18 December 2006
Become a subscriber and save £££
Subscribe to the New Statesman for just £82 and receive a free copy of Roy Hattersley’s In Search of England(Hardcover)
From the Editor…
Welcome to the New Statesman website. Whether you are a new reader or an existing one - online or via the magazine - I hope you'll enjoy the great writing, fresh ideas and provocative debate that make the New Statesman Britain's award-winning current affairs weekly
Cover story
Interview: Margaret Beckett
In her first six months as Foreign Secretary, Margaret Beckett has had to cope with the débâcle of Iraq, the threat of Iran - and a bad press. So is she being treated unfairly?
Features
The known unknowns with much to prove
We imagined that the system was incorruptible. But by the end of 2006 the myth of the British honesty gene had been exploded by the loans for peerages inquiry
Exposed: Britain's dirty secret
The government has been disguising the quantity of greenhouse gases that we create with our flights to and from the UK.
Europe's saviour
For decades, Germany has trodden carefully on the world stage. Now, thanks to a quirk of timing, it will dominate 2007 as it leads both the G8 and the EU. But will it be up to the job?
Christmas in care
Teenagers leaving care are neither children nor yet able to find their bearings in the adult world. The season of goodwill can hit them hard, however brave a face they try to put on things.
i live with him, i see his face, i go no more away
A short story by Helen Oyeyemi I'll tell you exactly what happened, I really will, only you better promise not to get cross at any point
Toys for guilty parents
The hot toy for Christmas is a fish tank that gives your kids self-esteem - or so the marketing says. Are we being duped?
Person of the Year: NS Readers' Choice
You chose the individual who did most for the good of humanity over the past 12 months
Person of the year: The man making China green
...and for 2007 we make our own nomination... Pan Yue
Reasons to be cheerful in 2007
The glass will be half full, not half empty, for leftists in 2007. And even though, according to the Chinese calendar, it will be the Year of the Pig , we can be bullish. As an ill-starred 2006 slips into history, New Year's Eve will be a good time to dig out the words of an old song and bellow "things can only get better". Cross your fingers, though, and be prepared for a few disappointments. Just in case
Regulars
New Statesman Leader
Gordon Brown must show the world a better Britain
New Statesman leader looking ahead to UK foreign policy in 2007
Christmas Quiz
Throughout the year, a certain smooth and orderly transition was on everybody's lips. It never happened.
Culture
An English visionary
The new year will bring the 250th anniversary of the birth of William Blake. Philip Pullman explains how the writer and artist has inspired his work, and his life
Get lost, Cameron
The Tory leader should stop trying to be trendy, those pop queens Girls Aloud tell Sophie Heawood
Television
Will the BBC get a visit from Santa - or the Grinch?
Viewers did not have to wait until Christmas for the turkeys this year
Theatre
Making a song and dance of it
Musicals dominated the West End, while serious theatre failed to pull in the crowds
Radio
A brave new world
Podcasts are a red herring, but digital radio gives listeners what they want
Film
Keep your eyes off the prize
There was a rich feast on offer - but the top Oscar went to the wrong film
Album Reviews
Brazil nutters
The most fun to be had this year was in the hyperactive presence of the Brazilian sextet
Books
Imaginary friends
Tales of talking animals and fantastical adventure aren't just for children, argues Ursula Le Guin - we can and should return to them throughout our lives
Too much, not enough
As 2006 draws to a close, our critics choose the best - and worst - books of the year, and predict what you'll be reading in 2007
Strange and wonderful
Alternative publishing is flourishing, but you won't find their work at your local bookshop.
The NS guide to: What you'll be reading in 2007
Look out for Norman Mailer's strange saga of the Hitler family and John Major's history of cricket's early years.
Look at me, I'm special
From middle class memoirs to trashy celebrity life stories, biographies in 2006 shared a belief in human indefatigability.
Humour and humanity
International literature explored the world of Zinedine Zidane and brought us new works by Isabel Allende and Laura Esquivel.
Observations
Now bury the myths
Writer and human rights activist Ariel Dorfman was forced to flee Chile when the government of Allende was overthrown by Pinochet. Here, he reflects on the long shadow of the tyrant
