Innholdsfortegnelse for 4-Mar-2025 i Woman's Weekly

Turning the page As one gets to the mature time of life, such is the nature of human existence that there are inevitably more funerals to attend. As a result, you often bump into people you haven’t met for years, with perhaps older faces but the same warm smiles. At a recent memorial service for a friend, taken too early, I met Brian and his wife, who I’d not seen for more than 20 years. Originally from Belfast, he has spent all his career working for Dublin libraries. Since my mum first took me as a little boy I’ve always loved libraries, and surely there are few more laudable careers than bringing books to those who want to read them? See page 10.…

Nigel Havers is known for his charming manner, soothing voice and eclectic on-screen roles, appearing in everything from Coronation Street to Downton Abbey, as well as blockbuster movies like Chariots of Fire. Now he’s bringing the story of his incredible 55-year career to the stage as he embarks on his first solo show, with a rather risqué title, Nigel Havers: Talking B*ll*cks. The dad of one, who has been married to his third wife Georgiana Bronfman since 2007, is every bit as engaging in real life as his on-screen persona would suggest. As well as being candid and unfailingly polite, Nigel is laugh-out-loud funny. ‘Someone has twisted my arm and I’m finally doing a one-person show. Instead of being on stage with a lot of people like I usually am,…

Roast duck with blackberries and plums An easy oven-to-table dish that’s bursting with an abundance of juicy fruit. SERVES 4 PREP 15 mins COOK 1 hr 20 mins ✱ 1tbsp olive oil✱ 4 duck legs (we used Gressingham)✱ 1tsp Chinese 5 spice✱ 2 large banana shallots, quartered✱ 2 plums, quartered✱ 180g blackberries✱ 4 garlic cloves, sliced✱ 200ml Madeira✱ 200ml stock✱ ½tsp cornflour✱ 600g potatoes, cubed✱ 20g bunch tarragon✱ 4 stems thyme✱ Red/white chicory or steamed vegetables, to serve 1 Heat the oven to 200C Fan/Gas 7. Put the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Sprinkle the duck with salt and pepper and fry, skin side down, until golden, about 10 mins. Turn over and cook for 5-10 mins. Save the fat for the potatoes. 2 Brush the 5…

ADVICE FROM OUR WOMAN’S WEEKLY DOCTOR Psoriatic patches may look pink or red, the scales white, grey or silvery. On brown and black skin, patches may look purple or dark brown. Psoriasis affects two in 100 people at any age, but most often adults aged 20-30 or 50-60. For some, it’s a minor irritation; for others, it affects quality of life. Psoriasis often goes through cycles for a few weeks or months before easing or stopping. The cause isn’t clear – it’s probably an immune issue affecting T-cells, which usually fight invading germs but in psoriasis attack healthy skin cells, causing the deepest layer to replace cells more quickly than usual. Although not directly inherited, psoriasis can run in families. Often, symptoms start or worsen after an event such as skin injury,…

Double-chocolate muffins A fluffy sponge studded with white chocolate chunks. MAKES 9 PREP 20 mins COOK 25 mins, plus cooling ✱ 160g butter✱ 100g dark chocolate (70% cocoa), broken into pieces✱ 3 medium free-range eggs✱ 170g granulated sugar✱ 180g plain flour✱ 2tsp baking powder✱ 15g unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted✱ ¼tsp fine sea salt✱ 100g white chocolate, broken into pieces YOU WILL NEED ✱ 9-hole muffin tin, greased with butter and then dusted with flour 1 Heat the oven to 180C Fan/Gas 6. Put the butter and the dark chocolate in a small bowl and microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring between, until the mixture is melted and smooth. Or melt over a bain-marie. Set aside to cool. 2 Put the eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk until the…

TIP-TOP BULBS Buy spring bulbs like snowdrops and bluebells ‘in the green’ (with their leaves and sometimes flowers showing) for a tip-top display next year. These bulbs are typically sent out by growers from February to April, and should be plunged into the earth soon as possible. The benefit of ‘in the green’ bulbs is that they’re more likely to thrive than the semi-dried ones planted in autumn. Plus, it’s easier to get their planting position right. SOIL TONIC Boost soil health with mulch. As well as giving beds a super-smart finish, mulch insulates the soil, locks in moisture and stops annual weeds germinating. As mulch breaks down, it feeds beneficial soil organisms. Whip out perennial weeds before laying a 5-7.5cm blanket of well-rotted horse manure, spent compost, leaf mould…

