Alconbury July 2020

VILLAGER The

Issue 98 - July 2020

and Town

Life

LOCAL NEWS • LOCAL PEOPLE • LOCAL SERVICES • LOCAL CHARITIES • LOCAL PRODUCTS

In this issue Paddling Pool Safety

Get Moving for

Mental Health Win £25 in our Prize Crossword

Bringing Local Business to Local People Every Month in Alconbury, Grafham, Kimbolton, The Stukeleys ur and all surrounding areas Yo EE R py

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Inside this issue...

News from EAAA

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The History of the Pandemic....................................... 4 Paddling Pool Safety................................................... 8 Nick Coffer’s Weekend Recipe.................................... 10 Wines Worth Locating: The Winebarn........................ 12 Get Moving for Mental Health................................... 14 Summer Dressing to Keep Cool................................. 17 Lasting Power of Attorney and a Will........................ 18 News from East Anglian Air Ambulance.................... 23 Silver Splendour........................................................ 24 Lockdown Musings.................................................... 26

The Good Pet Owner’s Guide to Summer................... 29 Exciting Car Technologies.......................................... 30 What do our national animals say about us.............. 32 Make your Outdoors Great......................................... 35 Puzzle Page............................................................... 36 Not Wired for Sound.................................................. 38 Gail’s Guide to Gin..................................................... 40 Villager Prize Crossword............................................ 42 Book Review............................................................. 44 Useful Numbers........................................................ 47

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The Good Pet Owner’s Guide to Summer

Get your business off to a flying start this year

Advertise with the Villager Magazine... prices start from just £30.00 +VAT per month Editorial - Catherine Rose, Tracey Anderson, Nick Coffer, Trevor Langley, Kate McLelland, Jennie Billings, Ann Haldon, Pippa Greenwood, Rachael Leverton, RSPCA, Aidan Wilson, Gail Mitchell and Kate Duggan

Advertising Sales/Local Editorial Nigel Frost • Tel: 01767 261122 nigel@villagermag.com Front Cover Photography - famveldman Design and Artwork - Design 9 Tel: 07762 969460 • www.design9marketing.co.uk

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Disclaimer - All adverts and editorial are printed in good faith, however, Villager Publications Ltd can not take any responsibility for the content of the adverts, the services provided by the advertisers or any statements given in the editorial. No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored without the express permission of the publisher.

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History

By Catherine Rose

The History of the Pandemic Despite our increased global mobility meaning pandemics are potentially more likely, diseases have been crossing country borders for centuries.

One of the earliest pandemics, the Justinian plague, began in 500 AD, spreading from Egypt into Palestine, the Byzantine Empire and then Europe.

Similar to bubonic plague, it killed twenty-six per cent of the world’s population – around five hundred million – thwarting Roman Emperor Justinian’s plans to revitalise the Roman Empire.

1347 saw the first wave of the Black Death, a pneumonic form of bubonic plague – one of the most devastating pandemics in human history.

Originating in Asia, it is likely to have travelled along the Silk Route and then by ship into Europe. It is believed, as with later outbreaks, that it was spread via fleas contaminated with the yersinia pestis bacteria.

The disease is estimated to have killed hundreds of millions of people worldwide and up to sixty per cent of the population in Europe. Characterised

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by a fever and buboes, the Black Death could kill within hours. Whole villages were wiped out and in cities people were confined to their homes, a cross marking the door to indicate if they had the plague within. Carts were piled high with bodies as people were ordered to ‘bring out their dead’.

It wasn’t until the nineteenth century that the bacteria were discovered. At the time, it was believed that the plague was caused by miasma or ‘bad air’. It was even thought that the illness could jump out of a dead man’s eyes and infect a healthy person.

Many believed that sinners were being punished.

Groups of flagellants took to the streets, whipping themselves to appease an angry God. What a strange sight that would be to us today!

The Black Death lasted until 1352 and had huge economic and social repercussions.

Instances of bubonic plague returned over the following centuries. In 1665, the Great Plague of London spread from ports along the Thames and

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killed twenty per cent of its population. As has happened more recently in China, it was believed that cats and dogs were spreading the disease and many were slaughtered.

The term ‘quarantine’ was coined in Venice referring to a period of forty days – the optimum time necessary for the spread of an epidemic to be contained. Cities that implemented quarantines were found to be less affected by fast-transmitting diseases.

The first of several cholera pandemics began in Russia in 1815. Acquired through contaminated water and food, the British Army unwittingly spread this serious bacterial illness across the British Empire.

Eventually India, China, Indonesia, Japan, Spain, Italy, Germany and America all succumbed to the pandemic. Millions of people died from the rapidly fatal effects of the disease which causes severe diahorreah and dehydration.

Another outbreak occurred during the Crimean War between 1853 and 1856. Nurse Florence Nightingale became famous at this time for her tireless efforts to improve unsanitary conditions.

A vaccine was created in 1885.

Smallpox, caused by the variola virus, is one of the most devastating diseases. Various outbreaks have occurred over the centuries with the earliest believed to have been as far back as 10,000 BC. During the twentieth century alone, smallpox was responsible for up to five hundred million deaths worldwide. It was finally declared by WHO to be eradicated in 1980.

The fact that COVID-19 originated in animals is one of the reasons it has been taken so seriously.

However, it is not the first pandemic virus to do so. The Spanish flu, which struck worldwide during

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1918/19, is believed to have started in birds.

Unlike regular flu, the illness targeted healthy young people more than it struck the old. With this particular strain, it is thought to be due to older people having built up more immunity over the course of their life.

Although nicknamed the Spanish flu, it first appeared in Kansas, America in 1918. Due to World War I, many European countries had news blackouts and initial announcements of the disease came from Madrid, which led to people believing it had begun in Spain.

Its arrival towards the end of the war meant it spread rapidly in the unsanitary and confined conditions of the trenches. And it came at a devastating time when populations had already been decimated.

This particularly deadly flu primarily attacked the lungs, leading to severe bronchial pneumonia. It infected a third of the world’s population and resulted in around fifty to one hundred million deaths.

