HEALTH • MONEY • TRAVEL • RECIPES • FASHION • TECHNOLOGY

APRIL 2021

STING
“I Make Records
Out Of Love
And Curiosity”

BOY GEORGE
On Childhood,
Culture Club
And Chaos

HOME REMEDIES
Around The World
In 12 Folk Treatments

14 BOOKS
INSPIRING
Our Key
Workers
readersdigest.co.uk

APRIL 2021 £3.99

 If I pass away
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 p28
Contents
APRIL 2021

Features
16 IT’S A MANN’S WORLD
Olly Mann discovers his
collection of old cassettes
and, with them, an entire
lifetime of fond memories

ENTERTAINMENT
20 INTERVIEW: STING
The iconic musician opens up
about The Police, failure and
why he still loves making
music after all these years

28 “I REMEMBER”:
BOY GEORGE
The lead singer of Culture
p74
Club looks back on his
childhood, playing with Band INSPIRE
Aid and overcoming addiction 74 WHAT HEROES READ
Key workers on the books that
HEALTH are helping them survive
38 HYPERHIDROSIS
Why we need to start taking 82 MEDITATIVE GAMING
abnormally excessive Can video games aid mental
sweating more seriously health? Jenessa Williams finds out

56 HOME REMEDIES TR AVEL

Reader’s Digest editors from 82 SPAIN’S BEST KEPT SECRET
around the world select their Discover the breathtaking
favourite home treatments for landscapes and world-class
various ailments cuisine of Spain’s Asturias

APRIL 2021 • 1
cover photograph by Agencia Efe/Shutterstock
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 p108
Contents
APRIL 2021

In every issue
8 Over to You
12 See the World Differently

HEALTH
46 Advice: Susannah Hickling
50 Column: Dr Max Pemberton

INSPIRE
72 If I Ruled the World:
Mark Galeotti

TRAVEL & ADVENTURE FASHION & BEAUTY

98 My Great Escape 114 Column: Fashion Tips
100 Hidden Gems: Copenhagen From Catherine Summers
116 Beauty
MONEY
102 Column: Andy Webb ENTERTAINMENT
118 April’s Cultural Highlights
FOOD & DRINK
106 A Taste of Home BOOKS
108 World Kitchen: Greece 122 April Fiction: James Walton’s
Recommended Reads
DIY 127 Books That Changed
110 Column: Mike Aspinall My Life: Kathy Reichs

ENVIRONMENT TECHNOLOGY
112 Column: Jessica Lone Summers 128 Column: James O’Malley

FUN & GAMES

130 You Couldn’t Make It Up
p127 133
136
Word Power
Brain Teasers
140 Laugh!
143 60-Second Stand-Up
144 Beat the Cartoonist

APRIL 2021 • 3
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 SPONSORED CONTENT

We are fearful of the present, Could things have been done

uncertain of the future and longing for differently? Would they have made a
the past that used to be. difference?

Even in the Blitz of World War 2 people Would you have chosen to be in the
went about life as best they could. shoes of the Prime Minister in handling
But, the country fell silent to Covid-19 this crisis?

How did lockdown affect you? LOCKDOWN 2020 touches the lives of
People lost their jobs and incomes, most people. Read it and identify your
children’s schooling was interrupted, life in the words of the author.
weddings were postponed and even
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was one of the saddest events in
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LOCKDOWN 2020
We saw ‘the good, the bad and the
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 EDITORS’ LET TERS

In This Issue…
In the past 12 Looking for something
months, we’ve all had inspiring to read? This
to find our own ways month, we’ve got all
to maintain our the literary bases
mental health, as the covered. On p74, we
global COVID-19 asked 14 key workers—
pandemic turned everyday from doctors and teachers to prison
life on its head. For some people officers and care home workers—
that’s involved long walks in the which books have helped them
countryside, for others, cosy nights survive one of the toughest challenges
in front of the telly. But for the of their lives—the coronavirus
people interviewed on p82, video pandemic. What we ended up with is
games have proven the best respite a colourful panoply of raw poetry,
from the unsettling twists and turns entrancing short stories and
of the coronavirus news cycle. empowering novels that helped our
Elsewhere this month, we’re heroes shut out the stress and escape
welcoming a new writer to the fold, the gruelling everyday realities of their
as Catherine Summers—better work for a moment.
known as Not Dressed As Lamb to And on p122, our book critic James
fans of her blog—joins us as our new Walton puts entertainer Mel
fashion editor. Turn to p114 to read Giedroyc’s debut novel to the test, and
her first instalment, in which she wonders whether there’s life after
sings the praises of bold and bright death as he examines Dr Bruce
waterproofs—just in time to see us Greyson’s fascinating book about
through those April showers. near-death experiences.

Anna Eva
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APRIL 2021 • 7
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 Over To You
LETTERS ON THE February ISSUE
We pay £50 for Letter of the Month and £30 for all others

LETTER OF THE MONTH

How refreshing to read about Niksen, contemplating life
the Dutch art of mindfulness, in and telling me to
the February issue. The word itself take time to think
literally means “to do nothing” and about what I
it was wonderful to read that expert wanted to do and Annette Lavrijsen
Annette Lavrijsen agrees with me not just rush from
that it can be a positive thing to take one thing to another!
time out and reflect on life, sit down The article emphasised that I’m
and not actually do anything for a set not being lazy by just taking time
time each day! to sit down and do nothing but that
I think my late father was ahead of it’s beneficial for my physical and
the times as I can recall him during mental health.
my childhood in the 1970s often sat — MELANIE LODGE, Yorkshire

OLDER AND WISER

Your fantastic article in nursing homes. With becoming more involved
“What’s Wrong with more and more people with our seniors in society.
Our Nursing Homes?” living longer, attitudes Engage the younger
highlighted so well the towards older people must generation with the older
startling problems within change too: they should generation: to learn from
the care system. Nursing be respected, nurtured them, be inspired by them
homes need greater and revered as they are in and really connect. Old
investment, training and some other countries and age comes to all of us—if
higher salaries to recruit we should listen to their we are lucky—and we
the most dedicated wisdom and learn from should be treated with
workers and entice young them. Isolation is also now respect and dignity at any
people into this growing prevalent in our society age. Don’t we all have a
sector. Lessons must be and on the increase. We duty of care in this civilised
learned, then urgent must find ways to combat society we live in?
change needs to happen in this growing problem by — GERALDINE SYSON,
so many ways, but not just showing compassion and Glasgow

APRIL 2021 • 9
 HEALTH

What’s Wrong
With Our
Nursing Homes? A SAFE HAVEN
A lot actually, says a Reader’s Digest
report from around Europe

by Lisa Fitterman Eileen Horan and her work to

help abused women “disappear”
sounds like an absolute godsend
39
to terrified victims everywhere
but a scheme like that needs to
NURSING HOMES be seriously scaled up to protect
Lisa Fitterman’s article in the February more women.
issue about the crisis in European nursing When you’ve faced sustained
homes was no surprise, and there seems physical and emotional abuse
to be no end in sight. Of the suggestions from a partner it can seem like
by Agnes Buzyn—the most impactful there is nowhere safe to run
one—is finding a way of caring for our to, especially when funding for
seniors in their own home with some women’s refuges means places
routine monitoring. I would add that this are severely limited at the best
care could also take place in a relative’s of times. And with so many
home. I grew up in Africa with non- abusers and victims confined to
existent nursing homes, meaning senior their homes during lockdown
citizens had to be looked after by their the situation has become even
own relatives. I remember as a kid my more dire. Even when attackers
mum and her two sisters taking turns to have been jailed there are some
care for my grandmother, at the time well women who will never be free
into her nineties. Europe could do well of their control and able to live
to learn this model and adapt it to suit without constantly looking over
European circumstances. This in turn their shoulder.
will allow only a small number of nursing If Eileen Horan shared her
homes to operate, without the need for a valuable knowledge with
huge workforce to run them. The critical women’s protection
staff shortages in nursing homes will not organisations everywhere the
disappear by pumping in more money, lives of many more victims could
if the NHS healthcare staff shortages are be transformed and, in many
anything to go by. cases, saved.
— MANYANDO MILUPI, Doncaster — ANN JOHNSON, Norfolk

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PARTNERSHIP
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12
Photo: © Getty ImaGes/shaun BotterIll

SEE turn page

THEtheWORLD...
 …DIFFERENTLY
A giant stroll for humanity. The world
was paying attention when on April 16,
2020, just two weeks before his 100th
birthday, Second World War veteran
Captain Tom Moore raised more than
£32 million for NHS Charities Together
in honour of the hard work of all the
people working to fight the coronavirus
crisis. As well as their donations, people
from around the world sent in their
thanks along with roughly 125 000
birthday cards (previous page).
Sadly, Captain Tom Moore himself
died from a coronavirus infection in
February this year. So we bid farewell to
this remarkable man, who not only
donated money but also offered us
hope in a time where hope was so
sorely needed. The world loses yet
another hero.

Photo: © PIcture allIance / solo syndIcatIon / Jenny Goodall

15
IT’S A MANN’S WORLD

In One Ear
This month, Olly Mann ponders the sentimentality of
forgotten audios, and why he won't be throwing them out

have always been a diligent 40, I am under no such illusions.

I archivist. All my photos are in

albums. My radio scripts are
boxed away; my TV appearances,
however fleeting, uploaded to
Dropbox. Documents of note (my
I understand that my precious
memories will be landfill by 2100. Yet
still, the mementoes pile up.
Lockdown offered an opportunity
to explore this archive: most recently,
university admission letter, my ticket a box of cassettes and minidiscs,
to the 2012 Olympics) reside in a committed to the attic circa 2005.
sacred filing cabinet. These are mostly mixtapes—songs
Frankly, I’m not sure why I do I taped off the radio as a teenager,
this. Perhaps, as a young adult, I or burned off CDs borrowed from
fantasised the British Library would the library. I can confirm that "Your
one day build an annexe in my Woman" by White Town (1997) and
honour, so that future generations "Walk Like A Panther" by The All
might marvel at my achievements Seeing I (1999) are both still bangers.
and pronouncements. Now, nearly On reflection, I am less convinced
by "Hooray For Boobies" by The
Olly Mann presents Bloodhound Gang.
Four Thought for Original recordings, though, make
BBC Radio 4, and up the rest of the audio. For example,
the award-winning
podcasts The Modern my school singing teacher playing
Mann and Answer the accompaniment to "With One
Me This! Look" from Sunset Boulevard, so I

16 • APRIL 2021 illustration by Dom McKenzie

17
IT’S A MANN’S WORLD

could practise during the still stream regularly).

summer holidays (the song Whereas, listening back,
suited my range, but as my skills as a rock writer
a 17-year-old lad I didn’t were woeful. The clichés
want my mates to know tumbling out my mouth
I was portraying Norma include: "How do you
Desmond—so I changed write a song?", "Who
the lyrical climax to would you like to duet
"Norman’s home at last’" with?", and (really), "Are
as if playing a Hollywood you influenced
diva called Norman made by The Beatles?"
it any better). Cringe! But the
Also in the box: a rendition revelation is, it
of "Always On My Mind" produced sounds like Jay was just as
in a £10 karaoke booth at London's jittery as I was. I am playing at being
Trocadero in 1998. I’d completely a journalist, and he (just three years
forgotten its existence, but within older than me) is playing at being a
seconds of pressing play the whole pop star.
thing came flooding back. My backing Two years later, he was dead,
singers were my school friends Ben having fallen from his seventh-floor
(who ended up being my Best Man) flat in circumstances that may have
and Jenny (who ended up being been suicide (he left no note, and an
my wife). It might have been rather inquest returned an open verdict).
moving, were it not for the fact that Knowing this now, some of my
we sing the whole thing in the style of embarrassingly entry-level questions
our GCSE drama teacher. ("Where do you see yourself in ten
I was 20 when I recorded the next years’ time?", "What truly makes you
one: an interview with then up-and- happy?") have a poignancy I could
coming singer Matthew Jay, for a not have predicted. Listening back,
student newspaper. This one I do I considered the illustrious career he
remember, because it was my first might have had—I reckon he’d have
ever assignment as a "journalist", gone on to sell as many records as
and I was incredibly nervous, and fellow Noughties troubadours
intimidated to be invited on to his David Gray and Damien Rice.
tour bus, backstage at the student Whereas I, clearly, was not destined
union, to do it. for the NME.
Jay was a formidable talent (his The last cassette I stumbled upon
debut album Draw is, in my view, in this jar of hearts was labelled
an under-rated classic, which I "Grandpa Matt’s Marbella Stories".

18 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

I remember making it, in 1986— a silly yarn Grandpa was evidently

sitting at my grandfather’s knee with a making up as he went along,
JVC cassette recorder, sheltering from based on my reception at the time.
the Spanish sun—and listening back Watching Harvey’s reactions to the
frequently as a boy. So, I invited my story’s twists and turns, I realised I
five year-old son Harvey to listen in. was re-living an experience from 35
My grandfather died in 1998. I years ago—but, this time, from my
hadn’t heard his voice for over 20 grandfather’s perspective, watching
years. So to hear him talking directly a young boy enjoying a tall tale.
to me (albeit five-year-old me) was For Harvey, this was the moment
unexpectedly stirring. He sounded my mum’s dad, a ghost hitherto,
rougher round the edges than I leapt out of photographs and into
remember, with more of an estuary his heart.
accent, but the smile in his voice and I’ve bought a cheap dongle off
his resonant benevolence instantly Amazon to digitise these tapes.
triggered all my happiest memories Again, I’m not quite sure why I’m
of seeing him. doing it. But I do know: it’s not for
Harvey heard "The Swan Story", anyone else. It’s for me. n

Literature Lessons

How well do you know your published works? Answers below

1. What was Stephen King's first published novel?

2. Homer is known for The Illiad and which other work?

3. Who's the current Poet Laureate?

4. Who wrote Black Beauty?

5. What's the cat called in Macbeth?

6. Where did Toad from Kenneth Grahame's Wind in the Willows live?

Answers: 1. Carrie 2. The Odyssey 3. Joy Harjo 4.Anna Sewell 5.Greymalkin 6.Toad Hall

APRIL 2021 • 19
 ENTERTAINMENT

STING
“I Make Records Out
Of Love And Curiosity”
By Danny Bowman

Sting returns to a place of collaborative creativity with

the release of his new album Duets; even if, in almost
every other way, he continues to find comfort,
innocence and improvement in blissful isolation

e is Sting, he is Gordon of the 69-year-old frontman. It’s

H Sumner, he is the ex-

frontman of one of the
most pioneering bands
of the post-punk era, who
sold 75 million records worldwide;
he is the right man to ask about a
Police reunion, right? Wrong.
not because Sting is particularly
offended by the approach, nor that
he has spent the best part of four
decades cultivating a reputation as
a wholly content solo artist
(although that’s true).
Perhaps it’s more that he is a
Speaking to Sting, The Police can creative who doesn’t necessarily
feel like the go-to topic for every crave the company of others. To
© A G E N C I A E F E / S H U T T E R S TO C K

lazy or poorly-prepared interviewer. typify this, there is an intriguing

Even a journalist suddenly finding shot from the end of The Police’s
themselves bereft of any other final gig, held at the Melbourne
questions would be best advised Showgrounds on March 4, 1984.
to steer clear from probing the Drummer Stewart Copeland and
idea of the London-formed three- lead guitarist Andy Summers stare
piece linking hands again, instead out into the worshipping crowd
perhaps commenting on the knowing the era of the band had
impeccable style or excellent health come to a close just a few moments

20 • APRIL 2021
 21
JANUARY 2021 • 21
 The Police in the 1970s

before. The camera lingers on their simply how I felt, and is still how I
faces to capture the raw emotion of feel today,” Sting begins. “I think it’s
the moment, as the congregation OK to be honest about your feelings
pours a sombre, messy mass of and that was the way it went for me.
elation and profound sadness onto “That’s not a slight on the people
the musicians. And then there’s I was with or the way things panned
Sting—grateful for the adulation out; it’s just how I saw it by the end;
but, instead of reflective and and let’s be honest, that’s not how
melancholy like everyone else in I wanted to remember it. If I thought
the arena, he’s alive, excited and that would be the emotion I’d be
focused straight away on the solo leaving with, I wouldn’t have done
experiences he knows he is going to it in the first place.”
create for himself.
© P E T E R B AY L I S / S H U T T E R S TO C K

Even when the band reformed Sting’s bandmates have been

in 2007 for a somewhat ill-fated similarly non-complementary, not
reunion, the 151-date project so much about the experience, but
replenished bank balances, sure, on their frontman’s aversion to life
but it also cemented the reality that as a threesome.
these were three men who should “I think it happens to all these
leave the past exactly where it is. white male singers—it’s a classic
“At the time I labelled the tour mistake,” says Andy Summers.
an exercise in nostalgia. That was “The singers all want the solo

22 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

“TO HAVE TOTAL CREATIVE FREEDOM IS, FOR ME,

THE ULTIMATE THRILL OF BEING SOLO”

career—they should go and do a immense credit… which takes us

solo album then go back to the back to why he wouldn’t want The
power base where the real chemistry Police back together.
and magic is, because you’ll never “I think there is a freedom in
get that chemistry and magic again. being a solo artist,” he says. “It’s
It was the sound of the three of us— not a power thing, at all, it’s just
that’s what made it, and it’s never about producing exactly the brand
been as good since. Look at the tour. and style of music that feels right
We had an incredible turnout all for you. Music, in every form, is a
across the world, and no one can do collaborative process, but never
that on their own.” more so than in a band, where
Deep down, you know Summers you have to consider other people
yearns for Sting to feel the same almost more than you do yourself.
way he does. Like a scorned lover “To have total creative freedom is,
desperately trying to convince an for me, the ultimate thrill of being a
ex they still have feelings towards solo artist.”
them. Yet, there are far too many So while some music journalists
frayed emotional ties to make have speculated that Sting’s ego
another reunion a possibility. And was the thing that broke up the
it would be pointless. Not only did band, they should perhaps note
the experiment fail, twice, but Sting that it’s a commodity conspicuous
is entirely his own man now, to his by its absence for a long time. The

APRIL 2021 • 23
INTERVIEW: STING

Sting with wife Trudie Styler in 1986

“WHEN I MAKE A RECORD, I WANT TO GO ON

A JOURNEY”

songwriter, in 2021, is, ultimately, continue to harness breadth and

a man at peace. He is reflective, bravery. “When I make a record I
satisfied in his achievements, and want to go on a journey. I need to
undoubtedly driven by creative learn as much about music as the
satisfaction rather than industry listener—that’s really important
awards or dollar bills. to me. It’s been a long time since I
“It’s great fun to have a hit record, went into a project wanting to play it
it really is, but it’s not why I make safe,” he explains. “Neither do I want
records, and it never has been, to be the musicians alongside me to play
honest. It’s easy to get swept along it safe, which is often why I will take
in the excitement of the charts—a some musicians out of genre. You
lot more so in the Eighties than it cannot perform to your optimum
is today—but the truth is I make if you are in a safe, protected
records out of love and curiosity, environment. Everyone needs to sit
© I L P O M U S TO / S H U T T E R S TO C K

even if it’s always nice to have on the edge of risk and failure to get
something on the radio.” the best out of themselves.
“I’m always trying to broaden
For someone who celebrates five what I listen to. Everything I’ve ever
decades of songwriting in 2021, and heard—bad, good and indifferent—
whose music has crossed multiple has conditioned my opinions about
genres—rock, pop, folk, reggae music. I don’t believe there are any
and new wave—Sting’s influences bad experiences.”

24 • APRIL 2021
 At a climate
READER’S DIGEST
change protest
in New York,
2014

Indeed, Sting is a man of culture had so long on the other side, I’m not
and influence that stretches way sure how I would have survived fame.”
beyond the sound that emanates
from a speaker. Long before The From early days earning his
Police signed their first record deal stripes around the Polish clubs
with A&M in 1977, the musician’s of his native Wallsend on North
pursuit of experience saw him Tyneside, where watching bands
immerse himself in the brutally live could mean dodging punch-
diverse environments of building ups and the opposite sex in equal
sites, office spaces and even school measure, Sting admits he struggles
staff rooms. with the trend of modern era music
“I liked all of those jobs, albeit in entertainment where musicians
very different ways,” he said. “I was are cherry-picked on reality
never embarrassed about any of the shows. In a matter of weeks they
jobs I did, they all connected me are transformed from everyday
with real worlds, and it wasn’t until members of the public to global
I was 26 that the music industry superstars, and that’s problematic,
presented itself to me. he says.
“I’m glad of that,” he says. “I’m “I feel the reason a lot of them
glad I had many years of struggle crash and burn has much to do
and obscurity because that has only with the way that exposure comes
helped my psychology. If I hadn’t about in the first place. You can ride

APRIL 2021 • 25
INTERVIEW: STING

the wave for a while, but so many back out on the road with his My
of those careers are built on loose Songs tour. In his spare time he’s
foundations, on being fast-tracked even making efforts to listen to his
to the top. own music.
“The music industry is much like “I do that from time to time, it’s
any other—there comes a point true,” he reveals. “It’s much nicer
where it will need you to have done now there is a vinyl revival and
the hard yards, and if you haven’t it we can all share in this incredible
can be very difficult to sustain the medium together. I had the great
whole thing.” privilege of putting a record on the
If there was someone who could other day—you know, taking it out
shadow new entrants into the of the inner sleeve, putting on the
industry, it would undoubtedly turntable and lowering a needle
be Sting, yet his time is best spent onto it and hearing that lovely noise
elsewhere these days. He remains before the music starts.
a fierce devotee to philanthropic “It’s a fantastic ritual that I
causes, having previously nailed his actually miss so much that I’m
colours to the masts of Friends of going to go back to that—I’m going
the Earth, Amnesty International, to go back to vinyl!”
victims of the September 11 attacks,
plus humanitarian projects in Brazil Whether Sting’s regression ends
and Tibet. And in June he will be there, we will have to wait and see.

