Recently, I was sent a petition to help save the fabulous, fairy-tale Château du Duc d’Épérnon, which is falling into decay.
Immediately, I wanted to buy the place and set to work. Alas, or thankfully as far as my husband Michel was concerned, it is not for sale.
I am obsessed with properties: castles, estates, vineyards, groves, plots that offer ‘potential’. Michel grows dizzy at the sight of me poring over yet another brochure gleaming with photographs compiled by upmarket estate agents. Although I enjoy browsing the glossies, it is the ‘ruins’ that light my imaginative fire: dilapidated properties, such as this château in Brie, that demand more than one lifetime and several fortunes to “sing back into existence”.
Denne historien er fra January 2018-utgaven av France.
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Denne historien er fra January 2018-utgaven av France.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Paindemic In Paris
For American actor and writer Alexander Burnett, a shortage of bread at his local boulangerie was one of the biggest challenges of lockdown in his adopted home city
VEULES-LES-ROSES
Between the white cliffs of the Côte d’Albâtre and the bucolic landscapes of the Pays de Caux, discover a village that combines coast and country,
Taking the BISCUIT
France is known for its exquisite pâtisserie and extravagant gâteaux but the not-so-humble biscuit deserves recognition too
PICTURE PERFECT PISTE
After a decade away from the slopes Janet Brice finds her ski legs in val d'arly, a hidden gem in the shadow of Mount Blanc
Let there BE LIGHT
Lyon’s annual Fête des Lumières brightens up the darkest of December nights in spectacular fashion, finds David Atkinson on a winter visit to the Rhône capital
Shop ‘til YOU DROP
In the first of our new Insight guides, Helen Parkinson delights in the French shopping experience
Floating YOUR BOAT
Spending a day on the River Seine in Paris, Heidi Fuller-love samples some of the city’s top entertainment that can be enjoyed afloat
Creamy Dijon Chicken With Bacon And Spinach
Enjoy this hearty dish from Bisous & Brioche, a cookbook shot on location in Burgundy
A Moveable Feast
Philip Sweeney embarks on a voyage gourmand along the Vallée de la Gastronomie travelling from Dijon to Marseille
BOND RETOUR 7
To celebrate the return of everyone’s favourite globe-trotting British intelligence officer in No Time to Die, Helen Parkinson rounds up five of James Bond’s top cross-Channel escapades
