Meet the new ‘Londonshire’ set taking over the Cotswolds
Things have got so bad in Londonshire – as we now call my area of the Cotswolds – that frantic house-hunters have been reduced to dropping leaflets…
Scrambled eggs, ketchup in gravy and talking to vegans: My alternative guide to the art of living
Pondering on how best to equip yourself for life in the coming year, indeed decade? You could enrol on a course at one of France’s most famous…
The best places to eat, drink and shop in Bermondsey
José Pizarro is a legend of the London restaurant scene, the “Godfather of Spanish cooking” in the UK. With six restaurants to his name, including the recently…
The best chef’s knives for impressive results
Few chefs are as infatuated by knives as Henry Harris, chef-director of The Hero of Maida, The Coach and Three Cranes. Harris owns around 100, and uses…
Should we call in sick with a cold in the post-Covid world?
The safest thing to do, then, is to take a PCR test to confirm whether your cold-like symptoms are Covid. However, even if the test comes back…
What your back pain is telling you about your health
If you have a generally achy lower back that is relieved by sitting… If you have an achy lower back that’s triggered by long periods of standing…
Eight of the best vegan protein powders to buy in 2022, from hemp to pea
In recent years, boxers David Haye and Mike Tyson, the Williams sisters, UFC fighters, cricketers and footballers have all reportedly “gone green” — following the example of Popeye, who built…
My wife hates me, but for now we muddle on in an uneasy stasis
I always liked to say that the first thing that drew me to my wife was her rapier wit. She was arch and funny, and could be…
2021 was a bad year for the police – they must act now to restore trust
Londoners know that 2021 was not a good year for the Metropolitan Police Service. The murder of Sarah Everard in Clapham last March — by a serving…
Modellers are heading for a showdown
The number of omicron cases generated over the Christmas period is enormous by any standards. On December 29, some 220,000 people tested positive for Covid across the…
Starmer’s speech proves Labour is still navel gazing
The thing about contracts is that they can only be entered into willingly by each party. Announcing a new contract between yourself and X, without reference to…
Dealing with omicron is simple: be sensible and get jabbed
I very much doubt if Boris Johnson will ever be rated amongst the greatest of our prime ministers, but I do not think anyone who might have…
We are playing whack-a-mole with variants – and the virus is winning
As we begin year three of the Covid-19 pandemic, hunkering down again to survive the viral blizzard that Omicron has brought, it is painfully clear that we…
Why is Sadiq Khan decriminalising dangerous drugs?
Sadiq Khan is considering a surprising initiative to stop the killings on our streets – a pilot scheme that would decriminalise cannabis in three London boroughs. Under-25s…
It’s not sexist that Eton and Harrow only admit boys
The concept of social justice and Britain’s most exclusive schools may not seem like obvious bedfellows. For decades, these institutions have been seen as bastions of unearned…
Is this the most bizarre anti-vaccine conspiracy theory yet?
It may be early days, but the Sentence of the Year contest for 2022 already looks a foregone conclusion. On Saturday, the following line appeared towards the…
Church closures hollow out Britain
Churches have always been closed down when they are deemed no longer to be supported by local people. Formal procedures governed by Church law have seen parishes…
Keir Starmer may think he’s a knight in shining armour, but a Union Jack T-shirt isn’t ‘new’ Labour
Labour, he stated accurately, was historically a patriotic party. He ticked off Attlee, Wilson and Blair – skipping sensibly over Callaghan and Brown – as examples of…
We were told to fear omicron – but it’s a pussycat compared to what came before
Most children have either had Covid, been vaccinated or both, so they enjoy superb immunity, but the poor kids will still be sent home for a week…
Of course Tony Blair should be knighted
Sometimes the Right, when outraged, can be as ridiculously narrow-minded as the Left. Indeed, on the subject of Tony Blair’s knighthood, they seem to be united. Of…
The best online homeware and interiors shops to suit every budget
There’s something fresh and fun about MADE, which produces design-led furniture at affordable prices, releasing new collections every two weeks. Since being founded in 2010, it’s become the go-to…
6 best beauty products every woman over 50 needs in their skincare routine in 2022
I used to think it was just my bathroom cabinet that was out of control. Recently though, a friend, despairing about her ever-expanding beauty routine, showed me…
Are you applying your face serum the wrong way? Here’s how to do it correctly
The problem with ‘HA’ is that it’s often either too large a molecule (it comes in different molecular weights) to pass through the skin’s surface or it…
What’s behind the record-breaking rise in global art market sales?
During the closing weeks of last year, some phenomenal statistics were released underlining how strong the art market has been in spite of pandemic conditions. Not only…
Have fillers gone out of fashion? Why celebrities are turning away from the needle
Written in her trademark refreshingly frank way, Schumer’s fans loved her honesty. Because as much as filler can be used to great effect in lifting a jowl…