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Plus, a delicious chocolate brownie recipe and a speaker pretty enough to hang on the wall |
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A specially curated guide to help you enjoy the next 48 hours (or more) in Bath
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HAPPY NEW YEAR | YEAR OF THE METAL OX
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Today marks one of the globe's biggest annual celebrations as a fifth of humanity celebrate despite it being a mostly virtual event this year.
The Chinese New Year 2021 animal is the Ox. Each year has an animal sign in the Chinese Zodiac (literally 'circle of animals'), which is based on the Moon and has a 12-year cycle. However, there is also a cycle of five elements — wood, fire, earth, metal and water — which together creates a 60-year cycle. So in 2021 it's the Year of the Metal Ox, which hasn't happened for 60 years.
The Ox is the second of all zodiac animals. According to one myth, the Jade Emperor said the order would be decided by the order in which they arrived to his party. The Ox was about to be the first to arrive, but Rat tricked Ox into giving him a ride. Then, just as they arrived, Rat jumped down and landed ahead of Ox. Thus, Ox became the second animal.
The Travel China Guide illustrates that those born in the Year of the Ox are known for being diligent, persistent, and honest. People whose birth dates occurred in the Year of the Ox include those born in 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997 and 2009. Famous individuals born in the Year of the Ox include Barack Obama, George Clooney, and Malala Yousafzai.
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WEEKEND WINE | PRODUCER OF INTEREST
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Ramón Bilbao - Rioja, Spain |
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Hailed as one of Spain's most innovative producers, Ramón Bilbao was established way back in 1924, when Don Ramón Bilbao Murga set up his home in the heart of Rioja's wine region. Today Ramón Bilbao creates some of the finest wines in Spain and is celebrated worldwide for its excellent bottles. Here are just five from the producer's wonderful selection at The Great Wine Co.
Albariño On the nose, tropical notes of pineapple and passionfruit interspersed with golden apple and stone fruits mix with white floral aromas. The palate is refined with unctuous notes of apricot and mango, and a delicious tropical fruit finish with a refreshing acidity. £13.95
Rioja Crianza This wine is amazing, with aromas of fresh dark fruit, such as blackberries and blackcurrants and hints of blackberry. It has a lovely ripeness and generous fruit character, whilst retaining good structure. One of The Great Wine Co’s best red wines around the £10 price point. £11.95
Rioja Viñedos de Altura A wine that portrays the beautiful fruit produced by high-altitude vineyards: in this case 50% Tempranillo from La Rioja Alta and 50% Garnacha from La Rioja Baja. This has lilting violet and plum aromas, and vibrant, intense fruit on the palate. Medium-bodied and supple-textured, it is both full of personality and dangerously easy to drink! £16.50
LaLomba Rosado 'Finca Lalinde' This wine's intricacy, finesse and balance is possibly the finest rosé we had ever tasted. Combining feather touch delicacy with enormous personality, it displays delicious juicy blush pear fruit, tempered by savoury bay leaf aromas, electric-bright acidity and a genuine impression of 'minerality'. Bone dry, yet with fabulous flavour intensity and sustain, this is a masterpiece. £25.00 (£49.50 for a magnum)
Monte Llano Blanco Rioja Pale lemon in colour with green hues. On the nose aromas of tropical fruits such as banana and citrus fruits can be found. The palate is fresh, vibrant and fruity with a balanced acidity. £10.95
Discover even more wines by Ramón Bilbao here
Stock up and order online with free delivery on all orders over £50.
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OBJECTS OF INTEREST | ROLEX IN COLOUR
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Over the last 12 months a riot of avant-garde colour has burst into watch design like never before. Rolex has always had a playful side since the late Sixties when it started adding joyful colours and tones on its enamel Stella dials. Forty years on, five new colourful dials have been added to the new Oyster Perpetual 36 line up.