26 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

“EVERYONE NEEDS TO SIT ON THE EDGE OF

FAILURE TO GET THE BEST OUT OF THEMSELVES”

In recent years there are hints of a the past it was presented to us then
rebelliousness in collaborations that gone… people didn’t pore over it on
imply he’s not willing to simply fade social media for hours and hours.
away into one genre. From allowing The important thing is we fill our
Puff Daddy to sample his music, to lungs and keep breathing it in.”
making an entire album with Shaggy For all his occasional seriousness,
in 2018, to performing with artists as for every time he speaks his
diverse as Craig David, Eric Clapton, mind with bruising honesty, for
Sam Moore and Julio Iglesias, it’s all everything he favours that is a
proof of a man still enthralled and distance from those rebellious post-
enchanted by music and, indeed, punk roots—countless musicians
the world around him half his age have long since given
“I am a citizen of the world—I vote, up on discovering something new
I pay tax, I’m a dad, I’m a husband. about themselves, their music and
And this world isn’t any madder now the spaces around us. For Sting, the
than it was before; it’s just that in search goes on. n

Explosive Baking
In 2011 British intelligence forces hacked the website of Al-Qaeda’s magazine and
replaced bomb-making instructions with a cupcake recipe
Source: abcnews.go.com

APRIL 2021 • 27
 ENTERTAINMENT

28
 Boy George
I REMEMBER…
Boy George (59) is a British singer,
songwriter, DJ and fashion designer, best
known as the lead singer of the pop band
Culture Club. Here, he looks back on growing
up in south-east London, Band Aid and
overcoming drug addiction

APRIL 2021 • 29
I REMEMBER…

…I GREW UP IN JOAN CRESCENT soon realise that sterility is a perfect

IN ELTHAM. The road was breeding ground for love, affection
nondescript and still is, and there and security. It is a fantastic platform
was always the faint whirr of the for that.
A20 whenever you stepped into
the garden or opened a window too SEEING DAVID BOWIE LIVE WAS
wide. Growing up in south-east A HUGE MOMENT FOR ME. I was
London was famously samey— 11. He gave kids a licence to say,
it didn’t really matter who you "You can be an adult and a fantasy
were. You were in houses that felt character, a magician, someone
comfortable and modern, but other than yourself." He inspired me,
ultimately were there to bully "Space Oddity" inspired me; and so
families and individuals into many millions of others.
conformity, sanity and normality,
during times when there was always MY DAD WAS A TREMENDOUSLY
the dangerous hint of rebellion in HARD WORKER and it was often at
the air. the expense of the one thing we truly
craved from him—time.
WE HAD NICE FAMILY TIMES AND
THERE WAS NEVER ANYTHING I WAS A STAND-OUT TEENAGER,
UNFULFILLED ABOUT MY AN EXHIBITIONIST, AND IN THE
CHILDHOOD, but I look back on it ROUGH CLIMATE OF 1970S
now and it was the epitome of LONDON, A LOT OF PEOPLE
normality. There was the telly, the DIDN’T UNDERSTAND OR
record player, the vegetable patch, TOLERATE THAT. I was chased
the trip to Danson Park. I always had down the streets by lads who wanted
the feeling I wanted to rebel against to kick the s**t out of me. Thankfully,
the sterility of it all, although I did I was blessed with Olympic-like

30 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

athleticism and never got caught.

I know I had to stay fit to survive, but
it wasn’t a particularly comfortable
existence—how could it be?

THE ATTITUDES NOW ARE

OBVIOUSLY VERY DIFFERENT TO
WHEN I WAS GROWING UP. As a LONDON’S DIVERSITY WAS AS
young man I would go through PREVALENT THEN AS IT IS NOW,
various episodes—some where I was ALBEIT PERHAPS IN DIFFERENT
elated to have freedom and WAYS. I would take comfort in the
individualism and expression, albeit fact that you could be in some
most of those were in the bedroom opulent neighbourhood, yet you’d
of my modest house in Eltham. turn a corner and find some rough
and ready council estate. It gave me
I’VE ALWAYS LOVED ARCHITECTURE. a nice metaphor for life and a lot of
I remember a stunning red brick hope and optimism when things
house by Blackheath Common that I went wrong in my life.
used to stare at when I was a kid. It It basically said to me, "However
has this huge clear glass outhouse uncomfortable this may be, there
and I always wanted to see inside. could be somewhere quite beautiful

APRIL 2021 • 31
I REMEMBER…

just around the corner." Sure enough, my favourite areas in London. I love
there was… usually Blackheath! the space there—the fact you can
stand in the middle of it and see just
I WAS OFTEN LURED TO fields stretching away with just a
BLACKHEATH BY THE GREATEST rooftop or two in sight… and yet you
OXFAM SHOP IN THE WHOLE OF are in the heart of south London.
LONDON. Given the sorts of clothes
I was buying when I was just IT WAS IN OXFAM IN
discovering myself and my sexuality BLACKHEATH THAT I MET ONE
as a young teenager, I didn’t want OF MY BEST FRIENDS MYRA,
the visibility of going to the West across the clothing rails, looking like
End to be seen buying all this kind of a pair of freaks. If you want to meet
stuff. I had no need to, anyway, as people who have an alternative view
Oxfam had some really incredible on the world and who aren’t afraid
clothes. Perhaps it’s because to step outside the norm, go to a
Blackheath itself is a bit eccentric charity shop.
compared to most of south-east
London, but the clothes most MY LIFE WAS ONE OF PRETTY
definitely followed suit. HAPPY DISCOVERY in those early
I still go there today—it’s one of Culture Club days. The newspaper

32 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

headlines were about love triangles, me. I managed to get on the last
drug accusations and all that stuff, Concorde flight of the day and make
but in reality every day was exciting. it back in time for the recording.
I used to hide away from the press
by going for long walks around I HAVE ALWAYS HAD A MISTAKE
Kenwood House—I still do. IN ME… BUT THAT’S OK. As far as
the troubles I had back in 2006 [Boy
THAT SAID, IN THE PAST I George called the police to his New
WASN’T THAT CAUTIOUS ABOUT York apartment to report a suspected
WHAT I PUT OUT THERE in regard burglary—officers instead found a
to my private life. Perhaps I got a stash of cocaine, which led to a
little too stung by that when I was month-long community service as a
growing up and I’m certainly more dustman on the streets of Manhattan]
reserved now in terms of what I say. and 2009 [he served four months of a
jail sentence after handcuffing and
TOURING WAS EXHAUSTING and falsely imprisoning a male escort],
always took a toll on us. I think our of course, they are things I am not
third album, Waking Up with the proud of. Yet at the same time they
House on Fire, was a skeleton of remind me that I hadn’t shaken off
what it should have been because that nihilistic attitude of the past,
we were all totally done in by a nor would I ever want to. And every
world tour we had just completed. mistake is a positive life lesson… it
really is.
I ALMOST DIDN’T APPEAR ON
THE BAND AID "DO THEY KNOW I ALWAYS MAINTAINED THAT JAIL
IT’S CHRISTMAS?" TRACK. I was WOULD FINISH ME OFF, but it
doing the David Letterman show in didn’t. You somehow find the
New York when Bob [Geldof ] called strength. It was a life-changing

APRIL 2021 • 33
I REMEMBER…

experience and I feel I came out of but getting sober also led me to
that situation with some wisdom and taking in nature so much more.
knowledge. I really don’t view that I remember when I first got clean
period in my life as negative… but and walking over the Hampstead
I wouldn’t want to go back. Heath thinking, I don’t know this
place, I don’t recognise that tree over
GETTING OUT ON THE DJ there or that hill, or that meadow,
CIRCUIT AND TOURING AGAIN even though it’d been there forever.
WAS A REVELATION FOR ME. I think I moved here a little
It reconnected me with my past, prematurely in my twenties and
without the chaos and without didn’t properly appreciate it because
feeling I had to be the centre of of all the partying at the time. I’m
attention. DJs are generally quite older now—I can say, "Wow, it’s
discreet—they hide in the really serene here."
background, they play for a couple of
hours, then they disappear off again NOTHING MUCH CHANGES IN
and go home. HAMPSTEAD which, actually, is why
I live there. I remember there being a
GETTING CLEAN FROM THE HAZE big hullabaloo about a McDonald's
OF DRUGS TRANSFORMED MY coming into Hampstead and there
LIFE IN WAYS I DIDN’T EXPECT. was a campaign to stop it, albeit an
There are the big things, of course, unsuccessful one. Otherwise, it’s

34 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

pretty much the same as it ever was:

quiet, affluent and leafy.
There’s a really great Japanese
restaurant here called Jin Kichi that
makes the best, most delicious maki
rolls. And the King William IV pub is
a nice place to hang out in.

I’VE LEARNED THAT WHEN YOU

DABBLE IN CHAOS, DISORDER
AND NIHILISTIC ENDEAVOURS,
it really is those things that make the
ground beneath your feet bumpy lifestyle. It has a way of keeping you
and uneven. firmly planted in infancy.
Essentially, you need to decide I think, for me, over the last few
which one it is that you want in years, I felt just a bit more grown up,
life, because you sure as hell can’t a bit more responsible, and a bit
have both! more alert really. And that’s enough
for now.
GETTING OLDER IS A GRADUAL,
SLOW-BURNING PROCESS. It’s not I DON’T TAKE IT ALL TOO
like I turned 50 and said, "OK, I’m SERIOUSLY. And being able to
going to grow up now." laugh at yourself—for what you
I think men will always tend to wore, what you did, what you said—
take longer to mature, especially in it’s absolutely essential. And, to this
my business, this industry, this day, I’m still laughing! n

Michelin Star Guide Facts You Need To Know

The iconic guide focuses only on the food—decor and service don’t count

Restaurant inspectors must visit each restaurant more than once

There are currently 1,205 Michelin star restaurants in the world

Michelin star inspectors spend the first few months of their job eating at the
world’s best restaurants, so they can establish a frame of reference
Source: bigseventravel.com

APRIL 2021 • 35
PARTNERSHIP
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38
 HEALTH

Hyperhidrosis
is excessive
sweating but carries
a heavy, invisible
burden—it’s not just
damp patches and
deodorants

LivingWith
Hyperhidrosis
By Daniel Reast

APRIL 2021 • 39
A I : D R I V I N G T H E F U T U R E O F H E A LT H

L
ike Many children, experience localised hyperhidrosis,
I dreaded the weekly finding it in specific areas such as
PE lessons at school. their hands, armpits and feet. Others,
That hour of rushed like me, find there’s not a place on their
dressing and undressing body that goes unaffected. This is
with aggressive, often much fitter known as generalised hyperhidrosis
classmates was never something and is much harder to treat—if
to look forward to. It was made possible at all.
worse by my sweating. Although Both varieties of the condition can
I wasn’t officially diagnosed with cause considerable embarrassment,
hyperhidrosis at the time, the signs even shame for some. Aidan from
were painfully obvious. Indeed, Liverpool, who developed heavy
school laid foundations for a sweating at age 13 and is now in his
crippling low self-worth that persists early twenties told me, “It makes me
to this day. anxious that it’s noticeable, and self-
But I’m not alone. It’s estimated conscious that people are looking or
that at least one to three per cent of talking about it.”
the UK population suffer with some The physical effects are obvious,
form of hyperhidrosis, a condition but it’s how damp patches and
that causes excessive, sometimes clammy handshakes affect the
uncontrollable sweating. The mental health of hyperhidrosis
majority of people with the condition patients which needs more attention.

40 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

For one business owner, 32-year- different diets… but nothing really
old Kay*, who suffers from palmar seems to help”.
hyperhidrosis (affecting the hands), Treatment for hyperhidrosis is
their livelihood was directly affected. known to be more effective for
“It made me very self-conscious… people whose condition is focused in
I was meeting clients and I was specific areas. Antiperspirants, Botox
injections and electric therapy known
THE MENTAL HEALTH as iontophoresis can halt excessive
sweat in particular places. But as one
OF HYPERHIDROSIS GP, Dr Gerald Jones*, told me,
PATIENTS NEEDS MORE “Patients with the condition all over
ATTENTION will sometimes struggle to find a
treatment which helps them.” Indeed,
knowing this fact only adds to the
always nervous to shake their hands. sense of frustration and hopelessness
It got to the point where I would for those experiencing it.
ensure my hands were fully dry
before the meeting.” One of the biggest barriers to
This experience highlights a deep treatment and acceptance of the
problem with the perception of condition is the wider culture of
sweating, particularly at times of embarrassment about sweating.
stress or intense pressure. We’ve all Maria Thomas, founder of the award-
seen film and television comedies winning blog My Life as a Puddle, told
which exaggerate sweat to make us me, “Many physicians brush off
laugh, like the scene from Airplane! hyperhidrosis as an anxiety problem,
where Robert Hayes has torrents of or tell their younger patients that they
water pouring down him. This scene will eventually outgrow it. The health
has become a popular meme with care community needs to understand
the scene evoking expressions of that we are not sweating because
tension on social media. we’re nervous, we’re nervous because
Such casual representation has we’re sweating.”
made it difficult to see sweat as This difficulty in seeking help for
anything but a joke. But for some managing the condition extends
people, these moments are real and further than just medical care.
desperately difficult to manage. Says Sufferers often feel hopeless and
Aidan, “It’s incredibly frustrating at trapped by their sweat patches,
times. I’ve resorted to folding tissues unable to see how their lives will
and trying to use them to absorb the ever get better. Maria explained to
sweat, shaving my arms, trying me how tackling this difficult

APRIL 2021 • 41
NEW HELP FOR ACHING BACKS

philosophy is vital to self-acceptance. even paranoia from the appearance

“The important thing is to never give of damp patches is a sad reality.
up hope while also being detached Clive* told me how the condition
from the outcome of finding a cure crippled him, leaving him feeling
or a treatment option that works suicidal and angry from his diagnosis
for you. If you base your happiness at 17. Now 37, his loved ones and
or productivity in life on whether coping mechanisms have helped him
or not you sweat, you’ll consistently to manage his symptoms.
be disappointed.” Another young man, 25-year-old
Londoner Connor, told me that
As with many chronic conditions, realising his sweating was a genuine
this positivity can feel very hard to problem took time and assistance
find. Young people who have been from others. “I never really thought
diagnosed with hyperhidrosis are at about it until I did some research
particular risk of suffering mental and found out I had the condition.
health problems as a result of their It never occurred to me before then
condition. Anxiety, depression and that I had it.” Connor's localised

42 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

WE'RE NOT SWEATING

BECAUSE WE'RE
NERVOUS, WE'RE
NERVOUS BECAUSE
WE'RE SWEATING

hyperhidrosis patients to seek

professional advice early.”
But as the condition affects every
corner of a person’s daily existence,
it’s hard to feel like any treatment
or medical approach will help. In
our social lives, having close support
and understanding from loved
ones is crucial for developing that
confidence. Family, friends and
partners have big role to play in
version of hyperhidrosis has been helping sweat-stricken relatives to
successfully treated with Botox manage their condition. As Aidan
injections, though he says, “I am explains, “my friends make me feel
aware that most people who suffer very comfortable and it really helps
with it do not get treatment and I’m going out with them.”
lucky to have had it.” Another sufferer, 29-year-old
Simone, explained that, “My
If young people with hyperhidrosis thoughts were mostly based on the
are unaware, embarrassed and idea that I wouldn’t be able to be too
suffering mental health problems as close to people. I’m still pretty social,
a result of their sweat, how can they as well as outspoken about my
get better? Dr Shamali Hoque, condition. I just don’t like to be
consultant dermatologist for HCA, touched. I find that I’m usually the
explains, “Hyperhidrosis patients can only person bothered by it.”
have a very poor quality of life if Simone hits on the real difficulty
treatments are not offered at an early of hyperhidrosis sufferers to perceive
stage… It is really important for whether others notice or care about

APRIL 2021 • 43
LIVING WITH HYPERHIDROSIS

RAISING
AWARENESS FOR
HYPERHIDROSIS
IS KEY

their sweat. In public spaces, a

passing glance may seem like a stare
to someone whose sweat is dripping
down through a shopping centre.
It establishes a mental barrier to
regular living but also a repressive,
regular physical routine of washing,
cleaning and mopping up sweat.
Dr Hoque explains, “There is a lot
of social stigma associated with this
condition and it can exacerbate stress,
which in turn causes further sweating,
thus creating a vicious cycle.”

When hyperhidrosis causes a dense

block of anxiety, personal contact Because hyperhidrosis is often
can become difficult, especially for undiagnosed and embarrassing for
those more intimate moments. its sufferers, medical clinicians have
I asked Maria Thomas, who first struggled to find an effective way of
noticed her own hyperhidrosis building wider awareness of the
symptoms at age 12, how those condition. But in 2019, health
suffering can handle worries when it researchers from De Montfort
comes to their sex lives. “Everyone University in Leicester carried out a
has something they’re dealing with… survey of patients with the condition,
If you can’t be open and honest with with the sole purpose of improving
your sexual partner, then you should treatment policy and raising the
probably find a new partner! Sweaty profile of the condition. The team
people deserve love, too. It’s OK to leader Dr Louise Dunford wrote at
make a few modifications in the the time, “Despite it being a common
bedroom if that will help yourself to skin condition, hyperhidrosis is not
feel comfortable.” widely known about, and research is

44 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

very poorly funded. Raising condition is not well-reported

awareness is key if people are enough to make an accurate record.
to feel comfortable enough to Dr Hoque says, “There is no doubt
come forward.” that there is a strong link between
Through speaking to those with skin conditions and mental health…
the condition, the researchers This is often underestimated and
pushed forward the awareness of not addressed.”
hyperhidrosis from a relatively Addressing a problem is half the
unknown problem to the much- task. It takes enormous courage from
improved clinical pathway that has sweat boxes like me to be confident
now been developed. But more can in their lives. To live without shame
always be done. and feel unburdened. We’re sweaty
but we really can’t help it. With
Estimations of the number of better empathy, and just a few blasts
people who are currently living of talcum powder, perhaps our sense
with hyperhidrosis are vague; the of reality need not be so futile. n

APRIL 2021 • 45
 YOU’VE GOT TO

MOVE IT
MOVE IT
Exercise improves your sex life
There, we thought that would catch
your attention! In fact, research
suggests that getting physical
We hear endlessly outside the bedroom for 20 minutes
a day could lead to you getting
how good exercise is more physical inside it. One study
for our health, but you found that 20 minutes of cycling
increased women’s sexual arousal
might be surprised to by a spectacular 169 per cent.
know just how good Hormones released during exercise
seem to make women feel more
sexy. Men benefit from physical
activity too. But be careful; one
Susannah Hickling
study from the University of North
is twice winner of
the Guild of Carolina suggested that men who
Health Writers Best exercise too strenuously may suffer
Consumer Magazine from lower libido. As well as biking,
Health Feature good options include running,

46 • APRIL 2021
 HEALTH

brisk walking, strength training, it, the better you’ll feel. But you do
dancing and even digging the need to work up a bit of a sweat. If
garden or mopping the floor. you’ve had a bad day, a little bit of
exercise—a quick power walk or
It lowers the risk of dementia beating your rugs—is a brilliant
The World Health Organisation stress reliever.
anticipates that the number of people
with dementia will triple in the next It aids digestion
30 years. But regular exercise could The way your gut feels often impacts
save you from being a dementia on your mental and physical health.
statistic. Research is increasingly Beat the bloat with cardiovascular
showing that staying active boosts exercise as well as good nutrition.
cognitive function. Alzheimer’s Walking, running and yoga
Society reports that the combined strengthen abdominal muscles,
results of 11 studies indicated that increase heart rate and encourage
regular exercise from middle age your muscles to move digestive waste
could cut your risk of dementia by through your body more efficiently
30 per cent. In older people, studies and digest food more quickly.
suggest that physical activity results
in less brain shrinkage. Keeping active keeps you young
There may not be an elixir of youth
It helps you breathe better just yet, but keeping fit comes close.
Frequent exercise improves the Just 15 minutes of exercise a day for
volume of oxygen you can use in eight years can increase your lifespan
your body. This is what makes you by three years. The more you do, the
fit and the benefits aren’t confined longer you could live, according to a
to sport—you’ll keep up with the study from Harvard Medical School.
grandchildren better, for example. It seems that physical activity delays
Increased muscle tone helps too. cell ageing and reduces
Pilates can build core strength and inflammation, which benefits heart
improve posture, and so tone and arterial health. It can be low-
breathing muscles. intensity exercise—swimming, a
gentle exercise, a long walk on a
Physical activity treadmill at the gym, or a low-
enhances your mental health intensity YouTube workout. n
Doing something active releases
“happy” brain chemicals, such as For more weekly health tips and
endorphins and serotonin, that make stories, sign up to our newsletter
you more positive. The more you do at readersdigest.co.uk

APRIL 2021 • 47
H E A LT H

this test, if blood is identified in the

sample you send, you are asked to
undergo further investigation.
Whatever your age, it’s crucial that
you look out for the tell-tale signs of
bowel cancer and get in touch with
your GP straightaway if you’re

Bowel Cancer concerned. The main symptoms are

bleeding from your bottom when
you poo or blood in your faeces. But
What You don’t ignore other persistent and
unusual changes, like going to the

Need To Know loo more often or feeling as if you

haven’t finished emptying your
bowels. Weight loss, fatigue and a
A new study shows that pain or lump in your tummy are
3,500 fewer people were other possible symptoms.
However, these symptoms could all
diagnosed with bowel
point to other, non-malignant
cancer last year, possibly conditions, including constipation,
linked with people’s irritable bowel syndrome, piles or
diverticular disease.
reluctance to go to doctors
There are proven ways to lower
for fear of catching your risk of bowel cancer. Around 11
COVID-19. But early per cent of cases are linked to being
overweight. Take action to shift extra
diagnosis is key to survival
kilos if your BMI is above 25 and
You should always take advantage of do at least 30 minutes of exercise
screening when it’s offered. Everyone five days a week. Limit red and
aged 60 to 74 and from age 50 in processed meat, as they up your risk,
Scotland is sent a home poo-testing and eat more fibre. Alcohol
kit. This aims to detect cancer at consumption is behind six per cent
an early stage before symptoms of bowel cancers and smoking is
appear. But there are changes to the linked to seven per cent of cases,
screening programme—bowel scope with risk increasing the more
screening (a mini-endoscopy) at age cigarettes you puff on. So restrict
55 has been stopped. Instead, the your drinking to 14 units a week and
plan is to extend home testing in have at least two alcohol-free days.
England to everyone over 50. With If you smoke, take steps to stop. n

48 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

Ask The Expert: Vaccines

Dr Paul McKay is a researcher at Imperial College
and member of Team Halo
How did you become a and reduces the effects if you do.
vaccines expert? My PhD over 30 Even if you don’t get very ill, COVID
years ago was in immunology and can have serious long-term side
molecular biology. Since then I have effects, affecting your lungs, kidneys,
been working mostly in HIV vaccine liver, brain or heart. Getting
development, but when the COVID vaccinated also protects vulnerable
pandemic started, I was able to switch people who can’t—for example,
the target of my vaccine to the people undergoing cancer treatment.
coronavirus spike protein, which is
how the virus gets into the cells. Can vaccines make you ill or
have long-term harmful effects?
How do vaccines work? To make Vaccines can give you a sore arm,
the immune system fight against headache, or slight fever. Vaccines
something, we want to give it the are one of the safest medical
thing it needs to fight against. The interventions and long-term
COVID vaccine makes an artificial harmful effects are extremely rare.
spike protein in our cells, which In comparison, long-term harmful
recognise it as not being our body effects of the diseases we vaccinate
and react against it. against are not rare.

