2497: Scramble – solution
From our UK edition
Six of the unclued lights are RAF stations of WW2. First prize Kathleen Durber, Stoke-on-TrentRunners-up Alison Gillam, Knotty Green, Bucks; Chris Kemp, Little Leigh, Northwich, Cheshire
The Spectator
Thursday
Wednesday
The false narrative of BAME vs white
From our UK edition
Almost 20 years ago, Michael Howard spoke about the ‘British dream’: that immigrant families like his could come to this country and find every door open for their children. The same was true for Priti Patel’s parents, both refugees from Idi Amin’s Uganda. Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, has spoken movingly about his father, who
Thursday
Letters: Keir Starmer has failed the country
From our UK edition
The word of God Sir: Douglas Murray complains that the C of E has embraced the ‘new religion’ of anti-racism (‘The C of E’s new religion’, 20 March). But the truth, which neither he nor the church seems to have realised, is that the ‘anti-racist’ agenda is a secular attempt to plug a long-standing gap
Britain must help Europe fight a third wave
From our UK edition
During the referendum campaign five years ago, the pro-Brexit side argued that by freeing ourselves from the EU’s native protectionism and over-application of the precautionary principle, Britain could revitalise its economy and democracy. The EU wanted to seize more power, they argued, by taking control of ever greater areas of public life. Remainers thought these
Portrait of the week: Europe’s vaccine wars, a beached walrus and Sturgeon survives
From our UK edition
Home The nation was surprised to learn that from 29 March there would be a dearth of vaccine for a month. More than half the adult population had been vaccinated once, and more than 4 per cent twice. In one day 589,675 people received their first vaccine, including Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, and the
2496: Depart Paddington – solution
From our UK edition
The play was The Winter’s Tale by Shakespeare. The perimetric dramatis personae are MAMILLIUS, LEONTES, FLORIZEL, DORCAS, MOPSA, HERMIONE and ANTIGONUS; NODI (23) and DIPTERA (17) are anagrams of Dion and Perdita. THE WINTERS TALE (in the third row) was to be shaded. Title: ref. ‘Exit, pursued by a bear.’ First prize Totty Milne, Wells,
Wednesday
Exclusive Ch Pichon masterclass
From our UK edition
Does the UK really have the highest Covid death rate?
From our UK edition
A long way from home A walrus turned up off the Pembrokeshire coast, thousands of miles south of its normal habitat. Some other lonely visitors: — In July 2020 an albatross, a native of the southern hemisphere, was spotted near Flamborough on the Yorkshire coast. It was one of 30 sightings over the past few
Thursday
Has Neil Ferguson been proved right about Covid?
From our UK edition
Calculated risk It is a year since Neil Ferguson’s Imperial College team published the paper that inspired the government to call the first lockdown. How good were its scenarios? — It modelled four Covid-suppression measures: isolating cases for seven days, their household contacts for 14 days, social distancing to reduce household contacts by 75 per
The Crown Office, The Spectator and a fight for a free press
From our UK edition
The power wielded by Nicola Sturgeon and her Scottish government means it’s hard to hold her to account for basic policy failures — of which there are many. It’s even harder to investigate accusations that her aides conspired to frame and imprison someone who had become a political problem for her. The Alex Salmond affair
Letters: What really irritates Meghan’s critics
From our UK edition
Meghan’s adroitness Sir: Tanya Gold suggests that people criticise Meghan Markle because she is mixed race and a woman, and states it is because she has dared to attack the royal family (‘In defence of Meghan’, 13 March). I think that misses the point. For a great number of people, her narrative simply does not
Portrait of the week: Tributes to Sarah Everard, rows over AstraZeneca and Nokia cuts jobs
From our UK edition
Home A Metropolitan Police officer, Wayne Couzens, 48, was charged with the kidnap and murder of 33-year-old Sarah Everard, who was last seen on 3 March as she walked home from Clapham to Brixton. A mass vigil on Clapham Common was called off after the High Court declined to interfere with a police ban on
2495: Contrary – solution
From our UK edition
Four unclued lights are places in Britain with MARY in their name. The remaining unclued lights can be linked with MARY (see Brewer). (Peter, Paul and Mary have been the theme words of Doc’s puzzles numbered 2489, 2492 and 2495.) First prize Simon Goodlad, Stowmarket, SuffolkRunners-up Kiran Parekh, Wayne, Illinois; Sue Matejtschuk, Stotfold, Hitchin, Herts
Thursday
The Oxbridge files: which schools get the most offers?
From our UK edition
Oxford and Cambridge have released figures showing how many offers they gave to pupils from various schools last year. We have combined the figures in this table below. It shows how well state grammars and sixth-form colleges now compete with Britain’s finest independent schools. Over the years, both universities have roughly doubled the proportion of
The policing of lockdown is failing
From our UK edition
The scenes in Clapham Common have brutally exposed the problem with lockdown rules. People had gathered to mourn Sarah Everard and protest in defence of the right to walk the streets safely. The Metropolitan Police had been asked by the government to stop people going outside for anything other than a handful of allowed reasons: protest is not
Letters: What happens if interest rates rise?
From our UK edition
Spinning plates Sir: Kate Andrews is right to highlight the looming risk of inflation (‘Rishi’s nightmare’, 6 March), but to say that the UK has known barely any inflation for almost a generation misses a very painful point. It may be true for consumer prices. Low interest rates and quantitative easing, along with other ill-advised
Which TV interviews have attracted bigger audiences than Harry and Meghan’s?
From our UK edition
Good for the goose The government indicated that it will ban foie gras, out of animal welfare concerns. While it is often thought of as a French product, its origins have been traced back to Egypt in 2500 bc — thanks to a bas-relief at the Necropolis of Saqqara outside the ancient city of Memphis.
Portrait of the week: Harry and Meghan’s interview, Piers Morgan’s resignation and Biden’s pets in the doghouse
From our UK edition
Home The world was agog, some in tears, some in synchronised toe-curling, as the Duchess of Sussex and her husband shared their sufferings with Oprah Winfrey. In America 17 million watched; in Britain 11 million. The Duchess spoke of Disney’s Little Mermaid; seeing it, she had exclaimed: ‘Oh my God she falls in love with
What did Spectator writers really get up to at school?
From our UK edition
Rod Liddle If you leave a Bunsen burner on for about ten minutes, then quickly put the rubber pipe over a water tap and turn it on full, you get a small explosion and a scalding stream of water to be directed at a boy called Harris. Similarly, if you attach crocodile clips to Harris’s
2494: Back to front – solution
From our UK edition
Unclued lights are from the ‘Looking Glass’ poem Jabberwocky. First prize Alison Peck, Mathry, PembrokeshireRunners-up Patricia Gibbs, Barrow upon Soar, Leics; Stephen Charman, Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex