Features & Offers

Happy boy in headphones smiling and looking at camera while making video call to teacher during online lesson at home

Tutor time

When it comes to choosing a tutor for your child, there are a few essential points you must factor in to ensure the confidence, safety and education of your little student. Time to tutor? Making the decision to hire a private tutor can be tough on both parent and child, but reaching a point where […]

Christmas on Fifth Avenue by Julie Caplin

Books

Festive and not-so-festive reads for Christmas and beyond. Christmas on Fifth Avenue by Julie Caplin Evie Green’s Christmas dream turns into a nightmare when a viral video makes her the laughing stock of the internet. But then a five-star hotel sees a PR opportunity and invites her to New York for Christmas. But when she’s […]

Lyn’s Budapest 2024 Christmas

Finding your own Christmas company

Living Magazines owner Lyn Drummond recalls how living away from ‘home’ during Christmas resulted in some very memorable experiences, while serving as a timely reminder to think about others during this festive season. Leading an expat life for more than 20 years, I treated the festive season as the ideal time to see friends in […]

Pumpkin walnut sage crostata

Higgidy’s pumpkin, walnut and sage crostata

A crostata is an Italian baked tart, often with a wonderfully rustic free-form pastry case. With its sweet pumpkin filling and tangy Stilton topping, this dramatic veggie centrepiece is the essence of Christmas. 1 pack of pre-rolled pastry A little plain flour, for dusting 1 pumpkin (about 750g), peeled, deseeded and cut into 2cm-thick wedges […]

Cozy bedroom interior with knitted blanket and cushions

Warm on the inside

Interior trends that will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy, even during the colder months. Outdoor indoor With all the stresses of modern life, the natural hues of the great outdoors are a perfect way to de-stress. So, bring the outside in with wood, lush plant life and a colour-scheme rooted in nature. This can […]

Berkhamsted psychotherapist and coach Sandra Keys

Living in the digital age

Berkhamsted psychotherapist and coach Sandra Keys considers how to find balance in a fast-forward world. In a recent interview on Radio Dacorum with Lyn Drummond, owner of Living Magazines, I reflected on how we create our sense of identity within local communities. Maybe the journey isn’t so much about becoming anything. Maybe it’s about un-becoming […]

River Bulbourne in Hemel Hempstead flowing towards Berkhamsted

Take me to the river

Harry McGrath, Berkophile and director of environmental adventure company Hamba Africa, discusses the importance of our local waterways. A central fixture for all Berkophiles is our marvellous canal and water courses – did you know that the River Bulbourne originates and is classified as a chalk stream river? Chalk stream rivers are exceptionally rare, and […]

Home Farm, painting before restoration

Down on the farm

Local historian Tim Amsden tells the tale of Home Farm, the subject of a new display at Tring Local History Museum, and its former residents. A newly-restored oil painting has gone on show at Tring Local History Museum, with a display telling the fascinating story of its subject, Home Farm, off Park Road. Home Farm […]

William Cooper

Coopers – From modest vet to global sheep‑dip empire

Berkhamsted once rang with the clang of steam engines and the drift of yellow arsenic dust. At its heart stood Coopers of Berkhamsted, a pioneering agricultural chemical firm that began as a one-man veterinary experiment and became a global brand. The company’s founder, William Cooper, started life in modest circumstances, but his innovation reshaped farming […]

Wild restaurant

From farm to table

Lyn Drummond visited new restaurant Wild, in Berkhamsted High Street. Farm to table food is enticing diners across the UK, not because it’s a niche trend but for its promise of enhanced and flavoursome freshness, while rejuvenating local economies and communities. Berkhamsted restaurant Wild sources food locally from its own farm at Radlett, giving discerning […]

Garden building

A room for all seasons

Planning and design check: what to consider before you build a garden room for year-round use. A garden room can completely transform the way you live – blending home and garden while creating a bespoke retreat for work, wellness, or leisure. But before the build begins, it’s essential to plan with care. A garden room […]

Books

Choose from our autumn selection of books by local authors. Wedding Bells at the Wartime Bookshop by Lesley Eames Lesley Eames delivers another heartwarming instalment in her beloved Wartime Bookshop series. Wedding Bells at the Wartime Bookshop continues the stories of Alice, Naomi, and Kate as they navigate love, loss, and friendship in wartime Britain. […]