I've used the phrase time is of the essence  all my life without realising that it has a quite precise legal meaning. I just thought th...

I've found something beautiful. The British television regulator, Ofcom, whose job it is to see that we are shocked politely, commissio...

The etymology of emoji  ought to be obvious. It's a little digital picture: hence e- like e-mail . And it expresses emotion : hence em...

Much has happened since A Short History of Drunkenness came out in America a couple of weeks ago. First, there's a lovely review in th...

As a child I was confident that the moon wasn't made of green cheese, because, even at an early age, I could see that the moon was n...

The wart is below the eye. The pig is a curious creature. We all think we know what it is: that dear old, rather intelligent thing, roo...

Today is a day that will live in revelry: A Short History of Drunkenness: How, Why, Where and When Humankind has Gotten Merry from the St...