Candles in the wind

Eremurus, also known as desert candles and foxtail lilies, make a wonderful show and are easy to grow if you give them the right conditions, says John Hoyland

Beauty needs vigilance

The Chilterns retains a gentle charm, despite the proximity of motorways and HS2

Who is Maris Piper?

If you ever wondered exactly why those potatoes are called Maris Piper and how Aston Martin came by its ‘DB’ model prefix, Eleanor Doughty has all the answers

There's gold in them there hills

From Scottish kings to political protest, there’s more to Muswell Hill than its height, finds Carla Passino

The Thirty-Nine Steps

Britain’s greatest masterpieces

The little master

One-hundred-and-fifty years after the painter’s birth, Jack Watkins considers the artistic endeavours of Sir William Nicholson, best known as the father of abstract artist Ben Nicholson, but whose work displays a satisfying warmth, mastery of technique and an old-school, painterly finish

Take the inside out

Outdoor fireplaces are an increasingly popular way to cosy up your garden. Eleanor Doughty gets to the hearth of the matter

Pride of place

Two country houses with a fascinating history and beautiful surroundings have flourished after careful restoration by their current owners

Fancy is as fancy does

Originally known as ‘pudels’ or ‘puddles’, curly-coated standard poodles were first bred in Germany to retrieve game from water and, as Matthew Dennison discovers, some still cut a typically stylish dash in the field

Creating the Cambridge college

In the first of two articles, John Goodall looks at the early history of the college that helped defined the tradition of academic architecture in Cambridge

HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT

Many will have wondered what lies behind the huge windows of the Victorian-era studios on one of London’s busiest roads. Rosie Paterson takes a peek

Blooming lovely

Seize the moment to plant a lilac–the scent of their generous flowers is more than enough reason why every garden should have one or, ideally, several, believes Charles Quest-Ritson

Under the Tuscan sun

In contrast with the arid landscape of the Val d’Orcia, the exuberant gardens created by Cecil Pinsent for the writer Iris Origo at La Foce, Tuscany, Italy, are all the more astonishing

The main attraction

The Greek islands have been a go-to holiday destination for decades, but what about the mythical and sometimes misunderstood mainland?

Plaster of paradise

Recent restoration and revival offers the perfect opportunity for a reappraisal of this house and its magnificent plasterwork interiors.

Through the looking glass

On a bleak January day, John Lewis-Stempel boards a train from London to Herefordshire and admires the wealth of wildlife on view through the carriage window

The women shaping a new countryside

Throughout history, formidable women such as Cleopatra and Lady Eve Balfour did much to nurture the land. Camilla Akers-Douglas talks to four present-day matriarchs who are helping to boost the rural economy in very different ways

Over the Moon

A Tintin drawing makes a record in Paris and a not-too frightening Bacon will be at the Royal Academy

Not such a Scilly idea

Beloved by The Prince of Wales, who shares his Scottish home with them, and thriving on Tresco and Arran–where they supposedly arrived in a laundry basket–red squirrels have a particular penchant for island life

The designer's room

Interior designer Sarah Fortescue has transformed the drawing room of a house on her family’s Cornish estate with colour and pattern

Everybody say cheese

The millennia-long tradition of cheesemaking in Britain and Ireland, having weathered many storms, is as vigorous as ever thanks to the great cheese renaissance. Ned Palmer takes a dairy-driven tour

In search of beauty

A publisher, innovator and shrewd businessman with strong connections to the Liberal political establishment, Edward Hudson was the visionary founder of COUNTRY LIFE 125 years ago. Clive Aslet revisits his remarkable life

The architectural conscience of the nation

Michael Hall, a former Architectural Editor and Deputy Editor of COUNTRY LIFE, looks back at the magazine’s formation of its architectural coverage from 1897 to 1939

The late blooming of a ‘saintly clergyman'

After a lifetime of quietly sketching wildflowers, parish priest William Keble Martin finally published the book every schoolboy wanted, says Matthew Dennison

White magic

Nowhere else can gardeners see rare named snowdrops growing in such measureless drifts as in the Rothschilds’ private garden at Eythrope in Buckinghamshire, finds Mary Keen

Loved back to life

Fulbeck House, Lincolnshire The home of Claire Van Cleave. This little-known house of about 1700 has been the subject of tactful restoration for a period of more than 20 years. Jeremy Musson looks at its fascinating history

The Queen's lost library

New research offers fresh insight into the splendid interiors of Queen Caroline’s library, a compact building by William Kent that once overlooked London’s Green Park, reveals Rufus Bird

Polly wants an apple

Ring-necked parakeets have made themselves at home across London and beyond, but how did these birds come to swap tropical climes for our grey shores, asks Claire Jackson

It's party time

From the smartest country estates to the capital’s most glamorous hotels, securing the dream wedding venue should be your first priority

Little England

Lost villages, factory villages, tourist villages, Georgian villages: these pieces of England all have their own story to tell. Archaeologist Ben Robinson chooses his top 10