Magic, according to the Collins Dictionary, is the power to use supernatural forces to make impossible things happen. Well-known authorities on the issue such as Hermione Granger,[1] assert that casting a magic spell successfully requires not only saying the right words in the right order but also enunciating them correctly, with the correct emphasis: “It’s not wingardiam leviosa, it’s wingardiam leviosa”. Others such as Ged, the principal character in the late Ursula le Guin’s Earthsea series, maintain that magic is

At Fathom, discussing monetary policy is one of those topics that can set blood boiling, comes at least with a PG rating and, in past eras, would have probably been settled by duelling "à l'outrance". Much of the reason for such heated exchanges centres around the concepts of credibility and independence. These were the central tenets of Fathom’s founding father and have been the bedrocks of our professional offering ever since. Yet, independence and credibility are too often taken for

On a recent trip to Peru, spent tackling the gruelling Inca Trail to the once-lost citadel of Machu Picchu, I found myself baffled by a more elementary matter than the life-changing experience of self-discovery that I had anticipated. Instead, I discussed, at length, the optimum height, or — more specifically — leg length, for tackling the mountainous Andean trail with my fellow hikers! Despite many passionate debates, we couldn’t reach a consensus on whether longer or shorter legs were best.

"This right to vote is the basic right without which all others are meaningless. It gives people, people as individuals, control over their own destinies." Lyndon B. Johnson Political Britain is currently preoccupied by the question of who will be the next UK Prime Minister. Daily radio interviews and opinion pieces by the candidates, and even TV debates. It feels like we’re in the run-up to a general election. However, the next Prime Minister will not be chosen by the

Small Island is a new show at the National Theatre based on Andrea Levy’s 2004 novel. A moving production, it tells the story of Jamaican migration to post-war London, highlighting how life for the Windrush generation wasn’t what they expected. Living conditions in the 'Motherland' were a disappointment, a fact made worse by the less than enthusiastic welcome they received from parts of their new society. Today’s would-be migrants face similar risks. Nonetheless, millions still opt to leave their country

Last Saturday, Liverpool, the most successful club in British football,[1] won their sixth Champions League title beating Tottenham Hotspur in the final. As a Liverpool fan, and the son of a Spurs fan, the victory was particularly sweet. In response to his team’s loss, my dad suggested that “losing isn’t so bad, it might pressure Daniel Levy [Tottenham Hotspur Chairman] to spend this summer”. While both champion and runner-up earn a financial windfall from their progress in the competition (Madrid

I spent my Bank Holiday Sunday at Wembley. It was a major milestone for my team, Charlton Athletic, as it was the first time the club has played at Wembley since the new stadium was opened in 2007, and the first appearance at the national stadium since 1998. In truth, it wasn't the Greatest Game, but the victory was memorable nonetheless. In the time it has taken Charlton to get back to Wembley, the transfer record has increased ten-fold, from the

Across Europe, voters are currently casting their ballots in the European parliamentary elections. However, Europeans already voted in a similarly contentious (albeit less consequential) poll last Saturday to crown this year’s winner of the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC). I must admit, I’m not a particularly avid follower of the annual spectacle (except for the occasional incongruously alternative acts such as latex-laden industrial or theatrical shock rock), but the general enthusiasm for the ESC certainly rivals that of political elections, with

For a (neutral) football fan, last week was truly exciting. Both Champions League semi-finals produced major surprises. Liverpool FC beat FC Barcelona to progress to the final despite having lost the first leg 3-0. Tottenham Hotspur beat Ajax Amsterdam in dramatic fashion, scoring three goals in the second half — the last one in the 96th minute — despite having lost the first leg and having been two nil down at half time. People who, against the odds, went to

As I forced my way onto the Northern Line from King’s Cross to Old Street this morning, to a muttered chorus of grumbles and coarse epithets from my fellow passengers, and crouched as the too-low train doors jolted shut uncomfortably close to my right ear, while inhaling nauseating amounts of the product in the hair of the man to my right and bringing my heel to rest on the toe of the woman to my left, regretting for the nth