OUR SEPTEMBER ISSUE IS OUT NEXT WEEK! PICK UP YOUR COPY AND ENJOY!

You'll love our marvellous September magazine which features a collection of great reading by our team of wonderful writers as well as beautifully presented advertising by Bath's best businesses.

This month we spoke to writer and director Emma Howlett who grew up in Bath and is bringing her production Her Green Hell to the Ustinov. Teacher and writer Catherine Bruton – who is coming to the Children's Literature Festival – talked to us about her book Bird Boy and the story of how caring for a wounded osprey allows a boy to heal. We also profile exhibitions with wildlife photography (at The American Museum & Gardens) and the unsettling artworks of Paula Rego and Francisco Goya (at the Holburne). You can read a blog from the ever-cheeful Cabin Crew from the Natural Theatre Company and there's the latest fashions from Jigsaw, as well as shopping, food, interiors and just in time for the return to school, our essential guide to education in Bath!

Every month we deliver 15,000 copies door to door, but if you don't get a copy at home then you can pick up a copy at many places around town and from our floor stands at: Waitrose, Sainsbury's [Green Park], M&S Foods in Twerton, Tesco in Weston Village, and at The Holburne Museum. 

Click here to enjoy the digital version of our current issue! 

And if you would like to have a copy sent in the post every month, then we offer a postal subscription for just £33 for 12 issues, £18 for six issues or buy a copy for just £4.25. UK mainland prices. For Euro and World zone subscription prices – click here to subscribe on our website. 

Words by Melissa Blease

Comforting Cassoulet

September is almost upon us! Celebrate the start of the autumn comfort food season with this indulgent Cassoulet, which brings the full-on flavours of a late French summer to the table in little over an hour.

Ingredients (serves 2)

50g smoked bacon lardons
4 Toulouse sausages
2 duck legs
400g tinned cannellini beans
4-5 shallots, peeled and sliced
1 x 400g tin tomatoes
100ml water
75ml red wine
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 level tbsp Herbes de Provence
1 level tbsp tomato purée
1 tsp white sugar
75g white bread
Handful of fresh parsley

To serve: French bread; seasonal greens

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 190c/gas mark 5. Tip the lardons into a large, cold, lidded casserole dish with a drizzle of vegetable oil. Turn the heat on the hob up to medium, sauté the lardons until crisp and golden then remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and set to one side.

Add a little more oil to the rendered bacon fat in the casserole dish (if necessary) and brown the sausages and duck legs until the sausage skins are starting to caramelise and the duck skin is crispy. Remove from the pan and set to one side. When the duck legs have cooled down enough to handle, gently remove (and reserve) the crispy skin.

Tip the onions into the casserole dish and sauté until soft and translucent, adding the garlic and tomato purée for the last minute or so. Add the wine and allow to bubble for a couple of minutes before adding the water, sugar and plum tomatoes. Stir well and bring to a simmer. Add the bacon lardons and beans, season well, stir again and submerge the sausages and duck legs into the mixture. Put the lid on and put in the oven for around 50 minutes.

Meanwhile, blitz the white bread, reserved crispy duck skin and parsley together in a blender or food processor to create crumbs. Take the cassoulet out of the oven and sprinkle the crumb mixture across the top. Continue to cook in the oven for another 20 minutes or until the crust is crispy.

Serve with crusty bread (French, n'est pas!), a bowl of hot buttered greens... and a bottle of good Bergerac.

A mixed case of wine rack essentials

The Wine Rack Essentials Mixed case is a specially curated, 6-bottle selection from the Great Wine Co.
Hand picked by the team at The Great Wine Co, this is a beautifully curated case of flavoursome, well-balanced, easy drinking wines that are ideal for keeping the wine rack in good shape and ready for any occasion. And at £59 for the case, there's free delivery on orders over £50. 

• Blanco Sobre Lias - Care 2023
• Embrujo Verdejo Organic - Bodegas Verum 2023
• Bergerac Blanc Château Laulerie - Vignobles Dubard 2023
• Baluarte Roble - Navarra 2021
• Reserve Malbec - Bodegas Santa Ana 2022
• Les Mougeottes Pinot Noir, IGP Pays d'Oc - IGP Pays d'Oc 2023

Click here to see this and many more mixed case offers at The Great Wine Co.

