The Oldie

The idea for the Oldie was cooked up 25 years ago by its founding editor, Richard Ingrams, and his much-lamented successor, the late Alexander Chancellor. Their aim was to create a free-thinking, funny magazine, a light-hearted alternative to a press obsessed with youth and celebrity. The Oldie is ageless and timeless, free of retirement advice, crammed with rejuvenating wit, intelligence and delight. With over 100 pages in every issue, The Oldie is packed with funny cartoons and free-thinking and intelligent articles covering a wide range of topics – from gardening and books to travel, arts, entertainment, and so much more.

The Oldie

Among this month's contributors

The Old Un's Notes

HOT MANY DEAD • Important stories you may have missed

GREAT BORES OF TODAY - HANDS-ON GRANNIES

My childhood dream? To be the Pope • There was only one problem – I wasn't Catholic. I settled for becoming Archbishop of Canterbury

Who wants to live for ever? Billionaires do • Now they've made a fortune, they want to defeat mortality

WHAT WAS 1960s men's fashion?

WHAT IS a swag gap?

Stepfather from heaven • Playwright Harold Pinter was very kind to Natasha A Fraser – and took her up the aisle

On the royal throne • For over 500 years, the monarch's household has looked after the sovereign's vital needs.

Le Carré, Bond and me • When Dick Clement wrote a film about Lockerbie, help came from a supreme spy novelist and a legendary actor

Bad marriage guidance • Couple counsellors are booming online – but are they any good? They certainly didn't save Laurie Taylor from divorce

At death's door • When Roger Lewis was laid low in hospital with pancreatitis, he never realised how close he was to dying

My death wish? No letters • When her husband died suddenly, the last thing Anne Sebba wanted was lots of condolence letters

The Ton-Up Club • David Attenborough is a new member. Elizabeth II was very nearly one. Simon Robinson meets some of the greats who've turned 100

Gout, drugs and rock'n'roll • Peter York looks back at 200 years of self-indulgence, from port to ketamine

Twin peaks • Peter Flacke adores phrasal verbs – quirky, picturesque pairings of English words

Playing Cupid • For 40 years, Nicola Arkell Reed has been a brilliant matchmaker, with 11 marriages – and only a few divorces – under her belt

The coolest heatwave fabric? Linen • What a miracle! Absorbent, with an open, breathable weave, it becomes even stronger with washing

The dingy life of English dons • Thank God I never became an academic!

The Not So Good Life

Exclusive tour of Cambridge colleges • with Harry Mount and Dr Justin Davies 9th September 2026

The Maeve Binchy Guide to Wills • The Irish novelist made 40 wills – better than not making a will at all, says Mary Kenny

Father's in God's waiting room • So why are they handing me the sample bottles and slipper socks?

Oh, to be in the country, now that summer's here

The dream pub lunch? In my own garden

Lawrence of Arabia, King of the Castle • T E Lawrence's epic book Crusader Castles was published 90 years ago

The class failures of British education

SISTER TERESA KESWICK • Parable of the lost sheep – and the lost drachma

Mammon

Should I keep on taking the pills? • Vitamin D and calcium tablets may not cut the risk of broken bones

George Melly

Charles Atlas was my world

READERS’ LETTERS • The Oldie, 23–31 Great Titchfield Street, London, W1W 7PA letters@theoldie.co.uk To sign up for our e-newsletter, go to www.theoldie.co.uk

Homer, sweet Homer • Homer-Haunted: The...