The last words of the actor Edmund Kean are alleged to have been “dying is easy, comedy is hard.” He passed away (with relative ease) in 1833, more than a century before the outbreak of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. One can only envy his good fortune and wonder what he’d make of the mayhem that unfolds every August in Scotland’s capital.
Sunday 14 July 2013
What do Lily Cole, Rupert Everett and Peppa Pig have in common? Apart, obviously, from their striking good looks. Answer: they are passionate about reading, and about encouraging children to read. To prove their point, they joined a host of other actors and writers at yesterday's inaugural Get Reading event, a day-long festival in Trafalgar Square in London.
Tuesday 04 June 2013
The former England captain stokes the fires ahead of this summer's Ashes
Tuesday 12 March 2013
Hundreds of passengers anxious to get off a stranded ferry have been forced to remain onboard at a French harbour as the ship's doors failed to open.
Thursday 05 July 2012
Two out of every five victims of homophobic bullying at school attempt or contemplate suicide, a report released today reveals.
Monday 18 June 2012
Charlotte and Peter Fiell, leading authorities on 20th and 21st century design, have put their London house up for sale
Friday 02 March 2012
The first three pages of this novel about Lucy, a 30-plus middle class mother coping alone with an autistic child, are so badly written and generally over-the-top that any casual reader might be inclined to stop there. This would be a mistake. For Kathy Lette soon settles into producing what she does best: a succession of often scabrous one-liners. A few are dire but most are excellent. How about "The only hard knocks he'd ever taken had been whilst playing polo", or "Divorce is like a haemorrhoid: in the end, every arsehole gets one"? Or even "A journey of self-discovery starts with a single step. But so does falling down a flight of stairs"?
Saturday 17 December 2011
From the mum who thought it worse than a heroin addiction to the stern grandparent who wasn't bothered, coming out as gay can be easy or traumatic. Simon Callow, Stella Duffy, Ben Bradshaw and others tell Holly Williams about the ultimate moment of truth
Thursday 01 December 2011
"Each man kills the thing he loves", wrote Oscar Wilde. "The coward does it with a kiss."
Monday 05 September 2011
Fassbender's sex advice
Sunday 04 September 2011
Saturday 16 July 2011
A sub-plot to this dramatic week was the lively turf war between the chairmen of the two Commons select committees with an interest in the hacking affair.
Sunday 10 July 2011
Sunday 10 July 2011
Sunday 19 June 2011
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