West Magazine March 29, 2015

29.03.15

WIN: + £70 FAMILY

DAY OUT

DON’T MISS: + SEAWEED

FACIALS

+ HIS N’ HERS

SUPERFOOD

What Katie said next Our motormouth speaks her mind

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‘When I first espy the casual outfit Di’s picked out for me, I wonder if Timmy Mallet is in the house, and try not to weep.’

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A great place for the weekend

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This season’s fashion must-have

41

HEALTHY EATING

TOTALLY TOPSHAM

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JEN’S FAVOURITES What she wears, and why

Catherine Barnes is persuaded to wear primary colours, page 12

[contents[ Inside this week...

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THE WISHLIST Our pick of the best Easter treats

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WIN A FAMILY DAY OUT Easter fun to be won

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JUST BETWEEN US...

Sh! We have the latest gossip!

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NOTHING TO WEAR? Catherine Barnes meets the personal shoppers

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GIVING HOPE

EASILY SUEDE

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COOL STUFF The best of the Westcountry

Find out what happened when Hannah from Honiton went to Afghanistan

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ART AND SOUL How pictures (and stickers and murals) can transform your home

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ANNE SWITHINBANK Reviving past-it plants

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SEAWEED, SERIOUSLY? Abbie Bray has a very Cornish facial

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EASILY SUEDE This season’s fashion must-have

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PRETTY PRACTICAL We trial the new utility trend

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CULTURE VULTURE Great ideas for things to do, see and read

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HEALTHY EATING Meet Ally, our new wellbeing columnist

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A WEEKEND IN...

Top tips for fun in Topsham

Meet Ally, our wellbeing guru

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HOT OFF THE PRESS

The must-read novel from Penzance’s Patrick Gale 3

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ART AND SOUL

Smart ways to bring art into your home

[ welcome [

22.03.15

‘Movies and me’ why exmoor’s ella hunt is one to watch

Easter’s nearly here!

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And it’s nearly time to break out the chocolate eggs, organise a proper Sunday lunch and (hopefully) have a nice four day break. With time off in mind, this week we have a wealth of treats for you to try.

We’ve got some lovely Easter shopping ideas on our Wishlist (page 6-7), plus the chance to win a fun family day out (see opposite).

Then, still on the shopping theme, we’ve got a fun - but seriously informative - report back from the realms of the personal shopper on page 12. Would you trust a complete stranger to pick out your wardrobe for you? Catherine Barnes gives it a try in Plymouth’s Debenhams this week and, we think you’ll agree, the results are pretty impressive.

Easter is, of course, not just about chocolate

Spring style must-haves + new botanics +

cheerful Macs & hi-tech facials

plus:

INsIDE:

+ seafood with

+ jenny agutter on

a sea view

set in cornwall

+ how to love

[

your lawn

Tweet

of the week @ella_hunt1 My first magazine cover :) West says: We’re sure it won’t be the last!

and new frocks, and on page 16 today we meet a woman who is truly inspiring.

Hannah Surowinski from Tiverton works tirelessly in Afghanistan to help women and children there achieve financial independence. Her story, by the wonderful writer Fran McElhone, is nothing short of remarkable.

And if you do have some time off over Easter, this issue of West is packed with ideas for great days out.

From dog shows to operas with Lesley Garrett, it is all happening here in the Westcountry this Easter.

Oh, and did I mention that we have a fabulous new food columnist starting this week? Turn to page 41 to find a delicious, and healthy, recipe from the lovely Ally Mac.

Would you trust a complete stranger to pick out your wardrobe for you?

CONTACT: westmag@westernmorningnews.co.uk Tel: 01392 442250 Twitter @wmnwest

[

[ [

Becky Sheaves, Editor

COVER IMAGE Ian West/PA

MEET THE TEAM Becky Sheaves, Editor

Sarah Pitt

Kathryn Clarke-McLeod

Catherine Barnes

Phil Goodwin

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If you do one thing this week...

Try an Eggs-travaganza at Crealy!

Devon’s Crealy Great Adventure Park is gearing up for an Eggs-travaganza this Easter with a show stopping line up of events and activities over the Easter holidays.

More than 5000 Easter eggs feature in the park’s much-loved Easter egg hunt from Friday April 3 until Monday April 6. Other highlights include a visit from Titan the Robot on Wednesday April 1 and Peppa Pig will visit on Wednesday April 8.

Win

A family day pass for four people to Crealy Devon to be won, worth £67.80, which can also be used at Cornwall’s Crealy, near Newquay. To win, send your name, address and contact number to: Crealy Competition, westmag@westernmorningnews.co.uk to arrive by April 10. Normal terms apply.

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FUNNY BUNNY Easter bunny tea towel, £7, www.berryred.co.uk

Jar of foil-wrapped chocolate eggs, £12.95, 600g Carluccio’s in Exeter and www.carluccios.com

the

wishlist West’s top picks for Easter shopping this week

Cheap cheep!

Easter chicks, £1 for the brood, Poundland

Free range Cornish hen oven glove from Newlyn-based designer Betty Boyns, £13, www.bettyboyns.co.uk

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Wishlist

Up in the air

CRAFTY Make your own rabbit kit, £12, www.iwmshop. org.uk

Flensted bunnies mobile, £14.50, www. scandinavianshop.co.uk

Store we adore Polka Dot Gallery, Exeter and Taunton For fans of fantastic jewellery, this independent shop is a real find.

It specialises in contemporary handmade jewellery from renowned designers, with a particular emphasis on going beyond conventional design and techniques to create stunning, original pieces.

Staff can give you all the help you need to find the perfect piece for you.

Polka Dot Gallery, 12 Martin’s Lane, Exeter (01392 276500) and 11 Riverside Place, Taunton (01823 289489) www.polkadotgallery.com

Here hare here Bill Skinner’s March Hare gold plated stud earrings, £45, www. cotswoldtrading.com 7

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talking points

Jewelled

Gillian Molesworth

Story of my life...

Gillian vows to revisit the yoga class, asap have been well and truly inspired by last week’s feature in the Western Morning News on Sunday about yoga. It’s been far too long since I did it. Once upon a time, I was bendy, firm, and in touch with my chakras. Now I’m the opposite – I’ll let you come up with the antonyms. wonky in fact. The instructor I first tried yoga in my twenties. would correct the angle and say Like many, I had preconceptions something like: “Try to lengthen about what it would be like. I had a your hamstring while keeping rather confused impression of siteven pressure on your quad. Just ting in lotus position, listening to be aware of the position of your whalesong in a candlelit room, atkneecap. And breathe.” tempting to reach enlightenment Kneecap awareness? while contorting into unnatural Awareness is another useful positions. thing I learned in Yoga. There Luckily, it was nothing like this. are lots of things to be aware of.

It took place in a gym, first of all, Where you carry your tension, which is surely a for instance. Often difficult place to it’s in your face. reach enlightenAre your eyebrows ment of any kind. clenched right Are your There were no now? Your jaw? eyebrows whales.

What about your clenched right What there was chin? The chin is was a lot of breatha tension heavynow? Your jaw? ing. Breathing is weight, especially What about very important when you’re conyour chin - it to yoga. Most of centrating.

Flex us take breathing your chin muscles can be a tension for granted, but and release the tenheavyweight. there’s ways of sion. Say it with doing it, correct me: Ohmmm... and incorrect. I For something never thought about my lungs and that happens at such a slow and the way they filled my ribs before. steady pace, yoga is amazingly Yoga started me on the path of challenging. It strains muscles lung awareness. where you didn’t know you had Actually, it seems odd that muscles. You can be panting like a you can be unaware of your own dog after twenty minutes. body and the way it works, esThe last time I did yoga we pecially when you’ve lived in it ended, surprisingly, with a prayer. for decades. But it’s true. “Try “Thank you for this time we have straightening your hips,” an inspent strengthening our bodies,” structor would say to me. “They our instructor said. “Thank you are straight,” I would say. Gently for our fellow yoga students in the she would direct my gaze to the tent. Thank you for our breathmirror. Really not straight – quite ing.” All together: Ohmmmm…

steal her

style

I

Gillian Molesworth is a journalist and mum-of-two who grew up in the USA and moved to north Cornwall when she met her husband

JULIE

Proving that it is possible to upstage the young whippersnappers (they seem to get younger every year, don’t they?) Julie Walters wowed at the Baftas, resplendent in a dazzling but still age-appropriate gown.

The 65-year-old chose a long-sleeved sequin dress from Adrianna Papell, and the great news is you can get the exact same one, because the brand is stocked by John Lewis and Amazon.

Stack a couple of sparkly bracelets or bangles on your wrists and add vintage-style drop earrings, to up the glam factor a la Walters.

John Lewis Adrianna Papell dress £149

OR MAKE IT YOUR OWN OPTION A Sweet Kaliko dress £149 For Fifties flair

OPTION B Smart

Isme Dress with coat £120 Whatever the weather

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BRAND NEW!

GARDEN PARTY ANYONE? JENNIFER ANISTON recently told Closer magazine she’s a big fan of footwear, revealing her favourite pair of shoes are these high, nude strappy heels from Azzedine Alaïa. But she prefers flats on a daily basis and uses a garden party as an excuse not to wear stilettos. Sounds like our lovely part of the world could be the perfect stomping ground for her. Better weed the borders just in case!

