CATEGORIES

Following His Nose

The whisky expert on evaluating a good malt and avoiding curry.

Wherefore Art Thou, Romeo?

The Alfa Romeo Giulia Super soaks up our awful British roads like a Bentley, but steers and handles like a Lotus.

Born In The USA

American plays lent opportunity for great acting roles and dramatic realism, but we’ve recently overlooked their capacity for comedy and farce

The Last Hurrah

DESPITE its soubriquet ‘the century plant’, the Agave americana only lives for up to 30 years, spending 20 or so of those storing up reserves of food in its leaves so that its flowers can finally burst forth before it dies.

Beekeeper

ALTHOUGH beekeeping is traditionally associated with the countryside, Amy Newsome’s bees actually live on an allotment in south-west London.

Still Knocking Them For Six

The former England cricket captain gives some batting advice

Of Last Scraps And Lit Tinder

JOE KENNEDY once said when the shoe-shine boys start giving you stock tips, it’s time to get out of the market.

Here Be Dragons

Michael Murray-Fennell goes in search of elves and wizards in the home city of the creator of Middle-earth

The Real Good Life

For some, their garden is a place of peace and tranquillity. For others, it’s a haven of productivity and profit. Anna Tyzack meets the lucky few for whom it’s both

I'm A Fool For You

Soft summer fruits need nothing but fresh cream and sugar added to make a perfect treat for a golden afternoon in the garden, says Flora Watkins

Worth Fussing Over

WHEN I first became interested in gardening, Jane Grigson’s Vegetable Book and Fruit Book were my kitchen inspirations.

It's opera, but not as we know it

Grunting, shrieking, climate-change fear and murder mystery: they all feature in the latest operas, but will we hum their tunes in a few decades time? Claire Jackson asks if we should be more open-minded.

The New Normal

A SHIFT is afoot among farmers and estate owners, with conservation becoming increasingly important. Funding is the key driverespecially now that the new Agriculture Bill and a similar proposal by the Welsh Government set out to reward farmers for environmental benefits (Does it fit the Bill?, Town & Country, September 19).

A Green Giant Awakes

WORK has started on the 154-acre site at RHS Garden Bridgewater, just outside Manchester, which will be the first new RHS garden in 17 years.

Wool-Spinner

KNOCKANDO WOOLMILL owes its longevity to its remote location above the River Spey, near Aberlour in Aberdeenshire. mainland Britain’s only surviving district woollen mill has been producing textiles for more than 230 years and Toby Tottle, who came here as a craft fellow in 2016, has learnt skills that have been passed down through several generations.

Landscape In The Orkneys

John McEwen comments on Landscape in the Orkneys.

In My Lady's Chamber

Sebastian Pryke has recently identified a rare form of distinctively Scottish furniture. He tells the story of this little-known group and its likely association with a remarkable early-18thcentury craftswoman.

High And Dry

IT was the driest early summer for 57 years and, even before breakfast, the glare was so great on my house loch that the trout wouldn’t venture from their weed cover to gobble any catapulted pellets.

Walk The Line

Scotland’s first formal gardens have been reinvigorated with geometric precision by their current custodian.

Building A New Church Of Flowers

Helena Attlee rejoices in the story of a late-Victorian polymath whose studies of flora, fauna and archaeology in the Alpes Maritimes are still of great value today.

Taming The Wilds, With Regret

Clive Aslet assesses the significance of the pioneering environmentalist and father of American landscape painting.

This Loch Ness Blackberry Is A Welcome Monster

I’VE never planted blackberries in my garden— at least, not until four years ago. I’m a country boy and I don’t see the point of cultivating a plant that’s widely available in the wild.

Portrait Of An Old Man And A Boy By Domenico Ghirlandaio

John McEwen comments on Portrait of an Old Man and a Boy

Fruits Of Paradise

Treated to little more than a dash of seasoning and olive oil, the Mediterranean flavours of ripe and juicy tomatoes take some beating

The Great Endeavour

The city of dreaming spires was home to both Inspector Morse, the nation’s favourite fictional detective, and his creator. Daniel Pembrey tours Oxford to learn more

Heroes Of The Emerald Isle

These two excellent Irish estates have histories to write home about

Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better

Two lots available in Christie’s summer sale dovetail beautifully with Sotheby’s, so it’s a shame that they couldn’t be viewed together

A Coach And 626 Horses

Elegant, but burly like a bare-knuckle brawler, Bentley’s new Continental GT Cabriolet is both slick and rugged.

From Out Of The Shadows

The actor on the knock-on effect of Maurice and the tedium of upper-crust roles.

Dilly-Dally Over Daffodils No More

With more than 26,000 to choose from, it can be agonising deciding which narcissus to grow. Charles Quest-Ritson asks daffodil doyenne Christine Skelmersdale for ideas.