Incredibly cool with unisex appeal – thanks to the mid-sized 36mm case – the range will look great on any wrist. The new hues are: coral red, yellow, green, turquoise blue and candy pink. All have Chromalight displays, which means that these dials are super bright in the daytime but also have a beautiful lume and are perfectly legible in the dark too. The classic stainless steel Oyster bracelet, domed bezel, super self-winding movement and waterproof quality – up to 100 meters – are all what you'd expect in this thoroughly modern classic. £4,450.
For availability and more details contact Mallory; official Rolex retailer.
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PRECIOUS GIFTS | IN SILVER
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Sometimes only silver will do. Icarus Jewellery is an independent silver jewellery shop based in Bath since 2015. They are delighted to offer a great selection of handmade unique silver jewellery designs in their Bath store on the famous Pulteney Bridge and in their online shop.
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FASHION NEWS | MULBERRY IN MINIATURE
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Mulberry celebrates 50 years
Mulberry celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, and have announced the first in a series of Mulberry Editions drops: a hand-picked collection of Mulberry’s most era-defining silhouettes – recreated in collectable, miniature sizes.
Mulberry began in 1971, founded by Roger Saul with his first collection of hand-crafted, timeless leather accessories. In the ensuing 50 years, successive creative directors have continued to champion British craft skills and a youthful, elegant aesthetic.
The Iris, Amberley, Bayswater, Bayswater Tote and the newly relaunched Alexa all feature in miniature forms as part of the Icon Editions, alongside the Roxanne.
The block-colour bags of the collection are crafted from Mulberry's signature sustainable leather and each silhouette is also offered in its own playful iteration of an archival check, with the eye-catching Mulberry Pink shade that will appear across wider 2021 collections.
This marks the start of a series of limited-edition drops that will launch throughout 2021. The collections will fondly pay homage as well as boldly breaking the rules to create something new that is beautiful, functional, and made to last.
The Icon Editions bags will be available in Mulberry stores and at mulberry.com, with prices ranging from £495 to £1050.
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VALENTINE'S RECIPE | CHOC FULL OF LOVE
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Recipe by Melissa Blease |
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Heartfelt Chocolate Brownies |
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Chocolate has been credited as having mystical aphrodisiac qualities since the days of the Mayan and Aztec cultures. It’s the seductive gift at the start of the affair and the classic, comforting standby that helps mend the ensuing broken heart. Casanova apparently ate tons of the stuff before frolicking with his conquests... and when we learn what's in it, it's easy to understand why: chocolate contains phenylethylamine and serotonin, both of which are chemically mood-lifting agents which produce the euphoric effects often associated with being in love. So... if you fancy igniting a fire in the belly of a ‘special someone’ or just treating yourself kindly this Valentine’s Day, this is the recipe for you.
Ingredients 185g unsalted butter 185g good quality dark chocolate (minimum 70%) 85g plain flour 40g cocoa powder 50g white chocolate 50g milk chocolate 3 large eggs 275g caster sugar
Method 1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/gas mark 4. Grease and base line a shallow, square baking tin, approx. 20cm in diameter.
2. Cut the butter into cubes, break the dark chocolate into chunks and place both ingredients in a heatproof bowl. Set the bowl over a pan of just simmering water (but do NOT let the bowl touch the water) and heat gently, stirring occasionally with a metal spoon, until the chocolate and butter have melted. Remove from the heat and set the mixture to one side to cool to room temperature.
3. Chop the white and milk chocolate into neat little chunks. Sieve the plain flour and cocoa powder into a large mixing bowl.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar together until pale, thick and creamy, by which time the eggs should have roughly doubled in volume and your whisk should leave a temporary trail on the surface of the mixture.
5. Pour the cooled dark chocolate and butter mixture over the egg 'mousse' and gently fold with a metal spoon or spatula until thoroughly combined. Hold the sieve over the mixing bowl, re-sieve the cocoa and flour mixture into the mix and fold in again – as soon as the ingredients are combined and the mixture looks a bit 'fudgy', you're done.
6. Stir the white and milk chocolate chunks into the mix and tip the batter into the prepared tin (as it's quite a thick batter, a spatula will help here). Level the top and bake for 20–25 minutes. The brownie is cooked when the top has a papery crust, the sides are just starting to come away from the tin and a knife inserted into the middle comes out slightly moist.
