As a record 119,789 people in UK test positive for Covid, here is how to keep the Christmas spirit alive on your ownBetter days ahead: those self-isolating look on the bright sideHo, ho … oh no. This second Covid Christmas will not be a huge improvemen…
The TV quiz of the year: from It’s a Sin to Squid Game
How’s your 2021 TV knowledge? Test how much love you’ve been giving your favourite shows with our brain-tickling end-of-year quiz. Continue reading…
The person who got me through 2021: Larry David helped me embrace life as a bald man
I have finally admitted that my hair has gone for ever, and taken great comfort from the reigning king of baldnessThis year will go down in history as the year I went bald. Well, actually, 2018 went down as the year I went bald. But still, 2021 will go…
My lover is frustrated by my libido. Should we split and find partners with similar sex drives?
I have had difficult relationships, which have affected how I feel about sex. I understand my current partner’s concerns, but am not sure anything will improve the situationMy partner and I are in our late 30s and met a few months before the pandemic. …
Nigel Slater’s festive recipes for roast cauliflower and chocolate treats
A humble yet splendid dish – and handmade fruit and nut clusters for ChristmasI brought a dish of baked cauliflower to the table the other day – creamy-white clouds in a spiced, brick-red sauce. Humble, yet somehow splendid with its festive colours and…
Dear Santa… I’m not sure what I want
My son starts writing a letter to Santa – but quickly becomes distractedMy son’s in that sweet twilight period of Christmases past; neither completely ignorant of what Christmas is, nor so radically materialistic that he forms his entire year around it…
‘We don’t have to command them – it’s a relationship’: meet Britain’s top dog whisperer
There are now more dogs in Britain than ever before. And many new owners are not sure how to cope. Louise Glazebrook, the country’s foremost dog behaviourist and author of a brilliant new book, explains how to make the most of your furry four-legged fr…
Vincentka vs garbage water – an original short story by Helen Oyeyemi
A chance meeting while waiting for a Prague tram and the gift of an ‘almost sister’… a seasonal short story by the prize-winning novelistWinter: Each time you step outdoors your toes curl – well, they try to – and you hiss into your scarf. The temperat…
The night owl problem: the surprising reason late sleepers are less happy
It is not just because they are tired and tied to impossible schedules. A new study suggests night owls experience less support from friends and familyName: Night owls.Age: They come in all ages. Continue reading…
Rescue me: why Britain’s beautiful lockdown pets are being abandoned
The cats and dogs that helped us through the pandemic are increasingly being dumped in the street or handed over to charities – and shelters are dealing with the falloutOn a cold, steely grey day in a farmyard in Essex I meet Spike. Thick-set, broad-ch…