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It may be the oldest art form in the world, practised 5,000 years ago by Ötzi the iceman and his fellow copper age Europeans. But with its more recent associations with red-light entertainment and gangland crime, modern tattooing has long been shunned by the galleries that turn lines on canvas into financial assets. A new … Read more
My disabled 84-year-old mother was due to return to the UK on a Ryanair flight after visiting me in Germany. I had booked special assistance to help her on to the plane. After I’d checked her in, assistance staff pushed her wheelchair to the departure gate and told her they would return to help her … Read more
Packing is a fine art. No one wants to lug heavy bags around transport hubs or arrive at the other end to a chaotically stuffed bag full of creased clothes. But we all have our “essentials” to cram in. For some, that’ll be a full skincare routine or a semblance of a wardrobe; for others, … Read more
In tune with the changeable weather, dinners this week have veered between substantial winter casseroles and lighter, more uplifting dishes. A typical dinner was one of a spicy noodle dish glowing red with chilli followed by a pale and gently flavoured panna cotta. A sort of whip-and-kiss effect that followed that of the week’s see-saw … Read more
Barceló Málaga You might think the location is the best thing about this hotel – slap bang next to María Zambrano station – the ideal starting point for a tour of Andalucía’s trio of spectacular cities: Seville, Córdoba and Granada. But the roof terrace is an unexpected win, too, with a sleek outdoor pool, alfresco … Read more
Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar established his international reputation with ‘raucous farces’ such as What Have I Done to Deserve This? And Women On the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, writes Robert Chalmers in the Observer Magazine on 5 June 1994. His new film, Kika, features a porn star, a lesbian maid, a serial killer and … Read more
It has been nearly 14 years since a chance encounter with a stranger in a post office changed Bernadette Russell’s life forever. The date was Thursday 18 August 2011. For weeks, on the news, as a series of riots broke out across cities in England, Russell had been inundated with images of young people in … Read more
A recent Apple update saw people waking up to their emails summarised for efficiency, thus creating light uproar, amusement and a series of small domestic mysteries to be untangled on the bus. A man in America shared a message from his mum, who’d told him, “That hike almost killed me.” Unfortunately, he’d read the summary … Read more
Shiki, 6 Tombland, Norwich NR3 1HE (01603 619262). Sushi and sashimi from £2 per piece, small dishes from £3, larger dishes from £10, beer from £3.50, sake from £6.50 We only get to truly value excellence by experiencing what it is to fall short. In politics. In sport. But also in food. How many times … Read more
Portrait of Kris Marshall as a child in a suit and tie, sitting in a chair in front of an indoor brick wall. Styling: Andie RedmanKris Marshall photographed in 1979 and 2025. Later photograph: Pål Hansen. Styling: Andie Redman. Grooming: Jolanda Coetzer. Archive image: courtesy of Kris Marshall Born in Bath in 1973, Kris Marshall … Read more