Commentators
Pat Venditti: Buying Burmese timber spells ecological disaster
Published: 27 May 2006
The revelation that Burmese timber is being sold openly at the Chelsea Flower Show should ruffle a few bushes in Vincent Square, home of the Royal Horticultural Society. Its annual extravaganza of flora and fauna is the most famous celebration of gardening in the world, with the power to set trends for a global industry. By not vigorously preventing exhibitors from peddling furniture from Burma, the RHS has played an unwitting role in the suffering of that country's people and contributed to an environmental crisis that has left unique eco-systems at the mercy of chainsaws.
Jemima Lewis: Why did the British disown Benny Hill?
Published: 27 May 2006
Rupert Cornwell: Roles are reversed as 'George and Tony' show nears its end
Published: 27 May 2006
It was supposed to be, as the Downing Street and White House jargon has it, a "forward-leaning" meeting, dwelling on the future of Iraq and Iran and the irresistible march of freedom and democracy to the darkest recesses of the planet. In the event, the joint press conference of George Bush and Tony Blair was a rather sorry affair, less sunlit uplands of the future than the dark valleys of the past. Just like their respective intelligence communities, these two leaders have a credibility problem, reflected in their abysmal opinion poll ratings. On Thursday evening, it showed.
Richard Ingrams' Week: Why does the 'Express' print this bunkum?
Published: 27 May 2006
There is only one baffling mystery about the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997. Why does the Daily Express, regularly every Monday, print bogus revelations on its front page suggesting her death was the result of a top-level conspiracy involving, among others, MI5 and the royals?
Michael McCarthy: Forgotten creatures that maintain the fabric of life
Published: 26 May 2006
Everyone knows about the giant panda. Everyone knows about the tiger and the polar bear and how they are threatened with extinction. For creatures like these, in the words of some rather cynical zoologists, are "charismatic megafauna" - big beasts with loads of photogenic personality.
Julie Flint: A peace plan not worth the paper it's written on
Published: 26 May 2006
Donald Macintyre: Leader who finally showed his claws
Published: 26 May 2006
Perhaps Mahmoud Abbas is not quite the "helpless" figure the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert described him as last weekend.
The Third Leader: Milk and honey
Published: 26 May 2006
Some accuse David Cameron of a lack of substance. I hope they are feeling chastened today: this is a man whose announcement that he wants to make us happy is swiftly followed by the news that one of his favourite songs is Benny Hill's Ernie. Implementation in three days. Impressive.
Susie Rushton: Indestructible garment that built an empire
Published: 25 May 2006
Screw it up into a ball, fling it into a suitcase, fly it to the other side of the globe - and still look glamorous, feminine and crease-free, with no iron required. Over the past two decades, the signature Ghost dress has remained a reliable standby in an industry notorious for proposing fantastic, sexy or shocking designs that might be heaven to behold, but are hell to wear and, in particular, care for.
Julia Stephenson: The Green Goddess
Published: 25 May 2006
I'm currently enjoying an eco-friendly mini break at the Mayr clinic in Austria. The clinic has sweeping views of Lake Worthersee, the purest lake in Europe, and is set in ravishing organic meadowlands studded with poppies, buttercups, daisies and cowslips; wild-flowers we take for granted but which are rapidly disappearing from the UK in our mania for immaculate green lawns.
The Third Leader: Green is the new white
Published: 25 May 2006
Ding dong! In a timely reminder that love hurts, Friends of the Earth are urging plight trothers to exercise their passion responsibly, think about the 14.5 tonnes of CO2 the average wedding pumps out, and make sure that theirs is a green one.
Patrick Cockburn: Face the facts: we are not wanted in Iraq
Published: 24 May 2006
Michael McCarthy: How maestro naturalist finally went into battle
Published: 24 May 2006
Daniel Howden: Ankara's EU project is in danger of collapse
Published: 24 May 2006
Turkey is in crisis. The shooting of one of the country's top judges by an Islamic lawyer last week has sharply polarised the nation's politics. And the angry popular response to a murder believed to have been motivated by disagreements over the right to wear headscarves, has had the effect of forcing people to take sides.
The Third Leader: Talking heads
Published: 24 May 2006
Today, let us give thanks for Alan Bennett, on whom honours pour down like rain on the rest of us. Today, it's five top Broadway drama awards for The History Boys and a shortlisting for the Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-fiction for Untold Stories. Soon, doubtless it will be the seven Tonys the play has also been nominated for, plus the SJ itself. And don't worry, he's already a Freeman of Leeds, done just the other week.
Donald Macintyre: Could this be the moment for Middle East negotiations?
Published: 23 May 2006
Joanna Lumley: We need clear labels to stop the damage
Published: 23 May 2006
I've always been interested in orangutans, partly because I spent some of my childhood in Malaysia. I was invited to do a TV programme last year, Final Chance to Save, and I chose the orangutan because I knew they were in terrible trouble. I visited Indonesia and was surprised by the severity of their situation.
Catherine Townsend: Sleeping around
Published: 23 May 2006
I should have known dark clouds were on the horizon of my budding romance when James, a 36-year-old screenwriter with a passion for Buddhism, let it slip on our fourth date that all his past lovers had told him he was fantastic in bed. This kind of ominous remark is the sexual equivalent of the sinister movie character who says: "I'll be right back," before heading down into the dark basement, never to return. Still, things seemed to be going well as we undressed each other back at his flat.
The Third Leader: Happiness is...
Published: 23 May 2006
Only a curmudgeon could fail to respond positively to someone who wants to make us happy, so blame it on the weather, the time of the week or because I've already impotently advised against the wisdom of such an ambition. Besides, how could one not warm to Mr David Cameron, a man who is almost hoarse with sincerity?
Jan McGirk: 'Constructive engagement' has paid few dividends
Published: 22 May 2006
When the Burmese junta executed a U-turn and welcomed a United Nations envoy this weekend for the first time in more than two years, political analysts saw self-interest at work. Few expect the generals to heed calls for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi; detaining the Nobel peace laureate is their trump card.
Rebecca Tyrrel: Days Like Those
Published: 22 May 2006
Charles Nevin: Round the world on a grand piano, anyone?
Published: 22 May 2006
In all the energetic discussions that we continue to have about Britishness, there is one quality which seems rather overlooked amid the usual stuff about homes and castles, rigid lips and distinctions, deep inhibitions and an excessive need to apologise and eat baked beans: energy.
John Lichfield: Our Man In Normandy
Published: 22 May 2006
In France, the past is rarely another country. History is buried in shallow graves. In rural France, for instance, you often find that local clans divide according to family allegiances of 1940-44: pro-Vichy or anti-Vichy; pro-Resistance or anti-Resistance.
Jonathon Porritt: Our nuclear future may already be decided
Published: 21 May 2006
Germaine Greer: Pop bitch
Published: 21 May 2006
IoS poll: Have divorce rulings tipped balance too far against breadwinner?