SALES PITCH - This is The North...

The lifestyle magazinefor the North-East

JANUARY 2005

SALESPITCH

SHOPPING INTERIORS GADGETS MOTORING GARDENING

The Northern Echo

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New year,new you,new home

One manand his shed

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SHARON GRIFFITHSI’m not a slummock,honest!INTERIORSWhat’s hot forhomes in 2005SLIMMINGNew year, new youHEALTHTake stock and detoxINTERIORSOne man and his shedINTERIORSA little bit of mural magicGARDENINGMy New Year’sresolutionsBEAUTYCan a jab meltfat away?

ME AND MYWARDROBELesley MiddlemissOUT ON THE TOWNThe Devonport,Middleton-One-RowSHOPPINGGetting the best outof the salesGADGET MANWho you callinga geek?FOODTime with RosemaryNE CONNECTIONSA new addition tothe Audi A3 rangeCOFFEE TIMEPuzzles PLUS win aluxury pamper day fortwo at Broom MillDay Spa

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3January 2005 Online: www.nemagazine.co.uk

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sharon griffiths

�I readsomewherethat to lose

1lb of fat youhave to walk

12 miles

THE new Tiko kitchen rangefrom Magnet might be justthe thing to update yourhome and give it acontemporary feel. It has asleek, professional look,with strong clean lines, in amix of stained oak andstainless steel. For furtherinformation visitwww.magnet.co.uk or call0845 123 6789 for detailsof your nearest store.

GOING CONTEMPORARY

PORTABLE FLAMES

NEW Year, New You? If only… Thereis, of course, no justice in the world.If there were, I’d have been born tiny,with razor-like cheekbones, natural-

ly curly hair and been good at maths. Like mysister, in fact.

Instead, I got the short straw. Or the largestraw. The size eight feet and the Channelswimmer’s shoulders. And there’s nothing Ican do about it. Believe me, I’ve tried.

Right now, I expect, you’re living on lettuceleaves and bottled water and going to the gym.If you stick to the routine, by Valentine’s Dayyou will have lost all the weight you gainedover Christmas, your clothes will be looser,your waistband gratifyingly swivelly. You willhave a spring in your step and a sparkle in youreye. For you, the regime will have worked. Not,alas for me.

Now you’ll pat your nice firm flat stomach,look at that picture on the top of this page andyou’ll probably think “What an idle, greedyslummock that woman must be.”

But you’d be wrong. Honestly, you would beso wrong.

Every now and then I do those quizzes in thepaper. You know the sort, “How healthy areyou?” they ask. And you go down ticking boxesabout what you eat and drink, how many veg-etables you have, how much exercise and howoften.

I answer those with scrupulous honesty andwhen I add up my score, it usually says some-thing like: “Congratulations! You have an ex-cellent lifestyle and are doing everythingright!”

In that case, I snarl, as I throw the paperacross the room, why am I four stones over-weight? Tell me that, clever clogs.

And answer comes there noneFor the past 20 years I have swum for about

40 minutes every morning except Sunday. At6.30 in the morning, as lazy slugs lie abed, rainor shine, sunshine or pitch dark, I go to thepool.

I rarely use lifts. I take the stairs. I use thegym occasionally, despite the mirrors. And Iwalk everywhere. I never buy chocolate, don’thave a sweet tooth, love vegetables, don’t drinkmuch. And when I eat out with my husband, Iam the one heard to say – honestly – “Do I haveto have a pudding?”

True, for years a wrecked Achilles tendonkept me from walking much. But then – won-derfully, magically, brilliantly – it was

fixed and I could stride out again. Oh bliss.I read somewhere that to lose 1lb of fat you

have to walk 12 miles. It was one of those fig-ures that stuck in my brain, so this time lastyear I decided I would keep a record of howmuch I walked and would aim for at least 12miles a week. At that rate, I thought in my in-nocence, by the end of the year I would havelost nearly four stone. Then I would wear skin-ny trousers and have a new picture for thispage. Ha!

I certainly walked. Nearly every day I strodeout down the lane near our house. There’s a de-cent three mile circular walk with nice viewsin the middle. And I know it in all weathers. Iknow most blades of grass, when the first budsappeared, where to find the best gooseberriesblackberries and sloes. I meet the gamekeeperand the tractor driver, an occasional shootingparty and sometimes other people out for astroll.

I have occasionally been accompanied by myhusband, my friend Liz, visitors, other people’sdogs, a three-legged cat and a mad pheasant.But mostly I walk on my own

Holidays are spent walking too. Welsh hills,Irish beaches and plenty of weekend walkingin Swaledale, Weardale, Teesdale and around.

I aimed at 12 miles a week, but at the end ofthe year, I worked out that throughout the year– not counting walking as part of the every dayroutine, to shops, to friends or wherever – I hadwalked an average of 18 miles a week. Everyweek.

On that, you’d think, I’d be as slim as a stick,a shadow of my former self, toned, tanned and– at the very most – a trim size 10.

Not a bit of it.True, I feel heaps better. I know I’m fitter. I

walk faster, easier, breathe better, sleep better,have more energy than I’ve had for years.

But my clothes are no looser, my waist notrimmer, the bulges still, depressingly, bulge…I don’t weigh myself because it makes me sui-cidal, but I honestly think I’ve not lost anounce. I shall continue to walk, because I loveit, and live a sensible life. But I don’t hold outmuch hope.

So if you are starting on your fitness regimeI wish you all the luck in the world. I’m sureyou’ll achieve it. You might well have a NewYou.

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A spring cleanfor sweeter

surroundings

IT’S the time of year when attention ison having a healthy body and gettingfit, but there is one key area many ofus neglect – our home. So get ready todetox. This means getting rid of every-

thing and anything in your surroundingsthat could bring negative energy, destruc-tive influences or just a bad vibe. Accordingto Jane Scrivner, author of Total Detox,there’s plenty of sound common sense inmaking your home comforting, energisingand relaxing.

She says: ‘‘Our surroundings can affectour mood and that can affect our energy. Ifevery time you enter your house you feeldown because of the state it’s in, or botheredbecause areas just don’t feel quite right, itcould be time for a detox.

“Clearing the clutter or even applyingsome feng shui principles will allow yoursurroundings to work for you. That will re-lease energy so that you can tackle otherareas of your life with a clearer head andbetter focus.’’

Scrivner has devised a checklist whichtells you if your home is in need of a detox.If you answer yes to the following questions– Do you feel drained at home? Have an un-friendly house? Need more space or wantmore energy? Suffer sleepless nights? Feelconfused or unsettled? Want to improve thequality of your life? – then a home detoxcould be the answer.

‘‘Start with an open mind and really lookat your home and see what you truly wishto change or improve,’’ says Scrivner. ‘‘Reg-ister areas that just don’t feel right thoughyou can’t put your finger on why. Considerareas that shouldn’t be the way they are, orthat were not right when you moved in.’’

DETOX MASTER PLANCLUTTER� Prioritise and then expel all the wastethat clutters living spaces. Most of us buynew possessions to replace out-of-date,worn-out items but rarely throw those awaydue to the ‘‘just in case’’ principle.� Sort everything into piles of items youdefinitely want and piles you don’t want andsend the latter to jumble sales or car bootsales. Also have a pile of those you are un-certain about and to this, apply the sixmonth rule – if you haven’t used any of it inthat time, it’s safe to dispose of it.

SPRING CLEAN� Set out a plan and a time frame and stickto it. You may decide to do one room a weekor three hours per evening. If you have amessy family, consider doing the whole jobin a relatively short time, otherwise they’ll

make sure you can’t tell exactly where youhave cleaned from where you haven’treached yet.

DETOX� Time to start space clearing. At its mostbasic level, it’s just like physical springcleaning. On a deeper level, it’s about actu-ally cleaning the energy of your home andmaking it fully active.� Go round the room and identify areasthat feel colder and flatter and areas thatfeel energetic and active. Clap loudly, lowand high, into each and every area to chaseout the stagnant energy and move aroundactive energy.� Scatter petals and spray essential oils ina water solution lightly around the room. � Use a chime to sound in the darkest cor-ners and highest points. Light candles todraw the air and circulate the atmosphere.Open windows and let air flow.� Before you finish, walk around theperimeter of the room, and stroke the ener-gy in with your hands. Clear away thecleansing equipment and enjoy the peace.

REDUCE NEGATIVE VIBESResearch suggests that technology, despitebringing many improvements in communi-cations and time saving, can also have neg-ative effects on our bodies.� Limiting exposure to electromagneticfields could be beneficial. Ensure a radioalarm is at least 1.2 metres (4ft) away fromthe bed, or use a wind-up clock. Use extrablankets instead of an electric one or useone only to warm the bed, and remove be-fore sleeping.

interiors

It’s a new year and while most people have heard of the advantages of detoxing the body by giving up alcohol, caffeine andrich foods, what about your home? GABRIELLE FAGAN gets sometips on how to give your house a complete room by room detox

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The New Year will see furniture continuingto move away from hard, clean lines. Thekey looks for the coming season will continue to be very decorative using lotsof detail, colour and pattern.

Wallpaper will still be big news in interiors andprovides a welcome change from plain walls.Traditional prints will be re-born with bright,contemporary colours to give a new flavour.

Vintage is still strong and, like wallpaper,will be mixed with contemporary styling.

Fabrics will reflect our love affair with bygoneeras and velvet seems to be making a hugeimpact in terms of upholstery, as do damasks.

Wood seems to be the main contender forthe hottest material of the season, againwith a hint of retro. And our perennialfavourite, glass, is popular too but takingon new formations with unusual finishesand colours.

To complement this softer style of home,lighting will move away from being stark tobeing more ethereal and atmospheric.

Finally this year, there will be a hugesurge in ‘green’, and I don’t mean thecolour. Recycled and reclaimed materialswill be in demand and, inspired by thefashion catwalk, you will definitely see theuse of hemp in interiors.

WHAT’S HOTFOR 2005

Andrew Durham, a stylist fromfurniture store Barker andStonehouse, gives his view onwhat we’ll be using in the homethis year� Sit no closer to a television than 1.5

metres (5ft), and no closer than 50cm(2ft) from a computer screen. Anioniser can help clear and balancethe air of all negativity.� Enclose mobile phones in a shield,available from most phone stores.Avoid spending time close to the mi-crowave when it is on.