Why should people be vaccinated? How do we know the COVID jab is

The percentage of people who get safe, given that it was developed in a
very sick with COVID and go to short time? The scientists behind the
hospital is really high. In the over- Oxford vaccine had been working on
seventies, it’s about one in five. The it for 15 years. It was used for another
vaccine protects you from getting ill respiratory virus, MERS, and has an
excellent safety profile. mRNA—used
in the Pfizer vaccine—is used in a
Dr Paul McKay is a
drug licensed in 2018 and there have
researcher at Imperial
College and a member of been no safety issues whatsoever. An
Team Halo, which tackles mRNA vaccine for rabies was first put
vaccine misinformation into people in 2013. n
on video-sharing
platform TikTok Visit teamhalo.org for more information

APRIL 2021 • 49
 HEALTH

Life On
Civvy Street
This month,
an encounter with a
former serviceman gets
Dr Max thinking

eorge had been happiest

G in the army. Looking at

him now, sitting hunched
up, speaking in almost
inaudible whispers and
barely making eye contact, it was
difficult to believe that he had ever
been happy. I looked around his
George lit a cigarette and
continued to tell me how he had
ended up on the streets. He hadn’t
liked school and had left at the age
room as I talked to him in the hostel of 16 with only a couple of O levels.
where he was staying. He sat in an After this he had spent several
old armchair and picked at the foam months helping his older brother
that was protruding through the clean carpets. He drifted aimlessly
armrests where the covering had until, a year later, he and a friend
worn away. I sat on the thin, bare had decided to sign up. Suddenly,
mattress on his bed; the springs his life had purpose. He had loved
creaking as I tried to get comfortable. the discipline and routine and went
on campaigns all over the world.
Max is a hospital doctor, When he’d left to return to civilian
author and columnist. He life, though, things had never
currently works full time in worked out for him. There had been
mental health for the NHS.
His new book, The no big event, no hideous trauma.
Marvellous Adventure of He just couldn’t adjust to life on
Being Human, is out now Civvy Street. He had wandered

50 • APRIL 2021
aimlessly through life until, without do precisely as you were told—in
work and drinking heavily, he found essence, to be institutionalised.
himself homeless and had slept Others I met were haunted by the
rough until he got a room at the things they had witnessed and
hostel a few weeks before I met him. dogged by depression or PTSD.
I was doing an outreach project at Some turned to alcohol or illicit
the time, working with homeless drugs to anaesthetise themselves.
and vulnerably housed people and Some turned to crime, others to
his story was nothing new to me. suicide. Poor specialist mental
Ex-servicemen make up about a health provision for those who have
quarter of homeless people in the witnessed traumatic events while
UK. It seemed that most had been serving their country means that
so used to the discipline of military many veterans are left battling severe
life that when this was taken away mental illness and behavioural
they were left dazed problems.
and confused, bereft of The fact that those
any sense of belonging. OVER who end up in prison
Research suggests over tend to have committed
2000 ex-servicemen are 2,000 EX- violent crimes suggests
in prison. that the way in which
Having witnessed SERVICEMEN service personnel are
the way that ex- being prepared for civilian
servicemen’s lives can ARE IN life is grossly inadequate.
unravel once they leave
the forces it comes as
PRISON It is, after all, unsurprising
that a cohort of people
no surprise to me that who have spent years
some find themselves in trouble being trained in effective combat
with the law. Perhaps some would can suddenly switch to a different
have ended up like this even if they set of social mores, especially when
hadn’t joined the forces and the they are having to contend with
army provides people like George mental illness. Is rehabilitation not
with brief respite. But as I sat and what’s needed here, rather than
listened to how he’d found himself in punishment? That’s not to excuse
a quagmire of despair and loneliness, their behaviour or absolve them
I wondered how you could be from responsibility for their actions.
expected to cope in the real world But I can’t help but think that we,
if, from the age of 16, everything as the people they have protected,
had been so rigidly controlled: you must take some responsibility for
were trained to obey orders, to their situation as well. n

APRIL 2021 • 51
 HEALTH

The Doctor Is In
Dr Max Pemberton
Q: I have always wanted to give between 7 stone 12lbs and 25 stone.
blood but I find the rules so There are some age restrictions—you
confusing, they seem to change have to be between 17 and 66, or 70 if
every time I look! I have eczema and you have given blood before. If you are
asthma—am I allowed to donate? over 70 you have to have given a full
My son says he cannot donate blood donation in the last two years.
because he is gay, which I don’t There are also restrictions for people
understand. With all these barriers with health conditions, including
it feels like they are trying to put us asthma. Taking inhalers doesn’t
off! Should I just give up? -Fiona prevent you giving blood. You need to
wait six months before giving blood if
A: Thanks so much for your letter and you’ve received steroid tablets or
firstly, please don’t give up! We injections for more than three weeks.
urgently need more blood and it If you’ve needed them for more than
would be awful if you gave up just six months, then you have to wait a
because the rules can seem a bit year before donating. Gay men can
confusing. Remember, every bag of donate but only if it has been three
blood used comes from someone who months or longer than the last sexual
has donated—there’s no other way of contact with another man. This winter
getting this vital resource. We’re lucky the NHS is facing extra challenges to
in this country to have a brilliant provide hospitals with blood,
NHS blood donation service who plasma and platelets (the latter
will be more than happy to help two are taken from the blood
and answer any questions you people donate). The
have. I’d encourage you and pandemic means they need
anyone else who is interested to donors more than ever. So
have a look at their website: please, do donate if you can! n
blood.co.uk or give them a
call on 0300 123 23 23. Got a health question
Most people can give for our doctor? Email it
blood. You have to be fit confidentially to askdrmax
and healthy and weigh @readersdigest.co.uk

52 • APRIL 2021 illustration by Javier Muñoz

 HEALTH

Why Buildings remember something you’ve learned

in one place when you’re somewhere
Bring It All Back else. In an exam hall, for example, it’s
harder to recall information than in
the room where you revised.
Your imagination lets you travel But it’s not all about location.
in time and space, says memory Emotional context is equally
expert Jonathan Hancock important. When you revisit
somewhere and it reminds you
y last foreign of how you felt in the past, those

M journey before
lockdown was to
Singapore—a place I’d
visited once before,
nearly 30 years previously. This time,
I spotted the hotel I’d stayed in on my
first trip, stepped into the foyer for a
familiar feelings can bring everything
else back.
You don’t even have to return
physically. You can go there in
your imagination and still enjoy
reconnecting with your past (in
exams, I used to “imagine” myself
quick look… and was shocked by how back into my bedroom!).
many memories came flooding back. Try it now. Pick a building you feel
Some things had changed, of nostalgic about, and imagine standing
course. But I was astonished at just there, looking around. If a particular
how much I recognised. detail comes to mind, focus on it for
Even more amazing was how a moment, in case it starts a chain
much the place made me remember. reaction of recall. What can you hear,
Suddenly I was the “me” from 30 smell, touch or taste there, too?
years ago. The layout, the décor, the Most importantly, zone into your
smell… they were all working together feelings about “being” in this space.
to take me back in time, in rich detail, You’ll create a powerful mental loop:
and with a powerful emotional kick. the physical details awaken your
Buildings often have this feelings, and those feelings bring
remarkable power to trigger our back more and more details about
recall. On a scientific level, it’s all your past.
about context. What you remember is Start seizing every opportunity you
linked strongly to where you were at get to revisit meaningful buildings,
the time. So, returning to that physical either for real or in your imagination.
space helps to bring it back to mind, It’s a great way to keep your recall
especially with all the sense “triggers” alive and your confidence high. And
there to help. I bet you’ll be surprised by just how
That’s why it can be so difficult to many memories fall back into place! n

54 • APRIL 2021
 The story
the grandkids
can’t put down
Yours

The gift of a lifetime

What could be more special than your life in your words? Told with the help of
LifeBook, the world’s leading memoir and autobiography service. Around the
world more than 8000 people already enjoy owning the life story of someone
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Find out how by calling us on 0800 999 2280 or at lifebookuk.com
 These 12 folk
treatments are
proven to work
by The Editors

HOME
REMEDIES
from AROUND
THE WORLD
illustrations by Ed Fotheringham
56 • APRIL 2021
 HEALTH

any of us fall back affect blood sugar levels: it delays the

M on home treatments
for ailments, whether
they’re proven to be
effective or not. We
asked editors at Reader’s Digest (RD)
editions around the world to share
those that work for them—and
rate at which the stomach empties
and starch is digested, which reduces
the blood-sugar spike after a meal.
But check with your doctor before
adding it to your diet, particularly
if you are also taking blood-sugar-
lowering medications.
then we checked out which ones Apple cider vinegar may also
are backed by research. Here are prevent overeating. A small
our favourites. Swedish study found that those
who consumed vinegar with a meal
FRANCE
reported feeling more satiated than
VINEGAR those who didn’t consume vinegar.
Fights Infection That could prevent unhealthy
French folklore has it that during snacking later in the evening.
the 17th-century plague, a gang of It’s best not to drink undiluted
four thieves would rob corpses, yet vinegar, as its acidity could damage
never catch the plague themselves. tooth enamel. Instead, add one or
Supposedly, anointing their bodies two teaspoons to water or tea.
with a concoction of vinegar and
MALAYSIA
herbs protected them.
The so-called vinaigre des quatre PAPAYA
voleurs (four thieves’ vinegar) is used Aids Digestive Health
today in the belief it fights infection. When her husband got food
Many of the ingredients steeped in poisoning while traveling in Malaysia
it—garlic, rosemary, sage, lavender, in 2017, editor Bonnie Munday heeded
thyme, juniper berry, black pepper a recommendation for a local remedy.
and more—are proven to have “We didn’t have any medicine for
antibacterial properties. tummy troubles, but our hotel manager
“I know people who consume advised eating ripe papaya,” says
this regularly as an antibacterial,” Bonnie, who is on RD’s International
says Stéphane Calmeyn, Paris-based Edition team and is based in Toronto.
editor of RD. He adds that a friend of She was skeptical but bought some of
his with Type 2 diabetes credits it with the fruit from a beach vendor. “An hour
helping regulate his blood sugar. or two after my husband ate it, he felt
Though more research is needed, so much better.”
there is evidence that vinegar, A study from Obafemi Awolowo
particularly apple cider vinegar, can University in Nigeria published in

APRIL 2021 • 39
57
HOME REMEDIES

the Journal of Medicinal Food the RD team in Stuttgart.

found that papaya, an orange- Her cousin Marlen, a teacher,
fleshed fruit that grows in the recalls that when her mother
tropics, fights intestinal grew calendula—also called
parasites. When researchers marigolds—in her garden,
gave a papaya seed she’d mix their orange and
preparation to children yellow heads with warm
who tested positive for pork fat (you can also use
intestinal parasites, it was petroleum jelly, beeswax, or
shown to be anti-helminthic olive oil). After a day of steeping,
(capable of eliminating parasitic the mixture was strained and jarred,
worms) and anti-amoebic (capable of to be used on rough hands, insect
destroying or suppressing amoebas); bites, acne, and other skin irritations.
it treated their parasites without High levels of antioxidants in the
harmful side effects. dried petals reduce the damage
And results of a double-blind caused by free radicals. Research
placebo-controlled trial that has shown the flowers contain anti-
were published in the journal inflammatory and antimicrobial
Neuroendocrinology Letters in components that prevent infection
2013 showed that volunteers with and heal wounds by helping form
digestive complaints like bloating new blood vessels and tissue. In
and constipation had significant patients with venous leg ulcers
improvements after ingesting a treated with either calendula
papaya pulp supplement called ointment or saline solution
Caricol. Papaya is also rich in dressings, calendula helped ulcers
vitamin C, and high in water and heal much faster.
fibre content, which regulates bowel
NETHERLANDS
activity. “Ever since that time in
Malaysia,” says Bonnie, “if we see LIQUORICE
papaya at the store, we buy it, just for Relieves Sore Throat
overall digestive health.” liquorice-based candy, called
dropjes, are as Dutch as wooden
GERMANY
shoes—but while few farmers still
CALENDULA wear wooden shoes, everybody
Calms Inflammation eats dropjes. “It’s a sort of national
“Many people in Germany consider pride,” says editor Paul Robert
calendula a miracle cure, and have in Amsterdam. “And you can get
their own recipe for a balm,” says them everywhere—supermarkets,
Annemarie Schäfer, who works on newsstands, pharmacies. They come

58 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

recalls with a laugh, “I gave them to

an American friend, who told me
they tasted just as terrible as the raw
herring and smoked eel that I’d given
her earlier!”
PORTUGAL
in all shades of brown and black with
flavours ranging from very sweet to GARLIC
very salty.” Gets Rid of Warts, Corns, Calluses
Besides being somewhat of an “We use a lot of garlic in our cuisine,”
addiction for the Dutch, it’s widely says editor Mario Costa in Lisbon.
known in northern European “But some people, especially in rural
countries that liquorice also serves areas, also use it to get rid of warts,
a medicinal purpose: sore-throat corns, and calluses.”
relief. Indeed, a 2013 randomised, Corns and calluses both involve
double-blind study of 236 people a buildup of skin at pressure points
by the Medical University of Vienna on the foot, while warts are small
found that patients who gargled a growths that can occur anywhere
liquorice solution before going into on the body and are caused by the
surgery requiring throat intubation human papillomavirus, or HPV.
had a lower risk of sore throat after Research from 2005 published in the
the surgery. International Journal of Dermatology
The extract of the liquorice showed that warts treated daily with
root, Glycyrrhizin, tastes sweeter a garlic extract disappeared for all the
than sugar, despite having a zero study subjects within two weeks, and
glycaemic index. But it’s not safe to corns disappeared for 80 per cent of
consume more than 100 milligrams subjects after three weeks.
per day, as it can dangerously reduce Garlic has antibacterial properties
blood potassium levels (a cup of (thanks to its main component,
liquorice tea contains roughly 30 allicin) and its antiviral effect may
milligrams, according to The British attack the virus that causes warts. Be
Medical Journal). careful not to allow raw garlic to touch
“When I was a child,” says Paul, healthy skin as it can cause irritation
“the best thing about having a cold and damage similar to a burn.
was that I’d get lots of dropjes. It worked for RD reader Georgina
Sucking on them soothed my throat of central Portugal. Here’s what she
back then, and still does now.” told us on Facebook: “A few years ago,
Dropjes are an acquired taste, when my friend’s aunt noticed me
especially the salty ones. “Once,” he limping because of a callus, she told

APRIL 2021 • 59
HOME REMEDIES

me about this home remedy. I baked in the other groups.

a few garlic cloves, crushed them, And a 2010 Iranian randomised,
and applied the pulp to the callus, double-blind clinical trial of 144
avoiding healthy skin. I covered women published in the Journal
it with gauze and changed this of Alternative and Complementary
compress daily. Although the smell Medicine showed that women who
was a little intense, after five days, had undergone caesarean sections
my callus disappeared.” and applied a St John’s wort ointment
three times a day for 16 days had
SLOVENIA
improved wound healing and less
ST JOHN’S WORT pain and scarring than those in the
Soothes Skin placebo and control groups.
“We use a balm containing St John’s Ingesting St John’s wort can also
wort to promote wound healing treat mild to moderate depression,
and soothe skin,” says editor Maja and menopause symptoms such
Lihtenvalner in Ljubljana. St John’s as hot flashes. But speak to your
wort is a plant with yellow flowers doctor before taking it, because it
that’s native to Europe, northern can cause serious side effects and
Africa, and southwestern Asia. drug interactions.
She describes how her friend
MEXICO
Neven, a consultant and olive oil
producer in his fifties, remembers ARNICA Reduces Bruising;
his grandmother always having the ALOE VERA Relieves Burns
remedy in her kitchen. “Neven would Arnica is popular in Mexico, says
spend summer vacations at her house RD editor Luis Eduardo Pineda Rosales
on the Adriatic Sea, and often got in Mexico City. “I played basketball
sunburned. His granny would apply when I was a kid, and sometimes my
a mixture of St John’s wort and olive fingers would get painfully bruised.
oil to his painful skin.” She also used it My mother would rub them with
on bruises and insect bites. “He says arnica balm, and in a few days the
it was always a relief.” bruising would be gone.” These days,
Animal studies out of Turkey in Luis uses it for sore muscles. “I keep
the past few years have shown that St arnica balm in my first-aid kit.”
John’s wort promotes wound healing Anti-inflammatory arnica, from
and also relieves burns; rats the same family as asters and
treated topically with St daisies, is said to reduce swelling
John’s wort four times and bruising. A 2013 review of 174
a day experienced more people with hand arthritis found
rapid healing than those that arnica gel reduced pain and

60 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

improved plants of the southern Rio Grande

function in region offers the health benefits they
the hand are purported to. The review showed
as effectively as that indeed, in several pre-clinical
an ibuprofen gel. As arnica can be studies, there’s evidence Tanara’s
poisonous, it should not be taken by grandmother was right: macela
mouth. (Achyrocline satureoides), which is
Luis has another go-to: aloe vera, or a plant in the daisy family, appears
sábila. A review of four studies from to be antispasmodic, helping relieve
Asia, published in the journal Burns, a cough. It’s also muscle-relaxing,
concluded that aloe mucilage (the anti-inflammatory, and analgesic.
gel inside its leaves) and some aloe
SPAIN
products can accelerate healing of
minor burns several days faster than OLIVE OIL
conventional medication. “Not long Softens Earwax
ago, I accidentally grabbed the handle We need earwax because it keeps the
of a hot pan,” recalls Luis. “Luckily skin inside the ear moisturised and
I keep sábila in a flowerpot on my helps prevent dirt and bacteria from
patio, so I got relief quickly.” reaching the inner ear. But a buildup
of too much wax can form a plug,
BRAZIL
contributing to hearing loss, ringing
MACELA in the ears, or dizziness. Plugs, called
Soothes Coughs cerumenosis, can happen if you use
“When we were kids, if we had a cotton swabs, which push wax in,
cough my grandmother would whip or if you’re naturally prone to the
one egg yolk with sugar and, when it buildup. It can happen especially in
had whitened, combine the mixture elderly people or those who wear
with a cup of macela [also spelled hearing aids.
marcela] tea,” says Tanara Vieira, a People in many parts of the world
designer for Reader’s Digest from Rio find that a little warm oil, such as
Grande do Sul. “It tasted so good almond or olive, can soften the wax,
that my sister, my cousins and I used unplugging the ear canal. Natalia
to pretend we were coughing so she Alonso, Madrid-based Reader’s Digest
would give it to us.” editor, says her sister-in-law, Carmen,
Across Brazil, plants have long been goes to her doctor to get built-up
used medicinally. A review of several earwax removed, but she sometimes
studies published in 2014 in the treats it herself.
Brazilian Journal of Pharmacognosy “On a recent beach holiday in
sought to show whether a variety of Galicia, she noticed her hearing

APRIL 2021 • 61
HOME REMEDIES

had diminished, and knew what the showed that components of manuka
problem was,” says Natalia. “So she honey can stimulate immune cells,
dipped a cotton swab in warm olive increasing our ability to fight bacteria
oil and let a little drip into her ear, (it’s especially effective against a
and soon the clog disappeared.” strain of streptococcus). Another
A University of Southampton study showed its antimutagenic,
review of 26 clinical trials found that antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory
earwax softeners are effective, and qualities may even help prevent or
that side effects are rare. Nevertheless, treat cancer.
it’s recommended you check with One small study showed that
your doctor before attempting self- manuka honey may improve dental
treatment of ear issues. health. Subjects given a chewable
form of the honey had a 34 per
NEW ZEALAND
cent reduction in plaque, and a
MANUKA HONEY similar reduction in bleeding for
Helps Many Ailments those with gingivitis, compared with
For centuries the Maori community study participants directed to chew
of New Zealand has relied on the bark sugarless gum. Some people use this
and leaves of the manuka bush— honey as a facial mask to soften and
native to New Zealand and sometimes brighten their skin. Says Julia, “I use
called a tea tree—for its health-giving it regularly, and I must say my skin
properties. More recently, the honey looks amazing!”
made from its white or pink flowers Check the label to make sure it’s
is the star: research shows this type genuine manuka honey from New
of honey has much higher levels of Zealand. Labels also carry a UMF
antibacterial and wound-healing (Unique Manuka Factor) grade up to
compounds than others. 26; the higher the number, the more
“Our whole family uses manuka healthful compounds it contains.
honey,” says Auckland-based Yulia
AUSTRALIA
McKenzie, who works in advertising
with the New Zealand edition’s RD EUCALYPTUS OIL
team. She says it’s a great-tasting Clears Sinuses
way to keep the immune system Adele Burley uses eucalyptus
healthy. “We use it on waffles and oil to alleviate cold symptoms like
cereal, and as a sugar substitute for nasal congestion. “It helps clear the
smoothies.” In winter months, Yulia’s airways,” says the Sydney-based
family uses the honey to soothe sore senior art designer for RD Australia.
throats and coughs. “I add a few drops to a bowl of
Research from Cardiff University steaming water, cover my head with

