Comment & Opinion
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British Library cyber attack is a wake up call to the cultural sector
Thankfully, physical objects are safe from cyber warfare, but our cultural institutions need to sit up and take notice, warns Athena
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Dry January 'is an abomination' dreamt up by 'misery merchants who are never happier than when they’re uncomfortable'
Our columnist Agromenes turns away from his usual focus to take a look at the Dry January movement. It's fair to say, er, that he's against it.
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The lost art of letter writing: 'Opening a letter brings a nostalgic feeling of joy unrivalled in this digital age'
From scribbled thank-you notes to long, lyrical testaments of love, the handwritten word creates a meaningful and lasting record, says Sarah Fortescue, as she laments the lost art of letter writing.
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E-Types, Scotland's best beaches and the 'backwards-looking fantasy' of rewilding: Country Life's best features of 2023
From travel and motoring to dog training and pithy comment, these proved out most popular feature articles of the last 12 months.
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‘The love we share at Christmas is a refuge. It replenishes our depleted batteries and allows us to go out again into the world’: The 2023 Country Life Christmas message, by Revd Colin Heber-Percy
A safe haven, a refuge for rest and relaxation, the place we feel we belong—the concept of ‘home’ differs for each of us. At Christmas, home is so much more than a physical location: it is all around, says the Revd Colin Heber-Percy.
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Jason Goodwin: The Neolithic treasure I missed by 10 minutes
Jason Goodwin goes in search of treasure, but not the traditional gold and silver.
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Carla Carlisle: 'Seamus Heaney deserves a sainthood, as well as his Nobel Prize'
Carla Carlisle applauds The Letters of Seamus Heaney and shares how she couldn't wait until Christmas to devour the collection from the late Irish poet
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The stories behind the strangest phrases in English from being 'gone for a burton' to 'caught red-handed'
Learning a language is one thing, getting to grips with a pig in a poke is another altogether. Octavia Pollock explores some of our best idioms
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Britain's great country house revival — and how it was boosted by the unintended consequence of a temporary tax measure
To celebrate the 50th birthday of Historic Houses, director-general Ben Cowell considers the unlikely importance of tax policy as a spur to its early development.
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Jason Goodwin: The century-old language learning course that teased and intrigued me beyond endurance
Learning Italian sends Jason Goodwin down a route he'd never have expected — and his life is all the richer for it.
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Carla Carlisle: 'What we are witnessing began in 1900BC with Abraham’s journey from Ur to Canaan'
Carla Carlisle shares her perspective on a war that truly feels Biblical.
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Patrick Galbraith: The best sport in life is free
Patrick Galbraith's trip to the Isle of Lewis shows him a new perspective on how to land a bird for your festive roast.
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Opinion: We can't possibly keep producing electricity the old way — and those campaigning against wind turbines and solar farms need to lay down their placards
Country Life's columnist Agromenes delivers a powerful and heartfelt message in praise of progress.
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'Owning a boat is like standing in a cold shower, ripping up tenners — but it's everything I dreamed it would be'
Joe Gibbs ignored the warnings and bought himself a boat. One year one, are the joys greater than the regrets?
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Jonathan Self: The lost art of hitch-hiking
A first encounter in decades with somebody hitching a ride prompts our columnist to look back on the days when hitch-hiking was entirely normal — and an incomparable way to get from A to Wherever.
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Jason Goodwin: A somewhat comprehensive agenda for fixing Britain, from turning off the internet to compulsory Natural Service for 18-year-olds
'I know they will thank me in the end,' says our columnist, with tongue in cheek — though who knows how firmly?
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Hadrian's Wall in an English summer: Wind, rain, and unforgettable beauty
Solitary daily pacing of Hadrian’s Wall, in the footsteps of Roman soldiers, brings back family memories for Fiona Reynolds.