FENG SHUI� It is about getting all the positiveenergy available into your life, usingit and letting all the negative energyout. A few simple steps could startyou off on a positive discovery of thescience although a qualified practi-tioner would give comprehensive, ex-pert advice.� Stand outside your house, face thefront door and imagine you are thepositive energy or a breeze. Is thereanything preventing access to yourhome, a tree, a sticking front door?� Don’t allow furniture to blockdoors or have mirrors facing eachother. Hang all doors so that theyopen into the rooms, and not out intothe hall or corridor. Check the backdoor is not blocked or sticking andopens outwards allowing energy toflow out freely.

Finally, sit down, relax and con-gratulate yourself for havingachieved a happier, healthier home.

Total Detox by Jane Scrivner (Piatkus Books, £9.99)

Above: Andrew DurhamFar left: Louis Ghost chair by PhilippeStark, £132; Live oval glass table,£1,295; Brilliante chest of drawers,£468; Splash rug, £195 Left: Lucien glass vases, £27.50 and£14.95; tealight holder, £7.95

For stockists, 01642 230988 orwww.barker-stonehouse.co.uk


CHRISTINE FIELDHOUSE was asuper snacker who drank fartoo much caffeine until shetried a diet which went to workon her bad eating habits

A NYONE for chocolate, cake orbiscuits? Or are you a savouryperson who’d prefer a bag ofcrisps or a bowl of nibbles?Maybe it’s a café latte or a pint

of beer that does it for you? Most peoplehave a favourite treat, but it’s when thosetreats get out of hand and a craving devel-ops that our health problems begin.

I was a chocolate girl, but when I gave mytreat up, I merely substituted it with othersugary foods, pretending I was beinghealthy. I had honey in my porridge, jamon my ricecakes, high sugar soya yoghurtsand sugar in my coffee.

I never thought about the amount ofsugar I was consuming until I read Zoe Har-combe’s new diet book Why Do YouOvereat? There, in black and white, was alist of symptoms I was suffering – bloatingafter eating, occasional stomach upsets,blurred vision and middle-of-the-nightinsomnia.

Harcombe, 39, who has spent 20 years re-searching diet and nutrition after sufferingfrom eating disorders through her teensand her twenties, says three conditions cancause our cravings, but once they’re undercontrol, our cravings will follow.

Her diet tackles Candida (a yeast withinall of us which, when out of control, canproduce uncontrollable food cravings), foodintolerance and hypoglycaemia (low bloodglucose, caused by the over consumption ofrefined carbohydrates such as white breadand white rice).

Harcombe claimed that by following afive-day diet, then a more varied eatingplan, I would be free of cravings for life. Injust five days she claimed I would feel amaz-ing, more alert than I have for years, andany extra pounds would have dropped off.

I weighed 8st 2lbs when I started the diet,which is acceptable for my 5ft 2ins height.Although I didn’t have extra weight to lose,I was keen to tackle my strong cravings forchocolate, sugary foods, tea, coffee and alcohol.

The diet starts with a five-day Phase One,which allows you to eat meat, fish, eggs,natural live yoghurt, quorn, vegetables,salad and 2ozs of brown rice and drink onlywater, herbal teas and decaffeinated teaand coffee. Vegetarians are allowed up to6ozs of brown rice per day.

Phase Two lasts for as long as you wantto lose weight and during this time you canre-introduce dairy, tofu, baked jacket pota-toes, wholemeal grains like brown pastaand wholewheat bread, beans and pulses.You must not eat white grains (white pasta,white rice or white bread), sugar, cakes, bis-cuits, confectionery or processed foods.Fruit juices, dried fruit and crisps and chipsare also banned as they are all refined.

In Phase two Harcombe recommendskeeping fats and carbohydrates separate atmeal times. Meals should be fat meals(meat, fish, cheese, eggs) with salad/greenvegetables OR carbohydrate meals (brownrice, brown pasta, baked potato) with salador green vegetables. Carrots, aubergine andbutternut squash have a higher carbohy-drate content so they should be eaten spar-ingly with fat meals.

I followed Phase Two for just three daysas I did not want to lose any more weight.

The final part of the diet Phase Three,which you follow for the rest of your life,allows you to eat anything youlike….sounded good to me!

PHASE ONEBREAKFASTSI had to give up my porridge for bacon,poached eggs and a grilled tomato, whichsounds delicious, but I missed my breador toast to mop it all up! It was also time-consuming when I was in a rush to get

my son to school, but it filled me up untillunchtime. Fish, omelettes and yoghurtsare other breakfast options.I also gave up caffeine – I had three orfour cups of tea a day and one cup ofcoffee before. Instead I drank lots ofwater and herbal teas. LUNCHESIt was hard to eat out on this five-dayplan as I couldn’t grab a sandwich or ajacket potato as I normally would.Sometimes I just had natural liveyoghurt, or an omelette. On one day I hadliterally roast chicken and steamedvegetables – no roast potatoes, noYorkshire puddings, no stuffing and nogravy. Anyone who likes salads will enjoythis diet.DINNERSThese were easier as I could have chickenkebabs with peppers, onion and tomato,or salmon cooked in olive oil, chicken stirfry and fried steak, all with vegetables.The daily allowance of 2ozs of brown ricehelped to fill me up. At first it was hard toresist a glass of wine with meals.SNACKSMy only snacks were natural live yoghurtand a raw carrot.

RESULTS AFTER PHASE ONEOn the first two days I felt terribly ill, andwould not recommend starting this diet ifyou have to work or look after children.

My head was pounding from what Isuspect was a caffeine and sugarwithdrawal and I ended up takingpainkillers.

By day three I was feeling better and Ihad more energy. I also felt slimmeraround my tummy and I refused allchocolate and wine offered to me.

By day four I felt brilliant and wasawake before my alarm clock went off forthe first time in years. I went outshopping for the day but couldn’t findanything suitable for lunch, so skipped ameal and came home starving.

By day five I just wasn’t interested insweet foods at all, and I didn’t want tospoil my good work by eating processedfoods again. I realised just how muchsnacking I did before – the odd crisp hereand a chicken nugget there. I also feltvery alert, my nails were strong andhealthy and my hair was growing fast.

When I weighed in, I had lost 3lbs,taking me to 7st 13lbs and my fat levelhad also dropped from 28.5pc to 27.9pc.

I felt so good I decided to try Phase Twofor a few days to see how easy it was tofollow, not to lose any more weight.

PHASE TWOThe diet got easier when I couldreintroduce dairy products, brown bread,brown pasta, fruit and jacket potatoes.Breakfast was porridge made with milk(no honey), lunches were jacket potatoeswith butter, omelettes and tuna saladsand evening meals were chicken breaststuffed with cheese and garlic, jacketpotatoes and a vegetable chilli. Snackswere an apple and a bunch of grapes.

RESULT AFTER PHASE TWOI still weighed 7st 13lbs, but my fat levelhad gone down to 27 per cent. I felt veryalert.

PHASE THREEBy now you should be at your “natural”weight and your cravings should beunder control. The main rule is to avoidrefined carbohydrates like white pasta,white rice and white bread, as well asprocessed foods. Treats are allowed inmoderation.

RESULT AFTER PHASE THREEI’ve had one or two treats in the fortnightI’ve been in Phase Three, but I no longercrave sweet foods. I haven’t gone back oncaffeine – the thought of that withdrawalheadache has probably put me off tea andcoffee for life. I’ve stuck to the rule ofhaving either a fat meal or a carbohy-drate meal and have amazingly stayed at7st 13lbs despite eating a lot of food andsome meals out.

FACTBOXwww.whydoyouovereat.comWhy Do You Overeat? When All You Want IsTo Be Slim (Accent Press, £9.99). I used aTanita InnerScan machine to weigh myselfand measure body fat. Contact 0800 7316994 or visit www.tanita.co.uk

Is this the diet toend cravings?

New year,

Christine Fieldhouse: determined to shift some pounds

� There, in black and white,

was a list of symptoms I

was suffering – bloating after

eating, occasional stomach

upsets, blurred vision and

middle-of-the-night insomnia

new youhealth

SALE N

OW O

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Heading for ahealthier 2005

IT’S not just New Year resolutions thatare made as another year starts. An in-creasing number of us decide to put ourbad ways behind us and opt for a new

healthier approach to the way we live ourlives. It may mean a commitment to eat ahealthier diet or banish the things from ourlives that are making us unhappy.

Whatever we decide to do, embarking on adetox programme of some description is agood start. Your body and looks will benefitfrom a good “spring clean” and the processis also guaranteed to lift the spirits and driveaway those winter blues.

Two major detoxification processes workwithin the body – one on a cellular level andthe other being of the liver. Both work along-side your circulatory and elimination sys-tems and require vital nutrients in order toprevent damage from free radicals and tox-ins being stored in the body.

The idea behind a detox is to give your bodya break and a chance to recuperate – it is asort of holiday for the digestive system andthe liver. January is the perfect time to startdetoxing after the over-indulgence of alcoholand rich food through the Christmas period.

The health supplements shop Holland &Barrett suggests a few important ways to en-courage your body to cleanse itself.

ANTIOXIDANTSANTIOXIDANT nutrients are believed tohelp fight against damage to the body byfree radicals. Antioxidant nutrients areimportant during a period of detoxificationto support the immune system. As thebody detoxifies it can sometimes give riseto symptoms such as headaches and spots,or you may be more susceptible tocirculating infections and viruses.Antioxidants help protect against theseand reduce the detoxification symptoms.These include vitamins A, C and E,selenium and zinc or extracts such aspycnogenol, grapeseed or bilberry.

COLON CLEANSINGTOXINS can build up in the colon and bereabsorbed back into your system if thedigestive tract isn’t functioning properly.Clean the digestive tract with fibre topromote regular bowel movements orfriendly bacteria to support digestivehealth. Products to try include acidophilus,aloe vera juice, Holland & Barrett ColonCleanse capsules or Regucol powder.