62 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

a towel, and
FINLAND
breathe in.” In
a randomised SAUNA
double-blind Boosts Circulation
trial of 152 people, “The steam sauna has been a Finnish
published in The tradition for hundreds of years, and
Laryngoscope in 2009, German most Finns go regularly,” says Ilkka
researchers found that the main Virtanen, Helsinki-based editor of
component of eucalyptus oil—1,8- Reader's Digest. A sauna is typically a
cineole, or eucalyptol—was effective room heated to between 80 degrees
and safe for treating sinusitis, helping and 100 degrees Celsius. When a
clear nasal blockages and mucus. person sits sweating in a sauna, their
The eucalyptus tree is native to heart rate increases, as does blood
Australia, and the oil from its leaves is flow in the skin, boosting circulation
similarly helpful if you have perennial as much as low to moderate exercise
allergic rhinitis—a chronically stuffy does. Risk of heart attack and stroke
or runny nose due to pet dander, are reduced, according to a 2015
mold, or dust. A South Korean study study of Finnish men published in
published in 2016 in Evidence-Based JAMA Internal Medicine. That research
Complementary and Alternative also showed that sitting in a sauna two
Medicine found that essential oils to three times a week lowers the risk of
including 1,8-cineole alleviated dying from any cause by 24 per cent.
symptoms. Of 54 people aged 20 to Another study showed that 15 minutes
60, those who inhaled the oils for five a day in a sauna five days a week may
minutes twice daily over seven days help to ease mild depression.
also had better sleep versus those If you’re new to the sauna, start
who inhaled a placebo. with five or ten minutes; 20 minutes
Don’t ingest eucalyptus oil, is the maximum. And if you have
though, and avoid applying it heart disease, or high or low blood
directly to your skin; if it’s undiluted pressure, speak to your doctor about
it could cause irritation. whether a sauna is safe. n

A Cardinal Mistake

In 1631, the royal printers Robert Barker and Martin Lucas mistakenly left out the
word "not" in the Bible's commandment "Thou shalt not commit adultery". The
edition is now know as the Wicked Bible or the Sinners' Bible
Source: theguardian.com/books/2015/oct/21/rare-sinners-bible-on-sale-bonhams-auction

APRIL 2021 • 63
 HEALTH

Sudden bald patches

can have many causes,
but most can be treated

A Hairy
Situation
To understand why unexpected
hair loss happens, it’s useful to know
the growth cycle of healthy hair.
by Anna Sharratt Usually, most of your hair is in a
growing phase, during which strands
lengthen by about 1.25 centimetres a
air loss is often begrudgingly month. This part of the cycle carries

H accepted as a natural part of

life. After all, most people,
women included, will lose some or
on for between two and eight years.
After that, there’s a middle phase,
lasting about three weeks, during
all of their hair as they get older. But which the hair isn’t getting longer but
when hair loss happens suddenly— also isn’t falling out. Finally, strands
handfuls coming out in the shower enter a resting phase, where the hair
or while brushing—it can be truly is loosened but sits in its follicle.
distressing. It can also be a signal Then, when the follicle begins to grow
of a health issue that needs to be a new hair, the old one drops out.
addressed as soon as possible. Due to this cyclical process, we all

64 • APRIL 2021
lose up to 100 strands of hair each worldwide, runs in families and can
day. “At any one time, about ten per be activated by a stressful event. In
cent of our hair is in the falling out some cases, alopecia is subtle; other
phase,” explains Jennifer Jones, a times, sufferers lose all their hair—
dermatologist from London, UK, and including their body hair, eyebrows
an advisor to the British Association and eyelashes. Patches of alopecia
of Dermatologists. tend to grow back, while full-body
When that balance is disrupted, a loss is usually permanent.
person can have too much hair in the Scarring from other autoimmune
resting phase—and a few months conditions—including eczema,
later, he or she might find that a large psoriasis and lichen planopilaris—
amount comes out all at once. can lead to patches of hair loss.
Similarly, ringworm, a fungal
infection, can affect the part of the
STRESS FROM head that it appears on.
GRIEVING, DIVORCE, Some people on prescription drugs
OR EVEN MOVING also experience a disruption of their
HOUSE CAN CAUSE growth cycle. For instance, hair loss
is a known side effect of some blood-
HAIR LOSS pressure medications, statins and
hormone replacement therapy,
among others. “If you notice hair
One of the main triggers for this loss, you should discuss it with your
disturbance is hormonal changes in doctor,” says Jones. “We can often
the body. Estrogen keeps hair in the switch your medications.”
growth phase, while androgens Treatment depends on the
shorten the growth cycle. underlying cause. To discover that, a
For this reason, giving birth and doctor might order blood tests,
thyroid issues—both of which shift perform a small skin biopsy or
the balance more toward examine the hairs under a
androgens—can cause hair loss. microscope. If the loss is hormone-
“Stress is also a massive trigger,” says or stress-related, it is usually
Jones. “So, life events like divorce, temporary, and resolves within a few
bereavement, or even moving house months without any intervention.
have this effect.” For cosmetic solutions, topical
Another common culprit is auto- steroids can help thicken hair, and
immune conditions, most notably hair transplants are another option.
alopecia. This condition, which Some people, of course, simply
affects two per cent of people embrace their hair loss. n

APRIL 2021 • 65
 My Britain:

Anglesey
T
he largest of the Welsh islands, Anglesey sits just off the
country's north-west coast. Such is its size, that it's only
five square kilometres smaller than Singapore. Anglesey is
the most populated of the British Isles after the Isle of
Man, with some 70,000 residents, most of whom are
native Welsh speakers. In literature, the island has something of a
mythic reputation, and has been known as the Dark Isle, the Isle of the
Brave, Honey Isle and Mother of Wales over the years.
The main towns on the island are Holyhead, Llangefni, Benllech,
Menai Bridge, and Amlwch. Anglesey is also home to the village with
the longest name in Europe—Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrn-
drobwllllantysiliogogogoch. Visitors to the island today enjoy its
unspoiled beaches, ancient heritage and breathtaking sites
of natural beauty.

66
 INSPIRE

“To be born in Wales,

with music in your
blood and poetry in
your soul is a
privilege indeed”
- Poet, Brian Harris
B EYS BT ROI TF ABI N
M R I: TAI SNHG L E S E Y

outstanding natural beauty. Having

Alison Lea-Wilson supplemented our meagre student
grants by growing oysters, our small
Alison Lea-Wilson of Halen Môn, enterprise evolved into a wholesale fish
a natural sea salt produced in and game business which we then ran
Anglesey, has lived on the island for for 12 years. We realised people were as
over four decades with her husband fascinated by the fish in the sea as the
and partner, David. Visit halenmon. fish on their plate so in 1983 we set up
com for more information The Sea Zoo, which ended up becoming
Wales’ largest aquarium.
When the seasonality of both these
businesses became a problem, we sat
down to brainstorm ideas of what we
could do to make money in the winter
months—we hit upon the idea of making
sea salt. We knew the sea around the
island was exceptionally clean as the

I moved to Anglesey with my

husband David more than 40 years ago.
For more than 30 of those, we have
restored and lived in an old Georgian
house with a farmhouse kitchen and a
garden where we grow much of the veg
we eat. We moved here all those years
ago to come to Bangor University.
In our student days we used to sell wet
fish in the student union to bolster our
shared student grant. After graduating,
having fallen in love with each other and
the island of Anglesey, we started
looking for ways that would allow us to
continue to live and work in this area of

68 • APRIL 2021
notoriously fussy sea horses at The Sea Ynys Môn is characterised by
Zoo bred happily in it. Sea horses are storybook coastlines, seemingly endless
very picky about the water in which they dunes, green, green grass, and—perhaps
live and breed so we had a feeling that most importantly for us—incredibly clean
these briny waters had the potential to seas. We have the most beautiful
produce the world’s finest sea salt. In combination of mountain and sea views,
1997, we left a saucepan of seawater to looking out as we do over Snowdonia,
boil on the AGA in our family kitchen and separated only by a thin stretch of water
as the salt crystals started to form, we called the Menai Strait. The island is
knew we’d struck culinary gold. peppered with so many memories of
We started supplying Halen Môn Sea walks, picnics, boat trips and businesses,
Salt to Swains, our local butchers in that it’s very hard to pick a favourite spot.
Menai Bridge on the Isle of Anglesey and If pushed, I’d probably choose either
they're still customers today. Our sea salt Ynys Llanddwyn, an island with a picture-
is enjoyed around the world by chefs, perfect lighthouse where we walk every
food lovers and even Barack Obama. Christmas day, or the beach right in front
It has been served at the 2012 Olympics, of Halen Môn—the view is never the
political summits and royal weddings same on any given day, and it’s the
and is a vital ingredient in Green & Blacks resource we have made our living from
chocolate and Piper’s crisps. for over 40 years.

67
APRIL 2021 • 69
B EYS BT ROI TF ABI N
M R I: TAI SNHG L E S E Y

I've lived in Anglesey all my life. My

Victoria Roberts three sisters and I grew up spending most
of our time in the water or on the water—
Victoria Roberts is the director of sailing, swimming, water skiing and
Wonderfully Wild, a luxury glamping windsurfing or on the beach. It was very
site in Anglesey. Visit wonderfullywild. much an outside childhood, we only went
co.uk for more information in when dinner was ready!
Everyone comes back to Anglesey
eventually. We all moved away for
university or jobs, but we all moved back
to raise our own families here on the
island. I think that speaks volumes, quality
of life.
The spirit of our community is rooted in
the landscape of the island. Anglesey
people are adaptable and have evolved
and changed as the island has. And of
course we have our Welsh language that
connects us and our spirit with the
landscape around us. It’s a living language
that we’re proud and fiercely protective of.
I love everything about Anglesey, wildflower meadow and started a tree
but if I had to choose one favourite planting scheme too. This year’s project
place it would be Penmon Point with its is adding in some further glamping units
iconic lighthouse. I’ve been drawn to it but you’ll have to wait and see what
since I was young, spending hours they’ll be!
fishing off the rocks or in my dad’s boat Anglesey is a great destination, it has
at Puffin Island pulling in the lobster everything—amazing places to eat, great
pots and watching all the nesting birds. places to stay (us!), lots to do and the
It’s an area steeped in history and you fresh air is free and unlimited.
can really feel it.
To plan a future visit to Anglesey,
We started our glamping site, head to visitanglesey.co.uk/en
Wonderfully Wild, eight years ago as
a farm diversification project and the
rest as they say is history. We offer luxury
glamping in safari lodges set on 15 acres
of private land, each with their own
facilities and some with wood fired hot
tubs too.
Last year we started our rewilding
project in order to turn some areas into

71
 INSPIRE

If I Ruled The World

Mark Galeotti
Dr Mark Galeotti is a scholar and writer, whose career has
stretched from being attached to the British Foreign Office
to teaching about organised crime in Moscow

We’d introduce a “Stuff Happens” I think that sounds like a fine idea.
law. It seems that whenever I wouldn’t expect people to wear them
something bad happens, the first every day, but it would make
question is, “Who is to blame?” weddings, funerals and office parties
and the second is, “What’s the much more glittering spectacles and
compensation?” When someone save people like me from worrying
really is at fault, whether it’s a they are ever going to be over- or
business owner who sold under-dressed for an event.
substandard goods or a government
that blundered, then of course there I’d make politicians do work
ought to be an apology, prompt experience. Most democracies
measures to put things right, and, now have a political class that to a
if appropriate, some kind of considerable extent is made up of
recompense. But sometimes, “stuff people who pretty much decided on
happens” and it shouldn’t be so hard this trajectory at university. Too many
to prove that no one actually did may have dabbled in politics-friendly
wrong. It’s infantilising, it’s counter- careers such as the law, PR or
productive, and it’s just plain stupid. finance—depending on which side of
the aisle they are on—but essentially
There would be more uniforms. are professional politicians. Yet
In late tsarist Russia, everyone from politics would be enriched by more
librarians to lawyers had official, people with practical experiences of
military-style uniforms, with the the issues which they are debating
appropriate garnish of braid and shiny and deciding: not just doctors and
buttons as you rose through your surgeons, but nurses and midwives to
profession. Postmen even got a sword! weigh in on health issues; police,

72 • APRIL 2021
prison and probation
officers who spent time at
the sharp end of the
criminal justice system;
market traders’ and
shopkeepers’
perspectives on the
economy. To this end,
every newly-elected
parliamentarian should
spend three of their first four
summer recesses in work
experience, getting a taste of a
different career each time.

Dogs would be given their due.

Of course, my most urgent act would
be to give proper recognition to dogs, make it too easy for people to say
as examples of the kind of unstinting the most terrible things, secure
love and unhesitating companionship behind their “handle.” It’s not a
to which we all should aspire. denial of your right to free speech
Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, if someone else blocks you (any
dictator of Turkmenistan, is a man more than if someone chooses not to
who has decreed that all black cars stand there if you are insulting them
should be painted white or silver and to their face).
made his cabinet applaud him for his
weight-lifting, but erecting a six-metre There would be grammar police.
statue of a dog in his capital is one of It’s time we pedants had a paramilitary
the less barking mad of his decisions. arm. Next time someone sneers about
We could do with more dog statues. the “grammar police” when they insist
on making a plural with an
I’d make time for online etiquette. apostrophe, or confuses its, it’s and its’,
The online world can be tremendously then in they should storm, correction
enriching but it can also be a sea fluid in one fist, handcuffs in the other,
of vitriol, bile and spleen, a virtual ready to drag the offender off to
haven for casual insults, open reformatory, the “Grammar Gulag.”n
prejudice and naked aggression.
It’s time for some online manners. A Short History of Russia by Mark Galeotti
Out go anonymous accounts, that (Ebury Press, £12.99) is out now

APRIL 2021 • 73
 INSPIRE

14 Books Helping Our

Key Workers Survive
By Parisa Hashempour

Books are valuable for so much they have been lifelines. Here,
more than simply reading, coronavirus front-liners
they're for sharing, escaping, reveal what reading means to
learning and growing. For many them right now, how books
of us, they are a form of therapy. helped them cope, and most
But for key workers operating importantly, which books have
in the UK during the pandemic been on their reading list.

74
 The Prison Doctor
by Dr Amanda Brown

Charlie Ross, prison officer

I have been running the prison’s COVID-19

symptomatic isolation unit. This means anyone who
shows symptoms, has been in contact with a confirmed
case or is new to the jail must live on my unit for 14 days
in total quarantine. The PPE shortage in March meant
that I had one mask to last me days of shifts.
We aren’t allowed to take any technology into the
prison, no phones, Fitbits or Kindles. An old-school,
bent spine and crinkled-paged book is something I had
never thought I would turn to and love—but I’m so glad
I did. The Prison Doctor reminded me I’m not alone in
my work and the traumas I see. I also use the book to
send to others to explain my job, it gave me the words
when I couldn’t find the energy to use my own.

Pie Fidelity: In
Defence of British Food
by Pete Brown

Kirsty Hall, teacher

I love food and eating out and in a time of restaurant

closures and travel bans, this was the perfect remedy
to fill that hole in my life. Pete is from Yorkshire (like
me) so this was also close to my heart.
The book reminded me of food’s power to bring
people together and was a good trip down memory
lane for childhood tastes and particular memories
of food. It’s a poignant defence of the value of British
street food and questions why certain foods are
“looked down on” even though they are cheap,
filling and tasty.

APRIL 2021 • 75
14 BOOKS HELPING OUR KEY WORKERS SURVIVE

On Earth We're
Briefly Gorgeous
by Ocean Vuong

Megan Williams, health food shop worker

There have been a lot of people coming into the shop

seeking remedies for anxiety and poor sleep during
this time, and it feels good to be able to help them.
Sometimes you're the only person they will speak
to that day, and it's nice to be able to offer support
and company to people. After a long day at work,
reading is a form of escapism and definitely helps me
relax—I can almost feel my blood pressure falling when I settle down with a
good book. Vuong is a poet so the imagery of this book is just so beautiful. It
is delicate and raw and emotive, and it really took my breath away. I sobbed
when I had finished it. I'd recommend it because it lifts you out of your world
and into his. I was immersed in the telling of this story, and it was good to
feel someone else's experiences and pain instead of wallowing in my own.

A Thousand Splendid Suns

by Khaled Hosseini

Margaret Pearson, civil servant and school governor clerk

It is just a wonderful book. I have read it before, and

I was waiting for the right moment to reread it. This
year felt the right time, as the women in the book face
so many challenges. It was a reminder that despite the
pandemic, our lives remain relatively good.
The book takes you on a journey, you feel like
a part of the story and see everything from the
perspective of the main character. You feel their
pain and emotion while gaining an understanding of life for women in
Afghanistan. I really did forget about everything else while reading and I just
couldn’t wait to pick it up each time. I also rationed myself, so I didn’t read it
too quickly—it kept the pleasure going for longer. I’m grateful that 2020 gave
me that time to read.

76 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

And I Do Not Forgive You:

Stories and Other Revenges
by Amber Sparks

* Zara, anti-terrorism finance analyst

Between giving birth at the start of the pandemic and

heading back to work soon after, I’ve had little time to
unwind. The idea of a book composed of short stories
appealed to me because it felt more manageable. Every
story was perfectly crafted and felt so deliberate and
real. I always admire when an author possesses the
ability to take you on a roller coaster ride through the darkest and strangest
corners of their imagination and that’s what I found in this book.
It’s helped me completely switch off from the warped reality we’re all
facing. For me that reality consisted of postpartum depression, loneliness,
exhaustion, baby s**t and vomit. Not to mention the fact all of that happened
in the middle of a global pandemic with no real access to family. This book
made me laugh and made me focus on myself again.

Ghosts
by Dolly Alderton

Dani Tomlinson, medical secretary

This book really makes you laugh, and with such a

challenging year behind us, we all need something
to perk us up and escape to. I love Dolly Alderton's
style of writing. I enjoyed her first novel and I knew
this one would be just as good. I thought it was
clever how she used the term "ghosting" in not only a
physical sense of being ghosted by someone but in a
metaphorical sense too.
The past year has been hard because there has been no outlet or form
of respite as you can't go anywhere or see anyone. Reading has been really
good for me. I enjoy writing, and I have been doing it a lot more during the
pandemic. Reading more has also really helped me to improve my writing.

• The name has been changed to maintain confidentiality

APRIL 2021 • 77
14 BOOKS HELPING OUR KEY WORKERS SURVIVE

Milkman
by Anna Burns

Ben Whiteside, trainee teacher

I haven’t been able to travel home as much as I’d like to this

year, so reading books from home has made me feel more
connected to my family and friends back in Belfast.
Milkman is set in a nameless city full of anonymous citizens
in the middle of a violent internal conflict—a facsimile of
Belfast during the Troubles. Burns strips away all the
cultural context and doesn’t acknowledge or even name any political entities in
the novel. England is “the country over the water”, the south of Ireland is “the
country over the border”, Catholics are “us”, Protestants are “them”.
The way the whole thing plays out is ridiculous and doesn’t make any sense.
However, it did make me reflect guiltily on the fact that I have never been able to
fully accept my Reebok trainers because they have a tiny Union Jack on them. The
main way the pandemic has affected me is by making home feel much further
away than it used to. I have read a few books by Irish authors recently: Anna
Burns, Colin Barrett, Seamus Heaney, Flann O’Brien. It’s a good way to connect
with home until it’s safe to travel again.

Everything I Know About Love

by Dolly Alderton

Emily Josephine Halliwell O’Brien, deputy headteacher

My partner of 11 years and I were due to be

married in August 2020. There have been many
date revisions, but we are hopeful and looking
forward to sealing the deal sometime soon. He has
been a shining sunbeam in this difficult year; but
a liberal amount of Pinot Grigio and reading in the
bath have also played quite a key role.
I loved the silly, messy, relatable vibe of Dolly
Alderton’s memoir. The quote “Nearly everything
I know about love, I've learned from my long-term friendships with women”
resonated with me a lot.

78 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

My System
by Aron Nimzowitsch

James Davies, support worker

Not only is this book a terrific read, but also,

I see chess as very didactic and found comfort
in the comparisons it holds with life. During the
pandemic, views on life and security have changed.
Not everything is in our control and no matter how
calculated one is in applying order, chaos can ensue.
But in both life and chess, we must keep moving, and it’s through these
movements we gain knowledge and insight. I’ve been delivering care to
vulnerable adults, which is challenging at the best of times but exacerbated by
current circumstances. Through reading, even if it’s about a game, I’ve gained
perspective, and I was able to leave whatever situational tribulations I was
experiencing behind, even if it was just for a few pages.

A Little Life
by Hanya Yanagihara

Sally McKerron, junior doctor in ICU

When things change every day, it doesn't feel like there's

time or space to reflect properly. If there were, sadly,
I wonder how many of the NHS workforce would struggle
to come into work the next day. Books are a small
remedy, helping us reflect on what has happened to us
through reading about what has happened to others.
Call it schadenfreude or that comforting feeling of
"things could always be worse," but there was just something therapeutic about
A Little Life and its relentlessness. Coming in at just over 700 pages it follows
the lives of four young men in New York, focusing on the utterly miserable
protagonist Jude.
It's a slog—and weeks of pure literary therapy. It's a tough read but worth it
for the beautiful writing and character arcs. It might sound dramatic but never
before have I come to know characters in such an intimate way. When I finished
it I was bereft. I wept so much I had to go to bed. In fact, I'm welling up now.

APRIL 2021 • 79
14 BOOKS HELPING OUR KEY WORKERS SURVIVE

The Testaments
by Margaret Atwood

Ciara Roddy, care home activities leader

Before I began working there, deaths at the care home

meant morale was low and many residents lost weight
due to anxiety and upset. This book really helped in
2020 because I needed a way of shutting out the stresses
and difficulties of the year. It helped me turn off after
work as I was able to shut out everything and get fully
lost in the drama!
I’ve dealt with the last year OK, thanks to family and friends. But reading
has also played a big role—at the start of lockdown I made a list of books that
I wanted to check off and read, and I started working my way through them.
I bought a Kindle too, to make it easier to get books without ordering online.
It was a hobby I could enjoy without having to risk even receiving packages.

Purple Hibiscus
by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Anna McClatchey, clinical fellow in respiratory medicine

Purple Hibiscus was emotionally challenging, yet it was

interesting to read a book based on such a different
culture and background. It highlighted the many ways
race, sex and money can influence children’s upbringing
but how family connections can get you through any of
life’s challenges.
This book was simply a way to escape the realities of daily life in 2020, be
that the struggles of lockdown, not being able to see family and friends and
also getting through tough shifts dealing with death and grieving families.
I’ve found connecting with friends in new ways to be a great way of keeping
focused on what and who is important to me. Reading has been another way
for me to connect with different worlds and explore how history, politics and
current affairs affect our views.

