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 Aimée Gibson • Aimée is the top-ranked British female padel player and the first Briton to make it into the world’s top 100 rankings. Today (May 14), she will compete in the Alfred Dunhill Padel Classic at The Hurlingham Club, London SW6. She is the daughter of George Gibson and Vivien Hancock of Thorpe-le-Soken, Essex.

The darling buds of May

Country Life

Town & Country

Town & Country Notebook

Letters to the Editor

On the bright side of life

Athena • Cultural Crusader

My favourite painting Sir Simon Keenlyside

The legacy • Harold Peto and the Italianate garden

A whale of a show • Kathryn Bradley-Hole previews the highlights of what promises to be a very strong year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show

A rare thing • Recent restoration works have retained the former theatrical splendours of these gardens and, at the same time, brought them beautifully up to date, finds Tilly Ware

An open and shut case • A gate is so much more than a way to keep dogs in and intruders out, writes James Alexander-Sinclair

Garden openings • Gates for all kinds of settings, selected by Amelia Thorpe

Wonderful wisteria

The late bloomers • Before gardeners of every persuasion eye up the new plants and ideas at next week’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show, James Alexander-Sinclair picks some of his favourite characters in the horticultural milieu, from the obsessive modernist to the wildlife saviour

An idyll with an opera • Easily overlooked beside the opera that has made its name world famous, this country house bears the architectural stamp of a remarkable 1930s revival, as Clive Aslet explains

Spot the difference • The ladybird, known collectively as a loveliness and named for the Virgin Mary’s crimson robes, is a child’s favourite and gardener’s friend that comes in a host of polka-dot patterns, says Laura Parker

Control your waspish tongue • Does Nature offer a more courageous sight than the usually shy honey buzzard devouring a hornets’ nest as the occupants whine about it with murderous intent?

We will not be deprived of our Liberty • More of an Aladdin’s cave than a department store, Liberty feels as fresh today as it did 150 years ago. Gavin Plumley uncovers the secrets of England’s favourite emporium

Gone potty • Choose terracotta to complement your garden, skin tone, outfit or mood. Frightfully ‘on trend’–not that that matters–it goes with almost anything, says Hetty Lintell

The prawn identity • It’s as retro as a pair of corduroy flares, but the classic prawn cocktail is a lily that needs no gilding, says Tom Parker Bowles

A feast of ideas • More than 20 rooms and outdoor spaces by leading interior designers will offer depth and breadth of inspiration, with an emphasis on bespoke craftsmanship, at WOW!house, the summer’s major interiors event, finds Amelia Thorpe

Driving home • Laverstoke Park in Hampshire–home to retired Formula 1 racing driver Jody Scheckter and family for 29 years–could be the most important estate to reach the market so far this year

A bite of the apple • With the growing season upon us, here are some beautiful houses with orchards ripe for...