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Woodcarving is gaining in popularity among those who want to whittle away their anxieties and carve out time for themselves amid life’s hurly-burly. Samuel Alexander’s peaceful carving reels on Instagram now have more than 56,000 followers, and his meditative YouTube videos regularly generate more than 60,000 views. “I began carving after I was diagnosed with … Read more

Supercentenarians – humans who live beyond 110 years of age – are objects of great fascination in our death-fearing culture. Interviews with them inevitably demand to know that one simple ingredient that is the secret to their extraordinary longevity; was it a shot of whisky before bedtime, maintaining good friendships, a happy marriage or always … Read more

I’ve broken just one bone in my 61 years – my fibula, the smaller of the two that connect your knee to your ankle. I was skiing, I caught my left foot on some ice and the rest of my body just rotated around it until something snapped. Yeah, ouch. I made a full recovery, … Read more

Laurie Woolever is an expert on indulgence. The first time we met was in a dimly lit omakase restaurant in downtown Tokyo, in the summer of 2017. We were both in Japan on respective work trips. Woolever was researching a travel book she was writing with her boss, the chef Anthony Bourdain, and I was … Read more

Let me tell you about my breasts, of blessed memory. That’s not something I would have said while I still had them. I was quite prim, you see, and maybe I still am, but a double mastectomy gives you license to say “‘breast” over and over again, without the usual consequences. My breasts were real, … Read more

It has been a week of bright, sunny days that suddenly turn into chilly evenings. The sort of weather that can wreak havoc with dinner plans. Twice this week I have had to make last-minute changes when the temperature dropped. What started out as a light supper of stuffed aubergine ended up being rethought as … Read more

Lachlan says he first noticed me when I was working as an usher at the Eternity Playhouse theatre in Sydney before Covid, but I first remember meeting him in December 2021 when we started rehearsals for A Chorus Line together. I was instantly attracted to this handsome, talented guy. When I found out he loved … Read more

Giovanni’s on The Hayes, 38 The Hayes, Cardiff CF10 1AJ (029 2022 0077;giovanniscardiff.co.uk). Starters from £4.55; pizza from £12.55; mains from £14.95; desserts from £7.30; wines from £28 Places from your childhood age slower than you do. Giovanni’s is a family-run Italian restaurant in the centre of Cardiff. While most of the landmarks of my … Read more

Comedian Rob Becket in 1988 and 2025Comedian Rob Becket in 1988 and 2025. Later photograph: Pål Hansen/The Guardian. Styling: Andie Redman. Archive image: courtesy of Rob Beckett Born in south London in 1986, Rob Beckett is a comedian and broadcaster. He started on the standup circuit in 2009, performing at the Edinburgh fringe in 2012 with his show Rob Beckett’s Summer Holiday. … Read more

There is a place in western Greece where, in a single day, you can frolic at an all-inclusive resort at breakfast time and then, after lunch, wade through an entrance to the underworld. This is Parga, built over a double-curve bay where the beaches are studded with tasteful tourist attractions, and inland the Acherontas River … Read more