80 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

Queenie
by Candice Carty-Williams

Adya Rana, trainee teacher

My interest in anti-racism stemmed from working as a

British-Indian employee in two predominantly white
industries (marketing and sustainability). Through books
like Queenie I learned that my experience of racism
cannot be compared to that of a Black woman living in
the UK. Via relatable situations from office politics, power
dynamics and romances to embarrassing one-night stands, we are shown
through Queenie’s first-person narrative the persisting presence of racism.
It also highlighted the importance of knowing your worth, and appreciating
true and genuine friendships; those who always show up, give you their
precious time and are by your side through the good and the bad. I definitely
owe much of surviving 2020 to those good, true friendships!

Educated
by Tara Westover

Larissa Buran, Track and Trace centre worker

This memoir really touched me. The author’s persistence

and constant fight for understanding and owning her
own identity and voice in the world resonated with me a
lot. It helped me look at my own privileges and be more
grateful for life, especially amid the complaints and
resignation the pandemic brought on.
Reading definitely helped me to cope with the
challenges of 2020. Mostly, I read memoirs or books based on true stories,
but also romances or classics. It was definitely my way of carving out my own
time and getting my head away from COVID for a bit.

Escapism, perspective or offering us a way to reconnect with the world, this is how books
soothe our minds and burn life back into us in times of hardship. Let us applaud the key
workers in their efforts amidst this pandemic—and say thank you for the reading list too.

APRIL 2021 • 81
 INSPIRE

MEDITATIVE
GAMING
Jenessa Williams explores the surprising
role that video games can play in managing
our mental health

FOR
MENTAL
HEALTH
82
83
M E D I TAT I V E G A M I N G

Nearly a year on, it is fair to say that the

coronavirus pandemic has impacted us
all. Stress, anxiety and isolation are all
deeply understandable sensations in
this age of uncertainty, and we all find
different ways to get through it–TV,
books, crafts or indeed, video games
While "gaming" might make you Whether you’re an experienced
think of first-person shoot-em-ups gamer or a technological novice,
or high-speed car racing, there is a it’s never too late to try something
softer side to video games too. From new. Here, three gamers explain
aeroplane flight simulators to virtual how their favourite meditative titles
farming, players are taking more have helped them to manage times
comfort than ever in meditative of grief, depression and isolation,
games of repetition and strategy, turning their virtual worlds into a
where "game over" is not an option welcome escape.
so much as infinitely remodelling
imaginary worlds. At their best, these HAVING EXPERIENCED SEVERAL close
video games can offer a real sense of family losses, Kevin finds Football
immersion, and we’ve been drawn Manager to be a nostalgic, soothing
in our droves towards titles that way to manage his grief.
offer simple, slow-paced gameplay, “I was staying overnight at
soothing in their lack of peril. a friend's house when I first

84 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

experienced the game that would loved ones that has really shaped
become Football Manager. My me as a person. I’ve only just turned
friend’s parents had bought him a 40 but have lost a sister, my father,
PC to help him with his schoolwork, a nephew and, most recently, my
and Championship Manager 2 was mother. I was 18 when my sister died,
the only two-player game he had. and I became fairly self-destructive;
Even though it took the best part of I quit college and spent a lot of time
an hour to load a new game, we were at the pub to try and numb what I
always happy to wait. was feeling. With my mum’s help,
Though my experiences with the I was just coming out of the cycle
effects of poor mental health started when Dad also passed. Two losses
in childhood—my father suffered hit hard—my drinking grew to seven
from depression and was both pints a night, my weight ballooned to
mentally and physically abusive—it 20-plus stone and I lost two jobs in
has been coping with the loss of quick succession.

I'M LEARNING TO COPE WITH MY

GRIEF BETTER EVERY DAY, AND
FOOTBALL MANAGER HELPS WITH THAT

Kevin, 40, has found playing

Football Manager (left)
soothing during times of
extreme grief. Right; At his
beloved Newcastle United

APRIL 2021 • 85
M E D I TAT I V E G A M I N G

Again it was Mum who helped impulsive and win, or take a more
me out of my spin. She found me methodical approach to success—it’s
a part-time job where I was on my really up to you and what you find
feet and talking with people all day. rewarding. I think that’s what makes
I started to make new friends, to it so popular—you can feel like
exercise more and to drink less. I lost you’re succeeding by simply being
nine stone in two years and got my yourself. That sort of acceptance is
career on track before deciding to all any of us truly crave.”
head to university, where I gained a
first-class degree and found the love THROUGHOUT THE PANDEMIC,
of my life. It’s been a little over two Doreen has used Nintendo's Animal
years since I lost my young nephew Crossing: New Horizons to manage
and my mother. I’m still recovering her anxiety and stay connected.
and processing the grief of both. “I’ve always been a big gamer—my
Grief is different for everyone, parents have a Polaroid photo of

ANIMAL CROSSING HASN'T "CURED" ME,

BUT IT HAS ALLOWED ME TO FEEL MORE
CONNECTED TO MY SUPPORT NETWORK

and while I have tried counselling, me on their bed with a Commodore

it’s been music and gaming that 64 in front of me, playing Q*bert
have helped me through the worst on their bedroom television. As a
periods of my life. Mum and I were teenager, I borrowed my cousin’s
very close, and the void she’s left PlayStation 2 to play Final Fantasy
looms large. But I’m learning to VII into the wee hours on a school
cope a little better every day, and night—I think it was 4am on a
Football Manager helps with that. It Tuesday when I finally finished!
might seem silly, especially to non- I had originally played Animal
footballing or gaming fans, but the Crossing on the GameCube in
escapism really relaxes me, and by the early 2000s; it was incredibly
the time I finish playing, I always feel distinctive in its utilisation of passing
like I’ve somehow reset myself. real-time, and I really enjoyed that it
Football Manager is an amazing wasn’t a game to "beat". When it was
way to put some distance between announced that Animal Crossing:
you and your worries. You can be New Horizons would be released

86 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

Doreen has loved

gaming since she
was a child. Right;
A polaroid of her
playing Q*bert
on a Commodore
64 in her parents'
bedroom

on Nintendo Switch in in touch during

2020, I was incredibly the pandemic.
excited. I was saving Gaming is a
up to purchase a Switch Lite when great escape from problems and
my boyfriend surprised me with stress. My mother is diagnosed with
a console, which he gave to me in bipolar disorder and hasn’t always
person right before the first UK- been great at managing it, so I’ve
wide lockdown. He mailed a copy of long been vigilant to mental health,
New Horizons to me, and I’ve been but it wasn’t until I had lived in
playing it solidly on a near-daily the UK for a few years that I sought
basis for the best part of a year. help for my own suicidal feelings,
Many of the game’s achievements anxiety and depression, which led
are reliant on quiet gratification: to a course of Cognitive Behavioural
catching all the bugs and fish, Therapy. After being signed off
unlocking abilities, making friends from work for stress in 2020, I
with the cute animals on your island. began again with weekly NHS IAPT
There’s always a new season to look online counselling, which has been
forward to, villagers moving out or incredibly helpful for addressing my
in, new ways to decorate your island. self-critical thoughts.
But what really makes it fun is being Mental health is something we
able to interact with friends in- all have to get more comfortable
game—a hugely welcome way to stay with talking about. Having anxiety

APRIL 2021 • 87
M E D I TAT I V E G A M I N G

or depression is often seen as always been something I just did

something to 'get over' rather than quietly in my room, so the idea of
something to get ongoing help with. broadcasting it seems quite strange!
Animal Crossing hasn’t 'cured' me, That said, I now know that it can be
but it has allowed me to feel more an incredible way to connect with
connected to my support network. others. I hope people enjoy watching
Being in a long-distance relationship, me shake some trees!”
the only time I’ve been able to see
my partner during the pandemic has RACHEL HAS ALWAYS ENJOYED
been online, often while playing New classic action fighter games, but
Horizons together on virtual dates. prefers the comfort of violence-free
With a group of friends, I’ve started a Lego Adventure games when she’s
chat group to keep track of the stalk feeling low.
market prices on our islands, and "Ever since the 1980s, I've always
to swap fossils and furniture. I’m had a computer. I was a big fan of
glad to have had something that has storytelling 'choose your adventure'
pulled us closer together. games, until one year when Dad
I’ve recently signed up to Mind’s bought me a Nintendo console. I was
"Switch Off, Game On" campaign, about eight. He got it second-hand
which encourages people to play off a friend, but when we plugged
marathon online gaming sessions it in, it didn't work! He must have
to raise money. Gaming has felt really guilty, because he went

Rachel normally
loves fighter
games, but when
she's struggling
with her mental
health, it's
the Lego series
she turns to

88 • APRIL 2021
 READER’S DIGEST

out and got me the Super Nintendo immersive world, with all these little
instead, and it all started from there. quests and details.
I happened upon the Lego Games During that same depressive
by complete chance—a friend of episode, a friend sent me The Last
mine was talking about playing them of Us, a zombie apocalypse survival
with his kids, and how much they all game. It’s the sort of adventure I’d
enjoyed them. I was a bit sceptical normally like, but I found that I was
at first, but within half an hour of getting really anxious when I was
playing Lord of the Rings, I was playing it—physical cold sweats,
completely taken by it. tense shoulders. It’s one thing to be
I went through a really bad fighting zombies, but if you’re having
depressive episode about three years a hard time dealing with the humans
ago, where I ordered lots of Lego in your real life, you don’t want to be
Games and played them for at least dealing with it in-game too! I had to
eight hours a day, every day. I was turn it off and go back to Lego.

THERE ARE HORRIBLE EXPECTATIONS OF

ADULTS THESE DAYS, WHERE WE'VE JUST LOST
OUR SENSE OF PLAY COMPLETELY

hiding from my problems really, Hardcore gamers can be so

but it worked well to quieten the dismissive of "fluffier" titles, but you
horrible negative thoughts that were have to just ignore that and focus on
roaring in my brain. the things that work for you. There
Lego games tend to be tethered to are horrible expectations of adults
movies, and focus on following those these days, where we've just lost our
familiar storylines—Harry Potter, sense of play completely. If it feels
Jurassic World, Indiana Jones. There calming for you and isn't hurting
are tasks to complete, but you can anyone else, go for it! Everyone
also do extra challenges to collect should allow themselves space to
trophies and items. I think that sense find that kind of peace.” n
of completion-achievement helps;
it's a bit like, OK, at least I can do this If you're struggling with mental
one thing, I’m not a total failure. health, speak to your GP, visit mind.
I still like the Lord of the Rings org.uk or call Samaritans on 116 123
game best—it feels like this huge for confidential advice and support

APRIL 2021 • 89
 TR AVEL & ADVENTURE

90
Spain’s Best-Kept Secret
Asturias, with its gorgeous sea-to-sky landscapes
and world-class cuisine, is like a country all its own
BY Bruce Schoenfeld
From NatioNal GeoGraphic

The pink-stone Basilica of Santa

María la Real de Covadonga in
the Picos de Europa (Peaks of
Europe) National Park
S P A I N ’ S B E S T- K E P T S E C R E T

his is a meal I could both those cities. “Nowhere else in

T
eat nowhere else, it Spain can you find so many flavours,
occurs to me around such incredible variety, in such a
the seventh course. small area,” says José. “It is like an
I’m in the mountains entire country.”
of Asturias, and I’ve We’re dining at Casa Marcial.
been served a dish Housed in an old mansion, or casona,
of sea urchin and ham that unites decorated with window boxes and
the coast and peaks of this northern topped by a barrel-tiled roof, the
Spanish province in one bite. Two restaurant sits at the top of a winding
tables away, I see José Antelo raise road in La Salgar, a mountain village
his fork in triumph. Antelo is an air that smells of pine. The coast is six

photo, previous spread: © Getty imaGes/istockphoto. this paGe: ©clare harGreaves/alamy stock
traffic controller in Barcelona. His miles to the north, but La Salgar
brother, Luis, is a judge in Madrid. remains so deeply embedded in
They live in two of Europe’s top the hilly, heavily forested interior
restaurant cities; they can enjoy of the region that, I’m told, many
memorable meals night after night. of its residents spend their entire
But three or four times a year, they childhoods without ever seeing the
meet to eat in Asturias. water. The Manzano family opened
Asturias? This autonomous Casa Marcial in the middle of the
region of Spain lying along the Bay last century as a general store, selling
of Biscay, dense with trees that run olive oil, cider, cattle feed, even
up hillsides, dotted by wild clothing. In 1993, 22-year-old Nacho
marshland, and scalloped with tidy Manzano, the son of the owners,
beaches, is hundreds of miles from returned from the coast to start a
restaurant. Gastronomes such as the
Antelos love Casa Marcial, which has
been awarded two Michelin stars.
So do locals, who don’t dress up to
eat there.
When I head back over the
mountain to my hotel in seaside
Gijón, it’s almost dawn. Walking in
the November drizzle by the seawall,
I pass a rowboat filled with fishermen.
When I look around me, and
remember the village I just left,
José’s description hits home. Asturias
is like an entire country.

92 • APRIL 2021
 RETURNING TO THE region for the first Above: Surfing lessons at Playa de San
time in years, I’d driven north from Lorenzo beach in Gijón, one of the most
Madrid a few days before. After hours popular beaches in Asturias. Opposite:
on a flat brown mesa, at the northern Fabada Asturiana, a rich bean stew, at
edge of the province of León I entered Casa Marcial restaurant in La Salgar
the Negrón tunnel—and emerged
somewhere else, in a land all its own. unknown in the other. Oviedo has the
The highway curved through a valley better museums; Gijón has the beach.
rimmed with tall pines, past bulbous Twice a year, the Sporting Gijón and
rock formations atop vertiginous Real Oviedo football teams bring the
slopes. I saw homes with picture rivalry to life before a full stadium.
windows cantilevered over stone- Most visitors come upon Oviedo
paved streets and ancient granaries first. They seek out some of the best
perched on stilts. There had been no pre-Romanesque architecture in
official demarcation when I passed the world, 14 preserved buildings,
from León to Asturias. But I hadn’t including the tall ninth-century
needed one. palace-church complex of Santa
I was heading for the Asturian María del Naranco. I go there first,
photo: ©chiara Goia

capital of Oviedo, a compact city of and enter a vaulted room made of

roughly 220,000 residents separated stones the colour of milk-clouded
from the slightly larger Gijón by coffee. Only one other person is
rapidly encroaching suburbs. Each here. The windows are cut thick into
city has a proprietary social scene; the walls, their shutters flung open.
you can be a VIP in one and all but I peer over a grove of trees and

APRIL 2021 • 93
S P A I N ’ S B E S T- K E P T S E C R E T

see the city spread out below. weather. We were a long drive from
Within the hour I’m making my anywhere, there were no flights. We
way through Oviedo and find assumed that nobody would want
sculptures on almost every corner; to come.”
more than a hundred adorn the Then two things happened:
city. Before I reach my hotel, I pass Europe’s new bargain airlines
“La Maternidad,” a rounded woman began flying here in the late 1990s;
with an equally rounded child by and Woody Allen’s 2008 film Vicky
Colombian sculptor Fernando Cristina Barcelona sent its characters
Botero, then Miguel Ortiz Berrocal’s to Oviedo for a weekend. “Woody
“El Diestro,” a metallic rendering of a Allen told the world we exist,” Esther
bullfighter’s torso. says. “He opened the world’s eyes,
Oviedo’s artistic awakening but he also opened our eyes.” A statue
has happened only over the last of the controversial writer-director
generation, just as Nacho Manzano stands off Calle Uria.
started drawing international Tourism has helped raise the
attention to his small restaurant in standard of living in Asturias, but
the mountains. “Before then, we it hasn’t changed its nature. Spain
didn’t think Asturias had much to entertained more than 80 million
offer the world,” explains Esther visitors last year, enough to overrun
Manzano, Nacho’s sister, who has many of its best-known places:
her own restaurant, La Salgar, in the Barcelona has been transformed
centre of Gijón. “We didn’t believe in from the raucous port town it
ourselves. We didn’t have fantastic used to be. Madrid seems like
an international shopping mall.
Asturias, however, remains regional,
strong-flavoured, authentic.
While Oviedo, like many inland
cities, tends to be insular, overtly
polite, and socially inaccessible,
Gijón is a port town: working-class
and occasionally profane, open to
the sea and new ideas. Oviedo has an
opera house and a full programme
to fill it; Gijón prefers its series
of avant-garde festivals. When I
visited, the Jazz Xixón festival was
underway, and I bought a ticket to
see the experimental band Portico

94 • APRIL 2021
 Opposite: The Cathedral of
Oviedo in the Alfonso II square.
Right: Looking toward the city
of Oviedo from the Church of
Santa Maria del Naranco, a
pre-Romanesque church built
into a mountain near Oviedo

Quartet. It was easy to spot

the blazing neon sign for the
venue, Teatro Jovellanos,
mounted above a pedestrian
mall. Inaugurated in 1899, the
theatre was renovated shortly
after the fall of ruler Francisco
Franco in 1975 and bought by
Gijón in 1995. It has served as
a cultural centerpiece since.
I spoke with Tonio Criado,
the festival’s director, in
the lobby underneath an
enormous crystal chandelier.
Criado grew up in a small
inland town near Cangas de
Onís before moving to Gijón. Now he 17th-century peasant house, a
wouldn’t live anywhere else. “It’s the covered alley where the bowling
youngest city in the region, and the game cuatreada is played, a bagpipe
freshest,” he told me. “You find that museum (bagpipes are a common
in our music, our cuisine, our way of instrument in Asturias and Galicia),
life.” When I asked him whether he and several of the granaries—called
feels Spanish or Asturian, he didn’t hórreos—that are ubiquitous in the
hesitate. “Oh, Asturian. But really, area. There is a food exhibit, and I’m
photos: ©shutterstock x2

I am from Gijón. What we are doing astonished to see how rudimentary

here couldn’t happen in Oviedo.” the kitchens were, even in urban
areas, into the 1950s and 1960s.
THE FOLLOWING morning, I visit Many of the dishes made in those
Gijón’s Museum of the Asturian kitchens are now served at Esther
People, a re-creation of a traditional Manzano’s restaurant, La Salgar. If
village. The grounds include a Casa Marcial is where the Manzano

APRIL 2021 • 95
S P A I N ’ S B E S T- K E P T S E C R E T

family adds an Asturian element to Not far away is Tito Bustillo Cave,
high gastronomy, La Salgar rewards site of one of the more remarkable
Asturians with deliciously familiar discoveries of the last century. In
food amid Gijón’s clamour. The 1968 a group of amateur spelunkers
idea was to have local diners taste discovered a magnificent series of
quintessential versions of dishes cave drawings, dating back more
they’ve been eating all their lives, than 10,000 years, on the walls.
such as arroz con pitu, the chicken, Another mysterious drawing was
rice, and red pepper that every made some 30,000 years ago,
Asturian remembers from childhood. according to carbon dating. Although
“Dishes of the home,” Esther the site has been validated by
declares, “served in a restaurant.” experts, its existence continues to
Like San Francisco and Scotland, raise questions. Why were drawings
bad weather suits Asturias. I leave made in precisely the same place
Gijón and head east along the coast some 20,000 years apart?
under a steady drizzle. In August, I ponder that over lunch 15
Ribadesella attracts Spaniards minutes to the north, on a spit of
desperate for a respite from beach. Güeyu Mar restaurant is a
oppressive heat. On a misty cool glorified shack where owner-chef
November morning, it’s a particularly Abel Alvarez has been grilling fish
lovely fishing village. Kids splash since 2007. His menu is whatever
through puddles in the streets. the boats have brought in that day,
Adults walk dogs. Shop owners stand supplemented by seafood in tins that
in the doorways greeting friends. Alvarez has preserved. There’s no
meat, rice, or potatoes;
just seafood, local
vegetables, and excellent
“GREEN SPAIN” bread rolls. I eat razor
Asturias has the Green Spain designation, clams and sardines,
reflecting the province’s pristine, verdant grilled cockles and
landscapes and cooler, wetter climate. A kingfish. I drink Asturian
network of trails covers the region, headlined wine (which barely
by the Camino del Norte, the quieter northern
existed a decade ago),
branch of Spain’s famous Camino de Santiago.
a blend of three local
Running from the French border to Santiago
de Compostela, it skirts such Asturian red grape varieties. Crisp
highlights as the tidal blowholes of Vidiago and salty, it tastes like
and the paleolithic Tito Bustillo Cave the sea.
Rain is falling again;
when I step outside, I

96 • APRIL 2021
 Cangas de Onís, and the much-
READER’S DIGEST
photographed Roman bridge
see a vivid rainbow arching
from the hilltop trees down
to the water. Then I pivot
inland. I stop in the hill town
of Cangas de Onís, where a
much-photographed Roman
bridge spans an unhurried
stream. From there the next
morning, it’s a short trip to
Covadonga, one of Spain’s
most historic spots. You could
argue that modern Spain
began when the Moors were front of a line of stopped cars.
halted here by the Visigoth I park and walk into the nearby
nobleman Pelagius, the founder brush, inhaling air so fresh that
of the Kingdom of Asturias, in 718. it sends a jolt of sharpness into my
Spaniards needed nearly 800 more chest. The spiky mountain peaks
years before they expelled the Moors, surround me from a distance; all
but the Battle of Covadonga marked I hear is the din of the sheep bells,
the start of the reversal. like church bells ringing. A driver
The setting is breathtaking, with honks in frustration, but that only
a serpentine road leading up a makes the sheep stop in their tracks.
canyon, past a waterfall and then a With great deliberation, they look
small shrine. At the top, shimmering around, then resume their shuffle.
above the mist, rises the majestic, Eventually the stragglers get
pink-stone Basilica of Santa María across. By now, traffic probably
la Real de Covadonga. I’ve visited snakes halfway down the mountain.
before, but hadn’t seen the lakes The cars are starting to move, but
above Covadonga in the Picos de I can’t walk back just yet. The bells
Europa (Peaks of Europe) National clank and the air crackles and the
Park. Now up another winding road peaks look like cathedral spires.
I drive, bound for those lakes. Trees Around me is a sea of sheep. I’ve
fall away, and the view opens to a sky never been anywhere like this. And
photo: ©Getty imaGes

of cottony clouds. I don’t want to leave. n

Then I hear bells. They start softly,
but soon their jangle has drowned Note: the writer visited Asturias
out the car radio. I round a bend before the COVID-19 pandemic
and see several hundred sheep From NatioNal GeoGraphic (december 2019/JaNuary
painstakingly crossing the road in 2020), copyriGht © 2019 by bruce schoeNFeld.

