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| Plus, four ways to cook with rhubarb and Marks and Spencer's sustainable denim range |
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A specially curated guide to help you enjoy the next 48 hours (or more) in Bath
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WELCOME BACK TO BATH | MCDONALD & DODDS S2
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| Bath stars in new series of hit ITV drama |
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Bath will once again play a starring role in the new series of the contemporary detective drama McDonald & Dodds this spring. The series consists of three two-hour long episodes, the first two airing on ITV at 8pm from 28 February.
Working in line with Covid-19 restrictions, production company Mammoth Screen spent four months from September 2020 filming at various locations in the city including Royal Victoria Park, the Guildhall and the Indigo Hotel on South Parade.
Filming was co-ordinated by Bath & North East Somerset Council's Film Office, which promotes the district as a film and TV location and helps productions access public areas with the minimum of disruption to residents and businesses.
Location filming also took place in Bristol, coordinated by Bristol Film Office. The city's vast A Bond Tobacco Warehouse on Cumberland Road was transformed into a wartime bunker, while filming also took place on Berkeley Square and at City Hall, in the Lord Mayor's Reception Room.
Set in Bath, McDonald & Dodds pairs feisty DCI McDonald, who has recently transferred from London's Met Police, with the unassuming DS Dodds. To McDonald's surprise they form an unexpectedly effective crime-solving partnership.
The new series of McDonald & Dodds sees Tala Gouveia (Cold Feet) and BAFTA award winning actor Jason Watkins (The Lost Honour Of Christopher Jefferies, Des) reprise their roles as DCI McDonald and DS Dodds in three new murder mysteries, along with guest stars including Doctor Who’s Natalie Gumede, Cold Feet’s John Thomson, Rob Brydon, Sherlock’s Rupert Graves, Saira Choudhry, and Patsy Kensit.
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WEEKEND WINE | GREAT WHITES
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| Five fabulous wines for around a tenner |
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Estate Sauvignon Blanc - De Martino
From Chile. Intense aromas of ripe citrus and tropical fruit that lead to a fresh palate with medium body. £11.50
Blanc de Blancs, Vin de France - Le Rouleur
From France. "Le rouleur" is the term given to a cyclist who is a good all rounder, and the same is certainly true of this wine. An attractive glossy, pale yellow with crispy, fresh citrus and floral aromas with lively herby apple flavours on the palate. Soft in texture with a persistant finish. £8.50
Pinot Grigio - Le Vigne
From Italy. Blended from top vineyards including Cantarelle, next to Lake Garda. Pale straw yellow in colour with a bright and flowery fragrance. Light, crisp and dry with a racy acidity that gives mouth watering appeal. Offers good mid palate balance with a clean finish. £9.95
Petit Chenin Blanc - Ken Forrester Wines
From South Africa. Very clean, sparkly colour. Steely aromas of lime, lemon and mint. Supple and spicy, with bright acids giving shape to the flavors of stone fruits and lime. Very impressive. £10.95
The Stump Jump Chardonnay - D’Arenberg
From Australia. Very aromatic to start, lifted citrus blossom mix with white peaches and nectarines. Fresh and zesty on the palate, the oak lends support and gives a lovely creamy mouthfeel with texture and spice. £11.95
Explore the full white wine cellar at The Great Wine Co
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OBJECTS OF DESIRE | ROBERTO COIN
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Italian jewellery designer Roberto Coin sets each and every piece of his jewellery with a small ruby, usually hidden from sight and in contact with the wearer. The brand has become enormously popular not only because of this quirky signature but also for creating beautiful romantic pieces embraced by a huge celebrity following. Shown here: Roberto Coin Pois Mois Mini 18ct yellow and white gold diamond pendant and chain 45cm, £995. Matching Pois Mois Mini bracelet, 18cm, £1,435.
See the full range and other collections by Roberto Coin at: mallory-jewellers.com
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DENIM SHOP | M&S SUSTAINABLE RANGE
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WHAT'S BAKING? | FRUITY MEASURES
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| Recipe by Melissa Blease |
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| Fruity Tea Loaf |
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Packed with fruity, malty flavours, this hearty, fat-free tea loaf is a super-satisfying treat that's most definitely not just for tea time: top thick slices with chopped banana and drizzle with honey for breakfast; pair a wedge with crumbly Cheshire cheese at lunchtime; indulge yourself and have a thin slice with a glass of sherry in the evening... make the cake, and make it your own.