7. Allow the brownie to cool completely in the tin before removing, placing on a plate and cutting into squares... or heart shapes.
8. Serve with a generous dollop of thick cream, dusted with cocoa powder. The brownies will keep in an airtight container for up to one week and can be frozen (tightly wrapped in cling film) for up to a month.
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ON THE BOX | A MOVING STORY
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Set five years after the end of the American Civil War, a veteran who travels from town to town reading the news undertakes a perilous journey across Texas to deliver an orphaned girl to a new home.
Based on the novel of the best-selling same name by Paulette Jiles, the Western movie sees Jason Bourne director Paul Greengrass reunite with Tom Hanks for the first time since Captain Phillips.
Starring Helena Zengel, Neil Sandilands and Elizabeth Marvel, News of the World is Netflix's latest must-see movie.
Watch it on Netflix here
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A speaker pretty enough to hang on the wall |
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Bang & Olufsen have recently introduced the Beosound Level – a portable wireless speaker that delivers on both impressive sound and equisite design.
The speaker intelligently changes its tuning to deliver the same listening experience in any position, in any room. That means you can stand it upright in the kitchen, lie it flat on a table or hang it gracefully on your wall, and the sound quality doesn't change.
Using materials that 'soften technology' the speakers add a touch of high-end Scandinavian style to any home.
£1,099; bang-olufsen.com
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RICHARD WYATT | SPREADING THE LOVE
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Combatting loneliness day
Bath’s Mayor, Cllr Manda Rigby wants us ALL to try and spread a little love this Valentine's and has dedicated 14 February as her ‘Combatting Loneliness Day.’
Help and support for those who feel isolated, solitary, sad and depressed has been her mayoral theme for her year in office and – as physical meetings have proved almost impossible – much of her work, and that of her supporters, has to be done online.
In a specially recorded YouTube video she asks:
"On February 14th, spread the love wider than normal. Obviously safely! But if you know of anyone who is on their own, or not on their own but feeling low, or isolated, in need of hearing from someone, drop them a card, give them a call, send some flowers, contact online... whatever you think they would most like and you are able to do.
"I would hate to think of anyone experiencing loneliness, or struggling with their mental health, and know this one day activity is not going to change the world, but it may just change their world for a few precious minutes, and I can promise that you will feel better for it as well.
"If you are on Twitter, please tag @MayorBath and use the hashtag Baththefriendlycity if you want to share with others what you have done and hope to encourage a few more people to do it."
The mayor's video message can be found on YouTube Mayor's Combatting Loneliness Day.
bathnewseum.com
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NEWS FROM THE CITY | CLEVELAND BRIDGE REPAIR
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Work starts this spring on the £3.8m project to repair Bath’s historic Cleveland Bridge
The major engineering project which is set to start mid-April is part of millions of pounds of investment in infrastructure projects happening this year to support the city’s recovery and meet its future needs.
The Grade II* listed bridge is a crucial link in the strategic road network between the A46 and the A36, carrying 17,000 vehicles every day. However, surveys carried out by Bath & North East Somerset Council have revealed that despite routine maintenance it now needs extensive major structural repairs.
The project, funded through the Government’s Highways Challenge Fund, is expected to take seven months to complete with the bridge closed to vehicles for 12 weeks from early May until early August. However, it is not until engineers are able to inspect the bridge, following its closure, that a timeline can be confirmed.
Access for pedestrians, cyclists and emergency vehicles will be maintained with diversion routes for vehicles clearly signposted from Chippenham, Warminster, Bristol and the M4.
Works were originally intended to take place in summer 2020, however the COVID pandemic has caused delays, with listed building consent only being granted in October last year.
Other improvements scheduled to start later in the spring include the installation of fibre broadband and the diversion of a major gas pipeline along the towpath to prepare the former gas works for development at Bath Western Riverside.
For more information on the Cleveland Bridge works visit bathnes.gov.uk
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EAT WITH YOUR SWEET | VALENTINE'S OFFER
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This weekend, Plate at The Bird is offering couples a 'Valentine’s Day at Home' hamper.