APRIL 2021 • 97
 TR AVEL & ADVENTURE

My Great Escape:

Time Travel
To Talmont
Susannah Harrison
enjoys a spot of history
on her French holiday

here’s a thunder of

T hooves and clouds

of orange dust as the
horsemen charge at each
other only a few metres in
front of us. In a death-defying display
of acrobatics and pyrotechnics,
one of the knights is brought to the
ground. It is the 12th century and
Richard the Lionheart, third son of
Henry II of England and Eleanor
of Aquitaine is setting off for the
crusades. The stunning re-enactment
is set against the imposing backdrop
of the ruins of Château de Talmont. history—costumes to try on,
As well as the skilled horsemen and medieval board games, calligraphy,
women, the cast of the twice-weekly archery and pony rides.
nocturnal entertainment includes Talmont-Saint-Hilaire, in the
dozens of actors in period costume. Vendée region of France, was the
The story of Richard I is narrated in destination of our annual family
French, with atmospheric music and holiday until last year, when we had
dramatic lighting filling the night. to cancel because of the COVID-19
By day, the chateau is alive pandemic. Unlike the camping
with interactive displays of its holidays of my own childhood,

98 • APRIL 2021
the mobile homes we stay in are
positively luxurious. The campsite
affords my children a relative amount
of freedom to meet other young
people, either at the multinational
kids club, where they enjoy a range
of timetabled activities, or informally
in the games area or at the swimming
pool complex.
The campsite itself provides
entertainment from early in the
morning when the first activities
are scheduled, to late at night when
families head to the bar area to watch
magicians, singers or the campsite’s
own entertainers. A short walk away,
a path leads to a small shingle beach,
where tiny hermit crabs in brightly
coloured shells scuttle in the rock
pools at low tide. Just a few miles
along the coast, the shingle gives way
to a vast expanse of golden sand,
where we build sand castles and swim
in the sea.
It’s very easy to spend all our
time on the beach, but day trips
further afield have taken us to Les
Sables-d’Olonne, with its colourful
carousel and quirky seashell
museum, Noirmoutier-en-l’Île, “the
Green Venice” of the Vendée with its
network of narrow waterways, and
the ancient Maillezais Abbey, where
we have enjoyed even more historical
tales about this fascinating region. n

Tell us about your favourite holiday (send a

photo too) and if we print it, we’ll pay £50.
Email [email protected]

APRIL 2021 • 99
THE
FORGOTTEN HIDDEN

GEMS
GIANTS
Copenhagen
As Copenhagen routinely excels in charts of the world’s most
livable cities, you’d be forgiven for thinking that its locals live
idealised existences—healthy eating, the perfect work/life balance
and so on—and need little egging on.
Apparently, though, some help is occasionally required. In
2016, artist Thomas Dambo hid The Forgotten Giants—six huge
trolls assembled from waste wood and felled trees—around
forests, lakes or meadows in Copenhagen’s leafy western fringes.
Each giant performs a function. Hill Top Trine’s hands double as
a viewpoint, for example, while Teddy Friendly’s arm enables the
fording of a nearby stream, and lake side Little Tilde contains 28
built-in birdhouses.
Specialising in fun sculptures using reclaimed or reused
materials, Dambo hopes that his quirky-looking figures will
encourage people to recycle. He also wanted to persuade
residents out into their hitherto-overlooked local nature.
The sculptures are just as much fun for tourists to find, though,
and they’ll thrill younger children. Dambo’s website contains a
“treasure map” marking the spot where each giant hides. Less
romantically, each is also on Google Maps.
To see every troll you’ll need either a car or a lot of taxi money.
If you’ll be content seeing just one, then take the train to
Brøndbyøster station, 13 minutes from Copenhagen Central and
walk a mile north to Sleeping Louis. Alternatively, target Oscar
Under The Bridge, near Ishøj Beach, and combine it with a visit to
© MARTIN HEIBERG

the excellent Arken Museum of Modern Art (arken.dk). Visit

thomasdambo.com/works/forgotten-giants to learn more. n

By Richard Mellor
101
 MONEY

On The
Money
Pension Special

Since we started asking for

your questions there’s been a
huge variety of money matters
you’ve asked for my help with.
But one topic has been far
more frequent in the “On
The Money” inbox. So this
month I’m devoting my entire
column to answering your
queries on pensions

102
Q: I have no idea how to access to be for at least 20 hours a week.
some pensions from early on in my These “Specified Adult Childcare”
career. Are there any tools out credits can be backdated to April 6,
there I can use to find them? 2011. So if you are short of the 35
Adrian, 70 years worth required to get the full
state pension, these are well worth
This is really common, particularly if applying for.
you’ve swapped jobs a number of I asked HMRC about whether you
times. You can find contact details can get a refund for the voluntary
for old workplaces and personal payments and they advised you write
pensions via the government’s free to: National Insurance Contributions
Pension Tracing Service. Head to Office, HMRC, BX9 1AN, explaining
gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details your situation.
or call 0800 731 0193.
Once you have these details, Q: A close friend has just been
get in touch with the pension made redundant as an inevitable
provider. It’ll help to have details on consequence of COVID. He’s just
hand such as the dates you worked turned 59, and his occupational
at the employer, or even better, any pension isn’t paid until he turns
policy numbers. 60. Though he has been offered the
option to take his pension early,
Q: I recently read that if you care for this would come with an 8% per
grandkids, you can top up your annum reduction. He is getting a
pension. I look after my two fair redundancy package due to
grandsons twice a week and a while length of service and does have
ago I paid extra money into my pot some savings.
in order to have a reasonable Arthur, 61
monthly pension, which I have just
started withdrawing. I probably Seeing as it’s just one year more your
wouldn’t have done so had I known! friend has to wait to claim the full
So have I read this correctly, and if amount, logic says it’s better to get by
so, is there any chance of backdating? on savings and the redundancy cash.
Anon Perhaps even looking for a short-
term job to top things up if needed.
Yes, you’re right! Grandparents or If he does want to take it early, I’d
other family members can claim definitely talk to a financial advisor
National Insurance (NI) credits if they first. They can provide input on how
are regularly looking after related it’ll impact his particular pension.
kids under 12 years old. This needs Eight per cent more every year as an

APRIL 2021 • 103

MONEY

annuity will make a big difference

when you consider this is an income
for life.

Q: I have worked and lived in Spain

for most of my working life, though I
am UK-born. I haven’t paid any UK
National Insurance over the years,
but I would like to come home to
the UK for my retirement, to be
closer to family and my growing
brood of grandchildren. Would I be
able to get any support here? I have
a Spanish pension but that doesn’t
amount to much. I am worried that
I have been silly.
John, 64

Though you need 35 years of

contributions to get the full state
pension, you qualify for a reduced
sum as long as you have at least
ten years of credits.
You might have some
years logged from before
you moved abroad, and
the years you contributed
Spanish social security
payments should also
cover you to get to
ten years.

104
 READER’S DIGEST

However, the amount you receive Q: I have worked all my adult life,
will be solely based on the amount besides the years when my children
of money contributed to your UK were young. I’m now 65, working
National Insurance. part time and have claimed my work
It might be possible to top these pension. Next year, I am eligible to
up. To do this you need to have lived claim the state pension, but should I
in the UK for at least three years, and defer this if I continue to work full
made NI contributions for a least time? I don’t know if it’s best to give
three years before moving abroad. up my job next year and claim full
If that’s the case, then men born pension or to defer, because maybe
after April 5, 1951 (it’s 1953 for then I could get more later on?
women) can add up to ten years Karen, 65
of contributions that were missed
between 2006 and 2016. You need to Claim the full pension and you’ll
do this by April 2023. get £9,339.20 a year. A decent sum
Top-ups work out at roughly £800 if you need it now, or would like to
a year. In return you’ll get a payment stop working.
of £232 each year added to your state Delay it instead and you’ll see the
pension. So it’ll cost close to £8,000 annual payment increase by 1%, every
if you do this for the full decade, and nine weeks. Do it for a year and this
you’ll get £2,300ish back each year. will be around £540 a year.
This means you’re looking at three However it’ll take a while before
and a half years before you get the you make enough extra to cover the
money back. But after that you’ll be money you didn’t take—roughly 17
receiving this level of state pension years for a single year deferment.
for life. Plus if you die while the state
You can also continue to make pension is deferred then it could
voluntary payments for any also impact how much of this fund
further years before you claim the a spouse can inherit. When you
pension. Check how many existing do start claiming it, the increased
qualifying years you have via gov. amount could also impact your
uk/check-state-pension, or call the eligibility for benefits. n
International Pension Centre on
+44 191 218 7777. Andy Webb is a
If this doesn’t work out then you personal finance
could be able to claim pension credit, journalist and runs
which can bring down the cost of the award-winning
things like council tax and heating. It’s money blog, Be Clever
a means tested benefit. With Your Cash

APRIL 2021 • 105

 A TASTE OF HOME:
THEO RANDALL
Melanzane Parmigiana
An all-time classic from southern
Italy, this combination of sweet
aubergines and tomato baked with
mozzarella and Parmesan is a real
treat. It reminds me of our summer
holidays in Puglia and a restaurant
called Osteria Bell’Italia. This
version is a blatant copy of the dish
on their menu—but sometimes
good recipes are just best left
alone. I make Melanzane
Parmigiana quite often and it is
one of those recipes that seems to
send an alarm out to family… It
doesn’t matter how much you
make, it goes immediately. It’s
vegetarian but meat-eaters love it,
as the texture of the aubergine,
tomato and hot melted cheese is so
comforting. I actually think it
always tastes better the next day,
when it has been reheated. That’s if
you have any left…

106
 FOOD

METHOD INGREDIENTS:
1 Place a heavy-based saucepan over Serves 4
a medium heat. When hot, add 3 • 4 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for oiling
tablespoons of olive oil and the garlic and • 1 garlic clove, finely sliced
fry for 30 seconds, until the garlic is soft • 8 basil leaves
but has no colour. Add 4 basil leaves and • 600g (1lb 5oz) tomato passata
cook for 30 seconds, then add the passata, • 4 aubergines, half peeled to
reduce heat and cook for 15 minutes, until give stripes (to help the aubergine
the sauce has reduced by half. Tear in the cook evenly)
remaining basil and add the remaining • 3 organic eggs, beaten
olive oil. Season and set aside. • 200g (7oz) tipo 00 flour
2 Slice the aubergines into 1cm (½in) • 100ml (3½fl oz) sunflower oil
rounds. Transfer them to a colander and • 200g (7oz) mozzarella, chopped
sprinkle with salt. Leave for 20 minutes to • 100g (3½oz) Parmesan,
draw out the liquid, then pat the slices dry finely grated
with kitchen paper. • sea salt
3 Have ready the beaten eggs in one bowl • black pepper, freshly ground
and the flour in another. Heat the
sunflower oil in a frying pan over a
medium heat. Dip each aubergine slice
into the egg to coat, then place in the flour,
taking care to fully coat each slice. Shake
off any excess flour, then fry, in batches, for
3 minutes on each side until they are all
cooked through and have a nice, golden
colour. Place on kitchen paper to drain.
4 Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C
fan/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Lightly oil a baking
dish. Arrange a layer of cooked aubergines
evenly in the bottom of the dish, spoon
over one third of the tomato sauce,
sprinkle over one third of the chopped
mozzarella, and sprinkle over one third
of the Parmesan. Repeat the layers twice
more, finishing with the final layer of
Parmesan. Bake the parmigiana for 35
minutes, or until the top is golden and The Italian Deli Cookbook by
crispy (give it up to another 10 minutes, Theo Randall (Quadrille, £26)
if you need to). Photography: Lizzie Mason

APRIL 2021 • 107

108
 FOOD

World Kitchen
Greece: Lamb chops and tzatziki
If the prospect of another lamb roast this Easter
leaves you a tad underwhelmed, you might want to
give this classic Greek pairing a go. It’s easy to cook,
doesn’t involve painstaking preparation and can act
as an exciting Mediterranean twist on traditional
Easter lamb with its garlicky marinade and brightly
flavoured tzatziki sauce—a staple of Greek cuisine. Serves: 2
Weather permitting, you can grill the chops outside, Cooking time: 80 mins
however, they’ll turn out just as delicious cooked in a
grill pan inside Ingredients:
For the lamb
Method: • 3 tbsp olive oil
1 Make the sauce: grate the cucumber and drain • 1 tbsp fresh dill,
through a fine mesh sieve. finely chopped
2 Combine the yogurt, garlic, oil, vinegar, and salt • 6 cloves garlic,
in a large bowl. finely chopped
3 Transfer the grated cucumber and dill to the • 1⁄2 tsp red chilli
yogurt mixture and stir to combine. Cover and flakes, crushed
refrigerate for at least 1 hour. • 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
4 Next, marinate the lamb: in a large baking dish, • Kosher salt and freshly
add the oil, dill, garlic, chili flakes, and lemon ground black pepper
juice. Season the lamb chops generously with • 4 lamb loin chops
salt and pepper, then add to the marinade and
turn to coat. Cover and set aside to marinate at For the tzatziki sauce
Karl allgaeuer / alamy StocK Photo

room temperature for 1 hour. • 1/2 a large

5 Heat a charcoal or gas grill to medium-high. cucumber, unpeeled
Grill the lamb, turning occasionally, until it has • 500g plain full-fat
reached the desired temperature, 4–6 minutes Greek yogurt
for medium rare. Alternatively, heat an oiled • 2 large garlic
grill pan over medium-high and cook, turning cloves, minced
occasionally, until the lamb is browned on all • 2 tbsp olive oil
sides, around 6–7 minutes. Transfer to a platter • 1 tbsp white vinegar
and let rest 5 minutes. Serve with tzatziki sauce, • 1/2 tsp salt
warm pita bread and/or a simple green salad. • 1 tbsp minced fresh dill

APRIL 2021 • 109

 CR AFT & DIY

Spring Tidy
This spring cleaning craft project is ideal for messy desks

pring has sprung, and—like You will need

S clockwork—many of us have
started on the annual spring
clean. Luckily, you don’t
need to go to great lengths to
freshen up your home! Even a simple
afternoon of cleaning and tidying
can make a notable difference,
Tin can, a few scraps of durable fabric,
strong fabric glue, fabric scissors

How to make your desk tidy

1. Remove the lid from your tin and
give it a thorough clean, being
careful of sharp edges. Leave to dry.
especially if you have good storage 2. Cut a strip of fabric approximately
solutions in place. 4cm wider than half of the height
With this in mind, I’ve been busy of the tin (so if the tin is a standard
reorganising my home studio this 11cm, the fabric should be 9.5cm
month. Although, being a crafter, this wide). Cut the fabric strip so it’s
is easier said than done… pencils, long enough to wrap all the way
knitting needles, craft knives and around the tin, plus a 2cm overlap.
scissors are usually strewn across Iron out any creases if necessary.
every available surface. But I’ve 3. Apply a few dabs of fabric glue
come up with a quick and easy across the top edge of the fabric (on
solution: DIY desk tidies. They’re the wrong side of the fabric). Fold
simple to make, and can be easily this edge down and press in place
customised to match your favourite to hem it.
colour scheme. And the best bit?
They’re crafted from completely
upcycled materials, so they’re a
sustainable solution too.

Mike Aspinall runs

one of the UK’s most
popular craft blogs,
The Crafty Gentleman,
where he shares free
DIY tutorials

110 • APRIL 2021

4. When the hemmed edge has dried,
apply some glue to the lower half
of the tin. Wrap the hemmed fabric
around the tin, so the hemmed 1
edge sits neatly in the centre. Firmly
press it into place with your fingers
so it sticks in position.
5. Add a little more glue to the
overlapping edges of the fabric
and then press them together.
One raw edge will remain exposed,
but the adhesive will prevent it
from fraying.
2
6. Hold the fabric in place for a few
minutes, then wrap a few elastic
bands around it to hold it tightly in
place. Leave to dry for 24 hours.
7. When it’s dry, tuck the lower edges
of the fabric over the sides of the
tin. Glue them in place on the
bottom of the tin, making sure you
smooth them out so the tin still sits
flat and even. 3
8. Repeat this process again with a
contrasting piece of fabric, this time
sticking it to the top half of the tin.

If you want to make this project even

simpler, you could use just one piece
of fabric to cover your desk tidy.
Simply cut your fabric to a larger size
4
at the start, and skip the “hemming”
step (no need to do this, as both ends
of the fabric will be tucked over the
edges of the tin and hidden from
view). Then place it on your desk, fill
it with all those odds-and-ends, and
enjoy the space it frees up! n

5
 ENVIRONMENT

The Big Thaw

750 billion tons of ice are melting every year. That’s a rate we just cannot afford…

T
o understand the knock-on which freezes more quickly underfoot
impact of ice melting around and makes it harder to walk and
the world we first have to search for food. In the summer,
understand what an ice sheet permafrost melts and releases
actually is. Covering 5.4 million previously trapped diseases which
square miles in Antarctica and the herds have no modern immunity
656,000 square miles in Greenland to. A similar destiny has befallen the
(our two remaining ice sheets today) polar bears who suffered a 40 per cent
an ice sheet is essentially a huge population loss between 2001-2010.
mass of glacial land. These Quite apart from these existing
sheets, over thousands tragedies, the imminent
of years, form by snow threat of sea levels rising
accumulating and if the ice caps were to
compacting into ice over disappear is ever looming.
the winter, which doesn’t If the Greenland Ice Sheet
entirely melt during the thawed, the sea level would
summer. This ice, home to rise around six metres, and if
a throng of diverse animals, the Antarctic Ice Sheet thawed, sea
is now melting at a rate that cannot levels would rise by around 20 feet. To
sustain the life it currently holds. put this in perspective, sea levels have
Many of these creatures rely on ice risen about eight inches since 1880,
sheets as land for resting, hunting and three of which we’ve gained over the
protection, yet as the size decreases last 25 years. This seemingly small
they are forced out of their natural amount has already caused dangerous
habitats in search of other land on flooding, loss of farmland and more
which to reside. Often this means deadly hurricanes and storm surges.
long, drawn-out journeys to search for While we’re still a long way from
food and an imbalanced ecosystem losing the ice sheets all together,
arises when different species are we’ve already lost too much for many
forced together onto the coast. ecosystems and humans to reasonably
Since the 1990s, the caribou survive under, and if we don’t take
population has declined by 56 per climate change seriously now, we will
cent—climate change has caused inevitably hit the point of no return. n
warmer temperatures over winter
triggering rainfall instead of snow, by Jessica Lone Summers

112 • APRIL 2021

 Expert Q&A: WWF
Dr Caroline Coch is a polar specialist at the World Wide Fund for Nature

How are polar bears affected What would happen if we lost

by climate change? Sea ice the Arctic in the future?
is vital to polar bears. It Massive ice loss is already
provides a platform for them happening in the Arctic and will
to hunt, live, breed, and in continue to happen until at
some cases, create maternal least 2050 unless we take urgent
dens. But sea ice is more than a action to cut greenhouse gas
simple platform: it is an entire emissions. This loss of ice is
ecosystem inhabited by plankton and fundamentally changing our global
micro-organisms, which support a rich climate system. The Greenland ice sheet,
food chain that nourishes seals, that in for example, holds enough water to raise
turn become prey for polar bears. global sea levels and the numbers are
Current research suggests healthy even bigger for the Antarctic ice sheet.
polar bear populations will be unable to Around 40 per cent of people worldwide
survive long-term in areas where the live close to the coast, and are affected by
sea ice disappears for much of the year. rising sea levels.
Losing the ice masses would also have
What don’t people understand about fundamental impact on the planet’s
ice melting? Land ice, such as ice caps weather—not just because of the albedo
and sea ice play a vital role in our global effect, but because this will affect the
climate system driving air and ocean ocean currents that move heat around
currents around the globe. They can be the globe—partly why in the UK we have
imagined as the air conditioner of our such a temperate climate. We would be
planet. Being white, they reflect more living in a much warmer climate and
of the Sun’s energy back into space— would experience even more severe
this is what we call the “ice-albedo weather events.
feedback”. When that ice disappears, For people who live in the Arctic, climate
more heat is absorbed by the change impacts their livelihoods, identity,
underlying water or land accelerating health and cultural practices.
the warming even further. This has Ice is not just found at the extreme ends
consequences for all of us—rising sea of the earth either. In the Himalayas,
levels, changes in climate and millions of people depend on the annual
precipitation patterns, increasing meltwater from the glaciers. If this were to
severe weather events—and effects on be lost, it would have huge implications
globally important animals. for all those who are living downstream. n

APRIL 2021 • 113

 FASHION & BEAUT Y

Rainwear That Makes A Splash

Our new fashion columnist Catherine Summers dedicates
her first pages to extolling the virtues of bright and
bold waterproofs

pril is traditionally a stunning honeysuckle pattern.

