“... Despite opposition from the White House, two senators – Mark Kirk, a Republican, and Robert Menendez, a Democrat (currently serving a federal prison sentence on corruption charges) – demanded sanctions on Iran’s central bank, winning unanimous Senate approval. A few months later, Congress also authorised sanctioning Swift, the Brussels-based ...”

“... impossible pace, rushing back and forth, herky-jerky, as in a speeded-up old slapstick comedy – Mack Sennett in blackface, Show Boat aground. Satire and brass can bring down any construct, especially if it’s as friable as the idea of minstrelsy.The Ellingtonians have thoroughly denuded the famous song. The bass-baritone Noble Negro is now just another ...”