A specially curated guide to help you enjoy the next 48 hours (or more) in Bath

EXCITING NEWS  |  COMING TO BATH IN MAY

TV personality and quiz show master Richard Osman is to join the starry line-up for the Bath Festival in May. The author of bestseller The Thursday Murder Club – currently on course to sell 1 million hardback copies – will be in conversation with comedian, actor and writer Miles Jupp at The Bath Forum at 7.30pm on 19 May.

Richard Osman is a regular on our TV screens as the joint host, with Alexander Armstrong, of the long-running quiz show Pointless and, more recently fronting Richard Osman’s House of Games. Before appearing on TV Richard produced shows such as Deal or No Deal and was a writer for Have I Got News for You, among other shows.

The Thursday Murder Club, his debut crime novel, features a group of friends in a retirement home who take up crime-solving in their twilight years. Steven Spielberg has snapped up the movie rights and Osman’s second whodunit, The Man Who Died Twice will be published later this year.

Clever and drily funny, with killer one-liners and artfully constructed twists and red herrings, The Thursday Murder Club is tremendous fun for all lovers of a classic whodunit.

Richard Osman has a huge social media following, with 1 million followers on Twitter @richardosman.

Tickets for Richard Osman and the rest of The Bath Festival go on general release from 13 April, from: thebathfestival.org.uk, 01225 463362.

Photo credit: Penguin Books

OBJECTS OF DESIRE  |  FABERGÉ 

The Fabergé dynasty really began in 1882 when Peter Carl Fabergé took over his father’s very ordinary 40 year jewellery business. Together with his brother Agathon, he quickly transformed it into an international phenomenon. 

The success of the two brothers was changing the nature of the business. Out went the then fashionable style where diamonds prevailed. In came the design-led artist-jeweller with a penchant for colour through both stones and reviving the lost art of enamelling. 

They added objets deluxe to their repertoire, including objets de fantaisie such as the Imperial Easter Eggs, now regarded as pinnacles of the goldsmiths’ art. 

Today these are treasured in some of the world’s leading museums and private collections. The craftsmanship of all their creations was of the very finest standard. This formula of design and craftsmanship made Fabergé irresistible and the ultimate objects to own, as well as the gift of choice.

These Fabergé egg pendants are not only wearable and highly collectable but are keepsake investments to be treasured for years to come.

From left to right: 

Fabergé Heritage Palais Tsarskoye Selo 18ct yellow gold, turquoise enamel and diamond locket pendant and 20 inch chain with a clover surprise. Total diamond weight: 0.31ct. 
£9,600

Fabergé Heritage Palais Tsarskoye Selo 18ct yellow gold, white enamel and diamond pendant and 20 inch chain. Total diamond weight: 0.29ct. £6,480

Fabergé Heritage Palais Yelagin 18ct white gold royal blue enamel and diamond pendant and 20 inch chain. Total diamond weight: 0.19ct. £6,480

Fabergé Imperial Simple 18ct rose gold and diamond pendant and 20 inch chain. Total Diamond Weight: 0.05ct. £2,760

Click here to see the Fabergé range at Mallory Jewellers.

OUR APRIL ISSUE  |  GREAT READING STARTS HERE

SUMMER PLANS  |  AN IDYLLIC SETTING

WEEKEND WINE  |  SPANISH SPARKLERS

... and it loves me! Discover these six fabulous Cavas with The Great Wine Co.

Mas Pere Brut Reserva Cava – Pere Ventura
Fresh and balanced with a creamy texture. This is an elegant and distinctive cava with aromas of apple and nuts. £12.95

Albariño Brut – Mar de Frades
Golden yellow with lemon green hues. On the nose it is complex and expressive. First it releases bottle ageing notes and a sea water, eucalyptus and white fruit in the background that remind us of albariño grape. A toasted bread and almond kernel character pervade. On the mouth it is broad, tasty and fresh. In the aftertaste the typical albariño notes reappear with a pleasant and crispy aftertaste. £27.

Blanc Vi Natural Sparkling Organic – Celler 9+
Vintage 2017. Gold yellow colour, lightly cloudy due to the second fermentation lees being present. Elegant bakery aromas and mature fruit. The bubbles are light in the mouth and very well integrated due to the second fermentation with cork top. Minimum of 15 months maturation in the bottle. £22.