Difficulty level TESTED BY US so they work for you MEASUREMENTS Mama turtle 25cm/10in long. Baby turtle 14cm/5.5in long. MATERIALS 4 x 20g (43m) balls of Sirdar Happy Cotton DK (100% cotton) in Turquoise (Seaside 784), and 1 ball in each of Pink (Jammy 755), Purple (Currant Bun 756), Pale Grey (Shower 762) and Yellow (Quack 788)*. Size 4mm crochet hook; 2 pairs of safety eyes; toy stuffing. Yarn is available from theknittingnetwork.co.uk. TENSION Hexagons and pentagons measure approximately 8cm across, using 4mm hook. ABBREVIATIONS BLO, back loop only; ch, chain; dc, double crochet; dc2tog, double crochet 2 sts together (to decrease 1 st) thus: [insert hook into next st, yrh and pull loop through] twice, yrh and pull through all 3 loops; slst, slip st; spk, spike st by…

Wordwise You have 15 minutes to find as many words as possible using the letters in the grid. Each word must contain four or more letters, one of which must be the central square. No proper nouns, plurals or foreign words are allowed. There is one nine-letter word in the grid, for which the clue is: Theatrical illumination. Average= 8 more than 16 = well done SUDOKU To solve this puzzle, fill in the grid so that each 3 x 3 box, each row and each column contains the numbers 1-9. LINKWORDS Fit 10 words into the grid so that each links with the end of the word on its left and the beginning of the one on the right. Then unscramble the letters in the shaded squares to make…

There were three rings on the doorbell the other day, which is the secret signal I once devised with George Clooney. Surely everybody has this arrangement? Anyway, there he was in a very fetching bright red mankini. ‘You look absolutely frozen,’ I said. ‘Do come in, dear, and I’ll make you a nice cup of hot chocolate.’ ‘With cream?’ he said. ‘Of course with cream, you silly man.’ George looked around rather sheepishly, as any man would if he was wearing a mankini in this neck of the woods and at this time of the year. ‘Oh, I’d love to,’ he said, ‘but I’ve seven more packages to deliver before 1pm.’ ‘By the way, did you put out the recycling?’ ‘Does that mean you have a package for me?’ ‘No,…

CATCH ‘MEEEH’ IF YOU CAN! There were sighs of relief when MacGyver the goat (pictured above, on the right), who had been missing for three months after leaping over a fence, casually returned to his herd on Wouldham Common in Rochester, Kent. No one knows where the wanderer had been, but rangers at the enclosed nature reserve were relieved to see him home. Season of hope Spring starts on 1 March, at least according to the meteorological calendar. Our first welcome blooms include daffodils, nodding snowdrops and delicate crocuses, plus early blossom on mimosa, blackthorn and cherry plum trees. Sleepy bumblebees start to emerge from hibernation, ready to feed on available nectar. We’ve all noticed the signs of spring coming sooner, and this applies to early-leafing trees too. Last year,…

Whether big or small, our libraries offer more than a good read. They’re at the heart of our communities, with many providing everything from events for children to IT and digital support, book clubs, Wi-Fi, printing, and even reading for wellbeing programmes. As World Book Day approaches (6 March), it’s the perfect time to visit your local library, joining the 13.7 million people (around one in three adults) who use these brilliant community spaces. Or you can take a trip to those featured here – some of the most historic and unusual libraries in the UK. The British Library Central London and Boston Spa, Yorkshire No list of libraries would be complete without the behemoth that is the British Library. Not only is it the UK’s biggest, with more than…

Soap stars Solid soaps lost their popularity when other exciting bottled beauty products arrived. But recently, solid bars have been making a comeback in a huge way. Offering head-to-toe cleansing, and with no plastic bottles you have to dispose of afterwards, you can now get shampoo and conditioner bars, facial cleansing bars and, of course, the classic hand and body bars. Bath And Body Works Cleansing Bar, £11.50, Next, is infused with shea butter and essential oils to soften skin without it drying out. It offers cleaning and moisturising benefits, and is eco-friendly too. You can even get travel soap tins like Eco Warrior Bar Soap Storage Tin, £4.95, littlesoapcompany.co.uk, so you can take your favourite with you wherever you go. DIY tints We’re a nation obsessed with going to…

Should my grieving friend move on? Q One of my friends lost her husband two years ago. She was very distressed, and we all supported her. I know she’s still finding things hard, but isn’t it time she took her place in the group and made some contact rather than waiting for us, or offering to have us round? When we don’t phone her, she complains. None of us is young, and we all have our own stuff to deal with. Name and address withheld A There is no time frame on grief. For some, after two years, a loss can still feel all-consuming. It sounds as though your friend would benefit from some grief counselling. Talking to her about this from a position of concern would be more useful and kinder than having a go at her…

