Travel tips-Restaurant reviews-Recipes
It had been a long time since I was last at Bancone. Well, pre-pandemic. After my first visit in August 2018 (click here), it became a favourite haunt where I ate many times and took friends and family along to enjoy too. Would it be the same? Would I still rate it as one of […]
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It’s always lovely to go up to Worcestershire for the weekend to visit my daughter. I go from busy city living to a weekend in a 16th century farmhouse surrounded by fields and beautiful views. And, most importantly, I get to spend some time with my lovely daughter, her wife, and my 4-year-old grandson. It […]
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Those of us who love Italy are always thinking of ways to bring some of it home – recipes to make in your kitchen; beautiful pottery from the Amalfi coast; glass from Murano; chocolate from Turin. Russell Norman, however, opens restaurants. First he brought Venice to London in the shape of Polpo; now he brings […]
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It’s just a few steps out of the back of The Cross Keys pub in Aldeburgh, where I’m staying, on to the beach. It wasn’t quite as early as the above photo suggests but actually 8.30am when I was heading out for a short walk before breakfast. However there were many clouds overhead, so dark […]
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Going to nearby Kingston upon Thames with grandsons Freddie (7½) and Ben (4¾) has become a regular holiday time ritual and makes a lovely outing for me with the boys. A major attraction is Bentalls toy department, which is one of the best I know, and they always come with a little money from Mummy […]
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An email from The Courtauld alerted me that the Edvard Munch exhibition I wanted to see was ending at the weekend. I knew very little of Munch apart from his famous and iconic painting The Scream, which has so often been used as a symbol of the anxiety of the human condition. After reading the […]
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We have a joke in UK that you wait ages for a bus and then three come along all at the same time. I’ve been playing this out with tapas bars recently. For years I meant to go to one of Jose Pizarro’s restaurants/tapas bars, finally made it to the RA one (click here) in […]
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The journey to Stamford for the weekend began with Hambleton Hall. My daughter Nicola searched for a Michelin starred restaurant within about a two-hour drive for both of us – a birthday present to me. My birthday was in April but everything was booked and I was given details then and have spent the last […]
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By the time I thought to offer buy us a meal on Friday night and took a look at what Stamford had to offer, The Slanted Door was fully booked in their restaurant but could offer us a table in the bar with the fine dining menu. We were happy with that option and it […]
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Before covid, I used to go to art history talks often and have been to some wonderful talks at the National Gallery, Tate, National Portrait Gallery, Royal Academy of Arts and the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) over the years, and heard some great speakers, like Simon Schama and Alastair Sooke; artists like Antony Gormley, […]
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