West Magazine, February 15 2015 (WMN on Sunday)

15.02.15

INSIDE: + NATHAN

OUTLAW + GET FIT IN

HOT NEW KIT

12

Things you never knew about our

Joss Stone + HER WEALTH + COMMUNITY LIFE &

BEING VEGETARIAN

DON’T MISS:

pg9

+ WIN £120 PET

PHOTO SHOOT + INSIDE JAMIE’S

ITALIAN EXETER

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‘I truly believe anything is possible if you persevere’ Julie Spiller, page 16

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Capturing canines on camera

38

Where do chefs eat out?

PET POSES

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WHO ADORES RITA? All the goss on page 9 today

[contents[ Inside this week...

6

THE WISHLIST Bright ideas for the dullest of days

8

GILLIAN MOLESWORTH A three parent child? Hmmm...

9

JUST BETWEEN US...

Sh! We have the latest gossip!

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PET POSES Capturing our four-legged friends on camera

16

A NOVEL APPROACH How a Devon writer got her book published, thanks to Downton Abbey

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BEAUTIFUL BATHROOMS Luxurious, and just a little bonkers, too...

26

ANNE SWITHINBANK

40

NATHAN OUTLAW

22

INTERIORS Beautiful bathrooms

JAMIE’S ITALIAN We try Mr Oliver’s new place

Have secateurs, will prune - but carefully

29

PETAL POWER Rose-scented beauty products

30

THE FIT KIT We road test M&S’s new gym gear

32

LANGUAGE OF FASHION How to wear a slogan tee

36

CULTURE VULTURE Great ideas for things to do

40

JAMIE’S ITALIAN Mr Oliver’s new Exeter eatery

46

MAN & BOY Our columnist Phil has some discipline issues...

32

LANGUAGE OF FASHION

How to wear a slogan tee

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38

[

[

SPECIAL PLACES Chef Nathan Outlaw

[ welcome [ Time for a little springtime boost!

Michelin-starred chef Nathan Outlaw, pictured above, finds this part of the world truly inspiring. Yes, he loves the beer (especially Doom Bar) but he also has many good things to say about the Westcountry’s fish, meat, cheese and... Flambards theme park.

Find out more today on page 38.

And Nathan’s right, the South West really does have so much to offer, in so many ways.

Someone else who finds this region inspiring is novelist Julie Spiller, who tells us on page 16 today how she came to write a swashbuckling pirates-and-smugglers romance, and got it published with a little help from the Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes. Oh, and she achieved all this after overcoming a nasty brain injury. I think

Tweet

[

of the week

you’ll agree, it’s an impressive story.

If your home needs a little springtime boost and mine certainly does - then have a look at our Wishlist on page 7 today. We’ve got a truly charming little night-stand to win, worth £120. Just the thing for brightening up your bedroom this spring.

My husband read West magazine last Sunday and spent a long time laughing at Phil Goodwin’s account of an uncomfortable encounter with David Cameron. Something tells me Phil’s battles with son James (who turned five this week - Happy Birthday!) will have him laughing once again this Sunday - read Phil’s column on page 46 and see if you agree.

[

She got her novel published with a little help from Downton Abbey’s Julian Fellowes: clever

Gillian Taylor @gillianartist @Great to see @ TheatreAlibi in @ Sarah_Jane_Pitt’s Culture Vulture - a new guide to the arts in @WMNSunday @WMNWest

Becky Sheaves, Editor

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

MEET THE TEAM Becky Sheaves, Editor

Sarah Pitt

Kathryn Clarke-McLeod

Catherine Barnes

Phil Goodwin

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If you buy one thing this week...

Cornish designer Tom Raffield uses steam to bend strips of sustainably managed wood into these dramatic lampshades. He has just been selected by TV presenter Kevin McCloud as a “green hero” for the Grand Designs Live show in London this May.

Standing lamp created with steam bent ash wood by Cornish designer Tom Raffield £685, www.tomraffield.com 5

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FRUITY Floozie by Frostfrench stud earrings, £8, Debenhams

Sail away with this set of two bags, £19.99, www. oakroomshop.co.uk

Home sweet home Wooden bee house, £16.95, White Stuff stores and www.whitestuff.com

the

wishlist West’s top picks to brighten up any dull day

Store we adore...

This wonderful shop sells dolls’ houses, either made up or as a flat pack. You can also buy all the paraphernalia to make them into a home, down to the wallpaper, carpets, windows and doors, paint and furniture. With finished houses to admire in the shop window, the shop is popular with adults who make dolls’ houses, some for their grandchildren and others just for themselves. “Like men with their train sets, so are women with their dolls’ houses,” says one member of staff.

Davenports, 128 Cornwall Street, Plymouth, 01752 666066

Handmade gold earrings Holly Belsher, £275, White Space Art in Totnes and www.whitespaceart.com

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Win

Like a window..

Washing Day by Sarah Bowman limited edition print, White Space Art, Totnes, £95

SOLID LOVE Melody Maison, makers of fairy tale furniture, are offering one lucky reader the chance to win this Sophia Hearts bedside table, made from solid wood, worth £119.95. Just email your name and address and a daytime contact number to westmag@ westernmorningnews.co.uk, with Melody Maison in the subject line, to arrive by February 27, 2015. Normal terms apply.

TURN IT UP! Roberts Revival radio in red gloss, £200, www. robertsradio.co.uk

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talking points Gillian Molesworth

Story of my life...

Is the price always right for starting a family? o – they can now take DNA from three people in order to produce a baby without genetic mitochondrial disorders. I have mixed feelings about that. On one hand – yay science!

Well done all those researchers who have successfully managed to overcome yet another human stumbling block. And yay for the Second, the three-parent news. people who have mitochondrial Third, a public appeal for more problems, who can now have chilpeople to put themselves forward dren. as adoptive parents – especially for On the other hand… three parchildren in sibling groups. Chilents? Aren’t we getting into the dren that had been taken out of realm of Frankenstein here? destructive home situations were The legislators and most of the in the same position as the foster experts (at least the ones that were kids – waiting. In large numbers, quoted on the news) don’t seem in the Plymouth area alone. And to think so. Altering the parts of they try really hard not to sepaDNA that involve mitochondria rate them from their brothers and is different from sisters. altering DNA in What a crazy the nucleus, apcontrast – on one parently, which hand, boatloads of I can’t help a would get you into money sunk into niggling fear the world of the complicated scienthough... Will “designer baby”. tific processes to So that’s all right. allow more people they later I can’t help to breed, and on the discover weird the niggling fear other hand, more side effects for though… will it available children work? Will they than homes. the three-parent later discover Part of me thinks children? weird side-effects the three-parent with the proceresearch is noble, dure, too late for and we should be the three-parent children? Usutrying to improve the health of ally when man tampers with the human species. nature, there are unforeseen conBut the other part thinks, persequences. haps that money could go towards Here’s what happened when introducing parents who face conI heard this news, which was ception difficulties to the adoption during a car journey of just over process, supporting them so they an hour. First, there was a feature could successfully take it on. on the shortage of foster parents, Because for every parent that and the many children waiting in deserves a chance to conceive, care for a foster home – getting there’s a child that deserves a older, absorbing their surroundhappy home. And you don’t even ings, yet without a supportive need any syringes or test tubes to home environment. offer them that.

S

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

long, sleek

AND STYLISH

TV presenter Emma Willis hits all the right notes at The Voice party, in a black halterneck jumpsuit - the perfect silhouette slimmer. Get her all-in-one look with this Pied a Terre jumpsuit with necklace detail, currently reduced to £44 from £89, House of Fraser (www.houseoffraser.co.uk).

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OPTION A Floral fun BHS Oriental jumpsuit £42 www.bhs.co.uk Channel Japanese elegance

OPTION A Utility chic Wallis Khaki jumpsuit £65 www.wallis.co.uk Bang on trend for SS15

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BRAND NEW!

JESSE LOVES RITA!

Just

between us Gossip, news, trend setters and more - you

heard all the latest juicy news here first!

JESSIE J has given The Voice coach RITA ORA her seal of approval, calling her “wicked”.

The Bang Bang singer was a coach on the BBC singing contest for the first two years, before making way for KYLIE MINOGUE last season, so that she could concentrate on her own music.

Now, Rita has taken over from Kylie and Jessie told the Daily Mirror:

“Rita looks wicked, she brings a different flavour.

“I can’t wait to see her coaching the acts. I saw Rita recently at the Jingle Bell Ball and I told her just to be honest with the singers.

And Jessie’s still watching the show: “I still feel like I’m a coach. I talk to the TV like I am still there, disagreeing or agreeing and wishing they would turn round.”

David Beckham:

My KIDS

Baby

are

body

EMBARRASSED

honesty KATE WINSLET has opened up about being a new mother. The mum-ofthree Kate tells Harper’s Bazaar UK magazine about how important it is to her, as a woman in the public eye, not to give unrealistic impressions of body image.

Kate, whose youngest child Bear is 15 months old, says: “Have I actively been on a diet to lose my baby weight? No, I haven’t. Life is just too short to be spending time focusing on things

!

by me!!

like that. I want to keep my health and my sanity. My body will never go back to what it was, and I wouldn’t expect it to after three babies.”

A certain 39-year-old father-of-four appeared recently on Jimmy Kimmel Live, where he told the comedian that since retiring from football in 2013, he has become a ‘glorified taxi driver’ to his children.

