One of the pleasures of being of a certain age is seasoned friendships and familiar landscapes. Since the early 1970s, when I stayed often as a schoolboy on a farm near Cirencester, one for me has been to return to South Gloucestershire to find little has changed and several of…
Finding a weekend date that 14 friends can all make is tricky enough; finding a house that meets everyone’s requirements is even harder. Salvation arrived in the form of Cothelstone Manor: a magnificent Grade II Elizabethan house beautifully situated on the southern slopes of the Quantock Hills in Somerset. It…
Newly refurbished Dog-friendly Near Blenheim Palace A visit to The Feathers Hotel There was a time when I would frequent Woodstock, beetling out of Oxford in my first car: a Ford Fiesta. Didn’t we all want a Renault Clio – ‘Nicole?’ ‘Papa!’ – or a bottle-green Golf but end up…
There are few places that one might want to retire to after the jolly highs of a Field Macnab Dinner. But after the morning after the night before it was to the elegant tranquillity of The Connaught on Carlos Place in Mayfair that we repaired, ready to be restored. It…
The William Cecil hotel Perfect pit stop Dog friendly Burghley Horse Trials Burghley’s Capability Brown landscape is wonderful. It had been a frenetic month: those end-of-season high days and beaters’ days spent battling bone-chilling conditions interspersed with torrential rain – all while semi-dried-out January wrapped its guilt-inducing tendrils around our…
Don’t miss: Estate tours taking in the rugged landscapes of Glen Lyon in the comfort of the Fortingall Land Rover or renting e-bikes to explore the local trails. High teas, whisky tastings and gourmet picnics are also on offer. Good for: Highland charm, sporting options, enviable interiors. The Fortingall Tucked…
Good for: Racing fans, shooting parties, stately home visits. In days gone by you might have found Spectator ‘Low Life’ columnist Jeffrey Bernard being propped up by the bar, and legendary Daily Express racing tipster Charles ‘The Scout’ Benson lounging on a banquette in the dining room. Next to them,…
“Oh, I think you’re going to be very happy,” confided our twinkly-eyed check in host. I was feeling fairly jolly already, having entered the hallowed Foyer from Brook Street and turned left instead of right, rather like turning the same direction when boarding a plane. Being a guest at Claridge’s…
The Painswick Good for: Luxury Stopover Fine dining On a sporting pilgrimage, whether it is towards Gloucestershire for Badminton or south for the trout, finding somewhere decent to stay on route can be a challenge. I’m a great believer in trying to make the journey as enjoyable as the destination.…
Few of us can resist the chance to go places usually out of bounds or take a peek inside institutions normally closed to the public but Newmarket offers just that. Racing’s ‘headquarters’ has heritage and famous faces (both equine and human) in spades, and The Jockey Club Rooms are no…
