,2010

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Picasso goes to the ballet, p54

The Blitz from both sides, p42

Chesterton’s finest, p51

Arts 52 Hollywood’s gloss on reality

Olivia Glazebrook 54 Exhibitions Diaghilev and the

Golden Age of the Ballets Russes 1909–29 Andrew Lambirth 57 Cinema Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

Deborah Ross 58 Arts Debate Lloyd Evans 59 Theatre House of Games; Birdsong

Lloyd Evans 60 Culture notes George Hull Opera Tristan und Isolde;

Niobe, Regina di Tebe Michael Tanner 63 Pop Marcus Berkmann 63 Dance Onegin;Afterlight:

Russell   Maliphant Giannandrea Poesio 64 Television Simon Hoggart 65Radio Kate Chisholm

LIFE

Lif e 71 High life Taki Low life Jeremy Clarke 72 Real life Melissa Kite 73 Motoring Alan Judd 75 Bridge Janet de Botton

Mini-bar Simon Hoggart An d fin al y . . . 76 Chess Raymond Keene 77 Competition; Crossword 78Status anxiety Toby Young Dave Michael Heath 79 TheWiki Man Rory Sutherland Yourproblemssolved Mary Killen

Is there not something irksome about bright youths who suck at the state’s teat and never leave it? Quentin Letts, p15

We were playing cards when there was the sound of the front door opening. ‘There’s Fred, the ghost,’ said my grandmother Susan Hill, p41

In the past, television was staffed by   people who desperately wanted to improve it. Now it’s run by people who want to make it worse Simon Hoggart, p65

Contributors

Quentin Letts (‘A perfect spad’, p15) is a journalist who writes for the Daily Mail. R achel Johnson (‘How to spend it’, p16) is editor of the Lady. She won the Literary

Review’s 2008 Bad Sex in Fiction award.

John Laughland (‘Revenge tragedy’, p24) lives in Paris. He is author of A History of Political Trials from Charles I to Saddam Hussein. S usan Hill’s latest ghost story is The Small Hand. She reviews Peter Ackroyd’s collection of English ghost tales on p41.

Margaret Drabble (Books, p44) has written a life of Arnold Bennett.

the spectator | 9 October 2010 | www.spectator.co.uk

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