Table of contents for 1566 in The Week

Controversy of the week The chaos in our prisons As Lady Bracknell might say, “to allow one dangerous, illegal migrant sex offender to be mistakenly released may be regarded as a misfortune”. To lose two in the space of a fortnight “looks like carelessness”, said The Independent. The Government seems unable to get through a week without some catastrophe sending its popularity to “fresh Stygian depths”. And last week, days after the farcical manhunt for Ethiopian migrant Hadush Kebatu, Justice Secretary (and Deputy PM) David Lammy suffered fresh humiliation when it emerged that a 24-year-old Algerian, Brahim Kaddour-Cherif, was on the run, and had been for six days – having been accidentally released from HMP Wandsworth. Prison officers only discovered Kaddour-Cherif was missing because he was due in court for…

Electric car drivers, with reports (see page 35) that the Treasury is pushing for them to be hit with a 3p-per-mile tax, to make up for the loss of billions in fuel duty as more people switch to EVs. The NHS in England, as resident doctors prepare for another strike. The BMA confirmed that the five-day action would start on Friday, after deciding that an offer that included the NHS covering the cost of doctors’ exam fees did not go far enough. DFDS ferries, after an adult film was accidentally broadcast in a passenger lounge on the Dieppe to Newhaven service. Children reportedly ran away screaming when the porn film began.…

31% of British adults think the BBC is biased in favour of left-wing views, while 19% believe the corporation to be biased in favour of right-wing views. 19% think it is not biased at all. 31% do not know. YouGov/The Daily Telegraph Just 20% of the British public believe that it is acceptable for Labour to break its manifesto promise not to raise income tax, even if that is what the UK needs. Labour voters are evenly split on the issue, with 38% on either side. Demos/The Independent 86% of British men feel safe behind the wheel, compared with 78% of women. Official figures show that men accounted for 76% of all road fatalities (but also drive more miles per person). National Accident Helpline…

Don McCullin’s despair War photographers are not supposed to reach the age of 90, says Emine Saner in The Guardian; and as he enters his tenth decade, Don McCullin feels “uncomfortable” that he is still here – and about all the accolades he has received for his work, covering conflicts and disasters. “I feel as if I’ve been over-rewarded,” he says, “because it’s been at the expense of other people’s lives.” Surely, though, his work witnessing atrocity was important? “Yes, but at the end of the day, it has done absolutely no good at all. Look at Ukraine. Look at Gaza. I haven’t changed a solitary thing.” In recent years, he has mainly used his camera to capture the beauty of the landscape around his home in Somerset; and he…

Most adult migrants who arrive in the UK on small boats are sent to Manston, a processing centre that opened on a former RAF base in Kent in 2022. They are supposed to be held there for only 24 hours, while officials carry out security and identity checks; but owing to overcrowding, some stay for weeks. Conditions can be squalid: in 2022, there was an outbreak of diphtheria at the site. Upon leaving, asylum seekers take up one of some 1,750 places in initial accommodation, while officials assess their eligibility for further help. After this, most will be sent to longer-term “dispersal accommodation”. On average, it took 413 days for an asylum application to receive an initial decision in 2024 (down from 735 days a year earlier). Although most asylum…

Tucker Carlson has lost the plot Thomas D. Howes Civitas Outlook “I have never been a fan of Tucker Carlson,” says Thomas D. Howes. There was a time, though, when I could forgive conservatives for enjoying the former Fox News star’s “brand of political entertainment”. It was McDonald’s, yes, but, as they say, “everyone has their McDonald’s”. While he may have been a loudmouth, Carlson was a “libertarian-leaning conservative who operated within a broadly conservative, classical liberal framework”. Yet over the past few years, he has moved beyond the pale by defending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and voicing increasingly extreme views. His “anti-Israel, even antisemitic insinuations” have grown louder, never more so than in his recent interview with the white nationalist activist Nick Fuentes, an avowed admirer of Hitler and…

