Oscar Wilde was vibing before the Beach Boys | Letters
Jess Cartner-Morley provides an insightful and witty history of the mercurial concept of “vibes” (‘It’s game over for facts’: how vibes came to rule everything from pop to politics, 14 December).“The story of vibes begins with the release of the Beach Boys’ Good Vibrations in 1966,” she writes, yet it might be argued that an earlier point of origin is Gwendolen Fairfax in Oscar Wilde’s 1895 play The Importance of Being Earnest.In the first act, Gwendolen magisterially informs her beloved that his name – Ernest – is “divine”, “suits” him “perfectly”, “has a music of its own”, and “produces vibrations”.Her deceiving lover (real name John) remarks that “there are lots of other much nicer names”, such as “Jack, for instance, a charming name”, a claim she swiftly dismisses: “No, there is very little music in the name Jack, if any at all, indeed.It does not thrill.
It produces absolutely no vibrations,”The Oxford English Dictionary lists this piece of dialogue as the first instance of “vibrations” in the sense of “[a]n intuitive signal about a person or thing” or “atmosphere”, and the dictionary includes similar uses in later literary works, such as Joseph Conrad’s The Arrow of Gold (1919) and James Joyce’s Ulysses (1922),Richard HaslamWynnewood, Pennsylvania, US Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section,This letter was amended on 23 December 2024,The name Ernest was incorrectly spelt “Earnest”.
Teen tearaway Sam Konstas rewrites red-ball recipe in fearless Boxing Day debut | Jack Snape
The first attempt by Sam Konstas at a ramp shot did not go well. In the windy heat of the MCG on Boxing Day, a swing and a miss was met with a wry grin from Jasprit Bumrah. At the non-striker’s end, Usman Khawaja – 38 a week ago – cracked a smile.When Konstas failed to connect on a second try minutes later, the writing was on the wall. In a critical moment of a Test series that will define this generation of Australian players, selectors had taken a risk
Skelton’s Grey Dawning has talent to light up Kempton in wide-open race
There have been many renewals of the King George VI Chase in recent years which revolved around a clear market leader but there is no obvious starting point for weighing up this year’s race at Kempton on Thursday, as nine of the 11 runners already have at least one Grade One victory over fences to their name and at least four – Spillane’s Tower, Banbridge, Grey Dawning and Il Est Francais – could conceivably set off as favourite.There are also slight question marks over all four of the principals in the betting. Banbridge is unproven at the three-mile trip, Il Est Francais ran poorly after bursting a blood vessel last time out, Spillane’s Tower has shown his best form with more cut in the ground and Grey Dawning had a tough race in the Betfair Chase in November.Every punter will have their own idea about how best to weigh it all in the balance, and Bravemansgame, the winner in 2022 and second behind Hewick last year, is an interesting each-way alternative at double-figure odds as he returns to a track and trip which clearly suits him so well.For a win bet, however, the most appealing option is the progressive Grey Dawning (2
Paris was the Dude: 2024 Olympics were right Games at perfect time
Four months after Paris 2024’s spectacular finale, starring Tom Cruise abseiling off the top of the Stade de France and hurtling out of a plane above Los Angeles, the executive director of the Olympics is mulling over the lasting impact of the Games. Albeit with the help of a rather different cinematic icon.“I was making a presentation to Deloitte executives recently,” says Christophe Dubi, the man responsible for planning and delivering the Olympics. “And I started by paraphrasing the Stranger in The Big Lebowski: ‘Sometimes, there is a man, he’s the man for his time and place, he was The Dude.’ Because Paris really was the right Games, at the right time and place
India to play Champions Trophy games in Dubai after refusal to visit Pakistan
India’s matches at the 2025 Champions Trophy will be held in Dubai, the International Cricket Council confirmed on Tuesday.Pakistan, the tournament hosts, selected the United Arab Emirates as a neutral venue for India’s fixtures with the team not able to play matches in Pakistan because of political tensions.The hosts’ Group A game against India will now be played in Dubai, along with India’s games against Bangladesh and New Zealand. The decision also means that the venue for the final on 9 March will change from Lahore to Dubai if India qualify.Last month the Board of Control for Cricket in India, citing government advice, told the ICC it would not send a team to the tournament, which begins in February
Grey Dawning bids to follow in Desert Orchid tradition for King George glory
A bold-jumping grey in the King George at Kempton: for a dozen years from the mid‑1980s, it was a Boxing Day tradition as Desert Orchid, One Man and Teeton Mill racked up seven wins from nine appearances between them. And as Robert Kirkland, a racehorse owner for nearly 40 years, still recalls, there might have been another.“The first horse I ever had a share in was called High Edge Grey,” Kirkland said this week. “He won the Charlie Hall at Wetherby in 1988 and the plan was to go to Kempton, but then he hurt his back in the Hennessy at Newbury. In those days, you didn’t have chiropractors for horses, and he missed it
The Breakdown awards: best rugby matches, players and quotes of 2024
The best and worst of the last 12 months and hopes for 2025 in our review of the year in rugby union1 Antoine Dupont (France, Toulouse, France sevens)2 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa)3 Pieter-Steph du Toit (SA), Ox Nché (SA), Wallace Sititi (New Zealand), Ellie Kildunne (England)1 Rassie Erasmus (South Africa)2 Joe Schmidt (Australia)3 Franco Smith (Glasgow Warriors)1 England 37-42 Australia – Twickenham (sorry, Allianz Stadium)2 Bordeaux 41-42 Harlequins – Stade Chaban-Delmas3 Leinster 22-31 Toulouse – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium; Bath 26-36 Bristol – Recreation Ground1 Toulouse2 Bristol3 England women1 Ilona Maher (US)2 Antoine Dupont3 Jack Willis (Toulouse)1 Rugby Football Union2 Stuart Hogg3 Exeter ChiefsThe eight-year-old Stevie Mulrooney stole the show before Ireland’s 36-0 win over Italy in February with a splendid rendition of Ireland’s Call.Rugby Journal.Ronan O’Gara (Irish Examiner).Tom Willis (Saracens), Cameron Hanekom (Bulls), Guy Pepper (Bath), Henry Pollock (Northampton), Afolabi Fasogbon (Gloucester), Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale Sharks).Sam Prendergast (Ireland), Tom Jordan (Scotland), Tom Rogers (Wales), Theo Dan (England)
Boxing Day footfall down on UK high streets despite discounts
The first quarter of 21st century wasn’t great for investors. The next needs an AI boost | Nils Pratley
There’s no reason for older people to fear smartphones | Letters
Older music has been getting a second life on TikTok, data shows
Banbridge wins King George VI Chase while Constitution Hill takes Christmas Hurdle – as it happened
The men’s Test cricket team of the year: from Atkinson to Jaiswal