Published in The Spectator (December 4th, 2010) 22 Days in May by David Laws/5 Days to Power by Rob Wilson (both Biteback) David Cameron was despondent on the […]
Arts / Books
That turbulent decade
Published in The Spectator (October 23rd, 2010) No such thing as society: a history of Britain in the 1980’s by Andy McSmith (Constable) On 2 January, 1980, a […]
Arts / Economics / Music
Record sales plummet but the music plays on
Published in The Times (October 22nd, 2010) The deeply wonderful Elvis Costello has a new record out. It is available as a download, on CD, on vinyl and […]
Arts / Books / Kashmir
Caught in the crossfire
Published in The Spectator (July 24th, 2010) Curfewed Night by Basharat Peer (Harper Press) Maqbool Sheikh dreaded hearing a knock at the door of his home. For he […]
Arts / Immigration / Music / Policy
This outburst will strike a chord around the world
Published in The Independent (May 7th, 2009) Abbas Kiarostami’s outburst against British officialdom will strike a chord with artists all around the world. However famous, however inspirational, they […]
Arts / Music
A brave new world of music
Published in The Independent (May 1st, 2009) As she waited to go on, Souad Massi looked nervous for the first time that evening. The Algerian singer, who has […]