Latest Articles
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Culture’s calling! What to see in London in 2022
Thrilling theatre, exhilarating art, fantastic festivals - these are the tickets you need to book now. Settle in for a capital city culture hitlist, and a jam-packed 2022.
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Muddy eats: The Filly Inn, Brockenhurst
To the New Forest! Cosy rooms, hearty dishes and stunning walks right on the doorstep - pull up a chair and join us at the £1m newly refurbed Filly Inn...
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Three design trends that will dominate 2022
Surrey interior designer Helen McClure predicts the trends that will see us through 2022 - including vibrant colour, sustainability and the importance of a harmonious home office.
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Witness the fitness! Best sportswear to buy now
There's loads of gorgeous new sportswear in the shops and online at the moment. Hop, skip and jump this way for the Muddy edit.
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Trend barometer! What’s hot (or not) for 2022
Pinterest has released its predictions for the biggest (and most bonkers) trends in 2022 - but what do you think? Let's head to the Muddy trend-o-meter to find out…
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Best vegan & veggie eats in Bucks & Oxon
Vegan or vegetarian curious? Get your local plant-based fix at one of these foodie joints that put veggies front and centre and deliver on flavour
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Green for go! 10 sustainable holidays
Want to do your bit for the environment while enjoying your hols? Check out these eco-friendly hot spots which are clean, green and keen on a bit of luxury too.
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8 health and fitness books to kick-start your 2022
New year, new bod: Get your exercise groove on with one of these new wave of bespoke fitness books catering for everyone, from angry yogis to gym sceptics
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Period drama hotties coming in 2022
Ladies, loosen that corset lest you faint dead away! Here's a sneak peak at the upcoming period drama men getting us hot under the collar in 2022, plus 11 more historical hotties to drool over.
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Cheese-free Xmas films? It can be done (just)
'Tis the season to hit the Baileys and get on a Christmas movie marathon. Here are 24 festive films for your viewing pleasure – full fat cheesy and dairy free.
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Muddy stays: the Cowdray Estate, Midhurst
Chances are if you're planning a trip over the next months you're back to thinking - UK, self-catering, countryside. And as it happens, I've just reviewed the perfect cottage for you!
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Hair trends 2022: the new styles to try this year
Is this the year to shake up your style? From the French bob to buttermilk balayage, awesome award-winning salon group Haringtons give the lowdown on 22’s most coveted looks
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Girls with guns: Ladies’ Day at Bisley Shooting Ground
We're going on a clay shoot. Clay shooting is great fun, but it's even better when you're surrounded by a gaggle of great girls and it includes breakfast, elevenses and lunch.
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Best spa breaks to book now
Robe and fluffy slippers at the ready! It's time to revitalise for the new year with some serious pampering, and these spa breaks are the best way to do it. Meet you in the jacuzzi...
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Review: The Magician’s Elephant, RSC
This captivating family musical is the first to stomp onto the RSC stage since it closed its doors, and the critics are all ears. But what did Muddy think?
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How to WFH (getting it right this time round)
We've all been here before; so let's nail it this time. Here to help is your sanity (and sex life) saving and productivity boosting Muddy guide to working from home
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Review: Beauty & The Beast at The Hexagon
Beauty or Beastly? You decide when you see CBeebies star Justin Fletcher and Dame Paul Morse in ballet tights, wrestling a balloon. Grrrrrrr.
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Escape by rail to these 7 heavenly new hotels
No flight, no faff... hop on the train to these gorgeous new hotels from the newest Pig Hotel to a Peaks treehouse and a cheeky little number in Paris
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49 lovely light trails across the Muddy counties
You glow, girl! At least, you will at one of these fabulously festive light trails to visit up and down the Muddy counties. Scarf on, boots strapped: let's admire some twinkling.
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Four Christmas cocktails and how to serve them
The perfect festive tipple? We've found one to match every kind of Christmas shindig, with the help of the pro shakers at Kocktail. And the best bit? They mix them for you!
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Review: The Yurt restaurant at Nicholsons
Banish the word café from your mind: The Yurt at Nicholsons in North Oxfordshire has gone full stylish restaurant. Muddy stopped by for a lunch, but did its new menu live up to the hype?
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John Lewis and M&S Christmas ads are here – which is your favourite?
It's that time of year again folks! Our two high street favourites are back with their festive telly offerings for 2021 - but which gets your vote?
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27 Halloween films to watch on Fright Night
Brave face on? Muddy's rounded up the best horror flicks to get you jumping, screaming, and laughing this Halloween, including Anya Taylor-Joy's new Last Night in Soho.
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13 cosy pubs for chilly days
Order something stodgy, pour a large glass of red and relax in front of the fire - it's time to hunker down in the best pubs in Oxon, Bucks and the Cotswolds.
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Who wants to get married at Botleys Mansion?
I do! Muddy road tests this grand Palladian mansion near Chertsey in Surrey. Here's what you need to know.
