David Cameron

Britain – or more accurately, England – is not a great place for freedom of speech, or freedom of any kind, right now. You have UK Home Secretary Theresa May pushing to pre-emptively censor British broadcasting in cases of “extremism.” You have similar logic being spouted by Prime Minister David Cameron in moves to target […]

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UK Prime Minister David Cameron has thrown his weight behind the widely criticized policy introduced by Justice Secretary Chris Grayling of banning book deliveries to prisoners. After refusing to meet a delegation of writers and intellectuals at No.10 Downing Street, Cameron has replied to the protest letter they delivered, pointing out that “the Government has […]

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The BBC is reporting that prime minister David Cameron is introducing new measures that will block all ‘online pornography’ from UK households. The block will initiate at the level of the Internet service provider (ISP), and will be a default setting unless customers specifically opt out to enable this content. Cameron is also calling for [...]

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Hilary Mantel has seen sales of her award-winning novels soar after making headlines worldwide by describing the Duchess of Cambridge as “painfully thin, shop window mannequin”.

Mantel, who has won the Man Booker Prize twice, said the Duchess had a "perfect plastic smile", being viewed as having “no personality of her own, entirely defined by what she wore”.

While she has not yet commented on the furore, Mantel will no doubt be pleased to hear of one positive side-effect, as sales of her book have rocketed.

Acclaimed author Hilary Mantel caused quite the stir after she defined Middleton as "a jointed doll on which certain rags are hung" whose "only point and purpose being to give birth." She also described the princess as "plastic" and "designed to breed."

The comments came during the multiple Booker Prize-winner's hour-long lecture for a London Review of Books event at the British Museum on February 4th. They have created a media storm in the UK - and yet the headlines hide a more complex discussion…