Iran, Paul Wood says that no-one knows what Trump will do next; John Power encourages Gen Z men to go hiking; and finally, astrophysicist David Whitehouse explores the dark side of the moon. Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.

Wednesday

Catherine Ostler

Is sex really better in the countryside?

From our UK edition

I can’t resist a courtroom drama. Prince Harry vs the press, for example: journalists I admire on one side, aggrieved celebrities on the other. Among the usual suspects I have a fondness for Elizabeth Hurley. When I was editor of Tatler, she gamely posed for the cover in a satin gown in a breezy field with a friendly goat in tow, with a coverline assuring our readers that people had better sex in the country. The logic escapes me, but the issue sold extremely well. Trials can drag on, though. I was once sent to cover a libel trial: Imran Khan had accused two cricketers of ball-tampering. Hours passed as they fought about gravel, and I played noughts and crosses with the commentator Henry Blofeld.