But DAVID BECKHAM reveals his oldest sons don’t like being seen with him dropping them off at school.

“My middle son ROMEO, who’s 12, he’s just started, as soon as I take him into school,

I’ll go to kiss him and he’ll turn his cheek.

“I will then pick him up and give him a bear hug and kiss him in front of his friends.

“Then my eldest, BROOKLYN, who’s 16 in March, I take him to school and he says to me ‘Dad, park around the corner’.

“VICTORIA [BECKHAM] did have to remind them the other day that actually ‘You’ve got quite a cool dad’, but it makes no difference.” West says: Aw, shame!

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Jump: Young dancers promote the forthcoming National Youth Dance Festival in Plymouth.

in pictures All aboard: Lizzy Stroud of Railholiday in Cornwall puts guests up in converted railway carriages.

Where’s Wally? Jayne Corrigan of Weston-Super-Mare changes the outfits on her mannequin in an old phone box weekly - see him on Facebook!

Free fallin’: Devon’s Skydive UK is seeking volunteers for a record-breaking leap.

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talking points Their year

Flip!

ONE OF US

Shrove Tuesday is on Feb 17: pancake ideas from www.bbcgoodfood.com

Famous faces with links to the Westcountry

1 Chocolate, peanut butter & banana 2 Squash, goat’s cheese & rosemary 3 Arnold Bennett (smoked

This week:

haddock, cheese and chives)

Joss Stone

4 Crêpe Suzette (sugar, orange and Grand Marnier)

6 American blueberry 7 Bacon and egg

1 Kate Hudson

8 Buttermilk

2 Caroline Flack (above)

9 Vegetable

3 Jesy Nelson

10 Rhubarb compote with vanilla crème fraîche

4 Julia Roberts 5 Pink 6 Kris Jenner

The happy list

7 Pamela Anderson

Early years: Born Jocelyn Eve Stoker in Kent in 1987, singer songwriter Joss Stone spent her teenage years in Ashill near Cullompton. She lives in the Devon home she grew up in, which she bought from her parents.

8 Donatella Versace 9 Nicole Kidman 10 Catherine Deneuve

Fat Tuesday 10 things to make you smile this week 1 Scented narcissi from Scilly, of course

2 Half term time to take a much-needed break Where Mardis Gras carnivals are happening this week:

3 Harper Lee To Kill a Mock-

1 New Orleans 2 Binche, Belgium

4 Penguins waddling like

3 Rio 4 Venice

ingbird’s prequel - can’t wait! little tuxedoed men

5 Lent 40 days to reflect 6 Eddie Redmayne our Bafta hero

5 Gelderland, Netherlands

7 1000lifehacks.com Your

6 Ivrea, Italy

8 Suede skirts comfy and

7 Cologne 8 Barranquilla, Colombia 9 Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago 10 Mazatlan, Mexico

MATT AUSTIN

It’s Chinese New Year - and all these famous women were born in the Year of the Goat.

Award-winning singer songwriter Joss Stone grew up in Devon and still lives there today

5 Vegan tomato & mushroom

life, made easier very now (see M&S’s version)

9 Red carpet fashion analysis what were they thinking?

10 TV’s Fortitude slow start, but we think it’ll be good

Debut: Aged just 13, Joss, who attended Uffculme Comprehensive, appeared on TV talent show Star For a Night, which she won.

community where she lives, saying: “I do feel very safe where I live, because of everyone that lives around me.”

Acting: Joss was part of a cast including Rachel Weisz and Jeremy Irons in the fantasy DID YOU KNOW? movie, Eragon.

Joss was once the face of Cadbury’s Flake chocolate: lucky girl!

Hit: Joss secured a US recording contract in 2003 and her first album, The Soul Sessions, went gold in America.

Winner: In 2005, Joss, then 17, was named best British Female Solo Artist and British Urban Act at the BRITs, the awards’ youngest solo winner. She became the youngest woman on the Sunday Times Rich List a year later.

Brave: Stoic Joss refused to be scared when two men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder and rob her.

She said: “I’m not going to allow that to be a negative thing in my life.”

Good neighbours: Joss still feels very much a part of the close-knit

Conviction: Joss has been a vegetarian all her life and is fond of lasagne made with Quorn mince.

Country girl: Joss says her little corner of Devon is her favourite place in the world. “I just feel much more healthy when I am there,” she says. “I don’t think I could ever live in a city, not even Exeter.”

Room for any more? Joss shares her home with friends, family members and dogs galore, including a Rottweiler and a Poodle.

Beaches: Croyde and Putsborough were favourite places by the sea for her childhood family outings.

Mama: Joss credits her mum Wendy’s passion for music, for inspiring her career. Wendy runs Exeter’s music venue Mama Stone’s.

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Animal Photography

Pets that pose Here in the South West we love our pets and, increasingly, want top-quality pictures of them. We catch up with the region’s premier animal photographers and hear how best to capture pets on camera

Kirsteen Titchener ‘I like them to snuffle about a bit first’ Pet photographer Kirsteen Titchener understands our four legged and feathered friends. No, she really understands them.

She not only works an amazing kind of animal magic behind the camera but, as a qualified pet behaviourist, knows just how to get under their fur and avoid ruffling feathers in the process.

Kirsteen, 41, from Plymouth combines her passion for both pets and photography in her business, Menagerie Photo. “We take things slowly to start with,” she explains. “I like them to snuffle around a bit, get used to me, my camera gear and the lights.”

Some shoots are in a studio, others take place outdoors or at home. While Photoshop is an important tool, she employs it only to erase extraneous objects - a lead, for instance, or owner’s trouser leg. “I wouldn’t change the shape of the dog,” she laughs.

Which is probably just as well. Can you imagine the hours it would take to airbrush the creases out of a self-conscious Shar Pei? Kirsteen charges £30 for a shoot within 20 miles of Plymouth: “The length of sessions can vary - some doggie models are clearly born to be photographed while others – like their humans – need a little more encouragement.”

For more details see www.menageriephoto. co.uk

Bichon Frises Beau and Chichi: ‘I took their photos at a country fair’

Queeni: ‘Dachshunds are very chilled in front of the camera’

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English Springer Spaniels Magic, Fleck, Cho and Indie

Kirsteen says: The subject: Spaniels can be the hardest breed to photograph - they often just can’t sit still! But these four were beautifully trained The gear: I use Nikon DSLRs which focus quickly and studio strobe lights to freeze the motion of the animals.

Basil the Shar Pei: ‘He’a a rescue dog who had just had eye surgery and was feeling under the weather’

fave!

Chloe: ‘She didn’t like flash lights, so we went outdoors’ 13

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Killian Hall ‘Be patient and the picture will come’

Chumley: ‘He came along as part of a family shoot’

Pepper: ‘This is our own pet dog. After her first visit to the dog groomer, she was looking so smart I took her portrait’

They say never work with children or animals - but East Devon based photographer Killian Hall regularly does photo shoots with both. “In fact, my approach to both kids and animals is the same,” he says. “Be patient, light everywhere so they don’t have to stay still, and the picture will come.”

Killian, who spent many years as an officer in the Navy, is now a full-time photographer, specialising in family groups and pets.

The father of three vividly remembers his first ever studio shoot of a horse: “We set up a large studio with all the backdrop and lighting, and Zachary’s owner, Rachel, assured me he would be wellbehaved. I just had to trust her!”

The result (pictured opposite) shows how well the shoot went. “Zachary walked in, stood beautifully and didn’t flinch when the flashes went off. We printed this picture up to huge size, three feet and more across, as a surprise 16th birthday present for Rachel’s daughter, who was delighted.”

Visit www.thesmartphotographer.com or call 01404 811289 for details

Stanley: “His owners wanted to capture his smile’

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Saffy: ‘She was found wandering in Wales but was adopted via Greyhound Rescue, and she is now very happily settled in Devon’

Killian says:

[[ ‘My approach to photographing children and animals is to be patient - and don’t expect them to stay still’

How to photograph a horse: Zachary simply walked in through the double doors to my studio. I was a bit nervous, I admit!

The gear: I set off a few flashes beforehand, so he got used to the lighting, then took the picture as quickly as possible Afterwards: I used Photoshop to turn the picture black and white, while highlighting his striking blue eye in colour

WIN £120 Shoot!

Killian Hall is offering readers the chance to win a photoshoot of their dog plus £25 print, worth £120 in total, within a 30 mile radius of Exeter.

To enter, send your contact details to Smart Photographer, westmag@ westernmorningnews.co.uk to arrive

by February 27. Normal terms apply.

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Interview

‘Romance,

pirates and me...’

With a little help from friends, family and the creator of Downton Abbey, Devon’s Julie Spiller has overcome serious health problems to become the author of a page-turning historical novel

By Sarah Pitt

ulie Spiller has always wanted to be a published author, and now she is. Julie, who lives with her husband and children near Totnes, has just taken delivery of a glossy stack of books, all with her name on them. And she couldn’t be more pleased.

“When I was a little girl I dreamed of seeing my name on the cover of my book,” she says. “I’ve just always wanted to write.”

Julie’s novel The Cornubian (which means The Cornishman) is a rip-roaring adventure set in 17th century Cornwall. The story tells the tale of smuggler Martin MacBride who returns home after escaping slavery in Algiers to find that his wife and child are dead.

