Armchair Travel: Books, films, etc

Breaking Boundaries: the Science of Our Planet

Netflix, June

This is a new Netflix documentary with David Attenborough and Swedish professor Johan Rockström, a global sustainability expert who appeared in the award-winning climate change movie Before The Flood. The featurelength programme will see the pair investigate how humanity has pushed Earth to the brink of collapse, examining issues like biodiversity and climate change, as well as the

TV solutions we need to secure the future of humanity.

Nomadland

Out now in cinemas

If you haven’t caught it already, this Oscar-winning film explores a 21st century phenomenon in America, modern-day nomads. These are the 60-plus people who were hard hit by the financial crash and can’t afford to retire, but can’t afford to work and maintain a home, and have instead begun roaming the country in camper vans looking for work. The film follows Fern (played by Frances Film McDormand) who packs her van and hits the road for a life outside of conventional society and an exploration of the vast landscapes of the stunning American West.

ARMCHAIR travel

A new Attenborough documentary, a film love letter to American landscapes and two very different but brilliantly British books

I belong here By Anita Sethi

Subtitled, ‘a journey Book along the backbone of Britain’, this is Sethi’s story of finding solace in nature after being the victim of a traumatic racial attack while she was journeying through Northern England. Although a racist had told her to leave, she felt drawn to further explore the area she regards as home. Anita experienced anxiety and a sense of claustrophobia which made the wide open spaces of the Pennines call to her and she was determined not to let the experience stop her travelling freely. This is an account of reclamation and an exploration of the natural landscapes of the North, exploring identity, nature, place and belonging.

Rubbish pet portraits

By Hercule Van Wolfwinkle

Phil Heckels, from Worthing in West Sussex, began working under the alias Hercule Van Wolfwinkle in 2020. He drew his dog and put it on Facebook, offering paid-for commissions as a joke, but requests flooded in. Heckels decided to use it as a way of raising money for his local Book homeless shelter, with a target of £299, but he didn’t expect it to go viral. The book is a collection of his silliest portraits with the scathing and hilarious customer reviews (self-written). To date, he’s raised over £80,000.