Just

between us Gossip, news, trend setters and more - you heard all the latest juicy stuff here first!

!

Let’s have

ANGELA back.....

Meanwhile, there’s growing campaign to have a female presenter for Top Gear. And it won’t be the first time. How about giving the Westcountry’s ANGELA RIPPON her old job back – Plymouth-born Angela was Top Gear’s first presenter, after all, back in 1977!

Katie backs Clarkson Exeter’s KATIE HOPKINS has sprung to the defence of under-fire Top Gear presenter JEREMY CLARKSON. She tweets: “Clarkson suspended by BBC. Don’t care what he said. Clarkson all the way #topbloke She also told LBC Radio: “The BBC are known for being a bunch of dullards. They are a unionised workforce. He has previously criticised unionised workers. I think that’s why they are out to get him.”

West says: #that’sallheneeds 9

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Natural high: Yoga is now on offer at the Eden Project, in a biome!

in pictures Wow: Surfer Mike Lacey took this stunning photograph from inside a Cornish wave

Aaah: Daffy the orphan lamb is being bottle-fed at the Secret World Animal sanctuary in Somerset

Woof: Tegan Stephens, two, met the hounds at the East Cornwall Hunt meet at Pentillie Castle.

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talking points Old school

In season

ONE OF US Famous faces who live in the Westcountry

British-grown veg available now

1 Red cabbage

This week:

Keren Woodward

2 Spinach 10 celebrities who used to be teachers

3 Turnip

1 Dawn French 2 Sting

4 Kale

3 Bryan Ferry

6 Jerusalem artichoke

4 Hugh Jackman

7 Cauliflower

5 Sheryl Crow

8 Celeriac

6 Katherine Jenkins

9 Endive

7 Gabriel Byrne 8 Brian May

Keren Woodward of 80s band Bananarama lives near Wadebridge in north Cornwall

5 Chicory

10 On its way: Asparagus

9 Stephen King 10 JK Rowling

The happy list

Oldies 10 historic board games found at mastersgames.com:

1 Bagatelle all the rage 300 years ago

2 Surakarta strategy game from Java

3 The Royal Game of Ur discovered in a 5,000 year old tomb

4 Fighting Serpents Indigenous American game of the Zuni Tribe

5 Duodecim Scripta Roman game of twelve lines

6 Lewis Chessman 12th century Norwegian version of the ancient game

7 Fox and Geese medieval game of cunning over strength in numbers

8 Asalto Spanish siege game 9 Hounds and Jackals Ancient Egyptian game of the Pharaohs

10 Hnefatafl Viking game around 1,200 years old

10 things to make you smile this week 1 Demelza we’re huge fans.

Love the blue silk dress

2 Cricket Somerset batsman Chris Gayle - exciting!

3 Trains looking forward to the new ones, thanks (see 4)

4 Election promises revamp the A303? Yes please

5 Gogglebox we love the Tappers. And Leon

6 Ambridge flood = riveting 7 Jack Nowell he’s the man 8 Exmoor so beautiful right now - go there!

9 Pride in Falmouth for respecting PC Andy Hocking

10 Violets in the hedges, now

Birthday: Happy birthday this Thursday to Keren Jane Woodward, born April 2 1961, who found huge pop success with 80s all-female band Bananarama. Today, Keren lives in north Cornwall.

Pop star: Keren’s singer and songwriter with British girl group Bananarama, which was co-founded by her school friend Sara Dallin and Irish musician Siobhan Fahey.

Early days: Keren has known one of her bandmates, Sara Dallin, since she was four, when they met at Bromley Heath primary school. All three are still good friends.

Home: In the mid-1990s the family moved to Cornwall, to live in a 15th century farmhouse near Wadebridge.

DID YOU KNOW?

Bananarama hold the Guinness World Record for the most chart hits worldwide by an all-female group.

First date: Keren went out with George Michael but there was no chemistry (surprise!). So George set Keren up with Andrew, and the pair have been together ever since.

Low-key: The pair live quietly in Cornwall, but Andrew has been known to turn out and support Cornish-based charity Surfers Against Sewage.

Power couple: She lives in Cornwall with her long-term boyfriend Andrew Ridgeley, the former Wham! vocalist and guitarist. These days, Andrew’s a surfing fanatic, often to be seen on the Cornish beaches.

Mum: Keren has a son called Thomas (born 1986), from her previous relationship with the model DavidScott Evans.

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real life I look like my mum!

Just go without me!

Help!

I’ve got Nothing To Wear! !£&*!

What was I thinking?!

If you’ve ever struggled to find the right outfit for you, then could a personal shopper help?

Catherine Barnes heads for Debenhams, and out of her fashion comfort zone...

photography: Steve Haywood with special thanks to: debenhams Plymouth

hen a woman says she has Nothing To Wear, she means it. Or at least she does if we take the miscellany in my own wardrobe to form the basis of an (admittedly unscientific) case study.

You’ll find a selection of slim-into-them skirts, the designer label piece marked down from a fortune to a fiver at TK Maxx (looks hideous on, but see what I saved!). The bulk is vintage jumble and sale-rail bargains, which don’t go, match, or suit any activity apart from time-travel back to the mid 1970s.

I spend most of my life in jeans and absolutely adore shopping. Until I have to dress the part.

Something hideous happens when you’re on a mission to find a special occasion outfit. A prickly heat quickly becomes boiling sweat after queuing for the changing cubicle and getting tangled up with the security tags and hangers, while trying to tread your trousers off the end of your legs.

Plus, your pants are on view through that gap in the changing room curtain.

A hundred shops later, you arrive back where you started, flushed, stressed and desperate.

I’m probably not alone in thinking I’ll be saving

W

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The formal choice My first reaction: Can I accessories with a hat? Will these weird abstract print accessories go?

What I learnt: Loved the dress, but leave accessorising to the experts! Also, the entire outfit’s by the same label, so colour-coordinating’s been thought through, however random it seems!

My style rating:



fave!

Dress £110 Debut Shoes £42.50 Debut Handbag £32 Debut

money, time and tears of frustration, too, by at a glance. She not only informs me which buying a bargain sale item, but then spend- size bra I ought to be wearing and why, but ing three times as much on accessories that correctly guesses the exact size I currently sort-of go. have on.

So, hello, personal shopping - a complete “I always suggest a bra fit. You can drop a first for me. It’s something I’d always as- dress size when you’re properly fitted,” she sumed was not for me, but turns out it is explains. “A lady came in yesterday and gratis, obligation-free and an awful lot of fun. couldn’t do a size 16 dress up. But with the Personal shopping is a service that’s been of- right bra on, the zip went up easily.” fered by department store I’m looking for three outDebenhams for decades. Di fits; casual, smart and speGiles has been steering cuscial occasion. Di quietly sizes tomers in the right directhe rest of me up and down, tion at its Plymouth branch doesn’t ask my size, makes a Di quietly for 14 years and is also the mental note, and heads off on sizes me up and expert-on call for stores a mission to womenswear. heads off on a throughout the region.

“Although I will shop for Her eye is largely credited an outfit in the size the cusmission to the for Debenhams Plymouth tomer tells me they are, if womenswear clocking up the most perthey ask me to, I’ll also get sonal shopper-recommendwhat I feel is right for them,” department ed sales outside of its flagshe says. “It just comes natuship Oxford Street store. rally. I’m always right – and Quite an achievement. they usually love it.”

Queen D and her colWhile Di combs the store league ‘Little’ Di Mabin don’t earn commisfor my outfits, I get a makeover on the ground sion on any sales. And the retailer stresses floor. I’ve plumped for the Dior concession, that the service is an ‘experience’ they’re ofpartly due to the fact that the lady behind it, fering, not the hard sell.

Pippa, wears it extremely well. She ap“When’s the last time you were measured plies a blended foundation to match my for a bra?” Di side-mouths in covert tones skin tone, on top of a correcting base when we’re introduced. and I get to choose shadow, blush and Could I be wearing the wrong size? A raised lipstick from the rainbow of colours on eyebrow conveys the affirmative. Di’s also an display. The results are far better than expert bra-fitter and my chunky knitwear I usually achieve for myself and I pardoes not deflect her ability to tell a cup-size ticularly love the flawless base. Free

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People

Grown up gorgeous!

Everyday casual My first reaction: Hawaii oh-no! I wouldn’t have picked any of this lot What I learnt: Fashion is supposed to be fun - and stepping out of your comfort zone can freshen up your look My style rating:

Cropped jeans £22, blue cami £14, Kimono £22, shoes £20 all Red Herring at Debenhams Handbag £39 Principles



I help them build an outfit,” explains Di. “Lots of people choose navy blue, black or darks and introducing them to colour takes them out of their comfort zone. I’m quite an adventurous dresser and I think that when you are, it comes across in your body language. It’s all down to confidence.

I’m 58 and within reason, will wear anything.”

Against my own better snap-judgement, I try the Timmy Mallet outfit on and am absolutely gobsmacked – it all works and what’s more, I like it. The smile’s completely genuine. Same goes for the smart pink top, back trousers and floral jacket. It’s all very proper, but then, I am 44. Maybe it’s time that my wardrobe grew up.

