The See-and-Be-Seen Hotel
London’s Savoy hotel welcomed glamorous Hollywood actors, top-brass politicians, and its fair share of intrigue. Who was behind it all?
The Not-So-Secret Garden
Buckingham Palace’s royal garden, home to the Queen’s famed garden parties as well as thousands of species of flower and tree, is ready for its close-up
Pippa Latour de Force
She tricked Nazis into spilling their secrets by posing as a chatty teenage soap saleswoman and just celebrated her 100th birthday
The Name Game
Sometimes, musicians make it personal. Herewith, tracks from Joni Mitchell, Elton John, Dave Edmunds, Chuck Berry, and more
Sophie Cookson
The British actress got her start in Kingsman when she was just 22. Her latest is a Mark Wahlberg–produced thriller
Opera Pick of the Week
From Houston Grand Opera, a green-screen Hansel and Gretel with TikTok flair
The Hypocritical Oath
Studies show Black patients react better to having Black doctors. So why is our whole medical system geared toward white doctors?
A Real-Life Benjamin Button?
Brendan Bracken, founder of the Financial Times and friend of Churchill’s, faked a premature-aging condition to satisfy his taste for being caned by teenage boys
Short List
What to read this week, from the latest in Henry Porter’s captivating Paul Samson series to books revisiting the pandemic’s early days and the myth of the Alamo
Arts Highlight: Midnight
It’s never too late for the romantic comedy that time forgot
Helene Hanff’s Diary
The story of Helene Hanff, the Bridget Jones of the postwar literary set, whose uproarious 84, Charing Cross Road has never been out of print
Paula Beer
The Berlin Film Festival darling who eschewed drama school for the real thing
Is Paris Churning?
As the city reopens to tourists, we have some delicious stories about it
The Really Right Stuff
John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Earth, was the picture of calm during meetings with J.F.K. ahead of his journey. His archives reveal a human side
