Dawn Chorus: Churchill's swimming pool, the end of puppy smuggling, Quiz of the Day, and a two tropical islands for the price of one
This morning's Dawn Chorus brings a few rays of sunshine to the start of December.
News
The latest property news and countryside & culture news
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Britain's top luxury property hotspots outside London
With its impressive Georgian architecture, Bath tops the list — but only after jostling for position with three other major British cities. Annabel Dixon reports.
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Chandeliers and marble floors in Britain's most eye-popping £750,000 house
A house in a Lancashire town where you get a LOT for your money, plus nature, Christmast presents and our Quiz of the Day: it's our daily Dawn Chorus.
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Why calling a fox sly is an insult, the loo with a view, and the end of Billingsgate and Smithfield markets
Plus our quiz of the day and some of our favourite pieces from the Country Life website that you might have missed.
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The florist-photographer turning vases of flowers into a 21st century Grand Masters
A look at the work of Harald Altmaier, an unusual solution to an imaginary problem, and much more besides in today's Dawn Chorus.
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How to choose a Christmas tree — and then keep it alive once you get it home
Expert advice on Christmas trees, good news for English bluebells, plus our Quiz of the Day and more — it's all in Tuesday's Dawn Chorus.
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Property Talk: The cost of moving more than doubles in a decade (and it’s set to climb further next year)
Homeowners fork out nearly £14,000 when selling one home and buying another. And brace yourself: that figure is set to rise from April 2025, when stamp duty thresholds change.
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Why the pub is our favourite amenity, how to send cheap Christmas cards from abroad and the return of the golden eagle
Plus the property of the day, and a quiz.
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The 25% premium for the pleasure of living in one of the UK’s national parks
Homes located in national parks are typically £66,700 more expensive than similar properties elsewhere, according to Nationwide. Still tempted? Here’s one or two plum homes for sale in these beauty spots.
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The £3 million Van Dyck painting going under the hammer with a unique buy-one-get-one-free offer
If you've ever dreamed of owning an Anthony van Dyck, now's your chance to pick up two in one go — plus more fun from today's Dawn Chorus.
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100 years of the Shipping Forecast, winning the war on antibiotics and the world's best young cheesemonger
Plus a sublime Scottish castle, how to address people correctly and the quiz of the day.
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Grazing sheep to save a church, a report from the farmers' march and why olive oil will soon be cheap
Plus our favourite property for sale and the quiz of the day.
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In pictures: Farmers march against inheritance tax in London
After it was announced that Agricultural Property Relief is going to be scrapped, farmers, landowners and others took to the streets of London in protest.
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Where have all the salmon gone, and what can we do about it?
Jane Wheatley examines the dire situation facing the king of fish.
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Britain lost 25 million of its 'graceful giants', the elm tree — but there's finally real hope that they are coming back
Once the hallmark of a rural idyll, our English elms were almost eradicated by the devastating fungal infection of Dutch Elm Disease. Thankfully a new cultivation aims to secure their survival, as Andrew Martin explains.
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What happened when Country Life put The Queen's Jack Russells on the Girls with Pearls page
After the sad news that one of Her Majesty The Queen's beloved Jack Russells died at the weekend, today's special edition of the Dawn Chorus looks back at the day that Beth and Bluebell took over Country Life magazine's famous Frontispiece page to become the first ever canine Girls in Pearls.
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Henrietta Spencer-Churchill: My life at Blenheim Palace, from waterskiing on the lake to dealing with a £10 million bill for a new roof
Lady Henrietta Spencer-Churchill joins the Country Life Podcast.
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Queen Camilla says 'sad farewell' to her beloved Jack Russell, Beth
Her Majesty Queen Camilla's much-loved Jack Russell terrier Beth has died.
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Buy a guitar from Jeff Beck, unpicking the Massacre of Glencoe and why you might go to prison for trimming a hedge
Plus, a glorious property for sale, watches that are art, and the quiz of the day
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'Other cultures celebrate the elderly. So why do we consign them to beige farms that smell of cabbage and wee?': Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen on Changing Rooms, retirement living and growing old disgracefully
30 years after finding worldwide fame as TV's most flamboyant interior designer, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen has a new mission: to turn retirement villages into places more like boutique hotels than 'oatmeal coffins'.