During its year-long reign, public places were closed and people told to wear masks, self-isolate and not shake hands. At the time it was believed to be caused by bacteria; much smaller viruses were only discovered later.

India was one of the worst affected countries due to the high number of people living in close proximity there. Tasmania closed its borders early and implemented a strict quarantine period – as a result the pandemic was mildest by comparison.

Today, we are better informed about the spread of disease, our lives are more sanitary and scientists can more easily predict outcomes and implement strategies that contain it.

Stay safe and well.

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Parenting

Paddling Pool Safety With more of us staying at home this summer many of us will be tempted to buy paddling pools and bathing pools (if we’re lucky enough to have a large enough space). Most parents are hypervigilant when near a hotel or campsite pool, but it’s easy to become more complacent when we’re at home in our own ‘safe’ environment.

It’s possible for a young child to drown in just a few inches of water. That’s why it’s important not to overfill your paddling pool: 5-10cm of water is enough for lots of splashy toddler fun.

Just as you’d supervise a child while playing in a hotel pool or on the beach so it’s important to supervise them while they are playing in a paddling pool. If you need to step away for a moment to answer the phone, switch the kettle on or check on dinner – be sure to take the kids out of the pool while you’re away. It might be a bit of a faff but so much better to be safe not sorry.

I’m betting you check that baths are not too hot when you run them. How many of us check our pools are not too cold? Water from outdoor taps tends to be very chilly. Adding a kettle or two of boiling water to the pool to take the chill off before the kids use it is kinder to tiny bodies.

The area around your paddling pool tends to become very slippery very quickly. A couple of old towels for them to stand on as they climb out helps

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By Tracey Anderson

to prevent accidents.

If you’re re-using a pool from previous years make sure you give it a thorough clean to get rid of cobwebs, bird and mouse droppings and general muck before filling it with water. Children ingest a surprising amount of paddling pool water and you really don’t want any nasty tummy bugs. A tablespoon of bleach when cleaning and rinsing it AFTER use will help keep it spotless and safe.

Gardens are full of sharps things, like twigs and stones. To avoid puncturing the pool, or inflicting any nasty cuts and grazes, check it for sharp objects before filling and keep an eye out for new debris whilst the kids are leaping in and out. If you do spot a puncture, tear, or rip, you’ll need to fix it before letting your kids play in it. Once filled with water a damaged pool can collapse or deflate depositing water and bathers all over the lawn!

The bright colours and sparkly water in paddling pools means they are a magnet for insects! You may need to fish a few out of the pool now and then. A small net, or an old sieve is great. It might also be a good idea to apply plenty of insect-repellent to your children to help ward off things that bite and sting!

Sun protection is important. Beachwear with a high SPF is perfect paddling pool attire. And don’t forget to slather on lashings of high SPF waterproof sunscreen and keep reapplying throughout the day.

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Food & Drink

Vietnamese Duck Salad Serves 4 people I used to live in East London and we had some wonderful Vietnamese restaurants there. I fell in love with this cuisine. It’s often light, fragrant, crunchy and healthy. And those four words perfectly describe this duck salad.

The star here is the dressing, which is so versatile. It was made for my show by Anne Harvey, who launched her catering and cookery course company, Taste of Vietnam, in St Albans to showcase all that is great about her country’s food. This is simple food, executed to perfection.

Ingredients 2 duck breasts 1 onion 1/2 red cabbage (shredded) 2 green mangos (peeled and julienned) 2 carrots (peeled and julienned) 15 mint leaves (roughly sliced) 10g piece of ginger 2 shallots For the dressing: 1 tbsp fish sauce 1 tbsp lemon/ lime juice 1/2 tbsp sugar 2 tbsp hot water 1 tsp garlic (finely chopped) 1 tsp chilli (finely chopped) 1 tsp ginger (finely chopped or grated) 1 tbsp crushed roasted peanuts

1. Bruise the ginger with a meat tenderiser or rolling pin. The ginger should remain in one piece.

2. Place the duck breasts in a saucepan and cover it with boiling water.

3. Add the ginger, 2 shallots and a pinch of salt to the pan. Cover with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes on a medium heat.

4. Take the duck out, leave it to rest and thinly slice it just before serving it.

5. While waiting for the duck to be poached, prepare the sauce.

6. In a small bowl, add the fish sauce, lime or lemon juice, sugar and hot water. Mix well until the sugar has dissolved. Add the ginger, garlic and chilli.

7. In a mixing bowl, combine the mango, carrot, red cabbage and mint. Add a tablespoon of dressing and toss well.

8. Transfer to a plate, add the duck breast slices on the top, and garnish with crushed peanuts and more of the dressing.

(NOTE: Duck breast can be replaced here with chicken breast or tiger prawns.)

Hear wonderful recipes on Nick Coffer’s Weekend Kitchen every Sunday morning on BBC Three Counties radio at 11am. You can also join Nick every weekday afternoon at midday for brilliant local guests with great stories to tell and all the music you want for your early afternoon.

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Food & Drink

Wines Worth Locating The Winebarn Germany utilises Riesling grapes to great advantage and the resulting wines have a range from Trocken (dry), Kabinett (medium-dry), through medium and sweet, to Beerenauslese (very sweet) and Eiswein (even sweeter).

The WineBarn Ltd company specialises in finding, importing and offering German wines of superb quality and elegance. Their MD is Iris Ellmann. Iris is very much acknowledged and respected. One of the UK’s first Fellows (The Riesling Fellowship), Iris is an expert in German wines. The team are extremely proud of having been recognised as The IWC Best German Wine Merchant. Advice includes recommendations for food pairings, any occasions and events. The WineBarn also offers a Rare and Antique Wines Service, sourcing elusive investment wines from hidden German cellars. For this ‘quest’ I searched for dry Riesling wines.

The Allendorf family have a history of over 700 years, living and working in the Rheingau region, which is home to the famed Riesling white wine grape. Their estate is recognised as one of the largest family-owned wineries in the Rheingau. Allendorf Save Water Drink Riesling (dry) has a primary fruity sensation, including apricot and crisp apple, for the nasal senses. Continuing to the mouthfeel and palate’s enjoyment, this is a very popular, refreshing wine. www.thewinebarn.co.uk/collections/allendorf Since the latter part of the 15th century the Aldinger family have worked the land in the town of Fellbach.