Hospital bosses have warned that the UK may be on the brink of a winter flu crisis. The number of cases has started rising earlier than usual this year – there have been three times as many as normal at this point – which is worrying, because millions of those eligible have not yet had their flu jabs. As of last week, 13 million people had been vaccinated, five million fewer than were vaccinated last year, when nearly 8,000 people died of flu. Officials have also noted that Australia’s flu season, which is often a predictor of what is facing the UK, has been the worst on record. The NHS has issued an “SOS” to people to have the jab. Those eligible to have it on the NHS include people…

Britain is in the middle of a “quiet crisis”, said Octavius Black in The Daily Telegraph: one that is dragging our economy down, and trapping millions of people in a cycle of dependency. That’s the conclusion of the former John Lewis chairman Sir Charlie Mayfield who, in a new report entitled “Keep Britain Working”, warns that a staggering one in five working-age adults (more than nine million people) are now out of the labour force, largely due to ill health or disability. Mayfield cites plenty of factors that have helped create this “sick note culture”, said Sean O’Grady in The Independent. Hard-pressed GPs are poorly placed to assess whether a person is fit for work, so end up signing off 93% of those who ask; there’s a sharp rise in…

“Coincidence is God’s way of remaining anonymous.”Adage cited in The Atlantic “Old age is the most unexpected of all the things that happen to a man.”Leon Trotsky, quoted in The Daily Telegraph “I always wanted to be somebody, but I should have been more specific.”Attrib. Jane Wagner, quoted in The i Paper “The most successful people I know believe in themselves almost to the point of delusion.”Sam Altman, quoted in The Knowledge “No man can be virtuous unless he has the strength of character to be wicked.”La Rochefoucauld, quoted in The London Review of Books “If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs, it’s just possible you haven’t grasped the situation.”Jean Kerr, quoted in the Daily Mail “Jokes are the resistance.”Comedian Sammy Obeid, quoted on…

To The New Statesman I loved Will Lloyd’s take-down of the monarchy, but in one respect at least he underestimated the degree of bowing and scraping to that questionable institution. Assuming that Athelstan was the first king of England (disputed I know), we have had 1,098, not 365, years of such servitude. It was only between 1649 and 1660 that we English did not have a monarch to bow and scrape to. Colin Richards, Spark Bridge, Cumbria To The New Statesman Will Lloyd’s thought-provoking analysis of the monarchy undervalues cross-generational ties. For Edmund Burke, society is a “partnership between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to be born”. It is easy to dismiss this as reactionary, yet the opposite is true: without a connection…

Arcadia by Tom Stoppard, 1993 (Faber £10.99). It’s rare for a week to go by without me making reference to this play – whether with regard to “noise”, fate or mansplaining. About lives misunderstood in parallel centuries, it features a cast of characters who are unapologetically clever and plain funny as they debate at the junction of science and art. The Birth of the Orchestra: History of an Institution, 1650–1815 by John Spitzer and Neal Zaslaw, 2004 (OUP £370). I knew as a penniless postgrad that I couldn’t afford to be without this, and it’s been a constant companion ever since. No lofty tome, it’s a readable romp through the historic adventures of the orchestra in a flurry of fascinating facts and figures. Miss Garnet’s Angel by Salley Vickers, 2000…

Programmes Hitler’s DNA: Blueprint of a Dictator A geneticist and a historian examine what they say is Hitler’s DNA – extracted from dried blood apparently found on a sofa in the Berlin bunker – and explore what it might reveal about the despot. Sat 15 Nov, C4 21:00 (60mins). Wild Cherry Glossy coming-of-age drama in which the seemingly perfect lives of two women are thrown into disarray when their teenage daughters are embroiled in a scandal. Sat 15 Nov, BBC1 21:00 and 21:55 (55mins and 50mins respectively). Summerwater Brooding adaptation of Sarah Moss’s novel, interweaving the stories of four families at a Scottish holiday park where a tragedy has occurred. Sun 16-Tue 18 Nov, C4 21:00 (60mins each). Turner: The Secret Sketchbooks Experts and artists delve into Turner’s vast archive of…

