Innholdsfortegnelse for 09-Mar-2021 i Woman's Weekly

A Cornish lifetime After their marriage, my parents’ first holiday together was to Cornwall – it was 1953 and a real leap in the dark, staying at a tiny run-down cottage in Lanreath belonging to someone’s aunt. It rained constantly for the first three days and, with no car, they had only the local buses to get around. Going to the cinema in Looe, they had to leave early to catch the last bus… only to discover the driver always ignored the timetable and waited for the credits to roll before he drove off! But they fell in love with the county that year, and it was a love that lasted a lifetime. I inherited that love, and if you feel the same, do have a look at page 10.…

Not everyone enjoys the ageing process, but Dame Sheila Hancock is definitely a glass half-full sort of person. For the past three years she has battled rheumatoid arthritis, but she reckons that one of the upsides of being 88 is that you can get away with far more than when you were younger. ‘If I’m a bit curt with somebody, my daughter will say, “Oh, forgive her, she’s old!”’ she reveals with a wry smile. ‘And before lockdown, when we could all get together in a group, I could actually say things like, “Look, I’m awfully bored, I’ve had enough, I’m going home. Sorry.” ‘You can do that when you’re old – they just dismiss you as a silly old fart – you couldn’t possibly do that when you’re young.’…

1 MINT CONDITION A pastel coat will brighten up your wardrobe in no time. Keep your look fresh and team with cream and beige for a sophisticated look. Coat, £16 , sizes 8-24, Nutmeg at Morrisons 2 THINK PINK This blush quilted bag looks super expensive and will fit all your essentials. Plus, the neutral tone will go with any outfit. Bag, £14 , George at Asda 3 SKIRT THE ISSUE A pleated midi skirt is a timeless buy. Tuck in a white T-shirt and let the added chunky belt accentuate your waist. Skirt, £22 , sizes 8-24, Tu Clothing at Sainsbury’s 4 SWEATER WEATHER This lightweight knit has matching trousers for the ultimate loungewear look – or wear separately for casual weekend wear. Jumper, £20 ,…

DEEP-FILLED CHEESY PIE Even meat lovers will want another slice of this pie. The cheese sauce helps it feel filling. PER SERVING 534 cals, 33g fat, 14g sat fat, 37g carbs SERVES 6 ✣ 1 butternut squash (500g/ 1lb 2oz), peeled and chopped ✣ 200g (7oz) shallots, peeled ✣ 2tbsp olive oil ✣ 2 courgettes, chopped ✣ 250g (9oz) mushrooms, sliced ✣ 25g (¾oz) butter ✣ 25g (¾oz) plain flour ✣ 300ml (½pt) milk, plus extra for brushing ✣ 250ml (8fl oz) white wine ✣ 1tbsp Dijon mustard ✣ 75g (2½oz) Gruyère cheese, grated ✣ 375g (13oz) pack block shortcrust pastry You will need: ✣ 1.25ltr (2pt) pie dish 1 Heat the oven to 200C/ Gas 6. Put the squash and shallots into a roasting tin and toss with 1tbsp…

Cancer blood test The Galleri multi-cancer early detection blood test, which may detect over 50 cancer types, will be piloted by the NHS next year on 165,000 people, including 140,000 over 50s, who have no symptoms and who will have annual blood tests for three years. Research on patients with cancer signs has already found that the test can identify many types that are difficult to diagnose early, such as head and neck, ovarian, pancreatic, oesophageal and some haematological cancers. ARTHRITIS NEWS A clinical trial comparing three new ‘biologic’ treatments against active conventional treatment in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis highlighted the efficacy and safety of active conventional treatment based on methotrexate combined with corticosteroids. The analysis, in patients who hadn’t had treatment before, compared active conventional treatment, certolizumab pegol,…

THE CHEESEWRING This celebrated tor on Bodmin Moor seems to defy physics – a pile of weathered granite slabs, the larger ones at the top. CARN EUNY A well-preserved Iron Age village, it has a stone-walled underground passage called a fogou, but no one knows why. GWENNAP PIT John Wesley preached at this natural amphitheatre near Redruth. Its 12 ‘rings’ can seat 1,500 people, but it never fills with water!…

1 Sew herbs indoors Create a kitchen garden by sowing fennel and dill seeds under cover. Direct sow chervil, sage and chives, and bed in pots of thyme, mint and rosemary. 2 Plant for pollinators Give insects a helping hand by introducing spring-flowering plants. Wild cherry trees, blackthorns, grape hyacinths sarcococca and forsythia (left), are all nectar-rich. 3 Clean your greenhouse Now is a good time to thoroughly clean your greenhouse. Empty out all plants and pressure-wash both inside and out in readiness for busy springtime planting.…

