One of my most magical musical moments was at, of all places, Dalaman Airport in Turkey at around 11 pm on the night of Friday, 27 July 2012 – (clue – 2100 BST, UK). Our flight was about to be called, but we were suddenly aware of the sweetest sound I’ve ever heard in an… Continue reading
Browsing Category Travel Blog
Green stay – the hotel that will produce more energy than it uses
As the world seeks a path to net zero over the next crucial decades, travel must play its part too. There are many areas where action is required, such as reducing the impact of flying and other carbon-based transport, and making accommodation greener and food and drink more sustainable. But as the tourism industry prepares for… Continue reading
Never mind the weather: Patrick Leigh Fermor takes meteorological liberties in A Time of Gifts
Did one of the finest British travel writers of the 20th century start his epic adventure across Europe on a meteorological fib? Patrick Leigh Fermor – “a thousand glistening umbrellas tilted over a thousand bowler hats in Piccadilly”. The Sunday Times – “At Kew it was 33° (1°C). Light falls of snow again occurred locally.” But does it… Continue reading
How Pembrokeshire was shunted into a siding
It’s a long way from London to Pembrokeshire, so if you didn’t have too much to carry, you might fancy a nice through train from Paddington to, say, Tenby, famous old resort. And until 2019 you could do just that. Four and a half hours of Co2-busting ease, bypassing the holiday jams. But not any… Continue reading
Poirot turns 100: how the Belgian ‘tec met his match in the desert
In October 1920 Agatha Christie introduced Hercule Poirot in her novel, “The Mysterious Affair at Styles”. And the great detective lives on, in Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of Death on the Nile, which follows the actor/director’s Murder on the Orient Express. The film is expected to open late in 2020. 1994 I interviewed David Suchet on set during the filming of… Continue reading
How to walk the stripling Thames – using only public transport to get there
Extinction Rebellion launched its Hourglass newspaper in September 2019. The newspaper folded in 2020, a victim of the pandemic. I contributed a series of simple travel articles, under the heading Whistle Stop Walks. I would take a train to a random station, and walk for between six and 12 miles to another station on the… Continue reading