2022-03-01 Good Housekeeping UK

Editor’s letter

12 72

Our cover Give yourself
star, actor a top-to-toe
Emilia Fox, health reboot
on finding by making a few
new love and easy changes
25 years of
Silent Witness

32

Kate Humble
shares some
recipes from
her new
cookbook

48 We look back at a century
of home styling and what
the future may hold

Enjoy every shred of life…

PHOTOGRAPHY: DAVID VENNI, JOSEPH MONTEZINOS, ANDREW MONTGOMERY, A s we’ve been going to press on this issue of Another change we’ve experienced over the past couple of
KRISTIANE VEY/TWINKLE IMAGES/URBANLIP, GETTY IMAGES. CHAIR: GH100 COLLECTION AT DFS Good Housekeeping and I’ve been reading the years is how much time we’ve spent at home and, as a result,
final proofs, one thing that particularly strikes lots of us have been giving our rooms a revamp. Our homes
a chord with me is how nature presenter section has plenty of advice on how to give yours a modern
Kate Humble talks about ambition (page 32). update, but I’d also urge you to read our feature A century
She tells us that she is not striving for any goal in particular of changing rooms (page 48). As we continue our 100th
any more, but never wants to use the words ‘I’m too old’. anniversary celebrations at Good Housekeeping, our brilliant
‘Really, I’m not one for bucket lists. I just want to keep my style and interiors editor James Cunningham has taken the
mind and my heart open, enjoy every shred of life and take long view to assess how our properties have adapted over the
every opportunity that it throws at me,’ she says. decades and what the future is likely to hold. Fascinating stuff.

I think that probably goes for most of us these days and These days, home is certainly where the heart is for our cover
many of us have readjusted our outlook over the past two years, star Emilia Fox, who gives us a candid interview (page 12) as she
feeling more gratitude for what we have, wanting to get the prepares to celebrate the momentous 25th anniversary of Silent
most joy we can out of life and appreciating its simple pleasures. Witness, and also bursts with the joy that new love is bringing
I know for sure that, for almost everyone, health has been to her life. Her happiness shines through the pages. Fabulous.
something we’ve focused far more on (good health is what Kate
describes as her ‘most treasured possession’) and increasingly Gaby Huddart
want to protect, nurture and ideally improve. For this reason,
as we emerge from the dark days of winter towards spring EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
and, hopefully, put the worst of the pandemic behind us, we’re [email protected]
bringing you a top-to-toe wellbeing reboot in our health section
(page 72). This is packed with great advice and easy-to-follow @gabyhuddart
tips and, while we may know some of it already (eat plenty of
fruit and veg, get a good night’s sleep, take regular exercise…), PS: As 8 March is International Women’s Day, this issue
good intentions can often slide in the busyness of life. The I’m pleased to tell you that GH’s new charity partnership
techniques in this feature promise the opportunity to reset and is with Women Supporting Women at The Prince’s Trust.
create new habits long term. I’ve stuck the pages on my fridge Read more about how to get involved on page 38. You
(I looked at them this morning!) and plan on giving it a go. can also support its #ChangeAGirlsLife campaign by
buying any of the gorgeous IWD products on page 11.

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 3MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING



MARCH 2022

Good style 38 COVER WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP 148 COVER GOOD LIFE With Sara Cox
CHANGE A GIRL’S LIFE In our 150 COVER BOOKSHELF March’s best reads
11 GOOD IDEAS FOR MARCH Support 100th anniversary year, GH teams
International Women’s Day up with businesswoman Chrissie and Monica Ali’s favourite books
Rucker and The Prince’s Trust 152 COVER ‘LIFE IS A MYSTERY TO BE
18 COVER DOUBLE IMPACT Fewer pieces,
more possibilities in your wardrobe 40 ‘WE’RE MAKING OUR VOICES UNRAVELLED’ Marian Keyes on
HEARD’ Three readers prove that life lessons and her long-awaited
28 INTO THE BLUE How to wear this anyone can set up a podcast follow-up to Rachel’s Holiday
season’s denim pieces 154 ‘STORIES CAN BE USED TO
44 ‘THE ISLAND THAT HELPED ME ILLUMINATE’ Natasha Brown, one
Good reads RECLAIM MYSELF’ Author Freya of our 10 Women’s Prize Futures
North on the special place that was shortlisters, on what motivates her
12 COVER ‘THE BIGGEST RISK I’VE key to her recovery from depression
Good advice
TAKEN? FALLING IN LOVE AGAIN’ 48 A CENTURY OF CHANGING ROOMS
A look back at 100 years of GH’s tips 108 GH CONSUMER AFFAIRS How to spot
Actor Emilia Fox talks about and tricks for home improvements a fake review online and what you
finding inner peace, confidence‥. should know before posting photos
and a new piano partner 56 COVER ‘IT’S TIME TO PUT NATURE
31 COVER SUSAN CALMAN The comedian FIRST’ Liz Bonnin explains how to 111 GHI GETTING GREENER We ask:
on why she has a lucky number take steps to be more eco-friendly how sustainable is bamboo?
32 COVER ‘I WANT TO ENJOY EVERY
SHRED OF LIFE’ Wildlife presenter 60 COVER HOW TO LOOK ON THE 112 COVER HOW GREEN IS YOUR
Kate Humble tells us about what BRIGHT SIDE OF LIFE‥. Hypnotist PENSION? How to use your pension
makes her happy and shares Paul McKenna shows us how to help the planet
recipes from her new cookbook

HEAD TO THE MED FLOWER POWER

Picks for each season Our latest floral-inspired
favourites
PAGE 158
PAGE 63

TO THE LETTER SPEAKING
OUT
Key pieces for your
home from A-Z Three women
and their
PAGE 90 podcasts

goodhousekeeping.com/uk PAGE 40

Good looks 132 COVER FLASH IN THE PAN Quick TRIED, TESTED, TRUSTED
and easy one-pot wonders
63 GH BEAUTY The latest picks from Your trust is important to us, which is why:
beauty director Eve Cameron 140 TWO’S COMPANY Rustle up some every recipe is tested three times in the GHI
simple midweek meals for two
64 THE TRUTH ABOUT TWEAKMENTS kitchens. Every product test bearing the GHI logo is
The nips and jabs that work Just for you carried out to the strict standards laid down by the
Good Housekeeping Institute, our leading research
70 MY LIFE IN BEAUTY With author 69 20% OFF REN CLEAN SKINCARE centre. Recommendations on our editorial pages
and aesthetician Dija Ayodele are based on the impartial advice of our editors and
AND 20% OFF VIONIC SHOES expert contributors. All health articles are checked
Good health
Good to go for accuracy by the Good Housekeeping Health
72 COVER THE BIG HEALTH RESET Watch team of health professionals. All prices are
Start with just one positive change 156 GH TRAVEL News and inspiration
158 A MED FOR ALL SEASONS Where correct at time of going to press.
76 HANG ON TO YOUR BALANCE Stay
stable to improve overall fitness to head in the Mediterranean, come GET IN TOUCH WITH US!
spring, summer, autumn and winter
80 LESSONS IN DEMENTIA FOR 161 CARIBBEAN CRUSH We visit a new We aim to correct significant inaccuracies
EVERYONE One woman’s battle Dominican Republic resort in the next available issue. Email us at
to break down misconceptions [email protected]
Tried & Tested
84 OVARIAN CANCER: WHAT YOU ON THE COVER
NEED TO KNOW Dr Sarah Jarvis 63 COVER HAIR MASKS
explains the signs and treatments 89 TOASTERS Photography David Venni
110 COVER AIR FRYERS Hair Charley McEwen
Good homes 111 COVER MULTISURFACE CLEANERS at Frank Agency
122 COVER CHOCOLATE HAMPERS Makeup Liz Beckett
88 GH HOMES March’s best buys Fashion styling Oonagh Brennan
90 COVER THE INTERIOR DESIGN In every issue Dress Edeline Lee

ALPHABET An A-Z of home trends 3 EDITOR’S LETTER
100 NEW ROMANCE Building a dream 8 WORTH SHARING Your letters
118 SUBSCRIBE TO GH
home in the South Downs 162 GIVE YOUR GREY MATTER A
104 COVER PLANT POWER Why you should
WORKOUT Brilliant brainteasers
fill your home with house plants 165 MEET THE TEAM
194 COVER ME‥. AND MY HOUSEKEEPING!
Good food
With presenter Edith Bowman
121 GH FOOD March’s foodie news
124 COVER BRING ON BRUNCH! Perfect

morning meals for Mother’s Day

HUMBLE BRUNCH TIME
PIE
Special treats for
Nature lover Mother’s Day
Kate turns
her hand to PAGE 124
cookery

PAGE 32

HOME IN
THE WOODS

A South Downs
new build

PAGE 100

DRESS UP
YOUR JEANS

What to wear with
this season’s
denim

PAGE 28

6 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022



Worth sharing

We love to know what’s inspired you in the magazine, and here’s
the page where you tell us what you’re thinking, baking and making!

HAPPINESS MANTRA ' Our MONEY-SAVING ADVICE
Star Letter
7 When I saw the Last-Minute wins a £50 Thank you for the article How To Speed
STAR Gift Guide (January), I got some bouquet. Up Your Laptop (Good Advice, January).
gifts that were featured for See below The steps and guidance were easy to follow
LETTER myself, including the animal print for how to share and not only has it made my laptop usable
your views. again, but it’s also saved me from paying for
pyjamas – because why wait? expensive advice. A great tip! HELEN HENRY

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s BAKES AND MAKES

that life is precious, so my mantra these days I saw the Cherry And Almond Christmas Cake
recipe (November) and realised I had all
is: do something that makes you happy the ingredients. I made six cakes for friends
and family. Thank you for a great recipe
every single day! RITA FORSHAW that made lots of families very happy.
ALICIA STEWART
INSPIRED TO COOK
The Spiced Carrot Cake in the Ultimate
I can relate to Mary Beard’s wish for Festive Bakes supplement (with December’s
a replacement for Delia Smith’s cookery GH) is packed with nutritious nuts and seeds
book, which is falling apart as she along with the sugar and makes a really
uses it so much (Bookshelf, January). delicious cake. It got such rave reviews
My go-to cookery book is the Good from my vegan son that I’m making it
Housekeeping Cookery Book, which again for him to share with his friends!
I bought when I got married in 1976. DIANA PASEK-ATKINSON
It’s falling apart now, but I wouldn’t
be without it. LESLEY GILES WORTH READING