Committed and dedicated to their productions, the wines produced have exceptional quality. Aldinger Rebhuhn Riesling Trocken I found to have very acceptable orchard fruits on the bouquet. Certainly crisp and fresh, with a good finish on the palate. Ideal to grace many dining tables, this is another popular production. www. thewinebarn.co.uk/collections/aldinger Riesling wines are great to accompany numerous dishes of cuisine, as well as having the ability to be enjoyed on their own. These and many more excellent wines with a passion - a good number of which are (multi) award-winning - are available from The WineBarn Ltd. Ordering is easy and available online, too. Orders are dealt with quickly and efficiently, dispatching to all types of properties, including hotels, Michelin-starred restaurants, retailers, private clients, homes and offices.

The WineBarn is delivering now.

The WineBarn Ltd, 16 Taylor’s Yard, Sutton Scotney, Winchester, Hampshire, SO21 3XX, England.

Tel: 00 44 (0) 1962 761215 E-mail: wine@thewinebarn.co.uk www.thewinebarn.co.uk

As always, Enjoy!

ey Trevor Langl

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Health

By Kate McLelland

Get Moving for Mental Health During the lockdown, with so little choice of things to do, it may well be that a walk round the block became part of your daily routine. That should have reminded you of the physical and mental benefits of fresh air and moving around.

But as lockdown eases, if you find you have reverted to form and even the very word ‘exercise’ makes you want to retreat to the sofa to binge watch Netflix, we hear you!

It really doesn’t have to be a chore though. Any type of exercise is useful, as long as it suits you and you do enough of it. It should be something you enjoy or it will be hard to find the motivation to do it regularly.

As the saying goes: necessity is the mother of invention and the last couple of months have been amazing for introducing exercise that doesn’t involve being in a gym. From martial arts in the garden, online yoga and cycling to just that brisk walk round the block.

Exercise to boost your mood Aerobic exercises, where your heart rate is elevated, have been shown to help depression. They reduce your levels of cortisol (AKA the ‘stress hormone’).

You could try jogging (using the Couch to 5K app to keep yourself motivated), a virtual exercise class or just dancing in your kitchen.

Exercise to ease anxiety Yoga and pilates can have a direct impact on your nervous system, helping to calm it down and ease anxiety. Some studies have shown that yoga can also be beneficial for tackling depression, alleviating stress and even reducing pain and blood pressure.

Exercise in nature According to a study by the University of Exeter, spending two hours a week in nature is good for both your mental and physical wellbeing. This could mean your local park, a field or even doing an outdoor

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circuits session in your garden.

Virtual exercise classes Joe Wicks runs weekday PE classes at 9am on his YouTube channel and you don’t need to have children to take part. If the family classes are too energetic, try some of his other workouts, such as the ones aimed at seniors.

Don’t fancy PE? You’ll find dance, martial arts and more online. The dance troupe Diversity teaches regular classes on www.20dv.co.uk. And you can take part in Oti Mabuse’s free dance classes on her YouTube channel whenever you want.

Exercising with a health condition If you’re worried that exercise might make an existing health condition worse, do speak to your GP. Finally the NHS offers more than 20 instructor-led workouts at www.nhs.uk/conditions/nhs-fitnessstudio, starting from just 10 minutes long. There’s even a 30 minute workout using your sofa!

Keep motivated Make a note of how you feel before and after your workout. Try rating your anxiety and mood and see whether the workout has had a positive effect.

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We’re recruiting people who care At Care UK, we’re committed to delivering the highest quality care for residents in our care homes, and we’re looking for caring and passionate people to make that happen.

You’ll need to be used to caring for others or you may have looked after someone elderly. What is for certain is that you will have a real desire to help others and lots of energy and enthusiasm.

In return, we’ll offer you a range of benefits, flexible hours and an award-winning training and induction programme that will make you will feel confident and supported from day one. You’ll also have the satisfaction of helping make people’s lives more fulfilling in a role where the work can be hard, but also fun and rewarding.

Search our vacancies and find out more about Care UK at careers.careuk.com or email rcs.recruitment@careuk.com We’re recruiting

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receptionists

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House of Colour

Summer dressing to keep cool Whether you love summer clothes or find hot weather dressing frustrating here’s my guide to keeping your cool in the warmer months.

Summer Dressing • We’re very good at wearing very little as soon as it gets hot in this country (often little opportunity I know!) but it’s not always doing us a favour. The more flesh we expose the less authority we hold.

If you’re in a professional setting, and even on a zoom call, keep your shoulders covered. A light weight jacket or even a fine knit cardigan at work is great to have on call.

• In warmer weather we can lose our own style in an effort to keep cool – anything will do! Think a little bit about your lifestyle and have a few items that serve you, give you style and shape, in really warm weather (it does still happen here!). Not all of us can work a linen peasant dress but all of us have some styles that we can use in really hot weather to keep cooler. For example I can’t do the maxi or midi dress (look like a small child lost in a grownup outfit!) but I can do a neat halterneck.

• Quality – buy less buy better. I think as our summer months can be so erratic we splurge when its warm on cheap clothing to get us by.

Investing in a summer wardrobe can seem a waste when our weather is so unreliable. But, our summers have been getting warmer and it looks like that will continue. Look for those quality items that you will wear every year in versatile colours, and the ones you absolutely love. A neutral item on the bottom half will always be more useful that a bright shade. Also, be critical of your clothes. Are they still looking good? Have they seen better days? Remember your clothes are speaking for you.

• Sales – tempting I know to go for the bargain options around but if you wouldn’t have bought it at full price then why are you buying it now?

It won’t be a bargain if it sits clogging up your wardrobe.

• Grooming, grooming, grooming. So this is a challenging one currently but it is really key to looking good in the summer months! It’s tempting to give up on make up too but a light dusting of foundation and some lipstick will help to define your look.

• Invest in good underwear for the summer.

Underwear should not be visible! Generally it needs to be a nude shade and smooth to avoid lines. If you’re stuck or hate underwear shopping

there is a virtual solution from BraSense. She’s a miracle worker.

