Air Mail
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A digital weekly from Graydon Carter. Arriving every Saturday morning, it's news and culture at a civilized pace. Start reading now via the link below.
https://airmail.news/saturday/newsletter
https://airmail.news/saturday/newsletter
“This is going to be my ‘Hamlet!’”
Buried Alive with Peter Sellers
When the comedian agreed to star in "The Blockhouse," a grim W.W. II drama, it seemed like his chance to be taken seriously—but the production turned into a comedy of errors.
airmail.news
December 6, 2025 at 8:30 PM
“This is going to be my ‘Hamlet!’”
Our tech columnist reviews an Apple product that’s genuinely different!
An iPhone to Fondle, According to Our Tech-and-Gadgets Columnist
Apple's new iPhone Air is so sensuous and sleek you won't be able to keep your hands off it, says Jonathan Margolis.
airmail.news
December 6, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Our tech columnist reviews an Apple product that’s genuinely different!
“Those who claim flags are apolitical are either naïve or disingenuous.”
How Flags Were Co-Opted by the Far-Right
Flora Gill takes a look at how once-innocent national symbols—from classroom banners to Ginger Spice’s Union Jack—became rallying props for extremist politics.
airmail.news
December 6, 2025 at 3:43 PM
“Those who claim flags are apolitical are either naïve or disingenuous.”
“There’s been a plane crash!”
Crew Members Revisit the Final Days of the Concorde
A look back at the year 2000 crash that ended the “white bird’s” reign.
airmail.news
December 6, 2025 at 2:30 PM
“There’s been a plane crash!”
“To me, ballet exists only when people are performing, otherwise it doesn’t exist.”
George Balanchine's Production of "The Nutracker" Returns to New York City Ballet
Holiday tradition! Cash cow! The ballet has involved audiences in the magic of dance every year since its premiere, in 1954.
airmail.news
December 6, 2025 at 1:43 PM
“To me, ballet exists only when people are performing, otherwise it doesn’t exist.”
“There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.”
The Princess Deception Program
Thirty years on, the journalist who first broke the story of Diana’s betrayal by the BBC’s Martin Bashir reveals the true extent of the cover-up.
airmail.news
December 5, 2025 at 3:43 PM
“There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.”
"As the Royal Scotsman made its way back to Edinburgh, I was reminded of how the greatest journeys hold the possibility to transform us in all sorts of unexpected ways."
All Aboard the Royal Scotsman
If you haven’t experienced a week of splendor on this Belmond train, are you really even an Anglophile?
airmail.news
December 5, 2025 at 2:30 PM
"As the Royal Scotsman made its way back to Edinburgh, I was reminded of how the greatest journeys hold the possibility to transform us in all sorts of unexpected ways."
“I take play very seriously, but I don’t want to be a pretentious asshole either.”
David Duchovny Can’t Say No …
… to new projects, self-revelation, and showing up nude on camera.
airmail.news
December 5, 2025 at 1:43 PM
“I take play very seriously, but I don’t want to be a pretentious asshole either.”
“Peter came on the line and told me that he loved the screenplay, that he was fed up of making idiotic comedies, and had been looking for a project he could sink his teeth into.”
Buried Alive with Peter Sellers
When the comedian agreed to star in "The Blockhouse," a grim W.W. II drama, it seemed like his chance to be taken seriously—but the production turned into a comedy of errors.
airmail.news
December 4, 2025 at 8:30 PM
“Peter came on the line and told me that he loved the screenplay, that he was fed up of making idiotic comedies, and had been looking for a project he could sink his teeth into.”
Our tech columnist reviews a Leica that’s actually easy to focus.
An iPhone to Fondle, According to Our Tech-and-Gadgets Columnist
Apple's new iPhone Air is so sensuous and sleek you won't be able to keep your hands off it, says Jonathan Margolis.
airmail.news
December 4, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Our tech columnist reviews a Leica that’s actually easy to focus.
“Flags are not simply symbols of unity—they can reflect and expose the fractures dividing a nation, too.”
How Flags Were Co-Opted by the Far-Right
Flora Gill takes a look at how once-innocent national symbols—from classroom banners to Ginger Spice’s Union Jack—became rallying props for extremist politics.
airmail.news
December 4, 2025 at 3:43 PM
“Flags are not simply symbols of unity—they can reflect and expose the fractures dividing a nation, too.”
“You had to prove yourself to join the Concorde crew.”
Crew Members Revisit the Final Days of the Concorde
A look back at the year 2000 crash that ended the “white bird’s” reign.
airmail.news
December 4, 2025 at 2:30 PM
“You had to prove yourself to join the Concorde crew.”
“Balanchine’s ‘Nutcracker’ may be a perennial blockbuster, but it is also an exalted illustration of how every single performance involves a communal act of faith.”
George Balanchine's Production of "The Nutracker" Returns to New York City Ballet
Holiday tradition! Cash cow! The ballet has involved audiences in the magic of dance every year since its premiere, in 1954.
airmail.news
December 4, 2025 at 1:43 PM
“Balanchine’s ‘Nutcracker’ may be a perennial blockbuster, but it is also an exalted illustration of how every single performance involves a communal act of faith.”
