Hassan Akram
James O’Brien on Brexit, Boris Johnson, and making radio go viral
"Nigel Farage thought he was coming in to have his tummy tickled. I helped him soil himself."
On Leadership by Tony Blair, Precipice by Robert Harris, and Oxford crime – Books of the Month
On Leadership by Tony Blair; Precipice by Robert Harris; Lessons in Crime: Academic Mysteries edited by Martin Edwards
North Korea and the Global Nuclear Order review – “An excellent account”
Dr Edward Howell, whose columns in the Spectator and the Telegraph are among the few intelligent and readable things left in those outlets, has...
A Revolution Betrayed by Peter Hitchens review – In Defence of Grammar Schools
Review – A Revolution Betrayed: How Egalitarians Wrecked the British Education System by Peter Hitchens. ISBN: 9781399400077
Most people accept that the British education system...
Veranilda by George Gissing review – The best historical novel never written
George Gissing remains the most underrated novelist in the English language. He wrote twenty-three novels, although the average bookshop today only contains four of...
Politics on the Edge by Rory Stewart review – “The prime minister we never had”
This is a marvellous book, a memoir of Rory Stewart’s nine years in Parliament, and its greatest flaw is that it is not long...
The Conservative Effect, 2010-2024 review: “Comprehensive and damning”
If you only read one book on British politics this year, make it this one.
P.G. Wodehouse’s Ukridge at 100
It is unfortunate that P.G. Wodehouse's reputation in Oxford takes such a blow from his being a popular favourite among OUCA members. Still, he...
Arcadia by Christ Church Dramatic Society review: ‘Mad, bad and brilliant to watch’
“The best prophet of the future is the past” – Byron
In the sweet-preserved garden behind Christ Church Cathedral there stands a table decked with...
The Orwell Tour review: ‘A unique and first-rate travelogue’
Within the last year there have been countless new books on George Orwell, but Oliver Lewis’s The Orwell Tour, just released in paperback, is...
Ten Years to Save the West by Liz Truss review: Revenge of the lettuce
I have met Liz Truss only once. It was in Oxford Town Hall in November of last year and I had tried (without success)...
The Achilles Trap: Saddam Hussein, the United States, and the Middle East 1979-2003 by Steve Coll review
Tyrants should only be brought down by their own people; they become martyrs when brought down by foreigners.
‘The Godfather: Part II’ at fifty
The Godfather: Part II is a film about gangsters. It is also a film about corruption, power, betrayal, succession, revenge, religion, marriage, generational change,...
Bust?: Saving the Economy, Democracy and our Sanity by Robert Peston and Kishan Koria- Review
"So long as we have an economic system geared towards the accumulation of wealth rather than the acquisition of it, inequalities will continue to widen"
