FUTURE HISTORIANS of post-war Britain, thought Auberon Waugh, will ponder an overwhelming question: why did the middle class have such a death wish? Social demarcation, true, is a minefield which can imperil the most careful sapper. It’s usually wise to plot another course. Yet the great provocateur’s point stands: why are so many middle class people eager to be punished?
Waugh’s question has acquired greater force in the two decades since his death. A certain kind of person can barely last a week without