LIVER DETOXBY giving your liver a break from havingtoo much alcohol and substances toprocess, the body can concentrate onregenerating itself. There are severalsupplement cleansers that you can take aspart of your diet. Natural remedies, suchas artichoke and the herb milk thistle, mayhelp to aid detox and cleanse the liver,

The Internet is a great place to learnmore about detoxing and the iVillage.co.ukwebsite has some excellent information.The site also has some great tips on how toput “you” first.

These include:� Learning to prioritise. Spend fiveminutes each day allotting a number toeach task to help decide what you need tofocus on and what can be left out ordispensed with altogether.� Taking out your diary for the next yearand marking time-out. This way you canmake a date with rest and relaxation.� Being a clutter-buster. Some things justhave to be tackled daily – the post, bills andemails. Get those done first thing and feelyour sense of control returning.

LIFE COACH

Soulful resolutions

INTERESTED in anew way ofmaking your new

year resolutions?Something just thatbit deeper thangetting fit or losingweight? For the past few years, I’vetaken to writing to myself. Not as daftas it may seem, so stick with me onthis.

New year’s resolutions are not justabout practical goals, it’s also abouthow much we have grown as aperson. Sit down in a quiet spacealone and reflect on the year justgone. Ask yourself, what have youcontributed to friends, family andcommunity? How have you made adifference? Write down everythingsignificant, what you achieved andalso what opportunities you missed.Then look forward and write out yourhopes for the year ahead.

Pour out your thoughts. Be bold –allow yourself to reflect deeply on yourlife. Then seal your thoughts in anenvelope and open it again six monthsfrom now. You’ll be amazed at howmuch can come true when youcommit your thoughts to paper.

In the meantime, have a hope-filledand prosperous 2005!

Juliette Leewww.juliettelee.co.uk or telephoneJuliette on (01748) 823010

By now, the long, dark nights and the excesses of Christmas will havetaken their toll on the best of us. Time to take stock and detox…

THERE are plenty of books around aboutdetoxing, including Carol Vorderman’s DetoxRecipes (£11.99), which contains more than100 great recipes. There’s also CarolVorderman’s Detox for Life: The 28 Day DetoxDiet and Beyond (£10.99). Log on towww.amazon.co.uk for other titles.

The Vorderman way

T HE Boots website –www.boots.com – also hasinformation about detoxing,

including details of Boots Detox 5Day Plan. This five-day plan, whichcosts £13.50, includes a daily drinkand tablet with ingredients thatbattle against toxins and helpprotect from the dangers of freeradicals, which are by-products ofpollution and smoke. The plan helpsrefresh your detoxifying organs toleave you feeling revitalised and re-energised.

The health and beauty retaileralso offers a range of other detoxproducts, including the Boots Detox5 Day Introductory Kit (£20), bodyfreshener (£6 for 28 tablets),massage oil (£6), digestive cleanser(£6), respiratory cleanser (£5), bodywash and body conditioner (£5), facemask (£5), body brush (£5) andelderflower, cranberry and raspberrytea (£2.50).

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A T first glance there is nothingout of the ordinary about theHindley’s garden shed. As wewalk out of the family’s backdoor, along stepping stones

and past plant pots, the 12ft by 10ftstructure fits in nicely next to the pondand the garden fence.

But it is when Darren Hindley flingsopen the door, letting out a blast of warmair, that the jaw drops in surprise. A stepinside the Tardis-like shed reveals aminiature version of a pub – completewith bar stools, beer pumps and a coaleffect gas fire.

“The things you can do with a shed,eh!” laughs Darren, 34, as he invites meto sit down on one of the comfy seats –enterprisingly adapted from some oldcaravan upholstery.

There are other signs of Darren’sresourcefulness too. On the bar (adaptedfrom two full-size wooden barrels hepicked up from his local garden centre) isa brass old-fashioned diver’s helmet.

“You’ll laugh if I lift it up,” he says,grasping the helmet to reveal an oldlamp base and lightbulb underneath,which casts a warm glow around the“pub”.

Darren began building his dream shed,which he bought for £700 from acompany over the Internet, during thesummer of 2002. Initially he neverthought of building a bar, justsomewhere quiet to get away from thegirls in his life – wife, Clare, 36, andchildren Jessica, 10, and Maisie, eight.But in a nice way, he adds.

The idea for the surprisingly roomypub came partly from his time posted inGermany with the Army when hisquarters had a bar in the basement, andalso from a visit to Theakston’s Breweryin Masham, North Yorkshire. He put theshell of the pre-packed shed up first,insulated it with polystyrene, then usedpine cladding for the interior beforelaying lino on the floor. Handily, he laid

the electrics himself and sawed thewooden barrels for the bar in half whenthey wouldn’t come through the mainhouse whole.

“I was working until about 10 o clockat night to get it finished and it tookabout three months,” he recalls.

Work on the interior took a littlelonger. Some of the items – the light andfan, mini-fridge, and coffee table – havecome from Argos. Others, like thecaravan seats, have been enterprisinglyadapted.

The couple are also into car boot salefinds with the best bargain probablybeing the beer pumps on the bar, whichgive the mini-pub a real authenticflavour. The old fashioned clock on theback wall was another boot sale success

which Darren adapted.“It used to be a table,” he laughs. “But I

cut the legs off.”There are a few themes going in their

pub, including a nautical one with thediver’s helmet and framed knots on thewall and a pirate theme with skull andcrossbones on a black flag.

The bar is dubbed The Jamaica Inn,after the Daphne du Maurier novel. Thecouple have even found a little woodenJamaica Inn sign which swings above thedoor to the shed and which they pickedup in the Jamaica Inn Museum shop inCornwall.

Bizarrely, there’s also a series offramed miniature photographs on theback wall.

“If you have your photograph taken, it

means you’re a life member and you getfree drinks for life – or until the fridgeruns out,” explains Darren.

And a pub wouldn’t be a pub without adartboard. There’s also a television forwatching the football on and a CD playerfor more entertainment. Preciousmementoes of Darren’s family, includinghis grandfather’s war medals and his latefather’s flat cap, sit behind the bar andon the wall.

Other bits and pieces were picked upon travels or given by family and friends,including the decorative tankers lined upon the back wall from Germany and theepitome of kitsch – a Billy the Bassmounted fish, which, thankfully, has runout of batteries.

Then there is the piece de resistance.Up on one pine-clad wall is a shelfproudly displaying the trophy Darrenwon for clinching the Shed of the Yearaward, organised by the Home andLeisure shopping channel. Darren won£1,000 for first prize. But while Claredreamed of spending it inside the house,Darren promptly splashed out on a coaleffect fire, run from a gas bottle. “Oh,and the two-seater wooden bench createdfrom a wagon wheel,” says Clare,shrugging her shoulders and smiling inresignation.

The neighbours have enjoyed a drinkin the shed and friends and family love ittoo. You can probably get about 10 peoplein at once, he says, before adding: “We’renot in here all the time, but it’s great tocome in here now and again. I come inhere to watch the football and we’reusually in here on Christmas Day. It’sgreat because you don’t have to get a taxihome or a baby sitter.”

Asked what other plans he has for theshed, he replies that while they’re alwayson the look-out, he’s pretty satisfied withit and is just going to enjoy it. As forthose who may look down on hisindividual taste, he says with a grin:“Don’t knock it until you try it.”

interiors

One manand his

shed

Darren and Clare Hindleydo not have far to travelto their local pub – there’sone in the shed at thebottom of their garden.LINDSAY JENNINGS takesa look inside


� If you have your

photograph taken, it

means you’re a life member

and you get free drinks for life

– or until the fridge runs out

Clare shows off the shed’s many comfortsPictures: NIGEL WHITFIELD

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A FAVOUR for a friend turned ahobby into a full-time businessfor a Yarm woman with a talentfor turning blank walls into

colourful works of art.Linda Bainbridge set up Mural Mischief

after a request from a family friend topaint The Tweenies on her two-year-olddaughter Amy’s bedroom wall. Amy isLinda’s goddaughter.

This prompted a number of furtherrequests from family and friends for awide variety of children’s designs,including spacemen, a jungle andunderwater characters, aimed at cheeringup dull rooms.

“It’s been mainly children’s rooms thatI’ve done, though I’m quite happy to workwith a more adult theme. I have donedecorative boards for restaurants andbusinesses,” says Linda.

Sometimes her work has to be done intop secret while the little client is sent tostay with grandparents or friends, butmostly they like to be involved. “They liketo pick the colours and their favouritecharacters,” says Linda. “It is veryrewarding and fantastic to see the look ontheir faces when the room is transformed.

Linda’s latest work of art was a raffleprize for the local primary school in Yarm.“The winner wanted a traffic jam. He’sseen do many in Yarm on his way toschool each day,” she laughs.

The business saw a change in directionfor 31-year-old Linda who previouslyworked in field study and outdoor centresin Suffolk, the Lake District and theYorkshire Dales as a trained geographyteacher. After relocating to Yarm, aftermeeting husband John, Linda worked atthe Carlton Outdoor Education Centre

before a horse riding injury forced her tore-think her career.

“I needed something different to do andI had always been quite artistic. Myteaching often meant that I had to bequite creative, so after people were soenthusiastic about my mural for Amy, Ithought I’d give it a go,” says Linda.

Mural Mischief was set up with the helpof Darlington Business Venture’s Start-UpService. Linda is currently focusing onmarketing Mural Mischief and has struckup a relationship with a Yarm-basedinteriors shop that is able to recommendthe service on to its customers. She hasalso developed an eye-catching websitefeaturing examples of her artwork,though most of her business to date hasbeen as a result of word of mouth.

Linda plans to develop the range ofmurals and broaden the themes to appealto older children, teenagers and adults,with art in public spaces, such asshopping centres, schools, nurseries andoffices, also being a possibility.

“With people starting to think aboutspring cleaning and sprucing up, it’s timeto pick up the paintbrush in earnest andstart making some faces light up,” saysLinda.

Linda is also available to carry outother kinds of artwork including pickingout the pattern in a carpet to detail on thewall, creating original art on boards tocustomers’ specifications and taste, aswell as stencilling and fancy lettering.Having designed the artwork for herwedding, including the invitations andhand decorated boards, she is also happyto carry out individual commissions forsimilar projects.

