Writers' blocks
Literary pilgrim Stephen Phelan has explored an author's home or two. From Tolstoy to the Brontes, he shares his favourites.
Ten cities you will love at first sight
Some cities take a while to reveal their charms - but these are the ones I loved as soon as I arrived.
Strokes of genius
Pool tragic Brian Johnston has dipped into some of the world's sexiest hotel pools. Don your swimmers, grab your designer sunnies and dive in.
Rats for dinner: tourists learn how to be Bear Grylls
A new academy backed by TV adventurer Bear Grylls offers training in vital survival skills. Oliver Smith signed up for a 'taster' session.
A cool run-up to Christmas
Mark Juddery goes to Edinburgh, where the festive season is not a spectator sport.
James Bond's Britain
To mark 50 years since 007's first film outing, and with his latest adventure Skyfall now in cinemas, Garry Maddox traces the steps of the world's most famous spy.
The scary cities that aren't so scary
Forget the bad reputations - some "dangerous" cities aren't dangerous at all.
Last stand of the Gaels
Jamie Lafferty is lost for words in the Western Isles, where a unique language and tradition thrive on the edge of Europe.
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Scotland comes in three shades: luminous green of its rolling hills and wild snow-capped mountains, grey for its history-dense castles, walls and houses, and red for its traditional kilts and its bloody, mind-blowing past. If that doesn't tempt, visit its outlying islands, experience Scottish pride and its legacies; its bizarre cuisine, single-malt whisky, music festivals, and hairy coos. Do we need to go on?
