IN JOHN Martin Robinson's magnificent book A Guide to the Country Houses of the North West (1991), there are many examples of the private mansions of Lancashire that no longer stand or have been ousted into commercial or municipal use. Against this backdrop of progress, the 14th-century Inn at Whitewell, in the Duchy of Lancaster near Clitheroe, exists today as a jewel in the crown of the county.
That it is in the safe and welcoming hands of Charles Bowman (whose family have lived here for centuries) and his wife Louise, a former Joint Master of the Pendle Forest and Craven, and is a warren of comfort and sporting memorabilia, ensure a stay is all the more memorable. It also has a cosmopolitan twist. The night of my visit coincided with the next day's prize-giving at nearby Stonyhurst, the imposing Catholic public school, and many of the guests (one discreetly landing by helicopter in the grass field below the inn) were parents from all over Europe. Their pupil offspring were smartly dressed and impeccably behaved. There is a fine collection of Catholic artefacts at the school (including a thorn from Christ's crown) and a museum of Roman antiquities at nearby Ribchester.
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Rory Stewart - The former Cabinet minister and hit podcast host talks to Alec Marsh about the parlous state of British politics, land management and his deep love of the countryside
The gently spoken 51-year-old former Conservative Cabinet minister is a countryman at heart. That's clear: he even changes into a tweed waistcoat for the interview, which takes place at his London home and begins with a question about his precise career status. Having resigned from the Commons and the Conservative Party in 2019, the former diplomat and soldier has reinvented himself, first with an unconventional but promising run as an independent for the London mayoralty (abandoned because of COVID19 in 2020) and then as a media figure, co-hosting one of the country's most popular podcasts, The Rest Is Politics, alongside Alastair Campbell, the former Labour spin doctor.
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