Big projects, stamped with a Union Jack, were ecstatically embraced by public opinion

Notebook

Volunteering at the London Olympics was a glorious one-off, but a one-off nonetheless

The trees are silhouetted against a mottled crimson sunset, you can detect more than the occasional mosquito, and still the people keep arriving.

The pictures show that we have a city that is worth looking after

Why can't they take part in debates in the modern mode, by webcam?

Intervening in other people's wars may delay the inevitable and cost more lives

The Church is one of few institutions to have flourished since the fall of the USSR

Denmark has long been a great destination for families with young children, offering everything from broad, safe beaches and non-scary food to Legoland, the holy shrine of plastic bricks. But can it deliver for grown-ups? The Bridge, The Killing, and New Danish cuisine have certainly put the country on the map for couples – although my husband and I were drawn by long-standing interests in the history of the Vikings, and in contemporary design.

Any new structure should have to earn its keep right around the year