This three course package includes:
- Dorset charcuterie selection
- Plate's own fig chutney
- Leon's seeded loaf, freshly baked
- Loch Duart smoked salmon blini, chive cream
- Homespun pappardelle, Beeswax Farm beef ragu, parmesan
- Glazed chocolate mousse to share, raspberry, Chantilly
- Loved up macaroons
The hamper costs £30 per person, so £60 per couple. To book, pre-order by 5pm the day prior, and collect between 12–5pm on Saturday 13 or Sunday 14 February. It is available for local delivery. Call 01225 580438 or email plateathome@platebathwick.co.uk to book.
thebirdbath.co.uk
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PREPARE FOR | SHROVE TUESDAY
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It's time for pancakes!
Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday (this year on 16 February), is the traditional feast day before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday. Lent, which is the 40 days leading up to Easter, was traditionally a time of fasting and on Shrove Tuesday, Anglo-Saxon Christians went to confession and were absolved from their sins, or “shriven”.
On a practical level Shrove Tuesday was the last opportunity to use up eggs and fats before embarking on the Lenten fast and pancakes offered the perfect answer.
The pancake has a long tradition and is featured in cookery books as far back as 1439. The tradition of tossing or flipping them is almost as old: “And every man and maide doe take their turne, And tosse their Pancakes up for feare they burne.” (Pasquil’s Palin, 1619).
The ingredients for pancakes can be seen to symbolise four points of significance at this time of year: eggs for creation; flour as the staff of life; salt for wholesomeness; and milk for purity.
A traditional English pancake is very thin and is served immediately. Golden syrup or lemon juice and caster sugar are the usual toppings for pancakes. Below Melissa Blease offers us some other tempting ideas.
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Recipes by Melissa Blease |
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Crêpes Suzette
Serves 4; vegetarian
Mix 150ml freshly squeezed orange juice and the juice of 1 small lemon with 1 tbsp caster sugar and 3 tbsp Grand Marnier, Cointreau or brandy. Melt 50g unsalted butter in a large frying pan and heat the sauce very gently, until just warm. Place 1 cooked pancake into the pan, allow to warm through, then fold in half and half again to form a triangle. Slide the first triangle to one side of the pan and tilt to allow the sauce to run back into the centre before adding the next pancake and repeating the process. Repeat the process twice more until you have four triangular pancakes, all soaked in warm sauce. If you're familiar with flambéing with more liqueur... go right ahead! If not, serve on warm plates with whipped cream on the side.
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Pancake Quesadillas
Serves 4; vegetarian
Heat the oven to 180ºC/gas mark 4. Scatter 2 finely chopped, deseeded red peppers, approx. 150g cheese (Cheddar or Red Leicester both work well) cheese and a handful of freshly chopped coriander over 4 cooked pancakes. Season well and cover each pancake with another pancake to make a thin pancake 'sandwich'. Place all four filled pancakes on baking sheets and cook for 5 mins in the oven until the cheese begins to melt. Meanwhile, sauté 1 crushed clove of garlic in a little butter in a hot frying pan for 1 minute. Add ½ tsp ground cumin and 1 x 400g can of kidney beans, continue cooking for a couple of minutes, then take off the heat and mash roughly. Season, add a splash of lemon juice to taste, and spoon into a serving dish. In a separate serving dish, mash 2 ripe avocados with a spritz of lime juice and a sprinkle of chilli flakes (optional). Slice the pancake quesadillas into quarters and serve warm with the the bean mixture and chunks of avocado.
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Speedy Seafood Pancakes
Serves 2
Mix 4 tbsp crème fraîche with 1 finely chopped shallot, 1 tbsp chopped dill and a squeeze of lemon juice. Roughly chop approx. 100g good-quality smoked salmon into ribbons and add to the crème fraîche mixture with approx. 100g cooked king prawns. Use the saucy seafood mixture to fill 2 cooked pancakes. Toss a handful of fresh spinach with 6 halved cherry tomatoes and some chopped avocado. Lightly dress the salad with French vinaigrette and serve with the pancakes.
