The piper walked slowly across the sand, bagpipes clasped under his arm, the sun glinting off the water as the haunting sound of the Skye Boat Song drifted across the bay. New Year’s Day on Dhoon Beach in Dumfries and Galloway. I couldn’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be....

What’s the thing most people talk about in the UK? Well, at the moment it’s possibly Brexit, though it’s banned in our house as I can’t bear to discuss it. However, a safe topic many of us resort to when meeting strangers or having chit-chat, is the weather. It’s part...

Lake District Treats As Christmas fast approaches, many of us are getting antsy, stressed out and anything but festive with all the places we have to be, people we have to see and the things we have to do. I love a good Christmas Market but they do get very...

A great wave of tranquility washed over me and for a few minutes, all was right with the world … I was sitting beside a labyrinth and stone circle, gazing across a field towards the Lake District mountains and Morecambe Bay. Crows wheeled overhead and in the distance a herd...

“Daddy, it’s alive, it’s breathing smoke!” The little boy shrieked with delight as the huge black engine chuffed under the bridge into the station. There was something supremely elemental about it as the steam hissed noisily, fire roared and smuts flicked over the admiring passengers. I was on the Keighley and...

For those of a certain age, St Moritz is synonymous with the uber-cool jet-setters of the Swinging Sixties. Renowned playboy Gunter Sachs epitomised this hedonistic era when he married French pin-up movie star Brigitte Bardot. and made Switzerland their winter playground. The Gunter Sachs Lodge and The Dracula Club, overlooking the Olympic Bob Run course, are where people...

North East Wales is an area of fascinating history and beautiful scenery. Its towns, villages and people offer a warm welcome to visitors from around the world. It’s also got some unique tea rooms and quirky cafes. Here are a few that I can recommend, having tried them out during...