Hand Picked

  • Lifestyle25/03/2026

    I wish I had done this sooner

    There’s a moment in mid-to-later life – sometimes subtle, sometimes seismic – when you realise you’ve lived long enough to see the patterns. You understand what mattered, what didn’t, and

  • Alfie the terrier

    Pets24/03/2026

    Alfie brings many joys

    It wasn’t my idea to get a dog – but I am glad I did. At our age, you start to think more about what you can manage rather than

Clementine the African Grey

Pets01/04/2026

I never expected to share my mornings with a parrot. A kettle, certainly. A crossword, absolutely. But a sharp-eyed African grey called Clementine, who now seems to know my routine

Semi-retirement

Advice26/03/2026

For most of our working lives, we expected we would retire and enjoy a retirement of leisure, travel, and long lunches. But somewhere along the way, real life and rising

Advice25/03/2026

There’s a moment in mid-to-later life – sometimes subtle, sometimes seismic – when you realise you’ve lived long enough to see the patterns. You understand what mattered, what didn’t, and

Alfie the terrier

Pets24/03/2026

It wasn’t my idea to get a dog – but I am glad I did. At our age, you start to think more about what you can manage rather than