A a month known for its

showers, yet given the
unreliable nature of the
British weather we’re all too expectant
of rain at any time. I’m most certainly
I wear it every spring without fail.
The bold pattern and bright, fresh
colour makes my heart sing—how
can you feel blue wearing such a
joyful raincoat? Unfortunately Hobbs
not a rainy day fan (I always long for don’t currently offer their iconic
hot summer days), but I do find joy Saskia trench in anything other than
in cheerful rainwear. In terms of my solid colours, but they always offer
style choices I’m no wallflower, but brights so it’s possible to avoid the
flowers—or any other bold print—on beige and black.
a raincoat? Yes please. Finding bright and/or patterned
The choices of raincoats available raincoats and trenches online turned
are pretty standard fare: there’s your out to be harder than I thought. A
classic beige trench coat, with black quick search resulted in just a few
and navy usually offered as other results: it seems your best bet for
available colours. While classics are something a little more daring than a
always a safe bet, I do tend to push beige trench is Boden. The Tiverton
the boat out when it comes to my Raincoat is available in a beautiful
own outerwear. soft pink, the Haddon Mac comes in
I’m putting a case forward for rainbow check and even the Morris
the patterned mac, or at least a Waterproof Mac is offered in "Surf",
bold colour that’s not considered a very pale blue with white and
a "classic". One of my favourite chartreuse stripes. It reminded me
raincoats is my SS15 Hobbs trench in of Pantone’s Colours of the Year for
2021, Ultimate Gray and Illuminating
Catherine Summers is an (soft grey and a cheerful yellow).
award-winning fashion If money were no object, I’d splash
blogger, posting out (pun intended) on a Paul Smith
regularly on her website,
notdressedasalamb.com
pink check coated mac. The ultimate
and on her Instagram in a bold check of pink, yellow,
account, @NotLamb green and apricot, it’s an explosion

114 • APRIL 2021

of colour that flies in the face of the So I’ll be wearing my blue floral
British weather. And if the occasion trench with my striped red wellies
called for it, I’d add some patterned on repeat this spring; pattern mixing
wellies to finish the look. is a long-term love of mine. I know
I currently own a pair of pink and it’s a Marmite style choice, but what
red striped welly boots from The I wear affects my mood greatly and
Wide Welly Company. Doing what anything bold is it for me. Therefore,
they say on the tin, it’s a brand perfect I urge you to think about brights or
for those of us who’ve long since patterns, or both, for your rainwear
given up on finding Wellingtons that this year. It’s been a long hard 12
fit over our calves as well as our jeans. months of on and off lockdowns and
You won’t find any plain black wellies restrictions, so don’t restrict yourself
on their site: I’m eyeing up the hot to safe neutrals if the weather is
orange ones as I fear I’ll be wearing trying to beat you back down.
out my striped pair considering Rise up and wear your waterproofs
how much I wore them during the with joy and pride. Your mood will
constant rain we had through winter. thank you for it. n

APRIL 2021 • 115

FASHION & BEAUTY

Cuticle Oils
Beauty expert Jenessa Williams
considers the usefulness of
moisturing your mani

What Are They? Does It

Though most of us are used to the Actually Work?
benefits of a good hand cream, we Whether you’re looking to
often forget just how delicate our create a new self-care habit or to
fingers can truly be. Available in restore long-neglected natural nails
droppers, rollerballs, balms and in the absence of salon trips, a few
industrial-sized bottles, cuticle oils drops of cuticle oil can go a long
are designed to target the very way. Get yourself into the habit of
specific area of translucent skin that applying nightly the same way you
grows around our nails, protecting us would a handcream or face serum—
from invading bacteria. massage in gently, and allow to soak
in its own time. Apply extra after
What Are The Supposed Benefits? washing up or using nail varnish
Between all the handwashing and remover to really keep the moisture
anti-bacterial sanitising we’ve been locked in.
doing lately, it’s no surprise that With so many formulas out
our hands and nails might be feeling there on the market, take some
a little dry or brittle. Formulated time to select a product that really
with rich ingredients, cuticle oils feels luxurious to you. Vitamin E,
help to strengthen nails by adding almond oil and apricot are all
moisture, encouraging growth and great ingredients for nail growth,
reducing peeling or hangnails while lavender, milk and honey
around the nail bed. will gently soothe any inflamed
For nervous nail biters, certain skin and slot easily into a gentle
formulas can even help you break night-time routine. Treat your
the habit by leaving a sour taste, or cuticles kindly, and your whole
can help to strengthen the natural body will feel the benefits. n
nail before applying (or when
removing) a gel or acrylic manicure. by Jenessa Williams

116 • APRIL 2021

 DIGESTED
T U N E I N TO O U R P O D CAS T
Over the past year, Reader’s Digest has navigated the woes and wonders of modern life,
weighing in with leading experts on the everyday tools we need to survive and thrive in the
modern world. And what better time than lockdown to catch up?

To subscribe to Digested and listen to all our episodes so far—including tips on

sleep, the menopause and reducing your plastic consumption—visit readersdigest.
co.uk/podcast or search “Digested” on iTunes.

SUBSCRIBE
TODAY
FREE
 FILM

HHHHH

NOWHERE SPECIAL
James Norton gives a masterclass in window cleaner and single parent to
drama acting in this poignant story of the timid yet adorable, Michael. We can
a father and son at a crossroads tell something’s up with John’s health
early on, as he opens his bathroom
his film is a perfect example cabinet, chock full of medication,

T of how world-class acting can

elevate the simplest of stories
to a genuinely moving, retrospective
staring blankly at his tired reflection in
the mirror. Around Michael, though,
he’s transformed: a caring father who
experience that helps you re-connect emanates love and kindness. Yet most
with your most deep-seated emotions. of John’s time is occupied with finding
The simple story? A young father his son the perfect family to settle into
searches for a replacement family for when he’s no longer there.
his little boy, when he’s diagnosed Norton’s acting is what really drives
with a terminal illness. Ineptly acted, this film—the process of coming face to
Nowhere Special could’ve ended up as face with your own mortality, coupled
emotional porn with the sole purpose with parental instincts to protect your
of exploiting and titillating us with the child—that’s no easy emotional state to
characters’ tragedy. convey. Yet Norton delivers a dignified
Instead, what unfolds is a thoughtful, performance that might bring a tear to
© C U R ZO N

tender piece about belonging and the the eye of even the toughest viewers.
true meaning of the word “family”. James
Norton plays John—a 35-year-old Eva Mackevic

118 • APRIL 2021 R E A D E RS D IGE S T.C O.UK/CULTURE

 Also Out This Month:
STRAY
his playful yet reflective

T documentary follows the day

to day adventures of a stray
dog, Zeytin, on the busy streets of
More Great Films About Dogs…

OLD YELLER (1957)—a classic family

Istanbul. The Turkish government film about a boy’s love for his dog,
dictates a no kill, no capture featuring one of the most beloved
policy towards all stray animals, pups in cinema history.
meaning dogs can freely roam the
city on their own terms. Zeytin, I AM LEGEND (2007)—one of the
then, is just one of the hundreds greatest on-screen portrayals of the
of mutts traversing the streets in unbreakable bond between man and
search of food, playmates and a dog, set in dystopian NYC.
bit of sympathy. With her huge,
deep eyes and an expression full ISLE OF DOGS (2018)—a beautiful,
of wisdom and contemplation, she animated feature following a boy’s
is an arresting screen presence; a odyssey in search of his pooch, from the
canine equivalent of Marlon Brando visionary director, Wes Anderson.
of sorts—without the attitude. A
life-affirming musing on survival TOGO (2019)—a heartening, timeless
© DOGWOOF

and even the meaning of life, you’re story about a sled dog in the wintry
bound to fall for Stray—especially if Alaskan tundra, starring Willem Dafoe.
you have a soft spot for dogs.

APRIL 2021• 119

 TELEVISION

S
pringtime in Paris, anyone? submarine over a spare, slow burn,
The runaway TV hit of early 2021 quietly potent miniseries. Furrowed
has been Lupin (Netflix), a cross- brows and long, fruitless trawls of
Channel collaboration—created by the seabed for evidence are the order
Brit George Kay, shot in the French of the day here; patience is (and
capital—in which the toweringly surely was) required, but rarely has
charismatic Omar Sy follows in the burden of proof been so starkly
the footsteps of author Maurice dramatised, and so profoundly felt.
Leblanc’s shape shifting gentleman Channel 4’s streaming service All4
thief, Arsène Lupin. The first batch of has bolstered its overseas imports
episodes, in which Sy’s Assane Diop with Ramy, the Trojan horse of recent
attempts to right a wrong Parisian US comedy. On the surface, these
high society committed against his are funny, thoughtful slices of life
father, proves limber, playful escapism about a twenty-something (likable
from the off; in true serial style, stand-up comic Ramy Youssef)
further installments are promised cohabiting with his family in latter-
over the summer. day New Jersey. What’s new—at least
In his excellent film work, Danish for US television—is that the family
writer-director Tobias Lindholm is Egyptian-American, and Ramy
has favoured decidedly on-the-nose himself a practising Muslim. Like
titling (A Hijacking, A War). With the wonderful Fresh Off the Boat
the similarly no-nonsense The (on Prime Video), it’s another
Investigation (iPlayer), Lindholm notable recent example of TV’s
makes an assured transition to ability to transport us into other
TV, shadowing the police cultures from the comfort of our
inquiry into the murder own couches.
of journalist Kim Wall
aboard a homemade by Mike McCahill

Retro Pick:
Auf Wiedersehen Pet (BritBox/iPlayer)
Franc Roddam’s ratings-courting tale of Brit
brickies in Europe merits revisiting in this
© BBC IMAGES

post-Brexit moment: the originals are on

BritBox, the revival on iPlayer.

120 • APRIL 2021

 MUSIC

Album Of The Month: All About

That Hammond
Breathe
by Dr Lonnie Smith
The Hammond Organ was

J
azz fans are in for a the first electronic musical
real treat this month as instrument to become
Hammond organ legend, commercially successful
Dr Lonnie Smith, releases when it went on sale in
eight tracks of untethered joy, entitled Breathe. 1935. Churches made up
Smith, who earned his “Dr” title for “doctoring the largest share of
up” other musicians’ tunes with his own unique Hammond buyers,
stylings, has been a jazz scene mainstay for six accounting for half of all
decades now and has played with everyone from sales in the 1930s as the
Dizzy Gillespie to Etta James. His new record is instrument was
an elegant, uplifting collection of six live songs advertised as a lower-cost
recorded in NYC during his birthday celebrations, alternative to the wind-
plus two studio tracks featuring none other than driven pipe organ.
rock legend, Iggy Pop. It then quickly became
Breathe is a slice of heaven for any Hammond popular with jazz
organ connoisseur; its soulful sounds effortlessly musicians, with Jimmy
cascade down the melodies, shape shifting Smith widely credited as
between bona fide gospel that takes you to church the figure to bring the
on tracks like “Pilgrimage”, and summery bossa Hammond organ to the
nova with Iggy’s slow-moving vocals on “Why forefront. Smith’s
Can’t We Live Together”. That’s one of the greatest widespread influence
things about this record: it truly showcases the resulted in a huge
instrument’s incredible versatility and the ability increase in the number of
to elevate songs of any genre. organs used in jazz, and
Elsewhere, wild saxophone solos blaze across his legacy continues to
tracks like “Track 9”, and gentle drum brushes this day with his protégés
whisper seductively on “Too Damn Hot”—the including Tony Monaco
Doctor put together a truly capable team of and Joey DeFrancesco.
musicians who can run with his virtuosic organ
improvisations. If you’re starved for a taste of live
music, Breathe is a quality, copper-bottomed jazz
record that will remind you of the heady magic of
seeing a great artist let loose on stage.

by Eva Mackevic
 BOOKS

April Fiction
TV presenter Mel Giedroyc enters the world of literature
with an affirming tale of self-discovery

The Best Things by Mel Giedroyc

(Headline Review, £12.99)

el Giedroyc’s

M fictional debut
is being hailed—
admittedly by its
own publishers—as
“the publishing event of 2021”.
Presumably, they’re hoping it might
even emulate the all-conquering
success of Richard Osman’s The wealthy hedge-fund manager. Staff
Thursday Night Murder Club, take care of the family’s Surrey
another first novel by a much- mansion, and of their four children,
loved TV presenter. But whereas even though the youngest is 11. But,
Osman was content to lean on the Sally can’t help wondering, Whatever
traditional whodunit, Giedroyc happened to the simpler, happier people
casts her net much wider, drawing she and Frank were before they had all
instead on more or less every trope that pesky cash?
in modern commercial fiction. Well, as you might imagine, she soon
When the book begins, Sally Parker has the chance to find out. But that’s
is living an apparently enviable life. only one of the book’s many, many
Her husband, Frank, is a staggeringly plot-strands, as Giedroyc continues to
assiduously tick every commercial-
James Walton is a fiction box, from Internet-obsessed
book reviewer and teenagers to status-obsessed middle-
broadcaster, and has aged women, feisty and sweary old
written and presented
17 series of the BBC ladies to any number of hopeless men.
Radio 4 literary quiz In fact, once all this is in place, the
The Write Stuff book rattles along very nicely for a

122 • APRIL 2021

while, with Giedroyc’s writing having
the same undeniable charm as her TV Paperbacks
appearances. The trouble is that the
sheer number of characters—and Shuggie Bain by
relationships between them—leaves Douglas Stuart
her an awful lot of endings to serve up. (Picador, £8.99).
So how will she manage it? The answer Last year’s brilliant
is by putting them off as long as she can Booker Prize winner
and then providing a sudden about growing up
avalanche of reversals and flat-out with an alcoholic
coincidences that just about wrap mother in 1980s
everything up—if perhaps in the Glasgow. By turns
manner of someone forcing the lid tragic, funny, tender
down on an over-filled suitcase. and excruciating.
Of course, it’s not unknown for
writers to put everything they can think Mistresses by Linda Porter (Picador,
of into their first novel. It’s also true that £9.99). An eye-popping history of the
most of what Giedroyc can think of is many mistresses of Charles II, solidly
fun to read. Yet, while nobody can researched and told with great verve.
possibly complain of a lack of story-
telling generosity here, they might also The End of Her by Shari Lapena
feel it’s the kind of generosity displayed (Corgi, £8.99). The latest mercilessly
by Mrs Doyle in Father Ted: “You’ll twisting thriller from the author of the
have some more, go on, go on, GO ON!” best-selling The Couple Next Door.

The Ratline by Philippe Sands

(W&N, £9.99). Riveting account of
Name the author senior Nazi Otto Wächter before, during
Can you guess the writer from these and after the Second World War, when
clues (the fewer you need the better)? he fled Germany with Vatican help—and
of why his son still forlornly believes that
1. His 2014 novel—which became a BBC he was a good man.
drama last autumn—has the shortest title
of any book that’s ever topped the Redhead by the Side of the Road
bestseller lists. by Anne Tyler (Vintage, £8.99).
2. An earlier book, and an even bigger Another shrewd yet kindly novel about
seller, was set on St Swithin’s Day over the mysterious business of family life by
20 consecutive years… one of the world’s great writers.
3. …and was called One Day.
Answer on p126
APRIL 2021 • 123
BOOKS

READER’S DIGEST RECOMMENDED READ:

A Dance With Death

A deep dive into possibly the most asked question known to
man: what happens when we die?

apparent inexplicability.

F
ifty years
ago—at the Over the years, he’s
beginning of collected and studied
Dr Bruce hundreds of NDE
Greyson’s stories, most of
distinguished which share several
career as a characteristics—
psychiatrist and among them out-of-
academic—a body experiences,
student called Holly a sense of serenity,
was brought into the some sort of divine
emergency room, having being and the appearance
taken an overdose. As she of dead relatives (including
lay unconscious and on the brink ones the experiencers didn’t know
of death, Greyson, who’d just spilt were dead at the time).
bolognaise sauce on his tie, talked to As a result, his initial scientific
her roommate Susan in a room along scepticism has been overthrown
the corridor. The following morning, by what he considers to be the
Holly awoke for the first time and he incontrovertible evidence. Not
introduced himself. only are NDEs real, he concludes,
“I know who you are,” she replied, but they have huge implications.
explaining that she’d seen and heard Most significantly, they suggest
him talking to Susan with a red stain that the brain and the mind (aka
on his tie. consciousness) are separate things.
For Greyson, this was the start After all, how else could people
of a lifelong fascination with near- continue to experience themselves as
death experiences (NDEs) in all their themselves even when their brain is

124 • APRIL 2020

 READER’S DIGEST

officially dead? Indeed, from all he’s Japanese American with an excellent
discovered, “some form of continued reputation, agreed to meet me, and
consciousness after death seems the was eager to hear about Al’s current
most plausible working model”. condition. Much to my surprise, he
Here, from the early days of his confirmed what Al said. He told me
NDE research, is a man called Al, that during his surgical training in
who was in surgery for a quadruple Japan, he’d developed a peculiar
bypass and, during the operation, habit that he’d never seen an
came to, and found he was “looking American surgeon use. After he had
down on the room from above”… ‘scrubbed in’ to the operating room
and donned sterile gloves, he didn’t

‘‘
‘As I looked down,’ Al continued, want to risk touching anything. So
‘to my amazement, at the lower while he watched his assistants
left-hand side was—of all things— begin the operation, he planted his
me! I was lying on a table and I was hands on his chest, flat against his
cut open to expose my chest cavity. sterile gown. He then supervised his
In this cavity I was able to see my team, using his elbows instead of his
heart. I was able to see my surgeon, fingers to point out various things.
who appeared to be somewhat I asked the surgeon how he made
perplexed. I thought he was flapping sense of Al’s claim to have seen
his arms as if he was trying to fly.’ all that. He shrugged. ‘My family
‘What do you mean?’ I asked. Al is Buddhist,’ he said. ‘Everything
demonstrated by placing his palms doesn’t have to make sense to us.’
on his chest and wiggling his elbows. I began to wonder whether
This struck me as too bizarre to Al might have seen his surgeon
have really happened. A surgeon ‘flapping his arms’ before he was
flapping his arms in the middle of
an operation? In all my years in
the medical field, I’d never seen or
heard of a surgeon doing such a After: A Doctor
thing. It’s also not the kind of thing Explores What
you see surgeons do on television Near-Death
shows. It sounded a lot more like a Experiences Reveal
strange dream caused by the general about Life and
anaesthesia. Beyond by Bruce
‘Would you mind if I talked with Greyson, MD is
him about it?’ I asked. ‘Be my guest,’ published by
Al said. Bantam Press
Al’s surgeon, a straitlaced at £16.99

APRIL 2021 • 125

BOOKS

completely anesthetised. So I asked Mind Vs Brain:

Al what else he had observed at the
time. He said that he saw his chest more from
held open by metal clamps, and After
two other surgeons working on his
leg. That puzzled him, because his
problem was with his heart and he Wilder Penfield
didn’t expect anyone to be messing devoted decades
with his leg. In fact, the surgeons of pioneering research
were stripping a vein out of his to mapping out the functions
leg to create a bypass graft for his of the various parts of the brain by
heart. This detail clearly established stimulating them with electric
that Al had been completely currents. But when Penfield
unconscious when he’d witnessed stimulated the part that made his
the cardiac surgeon flapping his patients’ arms and legs move, they
arms. He couldn’t possibly have didn’t think they were moving their
seen that bizarre behaviour with limbs. Instead, they felt Penfield
his eyes, because his brain was was forcing their limbs to move—
fully anesthetised and his eyes against their will. Penfield summed
were taped shut—something that this up at the end of his career:
is often done to keep patients’ eyes “When I have caused a conscious
from drying out if they’re going to patient to move his hand by
be anesthetised for a long time and applying an electrode to the motor
unable to blink. He shouldn’t have cortex of one hemisphere, invariably
been able to see anything. And yet the response was: ‘I didn’t do that.
he did. You did.’ There is no place in the

’’ cerebral cortex where electrical

stimulation will cause a patient to
decide [to move their hand].”

And the name of the author is… Clearly Penfield’s patients could tell
David Nicholls—whose 2014 novel Us the difference between their own
beat the shortest-title minds wanting their limbs to move
record previously held and their brains making their limbs
by Frank McCourt’s move because Penfield was
’Tis. The BBC version applying electrical current. They
starred Tom were convinced their brains and
Hollander and their minds were different things.
Saskia Reeves

126 • APRIL 2021

Books
THAT CHANGED MY LIFE
Kathy Reichs is a US crime writer, forensic
anthropologist and academic. Her new and 20th novel
in the Temperance Brennan series, The Bone Code, is
out on April 29, published by Simon & Schuster

The Password to Larkspur Lane by Carolyn Keene

One Christmas, aeons ago, I was gifted a copy of The Password to Larkspur Lane
by the pseudonymous Carolyn Keene. The plot involved a mysterious coded
message, an old woman in peril, and an eerie phenomenon in a creepy dark
forest. To my eight-year-old mind, the young female protagonist had it all:
independence, supportive friends, a cool dad, her own roadster. And she had
secrets to uncover! After blazing through my first Nancy Drew book, the tenth in
the series, I was hooked. Starting at the beginning, I began collecting every one
of the little blue tomes with their brightly illustrated covers.

Kon-Tiki by Thor Heyerdahl Dead Men Do

In school, I would grasp concepts Tell Tales by Dr
quickly and finish assignments William R Maples
early. Then, bored, I would In the1990s, I was
become a problem. To keep me fortunate to share a
occupied, my teacher devised a dinner table with my
scheme. She cajoled me into friend and colleague,
reading the classroom’s small library in its Dr William R Maples. In
entirety. Since most of the collection dated to 1994, Bill had released a non-fiction work
decades before my birth, I was to evaluate the entitled Dead Men Do Tell Tales giving the
appeal of each book to me and my peers. One of backstory of his career. It describes his
my early choices was written by the Norwegian analyses of the bones of celebrities, both
adventurer, Thor Heyerdahl. In 1947, to test his recent and historic, and presents cases
theory of a South American origin for the peoples involving the examination of the non-
of Polynesia, Heyerdahl and a small crew spent famous. When I broached the idea of
over three months crossing the Pacific on a hand- penning a thriller with a forensic
built balsa raft. Kon Tiki is the story of that sailing anthropologist as protagonist, Bill told me
adventure. Storms. Whales. Sharks. It was all so to go for it. This encouragement helped
very exotic and thrilling to a child stuck at a desk. me to write my first novel, Déjà Dead.