Jean Pigozzi’s favorite restaurant: “La Petite Maison in Nice.”
What Jean Pigozzi Can't Live Without
The photographer and subject of a new documentary, "I Am Curious Johnny," reveals his favorite people, places, and things.
airmail.news
December 3, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Jean Pigozzi’s favorite restaurant: “La Petite Maison in Nice.”
How Decca Mitford became the “Queen of the Muckrakers.”
The Runaway Mitford Sister Gets Her First Biography
A new book traces the life of Jessica "Decca" Mitford, who ran away from home at 19—first to the the Spanish Civil War, and then to America.
airmail.news
December 3, 2025 at 8:30 PM
How Decca Mitford became the “Queen of the Muckrakers.”
“The link between the deception of his sister and her fatal car crash in Paris is something which Charles Spencer has considered at length.”
The Princess Deception Program
Thirty years on, the journalist who first broke the story of Diana’s betrayal by the BBC’s Martin Bashir reveals the true extent of the cover-up.
airmail.news
December 3, 2025 at 5:43 PM
“The link between the deception of his sister and her fatal car crash in Paris is something which Charles Spencer has considered at length.”
“By the end of the trip, for the first time in my life, I finally felt connected to Scotland.”
All Aboard the Royal Scotsman
If you haven’t experienced a week of splendor on this Belmond train, are you really even an Anglophile?
airmail.news
December 3, 2025 at 3:43 PM
“By the end of the trip, for the first time in my life, I finally felt connected to Scotland.”
“If comedians commit to the acting part of acting, they’re some of the best actors.”
David Duchovny Can’t Say No …
… to new projects, self-revelation, and showing up nude on camera.
airmail.news
December 3, 2025 at 2:30 PM
“If comedians commit to the acting part of acting, they’re some of the best actors.”
Don’t panic! In her latest “Notes on an Aesthetic” column, our commerce editor Jen Noyes lays out the rules for wise—and impossibly stylish—last-minute gift shopping.
The Polite Panic of the Last-Minute Gift
In our latest "Notes on an Aesthetic" column, learn how to find the perfect present on the fly.
airmail.news
November 28, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Don’t panic! In her latest “Notes on an Aesthetic” column, our commerce editor Jen Noyes lays out the rules for wise—and impossibly stylish—last-minute gift shopping.
While the Epstein files wreak havoc on Washington, Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted sex-trafficker and special friend of Jeffrey, is living out her days in a cushy low-security prison.
Ghislaine Maxwell is Living the High Life in a Low-Security Texas Prison
Jeffrey Epstein’s co-conspirator—currently serving 20 years for child sex-trafficking—gets puppy visits, snacks, and a warden she treats as “her personal secretary.”
airmail.news
November 28, 2025 at 5:43 PM
While the Epstein files wreak havoc on Washington, Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted sex-trafficker and special friend of Jeffrey, is living out her days in a cushy low-security prison.
"Swiss boarding schools are a sort of Bilderberg crèche, a gilded holding pen for the broiling offspring of despots, kings, and the unthinkably wealthy."
Alexis Wilkins, Tucker Carlson, the Elite Swiss Boarding School That Binds Them
The country-singer girlfriend of F.B.I. director Kash Patel may warble about pickup trucks and patriotism, but she grew up in a school for billionaires, dictators ... and Tucker Carlson.
airmail.news
November 28, 2025 at 3:43 PM
"Swiss boarding schools are a sort of Bilderberg crèche, a gilded holding pen for the broiling offspring of despots, kings, and the unthinkably wealthy."
Gordon Ramsay’s favorite cocktail: “An old-fashioned.”
What Gordon Ramsay Can't Live Without
The British chef and TV presenter answers 17 of life’s most pressing questions.
airmail.news
November 28, 2025 at 2:30 PM
Gordon Ramsay’s favorite cocktail: “An old-fashioned.”
Inside the San Francisco wellness startup that groomed its employees to serve the sexual desires of its founder and her financier.
How the Wellness Cult OneTaste Turned Consciousness-Raising Into Sex Slavery
It started with the manta: "always be a yes."
airmail.news
November 28, 2025 at 1:43 PM
Inside the San Francisco wellness startup that groomed its employees to serve the sexual desires of its founder and her financier.
Long forgotten since his death in 1949, the painter William Nicholson is being revived in Chichester, a small coastal town turned unlikely sanctuary for 20th-century English art.
Long Forgotten, English Painter William Nicholson is Being Revived in Chichester
The tiny coastal town has become an unlikely mecca for 20th-century British art.
airmail.news
November 27, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Long forgotten since his death in 1949, the painter William Nicholson is being revived in Chichester, a small coastal town turned unlikely sanctuary for 20th-century English art.
Gordon Ramsay's favorite sandwich: "Grilled cheese. I finally nailed it after years of practice—two slices of sourdough with some Swiss cheese beautifully melted in the oven."
What Gordon Ramsay Can't Live Without
The British chef and TV presenter answers 17 of life’s most pressing questions.
airmail.news
November 27, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Gordon Ramsay's favorite sandwich: "Grilled cheese. I finally nailed it after years of practice—two slices of sourdough with some Swiss cheese beautifully melted in the oven."