• Accessories – again we can forget about our accessories in warmer weather. They’re a quick way to update our look if we aren’t into investing in clothes. More importantly they complete our look, making us look finished and put together.

Think about that cameo area in your online call too, you’ll look the part with your jewellery on.

They aren’t just a piece of fun, they’re important!

• If you’ve had to have a massive clearout recently because you’ve not been wearing most of your wardrobe and are worried you might make the same mistakes again, find your local stylist for free no-obligation chat.

Enjoy your clothes this summer!

By Jennie Billings, Colour and Style Consultant, House of Colour www.houseofcolour.co.uk/jenniebillings e:jennie.billings@houseofcolour.co.uk

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Finance

By Ann Haldon

How Can You Protect Your Money With a Lasting Power of Attorney and a Will?

Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs) are legal documents that help to protect your money if you’re unable to manage your own finances for any reason. Wills contain instructions on how your money should be distributed when you die.

So why should you make a Lasting Power of Attorney and a Will, and how do you do it? Let’s start by looking at Lasting Powers of Attorney.

What is a Lasting Power of Attorney and why do you need one?

A Lasting Power of Attorney is a document that appoints one or more individuals (attorneys) to make decisions and act on your behalf (the donor) in relation to your property, finances, health and welfare.

Should you suffer a stroke, lose mental capacity or experience a debilitating ailment, a Lasting Power of Attorney ensures important aspects of your life are taken care of by one or more individuals you trust.

Setting up a Lasting Power of Attorney You can ask a solicitor to draw up these documents for you or set them up yourself. If you decide to set up a Lasting Power of Attorney yourself, you must be over eighteen and have the mental capacity to do so.

There are two types of Lasting Power of Attorney: • Property and financial affairs • Health and welfare You can download the forms from the gov.uk website or complete them online. They must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before they can become effective, which currently costs £82 per document.

What is a Will and why do you need one?

A Will documents your wishes regarding what happens to your money, property and possessions

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when you die. This may be a straightforward instruction to pass your entire estate to your spouse, for example, but some situations are more complex.

A Will allows you to decide in advance who will inherit your money and possessions. Making a Will helps you avoid inheritance tax, or reduce it – inheritance tax currently stands at 40% and applies to some deceased estates over £325,000.¹ How do you make a Will?

As with a Lasting Power of Attorney you can ask a solicitor or professional Will writer to make your Will or you can do it yourself. Some charities also offer free or reduced cost Will-writing services in return for a donation, so this may be worth considering.

It’s sensible to seek professional assistance in drawing up your Will if your circumstances aren’t straightforward. If you do decide to write your own Will, you can buy ‘blank’ templates that provide simple guidance and example wording at stationery stores and online. You’ll need to consider who to appoint as your Trustee(s) and who will inherit your money and possessions.

Drawing up a Lasting Power of Attorney and a Will protects your money if you fall ill or lose mental capacity, and in the event of your death. Writing these documents is an important consideration at any age, but it becomes more so as you get older – a time when your health may be more likely to fail. ¹www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax www.gov.uk/power-of-attorney www.which.co.uk/money www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/articles/ planning-what-to-leave-in-your-will

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Local News

East Anglian Air Ambulance is still flying and saving lives, thanks to the community The team at East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) has been working incredibly hard to keep the charity’s helicopters and rapid response vehicles operating throughout the crisis, never missing a shift.

The medical teams are available 24/7 (with the rapid response vehicles used at night when both helicopters are offline) and ready to respond when needed. While Covid-19 has been dominating the news, people are still having cardiac arrests, medical emergencies and accidents at home and road traffic collisions, which is when the EAAA critical care teams are needed to help save lives and get patients to hospital for further treatment.

Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire are well served by EAAA, which flies out of Cambridge Airport between 12pm and 12am with the rest of the day covered by rapid response vehicle. The teams have been tasked to Bedfordshire 56 times so far this year, and 167 times to Cambridgeshire to provide emergency care.

EAAA is proud to keep operating despite the challenges Covid-19 has presented. The main change is that its teams now have to wear personal protective equipment (PPE) on all missions. And will have to do so for the foreseeable future. The risk of being exposed to Covid-19, when the teams know very little about the patients they are treating, is going to be high for a long time. Especially as the EAAA doctors and paramedics are delivering critical care procedures

which put them at a greater risk of coming into contact with droplets from a patient.

Adapting to this need and sourcing and financing the equipment has been a huge task for the charity.

Thanks to an overwhelming response to its emergency PPE appeal, the community has come through and helped to support the charity at an uncertain time.

However, to keep its helicopters flying and its team operational for the rest of the year, continued support from the community will be required. EAAA need to raise £13 million a year to develop and deliver its lifesaving service. All of its scheduled fundraising events and bucket collections for 2020 have been cancelled, due to the need to observe social distancing.

To help East Anglian Air Ambulance keep flying and saving lives, please give in any way that you can.

Making sure its teams can operate safely has been the number one priority. Now, the charity needs to make sure it can continue to raise funds throughout the rest of the year.

There are several ways you can help EAAA from home. You can make a one-off or regular donation, sign up to play its weekly lottery, set up your own sponsored fundraising challenge or consider leaving the charity a gift in your Will.

Anything you can do will help to keep EAAA’s life-saving teams in action. Call 03450 669 999 or go online to www.eaaa.org.uk to help.

Thank you.

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23

Gardening

By Pippa Greenwood

Silver Splendour Why not bring a bit of silver in to your life with some sensational silvery plants for your garden?

If you are rather partial to aromatic plants then there are several that have not only a pungent aroma but also striking silvery foliage, such as the cotton lavender and the curry plant. With attractively divided silvery leaves, they look gorgeous and need not take up too much garden space either. The aroma is one you’ll either love or hate – it is up to you to decide!

Hostas are well-loved herbaceous perennials often grown with great effect in shaded spots, especially those that are also rather damp. Their large, showy leaves come in a range of colours including some smart, silvery blues. When paired with the also somewhat silvery and densely hairy Alchemilla mollis they make a great ground cover display, and the Alchemilla will soon self-seed, giving more plants at no cost to you.

