Country Life 11 August 2021

SPA TOWNS: A mineral-laced spring could lead to a profitable resort for Georgian landowners. Clive Aslet dips into spa towns.

HOT AIR BALLOONS: Levi jeans, Van Gogh’s head and a dinosaur — they’ve all taken flight through Cameron Balloons in Somerset.

WALTER SCOTT: Despite inventing the historical novel, Walter Scott’s books are often left on the shelf. Why is that, asks Jack Watkins, on the writer’s 250th anniversary.

CARLA CARLISLE: Carla on dogs raging at the dying of the light.

GREEK ARCHITECTURE: Marking the 200th anniversary of the completion of St Pancras Church, Harry Mount considers the 19th-century enthusiasm for Greek architecture.

INTERIORS: Romantic sash windows have their fans and detractors.

LUXURY: Hetty Lintell is by the pool.

CHILLI: Tom Parker Bowles was drawn into the chilli’s fiery embrace from a young age.

ELTON HALL: Tilly Ware visits the transformed historic gardens of Elton Hall in Huntingdonshire, where much of the past is a mystery.

And much more...