La Cuvée Brut Organic – Gramona
Medium intensity. Elegant floral notes wrapped in stone fruit – peach, apricot, golden apple, lemon peel, closed by a shy note of raw almond. Round entrance, medium enveloping body, crispy carbonic texture. In the retro-nasal route citrus memories return, the apple, the almond. Very refreshing and long finish. £22.50. 

Cuveé Classic Cava – Pere Ventura
Pere Ventura's high-quality cava house was established in 1992, but draws on a sparkling wine heritage that extends deep into the past. Ageing takes a minimum of 18 months in the cool Père Ventura cellars, although some of its cavas are allowed to rest for as long as three years or more. "Take risks and pursue excellence,'" advises Père. "That is the secret of success." This elegantly balanced Cava has fine, frothy bubbles and a vibrant golden hue. The aromas of crunchy green apple and white peach come to the fore on the nose, alongside hints of lemon balm and toasted brioche. £11.75.

Imperial Brut Organic – Gramona
A delicious 2015 vintage – ripe white fruit such us apple and peach. Aniseed notes, fennel. Nice balance between notes of freshly baked bread and subtle citrus peel aromas. Dried nuts. Subtle toast and yeast notes with buttery aromas. Wide on entry, full and creamy on the palate. Velvet-like bubbles. Refreshing finish. The white flowers and fruit aromas come through again on the palate against a backdrop of freshly baked bread. £33.

Explore the full range of great Cavas at: The Great Wine Co.

FASHION  |  SPRING STAPLES

AL FRESCO DINING  |  GRAND REOPENINGS

Luxury country house hotel Homewood will open its Olio Terrace from 12 April. With a large patio, outdoor kitchen, rustic pizza oven, relaxed seating area and views across the gardens, the terrace welcomes guests for lunch, afternoon tea, dinner and cocktails. Executive chef James Forman’s menus include generous feasting platters for sharing and great British favourites. For private groups of six (limited to two households), Homewood’s heated Olio Chalets offer a welcoming space (these must be pre-booked). The Olio Terrace will be open every day from 12–9pm.

homewoodbath.co.uk

Luxury boutique hotel, The Bird in the centre of Bath, will also open its Plate Terrace on 12 April. Offering one of the city’s best al-fresco views, the terrace has a mix of relaxed seating, which includes covered pavilions for the terrace. The Plate Terrace will be open from 11am to 10pm, Wednesday to Sunday for drinks, lunch and dinner service, as well as for breakfast from 9am at the weekend.

thebirdbath.co.uk

The Bath Priory has plans to welcome visitors to enjoy some spring-time outdoor fun. From 12 April, the terrace and four acres of gardens will be open for all-day alfresco dining, with a new informal terrace menu serving breakfast, brunch, lunch and supper, packed with seasonal, light and exciting dishes. For a full day out, there are new exclusive-use pool and poolside packages for up to 12 guests from two families, which include exclusive use of the pool and poolside areas, delicious food throughout the day and access to the gardens and garden games. Half day and indoor pool packages are also available. The exclusive use Pool Fun Day Packages for the heated outdoor and indoor pools will be on offer from 12 April, available until the hotel re-opens to residential guests on 17 May.

Pre-booking is required: thebathpriory.co.uk

LES CHANSONS DE PRINTEMPS  | SALADS IN THE SUN

Since it first appeared on menus in Nice in the late 19^th century, Salade Niçoise – a glorious combination of tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, tuna, green beans and olives in an anchovy-rich vinaigrette – has topped the salad charts across the world. Delia Smith calls it "one of the best combinations of salad ingredients ever invented" and Gordon Ramsay says it's “the finest summer salad of all" – like most chefs, however, they beg to differ when it comes to how to treat those little potatoes: Gordon sautés his after boiling (I do, too), while Delia slices hers and uses them cold. Would Nigella Lawson care to comment? “I have no desire to join the fray,” she writes, in her 2007 book Nigella Express. “I put in what I have at home from, broadly, the accepted canon, but not necessarily everything the purists would”. She therefore eschews spuds altogether and uses croutons instead. I would like to add, however, that canned new potatoes can be used to great success in this recipe if you haven't got any fresh to hand... just don't tell Gordon I said that.

On the fish front, many recipes insist on using seared fresh tuna; many more tell you that only tinned tuna will do... and on and on the debate goes, with olives, anchovies and everything else being tossed around in the great salad bowl of cheffy egos.