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Korean-style Prawn and Spring Onion Pancake Rolls
Serves 2
In a small bowl, mix 2 tbsp rice vinegar with 1 tbsp dark soy sauce, 1 finely chopped red chilli and a pinch of caster sugar. Stir well and place to one side. Tip 75g plain flour into a bowl, season well and add a dash of chilli powder. Beat 100ml water with 1 egg and 1 clove of crushed garlic. Make a well in the centre of the flour, pour the water mixture in and beat to create a smooth batter. Add a slick of vegetable oil to medium non-stick frying pan and sauté 4 sliced spring onions until just beginning to soften (2–3 minutes.) Scatter 100g small, cooked prawns across the pan and cover with the batter. Cook on a medium heat for 3–4 mins or until the bottom is fully set and turning golden, and the top is just beginning to set. Flip over and cook the other side for 3–4 mins more until cooked through. Slice into wedges and serve warm with the dipping sauce.
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SMART TECHNOLOGY | PURE WATER, CLEAN BOTTLE
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Never buy bottled water again |
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This is a light-weight self-cleaning water bottle with its very own water purification system. By using UVC LED light, Grey Ark Tech have developed a system to clean both the water and the bottle itself.
The light eliminates up to 99.9999% of bacteria, bio-contaminants and germs that can cause odor when using an average reusable bottle. This leaves us with clean, refreshing water.
The sleekly designed bottles are insulated and vacuum sealed, meaning they will keep the contents hot or cold for up to 12 hours. The LED temperature display tells you the exact temperature of your water and there’s also the option to turn on a reminder setting - to let you know when it’s time to hydrate again. It’s sustainable, sterile and smart.
Priced at £80 - find out more and shop at Grey Ark Tech
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Want to win one?
Follow us on social media @thebathmagazine – Competition details on Twitter or Instagram next week!
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TECHNOLOGY | FIBRE BROADBAND ROLL-OUT
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Truespeed brings full fibre broadband network to Bath
Bath-based Truespeed has started rolling out its ultrafast, gigabit-capable full fibre broadband network in Bath, propelling the city into the gigabit era. In parallel, the firm is expanding its footprint into neighbouring areas in Somerset including Keynsham, Saltford and South Widcombe.
In Wells, where the Truespeed build began in earnest in June 2020, Truespeed has now passed over 3,000 premises. Today the firm has announced that it is boosting its investment in Wells, with plans to connect more areas of the city and continue expanding its current building works in surrounding areas such as Wookey and Coxley.
On a mission to bring left-behind towns, cities and rural communities across the south west the benefits of affordable, full fibre broadband direct to their doors, Truespeed’s ultra-fast broadband infrastructure roll-out continues apace.
Truespeed has already connected over 200 communities ignored by national broadband providers. By building a brand new infrastructure, Truespeed is able to deliver 10 gigabit-capable full fibre broadband directly into premises – guaranteeing lightning quick connectivity and cast-iron reliability, even at peak times. The company is en route to its ambitious target of passing 500,000 properties by 2025.
truespeed.com
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LOOKING BACK | VIEWS FROM THE PAST
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By Andrew Swift
This photograph was taken in 1898 from the south-east corner of Queen Square. Anyone living in Bath will recognise the location immediately, but the scene itself has a remoteness and strangeness, as though it belongs in a novel by Charles Dickens. Apart from the obvious differences – the lack of traffic, the road paved with setts instead of covered in tarmac – it is the people who grab our attention, especially the women in the foreground, clutching a lamp post with one hand, while holding a basket with the other. It is to her that our eye keeps returning. She, like the man with the handcart in the middle of the road, is looking away from the camera.
