Interests

Do you get a daily paper? If it’s a tabloid, do you trust the content or suspect a lot of it is mostly exaggeration, fibs and inaccuracies? At between 50p and 80p a day, it’s quite a lot to pay for stuff that isn’t always real news, or even the whole truth: at 50p a…read more

The thought of sweating in a gym on your own leaves you cold. You’d rather eat worms than go jogging or running, pounding the pavement all cross and out of breath. But you’d love to be able to dance beautifully, stylishly, elegantly and confidently. Humans have been dancing since we first climbed out of the…read more

What a year it’s been, with the economy nose-diving yet again and money-saving tips hot on the nation’s lips. The trend has been reflected on telly, with programmes like Kirsty’s Vintage Home making a splash. Almost every high street in Britain contains a string of charity shops, ‘make do and mend’ is bigger than ever…read more

My Great Aunt Sylvia, who died recently in her 90s, spent winters in her chilly North Yorkshire farm cottage making the most beautiful and intricate patchwork quilts with tiny octagons, hexagons and squares of old fabric. And her sister, my Granny Molly, made stunning rag rugs in rich jewel-like colours (pictured). Pick a serious craft…read more

A friend of mine runs a very successful call handling service for small businesses. He’s also an experienced poker player, one of those rare people who manages to do very well out of it. He says it’s mostly because he knows exactly when to stop, he’s highly organised and sets himself very strict spending limits….read more

The world’s a wonderful place, and there’s plenty to do that doesn’t involve shopping. Here’s thirty one ideas for alternatives to our favourite national pastime! visit a museum, using the visitbritain.com website for inspiration take in an art exhibition go for a picnic see a band go for a long stroll in the countryside – go…read more

With the London 2012 Olympic games just around the corner, the entire country is ablaze with Olympic fever, and quite literally as the torch is still trekking it’s way around Britain and will be until it reaches the Olympic Stadium in Stratford on the 27th of July. But until then we thought it would be…read more

What a great year we’re having! Now the Jubilee celebrations are over, everyone’s looking forward to the 2012 London Olympics and hopes are high that the event will inspire millions of us to take up a new sport. They call it the Wimbledon Effect and apparently it’s pretty powerful. But competitive sports aren’t for everyone….read more