And there’s one very important projectthat will have to be completed by thesummer. Linda is expecting her first babyin June so there’s a nursery to decorate.

�� For further information on MuralMischief contact Linda Bainbridge on(01642) 780933 or visit the website:www.mural-mischief.co.uk. Prices startat £200.

Linda with god-daughter Amy, farright, and someof her designs

If you wantto brightenup yourchild’s lifethis year,just call upLindaBainbridge.JENNYNEEDHAMreports

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This year, I will be mostlystudying fungi

IHAD a lovely day back in early De-cember, ambling through some ofDurham City’s oldest woodlands. Tome, it is a place of inspiration, notonly because of the deep seated echoof history buried within the soil and

the stone, but also because it is filled withthe sense of optimism and energy createdby the bands of young students as theynaively begin to figure out their role in thepantomime of life.

As it happens, another drama was playedout before me as I crunched through the aro-matic thick mat of fallen oak and beechleaves. A band of vagabonds wielding two-handed swords, long pikes and spiked clubscame running down the pathway towardsme. I stopped in my tracks, but they passedon by.

Another 50 yards on even the dog froze tothe spot. A young woman dressed in greenwas huddled over behind the trunk of a tree.As she heard my approach, she looked up.She was covered in “blood”, and just beyondher was “the grim reaper”, hovering overthe prostrate body of a young knight.

This was obviously the scene of a me-dieval re-enactment, or the aftermath of anoutdoor play. Either way, it reminded mejust how old the woods were, and made mewonder at the real tragedies and heroicsthat had taken place underneath the coverof the leafy canopy.

As I was looking around me, trying toimagine a world gone by, a large clump oftoadstools caught my eye. They had raisedtheir heads above the leaf litter andmarched in a straight line down the hillside.The caps were the size of small sideplates,the shape of a blown-out umbrella and light

grey in colour. I gave myself a frustratedmental kicking because I am not very goodat identifying fungi, and have alwayspromised myself that one day, when I havethe time, I will sit down and learn them.What I really need it to be out in the woodswith someone who knows their mushroomsand learn them in a hands-on fashion. Thusmy first New Year’s resolution for 2005 cameto be born – I must get myself booked ontoone of those expert-led fungi forays.

My other resolutions are a bit simpler…

ISHALL only buy as many varieties ofvegetable seeds as I have space to ac-

commodate. I know it is so tempting, as youflick through the catalogues and examinethe display stands in the garden centres, tokeep finding something new or different tohave a bash at in the coming season. I al-ready have some on order, and the year isonly in its infancy, but these really lookedfun. They included yard-long runner beans,100lb pumpkins and perpetually fruitingcherry tomatoes. I wonder if they do thosein a yellow as well…

IAM about to celebrate one year’s an-niversary of moving to my new house. I

think I did what everyone does when theyget a new spot, I immediately set to workredesigning and recreating the garden.

I chopped down the overgrown jungle, re-moved all the gravel (it had obviously beenlaid down as a maintenance-free garden atsome time, but even they need some atten-tion from time to time). I created pathwaysand borders, laid a small lawn and had afriend over to help remove a long-forgottencompost heap and to build a retaining wallfor the raised patio. Then I stopped…

Some time this year, and hopefully beforethe best of the summer sun breaksthrough, I will get the patio finished.

ISHALL also clear out my shed. It is theusual type, an old outside toilet convert-

ed to house tools, canes and bits and bobs.It started off fairly clean, but I have beenslowly putting in the odd brush and bit ofhose pipe Then the half-used paint pots goin there just in case I need to top up scratch-es and chips in later years, there are theobligatory bags of used plant pots, and, ofcourse, one or two nearly empty bags ofcompost.

The odd pruned-off twig that I started col-lecting to use in the outdoor burner hasturned into a pile of branches big enough tofurnish a tree.

I do have plans to turn the shed into an in-

door seating area for when the weather isn’tquite good enough to be sitting outside.Even if I don’t get it painted up, I would liketo get rid of all the unnecessary rubbish be-fore the end of 2005.

IHAVE yet to find last years’ resolutionsand tick off any that I managed to fulfil.

The secret in successfully sticking to orcompleting any new years resolutions is inbreaking old habits, but gardening is creat-ed by the retention of such habits whichhave been passed down from generation togeneration, and you often find yourselfveering away from anything unconvention-al or out of routine. I usually find it betterto say “this year I am going to do…” ratherthan “this year I am not going to do…”

However, I have to list as my last resolu-tion that I am not going to buy a strimmer.I don’t need a strimmer. I only have a verysmall (but perfectly shaped) patch of lawn,which I can cut by hand with a pair ofshears. It takes me about half an hour to getit right, but at least I know that there won’tbe any scalped or accidentally deadheadedborder plants, plus it’s a good form of exer-cise for the back, the thighs and the upperarms.

As a bonus to all my neighbours, they willavoid being irritated early on a Sundaymorning by the annoying whine of mystrimmer.

ITHINK that’s quite a positive set of reso-lutions, including ones that will not only

benefit me, but also those who usually haveto end up growing on my excess supply ofvegetable seedlings and all those withinearshot of my garden.

New Year’s resolution number one... I must get myself booked onto one of those expert-led fungus forays

Gardening Correspondent BRIGID PRESS comes up withsome New Year’s Resolutions for 2005, though she stillhasn’t checked how well she did last year

� What I really need it to

be out in the woods

with someone who knows

their mushrooms

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IN a smart suit and with his fashionable hair-cut, Bryan McCourt looks every inch theyoung entrepreneur. He might run a fashionstore or a hairdressing salon – where image isall-important – but he’s involved in neither ofthese, although image is his livelihood. In-

stead, Bryan has chosen the more radical businessof ‘aesthetic procedures’ – less drastic alternatives tocosmetic surgery, such as Botox and lip enhance-ment.

Bryan, 33, recently became the North-East’s firstfranchisee for Collagenics, the UK’s largest group ofclinics specialising in the field. Although his back-ground is in selling and marketing electrical sup-plies, he says he had no qualms about taking such aleap into the unknown. “I looked at it purely from anobjective point of view. I looked at the products andservices provided and the business model. I was pret-ty much blown away by the professionalism and theresults,” he says.

Bryan has set up an administrative base in the Im-perial Centre on Grange Road, in his home town ofDarlington, from where he oversees the running ofabout 30 clinics at North-East salons. He says thateach one had to meet strict criteria. “We are involvedwith Saks and Toni & Guy nationally, so all over theNorth-East, we go into their salons and offer treat-ments, but we also use selected, premium beauty sa-lons throughout the region. We need the right clini-

cal surroundings but as well as that, we need a nice,relaxing atmosphere,” says Bryan.

Although Collagenics had a presence in the regionprior to his involvement, operating from a handfulof Saks branches, it suffered from the lack of some-one to promote it. Now, with Bryan at the helm, it isaiming high, and this month, is exclusively phasingin the latest fat-busting treatment, Lipo-Melt.

“It really is going to be absolutely astronomical,”Bryan enthuses. “Collagenics is the only practition-er in the North of England that’s qualified to do it.It’s been used in America for the last seven years andalso heavily in Europe.”

Lipo-Melt is a soya bean derivative which is in-jected into the problem area, such as the hips, thighs,or buttocks, and literally dissolves the fat. This isthen excreted by the body through the normal meta-bolic process.

Is it really as simple as it sounds? Bryan says so.“It’s massively less invasive than liposuction. There’sno scarring with Lipo-Melt and it can work out cheap-er,” he says.

“With liposuction, the patient will go under seda-tion with a general anaesthetic and will be cut openand the fat will be sucked out. Lipo-Melt is just a lit-tle injection and none of the clients I’ve spoken tohave had an anaesthetic.”

Clients coming in for Lipo-Melt, which is alreadyoffered by Collagenics elsewhere in the country, will

Forget liposuction– the latestprocedure forgetting rid ofunwanted fat isLipo-Melt. SARAHFOSTER meetsBryan McCourt,who is about tostart offering it athis clinicsthroughout theregion

melt fat away?Can a jab

Fat-busting: BryanMcCourt, the North-East’s first franchiseefor Collagenics, ishugely enthusiasticabout the results forLipo-Melt

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have a full consultation, including photographs beingtaken of the fat zone. Depending on its size, it mighttake one or several treatments to eliminate, with re-sults showing after about four weeks and apparentlylasting indefinitely.

Bryan says a code of ethics will be followed, andthat some clients may be refused. “Although it’s a mir-acle treatment, it’s not seen as a miracle substitutefor healthy eating and exercise. All our clients getadvice on a healthy eating plan and good exercise,”he says.

“This treatment is for areas of fat that no matterhow much you exercise or what you eat, you can’t getrid of. But we are not going to treat anybody who’smore than two stones overweight.”

Although he hasn’t tried Lipo-Melt – he looks likehe has barely an ounce of fat – Bryan has had Botox,a cosmetic peel and teeth whitening treatment. Hissister Judie, a radio and TV presenter and fashionwriter for The Northern Echo, has also had Botox andapparently raves about her Collagenics lip enhance-ment.

Bryan says that once he realised how safe and ef-fective the treatments were, he was entirely happy tohave them. It’s an attitude that’s reflected by hisclients – whether they’re willing to admit to them ornot – and an impressive 90 per cent return for furtherwork.

“I think it’s more and more acceptable to go and

have one of our treatments. These treatments werethe beauty secret of the rich and famous and now thatthe secret is out, people know that they’re what’s keptthem looking so good. In this day and age, I don’t thinkit’s a bad thing to give yourself a boost,” he says.� For details of clinics and treatments, contact Collagenics (North-East) on (01325) 367367.

Denise Zaccariah, 45, from Sheffield, has had oneLipo-Melt treatment and was due for a second. She says:

�SINCE having my children, I’ve always hadthis thing about the cellulite on the backs of

my legs. That’s the part of my body that hasalways made me think, ‘Yuk’. I had Lipo-Melt onmy thighs, the backs of my legs and my inner legs.

I had about 25 injections in each leg, which tookabout 45 minutes. With a couple of the injections,I thought, ‘Oh that pinched,’ but apart from that,it was fairly painless.

