Royal wedding etiquette for the metropolitan sophisticate, p20

The faded glory of music hall, p68

The flair of the film poster, p61

5 Leading article 9 Portrait of the Week 11 Diary A.A. Gill 12 Politics James Forsyth 13 The Spectator’s Notes 19 Rod Liddle 22 Barometer 28 Mind your language 31 Matthew Parris 32 Hugo Rifkind 44 James Delingpole 46 Letters 49 Any other business Martin Vander Weyer 96 Ancient and modern

Kate Chisholm, Roger Alton, Michael Heath and Dave are away.

14 The meaning of a marriage There are fine constitutional reasons to be excited about William and Kate Andrew Roberts 15 Roy Kelly ‘Hanging’: a poem 16 A royal notebook

Hugo Vickers 20 How to play the big day

A guide to royal wedding talk Quentin Letts 22 Harlem renaissance

A revolution in education Mary Wakefield 26 ‘What is truth?’

Pilate and the Gospels Bruce Anderson 28 Mexistan America’s toxic neighbour

William von Raab 34 Golden age

A celebration of our most influential and inspiring over-80s, with tributes by Ian Rankin, Peter Oborne, David Cameron, Nick Clegg, Alex Salmond, Martin Rees, William Waldegrave, Matt Ridley, Martin Gayford and Chris Beetles

40 Smart South and Deep South America’s divided rebel country

Florence King 41 Koo Stark’s notebook 42 Scotland the broke Welcome to fiscal fantasyland

Gerald Warner Books 52 A. N. Wilson

G.K. Chesterton, by Ian Ker 54 Lewis Jones Graven with

Diamonds, by Nicola Shulman Toby Jones Lucky Break,

by Esther Freud 55 John Preston The Coincidence

Engine, by Sam Leith Philip Hancock

‘Mind in the Halo’: a poem 56 James Buchan

The Shah, by Abbas Milani Kathryn Maris

‘Last Supper’: a poem 57 James Grande The Omnipotent

Magician, by Jane Brown 58 Alexander Chancellor

Much More of This, Old Boy?, by Peter Paterson

Cover by Morten Morland. Drawings by Michael Heath, Phil Disley, Ian Tovey, Kipper Williams, Morten Morland, Russell, Nick Newman, Grizelda, Geoff Thompson Adam Singleton, Bernie, Roger Latham, K.J. Lamb, Cookson, Robert Thompson and Wilbur www.spectator.co.uk To subscribe to The Spectator for £104 a year, turn to page 58 Editorial and advertising The Spectator, 22 Old Queen Street, London SW1H 9HP, Tel: 020 7961 0200, Fax: 020 7961 0250, Email: editor@spectator.co.uk (editorial); letters@spectator.co.uk (for publication); advertising@spectator.co.uk (advertising); Advertising enquiries: 020 7961 0219 Advertising fax: 020 7961 0020 Subscription and delivery queries Spectator Subscriptions Dept., 800 Guillat Avenue, Kent Science Park, Sittingbourne ME9 8GU; Tel: 01795 592886 Fax: 0870 220 0290; Email: spectator@servicehelpline.co.uk Newsagent queries Spectator Circulation Dept, 22 Old Queen Street, London SW1H 9HP, Tel: 020 7961 0200, Fax: 020 7961 0057, Email: dstam@spectator.co.uk Distributor COMAG Specialist, Tavistock Works, Tavistock Road, West Drayton, Middlesex UB7 7QX Vol 315; nos 9530 and 9531 © The Spectator (1828) Ltd. ISSN 0038-6952 The Spectator is published weekly by The Spectator (1828) Ltd at 22 Old Queen Street, London SW1H 9HP Editor: Fraser Nelson

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the spectator | 23/30 April 2011 | www.spectator.co.uk A selection of our most senior citizens, p34

Garden variety, p70

How to tell she’s not a belle, p40

59 Paul Binding on Theodor Fontane 60 Jane Ridley

The Churchills, by Mary S. Lovell 61 Bevis Hillier Bill Gold: Poster

Works, edited by Tony Nourmand 62 Kate Chisholm

Hill Farm, by Miranda France 63 Nicky Haslam The Day of the

Peacock, by Geoffrey Aquilina Ross 64 John Gimlette The Devil’s Garden,

by Edward Docx Douglas Hurd Running the Show,

by Stephanie Williams 65 Bookends Andrew Petrie Arts 66 We are the mockers, too A meditation on Hieronymus

Bosch’s ‘Christ Carrying the Cross’ Michael Prodger 68 Olden but golden Charles Spencer Wilton’s Music Hall Robert Gore-Langton 70 Exhibitions Charlotte Verity:

A year in Tradescant’s Garden Andrew Lambirth

73 Theatre Moonlight; Ecstasy

Lloyd Evans 74 Opera The Tsar’s Bride

Michael Tanner 76 Cinema Cedar Rapids; Arthur

Deborah Ross 77 Television Simon Hoggart Culture notes Liz Anderson Life 89 High life Taki Low life Jeremy Clarke 90 Real life Melissa Kite 91 Wild life Aidan Hartley The turf Robin Oakley 92 Motoring Alan Judd 93 Bridge Susanna Gross

Mini-bar offer Simon Hoggart

And finaly . . . 94 Chess Raymond Keene 95 Competition; Crossword 96 Status anxiety Toby Young 98 The Wiki Man Rory Sutherland Your problems solved Mary Killen

Annoying people, infringing their sensibilities, is these days considered a far more hideous crime than stealing Rod Liddle, p19

How can it be that Chesterton writes such very good stuff beside such utter rot? Imagine the author drunk, and all is explained A.N. Wilson, p52

I read and reread the penalty notice. I spend a lot of time thinking about Operator LH1379. Does he or she even have a name? Melissa Kite, p90

TRAVEL

SPECIAL p79

Contributors

Andrew Roberts (p. 14) is a writer and historian; his ebook The Royal House of Windsor is now available for Kindle.

Quentin Letts (p. 20) writes for the Daily Mail. Hugo Vickers (p. 16) is a writer and broadcaster. His books include The Private World of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and a biography of the Queen Mother.

James Buchan (p. 56) lived in Iran for a year in the 1970s. His novels include The Gate of Air, High Latitudes and A Good Place to Die.

the spectator | 23/30 April 2011 | www.spectator.co.uk

Jane Ridley (p. 60) is working on a biography of Edward VII.

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