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 Helen Chester St Maur Stewart • Helen is a costume designer, fashion historian and the founder of House of Stewart, which specialises in bespoke ball gowns. She is also studying for a Masters in History of Design at the Royal College of Art, London. Helen is the daughter of Ian and Nancy Stewart of Brackley Grange, Northamptonshire.

The greatest show on earth

Country Life

The Icarus effect

Town & Country Notebook

Letters to the Editor

No excuses left

Athena • Cultural Crusader

My favourite painting Cindy Sughrue

The legacy Bess of Hardwick and Chatsworth

The year of the tree • Kathryn Bradley-Hole on what to look out for at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show next week

Beneath the boughs • Tom Stuart-Smith returns to Main Avenue with a hazel grove for the National Garden Scheme. Joanna Fortnam takes an exclusive look behind the scenes at its creation

A timeless view • In the care of its new owners, major renovations and a programme of tree planting have all enhanced the simple beauty of this garden, set in its 18th-century landscape, writes George Plumptre

Seating plans • Why is it so hard to find a good garden seat?

Summer • In the third and final part of our series, flower grower Anna Brown tackles the massive job of planting out 6,000 annuals

Of roses and strawberries, cherry blossom and crushed turf

A lily among weeds • This year is the bicentenary of the birth of the prolific Victorian architect George Edmund Street. Clive Aslet considers his life, his buildings and his remarkable achievements

‘When the ass begins to bray, surely rain will come that day’ • Is a leaping trout more accurate a rain gauge than Michael Fish? John Lewis-Stempel ponders the accuracy of proverbs portraying our wildlife as weather forecasters

Slugging it out • Have you ever encountered leopard slugs in the throes of passion? They may lack grace, but some of our tough-skinned mollusc species are a curiously beautiful sight, says Marianne Taylor

Mane stay • A hard-wearing textile with a pearlescent sheen, horsehair is much more than mere mattress stuffing. Deborah Nash meets the last British company creating this heritage fabric

Making the countryside a better place to live

Bright ideas brought to life • Prepare to be dazzled: six designers currently dreaming up rooms for this year’s WOW!house share their plans with Amelia Thorpe

Wonders of the Weald • Three enchanting houses amid rolling hills have been well cared for

Dining en plein air • As summer beckons (surely?), here are five houses for sale that offer glorious spots for breakfast, lunch, tea and supper

Thumbs down • Jean-Léon Gérôme was fêted in the 19th century, reviled in the 20th and is enjoying a revival in the 21st, but one of his works has left an enduring mark on Western culture

My art is in the garden • Monet and Turner supplied the colours, Canaletto the structure and Klimt the patterns for the Boodles National Gallery garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. Carla Passino discovers the paintings behind the design

A brush with sparkles • To mark the National Gallery turning 200, British jeweller Boodles...