“I always say never say never, to trying something on,” says Di, triumphantly. “I think I look at people very differently and they think they’d never wear what I’ll put them in. Another saying of mine is that you’ll always have what you’ve always had, unless you change it. All I want is makefor the customer to feel happy. Once they’re overs are also generally on offer, subject t o taken out of their comfort zone and can see the how busy the concession is. reasoning, they’re really happy.”

Face on, it’s upstairs to the mezzanine-level As well as outfit-building for customers personal shopper salon, a big without a clue, Di also helps spacious room with two roomy customers pick out somechanging cubicles and sittingthing to wear for special oc‘Very often down area complete with swish casions. It’s a unisex service coffee machine. and many wives are happy people will When I first espy the casual to take a back seat and let come in and say, outfit Di’s picked out for me, I Di dress their husbands. At wonder if Timmy Mallet is in the this time of year though, DeI’ve got so many house, and try not to weep. Firstbenham’s Quiz concession is random things ly, it’s in two of my un-favourite thronging with teenage prom but nothing I colours; royal blue and lipstick princesses.“Although proms red. Hanging besides a sleeveless aren’t till June and July, all want to wear’ top and cropped trousers is what the girls are coming in alI’d describe as a Hawaiian shirt, ready,” she says. but is labelled a Tropical Garden I love the glam apricot Kimono. Which doesn’t make it evening gown she chooses any quieter. for me and am quite amazed that the vivid pat“Very often, people will come in and say, I’ve terned shoes and clutch co-ordinate so well with got so many random things, but nothing to wear. the frock. I’m a wee bit less enamoured by a Mar-

[[

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Personal shopper Di Giles, right, with colleague Di Mabin

Day into evening My first reaction: Like the black trousers, but am I ready for the rest?

What I learnt: Build around classic wardrobe staples with affordable colour picks such as this £16 top to ring the changes My style rating:



Shoes £29.50 Red Herring top £16 Red Herring Floral jacket £60 Star by Julien McDonald Black trousers £38 Star by Julien McDonald Bag £15 Red Herring

ibou stole and a hat I insisted on trying, which, combined, look a bit fancy-dress.

“I have made mistakes of my own in my time,” admits the lady who very rarely gets it wrong. “I fell in love with a Jane Norman dress I wore for my fiftieth birthday. But it wasn’t me at all. It was one of very few things I’ve ever worn, where nobody said: oooh, I like what you’re wearing. There was no reaction, so I just knew. It was horrible.”

But that’s also the beauty of personal shopping. If you don’t like something, it’s no problem.

They’ll bring you something else. No sweat. Literally. I’ve never been this cucumber-cool in a changing cubicle before - this is a stress-free experience that every girl should try for size at least once in her life.

It’s best to book the personal shopping at Debenhams Plymouth, although Di and her team are available to advise customers throughout the week. Call 01752 275079 or visit www.debenhams.com.

Your top fashion fixes Personal shopper Di Giles has the answers 1.

Wear a properly fitted bra - it could help you drop a dress size

2.

Invest in a pair of coloured jeans - they’re great for building a look around

5.

A little black dress is still an essential in every wardrobe

6.

Layer: experiment with building your look

[[ Rule number one: Wear a properly fitted bra - it can help you drop a whole dress size

3.

Tailored trousers are a must: They’ll take you through from office to evening out

4.

Control pants or seam free undies are essential: they won’t ruin an outfit with visible lines

7.

Have confidence: feel fabulous and you’ll look it. too 8.

There are no age limits: if you’ve the legs for over-theknee, go for it! Have faith in your body shape.

9.

Be bold and trust in sizes. Skinny jeans come in sizes eight to 18 - if they didn’t think people would wear them, why would they sell them?

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People

Hoping for

a future Women and children in Afghanistan live desperate and difficult lives. Fran McElhone meets the woman from Tiverton who is doing her best to change women’s chances in this most damaged of countries.

“

fghanistan gets under your skin,” says Hannah Surowinski reflectively. “I went out there and just fell in love with the place. It’s a beautiful country geographically, but also the people are so wonderful. Despite everything they’ve gone through.

“But what shocked me was the level of poverty.

You see women begging, lying on the road. That really got to me.”

Hannah’s been up since 3am checking her emails. She arrived back home in Tiverton after an 11 hour flight the day before, so her body clock is all out of sync. Plus she’s had a lot of emails to catch up on, and when I leave, she’ll be back on them – one of the most war-torn corners of the

A

world needs her help.

The 31-year-old doesn’t look jet-lagged though, she’s all smiley and relaxed, even though she can’t remember when she and partner Pen Farthing (also a seriously inspirational character, and founder of animal rescue charity Nowzad Dogs) last had a day off.

The pair have just got back from a three-week visit to the States, securing funds for Pen’s charity Nowzad. They will be back there again in April. Then it’s Afghanistan, on-and-off, until the end of the year.

Just under two years ago, Hannah was managing quarries in Wales and the South West for Aggregate Industries, a pretty young woman bossing all the boys about. She giggles at this thought 17

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MAIN PICTURE: MATT AUSTIN

Hannah with partner Pen Farthing

but says she “absolutely loved it”, though struggles to remember her final job title.

Then she met former Royal Marine Pen Farthing when she was trekking in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains. They fell for each other, he told her about Nowzad, the charity named after the beloved pet he rescued from a dog fighting ring during his military tour of duty of Afghanistan.

It wasn’t long before Hannah made her first trip to Afghanistan and the life of the girl who grew up in Honiton, east Devon, did an about turn. Today, her life is intertwined with the hopes of many Afghans thousands of miles away.

“Pen invited me to spend Christmas in Kabul with him,” she continues. “I told my parents I was going to Dubai because I didn’t want to ruin their Christmas,” she laughs sheepishly.

“I got back and I remember sitting at my desk and I had all these calls about asphalt complaints.

And I just didn’t care anymore. I just wanted to make a difference and bring back good news stories about Afghanistan, the stories no one gets to hear about.”

Within two months Hannah handed in her notice and started working for PARSA (Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Services for Afghanistan) as its development manager. The charity’s projects include the training of women - often

[

widows who are the main breadwinners - in handicrafts, as well as establishing a worldwide market for them to sell their wares.

“If it wasn’t for PARSA, these women wouldn’t have anywhere safe to work,” Hannah explains.

“They’d be confined to their homes and have no income, and then it’s a short slippery slope to becoming that woman lying down begging in the road.”

The former Honiton Community College

[

‘I told my parents I was going to Dubai - I didn’t want to ruin their Christmas’ student works on groundroots projects in and around Kabul. The aim is to liberate women from a poverty “only fathomable if you’ve seen it with your own eyes”, she explains. She also works with orphans, rescuing them from lives on the street, in danger of drug addiction or falling into the hands of the Taliban.

Suffice to say Pen and Hannah are a busy pair.

Pen’s charity Nowzad reunites war strays with their soldier companions and drives a vital veterinary, neutering and rabies vaccination pro-

gramme in Afghanistan. The two work closely together, and are based at Marastoon (a word meaning place of safety). This is a settlement owned by Red Crescent, the Afghan equivalent of the Red Cross. It is, says Hannah, “technically” a safe haven from the Taliban.

Hannah says she never fails to be moved by the people she has met in Afghanistan. “The majority of the women are widows, or their husbands have been incapacitated because of the war.”

But they are survivors. She tells me about one woman she works closely with, called Palwasha: “She’s amazing. She started working for PARSA about 13 years ago but was caught by the Taliban and imprisoned for two years. When she was released she fled to Pakistan, but despite everything that happened, she came back to work for PARSA again. Today, she runs our textilemaking project.

“These days, I am always learning,” she says.

“Last time I was out there we were helping women to grow potatoes and other produce, not only so they can be self-sufficient, but so they can sell them too. I learnt that if you grow marigolds next to he potatoes, it keeps the aphids away.”

Hannah, who now speaks the local language of Dari, assures me she feels safe in Afghanistan.

But she is acutely aware of the round-the-clock risk of insurgent attacks. On one occasion last

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People

With orphans in Afghanistan

An agriculture project in action

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[ [ ‘I know what is important in life now - and I know not to take things for granted’

Sorting mulberries for sale

year her flight circled Kabul Airport for three hours before diverting back to Dubai via Pakistan until the next day, because the airport was under attack from the Taliban.

Today, PARSA - and Hannah - are committed to empowering Afghanistan’s next generation. The charity runs the Afghan Scout movement, which was founded in 1931 but vanished with the start of the Soviet invasion in 1978. There are now 1,500 Afghan scouts, 90 per cent of whom are orphans.

“That is 1,500 fewer kids on the streets, or falling into the hands of the Taliban,” says Hannah.

“This has to be the most important scout movement in the world. These children would literally have nothing without it.”

It is clear, as we chat, that Hannah is committed to helping a country, and its people, heal from its brutal recent history. “Afghanistan is associated with the Taliban, but the majority of people don’t want to live under their rule,” she continues. “And the men want their wives to work and their daughters to go to school.

“It’s a place that is full of surprises, and there is so much to be optimistic about. As a woman, I get to see the glamour underneath the burkas.

There are beauty salons all over the place now and the men’s grooming parlours have photos of the footballer Ronaldo in the window because all the men want to look like him.”