Both the English lavenders and their French cousins (with rather more elaborate and often winged flowers) are a good ingredient for any garden where

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silver foliage can play a part. The aromatic leaves and the flowers smell gorgeous and have a naturally relaxing quality for most people. Bees adore the flowers too, and add to their silvery magic.

You can even use silver foliage to create a water-free waterfall, as there are several silver-foliaged plants that have a naturally trailing or cascading effect. The best known is probably Helichrysum petiolare with long trailing stems edged with small, rounded leaves, each so densely covered with hairs that they are like silver coins. They are great for hanging baskets, creating a waterfall effect within weeks of planting.

For a year-round effect, grow one of the variegated ivies such as Hedera helix ‘Glacier’ whose grey-green leaves are edged with silvery white.

Many of the small Artemisias have the most elegant of silvery foliage, not least Artemisia ‘Powys Castle’, whose finely divided foliage takes on the appearance of silver filigree lace. They will look their best grown in a fairly sheltered, sunny spot and will provide you with a fabulous display for many, many years.

Sometimes that touch of silver comes after

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flowering, in the form of seed heads. There are many plants whose flowers may be brightly coloured that then offer a gorgeous, silver display once the flowers themselves are long forgotten. The seed heads of the lovely purple or white flowered alpines called Pulsatilla, for instance, are a real delight. Each seed is equipped with feather plume to help it disperse, making a wonderful wisp of silver. Some of the clematis too have very fluffy seed heads – the silvery furry seed heads of the wild clematis are aptly known as old man’s beard. For a similar effect on a shrub take a look at the Cotinus – most have wonderful autumn colour to their leaves and the seed heads explain why this shrub’s common name is smoke bush!

Many plants whose leaves appear silvery look this way because the leaf surface is covered with a dense matt of short hairs. As an added bonus, after rain or even a heavy dew many silvery plants will become studded with water droplets, making them look as if studded with pure silver gems. It is almost enough to make you glad when the dewy autumn mornings arrive in a few months’ time.

For the tiniest space, even a small window box, you can still enjoy growing some silver – try the houseleek Sempervivum arachnoideum with its evergreen, fleshy rosette of red-tipped leaves that is

covered with a web of silvery white hairs – and not a spider in sight!

Many of the silvery foliaged plants have their origins in the Mediterranean, where the dense layer of hair helps to reduce the amount of water that is lost through the leaves and their pale colour helps to reflect some of the sunlight, thus adding to their ability to withstand dry or hot conditions. So, when you’re looking for plants for a sunny, dry area of your garden, you won’t go far wrong with silver foliage!

Silvery foliage plants may produce their absolute best display in bright sunlight, but use a few in a slightly shaded spot, ideally combined with some plants with large, pale-coloured flowers, and you will see how they also have the ability to make that dull spot look brighter.

Combine silver foliage plants with some with either very dark-coloured leaves or those with rich blue or purple hues and you’ll introduce a really magical effect, as the richness of the dark colours is brought to life with the sparkle of the silvery foliage. Plant silver foliage close to, say, Cotinus ‘Royal Purple’ with darkest purple leaves, and you’ll see what I mean.

Visit Pippa’s website (www.pippagreenwood.com) to book Pippa for a gardening talk at your gardening club or as an after-dinner speaker.

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Garden View

By Rachael Leverton

Lockdown Musings Back in May garden centres became some of the first businesses allowed to reopen to the public.

For gardeners stuck at home (even though we understood and supported the lockdown), it’s been a frustrating time. We’ve been unable to plant during one of the best springs I can ever remember.

And for many of the UK’s growers it has been devastating. Millions of lost plants nurtured to be at their best by Easter were lost. The scale of the issue was mind-boggling. Garden centres and nurseries usually make the bulk of their income during the early growing season as people prepare their plots for the summer but instead they’ve been forced to compost or recycle millions of plants, leaving one in three growers in serious financial difficulties, with little possibility of recouping their losses later in the year.

I was glad to see nurseries and garden centres reopening and in spite of my own apprehension about venturing out, I decided to go to my local garden centre reasoning that the open outdoor spaces meant transmission of coronavirus was less likely and it would be easier to maintain social distancing.

There were staff in the car park and the queue markings were 2m apart. The trolleys were cleaned before being handed to the customers and social distancing was observed throughout the one-way system. There were fewer plants on display which puzzled me for a second until I realised that growers couldn’t take the risk of planting a few weeks before when they had no idea whether they would have to destroy those plants too. Such a heart-breaking decision for them to have to make.

My own garden has been a source of solace

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throughout lockdown, but what has been particularly nice is the number of people who have discovered gardening during this period. There is a lot of psychological research which concludes that nurturing plants and flowers diverts our attention away from stresses and anxieties in our lives and goodness knows there’s been way too much stress and anxiety recently.

So, as we hit July is there anything easy which you can still plant? The good news is yes.

Nasturtiums can be sown throughout this month.

They are known for their brightly coloured flowers and attractive foliage. There are trailing, climbing, and dwarf varieties. The showy flowers can be single or double and come in fiery shades of reds, oranges, and yellows. Leaves are pale green and umbrella-shaped with long stems. They are the perfect flowers for beginner gardeners so if the kids have been dying to have a go at gardening these are your go-to plant.

Sow the seeds and within 7-10 days, you should see sprouting. They are drought tolerant and ideal for hanging baskets and containers. Even better, you can add the flowers, buds and young leaves to salads, and they have the most wonderful peppery taste.

Love-in-the-mist are easy to grow and have distinctive seed heads. These can be sown until early July and also again in September so they will get a head start for next year.

And of course, you can still plant sunflowers. Who doesn’t love a sunflower? Plant one for each member of the family and see whose grows the most. You could give prizes for the tallest, the prettiest or the largest flower.

Happy Gardening!

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Pets

The Good Pet Owner’s Guide to Summer The weather over the last few months has on the whole been glorious. May was particularly warm – being the sunniest and driest calendar month on record. 626 hours of bright sunshine were recorded in Spring 2020 for the UK. With this in mind as we approach the Summer, one cannot help but wonder what is in store. If we do have a warm, sunny summer as many are predicting, pet owners need to start making the appropriate preparations.

