LITERARY FESTIVAL OR THE COUNTRYSIDE IN SPRING? NICE CHOICE: LET'S HAVE BOTH!

Here in Chipping Norton, we're clear of the winter snows at last, and the sun is starting to have some warmth in it, even if the wind is still mostly biting cold.


The weekend is packed with interesting speakers at the the annual Literary Festival, with luminaries such as Richard Dawkins discussing his latest book The Magic of Reality ranged against TV's Fern Britton, talking about her new novel Hidden Treasures.

Beyond the town limits, trees are starting to come to life, even if they still look skeletal at a distance. One of my favourites is this ancient beauty (below), to be seen just outside the nearby hamlet of Heythrop.

The buds are swelling, and early planted fields already have a few inches of fine green showing. 

So it looks like Spring is well and truly in the air - and not before time, as Chippy's open-air Lido opens for the season next week!