As if this week’s threats of police raids on over-sized Christmas Day gatherings were not barmy enough, then along comes something even sillier: a ban on singing the national anthem. Even the Welsh Government’s comedy order prohibiting the sale of kettles does not come close to the absurdity of forbidding loyal ex-servicemen and women and … Read more
The crowds queuing up for the panto at the Churchill Theatre, Bromley, had never seen anything quite like it. Into the car park growled one hefty, blacked-out limousine after another for what would turn out to be nothing less than a royal command performance. It was a few days before Christmas in 2008. Prince Azim … Read more
True, it is one more layer of airport hassle which we would all rather do without. However, it is quicker than check-in. It is no more uncomfortable than being frisked by a bored X-ray machine operator because you forgot you had an old 10p coin in your pocket. And you don’t even have to take … Read more
Year after year, it is always one of the most moving sights in the calendar. For as far as the eye can see, there are veterans of all ages — a few frail witnesses to Monte Cassino or the Burmese jungle or the huts of Bletchley Park; old sweats from Korea or Malaya or Aden; … Read more
As every new edict is handed down from the authors of the Covid rulebook, Frances Gledhill and her team here at the Red Pump Inn in the wilds of the Forest of Bowland have somehow found a way of making it work. Indeed, they have gone the extra mile in their quest to make their … Read more
Whatever the merits of a Tier Three lockdown – and it is very hard to find a single fan here on Merseyside – one thing is beyond doubt: it is bad news for the waistline. For you can still get a pint of beer or a glass of wine or any other drink in Liverpool, … Read more
They haven’t had much to cheer about in 2020. But at least some of Britain’s best-loved charities have one reason to smile this week – an early Christmas present of sorts, courtesy of Mail Force. Our charitable campaign, started by this newspaper and backed by our generous readers, is on the road once again with … Read more
There is a wonderful photograph on the wall of the old parsonage in Haworth. It shows the day this place opened as a museum — back in August 1928. As far as the eye can see, the road outside is packed with people flocking to poke their noses around a house that has produced some … Read more
To the untrained eye, it could be a photocopier with a few plastic trays on top. Except that you need to wear a gown, mask and gloves and enter a secure zone via two pressurised doors to access this particular piece of dull grey machinery. It is also one that plays a vital role in … Read more
A preachy message to infuriate the Palace: Should anyone still cling to the idea that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle might be torn between the old world and the new, then just look at their video address about the US election, writes ROBERT HARDMAN By Robert Hardman for the Daily Mail Published: 22:01 BST, 23 … Read more