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My Favourite Places – Gyles Brandreth
The author and TV personality takes us on a literary tour of his favourite Hampshire places and reminisces about childhood holidays on the Isle of Wight
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Autumn roasts with the most
Can’t be bothered to baste potatoes with goose fat? I hear you. Instead grab your gang and head to one of these local gastropubs that do roasts with the most.
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Where to buy vintage homewares in Bucks & Oxon
Out with the old, in with the... vintage. Autumn is the time to clear out and freshen up your interiors with something edgy and characterful. And with these stores, fairs and auctions, the browsing is the best part.
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Thinking of buying an electric car? Read this
Fuel crisis giving you nightmares? If you're sick of playing chicken with your petrol gauge and now plan to go electric, here's everything you need to know before you take the plunge.
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Muddy goes back to school. Gin school!
Forget gin tasting, REAL lovers of gin are learning how to make their own. So naturally Muddy heads into the lab at Wessex Distillery in Surrey to get to the bottom of a bottle, I mean, all those botanicals.
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How to supercharge your kids learning
Are there educational bumps in the road ahead? Why a roadmap of schools advice, academic support and mentoring could supercharge your child's success.
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Grace Regan: My Favourite Places
Introducing the awesomely cool, gorgeous and talented chef Grace Regan - owner of critically acclaimed London curry house, Spicebox, who lives in Margate. To celebrate her delicious vegan cookbook we got Grace to tell us her fave places to hang out locally.
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Ready, aim, fire? Let’s go shooting
More women and children than ever are taking up shooting, so Muddy takes her teenager along to Bisley Shooting Ground and gives it two smoking barrels. Boom!
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Protected: Muddy stays: Cliveden House Hotel, Taplow
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
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Iford Manor Estate – It’s your passport to Italy – bella bella!
Discover this Italianate garden that's a little slice of heaven on the Wiltshire-Somerset border. The recent addition of a gorgeous cafe equals hard-to-beat day out, and they now have their own holiday cottage so you don't have to leave!
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Lunch with a view: 21 top riverside eats
Ahh, is there anything better than a stroll along the riverside? Actually, yes - a riverside that includes a long lazy lunch an some stonking views across Bucks or Oxon! Come on landlubbers, let's tuck in.
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Don’t miss Stonor’s magical festival of fun
Frazzled parents, listen up! Read the Muddy verdict on Stonor's Sparkle Bright Flower Festival of Fun at Tumblestone Hollow – it's fun, free range and affordable! If this doesn't tire out your kids, nothing will.
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Berkshire’s Olympic giants going for gold
Addicted to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics? With Maidenhead's Tom Dean winning gold, meet your local Team GB stars medal hunting in Japan.
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Muddy meets celeb ventriloquist Paul Zerdin
He won America's Got Talent and is finally back on tour. Muddy talks to ventriloquist Paul Zerdin about weird fan mail, dressing up as Maggie Thatcher and his beef with Barney the Dinosaur.
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What to drink: Best rosé for a summer barbecue
Rosé is a great summer wine and works particularly well at a BBQ where it pairs well with the delicate flavours of fish and the more robust smoky meats. Here are nine to order in for your next gathering.
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What to drink: 9 English wines to taste
We don't need English Wine Week to celebrate our local wines! Here three Surrey wine merchants share their favourite English tipples. Ready, steady, glug!
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Insta-worthy places to eat in Oxon and Bucks
Now we're all going out out, naturally we want to shout about it. Be the envy of your followers at these photogenic local hotspots where the backdrop is as good as the food.
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11 outdoor cinemas to book now
So long, tiny TV screen; hello, massive outdoor cinema with classic films, sing-a-long action and boozy picnics to boot. Here are the best in Bucks, Oxon and beyond.
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Stratford Lit Fest 2021: the line-up
There are so many fantastic headliners at Stratford Literary Festival’s brilliant Spring Festival (May 8-16), I don’t know where to begin…
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Muddy meets actor Zoe Lambert
Zoe Lambert is making her RSC debut in The Winter’s Tale which never opened on stage due to Covid but has been adapted for TV on Sunday April 25, as part of BBC Lights Up.
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Best outfits from The Winter’s Tale – the RSC’s first TV premiere
Muddy takes a first look at the gorgeous Mad Men-inspired costumes and stage design of this postponed RSC period piece for BBC Lights up.
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Muddy Meets: Soprano Laura Wright
The rugby-loving opera A-lister tells all about singing for the crowds, royal encounters and post-lockdown footwear dilemmas.
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Live theatre is back! RSC’s new ‘garden’ theatre & BBC 4 film
Hot-off-the-press the RSC has today announced two of 2020's major productions postponed in the pandemic will go ahead!
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Dream a little dream: musician Nick Cave joins RSC cast
Dream, the RSC's new live online theatre and and gaming tech collaboration opens Fri Mar12 leading the way in future audience experience with singer Nick Cave as 'Voice of the Forest'.
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15 cool things about 2021’s Coventry City of Culture
...including The Turner Prize, a weekend of Home Session gigs curated by Terry Hall, a major new theatre commission with the RSC so much more. Seriously, it will be amazzzing.