He wows to avenge their deaths by killing his hated foe, customs officer John Cardinham. Cardinham, meanwhile, is convinced that his fiancée, beautiful innkeeper Josephine Bryant is in love with MacBride, and is determined to see him swing from the gallows.

It is a colourful tale, inspired, says Julie, by her childhood love of Cornwall and the tales of the real life antics of charismatic smugglers, like Jack Rattenbury of Beer in east Devon. And Julie’s journey to getting published has been equally colourful, strewn with obstacles which might

PICTURES: STEVEN HAYWOOD

J

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have stopped someone less determined in their tracks.

As a child growing up in the village of Marldon near Totnes, Julie, now 33, loved writing stories.

“I have always written. I wrote my first story when I was at Marldon Primary School in class one. I still have it now,” she says.

This love of literature continued when she went to secondary school, where she got an A* at GCSE in English, but then she was stopped in her tracks by a serious head injury.

“In the summer between my GCSEs and my A levels I got kicked in the head at a karate competition,” she explains. “Basically my brain collided with the inside of my skull, and ever since then I’ve suffered from vertigo.

“It has an effect on my brain and when I went back to do my A levels, I really struggled. When I tried to write, my letters kept coming out upside down and back to front. It was really frightening.

I had two brain scans but they couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was wrong.”

After this, her studies became a real battle and while she soldiered on with her A levels, she didn’t do as well as she hoped.

Dreams of a literary career were abandoned and, frightened by an episode where she passed out in the street in Torquay, Julie became scared to stray outside her comfort zone.

“It was a terrible episode which happened very suddenly and no one helped me,” she says. “It took me a year to get the courage to leave the flat after that.”

Later, with a family of three children at home, Downton Abbey writer Julian Fellowes has given his support

Julie didn’t have much time to write and, in any case, felt such ambitions were now behind her.

“I always said I wanted to be a writer, but I never really believed it was an achievable goal,” she says. “There seemed to be so much luck involved as to whether you make it or not, and I was crippled with anxiety attacks because of my vertigo.”

But one day, Julie was up in her loft looking for something else, and she found those stories she had written as a little girl. “I thought, I want to be doing this again.”

So, alongside being a mum and working as a

[

breast-feeding advisor in her local hospital, Julie started writing The Cornubian. She chose the theme of pirates and smugglers for the fun of it, she explains.

“I’d watched Pirates of the Caribbean and thought ‘this is brilliant’ and we always went down to Cornwall when I was little,” she says. “I can remember going to museums with my mum and dad and learning about the smugglers. Some of the things that went on were just too colourful not to write about.”

This was no mean feat, as Julie was still troubled by her vertigo, which causes her to have episodes akin to a severe migraine. And when it came to getting published, Julie hit another challenge. “I sent The Cornubian to agents and publishers but they wouldn’t even open my manuscript because it was unsolicited,” she says.

She was beginning to despair when a friend suggested she give an enterprise called Britain’s Next Bestseller (www.britainsnextbestseller.com) a try.

This crowdfunding initiative allows wannabe authors to bypass the traditional publishing world by pitching their manuscript directly to readers, who are invited to buy a copy in advance.

Julie was given 16 weeks to sign up 250 preorders, and thus secure herself a publishing contract. There were plenty of doubters, among them the woman in a bookshop who told her she would ‘never get more than eight people to buy a copy’, but Julie was determined to meet her target.

She threw herself into contacting the press, leafleting cars with handwritten pleas in former pirating hotspots of the Westcountry and appearing on local radio, not to mention making appearances with Pirates of the Caribbean Johnny Depp impersonator Jonty Depp. Her husband and children joined in, dressing as pirates in publicity stunts.

“I decided couldn’t sell my book to people on my writing alone, so I said ‘let’s be funny and silly and do whatever it takes’,” says Julie. “At one point I put on my Facebook page that I would personally bring cakes to anyone who pledged to buy my book. I really did it too. I decided I had to go for it, because if you don’t give 110% you are not going to make it.”

And Julie, who seems to have a natural instinct for marketing, played an audacious trump card by appealing for help from celebrities, including

[

‘I never really believed being a writer was achievable, as I was crippled with anxiety’

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Interview Julie has overcome serious health problems to become a novelist

19

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11/02/2015 13:17:22

Interview

Hollywood actor Nicholas Cage, who didn’t write back, and to Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes, who did.

“He said ‘I like it, and I think Cornwall is ripe for an adventure,” says Julie. Julian, who lives in Dorset, wrote Julie a glowing endorsement which she added to her crowdfunding pitch, and even posed for photographs with her and her book at a function.

“He said, yours is the kind of determination that gets people places. He was absolutely lovely,” she says. “Apparently, he’s very good friends with George Clooney. I didn’t know that when I met him or I might have pushed for an introduction!”Julie is now planning a special trip to Dorset, to deliver Julian’s own copy, by way of a thank you for believing in her. She says that getting published has also made her believe in herself.

“Do not let life dictate what you can and cannot do,” she says. “I truly believe anything is possible if you persevere. If you want it enough and work for it enough there is nothing to stop you.”

The Cornubian by Julie Spiller, £8.99 www. britainsnextbestseller.co.uk

The Cornubian Hang on to your hats! Here’s a taster of Julie Spiller’s swashbuckling new novel

‘Do not let life dictate what you can and cannot do’

Cornwall, 1787: Warm candlelight penetrated the gloom of the heavily beamed bedroom, casting flickering shadows along its slanted ceilings as Josephine Bryant untied the string that encased the crumpled parcel. The stained, waxy paper and underlying tissue fell away to reveal a length of carefully folded lace. Jo drew it out and, turning towards the mirror above her dressing table, held it against herself. A smile spread across her face as she wrapped the delicate fabric around her shoulders and fingered the white and cream scalloped edge that draped over the soft skin of her chest.

A dark shadow appeared in the doorway. She became aware of another presence and turned abruptly.

“Another gift from MacBride?”

The voice was gruff, heavy with a sneer. It was Cardinham, her lover.

“It’s for our wedding, John.”

“It’s to win your affection.”

Jo turned back to the mirror, re-adjusting the lace.

“He’s happily married, as we are both very much aware.”

Her calmness incensed him further. Within a moment he was beside her, digging his fingers into her shoulders as he turned her to face him, his bloodstone ring burning her skin.

“For pity’s sake, Jo, open your eyes! These are smuggled goods!”

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THE CATHEDRALS EXPRESS

Nostalgic Days Out by Steam from EXETER

KINGSWEAR Wednesday 1 April & Sunday 19 April

Approx’ times - Depart EXETER: 1300 – Return: 1830 Join us on scenic day out to the English Riviera and enjoy racing along the famous sea wall at Dawlish before joining the picturesque Paignton & Dartmouth Railway finishing in Kingswear, a short ferry ride away from Dartmouth.

PRICES Pullman Style Dining: Premier Dining: First Class: Premium Standard:

£165 £139 £99 £69

Premier Dining and Pullman Style Dining passengers will receive a either a full English breakfast or Brunch on the outward journey and a two course meal on the return.

Tel: 01483 209888 www.CathedralsExpress.co.uk AD274 Ads.indd 2

Terms and Conditions apply 11/02/2015 15:00:28

Soak up splendour Sarah Pitt discovers some spectacular bathrooms at Elizabethan country house hotel Combe House, including a thatched one in the grounds where you can bathe in heated rainwater t goes without saying, really, that slick bathrooms, all chrome fittings and streamlined mirrors, would not be quite right for Combe House. This beautiful Elizabethan manor house, nestled in its own valley beside the picture postcard thatched village of Gittisham in east Devon, has too much historical character to sit easily with anything too modern.

In days of yore, one imagines, bathrooms in such a grand house as this would have had a large tub, filled laboriously by jugs of warm water being brought up the backstairs by legions of servants.

And this old fashioned charm survives, albeit incorporating modern comforts, in the Grade I listed manor where guests feel more like they’ve

I

arrived for a country house party than for a hotel stay.

The en suite bathroom in the Tommy Wax room, one of the grandest bedrooms in the house, is a case in point.

It has recently been refurbished, but in such a way that its old world charm is retained. The free standing bath with claw feet has an old-fashioned shower curtain to keep the drips from spilling from the “rainforest” power shower above it. A mahogany side table, meanwhile, is decorated with a large bunch of flowers, which during the warmer months, come from the gardens. Even the toiletries supplied, Penhaligon’s, are in keeping with the nostalgic feel of the house.

Whenever bathrooms in the house are refurbished, an ongoing project, owners Ruth and Ken Hunt gener–

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Interiors The magnificent copper tub in the Linen Suite is made for two

The garden bath house

[[ The oldfashioned charm survives albeit incorporatnig modern comforts

The bathroom at Combe Thatch Cottage

STYLE TIP: Fresh flowers from the garden and

old mahogany furniture add a nostalgic touch to the look of the bathrooms

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Interiors

[[

ally have to work with the ‘The idea is that space already allocated for one partner has ablutions. a bath and the “What we have here is a Grade I listed Elizabethan other sits beside property that is 450 years them, and they old, so we are somewhat restricted as to what we share a bottle of can and can’t do,” says champagne’ Ruth. “If we were to take all the rooms to bits, we would have to go through English Heritage, which makes it very difficult to do.”

