Kishwar Desai | Can Britain gain at America’s expense? Don’t fly; ride the Eurostar to Paris

After the showdown between Presidents Trump and Zelenskyy (with US Vice-President Vance playing a side role as chief instigator) the angry headlines against Trump have wiped everything else off the front page in the UK.

What Trump forgot was that Zelenskyy may come from a war-torn country — but he used to be a comedian, a performer who has probably faced many such outbursts in his life. He was not going to crumble when faced with bombast. A live performer has to think on his feet and he had to somehow get out of there with his dignity intact. Many would have been reminded of the David and Goliath story.

If we were to take a comic viewpoint (remember the anti-hero created by Charlie Chaplin) — sympathy always goes to the underdog. Zelenskyy may have come without a suit — but his ordinary visage made him the common man the world can identify with. So ‘“Charlie” Zelenskyy goes to the White House’ might make a really funny film if matters were not so serious. So he gets kicked out of the White House — cut to being welcomed by Sir Keir Starmer at 10 Downing Street, in the next scene.

Already it is becoming a case of America versus the Rest of the World over the vexed issue of Ukraine. One worries that MAGA will soon stand for Make America Groan Again. Such an aspirational country is now being reduced to one where leaders can only have ill-tempered discussions about land grab — whether it is Canada, or Panama or Gaza, or minerals in Ukraine.

And yet every cloud has a silver lining. Perhaps the meeting with Nato and the EU allies taking place this week in London will create a brave new balance of power.

As the US cedes the ethical leadership space — it could be the UK that leads the world out of this mess, with Sir Keir Starmer, a marked contrast with a cool persona, at the helm.

The Wallace Collection is a treasure house of great paintings with Turner, Fragonard and Velazquez plus many other great artists. It was a private collection over four generations put together by the Marquess of Hertford and donated by Sir Richard Wallace, one of the descendants.

Sir Grayson Perry (a Turner Prize winning artist who is famous for cross dressing in woman’ s clothes) was asked to prepare an exhibition, “Delusions of Grandeur”, by the Wallace Collection staff. He has put together his own art pieces alongside selected works taken from the existing collection.

But he faced a challenge in the curation as he said he did not love much of what he saw in the old collection.

So, ever inventive, he altered his own persona by taking on the fictional identity of an artist Shirley Smith — complete with a fancy dress and make-up. To make “Shirley” more contemporary — he said she had woken up in Hertford House after a mental health crisis and found a deep connection with the entire Wallace Collection.

In fact, there was a Shirley Smith who died in 1930, so it was not difficult for Grayson Perry to recreate her. Talk about channelling!

The show opens on March 28. “Shirley Smith” (alias Sir Grayson Perry) will turn up as a guide now and then. There will be around fifty classic paintings from the collection of five thousand on display.

So, every time I get stuck with my writing — maybe I should channel the spirit of Jane Austen, or even Shakespeare! Interesting idea!

One of the great pleasures of London is to be able to arrive at Kings Cross-St Pancras railway station and get on the Eurostar for a smooth, no-hassle ride to Paris while a good catering service looks after you. Flying is becoming more and more difficult with long security queues and the need to go an hour or more in advance, and thus the trains are smooth and comfortable.

Now the rail trip can take you further into Europe if you wish with other destinations, so combine your London holiday with a memorable ride on the Eurorail. No need to put on your safety belts.

Shakespeare still remains, after five centuries, the favourite playwright for the British artistes in the West End and beyond. We have now three plays of his to watch, all running at the same time with different interpretative settings.

Hamlet, the classic tragedy, is being staged on the Titanic, and of course therefore set in 1912, and the entire action takes place in one night rather than spread over weeks. This is by the Royal Shakespeare Company at Stratford upon Avon, Shakespeare’ home town. The tickets for this are going at £300, even though some critics said it left them with a sinking feeling.

At the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane we have an almost rock and roll version of Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Jamie Lloyd. And this is reconstructed as a contemporary romcom, winning hearts.

Richard II is playing at the Bridge Theatre, at London Bridge — with the lead role played by Jonathan Bailey, last seen in Bridgerton.

But are there some similarities we see today — with Richard II thinking he is born to rule even though he is ruining the country with his policies? Hmmmmm…