THE WOMAN WHO PUT GH AHEAD Jenny Eclair’s Moving is wonderful
from the first page to the last;
I thoroughly enjoyed your article I didn’t want it to end. She’s
on Alice Head, GH’s first editor, in the probably my favourite author.
January issue. What a fascinating woman JENNY MORRIS
and what an amazing career! The
illustrations of the covers that went The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi is
alongside the article were wonderful. beautifully written and takes place
I particularly admired the covers from in 1950s India. Her characters are so
August 1923 and October 1926 – they believable and her descriptions are
were absolutely charming! SUE THOMAS rich in detail. JOY VAN WEZEL

Glamorous Grace Dent CONFIDENCE BOOSTER A Girl Made Of Air by Nydia
shares her beauty secrets Hetherington is captivating. It’s
I was so impressed with broadcaster a story told by a tightrope artist
Grace Dent’s attitude to body image about love and loss and the mystery
and self-acceptance in Ready, of a lost child. NATASHA RANDALL
Steady, Sparkle! (January). I am
a little older than her, but I’m
going to try to follow her example
of looking well put-together
and glamorous to improve my
confidence as we all, hopefully,
get used to going out more
often in 2022. KATE PRICE

PLEASE SHARE YOUR VIEWS OR WHAT YOU’VE BEEN CREATING. You can contact Good Housekeeping by emailing
[email protected] or write to Worth Sharing, Good Housekeeping, House of Hearst, 30 Panton Street, London
SW1Y 4AJ. If there’s a book you’ve loved, then please do leave a short review on facebook.com/groups/GoodHousekeepingBookRoom

8 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022 goodhousekeeping.com/uk

GH exclusive

Join us at

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In our 100th anniversary year,
we’re so excited to be bringing
you the opportunity to join GH
for a fabulous three-day event in
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We would love you to come and join Good Housekeeping
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THE LINE-UP INCLUDES:

PHOTOGRAPHY: DAVID VENNI, GARETH MORGANS. ILLUSTRATION: BILLIE LOUISE. *TERMS AND CONDITIONS APPLY z Exclusive interviews with

special GH guests – join

them for intimate Q&As

over brunch, lunch or

afternoon tea.

z Talks and panel

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the acclaimed authors sunshine to the event

doing talks at GH Live experts, covering everything
from how to style the

new-season looks, interior

design for your home, the

best new beauty products,

achieving good health, creating a beautiful

garden, and even how to write a bestselling novel!

z Pop-up cookery demonstrations by leading

chefs, hosted by the GH cookery team.

Book your ticket for z Informal masterclasses on tablescaping, simple
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Good ideas for Good ideas

IN THE BAG March KEEP CALM TREAT
YOURSELF
Carvela is SUPPORT INTERNATIONAL The White Company
donating 100% WOMEN’S DAY ON 8 MARCH is donating £5 Indulge with
WITH THESE WONDERFUL a conscience, as
of all profits for any candle over £1 from every Potage
from sales of its CHARITABLE BUYS FOR £20 sold between brownie box, £5 for 6,
Fearless bag, £119, THE PRINCE’S TRUST 2 March and 8 March. sold in March will go
designed exclusively #CHANGEAGIRLSLIFE Calm candle, £20, to #ChangeAGirlsLife.
CAMPAIGN The White Company
for IWD.

FLOWER COSY TIMES WAY TO WELLNESS
POWER
Cath Kidston is contributing a portion of all A portion of all sales of LYMA’s Supplement
Mimosa is sales of its Anything Is Possible pyjamas, Starter Kits, £199 for a 30-day supply,
traditionally given £65, xs-xl, made from 100% modal satin, made on IWD will be donated.
to celebrate IWD; during IWD week.

COMPILED BY: EMMA JUSTICE, MEDINA AZALDIN, DAISY BENDALL, and FlowerBX COCK-A-HOOP LOOK GOOD,
AMANDA MARCANTONIO, ALICE SHIELDS will donate £5 for FEEL GOOD
Buy these Freya
every bunch of Rose woven 22ct Elemis and Rixo
yellow flowers gold mini hoop have collaborated
sold between earrings, £97.50, on on a Mother’s Day
28 February and IWD and £10 will
8 March. Mimosa, be donated, with £5 Collection, £59
from £45 for 40 donated for every (worth £80), with
stems, FlowerBX purchase made £5 from every sale
donated between
SHOW WHO’S BOSS thereafter.
mid-March and
Donna Ida has designed this Boss T-shirt, £40, mid-April.
s-l, available in black or white, to celebrate
IWD and will donate £20 from each sale. STRAIGHT JACKET

y International Women’s Day (IWD) on Saint + Sofia will donate £5 from every order
made on the website on 8 March. We love
8 March aims to celebrate women’s this Cambridge blazer, £179, 6-22.
achievements. The Prince’s Trust’s
#ChangeAGirlsLife campaign has 11MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING
partnered with some of our favourite
brands to help raise funds. Find out more
on page 38 and at princes-trust.org.uk.

goodhousekeeping.com/uk

12 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022

My 40s have ‘The biggest
been much calmer
– and happier, too Falling

EMILIA WEARS: BLOUSE, ME+EM. SKIRT, EMILIA WICKSTEAD AT MATCHESFASHION. SHOES, L.K.BENNETT.
GH100 ACCENT CHAIR, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING COLLECTION AT DFS

The big interview

in

Silent Witness star Emilia Fox talks to Nathalie Whittle about her battle with
nerves, finding peace in her 40s and the joy of piano duets with her new partner

Photography DAVID VENNI

‘The older I look, the contentment about her and as we sit
younger I feel… so I think down to chat, it becomes clear why.
I’m going to hold on to
the feeling young bit!’ At 47, Emilia is celebrating her
laughs actor Emilia Fox 17th year playing pathologist Dr Nikki
at the GH cover shoot. It’s a statement Alexander on BBC One’s Silent Witness
that, in many ways, is characteristic and she’s thrilled to be a part of the 25th
of her optimistic attitude towards life. anniversary series, which airs this spring.
She’s spoken openly in the past She also reveals that she’s recently
about weathering her fair share of found love again, with TV producer
challenges – a miscarriage, which led to Jonathan Stadlen. She smiles each time
the end of her marriage to actor Jared she mentions his name and describes
Harris in 2010, and later becoming a their meeting as ‘extraordinary’. ‘We met
single mum to daughter Rose, now 11, by complete chance; it was a total right
who she shares with the actor Jeremy time, right place moment,’ she says.
Gilley. But today, she has an air of Here, Emilia shares why she’s never
given up on finding happiness…

You’ve talked about facing some big life changes in your
30s. How have your 40s been different?
In my 30s, I was dealing with lots of change in my personal
life; it felt like being on a rollercoaster. In your 20s, you can
pursue your career; then suddenly, in your 30s, your body
clock is ticking. You’re trying to form the relationships that
you think might last for ever and, when they don’t, you
have to work out how you feel about that and what you do.

I suddenly had a young child and I had to balance being
a single mum with my working life. It felt like I was
always trying to get the jigsaw puzzle pieces in
the right places; it was exhausting. Thankfully,
my 40s have been much calmer – and happier, too.

Why do you think that is?
Towards the end of my 30s, someone said to me, ‘I’m not sure
who you are. I know you’re a mother and an actor, but who are
you?’ It made me think, ‘Who am I? What do I want? What do
I need?’ I realised I had to stop going with the flow and begin
making choices in life. I started to be able to say no to things
and understand what made me feel good, and what didn’t.
It’s been a lot of work in therapy (and I’m not saying I have
the answer to everything), but it’s definitely improved my life.

13MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

You’ve said that you want to take more risks as you get older. myself, for better or worse, and I’ve been able to bring that

What was the last one you took? to this relationship, which has really helped.

Falling in love again; that’s a big risk. You have to be prepared to What advice would you give to other women hoping for

put all your cards on the table, to leave your past in the past and another chance at love?

look forward to the future together – and to be vulnerable with Keep believing in it, and never give up on it. There are a few

that. I think that’s quite a brave thing to do. couples in my life whose relationships I’ve looked at and

What drew you and Jonathan together? thought, ‘My gosh, that’s what you long for in life; true love and

It makes my heart dance thinking about what attracted me compatibility.’ I never knew whether that would happen for me.

to him. We’ve met at a time in our lives when we’ve both But I still believed in it because I could see it in front of me. I’ve

had relationships, we both have children and we’ve both learned that you can’t seek the love that really works for you,

been on our own and, as a result, we’re able to communicate though; it just happens. And when it happens, you know.

freely, openly and honestly about everything. You’re also celebrating the 25th anniversary

I’ve not had communication like that in any of Silent Witness this year. Did you ever

romantic relationship, ever. I’m just glad imagine you’d still be playing Dr Nikki after
It sounds like you’re in a very happy place… we’ve made it all these years?
Every day is extraordinary with him, whether Definitely not. When I first started, no one

that’s when we’re out walking the dogs, this far with could imagine the luck of being in a series
cooking at home, or when we’re at the Silent Witness! for this long – and I don’t think anyone quite
supermarket. It’s also lovely to have someone understands how the show is still going either!

in my life who says, ‘I’m going to love you When I joined the cast, I always said I’d carry on

through all your ages.’ That gives me doing it for as long as I enjoyed it – and 17 years

confidence. I feel the future in our love, and I feel exceptionally later, I feel incredibly grateful that I still do.

happy because of it. We’ve heard Amanda Burton is returning to the show as

Does your daughter, Rose, adore him, too? pathologist Sam Ryan. What has it been like working with her?

She really does, which is wonderful. It’s so incredibly important The first time I met Amanda was for an interview we did to

to me that it works for her, too. celebrate the show’s 20th anniversary, and when I heard her

People often say that the secret to meeting the right person is talk about how much she cared about the show, how much

being happy by yourself first. Have you found that to be true? it was a part of her life and what she invested into it, it was

Absolutely. I really enjoyed being on my own, and I was totally like seeing a mirror reflection. We totally connected. We hadn’t

happy with the idea that I might not ever meet anyone else; seen each other since then, but it didn’t matter at all; that

I wasn’t seeking the next relationship at all. But I feel much connection was still there. She’s become a friend and that’s

happier with my relationship with myself now. I think I know been something to celebrate.

14 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022 QUICKFIRE

WHAT IS YOUR EARLIEST MEMORY?
Being given canaries by my parents for my
fourth birthday and the impression they made
on me of true love. Ironically, they were called
Samson and Delilah, but they adored each other.

WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST FEAR?
Other people’s pain.

