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Auberon Waugh's death at the age of 61 is more sad than surprising. His immediate heredity wasn't promising - his father died at 62, his mother at 57 - and he suffered from ill-health all his life, partly resulting from severe wounds sustained during National Service at the age of 18. That may, in part, have accounted for the acidic personality which made him the most verbally brutal journalist of his age. Everyone who met him remarked on the contrast between his ferocity in print and his personal geniality, but this was hard to explain to those who didn't know him, especially if they had been on the rough end of his pen. Apart from health, his background shaped his career in one other respect. He spent much of his life trying to escape from the shadow of his father, the greatest English novelist of his age. This provided an obvious weapon for Auberon's enemies. Philip Larkin joked about "my projected series, Talentless Sons of Famous Fathers - Waugh, Amis, Fuller...", and for … [Read more...] about Auberon Waugh

If the Sopranos, which returns this week for its fourth series, is arguably the most accomplished drama in television history, there is no doubt at all that it's the most analysed. Never before has a programme been subject to such extensive interpretation. While the story concerns a New Jersey mafia boss and his middle-class suburban family, no self-respecting critic would ever say that's what it was about. Ever since he first appeared on US television back in January 1999, Tony Soprano, the show's monumental anti-hero played by James Gandolfini, has been a gift to the metaphorically minded. He is the American Everyman, the embodiment of ruthless free-market capitalism, the defining figure of balding fat manhood in midlife crisis, and much else besides. It's no wonder Gandolfini stoops, carrying that weight of symbolism around on his shoulders. That Tony also visits a shrink to discuss his problems, and that shrink in turn visits another shrink to discuss the problem of seeing … [Read more...] about Deconstructing Tony

By Branwen Jeffreys Published 11 December 2015 Share close Share page Copy link About sharing Ofsted is to set up a taskforce of inspectors to seek out unregistered schools that are operating outside the law in England. Chief Inspector of Schools Sir Michael Wilshaw says there is a serious and growing threat to the safety of children. Inspectors have found three unregistered schools operating in Birmingham in recent weeks. The government says it is taking robust steps against unregistered schools. Analysis : From BBC education editor Branwen Jeffreys Anywhere that offers more than 20 hours a week of teaching is legally obliged to be registered as a school. The three schools inspected by Ofsted had not met this requirement to register. It is likely the children being sent to some of the centres breaching that threshold are registered as home-educated. The … [Read more...] about Illegal unregistered schools face prosecution

By Hannah Richardson Published 21 November 2014 Share close Share page Copy link About sharing Pupils at six small Muslim private schools in east London are at risk of extremist views and radicalisation, says Ofsted's chief inspector. Sir Michael Wilshaw said the pupils' "physical and educational welfare is at serious risk" following a series of emergency inspections. He said all the schools focused too heavily on Islamic teachings. One of the schools called Ofsted "unprofessional", while another said its findings did not reflect reality. Education Secretary Nicky Morgan says the schools will be closed down if changes are not made quickly. "We asked Ofsted to carry out these independent school inspections and the findings are very concerning," she said. "While there is no suggestion of a co-ordinated plot, it is clear that these schools are failing children and this … [Read more...] about ‘Radicalisation risk’ at six Muslim private schools, says Ofsted

Published 24 March 2016 Share close Share page Copy link About sharing The killing of criminal lawyer Joseph "Pino" Acquaro in Melbourne sheds light on the hidden machinations of the 'Ndrangheta, says Australian crime writer Adam Shand. Liborio Benvenuto, who died in 1988, was the last of the old-time Australian godfathers. He understood his power but also its limits. His protege Joseph "Pino" Acquaro, who was murdered in a Melbourne street last week, was not so wise. Benvenuto became the leader of The Honoured Society, a Melbourne-based Calabrian mafia group, after a bloody internal battle in the early 1960s dubbed the Market Wars. He presided over a quarter century of relative peace until he died of natural causes in 1988. It was Benvenuto who encouraged Acquaro, the son of a prominent accountant in the Calabrian community, to become a lawyer. Violence was bad for business, so a … [Read more...] about Lawyer’s murder hints at secrets of Australia mafia