The recipe you see here is my own little version of this great big salad, but feel free to do your own thing. I can, however, offer one firm guarantee regarding the multiple charms of Salade Niçoise: after just one forkful and a sip from a glass of chilled rosé on an early spring evening, you're immediately transported to a pavement table outside a French Riviera bistro. À votre santé!

Ingredients (serves 2, generously)

For the olive dressing:
50g pitted black olives
6 anchovy fillets
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic or red wine vinegar
The juice of half a lemon

For the salad:
300g small new potatoes or 1 x 300g can of peeled new potatoes in water
100g green beans, trimmed and chopped into bite-sized chunks
2 x 200g high-quality tinned tuna in olive oil, drained
4 large eggs
2 Baby Gem lettuces
200g cherry tomatoes, halved
2 tbsp balsamic or red wine vinegar
The juice of half a lemon
Olive oil, for sautéing and dressing
Pinch of caster sugar
Small handful basil leaves
Fresh chives, to serve

Method

1. To make the olive dressing, mash the olives, anchovies and garlic together to form a rough paste (a pestle and mortar helps here) before adding the olive oil, lemon juice and balsamic or red wine vinegar. Combine well, and set to one side.

2. Cook the potatoes in salted, boiling water for 12–15 minutes, or until tender (or, open that can.) Drain and set to one side. Meanwhile, cook the eggs until hard-boiled (I like the yolks to be slightly soft-set, which takes around 6 minutes). Plunge into cold water before peeling, to avoid the dreaded 'green rim' around the cooked yolks. Steam the green beans until al dente and refresh in cold water; drain, and set to one side.

3. Halve the cooled potatoes and sauté over a medium heat in 2 tbsp olive oil until just turning slightly crispy on the outside.

4. In a large bowl, whisk 3 tbsp olive oil with 2 tbsp balsamic or red wine vinegar and the juice of half a lemon to make a vinaigrette. Strip the Little Gem lettuces and add the leaves to the bowl, tossing with your hands until each leaf is covered in vinaigrette. Divide the dressed leaves between two large, shallow serving bowls and roughly blob half of the olive dressing hither and thither across the leaves.

5. Pile the potatoes and tomatoes on top of the leaves, followed by the green beans and chunks of tuna. Cut the hard-boiled eggs into halves or quarters and place them neatly around the top of each bowl, making sure that each serving has a total of 2 eggs each. Dollop small spoonfuls of the remaining olive dressing on top of each piece of egg... et voila!

INTERIOR STYLES  |  WALL CLOCKS WITH ATTITUDE

We’ve often featured Newgate clocks in The Bath Magazine and our newsletters, and while we might choose our words more carefully – we don’t take exception to Newgate’s forthright self-declaration and generally agree they are pretty darned-good wall clocks.

Available for a short time only, Newgate has a limited edition of six vibrant designs including ’Best Clock Ever' and 'Up Yours' wall clocks featuring multicolour, limited-edition artwork with a hand-pulled screen-printed slogan combined with a spun aluminium dial and matt black silicone case.

Newgate clocks have become popular also because of their generous size – these measures 53cm and have a quality ‘silent sweep’, whereby the hands move in a constant sweeping motion rather than a stepped tick. The motor is pretty quiet too, so the only noise you’ll hear is guests mouthing out expletives as they read the time. Regular price: £100

Order and view all the range at Newgate World

ON THE BOX  |  A FATHER-SON DRAMA

Sent to live with his estranged father for the summer, a rebellious teen finds kinship in a tight-knit Philadelphia community of Black cowboys.

Starring Idris Elba, Caleb McLaughlin and Method Man, this moving father-son drama is the perfect way to kick off the bank holiday weekend.

Watch it on Netflix tomorrow

LET'S TALK  |  LIQUID HEAVEN

Soup shouldn't be put on the back burner just because the sun is shining. Here are a spring soup selection packed with lively, seasonal flavours, refreshingly elegant, elegantly refreshing and super-speedy to make.

BEAUTY MUST-HAVES  |  TREAT YOURSELF

LOOKING BACK  |  VIEWS OF THE PAST

By Andrew Swift

This photograph was taken in the 1890s, looking across Stall Street to the colonnade leading into Abbey Church Yard. Although immediately recognisable, two changes are particularly striking. The first is the appearance of the Pump Room and colonnade, blackened by soot from thousands of chimneys across the city, something that didn’t change until the burning of coal was banned and a programme of stone-cleaning finally got under way in the 1960s. The other is the balustrade in the foreground, which divided the forecourt of the Grand Pump Room Hotel from the street. Built in 1869, this hotel was a vast five-storey building in French Chateau Style, which towered over the surrounding streets, and rivalled the Empire Hotel for scale and lack of sympathy with Bath’s Georgian heritage. For a time, though, it was the rendezvous of choice for wealthy and titled visitors to the city, a temple to conspicuous consumption and to a style of living that died, like so much else, in the First World War. 

