Mark Atkinson The Nobel Prize for Economics was awarded last week to Canadian-born Professor Robert Mundell whose work on the advantages of common currencies gave birth to the euro. He believes sterling is doomed to extinction and predicts United Kingdom membership of the new currency zone will prove irresistible. In a world of volatile and […]

David Moore A SECOND LOOK As we speed our way to the end of this century one might pause to reflect on the part the Congo played at the close of the last one. Then, as now, the globe was becoming integrated financially, productively and culturally at a frenetic pace. Then, as now, the heart […]

Matthew Simpson I discovered the virtues of the Independent Armchair Theatre one night when a friend and I stumbled out of Stones in the early hours of the evening, looking for somewhere to have another drink. I’d seen it a number of times before but for various reasons had never actually gone inside. But it […]

The Pet Shop Boys are back, always different, always the same, and permanently in fashion. Michael Bracewell speaks to the pair For a pop duo who had their first number one hit – West End Girls – back in 1985, Chris Lowe and Neil Tennant, better known as the Pet Shop Boys, have a knack […]

Olivia Schaffer Lifestyle Groot Marico, less than three hours north-west of Johannesburg, is the home of the Herman Charles Bosman Literary Society, founded in 1993, of which the legendary Patrick Mynhardt is honorary life president. At least twice a year the local committee members and friends open their doors and extend their hospitality to visitors. […]

Andy Capostagno Rugby World Cup There are those who are beginning to clutch at straws. It was suggested this week that South Africa’s progress to the final of World Cup 1999 was inevitable as there were so many parallels to the 1995 campaign. In ’95 the Springboks played some coruscating rugby in their opening match […]

Inayet Motara The millennial spirit is bound to inspire a unifying climate in world culture. A typical foray is the effort to assemble the world’s largest canvas in Australia at the end of the year. On October 2, 24 South African artists began their contribution to what has been termed Global Images – a collage […]

Paul Kirk Lieutenant General Basie Smit, one-time commander of the South African Police’s (SAP) hated internal security branch and apartheid killer Eugene de Kock’s boss, is the South African president of the International Police Association (IPA). The IPA is a fraternal organisation of serving and former police officers that enjoys consultative status with the United […]

Shaun Harris Until recently, property unit trusts (PUTs) hadn’t really caught the eye of the smaller, private investor. There are a number of reasons for this. Investors tend to focus on capital appreciation, and with PUTs the income yield is as important. Also, PUTs are a relatively small sector, easily overlooked. Perceptions began to change […]

Charlene Smith CROSSFIRE After writing about a woman gang-raped in front of her children who now has HIV (October 15 to 21), a number of male callers to the Mail & Guardian suggested that my writings about rape suggested I have a boring life and “just need a good fuck”. Amazing how often it comes […]