Three weeks ago I walked (backpacked actually, yes even at my age!) alone from Bordeaux to Toulouse. I cheated a bit and took a couple of trains, but I still clocked up between 20 and 35 kilometres every day, with a large pack on my pack. I’ll admit: I was very nervous before I left….
WISDOM, WONDER AND THE POWER OF WORK
Once upon a time there was an extraordinary musician called Pablo Casals. Pablo, a Spanish Catalan by birth, was a few weeks shy of his 97th birthday when he died in 1973. Still revered by many as one of the greatest cellists ever, Pablo dedicated his life to his two passions: music and justice. Whenever…
WHY WE NEED LIGHT
It’s exam season in the UK and all six of our children are mid-revision. We’re diligently feeding them blueberries, nuts, leafy greens and oily fish, not to mention our brain-improving coffee and chocolate biscuits. But there’s something else they need to perform at their best. And it’s something that’s often overlooked: light. Thank goodness the…
WHY GOALS MATTER (AND I DON’T MEAN FOOTBALL)
I’ve just set myself a ridiculous goal: to give a speech in French. To French people. I haven’t spoken French for a very long time. I got an embarrassingly bad grade at A-level, over thirty years ago. But the event is in November – so I’ve got plenty of time to brush up – and I’ve…
GREEN SPACE IS GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH
Do you have time in the countryside planned this summer? I hope so. If not, find a bit of green space nearby (city parks are great) and aim for some Green Time every day. We’ve been singing the praises of trees and the great outdoors for some time now, but in the last few weeks…
WHY YOU SHOULD BE DANCING (& CHRISTMAS NUTS)
What you doin’ on your back, aah/ You should be dancing yeah… Anyone remember those lyrics from the Bee Gees? Well, it turns out the Bee Gees were right. And as we’re in full party swing, I’m delighted to bring you the facts and figures showing why we really should be dancing (yeah). I’m not…
HOW TO LIVE HAPPILY EVER LAUGHTER & FARRO SALAD WITH EGGS AND SMOKED MACKEREL
A few weeks ago I had dinner with one of the UK’s kings of comedy. Charlie Higson, writer, producer and comedian in shows like Saturday Live, the Harry Enfield Programme, Reeves and Mortimer and The Fast Show, had us all in stitches. After a while, we were laughing before Charlie even opened his mouth, almost…
WHY YOU NEED TO NURTURE YOUR LOVED ONES: ONE-POT COD WITH RED VEGETABLES
Yesterday I visited a friend whose Easter was spent battling for the life of her son. Not in a sophisticated London hospital but on a remote African island. Her twelve-year old son’s appendix burst somewhere between Madagascar and a tiny island, reachable only by a three hour choppy boat ride. The island had no hospital,…
HOW TO BE CALM – SMOKED MACKEREL BRUSCHETTA
I wrote recently about gratitude, after fracturing my skull and realising how lucky I was to be alive. But as I convalesced, other less positive thoughts also swam around my head. In particular, I began thinking about people who live with fear. Why? Because I too had suddenly become fearful: What caused my collapse? Would…
GRATITUDE – THE HOTTEST AREA OF NEUROSCIENCE?
Every now and then I’m made aware of what a huge privilege it is to be alive. However, like most of us, I spend the bulk of my time caught up in the hum drum of daily life. But not anymore. Two weeks’ ago, on my way home from London Book Fair, I collapsed in…