I am not very heavy-handed with the spices in my savoury cooking, says Alison Roman, but there is something about sweet, earthy carrots that calls for them. Instead of getting toasted beforehand, the spices (and walnuts) are roasted with the carrots, blooming in the fat as they cook. I’m wary of sweet vegetables, so I always like to anchor them in something deeply savoury. Here, raw garlic adds that intensity, but don’t worry: the heat from the just-roasted carrots gently tames its bite. Serves 4 2 bunches small carrots (about 450g, unpeeled, tops trimmed) 75g walnuts, coarsely chopped 2 tbsp olive oil kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper ¼ tsp ground cinnamon ¼ tsp ground coriander ½ tsp chilli flakes 1 tbsp fennel seeds 2 tbsp unsalted butter, cut…

Handmade in Lancashire, Butlers’ Perfect British Cheeseboard with Crackers & Chutney comes in two sizes, with a blue, a soft and a hard cheese, plus fig relish and crackers (from £10; butlerscheeses.co.uk). Cutter & Squidge’s Mixed Mini Brownie Box includes a mix of six flavours of brownie bites, including peanut butter and salted caramel (£20; cutterandsquidge.com). The Gardeners Tools Collection comes with a gardening fork, a small roll of twine and wooden plant markers (£30; moonpig.com). Letterbox Gifts has ideas for every occasion including a Muscle Relaxation Gift Set (£38) or the New Mum Gift Set (£37), which includes camomile tea, essential oil, bath salts, a tea light and chocolate (letterboxgifts.co.uk). One for readers, The Letterbox Tea Break includes a pre-loved book of fiction or nonfiction; tea, coffee or hot chocolate;…

Tewinbury Farm Hotel Hertfordshire Set on a former dairy farm near Welwyn Garden City, this rambling hotel is like a more “affordable” and “family friendly” version of Soho Farmhouse, says Cathy Adams in The Times. Its 52 rooms are spread across the old farmhouse, its outbuildings (which have a “nicely worn-in, homely feel”), and a series of lakeside huts (with their own outdoor hot tubs) and lodges. There is an upmarket gastropub on site, serving “classics well done”, a courtyard where you can get pizza from woodfired ovens, and a wine bar. A gym, freshwater swimming lakes and an outdoor cinema are due to open soon. Doubles from £175 b&b; tewinbury.co.uk.…

Diageo: drastic remedy Rarely had the fortunes of Britain’s largest drinks group, Diageo, seemed so bleak, said The Mail on Sunday. Last Thursday, a profits alert sent shares in the rudderless company to their lowest level in a decade. But never underestimate the power of a timely snifter, said Alistair Osborne in The Times. In the nick of time, Diageo has served up a “cocktail worth drinking”. What’s it called? A “Drastic Dave”, of course. The booze group’s value gained £2bn in a session on news that the former Tesco boss Sir Dave Lewis has been put “in charge of the drinks cabinet”. True, Lewis has no direct experience in the industry. But 27 years at consumer giant Unilever (where he earned the nickname “Drastic” for his bold cost-cutting moves),…

The job market and Budget fears David Smith The Times Until this week, a narrative was starting to develop that Britain’s labour market was recovering after the shock of last year’s Budget, says David Smith. That has been dealt “a savage blow” by the latest job figures. The headline bad news is a rise in the unemployment rate to 5%: the highest, outside the pandemic, since 2016. In particular, construction jobs – essential for the rebuilding of Britain and the Government’s housebuilding target – are falling, with numbers dropping by a fifth since 2016. In some ways, the timing of these gloomy figures is helpful. “It makes it highly likely that there will be a cut in interest rates next month”, and should act as “a red flag for the…

THE WEEK CROSSWORD 1491 Two Connell Guides and three Week-branded items will be given to the sender of the first correct solution to the crossword and the clue of the week opened on Monday 24 November. Send it to The Week Crossword 1491, 121-141 Westbourne Terrace, London W2 6JR, or email the completed grid/listed solutions to crossword@theweek.co.uk. By Tim Moorey (timmoorey.com) This week’s winner will receive Week-branded items, as well as two Connell Guides (connellguides.com). ACROSS 1 House provided by small record company (4) 3 Large estate with project to replace head in post (10) 9 Lively old Elgar composition with no depth (7) 11 Amenities lacking IT ordered for tight folk (7) 12 Gain ground in medicine measure to identify problem (8) 13 Hang back for a seat (5) 15…