A mixture of 300g of whatever dried fruit you have to hand (or prefer) can easily replace the combination in this recipe – I've made this cake with various medleys including dried cranberries, dates, raisins and blueberries all to great success, but the sultana/apricot/prune mix results in the moistest end result.
The cake also has the added benefit of keeping well in a tin for days on end (if, that is, you can bear to leave it alone). It freezes well too, wrapped tightly in cling film... which is why I tend to bake two at once, and keep another in storage 'just in case'.
Ingredients
75g dried apricots, chopped
75g dried, pitted prunes, chopped
150g sultanas
2 large eggs
225 dark brown soft sugar
225g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
4 tea bags
Method
1. Mix the dried fruit and sugar together in a large bowl. Infuse the tea bags in 300ml boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bags and pour the tea over the dried fruit and sugar, stirring well. Cover the bowl and leave the mixture to marinate for a minimum of 4 hours (preferably overnight).
2. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/gas mark 4. Grease and line a 900g loaf tin.
3. Beat the eggs and stir into the fruit/sugar/tea mixture. Sift the flour, cinnamon and baking powder into the bowl and stir until thoroughly combined.
4. Transfer the cake batter into the prepared tin and bake for around 1.5 hours, or until the top is golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. If the top of the cake is browning too quickly before the centre of the cake is cooked, turn the oven down slightly and cover the top with foil.
5. Allow the cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out to cool completely before slicing.
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ON THE BOX | AN UNNERVING THRILLER
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The film follows Marla Grayson, a court-appointed legal guardian who cheats her elderly wards out of their assets as part of a con-artist team with her partner Fran. But when the pair set their sights on swindling wealthy retiree Jennifer Peterson they quickly find they've bitten off more than they can chew.
Starring Golden Globe-nominee Rosamund Pike, Peter Dinklage, Eiza González, Chris Messina, and Dianne Wiest.
Watch it on Amazon Prime today
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RICHARD WYATT | MAKE THE GREENS GREENER
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| Support wildlife in golf courses |
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Local author and historian Kirsten Elliott is on a mission. She’s launched a campaign to persuade the local council to open the gates to nature in two hotly contested green spaces in Bath.
Kirsten has organised an online petition to gain support for wildlife reserves being established in and around the Approach and Entry Hill golf courses, both of which have been in the news recently.
B&NES invited tenders to run the Entry Hill course – and we'll find out more next week about what plans the bid they’ve chosen actually has for the site. Meanwhile, the council turned down the one application they received for the Approach site adjoining the High Common which is now to have a 'rest period' of at least two years.
Kirsten said: "In his New Year message, Sir David Attenborough hoped that 2021 would be a Happy New Year for all creatures on this planet. It was that message that drove me to create this petition, because it seems to me that councils presented with opportunities to make our world a better place for wildlife should seize them with both hands.
"At Entry Hill and High Common, Bath has three golf courses which have been closed throughout the pandemic, but are there people clamouring for them to be reopened? Apart from a few dedicated golfers, the answer is largely no. But that does not mean that the spaces should remain unused."
Kirsten suggests a properly managed ecology centre, with education facilities for everyone, at Entry Hill. While a wildlife area on the High Common Approach site could include turning some of the bunkers into ponds, she'd love to see a wildflower meadow, too.
She added: "What the pandemic shows is that many people, while locked down, have come to appreciate our wild spaces. All over Bath, open spaces were busy with people of all ages. At times, some sites could hardly cope with the numbers. The Skyline Walk on the south and the Cotswold Way on the north have been discovered by many who had never visited them before.
Listening to local radio, or watching social media, you can hear and see people asking questions about a bird in their garden, or a plant or wild flower they’ve discovered.
Let’s build on that. Let’s make Bath a leading city in improving ecology and doing its bit in restoring Earth to being a Perfect Planet.’