FOR MORE, GO TO READERSDIGEST.CO.UK/CULTURE APRIL 2021 • 127

 TECHNOLOGY

Big Tech & The

Silver Screen
James O'Malley on how tech
is transforming Hollywood
he Oscars is scheduled to Apple TV+, Disney+, and US telecoms

T finally take place later this

month, having originally
been planned for January.
And the ceremony will
cap off one of the strangest and most
disruptive years in Hollywood history.
The most striking example of this
company AT&T, which owns Warner,
has its own streaming service in the
US called HBO Max, which is expected
to launch worldwide this year.
And this changes everything. For
instance, though Hollywood has
always had some creative accounting
came last December, when Warner practices, it is now completely
Bros announced that its entire 2021 plausible that films do not have to
slate of releases would be going digital make a profit in order to be successful.
first in the US, it’s most important Why? Because instead of worrying
market. It’s likely the same will about selling tickets to individual
happen in Britain too. This means that films, these companies are much
most people will be watching the most more interested in maintaining your
high-profile blockbusters like Dune monthly subscription fee. So
and the fourth Matrix film not in the everything they do is designed around
cinema but on the small screen. reducing "churn"—the worry that one
However, it’s not just about the day you may decide that you don’t
pandemic. COVID has merely really need to pay £10 every month for
accelerated existing trends. Because Netflix, and will cancel.
film streaming and the role of Big Tech So instead, streaming companies
in the film industry is shaking up the are more interested in their
entire economics of filmmaking. investments paying off not in the short
Today, the biggest players in the term at the box office, but in the long
film industry are streaming services: run. A streaming service is additive:
there’s Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, the deeper the library of content is,

128 • APRIL 2021

the better it is for the viewer. So Netflix streaming service is because it's a
doesn’t really care if you watched The source of recurring revenue. Over time
Queen’s Gambit when it premiered last a monthly fee is more valuable than a
year, or if you watch it in ten years' one-off iPhone purchase, and is more
time, just as long as you can find likely to lock you into another iPhone
something to watch when you log on. purchase in the future, if they can
Streaming is also changing the form watch Apple TV on it.
of what we watch. For instance, when Disney actually makes most of its
Disney decided to make Star Wars money from selling holidays to Disney
spin-off The Mandalorian, it made it theme parks. What Disney really
as an eight-part TV show, not a movie. wants you to do is book a pricey trip to
Disney World in Florida. Disney+ is
really about making your kids fall in
FILM AND TV IS JUST A love with their characters.
VALUE ADD FOR WHERE And what about Amazon?
STREAMING Ultimately, it is all about Amazon
Prime, the company’s subscription
SERVICES REALLY MAKE service that bundles its streaming
THEIR MONEY offering with other products and
services, such as free shipping on
This wasn’t a trick to save money, as goods that you’ve ordered.
the show still reportedly costs Disney Amazon knows that if you were to
$15m for each episode. But it’s ask someone individually if they
because the more important thing for would be willing to pay a monthly or
streaming services is increasing the yearly fee for free next-day shipping
time you’ve spent watching, so you from one online shop that might be a
feel as though you are getting more hard sell. Of course you can wait a
value from it. Even better for Disney: if couple of days for that delivery. But
you watch as the show is released once the company has hooked you in
week-by-week, you’ll have to keep with the promise of some blockbuster
subscribing for two whole months to films and TV shows… well, you’ll
follow it through to its conclusion. suddenly find yourself buying a lot
Perhaps the strangest more from Amazon too.
transformation though is the business Or to put it more succinctly,
models behind the streaming services. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos famously
For everyone aside from Netflix, film summed this approach up, telling the
and TV is just a value-add for where website Business Insider that “when
they really make their money. we win a Golden Globe, it helps us
The only reason Apple has a sell more shoes.” n

APRIL 2021 • 129

 FUN & GAMES

You Couldn’t Make It Up

Win £30 for your true, funny stories!
Go to readersdigest.co.uk/contact-us
or facebook.com/readersdigestuk

My father-in-law passed away She replied, "Was she born slow?"

earlier this year and my husband OLIVER UNDERWOOD, Stirlingshire
and I went to the crematorium to
discuss arrangements. My daughter was looking at her
The lady who met us turned out friend in her newest outfit.
to be an old school friend of mine. "You're so slim" she commented.
She explained that due to the Knowing she wanted to lose some
pandemic, the limited number of pounds, her friend mentioned she
mourners would have to come in could do something about it if she
separately, sit two metres apart and wanted to.
maintain social distance at all times. "That's a great idea," my daughter
Then, just as we were about to retorted, and offered her friend a
leave, she said, “Ah, let me give you very large slice of a chocolate gateau
a hug before you go.” from the fridge!
MARY ROSS, Essex JANET AITCHISON, Merseyside

I hate the snow but my husband Am I getting older or has the

loves it. supermarket started playing really
"What better time of the year is good music?
there to make your lawn look as nice LUKE HAMMETT, Cheshire
as your neighbour's?” he said.
GERI BURTON, Denbighshire When playing I Spy with our six-
year-old son, he declared “I spy
My wife is always last to finish a with my little eye, something
meal. At breakfast with my five- beginning with M”.
year-old granddaughter, while my After guessing incorrectly for what
wife got dressed, I remarked that seemed like an eternity we finally
Granny might take a while. decided to give up. Our son then

130 • APRIL 2021

 Ben (clearly concerned): "But if you
married someone else, then who
would look after Daddy?"
MARGARET ANNE ROBERTSON, Kent

My son's teacher looked at her

pupils and said "Oliver, this is the
fifth time I’ve had to punish you this
week for not doing your homework.
What have you got to say?"
Oliver stared at her solemnly and
followed up with, "Well, thank God
"SORRY, DAD, BUT I DON'T WANT it’s a Friday!"
TO BE THE EASTER BUNNY!" AMIE YARDLEY, Cambridgeshire

pointed to the balcony and proudly A friend was boasting about her
said, “Miranda”. son who she said was always
Once we stopped laughing we playing "doctors" and she was sure it
explained to him that it was a was a sign he was going to be a
veranda and that it actually began doctor himself one day.
with a V. One day, I saw him pick up a toy
CLED HERBERT, Northumberland stethoscope and play with it.
"Listen," he told me, while he
My second husband and I were on proceeded to speak happily into
holiday with my son, his wife, and the instrument.
their six-year-old, Ben. "Welcome to McDonald's!"
We had had lunch by the pool and he announced, "May I take your
my husband had gone up to our order please?"
room by the time the waiter arrived ANNABEL HAMMET, Cheshire
with the bill.
My son said he would sign it for The elderly lady in front of me at
his father and the following the queue at the COVID-19 vaccine
conversation then ensued: clinic was asked the standard
Ben: "But he's not your father, question, "Do you take any blood
Grandpa Kevin is." thinning tablets?"
Son: "Well, he is my stepfather." I don’t know if she misheard but
Ben: "What’s a stepfather?" her answer was, "No, I’ve never
Ben’s mum: "If I married someone been on a diet in my life!"
else, he would be your stepfather." LIZ TUBBY, Norfolk

cartoon by Guto Dias APRIL 2021 • 131

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 FUN AND GAMES

IT PAYS TO INCREASE YOUR

Word Power
The challenge is on, Word Power fans! We canvassed some
Reader’s Digest editors for their favourite words, and they answered
the call in top linguistic form. Are you game? Answers on the next page

BY EM ILY COX & H ENRY RATH VO N

1. antediluvian adj.—A: at dusk, 8. echelon n.—A: braid of hair.

partial darkness. B: environmental. B: medieval criminal. C: level of
C: belonging to the period before command, step-like formation.
the biblical flood, old-fashioned.
9. spelunking n.—A: racing on
2. bamboozle v.—A: get drunk on snow sleds. B: lifting weights.
cheap alcohol. B: deceive. C: get C: exploring caves.
quickly out of control.
10. sanguine adj.—A: naturally
3. blandish v.—A: coax with flattery. cheerful, confident. B: melodic.
B: wave like a flag. C: tone down. C: of or relating to the sun.

4. pellucid adj.—A: easy to 11. brouhaha n.—A: group of

understand. B: frozen solid. witches. B: practical joke that
C: innocent of a crime. goes wrong. C: uproar.

5. debacle n.—A: annual 12. obfuscate v.—A: snatch away

celebration. B: sudden collapse, from. B: make obscure. C: set on fire.
fiasco. C: utter surprise.
13. deride v.—A: laugh contemptuously.
6. bluster n.—A: sloppy kiss. B: dismount. C: exterminate.
B: aggressive or indignant talk
with little effect. C: pitfall. 14. pusillanimous adj.—A: catlike.
B: odorous. C: cowardly.
7. onomatopoeia n.—A: the
use of words whose sound 15. detritus n.—A: unpaid bills.
suggests the sense. B: repetition. B: loose material, debris. C: gap
C: speech impediment. between two teeth.

APRIL 2021 • 133

 ANSWERS
1. antediluvian—[C] belonging to the of faithful service, she is now in the
period before the biblical flood, old- upper echelon of city officials.
fashioned. Her parents had
antediluvian ideas about what time she 9. spelunking—[C] exploring caves.
should come home after a date. An interest in geology research led
Andrew to adopt spelunking as
2. bamboozle—[B] deceive. Don’t let his favourite hobby.
the smooth car salesman bamboozle
you with sales talk. 10. sanguine—[A] naturally cheerful,
confident. Jay’s sanguine disposition
3. blandish—[A] coax with flattery. made him a pleasure to be around.
They blandished the guard into letting
them through the prison gate. 11. brouhaha—[C] uproar. A brouhaha
erupted over her statements about
4. pellucid—[A] easy to understand. the president.
The physics professor had a knack for
giving surprisingly pellucid lectures. 12. obfuscate—[B] make obscure.
Could these instructions possibly
5. debacle—[B] sudden collapse, obfuscate the construction of my
fiasco. The CFO took full responsibility shelves any further?
for the technology company’s
financial debacle. 13. deride—[A] laugh at
contemptuously. Alex derided his sister
6. bluster—[B] aggressive or indignant for entering the talent show, but she
talk with little effect. The politician can got the last laugh after winning it.
bluster all he wants, but he’ll have to let
it go in the end. 14. pusillanimous—[C] cowardly. Bert
Lahr played the pusillanimous lion in
7. onomatopoeia—[A] the use of The Wizard of Oz.
words whose sound
suggests the sense. 15. detritus—[B] debris.
WORD OF THE DAY*
With on-screen bursts Vinnie photographed
like "kapow", the NEPHELOMETRY the leftover detritus of
Batman TV series was The measurement of the city streets for his
famous for its creative cloudiness of liquids abstract essay.
use of onomatopoeia.
Alternative VOCABULARY RATINGS
suggestions: 5 & below: Good effort
8. echelon—[C] level "Measuring system 6–10: Keen contributor
of command, step-like for giants" 11–12: Dictionary devotee
13-15: Word Power wizard
formation. After years

134 *POST YOUR DEFINITIONS EVERY DAY AT FACEBOOK.COM/READERSDIGESTUK

 TRIVIA
By Samantha Rideout

1. Which common cloud type most 9. What Spanish building did Frank
resembles a fluffy white cotton ball? Gehry design using software first made
for the aerospace industry?
2. Which flightless creature is the largest
bird on Earth? 10. A factory in the US sells around
80,000 washboards each year to
3. The leopard seal is an apex predator customers who use them for decorating,
on which continent? washing clothes or what other purpose?

4. What was the first human-made object 11. Which form of arthritis most
to orbit the earth? commonly affects the large
joint of the big toe?
5. What is the real
name of Who Wants to 12. Which one of these
Be a Millionaire’s technologies is the
“coughing Major?” newest: the compass,
irrigation or gunpowder?
6. Heart attacks are more common
during spring, compared to other 13. What beloved children’s book
seasons. True or false? characters were created by Finland’s
Tove Jansson?
7. In Western art, what is
a memento mori? 14. Initially, many
15. Rhubarb’s stems European scientists didn’t
8. In which country were are delicious and believe this animal was real Photo: ShutterStock/Diana taliun
robotic wolves with flashing nutritious, but which because it seemed to be
red eyes recently deployed part of this plant is part mammal, part reptile.
to scare off bears? toxic for humans? What is it?

Moomins. 14. The platypus. 15. The leaves.

10. Making music. 11. Gout. 12. The compass, which dates as early as the 11th century. 13. The
intended to remind the viewer of their mortality. 8. Japan. 9. The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao.
Ingram. 6. False: they’re more common during winter and summer. 7. A symbol or artwork
Answers: 1. Cumulus. 2. Ostrich 3. Antarctica. 4. The Soviet satellite Sputnik 1. 5. Major Charles

APRIL 2021 • 135

 Brainteasers
Challenge yourself by solving these puzzles,
then check your answers on p139

1 to 25 21 14 19 23 4 8 22
Move the numbers from the
outer ring onto the board.
Each number must be 24 1 20
placed in one of the five cells
that lie in the direction 3 18
indicated by its chevron.

(1 to 25) Jeff Widderich; (Mathelogical) fraser siMpson; (favourite things) eMily goodMan
The numbers must snake
together vertically, 17 9
horizontally or diagonally so
they link in sequence from 1 13 5
to 25 (for example, 2 must
be adjacent to both 1 and 3). 6 12
There’s only one solution.
Can you find it?
25 15 16 11 2 7 10

Mathelogical Favourite Things

Each letter in the A B C Amar, Oriana, Rosa and
grid stands for one Brodie each have a different
of the whole D E F favourite activity from among
numbers from 1 the following: rock climbing,
through 9. No two kayaking, cooking lessons
of them represent G H J and zip-lining. Can you figure
the same number. out who likes what, based on
With the help of the following clues?
the clues, can you figure out which letter ✦  Amar’s favourite activity
stands for what? isn’t rock climbing.
1. B × F = the two-digit number AB ✦  Oriana is afraid of heights.
2. B + J = G ✦  Rosa can’t do her favourite
3. D × D = the two-digit number BC activity without a harness.
4. One of the rows contains only ✦  Brodie likes to keep his feet
odd numbers. on solid ground at all times.

136 • APRIL 2021

 FUN & GAMES

Trains 80 km
This map shows Luisa, her 60 km
destination and three train routes 50 km
she can take to get there. Each 30 km
segment of track has a different A 120 km/h
speed limit, indicated by the 15
speeds shown. The distances of B 0
km
each segment are indicated by
C 10
0k /h
m/
their colours and the legend to the h
120 km/h

90 km
right. Presuming that each train
10
0
always goes at the top permitted
km

h /
/h
speed and doesn’t stop anywhere
along the way, which route (A, B or
120 km/h
C) is the fastest?

Dominoes
A standard double-six set of 28 dominoes has been arranged in a rectangle.
Can you draw in the lines to show the placement of the dominoes? We’ve listed the
28 dominoes so you can cross them off as you find them.
(trains) sue dohrin; (doMinoes) fraser siMpson

APRIL 2021 • 137

BRAINTEASERS

        CROSSWISE
Test your

general
  knowledge.
Answers
on p142
 



   

  

   



 

 

ACROSS DOWN
1 Baby’s garment (5) 2 Boozy (9)
4 Bizarre (9) 3 Saint -----, London cathedral (5)
10 Liverpudlian (6) 5 Ulcer (7)
11 Cooking pot (8) 6 Tense (4)
12 Spoke quietly (9) 7 Old liner, perhaps (9)
13 Yellowish-brown colour (5) 8 Icon (5)
15 Dated (3,3) 9 Depression (9)
17 Flock supervisor (8) 14 Cleansing agent (9)
19 Paper-cutting instrument (8) 16 Brother of Hannibal (9)
21 Uncover (6) 18 Got going again (9)
22 Transport (5) 20 Tremble (7)
24 Magyar (9) 23 Capital of Ghana (5)
27 Sheath for a sword (8) 25 Regenerate (5)
28 Degrees in a right angle (6) 26 Agreement (4)
29 Hard water fall, maybe (9)
30 Root vegetable (5)
 READER’S DIGEST

BRAINTEASERS £50 PRIZE QUESTION

ANSWERS
1 to 25 Do The Math
Replace the question marks with
21 14 19 23 4 8 22
mathematical symbols (+, -, ×, and ÷)
24 20 19 1 24 25 20 to produce the correct answer. Perform
3 18 21 23 2 3 18 calculations in order, left to right.
17 17 16 22 4 9 9
13 15 13 5 10 8 5
6 14 12 11 6 7 12
25 15 16 11 2

Mathelogical
7 10
36 ? 6 ? 2 ?
2 4 9
7 8 6
5 3 1
1?5?1=8
Favourite Things
Amar likes to zip-line,
Oriana likes to kayak,
Rosa likes rock climbing THE FIRST CORRECT ANSWER
and Brodie enjoys WE PICK WINS £50!*
cooking lessons. Email [email protected]

Trains ANSWER TO MARCH’S

Route A, which will take
PRIZE QUESTION
70 minutes.

Dominoes
Squares
27

AND THE £50 GOES TO…

IAN FORSTER, Essex

APRIL 2021 • 139

 FUN & GAMES

Laugh! WIN £30

for every reader’s joke we publish!
Go to readersdigest.co.uk/contact-us
or facebook.com/readersdigestuk

As we left the restaurant, my We should try another national clap,

beautiful date whispered to me, “We but have everyone use two halves of
should have dinner again.” a coconut so that we terrify France
I said, “No thanks. I’m full.” into thinking we have a giant horse.
Submitted via email Seen on Facebook

It’s been snowing for two days now, Ice skating is wild. Someone was once
but it can’t afford to settle in London. brave enough to walk onto a frozen
Comedian RICHARD VRANCH lake and say, “You know what my
feet need? Knives!” Seen on Twitter
“Let them post pictures of cake!”
—Marie Internette Seen on Twitter Working as a conductor on a ghost
train was all tickety boo.
For a laugh, I put on a Disney Dumbo Comedian OLAF FALAFEL
filter for my online meeting. I was
a bit disappointed though, nobody I’ve been trying to arrange a game of
mentioned the elephant in the Zoom. hide and seek, but good players are
Comedian BARBARA NICE hard to find. KEITH LODGE, Hull

140 • APRIL 2021

 What is the
Easter bunny’s
favourite kind
of music?
Hip-hop!
Seen online

Sweet Dreams…

THESE HILARIOUS
It’s true, I do get high on brake fluid. PHOTOS ARE PROOF THAT
But I can stop anytime I like! TODDLERS WILL SLEEP
Comedian IAN POWER ANYWHERE…

“He’s pronounced dead”, said the via boredpanda.com

kiwi introducing their father.
EMILY RAKE, via email

People used to be so shocked when I

told them that my children are made
out of hair.
Raised a few eyebrows, I can tell you.
Comedian GLENNY RODGE

I’ve really gotten into snail racing but

I’ve been losing a lot recently, and
trying everything to make my snail
faster. I even tried taking off his shell,
but it just made him sluggish.
Seen on Reddit

I didn’t exactly ace my “capture the

wasp” exam.
I got a bee.
TIMOTHY PATRICK, Northampton

APRIL 2021 • 141

LAUGH

My son, Bob, was only 5,8 when he left for

university. He worked through the Christmas
holidays and didn’t return home again until the
Add A
February break. When he got off the train, I was
stunned at how much taller he looked.
Word, Ruin
Measuring him at home, I discovered he now A Love Song
stood at 5,11. My son was as surprised as I was.
“Couldn’t you tell by your clothes that you’d Twitter users ruined some of
grown?” I asked him. our favourite romantic songs
“Since I’ve been doing my own laundry,” he by adding just one word…
replied, “I just figured everything had shrunk.” @Kristibeann: Take My
Seen on Facebook Morning Breath Away

What did Yoda say when he saw himself in 4k? @Stellina429: When a Man
“HDMI!” Submitted via email Loves a Different Woman

I woke up this morning and my pillow case @KatieFournier: Quit Playing

Games With My Heart Monitor
was covered in sticky crumbs.
I guess I shouldn’t have gone to sleep with @Caffeine748: Can You Feel
my hair in a bun. the Love Handles Tonight?
VIVIENNE CLORE, via Twitter
@NotReally_Kyle: Help Me
“Hi, I’m Howard, and I’m an alcoholic, Move, Rhonda
a drunkard, a souse, a booze hound, a lush.
@INTJ: We’ve Only Just
Thanks for coming to this meeting of Begun Quarantine
Alcoholics Synonymous.
Comedian HOWARD MITTELMARK @TheUmptenthDoctor:
Somebody Else to Love
Most people are shocked when they find out
what a bad electrician I am. @PSIFly: I Just Called To Say I
Seen on Twitter
Don’t Love You

CROSSWORD ANSWERS
Across: 1 Nappy, 4 Fantastic, 10 Scouse, 11 Saucepan, 12 Whispered, 13 Amber, 15 Old hat,
17 Shepherd, 19 Scissors, 21 Expose, 22 Carry, 24 Hungarian, 27 Scabbard, 28 Ninety,
29 Hailstorm, 30 Swede
Down: 2 Alcoholic, 3 Paul’s, 5 Abscess, 6 Taut, 7 Steamship, 8 Image, 9 Dejection,
14 Detergent, 16 Hasdrubal, 18 Restarted, 20 Shudder, 23 Accra, 25 Renew, 26 Pact

142 • APRIL 2021

 READER’S DIGEST

(pre-COVID-19, of course) and I

made a guy laugh so hard he spat his
drink all over me. It was disgusting
but I couldn’t be too hard on him
because it was partly my fault for
being too funny.

WHAT’S THE BEST PART OF

PERFORMING? I often get to see other
performers’ shows for free. There’s so
much talent and variety out there.
Some of them couldn’t be more
different yet we all have our place on
the entertainment smörgåsbord.

60 Second WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE OF YOUR

OWN JOKES? You know you’re
emotionally dead inside if you can

Stand-Up eat a whole packet of lovehearts

without reading the messages.

WHAT’S YOUR PET PEEVE? When

We chat to people try to recycle things just
the hilariously sharp because the packaging describes it as
recyclable. You have to check with
Eleanor Tiernan your local council and make sure
they have the facilities to take it.
WHO OR WHAT INSPIRES YOUR
COMEDY? I find animals very funny. WHAT SUPERPOWER WOULD YOU
In my current show I have a story CHOOSE TO HAVE? It would be fun to
about how I had an encounter with be able to squirt ink at people like a
some cats that showed me how to squid underwater and swim away.
handle social media better. I’d need to be able to breathe
underwater too though. Can I have
DO YOU HAVE A FUNNY TALE ABOUT two superpowers please? n
WHEN THINGS WENT WRONG ON
STAGE? I was performing once in a Eleanor Tiernan’s special, Success
small cramped venue where the Without A Sex Tape, is available on
audience were right by the stage BBC Sounds

APRIL 2021 • 143

LAUGH

Beat the Cartoonist! IN THE

MAY ISSUE

Jarvis Cocker
I REMEMBER…
The Britpop icon and
Pulp frontman looks
Think of a witty caption for this cartoon—the back on his incredible
three best suggestions, along with the cartoonist’s life and career
original, will be posted on our website in mid-APRIL.
If your entry gets the most votes, you’ll win £50.
Submit to [email protected] If I Ruled The World
by April 7. We’ll announce the winner
in our May issue. Paul Gervais
The prolific US visual
artist and writer on
FEBRUARY WINNER what he would change
if he was in charge of
the world

+
PET CEMETERIES
Discover the fascinating
history behind burying
our beloved pets

Our cartoonist faces another loss this month as his caption, “It
might be ‘officially’ Groundhog Day, but it’s felt like it for
the past year…” failed to beat our reader Julie Halliday, who
won the majority with her caption “Is that the famous
masked singer, Justin Beaver?” Congrats Julie!

144 cartoons by Royston Robertson

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