Country Life

Published by Time Inc. (UK) Ltd Country Life, the quintessential English magazine, is undoubtedly one of the biggest and instantly recognisable brands in the UK today. It has a unique core mix of contemporary country-related editorial and top end property advertising. Editorially, the magazine comments in-depth on a wide variety of subjects, such as architecture, the arts, gardens and gardening, travel, the countryside, field-sports and wildlife. With renowned columnists and superb photography Country Life delivers the very best of British life every week.

Miss Zofia Louise Hare • Zofia is the lead presenter of BBC 3’s The Catch Up—a daily news programme aimed at young adults—and a journalist with BBC News. She is the daughter of David Hare and Anna Golden of Ashby De La Zouch, Leicestershire.

Never give up

Country Life

Town & Country

Town & Country Notebook

Letters to the Editor

Return of a big hitter

Business does not explain the Arts

The way we were Photographs from the COUNTRY LIFE archive

Clarity not carte blanche • Developers need clarity as to where they can build, argues Simon Jenkins. We need to zone our countryside to prevent conflict and the erosion of this limited and precious resource

My favourite painting Gavin Plumley • The Druids: Bringing in the Mistletoe by Edward Atkinson Hornel and George Henry

Classicism in the Deccan • Telangana Mahila Vishwavidyalayam, Hyderabad, IndiaThe restoration of the former British Residency in Hyderabad has helped encourage local craftsmanship, as the architect involved, Anuradha S. Naik, explains

Native breeds Blackface

Stirring the pot • On the last weekend before Advent, families gather to make Christmas pudding–but they probably don’t serve it with roast beef. Neil Buttery sheds light on Stir-up Sunday

Game, setter, match • An affectionate free spirit in a glamorous feathered coat, the English setter comes in Robin Reliant or Ferrari mode, finds Matthew Dennison

The devil is in the detail • Devil’s Dyke? Satan did it. The Devil’s Shovelful?Guess who. The Devil’s Punch Bowl? Actually, that one was giants. Susan Owens recounts some imaginative explanations for our ancient monuments

Betty, Belle and other stories • James Fisher leaves the city behind to go wild in Exmoor in a Land Rover Defender

Hang on in there • Mixing and (not always) matching tree decorations is fun, says Hetty Lintell, who mixes collected ones with homemade, so each one tells a story–they make an excellent present, too

The designer’s room • The team at Salvesen Graham moved the kitchen of this Mayfair pied-à-terre into the main living area, to create a handsome, multifunctional space

Top tables • Joyful ideas for dressing the festive table, selected by Amelia Thorpe

Unchanging Cotswolds • London buyers who are prepared to look beyond the trendy Cotswold catchment areas of Daylesford and Soho Farmhouse can find tranquillity and value for money

Property news

Devoted to daphne • The bewitching scent of daphnes hangs heavy in the winter air, making them an essential plant at this time of year, says John Hoyland

Enjoy your winter greens

As hard as nails • Known as ironwood thanks to its ability to blunt saws, the densely muscular hornbeam is often overlooked and frequently misidentified, finds Vicky Liddell

Kitchen garden cook Savoy cabbage

Cure and simple • Flavoursome and flourishing, the British air-dried sausage offering is catching up with its Continental counterparts, says Tom Parker Bowles

Time and tide wait for no avocet • On a lonely November day at Thames end, where the wildness of Nature is intensified by the closeness of our capital city, John Lewis-Stempel is...