You can find Kirsten’s petition at chng.it
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There are two types of rhubarb available right now: baby pink forced rhubarb (which is grown in the dark) and outdoor-grown rhubarb, which tends to be thicker stemmed than its forced cousin and and is brighter red in colour. Make sure you select bunches with firm, unblemished, snappable stalks, but beware! Never, ever eat rhubarb leaves: they contain high levels of oxalic acid (poisonous to both people and animals) so dispose of them immediately.
To poach rhubarb: rinse, trim and chop 400g rhubarb and tip into a suitably sized pan. Scatter with around 40g caster sugar, add a splash of water and simmer (partially covered) until soft. To roast rhubarb: preheat the oven to 190ºC/gas mark 5. Rinse, trim and chop 400g rhubarb. Toss with 50g caster sugar, tip onto a baking tray (in a single layer), cover with foil and roast for 15 minutes. Shake it all about, remove the foil and roast for a further 5–10 minutes until the rhubarb is tender and the juices have turned syrupy.
Below are some tempting recipes with rhubarb.
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PREPARE FOUR | RHUBARB RECIPES
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| Recipes by Melissa Blease |
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Rhubarb and Custard Cake
You will need 400g of roasted rhubarb for this recipe (see above). Preheat the oven to 180ºC/gas mark 4. Grease and line a 23cm loose-bottomed or springform cake tin. Take 3 tbsp of ready made 'store cupboard' custard (not the chilled, fresh custard) from a 150g pot and set to one side. Tip the remaining custard into a large bowl, add 250g softened butter, 250g self raising flour, 250g caster sugar, 4 large eggs and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Beat the mixture well until smooth and creamy. Spoon one-third of the cake batter into the prepared tin and cover with 150g roasted rhubarb, gently spreading as you go. Add another third of the cake batter mix and another 150g roasted rhubarb. Top with the last third of the cake batter and dot the top with the remaining 100g roasted rhubarb interspersed with little blobs of the set-aside custard. Bake the cake for 35–40 mins until risen and golden, then cover with foil and bake for a further 15–20 mins until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tin before serving.
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Rhubarb and Ginger Fool
Rinse and trim 300g rhubarb and chop into 2cm chunks. Place in a saucepan with 3 tbsp caster sugar and 1 tbsp water and cook over a gentle heat, partially covered with a lid, until the rhubarb is tender. Remove the lid, turn the heat up and boil rapidly for a couple of minutes until the liquid has reduced to a syrup. Tip the rhubarb into a sieve set over a bowl to catch the syrup, and allow both the fruit and the syrup to cool completely. When cool, use a stick blender or a food processor to purée half of the cooked rhubarb with 2 balls of stem ginger plus 1 tbsp ginger syrup from the jar. Whisk 200ml double cream with 1 tbsp icing sugar to the firm peak point. Roughly mash the cooked rhubarb and gently fold it into the cream along with 4 tbsp of the ginger purée and 200ml thick Greek yogurt, creating a swirl/ripple effect as you go. Spoon the mixture into glasses or dessert bowls and allow to chill before serving topped with the remaining ginger purée, the ginger syrup and crunchy ginger or shortbread biscuits.
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Rhubarb Jam
Rinse and trim 1kg rhubarb, chop into 1cm chunks and place in a large, heavy bottomed saucepan. Add 1kg jam sugar (or 1kg caster sugar plus 1 x 8g sachet of pectin) and 2 vanilla pods (halved lengthways) and heat and stir gently,until all the sugar has dissolved. Add the juice of 1 large lemon and increase the heat and boil rapidly for around 10 minutes, skimming off any scum that rises to the top, until the fruit is really soft. To test that you've reached setting point, drop 1 large blob of jam onto a chilled plate and allow to settle for 2 minutes before pushing your finger through the jam; if the surface wrinkles, you're good to go; if not, keep cooking, testing for the setting point every 2 minutes. Allow the jam to cool for around 20 minutes before ladling into warm, sterilised jars and sealing well. The jam will keep in a cool, dark place for up to 6 months.
