Baby boomers have safeguarded and perpetuated a grand myth through which they interpret past and present events, and derive motivations. Myth is one hell of a drug.
Baby boomer conservatism arose during the salad days of American capitalism, the apex of American military might, and the drama of the Cold War. That’s all gone and the young right stands at a crossroads.
The non-stop English springer is still our number one working spaniel, reveals Matthew Dennison, as he delves into this enthusiastic, energetic breed
Snake, rattle and roll
Rob Crossan investigates the deeply spiritual origins of that enduring family board-game favourite Snakes and Ladders
Heard it on the radio
The wireless broke new ground as the first form of home-based mass entertainment and is still going strong in the age of the smart speaker, finds Ben Lerwill
Friends with benefits
Nematodes are a natural way to halt the march of all manner of garden pests and Charles Quest-Ritson is a convert
Mould and behold
Josiah Wedgwood was a brilliant businessman with a remarkable social conscience. Tristram Hunt assesses his life and legacy
Catch us if you can
Owain Jones sizes up six of the best as he picks out the players to watch in this year’s Guinness Six Nations rugby extravaganza
Roger Morgan-Grenville’s favourite painting
The conservation campaigner selects a work that inspired his lifelong obsession with seabirds
A Palladian premonition
Richard Hewlings offers a fresh analysis of the architecture at Bramham Park, a highly original West Yorkshire country house
The legacy
Kate Green remembers Robert FitzRoy, the founder of the Met Office whose name lives on in the BBC’s Shipping Forecast
Dear country diary
Paul Fleckney flicks through The Guardian’s Country Diary, which has offered a snapshot of rural life for more than 120 years
Interiors
The best stoves and fireplaces picked by Amelia Thorpe, plus the alternatives to burning logs
Luxury
Hetty Lintell’s top timepieces and James Haskell’s favourite things
Magnificent mahonias
Charles Quest-Ritson makes the case for mahonias, arguing that their pleasantly scented flowers are a seasonal delight
Kitchen garden cook
Melanie Johnson pairs peppery horseradish with salmon fillets
Ring-dove beauteous!
John Lewis-Stempel coos over the much-maligned wood pigeon, that canny, keen-eyed and fast-flying stalwart of our countryside
The once-fringe writer has long argued for an American monarchy. His ideas have found an audience in the incoming administration and Silicon Valley. By David Marchese
COUNTRY LIFE MAGAZINE (January 21, 2025): The latest issue features ‘They’ve got charm’ – The fabulous finch family; Which commuter character are you?; Ripping yarns – Jane Austen’s shocking legacy; Marmalade secrets and the wizard quizmaster…
Climate change has brought both fiercer rains and deeper droughts, leaving the city with brush like kindling—and the phenomenon is on the rise worldwide. By Elizabeth Kolbert
Traversing the Metropolitan Museum’s Eight Hundred Galleries, One by One
Dan and Becky Okrent spent seven years on the Met Project, a labor of love that took them from ancient Sumer to Synchronism. By Ben McGrath
After the Fires, a Slow Night in Hollywood
The freeways were traffic-free, and so were hotels, where a handful of forlorn locals waited for what would come next. By Sheila Yasmin Marikar
THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE (January 18, 2025): The The 1.19.25 Issue features Jennifer Kahn on chronic pain; Moises Velasquez-Manoff on raw milk; Alia Malek on Syrians in Turkey; and more.
After developing chronic pain, I started looking into what scientists do — and still don’t — understand about the disease. Here is what I learned.By Jennifer Kahn
Despite the serious risks of drinking it, a growing movement — including the potential health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — claims it has benefits. Should we take them more seriously?By Moises Velasquez-Manoff
Tiffany Daneff savours the exotic surroundings of Tresco Abbey Garden, where the temperate climate of the Isles of Scilly has created a colourful paradise
Box of tricks
The devastation of box blight is well documented, but what can we do to save our hedges? Charles Quest-Ritson investigates
Now that’s what I call pulling power
The ox may have disappeared from the fields of Britain, but that mighty beast of burden still plays a huge role in agriculture across the globe, finds Laura Parker
‘Make way for Her Majesty’s gloves!’
You’ve got to hand it to Cornelia James, suggests Katy Birchall, as she recounts the incredible rise to prominence of our late Queen’s favourite glove-maker
Amie Atkinson’s favourite painting
The actress selects a heavenly landscape that has fired her imagination since childhood
The legacy
Tiffany Daneff pays tribute to Beth Chatto, whose ‘right plant, right place’ philosophy inspired her Essex dry garden
Top seats
The best chairs and benches for the garden, with Amelia Thorpe
Cool schools
Non Morris taps into the expert knowledge of Troy Scott-Smith, Charles Dowding and Tom Stuart-Smith as she digs into some of Britain’s best garden courses
Town versus Earl
John Goodall charts the history of The Lord Leycester and its outstanding medieval buildings in Warwickshire that have been given a whole new lease of life
See you on the top deck
To celebrate the centenary of London’s covered double-decker bus, Rob Crossan hops aboard for a whistle-stop tour of our capital’s public transport
The good stuff
Hetty Lintell keeps her cool with a sparkling selection of jewellery inspired by ice
Interiors
Arabella Youens admires a sitting room in London and Amelia Thorpe answers the call of the wild with animal accessories
Kitchen garden cook
Earthy leeks take centre stage in winter for Melanie Johnson
Be still, my beating art
An obsession with Emma, Lady Hamilton led painter George Romney to produce his finest pieces, reveals Carla Passino
Introducing “How the System Works,” a series on the hidden mechanisms that support modern life
The Tyranny of Now
There’s no time like the present to revisit the warning of forgotten media theorist Harold Innis: “Enormous improvements in communication have made understanding more difficult.”
News, Views and Reviews For The Intellectually Curious
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