British Art Destinations
The 50 best places to see art across Britain; the must-see places for anyone seeking creative inspiration. Discover Britain's most intriguing art. From the prismatic beauty of Charleston House in West Firle to the meditative natural forms at the Barbara Hepworth Sculpture Garden in St Ives, these are the must-see places for anyone seeking creative inspiration. Whether you're marveling at masterpieces in the Ashmolean Museum, the serene artist studios of Henry Moore, or exploring Jupiter Artland's open-air artworks, each destination offers and entirely unique experience and a new way to explore Britain's rich artistic heritage.
Outer Hebrides
This new, thoroughly updated third edition of Bradt's Outer Hebrides is the only up-to-date guidebook to focus solely on Scotland's Western Isles: the islands of Lewis, Harris, St Kilda, Berneray, North Uist, Benbecula, South Uist, Eriskay, Barra and Vatersay. Informed and intimate, this guidebook is ideal for people who travel with curious minds to discover places of great cultural, historical and wildlife interest. The Outer Hebrides is an archipelago of 15 inhabited islands and more than 50 others that are free of human footprint. Huge variations in landscape are found across the islands - from Lewisian gneiss, which dates back almost three billion years, to rugged Harris with its magnificent, almost unbroken sands running down its western flanks, and the undulating flatness and jagged sea lochs of the Uists. Here Gaelic is increasingly spoken (driven both by a strong sense of regional identity but also, unexpectedly, boosted by commitment from many incomers). Ancient monuments abound, from enigmatic 2,000-year-old brochs to Tobha Mor, the earliest Christian site on the Outer Hebrides. Here too are the Standing Stones of Callanish (where a vibrant new visitor centre opens in 2026) and the Uig peninsula (where the 'Lewis Chessmen' were uncovered nearly 200 years ago). Nature-lovers can watch stunning seabird colonies, birds of prey, seals and red deer - or become absorbed in the machair, grassy coastal zones that are transformed into glorious carpets of wildflowers in late spring and summer. Walkers have an impressive choice of routes, while cyclists can enjoy the new Hebridean Way cycle trail. People with family ties to the islands can even track their Hebridean heritage at the Hebridean People Visitor Centre in South Harris. Alongside providing key practical details for visitors, experienced journalist Mark Rowe contextualises your visit with detailed and enlightening background information - from geography and geology to art and architecture, via extensive coverage of wildlife. New elements of this third edition include advice on camping and campervanning, a round-up of deserted villages, and details of the island of Harris' first malt whisky. Whatever your interests, Bradt's Outer Hebrides is the perfect travel companion.
Secret Houses of the Cotswolds
A personal tour of twenty of the UK's most beguiling houses in this much loved area of western England. Author and architectural historian, Jeremy Musson, and Cotswolds-based photographer Hugo Rittson Thomas, offer privileged access to twenty houses, from castles and manor houses, as well as eighteenth- and nineteenth-century mansions, revealing their history, architecture and interiors, in the company of their devoted owners. In the footsteps of artists and designers including Humphry and George Repton, and Victorian visionary, William Morris, who inspired the arts and crafts movement, and others such as Detmar Blow, Norman Jewson, Clough Williams-Ellisand Oliver Hill, we find a series of fascinating country houses of different sizes and atmospheres, which have shaped the English identity. Each house has their own story, but their distinctive honey-coloured stone walls, set amongst rollinghills, in different ways express the ideals of English life. Most of the houses included here are privately owned and not usually open to the public. In this beautifully produced book, they can now be enjoyed through the eyes of their owners, as well as an experienced architectural historian, and an award-winning photographer.
111 Places in Cambridge That You Shouldn't Miss
- The ultimate insider's guide to Cambridge, fully illustrated with 200 color photographs- Features interesting and unusual places not found in traditional travel guides- Part of the international 111 Places series with over 650 titles and 3.8 million copies in print worldwide- Appeals to both the local market (124,000 people call Cambridge home) and the tourist market (over 5 million people visit Cambridge every year)- Fully revised and updated editionWhat do movable dolls' eyes have to do with a Catholic church? Where could you meet Plain Bob Maximus and Surprise Major? Why does just one person know where Oliver Cromwell's head is buried? And where is a dog a very large cat? The answers to all these questions lie in Cambridge, which combines the magnificence of a medieval university with the dynamism of a high-technology hub. Tens of thousands of visitors flock to Cambridge every year to see the colleges, go punting on the river, and shop. But there is much more to Cambridge than its university and Silicon Fen. Over the centuries, town and gown together have transformed this city, which was an inland port until the 17th century. Eccentricity is something of a Cambridge tradition, and the town seems to delight in taking its visitors by surprise, whether that's with a huge metal time-eating grasshopper, May Balls held in June, sculptures that dive into the ground feet first, or a museum that makes a feature of broken pottery. You will find these and many more curiosities in this book.
111 Places in Edinburgh That You Shouldn't Miss
Part of the international 111 Places series, this is the ultimate insider's guide to Edinburgh, featuring unusual places not found in traditional travel guides. Revised and updated. Edinburgh is rightly celebrated for its famous historical and cultural attractions. But for the discerning visitor it has much more to offer away from the well-worn tourist trail. This book takes you to hidden corners and secret sights in this city of contrasts, exploring fascinating locations unknown even to most residents, and revealing unexpected aspects of some familiar local landmarks. Marvel at a unique underground temple hewn out of the living rock; learn how a world-famous illusionist came to be buried here - with his dog; find out why the city council once commissioned an enormous electric blanket; look out for the ordinary Edinburgh post box with an explosive history. Discover the human stories behind a wide range of places, both exceptional and commonplace, bringing to life the greatly varied cityscape where people have been leaving their mark for at least 5,000 years.