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Rhubarb Gin
Rinse and trim 1kg rhubarb and chop into 3cm chunks. Put in a large jar with 400g white caster sugar, screw the lid on tightly, give it a really thorough shake, and leave in a cool, dark place for 24 hours, by which time the sugar will have drawn all the juice out of the rhubarb. Add one bottle of a classic, unflavoured gin of your choice (keep the empty bottle and lid), seal the jar again, shake to mix well and put it back into hiding for 4 weeks, by which time the gin will have turned a soft baby pink. Strain the liquor back into your empty gin bottle through a muslin-lined sieve and store in the fridge.
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FITNESS AWARDS | THE UNSUNG HEROES
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| Nominate your local trainer |
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Is your bootcamp instructor the best in class? Perhaps your running coach is miles ahead of the rest, or your personal trainer has kept you trim and healthy through the year-long pandemic?
Then you can officially cast your vote for Trainer of the Year in the Fit&Well Awards 2021.
While influencers such as Joe Wicks have positively transformed the fitness space this past year, it's crucial that we also commemorate our own personal fitness influences, from PTs to Pilates instructors who have played a pivotal role in keeping Britain fit and healthy in 2020. This may be through virtual group exercises on Zoom or personal training appointments held in the park.
"This last year has underlined the need for each and every one of us to make our health and fitness a priority," says Stephanie Wood, editor of Fit&Well.
"The Trainer of the Year award therefore gives people the chance to pay tribute to the pros who have been the driving force behind their personal fitness experience over the course of the pandemic."
Alongside the public-nominated Trainer of the Year award, the Fit&Well Awards will see handouts in five key categories including Home Workout Wonders, Hot Fit Kit, Top Fitness Tech, Healthy Home Heroes, and a panel-judged Headline Awards. The winners for each category will be announced in a week-long event from 12 April. Media partners for the 2021 awards include Woman&Home, T3 and Tom's Guide.
Stephanie also comments, "In these trying times, it's necessary to appreciate the individuals who have encouraged the public to maintain our collective health and fitness and approach the new normal with an optimistic and healthy mindset. That's why our Trainer of the Year award will acknowledge and celebrate the key fitness professionals who have inspired our fitness journeys during this important time."
You can now put forward your nomination for Trainer of the Year here by 7 March.
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LOOKING BACK | VIEWS FROM THE PAST
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By Andrew Swift
This aerial photograph taken in the mid-20th century shows a major industrial complex which, give or take a few remnants, has been totally swept away. Today, Bath’s Western Riverside development covers most of the area seen here. Back then, it was Stothert & Pitt, Bath’s biggest employer and known in its heyday as ‘crane-makers to the world’.
The gasholder in the foreground is one of three which once stood on the old gasworks site. For generations they were among the city’s most familiar landmarks. To the left of it is the old Destructor Bridge. A little further along is Victoria Bridge, still there today, and recently refurbished.
To the right of the gasholder is the former Midland Railway line to Bristol, which also carried trains heading south to Radstock and eventually all the way to Bournemouth on the old Somerset & Dorset line. The goods yard in the distance, along with the sidings and engine sheds, is now covered by the former Homebase store, a large car park and a network of roads. On the far side of the river lies Green Park station, still there today, although here again cars have replaced trains.
Although many residents will remember how large parts of the Western Riverside site lay derelict for years after the factories closed, it still seems extraordinary how quickly and how radically this scene has been transformed. Bath is not the only city to have been hit by deindustrialisation, but, so complete has been its loss, many newer residents may be surprised to discover how extensive its industrial base once was.
akemanpress.com
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THE KIOSK | MAGAZINE MOMENTS
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Curated by Daniel McCabe – Magalleria
Paddock Life is one of only a handful of premium car magazines, offering quality journalism and high-end photography printed over 180 pages of heavy coated art paper, all wrapped in lovely laminated art board covers. It’s just moved from subscription-only to the newsstand and takes a fairly non-traditional approach to its subject (auto sports) with minimal advertising and no obvious cover image. Paddock Life revels in the likes of GT3, endurance, F1, classic racing, hill climbing and marquee races such as the Mille Miglia or Le Mans, but it’s not about race results or standings but more about the events themselves, the lifestyle and ‘the scene’. Still, it takes some beating.
