7 h. ago I stayed in 'cosy' riverside Scottish hotel in 'most dog friendly town'

An award-winning pub, cosy fires, completely dog-friendly and excellent food - is this Scotland’s best country hotel asks Rosalind Erskine.

Politics

7 d. ago Bog Queen by Anna North review – a tale that could dig deeper

This story of a teenage druid whose body is discovered in a peat bog has memorable moments – but its evocation of time and place is unconvincingAnna North’s fourth book, Bog Queen, is a stranded or braided novel. First “a colony of moss” speaks – or rather, does not speak, but “if such a colony could tell the story of its life”, here’s some of what it might say. Then we have Agnes in 2018, American, tall, awkward, expert in forensic pathology and uncertain about everything else, including much of life in England. And then, in the first person, there is an iron age teenage girl, the druid of her village, riding towards a Roman town with her brother Aesu and friend Crab: “I had been druid for two seasons at that point and everyone said I was doing very well.”Agnes has a post-doctoral fellowship in Manchester, from which she is summoned to the discovery of a body in a peat bog in Ludlow. The story shadows that of Lindow Man, found by peat harvesters in a bog near Wi...

Politics

8 d. ago How are you? If you’re German, like me, you might struggle to answer | Carolin Würfel

Our cultural aversion to superficial answers leaves ‘Wie geht’s?’ sounding like a trick question. Perhaps it is time to let our guard downIn the early autumn, over pizza and wine, I had a conversation with a dear friend. He’s Turkish. We were in Ayvalık, a small town on Turkey’s Aegean coast, talking about cultural imprints, when he suddenly paused and looked at me. “You know what?” he said. “Whenever I ask you how you are, you never really answer. You go into a meta space immediately – talking about politics or about bigger things that worry you – but you never say how you actually are.”I’ve been thinking about his observation ever since, debating in my mind whether it was true – and I’ve recently reached the conclusion that, unfortunately, he was right.Carolin Würfel is a writer, screenwriter and journalist who lives in Berlin and Istanbul. She is the author of Three Women Dreamed of Socialism Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago Nessa is back! Ruth Jones resurrects legendary Gavin and Stacey character in first look at new BBC show From Porthcawl with Love showing friend Steve Speirs around her home town

Fans waved goodbye to the BBC sitcom favourite Nessa as the series drew to a close with a record-breaking Christmasspecial last year, which was watched by more than 19million people.

Politics

2 w. ago Kim Cattrall married: Sex And The City star weds Russell Thomas in intimate London ceremony

The 69-year-old actor married the audio engineer at Chelsea Old Town Hall in a quiet, understated ceremony with close family and friends

Politics

2 w. ago Friendly Yorkshire market town crowned Britain’s happiest place to live

Skipton is surrounded by scenic views and is a gateway to the Yorkshire Dales.

Politics