What happened BBC bias battle Donald Trump threatened this week to sue the BBC for $1bn for “deceitfully” editing footage of a speech he gave on 6 January 2021, the day of the Capitol riot. BBC chair Samir Shah had earlier apologised for the “error of judgement” in the 2024 Panorama episode, which, by splicing together quotes from two separate parts of the speech, gave the false impression that Trump had directly incited the riot, omitting the section where he urged the crowd to protest “peacefully and patriotically”. However, Shah rejected claims of systemic bias. The row broke out last week after internal memos written by Michael Prescott, a former independent adviser to the BBC’s editorial standards committee, were leaked to The Daily Telegraph. As well as complaining about Panorama’s…

Heywood Hill, the bookshop in Mayfair where Nancy Mitford worked in the 1940s, is now offering what it calls “London’s greatest book subscription”. For the top-of-the-range package, which costs £1,200 a year, subscribers are given a reading consultation with one of the store’s employees, and are then sent 40 hand-picked hardbacks over 12 months. It’s like “having an intellectual personal trainer”, said one customer, the CEO of an international commodities trading firm. Almost half of UK adults have bought a toy for themselves or another adult this year. Toy makers are hoping to cash in on this trend at Christmas, with Wicked 2 dolls among those expected to appeal to “kidults” as well as to kids.…

On Tuesday evening, allies of Keir Starmer anonymously briefed several news outlets that the Prime Minister’s job was under “immediate threat”, and expressed fears that Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, might be planning a coup. They insisted that Starmer would “fight” any such attempt. On Wednesday, Streeting denied the claims entirely, describing them as “self defeating nonsense” and said they were indicative of a “toxic” atmosphere in No.10. In the Commons, Starmer denied authorising the briefings, and said attacks on his Cabinet members were “unacceptable”.…

Copenhagen Social media ban: Social media is “stealing our children’s childhood”, declared Denmark’s PM, Mette Frederiksen, in a speech last month; and last week her government announced its plan to ban children under 15 from going on social media platforms. A recent survey has shown that, in Denmark, 14-year-old girls spend almost four hours a day on average on social media; boys of the same age, over two-and-a-half. The new rules, which have cross-party support but no timescale, will oblige people to use an age-verification app to get on social media; parents will be given dispensation to let their 13- and 14-year-olds access specific platforms. This will be the first such ban in Europe, though France does oblige users under 15 to have parental consent. Denmark is following the lead…

“The poppy police, an informal mainstream and social media militia, is placed on high alert early every November. Sniffing out those suspected of insufficient respect to fallen service personnel, and then abusing them – for not wearing a poppy or wearing one of the wrong colour – has become an annual witch-hunt. Not only is this poppy shaming nasty and absurd, it’s totally unBritish. If there’s one thing Our Glorious Dead died for, it was the freedom to not conform to any particular orthodoxy. Yet Remembrance Day is becoming as much about bullying those who fail to go along with the approved version of patriotism as it is about honouring veterans.” Robert Crampton in The Times…

The collapse of our old political order Andy Beckett The Guardian It is extraordinary, says Andy Beckett, how rapidly the architecture of British politics – in particular its century-long domination by two major parties – is “falling apart”. Only six years ago, in the 2019 election, Labour and the Tories between them won 75.8% of the vote. Current polls show them with a combined support of less than 40%. Each is now trailing Reform UK and struggling to stay ahead even of the Greens and Lib Dems. It’s so unprecedented, we still haven’t come to terms with the potential impact of this fragmentation on every aspect of political life. Safe parliamentary seats could become a thing of the past, with parties no longer able to count on any heartlands. That,…

The case for more PSA tests Screening all men over 50 for prostate cancer could significantly reduce the number who die from the disease, a major study has found. Prostate cancer is Britain’s second-biggest cancer killer in men, responsible for more than 12,000 deaths a year. However, men in the UK are not routinely screened for it because the main test – which looks for levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA) in the blood – is not very reliable, creating a high risk of overdiagnosis and overtreatment. Men over 50 can, however, request a test from their GP. The research, for the long-term ERSPC study, involved 162,236 men aged 55 to 69 from eight European countries, almost half of whom were invited for a PSA test every four years; the…

