Country Life

2 days ago | countrylife.co.uk | Rosie Paterson

In today’s world, most new hotels blaze bright and are then relegated to the shadows — proving to be a flash in the plan — because, ever fickle, we turn our attention to the next new opening, and the next one, and so on… It therefore takes something — or someone — extra special to hold out attention and make a permanent mark. Enter stage right, Passalacqua, which opened in June 2022 and won Best Hotel in The World in September 2023.

3 days ago | countrylife.co.uk | Chris Hall

It can be easy to oversell the idea that a certain era is ‘back’; a more clear-headed perspective might be that we find ourselves living in an age where everyone, regardless of age, is on the receiving end of relentless nostalgia marketing. But look: teenagers are wearing baggy jeans again, my primary-school age daughter comes home from parties with slap bands and yo-yos, and Pulp just announced a new album, so forgive me for finding a certain 1990s flavour in the air.

3 days ago | countrylife.co.uk | Toby Keel

Cirencester — £3.25 millionThis Grade II-listed vicarage has six bedrooms and 2.4 acres — but it's the grace and charm of the place rather than the space and facilities which will win you over. Georgian architecture, Cotswold Stone, huge sash windows, an Aga in the kitchen and a slate roof... this is the sort of place we've all dreamed of. For sale with Knight Frank. See more pictures and details for this property.

4 days ago | countrylife.co.uk | Carla Passino

Kermit the frog claps his hands with glee, eyes dancing, a big smile plastered on his face. He, Fozzie Bear, Rowlf the Dog and a bunch of other muppets are clustered around an old-fashioned television, watching Charles III being crowned. They are not, however, appearing on a screen themselves. They are figures in a painting by Leslie Thompson, one of eight artists commissioned by the Government Art Collection to capture the spirit of the King and Queen’s Coronation on May 6, 2023.

4 days ago | countrylife.co.uk | Rosie Paterson

Bees are vital for life on Earth because of their invaluable contributions to biodiversity, the fact that they pollinate plants and the products that come from them, such as honey and beeswax. Imagine a world without wonderful honey, a sweetener, spread and salve. In Greek mythology, the Gods feasted on ambrosia, believed to bestow power and immortality on the consumer and regularly associated with honey. There are 276 species of bee in the UK — nearly all of which are found in London.