Use our easy to follow checklist to make sure the animals you love and care for have a safe and enjoyable summer.

• Check the temperature of the pavement before you take your dog out for a walk. If it is too hot to touch with your hand, it will certainly be too hot for your dog’s paws.

• Exercise your animals in the cooler parts of the day.

This may mean that your routines change slightly to accommodate this. But going out in the cooler mornings and evenings will be much better for your dog or horse.

• Think carefully about the environment your pet is in, more specifically the temperature of it. Vehicles, caravans, tents and conservatories can become extremely hot places during warm weather. Never leave pets in these places, as they can easily overheat and die.

• Pet-safe sun cream can now be purchased from a range of shops and online. Consider apply to exposed skin during the warm weather.

• Shade and fresh water are essential for the health and safety of humans during sunny days. Animals are no different. Ensure your pets have access to a shady

area with plenty of fresh drinking water available.

• Check that any hutches or enclosures you have in your garden are not in any direct sunlight. Also make sure they have good ventilation.

• If you keep rabbits or guinea pigs, it is recommended that they are checked regularly for ‘flystrike’. The RSPCA suggest checking twice a day during the summer months.

• Water can heat up quickly in the summer, so be mindful of any fish you have as pets. Keep fish tanks out of direct sunlight and top up the water levels in ponds.

• Damp towels are perfect for pets to lie on when it is hot. Ice packs can be wrapped in towels if temperatures begin to increase, and the damp towels aren’t enough of a coolant.

• Most dogs treats can be kept in the fridge and will therefore provide your dog with a great way of cooling down. You could always make ice lollies using dog friendly ingredients.

• Adding ice cubes to a pet’s water bowl is a quick and easy way of keeping them cool. Don’t forget Kongs can be put in the freezer • Why not fill a paddling pool or spray a hose for your dog to play in (always supervised) If you need to contact our Branch (North Bedfordshire) for any reason we can be reached by the details below, or for an animal welfare issue or emergency, contact 0300 1234 999.

Lines are open 7 days a week 24/7.

Email: info@rspcabedsnorth.org.uk Tel: 01234 266965 / 01234 930304

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Motoring

Exciting Car Technologies

We take a look at upcoming car features that could transform the way we drive The automotive sector is currently seeing the rise of electrification and increased autonomy, and the next few years could see manufacturers including a number of exciting technologies. We pick out some examples.

Vehicle-to-Grid Charging

Clutchless Manual

With the rise of hybrid and electric vehicles, the need for a manual gearbox is fading, though it may live on in some form. In 2017, Toyota showcased the GR HV Sports Concept, which had automatic transmission but left an H-pattern shifter in place to retain driver engagement. Don’t be surprised to see such a feature in a near-future production car.

Enhanced Autonomous Technology

Production cars already use autonomous technology, many for safety reasons – such as allowing cars to detect vehicles ahead of them slowing or stopping.

In the next five years, we expect further developments. It’s unlikely that we’ll see production cars that are capable of piloting themselves on public roads, but there’s a good chance that many production vehicles will be able to take over more control from the driver than is currently available.

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Launched in 2018, vehicle-to-grid charging (V2G) allows electric cars to give back electricity to the grid.

Essentially electric cars ‘talk’ to the grid, detecting when energy demand is at its highest. We expect this to properly come to fruition over the next five years.

Wireless Electric Car Charging

A major drawback of electric car ownership is the charging process – it can be complicated, and involve heavy and unwieldy cables going from vehicle to plug.

Wireless electric car charging allows a vehicle to drive over a ‘pad’ capable of transmitting charge wirelessly from the mains to the car’s batteries. Just driving over a section of road or parking space fitted with the technology will allow you to charge an electric car.

Speed Limiters in Cars

From 2022, all new cars sold in the EU and the UK will be fitted with automatic speed-limiting

technology that detects the speed limit of a road and prevents gradual acceleration beyond that point.

However, pressing the throttle harder with the limiter active will allow the car to push beyond it, though keep in mind breaking the speed limit is an illegal act.

Breathalyser Technology Built-in

2022 will also see the infrastructure for breathalyser technology built into all new cars.

This won’t require every driver to take a breath test before using their vehicle but convicted drinkdrivers would have to breathe into a device — with the engine unable to be started if they are over the limit or do not attempt the test.

Digital Mirrors

Digital mirrors are expected to be more widespread and replace traditional mirrors with cameras located on the wings of the car.

These relay an image onto small screens placed at either side of the cockpit.

You get a clearer picture of the area behind you and there are efficiency benefits through decreased drag. We’ve already seen it on cars like the Audi e-Tron and Honda e, but it’s likely to be adopted in other vehicles soon.

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Quirky Britain

What do our national animals say about us?

By Kate McLelland

Australia has the barn swallow, Belarus has the European bison, Canada has the beaver and, famously, China has the giant panda. Almost every country in the world has its national bird or beast, and some have more than one.

In most cases, countries select their national animal or bird based on the creature’s characteristics. In order to qualify for ‘national’ status, the animal – whether a living thing or an imaginary beast – must share the same qualities, values and spirit as its home nation.

England: the lion The lion symbolises courage, nobility, royalty, strength, stateliness and valour. Lions were first used as royal emblems by Danish Vikings and later by Saxon leaders. In the late twelfth century Plantagenet kings decided to use three lions on their heraldic shields and the symbol endures to this day, on coins, and, of course, on those iconic English football shirts.

Scotland: the unicorn In Celtic mythology this fabled beast represents innocence and purity. It is also believed to be a symbol of masculinity and power, which is perhaps why it was favoured by Scottish kings. The unicorn first appeared on a Scottish royal coat of arms in the twelfth century reign of King William I, and when King James VI took over the English throne in 1603, he combined the unicorn with the English lion in a royal crest that is still used today.

Wales: the dragon More of a heraldic beast than a living creature, Wales’ national animal is the ‘Red Dragon of Cadwaladr’.

