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Robert Hutton

Robert Hutton

@RobDotHutton

Robert Hutton is a freelance journalist and sketchwriter for The Critic

The Night Margaret Thatcher Became The Iron Lady
History
The Night Margaret Thatcher Became The Iron Lady
Fifty years ago, the female leader of the Tory opposition was about to celebrate a newly minted moniker, a gift from Russia
Recipes for disaster: burger diplomacy
Foreign affairs
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: burger diplomacy
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: the Golden Arches Theory
Recipes for disaster: Soviet recipes
History
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Soviet recipes
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: cookbooks as propaganda
How Well Do You Remember Brexit? Take Robert Hutton's Quiz
Brexit
How Well Do You Remember Brexit? Take Robert Hutton's Quiz
It’s 10 years since Britain’s momentous decision to, according to your taste, throw off the shackles of European oppression or make it harder to sell things to France.
Recipes for disaster: Mrs Thatcher’s larder
History
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Mrs Thatcher’s larder
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: “You call it stockpiling. I call it being a prudent housewife.”
Recipes for disaster: Winston Churchill’s dinners with Joseph Stalin
History
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Winston Churchill’s dinners with Joseph Stalin
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: the limits of banquet diplomacy
Recipes for disaster: the Granita pact
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: the Granita pact
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: a fateful dinner in Islington
Recipes for disaster: Boris Johnson iced by a cake
Coronavirus
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Boris Johnson iced by a cake
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: when Boris Johnson was ambushed by a birthday cake
Recipes for disaster: Lord Young’s lunch with Christopher Hope
Economy
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Lord Young’s lunch with Christopher Hope
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: Lord Young’s lunch with Christopher Hope
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for Disaster
Recipes for disaster: Theresa May's election mess
Parliament
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Theresa May's election mess
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: chicken lasagne and boiled potatoes
Recipes for disaster: David Cameron v chocolate oranges
Health
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: David Cameron v chocolate oranges
The Conservative Party, defeated at Labour’s hands, had elected a new, young leader who was determined to create distance with the failures of the past.
Recipes for disaster: George Osborne's Byron Burger
History
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: George Osborne's Byron Burger
“Putting the final touches to the speech,” George Osborne, or someone in control of his Twitter account, typed.
Recipes for disaster: Rachel Reeves (doesn't) make a cheese sandwich
Economy
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Rachel Reeves (doesn't) make a cheese sandwich
Robert Hutton may or may not get round to filing the piece he promised...
Recipes for disaster: Nando's with The Independent Group
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Nando's with The Independent Group
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: Nando's with The Independent Group
Recipes for disaster: David Cameron's porcine pasta
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: David Cameron's porcine pasta
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: David Cameron's porcine pasta
Recipes for disaster: Rishi's fasting
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Rishi's fasting
“It’s a testament to the discipline, focus and determination he shows in all aspects of his life and work.”
Recipes for disaster: Brexit three and a plot at the Tate over tea
Brexit
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Brexit three and a plot at the Tate over tea
We met, my guest and I, in the atrium of Tate Britain.
Recipes for Disaster: Boris Johnson's cheese on toast
Parliament
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for Disaster: Boris Johnson's cheese on toast
An expert in guilty pleasures goes to the kitchen...
Recipes for disaster: David Cameron’s almond milk porridge
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: David Cameron’s almond milk porridge
This is a story from early 2014, just before the start of what I think of as the Mad Decade of British politics. It is also one in which I played, to my intense distress, a major part.
Recipes for disaster: Gordon Brown’s sushi
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Gordon Brown’s sushi