They were able to be more adventurous, though, when they converted the old Victorian ironing room into their showcase Linen Suite, a calm space of greys and whites with luxurious furniture. Less traditional in feel than the rest of the house, it still references its history – the Hunts have kept the drying rack which takes up the entire ceiling.

And when it came to the bathroom, Ruth and her husband Ken really went for the wow factor, with a massive round copper bath which can easily fit two people for a luxurious soak.

“In Victorian times the ladies would have washed Ruth. “It is a romantic cottage, so it needed a their sheets in a round copper tub, which is where lovely romantic bathroom to go with it.” the idea came from,” she says. “We couldn’t find There’s another romantic bathroom to be found, anyone to make the copper bath in this country, rather unexpectedly, in what was the gardeners’ so we had it commissioned in India. People just outside loo at Combe. It has no electricity, so light love it, they are so surprised and wowed by it, it is is provided by candles and a Tilley lamp. The just totally unexpected but it fits with the room.” bath came from a reclamation yard, and Ruth There is also a copper bath in the Hunts’ latest painted its claw feet gold. In summer, the air is refurbishment project, Combe Thatch Cottage, a scented with flowers from the garden and the 600-year-old cottage with its own walled garden bath is fed by rainwater, heated by its own boiler. available as a romantic escape for two.

But arguably the most spectacular bathroom of “We decided to turn the second bedroom into a all at Combe is the open-air Thatched Bath House, lovely big bathroom with a love seat in it,” says pictured above, also in the woodland garden.“We

The Tommy Wax room, left, and thatched bath house, below

don’t tell people it is there, so they are wandering around and suddenly they discover it!”

It, too, is fed by rainwater, heated by a fire box, which Ken will light for any guest wanting to take a dip.

“It has gorgeous views over the parkland, the idea is that one partner has a bath while the other sits beside them and they share a bottle of champagne,” says Ruth. “It is a bit of fun really!

That’s how you stand out really in this business, by being a bit bonkers.”

Visit www.combehousedevon.com.

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Shopping

GET THE

LOOK

Copper side table, £98, www.frenchbedroomcompany

Mix old-world charm with touches of copper and terracotta

Florence vase, £30, www. thewhitecompany.com

Rustic flower pot scented candles, £3.95-£10.95, www. onebrowncow.co.uk

Antique mahogany chest of drawers circa 1850, £745, www. theoldcinema.co.uk

Girasol enamel jugs, £45 for set of three,www.loaf.com 25

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11/02/2015 14:15:02

Gardens

ANNE SWITHINBANK

How not to prune Devon’s Anne Swithinbank, panellist on Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time, advises us to step away from the shears awn grass is static, weeds are Shrubs in average sized gardens very biding their time and every often outgrow their space but it is easy to single autumn leaf has been keep them under control and at the same cleared away, so I would urge time allow them to retain their natural you to beware the trigger shape and bloom every year. Taking happy gardener. There is a certain breed the Weigela florida as an example, this of tidy person who takes to wandering very common deciduous shrub produces around the garden at this time of year masses of (usually) pink, funnel-shaped wielding secateurs and looking for someflowers in late spring. The flower buds thing to snip. If you are busy, away or are formed on stems produced during the otherwise laid up and previous summer, so a well meaning but unif you cut these away initiated spouse, sister, during winter, all the best friend or even a flowering potential jobbing gardener offers disappears down the Once shapely to ‘do a bit of gardengullet of a shredder, and elegant ing’ for you on an enor off to the municipal shrubs have ticingly sunny day, pocompost heap. New litely decline. A friend stems will regrow but been pruned recently said ‘yes’ and they won’t flower until into the shape she won’t have any the following spring of slightly flowers on her weigela (2016 in this case), so a this year. Other once whole year is missed. demented shapely and elegant If the badly timed hedgehogs shrubs have been winter pruning is pruned into the shape repeated annually, you of slightly demented may never see a flower hedgehogs and all is again. not well.

This is true of most spring and early Back in the day when I used to hire summer flowering shrubs, including myself out as a gardener, I took on a forsythia, deutzia and philadelphus. The customer whose gardener, a dapper correct pruning time is immediately after Italian, had reduced all her plants to neat flowering. You can thin out some older round balls. “Some of these plants used stems close to the base and prune back to flower” she wailed “but we hardly get some of the stems that have just bloomed, any now”. I told her they could be restored leaving short spurs behind. Then, the over a period of three years but only if she shrub has all summer to sprout new ones forbade the Italian from carrying out any on which the following year’s flower buds pruning at all. will form.

L

[[

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The friend with a butchered weigela also has a Himalayan honeysuckle (Leycesteria formosa) whose flowers appear in late summer and this was snipped back to about 1m/3ft. Fortunately, you can prune late summer flowering shrubs now, because the stems they produce from spring onwards have time to form flower buds ready for late summer. However, cutting them back to 1m/3ft means the regrowth will begin from this height, creating an ugly thicket which viewed from a seated position indoors will be at eye level. Either cut all the stems almost to ground level or thin them out to within a couple of joints of their base. This way, regrowth comes from low down in the plant, doing away with the eye-level thicket. Other late flowering shrubs include lavatera, buddleja, caryopteris and Hydrangea paniculata.

If you are glazing over because you neither know what you have or when it flowers, don’t worry because there’s an easy solution. Using loppers or secateurs, thin your overgrown shrub out pretty much whenever you like by removing up to one third of its growth. Target the oldest, tallest or worst-placed stems first and take them down close to the base or to a strong side growth. Stand back continuously and use your eye to make sure the shape remains balanced and you’ll end up with a lighter, smaller plant which retains its natural shape. Best of all, there will always be two thirds of flowering wood left behind, so blooms are guaranteed.

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

• C omplete the pruning of any overgrown hedges, thick ivy or other thickets before the birds begin to build their nests.

• S ow calabrese Either set two or three seeds per module and thin to one, or sow into a pot and transplant singly to cm/3.5in pots to grow on and plant out.

• Prune roses before they waste too much energy putting out new shoots. Shrub roses are pruned lightly by only a third but you can be harder on bush roses. With climbers, tie in the framework first, removing any older and unwanted stems.

Then prune side shoots back to two or three buds.

Question time with Anne West reader queries answered by Anne Swithinbank

Q

I have seen pictures of trilliums in books and magazines and would very much like to grow some. How do I go about it?

These are exquisite plants also known as Trinity flower or Wake robin. Most are North American woodland plants rising to about 40cm/16in and dying back to rhizomes after flowering. A whorl of three leaves forms an attractive collar for the three-petalled flowers above. White-flowered Trillium grandiflorum and maroon-petalled T.chloropetalum var.giganteum are classics of the tribe. They like a typical shaded woodland position of moist yet well-drained, humus rich, neutral to acidic soil. Young plants may take a few years to established and won’t thank you for disturbing them. A slightly raised will suit them.

Hand weed frequently so you don’t need to fork around them and mulch with leaf mould.

I sowed some broad beans in late November and covered them with fleece, which was left on to protect them from cold.

They grew, but seemed to rot and come out of the soil. Only a few are left.

Q

A covering of fleece is useful directly after sowing, to ward off cats, birds and (in my garden) badgers and will give the emerging seedlings protection against undue cold. However the hardy beans like ‘Aquadulce Claudia’ used for autumn sowings are generally pretty hardy especially in the south west. Either the beans rotted in wet soil, in which case mound your bed up above soil level next time. Or more likely they’d have been better of without the fleece which became wet and pushed down on the beans just as they were thrusting upwards, causing them to break and rot from the old seed case. If you live in a chilly spot, use a fleece tunnel.

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

Prune late flowering clematis such as ‘Etoile Violette’ and they will regrow a mass of stems on which to bloom later in the summer. Vigorous plants with many stems can be pruned almost with shears, to remove most of last years growth but leave a few buds behind on each stalk.

Sow seeds of your favourite chilli variety thinly and evenly over moist compost in a 9cm/3.5in pot. Place in a heated propagating case or a windowsill to germinate.

Transplant one per pot to grow on in a warm bright place.

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Beauty

Tried

RELAX

& tested

At £43 for a 125ml bottle, this luxury milk bath is a real-treatyourself indulgence, scented with gorgeous citrus blend of organic essential www. lucyannabella.com

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

Handy Revive winter-dry hands with the lavender and geranium scents of summer: This Bee Calm cream (£12.95) is handily handbag sized, too! www.berryred.co.uk

Deal of the week Good nudes: these Collection shadow palettes in ivory, grey and chocolate shades cost just £3.99 at Superdrug

CLEVER HAIR These ties don’t bind: No Kinky Stuff’s hair bands won’t leave a lasting impression on your barnet when it’s time to let loose. £7.95 for a card of five at: www.heyholla. com

Smooth...

Now this kind of ironing, we don’t mind.

Benefit’s come up with this clever new gel which smoothes out creases and tired looking eyes. £22.50 at www. benefitcosmetics.co.uk 28

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the review Three of the best:

Rose-based products A bouquet may be lovely, but rosethemed beauty treats last longer.