Legend has it that the magician Myrddin (or Merlin) prophesied an epic fight between the red dragon (representing the Welsh people) and a white dragon

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(representing the English).

Northern Ireland: centaur or elk?

Wikipedia lists Northern Ireland’s national animal as a centaur, although there’s no explanation as to why this mythical half-man, half-horse was chosen to represent the six counties of Northern Ireland. A 1924 coat of arms showed a red lion (for the Ulster Scots) standing opposite an Irish elk (representing what officials of the time jarringly referred to as ‘the native element’). Unsurprisingly, this highly controversial badge is no longer used.

Spirited symbol: the bulldog While the bulldog doesn’t carry the same official weight as the lion, unicorn or dragon, it would probably win any poll in which voters were asked which creature best represented the nation’s character. Despite being famously used in WW2 propaganda, the well-known expression ‘British Bulldog Spirit’ actually dates from the eighteenth century, when bulldogs developed a fearsome reputation as fighting dogs in the popular sport of bull-baiting.

The British may be great animal lovers but it’s clear that we don’t let our hearts rule our heads when picking creatures to represent our nation. Those animals are not chosen for their fluffy, endearing qualities but for their strength, endurance and power.

They have stood us in good stead for many hundreds of years and will doubtless continue to represent our nation well into the future.

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R I N G

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Technology

Make your outdoors great

July is time to embrace the great outdoors. If your hard work has the garden looking great, it’s time to enjoy the benefits with our gadgets for summer days and nights.

MUSIC One of our favourite pieces of outdoor technology is the wireless speaker, which can soundtrack anything from sunbathing to social events. You don’t need to spend a lot of money on a wireless Bluetooth speaker though. For example, Sony’s excellent SRS XB01 can be bagged for £19.99, runs for six hours between charges and is water-resistant. If you can afford higher-end models you’ll get even better sound and smart features.

The Sonos Move may well be the best portable speaker in the world right now; it’s just a shame it costs £399.

LIGHTING Another favourite is outdoor

lighting. There are two options: solar lighting that costs nothing to run and smart lighting that runs from a power socket. The former is available in many designs, from single posts to curtains of fairy lights, colour-changing flowers, security spotlights and decking lights – all you need is a reasonably sunny spot for the solar panel.

Smart lighting isn’t as cheap, but it’s tons of fun. Philips’ excellent Hue lighting continues to add new outdoor ideas, with a range that now includes spotlights and wall lights as well as light strips and floodlights designed to deliver more subtle ambient light. Just like the indoor versions you can choose from endless colours, create your own lighting ‘recipes’ and set up automation that’ll trigger the lights either at set times or when specific things happen, such as the sun going down or you arriving home. It’s a fairly expensive

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option, however – individual lights such as the Appear, Resonate and Lily lights cost £129 each – and the lights’ hub needs to be within range of your Wi-Fi router.

HEAT Although the UK gets comfortably warm July days, the temperature drops dramatically when the sun starts to go down. Instead of a fairly wasteful gas-powered heater, an electric one with halogen bulbs uses a lot less energy and is much cheaper to run, although you need to be within reach of a plug socket for them to work.

Unlike gas heaters, which heat the air around them, electric heaters heat the things they light up but not the air in between: you might find a smaller tabletop heater (from around £70) or a parasolmounted heater (around £89) keeps you warmer than a more powerful big one that you have to sit further away from.

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Codeword 1

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ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

Easy Suduko

Hard Suduko

Fill in the grid so that each row, column and 3x3 box, contains the digits 1 through to 9 with no repetition. Use your logic to solve the puzzles.

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Technology

By Aidan Wilson

Not Wired For Sound Today while so many of us are at working from home right now, the chances are we are sharing the space either with other family members or as part of an apartment complex so blasting loud music out of speakers is probably a good way to annoy people.

Headphones have gone wireless and noise-cancelling now, which means it’s never been easier to create our own little oasis of sound.

With so many headphones to choose from here are the main features you might want to consider.

To connect headphones to your phone or tablet they need to speak the same language. This language is Bluetooth. Bluetooth is designed to connect devices together over short ranges. There are two main versions of Bluetooth at the moment, version 4 and version 5. For music and audio both give full quality sound. Bluetooth 5 is the newer version with a larger range and better battery life. The range extension should let you walk a couple of rooms away from your player rather than just a few metres. It has a faster data rate and while that probably won’t make a lot of difference for music, if you have a choice go for Bluetooth 5.

Bluetooth also means that you don’t have to worry about whether you’re using an Apple device, Android, or any other system. If your device can output sound using Bluetooth it will be able to connect to any Bluetooth headphones.

Many headphones offer noise cancellation. Be careful as there is active and passive cancellation. Active noise cancellation uses a microphone to listen to the noise around you and then tries to cancel it out by playing sound waves into your headphones. This works extremely well but is more expensive. Passive

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noise cancellation simply involves your headphones blocking out the background noise. They will either cover over your ears or use a tightly fitting earpiece to block sound from getting into your ear canal. Passive cancellation tends to reduce background noise rather than getting rid of it.

Headphones come in two styles. Traditional headphones have an over the head band that connects the two earpieces together and supports the device. Ear buds use two separate wireless speakers that push into your ear. They are usually held in place by the way they fit inside your ear canal, but some include clips that help them stay in place.

Which style you choose is really down to personal preference. Headphones can be more comfortable for longer periods of time and being much bigger they usually have better quality speakers built into them.

Ear buds are lighter and more unobtrusive and can be less cumbersome if you move around a lot.

So which headphones should you go for? The choice really comes down to how you plan to use them. If you want to relax and listen to music with the best quality possible, traditional, over ear headphones will be your best choice. You’ll get the best sound production and the best noise cancellation, but your headphones will be bulkier. If you want music while you exercise either in the gym or out in the open, wireless earbuds will be your best choice. Your earbuds will stay in place while you move, they’ll handle sweat and rain, while still giving excellent sound reproduction.

As with all things it comes down to personal choice and personal budget. So, bear all of these factors in mind and have fun shopping.

