Quacks

I like my doctor, but I worry about him. The trouble is he is already 84. I don't know what I'll do when he

The Book What I Wrote

A couple of years ago, unable to find any novels that I really wanted to read, I decided I should act on my

Ozymandias All Over Again

I don't know where it came from but for a long time we've had a mug commemorating Margaret Thatcher,

Nothing is Lost

If you look hard enough, everything is on the Internet - including Judi Dench in the play I mentioned

A Girl After my Own Heart

I am no nearer understanding why I'm always in such a rush in the kitchen these days, but I have

Why the Rush

Lately I've noticed my attempts at cooking all too often end up being focussed on getting the process over

Arse

Before I start ranting and raving, let me make it clear

Corsets and Sable Trim

If I can't find some food in a book, then a passage that is full of details about clothes is the next best thing. As

It Was Round and Pale Green

The bush is very smelly at the moment. At first I thought it might be because of the yellow flowers that are

As I Was Saying

I think I may have mentioned tattoos recently - and here I am, moth-like, drawn to the subject again. This

Marcel's Citrus Epiphany

Speaking of food in novels, when one of my daughters was still at school, they

Yum

Ages ago I got excited about descriptions of food in novels and, reading JG

It Must Be Love

One of my favourite Internet friends is Denis Wright and his

Filial Duty

When I was young, I was quite often left by myself at home. My mother would

Misogyny

Recently, our Prime Minister, in defending the male Speaker of

Italian Antidotes

I have just spent twenty-four hours without coffee or tea and I have to, reluctantly, admit

The Smiling Spy Turns Ninety

In 2010 I wrote a post about George Blake and I'm

Books and Reading

I've just finished the new biography of Patrick Leigh Fermor by Artemis Cooper. One of the things that

Australia v Britain

To the evolving Australia v Britain list, initiated by my

Things I Never Knew about Canberra

A Canberra MP (Labor, it almost goes without saying, given that Canberra is a Labor city) had

Abandoned Places

I've been reading a book by Rose Macaulay about ruins lately and also reading

Honoured

A VC was awarded to an Australian soldier, Corporal Daniel Keighran, the other

Vote One: Ol' Creepy

For any American readers wrestling with their democratic duty, here is a suggestion from

Autres Temps

My primary school education in the early sixties in England was, I suppose, a kind of

Bling Queen

I never ever thought Queen Victoria would stoop to

Winners Are Grinners

There is an interesting essay podcast on the Radio 3 website, dealing with