It took about four weeks for me to noticeanything and my skin seemed slightly smoother.I’ve seen about a 20 per cent improvement – I’vedefinitely lost fat from my inner thigh. If it works100 per cent, I’ll be thrilled to bits.”

LIPO-MELTA substance taken from soyabeans is injected into an arealike the hips or thighs andbreaks down the fat, which thenpasses harmlessly from thebody. One session starts at£320.

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and smooth expression lines,frown lines, forehead lines andcrows’ feet. Fans include LizHurley, Cliff Richard, Lulu andPatsy Kensit. It costs from £200for one area and lasts fromthree to six months.

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me and my wardrobe

Who says beauty and brains don’tmix? Former model andbusinesswoman Lesley Middlemiss,39, proves they do. Lesley spent her20s modelling, as well as findingtime to get married and bring up afamily. She branched out at the ageof 28 when she opened a modellingagency from her home in Seghill,near Seaton Delaval. Tyne TeesModels, based in Whitley Bay, is nowthe largest agency in the North-Eastand celebrates its tenth anniversarythis year.

How would you describe your look?5ft 10ins curvaceous blonde. I’d say I’ma mix of smart and casual.

What’s your favourite item ofclothing?It’s got to be my Hunter Wellingtonboots. I live on a farm, I’ve got chickensand ducks and I’m always out with thedogs. They’re practical and comfortableand I feel at home in them.

What’s your worst buy?There are just too many to mention. Idon’t really impulse buy but I do buythings I think look great in the shop butlook awful when I get them home.Unfortunately, I’m terrible at takingthings back.

What’s the most you’ve ever spenton an item of clothing?I can’t say in case my husband reads

the article. I always have to pretend I’vehad things for ages, although he isactually worse than me. He’s got abigger wardrobe than I have and he’salways spending a fortune on clothes.

What are your favourite shops?I shop mainly in the high street –Ninewest for shoes, Marks & Spencerand John Lewis

Which celebrity’s style do youadmire and why?It has to be Bo Derek, my heroine fromteenage years. She’s a natural beautyand she still looks amazing. I hope I lookthat good when I’m her age.

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T HE long awaited re-opening of TheDevonport Hotel and Restaurantin Middleton One Row has finallytaken place. Julia Ellwood – wellknown for her excellent catering

skills – and partner Chris Mills worked dayand night for many months to ensure it re-opened as a high quality hotel offering finedining and comfortable, tasteful accommo-dation.

The Devonport overlooks the river Tees,with splendid views of the surroundingcountryside, and has featured in TV dramassuch as Boon, starring Michael Elphick.

On the opening night it was packed to therafters. Darlingon Football Club managerDavid Hodgson gave a warm opening speechfollowed by a tearful big list of thank yousfrom Julia. Judging by the response fromfriends, locals and business people from thesurrounding area, we don’t think they’llhave any problem filling the place.

So who was there for the relaunch party,and what were they wearing…?

JULIA ELLWOOD & CHRIS MILLSJULIA is proprietor of The Devonport andlooked very chic in a classic suit by StellaMcCartney. Whenever Julia gets the chanceto shop, she heads to Leeds, as she loves Har-vey Nicks. A good high street shop where she

can usually find things she likes that fit wellis Next.

No matter how busy Julia is she believesyou should always allow time to get yourhair and nails tended to weekly. Chipper-fields in Coniscliffe road is her favourite.

Chris looks great at 51 and he attributesthat to going to the gym three times a week,doing weight training and using a BodyShop moisturiser twice a day.

Chris is co-owner of The Devonport andlooked the part for the relaunch wearing asuit by Crombie at Binns in Darlington, ashirt by Prada and Base shoes. He finds theHouse of Fraser store at the MetroCentre al-ways stocks a good selection of quality clothing.

ELIZABETH CARRIGAN ELIZABETH Carrigan is 28 and a beautytherapist at Gange Beauty at Tracey Chip-perfield on Coniscliffe Road. She was at theparty to support her client and friend Julia.

Elizabeth oozed style with well-cut jeansand a jacket from View by Vila, a top fromGap and shoes from Leggs. The pretty hand-bag was made by Spencer and Rutherfordand bought at Élan. She loves shopping atThe Victorian Quarter in Leeds and finish-ing with a cocktail on the 4th floor ofHarvey Nichols.

To stay slim and beautiful, Elizabeth rec-ommends not eating carbs after 5pm and De-cleor skin care products.

GREG DAVISONGREG is a 29-year-old chartered surveyor. Helooked fab in a pair of jeans from Zara, shirtfrom H&M by Karl Lagerfeld and a jacketfrom the M&S Autograph collection. Greg’slook was given the stamp of style with a pairof Alain Mikli glasses that looked an acces-sory not a necessity, but as Greg says, if youhave to wear glasses, make sure you have afew pairs to match different fashion looks.

Greg likes to shop at Zara, Reiss and Dieselbut isn’t too fussy as long as the clothes aremodern and easy to wear.�� The Devonport Hotel, The Front, Middleton One Row, Darlington, CountyDurham, DL2 1AS (01325) 332255

out on the town

McCourt & McKay

The North-East’s answer toTrinny andSusannah taketo the bars andclubs of theregion in searchof style andindividuality

DAVID HODGSON

�� Judie McCourt, of TV and radio fame, andmake-up and hair artist Allison McKay, run AMCreative Productions, which specialises increative event management and theproduction of photographic images foradvertising

amcreativeproductions.com

MARINA COLLINSMARINA keeps in shape with a low-carb diet and lots of horse riding. As for beauty prod-ucts Marina said she has spent a fortune on lotions and potions claiming to work wonders,but has since come across Collagenics. In fact, she loved the products so much that shenow works for the company as an administrator. Marina couldn’t quite recall where hertop and trousers were from but the beautiful lace poncho was from Next. When it comes toshopping Marina prefers London, as she loves the Ghost and Whistles stores there. Shealso stocks up on her favourite Moschino T-shirts when she visits the capital.

DAVID HODGSONDAVID, 44, is the manager of Darlington Football Club. He always looks well groomed andthis party was no exception. He was here to open the Devonport for his friend Julia. Davidbuys his suits from Geoffrey Gillow in Grange Road, Darlington, and this one was by Sand.For a feelgood factor David has a weekly manicure and has even organised a weekly man-icure and massage with Bishop Auckland College for his players as he believes being wellgroomed does help with confidence.

MARINA COLLINSGREG DAVISON

JULIA ELLWOOD& CHRIS MILLS

ELIZABETH CARRIGAN

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W E first spied each otheracross a crowded room.They were sitting demure-ly on a shelf, waiting to becoveted. I was trying to

make my way past two gum-chewingteenagers and their exasperated mother.

The path to a wonderful life together waslooking decidedly rocky, but eventually Ireached them – the brown, mock-croc kittenheels I had fallen in love with.

I plucked them from the shelf and huggedthem close to me. I stroked their pointy toesand tweaked the little heel, before holdingthem up to savour the price tag. They werereduced from £65 to £40 and to cap it all, itwas Blue Cross Day – an extra 15 per centoff.

There was only one slight problem.“We don’t have any fives left, we only have

those in a four,” trilled the sales assistant.“Do you want me to get the other one foryou?”

I knew I should have walked away then,put the shoe down and stepped away fromthe shelf. But it was too late.

“Yes please,” I blurted.When she brought it out I felt like one of

the ugly sisters in Cinderella, but I was de-

termined to get my foot into this daintyshoe.

“I’m sure if I wear them around the houseor with socks a bit they might stretch,” I rea-soned, adding for good measure that theywere such a bargain and would go with mytweed trousers and my brown pencil skirt.And did I mention they were a bargain?

I walked up and down and convinced my-self that they fitted and before I knew it I’dbought them.

I’ve worn them twice in two years. Twice.They’re even still in their box and look asgorgeous as the day I bought them – butthey still don’t fit.

Sales must rank as one of the greatestfalse economies of all time.

Whether it’s a skirt we think we’ll sliminto or a bright purple sweater we wouldn’tbe seen dead in come spring, if it has SALEemblazoned across it, then we simply musthave it.

Whereas normally we are creatures whodeliberate and pontificate before we makecarefully considered purchases, suddenlywe can be found rummaging wildly in bar-gain bins, plucking out glittery pink belts,stripy socks and lace fingerless gloves. Themore the price has been knocked down, themore attractive the item becomes. It’s a bitlike wearing shopping goggles – the equiv-alent to wearing a pair of beer goggles on aSaturday night.

And for all the shoes, skirts and shirtsthat get relegated to the back of thewardrobe after being worn once or twice,there are those scary sale items that end upbeing worn a great deal.

It’s amazing how those of us who are usu-ally so chic, being careful never to wearnavy with black for example, suddenly hurlgood taste out of the window when there’sa bargain to be had.

Sometimes there’s a reason why that flow-ered 70s inspired skirt you’ve picked up is inthe sale. And if it barely looks good on thelikes of stunner Sienna Miller, is it going to

Will we still be sportingbrooches in the spring?Do you really need thatpurple jacket, even if itis a bargain? Women’sEditor LINDSAYJENNINGS looks at thebest and worst buys tobe had from theJanuary sales

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look smashing on someone heading for thewrong side of 45? Thankfully though, thereare some tips you can pick up in readinessfor the dreaded/longed-for sales.

Charlotte Sanders, fashion features editorat InStyle magazine, says: “Never ever befooled into buying something that doesn’t fitand look for really good basics that will standyou in good stead, such as a great coat orgood knitwear, which may not be the trendi-est thing in the world but it will last. It alsohelps if you have a good idea of what youwant before you go.”

According to Charlotte, part of negotiat-ing the sales minefield is deciding what youmight take forward from this season to thenext. Fashion’s love affair with colour willfeature strongly in the spring/summer, par-ticularly the colour blue, so she says it’s anideal opportunity to grab a bargain and stayin fashion.

“There’s going to be a lot of bright bluesaround and sharp turquoises,” she says. “Thepurple is still there but it’s going to be lessdominant and the greens will tend to bemuch softer.

