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The not-so-ugly duckling: What to know about the quirky Irish water spaniel
With its curly topknot, ‘rat-tail’ and boundless energy for water, the Irish water spaniel is a breed apart. Quirky, clever and affectionate, it has been winning hearts for centuries — even if it still gets mistaken for a poodle.
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The 'professional hoarders' that have dressed everyone from Helen Mirren to Hugh Grant, and Madonna to Meryl Streep
Cosprop in London has been the go-to wardrobe for period productions of the stage and screen since 1965.
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'Top Trumps: British wildlife edition': How do our native animals measure up against one another
Patrick Galbraith rates ten of the UK's most interesting native animals on their elusiveness, speed and deliciousness, and reveals everything else you need to know about them.
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Agromenes: Act now for Man’s best friends
A crucial bill on animal welfare is making its way through Parliament. It must pass to put an end to the illegal trade on cats and dogs.
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Dickie Bird: 'I gave my life to the game, and, in return, it’s done a lot for me. It’s given me a clean living, the chance to see the world and to meet some wonderful people. I’m very grateful for that'
Dickie Bird, one of the most respected and loved umpires in the history of cricket, has died at the age of 92.
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Lady Bamford's next act: The Cotswold Curated Craft Fair
The inaugural Cotswold Curated Craft Fair will bring together the country’s leading artists, sculptors and designers.
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Meet the basset hound: Low-slung in stature, high in charm
Born in France and perfected in England, the basset hound has been tracking scent trails and stealing hearts for centuries — a low-to-the-ground, long-eared charmer with a perfect amount of wrinkles.
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Sophia Money-Coutts: I went to stay with a friend last weekend and my dog killed a chicken. How do I adequately apologise?
Our modern etiquette columnist Sophia Money-Coutts reflects on the dark side of being a dog owner.
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‘People would rather buy 20 synthetic jumpers than a woollen one that would last them a lifetime’: The British wool trade today
Sheep shearing was king in the middle ages, writes Lotte Brundle, but the rise of synthetic fibres put the industry in a woolly position. How is it faring now?
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Bedlington terriers: The rare dog breed that conquered the coal mines and made it to Crufts
The Bedlington terrier originated in the mining towns of Northumberland, and while it might look like a lamb, it’s got the heart of a lion.
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'A world within a world… a community with an identity, a smoothly turning cog in the wheel of royal life': A look behind the stable doors of the Royal Mews
Home to carriages, coachmen and craftspeople, Buckingham Palace’s Royal Mews is a village in the heart of London. It celebrates its 200th anniversary this year.
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‘We couldn’t go around digging holes in existing graveyards for fear of exhuming a real body’: The man who brought The Thursday Murder Club to the big screen
Lotte Brundle caught up with James Merifield, the production designer behind the new Netflix film adaptation of the Richard Osman novel, to chat about the murder mystery.
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What everyone is talking about this week: The great porpoise panic
Week in, week out, Will Hosie rounds up the hottest topics on everyone's lips, in London and beyond.
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The otterhound — the story behind Britain's rarest breed of dog
Bred for centuries to hunt otters in icy rivers, these shaggy, web-footed hounds were once favoured by royalty. Today, fewer than 1,000 survive worldwide.
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One by one: The lone wolves of the animal kingdom
Mankind may be tribal and sociable by nature, yet the ‘bliss of solitude’ — a state previously reserved for hermits — is the key to achieving inner peace, says Laura Parker
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If there's no fish, there's no fishing, with Robin Philpott
The CEO of Farlows joins the Country Life Podcast.
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Pugs in pearls: Nine times dogs stole the show on publishing’s most famous page
Every Monday, Melanie Bryan, delves into the hidden depths of Country Life's extraordinary archive to bring you a long-forgotten story, photograph or advert.
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The smooth collie: A working breed with beauty and brains
Once the go-to Scottish herding dog, the smooth collie is as elegant as it is dependable — a working breed with beauty and brains.
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A new gilded age: Sir David Attenborough christens a rare golden eaglet
The first golden eagle to fledge from the nest of a translocated bird has been rewarded with a name selected by Sir David Attenborough.
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How Sir Walter Scott made the Dandie Dinmont terrier a legend
This week marked Sir Walter Scott’s birthday — and so it seemed the right moment to celebrate the terrier that owes its fame, and its name, to his pen.
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'Two months to the Moon, three for rest and refreshment and two more for the return': The English stork success story
Long unseen on British shores, white stork chicks are hatching once again in the UK and a colony is now flourishing in West Sussex thanks to a pioneering restoration project.