The Watch for World Travellers

The Rolex Oyster Perpetual Sky-Dweller is a sophisticated, luxury timepiece and companion designed with frequent travellers on mind. First unveiled in 2012, it combines technological innovation with user-friendly functionality.
The Sky-Dweller displays time in two time zones simultaneously, with local time shown via traditional centre hands and reference time by means of a red triangle pointing to a 24-hour off-centre disc, allowing travellers to easily distinguish between day and night hours.
The watch features a revolutionary annual calendar named Saros, a revolutionary system used since antiquity to designate an approximately 18-year cycle of alignment patterns between the Sun, the Earth and the Moon. This ingenious mechanism automatically differentiates between 30 and 31-day months, requiring only one date adjustment per year, on on 1st March, February having only 28 or 29 days.

The calendar is elegantly displayed via 12 apertures around the dial, outside the hour markers with the current month highlighted in red.
At the heart of the Sky-Dweller is the calibre 9002, a self-winding mechanical movement developed by Rolex. Known for its precision, durability, and a 72-hour power reserve, this movement includes the patented Chronergy escapement and Parachrom hairspring, both of which enhance resistance to magnetic fields and shocks.

The patented Ring Command system allows easy and intuitive adjustment of the watch’s functions by rotating the fluted bezel and using the winding crown.
The Sky-Dweller is available with three bracelet options – the three-piece link Oyster, the five-piece link Jubilee, and the innovative Oysterflex – all equipped with patented comfort extension systems for an optimal fit.

Combining elegance, functionality, and robust engineering, the Sky-Dweller is another perfect example of Rolex’s excellence in watchmaking. For model options prices and more information contact Mallory or click here to see the Sky Dweller range on the Mallory website

True Letter 3/4 Sleeve Midi Dress (GOTS) from Seasalt Cornwall

100% Cotton (organic)

• Certified organic to Global Organic Textile Standards (GOTS) by Soil Association Certification DK16784.

Seasalt Cornwall | £79.95 
Click here to buy now or visit the Bath store at 5 New Bond St, Bath

September Birthday Gift - Sapphire Star Set Necklace

Celebrate her September birthday with a dainty 9kt gold necklace, star-set with a tiny blue sapphire.

Sapphire is the birthstone for September.

Handmade with recycled 9kt gold and hallmarked by the London Assay Office.

The pendant is 7mm in diameter.

Handmade in Bath, England. 

Honey Willow | £295

Click here to buy now. 

A Yarn Story

This is not your average wool shop. The shelves of A Yarn Story are full of hand-dyed yarns, luxury fibres and the hard-to-find. Located on Walcot Street in the heart of Bath’s artisan quarter you’ll find a beautifully curated selection of yarns from around the world as well as several proudly British brands including the store’s own range, Walcot Yarns. With a staff as knowledgeable as it is passionate about knitting, crochet and yarn you’ll be welcomed into a world of vibrant colours and exquisite textures. Whether you are looking to start knitting or you’ve been doing it for decades, you’ll be sure to find something that delights. A must visit for yarn lovers.

128 Walcot Street, Bath BA1 5BG
Tel: 01225 429239 Web: ayarnstory.co.uk

Take Charge Bikes

No one would argue with the fact that switching from using a car to riding a bike creates a host of benefits for both you and your surrounding environment. Exercise, even at moderate levels, helps to reduce stress and depression, as well as improving your mood and self-esteem. But could it be that the idea of pedalling up all those steep hills around Bath is putting people off? This is where the electric bike comes in, with all of the benefits of a regular bicycle, but with the added bonus of not arriving at your destination needing a shower. Take Charge Bikes is an award-winning company based in Bath with additional stores in Exeter, Woking and Cheltenham. They offer the widest selection of quality electric bikes from commuting bikes, tourers, leisure, folding, cargo bikes, tandems, and mountain bikes. Take Charge offers service and maintenance on all types of bikes too. Anybody who is considering an electric bike is encouraged to pop along and try a demo bike. An electric bike works like a regular bicycle but with power assistance when you want it. Take charge of your life – you too can really benefit from an electric bike.

1 Victoria Buildings, Lower Bristol Road, Bath BA2 3EH
Tel: 01225 789568 Web: takechargebikes.co.uk

Click here for more great Bath shops!

Curated by Daniel McCabe

We’re now stocking Ugly Things, a US fanzine published by British ex-pat Mike Stax in 1983 and now established as the go-to resource for connoisseurs of primal rock music, from underground garage/beat/rock’n’roll of the mid-1960s to the punk era of the 70s with an eye on anything contemporary that hooks up with the scene. It’s all about uncovering the lost bands and those untold stories, as well as providing a valuable consumers’ guide to the ongoing tide of reissues and compilations. The latest issue features the softer sounds and strange career of Michelle Phillips from the Mamas and the Papas. | £12.99

magalleria.co.uk

Medieval Falconry Day, 7 September
The Bishop's Palace and Gardens

Held on the South Lawn, against the stunning backdrop of the medieval Palace’s Great Hall, Tony from the specialist falconry firm, Raptorcare, will entertain crowds with a day of fantastic flying displays, fascinating information and beautiful birds!