Alan Hollinghurst was this year’s proud winner of the prestigious David Cohen Prize for lifetime achievement in literature. When Harold Pinter won the prize in 1995, he informed the crowd that he’d recently come under the scrutiny of a far harsher judge, says The Times. He’d met a six-year-old boy, whose mother had introduced the playwright by saying: “This man is a very good writer.” The boy looked Pinter up and down sceptically, and said: “Can he do a ‘W’?” The late Jilly Cooper wanted to be cremated; she’d scattered her own mother’s ashes in the garden of her Cotswolds home, and installed a headstone, carved with her name, dates (1906-1997) and an image of a rabbit running over some grass. The memorial had many admirers. Once, when Cooper was…

“The frenetic pace of the briefings and leaks” from the Treasury is such that you really have to ask, said Tim Shipman in The Spectator: “What the blithering heck is Rachel Reeves up to?” Last Tuesday, the Chancellor gave a speech blaming the parlous state of the national finances on the Tories, Brexit, the pandemic, foreign wars, Trump’s tariffs, low productivity, and so on. A few days later, it was reported that she had warned the Office for Budget Responsibility that she plans to raise income tax at the Budget later this month, contrary to Labour’s manifesto promises – possibly alongside a 2p cut in national insurance, to protect the less well-off. A few days after that, she hinted that she would lift the cap on benefits for families with…

When Sunderland were promoted to the Premier League last season, after an eight-year absence, questions were asked about Régis Le Bris’s side, said Cerys Jones and Anantaajith Raghuraman on The Athletic. How would a manager whose top flight experience was limited to two years with French club Lorient fare in England’s ferocious top division? “How would the team with the worst defensive record of the three promoted sides stand up to elite attackers?” With more than a quarter of the season gone, the answers to such questions look overwhelmingly positive, said Martin Hardy in The Sunday Times. Sunderland are fourth in the table, and are a team who “do not know when they are beaten” – as they proved once again last Saturday by drawing 2-2 with leaders Arsenal. Their…

Tennis Elena Rybakina upset world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 7-6 to win the WTA Finals in Riyadh. She won £3.8m – the largest payout in women’s tennis history. Football Manchester City narrowed Arsenal’s lead in the Premier League to four points with a 3-0 win over Liverpool. Chelsea moved to third place by beating Wolves 3-0. Cricket England touched down in Australia ahead of their Ashes series. Before the first Test, which begins in Perth on 21 November, Ben Stokes’s team will play just one warm-up game, against the England Lions.…

Dick Cheney 1941-2025 The office of vice-president is often regarded as a marginal role, said The Guardian. Yet Dick Cheney, who has died aged 84, held so much influence, as VP to George W. Bush, that he was often referred to as “the real president”. Bush has pushed back against that idea, yet there can be little denying that Cheney – the leading figure of a group of neocons that included Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz – “found the laidback president pliable on a whole raft of policy decisions”, including the invasion of Iraq in March 2003. Cheney was not single-handedly responsible for the Iraq War. Wolfowitz had discussed the possibility of military action to protect US interests in the region before 9/11; and Bush had come to office, in…

Gopichand Hinduja “In the freewheeling commercial milieu of 1970s Tehran”, it was said that the Shah once complained “the Hindujas were making more money than he was”, said The Daily Telegraph. That knack never deserted them. On his death last week aged 85, the family patriarch Gopichand Hinduja was the UK’s richest man: topping The Sunday Times Rich List with an estimated £35bn. Known fondly as GP, the British-Indian tycoon was the second of four brothers who fled Iran, where the family had been for 60 years, before the 1979 revolution, and built their father’s trading firm into an international conglomerate spanning oil, carmaking, banking, healthcare and real estate. “Jovial and voluble”, he was their natural spokesman. The Hindujas were “tough and inscrutable dealmakers who sailed with the political wind…

