CATEGORIES
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Clear in the attic
Intriguing chairs, tables and bookstands peppered the Holkham sale at Sworders, but, for me, a lacquered-brass stick barometer in a mahogany case stole the show
Survival of the exceptional
The addition of VAT on fees will be the straw that breaks the camel’s back’, not only for stretched parents trying to do the best for their children, but for smaller schools and what they can offer. Lucy Higginson finds out how they are mitigating the damage
As good as gold
The glittering, jewel-like works by early-14th-century Sienese painters reflected the splendour of the city’s heyday and went on to influence courtly art as far afield as Britain and Bohemia, as Mary Miers discovers
Bitter together
Peppery, rocket-like and best eaten raw, this warming winter weed adds a decorative flourish to any humble salad, finds John Wright
Knock on wood
Our beloved, bark-drumming woodpeckers are guardians of ancient broad-leaved woodlands, busy ecosystem engineers and keen consumers of ant porridge, discovers Vicky Liddell
Timeless bridal jewellery
Bespoke wedding jewellery crafted by G. Collins & Sons will bring extra sparkle to the happy couple's special day and beyond
A glimpse of the sublime Russborough House, Co Wicklow, Ireland A property of the Alfred Beit Foundation
The redecoration of a drawing room offers a fascinating insight into the aesthetic preoccupations of Grand Tourism in the mid 18th century, as John Goodall explains
Lights, camera, action!
Renting your house out for filming can be fun, occasionally alarming, a good revenue stream and might even increase its value, finds Annabel Dixon
A pocket of Middle England
Idyllic Midlands counties appear to have been left alone by the hordes-all the better for those who live there
Little gems
A small space can be just as appealing as a large one. All that's required is some decorating derring-do, discovers Arabella Youens
Bay and vanilla crème brûlée custard tart with poached pears
In a large bowl, use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs and then stir through the icing sugar.
A brush with snowdrops
Tilly Ware meets the artist and galanthophile John Morley in his Suffolk garden, home to the oldest snowdrop nursery in the country
My favourite painting Sir Stephen Hough
Portrait of a Carthusian by Petrus Christus
What goes up, must come down
The welcome sight of a Cumbrian dry-stone wall on a murky February day offers John Lewis-Stempel solace, as he navigates the spooling, rocky path down from one of the Lake District’s cloud-capped peaks Illustration by Michael Frith
The legacy Ralph Allen and Bath
THREE men are said to have created the City of Bath: Beau Nash made it fashionable, John Wood made it beautiful and Ralph Allen made it possible.
An officer and a gentleman
Once so popular they were labelled the 'English terrier', numbers of smooth fox terriers have dwindled to worrying levels. Yet these smart and charming little dogs could rival the labrador if better known, devotees tell Flora Watkins
You belong with me
Drawing on his experiences as a troubled schoolboy, a burnt-out BBC screenwriter and an ‘awkward' parish priest, the Revd Colin Heber-Percy reflects on the value of being lost-and found in the forest of life
The electric limeade acid test
IN early March, in the way of a stop-motion picture jump, the bleached deathliness of winter lanes are punctuated as if from nowhere with electric limeade alexanders plants.
Shaping the view
Shaping the view The Cart House, near Boddington, Northamptonshire A Modernist garden was exactly the right choice for this newly converted agricultural building
Snakes and snails and puppy-dog tales
Two kindred spirits made it their lives’ work to collect the smallest great poems of the world’s literature’, preserving for children the nursery rhymes, games and fairy tales no longer handed down by their mothers
The ghost of golden daffodils
The flower remains the national emblem of Wales, but how many today are aware of the true Welsh or Tenby daffodil
Kentish variety
Renovations, showjumping and archbishops lend character to two period properties
History triumphs over invention.
A brilliantly acted historical play about two world leaders squaring up to each other outstrips two over-produced versions of Greek mythology, despite their imported Hollywood stars
The lure of Venice
Vedute, the kaleidoscopic views of the maritime republic made popular by Canaletto, so enchanted the British that they not only collected them in large numbers, but soon began painting their own shimmering visions of the city
Power games and the battle for beauty
The Government’s plan to cover the countryside in ugly pylons with seemingly no regard for aesthetics must be vigorously challenged
Mad as a box of frogs
With genes that bear an uncanny resemblance to our own, our amphibious frog friends have aided medical advances and captivated many cultures with their mystical powers, discovers Ian Morton
Follow the yellow brick road
\"IN the 100th year since the death of the man who saved the daffodil I from extinction, the RHS hopes to safeguard the bulb from the perils of a changing climate.
Picasso's mystery lady
A MYSTERIOUS woman has been discovered A under underneath Picasso's Portrait of Mateu Fernández de Soto (1901).
Centuries of starlight
ROYAL MUSEUMS GREENWICH has been awarded a £1.25 million grant from to transform the visitor experience at the Royal Observatory.
A sense of delight
The Aldourie estate, Inverness-shire The process of stitching together the architectural fabric of a Scottish estate has created an outstanding group of new and restored buildings, as John Goodall explains