I SEND the family WhatsApp group a spectacular photie of the first snows of winter on Ben Wyvis, anticipating a lyrical response.
My wife messages back: ‘I’m not coming home until the heating’s turned on.’ Ah, well. As I will have beaten my personal best for ‘latest central heating switch-on date’ by a distance, I can afford to reply in soothing textual reassurances.
The days are drawing in and rural evening entertainment options are narrowing to prayer groups and cribbage when, stab me vitals, an invitation appears, hand-delivered under the back door, no less—or perhaps handdived through the puddle outside it, as they say of scallops in some classier inns.
Anyway, a bona fide excuse to escape the ice house for a warm community hall is welcome, even if it’s to hear that the Earth is flat. Yup, that old red herring. If you thought Aristotle and Pythagoras put this one to bed, think again.
The audience numbers about 14 souls. A sheepish neighbour emulates the green-exit-sign man as I spot him. One down, 13 to go. Some faces I recognise, but they stare unseeing into the middle distance, coat collars turned up and hands thrust deep into pockets.
Later, as with certain Soho cinemas, no one will admit to having been here tonight, with the exception of the sole occupant of the front row, who shows all the signs of being a committed Flat Earth disciple.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der November 22, 2017-Ausgabe von Country Life UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der November 22, 2017-Ausgabe von Country Life UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
