Christopher Howse

Writer at The Telegraph

Writer for Telegraph. Author of Soho in the Eighties and The Train in Spain. Opinions are often not my own.

Articles

What we lost when they rebuilt St Peter's, Rome

5 days ago | telegraph.co.uk | Christopher Howse

As the conclave worked away unseen in the Sistine Chapel to elect Pope Leo, St Peter's itself gave vast, silent witness, as at Pope Francis's funeral, to the historic function of the Bishop of Rome. I thought I might be perverse in wishing we still had Old St Peter's, the church built under Constantine in the 4th century, instead of the stupendous Renaissance basilica that always awes visitors. But others have felt likewise.
I'm allergic to dogs

1 week ago | telegraph.co.uk | Miranda Levy |Pete Wedderburn |Christopher Howse |Rosa Silverman

What are allergies? Put simply, allergies occur when the immune system reacts inappropriately to a harmless, foreign substance that gets inside the body. The substance is known as an allergen. Adam Fox is a professor of paediatric allergy at several London hospitals, and one of the UK's leading experts on the subject. "People who are allergic have a broad genetic tendency called 'atopy' where they have the potential for inappropriate immune responses," he says.
Why Pope Francis chose his place of burial

2 weeks ago | telegraph.co.uk | Christopher Howse

Pope Francis was the first pope to take the name of St Francis of Assisi, "the man of poverty, the man of peace, the man who loves and protects creation". A mosaic of St Francis is prominent in the church where he has chosen to be buried, St Mary Major. The mosaic was put up in the apse inside the church by Pope Nicholas IV, the first member of the Franciscan Order elected pope, dying four years later, two days before Easter 1292.
Philately's reputation | TLS

3 weeks ago | the-tls.co.uk | Christopher Howse

Welcome to the TLSTo access over 1000 book reviews, essays and more, subscribe here
We tell ourselves stories

3 weeks ago | the-tls.co.uk | Philippa Conlon |Ben Street |Christopher Howse |Anne Nelson

To access over 1000 book reviews, essays and more, subscribe hereWe tell ourselves storiesWhen to surrender to fictionCharles, the narrator of Morgan Talty’s debut novel, Fire Exit, does not know when exactly his daughter, Elizabeth, was born. For days, he sat on the riverbank, staring at a darkened house on the other side of the water, waiting for it to light up again with the arrival of his baby. It was “Mary’s plan to lie”, Charles explains, “and say that the girl was another man’s”.
The heroic perseverance of Antoni Gaudí

3 weeks ago | msn.com | Christopher Howse

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The heroic perseverance of Antoni GaudÃ

3 weeks ago | telegraph.co.uk | Christopher Howse

Antoni Gaudí, who designed the extraordinary basilica of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, has been declared "Venerable". That is a step towards sainthood which recognises the heroic virtues of the candidate. Signing the decree was the first official act by Pope Francis on being discharged from hospital in late March. The huge Sagrada Familia, big enough to accommodate 6,500 people, cannot be ignored. It is built in a strange organic style.
Why crosses and images are veiled during Lent

1 month ago | telegraph.co.uk | Christopher Howse

A question on a worthy website asks: "Why do we veil images in Lent?" The answer given is: "The veils are hard to miss and they serve as a reminder to get ready!" That is unconvincing. An old copy of The Catholic Enyclopedia says: "The crosses are veiled because Christ during this time no longer walked openly among the people, but hid himself.
An interruption in the flight of time's arrow

1 month ago | telegraph.co.uk | Christopher Howse

Crowds used to wave handkerchiefs as the Queen went by. More recently they tried to catch her on their mobile phones. "I miss seeing their eyes," as Craig Brown quotes the late Queen saying in his masterly A Voyage Around the Queen. Both hanky-waving and mobile-craning are a sort of ritual, but I think the former is more like a liturgical act in the sense explored by Cosima Clara Gillhammer in her compelling new book Light on Darkness: The Untold Story of the Liturgy.
The English high street: St Chad's Parade, Kirkby

1 month ago | telegraph.co.uk | Christopher Howse

Once voted the worst shopping destination in the country, the town has repeatedly been promised regeneration but it has yet to materialiseChristopher Howse is travelling the nation to speak to local people about their high street, including how it has changed and what they miss... This week, Christopher explores St Chad's Parade in Kirkby, Merseyside. A surprising thing I found in Kirkby was a system for hiring artificial white funeral flowers, spelling out DAD or NAN.

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Christopher Howse @BeardyHowse

10 May 25

RT @aIIegoricaI: John Singer Sargent’s painting ‘Staircase in Capri’ (1878) is one of the most beautiful portrayals of light in art that I’…

Christopher Howse @BeardyHowse

10 May 25

Carpe diem.

The Telegraph @Telegraph

🎣 An insurance broker from Essex has reeled in a world record-breaking common carp while on holiday in Hungary This is how he did it👇 https://t.co/5Gp4dWQhKq

Christopher Howse @BeardyHowse

10 May 25

RT @Larkspurr44: Woods at Enstone, Oxfordshire. Photo last weekend. https://t.co/UXUnAGsH9N