As for Hannah: “I realise what’s important in life now,” she affirms. “And I know not to take things for granted, even something as simple as the freedom to wear shorts and T-shirts. I find myself thinking how frivolous people in this

country can be with their money, and how such small sums could make such a difference to so many people.”

• For more details about Hannah’s work, visit www.afghanistan-parsa.org

An amazing life Hannah’s life today never fails to amaze her, she says. “I once had a meeting to go to in a place called Panjshir, a five hour drive from Kabul. When I went through one of the check points on the way the police were trying to bar the way to Westerners because it was so dangerous. They even took the details of my next-of-kin in case something happened to me.

“I was meeting women who were growing and drying mulberries that they made into candy – we’re helping them market and develop their business to give them muchneeded financial independence.

“They’d never seen a Westerner before and all they wanted to talk about was whether I had babies and about my ‘husband’. When I told them I didn’t have any babies they were so sorry for me. I just thought, here are these women, who have barely stepped outside their village, and they are feeling sorry for me.”

Hannah with her friend and co-worker Palwasha

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25/03/2015 14:23:17

In the picture Gabrielle Fagan investigates some fresh (and often inexpensive) ways to put a little art and soul into your home decor this springtime

Landscape murals, from ÂŁ232, Pixers (www.pixercise.com)

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Interiors Family portrait, Venture Photography

I

t could be argued that we’re all artists these days, snapping away with our mobiles and generally enjoying a more visual world, but all too often the images we create end up

unseen.

Photographs of family, friends and holidays are commonly left lingering on laptops and phones. But what could be easier than dressing your walls with personal photos and artwork for an instant injection of personality?

“Even a single piece of art, beautifully framed, in the middle of a blank wall can have an enormous impact, especially if the piece is particularly small or large,” says Luci Noel, director of the Affordable Art Fair, which comes to Bristol in September.

“Art creates a real focal point for a room, and symmetry of furniture or furnishings around the piece can also help to draw the eye to it. Conversely, a cluster - known as a ‘salon hang’ - can vary from a few pieces up to an entire wall filled with a collection. Be as creative as you want to be, even hanging objects or mirrors within the cluster to fill a space.”

If you’re bewildered by the vast array of art on offer, or struggle to identify which photos to include in your home ‘gallery’, she advises fol-

lowing your heart.

“It’s all about browsing at art fairs and visiting galleries to discover what resonates with you.

Maybe print off a selection of your photo prints, so over time you can narrow down your choice,” she says.

“Art should be an emotional experience - buy only what you love and what you want to live with and will enjoy every day. It’s all about personalising your space and making it unique to you.”

Traditionally, the walls of ancestral homes were hung with grand oil paintings of the family; the modern, affordable equivalent is photographic family portraits.

“We find scaled-up individual portraits and group family member portraits are the most pop-

ular styles for wall art,” says Richard Mayfield, creative director for family photography specialists Venture Photography.

“There are lots of ways to display photographic wall art. Individual shots can be blown up into high-impact images and displayed as a focal point. Another successful approach is for each family member to be shot separately rather than as a group, which captures the personality of the various individuals, then each can be framed and the prints grouped together on a wall.”

Another option is to get an enlarged sepia-tinted print of a favourite holiday snap, with the nostalgic vibe of a vintage railway poster; The Drifting Bear Company can provide one from £29.

It’s generally agreed that the centre point of

STYLE TIP: A single piece of art, beautifully

framed, in the middle of a blank wall can have an enormous impacton the whole room 23

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Interiors Deer sticker £39.99, Inspace

Ostrich canvas £183 www. frenchbedroomcompany.co.uk

a piece of art should be at eye height, although there may have to be a compromise if you or your partner are considerably different heights!” says Luci Noel. “A midpoint of 60-65 inches above the floor is usually comfortable for most people.”

Wall murals, once considered the height of naff-ness, have won back their style credentials.

Pixers (www.pixercise.com) has a vast mural library with foreign landscapes, feature shots and famous views from the Pyramids to the Eiffel Tower. Alternatively, opt for a gentle, bucolic effect with its watercolour landscape, such as its mural called Near the River Bank (pictured overleaf), costing from £32.

And you don’t even have to put paintings on Another option for a striking feature, your walls - you can make a display from any this time not in a frame, is a wall sticker, image you love, whatever its source. currently an on-trend way to make an “Artwork - and that’s such a broad term, it can impression. cover everything from wall stickers through to a A wall sticker depicting a masterpiece collection of framed favourite magazine covers by UK street graffiti Banksy would give is such an easy way to add visual impact in any any room an edgy feel. space,” says Claire Hornby, One of his classics, Maid creative stylist at Barker & Sweeping, £24.99, from Stonehouse (www.barkerandIn Spaces (www.in-spacstonehouse.co.uk). es.com), shows a girl in “A vibrant or quirky piece ‘Allow each piece an apron hiding rubbish of artwork adds a splash of room to breathe, by lifting wallpaper to personality in an instant. If don’t be tempted reveal a brick wall. hanging prints isn’t quite your Banksy wall sticker, £24.99, Another of In Spaces’ thing, consider utilising shelvwww.in-spaces.com to crowd the stickers, the life-size ing space and carefully display artworks too British Deer (pictured), framed artwork on it, or simply £39.99, is a really strikput prints on the floor and lean closely together’ ing addition. All in all, your rooms a work of art, often at a reasonable against a wall. For an inexpenthere are plenty of ways to make price, too. sive, imaginative touch, use your children’s artwork - the more abstract and playful the pictures, the more striking the display will be.”

Don’t be afraid to put a larger picture next to a smaller one, but perhaps balance it by having two or three small pictures taking up the same space as the larger one, suggests Luci Noel.

“A series of different sized pieces can look striking when carefully spaced and hung at the same mid-point, but allow each one enough room to breathe. Don’t be tempted to hang paintings or prints too close together.”

[[

STYLE TIP: Wall stickers and murals can

be a simple, effective and inexpensive way to create a striking effect in a room

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Shopping

GET THE

LOOK

Personalised vintage travel poster from £29 www. thedriftingbear.com

Art can be used in so many ways to add drama and interest to your decor

Young & Battaglia handpainted three drawer cabinet £350 www. alexanderandpearl.co.uk Nine comic books £160 www.bombus.co.uk

Black picture print club chair, £752, www.artisanti.com Paint Your Dreams by Dganit Blachner £3,550 from the Linda Blackstone Gallery 25

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25/03/2015 11:39:05

Gardens

ANNE SWITHINBANK

Mother’s Day – the aftermath Devon’s Anne Swithinbank, panellist on Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time, on how to make your plant gifts last longer he end of March is such an exciting time of the year, garden-wise. For a start, we have Easter looming next weekend, when even self-styled nongardeners feel obliged to go outside and do their bit.

The Vernal Equinox was on 20th, marking the official start of spring (hooray, there’s more light than dark again) and overnight, the clocks have gone forward and British Summer Time means another hour in the evenings to spend outdoors.

Two weeks ago, it was Mothering Sunday, with Mums up and down the country being celebrated, spoiled and gifted with presents, often including plants. Now the euphoria has worn off and you are looking at baskets crammed with spring flowers (slightly going off), miniature potted roses, pastel hydrangeas or strange, science fiction-like bromeliads chosen by your offspring, what are you to do with them all?

Most popular in the gift stakes is probably the spring flower arrangement, typically including narcissus, hyacinth, grape hyacinth (muscari), primrose and ivy. Hopefully you placed this in a cool, bright position indoors, so the flowers kept for as long as possible.

Cut away the hyacinth flower stem when the blooms fade and taken on that nasty, mouldering flannel smell and take off narcissus stems as they go over. By now, it could be time for the whole lot to go outside. To begin with, stand out by day and back in at night to acclimatise plants to colder weather, then empty the container and carefully separate the plants. Fork up soil and using a trowel, plant the bulbs out, so hyacinth and daff bulbs lie about 10cm/4in deep and grape hyacinth 8cm/3in, then allow their foliage to die down naturally. I find hybrid primroses a bit garish

T

for our garden and they tend not to thrive well outdoors here, so I prefer to pot them separately and continue to enjoy their cheerful blooms in a porch, greenhouse or cool windowsill. Ivies can make handsome house plants, or use them in outdoor containers.

The best bulb treat I saw on sale for Mother’s Day was a generous bowl of Fritillaria meleagris.

The snake’s head fritillary grows to about 30cm/12in high and bears fabulous, nodding, chequered, bell-shaped flowers of purple or

occasionally white. In the wild, they colonise water meadows and, with luck, you can plant them out in borders or turf, where they’ll come up year after year as a lovely reminder of the original gift.

Miniature roses in pots are not easy to keep alive indoors and prefer to be treated like full sized rose bushes. When they’ve finished flowering, cut them back by half, place them outdoors, wait for them to start sprouting and then plant them to the front of a patio border or into a larger container

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where they won’t be forgotten, or swamped by weeds. Fed and watered, they’ll surprise you with lots of flowers. Prune in late summer as for ordinary roses.

Potted hydrangeas are gorgeous, with their heads of soft blue, white or pink flowers. However, they’ve been specially chosen for indoor work and raised carefully under glass – their natural flowering time is late summer. After flowering, prune away the dead heads and some of the stem, above a pair of buds. In most regions of the South West, we can get away with planting these out in semi shade and a moist, humus-rich yet well-drained soil.