“The cropped jackets will also carrythrough. There are the 50s-inspired boxedjackets a la Marni or the blazer jacket whichwill carry through to summer.

“The autumn/winter trend for metallicswill also still feature, but in the form of plat-inum and old gold colours instead of the se-quins and the brasher metallics.”

It’s also time to say goodbye to tweed,which has seen such a renaissance this au-tumn/winter, unless, says Charlotte, you canfind a really, fine knit example in palespring/summer colours.

And although the poncho was a staple ofevery girl’s autumn/winter wardrobe theyare starting to look distinctly too popular sorelegate them to the bottom of your jumperdrawer. While you’re at it, throw the models’favourite – Ugg boots – to the back of thewardrobe.

The bo-ho retro 70s look is still strong and,according to Charlotte, will carry through(but only for the young and hip). We can alsopop the brooches away – anything that’s sucha big hit for one season rarely carries ontothe next.

Charlotte’s topthree what tobuy and whatnot to buy inthe Januarysales are:

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� Don’t missBurton’s Bytes– gamereviews in TheNorthern Echoevery Friday

Who youcalling ageek?

IT isn’t so long ago that gadget lovershad to keep their obsession a secret.Admitting to a love of electronicephemera was an open invitation toscorn and derision. How things havechanged.

Nowadays it seems everyone is a gadget-man (or woman), even if some people aremore reluctant than others. Gadgets and alove of technology are finally cool.

Don’t believe me?According to a survey by leading online

technology company dabs.com gadgets arein huge demand among Premiership foot-ballers.

More than 100 top European footballerstook part in the survey – including playersfrom Barcelona FC and Manchester Unit-ed. They were quizzed about which gadgetsthey would most like to own.

As expected, the ipod MP3 player was astrong footballers’ favourite, with morethan half admitting that they would lovethe gadget so they could listen to the themetune from Escape To Victory or whatever.

More than 30 players cited a notebookcomputer as their chosen gizmo.

And as long journeys become more com-monplace for top footballers competing inEuropean competitions, the ability to playcomputer games and watch DVDs on a lap-top is more important than ever.

Other popular gadgets among soccerplayers include the new ‘3G’ mobilephones, presumably to keep up with all thelatest goals video clips.

In a recent interview, Arsenal’s GilbertoSilva commented: “I like digital cameras,but have recently bought an ipod. I love mymusic and this machine is fantastic – it’sgreat when I am on the team bus or travel-ling a long way to matches. It look greattoo.”

Gilberto’ s enthusiasm for gadgets is sup-ported by Dean Kiely of Charlton who re-cently commented: “My most prized pos-session is my palm top computer. It’s a bitof a bible for me and goes everywhere I go– it’s my life organiser.”

A quarter of all players surveyed pre-ferred to shop online as opposed to visit-ing the high street, a trend reflected in the

shopping habits of the general UK publicas the number of online festive buyers isset to smash all records this year.

Jonathan Wall, marketing director atdabs.com, reflected: “Through our footballsponsorship programme, we have attract-ed a large number of Premiership playersto dabs.com.

“The most popular requests recentlyhave been for the latest multimedia com-puters, TVs and DVD players, which are allmust-have gifts, not just for footballers, butfor anyone looking for the best products atthe most competitive prices.”

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Time with RosemaryIT was only appropriate it was a game

cookery course. Confronted by the larg-er-than-life Rosemary Shrager, I stoodlike a rabbit in the headlights. “Putyour apron on!” she boomed at me, in

tones reminiscent of the late dog trainer Bar-bara Woodhouse. “No, no, no, tie it at thefront!” I’d already failed the first test. If Rose-mary thought I was clumsy with my apronstrings, wait until she saw me with a pheas-ant and a carving knife.

I have no pretensions about my kitchenskills. I can do very basic meals, such as roastchicken, lasagne and chilli con carne, but Ican’t bake. My first attempt at school cook-ery for what should have been cauliflowercheese resulted in a soggy mess, and sincethen my confidence in the kitchen has beenzero. I was eight when I made my last cake –a birthday cake for my border collie Lassie,and even she didn’t ask for seconds.

I’ve never watched a cookery programmein my life and I know of Delia, Nigella andtheir colleagues only through the gossipcolumns. But here I was, standing beforeRosemary Shrager at Swinton Park, nearMasham, North Yorkshire, for the start of aday-long game cookery course.

The kitchen in the castle’s old stable blockwas superbly equipped, with utensils I’dnever come across before. My fellow studentsall looked supremely confident, definitely onthe dinner party circuit. I suspected I was theonly beginner.

“You! You can make wheaten bread,” I wasordered. “Come round here, come on, comealong! We have a lunch to make!”

A tray of ingredients was placed before meand I started to read my recipe. “Don’t both-er with that,” boomed Rosemary. “Just chuckit in, come on, throw it all in.” She encour-ages a devil-may-care attitude to cookery,which is great if you know how to retrieveyour mistakes. “You can’t go wrong with thisone,” she quipped, reading my mind, as thesoggy mess got tipped into a loaf tin.

I was just starting to enjoy myself when apheasant was slapped on the table. At leastit was plucked. But all those other jokesabout boning a pheasant had come back tohaunt me. Rosemary brandished an enor-mous knife and with a few swift moves, hadtwo breasts ready for searing and two legs fora confit of pheasant. The carcass was thrown

into a pan for stock. It looked so easy, butwith a knife in my own hand, my mind wentblank. “Cut on the diagonal,” I told myself.“Don’t waste any meat.” “You’ve wasted somuch breast,” Rosemary told me. “Let meshow you.”

And so the morning went. We learnt tomake rabbit consomme with chives and redpepper, pheasant confit in filo with a grainymustard and cider sauce and plum frangi-pane. I soon realised Rosemary wasn’t bul-lying me. She is naturally loud and her pas-sion for cooking and eating makes her more

so. Every now and then a finger was dippedin a sauce and tasted. “Yes, do try, it’s ab-solutely delicious!” she raved.

The final stage of our lunch menu wascrème anglaise, but I couldn’t spot a tin ofBirds custard powder anywhere. I just knewthis was going to be my job. My recipe seemedstraightforward until I read the words: “Thepips of one fresh vanilla pod.” A black ver-sion of a green bean was on my ingredientstray, but I didn’t know what to do with it. Afellow student whispered conspiratorially:“Cut down the middle and scrape.”

With everything under control, Rosemary,a self-confessed “bossy old boots”, an-nounced it was time for a drink. Bottles ofwine were uncorked and Rosemary toastedour superb efforts – yes, even mine.

The cookery school at Swinton Park has itsown elegant dining room and students learnto present the meals as well as cook them. Myslap-it-on-a-plate technique had to be quick-ly unlearnt in favour of dinner party pre-sentation. The secret was to start with a base,then build from there, just like Lego, but withfood. Sauces are delicately drizzled round theedge. Spillages are banned on these works ofart.

Lunch was delicious, but it felt extra spe-cial that I had helped to make it and I felt con-fident I could repeat the meal at home. Rose-mary’s courses break after lunch until 5pmwhen students are back in the kitchen tocook for dinner.

For the second session, we learnt to pre-pare rabbit legs for chicken stuffing, madebreast of wood pigeon with puff pastry, redcabbage and a wild mushroom mousse witha port and lavender sauce, and baked a peartarte tatin.

That evening, Rosemary insisted my hus-band Ian should join us for dinner to marvelat my new kitchen skills. As he walkedthrough the door, slightly apprehensive atthe thought of eating game prepared by hisincompetent wife, he saw a sight of which hehad only previously dreamt. I was wearingan apron, tied at the front, with cloths tuckedin, and a spoon for tasting, and a face flushed

from cooking (and wine!). Dinner was deli-cious – but can I try these recipes at home?I’m off to the butcher’s for a pheasant sowatch this space – or our local casualty de-partment!

�� Rosemary Shrager has appeared inRosemary – Castle Cook and Rosemary onthe Road on five, as well as a cookeryseries for the Discovery Channel. Thismonth she is back on our screens in ITV’sLadette To Lady. Her cookery school isnow established at Swinton Park, nearMasham. �� Cookery courses at Swinton Park runthroughout the year and include Basics forLife, Just Italian, Dinner Parties and Fishand Seafood, among others. Half daycourses start at £125 per person.Accommodation is extra. Telephone 01765680900 or visit www.swintonpark.com

Getting stuck in: Christine Fieldhouse, watched by her fellow students, gets some tips from Rosemary Shrager

EATING OUTTHE COUNTY

AYCLIFFE VILLAGE

IT’S always a pleasure to visit TheCounty in Aycliffe Village. Theformer pub-turned-restaurant

which features in the current Michelin“Eating Out In Pubs” guide stillretains the friendly, buzzingatmosphere of a village local butserves up stonkingly good food.

With its continental feel andattentive, white-aproned staff, it feelsas if you have been transported tosome idyllic hostelry where the realale is spot-on and the grub evenbetter.

We visited The County on a busySaturday night and were pleased tobe shown to one of the best tables inthe house. Private, but still in touchwith the convivial hub-hub.

To start we had no less than sevenchoices, ranging from soup andprawns to the more exotic grilledgoats’ cheese or pressed terrine ofduck.

I plumped for the home-madeparsnip, apple and rocket soup whichwas delicious and piquant withcomplex flavours. My wife chose thegarlic king prawns which she foundmeaty, succulent and very tasty.

At this stage we tried the wine, anexcellent bottle of medium-bodiedHazy View Pinotage from SouthAfrica. Why are restaurant winesalways nicer than the stuff from thesupermarket?

For our main course we couldchose from nine dishes extendingfrom fillet of salmon to slow roastbelly of pork and vegetablemoussaka and goats’ cheese.

I opted for the truly memorable potroast pheasant with creamy mashpotato and assorted vegetables in athyme sauce, an excellent choice asthe game was superbly savoury andtender. My wife went for the monkfishfillet and she loved it. The delicately-flavoured fish was cooked toperfection.

So far it had been superb, but thebest was still to come. For puddingyou could choose from six options. Iwent for the unusual, intenselylemony citrus creme brule while mypartner chose the (even better) bitterchocolate torte with confit orangeand chantilly cream. After a bit ofpressure from my side, we agreed toshare. I reckon I got the best deal.

