CATEGORIES

My Stirrup Cup Runneth Over

Intricate and valuable silver stirrup cups, be they fox, hound, fish, bear, eagle or even gorilla, are far more likely to be found in a safe than on the hunting field today, explains Peter Greenhalgh

By The Light Of A Woodcock Moon

Beguiling, enigmatic and notoriously difficult to shoot, the woodcock is one of our most mysterious and coveted birds. Adrian Dangar considers how this wily wader should best be conserved

Paradise In Peru

WHERE better to sit sipping a pisco sour than watching a Peruvian Paso horse perform its extraordinary four-beat ‘swimming’ gait surrounded by a vineyard and the oldest working distillery in the Americas in a coastal valley of the Ica region of Peru?

Same Game, New Rules

He might devour snipe on toast with greedy glee, but Tom Parker Bowles believes that modern game cookery, from wild-boar ragu to pulled-pheasant bao buns, is the key to spreading the love

A Car For All Seasons

Is there a perfect all-round sporting vehicle that’s man enough for the field, with ample space for guns, rods and dogs, but slick on the road, too, asks Charles Rangeley-Wilson

What Shall We Watch In 2070?

Which playwrights’ works will survive the test of time and have audiences flocking 50 years from now?

When Mother Nature Does Her Own Thing

A new monthly column about the vicissitudes of life on a mixed farm in Scotland

Oxford's First Palace

In the first of two articles, John Goodall looks at the most widely copied university college in England, a building inspired by a great 14th-century palace

Green Monsoon By Howard Hodgkin

John McEwen comments on Green Monsoon

Crispy Crawlies

Cockroaches are tough, tenacious and in many ways remarkable, but Ian Morton still doesn’t want to eat them–or any other insect

‘I've Been In Disguise All The Time'

The actor synonymous with Hercule Poirot discusses his other life, behind the lens

Animal Magic

Robert Dalrymple’s African Grey parrot

A Moral For Our Time

Philippa Stockley revels in the humour, perspicacity and story-telling that radiate from Hogarth’s ‘Progress’ series

The sky's not the limit: Horseshoe Bend Garden, London NW10

Juliet Roberts visits a garden that pushes the boundaries of space, light and colour to dazzling effect

We're Growing Underground

Those pounding the pavements above might not realise it, but acres of micro herbs are being grown deep beneath the streets of south London, finds Julia Platt Leonard

The Best Of A Good Brunch

Put down your wellies–the countryside weekend has been abandoned in favour of urban brunch plans. Debora Robertson investigates what the meal has done to our weekend and how to host your own in style

Not-So-Tim'rous Beasties

Be they plague rats, dray horses, elephants, pigs or poultry, we’ve always ‘eaten, beaten, worked and played with the beasts of London’. Claire Jackson discovers how animals have long made the city roar

Living On The Thames

Important new discoveries illuminate the form and history of the houses that lined one of London’s most celebrated lost landmarks. Dorian Gerhold explores the remarkable story of their construction and development

Greek Drama

The striking Peloponnese region is at the forefront of a new generation of high-end developments in Greece, discovers Holly Kirkwood.

Pointing The Finger Of Scorn

Two centuries ago, as now, Britain was locked in political crisis. As we surely approach an election that could redefine British politics, Jacqueline Riding looks at the corruption and chaos that prompted the reform of the Georgian Parliament.

Guns And Roses

Two sporting estates are the flowers of their counties–one in the family of a Gunpowder Plotter, the other at the heart of malt-whisky land.

Building For Peace

Hillsborough Castle, Co Down The home of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland After five years of repair and renovation, a house at the centre of political life in Northern Ireland has opened to the public. John Goodall reports.

Bavarian Rhapsody

Munich is a king of cities, finds Eleanor Doughty, with property prices rising up to 6% per year.

All Fired Up

Since teetering on the brink of collapse a decade ago, Burleigh has undergone a remarkable revival of fortunes. Amelia Thorpe visits its Staffordshire premises to learn why its distinctive patterns are again a tea-time favourite.

Steep Learning Curves

Banks Fee, Longborough, Gloucestershire The home of Mr and Mrs Hugh Sloane Spectacular views set off varied formal elements, from pleached hornbeams to a large kitchen-garden, in this serene Cotswold garden, finds Non Morris.

All Being Well

With the internet now invading that most sacred of offline spaces–the in-flight cabin–the drive to escape and switch off is ever more vital. Arabella Youens examines the rising trend for wellness properties

The Loveliest Music You've Never Heard

The London Philharmonic Orchestra’s Isle of Noises season aims to redress the unfair marginalisation of many 20th-century British composers and their melodic music.

The Allium List

Alliums are statuesque, reliable and immensely useful, but which varieties should you choose? Val Bourne asks three experts to recommend their favourites

Questions Of Creation

Craft becomes art, as reality fails to live up to an artistic vision and Abstraction is rejected at Frieze Masters

Stop And Smell The Pages

Romantic, thoughtful and practical, this part-diary, part-handbook on fragrant planting is one of the best gardening books John Hoyland has read for years