WHAT IS YOUR KARAOKE SONG?
I’m yet to find it. I once had to do karaoke
for an episode of Silent Witness and it was one
of the most extraordinarily stressful things

I’ve ever had to do.
WHAT SUPERPOWER DO YOU WISH YOU
HAD? I’d like to have the ability to teleport

anywhere I want.
WHO IS THE ACTOR YOU’D MOST LIKE TO
WORK WITH? My brother, Fred [the actor
Freddie Fox]. We’re very different – he’s an
extrovert and I’m an introvert – so I think it

would be quite interesting!
WHERE DO YOU FIND PEACE OF MIND?
In the garden. I find gardening the most

cathartic thing in the world.

goodhousekeeping.com/uk

EMILIA WEARS (THIS PAGE): DRESS, L.K.BENNETT. (OPPOSITE): BLOUSE, BORA AKSU. TROUSERS, SEE BY CHLOÉ AT MYTHERESA. SHOES, JIMMY CHOO

The big interview

goodhousekeeping.com/uk



The big interview

EMILIA WEARS (THIS PAGE): DRESS, ROKSANDA.(OPPOSITE): BLOUSE, ME+EM. SKIRT. EMILIA WICKSTEAD AT MATCHESFASHION. Do you think there will be many more series of Silent Witness? she sees a mum who can work and provide for her, but who has
STYLING: OONAGH BRENNAN. HAIR: CHARLEY McEWEN AT FRANK AGENCY. MAKEUP: LIZ BECKETT You never, ever know. I do hope so. From the very first year that also been there for her at every opportunity that I can be.
I joined, we honestly haven’t known whether it would continue What are you most proud of as a parent?
from one year to the next, so I’m just glad we’ve made it this far! I think parenting is something you’re going to have to work on
You’ve said that acting was your plan Z, yet you have carved every single day for the rest of your life. But for all the sadness
out this amazing career. Have you ever had moments of that comes with separation and not having the obvious nuclear
self-doubt along the way? family, we have a very close relationship. I really hope we can
Oh, every day! I’m someone who always has the voice of keep that throughout our lives – though I have no doubt that
self-doubt in my head going, ‘Are you good enough? Can you the teenage years will be tough, and I’m going to have to learn
do this? Why didn’t you do it that
way? Go home.’ How have I dealt how to deal with that!
with it? By having lots of therapy! What are your personal
I used to watch everything I did ambitions now?
to try to learn from it, but these I think the focus of the second half
days, I have an entirely different of my life will be trying to learn as
attitude and I can’t watch a thing. much as I can. I’ve gained a huge
Now, I throw myself into a job appetite for learning as I’ve got
– and hope for the best! older, which I think has come
Where do you find confidence? from time and knowing that we
I think the confidence comes don’t live for ever. After 17 years
from not being myself, from working on Silent Witness, I’ve
playing a character with someone never been more aware of that!
else’s words, clothes and makeup. Have you learned anything
If, even for one moment, I have new recently?
to be myself – if I had to do I’ve always said I wanted to take
a reading or a speech at a up the piano again, so I started
wedding – I couldn’t do it. Even having lessons during the
if I’m sitting around a table and pandemic. By complete chance,
someone says, ‘It’s someone’s Jonathan had also started learning
birthday; can you say something?’ before we met, and now, every
I can’t. It makes me nervous just night, we play duets together at
thinking about it now! home. It’s the most joyous thing.
Do you get nervous before What do you play together?
acting jobs? At the moment, we’re learning
I get nervous before every single Eric Clapton’s Wonderful Tonight
scene. I do all of the superstitious and we’ve also learned Simon &
things and, on every set, I’ll try to Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled
find a piece of wood to touch before a take. I’m particularly Water, Bill Withers’ Lean On Me
terrible in the theatre – I can barely stand on a stage because and some classical stuff, too. We have quite a lot on the go!
I find it so nerve-racking. I actually have to go through the Will we see you learning to dance on Strictly next?
entire play in my head before I go on every single night, which I’m far too shy – and I don’t think I could cope with the nerves.
is quite time-consuming! I’d like nothing better than to be able to get dressed up and
What else do you have in the pipeline? dance well, but I know I’d always feel like I was the worst dancer
I’ve been working on another crime series called Signora Volpe, in the competition and that I was letting my partner down.
which I can’t wait for you to see. I play Sylvia, an MI6 agent I’d love to do all the learning – without the total failing!
who visits her sister in Rome and ends up getting involved y The 25th anniversary series of Silent Witness will air in spring
in a murder investigation. It’s a really fun series – and the on BBC One. Previous episodes are available on BBC iPlayer
costumes are off-the-scale stylish!
Do you ever worry about what’s next? 100 YEARS OF CHANGE
In many ways having Rose changed my feelings about that.
Before I had her, at the end of every job I’d think, ‘What’s The greatest change in women’s
the next one? Where am I going now?’ For years I had that lives in the last century has been…
anxiety. Then I became a mum and whenever I wasn’t working That we have more opportunity.
I’d think, ‘Great, I can be 100% committed to being there for The change I’d still like to see is…
her all the time.’ It gave me a sense of balance – and I think I’d like it to be made easier for every woman
that’s the key to life. to have a working life and a home life.
Have you ever felt guilty as a working mum? The woman who has inspired me is… The actor
Absolutely. There’s always guilt getting up at five o’clock in the and activist Liz Carr. She’s the most determined force
morning and saying goodbye to Rose – that’s really, really hard. for change, opportunity and making the most of life.
It’s hard for her, too. I hope it’s balanced out by the fact that She’s a true inspiration, both on and off the screen.

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 17MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

Fashion’s new buzzword
is ‘flexible’ as, now more
than ever, our wardrobes

need versatile pieces
for both smart and

off-duty dressing. Think
cafe-to-desk dresses

and city-to-sofa sweaters.
Fewer pieces, more
possibilities – it’s

time to invest in these
double-duty outfit heroes

PHOTOGRAPHY OLIVIA BOSSERT
STYLING AMANDA MARCANTONIO

DRESS IT UP Searching for the

perfect wear-with-everything top? You
can never have too many frills in your

life. Look for a high-quality cotton
blouse with a ruffle-trimmed collar and

captivating cuffs. Worn on its own or
layered beneath a jumpsuit, the beauty

is its ability to adapt, with the peep
of frills injecting a little personality to

your Monday-to-Sunday wardrobe.

Coat, £249, 6-18, Hobbs. Jumpsuit,
£34.99, 6-18, New Look. Top, £125, 4-16,

ME+EM. Bag, £209, Radley. Pumps,
£229, 3-9, L.K.Bennett

Good style

DRESS IT DOWN Calling all frill seekers! With hybrid routines and remote offices still very much in play, the

requirements of workwear have shifted. For those WFH days, think laid-back not lazy – a beautiful broderie blouse
plus elevated loungewear in soft, sumptuous fabrics delivers comfort with just enough style up top for Zoom calls.

Top, £125, 4-16, ME+EM. Trousers, £17.99, xs-xxl, H&M
[CONTINUED OVER PAGE]

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 19MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

Good style

A DO-IT-ALL EASY-BREEZY DRESS

DRESS IT UP A printed midi is flattering and forgiving, and arguably one of the easiest pieces to transform. Heading to

the theatre or on a night out with friends? Drape a blazer over your shoulders – contrasting a structured blazer with a floaty

hem gives you instant fashion flair. Finish with glistening gold sandals that will revolutionise everything in your wardrobe.

Blazer, £65, 8-18, John Lewis & Partners. Dress, £169, 6-18, Baukjen. Bag, £228, Reiss. Sandals, £170, 3-8, A Piedi

20 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022 goodhousekeeping.com/uk

DRESS IT DOWN

On days off, give your multitasking
midi dress a new lease of life and
embrace the softer side of style. Don’t
forget, you can slip a cosy sweater over
the top. We often think jumpers are just
for jeans and joggers, but they look so
modern layered over a floaty frock.
Upgrade your slippers to a Scandi-style
indoor sandal and sling on a leather belt
to add a little bit of luxe to lazy days.

Jumper, £39.95, xs-xl, Gap. Dress, £169,
6-18, Baukjen. Belt, £58, s-l, Reiss.
Slippers, £39.95, 3-8, Seasalt
[CONTINUED OVER PAGE]

21MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

DRESS IT UP When chic days turn into out-out nights,

a satin-finish skirt is the new multitasking must-have. Yes, most
of us will need to wear control knickers underneath to smooth

out lumps, bumps and VPL, but the results are glorious. Not
just an evening-only staple – sometimes you just want to

add a touch of opulence to your everyday trench and pumps.

Trench, £399, 6-18, L.K.Bennett. Cardigan (just seen),
£29.99, xs-xl, Lindex. Skirt, £79, xs-xl, Ghost.
Bag, £26, Next. Shoes, £110, 3-8, Boden

Good style

DRESS IT DOWN When you splash out on a showstopping skirt, you don’t want to just wear it on the odd occasion.

So, get some more style mileage by dressing it down. A silky skirt on a Sunday afternoon? Absolutely! Lightweight and smooth
against the skin, it has all the comfort of a pyjama bottom with the glamour of a dreamy slip dress, blurring the lines between

sleepwear and ready-to-wear. Dial down the drama with a sleeveless knit that will see you through to spring and beyond.

Jumper, £19.99, s-l, New Look. Shirt, £229, 6-18, L.K.Bennett. Skirt, £79, xs-xl, Ghost
[CONTINUED OVER PAGE]

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 23MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

Good style

A PAIR OF CHIC DRAWSTRING TROUSERS

DRESS IT UP Trousers that are equal parts smart and casual are an investment we can’t recommend enough.

Endlessly adaptable, tailored drawstring trousers are essentially an elevated pair of tracksuit bottoms, but

will cleverly amp up neutrals, tastefully contrast with feminine frills, and can be worn with both heels and flats.

Blazer, £350, xs-xxl, Gant. Blouse, £150, 6-16, ME+EM. Trousers, £138, 4-14 (also available in petite), Reiss.
Bag, £99.95, Seasalt. Shoes, £189, 3-8, Pretty Ballerinas

24 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022 goodhousekeeping.com/uk

goodhousekeeping.com/uk DRESS IT DOWN If you usually live in jeans, you might want to

try elegant track pants instead. From running errands to weekend brunch,
drawstring trousers blend the laid-back ease of loungewear with the sleek
appeal of tailoring – and have an ‘all-you-can-eat’ adjustable waistband, too!
Pair yours with classic knits and Breton stripes for an ultra-modern look.

Jumper, £55, xs-xl, WoolOvers. T-shirt (worn underneath), £39, 8-18, Phase Eight.
Trousers, £138, 4-14 (also available in petite), Reiss
[CONTINUED OVER PAGE]

25MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

DRESS IT UP As with

every area of our lives, workwear
has pivoted to a new normal.
Gone is dry formality and in its

place comes a high-low workwear
revolution: think relaxed yet entirely

office-appropriate knitted
co-ords, wide-leg trousers, stretchy
waistbands, laptop-roomy totes and

on-trend trainers that work just
as well for a commute to the office

as a stroll through the park.