£10; magalleria.co.uk
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GREAT READS | FROM THE ARCHIVES
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We are now working on a new edition of The Bath Magazine, which will be published in 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 | MOVING LIFE TALES
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| Review by Saskia Hayward, Topping & Co. |
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| Childhood, Youth, Dependency |
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Childhood, Youth, Dependency, Tove Ditlevsen's Copenhagen Trilogy, published this year in a single paperback volume, is the searing and unsentimental tale of self-actualisation of a young girl from a working class childhood in 1920s Copenhagen.
Written with a devastating commitment to honesty, Ditlevsen takes us through the Second World War, through love, marriages, and addiction. As she charts this difficult path to adulthood she resists any urge to present herself as the hero –therein lies her appeal. Instead her work is intimate, immediate and utterly prescient even half a century later. This masterful autofiction triptych is the ideal introduction to the extraordinary life and work of one of Denmark’s most well-regarded writers.
£9.99, Penguin Books; toppingbooks.co.uk
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| Review by Saskia Hayward, Topping & Co. |
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| Let Me Tell You What I Mean |
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Let Me Tell You What I Mean collates for the first time twelve short essays from Joan Didion’s early writing. Her subjects vary: a Gamblers Anonymous Meeting, watching Nancy Reagan during a recorded interview, her teenage self getting a rejection letter from Standfords - but guiding each essay is her recognisable voice, characteristically dry, sharp, and insightful.
Most illuminating for fans of Didion will be essays such as ‘Why I Write,’ offering a glimpse into her writing process and thoughts on the act of writing itself. A constant presence beneath the surface is her awareness of the uneasy relationship between the writer and the text. As she claims, “in many ways, writing is the act of saying, of imposing oneself upon other people...” A valuable addition to her acclaimed non-fiction writing, this collection is considerably pertinent in its dissection of American culture and the role of truth in journalism.
£12.99, Fourth Estate; toppingbooks.co.uk
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The Arts Society Bath: The Studio Houses of the Holland Park Circle
At the centre of these extraordinary group of studio houses at the edge of Holland Park was Frederick Leighton’s house with its exotic Arab Hall. This lecture explores the houses of the Holland Park Circle that provide insight into the wealth, status and tastes of successful artists of the late 19th century.
Tickets cost £7 – instructions for joining and payment are available from treasurer.bath@theartssociety.org
Lecturer: Daniel Robbins
theartssociety.org/bath
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INTERIORS | ED'S CHOICE: COMFY THINGS
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This may come as a surprise to you, but it's National Comfy Day tomorrow (20 Feb). There's not a great deal to it – simply luxuriate, chill out and surround yourself with comfy things. Here are a few ideas if you need to up your comfy factor...
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PROPERTY OF THE WEEK | NEW TO THE MARKET
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| Mulberry House, Golf Course Lane, Bath BA2 |
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A rare opportunity to acquire this substantial detached property which has been in the same ownership since being built in 1978. This wonderful four-bedroom family home sits beautifully in a large one acre plot and enjoys the most stunning panoramic views of the city. The property also offers a unique opportunity to extend if required, subject to the necessary planning consents and significant value could be added.
With an impressive semi-circle driveway with dual entrances, the property sits within glorious, well-stocked gardens to both the front, rear and sides of the property. The house is entered at first floor bedroom level to the rear where there are four lovely bedrooms and a large master bedroom suite, all which have doors leading onto a first-floor balcony, which spans the width of the property.
Stairs lead down to the ground floor level where there are three attractive open-plan, linked reception rooms which all enjoy access onto a pretty sun terrace over-looking the gardens. In addition, there is a well-fitted kitchen/breakfast room, a utility room and cloakroom, along with an extensive undercroft and storeroom.
The property is generally in good decorative order throughout, however some updating may be required, although this is likely to be part of a larger project to extend the house.
The beautiful south-west facing gardens have a wealth of mature shrubs and trees and the breathtaking views.
Offers in excess of £1,650,000.
Viewings commence on 6 March, strictly by appointment, with best offers by 12 noon on 31 March. Contact Vivienne Hayes: vivienne@cobbfarr.com
cobbfarr.com
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