Country Life UK Magazine - December 25, 2024

In this issue

When the saints march in: The Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Albans, Hertfordshire, part II.
Where time stands still: Memorials are our nation’s collective memory, built to endure and ensure that achievements, individuals and disasters are never forgotten. Susan Owens takes an emotive tour around the British Isles in 50 monuments.

When the saints march in The Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Albans, Hertfordshire, part II

In the second of two articles, John Goodall examines some of the recent changes made to highlight the saints associated with this ancient church

7 mins

Welcome home

Despite the trundling tractor and buzzing shears, our ancestors would still recognise the rhythm, ritual and practices of the traditional hill farm, argues John Lewis-Stempel

5 mins

'Eating is an agricultural act'

Farmers need to convince consumers that the choices they make are integral to preserving the British environment

3 mins

Where time stands still

Memorials are our nation’s collective memory, built to endure and ensure that achievements, individuals and disasters are never forgotten. Susan Owens takes an emotive tour around the British Isles in 50 monuments

10+ mins

Shake your pompom

Some can rock a bobble hat, others will always resemble Where's Wally, but still this knitted creation belongs on every hat rack, says Harry Pearson

4 mins

Give the dog a bone

Man's best friend still needs to eat like its Lupus forebears, believes Jonathan Self, when it's not guarding food, greeting us or destroying our upholstery, of course

4 mins

When a perfect storm hits

Weather, wars, elections and financial uncertainty all conspired against high-end house sales this year, but there were still some spectacular deals

6 mins

Mission impossible

Rubble and ruin were all that remained of the early-19th-century Villa Frere and its gardens, planted by the English diplomat John Hookham Frere, until a group of dedicated volunteers came to its rescue. Josephine Tyndale-Biscoe tells the story

4 mins

Shhhhhh...

THERE is great delight to be had poring over the front pages of COUNTRY LIFE each week, dreaming of what life would be like in a Scottish castle (so reasonably priced, but do bear in mind the midges) or a townhouse in London’s Eaton Square (worth a king’s ransom, but, oh dear, the traffic) or perhaps that cottage in the Cotswolds (if you don’t mind standing next to Hollywood A-listers in the queue at Daylesford). The estate agent’s particulars will give you details of acreage, proximity to schools and railway stations, but never—no, never—an indication of noise levels.

2 mins

Private views

One of the best ways-often the only way-to visit the finest privately owned gardens in the country is by joining an exclusive tour. Non Morris does exactly that

4 mins

A love supreme

Art brought together 19th-century Norwich couple Joseph and Emily Stannard, who shared a passion for painting, but their destiny would be dramatically different

5 mins

Mary I: more bruised than bloody

Cast as a sanguinary tyrant, our first Queen Regnant may not deserve her brutal reputation, believes Geoffrey Munn

2 mins

For love, not money

This year may have marked the end of brag-art’, bought merely to show off one’s wealth. It’s time for a return to looking for connoisseurship, beauty and taste

4 mins

Paper escapes

Steven King selects his best travel books of 2024

3 mins

Read all stories from Country Life UK

Country Life UK Magazine Description:

Country Life; architecture, gardens, countryside, property, the very best of British life Published by IPC Media. Country Life, the quintessential English magazine, is undoubtedly one of the biggest and instantly recognisable brands in the UK today. It has a unique core mix of contemporary country-related editorial and top end property advertising. Editorially, the magazine comments in-depth on a wide variety of subjects, such as architecture, the arts, gardens and gardening, travel, the countryside, field-sports and wildlife. With renowned columnists and superb photography Country Life delivers the very best of British life every week.