This week, Katie Wright seeks out the best of the bunch HEAVENLY FLORAL The latest addition to the beloved Jo Malone fragrance line-up is Red Roses Cologne, a blend of no less than seven varieties of the heavenly floral, with a dash of lemon and hint of honeycomb. You can personalise your perfume too, by having the bottle or lid engraved.. Jo Malone Red Roses Cologne,

£82 www.johnlewis.com

EYES RIGHT! Shimmer in Mac cosmetics’ half pearl, half frosted mineralised eye shadows, currently available in six gorgeous limited edition shades. £17 each at www.maccosmetics.co.uk

French roses L’Occitane’s latest fragrance, Arlesienne, is centred around rose scents from the famous French perfume town of Grasse, enhanced by sweet violet and saffron.

The range’s Beauty Oil carries the delicate scent, while softening skin and adding gloss to hair.. L’Occitane

Arlesienne Beauty Oil, £22 www.loccitane.com

Petal power Relaunched to celebrate the brand’s 30th birthday, Aromatherapy Associates’ delectable body lotion is your guaranteed route to rose-infused relaxation. Slather the rich cream on daily to leave skin feeling as soft as petals. Aromatherapy Associates Limited Edition Renewing

Rose Body Velvet, £50 www.aromatherapyassociates.com

fave!

Perfect pins We love this illuminating Tanworx body moisturiser for soft skin with a touch of shimmer. Only available for a short time, so £16.95 get it while you can at www.feelunique.com

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

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the review This week we try

M&S innovative sports wear Kathryn Clarke-Mcleod tries out the new fitness range from M&S, that promises to enhance your workout, as well as the way you look doing it...

Underwired push up high impact sports bra This bra is marketed as a bra that can take you from work to gym. So I did just that. I slipped it on under a soft blouse for the day, and was more than a little pleased with the shape it gave me. The straps are wonderfully padded, which made for comfortable wearing, and the light performance fabric made it light as a cloud. I almost couldn’t believe it would stand up to one of my workouts. To test the claim I put it through a particularly testing circuit of boxing, skipping and planks. This bra deserves an award for engineering. The forces were centralised neatly in the centre of my chest, where only minimal controlled bounce occurred (anything less would be uncomfortable and restrictive.) I could pant without feeling like a boa constrictor was wrapped around my chest, and when I peeped in the mirror I spotted a glimpse of unexpected cleavage. All without any threat of anything slipping out. I’m impressed. This bra costs £19.50, see more styles on www. marksandspencer.com

Adrenaline Iso-Viz jacket down from £69.99 to £34.99 www.mountainwarehouse.com

Quick Dry half zip sweat top with Cool Comfort technology If you like a long sleeve top to perform well when you exercise on cooler days, as well as look good when sipping post-workout lattes, then this is for you. On an outdoor trail run this kept me at an even temperature (breathable fabric means heat can move through the fabric) and dry (moisture wicking).

The trims are reflective so you are visible to drivers, and the level of detail includes a media loop to stop earphone cables from flapping about. There’s a media pocket for keys, phones etc and nifty thumb holes too. This top is £25, at the time of writing online stock was low, but there are a variety of innovative styles to choose from at www.marksandspencer.com

Training top with built in support £14.99 www.tkmaxx.com

Want a review? Send your request to westmag@westernmorningnews.co.uk 30

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Fashion

Adidas Supernova Glide Boost (customisable) from £115 www.adidas.com

Monster iSport Intensity waterproof headphones £80 www.qvcuk.com

Fit kit Our pick of the best ways to look good as you exercise

f you need an enjoyable incentive to keep fit, what could be more inspiring than some smart new gym kit?

At this time of year, daylight hours are still scarce and a high-vis jacket’s essential for outdoor running and cycling. Compression tights are the new thing to help your muscles recover after a workout, and are as slimming as a pair of Spanx. And when it comes to trainers, Adidas will now let you customise your running shoe colours, even adding text on each heel - maybe the words ‘run’ and ‘faster’ would be helpful?

Finally, power up some go-faster music and stow your smartphone in a waterproof armband – they are a lot more comfortable than they look.

I

Nike Smartphone armband £25 John Lewis

Proskins Slim high waisted compression tights £60 www. proskins.co.uk

Reebok ZCut TR trainers £70 www.reebok.co.uk

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Trend

How to wear it:

The slogan t-shirt Kathryn Clarke-Mcleod on the best ways to wear words ven the swiftest of ankle length skinnies. If you are 6ft lunchtime jaunts down plus, then I give you permission to the high street will put boyfriend jeans in the mix. Those reveal the dominance of shorter, and I include myself in that, the slogan tee. It really just don’t have the frame to pull off is a delightful little trend. It’s pure doubly baggy combinations. light-hearted fun, and most of the Speaking of short, this is a time for items are available from anywhere heels. Lucky for us all, the wedge is between £8 to £30, which makes for making a comeback this season. If guilt-free spending. you’re unafraid of the regular verThere are countless sayings to sion though, go big. I love these platchoose from. I am particularly partial form ankle boots from River Island to ‘Pardon my French’ (Saw it. Liked (pictured). The big chunky heels let it. Bought it) and ‘Nothing to Wear’. people know I mean business, while The latter is one the platform gives me I have been eyeballsome degree of coming for a while now, fort as I run errands. teetering on the cusp A nicely tailored There are of an actual purchase, on-trend jacket also fuelled by the logic elevates these tees. countless sayings that one just throws it This is not the time for to choose from. I on with a pair of troua hoodie or cardisers and it is guarangan. This season’s am particularly teed instant style cred. favourites include the partial to ‘Pardon Then, on a recent road tuxedo blazer and a trip, I saw a young structured biker. Their My French’ woman emerge from a feminine cut and clean BetFred in my beloved lines will keep your shirt and a pair of look edgy and crisp, trackies, and the illuwhich means it will be sion was shattered. Turns out, just well received at the office too. ‘throwing it on with some bottoms’ is And, if you really want to make not quite enough to take you to chic. this look your own throw in a hat. I Let’s just say that, on her, I genuinely was sceptical. But the minute I placed believed the message. this brimmed beauty on my head, I now feel that it is my duty to save I understood why the makers of other women from this same sorry Breaking Bad decided to use a hat as fate. So let’s run through a few simple a device to symbolise the transition to do’s and don’ts. an edgy alter ego (Sorry, I blame my This is very much an ‘it-girl’ style postmodern film studies course). In choice. You know, the type of girl in the case of the TV series, perhaps who likes to look like she has made it was bit too bad. This hat, however, no effort at all, when in reality the is just the right amount of fierce. outfit has been three days in the Follow these rules, and I guarantee planning. Honour that. These shirts you will stop traffic. Even if you are are not to be paired with your jogwalking out of BetFred. gers, cargo pants or yoga pants. Save those for gym, DIY and zen retreats, All fashion in these pictures is from respectively. If you are going down Princesshay Shopping Centre, Exeter, the denim route, choose dark fitted www.princesshay.com

Main Photo Hair: adam at Saks, Exeter Makeup: Clarins, Debenhams (both Princesshay) Photography: Steve Haywood Still-life photographs: PR Shots

E

Leather jacket, River Island, Princesshay, £50 Soft slogan tee, River Island, Princesshay, £30 Trousers, River Island, Princesshay, £38 Hat, River Island, Princesshay, £25

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NEW LOOK black Tres Chic T-shirt £7.99

NEW LOOK slogan vest £7.99

GET THE

look

+

NEW LOOK slogan t-shirt £9.99

M&S Indigo collection hat £25

Note: these babies will transform your jeans and t-shirt combo into the sassiest of outfits.

Buy them. Buy them now.

STREET STYLE HERO Charlotte Purnell

FABUCCI FOOTWEAR Red suede stilleto with bow detail by Menbur £145

Student, Exeter Jacket - Topshop Skirt - Urban Outfitters Shoes - Urban outfitters Knit - Topshop RIVER ISLAND high ankle boots £55

Charlotte says: I like to look smart, but prefer to build my look with a few casual elements. This means it’s never ‘too much’ 33

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Rainbow International Hotel Torquay Belgrave Road, Devon TQ2 5HJ 01803 213232 www.rainbow-hotel.co.uk star hotel 07970850008

Rock ‘n’ Roll March Madness

Weekender Friday 20th - Monday 23rd February 2015

£99

per person Half board 2 NIGHT STAY

Featuring

£129

From only £49 per person per night you can enjoy: • Two nights' accommodation and breakfast • Three course dinner on your frst night at the hotel • Cornish daffodils in your room on arrival • A fantastic 20% off any Spa treatments, when booked prior to arrival at the hotel

per person Half board 3 NIGHT STAY

MIKE BERRY & THE OUTLAWS Original hit maker from the sixties. Mike appeared in many tv commercials in the seventies and a role in childrens tv series Worzel Gummage and as Bert Spooner in Are you Being Served. Appeared with Buddy Holly’s original Crickets in 2006 when he headlined the Clovis Music Festival in the States.

Limited nightly availability on this special offer so call reservations on 01637 872211 to book today. Quote WMN. Available from Monday 23rd February until Thursday 26th March. *Friday and Saturday arrivals are from £55 per person per night.

COLIN PAUL & THE PERSUADERS Superb fve Piece Rock ‘n’ Roll band playing music from the late ffties to early sixties. Songs from Eddie Cochran, Chuck Berry, Cliff Richard, Johnny Cash, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis, Buddy Holly and many more.

ALLIGATORS (Fronted by the fantastic Tony Graham) Five piece band playing songs from the ffties and sixties.

Playing all your favourite hits.

LAST FEW ROOMS AVAILABLE!