David Szalay, who won the Booker Prize with his sixth novel, Flesh. It traces the life of a working-class Hungarian émigré – a soldier turned strip-club bouncer, turned property developer – from his teens to middle age, to explore themes including masculinity, trauma and power. Nicolas Sarkozy, the former French president, who was released from prison just three weeks into his five-year sentence. The 70-year-old had contested the decision to jail him before the appeals process was exhausted, which is unusual for white-collar crimes. Under the terms of his release, he may not leave the country or meet witnesses or others associated with his case. Comebacks, with reports that the Duchess of Sussex is returning to acting, after an eight-year hiatus. Meghan is said to be making a cameo appearance…

The UK’s unemployment rate rose to 5% in the three months to September – its highest level since early 2021, during the third Covid lockdown. The Office for National Statistics (ONS), which compiled the data, said they pointed to a weakening labour market. The figures raised expectations that the Bank of England could cut interest rates in December. Wage growth also marginally slowed. However, the ONS – which has faced questions over the accuracy of its data – said the figures should be treated with caution for now.…

Alberta province, Canada Measles is back: The Americas has lost its “measles elimination status” owing to a year-long outbreak in Canada. The outbreak began in October 2024. Since then, more than 5,100 cases have been recorded, along with two deaths, most of them in communities with low rates of vaccination uptake in Alberta and Ontario. Canada was deemed measles-free in 1998, but overall vaccination rates have fallen recently. The proportion of two-year olds to have had at least one dose of the vaccine fell to about 82% in 2023, from 90% in 2019. The Americas – which includes the countries of North and South America and the Caribbean – became the first, and so far only, region to be designated measles free by the WHO in 2016, but has now…

A Facebook group devoted to “barefoot living” in the UK has been infiltrated by “foot fetishists”, The Times reports. The group was designed for people to share experiences of barefoot hiking and the like; but administrators have now had to bring in new rules – including a ban on photos of “just feet” – owing to a rise in people lurking in the group and making inappropriate requests. New members are now warned that this is “not a foot fetish group”: “Nothing against you,” a message to them reads, “but it’s not that kind of group.” A spider with markings resembling a human face has gone viral in Thailand. The photo of a crab spider – a harmless species known for its sideways movements – was first shared on a…

At Labour’s party conference in September, Shabana Mahmood pledged to do “whatever it takes” to regain control of Britain’s borders. It looks like that means copying Denmark, said Millie Cooke in The Independent. The Home Secretary dispatched officials to Copenhagen last month to study the country’s restrictive immigration regime, which last year succeeded in reducing asylum claims to a 40-year low. While refugees who are targeted personally by foreign regimes are normally given long-term protection by Denmark, those fleeing dangers such as civil wars are now granted only temporary leave to remain while the threat persists. Refugees with residency rights must meet strict criteria for their partner to join them. Both must be 24 or older, and must pass a language test; the partner in Denmark must not have claimed…

“You have to say, the stars are aligning” for Britain’s Lando Norris, said Tom Cary in The Daily Telegraph. Last month, in Mexico, the McLaren driver produced one of the performances of his life to win his first Grand Prix since August. Now, he has backed that up with an “absolute dream weekend” in Brazil, during which he powered to “flawless” wins in both the “sprint race and the feature race”. It means that with three race weekends to go, he leads his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri by 24 points – which is “almost a full race win”. Whisper it, but the drivers’ championship increasingly looks like “his to lose”. It was at São Paulo a year ago that Norris’s “title hopes evaporated in a miserable effort on a tricky…

It can be easy for Othello – manipulated and out-argued by Iago – to end up “looking like a sideshow” in the play that bears his name, said Susannah Clapp in The Observer. In Tom Morris’s new production, however, David Harewood is in command from the moment he strides onto the stage in general’s uniform. In 1997, he became the first black actor to play Othello at the National Theatre. Then, his performance was “impressive but sometimes strenuous”. Here, he is “utterly at ease in the entire range of the part”. An uneven production is redeemed by the acting, agreed Dominic Cavendish in The Daily Telegraph. Harewood proves to be a “great, under-sung Shakespearean”, while as Iago, Toby Jones exudes a gleeful nastiness. Jones is convincing in the role of…