What about those crazy bromeliads? They are descended from plants native to warm, shaded jungly places where they grow epiphytically - in the branches of trees rather than in the ground and are good choices for normal house rooms.

Many are known as urn plants because in the wild, they collect drips and rotting matter in the vases made by their leaves. At flowering time, the mature rosettes flush lovely colours which last some time before they slowly die away to be replaced by offsets. Be patient, one day the offsets will, in their turn reach flowering size – like so much in the garden, all they need is some patient mothering.

This week’s gardening tips Anne’s advice for your garden

•G o shopping for composts, pots, seed trays, seeds, onions sets and young plants.

Make sure your tools are sorted and at the ready for the upcoming Easter weekend.

Question time with Anne West reader queries answered by Anne Swithinbank We were given a large columnar cactus 1m/3ft tall that used to live in a friend’s house. It has smooth, blue-green skin and long ridges with spikes. We’ve kept it in a frost free porch with no water all winter but an area near the top has gone soft and yellow as if rotting inside. It looks as though it has been topped with builders sand, could this be the problem?

Q

Builder’s sand should never be used for plants because it can be salty, or contain lime. It also has fine particle size that tends to clump together and block air spaces in compost. Use horticultural sharp sand or potting grit for mixing into compost and a coarse grit or shingle for topping the compost surface. Replace the builder’s sand as soon as possible. I think your cactus is what we’ve always called Cereus peruvianus though there is some botanical confusion over the name.

Just frost free is a little chilly for this plant, especially when porch doors open to admit blasts of icy air and the plant might have been better in a cool, bright room indoors. If the top rots, there are only two plans I can think of. A is to cut the whole plant down to near the base and hope it sprouts. B is to cut horizontally through healthy tissue below the rot and then find the severed top of another cactus (it can be a different type) with the same diameter. Sit the top on the base with as close a fit as possible, tie over the top to keep it stable and sometimes, a graft will take!

A plum tree we planted several years ago has side branches growing from low down on the main stem that look different to the top. Could they be suckers, should I cut them off and when?

Q

•S ow beetroot straight into soil if this is dry enough to rake at the surface. If not, sow a couple of seeds (actually seed clusters) into each cell of a set of modules under glass. They are later planted out as small clumps but roots

have space to swell outwards.

•T here’s still plenty of time to sow tomato seeds in warmth, or wait and buy plants later. Begin to organise their space in the greenhouse in pots, growing bags or borders •S ow Brussels sprouts into modules under glass or a seed bed outside to be transplanted into permanent positions when large enough.

Start leeks from seed.

They probably are suckers or just unwanted lower shoots. Wait until summer to cut them off your plum and cherry trees, to reduce the risk of infection by a fungal disease known as silver leaf.

This can gain entry via wounds and is spread by air currents and on infected tools.

Zinnias

Send your questions to Anne at westmag@ westernmorningnews.co.uk

are a tribe of showy daisy-like plants prized by flower arrangers. Greenflowered Zinnia ‘Envy’ and ‘Purple Prince’ are particularly good. Sow seed individually to modules as seedlings resent disturbance. They can be potted on or planted straight out later.

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25/03/2015 11:11:03

Beauty

Tried

& tested

We present the beauty treats and cheats of the week, all trialled by West magazine’s Catherine Barnes, with help from daughter Tilly, 17.

RENEW This skin renewal serum (£32) is new from Origins this month and contains Willowherb to remedy stressed skin that’s lost its bloom. Find it at Debenhams

Nailed Mani experts Ciate have spring nailed with their Liquid Chalk matte varnishes in four colourways, each utterly appealing. They’re £9 each or come as a £15 duo at www.ciatelondon.com

Spring perfect Spring greens and Devon violets are among the fresh colour combos available in Body Shop’s Shimmer Cube palettes, costing £16 each.

GOOD HAIR, EVERYDAY Color Wow’s Pop & Lock serum got a big thumbs up from us - now introducing its sulfate-free, shampoo and conditioner. It locks in colour and contains proteins which strengthen hair. £16.50 each at colorwowhair.com 28

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the review

Back to basics A good base will make your foundation work twice as hard and Truly Organics’ Face Base balm is moisturising, too: Pea extract is among the flower and fruits in the formula. £25 to buy online at yourstrulyorganics.com

This week we try STRAWBERRIES OPTIONAL...

Indulge your weaknesses: Philosophy’s new fragrance evokes whipped cream, almond blossom and vanilla.

Sweet.

Philosophy Fresh Cream, £34, www.philosophy.co.uk

Beauty from the Ocean Abbie Bray has a Seaweed Facial in north Cornwall eaweed is funny stuff and I was something very relaxing about it. wouldn’t naturally consider Throughout the facial, Hannah paid parslapping it all over my face. ticular attention to the pressure points on However, it is rich in nutrimy face and head - this was particularly ents, and we certainly have relaxing as I can suffer with headaches. an abundance of it in this part of the The seaweed for the products is all world. sourced from Cornwall, which I think The St Enodoc Hotel overlooks the makes the experience all the more special Camel Estuary at Rock in north Cornwall, as you get that little taste of the Cornish and has a view that takes your breath coast. Hannah explained that seaweed away. It certainly is the is good for cleansing and perfect setting for any soothing the skin, and is spa day. suitable for all skin types My therapist, Hannah including sensitive skin.

‘Cornish Richards, has worked at It is also packed full of the spa for two years and vitamins and said to help seaweed is thinks organic products collagen production. packed full are the way forward.

The smell of the prodof vitamins She asked me a few brief ucts was fresh and clean questions about my skin – none of your tideline and is said to type and if I have any odours! - and my favourite help collagen major concerns before part was the seaweed clay production’ she started the treatmask that dried onto my ment. I think generally face (it actually felt like I as women we can all pick couldn’t move my face), fault with our skin - I exalong with the eye masks plained that I hate how uneven my skin that looked like dried leaves before they tone is. softened in water to form a relaxing and The Detoxifying Seaweed Facial was an cooling eye treatment. hour long but it seemed to take far less My skin has been left feeling calm and time - I could feel myself drifting off to relaxed and looks both smooth and radisleep on many occasions throughout the ant. I think it is safe to say seaweed is now treatment. my new “must have” best friend.

I have had many facials over the years, The detoxifying seaweed facial at the but this has to be one of my all-time fa- St Enodoc Hotel Spa in Rock, north vourites. The steamer, in particular, was Cornwall costs £65 for 60 minutes. Visit one of the best parts of the process, and www.enodoc-hotel.co.uk or call 01208 something I had not experienced before.

862858 for details It felt like a sauna for the face, there

S

[[

Want a review? Send your request to westmag@westernmorningnews.co.uk 29

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Look Again Laura Scott suede bag £59

Miss Selfridge Pleat mini skirt £35

Look Again boots £59

New Look jacket £34.99

Dune sandals £85

Miss Selfridge pink suede dress £xx 30

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Fashion Le Redoute jacket £199

Easily suede Soft, touchable suede is simply everywhere this season...

right days, chilly evenings and the promise of a bracing breeze at any moment.

Dressing for early spring is never simple, but this season there is a solution. Suede has been bubbling under the fashion radar for a while now and has long been a go-to choice for bags and boots. But this spring, it’s to be found pretty much everywhere, in skirts, dresses and jackets too.

It’s in part due to the 70s vibe taking fashion by storm right now, but also quite simply because suede is lovely to wear. Suede’s low maintenance, fun to wear and lends an air of touchable softness. There’s plenty of suede in the disco-era look that’s hot right now, but suede can also do smart, hence this chic green handbag from Dorothy Perkins, and these lovely burnt orange flats from Dune. Something for everyone.

B

Dune loafers £79

Dorothy Perkins bag £32

Accessorize fringed backpack £49

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Trend

HOW TO WEAR IT:

Utility MAIN PHOTO HAIR: CHRISSY AT SAKS, EXETER MAKEUP: CLARINS, DEBENHAMS (BOTH PRINCESSHAY) PHOTOGRAPHY: STEVE HAYWOOD STILL-LIFE PHOTOGRAPHS: PR SHOTS

Fashion gets functional this season, finds Kathryn Clarke-Mcleod love pockets. There, I said it. But who doesn’t? Is there anything better than finding a coat or dress that is cuter than cute, and then finding that is has the most generous spaces in which to plunge your hands, keys, phone or anything else your heart desires. Surely not.

I’d go so far as to say, it is largely my love of onperson storage that has endeared me to this seasons utility look. Large flapped pockets cropped up again and again during the SS15 shows, with Coach and VB being standouts.

The look is not quite safari, rather a more urban warrior vibe. Mrs Beckham did a particularly fantastic stone dress with shoulder cut-outs and extra large pocket details up front. Just another reason to long for warmer weather.

But in these awkward in-between months, this trend lends itself beautifully to layering. Pop on a tailored crisp white shirt (you can’t have too many of these, they go with absolutely everything), any pair of fitted trousers, and throw on a functional yet stylish cover-up like this gem from River Island. You’re looking for a balance between function and fashion, so don’t lean too much towards the former. My friend Kara and Mrs Beckham her boyfriend Andy recently did a particularly climbed to Everest base camp.