Difficulty level TESTED BY US so they work for you YOU WILL NEED ✱ 25x20x4cm box canvas✱ Acrylic paint in deep pink, mid-pink, light pink, black, mid-green and light green✱ Fine, medium and large artist’s paintbrushes✱ Tracing paper✱ Fine black felt-tip pen✱ 2B (soft) and HB pencils✱ Masking tape✱ Scissors Transfer the design Use a photocopier to enlarge the anemone design template by 200%. Trace the design, omitting the letters, on to tracing paper using a fine black felt-tip pen. Trim the design along the solid outer lines. Turn the tracing over and redraw the template with a soft 2B pencil. There is no need to redraw the broken lines. Use masking tape to tape the tracing, right side up, on to the box canvas, matching the broken lines on…

ARIES 21 MAR – 20 APR Release your hold on people and things that no longer serve you now and a whole new world will open up. TAURUS 21 APR – 21 MAY Give your imagination free rein and allow yourself to think big. It’s time for the authentic, magnificent you to shine. GEMINI 22 MAY – 21 JUN Make it a practice to quickly replace negative thoughts with positive ones. The more you do this, the happier you’ll be. CANCER 22 JUN – 23 JUL Explore the unseen realms, delve into the world of intuition and awaken your natural psychic talents. It’s exciting! LEO 24 JUL – 23 AUG Make a habit of listening to your body. You can greatly enhance your energy levels by making this a daily…

Letter of the week A special rose I was heartened to read the story about the Rose of the Year 2025, ‘You’re My Everything’ [7 January issue]. I donated three of these roses to our local community gardening group, Grow ’73, for planting in Overtoun Park in Rutherglen in memory of my mum, dad and brother. I cared for my bedridden mum for many years, and one day she sat up in bed and said ‘Dorothy, you’re my everything.’ When my brother, who was my rock all through my cancer journey, died suddenly in 2021, I said to the nurse who came to see me afterwards, ‘He was my everything.’ This is my tenth year cancer-free. My dad was an accomplished rose-grower and loved his garden, so it was my…

3 WAYS TO... Boost your immunity 1 EAT RIGHT ‘It’s crucial to adopt a well-balanced diet,’ says GP Dr Donald Grant*. ‘Include citrus fruits for vitamin C, leafy greens for vitamins A and E, nuts for zinc and garlic for alliin, which supports white blood cells when infected by a virus.’ 2 SLEEP SMART ‘Aim for seven to nine hours,’ says Dr Grant. ‘During sleep, our bodies produce a protein called cytokine, which helps protect against infection and inflammation, and antibodies that are vital for fighting off illness.’ 3 KEEP MOVING ‘Exercise can do wonders for the immune system,’ says Dr Grant, ‘increasing white blood cell production and reducing inflammation.’ And natural daylight gives a vitamin D boost too. HOW PILATES CAN TRANSFORM YOUR HEALTH Lucy Ingleby is a personal trainer with Mirafit**. There are…

1 SPRUCE UP FLOORING Use a rug to help define your living room’s seating space and add a cosy layer to hard flooring. Opt for a tufted, patterned rug in rich shades, which will help disguise any spills or stains. Better yet, choose a washable option. ✱ Pink washable Bettie floral rug, from £30, Next 2 RE-ENERGISE SOFT FURNISHINGS Have fun when picking out your accessories. Soft furnishings are the best way to play with colour, texture and pattern, with cushions and throws that are easy to swap out if you grow tired of them. Pair different patterns in similar shades to create a cohesive effect. ✱ Cushions, from £10 each, Primark; other items, stylist’s own 3 ALL IN THE DETAILS Coffee tables can easily become cluttered in a living…

Same Time Next Week by Milly Johnson (£16.99, HB, Simon & Schuster) If you love a community book based on friendship, this one’s for you. Every Tuesday, a group of women meet in the back of Ray’s Diner for a cup of tea and to chat – and it’s here that they might find the answers they’re all looking for. Will Astrid be persuaded to take on a fantastic opportunity, can Erin get past the guilt she feels about a traumatic loss, and is it time for carer Amanda to put herself first? Warm and wise, Milly has done it again with her healing words. A hug of a book. Other People’s Houses by Claire Mackintosh (£16.99, HB, Little, Brown) There’s usually one street in every area that’s ‘the place’…