Country Life 25 January 2023
Country Life 25 January 2023 looks at oak trees, eccentrics, Shetland wool and an artist’s paradise on the French Riviera.


Take a bough
A single oak is home to myriad species, shelter to more and succour for others. John Lewis-Stempel looks at a day in the life of our noblest tree
In a league of their own
From riding crocodiles to marrying stones, gold turbans to cold baths, the great British eccentric is a species apart, discovers Claire Jackson
To dig or not to dig
Mark Diacono lays down his spade with relief, for the sake of his soil and his back
The Duke of Buccleuch’s favourite painting
The president of the Georgian Group picks an intriguing scene
Masterpiece
Jack Watkins watches Charles Frend’s The Cruel Sea, the war film devoid of empty glamour
Water, water everywhere
John Lewis-Stempel sloshes through the flooded fields to save a sodden sheep
A monument to enthusiasm
In the second of two articles, Marcus Binney delves into the astonishing interiors of Fawley Hill in Buckinghamshire
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Native breeds
Kate Green salutes the Oxford Sandy and Black pig
You greedy gannet!
The epithet may not be flattering, but the gannet deserves more admiration, for its awesome diving technique and family values, reveals Ian Morton
From sheep to shop
Annika Purdey traces the route taken by soft Shetland wool to become the top-quality tweed clothing her company produces
Luxury
Colourful coats and marquetry, Matthew Williamson’s favourite things and motoring watches
Interiors
A light-filled kitchen and the tactile joy of wooden objects
Mediterranean masterpiece
Kathryn Bradley-Hole explores Les Colombières, an artist’s paradise on the French Riviera
Kitchen garden cook
Melanie Johnson tries endives
Country Life is unlike any other magazine: the only glossy weekly on the newsstand and the only magazine that has been guest-edited by HRH The King not once, but twice. It is a celebration of modern rural life and all its diverse joys and pleasures — that was first published in Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee year. Our eclectic mixture of witty and informative content — from the most up-to-date property news and commentary and a coveted glimpse inside some of the UK's best houses and gardens, to gardening, the arts and interior design, written by experts in their field — still cannot be found in print or online, anywhere else.
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Graham Norton's elegant East London home hits the market, and it's just as wonderful as you would expect
The four-bedroom home in Wapping should be studied for how well it uses two separate spaces to create a home of immense character and utility.
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Sign of the times: In the age of the selfie, what’s happening to the humble autograph?
When Ringo Starr announced that he was no longer going to sign anything, he kickstarted a celebrity movement that coincided with the advent of the camera phone and selfie. Rob Crossan asks whether, in today’s world, the selfie holds more clout than an autograph?