Jacket, £150, s-xl, Radley. Jumper, £199;
skirt, £199, both xs-l, L.K.Bennett.
Shirt (worn underneath), £14, 8-20,

Matalan. Bag, £295, Russell & Bromley.
Trainers, £80, 3-9, New Balance

26 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022

Good style

STYLING ASSISTANT: NICOLE HUTT. HAIR: ALEX SZABO AT CAROL HAYES MANAGEMENT. DRESS IT DOWN Don’t let rainy weather stop you from enjoying being out and about and
MAKEUP: BRITTA D AT CAROL HAYES MANAGEMENT. MODEL: NADIA BENA AT DUO.
PRODUCTION: FIONA ANDREWS. WITH THANKS TO FRESH LOCATIONS looking oh-so stylish. Rework your chic jumper and skirt set with your favourite all-weather, all-terrain
staples – offset the co-ords’ smart appeal with a preppy waterproof jacket and haute hikers.
Functional yet fabulous for long, leafy walks to a country pub, or for a trek through city snow.

Waterproof jacket, £150, 8-26/28; boots, £135, 3-8, both Seasalt. Jumper, £199; skirt, £199, both xs-l, L.K.Bennett. Socks, £19, 3/5-6/8, Arket

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 27MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

INTO THE BLUE

VINTAGE Earrings, TIP SUPER-COOL Hair clips, £15
WIDE-LEG £5, Try a fitted top STRAIGHT-LEG for a set of 2,
to avoid looking Oliver Bonas
JEANS Claire’s overly baggy. JEANS
Top, £85, 6-16,
Relaxed and easy Scarf, Want to look modern ME+EM
to wear, there’s £59, not mutton? A
a preppy polish Toast Cardigan,
to washed-out mid-blue turn-up £89, xs-l,
Jumper, design has just the
wide-leg jeans that £88, right edge. Extra Mint
feels so 2022. style points for the Velvet
s/m-l/xl,
Denim Paisie frayed hem, too.
culottes,
Coat,
£55, £220,
25-32, 6-22,
Arket Boden

Blazer, £59, Turn-up
10-28, Damart jeans,
£160,
6-18,
Wyse
London

Bag, £219,
L.K.Bennett

TIP Loafers, £85, 3-8, Trainers, £74.99, 3-9, TIP
A paler blue is our new Dune London New Balance at Office Slim, straight-leg
jeans look great
neutral, and we’ll be Tie-waist,
wearing it to lighten up £159.95, 8-22, with slouchy,
our staple black blazers. cuddly tops.
Madeleine
BEST OF THE OTHER NEW JEAN SHAPES
Ombré,
TIP Straight-leg, £75,
Not into £99, 6-18, 6-22,
jeans? Hobbs
Denim Boden
palazzo Wide-leg, TIP
pants have £69.95, 6-16, The
a tailored, United Colors tapered,
trouser-like of Benetton barrel-leg
look, so feel style
really smart. Barrel- follows
leg, £69, the body’s
contours,
24-32, which
Cos feels
gloriously
Belted, feminine.
£129.95,

8-22,
Madeleine

28 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022

Shop for your shape

This season’s denim has something for everyone. From romantic blouses in
inky hues to delightful dresses in faded blues and the new must-have jean
shapes, it’s time to diversify your denim portfolio with a style that suits you!

DENIM ALL-IN-ONES… SKIRTS WITH SASS

…aka dungarees or a boilersuit (but a much more stylish With limitless styling options, a timeless true-blue denim
version!). Fan of the jumpsuit? Then try a denim onesie. skirt will be on heavy rotation for years to come.

Hair tie, £25, TIP
David Watson Make denim
office-appropriate by
TIP choosing dark washes
A cooler and minimal designs.
alternative to
Dungarees, potentially
£89, 6-20, prissy pleats,
Kin at John the A-line
denim skirt is
Lewis & universally
Partners flattering.

Boilersuit, Boilersuit, Skirt, £179, Skirt,
£225, 6-18, £85, 6-18, 6-18, £79.99,
6-20,
Toast Oliver Marc Cain Thought
Bonas

TIP Blouse,
For a playful £99,
twist, add a 6-20,
Breton and
Hobbs
hairband.
TIP . Skirt, £65,
6-20,
Stick to leg Breton, £32, Seasalt
6-18, Crew
shapes you Clothing Basket, £195,
know you love. Stelar

DRESSES WITH A DIFFERENCE TOPS WITH A TWIST

Back in a dressed-up mood, this season’s denim styles A denim blouse brings carefree elegance to a tailored suit,
redefine ‘relaxed glamour’ and are truly lustworthy. or wear as an everyday layering piece beneath knitwear.

TIP Bracelet, Top, £135, 8-28,
Denim tends to £6, Persona by
stretch, so if you’re
in between sizes, Claire’s Marina Rinaldi
try a size smaller.

Dress, Blouse,
£255, £59.95, 6-18,
6-20,
Rixo Thought

Dress, £59, TIP
8-20, John Love double
denim? Match
Lewis & the shades
Partners as closely as

you can. Shirt, £32, 8-20,
Principles at

debenhams.com

COMPILED BY: AMANDA MARCANTONIO TIP Dress, £60, Bag, £99,
Looking for a 8-22, Jones
slimming style?
It’s the cut that’s Monsoon Bootmaker
most important,
not the shade. Sandals, £299, Trench, £79, 8-20, Petite jeans, £110, TIP
Principles at 24-32, Reiss Calling all our petite
3-9, L.K.Bennett readers – Reiss has
debenhams.com launched a stylish new
goodhousekeeping.com/uk
petite collection!

29MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING



Point of view

SUSAN CALMAN

‘I wear a badge that has
an eight on it for luck’

From picking lottery numbers to choosing the address of a new home,
our columnist explains why the number eight guides her fate

I read an article recently that was both intriguing and subliminally, I’m always thinking back to that time and how I
challenging. It was about women who live their lives felt. Secondly, I always loved the joke, ‘What did the zero say to
guided by a number that is significant to them. Whether the eight? Nice belt!’ (I’m very easily amused). And lastly, I think
it be personal or work-related, they would seek out dates, it’s just a lovely number to look at; like an infinity symbol, it goes

addresses or events that contain a specific numeral. on for ever. It’s smooth and graceful and full of possibilities.

And if, for example, a first encounter with a suitor occurred While I don’t slavishly look for an eight wherever I go, I am

on a date that a numerologist had said was influential, they influenced by it. I still play the lottery every week, always living in

would be more predisposed to romance. While I was initially hope of that big win, and most of my numbers have an eight

sceptical, as I sipped my morning coffee and nibbled a Jaffa in them. It sometimes works. I got an email the other day to

Cake (an excellent breakfast choice, as it counts as one of my say I’d won a prize, and cheered loudly. Fortunately, I didn’t

five a day), I began to realise that I had more in common with give up my job immediately, as upon reading the email I found

them than I perhaps cared to admit. I’d won a lucky dip (see, it works!). I have a badge with an

By way of background, I should let you know that I am an eight on it that I wear whenever I need good fortune (I wear

extremely open-minded person. I firmly believe in karma: that it a lot). I always buy eight tickets in a raffle (last time, I won

you get what you give in life. For example, I once returned a frog a bottle of Babycham, which was absolutely the best prize on

I found in the street to the pond in my local park. Kermit owes offer). Oh, and strangely, before my favourite dance on Strictly

me one now, and who knows started (the quickstep), we

when I’ll need help from a ran for eight steps; it was my

Muppet? I’ve seen a spirit and highest scoring dance and the
waved at it (I ain’t afraid of Eight is a lovely number to look at; like best night we had. I remember

no ghost), and I’m more than an infinity symbol, it goes on for ever counting before we started
happy to consider that there is and in my head shouting, ‘One,

something unseen or unknown two, three, four, five, six, seven,

in the universe that can EIGHT,’ before sprinting off

dictate the course of my life. across the dancefloor.

For me, it’s the number eight. Some people will consider

Intriguingly, it seems I’m all this silly, that life can’t be

not alone in my octo love. It’s affected by a random number.

considered lucky in Chinese I’m happy to say that I look

culture, and in Pythagorean upon anything with an eight

numerology the number in it more fondly. I smile if

represents victory, prosperity a friend has an eight in their

PHOTOGRAPHY: DAVID VENNI. ILLUSTRATION: STEPHEN COLLINS and overcoming. Also, Scorpio phone number, and when

(my star sign) is the eighth looking for a new house I was

astrological sign of the zodiac. predisposed to any address

My reasons for loving it are that had the magic number

slightly less mystical, but no in it. Oh, and as if I needed

more logical. Firstly, I was another sign, a packet of Jaffa

eight in 1983 and I remember Cakes has eight delicious

it being the best year ever. servings in it. Well, technically

The music was amazing and it has 10 portions, but if you

I had a white boilersuit with open the box up, immediately

neon paint splashes, and a eat two and then put the

perm so big that doorways remaining eight cakes on

had to be widened for me a plate, it counts. How very

to get through. Perhaps, lucky for me.

