Woman's Weekly

The generation game “I wear a simple ring on my finger that once belonged to my paternal grandfather. He wore it until the day he died, whereupon my father put on his finger. My dad gave it to me just before he too left this world, and hopefully I’ll have it until it’s my turn to pass it on again. I love the fact it comes from one of my grandparents because they were such significant and loving influences on my young life. I think it’s often an advantage for young children to mix in the company of a much older (and maybe sometimes wiser) generation of relatives. So my wife and I will consider it a privilege if we ever get the chance to be grandparents. See page 20.”…

TIME WARP TIME Jason Donovan stars as Frank-N-Furter in a new UK tour of Richard O’Brien’s musical classic, The Rocky Horror Show. Its mix of famous songs (including Time Warp), dances and outrageous costumes have been entertaining and challenging audiences since its debut in 1973. Catch it on tour throughout 2025. ✱ rockyhorror.co.uk Busy beavers Look who’s learnt to swim! This confident little kit is the newest addition to the family of beavers introduced to the National Trust’s Wallington Estate in Northumberland last year. The first sighting of the newcomer was at night, but now the little beaver is out and about, joining the family’s activities in a tributary of the Hart Burn, creating complex dams that help to control the flow of water, and form a rich habitat for…

FRUIT PICKING I live in the sunny(ish) south, and picked my first blackberries of the season at the end of July. They were deliciously sweet and sharp. Blackberrying always reminds me of my father (born in 1921). He told me that when he was a lad, they were given three days off school in September to go blackberry picking. It seems hard to believe now, but blackberries were a nutritious, free food that was too good to miss. How times have changed! I wonder if any other readers have heard of this happening? Julia Deeble, Haslemere PAWS FOR THOUGHT This is my beautiful Samoyed, Lucy, and she’s the fourth we’ve owned. She’s pictured with our then 18-month-old grandson, Tommy, now five. All our Samoyeds, like Lucy, were perfect companions for…

I always knew I had been adopted, but I wasn’t searching for my birth parents. So, when I found out who my mum was, quite by accident, I reflected on all the synchronicities in my life. When I started out after drama school, I got a small part in Oedipus at The Royal Exchange [in Manchester]. On the first day, I met this guy, Michael N. Harbour, who I recognised from a school programme called Finding Out. I wanted to know more about him, as I’d grown up watching him. Unbeknown to me, Michael had said to the director David Threlfall, ‘Wow, she’s the spitting image of my wife at that age.’ Michael and I became good friends, and at a party, he mentioned my accent, and asked where and…

A dancer, singer, television presenter and judge on Strictly Come Dancing, Anton Du Beke, 58, is a man of many parts. Strictly Come Dancing, the programme that made him a household name, marks its 20th anniversary this year and Anton says, ‘I’m so honoured and thrilled to still be part of it.’ He believes that the secret to the show’s success is that it attracts a multigenerational audience. ‘It’s literally the only terrestrial thing that my children will watch. They’re always wanting to stream something on YouTube or Netflix, which you can watch any time. But Strictly Come Dancing is the only scheduled show that they will make an appointment to watch because if you want to be involved and judge, you have to watch it live,’ the star explains.…

According to The State of Nature 2023 Report, 16% of our wildlife is now at risk of being lost from Great Britain. Intensive farming, loss of habitat, climate change and pollution are all contributing factors in this decline. However, conservation projects around the country are underway to bolster the most vulnerable species, and collectively we can all help them by respecting the wildlife that is around us. Hazel dormouse With their huge black eyes and golden coats, nocturnal hazel dormice have vanished from more than half of their former range, since the millennium. Changes in farming practices, woodland management and loss of hedgerows are thought to have had a huge impact on their numbers and they are now considered to be vulnerable to extinction, but a reintroduction scheme that returns…