Photo c/o thediamondjubilee.org Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II looked up at her son and smiled, nodded to a gold-clad footman and stepped carefully into the 1902 open-topped State Landau.  Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (who'd have thought it?) got in beside her and Prince Charles settled opposite.  Dark rugs were placed...

In January this year I was invited to take part in 6 Challenges by Dan Brown of The Kendal Courier, the newly relaunched local magazine for Kendal and the south Lake District, Cumbria.  For each edition I agreed to do an activity that would push me out of my comfort zone,...

Thanks to the current economical climate, more and more people are finding ways to enjoy cheap holidays in the UK. With over 240,000 square miles of magnificent scenery, there's little wonder why. Of course, a holiday can be made just that little bit extra special if it saves you money...

What’s Easter all about?  As I arrange small colourful eggs in straw nestled within a wooden trug, the sounds of the Eucharist service from Manchester Cathedral tumble out of the radio; a beautiful voice celebrating Christ’s resurrection.  Teenage son struggles to wake up from a late night’s X-Box playing and can’t...

Now for some of you that believe the bad press about Manchester, there may be a touch of scoffing and a muttered ‘IF’ but I can assure you that it is very often beautifully sunny in this northern urban city, as those expatriated BBC staff will no doubt tell you 😉...

Author Barry McCann is a writer and expert on the horror genre, tradition and folk tales.  He appears regularly on BBC Radio sharing quirky tales of mystery and imagination in Cumbria and Lancashire.  Here are some of his favourite folklore stories from the Lake District. The shires and counties of...

May Your Days be Merry & Bright … I was invited to learn how to make cocktails at the Cavendish Hotel, just off Piccadilly, round the corner from its sister hotel, the world-famous Ritz in the heart of luxury London.  The hotel was previously owned by Rosa Lewis, the renowned...