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Country Life 26 February 2025 looks at smooth fox terriers, woodpeckers, the treasures in Britain's schools and how to make the most of getting lost in the woods.

Here's a look at some of what you'll find inside:

An officer and a gentleman

Smooth fox terriers are ‘mischief on four legs’ and boast character in abundance, as Flora Watkins discovers from devoted owners of these smart and charming dogs

Knock on wood

Woodpeckers have been busy hammering out the beat of our broad-leaved woodland for millennia. Vicky Liddell takes a closer look at these striking birds

What goes up, must come down

John Lewis-Stempel laments the ups and downs of Lake District fell walking in February as he goes from scampering mountain goat to plodding dobbin

There’s gold in them thar schools

Churchill’s art, Shackleton’s boat and Turing’s reports — Madeleine Silver unearths the treasures belonging to Britain’s schools

Survival of the exceptional

How can independent schools prevent VAT on fees being the ‘straw that breaks the camel’s back’, asks Lucy Higginson

Sir Stephen Hough’s favourite painting

The classical pianist and composer chooses a virtuoso work from the mid 15th century

A glimpse of the sublime

John Goodall gains an insight into the era of Grand Tourism in the restored drawing room at Russborough in Co Wicklow

The legacy

Octavia Pollock applauds Ralph Allen, Bath’s ‘benevolent man’

You belong with me

Revd Colin Heber-Percy reflects on getting lost — and found — in Wiltshire’s Savernake For-est

Luxury

Hetty Lintell has all the ingredients for a wonderful wedding day, plus India Knight’s favourite things

Interiors

Author Ros Byam Shaw tells Arabella Youens how small and beautiful can go hand in hand

A brush with snowdrops

John Morley is calling it a day after growing and drawing Galanthus for 40 years, reports Tilly Ware

Foraging

Harness the raw power of bitter-cress to pep up the humble salad, suggests John Wright  

Arts & antiques

Stuart Lochhead is revealed as a man behind the masks — Carla Passino talks to the art dealer about his passion for disguise

As good as gold

Glittering 14th-century works by Sienese artists influenced art far beyond the bounds of the Italian city, reveals Mary Miers

Book your place

The Country Life guide to open days at 50 schools across Britain  

And much more