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The creative power of scenery and steam continues to inspireThe myriad tracks and carriages of the British rail network have proved fruitful inspiration for generations of writers.
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'The caviar of its day': How the cucumber sandwich conquered tea timeThe popular fixture of the tea table was delighting diners long before Enid Blyton’s young adventurers tucked into them, reveals Deborah Nicholls-Lee
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Fields of gold: Our finest art has been inspired by home-grown produceOur three million hectares of cereal crops are more than ‘the bread basket of Britain’, sustaining the imaginations of both artists and writers, discovers Deborah Nicholls-Lee.
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'We cracked the padlock and found a mountainful of asbestos, so that wasn't ideal': The secret spaces in our finest country housesSecret spaces in country houses continue to thrill and spook us in equal measure.
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A red sky at night is a delight for shepherds, writers and artists alikeA glowing red sky, shot with crimson and copper and streaked with the dusky blush of sunset, is a spectacle that has spellbound writers and artists since the dawn of time
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Divine tears, fairy footsteps or the sweat of heavens: The delight of dewThe transient beauty of early-morning moisture has bewitched poets, playwrights and scientists alike, finds Deborah Nicholls-Lee.
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Elizabeth II's favourite accessory is a firm fashion crowd favourite — and it fits inside a pocketThe silk scarf was one of Elizabeth II's style signifiers and a big part of an exhibition celebrating everything she wore on what would've been her centenary year.
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Rooting for you: The many merits of the valerianA versatile herb valued as a tonic for the nervous system, valerian’s soporific effects were once considered a great asset to public decorum, discovers Deborah Nicholls-Lee.
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'It seems as if hatboxes needn’t always contain hats: ideas can percolate there, too'In its journey from Regency status symbol to most-elegant luggage in the golden age of travel, there’s a world of wonder to unpack when it comes to the hatbox, says Deborah Nicholls-Lee.
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'To my unspeakable disgust and pain, the little inconsiderate beast squirted his acid down my throat': The army of animals weaponising chemistry in the fight for survivalClouds of noxious gas, stink bombs and purple smokescreens may sound like schoolboy pranks, but the animal world is just as capable of executing arresting chemical warfare.
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A good call: The red telephone box rings in 100 yearsOne hundred years ago, the first all-red telephone box, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, was installed in London. Deborah Nicholls-Lee lifts the receiver on a very British icon.
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‘Live in the country (or, failing that, Kensington Square) and wear navy’: A brief history of the colour that never goes out of styleDeborah Nicholls-Lee takes a look at how the colour navy got its name — and why its still a safe bet, centuries on.
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Just can't get enough of the muff? The history of the furry handwarmer with the funny nameDeborah Nicholls-Lee goes diving into the history of the muff.
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The 'professional hoarders' that have dressed everyone from Helen Mirren to Hugh Grant, and Madonna to Meryl StreepCosprop in London has been the go-to wardrobe for period productions of the stage and screen since 1965.
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Galls: Nature's most beautiful, horrifying and intriguing parasitesA playground for aphids, wasp eggs, and funghi — galls come in all shapes and sizes
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No strings attached: A brief history of swimwear, from heavy skirts of linen linked to women's drownings, to the skimpy two-piece named after a nuclear weapons siteFrom knee-length numbers to a scandalous suit denounced by the Pope, the colourful history of swimwear has been brought to life by a glamorous London exhibition.
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Forget catnip, it's all about catmintNepeta, the highly aromatic and pretty perennial beloved of so many country gardens, may be your feline’s favourite fix, but we should be wary of its root, warns Deborah Nicholls-Lee
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New balls please: Eddie Redmayne, Anna Wintour and Laura Bailey on the sensory pleasures of playing tennisLittle beats the popping sound and rubbery smell of a new tube of tennis balls — even if you're a leading Hollywood actor.
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What lies beneath: The weird and wonderful things lurking in Britain's museum basementsFrom radioactive rocks to great white sharks, and a dolphin called Boris, the things stored in Britain's museum basements make the mind boggle — and now plans are afoot to improve visitor access.
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Food with a pinch of salt: The crops we can harvest from the seaFilling, rewarding and nutritious, vegetables and plants grown in saline environments — whether by accident or design — have plenty of potential. Illustration by Alan Baker.
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Why do the English constantly say sorry?What is that makes the people of this island so overly fond of apologising? Deborah Nicholls-Lee finds out.
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Playing the fool: The rich history of tarot and how it satisfies our desire for transcendenceOnce an elaborate art form that entertained 15th-century Italian nobility, tarot cards have evolved into a tool of divination. A new exhibition shines a light on their history.
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‘Look out! Look out! Jack Frost is about!’Variously described as ‘wearing a cloak of silver’ and looking like ‘a hoary old man’, Jack Frost has attracted many artistic depictions over the centuries — some more positive than others.
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'Fractals are everywhere, even within the human body: our nervous system, blood vessels and the structure of our brain and lungs'What do spiders’ webs, snowflakes and snail shells have in common? They all contain fractals: Nature’s exquisite, endlessly repeating mathematical pattern.
