Friday, 19 January 2024

The great epic tales stank, I think, more than the historians give them credit for

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'But ... I'm totally unprepared! I have no luggage with me, no nothing.' 'None of us do. We none of us expected this. That i...
Thursday, 18 January 2024

Some sentences have the power to change everything

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Some sentences have the power to change everything. They are the usual suspects: I love you , I hate you , I'm pregnant, I'm dying, ...
Wednesday, 17 January 2024

He was flagrantly lacking in public spirit

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The fact is that every large school requires an advocatus diaboli - and at Castrevenford Mr Etherege occupied this important post. He was fl...
Tuesday, 16 January 2024

He seemed to see, ranked indomitably behind her, all those bold, outspoken, competent, middle-aged women whose kind is peculiar to the higher levels of the English bourgeoisie

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He invariably found Miss Parry's efficiency a little daunting. He seemed to see, ranked indomitably behind her, all those bold, outspoke...
Saturday, 23 December 2023

His reputation for bravery was for him tantamount to a reputation for stupidity

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Tiekoro had always looked on Tiefolo as a boor who covered himself with gris-gris to track down animals that had never done him any harm; hi...
Friday, 22 December 2023

Al-Qaeda, by contrast, never played cricket and favoured volleyball

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So cricket is one of the rare things which can bring the Pakistan military and the Taliban together, in what amounts to a temporary ceasefir...
Thursday, 21 December 2023

Astonishing teenagers are a recurring theme in Pakistan's cricket history

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Astonishing teenagers are a recurring theme in Pakistan's cricket history. Of the 33 players recorded as making their Test debut before ...