“A book about King Arthur changed my life. I wouldn’t be the first teenager to have adored the fantasy escapism of such myths. My favourite TV show in 1984 was Robin of Sherwood, starring Michael Praed as its pagan-tinged hero. And at the cinema I’d looked in awe at the posters for John Boorman’s epic film Excalibur with a black-clad Helen Mirren portraying Morgan Le Fay as an evil, seductive sorceress. ‘There are always different ways of seeing the same story’ But then at 16 I read The Mists of Avalon by the American fantasy writer Marion Zimmer Bradley and it changed how I saw the world right from the cover. On the front was an elegant image of Morgan Le Fay in her black robes and mounted on a…

Yes – it has lots of advantages ‘After five or six years, there’s still no wear and tear’ ‘It’s good for older people as there’s no upkeep’ Marion Harding, 71, from Guildford in Surrey, found artificial grass helped meet her and her family’s changing needs. We had a cabin built in the garden for my granddaughter and her boyfriend to stay in, but they still used our house for various things. So, to save them treading in mud, I had some artificial grass put down and it did the job terrifically. No mud, no mess. It’s great for the grandkids and great grandkids to play on. The only drawback is that it can cause a static build-up in summer, like a trampoline. Since then, I’ve bought another couple of rolls…

1 STOP SMOKING It puts a big strain on your heart. Your practice nurse can help you quit. Social drugs such as cocaine also increase heart risks. 2 WATCH YOUR DIET Lifestyle factors are very important – have a diet low in saturated fat, avoid excess salt and keep alcohol intake to less than 14 units a week. 3 GET MOVING Activity is also heart healthy. Whether or not you’re overweight, try a variety of moderate exercises and activities for 150 minutes a week. 4 KEEP CONTROL Carefully manage chronic disease such as high blood pressure and diabetes, and get your GP to check cholesterol levels.…

CARROT CAKE CHIA PUDDING This also makes a great breakfast! PER SERVING 238 cals, 13g fat, 3g sat fat, 19g carbs SERVES 4 For the pudding: ✣ 30g (1oz) walnuts ✣ 30g (1oz) carrot ✣ 40g (1½oz) chia seeds ✣ 300ml (10fl oz) almond milk or rice milk ✣ 30g (1oz) raisins ✣ 2tbsp cocoa powder ✣ 30ml (1fl oz) maple syrup ✣ A pinch of ground cinnamon ✣ A pinch of ground allspice To serve ✣ 300g (10oz) coconut yogurt (find one with under 15% fat content) 1 Roughly chop the walnuts and grate the carrot. 2 In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the chia pudding (leaving 1tbsp of walnuts and a little of the grated carrot aside to garnish). Leave to soak for 30…

PLANTS FOR POLLINATORS Bees and other pollinators will be out foraging on mild days, hungry from winter hibernation. Nourish them with blossoming fruit trees – apple and cherry are among the first to flower – and shrubs like Berberis darwinii and ornamental currant (Ribes sanguineum). Even leaving a few dandelions to flower will feed a hungry bee! EASY CUTTINGS Houseplants can be pricey, so why not take a few cuttings and get them for free? Rooting in water is easy and works for lots of plants, including philodendrons and peperomias. Cut a 10-15cm stem and trim to just below a leaf. Strip away any lower leaves and pop the stem in a jam jar of water. Roots should sprout in three to fours weeks. When they reach 3-5cm, the cutting…

MEASUREMENTS To fit bust sizes 81 (86) (91) (97) (102) (107) cm/32 (34) (36) (38) (40) (42) in. Actual measurements 81 (86) (92) (97) (102) (108) cm/32 (34) (36¼) (38) (40) (42½) in. Side seam 33 (34) (34.5) (35.5) (36) (36.5) cm/13 (13¼) (13½) (14) (14¼) (14 ½) in. Length to shoulder 52.5 (54) (55.5) (57) (58.5) (59.5) cm/20¾ (21¼) (21¾) (22½) (23) (23½) in. Sleeve seam 30 (31) (31.5) (33) (34.5) (35.5) cm/11¾ (12¼) (12½) (13) (13½) (14) in. MATERIALS 9 (10) (11) (12) (12) (13) 50g (121m) balls of King Cole Majestic DK (50% wool, 30% acrylic, 20% polyamide) in Cerise (2659)*. Pair each of 3.25mm (No. 10) and 4mm (No. 8) knitting needles. TENSION 22 stitches and 28 rows, to 10 x 10cm, over stocking stitch, using…