The cluster of boys on the other side of the road, with nothing better to do, display no such reserve. They look straight at the camera, their stances expressive of a cheeky jauntiness, and doubtless with a ribald comment or two ready on their lips. The gardener on the other side of the railings also gazes at the camera, although his stance is expressive of nothing so much as relief at straightening up after too much bending over. But while they, along with the men further up the square, are the sort of figures we are accustomed to seeing in old photographs, the woman in the shawl and bonnet, her face in shadow, has a haunting, enigmatic quality. Has she just grabbed hold of the lamp post to help her up on to the pavement, or has she been standing there for hours, in what, with its leafless trees and grey sky, has all the hallmarks of a chilly day? We can never know, any more than we can know where she was heading or what was in her basket. It is a moment of mystery, frozen in time.
akemanpress.com
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THE KIOSK | MAGAZINE MOMENTS
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Curated by Daniel McCabe – Magalleria
DEK is a new, slim and luxurious music and film magazine that operates a little differently in its market. Rather than focusing on PR-driven album releases and touring, it opts to look more closely at specific events, places and, of course, people to ask, ‘What’s the story behind the story?' Print music magazines really have their work cut out to get our attention in the digital age, but DEK seems to have fresh ideas, taking us down new alleyways we didn’t even know were there.
£12; magalleria.co.uk
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GREAT READS | FROM THE ARCHIVES
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At the beginning of lockdown and wishing to abide by the guidelines, we temporarily suspended our print editions. We are now working on a spring edition of The Bath Magazine, that will be published early March.
In the meantime, if you fancy catching up on some great reads that you may have missed, there's an often overlooked link on our website, which will take you to a wondrous digital bookshelf of The Bath Magazine's back issues. Explore and enjoy. It'll help keep you off Netflix.
Delve into the bookshelf here
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ON THE BOOKSHELF | THE THREADS OF PLACE
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Review by Saskia Hayward, Topping & Co.
Thin Places
“There is a power to place – a hold that is kept over us – a woven thread that never really loosens itself once we have been there, and been held by it.”
‘Thin places’ are understood in Irish mythology as those spaces where the gap between this world and the next is thinner: “places that make us feel something larger than ourselves… a place between worlds, beyond experience.”
A blend of memoir, nature writing, and a history of the Troubles, Kerri masterfully traces the threads that intertwine place and landscape with our sense of self. All too aware that Brexit has signified a return to the preoccupation with borders, her anxieties over the impact such a change could have upon Ireland are felt. She writes as the threat of a ‘hard border’ between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland looms and the threat of a return to the violence of her childhood resurfaces.
Growing up in Derry on a “rough, sectarian [mostly Protestant] council estate” to a Catholic mother and a Protestant father she understands being born between worlds. The stories from her childhood are unbearably violent: her house petrol bombed when she was 11, she wakes up to her cat scratching at her face as smoke fills the room.
The book tells the story of her return, both physically to Derry but equally to Irish language and culture - an attempt to articulate the trauma of what she has experienced. In the Irish language, and specifically in its ability to contain otherness and the liminal, she comes to understand her trauma as being inseparable from the natural world (“eco grief,” in her words). Her writing is intense and embodied, recreating the turbulence of history as a lived experience and revealing how she has carved out a place of belonging from trauma.
£14.99, Canongate; toppingbooks.co.uk
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INTERIORS | ED'S CHOICE: IN THE PINK
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Audrey Rose Velvet Stool |
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H40 x W53 x D38cm, £195; grahamandgreen
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Powder Pink Coolicon® Shade |
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small 43 x 43cm, £125 and large 55 x 55cm, £200; loaf.com
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PROPERTY OF THE WEEK | ROMANTIC GEORGIAN
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A beautiful and truly unique property in the heart of the Georgian centre of the city.
Ideally situated with just a short walk to the shops, bars, restaurants, theatres, galleries and all that the city has to offer as well as the glorious Henrietta Park is just across the road.
The property is a three bedroom lateral apartment spanning two Georgian townhouses. Located on the first floor this apartment benefits from the grand proportions, seven street-facing sash windows, period features and high ceilings associated with what would have originally been the principal reception rooms of the townhouses.
The accommodation comprises of three bedrooms, a large drawing room with three sash windows and high ceilings, an open planspacious kitchen/dining room, Bathroom and separate w.c. It's on the market: £925,000; leasehold.
For further details and to arrange a viewing contact Winkworth estate agents in Bath
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