All in all, an evening of pure magicwhich cost a total of £79.68.

Barry Nelson

CHRISTINE FIELDHOUSE enrols on a cookery course at SwintonPark… and turns into the woman her husband has always dreamed of

� I was wearing an

apron, tied at the

front, with cloths tucked in,

and a spoon for tasting,

and a face flushed from

cooking (and wine!)


Audi A3 Sportback

IT’S the perfect storm. Rolling in from theAtlantic, heavy and menacing, the de-pression lets go with full fury. Sky, landand loch become one in the deluge and

traffic slows to a snail’s pace as drivers strug-gle with the stair-rods and spray.

Water fills the air to the point where we areall in danger of drowning and roads becomerivers, drain holes dangerous lagoons, a wa-tery death hiding round every bend.

What better conditions to test a new car?None of these fair weather critiques fromsunny climes here; this is Scotland where theweather is real, raw and ready to trap you atany time.

Caught in the cloudburst is a fleet of newAudis, the rain running off freshly waxedpaint like water off a duck’s back, the impactof the convoy lost for ever in the murk.

The Sportback is the latest in the re-vamped Audi A3 range and comes with anextra two doors and bit more length to ac-commodate them. Most manufacturers liketo think of the three-door variants as beingthe sportsters of the bunch as the lines lendthemselves to a coupe look. Not Audi whichhas given the sporty tag to the five doorSportback.

It does seem to work: while the three-doorlooks pretty good, the extra length of theSportback seems to give it more presence onthe road – or at least it does when you can ac-tually see it through the rain.

A longer wheel base also gives it extra sta-bility; just the ticket when most cars wouldhave been in danger of aquaplaning acrossthe flooded roads. Overall, the Sportbackfeels balanced through the bends and gripstenaciously even when the surface is wet andslippery.

Heavy rain also tests how waterproof thecar is (no problem there), the wipers (set tothe max and just about coping) and the ven-tilation. It drives me mad when cars sudden-

ly steam up at the first drop of rain and thenfail to clear despite the blower being on full.Thankfully, the A3’s climate control worksvery well and keeps windscreen and side win-dows clear while the back de-mist looks afterthe rear screen.

The Sportback comes with a range of en-gines to choose from – petrols including a 1.6,2.0, 2.0 turbo and 3.2 V6 and 1.9 and 2.0 diesels.

They all do a fine job but the top of therange are the most impressive of course. The3.2 litre petrol is fitted to the Quattro and isa complete flying machine thanks to 250PSof power and big reserve of torque. The 140PS2.0 diesel is almost a match and in the torquestakes a complete monster while offering su-perb economy.

The others will trundle you along prettywell combining adequate performance withgood miles per gallon.

Inside, the Sportback is pure A3 and there’snothing wrong with that. It is well-equippedand well-made, has a sporty feel and oozesquality. Rear seat passengers benefit fromextra leg room over the three-door versionand the convenience of having their owndoors. The boot is also larger on the Sport-back so there are many practical reasons tochoose one above the other.

The Sportback is a very useful addition tothe Audi A3 range, offering the appeal of thethree-door with the extra versatility thatcomes with a bit more space. It remains anaccomplished and appealing drive and can’tfail to go down a storm.

motoring

TThhee nneeww AAuuddii:: a little bit longer and with two extra doors

Back to the futureIn inclement conditions, Motoring Correspondent IAN LAMMING

tests out a very useful addition to the Audi A3 range

� It is well-equipped

and well-made,

has a sporty feel and

oozes quality

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W INNER of the AA Irish Hotel ofthe Year, Hayfield Manor hadcome highly recommended byHilary Finlay of Ireland’s

excellent Blue Book, an extremely usefulguide to country houses and restaurants.

Even so at 10 o’clock at night we were notexpecting much. For starters, they hadstopped serving dinner, so we foundourselves in the bar – a wonderfully smoke-free bar thanks to the ban on smoking inpublic places – hunting for a sandwich. Inanother flash a pristine white cloth wasspread across the table and together with arange of cutlery, two huge linen napkinswere placed before us. With each mouthful ofblack stout that slipped past our lips webecame hungrier and hungrier and the filletsteaks we ordered, with great big chippedpotatoes and a fresh salad, could not havebeen better.

As we were to discover, good food and Corkgo hand in hand and now the city of Corkhas become the European Capital of Culture,Irish cuisine will play a big part in drawingthe crowds, along with a host of activitiessurrounding the arts, architecture andsports.

Next morning, after a kingly breakfast, wewalked the short distance from Hayfield intotown to explore the incredible EnglishMarket. It hides away between St Patrick’sStreet, the backbone of the city, and GrandParade. Incredibly, this market goes backnearly 400 years. Once only English traderswere allowed to sell their produce here buttoday it is the most important food market inthe whole of Cork.

No one interested in food can pass byBallymaloe House and the welcoming armsof Myrtle Allen. It was 40 years ago that sheand her husband Ivan decided to turn overtheir dining room to paying guests and sentthem away talking about the delicious, homecooked food they served. Surrounded by awealth of ingredients from the mixed farmthey ran, sharing it with others seemed anatural thing to do. Next they thoughtpeople might like to stay with them, which ofcourse they did, if only to experience the fullIrish breakfast. Then Myrtle startedteaching and writing about cookery, until

one day a student called Darina came alongand married one of her sons.

Four decades later Ballymaloe is athriving hotbed of good Irish food. Thehouse, where Myrtle still lives – her husbanddied a few years ago – is still the old home italways was.

The wind was blowing in the wrongdirection for the chimney in the sitting roomwhen we arrived, so it was belching woodsmoke and sending it through the wholehouse. It didn’t matter. Just like honeybeesthat are calmed by smoke, the sweet smellmade us want to plonk down in one of thesquashy sofas. It also made us hungry.

Many of Myrtle’s six children and 22grandchildren have now jumped on theBallymaloe bandwagon. Darina runs thebusy cookery school, which attracts studentsfrom all over the world. There is a shop, acafé, another restaurant. A sprightly 80years old, Myrtle is just as passionate as everabout the importance of eating proper food.She invited us down to the kitchen whereshe was making crab apple jelly.

“We have a real battle going on and I’m notsure we’re winning, “ she told us. “Theflavours of food are being lost all the time.”

And so her latest project is a book thatbrings together producers of fine food in theCork area. There is, it seems, no stoppingher.FACTFILEHayfield Manor Hotel, Perrott Avenue, CollegeRoad, Cork. Superior Double room from about£250 (subject to exchange rate). Dinner fromabout £44. Winter packages; two night bed andbreakfast with one dinner about £224 per person.Tel: 00353 214845900. www.hayfieldmanor.ie

Ballymaloe House, Shanagarry, Midleton, Co.Cork is a member of Ireland’s Blue Book ofcountry houses and restaurants. Bed andbreakfast from about £65 per person. Dinner,served from 7pm until 9.30pm about £37.50.Bookings: Tel: 00353 214652531www.ballymaloe.ie

Ireland’s Blue Book. O0353 16769914www.irelandsbluebook.comMore information on visiting Cork: Tourism Ireland:0800 0397000 www.tourismireland

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

SimplyCorking!

KEITH ALLAN and LYNNE GRAY get a taste of Cork, whichbecame the European Capital of Culture this month

Ballymaloe House and, right, the ever-busy Myrtle Allen inher kitchen making crab apple jelly

� Many of Myrtle’s six children and 22 grandchildren

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J ANUARY – it’s a bad time of yearas the dark nights and gloomyweather continue without the

sparkle of Christmas to counteractthem. And it’s still a long way untilspring so you need something to lookforward to, a treat for mind and body.

A day of treatments and relaxationat the Broom Mill Day Spa at High HillHouse Farm, just outside Ferryhill,could be the answer. The spareopened in the summer after amassive revamp and boasts a light andairy reception area where meals areserved, three pine rooms – an infra redroom, a specially designedaromatherapy room and a traditionalsauna, a pool and a huge chill-outroom. There’s a consultation room,two well-appointed treatment roomswith infra red heating panels in theceiling and dimmer switches to makethem warm and cosy, and two hugechanging rooms with showers, allsuitable for the disabled.

Broom Mill Day Spa has teamed upwith The Northern Echo to offer onelucky reader the chance to win aSignature Spa Day for two, so you cantake a friend or partner along to chillout with you.

The day includes a warm welcome

and tour of facilities; fluffy dressinggown, bath sheet and disposable flip-flops; full use of all facilities, relaxationzone and pool; use of sauna,aromatherapy and infra red rooms anda 20-minute session in the White Lightroom. After a full consultation you willreceive a 30 minute treatment tailoredto your specific needs and a buffetlunch and refreshments throughout theday. To stand a chance of winning thistreat for two just tell us which townBroom Mill Day Spa is nearest to.Answers, by the end of January, ToBroom Mill Day Spa Competition,Features, The Northern Echo,Pirestgate, Darlington DL1 1NF. � High Hill House Farm, Dean Bank,

Ferryhill, Co. Durham (01740)

654225 www.broommilldayspa.co.uk?IMPOSSIPUZZLE“Ted lives just across the road from us,

our numbers are consecutive,” saidMike. “We’re up in the hundreds.”

Tony nodded “What about your son ,helives nearby too, doesn’t he?”

“Sure, but a bit down the road,” Mikereplied. “In fact the squares of Ted’s

number and ours total one more thanthree times the square of his number.”

What were the three numbers?

SSOOLLUUTTIIOONN

Numbers 242,243 and 198

WORD

C: A small gate.

wiseThe word may soundfamiliar, but do you

know what it means?

WICKET

A

B

C

A twig

A fence arounda field

A small gate

Find a word that can follow the word on the left and precede the word on the right. When you have filled in allthe answers, the name of a celebrity can be read fromtop to bottom in one of the lines.

ANSWERSCelebrity wordmatch:Escape, Sponge, Sugar, beauty,House, Spider, Desert, Heart, Player, Letter, Carol andCounty and the hidden celebrity is Angus Deayton

Meynells Ltd Stockists of all makes of

sewing machines and everything you need

for your hobby.

