Revelations. Resignations. From BBC bias to Cabinet scandals, read the stories that get the world talking – from the journalists who break them. |  | Gordon Rayner Associate Editor | What should we do if there is another pandemic? That is the question Baroness Hallett’s Covid inquiry was supposed to answer, but critics say that after two years and £200m of taxpayers’ money, it has told us nothing we didn’t already know.
That is largely due to the fact that the inquiry never set out to quantify the human cost of wrecking the economy with lockdowns, meaning Lady Hallett will not offer any assessment of whether the long-term consequences of lockdowns outweighed any short-term benefits.
Prof Carl Heneghan, director of the University of Oxford’s Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, has told The Telegraph that the inquiry is so wide of the mark that it should be stopped and recalibrated immediately.
He is not alone. Prof Simon Wood, a statistician from the University of Edinburgh, suggests that the total number of life years lost because of the long-term economic scarring from lockdowns could eventually dwarf the number of life years lost to Covid itself, a scenario that has not been considered by the inquiry.
Lady Hallett still has a chance to rectify this as the hearings continue, but only if she is prepared to contemplate a possibility she has so far dismissed: that lockdowns might have been the wrong course of action.
Read the full essay here ➤ |  | Dominic Cavendish Chief Theatre Critic | Theatre ticket prices in the capital are, to borrow a phrase from a certain hit musical, defying gravity. Earlier this year, the top price for a ticket for the West End run of the hit Roald Dahl play Giant reportedly flew north of £400. That’s exceptional, and the average cheapest seat for a West End production now costs £30.55, up an eye-watering 24 per cent from 2024.
Fear not, help is at hand. As The Telegraph’s chief theatre critic, I’ve become aware of a trick or two over the years, from the obvious to the devious, about how to see world-class stage productions in the capital (and beyond) without breaking the bank. In this essential guide, I share my top 21 tips for getting West End tickets for less. Find out more ➤ | | Charles Moore Our civilisation has failed in Johnsonian nurture, becoming more knowing but less knowledgeable Continue reading ➤ Toby Young Thank lockdowns for the worst Budget in history Continue reading ➤ William Sitwell Chris Packham must keep his hands off Britain’s Boxing Day hunts Continue reading ➤ | Sharpen your talking points. Explore incisive opinion from Britain’s leading comment writers. | | Australia need 205 to win after England’s horror batting collapse | Just when it looked as though England were turning the screw in this thrilling opening Ashes Test in Perth, their batting ability deserted them in a brainless afternoon session.
It ended up more like the Hundred than a Test. With Australia employing a backstop and England swinging from the hip, the tourists were eventually dismissed for 164, setting Australia 205 to win.
Despite a pair for Zak Crawley, England went from the comfort of 65 for one, 105 runs in front, to 112 for seven, giving Australia, a team creaking in so many ways, a lifeline they did not deserve. Jamie Smith’s controversial dismissal added to the drama, too.
“It’s hard work being an England fan,” smirked Stuart Broad on Australian radio. It was impossible to disagree.
Over to the bowlers again, then.
Follow it with us here ➤
Plus, sign up to our Sport Briefing newsletter for a review of the day's action at close of play. | | When Fatima Bosch was crowned Miss Universe just two weeks after the pageant’s director appeared to call her “dumbhead”, it confirmed this year’s event was the most controversial in the competition’s history. But that was only the start. While the world saw glamorous gowns and gleaming toothpaste-commercial smiles, behind the scenes were allegations of rigging, manufactured political rivalries and racism... Continue reading ➤ | | | In a rare interview, 30 years after resigning as Princess Diana’s private secretary, Patrick Jephson talks to Camilla Tominey about how Diana was a “royal super ambassador for the UK, not some airy fairy charity hero. She was so much more than Shy Di”. Jephson also criticises a generation of poor decisions made by the Royal family leaving the Prince and Princess of Wales to pick up the pieces. Continue reading ➤ | | | The next few weeks are a mince pie minefield, but from soggy bottoms to overpowering filling – the quality is variable. Let Xanthe Clay guide you to the five-star supermarket stunners in her exhaustive taste test, and the ones you should avoid. Continue reading ➤ | | | If you’re a modern parent, you’ll know it’s impossible to escape their constant demand for attention, random questions and heightened emotions. No, not your children – the school WhatsApp group. It all begins innocently, but soon everyone has a part in the dramatis personae. If you’ve any sense, you’ll just be a lurker but, whatever you do, don’t be foolish enough to try to leave...
Continue reading ➤ | | | Squeeze’s brilliant frontman gives a deeply moving interview to Chris Harvey – ahead of the release of an album the band wrote at the height of their powers but never recorded until now – where he talks for the first time about the abuse he suffered as a child. Continue reading ➤ | | | The sudden death of Matilda Head’s father turned her into a shell of her former self. “I was apologising endlessly, isolating myself, too afraid to share the hilarious anecdotes that defined his radiant character for fear of pitying looks,” she says. Then Matilda found a community where talking about grief wasn’t uncomfortable, where she could share memories freely. She realised the fact that her father was dead didn’t have to supersede the life he lived. Continue reading ➤ | | | As the countdown to Christmas ticks on, so too do the strict – and often confusing – party dress codes (“hygge at home”, anyone?). From “black tie” to “festive sparkle”, our fashion team has created the ultimate guide on how to dress for the party season– and there’s not a Christmas jumper in sight.
Continue reading ➤ Below are three more articles that I hope will be useful this weekend: - The era of bland, gassy pints is long gone. Across Britain, meticulous brewers are reviving lager with care, craft and real character. Here are 10 of the best British lagers to try.
- As Radiohead’s first tour in seven years reaches the UK, our critic ranks their greatest tracks, from Creep to Paranoid Android. Do you agree with their verdict?
| Andrew Baker’s Saturday Quiz |
Gather round for the latest instalment of my Saturday quiz.
You can find the answers at the end of the newsletter. - US president John F Kennedy was assassinated on this date in 1963. The man accused of the assassination, Lee Harvey Oswald, was himself assassinated two days later. By whom?
- In which US state is the Kennedy Space Center [sic], launch site for the Apollo Moon missions?
- After whom is the US state of Georgia named?
- On which British-administered island is Salisbury Plain, inhabited by thousands of king penguins?
- The evil penguin Feathers McGraw is an opponent of which heroic duo?
| Proper puds Bread and butter pudding, steamed sponge and a nutty crumble | Quince, cranberry and brioche bread pudding |  | Eleanor Steafel Feature writer and recipe columnist | It is quite clearly a weekend for a true rib sticker of a dessert, and where better to start than with a great tray of bread and butter pudding. You could go for something fairly traditional, like this recipe with raisins and Marsala, or, as quince is in season, why not try Diana Henry’s recipe with quince, cranberry and brioche.
If a steamed sponge appeals, this is a lovely twist on one, with a base of blackcurrant jam and a light sponge with a little lemon zest running through it. Or could it be time for an old-fashioned spotted dick? Ravneet Gill has a classic recipe here.
| Autumn fruit and nut crumble | Then again, there’s always crumble. It’s hard not to make a crumble once the thought has entered your mind, and this recipe for a fruit and nut crumble is autumn in a bowl.
Happy cooking, and see you next Saturday!
Eleanor writes a weekly Recipes newsletter every Friday. Sign up here. | | Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
The solution to yesterday’s clue was HANDPRINT. Come back tomorrow for the answer to today’s puzzle. | | Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor
P.S. Please send me your thoughts on this newsletter. You can email me here. | Quiz answers: - Jack Ruby
- Florida
- George II
- South Georgia
- Wallace and Gromit
| |
.png){kind=icon}
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire