The author of this piece, Theodore Dalrymple (Anthony Malcolm Daniels, M.D.) writes with attention to both detail and to his surroundings, as one would expect from a British prison doctor and psychiatrist.
From New English Review, April 2023 edition:
I suppose I should declare an interest at the outset: I will mention favourably a book by one of the editors of a magazine for which I write, the New Criterion.
Let me reassure smellers-out of financial corruption, however, that the sums of money that could possibly be involved are so tiny that no one would risk his reputation for them, however dishonest he was. My principle is clear: I will mention a book by a person I know if it is good and I can praise it in the knowledge that I would have written the same thing had I not known its author. On the other hand, I admit to refraining from adverse criticism of the books of people with whom I am friendly. About those books, I remain silent; I leave criticism to others.
Sometimes I rather regret than no one, except once, has tried to bribe me. This is a testimony to my profound unimportance: it means that what I say or do makes no difference to anyone. The one exception was many years ago when a family asked me, as a young doctor, whether I could do away with their relative, who they felt was suffering pointlessly (or holding up the inheritance due them). I said that this was a treatment that was not available on the National Health Service.
‘Can’t we go private, then?’ they asked....
....MUCH MORE
The subject of this essay is, as Dalrymple points out, no starchitect but rather a very industrious professional designer. I thought we would have posted something on Robert Adam, the list of just the houses he designed runs to pages and pages but a quick search of the blog only turned up a couple references, one on Ogilvey's Rory Sutherland and his purchase of an Adam house (Gr.I) and one which was a mention of Adam's fireplace mantels.
They're nice mantels, even one from his time "in the style of" will set you back nearly $100,000 but that's pretty much all we have.
And speaking of industrious, the list of articles, essays and opinion pieces by Dr. Daniels, just at the New English Review, has to be seen to be appreciated.
