Tag Archives: England

English Country Homes: The Old Watermill In Clophill, Bedfordshire

The word ‘idyllic’ doesn’t seem quite enough for some properties — and the Old Watermill in Clophill, Bedfordshire, with water rights over the River Flit and waterfalls in the garden, is a prime example of just how magical a house can be.

Lydia Stangroom, August 6, 2021

The stunning property is thought to date from the 18th century, with many of the bricks transcribed with the date 1725. However, as expected, the bricks are just the beginning of the many period features retained in this property.

Within the house is ‘an undershot wheel which drove three pairs of stones, grinding both wheat for flour and grain for animal feed’. Although, perhaps the most obvious feature are the exposed ceiling timbers, which run throughout every room, and juxtapose effortlessly with the exposed red brick work.

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Front Covers: Country Life Magazine – August 4

Here’s a small selection of what you’ll find inside.

FLYING VISIT: Charles Harris takes glorious flight over the Lake District

ROCKPOOLS: Life in the rockpool can be cut-throat, says Adam Nicolson

INSECT APOCALYPSE: Dave Goulson on averting the impending insect apocalypse

MY FAVOURITE PAINTING: Sally Clarke, restauranteur, chooses a simple, restful study by Dürer

ELGAR: Jack Watkins examines Elgar’s ‘best of me’ oratorio

TURVEY HOUSE: Jeremy Musson details the refurbishment of neo-Classical Turvey House in Bedfordshire, by the seventh generation of the family that built it

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Morning News: Myanmar Military Rule, France-UK Rift, Kososvo’s Olympics

We get the latest from Myanmar with Asean under pressure to name an envoy to the country. Plus: we ask why Franco-UK relations are so poor and discuss official Olympic recognition for Kosovo.

Cornwall UK Views: The ‘ANNY OF CHARLESTOWN’, A 1930 Topsail Schooner

Clinging on tight to the rigging just below the main yard, I looked down at the rollers of clear green water sweeping along the white sides of the ship, beneath her polished wood and neatly slaked lines.

Above me, perched nonchalantly on the yard, was bosun David, moving to the motion of the swaying mast as the hull lifted and fell on the waves. A few fathoms away lay Charlestown, with its grey stone harbour, white-painted cottages and sheltering cliffs.

 Octavia Pollock, July 31, 2021

I was aboard Anny, a topsail schooner available for day and overnight charters from the south Cornish village, well known to viewers of PoldarkThe Three Musketeers and The Onedin Line. So little has Charlestown changed in 200 years that it is a favourite with location scouts and its unpolished charm makes it a delight to visitors, too. With Anny and her consort Irene, a 1907 West Country trading ketch, moored off shore and not an ugly modern steamer in sight, it is easy to imagine oneself back in time.

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Walking Tours: St. Jame’s In London, England (4K)

St. James’s is an exclusive area near Buckingham Palace, with many fine-dining restaurant options. The Theatre Royal Haymarket and Her Majesty’s Theatre stage West End plays. Art dealers surround Christie’s auction house, while the Royal Academy of Arts draws crowds to Piccadilly. Upscale shops include Fortnum & Mason, with its posh food hall, and Jermyn Street’s tailors. St. James’s Park is popular for picnics. 

360° Views: Top Landscape Photographer Tours Northumberland, UK

.Getting the best from landscape photography – a 360° tour of Northumberland. Join local landscape photographer David Taylor as he takes us on a tour of some of his favourite locations around Northumberland. David explains how the changing seasons and weather are opportunities to capture different aspects of each landscape. From the famous Hadrian’s Wall and coastal Bamburgh Castle to more inaccessible sites, you can explore each scene in 360 degrees. For more of David’s photography, visit: https://www.davidtaylorphotography.co…

English Guest Houses: The ‘Lord Crewe Arms’, Poet Auden’s Favorite Bolthole

‘No other spot brings me sweeter memories,’ remarked the poet W. H. Auden about the Lord Crewe Arms. 90 years later, the beauty of this historic bolthole, on the Northumberland/Co Durham border, hasn’t changed. 

Harriet Compston, July 27, 2021

In the village of Blanchland, the 12th-century building was originally a guest house for Blanchland Abbey. Today, the Calcot Collection runs the show and the company’s clever touches — as seen in Barnsley House — shine through.

The superb food is modern British with big flavours, made using local produce. After cocktails in the barrel-vaulted Crypt Bar, we feasted in the elegant dining room: my favourite dish was the super succulent roasted guinea hen with a garden herb sauce.

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English Countryside: Peak District National Park

The air in the Peak District feels different. It’s softer; thicker even — one friend compared it to ‘butter’ (a good thing, I think) — and certainly cleaner than any air in London. Maybe it was the feeling of freedom: it was the farthest any of us had travelled in months, following months of respective lockdowns in the capital and in Devon (where the air is lighter, and salty). 

We had few expectations. Several people had said that the Peaks couldn’t compare to the Lake District (spoiler alert, they are wrong and have likely never been), several more couldn’t even point them out on a map. But change is afoot and the Peaks look set to become one of the UK’s most popular destinations with the arrival of several new, exciting hotels. Buxton Crescent Hotel (Buxton of bottled water fame) opened last year; The Tawny — a collection of rooms, tree- and boathouses — and Wildhive Callow Hall join it this summer. 

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Walking Tour: Looe in Cornwall, England (4K)

Looe is a coastal town and civil parish in south-east Cornwall, England, with a population of 5,280 at the 2011 census. Looe is 20 miles west of Plymouth and seven miles south of Liskeard, divided in two by the River Looe, East Looe and West Looe being connected by a bridge. 

We start our tour in East Looe in front of the beach and explore the harbour with it’s brightly coloured fishing boats. We then explore the winding streets of the charming town centre, lined with welcoming pubs, restaurants and Cornish pasty shops, before heading over the bridge to West Looe and a fantastic view across the river and out to sea. With so many people wondering where to holiday in the UK this year, you can see why Cornwall England continues to rank at the top.