An amazing feat and one they fantastic stone will look back on until they dress with extra are old and grey. For the trip they bought functional clothlarge pocket ing, especially designed to She showed me the message, gigdetails up front make expeditions like this gling at his attachment to his trekking one easier, keep you the right gear. I didn’t have the heart to point temperature, and riddled out that the protruding neck of her with pockets for things like Everest-ready thermal quilted body altitude sickness pills. warmer was somewhat ruining the line of her Problem is, some outfits should stay on the pastel collarless coat. mountain. Still exuberant from the achievement, Lovers of function will especially enjoy that it seems this hasn’t quite sunk in. Kara sent the backpack is now ‘a thing’. These aren’t the Andy around to a friend’s house in London to type of backpacks that need a Sherpa. They’re drop something off recently and received a text smaller, sleeker and far more stylish. Before shortly afterwards saying: “Andy was just here. you dismiss it as the domain of the student, try Why is he dressed like someone from Jurassic it. I felt more than a little liberated having both Park?” hands free. And the plethora of pockets on my

I

Grey Jeans, River Island, Princesshay, £40 White Shirt, River Island, Princesshay, £25 Coat, River Island, Princesshay, £69 Bag, River Island, Princesshay, £28

coat meant I still had easy access to my phone and keys.

If you’ve even been shopping and felt the frustration that comes from having a swinging handbag on one side and your new purchases weighing down the other, you’ll appreciate the joy this could bring.

This trend gets my full seal of approval. It is school run, office, lunch date and even sightseeing friendly. So versatile, I bet you’d even look good running from a velociraptor.

All fashion in these pictures is from Princesshay Shopping Centre, Exeter, www.princesshay.com

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DEBENHAMS Star by Julien Macdonald £32

MISS SELFRIDGE black ripped skinny jean £40

NEW LOOK grey ribbed high neck crew £4.99

GET THE

look NEW LOOK extreme rip white jeans £24.99

DEBENHAMS RJR. John Rocha Jacket £75

NEXT biker jacket £60

NEW LOOK trench jacket £32.99

RIVER ISLAND boots £55

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25/03/2015 15:07:30

Discover

culture vulture The superb new guide to the arts scene in the South West by our woman-in-the-know, Sarah Pitt

Must-read of the week Bestselling author Patrick Gale lives in the far west of Cornwall where he and his husband Aidan Hicks raise beef cattle. Patrick’s latest novel is out now, entitled A Place Called Winter. It’s a poignant story of love and secrets among emigrant farmers on the Canadian plains more than a century ago.

Patrick, whose most famous novel Notes from an Exhibition is set in Cornwall, was inspired to write his latest story by the discovery of an old notebook revealing his ancestor Harry Cane’s own story as a pioneer in Canada.

You can meet Patrick at the Falmouth Bookseller at 1pm on April 1, Waterstones Truro on April 1 at 7pm (tickets £2), The Exchange, Penzance at 7pm on April 2 (free, RSVP to the Edge of the World bookshop on 01736 365607), Waterstones on the Cathedral Green, Exeter on April 3 at 7pm (tickets £3, 01392 218392); and at Sterts near Liskeard on April 4 (tickets £7.50, 01579 342112).

Playing the blues There’s a treat for fans of the blues next month. One of the world’s finest slide guitarists, Michael Messer, joins forces with Manish Pingle, a rising star of Hindustani slide guitar, who hails from Mumbai. See them play together at the Broomhill Sculpture Hotel, Barnstaple on Wednesday, April 1 (tickets £7.50 on 01271 850262); and at The Bridge Inn in Topsham on Thursday, April 9 (£12 on 01392 873862).

Hey, Mr Minotaur...

North Devon sculptor Elizabeth Spiers creates ceramic sculptures inspired by figures from mythology which she arranges in everyday situations and poses. Her minotaur – the half-bull half-man of Greek myth – sits casually on a wall, for all the world like a builder taking a tea break. Their appeal is heightened by the glazes Elizabeth uses in her studio at home in Great Torrington which give them a ‘just excavated’ look which emphasises the humour. Her work can be seen, alongside abstract paintings by Karen McEndoo, in a current exhibition at The Plough, also in Great Torrington, until April 25.

Entry is free. Visit www.theploughartscentre.org.uk.

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25/03/2015 15:05:55

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Official Fuel Consumption in MPG (l/100km) and CO2 emissions (g/km) for the 308 SW range are: Urban 43.5 – 78.5 (6.5 – 3.6), Extra Urban 64.2 – 94.2 (4.4 – 3.0), Combined 54.3 – 88.3 (5.2 – 3.2) and CO2 119 – 85 (g/km).

MPG figures are achieved under official EU test conditions, intended as a guide for comparative purposes only, and may not reflect actual on-the-road driving conditions. Terms and conditions apply, participating dealers only or visit www.peugeot. co.uk. To finance your lease we may introduce you to a limited number of lenders. #Passport Personal Lease: A guarantee may be required. Over 18s only. Written quotations available on request from Peugeot Financial Services, Quadrant House, Princess Way, Redhill, RH1 1QA. Vospers Motorhouse Ltd is acting as a credit broker and is not a lender. 308 SW Active PureTech 1.2 e-THP 110 Start & Stop, including metallic paint, initial rental contribution £500, customer initial rental £2,700, optional final rental £7,413. 35 monthly rentals payable. 6,000 miles per annum. Excess mileage charges may apply. If you choose to pay the optional final rental, you can pay an annual rental equivalent to one of your monthly rentals but will not own the car. Ownership is possible with Passport – ask us for details. Offer available on cars ordered by 31/03/15. Calls may be recorded for training purposes. Information correct at time of going to press.

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25/03/2015 14:25:12

Costume drama Magic comes the stage at the Theatre Royal in Plymouth this week with the Welsh National Opera’s annual visit to the Westcountry, complete with soprano Lesley Garrett.

As the stars unpack their cases and launch into song, Diane Parkes takes a peek behind the scenes of a world-renowned costume department alking into the costume department at Welsh National Opera is like entering a child’s fantasy world of dressing up.

Boxes are piled onto every shelf with labels promising a whole range of make-believe from military belts to gilt buttons and gold braid to feather boas.

At one table a woman holds a black jacket to the light and stitches carefully, at another a colleague is humming along to the sewing machine. In a little room to the side the milliner is piling up towers of multi-coloured hats which sprout lace, ribbons and bows.

Tailor’s dummies stand at intervals throughout the room, some wearing fabulous costumes covered with pearlised beading, glittering gemstones and scintillating sequins. On the floor are piled military boots in a range of different sizes and shades.

And all their colourful characters are dressed by head of costume Siân Price and her team.

Siân joined the opera company straight from college as a costume maker in 1979, then became a cutter and gradually worked her way through the ranks. It is a job she adores.

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“I love putting costumes on stage and seeing how the audience responds to them,” she says.

That moment in the spotlight may only be fleeting but every costume has to be perfect and will have taken hours of work.

And the task is immense. Depending on the show, Siân and her team could be dressing more than 50 people in the cast.

Tutte which started life as a Flora dress in La Traviata way back in the 1980s… a basic piece of costume can just go round and round,” says Siân.

The company is bringing three shows to Plymouth this week - Mozart’s Magic Flute, Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel and the opera greatest hits show Chorus!

“I really love our production of Hansel and Gretel. It’s designed by John Macfarlane and when the chefs come out and bring out all these silver salvers and they open them in time to the music - the first time you see that it’s absolutely amazing,” says Siân.

The Magic Flute costumes include Pamina, whose white dress is decorated with rich beads and glistening rhinestones.

Starring Lesley Garrett, WNO’s new production of Chorus! is inspired by the 1950s, says Siân. “There is some fun in store, as we are all guessing which one of our chorus men will want the Superman costume or if they all want to be Elvis!”

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‘When the chefs all come out and open their silver salvers in time to the music, it’s absolutely amazing’

“And of course it’s more than that because they could be wearing two or even more costumes in each show. And for the principals we could have a number of casts.”

Because WNO is constantly creating new work, the costume team has to think laterally about what they can recycle from previous productions.

“We’ve got a costume from our recent Così Fan

Welsh National Opera performs Chorus! at the Theatre Royal, Plymouth on March 31, The Magic Flute on April 1-2, Hansel and Gretel on April 4, www.theatreroyal.com

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Costume expert Sian Price (above right) created the outfits for the Plymouth operas

photography opposite page, far left and below left: brian tarr sonia: david massey bottom: johann persson

Discover

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25/03/2015 13:12:48

My Secret Westcountry Padstow’s May Day fun

Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones Entrepreneur Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones introduced chefs including Gordon Ramsay, Antony Worrall-Thompson and James Martin to TV in his role as a television producer, before taking up farming just on the Devon border near Launceston and launching his own food company, The Black Farmer.

My favourite...

Walk: I love the woods at Witherden, a not too large area of woodland about five miles from my farm. There’s something to enjoy at any time of year but somehow in the winter months it epitomises the season. Dark, damp and mossy and like a horror film location. Then on a sunny day it is transformed into a fairy playground as shards of sunlight cut through the trees to sparkle on the wet or icy ground.

Festival: The Padstow May Day festival, definitely! Thousands of people cram into that tiny town to see the Obby Oss and create the most extraordinary atmosphere. What I love is that it’s a local festival for local people - and I’m told that old Padstonians from all over the world come back to celebrate the occasion. It is vibrant, loud and fun.