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 31MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

In conversation

‘I want to enjoy
every shred

OF LIFE’

As nature presenter Kate Humble publishes her first recipe
book, she talks to Anna Bonet about ambition, embracing
opportunity and the joy of a delicious home-cooked dinner

Photography ANDREW MONTGOMERY

When Kate Humble pursuit of a self-sufficient life on the also had recipes that had been passed on
was growing up in the
Berkshire countryside, farm in Wales where she lives with to her by family, friends and neighbours
nothing brought her
joy quite like food. her husband, Ludo, a TV producer. in the Wye Valley, where she lives.
‘I’d spend all day outside, then come in,
cold, muddy and starving, and there’d COOKING SOMETHING UP ‘We all enjoy cooking, and we’re
be something delicious on the table,’ she always swapping recipes. We eat
says. ‘My mum is a great cook. She used
to do this amazing poached fish, and ‘The first thing I made on the telly was something at someone’s house and then
her shepherd’s pie was, and still is, the
best shepherd’s pie known to man.’ soda bread, which I’d discovered after cook it for someone else.’ Recipes she

As she’s got older, Kate’s love for trying and failing to make sourdough,’ she poured into her proposal included her
food has only deepened, with cooking
becoming a kind of anchor during tough says. ‘Soda bread is pretty foolproof and neighbour Angharad’s ‘life-changing’
times. ‘There’s something restorative
about cooking, particularly when you’ve suddenly my social media feed was full bacon jam, her mum’s blackberry
had a long and stressful day,’ she says.
‘I find the gentle creativity of pottering of people’s photos of theirs, talking about meringue pie, and even the ice cream
about in the kitchen very calming. It’s
alchemy; you’re taking raw ingredients what a revelation it was.’ that came from her friend’s 12-year-old
and turning them into something
different, and that’s incredibly satisfying.’ The more she cooked son, Fred. ‘He’s brilliant

Kate’s culinary passion is so clear that on the show, the more at it, so I phoned him
you might forget this isn’t, historically,
her area of expertise. Having hosted she received messages I’m not writing and said: “Can I come
everything from BBC Two’s Animal asking for a cookbook. for the round and have an
Park to Springwatch, Kate is known as When Kate floated the ice cream masterclass?”’
a nature and wildlife presenter. But this
month marks an important shift as she idea to her publishers, food world. Kate laughs. ‘This book KATE WEARS: TOP AND WAISTCOAT, CABBAGESANDROSES.COM. JEANS, MARC CAIN
releases her debut recipe book, Home the initial response was I’m writing is a testament to
Cooked, inspired by hundreds of lacklustre, as they felt family, friendship
messages she received after trialling
a cookery segment on her Channel 5 she wasn’t well enough for people and collaboration.’
show Escape To The Farm. The series known as a cook. like me A year on, Kate
launched in 2020 and follows her
‘Then my publisher admits to being nervous

said I was welcome about the response.

to put together a book ‘I think there might be

proposal; but it would have to include 80 a lot of grown-ups in the food world

to 100 recipes, and she’d need it within who are, quite rightly, a bit sceptical.’

three days,’ Kate recalls. ‘It was like a She pauses. ‘But I’m not writing for the

gauntlet had been thrown down, and the food world. I’m writing for people like

stubborn streak in me made me think: me, who enjoy cooking, who love sitting

“I’m going to give it a go.” I abandoned around the table with their friends or

everything else and went for it.’ family, and who want a bit of inspiration.’

In writing, Kate came up with the It sounds as though this might be

idea for Home Cooked: a cookbook the start of a new chapter for Kate, but

that would not only be organised by the she insists this is not a reinvention of

seasons to encourage sustainability, but her career. ‘I’m not trying to be the next

32 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022 goodhousekeeping.com/uk

‘I find the gentle
creativity of pottering

about in the kitchen
very calming,’ says Kate



In conversation

Nigella,’ she says. ‘This is Home for Kate is the grief bowled her over
simply an opportunity to a farm and nature – but nature helped her
have a go at something helps her cope with cope. ‘During that time,
I’m passionate about.’ life’s challenges I found it immensely

A VARIED therapeutic to go out for
CAREER
a walk in the countryside,’
In turning her hand to
cookery, Kate is adding she says. ‘I would often
another string to the bow
of a varied career. Over the just go for a walk in the
last two decades, her TV
shows have inspired Brits woods and have a cry.’
to get out and enjoy our
beaches in Kate Humble’s Kate pauses, her voice
Coastal Britain, explore
the remote corners of the beginning to break. ‘The
country in Off The Beaten
Track, and live more wonderful thing about
sustainably in Good Life,
Green Life. Meanwhile, being in nature is this
she’s published books on
the joy of dogs (Friend liberation to be yourself,
For Life), the power of
a pared-back lifestyle (A and not feel in any way
Year Of Living Simply) and
the wonders of walking inadequate or judged.’
(Thinking On My Feet).
Kate also credits
After school, she saved
up to travel through Africa, from Cape her husband for being
Town to Cairo, and when she got back,
decided she wanted to work in TV. Her supportive through thick
mother suggested she get in touch with
her friend’s son, who was working in TV at and thin. While they’re ‘not
the time. ‘His name was Ludo,’ she laughs.
‘He wasn’t particularly helpful when it terribly romantic’ and this
came to work, but I fell in love with him!’
year’s 30-year wedding
She worked as a runner on TV shows,
climbing the ladder to researcher and anniversary will most likely
then producer. She had no plans to pivot
into presenting, but on her second day be spent ‘taking the dogs
working for BBC One’s The Holiday
Programme in the mid-1990s, she was out for a walk’, she’s
asked to do a screen test. ‘Three weeks
later, a woman came into the office and thoughtful about what has
asked if I could go to France the next
day,’ Kate remembers. ‘I said yes, thinking MY SIMPLE kept their marriage strong.
they must need someone to carry heavy PLEASURES ‘When we got married,
stuff, which is what I’m good at. Then I was given The Prophet
she said, “Good. We’d like you to by Kahlil Gibran. There’s a piece in it
present a film on a barge in Normandy.
Can you do something about your hair?”’ z The last great book I read is… that says when you marry someone

There have been plenty of highs since, Unsheltered by Barbara Kingsolver. you become two pillars holding up
but it hasn’t always been easy. ‘There
have been many times throughout my z The last boxset I binged on… the same roof,’ she says. ‘I love that
career when I’ve thought, “Where’s my
next job? How am I going to pay the I’ve just discovered The Morning analogy. Ludo and I work because we’re
mortgage this month?”’ she admits. ‘But
I’ve been lucky that when push comes Show on Apple TV. It’s so good! individuals who share a common goal.’
to shove, the right job has come along.’
z The song that gets me on the Kate has been open about the fact

dancefloor is... Nina Simone’s the couple have never wanted children.

Ain’t Got No, I Got Life. Has she dealt with pressure over the

z My most treasured years? ‘Definitely,’ she says. ‘I only said

possession is… My health. publicly, about 10 years ago, that I don’t

z My desert-island essential is… want children because I was bored of

A never-ending jar of Marmite. being asked! I’m staggered that women

z My greatest simple pleasure is… are still having to justify that choice.’

Waking up in the morning and walking At 53, Kate feels more positive than

outside barefoot to watch the sunrise. ever. ‘I’ve found my 50s liberating,’ she

says. ‘The wonderful thing about being

KATE WEARS: SWEATER, N.PEAL. SKIRT, YLONDON.CO.UK. this age is you care less about what
STYLING: RACHEL FANCONI. HAIR AND MAKEUP : LIZ KITCHINER
LIFE IN THE COUNTRYSIDE people think. That empowers you
to give things a go. Like with the

Her love for the natural world is the cookbook, it’s not the end of the world

reason why, in 2007, Kate and Ludo if it doesn’t work out. When you’re 20,

swapped their London life for a 117-acre that matters. When you’re 50, it doesn’t.’

farm in Wales. They live there along with So does she have any other ambitions?

their dogs, Bella and Teg, and an array ‘To never use the words, “I’m too old,”’

of sheep, pigs, cows, chickens and ducks. she quips. ‘I’m not one for bucket lists.

The farm has provided many happy I just want to keep my mind and heart

memories, as well as being a sanctuary open, enjoy every shred of life and take

for her in times of difficulty. When, every opportunity that it throws at me.’

in 2019, she lost both her father and y Home Cooked: Recipes From The Farm

father-in-law within weeks of each other, (Gaia, £25) by Kate Humble is out now

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 35MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

In conversation

KATE’S COMFORT FOOD

The presenter shares two of her favourite recipes from her new book, Home Cooked

An Everyday Bara Brith

Bara brith is Welsh for ‘speckled bread’ – the speckles coming from
the dried fruit that makes this a sort of cross between fruit cake
and tea bread. It is comforting and filling and I love it.

A quick note before you start – the 3 Stir the flour, salt and spices into
fruit needs to be soaked overnight! your soaked fruit until everything is
properly combined. Then add the
Makes 1 loaf beaten egg and mix again. You will
end up with a lovely, fragrant, sticky,
y 450g (1lb) mixed dried fruit speckly dough!
y 100g (3½ oz) soft brown sugar 4 Spoon the mixture into the lined
y 425ml (¾ pint) black tea (regular, tin and bake for 50–65 minutes,
testing with a skewer. If it comes
Earl Grey or Lapsang Souchong) out clean, your bara brith is ready.
y 450g (1lb) self-raising flour If you find it is getting too brown
y 1tsp fine sea salt on the top, but is still not quite
y 1tsp ground allspice cooked, cover loosely with foil for
y 1tsp mixed spice the last bit of cooking.
y 1 large egg, beaten 5 When it’s done, take it out of
the oven and let it cool in its tin
1 Put the dried fruit and sugar in a for 20 minutes or so, then take
bowl, pour in the hot tea and leave to it out and put it on a wire rack
soak overnight or for at least 5 hours. to cool completely.
2 When you are ready to cook, 6 Cut into generous slices and
preheat your oven to 170°C spread as liberally as you like
(150°C fan) mark 3, and line with butter. It freezes well.
a 900g (2lb) loaf tin.

Prawn & Spinach Curry

A quick bowl of curry is sometimes just what a chilly winter
weeknight demands, eaten without ceremony, but with
appreciation, in front of the telly.

Serves 4 1 Heat a glug of oil in a large
saucepan over a medium heat.
y Rapeseed oil Add the onion, garlic and ginger
y 1 onion, sliced finely into and cook for 4-5 minutes, until soft.
2 Then add the spices; stir them in
half moons well and cook for a further minute.
y 2 garlic cloves, sliced Pour in the coconut milk and the
y 1 large thumb-sized piece vegetable stock, bring to the boil
and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
of ginger, peeled and grated 3 Add the prawns, lime juice
y 1tbsp ground coriander and zest and simmer until the
y 1tbsp ground cumin prawns are pink.
y ½tsp ground turmeric 4 Pile the spinach leaves in and
y 200ml (7fl oz) coconut milk pop a lid on for a minute or so,
y 1 25ml (4fl oz) vegetable stock until they have wilted down into
the curry. Season, stir and then add
(fresh or from a cube) some of the chopped coriander,
y 600g (1lb 5oz) raw prawns reserving some to garnish.
y Z est and juice of 1 unwaxed lime, 5 Spoon over brown rice, scatter
with the remaining coriander,
plus extra to serve squeeze over a bit more lime juice,
y 250g (9oz) baby spinach grab a fork and settle down on
y Salt and pepper the sofa for a quiet night in.
y A small bunch of fresh coriander,

chopped
y Brown rice, to serve
y Lime wedges, to serve

36 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022 goodhousekeeping.com/uk



What you can do
to help change a

Entrepreneur Chrissie Rucker OBE is girl’s life
passionate about making a difference
to the lives of young women who
need help. She tells GH editor-in-chief
Gaby Huddart how we can all get
involved with the launch of our
new charity partnership

H ere at GH, it’s always been about making life Chrissie believes it
better for other women, so, in our 100th year, was the support of
we want to support those who really need us. others that got her
It’s why we’re delighted to announce a charity to where she is today
partnership with Women Supporting Women
at The Prince’s Trust and its Change A Girl’s Life campaign. goodhousekeeping.com/uk

The driving force behind this is Chrissie Rucker, founder
of The White Company and one of the UK’s most successful
female entrepreneurs. She’s married to businessman Nicholas
Wheeler and they have four children: Tom, Ella, India and Bea.

