Belfast City Hall is one of those buildings that seems to steady the city around it. Grand without being stuffy, ornate without tipping into absurdity, …
Belfast City Hall, the great stone stage at the centre of Belfast
Heritage
Autumn towns to bookmark for atmospheric UK breaks
Autumn is the season when British towns begin quietly outperforming themselves. Market squares look richer, churchyards turn golden, rivers acquire a thoughtful air, and old …
Northumberland – A deeper look at one of Britain’s most rewarding regions
Northumberland does not rush to impress. It reveals itself in stages, through empty beaches, moorland roads, ruined priories, Roman stones, market towns and castles planted …
Windsor Castle visitor guide, history, highlights and tips
Perched above the Thames with the sort of quiet confidence that comes from being nearly a thousand years old, Windsor Castle is not just a …
Best things to do in Gloucester for a memorable city break
Gloucester is one of those cities that can seem oddly modest at first, as if it has no intention of showing off, and then suddenly …
Tintagel Castle review
Tintagel Castle is one of those places that arrives with an unfair advantage. It has cliffs, sea spray, ruined walls, a footbridge dangling dramatically over …
30 must visit UK gardens that are at their best in spring
Spring is when British gardens remember they have a reputation to maintain. Snowdrops start the conversation, daffodils pile in enthusiastically, magnolias become flamboyant, and suddenly …
Coventry, the city that refused to stay down
Coventry is one of those places that has had the sort of history that would have sent a lesser city quietly off for a lie …
Norwich and the unlikely triumph of a city doing things its own way
With a Norman cathedral, a crooked medieval street plan, a market that has been trading for centuries and a quietly rebellious streak, Norwich is one …
Chester and the agreeable confusion of being almost in another country
With Roman walls, medieval Rows, a grand cathedral and a river that softens all that old stone, Chester is one of England’s most handsome historic …