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39

Special Report

Gail’s Guide to Gin

By Gail Mitchell

I fell in love with gin when I went to a gin tasting event a few years ago. These events are a bit thin on the ground right now for social distancing reasons, so if you are gincurious and wondering where to start I’ll to try to be your guide.

Gin is a flavoured alcohol, with juniper as the predominant botanical. Juniper is a fragrant shrub and its aroma and taste should be the signature note in any gin. Even the name ‘gin’ is derived from either the French genièvre or the Dutch jenever, which both mean juniper.

You can add other botanical ingredients, but juniper should always be the primary one. There is actually a legal EU definition of gin: it must be a juniper-dominated spirit, with an agricultural origin and a 37.5% ABV. This means that as well as the main botanical being juniper, the base alcohol must be made from something natural such as wheat, barley, rye, molasses, potatoes or grapes, and there must be at least 37.5% of pure alcohol in the total volume of liquid.

London Dry Gin This doesn’t have to be made in London, it can be made anywhere in the world but it’s important to know that it’s the highest-quality gin you can produce. It has to be made with all-natural ingredients (no artificial flavourings), highquality alcohol and only contain 0.01g of sugar per litre of alcohol.

Crucially you can’t add any other flavourings after distillation. It’s the purest form of gin and is a good place to start your gin journey. I would say No. 3 London Dry Gin is one of the best places to start your gin journey. It’s won the world’s best gin 4 times and is a beautiful smooth gin which won’t disappoint.

Regular distilled gin This is made in a similar way to London Dry Gin but may have flavourings, essences and sugar added to it after the distillation process.

Craft distillers have been producing more variety and exciting new flavours recently. Broadly there are herbal gins (less sweet), floral gins (light and fragrant), fruity gins (sweeter) and citrussy gins (light and fresh). Look at the list of botanicals to see which appeal.

Geographical gins Just as champagne has to come from a specific region in France so certain gins have to come from a particular geographical area.

Mahón Gin can only come from Menorca, it’s a sweeter style of gin which comes in various flavours, and Vilnius Gin from Lithuania,

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which is quite smooth and has a citrussy / pine flavour. The UK used to have a geographical gin - Plymouth gin - but it lost its protected status in 2014.

Sloe gin - is a gin liqueur. It contains more sugar and its ABV is between 20-25%, which is below the minimum requirement of a spirit.

Old Tom gins An older style of gin. These gins are sweeter because in the 18th Century, when gin was also very popular sugar or honey was added to disguise bad-quality gin they used. Nowadays Old Tom Gins are made to a high standard and are the gin you would use in a Tom Collins cocktail, which should be made with soda water rather than tonic, because tonic would add too much sweetness to an already sweet alcohol.

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The Villager Prize Crossword

Complete the crossword, fill in your details below, cut out this page and send to the address below before

16th July 2020 Prize Crossword, Villager Publications Ltd 24 Market Square, Potton, Beds SG19 2NP

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Across 1 Written announcement (6) 4 Film regulator (6) 9 Fan (7) 10 Subject (5) 11 Type of hat (5) 12 Closest to (7) 13 Sound transmitters (11) 18 Ruler (7) 20 Edition (5) 22 Tale (5) 23 Easily seen (7) 24 Lower down (6) 25 Helpful (6) Down 1 Close to (6) 2 Stopwatch (5) 3 Custodian of museum (7) 5 Surplus (5) 6 Most important (7) 7 Repeat aloud (6) 8 Carried along (11) 14 Make better (7) 15 Beginnings (7) 16 Stopped (6) 17 Relating to teeth (6) 19 Type of poem (5) 21 Horizontal board (5))

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Books

Books to keep you busy Dream Big! Heroes Who Dared to Be Bold

by Sally Morgan

Dream Big! comprises a hundred bite-size biographies, each accompanied by an illustration.

My ten-year old and I have both enjoyed learning more about some well-known names (e.g. David Attenborough and Maya Angelou) and discovering other inspirational people neither of us had heard of. As well as being a great read, it’s opened up conversations about racism, sexism, LGBTQ+ rights and having the courage to stand up for what’s right.

Highly recommended.

The Sin Eater

By Megan Campisi

14 year old May Owens expects to be sentenced to death for stealing a loaf of bread. But her sentence is much worse. She’s to become a Sin Eater – responsible for taking on the sins of others so that their soul is cleansed. The role means she’s to be forever shunned. So when she discovers someone is trying to blame dead women for sins they didn’t commit, no one will listen. Intriguing setting, believable characters and a great story. Pre-order it now for delivery at the end of July.

The Sleeper and the Spindle

by Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddle

The companion book to the latest series of the popular BBC programme, The Great British Sewing Bee: Sustainable Style invites readers to upcycle and repair existing clothes, and make new ones using sustainable, natural fabrics. There are twenty-seven projects to choose from and plenty of advice for beginners.

Grow Food for Free: The easy, sustainable, zero-cost way to a plentiful harvest

By Huw Richards

Growing your own fruit and vegetables can be expensive once you’ve factored in the costs of plants, compost, pots and so on. However, it is possible to grow vegetables on the cheap. This book has plenty of tips on doing just that, from growing new plants using vegetable scraps to ideas for raised beds and containers. There’s also step-by-step advice on everything from sowing and transplanting to controlling pests.

Vegan(ish)

This beautifully illustrated book takes the story of Sleeping Beauty and adds a dollop of darkness and a few ‘what ifs’. What if the sleeping sickness spread? What if there was a queen with hair as dark as a raven’s wing, lips as red as blood and several dwarves by her side, who could set out on a quest to rescue the princess? Yes, The Sleeper and the Spindle is aimed at young adults and takes under an hour to read, but don’t let that stop you from adding it to your wish list.

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The Great British Sewing Bee: Sustainable Style

By Caroline Akselson and Alexandra Bruce

By Jack Monroe Whether you’re 100% vegan or just want to eat more plantbased meals, Jack Monroe’s latest cook book could well become your go-to resource.

There are a hundred recipes altogether, from simple soups and sandwiches to more complicated dishes such as Beet Wellington and Ultimate Moussaka. As you’d expect from the queen of budget meals, recipes are carefully costed out so they won’t break the bank.

By Kate Duggan

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