Several familiar faces are missing from the South African team to meet Italy on Saturday – and their replacements have the talent to keep them on the sidelines, writes Andy Capostagno Nine changes and four uncapped players on the bench. You could be forgiven for thinking that Nick Mallett has gone mad. But it is […]
war, grandad? A controversial new book claims that, far from hating war, soldiers thrive on the thrill of dispatching the enemy. Peter Kingston reports Since the end of conscription, the British army has tried a variety of tricks to lure young men and women to take the queen’s fivepence. See the world, get yourself a […]
How can a 20-year-old bag a fortune for his first novel? Is it because it’s a stunner – or because he is? Dan Glaister investigates books and looks The four words most frequently used to describe Richard Mason are sensation, advance and Hugh Grant. Sensation because Mason is 20 years old and his debut novel, […]
Cameron Duodu Letter from the North A former Conservative minister in Britain, Norman Tebbitt, once suggested that one yardstick by which the loyalty of British citizens could be measured was the support they gave to the English cricket team when England was playing against another country. Like all armchair experts, Tebbitt, I am certain, had […]
A caller to a local radio station last week suggested that the franchise be taken away from white people for a period so that the black majority can get on with the business of political contestation free from the bogey of race. Her reasoning is that after 10 years, once the playing fields have been […]
Herman Lategan takes a look at a somewhat unusual fashion design that also has an ecological advantage When most people think of fish, they think of food, or fishing or perhaps feng shui. In the United Kingdom it is traditionally served deep-fried with chips, in Japan it’s served raw and in Jewish households they poach […]
Ivor Powell and Wonder Hlongwa report back on KwaZulu-Natal election results Election politics will give way in KwaZulu- Natal to political horse-trading as the African National Congress and the Inkatha Freedom Party look for political advantage in an election battle that went right to the wire. By the time the Mail & Guardian went to […]
John Grobler A brave attempt to pass progressive anti-rape legislation in the Namibian Parliament ran into heavy weather as even members of the South West African Peoples Organisation (Swapo) found themselves at odds with each other – the women against the men. At stake is the passage of the Combatting of Rape Bill, which breaks […]
Peter Makurube The best jazz in ages, with a variety and quality that is mind boggling -this is what the 10th anniversary of jazz at the national arts festival promises. It is a programme paying homage to the growing relationship between European jazz musicians and their South African counterparts, a relationship that began more than […]
Ian Harris and Struan Douglas Moments before the launch of Dantai’s debut album, Operation Lahlela, lead singer Pam Lungu was standing outside, alone on the chilled pavement, smoking. All tense and apprehensive. ”Looks like you’re expecting,” we joked, intuiting in her excitement the arrival of something unique. Not the album – we knew that was […]