Culture & Anarchy

William Walton was inspired by sexual energy

Rupert Brooke deserves to be taken seriously

London needs protecting against the current invasion of skyscrapers

In 1914 the German people wanted war no more than the British

The greatest American movie of all time was made in 1946 and you’ll never have heard of it

It is a misfortune shared by several composers — notably British ones, who still struggle to be valued by those loath to travel beyond Mozart and Beethoven — to be known for only one work, despite having written many that merit recognition. It was Gustav Holst’s misfortune to have written The Planets, which made him famous, and have given him an international reputation since he died in 1934. And yet Holst wrote music of almost uniformly high quality, much of which is little known, even though well recorded. 

We shouldn’t be satisfied with solidly utilitarian coins, stamps and the dreaded “street furniture”. Good design can be incredibly heartening

British television today is rubbish. But boxed sets — especially those dramas from America — are like bottles of fine wine, waiting to be consumed at the perfect moment

The fact that most of today’s comedians are left-wing isn’t necessarily the reason they aren’t funny. It’s because they aren’t very bright