Country Life

Published by TI Media Limited 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 Georgie Hodge • Georgie works in the Country House Department of Knight Frank. She is engaged to Charles Potter, whom she will marry next June at St Mary Magdalene, Barkway, Hertfordshire, and is the daughter of Charles and Jayne Hodge of Therfield, Hertfordshire.

Of birds and bees

Country Life

Town & Country

Town & Country Notebook

Stuff & nonsense

Letters to the Editor

Let us use our heads

Athena • Cultural Crusader

My favourite painting Baron von Pfetten

A city of spires and towers • In the second of two articles, John Goodall looks at the eventful later history of this most celebrated of Scottish castles and its association with Elizabeth, the late Queen Mother

The legacy • Sir Francis Beaufort and the Beaufort Scale

Me, myself and I • Mankind may be tribal and sociable by nature, yet the ‘bliss of solitude’–a state previously reserved for hermits–is the key to achieving inner peace, says Laura Parker

The gall of it! • Galls, which can range from the delicately beautiful to hideously unattractive bulbous growths, are among Nature’s most intriguing phenomena, discovers Deborah Nicholls-Lee

Looks aren’t everything • COUNTRY LIFE’s fishing correspondent takes a closer look at the sturgeon, which has been highly prized by gastronomes since Roman times

What lies beneath • August has a reputation among followers of the natural world for being something of a non-event, but, with a sickle in his hand, John Lewis-Stempel is granted a glimpse of a magical underworld in a field of ripe wheat

Keep your eye on the ball • Founded in the 18th century to launch the daughters of the aristocracy into Society, Queen Charlotte’s Ball has been revived and modernised for a new generation. Eleanor Doughty finds out what’s changed–and what hasn’t

To the manner born • How should noodles be eaten? Who ought to stand for whom? Far from being preserved in aspic, etiquette must evolve to suit modern life, argues William Hanson

The designer’s room • Penelope Chilvers has transformed two adjacent rooms into a spacious kitchen that combines the best of old and new

Chic and cheerful • Patterned tableware, chosen by Amelia Thorpe

Luxury Notebook

A few of my favourite things • The award-winning journalist and presenter is known for his time on Top Gear and The Grand Tour and for his science and physics programming. He features on the YouTube channel DriveTribe and Richard Hammond’s Workshop, made by his production company Chimp, has been recommissioned for series three and four. He will be a judge on Sunday at luxury car show Salon Privé, marking its 20th anniversary at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, until August 31.

A vintage time • As Goodwood Revival, West Sussex, approaches (September 12–14), vintage jewels comfortably rub shoulders with motor-racing accessories

Grace and space in Cheshire • It is one of the wealthiest counties in England, with no signs of an exodus of money, say agents. Here are three exceptional country houses for sale in a fashionable area

Escape artists • Owning a piece of Britain’s built heritage is a privilege, but to do so without having to navigate...