Ads.indd 3

The Headland Hotel & Spa, Newquay, Cornwall TR7 1EW

+44 (0)1637 872211 • reception@headlandhotel.co.uk

©LW

ROGER DEE’S NOSTALGIA DISCO

©LW

Plus...

11/02/2015 15:04:31

Events

The hotlist: There’s plenty to do right now here in the Westcountry, from vintage fairs to wildlife workshops

1. Vintage Fair March 7-8, Mawgan Porth

#1

Calling all creative types – Bedruthan Hotel & Spa’s Midcentury and Vintage Fair is coming soon. You can browse 50 stalls of midcentury home wares and furniture, plus fashion and beauty stands. Entry is free and there are also a number of craft and fashion workshops and demos. Download tickets in advance from www.bedruthan.com

#3

#2

3. Sealed with a kiss 2. Build a scarecrow

Feb 18, 21, 22 RHS Rosemoor North Devon’s Royal Horticultural Society garden at Rosemoor has lots of half term fun planned for families,. Sign up for wildlife workshops and scarecrow-making classes. For details, visit www.rhs. org.uk or call 0203 176 5830 to book..

#4

4. Utterly Sublyme

Feb-March, Gweek

Year-round, Lyme Regis

Now’s the time to visit the adorable baby seals at the Gweek Seal Sanctuary in West Cornwall as they recover before being released back into the wild. A special £15 Pup Pass will enable you to pop in as many times as you like. See www. sealsanctuary.co.uk for details.

The Dorset coast is abuzz thanks to series two of TV’s Broadchurch, but it’s also the setting of much-loved novels The French Lieutenant’s Woman and Jane Austen’s Persuasion. Natalie Manifold offers scheduled and by-appointment tours based around the classics of Lyme literature - see www.literarylyme.co.uk 35

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culture vulture Our superb new guide to the arts scene in the South West by culture expert Sarah Pitt Fun for the kids Tall Stories, creators of The Gruffalo and Room on the Broom stage shows, have a new show for little ones, just in time for half term. They’ve adapted The Snail & The Whale, another much-loved picture book by author and illustrator team Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. The story of a snail who hitches a lift around the world on the tail of a humpback whale includes live music and lots of laughs. The Snail & the Whale, Hall for Cornwall, Feb 26-27, tickets from £12 www.hallforcornwall.co.uk

Behind the scenes in a stately home...

Page turner

February 28 and March 1

I’m a big fan of Exmouth writer Margaret James’s sassy and well-written romantic novels. I particularly liked The Silver Locket, which saw aristocratic Rose Courtenay fall for tall, dark and handsome Alex Denham during the First World War. Margaret’s latest book follows a descendant of Rose and Alex. London-based PR consultant Rosie Denham takes off to Minnesota, where she meets IT professor Patrick Riley, whose wife has just left him. They couldn’t be more different; she’s had a privileged English upbringing, while he was raised in poverty in Missouri. He’s married, she’s not. So when the pair fall in love, the prospects don’t look bright. But magic sometimes happens – right? Magic Sometimes Happens by Margaret James, Choc Lit, £7.99

After-hours visits to stately homes have an allure which surely stems from the feeling that you might encounter a ghost on the backstairs. So an arts project which sees the National Trust open the doors to four of its historic properties at night caused my ears to prick up.

One of them is Barrington Court in Somerset. Here, visitors are invited to explore the house from drawing rooms to servants’ bedrooms. Along the way dancers, actors and musicians will be performing. The finale is a concert by Patrick Wolf, pictured, described by one critic as “Britain’s most innovative radical and creative pop star”. Patrick’s music will be inspired by the people who once trod through these rooms. Night Songs featuring Patrick Wolf, Barrington Court, Somerset, Feb 28 and March 1, from £25 www.inbetweentime.co.uk

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Enjoy Truro: well worth a weekend

A WEEKEND IN...

MAIN PICTURE: MONIKA KLUD

Truro

t’s worth making a weekend in Truro as there is so much to do and see in Cornwall’s beautiful capital city. Vibrant but not hectic, it’s perfect for setting your own pace and enjoying days to remember.

Cocktails at Mustard & Rye

I

Stay: The Alverton Manor Hotel is stunning and only a short walk from the heart of the city. An overnight stay with breakfast in a double room costs £145. The Old Vicarage is a luxury B&B down by the river in the rural hamlet of St Clement just a couple of miles from the town centre.

Eat: Archie Browns has a meat-free menu in the cafe above its health food store on Kenwyn Street including the some of the most amazing (and filling!) salads you’ll ever taste. Try one topped with baked goats cheese (£7.50). Mustard & Rye is an American-style diner, with a Prohibition-era inspired Speakeasy cocktail. Try Beer Can chicken (£13.95) and check out the cocktail menu - ours is a Pomegranate Cosmopolitan - cheers! Fancy

catch of the day? It’s fresh in at the Falmouth Bay Seafood cafe - share a platter for £48.

Mustard & Rye

See: Arts venue Hall for Cornwall has a yearround programme of theatre, comedy and music.

Catch The Snail and the Whale on February 26 and 27, the latest play based on a tale by Gruffalo creators Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler.

Shop: If independent boutique and vintage shop-

The Old Vicarage

ping are your bag, you’ll be a happy bunny. Riffle through old vinyl at Music Nostalgia at the Lemon Quay Market. Tootsie and Tiger sells vintage glam accessories and new 50s-inspired frocks in sizes eight to 24. Find it in Tinners Court. Hang the diet: there so many treats to enjoy at the regular Saturday farmer’s market on Lemon Quay.

Treat: Find silversmith Victoria Walker’s lovely jewellery at Princes House, along with contemporary millinery by Holly Young. It’s also home to a range of stylish boutique businesses that are perfect for planning a wedding day.

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11/02/2015 14:06:50

Nathan Outlaw

The Mariners

MAIN PICTURE AND FAR RIGHT: MIKE ENGLISH

My Secret Westcountry Nathan Outlaw Originally from Kent, Michelinstarred Nathan Outlaw has spent much of his working life in Cornwall.

He met his wife, Rachel, while working for Padstow chef Rick Stein. They now live in St Minver with their two children and Bud the Lurcher.

My favourite...

MAIN PICTURE: ADDAM GIBBARD

Walk: I love walking with my dog, Bud, on Rock beach. It tends to be relatively quiet and it’s walkable from my house. My children love running up and down the dunes there too.

Great fun! We also like Cardinham Woods.

Walking through there is a bit like being in a natural playground. It takes me back to my childhood.

Scenic spot : The top of Roughtor on Bodmin Moor. It’s a bit of a walk but the 360 degree view is amazing and it’s so quiet. It’s a great place to think things over. The view from my new restaurant in Port Isaac is pretty scenic too, across the bay and straight out to sea. I’m spending far too much time daydreaming there!

Arts venue: Take your pick from the brilliant Rock

festivals in the area. I’ve been to most of them both as a visitor and a chef. Port Eliot Festival is good for music and Padstow’s food festival

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11/02/2015 14:19:45

People

in December has a lovely Christmassy atmosphere.

Restaurant:

My list of ‘likes’ is quite extensive! The Pony & Trap at Chew Magna; Porthminster Beach Café, St Ives; Casamia in Bristol; Food: It has to be the fantastic array of fish Chris Eden’s place Driftwood in Portscatho and seafood we have in the Westcountry. It’s and the last one I visited, The Cornish Arms in what drew me to the area and it’s what my Tiverton, where the chef John Hooker is doing business relies on. We really don’t know how lovely things. But to be honest, we’re spoilt for spoilt we are here. Of course, choice here in the Westcountry the local meats, cheeses and now. Oh, and I mustn’t forget the fresh produce are also the best Trevenson Restaurant in Cornyou can get in the UK. Oh, and wall College, Camborne where I had a great day clotted cream, of course. I have the student chefs cook and serve at Flambards to be very strong when it’s about under supervision to extremely so that I don’t eat the lot. high standards. People should with my kids. I really give that one a try. was daft enough Tipple: I really do like Sharp’s to try a ride Doom Bar. It’s a lovely brew, Treat: Time on my own, listeneasy drinking and acceptable ing to my music with no phone or that spins you to most people. A pint of Doom internet. upside down Bar after a long, hot restaurant service goes down a treat.

Day out: I don’t do that much as I’m always working! But I did Pub: I’m very excited about have a great day at Flambards The Mariners in Rock, the pub I now run with with my children recently. I used to go there as Sharp’s Brewery. Pub grub has come a long a child myself when I came on holiday to Cornway and customers demand a very high standwall. It really took me back. We had such a lot ard these days. I serve the very best quality of fun and because it was out of season, there ingredients available and it seems to be going were no queues. I was daft enough to go on one down well. I want it to be a ‘local’ as well as ride that spins you upside down. It seemed like attracting holidaymakers, and judging by this a good idea at the time. winter, we seem to be doing that, which I’m very pleased about.

‘Secret’ place: If I told you that, it wouldn’t be secret, would it?

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Padstow food festival

Flambards

Philosophy: At the moment, I’m thankful that life is good. If it gets even better, then so be it. I’m always open to new opportunities but I’m also happy with what I’m doing. As long as I can cook and have happy customers, and my family are happy and healthy, that’s fine by me.

