Donna Ferguson

A list compiled by spymaster Robert Cecil gives an insight into the beginnings of the secret service, says historian

For more than a century, it lay undisturbed in the National Archives: a single sheet of paper, headed The names of the Intelligencers, with the power to unveil a hidden network of secret Elizabethan spies.

The naturalist gets up early to enjoy a busy day with rugby, canoeing, a picnic and waterbirds. By Donna Ferguson

There is always the unexpected. Even when you expect it, it can still take you by surprise. The weather may change, you can’t find any fresh corn at the store, or a guest may, or may not, be coming and you aren’t going to know until the very last minute. Don’t be caught off guard. […]

Let’s keep it cool and easy this week. When it’s hot outside, the last thing you want to do is cook. Beat the heat and don’t even think about turning on your stove or oven. When it’s too hot, I’m the first person to get out of the kitchen. Here are some easy eating options […]

I was blessed with four wonderful grandparents. One grandfather was a mechanic. The other, a proofreader for the local paper. My dad’s mom was a home economist, and my mom’s worked in a department store. They couldn’t have been more different, but each of them gifted us with what they knew. They were generous with […]

Berries, and cherries, and peaches, oh my! It’s beautiful, bountiful berry season and the picking’s mighty fine. Grocery stores, farmer’s markets, fruit stands – and maybe even your own back yard – are all filled to the brim with the season’s best. While fruit is at its peak right now, make everything with it that […]

It's 5am and I awake to the sound of a gaggle of greylag geese heralding the morning outside my bell tent.

Conservationists report a worrying decline in UK bat populations, attributing the drop to an unusually wet summer that has reduced the insects they feed on.