At The Bull, Chris and Carly reconnect over memories from their past, and their kids. Henry is grumpy about missing the Scottish holiday. Desperate for holiday cover for Bridge Farm, Helen and Tom consider George. Meanwhile, George approaches Susan about volunteering at the village shop; Susan is determined to make it happen, but Neil urges caution. Next day, angry Mick refuses to be served by George – Susan defends George and sends Mick away. Tom approaches Mick to cover at Bridge Farm, but it doesn’t work out. Carly goes to Chris’s place for fireworks in the garden with Martha. After a near miss with a firework, they end up kissing. Next morning, Chris overshares with Alice, revealing that Carly stayed the night. After an interruption at her father’s funeral, Esme…

Starling 3 High Street, Esher, Surrey (01372-650015) Nick Beardshaw, the owner of Starling, used to be head chef at Tom Kerridge’s Bar and Grill, says Jay Rayner in the FT. And he clearly “shares with his one-time boss an enthusiasm for rollicking, crowdpleasing flavours, only executed with control and precision”. Our lunch begins with a pair of oblong crumpets, “layered with whorls of herby whipped cream cheese”, plus a grating of aged parmesan. “The cheese crumpet we never knew we needed, it is a mark of what is to come.” From the £30 set-lunch menu, available on Wednesdays and Thursdays, “satin-soft” pumpkin and ginger soup is “accessorised with delightful attention to detail”: clusters of toasted seeds, splashes of sweet maple dressing, a dollop of “brightly acidic crème fraîche”. Pork loin…

Soho House curator Kate Bryan and artist David Shrigley share their tips ● Search for open-studio weekends, where there is less pressure to buy. They tend to be busy on opening nights and quiet on Sundays. You could also search on Google Maps for artist studios and arrange a private visit. Graduate shows can be interesting. Check art school websites for details. ● There are lots of art fairs that specialise in or include less expensive art. London hosts The Other Art Fair and the Art Car Boot Fair, where artists present their own work. ● Instagram is a good resource. Search using the hashtag #artistsupportpledge. It was created in lockdown for artists to sell work costing up to £200, excluding postage. ● Look out for emerging galleries supporting new…

Pauline Collins 1940-2025 Having worked solidly for years on stage and on TV in the UK, Pauline Collins was propelled to worldwide fame in the late 1980s by the success of Willy Russell’s film Shirley Valentine, about a frustrated Liverpool housewife who escapes her humdrum life by getting on a plane to Greece. Collins had created the role on stage. The play – a hit in the West End and on Broadway – was a one-woman show, a warm and funny two-hour monologue, said The Guardian. On screen, Collins was joined by Bernard Hill, as her insensitive husband, and Tom Conti, as the Greek taverna owner with whom she has an affair. The film’s producers had wanted Cher to play the main role. But Russell loyally insisted that it had…

Elon Musk is already the wealthiest person on Earth, with an estimated net worth of around $500bn, said The Independent. Adjusting for inflation, he outstrips the richest men in US history: J.P. Morgan, Henry Ford and John Paul Getty. Only the oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller edges him. But an extra trillion would put Musk in a new league. What can you do with a cool trillion? “It turns out, quite a lot,” said Sky News. Musk could buy up the top 15 largest publicly traded automakers (excluding Tesla) by market capitalisation – including Toyota ($275bn), BYD ($120bn), Mercedes-Benz ($62bn), BMW ($52bn), Volkswagen ($50bn) and Ford ($48bn) – and still have change. “He could buy up every single residential property in San Diego County” – or, all the homes in…

The week’s best shares C&C Group Investors’ Chronicle Citing cost control and operating efficiencies for resilient half-year numbers, the Tennent’s lager and Magners cider owner is focused on realising synergies from acquisitions. Strong free cashflow underpins further buybacks. Buy. 134p. Focusrite Investors’ Chronicle Tariffs have shocked the audio equipment seller, but there are signs that it’s “past the worst”. Organic revenues are up 8.8%, driven by the content creation arm. A “grossly undervalued” sector leader. Buy. 224p. InterContinental Hotels Group The Times With its solid finances, upbeat growth prospects and wide geographical spread, IHG merits a premium valuation. “High-quality”, with rising profits and a pipeline of 342,000 rooms. Buy. £93.14. Reckitt Benckiser Group The Times The Dettol, Gaviscon and Finish owner is divesting non-core brands to create a leaner and…