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: Gordon Brown’s sushi
Recipes for disaster: Ed Balls' eight sausage rolls
Parliament
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: Ed Balls' eight sausage rolls
Politicians making a meal of it. This week: eight sausage rolls for Ed Balls
Recipes for disaster: David Cameron's Cornish pasty
Economy
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for disaster: David Cameron's Cornish pasty
It’s said that to be a minister in the Home Office is to have an entire staff under you working on things that will force you to resign. But if you think things are any better at the Treasury, you’ve got a lot to learn.
Dominic Raab's Pret Special
Brexit
By Robert Hutton
Dominic Raab's Pret Special
He doesn't have the same lunch every day. Really.
Recipes for Disaster: Kemi's steak
Parliament
By Robert Hutton
Recipes for Disaster: Kemi's steak
Back in 2006, a pollster advised George Osborne that the public generally knew at most three things about any politician, and that he should think what he would like them to be.
Recipes For Disaster: The Bacon Sandwich
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
Recipes For Disaster: The Bacon Sandwich
To launch a new column on politicians making a meal of it, there was only one place to start.
How handovers work: John Major's final hours in No10
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
How handovers work: John Major's final hours in No10
For the first time since 1997, Britain is approaching an election where no one doubts that power is about to change hands. And by happy coincidence, last Christmas saw the release of a memo spelling out how Downing Street prepared for the moment last time around.
All must have prizes: Headmaster Hoyle's 2023 school report
Parliament
By Robert Hutton
All must have prizes: Headmaster Hoyle's 2023 school report
As a tumultuous term draws to a close, Robert Hutton hunts though the debris and hands out gongs
Illustrations by Tracy Worrall
The Ex-Files: What should former prime ministers do with the rest of their lives?
History
By Robert Hutton
The Ex-Files: What should former prime ministers do with the rest of their lives?
One day you’re feted by world leaders and fawning staff, the next you’re out on your ear. So what should a former premier do with the rest of their life? Robert Hutton explores the options
King of Chaos: Prime Minister Boris Johnson's tenure and departure
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
King of Chaos: Prime Minister Boris Johnson's tenure and departure
“The Prime Minister said: ‘I am more frightened of you having the power to stop the chaos than I am of the chaos. The chaos means everyone will look to me as the man in charge.’” – Dominic Cummings, May 26, 2021
Corbyn's Covid conundrum: what if Labour had won the 2019 general election?
Coronavirus
By Robert Hutton
Corbyn's Covid conundrum: what if Labour had won the 2019 general election?
It is two years since Boris Johnson led the Conservatives to victory at the general election, but one decision might have changed everything. Robert Hutton takes a trip down a parallel timeline.
Who Are The Tory Tribes?
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
Who Are The Tory Tribes?
The Wets and Drys. The Maastricht Rebels. The Notting Hill Set. The Conservative Party has long done a first class job of factionalism. Whereas Labour splits seem carved in stone, based on decades-old feuds and theoretical arguments, Tory gangs form and break up with great pace, something accelerated in recent years by both the changing demographic of its voters and ease of setting up a WhatsApp group. Robert Hutton reports.
From seabed to space
Defence
By Robert Hutton
From seabed to space
First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Tony Radakin has a remit stretching from the ocean floor to the outer hemisphere, along with responsibility for the welfare and wellbeing of more than 30,000 personnel and their families. He tells Robert Hutton he has reasons to be cheerful.
Field of Dreams: When Politicians and Festivals Meet
Culture
By Robert Hutton
Field of Dreams: When Politicians and Festivals Meet
Pop festivals and politicians – not an obvious match. But from triumphant appearances on the Pyramid Stage, to hangovers and hasty exits, many MPs have in-the-field experience.
The Definitive Guide to Boris Johnson's Buses, Bridges and Boreholes Under the Irish Sea
Political parties
By Robert Hutton
The Definitive Guide to Boris Johnson's Buses, Bridges and Boreholes Under the Irish Sea
His cable-car crossing was the most expensive ever built, and his ‘Boris Bikes’ made it into the Oxford dictionary. With proposals on the table for a ‘Boris Burrow’ to connect Scotland and Northern Ireland, Robert Hutton explores Johnson’s quest to secure a lasting legacy.
Adult Lockdown Lessons For Home Schooling
Education
By Robert Hutton
Adult Lockdown Lessons For Home Schooling