Beach:

Widemouth Bay. Ever since I bought

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People my farm I’ve visited Widemouth Bay - either to don wetsuits for a bit of bodyboarding, or simply to walk along the coast on a blustery day and blow away the cobwebs. At this time of the year it can seem a bit bleak and grey, but as a keen photographer I find the light can create some amazing shots. Whatever the weather the surfers are out in numbers. I definitely couldn’t go in the water in the winter, though: I’m a fair weather dipper!

Food: It has to be the traditional Cornish pasty.

The pasty is a local treasure and, made well to a traditional recipe, you can’t beat it as a meal on the hoof.

Tipple: I don’t drink a huge amount of alcohol but I do enjoy the odd Plymouth Gin and tonic.

I find the balance of botanicals gives Plymouth Gin a very distinctive flavour. The distillery is well worth a visit, too: so much history and tradition packed into a relatively small distillery.

I also really enjoy Luscombe Sicilian Lemonade from Devon. Really thirst quenching on a hot day.

Pub: A recent discovery is The Springer Spaniel at Treburley which has managed to keep the feeling of a reasonably low key country pub restaurant but serves exceptionally good food.

The menu is seasonal and local. It always offers something new and interesting but not over fussy. A bit of a family favourite I must say.

opened a shop in Launceston, called ElkertonSmith. It specialises in antiques and gold and silver jewellery, and they are very skilled at renovation and repairs. It’s so refreshing to see young people getting involved in this type of work - and I know that someone might easily find something I would like in there!

Treat: Another new little treasure in Launceston (I know, it’s all happening here!) is The Little Bakehouse. They make and sell lots of different types of delicious sourdough bread and other little titbits. You can sit at a communal table and enjoy a generous bowl of soup and bread and it’s fun and interesting to chat to other people or the owners who obviously are very happy in their work. Or a regular favourite is the cafe at Cowslip Workshops, the craft centre in a farm near Launceston. I love the informality and friendly atmosphere and all the food is freshly prepared and organic. In fact the vegetables and salad are grown right outside the door. The cafe also has a stunning view of Launceston Castle.

The Black Farmer range of gluten free products includes sausages, chipolatas, bacon, burgers, meatballs, chicken, cheese and eggs. www.theblackfarmer.com

Shop: A couple of young guys have recently

Cowslip Cafe Four Crows Gallery

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#1

#2

Enjoy

the hotlist There’s plenty to do right now in the Westcountry, from horse-watching to Mad Hatter tea parties

1. It’s ova there!

Ottery St Mary, until April 12 Collect a clue sheet from the kiosk at the Escot estate and see if you can find the eggs hidden around the park.

There’s a chocolate prize and certificate for every completed clue sheet and you decorate paper eggs to take home.

#3

Entry to Escot costs £9.50 adults, £33 family, plus £1 per egg hunt, paper eggs cost 50p www.escot-devon.co.uk

2. Adventures with Alice Helston, March 30 to April 8

Helston Museum’s celebrating the 150th anniversary of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland with lots of free and fun activities.

Find your way out of a maze, design your own Mad Hatter’s hat and help The White Rabbit avoid being late! Fun games and cake at the Mad Hatter’s afternoon tea party on April 8 (tickets, £3). Don’t forget to send a postcard: Royal Mail has issued these fabulous commemorative edition Wonderland stamps.

www.helstonmuseum.co.uk

3. Horse Watch

Moretonhampstead, on Wednesday and April 18, from 9.15 am

#4

Spend the day with Marie Franco and her horses at the Horse & Heart Holistic Learning Centre on Dartmoor and find out more about the animals’ behaviour, social structure, habits and how they communicate. Suitable for ages 13 and up; horsey background not essential! Places cost £50 (adults) and £40 for children, book at www.horse-and-heart.com, where you’ll also find a list of things you need to bring.

Best in Show

Plymouth, Saturday from 11am Pet rescue centre Gables Farm is holding an Easter fair with stalls and a dog show with categories including the pooch with the waggiest tail. They’ll also crown a best- in-show champion, who’ll win a professional posing session with Farlap-photography.com’s Sam Clark. She’s behind the adorable portraits of Gables residents including Dita, pictured here, seeking happy Forever homes. See more at www.gablesfarm.org.uk Entry to Easter fair £1 per adult, children go free.

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Enjoy

ally mac’s

Banana ’n’ Date Chia Puddings Ally says: These little pots are packed with goodness, and here’s why: Chia seeds are a South American superfood and are packed with antioxidants, yet have very few calories. You can find them these days in supermarkets, as well as in health food stores and online.

Almond milk is creamy, delicious and naturally high in zinc, iron and magnesium. It’s low calorie, low fat and has lots of Vitamin E which is (hooray!) anti-ageing. Aim for making your own, or buy unsweetened versions.

Goji berries are another superfood, with real A list status thanks to their vitamin content. They are best soaked in water first. Finally, cocoa nibs (part of the roasted cocoa bean) are a crunchy, tasty raw alternative to processed chocolate that’s blissfully free of sugar.

You will need: Ingredients make two pots 2 Bananas 4 Medjool dates, pitted 4 tbsp chia seeds 1/2 cup coconut, cashew or almond milk (homemade) A topping of goji berries and cocoa nibs

Method: 1.

2.

Blend the banana and dates in your blender until silky smooth. Pour into the bottom of a cup or jar. In a small bowl mix together the chia seeds and milk then pour carefully on top of the banana.

set then look out, you now have an addiction!

Top with gojis and cocoa nibs.

3.

The final product is a glorious treasure that you and your hubba can share. For best results, enjoy on the weekend in bed!

Place in the fridge for an hour or so for it to

Natural food expert Ally Mac lives and cooks in South Devon. Ally specialises in devising good-for-you recipes that are easy to prepare at home. She also sells several of her own delicious healthy products online at www.allyskitchenstories.co.uk 41

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Ingredient of the Week

Watercress with Tim Maddams

atercress may be one of those ingredients that you are familiar with but with which you have a stunted relationship. A little like a distant cousin. You meet occasionally, get on, remember how much you liked them the last time you saw them and leave each other’s company fully intending to keep in-touch and looking forward to the next meeting. Only to drift away and fail to do so until the next unfortunate family get-together reminds you how churlish you’ve been.

But of course, being such a decent chap, the cousin completely understands how busy you are and makes allowances. Still with me? Watercress is a bit like that. It tends to turn up on a menu from time to time, often as a soup or a garnish for smoked fish or grilled steaks. And that’s it. You think, mmm, that’s nice. Then never think about it again until the next time it appears, almost apologetically, on your plate.

That is unless you are a veg box recipient.

Whether you go for the full-on organic-only option or the locally grown or at the very least UK produced veg box I can highly recommend the system. For a start you never know quite what’s going to crop up and that’s good for the creativity. And it is always cheaper and better quality than shopping at the local supermarket.

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If you are a vegbox convert already than the likelihood is that you have seen a fair amount of watercress of late. Veg box packers are desperately seeking some greenery in season now.

I love watercress. It’s like an old fashioned English version of rocket. You can pick it yourself from the wild and it is just about getting going around now (do be cautious of liver fluke though, and cook it or wash it scrupulously before eating). But a good bag of watercress isn’t hard to come by at the greengrocer or farm shop, so pick some up and give it a chance.

A word of warning though, look after your watercress or it won’t thank you. Un-bundle it from its elastic band and place it in a good sealed tub on a damp piece of kitchen paper and it will keep happily for days.

If you just open the pack, tear a bit off and shove the whole show haphazardly into the salad drawer you will be amazed how quickly it wilts, goes mushy and has to be wasted.

Enjoy your watercress and do give a veg box a go. One of the leading national providers is Devon-based Riverford. Now I feel I must mention Roots and Fruits of Chard in Somerset to even the balance. And now I feel bad for all the other little veg providers out there. Ask around and find one near you!

Oh, and do write to that cousin of yours...

Fresh ways with watercress With bacon: I really like watercress in a good bacon sandwich. It makes you feel a little better about all that fat and salt and stands up well to both, bringing a fresh and zingy finish to the whole indulgence.

As a pesto: A great trick with watercress is a simple pesto made with even quantities of wild garlic and watercress, chucked in the blender with some good cheddar and lashings of rapeseed oil and a handful of toasted hazelnuts.

This will happily keep in a tub in the fridge for a week or more and is a delight on pasta or used as a garnish for meats and roasted veg, particularly beetroot.