Having left school at the age of 16, Chrissie knows how
vital it is to have support and encouragement, especially
when things aren’t going well.

How did you first get involved with The Prince’s Trust?
It was hearing the incredible stories of some of those who
had been supported by The Prince’s Trust that inspired me
more than 13 years ago. The work really is life-changing and
I knew straight away it was a cause I wanted to support.

The Trust supports young people from disadvantaged
communities and those facing the greatest adversity. It aims
to help people find confidence, as well as giving them support
into a job, further training or becoming self-employed.
How did that lead to setting up Women Supporting Women?
The Trust supports fewer young women on its programmes
than young men and I wanted to help address this. Women
Supporting Women and the #ChangeAGirlsLife campaign
were founded in 2018. It began with a small group of
successful, leading businesswomen who signed up to
become patrons. Today, the group has grown significantly
and includes both men and women: everyone from founders,
CEOs and philanthropists through to younger, next-generation
professionals and business executives.
What are the aims of WSW?
Our first aim is to raise £10m over five years to enable many
more women to have access to inspiring, free courses
provided by The Prince’s Trust – we have raised £5m so far
and have another £5m to go. We want all young women to

38 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022

Women who lead

have the support and tools they need to find their confidence How has HRH Prince of Wales been involved?

as well as the inspiration for them to move into a job, further The Prince of Wales has long been committed to improving

training or self-employment. We want access to more female life for disadvantaged young people across the UK. Most

mentors, and The White Company has also helped by recently, HRH The Duchess of Cornwall invited a group

employing young women through the Trust, too. of young women supported by the Trust into their Clarence

You mentioned The Prince’s Trust helped House home, where she hosted a Brilliant

fewer women than men. Is that changing? Breakfast and heard about the impact

As a result of WSW, we’ve been able to The young women we the Trust has had on their lives.
run more courses and introduce new Looking ahead, what is the greatest
ones, such as Get Into Dressmaking and
help have often faced change you’d like to see for women?

Wellness, in addition to courses that help enormous challenges. We need to give all women the tools,
young women gain skills and get into work It’s amazing to see opportunities, support and confidence
in sectors such as tech, hospitality, health to thrive. I know from my own experience

and social care, beauty and retail. All offer what they achieve that when life feels overwhelming, a good
a starting point for new careers. They also conversation and some wise advice from

inspire many to start their own businesses. a trusted mentor makes all the difference.

What makes GH a great partner for WSW? I was painfully shy as a child and know

GH has always been about championing women and making I wouldn’t be doing what I do today without the love and

their lives better; the advice you offer, the inspiring ideas and support I’ve had along the way. But not everyone is as lucky.

the life stories you share. We’re thrilled to have the support of How did you overcome that shyness?

one of the UK’s most loved magazines. I am dyslexic and didn’t thrive at school. I began to feel more

How can readers get involved during 2022? confident when I discovered my passion for design. I left

Join WSW as a patron or ambassador or get involved with any school at 16 with six O levels and went on to study couture and

of the year’s three fundraising initiatives. First, on International dressmaking – it was like a switch turned on, and I passed top

Women’s Day (8 March), is the #ChangeAGirlsLife campaign. of the class! I believe having a purpose and passion is crucial.

In September, we’d love everyone to join us for the Palace If you wake up every day with something positive to do, it’s so

to Palace sponsored bike ride from energising. I know I’m happiest when I’m

Buckingham Palace to Windsor Castle. GH 100 busy. I also know now that when I stand
It’s a fantastic day and great fun. at the door of a crowded room and feel

And in October we’d love GH readers What’s been the greatest change for daunted, at least half the people in there

to be hosts for The Brilliant Breakfast. women since GH launched in 1922? feel the same! What you must do is be

This is a really exciting new initiative. The landscape for women in business brave, walk in, smile and say hello. From

Our dream is to build it into the biggest is incredibly different today. There are this, amazing things can happen.

nationwide breakfast, where people get still challenges, but I’ve been lucky What’s your advice to young women?

together, have fun and make a donation. enough to work in industries that Find one or two people whose opinions

How vital is it to support women? welcome and support women. you trust and invest time creating a

Young women in the UK are still What is the greatest change you’d support network. Those you reach out

disproportionately disadvantaged still like to see for women? to will change over time, but when you’re

compared to their male peers. This was We need to work harder to give feeling stuck, talking with someone more

the case before Covid and it has been all women the tools to thrive. experienced, or even just saying things

exacerbated by the pandemic. So for the Who are the women you most out loud, is often all you need.

vulnerable young women who reach out admire from the past 100 years? Why is WSW so important to you?

to the Trust, life is tougher than ever. For The Queen, with her dedication and Because when you meet the young

many, their confidence, self-esteem and dignity. Madame Clicquot, of Veuve women and see the extraordinary

overall mental health is at an all-time low. Clicquot, one of the first female CEOs. challenges they have faced, it’s so

In the first three months of 2021, young Even now, her annual Bold Woman wonderful to see them overcome them,

women were more likely to experience Award continues to champion female make a fresh start and watch all the

some form of depression than any other leadership. Estée Lauder: I love how amazing things they go on to achieve.

PHOTOGRAPHY: CHRIS EVERARD/THE WHITE COMPANY group. There’s much more we need to do a simple face cream became a global It really doesn’t take much to enable

to help break the current cycle of poor empire that’s still family-run. and inspire them to transform their

mental health and uncertain employment. lives and build a much better future.

HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED

z You can shop from one of the brands that support International Women’s Day through the #ChangeAGirlsLife
campaign. See p11 for a few ideas! z The Brilliant Breakfast is a fundraising event that encourages people to get together

and host a breakfast with their friends and families. You can sign up at thebrilliantbreakfast.co.uk z Join Women
Supporting Women as a patron or an ambassador. Discover more at princes-trust.org.uk/women or donate via

princes-trust.org.uk/donate z Keep an eye on future issues of GH to learn how to become a mentor to a young woman.

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 39MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

‘We’re
making
our voices
heard’

Podcasting isn’t just for celebrities – anyone can
tap into new technology to become part of the
exciting world of podcasts. It’s where these three

readers have all found their place

Photography LIZ McAULAY

Words MEL HUNTER

‘My podcast gets into people’s hearts’

Joy Carter faced racism growing up as a Black child in a white British family.
Now she uses her own story to help others through her podcast, Adoption Arena.

Iwas born in Nigeria during the my parents, they said I should ignore it. JOY WEARS: DRESS, FRESHA LONDON. BELT, JOY’S OWN. EARRINGS, TOOLALLY. It’s amazing
civil war in 1970. Daphne and Rex At the time, I felt they should RING, JOANNA LAURA CONSTANTINE. SANDALS, RUSSELL & BROMLEY when people
Carter had left Britain to combine say they can’t
professional and missionary work, have done more to protect me, and wait for the
while offering their help at a things got even worse after Stephen next episode
hospital. I was placed in their care, having was killed in a car crash when I was 17.
been found just days old alongside the I ate too little and partied too much. It
body of my twin sister. My dad later told was only after moving to London to do
me that their love for me was instant, a theatre studies degree and getting
and I immediately became a part of their help from a bereavement therapist
family. They already had a son called that I repaired my relationship with my
Stephen, who was then two, and their parents, realising they had always done
son David was born 10 months after me. their best and were exceptional people.

My parents took the family back to I buried myself in my work as a
the UK when I was a toddler. While my dancer and performer, eventually
childhood was full of love at home, it finding my place on the comedy
wasn’t the same as I got older. I was 12 circuit. As trans-racial adoption
when the bullying and racism began at became more understood in society,
school. People would mock me for being I began to talk about my story. I
Black, and they’d spit on me. When I told supported adoption organisations
and eventually started including it

40 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022

Be inspired

in my comedy routine, finding
humour and positivity in the dark
times I’d experienced.

CREATING THE PODCAST

All my work dried up during the
pandemic. Suddenly I had time and
needed a challenge. Keen to breathe
new life into the Adoption Arena
blog that I’d started writing in 2014,
I turned my attention to creating a
podcast. Reading about someone’s
feelings is one thing, but hearing
the emotion in their voice can be
even more engaging.

I learned how to create a podcast
through an online course organised
by Equity, the union for performers.
The first episode went out in
February 2021, when I interviewed
the head of the Nationwide
Association of Fostering Providers,
Harvey Gallagher. It was great to
start with someone I knew well and
who is so highly respected and so
passionate about the subject.

Now I am on my third series and
release a podcast every fortnight.
I always aim to reflect some of the
complex issues in the adoption world
and to hear more from those who
have experienced it themselves.
The beauty of it is that people can
listen from anywhere in the world,
whenever they want. They can laugh
or cry, and no one else needs to know.

It’s amazing when people say they
can’t wait for the next episode or
tell me they are forwarding it on to
someone else. Sadly, some of the old
problems around adoption still exist
and my driving force is knowing I do
not want anyone to go through the
hurt and loneliness that adoption can
bring without seeing there are things
they can do to overcome their past.

The best thing is when people
who’ve heard the podcast tell
me that they have adopted a child.
Then I know that someone is going
to have the love and support that
I had from my own family. Although
my father died four years ago,
I’m still very close to my mum.
y Listen to Adoption Arena at
adoptionarena.com or on Spotify
and iTunes. Joy is an ambassador for
The Centre for Adoption; find out
how you can help at icacentre.org.uk

41MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

‘Success shouldn’t be for empowering to face up to what makes
me feel most uncomfortable. I don’t find

those who shout loudest’ it easy, but I’ve found that with shyness
you have to build bravery muscles – you

Nadia Finer felt weighed down by her shyness, until she turned just have to keep flexing them.

it into a strength through her Shy & Mighty podcast. Talking about my own experiences

and interviewing other people who have

Ihave felt shy and self-conscious and grappling with my nerves, I started learned to work with their shyness, as well
since I was a teenager and took thinking that if the loud, dominant voices as experts, about how to find confidence
part in a French conversation class were the only ones they heard, the quiet has helped the podcast make an impact.
at school. When I played back a ones among them would feel even more We cover everything from how to tackle

recording of my voice, instead of alienated. Success shouldn’t job interviews to using sport as

the sultry tones I’d been hoping for, I be reserved for those who a way of overcoming shyness.

heard a little kid’s high-pitched voice. can shout the loudest. I started I get emails from women, often
I was mortified. Since then, a kind of
invisible force has held me back. my podcastI decided someone should in their 50s or 60s, revealing
the impact that being shy has
give shyness a voice – and that

While I know I am capable, clever and in the spareperson could be me. On the had on their lives. One listener
successful, I am absolutely terrible at
putting myself forward. My little voice train home, I hit on the name room at told me that not only did she
Shy & Mighty, which shows that feel she’d missed out in life

means that talking in front of people, shyness can be a positive force home and work, but also how it had NADIA WEARS: DRESS, ALBARAY. CHAIN BRACELETS, ORELIA LONDON. RINGS, JOANNA LAURA CONSTANTINE, PILGRIM
addressing a meeting, even leaving a rather than a disabling one. A affected her family.

voicemail message are major ordeals. few weeks later, I started my I’ve recorded around 50

That’s one reason I’m now a shyness podcast in my spare room, with my son, episodes over the past two years.

coach, helping others fulfil their potential. Jacob, now 13, husband, Robin, and our Sometimes I’ll do one a month, then I’ll

Working with people one-to-one like that cavapoo, Bobby, just a closed door away. be inspired and record a flurry. I pay a

is where I’m most comfortable. And yet A podcast is a very personal medium, podcast editor who balances the sound,

I started a podcast, where not only is my and there is something very honest eliminates the pauses and cuts out the

voice centre stage, but so is my shyness. and open about it. For me, it’s the times that Bobby barks at the postman.