Nathan’s fine dining restaurant Nathan Outlaw is relocating from Rock to to Port Isaac in March. He also runs several other eateries, including one in Knightsbridge, 39

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PHOTOGRAPHY: GRW PHOTOGRAPHY

[ Jamie’s Italian [ EATING OUT

By Becky Sheaves

’m so old that I can remember when Jamie Oliver wasn’t famous. Yes, that truly is ancient, isn’t it? I was thinking just this the other day, when I went to the launch of his latest restaurant, Jamie’s Italian, which has just opened in Exeter.

He just seems to have been around forever.

And yet, I credit myself with launching his career, back in about – oooh, must’ve been 1999. I really did, you know.

It’s very wow-factor, his new place, all glass and rustic tables, with amazing views of the Cathedral from the upstairs mezzanine, where I had a pretty good lunch – of which, more later.

Of course, it was not cooked by Jamie. Oh no. He is probably much too busy launching restaurants in Australia, or filming his umpteenth TV series, or writing yet another cookbook, or perhaps just spending time with his family and being an allround good guy.

And yet, so keen and so unknown was he in 1999 that he actually rode a moped to my flat

I

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in London and cooked me properly. As for life and romance, he breakfast, all on the promise of told me firmly that “I know it seems a newspaper article that I had boring, and I probably am boring, been asked to write about him. but I’m settled with Jools and she I credit myself Back then, he was “The is the one for me.” So that put the with launching Naked Chef” (remember?) flatmates in their place.

Jamie Oliver’s and aged about 23 was filmed My feature appeared in a national skateboarding, and zipping newspaper with the headline: career, back in around on his Italian scooter “Could this young man possibly be oooh - must’ve and sliding down banisters, the new Delia Smith?” Well, I think been 1999 before chucking some “pukka that question has most definitely pukka herbs” on an easy traybeen answered by now! bake style dish. My editor at So, what was our meal like? the time hauled me into her Well, I lunched with my colleague office, asked us to look into this Sarah Pitt and we were shown to a “Jamie, er, something-or-other” and do a feature table upstairs, which is lovely – filled with light on him. and with views of the top of Exeter Cathedral. I As a result, Jamie came to my flat (my flatmates should add, we were invited to try the food and we had hysterics, and kept running in and out of the didn’t (as I usually do) pay for our meal this week. kitchen on the flimsiest of excuses) and roundly To start, we had a few nibbles – flatbread, abused my kitchenware as “useless” while trying focaccia and olives, with a very good tapenade. to cook kedgeree with “three of the ten necessary All were excellent. For our main courses, Sarah ingredients”. Sorry, I said. ordered crab spaghettini which she liked very In person I found him focussed, determined and much and I had my eye caught by the special a perfectionist. Even though the kedgeree was of the day – whole sea bream in “acqua pazza” really only for the photographs, it had to be done (£13.95) which translates as “crazy water”. This

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4 of the best Italian restaurants Rojano’s

1 Rojano’s, Padstow

Owned by top chef Paul Ainsworth, who also runs the nearby fine dining restaurant Number 6, this familyfriendly Italian is in the heart of foodie Padstow. It offers good food at affordable prices, combining fresh Cornish produce with Italian recipes.

Dish of the day: Pizza Al Tartufo with truffle, Parma ham and gorgonzola Prices: Mains around £12 Contact: 01841 532 796

2 La Rosetta, Newton Poppleford

This long-standing Italian restaurant is an in East Devon village not far from Sidmouth. It serves the classic Italian dishes, with great pasta and pizza.

Dish of the day: Rump steak flambed in brandy sauce Prices: Mains around 312 Contact: 01395 568136 was absolutely delicious, in a light but flavourful wine sauce with olives and little tomatoes. The fish was done to perfection.

Our waiter wisely advised us to order vegetables on the side, which turned out to be very thinly sliced courgettes in chilli and lemon – again, very good. This is one of those restaurants where you need to order side dishes separately, which can have a tendency to ramp up the bill somewhat, but I couldn’t fault the quality of the ingredients or cooking in any way. One niggle is that they have crammed in the tables, canteenstyle, which means that this probably isn’t the place for discreet conversations.

This was a lunch on the fly, and Sarah had to dash off to do an interview. I was left for rather a long time trying to catch the waiting staff’s eye. It was very busy, as the restaurant had just opened, and the staff, although extremely pleasant, were stretched a little too thinly. I’m sure this will sort itself out soon.

Eventually, I was able to order a very delicious frozen yoghurt with pineapple, pomegranate and fresh mint leaves. I’m on a health kick right now and was glad to see something so light on the dessert menu amid temptations

such as chocolate brownies and cheesecake.

All in all, this is a good addition to the food scene in Exeter and, judging by the numbers who were there when we visited, looks set to be yet another of Jamie Oliver’s triumphs.

But like I said: I spotted him (almost) first!

Jamie’s Italian, 20 Bedford Street, Exeter

How they scored...

Food



Atmosphere



Service



Price

This was a complimentary meal, but mains are around £13

3 Giovanni’s, Barnstaple

Run since 1999 by chef Vincenzo Ferracuti from Rome, this is a firm favourite in North Devon. Great for pre-theatre menus before shows at nearby Queen’s Theatre.

Dish of the day: Risotto primavera - with chicken, mushrooms, peas, tomato and cream sauce Prices: Mains around £11 Contact: 01271 321274

4 Amici, Torquay

Opened in 2010 by the Petinelli family, this restaurant has good food and service, with all the favourite Italian dishes on its menu. It’s in the town’s newly-renovated rotunda, with lovely views of the harbour.

Dish of the day: Antipasto Siciliano sharing platter of Italian cured meats and snacks as a starter Price:s Mains around £11 Contact: 01803 201 770

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11/02/2015 12:51:56

Ingredient of the Week

Rhubarb

with Tim Maddams ow, I don’t want to drag out the same old cliches and bang you over the head with them. We know by now that rhubarb is a vegetable not a fruit and we are equally aware that the early stuff is forced in darkened sheds in Yorkshire to produce the delicate, pink stems and crunchy freshness we are all so familiar with at this time of year.

I would like to make a statement here: I think of rhubarb as a fruit. True, I have chopped it small and added finely-chopped onion and thyme and dressed the whole thing in rapeseed oil to garnish cured mackerel and even bass.

But I am most pleased to see the new rhubarb when I am thinking about pudding. I know, that’s terribly un-cool and out of touch - but then I am, too.

Whether it’s the flavour or acidity that gets you, if you like rhubarb you like rhubarb and that’s that. These tender stems are so fresh and firm they can simply be chopped into sticks and dipped into sugar, sherbet dib-dab style, and eaten raw. Yes raw, and no, it won’t make you

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sick. That’s the leaves, which definitely will make you ill.

Whatever you decide to do with it, please don’t over cook it (see panel, right, for the best way to tackle it) or it will turn to watery colourless sludge. And that is a crime against this fine thoroughbred variety of rhubarb. Save that treatment for the hard stuff that grows in the garden and needs the extra cookery to bring out the sweetness and flavour within.

In fact, you have a whole gamut of options available to you when it comes to forced rhubarb.

You can serve it up warm with ice cream or yoghurt, you can churn it into ice cream, you can make it into a sorbet, or frozen parfait.

What I like to do is double the value, so I cook it, drain off the liquid, shake this over ice with equal parts of gin and dry vermouth and have myself a very tasty rhubarb martini.

The left-over fruit itself ends up in a lightly spiced brownie mix and baked until just done.

The martini and the brownies go well together, or you can save the good stuff for yourself and palm off the brownies on the kids.

Gently does it

I think the very best way to deal with this wonderful early rhubarb is to dress lengths of it in a little honey, add a little black pepper and place the whole thing in a ceramic baking dish.

Cover with a tight fitting lid and place into a warm BUT NOT HOT oven, say around 80 degrees C, for around 40 mins, until it’s softened but still got some bite and sharpness to it.

This cooked (but not that cooked) rhubarb makes an excellent addition to trifle or, if you can manage a creme patisserie, then a rhubarb mille-feuille is on the cards and is well worth the effort. @TimGreenSauce

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

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Drink A meet-the-brewer evening is a great chance to try new beers

Beer of the week So, St Austell Dartmoor Best is no more and Cornish Best, instead, is on the St Austell bar.

My understanding was that this beer was to be Dartmoor Best re-badged, but this new version of the 3.5% ABV session bitter seems lighter in colour and tone, more balance towards the grassy, lemony hops rather than the biscuit malt, and in my humble op it is all the better for it. It’s clean, fresh, easy drinking and won’t have you under the table singing Eskimo Nell after a session.

The fight goes on… … on two fronts. CAMRA is pressing the Government to help save pubs, with an average 29 a week closing.

Meanwhile, the British Beer and Pub Association is pressing for a drop in beer duty for a third year at next month’s budget. The pub industry supports 900,000 jobs, many of which are for 16- to 24-year-olds.

Darren Norbury

talks beer ith its expanded craft beer range and ever-varying cask and keg lineup, national chain Wetherspoon’s reputation is riding high at the moment among many pub industry commentators. One of my favourites of their venues is the John Francis Bassett, in Camborne, and it was there I was drawn when Cornish Crown Brewery, from just outside Penzance, staged a meet-thebrewer evening.

Meet the brewer does just what you expect, and is another example of how the brewing industry doesn’t take for granted the support of loyal drinkers. On this occasion, it was also a chance for local CAMRA members to socialise and for Wetherspoon’s to offer managers from across its Cornish estate the chance to meet drinkers, too.

