Most couples might shy away from difficult conversations on nationalism, adultery or the gender pay gap in a bid to keep the peace. But not so Kenzo Onumonu, 29, and Georgia Gibbs, 25, of Tooting, south London, the creators of Forty: a provocative dinner party game designed to get people talking. Forty consists of a … Read more
Coronavirus is being blamed for the collapse of Flybe, despite the fact that the airline has been in trouble for years. The 2,000 staff who find themselves out of work are rightly furious. One raged: ‘Is coronavirus the new go-to excuse after Brexit?’ Yes, I’m afraid it is. Flybe may be the first failing company … Read more
Are you panic buying yet? I was tempted to stick another nine-pack of loo rolls in my supermarket trolley yesterday but resisted the impulse. Why? Because I want to be British about this. I want to be sensible and responsible. I want to do the right thing by society. I’m not vulnerable, I don’t have … Read more
They say scary times call for steady heads. Fortunately, Professor Chris Whitty is one weirdly cool hombre. For 90 minutes yesterday, England’s Chief Medical Officer answered questions from the Commons health committee on the coronavirus outbreak. No notes, no sprawling entourage. He didn’t so much as require a replenishing tumbler of Highland Spring as he … Read more
Sir, I was interested to read the open letter sent by leaders of Women’s Aid and the Women’s Equality Party in which they called on the Oxford University Press to abolish its dictionaries’ ‘sexist’ definitions of the word ‘woman’. I share their outrage that the Oxford English Dictionary continues to include synonyms such as ‘chick’, … Read more
MAX HASTINGS: Discriminating against people because of the colour of their skin or their gender is very different to stating a fact about someone’s physical state which puts them at risk…
Priti Patel was once asked whether she thought she was widely liked by the civil servants who worked for her. ‘Probably not,’ she replied. ‘But you don’t go to work to be liked and be popular. You go to work to be effective and to change things.’ Given recent events, that attitude is probably for … Read more
Fiona Bruce is almost unique among her generation of high-profile female presenters in that she has never — so she says — succumbed to the temptation of Botox. In an industry where frozen foreheads abound, she remains steadfastly untouched by the needle at 55, even though, as she puts it: ‘If you don’t do it, … Read more
At times of crisis most people will offer up thanks that they are not running the country, and that someone else is prepared to undertake such an unenviable task. For days many of us have been cavilling at Boris Johnson. What has he been doing? Was he really too occupied with his bride-to-be Carrie Symonds … Read more
JANET STREET-PORTER: Could this pregnancy could be proof that Boris has finally met his match? For flood victims, the news that 55-year-old Boris Johnson is to be a dad (for at least the sixth time) will be as welcome as a bucket of fresh sewage. Where’s our (normally) media- savvy Prime Minister been for the … Read more