ARIES 21 Mar – 20 Apr You may be looking for a new direction in your life. Whatever is no longer working is ready to go. Make way for something different. TAURUS 21 Apr – 21 May This is a good time to reach out to someone who may need your help. A kind word can make all the difference. GEMINI 22 May – 21 Jun A new business opportunity or job may come your way. Think carefully before committing and make sure the terms are what you want. CANCER 22 Jun – 23 Jul Relationships are in the spotlight for you this week. If you’re looking for someone new, it’s time to be proactive. LEO 24 Jul – 23 Aug It’s important to take time out when you need…

Behind Closed Doors by Catherine Alliott (£12.99, HB, Penguin) Catherine Alliott is back with another warm, escapist read. When Lucy Palmer realises her marriage is over, she seizes the opportunity to escape her London home for her childhood one – a rural escape in the country. But it’s here she confronts secrets she’s been keeping from herself and those she loves, as she deals with her ageing but socially active parents – and an old flame. Big subjects are dealt with sensitively in this wonderfully written novel. Happy Families by Julie Ma (£8.99, PB, Welbeck) Chosen as the winner of Richard and Judy’s Search for a Bestseller competition in 2020, this is a tender, funny and heart-warming story of three generations of a Chinese immigrant family living in rural Wales.…

“The big news this week is about Ben and Clare, who are the youngest volunteers in our charity shop. You might remember that they became an item after meeting in the shop (how very old-fashioned: have they never heard of internet dating?) and eventually married. ‘Isn’t it wonderful news?’ said Wendy as we both stood next to the counter, trying to look helpful. ‘Yes, wonderful,’ I agreed. ‘Wonderful,’ said Wendy. ‘It makes me quite nostalgic.’ ‘Mmm, wonderful. Wait a minute, weren’t you dreadfully sick all the time?’ ‘A little bit, yes.’ ‘And wasn’t your blood pressure terribly high at one point?’ Wendy sighed. ‘Yes, but apart from feeling terribly sick and apart from the high blood pressure – and it really wasn’t that high – and apart from my craving…

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NEEDLE THERAPY I had a stroke last January. Soon after, I joined a local young stroke group and we now meet via Zoom. In June I noticed another member knitting – so I thought, if she could knit, then so can I. Then, late last year, I spotted a lovely long cardigan pattern in Woman’s Weekly and decided to knit it as a challenge. Here is a photo of the completed cardigan – I had enough wool left over to knit a hat, mitts and a long scarf. Thank you for helping in my recovery. Ardene Smyth, Belfast…

‘I decided to leave something for my children’ ‘I spent my last wage packet on a writing retreat’ Joan Haig, 41, lives near Peebles, in the Scottish Borders, with her husband and two sons, who are aged 12 and 10. Two things made me decide to write a book; my Aunt Lilian was diagnosed with dementia and was unable to write the story she’d always dreamed of, and then I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer at 36. Just like Aunt Lilian, I’d always wanted to be a writer, and now, more than ever, I wanted to write something for my children, so I would have something to leave them if things went badly. As well as an operation to remove my thyroid, I needed radioactive iodine therapy treatment. I had…

The shorts that cured my BLADDER WEAKNESS My bladder weakness was first noticeable when I turned 40. I put up with it at first, wearing liners day and night, but then I started needing to wear really thick pads, and worried about smelling and leaking. Everything set it off – laughing, sneezing, moving. It affected my sex life and confidence too. The turning point came at New Year’s Eve in 2018. Before we went out I had a shower and was getting ready. But by the time I’d done my hair and make-up, my pad was soaking. I smelt of wee and felt unclean. I had another shower and changed my clothes. When we left I took spare jeans, underwear and pads, and while at the venue I had…

Have I failed as a parent? QI have a son with severe autism. We’ve always wanted to keep him at home. He is deeply loved by us all. But his behaviour is getting worse and we’re struggling to manage. He’s now a teenager and it was easier when he was small. I know it isn’t anyone’s fault but I feel so bad and such a failure even thinking it’s time he went to live somewhere else. Name and address withheld A It sounds from what you’ve said that your son has severe autism. There are three categories and those with mild and medium autism will have fewer challenges than your son. Young people with severe autism are rarely able to manage in society and need specialist help. They will also…