W E G UARANTEE Y OU E XCELLENT C USTOMER

S ERVICE

2 Southfield Road, Middlesbrough

Tel: (01642) 247863

Criminal Defence Service

467526

• Divorce • Separation • Children • Financial

Call the ‘caring’ Solicitors

Shirtcliffe & Co 01845 526222 1 Finkle Street, Thirsk, YO7 1DA

Pine Thingummies

HAND-BUILT BESPOKE

KITCHENS & BEDROOMS. FURNITURE

ETC. Tel. (01388)

819890 / 816821 or (07966)

478591

AINDERBY ROAD SERVICES

Ainderby Road, Northallerton DL7 8HJ Tel. (01609) 761882

email: [email protected] www.ainderby.com

Winter Servicing on all makes and models

From £49 To include � Oil & filter change � Tyres checked � All lights checked � Brakes checked & adjusted � Steering & suspension checked � Antifreeze checked & topped up � All belts checked & full report given

� Cam belts changed � Brake pads & discs @

competitive prices � Batteries & exhausts fitted � Clutch replacement service

MoTs from £30 FREE NO OBLIGATION QUOTES

Beauty is within the eye of the Beholder

B eauty is within the eye of the Beholder

Quality and Value from

E XPRESS B LINDS Vertical • Roller • Venetian

Pleated • Solar Film

0800 0745724 www.expressblinds.co.uk

NE Motors

Site Visits & Home Visits 2 Day Fittings

0800 78 38 548 0800 78 38 548 www.al-blinds.co.uk

A1 Choice

A1 Quality

A1 Value

A1 Blinds Vertical Roller Venetian Wooden Pleated Conservatory

Blinds We also specialise in

Curved Track Rails Anti Glare and Hi Tech Fabrics Flame Retardant Homes, Offices and Commercial

Premises Made to measure in many styles and colours Quality workmanship from a family business established 1980

Freephone Freephone

BLINDS UK

(01325) 320666

All blinds & samples brought to your home

2 Vertical Blinds £ 60 3 Vertical Blinds £ 89 4 Vertical Bllinds £ 111 5 Vertical Blinds £ 129

For a FREE No Obligation Estimate Visit our website www.blinds.uk.com

Also fabulous range of Wood Venetians and Roller Blinds

Any size - FREE Measure - FREE Fitting (Lovely choice of fabrics) Established 1840

Auctioneers of Distinction

The Gallery Saleroom Northumberland Street

Darlington DL3 7HJ

Telephone Fax (01325) 462559 (01325) 284587

NE Homes

467459

MACKAY SERVICES LTD New Floors

for Old! REPLACEMENT

FLOORS also installed.

Total renovation of all timber flooring, sanding, staining and polishing . V ICTORIAN T ERRACOTTA

T ILES R ENOVATED

T EL . (01937) 835776

Regency Restorations R. Robinson, Est. 1948

Antique and Modern, Domestic & Commercial

Furniture, all repaired and restored by expert craftsmen

CABINET MAKING, FRENCH POLISHING

ANTIQUES A SPECIALITY Free Estimates at our

discretion MEMBER OF GUILD OF MASTER CRAFTSMEN

Heighington, Co. Durham

Tel. 01388 778022 467509


NE Holidays

FRID

AY

NIGHT

IS DISCO NIG

HT

6-8pm

Ruff ‘N’ Tumble invites you to explore

the region’s finest Indoor Play Centre

Millennium Way, Newton Aycliffe

� 01325 313777

Entry Fee for 90 minutes of play: Under 12 Months - FREE

Under 5 Years £3.25 Over 5 Years £3.75

Open 9.30am till 8pm EVERY DAY

Parent & Toddler Sessions Mon-Fri 10am-2pm

£2.50 per Child which includes refreshments for child and parent

(Excludes School Holidays and Bank Holidays)

Dare you climb to the top of the Castle and experience the

thrill of the scary Drop Slide or prepare for

battle in the Ball Blast Cannon Arena

You can also race your friends down the three

lane giant Waterfall Slide

Toddlers are invited to their very own dedicated

Toddler Village. The Village provides a two-

lane Rainbow Slide and mini slide, activity boards, a

ball juggler and a fun packed “Little Tykes”

Village.

Parents can experience the fun with their children or simply relax and enjoy the excellent

quality fresh food on offer

Ruff ‘N’ Tumble is THE place to PARTY

Come and experience a unique Birthday Celebration in one of our

professionally themed Party Rooms.

You can choose from the Medieval Room , the Undersea

World Room or the Jungle Room.

Our Party Co-ordinator does all the hard work. Parents need only

provide the Cake

THE ART OF HAIR...

8 New Elvet Durham City

DH1 1AQ Tel. 0191 386 8768

www.enzo.co.uk

SCOTLANDFORGLEN COUNTRY

COTTAGESPeaceful cottages in secluded

1,000 acre estate wildlife haven.Children & Dogs welcome.Tel. Turiff, Aberdeenshire

01888 562918www.forglen.co.uk

Saltburn-by-the-Sea Golf Club Ltd Est Est 1894 1894

Visiting parties welcome every day except Thursdays & Saturdays • Superb Clubhouse and well maintained Course

• 2 for 1 and Bunkered Vouchers accepted • Limited Membership available Telephone 01287 622812

Hob Hill, Saltburn-by-the Sea, Cleveland SUMMER 2005 PACKAGES AVAILABLE NOW

WINTER PACKAGE Coffee & bacon buttie, 18 holes of golf + 2 course meal

£ 18 MIDWEEK £ 24 WEEKEND (M INIMUM OF 8 PLAYERS ) www.saltburngolf.co.uk Email: [email protected]

Probably the best greens in County Durham, if not the North

Crook Golf Club Crook Golf Club

Membership available (Nov) Joining Fee £20

(full membership only from 1st April)

Full Gent’s Fees £350 Full Lady Fees £306 Juniors up to 14 £40

up to 16 £60 up to 19 £120 19 to 20 £235

Please apply to Secretary on

01388 762429 or Proshop on

01388 768145

Low Jobs Hill Crook

Co. Durham, DL15 9AA

Here’s Away Coffee - 18 holes £17.50 weekday £20.50 weekends

Crown Green 1 8 holes of golf + 2 course meal £23.00 weekday £26.00 weekends Klondyke Coffee - 9 holes, soup; sandwiches - 18 holes

£24.00 weekday £27.00 weekends Westwood Ho Coffee, bacon sandwich - 9 holes, soup & sandwiches. 18 holes - 2 course meal

£31.00 weekday £34.00 weekends

Clubhouse 01388 762429 Course Info 01388 765949 Fax No. 01388 762429

London Weekend Executive coach hire including insurance, 2 nights bed and breakfast accommodation at the 2 star Ibis Hotel, London Excel which is 5 mins walk from the Custom House Station (for easy transfers into London) and offers en-suite faciltiies, television and telephone. The ‘La Table’ restaurant offers buffet breakfast, hot and cold snacks during the day and dinner in the evening

21 st -23 rd January 2005 Day 1 Travel to London to arrive at 2pm and leave for hotel at 6pm the coach wil

then transfer back into London at 7-7.30pm and return back at 9pm

Day 2 10am transfer into London and return at 6pm. 7-7.30 transfer into London and return at 9pm

Day 3 10am depart hotel and into London, for homeward journery at 1.30-2pm

2 1 for

£ 150 per couple

H. Atkinson & Sons (Ingleby) Ltd Ingleby Arncliffe, Northallerton, North Yorkshire 01609 882222

Full tour brochure available

NE Beauty

NE Leisure

NE Leisure

Richard and Carol look forward to seeing you

THE VANE ARMS

Long Newton - 01642 580401

Now serving quality L UNCHTIME M EALS

12 noon - 2.30pm Tuesday - Sunday

E VENING M EALS Served between 5.30pm and 9pm

No food Wednesday or Sunday night

Bookings Essential For S UNDAY L UNCH

QUIZ NIGHT EVERY LAST SUNDAY

MUSIC NIGHT EVERY OTHER SATURDAY

Bowness on Windermere

Lonsdale Hotel UK Accommodation of the Year

2004 Award Winner

Lic, all en-suite, car park, family rooms.

(015394) 44348 www.lonsdale-hotel.co.uk

Scarborough North Bay

Licensed 12 Bedroom Hotel SEA VIEWS

From £18 pppn

En-suite £22.50 pppn

NON-SMOKING

Telephone 01723 361495

P ERRANPORTH

Gear Park CORNWALL

6 berth caravans to let Colour TV, close to

beach ideal for touring Cornwall

Discounts available

Enquiries: Tel. 01872 572271

Home and Abroad Holidays Home and Abroad Holidays Specialising in Long Haul - Safaris - Tailor Made

Groups - Weddings

See our web pages for unbeatable deals of the week at www.homeandabroadtravel.co.uk

Up to 50% OFF P&B and Princess Cruises www.cruiseabroad.co.uk

Alternatively email us at [email protected] with all your travel requirements

6 Craigton House, Redcar TS10 1DL Telephone 01642 484842

459992

Jorvik Hotel 50-52 Marygate, Bootham, York

Midweek Special Dinner B&B,

twin or double from £35 PP

min.2 nights � Restaurant

� Bar � Parking All rooms en-suite

with colour TV T EL . (01904) 653511 Fax (01904) 627009

Wateredge Inn on Lake Windermere

Delightfully situated on the shores of Windermere with superb country-inn style dining. Pretty bedrooms, many with lake views. Ideally situated for enjoying Ambleside, Lake, Steamers and nearby Fells.

Midweek rates from £35pp B&B.

Ambleside, Cumbria, LA22 0EP.

Tel. 015394 32332

www.wateredgeinn.co.uk

WHITBY Excellent base to

tour Moors / Coastline

OPEN ALL YEAR

1, 2 and 3 Bed Cottages

Fully equipped Parking

Dogs welcome B&B also available

Telephone:

01947 603790

Osborne House Osborne House LIC. BAR

Pigeon Weekend S p e c i a l O f f e r

2 Nights B/B £25 .00

3 Nights B/B £37 .00

CENTRAL LOCATION, WARM WELCOME AWAITS

Telephone 01253 346444

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