Although the hotel stayed open after the war, it grew increasingly shabby, increasingly difficult to maintain, and increasingly out of touch with the demands of the new age. In the 1930s, there were plans to revamp it in art-deco style, but then came another war and its requisition by the government. After the war, it enjoyed a brief spell in the unlikely stewardship of British Railways, before demolition in the late 1950s. Arlington House now occupies the site.

akemanpress.com

THE KIOSK  |  MAGAZINE MOMENTS

Curated by Daniel McCabe – Magalleria

NORTHLETTERS  is a handsome and substantial annual German magazine focused on Scandinavia. It’s a themed, story and photography-driven exploration of the ‘Northern’ or more specifically 'Nordic' soul. This is only the third issue, with the other outings being a winter-themed travel/adventure debut (NL1), followed by a self-awareness and wellbeing summer edition (NL2). Instead of a seasonal theme the main idea for NL3 is that of 'home' and the sense of shelter and sanctuary we attach to this. It's quite lush and atmospheric and anyone with a penchant for Scandinavian travel, nature, folklore, photography, architecture, interior design and wellbeing is going to love this. 

£25; magalleria.co.uk

ON THE BOOKSHELF  |  WHO'S  A LITTLE DEVIL?

LOOK OUT FOR... 

HOMES & GARDENS  |  AWARD-WINNING SPECIALISTS

Founded in 2006, Etons of Bath is the UK’s only specialist interior design practice focused on refurbishing, renovating and reinvigorating Georgian and Regency homes and hotels. Their team of 12 interior designers, planners and project managers can help you plan, design and deliver classically inspired interiors that add value, turn heads and improve the use of space. The showroom and studio are packed with ideas, inspiration, know-how and experience. They cover projects of all shapes and sizes from large country homes to Bath townhouses, boutique hotels to bijou boltholes combining creative flair with solid experience together with a passionate and friendly team.

108 Walcot Street, Bath BA1 5BG 
Tel: 01225 639002 Web: etonsofbath.com

PROPERTY OF THE WEEK  |  A CITY CENTRE TOWNHOUSE

This beautiful city-centre, Georgian Grade II listed terrace property was built by John Wood (The Elder) c1760-1770 and is distinct as it is the only house in Miles’s Buildings with an additional attic storey. Every one of its five floors has been recently renovated and refurbished by internationally renowned interior designer, Julia Dempster, resulting in a stylish and very comfortable home.

Inside the front door and internal porch, there's an elegant hallway with a striking, black cantilever staircase, white panelled walls and wooden herringbone flooring that flows into the other rooms on this floor. The kitchen/dining room has bespoke Intone Design units and central island featuring a round wooden breakfast bar.

At the heart of the kitchen is a Rangemaster cooker, accompanied with built-in white goods and Carrara worktops. The triple bay window, looking over the enclosed rear garden, is the perfect spot for a dining table. There's a wrought iron fireplace and door from here into the office/dining room which also has a door from the hall.

On the lower ground floor, the white panelled walls continue along a hallway that leads to the back door and onto the garden. There's a cosy family room with stone wall insets and off-white herringbone tiled floor. The room benefits from a large window, clever lighting and soft colour palette that creates an easy, comfortable space. On this floor, there's also a useful office room (that doubles as a laundry) with views to the garden courtyard, a bedroom/gym room and WC.

On the first floor, the white wall panelling flows into the drawing room with triple bay windows with shutters overlooking the garden and a fireplace; and a bedroom with fitted wardrobe. Up another floor to the master suite that has a walk-in wardrobe was well as a luxe bathroom with freestanding bath, shower and double vanity.

On the third floor there are two further bedrooms, one currently a dressing room with exceptional storage, and two shower rooms. A new, pressurised water system means power showers are possible even on this top floor. 

The east-facing, rear walled garden has a courtyard and a small patio, a large magnolia tree and several borders with shrubs. Although Miles’s Buildings is a paved street, the property does have a garage, which is located nearby off Circus Place.  £1,750,000

Knight Frank are the appointed agents. Click here for information and to view even more lovely images