Commentators
Patrick Cockburn: Military progress is an illusion
Published: 01 December 2005
The Iraqi armed forces on the ground in Baghdad look very different from the encouraging picture of them painted by President George Bush. Its men are often packed into pathetically vulnerable convoys of ageing white pick-up trucks.
The Third Leader: Up and away
Published: 01 December 2005
Cold snaps, Christmas, terrorism, murders, pensions: what we need is some uplifting news, something to reaffirm, gloriously, our confidence in the indefatigable spirit, goodwill and ingenuity of humanity. And so I am proud to salute the liberal display of all those qualities in yesterday's bold attempt to teach a vulture to fly in a wind tunnel in Milton Keynes.
Jenni Murray: 'It's not that kind of place at all'
Published: 30 November 2005
I was taught by Joanne's mother at Barnsley Girls High School during the Sixties and I can still remember the impact she had on us as this glorious, exotic creature, dressed in black and trailing clouds of Je Revien perfume. She was unself-consciously intellectual in that very French manner and I think she really opened the eyes of a generation of girls such as myself to books like Madame Bovary. She was wonderful.
The Third Leader: Watch out
Published: 30 November 2005
Lots of wristwatches, I note, on sale at Bonhams yesterday. Gold, platinum, famous owners, famous names, with or without automatic, perpetual triple calendar, sunrise, phases of the moon or an alarm to tell you your egg's ready.
Charles Glass: Free speech is for everyone - even David Irving
Published: 29 November 2005
The Third Leader: Morning after
Published: 29 November 2005
Predictable reactions, I see, to the expenditure of £40,000 of public money on research revealing that "an alcohol-induced hangover impairs psychomotor and cognitive performance". Down here, though, there is some hesitation in joining in with the raspberry blowers and cat callers, and not just because it's so dreadfully noisy after an enjoyable evening.
Charles Nevin: News from Elsewhere
Published: 28 November 2005
Simon Callow: Like Olivier, I am revisiting a classic role
Published: 28 November 2005
I last played the role of Abanazar 32 years ago. It was my first and until this year my last attempt at pantomime, but it is a truth universally acknowledged that one should always come back to the great classical roles and I was delighted that someone thought to ask me.
Julie Bindel: Marriage? No thanks, we're gay...
Published: 28 November 2005
Geoffrey Lean: Nukes - I've changed my mind
Published: 27 November 2005
Denis Law: Yes, we should have done more to protect him from himself
Published: 27 November 2005
Germaine Greer: The Best year of my life
Published: 27 November 2005
Anthony Grayling: Little Britain is cruel. But look who's laughing
Published: 27 November 2005
Claire Rayner: At 17 you think you're immortal
Published: 27 November 2005
Risk-taking and pushing yourself further than you thought you could go is normal for young people. It starts in childhood: toddlers always do it, then run back to the safety of their parents.
Rupert Cornwell: Out of America
Published: 27 November 2005
Jemima Lewis: The indisputable joy of sex toys
Published: 26 November 2005
Next time you go shopping on the high street, be warned: if you ask for a Little Gem you may not come away with a lettuce. A Charm is no longer something you wear around your wrist, and a Wand is most definitely not a suitable Christmas present for a small child.
Richard Ingrams' Week: From shots in the arm to a shot in the dark
Published: 26 November 2005
As one of the vulnerable oldies, I am glad to reassure readers that I have been given my annual flu jab. But thanks to the shortcomings of the Government in the person of Patricia Hewitt, many others have not been so fortunate.
Ian Irvine: btw
Published: 26 November 2005
Get thee behind me, Santa. Curious news from Germany, where a group has launched a campaign to persuade people to turn their backs on Santa Claus and return to St Nicholas instead. Calling themselves the Santa-Free Zone, they have printed thousands of flyers and stickers and are distributing them in towns across the nation. The country's most famous newsreader, Peter Hahne, is championing their campaign: "St Nicholas's values are selflessness, charity, solidarity, giving and sharing. Santa Claus, on the other hand, is a product of a consumer society. He is a symbol of shopping and has got nothing to do with St Nicholas, who still teaches us today that giving does not make you poorer, but richer." Of course, it could be just another outbreak of anti-American feeling: these Santa-deniers are spreading the urban myth that the figure of Santa Claus was only created in 1931 to advertise Coca-Cola. (Definitely not true. Have a look on www.snopes.com for an entertaining rebuttal.)
E Jane Dickson: It's not a crime for women to get drunk. It's just not very clever
Published: 26 November 2005
In the fog of outrage and confusion surrounding the case of Ryairi Dougal, the man acquitted in Swansea this week of raping a dead-drunk woman, one sharp-edged fact emerges: binge drinking puts women at risk of more than a killer hangover.
Matthew Norman: My sympathy for Gary Glitter
Published: 25 November 2005
Stephen Wall: The real damage from this rift over Iraq
Published: 25 November 2005
The Third Leader: Eat your purples!
Published: 24 November 2005
So: the purple sprout is with us, to follow the blue potato, the maroon carrot, the white cucumber and the red cabbage ice cream, earlier attempts to entice children into eating what's good for them. Unusually for this space, we do not feel terribly optimistic.