Owned and run by Josh Dunkley, licensee of the Crown pub in Penzance, Cornish Crown Brewery was established in 2011. It has since earned a good reputation in some of the finest beer bars around the country. I freely admit that, for me, this brewery has been something of a slow burner, but now I think the recipe for success is there.

There was a moment towards the end of last year when I tried the new Porter (5.2% ABV) on keg at the Driftwood Spars, St Agnes, and was stunned. It’s flavoured with just the right amount of Madagascar Bourbon vanilla to create a sump-

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tuous, smooth porter, just at the time the style was seeing a resurgence.

Another gem worth looking out for at the moment is Cornish Crown’s Red IPA (5.9% ABV), which has recently been bottled. It’s more amber red than red in the style of an Irish red, say, but there’s a lovely freshness, with red apple skin coming through and the malt background creating a sort of toffee apple effect.

An interesting experiment, again available to taste at this session, was a bottled green hop beer. Most green hop beer – the brewing equivalent of Beaujolais Nouveau – is rushed into cask, drunk fresh, then eagerly awaited in another year’s time. St Loy Wild Green Hop Beer (4.3% ABV) was, as the name suggests, made from some wild hops Josh happened upon at St Loy, in west Cornwall. Once he had established the ownership of them, he was given permission to harvest the hops – variety unknown at present – and get about 11kg for a green hop brew. Amazingly, it keeps its freshness well in the bottle, light in colour with refreshing, grassy herbal notes.

All in all a good evening, well hosted by ‘Spoons, and a great showcase for Josh and his busy sales manager Mark Bishop.

Darren Norbury is editor of beertoday.co.uk @beertoday

BEER SALES RISE A decade of decline in UK beer sales has come to an end, with a 1.3 per cent rise in 2014, according to the British Beer and Pubs Association. There was still a small decline in beer sales in pubs, though, as against shops. Come on people, you know what to do…

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11/02/2015 14:11:58

Living

MOTORS

Plenty of punch Scott Squires road tests the Seat Ibiza FR Edition ACT 1.4 TSI his particular supermini from SEAT but in its latest guise, the sharp looks are far in FR edition spec has something better than its rivals. With the FR Edition, you in common with a Lamborghini . get a few little extras over the standard spec, Nope, it’s not to do with its performincluding LED rear lights, twin exhaust pipes, 16ance, but does have inch alloy wheel, cruise control something to do with its engine. and a portable infotainment That’s right: it’s those three system. It provides you with letters, ACT, which stands for satellite navigation, Eco Trainer Active Cylinder Technology. function, Bluetooth connection Find a twisty What’s ACT? I won’t bore with music streaming and hand road and keep you with the long technical free phone, plus a few other little the engine on explanation, but put simply gimmicks. it shuts down half the engine The interior has soft touch the turbo and when it’s not needed. This has materials in all the right places you’ll be smiling become very common in big and with the FR spec you get from ear to ear engine cars, as it helps reduce some sporty additions like CO2 and fuel consumption. red seatbelts and a flat bottom In the Lamborghini the V12 steering wheel. The cabin’s becomes a V6 and in the Ibiza nicely laid out, with room for two the little turbocharged 1.4 four cylinder engine adults in the rear seats – just. An average size become a two cylinder. Seat claim that it can boot’s big enough for the weekly shop or spree at switch between four and two cylinder in 40 the shopping centre. milliseconds, I must say that I couldn’t tell when As this is an ‘FR’ spec car, it needs to perform it was running two or four. when you get out of town. So has this little You’ll probably recognise the Ibiza at a glance, 1.4TSI got the power and punch to make the Ibiza

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[[

sporty? Yes, this little 1.4-litre is an absolute gem, from its 1.4 litres you get 140bhp and a 0-62 time of just over seven seconds, with a CO2 figure of just 109g/km, which are all better than the diesel in the range.

Find a twisty road and keep the engine on the turbo and you’ll be smiling from ear to ear. The Ibiza is a very capable little hatch. There’s a little bit of body roll around the bends and if you push it hard it will understeer, but drive it within its limits and it’s great fun.

Even with a fair bit of exuberant driving, the gem of an engine still managed to average over 35mpg. The cylinder-on-demand function of the engine is excellent, as I couldn’t tell you if it was working or not - a Good Thing - and from the mpg figures I achieved I would say it was working.

On the commute to and from work on our potted roads, the Ibiza does a great job of ironing out the bumps, while the engine is always ready and willing for a quick getaway or lane change.

The slick gear change and light steering make this a pleasure to drive in the city. In fact, you’ll be surprised at just how good a car the Ibiza is: SEAT’s no longer the poor sister of the VW group.

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gadget notebook HI TECH: Toys

15 February 2015

Family fun goes futuristic

New friend This battery-operated balancing robot, controlled by hand gestures, will dance, follow a path, play games and generally show off its impressive array of tricks. The extra joy is putting the carry tray on, loading it up and marvelling as he happily wheels its wares. Control from an armchair over Bluetooth with either an iOS or Android app.

MiP Robot - £79.99 from menkind.co.uk

Puzzle At a glance 0-62 mph: 7.6 Max speed: 130 CO2 (g/km): 109 Combined mpg: 60 Price: £16.660

Once the 100 pieces are all in place, hover your device over the completed puzzle and activate one of three interactive games that bring the jigsaw to life. Ravensburger Finding Nemo Augmented Puzzle - £8.99, amazon. co.uk

Trigger app-y With the free ARC app loaded onto your device, it’ll host races for you as you chase the cars around the five-metre track with your trigger control. It’ll count laps, give you speed information and send you into the pits when your engine or tyres need attention.

Scalextric 1:32 Scale C1329 ARC One £54.99, amazon.co.uk

jump This can leap up to 80cm in the air then always land back on its circular feet.

On-board is a camera that can stream live footage of your antics back to your smartphone.

Parrot Jumping Sumo £139.99 from firebox.com

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My life

[

man and boy

Spare the rod...

[

Phil Goodwin, father of James, 5, has discipline issues

s a lapsed Catholic, I read the Pope’s recent comments on smacking children with a degree of alarm and hilarity. The latest Pontiff reportedly thinks spanking kids is okay, just so long as you don’t hit them in the face. That way, he says, they can maintain their dignity. Okay... And according to the report, he unearthed this nugget of insight during a conversation with a devoted father who humbly admitted during a meeting of couples that, yes, he did hit his children ‘a bit’, but never in the face so as to ‘not humiliate them’. This, the man-in-white thought, was ‘beautiful’. ‘He knows the sense of dignity! He has to punish them but does it justly and moves on,’ was the Papal pronouncement. Wow. As I understand the law, it is not illegal to hit your children in Britain, provided it leaves no worse

A

than a brief red mark, so there’s no conflict for the faithful there. But the idea of slapping a child across the face sounds brutal – and how bizarre to consider that sparing kids the full force of an adult hand across the cheek is a thing of beauty.

However, what amused me was the idea that being slapped on the backside allows a child to maintain their dignity. I think this perhaps reveals the Holy Father’s lack of detailed knowledge of kids. When I slapped James on the bum once, he was deeply humiliated. In fact, he went totally ballistic.

Having suffered violence at the hands of the Roman Catholic Church as a youngster at school, I am against using smacking to discipline kids.

I have done it, a handful of times (never in the face, of course), but on reflection it has always been because I have lost my temper, not because I calmly decided it would be a painful but necessary step in my lad’s education. When all else fails, give them a slap. Unfortunately, in my case, that failed as well.

So when I see the exasperated parent fighting with a toddler in a supermarket and resorting to a smack, I tend to feel sorry for

[

them, because I know how it feels to lose it completely. To be honest, most tried-andtested shock-therapy procedures have failed to work on James, including the naughty step and naughty room – a walk in wardrobe in our case which left me feeling a bit weird… why am I forcing my son into a cupboard? At the risk of sounding like a Scandinavian childcare therapist, the only thing that brings my boy back from the brink of extreme naughtiness and temper tantrums is time and talking.

This ‘softly, softly’ approach goes against the grain a bit because when someone is screaming at you, throwing stuff, pushing over chairs and maybe even hitting you (fun at times in our house) you do want to give the little so-and-so a slap. But you also have to keep in mind the fact that you are, in boxing terms, a light-heavyweight in the ring with a flyweight.

Showing love, restraint and understanding at this moment of huge stress and drama, I would suggest to Pope Francis, is the thing to be admired, rather than selecting different parts of the body to administer blows.

I am of the generation that was beaten at school, with shoes, sticks, hands, board dusters, rulers… you name it. I wouldn’t say it did me now harm – I was a cosmically rebellious teenager. Our headmaster Brother Maximus (straight up, that really was his name) used to cane us in his office. There was often a line outside. But he was tame in comparison to the deputy head, Willie Mac, who once broke a boy’s finger. Corporal punishment is now banned in British schools but still prevalent elsewhere in the world. The Vatican says it doesn’t promote the practice, but can’t enforce a ban on its use in Catholic schools either. Given that the Pope speaks for God on Earth, a few choice words from him ought to be enough. Of course, there would also have to be a will to put a stop to it.

The softly-softly approach is hard when a kid is screaming and pushing over chairs

[

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11/02/2015 14:18:31

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