There is an original Picasso tile – of an abstract face with a yellow nose – roughly cemented into the wall above the Aga in the kitchen of Farleys House in East Sussex. “Patsy [the housekeeper] I always scrubbed it with Vim,” says Jenny, my guide. “Lee and Roland believed that art should be lived … Read more
If you have even the slightest interest in English wine, you will remember the cock-a-hoopery when English sparkling wines defeated champagne in a blind tasting competition for the first time. Now there is expectant talk about whether English Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays can ever again compete with Bordeaux. But there is something else that English … Read more
Will Self’s 2006 novel Dave’s book – in which the author mixes a contemporary comedy novel with a science fiction dystopia – includes a map of London after the Flood. All that remains of the rest of England, now called the Ing Archipelago, are a few jagged islands. It’s an extreme version of the apocalypse … Read more