I had the idea in 2019 when speaking perfect vehicle – I can be sitting at Alongside the podcast, I work with

at an event to inspire schoolgirls. As the home, not having the anxiety of businesses to help them value the

other speakers, including a female banker, standing in a room full of people, contribution of shy people. I speak a lot

leapt up to speak with glossy confidence, yet I can still reach a huge audience. in schools, helping young people see

I wished I could crawl under the table. It feels exposing that people are just that there is nothing wrong with being

Looking out at the 800 teenage faces listening to my naked voice, but it’s also the quiet one. With two books coming

out – one for children and another for

adults – I have really found my voice.

I still find talking in public uncomfortable,

but I keep practising. With the name Shy

& Mighty, I have to be brave.

y Shy And Mighty: Your Shyness Is

A Superpower (DK) is out 7 April;

and Nadia’s book for adults, Shy And

Mighty: How To Step Out Of The

Shadows And Live A Bigger Life

(Quercus), is out 14 April

Nadia uses her HOW TO START
podcast to give A PODCAST
shy people a voice
The word ‘podcast’ was first coined
in 2004, and these audio blogs have
been steadily growing since, but it was
during lockdown that they saw the
biggest surge. In 2020, almost a fifth of
us listened to a podcast – double the
number of two years prior. Celebrity
podcasts, such as Fearne Cotton’s
Happy Place, can have a big following,

goodhousekeeping.com/uk

Be inspired

Lou’s idea stemmed in a hotel in front of a small audience,
from her drawings

so it worked as a format to put on

YouTube as well as using the audio for

the podcast. But it was barely off the

ground when the pandemic happened.

With much panic and trepidation,

I moved into my study at home,

interviewing guests remotely.

Each person I talked to would

recommend someone else they found

interesting and soon I found I had more

potential guests than I could get

through. The subjects vary so much,

from Maryon Stewart talking about

the menopause to war correspondent

Christina Lamb. The beauty of podcasts

is that they don’t disappear and the

audience of people who are discovering

HAIR & MAKEUP: CAROLINE PIASECKI AND LIZ KITCHINER. STYLIST: CHARLIE MOORE. LOU WEARS: SHIRT, THE WHITE COMPANY. ‘Anyone can start a podcast’ them is growing all the time.
JEANS, PHASE EIGHT. SCARF, EMMA J SHIPLEY. LARGE HOOP EARRINGS, MAMATER. SMALL HOOP EARRINGS; SNAKE BRACELET; I love being able to walk into my
RING STACK (RIGHT HAND), ALL PILGRIM. DOUBLE CHAIN NECKLACE, SIF JAKOBS. SMALL PEBBLE NECKLACE; GOLD COIN
NECKLACE, LUCIA HALL. PILGRIM. ALL OTHER RINGS; DELICATE BRACELETS, ALEX MONROE office and interview really interesting

Lou Hamilton admits that she has ‘pinch-me’ moments when people, no matter where they are in

speaking to inspiring women for her Brave New Girl podcast. the world. It feels very immediate

compared to documentaries, where

With every woman a character called Brave New Girl. She it’s possible to spend more time talking
I interview for my reflected the life I wanted for Ruby and about the idea and getting funding
podcast, I learn Sol – to take risks, believe in themselves than making the films themselves.
so much. All my and cope when plans fell through.
The technology has swept me into

interviewees are I put some of the pictures on a new business. I have set up Silk

amazing, but sometimes there is Facebook and Twitter and got Studios, an agency that

someone who does something I’m so a great response, with some matches podcast guests with
in awe of that it gives me a real jolt of of my followers suggesting
I love being podcasts, and have written

excitement. In October 2021, I interviewed I should turn them into a book. able to a book, Dare To Share, to give
Melony Mahaarachchi, a NASA space I started researching agents interview everyone more knowledge
scientist. It was a real ‘pinch-me’ and writing to them, and about how to make guesting

moment to be talking to someone managed to get a deal, interesting on podcasts work for them.
who had helped create a vehicle that which led to Brave New Girl: Anyone with a microphone
landed on the surface of Mars. How To Be Fearless being
people can start a podcast, so it opens

I’ve been a documentary maker, artist published in 2016. its doors to real equality and

and creative coach, and my podcast is Three years later, I had the diversity. For me, podcasting

the culmination of that. When I reached idea of launching a podcast, where has brought together everything I’ve

50 in 2014, my daughter, Ruby, and son, I would interview women with courage always been passionate about and

Sol, flew the nest and I found myself and tenacity, riding the waves of starting it’s given me an exciting new career.

thinking that maybe I could fly, too. a new business or succeeding in their y Dare To Share by Lou Hamilton (Rethink

I started drawing again and created field. I started filming a monthly podcast Press) is available now; silk-studios.co.uk

but with a decent idea and a little z THINK ABOUT LOCATION: You can URL, so it can be listed on directories
homework, anyone can start a podcast. record anywhere, but a big space will be such as Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
z PLAN: Take your time to hone your echoey. Quiet is essential, as every sound z THINK ABOUT THE OUTLAY: Making
idea, think about different episodes and will be audible. Soft furnishings will a podcast needn’t cost much, but you’ll
ask yourself who your audience is. absorb the sound and stop you noisily have to pay for the software. As your
Choose a name that will appeal to your banging into things when recording. podcast grows, you may be able to
listeners and design a fitting logo. z UNDERSTAND THE SOFTWARE: make money through sponsors. Some
Ask yourself what makes your podcast Research the best programs for people also use a membership scheme
different and who will want to listen. recording and editing, known as digital and offer exclusive content.
z GET THE KIT: You can record a audio workstations (DAW). Also, find a z TELL PEOPLE ABOUT IT: Once
podcast on your phone, but to take it to podcast host site – this comes down to you’ve got started, use your podcast
the next level, you need a decent laptop personal preference, including price. It’s logo to talk about it on social media.
and a good-quality microphone. where you’ll get your podcast’s unique y Find more tips at thepodcasthost.com

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 43MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

Pain and heartbreak led to a goodhousekeeping.com/uk
depression that meant bestselling
author Freya North couldn’t write for
three years. It was the beauty of a
Scottish island that finally helped her
to recover and feel inspired again

44 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022

Personal journey

teadying myself against the an amazing response from critics and Freya found
new strength
whipping wind, I planted my readers alike – it should have given me on the Isle of
Harris in the
feet in the sand, squinted into the impetus and confidence to throw Outer Hebrides

the sunlight and listened to the myself into my next book. And perhaps I’d been focused on my children, I was
acutely aware of what I termed my
waves crashing on the shore, it would have, if my usually calm and on-my-owness – this was liberating.

waves that had travelled 3,000 miles predictable life hadn’t taken such a sharp However, by the autumn, I went
from being at the epicentre of his world
across the Atlantic to break right here at turn on to the most precarious of paths. to being ghosted. Overnight. With no
warning, no explanation, he cut all ties.
just about the most far-flung edge of the It was as if he’d disappeared into thin
air; it was as bewildering as it was hurtful
UK, the Outer Hebrides. I took three FEELING LOST and my sense of self was in tatters.

deep, measured breaths of slicingly cold A few years earlier, in 2009, I had As Christmas approached, I was
suffering severe pain in my left leg, which
air and jigged up and down on the spot. moved from London to a small was worsening by the day. I’ve always
been sporty, so I assumed I’d twanged
‘You’re ready,’ I told myself. ‘Off you go.’ farm in Hertfordshire when I split from the something and soldiered on. It transpired
that the pain in my leg was due to two
It was summer 2017, eight weeks after father of my children. It was a shock to the severely herniated discs in my back. In
spring 2017, I was in hospital for a double
my back surgery and I went for my first system at first, but soon enough we loved discectomy and laminectomy. But it
wasn’t just my body that felt fragile and
tentative run. I was on Luskentyre Beach, rural living and the warm community at vulnerable; I could sense my spirit and
my self-esteem draining away. I didn’t
on the Isle of Harris, with sand the colour a little school, whose playground backed want anyone to know. I suppose
I reasoned that if I told anyone how
of angel wings under my feet. To me on to a field of cows. On our farm, some desperate I was feeling, I’d have to talk
about it – and I wasn’t sure what ‘it’ was.
it signified so much more than merely of the stables and grazing were already
Depression can seep into one’s life like
a physical achievement; I felt I was rented out to other horse-owners and, an odourless gas. While the children were
at school, I hid at the farm, curled up
pounding away from all the heartache unfortunately, there was a clique who quietly sobbing or sitting in one spot for

and anxiety I’d recently experienced, were particularly unpleasant. By 2016 my

putting distance to my past and running land was over-grazed, fencing was held

with an open heart towards the future. together with string and the stable yard

‘This is the beginning,’ I said to myself as was a mess. My concerns were either

I ran. ‘The healing starts now.’ ignored or ridiculed and there

It was to be a long and was such a horrible atmosphere

challenging road back. The that I couldn’t face going down

previous 18 months had to see my own horse until I was

been the most trying time sure no one was around. That

of my life. I’d had my heart Easter, I went to stay with my

stamped upon, I’d had to cousin Kate. She took one look

deal with a supremely future at me and knew something was
challenging situation at wrong. When it all poured out

home and physically, I was she gave me a hug. ‘It’s really

in extreme pain. It was also simple,’ she said. ‘Just get rid

a period during which I found myself of them! It’s your home! Tell them to

incapable of writing – and yet writing go – boot them off. If you don’t, I will!’

doesn’t just fuel my soul, it pays the bills. It was easier said than done, but finally

As a single parent and sole provider for by that June I had the farm all to myself.

