Notes on…
Artists’ houses
I’m not sure what took me to Salvador Dalí’s house in Port Lligat, but it sure as hell wasn’t admiration.…
Drunkenness, theft, fighting and smuggling: the indiscreet charm of Deal
However the sand got into Sandwich, it did Deal a big favour. As the Cinque Port’s harbour silted up from…
The perfectionist builder I always wanted
I have a friend who is perhaps best described by that old-fashioned phrase ‘ladies’ man’. He’s not a cad or…
Sicily – notes from a large island
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Sicily is anything like the Isle of Wight: it’s 70 times the size,…
The quest for the perfect malt
It was poker night. Five yuppies crammed round a table in a room at the back of a south London…
Seville: a city to get lost in
On our second night in Seville we got lost. We’d been to a flamenco concert, my first, a little way…
Nira Alpina, St Moritz: A cool Alpine hotel that's perfect for the under-tens
It’s a terrible moment, the realisation that you’ve spawned a monster. Parenthood, it becomes clear, has wiped stylish holidays off…
On safari in Gloucestershire
The heat was still sweltering as we headed off at dusk towards the hide to watch wildlife with our enthusiastic…
An amateur's guide to the glories of Gleneagles
Pity the folk at Gleneagles. They have the misfortune to host the Ryder Cup this year. Nothing, surely, can surpass…
The loveliness of Lucerne
When Queen Victoria came here for her summer holidays, Lucerne was already a bustling tourist destination. Today it’s just as…
The glorious bohemia of Prague
Prague, ‘Golden Prague’, is rich in music, architecture, glassware, pilsner and natural beauty. It is one of those places where…
Damp, green and beguiling – the joys of Killarney
Here’s a question for a Guinness-sponsored pub quiz: who or what is a ‘jarvie’? The answer is the gypsy driver…
Hundreds of years of history in a £2 plate
Next time you’re in a shop that sells Chinese blue and white porcelain, pick up a piece and turn it…
The immigration museum that travelled 4,000 miles
The Immigrant Church at Sletta emigrated from North Dakota 18 years ago. Built on the prairie by Norwegian settlers in…
From prisons to offices to police stations – London's turning everything into hotels
The test of a truly great city is reinvention. Does it have the courage to change? London holds a PhD…
Salzburg – more than just a ridiculously pretty place
Salzburg is so ridiculously pretty, it’s sometimes hard to take it seriously. Standing on the ramparts of its knights-in-armour castle,…
The wonders of Wexford
I might have had chance to visit the famed Wexford Opera Festival when I was walking out with Bernard Levin…
The only place I feel comfortable in my bathrobe
I know James Bond is partial to strutting around not-quite-enveloped in a dressing gown, but whether your robe is monogrammed…
Goodwood Festival of Speed
You smelt them, it was said of the Mongol hordes, before you heard them, and by the time you heard…
The rise of the art fair – and the death of the small gallery
In 1967, two Cologne-based gallerists came up with the Cologne Art Market — a trade fair where German galleries could…
The Himalayas
As the aircraft descends into the high altitude military airport at Leh, the first glimpse of the Himalayan Kingdom of…
My mother's passport to the Antibes good life
My mother always said she wanted to ‘die tidy’. But I never imagined she would file everything away quite so…
Notes on… Eastern Germany
Ever since the Berlin Wall came down, I’ve been pottering around eastern Germany, where my father’s family came from, and…
Where it's all kicking off in Athens nightlife
Where in the developed world can you ride a moped, minus helmet, at 2 a.m. under the noses of weary…
Book clubs
Everyone knows somebody who belongs to a book club. From informal gatherings of bookish friends in living rooms and cafés…
