The anti-genius of William McGonagall, history’s worst poet
‘Not marble nor the gilded monuments of princes,’ wrote Shakespeare, ‘shall outlive this powerful rhyme.’ To be a great poet,…
The ‘goodies and baddies’ era of world politics is over
It’s hard to overstate just how shocking, how grotesque and shaming, was President Trump’s outburst against Ukraine’s President Zelensky in…
AI needs to be regulated
On Tuesday, the government’s consultation on AI and copyright comes to an end. There doesn’t seem to be much hope…
The new Civ is gorgeous and richly rewarding
Grade: A- It has been nearly ten years since addicts of the empire-building simulator Civilization – or Civ, as players…
Don’t blame WFH parents for absent school children
The Chief Inspector of the schools’ watchdog Ofsted, Sir Martyn Oliver, has said he thinks the change in working habits…
The AI industry has been given a taste of its own medicine
Life comes at you fast, eh? Only a few weeks ago I was grumbling in this very slot about the way in…
Scrapping Oxford’s ‘traditional’ exams won’t make things fairer
Are exams… racist? Are exams snobs? If a report in yesterday’s Sunday Telegraph is to be credited, academics at Oxford…
The difference between Trump 45 and Trump 47
Him again? Donald Trump’s back in the White House. Those who thought his first term in office was an aberration…
The truth about Dominic Cummings and Elon Musk’s ‘sabotage plot’
A few centuries ago, when I worked on the Daily Telegraph under the editorship of the now Lord Moore, there…
A winter’s tale: Brightly Shining, by Ingvild Rishoi, reviewed
In a poignant story reminiscent of ‘The Little Match Girl’, two Norwegian children try to dodge social services by selling wreaths and Christmas trees when their father fails to provide for them
Is it time to lay off Tulip Siddiq?
We all have generous aunties, right? My own once let me live rent-free in her London flat for several months…
The intensity of female friendship explored
Rachel Cooke’s spry anthology includes fiction, poetry, memoir, speeches, obituaries, letters and even comics – The Four Marys from Bunty
The downside of charity
I blame Charles Dickens, personally: he of David Copperfield, Little Nell, Oliver Twist and, of course, Tiny Tim. He’s the…
Should AI be allowed to train itself off this column?
If you’re a writer, should AI companies be allowed to use your work to train their models without your permission?…
The hypocrisy of Nick Candy
The property tycoon Nick Candy, interviewed in yesterday’s Sunday Times, appears to be hoping to position himself as a UK…
The absurdities of a ‘meritocracy fund’
‘Go woke, go broke,’ runs the catchphrase. Now, at last, we are presented with the welcome opportunity to put this…
Why Gail’s triumphs
The bakery chain Gail’s, which opened its first branch in Hampstead less than 20 years ago, is reportedly touted for…
Lovingly designed, touching and immersive: Neva reviewed
Grade: A- There’s a very faint echo of Jeff VanderMeer’s unheimlich Southern Reach Series in the new indie side-scroller Neva.…
Those signing the general election petition should know better
Every now and again, a newspaper will run – and portentously headline – a survey on the future of the…
Elon Musk and the age of the troll
There has been a cheering new development in the struggle against scam phone callers. AI can now be used to…
Peanut the squirrel shows Elon Musk is wrong about the mainstream media
Was it Peanut wot won it? One of the stranger and more incendiary aspects of the run-up to the recent…
Much more than just a game: World of Warcraft at 20
On 23 November, the video game World of Warcraft celebrates its 20th anniversary. That’s no small thing. By most metrics,…
Do we care that the King is rich?
For the first time, the true extent of the property held by the King and the Prince of Wales’s private…
Why is Elon Musk obsessed with Diablo IV?
Grade: A- I usually try to write about new games, but indulge me in addressing Blizzard’s open-world dungeon crawler Diablo…