Felix and Georgia (then 16 and 14), my That summer, the wildflower meadow

inability to put words down on to paper was a riot of colour and fragrance, and

was the equivalent of being unable to my land was on the mend. It was then

put food on the table. My 14th novel, that I tumbled into a passionate affair

The Turning Point, which had been with a man I had known for a while. I’d

published two years earlier, received been single for years and, although

goodhousekeeping.com/uk 45MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

Personal journey

Embracing the future:
Freya on Luskentyre
Beach, Isle of Harris,
after her first run

following back surgery

hours on end staring at nothing. aspect of my life, but day by day I grew once so tiny and yet so alive. It was there
I was exhausted and frail, and I could not
write a word. I had the sketchy outline stronger in mind, body and spirit. My that I found space to breathe and reflect.
for a story, which is usually enough of
a springboard for me, but this time smile came back, my energy and strength Though I was on my farm, in my mind’s
I couldn’t hear the characters and
everything was out of focus. My and, very slowly, my words did, too. eye I was back in the Outer Hebrides.
self-belief was diminishing by the day
because, if I couldn’t write, then who was NEW INSPIRATION There is a robust spirituality to the Isle
I? Writing had defined me since my first of Harris, a majestic but gritty poetry. It
novel, Sally, was published in 1996. This
work in progress was tentatively called And so to Harris. My first trip was to is a brooding, beautiful, wild place where
The Lost Mother – but how could I write
when I was feeling so lost myself? research an idea for a TV drama based weather truly dictates and shapes the

Finally, I spoke to my GP, who around a true story. Forty years before lives and the land. I wondered what if
organised a block of counselling on
the NHS. Therapy began to help me the NHS was founded, there was a I sent a character there – how would
unravel and rationalise what I’d been
through; that the situation at the stables programme of state-funded healthcare they fare? What if that character hadn’t
had been tantamount to bullying and
that ghosting is cowardly and cruel. bestowed on the islands of the Outer chosen to go, but had been banished to
I began to explore how mental health
can benefit from a multi-targeted Hebrides in the form of a band of Harris, in disgrace at 16 years old, in the
approach. So I started to meditate for its
holistic potential and, as I recovered from indomitable and brave district nurses. late 1960s? And then I thought what if, in
my surgery, I discovered how exercise
releases endorphins, the feelgood I could so clearly envisage the storylines the early 2000s, there’s someone finally
hormone. I also took anti-depressants
to alleviate the chemical effect of and the characters. Ultimately, the island looking for her? My novel, Little Wing
depression. For a while, I limped in every
would give me so much more, although took flight. Unable to write for so long,
Happier now:
Freya with her it would take a further two amazingly the novel was
children, Felix
and Georgia years for me to truly completed in five months.

understand that. My smile For three long years, I had
I loved writing the came back felt robbed of my ability to
write. And yet, somehow,
screenplay but it was

speculative, nothing was and, slowly, I had done it, I’d been
commissioned, and the novel my words able finally to reclaim my
was still hopelessly stuck. confidence and self-belief,

However, as Covid started to did, too my passion and drive
strangle our world, I began for my craft. I could not

to contemplate how fiction have achieved this had

was more important than I not consciously dedicated

ever, a form of release and escapism for time and patience to work on myself. WORDS BY FREYA NORTH. PHOTOGRAPHY: DAN WELLDON PHOTOGRAPHY, ALAMY

writer and reader alike. I no longer take anti-depressants but

I looked at the novel I’d I go to therapy every other week, I still

been struggling with meditate and I keep fit and healthy. My

and gently placed it children are flourishing and I’m finishing

to one side. The blank my next novel. I now have a wonderful

screen of the laptop boyfriend who is kind and thoughtful,

was before me yet it no self-aware and emotionally wise. I have

longer felt threateningly learned how robust I am and how

empty. As I placed my resilient I can be. I know I am a deeper

fingers on the home and more rounded person for the

keys, I surged again experiences I have had and, through

with passion and drive my increased awareness

for a story. I closed my of mental health, I have

eyes and transported been able to let go,

myself back to the forgive, and move on.

island where, two years y Little Wing (Welbeck) by

previously, I’d felt at Freya North is out now

46 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022 goodhousekeeping.com/uk



In every issue of the
past 100 years, Good

Housekeeping has
imparted advice on

how readers can
make the most of
where they live.
Interiors editor James
Cunningham looks
back on previous
decades, assesses our
properties today and
asks what the future
holds inside the four
walls we call home

woodstain their own floors and make their PRODUCTS FEATURED FROM CHALK PINK LINEN
COMPANY, POOKY, L. ERCOLANI, LITTLE GREENE,
own curtains, with the magazine advising ROBERTS RADIO, AMAZON, LOEWE

on the patterns and fabric choices as much

as the practicalities. For the more adventurous,

several issues of the magazine even published

step-by-step instructions on how to build a

house from scratch! The magazine, now as then,

places a premium on expert knowledge, rigorous

testing and style, giving readers advice on both

the practical and the decorative. The very first
issue of GH was
published in 1922

48 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022

Talking point

Throughout the decades, our sitting rooms have
performed different functions in our homes. They
have been places to relax and be leisurely, ideally on
a comfortable sofa, but also to host guests and show
off good-quality furniture and artwork. In one of the
biggest changes in middle-class homes over the past
century, everyday life has become less rigid and more
informal, especially compared with the days of strict
drawing rooms (where you’d retire after dinner) and
parlours (for welcoming guests). ‘Historically, these two
rooms were distinctly different, but as societal norms
evolved over time, the purpose of a separate drawing
room and parlour started to blur,’ explains Hannah
Armstrong, interiors expert from furniture retailer Heal’s
(founded in 1810). ‘Whereas women were once expected
to withdraw to the drawing room after dinner, a shift
in expectations began to reflect in the way our homes
looked and felt. Sitting rooms, as they are now, became
social, relaxed and comfortable spaces,’ she explains.

A 1920s family
sitting room

The iconic Roberts The space soon became a hub for
radio is a retro touch entertainment. Families gathered
for the 21st century around to listen to the wireless and later,
to watch their televisions – it was the
Families gathered Flatscreen TVs landmark broadcast of the Queen’s
in the sitting room give us more space coronation in 1953 that spurred many
to watch TV and households to buy their first set. Today,
listen to the radio shows are streamed over the internet to
flatscreen televisions, mobile phones
and tablets, and the space in our homes
previously taken up by a bulky hi-fi
system (and the accompanying shelves
of vinyl, cassettes and CDs) has been
liberated by the advent of smart
speakers that can play millions of songs

at a simple voice command. Some
things do stand the test of time,
though, and are worth
investing in – the instantly
recognisable Roberts radio,
for example, is just one of
the pieces we use in our
homes today that has
decidedly retro roots.

goodhousekeeping.com/uk Smart speakers are an easier 49MARCH 2022 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING
way to listen to music

Talking point

A matter of taste Styles that were
popular in the
past often come
back into fashion

The way we decorate and furnish hasn’t homewares in the 1970s, are back in

changed as much as you might think. fashion as the brand relaunches with an

An early issue of Good Housekeeping exclusive collection at Next. The rattan

proclaimed that ‘the laws of colour are furniture of that same decade is also

in every way definite, so far as interior proving popular again today.

decoration is concerned’, as readers Less obvious trends can make

sought advice on how to achieve a comeback, too – some

harmony with different colours in their forecasters even predict

spaces. Alongside today’s neutral the return of lava lamps

shades, green, blue and pink tones and inflatable furniture,

continue to dominate our interiors as although it may be

they have at various points throughout a while before you see Contemporary furniture
the past century. ‘These shades are a holy them in the pages of is streamlined without
trinity when it comes to colour,’ says this magazine! sacrificing comfort

Marianne Shillingford, creative director

of Dulux. ‘They are truly timeless.’ The Dulux’s colour of
paint brand has just named Bright the year for 2022
Skies, a clear, crisp shade of blue, as is Bright Skies

its colour of the year for 2022.

Other trends endure, too. For

example, Art Deco, popularised in

the 1920s, is seen today on new

The timeless wallpaper patterns from the likes
Yeabridge of Designers Guild and Cole &
Green paint by Son. Mid-century sofas are as
Farrow & Ball popular now as they were when

first released, with the iconic

brand Ercol producing the same

10designs today. Laura Ashley’s chintzy Liberty’s iconic
fabrics are still
florals, which launched on clothes and much loved

BRANDS THAT TRANSFORMED OUR HOMES

DULUX The iconic paint brand launched in 1931, but came to the HEAL’S Constantly at the forefront of

forefront in the 1950s when it launched a range for consumers contemporary international design, over the

who were eager to embrace the DIY trend. The brand’s adored past two centuries this store has introduced

Old English Sheepdog mascot first appeared in 1961. innovative pieces of furniture to Britain.

IKEA From the Billy bookcase to the Klippan sofa, this Swedish LIBERTY This London landmark was created

brand made flat-pack furniture popular the world over. The first to bring ‘luxuries and fabrics from distant

store to open in the UK was in Warrington in 1987. lands’ into British homes. The brand’s iconic

HABITAT Founded in 1964 to bring ‘a new, European way to shop’ floral fabrics are often reinterpreted in fresh colourways and

for homeware, Sir Terence Conran’s retail experiment brought at different scales, bringing a new look to the heritage styles.

continental cool to the British high street. Those unable to visit THE WHITE COMPANY A luxurious brand offering quality pieces PRODUCTS FEATURED FROM MADE.COM, KITCHENMAKERS,
POOKY, HEAL’S, FENWICK & TILBROOK
a store could request a mail-order catalogue. made predominantly from white materials.

JOHN LEWIS & PARTNERS Originally The White Company’s Nearly 30 years after launching, its timeless
created as a drapery retailer, this iconic neutral palette is looks are still in high demand.
department store curates an edit of perennially popular MADE.COM The online retailer brought

homeware and haberdashery that is furniture buying into the 21st century when

renowned for its commitment to quality. it launched in 2010. As it grew, it opened

ERCOL Established over a century ago, bricks-and-mortar stores, too.

the brand is perhaps most famous for DESIGNERS GUILD The floral motifs of this

its mid-century modern creations. Sofas fabric and furniture brand made founder

and chairs designed in the 1950s remain Tricia Guild a tastemaker in the 1980s. Today,

among the most popular pieces today. it continues to push boundaries.

50 GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MARCH 2022 goodhousekeeping.com/uk