@TimGreenSauce Tim Maddams is a Devon chef and writer who often appears on the River Cottage TV series 42

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25/03/2015 12:34:44

Drink Beer at the Driftwood Spars festival

Darren Norbury

talks beer hen I’m toiling over a hot keyboard at The Driftwood Spars, St Agnes, so much that at beertoday.co.uk I make a point of for the past couple of years they have made it a concentrating on the British beer key element in their first beer festival of the year. scene. I do this because I’ve chosen I spent a happy afternoon there on the north to mine a niche rather than take in beers from Cornwall coast recently, taking guidance from around the world (which are already more than head brewer Pete Martin and warming to such adequately covered elsewhere). However, it’s delights as a collaboration between BrewDog, of almost as though I need not Scotland, and the Welsh Celt Expehave worried about my niche. rience brewery. Home of the FruitSlowly, Britain is turning into cakes (6% ABV) is bright orange/ a microcosm of the global amber in colour, with a zingy, reIt was bright brewing scene. freshing, sour fruitbowl taste, remiorange/amber, Where once British brewers niscent of a penny Fruit Salad chew were happy to turn out a small of my childhood, with strawberry with a zingy range of styles such as bitter, and orange notes, as well as a bit of taste reminisporter, stout and barley wine, sherbet. cent of a penny now they are having a crack at Why go to Belgium for a saison styles which have been popuwhen there are joys like this availFruit Salad chew lar internationally for many able in the UK? Well, of course, you of my childhood years – as well as some which still want to try Belgian saisons if didn’t exist until recently. you can. But Saison Dupont, for inTake saison, for instance. stance, is widely available in bottle Saison – the French word for shops here and a good introduction season – is a traditional Belgian style of light, to the style. However, many British versions are well hopped, fruity beer which was made in by no means second best. British brewers these spring to be laid down and opened in summer by days can turn their hand to saisons, Pilsners, toiling farm workers and the like. They’re generlambics, Marzens and American pale ales, to ally strong enough to sustain storage for a few name just a very short list, showing just how months – 5 to 6 per cent ABV is common – but far the industry has come in the past few years. hoppy and light in body to be thirst quenching.

Darren Norbury is editor of beertoday.co.uk It’s a style which intrigues the brewing team @beertoday

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ENJOYING OUR NATIONAL DRINK What a great time for beer. According to new figures from industry body the British Beer and Pub Association, beer sales increased in the past year even though overall alcohol sales were down. Beer now has 36 per cent of the drinks market, says the BBPA, with wine on 33 per cent.

Beer of the week I’ll stick to this week’s theme of saisons and choose Wild Goose Chase gooseberry saison (4.5% ABV), from the Wild Beer Co in Somerset.

The Wild boys use wild yeast for their distinctive, really flavoursome beers and this stand-out was fruity and vivacious, with tart gooseberry ramped up just enough to be slightly mouth puckering but not eye watering. Delicious!

Manifesto for beer The Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) has launched a Manifesto for British Beer which it is asking Parliamentary candidates in the forthcoming general election to adopt. SIBA’s manifesto sets out four key areas: supporting local brewers; backing community pubs; making beer tax work; and maintaining and extending small breweries’ relief.

Candidates can sign the manifesto at www.siba.co.uk/manifesto2015.

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25/03/2015 15:41:22

Living motors

Not so thirsty work

Car guru Scott Squires of Plymouth road-tests the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV

ou know a manufacture has something to shout about when its UK TV advert budget goes from around £6 million to £20 million – and that something is the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle).

Why is Mitsubishi shouting from the roof-tops about the PHEV? Well, because this is a medium size 4x4 that is tax free and can do (so they claim) 148mpg, and costs the same as a normal dieselpowered Outlander.

How does it all work? The Outlander PHEV has two electric motors one on each axle – and a 2.0litre petrol engine under the bonnet which can drive the front wheels or charge the batteries.

As the rear electric motor doesn’t get any help

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from the petrol engine, unlike the front one, it has a little more torque at 144lb ft compared with 101lb ft for the front motor. Both the motors are fed by a 12kWh battery which is mounted in the middle of the floor.

The battery can be charged by the petrol engine like a generator while you are driving or you can plug it in to your socket at home or a public charging station. The car also has regenerative braking, which charges the battery by using engine braking to slow the car down without the need for the brakes. You have five settings for this – one to five, with five being the most aggressive and being able to almost bring the PHEV to a complete stop.

Charging at your home from a standard socket takes around six hours while public charging

stations take that down to around three hours, or you can get an 80% charge in 30 minutes from a fast-charger.

The petrol engine comes in the form of a 119bhp 2.0-litre, four cylinder – but when combined with the electric motors gives you a total output of 200bhp. Mitsubishi claims a range of around 32 miles on pure electric power and around 500 miles on the dirty stuff.

Now that doesn’t sound very far on battery power, but the thinking behind the Outlander is you only use the electric motors in and around town. So, say your commute is from Exeter to Plymouth, you would use electric mode from your house to the A38, when you would switch to petrol or as you reach 70mph it kicks in anyway as at that speed the petrol engine is more efficient.

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gadget notebook Then when you reach Plymouth and turn off the A38 you switch back to electric mode for the remainder of your trip to your office. You may think that this all sounds a bit complicated, switching from one mode to another and back again – but don’t worry as the Outlander takes care of it all for you and it will always choose the most efficient way of driving.

On my commute to the office, which is all town driving I achieved 97.9mpg. Yep, and in a big 4x4, that’s not bad. In my week commuting in the Outlander I don’t think I once used anything other than electric power. So I’m not sure how it works out the mpg figure, as in my head I’ve done precisely no miles to the gallon.

Enough of the technical stuff – what’s the rest of the car like? On the outside it’s very Range Roveresque, but the inside is where I think Mitsubishi has missed a trick, as the quality of some of the material and switch gear on the inside are on the cheap side, which is a shame.

If the company charged a little more and put a better interior in, I think they would be on to a surefire winner.

You have a choice of three trim levels: GX3h, GX4h and GX4hs. All are well equipped, with standard kit including dual-zone climate control, cruise control, electric windows, remote central locking, Bluetooth connectivity, a USB port, a six-speaker stereo, electric heated mirrors, automatic lights and rear parking sensors.

When it comes to driving the one thing you have to get used to is the silence when you start it up as, unless it’s cold, the engine just doesn’t come on. You don’t have to worry about running on electric power and holding up traffic like the old milk floats though. The thing with electric motors is that all the power is on tap as soon as you touch the throttle, so pulling away from the lights you leave most things in your clean air.

If you really push your foot down for a rapid get away then the petrol engine kicks in to help out. The same goes for when the Outlander needs more power than the electric motors can dish out.

The Outlander handles like any other big 4x4 on the road, but you can feel the extra weight of the batteries if you push on through a corner.

Luckily they are mounted in the floor so the centre of gravity is as low as possible and body roll is kept to a minimum.

One advantage the Outlander PHEV has over its competition is its off-road capabilities. You have Mitsubishi’s knowledge of off-road vehicles and the fact that the electric motors with their silky smooth power delivery, with no gears, give it a very tractable power delivery, great for slippery surfaces.

While I never achieved the claimed 148mpg, I think the 97mpg I did achieve was fantastic. What other big 4x4 could you do that it?

At a glance Price: £34,999 (incl. £5,000 Plug-In Car Grant) Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl petrol plus electric motor CO2/tax: 44g/km/£0

29 March 2015

TECH TIPS: BACK-UP STORAGE

Feel like ringing the changes? Make your landline a feature, with our pick of the best retro-inspired telephones around

Groovy, baby This 1960s-style desk phone by Wild and Wolf has modern push button numbers secreted in the dial and comes in a range of colourways that evoke the décor of the period. £39 at www.redcandy.co.uk

‘Ello, ‘ello Well, this is all very Dixon of Dock Green, isn’t it? This phone has a traditional rotary dial, but with a contemporary number template to ensure it’s compatible with services such as telephone banking. Has a proper ring-ring bell, too. £90 at www.astellahrela.com

Red alert This Trim Phone’s based on the original model which launched in 1965 and became hugely trendy in the 70s. Available in a range of colours with push button technology and modern functions including call waiting. £40 from www.berryred.co.uk

Call home Inspired by the traditional, but with an uber contemporary twist, the ePure Dect TAM by Swiss Voice is cordless and even has a hands-free mode, with a myriad functions including remoteaccess answering machine £74.95 from www.cuckooland.com

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Discover Topsham is right on the River Exe

A WEEKEND IN...

Topsham

he pretty little town of Topsham on the banks of the river Exe is a wonderful place to spend a relaxed few days. Once a bustling port which traded with Holland, it has wonderful Flemish-style architecture. The shops in the town offer nautical fashion in upmarket boutiques as well as a proper chandlery. There are also plenty of pubs, cafes and restaurants where you can sit and watch the world go by.

IMAGE: ROBIN BROOKS

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Stay: The

former 17th century Salutation Inn has recently been refurbished while The Globe, equally historic, also has rooms. Bed and breakfasts (see www.topsham.org.uk) include Reka Dom, a restored merchants’ house. For self-catering, try the Topsham Lock Cottage, over the river by foot ferry.

Pebblebed wine

Eat: Try

the Avocet Café for homemade cakes, and platters of local charcuterie. At the Georgian Tea Room even the jam is homemade. For a fine dining with local fish try La Petite Maison and

The Galley. Overlooking the town’s other river, the Clyst, the historic Bridge Inn serves real ales in cosy bars and snugs. Close by, Darts Farm is a foodie’s shopping paradise, including excellent local fish and chips in the Fish Shed.

Do: Twitchers from far and wide make a pilgrimage to the RSPB reserve here on the mudflats to see rare feathered visitors. Cycling is another way to enjoy the river; hire bikes from the Route 2 café and head off seawards towards Exmouth on the cycle path. There are bird watching cruises on the river during the winter.

Try: Wine tasting evenings organised by Pebblebed Vineyard, which grows and makes wine nearby, are a convivial way to spend an evening, held in their wine cellar on Ferry Road.

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