Displays will take place at 12pm and 3pm.

Aimed at visitors of all ages, the displays will illustrate how these birds would have been used in Medieval times and why. Marvel at their skill and training as they show off their well-honed moves in front of the audience and in between displays, Tony can be found at his medieval tent where he can answer all your burning questions!

The 14 acres of gardens will also be open, and the Dragon’s Lair Play Area is the perfect place to exercise little legs!

The Bishop’s Palace and Gardens Wells Somerset BA5 2PD

Book tickets here.

Henry Moore in Miniature at the Holburne
Until 8 September

The Holburne Museum is delighted to present Henry Moore in Miniature, a survey of Moore’s sculptural output from his earliest works through to his last years, in which nothing is more than 30cm in size. The first exhibition of its kind, it will include works from every decade of Moore’s career, from the 1920s to the 1980s.

At the heart of Moore’s practice from his earliest years to the end was the directness of working on a small scale, whether it was carving small stones or pieces of wood, casting lead, modelling in clay or, as was usual in later years, modelling in plasticine or plaster around a found stone or bone to be cast in bronze.

Presented in partnership with the Henry Moore Foundation, Henry Moore in Miniature will include over 60 of Moore’s works that can fit in the hand.

Click here for more information. 

BATH RUGBY v MUNSTER RUGBY
The Rec - Saturday 31 August, kick-off 15:00

Coming face-to-face for the first time since 2001, The Rec will play host to Bath Rugby v Munster on Saturday 31 August, kicking off at 15:00.

Bath’s Head of Rugby, Johann van Graan, was at the helm of Munster for five seasons, leading them to two European Champions Cup semi-finals and the Pro 14 final before making the switch to England in 2022.

Starting XV: 1 Arthur Cordwell, 2 John Stewart, 3 Kieran Verden, 4 Jacques du Plessis, 5 Ross Molony, 6 Ewan Richards, 7 Thompson Cowan, 8 Miles Reid (c), 9 Louis Schreuder, 10 Orlando Bailey, 11 Ruaridh McConnochie, 12 Will Butt, 13 James Short, 14 Austin Emens, 15 Ciaran Donoghue

Replacement forwards: Niall Annett, Jasper Spandler, Kepu Tuipulotu, Ioan Emanuel, Archie Stanley, Mikey Summerfield, Francois van Wyk, Charlie Ewels, Will Jeanes, Quinn Roux, Jaco Coetzee, Ted Hill, Arthur Green, Ethan Staddon

Replacement backs: Tom Carr-Smith, Ieuan Davies, Finn Russell, Louie Hennessey, Max Ojomoh, Joe Cokanasiga, Tom de Glanville, Luke Graham, Tyler Offiah, Jack Woods

Referee: Anthony Woodthorpe

Assistant referees: Andy Wrigley & Simon Harding

Click here for more information. 

And check out the 2024/2025 Home Kit here!

Hopton Way, Lansdown, BA1

Offered for sale by Hamptons Estate Agents

• Link-detached
• Three bedrooms
• Two bathrooms
• Desirable location
• Parking

This modern home built by Bloor Homes less than five years ago offers ideal accommodation for a young family. The entrance hall with cloakroom, has stylish wood finished laminate flooring leading to the bright and airy kitchen/dining room and well-proportioned sitting room. The kitchen, located to the rear of the property, has bi-fold doors leading to the south easterly facing rear garden and is fully equipped with integrated appliances that include a full-size fridge/freezer, an electric fan oven, induction hob and dishwasher. In addition to the kitchen is a neat utility area where there is space for a washing machine and space for a tumble dryer under worktops matching those of the kitchen. The sitting room is located to the front of the property, with a window overlooking the front garden. The first floor offers a principal bedroom with mirrored wardrobes and an en-suite shower room. The two further bedrooms are served by a fully tiled bathroom.

Outside
To the front is a shallow area behind fencing and a mature hedge with stone pillars and a gate with a path to the front porch. The drive is to the side providing parking for multiple vehicles with an EV charge point and leads to a single garage with door to the garden. The pleasant, south easterly aspect rear garden has a patio area leading directly from the kitchen with ample space for a garden table and chairs. Mainly laid to lawn with a shrub and flower beds with fenced surrounds.

The house is located in a well-regarded Lansdown address, with a level walk through the attractive grounds to a convenience store and school, with ease of access to private schools, Lansdown Golf Course, Bath Race Course and popular public houses.

Guide price: £585,000

For further images and details click here to view the property on the Hamptons website.