Is the dead cat really dead? — From the Desk of Sir Alan Bladder, MP, QC, DFS, DIYSOS Minister of Truth and Other Information The UK Prime Minister has recently resigned and done so at extraordinary speed, showing contrition, humility and respect for both the office and the political process. Some of you may not have observed this because you simply, through no fault of the PM, were…

Why has our countryside inspired ghost stories for millennia? — Britain has a long and often dark history, with our ancient landscapes and buildings telling the tales of our ancestors. Our history is also steeped in tales of ghostly goings-on with the countryside and ancient monuments and buildings providing the perfect creepy fodder. From ancient castles to haunted hills and…

A slightly more than Just a Minute guide — I can’t help thinking this exercise is like the BBC Radio 4 panel game, Just A Minute, where contestants are invited to speak on a subject — without repetition, hesitation, or deviation — for sixty seconds. Indeed, the rules of Just A Minute are great guidelines for some communications. If…

An English safari through the Knepp Estate — At the end of a warm day in June, in sticky-sweet air laced with threats of thunderstorms, a bone-rattling safari drive in the back of an Austrian Pinzgauer troop carrier comes to a halt under a twilight sky, turning inky blue. …

How a three-week, East to West Odyssey in an Electric Milk Float Changed My view of our World… — We were almost halfway across England on a beautiful bright June afternoon when a man riding a bicycle that seemed to be slightly too small for him raced towards us, legs whizzing around like sandcastle windmills. He arrived with an offer to help us in any way he could. It…

How borders make Britain what it is — North of the Black Mountains, beyond Y Gelli Gandryll, the Anglo-Welsh border abandons the long, straight hogback watersheds of unpronounceable Welsh streams and the centre line of the wide Wye to become a much more local and complicated affair altogether. Jostling down lanes where foxgloves spring from broad verges in…

That’s not a trick question, just a very common one. — I wonder if any other midlist authors are asked by staff at publishing companies and booksellers, as I am with tiresome regularity, what it is they do for their day job? …

Or is writing the future of AI? — In a world where technology is constantly evolving, it’s no surprise that artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming more involved in our everyday lives. From personal assistants to self-driving cars, AI is slowly but surely changing the way we live and work. But what about writing? Is AI the future of…

Secretary of State for Social Scrutiny, Sir Edward Bicycle, on the Way Things Will Be from Now On — Secretary of State for Social Scrutiny, Sir Edward Bicycle, outlines a new programme of work for the Department with more responsibilities, including tax, benefits and counter-insurgency measures. The Government, your Government, has had its difficulties recently, but we would urge the country to remember our strong record of achievement: