Celebrate Diwali with Renu Bhardwaj

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Influencer and chef Renu Bhardwaj’s new book Celebrate Diwali is out now, published by Ebury books. She shares a taste with us

Renu’s passion is in creating affordable, delicious meals for busy families. Her new book is full of recipes to create the perfect Diwali feast, simple crafts to do with children and low-budget ways to decorate the house, Celebrate Diwali is everything families need to bring together the ultimate celebration.

As she says in her introduction, Diwali is so much more than just a ‘festival of lights’. Diwali honours the victory of light over darkness, and good over evil. It is a celebration that reignites the light within us all – the lights signifying family bonds, shared heritage and our common humanity.

Recipe for Masala Chai (serves two)

Sipping a warm cup of masala chai reminds me of peaceful Sunday mornings spent preparing a traditional Indian brunch with my family it makes me feel nostalgic and evokes comfort. The ritual of brewing the spiced tea feels almost meditative, and the first sip is utterly soothing as the warmth of the aromatic spices envelops you. Let it become a moment of pause and reflection in your day and make an extra batch of the spice blend to share with loved ones. This is my mother’s cherished recipe.

Ingredients
• 400ml water 1tsp masala chai mix (see below)
• 2x black teabags (I use everyday tea, such as Tetley or PG Tips)
• Milk of choice sugar or sweetener, to taste

Method
Mix 50g ground ginger
1 large cinnamon stick or 15g ground cinnamon
30g black peppercorns
8g whole clove 2g ground nutmeg

1. In a spice grinder, combine all the spices for the masala chai mix and grind to a fine powder. Pause halfway through to stir the spices and ensure they are properly ground.
2. To make sure there aren’t any pieces left in the chai mix, sift it into a bowl. Place the mix in a clean, airtight container. It will keep well for 6-12 months.
3. To make the tea, heat the water in a saucepan over a low heat and add the masala chai mix and teabags before the the liquid starts to boil and allow them to infuse for at least 2-3 minutes.
4. Stir in the milk and bring to a boil; this is when the chai begins to foam up really fast so keep a close eye on it. If you would like a stronger tea taste, allow the liquid to boil for 5-10 minutes.
5. Remove the teabags, add sugar to taste, and strain into mugs.

Achari aloo (pickled spiced potatoes) recipe (serves four or five)

In any Indian home, you can always find a potato dish gracing the table, a sabji (vegetable dish) that infuses a meal with comfort. Achari aloo is a tasty Punjabi dish made using pickling spices that raise the humble potato to new heights. These tangy potatoes have been a staple at my family’s feasts for as long as I can remember and they are a crowd pleaser. Serve alongside a dal with raita and naan (also in the book).

Ingredients
• 900g small baby potatoes, peeled
• 1 tsp rapeseed oil
• ½ lemon handful of coriander, chopped 

For the whole spices
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp black mustard seeds ½ tsp fennel seeds
• ½ tsp carom (ajwain) seeds  
• ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds
• 2 dried red chillies

For the sauce
• 2 tbsp rapeseed oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp garlic, finely chopped or crushed
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• ¾ tsp ground turmeric 
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp amchur powder or chaat masala
• 1 tsp sea salt

Method
1. Place the potatoes in a saucepan of salted cold water and bring to a gentle boil, the simmer gently until soft – about 10 minutes, depending on your potatoes. They should be soft all the way through; you can test this by piercing the potatoes with a skewer. Once cooked, drain and allow to cool.
2. Using a fork, make small idents in the potatoes, which will allow the sauce to penetrate the flesh and give the potatoes maximum flavour.
3. In a large wok or frying pan, dry-roast the whole spices. Once you can smell the aromas – after 2-3 minutes – remove the pan from the heat and blitz into a powder using a spice grinder or by hand with a pestle and mortar.
4. Add the 1 teaspoon of oil to the same pan and fry the baby potatoes over a medium heat for 4-5 minutes, until they turn golden brown, then remove from the pan.
5. Make the sauce by adding the oil, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, garlic and ginger to the same pan. Cook over a medium heat until just brown – about 1-2 minutes. Add the remaining spices and mix, then return the potatoes to the pan.
6. Add the blended spice powder and coat the potatoes well, then cook for a further 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and serve the potatoes with a squeeze of lemon and sprinkled with coriander.

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The Best Champagnes of The Year

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Round and About’s resident wine columnist, Giles Luckett, gives his recommendations on the best luxury champagnes of 2024

Hello. As regular readers of this column know, I’ve a bit of a thing for champagne. A ‘thing’ in the same way that flowers have a bit of a ‘thing’ for sunlight. While I am passionate about most wines, there’s nothing to match the delicacy, complexity or pure pleasure of a great glass of champagne. So, you can imagine my excitement when I was asked to a tasting of the Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) champagne portfolio. This was my Golden Ticket event and while there weren’t any sweets on offer, I did feel like a very big kid in the world’s greatest sweet shop.

All the wines on show were hugely impressive. The Moët & Chandon Brut Imperial (Majestic £48) was in great form and the Ruinart Rosé (Majestic £80) will be on my dining table again this Christmas. For this piece though, I’m going to focus on the rare prestige cuvee wines such as Dom Perignon and Krug. I’ve tasted, reviewed, bought and sold hundreds of these luxurious wines over the years and the question I’ve often been asked is, ‘Are they worth the money?’ My answer’s always the same, a resounding yes. These are unique, wonderful, awe-inspiring wines that are the perfect centrepiece for a celebration. They are not cheap, but then the finest things in life never are. Anyway, here is a selection of my notes from a very special tasting.

Dom Perignon is arguably the most famous champagne in the world, and its exceptional reputation is well-deserved. The tasting gifted me the opportunity to try not just one Dom Perignon but three. The first one was the Dom Perignon 2012 in magnum (The Champagne Company £475). Magnums, double-sized bottles, are the perfect format for champagne. It allows the wine to develop more slowly and gain greater complexity over time and saves me from getting up and getting a second bottle. 2012 was top-flight vintage and having tried Dom Perignon 2012 in bottle, it was fascinating to taste it from magnum as it felt like I’d gone back in time. The bouquet was joyous, fresh and youthful. Apple blossom, pears, melon, spices and acacia seamlessly came together. In the mouth, it was lively, vigorous, and yet had that seductive silkiness that is one of Dom Perignon’s signatures. The fruit ranged from melon and pear to raspberry and white currant with a chalky, slightly saline seam. Gorgeous now, it has a wonderful future.

Next was the Dom Perignon Rosé 2009 (Findlays £299) and it was entrancing. Very deep pink, the nose was a seductive blend of red cherries, blackberries, oriental spices and citrus. In the mouth, it has more weight and glycerine than the 2012 and offered layer upon layer of summer pudding, chalky minerals, citrus, and red cherries all of which were shot through with a fruity spiciness. What a time!

Completing this amazing trio was the Dom Perignon 2006 Plenitude 2 (Millesima £370). Now this is a wine that needs a little explanation, but basically plenitude refers to the wine’s state of evolution. Moët and Chandon leave a small proportion of wines from exceptional vintages in their cellars and release them in their second and third plenitude years after the initial release. Like the 2012 in magnum, this was another taste of history. Bright and bracing on the nose, the yeast and mineral elements were much more apparent. On the palate, the surge of fresh green and red fruits – kiwi, greengage, strawberry, raspberry – were underpinned by ripe, fleshy pears, apricots, plus vanilla, spices, minerals and a touch of lemon curd. A remarkable wine which is all about elegance at this stage, over the coming years it will take on a delicious autumnal fruit and smoke tone that will be quite something.

Next is a wine that always delights, the Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut 2013 (The Champagne Company £230). Dom Ruinart is the world’s oldest Champagne House, and its wines are impeccable. This is one of their flagship wines and is made exclusively from Chardonnay, a fact that never fails to astonish me given how much weight, depth and complexity this beautiful wine manages to convey. Ghostly pale with minuscule pearlescent bubbles, the bouquet offers fresh pears and red apples alongside lemons and vanilla foam. In the mouth there was a sublime mix of green and yellow fruits, white berries, custard apple, hazelnut, and a tang of sea salt. A hauntingly beautiful wine, its intensity and firm acidity suggest a long life ahead.

It’s not often that I get to enjoy Krug Grande Cuvee. It’s rare that I get to taste Krug Vintage, and the last time I got to try them against each other TikTok was being touted as the next big thing. Krug is unique. Its combination of power, intensity, elegance and nuance make it unlike any other wine and it’s a champagne that should be on every wine lover’s bucket list. I tasted the Grande Cuvee 172eme Edition (The Finest Bubble £204), the number signifying which iteration it is. These Editions differ as they are made from different vintage wines, in this case from 11 different years. The 172 boasted an expansive bouquet with aromas of lemons, grapefruit, honey, red blooms, apricots and roasted nuts. On the palate, it showed extraordinary complexity and class. Powerful flavours of yellow plums, apples, melon, liquorice, dried pears, red currants and spices. Tremendous now, it will develop and put on even greater richness over the next decade or so.

The Krug 2011 (Champagne Direct £350) is destined to be another legendary champagne. Only made in the finest vintages, and then in tiny quantities, Krug vintage always puts in a barnstorming performance. Mid-gold, the surprising freshness on the nose helped keep the masses of tropical fruit, nuts, honey and blackberry notes in check. Mouth-filling, it was all I could do to keep track of what my palate was experiencing. Grapefruit, lemons, raspberries, vanilla, peaches, apricots, strawberries in cream, green herbs, savoury minerals, the list went on and on. Remarkably for all its complexity and breath-taking size, everything was balanced, in perfect proportion, and poised. A showstopper now, it reminded me of a young Grand Cru Burgundy in that for all its immediacy, you know there is so much more to come.

My last recommendation isn’t an LVMH wine, but all that tasting left me with a raging third and when I got home, I opened a bottle of champagne. The last time I had Taittinger 2015 (Slurp £69.95) was at Taittinger a couple of years back. I remembered it being excellent, but I thought it needed more time before it would show its hand, and so it proved to be. The colour is now a rich gold punctuated by pretty amber bubbles that bring forth notes of red apples, peaches, and toasted brioche. In the mouth it’s ripe and rounded, the slight lemony tone of youth having mellowed to peach while the firm raspberry acidity has relaxed to add a lovely strawberry note. Medium-bodied but with wonderful richness and intensity, this was the perfect way to end a perfect day.

Next time out, I’ll be looking at the fantastic Riojas from Beronia.   

Cheers! 
Giles 

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Inspiring star Gareth Gates opens up

Liz Nicholls

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Singer, entertainer & dad Gareth Gates, chats to Liz Nicholls about how far he’s come ahead of his newly produced show, Gareth Gates Sings Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons which lands at Wycombe Swan on Tuesday, 15th October.

Q. Hello Gareth. This show sounds amazing! Tell us more…
“I’ve been a fan of Frankie for many years. My parents were big fans so his songs were drummed into me and then I had the idea to produce a show with all those big hits in, songs like big Girls Don’t Cry and Walk Like A Man. We guarantee that, at the end of the night everyone will be singing and dancing!”

Q. They just don’t make the hits like that any more, do they?
“That’s right! Ever since I started touring the world 20 years ago – I’m old now! – I’ve always tried to throw a Frankie Valli song in there and it goes down very well, wherever you are in the world and whatever the audience. So this is going to be a real buzz!”

Q. Where did your journey into music start, Gareth?
“Well, as a child, I had a terrible stammer. I still struggle with my speech on a day-to-day basis. But as a child, my speech was really, really out of control. At the age of eight, though I learned to sing. My friends went along to audition for Joseph and his Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and my teacher asked me to sing, I couldn’t believe it but I could! This became everything to me as I wasn’t able to speak. And so this became my only form of expression.”

Q. I was very moved by your appearance on Good Morning Britain recently when Ed Balls broke down while talking about what an inspiration you’ve been… Were you surprised?
“Yeah massively! I knew Ed Balls used to have a stammer but it was lovely to hear him say I inspired him to become a politician. Whenever I do an interview, I always mention my speech issues, because you just don’t know who you’re inspiring. There are so many people out there who have some form of affliction who choose not to follow their dreams. They feel it will hold them back but all I’ve ever tried to do in instil in people that you don’t have to accept what you’re given in life, you can become anything you want!”

Q. I know you were bullied at school… What would you say to your bullies now?
“Well, it was awful at the time but in a weird way, it made me who I am today. Those hard times made me a much stronger and more resilient person so if I were to say anything to the bullies, I’d probably say thank you. I recently did the TV show Who Dares Wins [Gareth won] and tapping into that old hurt got me through. The men on that programme are some of the toughest men you can imagine, but they were pussycats in comparisons to the school bullies, in my head. That’s what got me through and why I was the last man standing.”

Q. You made your name on Pop Idol, 22 years ago! Are you friends with your fellow alumnus, Will Young?
“Yeah, we speak often. He said in an interview he’d recently moved to my hometown, which confused me as I thought it might be in Bradford but he meant the place I bought in Wiltshire because my daughter goes to school there. I’m looking forward to seeing him soon.”

Q. Are you pals with Simon Cowell?
“We often bump into each other at events. He’s a great guy, Simon. From the moment I walked into the audition on Pop Idol, I was his boy, he was rooting for me. His belief in me is the reason I’m here today!”

Q. I heard you’re writing a musical?
“Yes, I had this idea to write a musical about the hardships that come from having a stammer. You know, it isn’t just the repetition of sounds, it’s the mindsets. You avoid speaking to people, you avoid certain words and that can become very lonely. It crafts and moulds a person. Many people choose to work behind a computer screen, so they don’t have to talk to people. I’ve had this idea for maybe six or seven years but lockdown meant I was in a room with a piano and a guitar and wrote ten songs! I took it to a West End producer who commissioned it on the spot, which was very lucky! It’s going to be called Speechless & watch this space, hopefully next autumn!”

Q. Your story is so inspiring, Gareth. What advice would you have for anyone struggling with their speech?
“I always tell people that you don’t have to accept everything you’re given in life. As a stammerer I could easily have said ‘I’m never going to be able to handle interviews. I’m never going to be able to learn a script and recite on stage….’ But since those days I’ve done loads of West End shows I’ve had to script and act, and we’re doing this interview now. And my speech was so bad! Anyone with a stammer or form of affliction, I’d say: don’t let that define who you are. You can be anything. It’s just how much you want it, how much work you’re willing to put in.”

Visit garethgatessings.com

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Van Morrison releases his new album

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Van Morrison has today released the album New Arrangements and Duets, the first in what he hopes will be an ongoing series of archive albums compiled from his vast collection of unheard recordings.

The album is launched alongside the new focus track The Master’s Eyes. Originally from the 1984 album A Sense of Wonder and rarely played live, The Master’s Eyes is a deep cut but one that represents the remarkable depth of his rich back catalogue. It’s particularly notable as an example of how Van Morrison applies elements of gospel into his core soul and R&B sound.

Like the recent tracks You’ve Got To Make It Through The World and Choppin’ Wood, The Master’s Eyes is an alternate big band arrangement which was recorded in 2014. The new arrangements on the album were all chosen by Van Morrison’s musical director / pianist Paul Moran and his former live band saxophonist Chris White.

The only duet to preview the album has been Someone Like You with Joss Stone. It highlights further collaborations with Kurt Elling, Curtis Stigers and Willie Nelson, all of which were recorded in 2018 and 2019. The two Willie Nelson duets – ‘What’s Wrong With This Picture’ and ‘Steal My Heart Away’ – also feature guitar courtesy of Lukas Nelson of Promise of the Real.

Physical copies of ‘New Arrangements and Duets’ have been pressed on black double-vinyl, limited edition orange double-vinyl and CD.

Van Morrison plays the first of two shows at the Brighton Dome tonight before heading to North America for six headline performances next month plus the special concert event ‘Life In A Carnival: A Musical Celebration of Robbie Robertson’ at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles.

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Stephen Fry & co’s water plea

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In a powerful show of public outrage over the state of the UK’s waterways, the March for Clean Water will now take place on Sunday, 3rd November, in central London.

A coalition of the concerned, including river campaigner Feargal Sharkey and celebrities such as Stephen Fry, Bear Grylls and Joe Lycett, are calling on everyone in the country angry at the state of water to take a stand. The march (which has moved from its original date of 26th October, will demand that our new government takes urgent action to address the UK’s alarming and dangerous water pollution crisis by marching through central London.

You’re all invited to join in one simple demand of Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer: to take immediate and decisive action to end the poisoning of our rivers, lakes and seas by the lethal cocktail of raw sewage, agricultural waste and other chemical pollutants, that over recent years have been allowed to leave most of our waterways so filthy that they present major risks to human health and untold damage to nature.

Mental Health Swims, the coalition’s 100th member, joins a diverse array of organisations – both large and small – from across the UK. Other organisations to recently sign up to join the March include smaller groups such as The Blue Tits, The Marine Conservation Society, Friends of the Earth, East Kent Climate Action, the Outdoor Swimming Society, alongside larger organisations such as the National Trust, Greenpeace, RSPB, British Rowing and Wildlife Trusts.

Charles Watson, River Action’s chair and founder and co-convenor of the march, said, “This landmark achievement highlights the immense momentum, public anger, and frustration about the state of our waterways. Environmental charities, anglers, wild swimmers, members of the legal profession and high-profile campaigners such as Chris Packham, Jo Brand and Liz Bonnin are coming together to amplify the urgent call for action from Sir Keir Starmer’s government to put an end to the poisoning of our rivers, seas and lakes.”

Comedian Joe Lycett who made a television documentary about the terrible state of the UK’s sewage network (Channel 4’s Joe Lycett v Sewage) said, “Our rivers and seas are still, literally, s***. I fully support this brilliant campaign.” 

Rachel Ashe (MBE), MD & Founder of Mental Health Swims, said, “Mental Health Swims is proud to be part of the coalition for the March for Clean Water. Due to the water quality issues throughout the UK, we are having to cancel some of our mental health peer support swim groups to ensure that participants and volunteers do not get sick. It’s really disheartening for our volunteers and participants who have worked hard to build a support group in their local community that comes together over a love of outdoor swimming. We want to see the new government taking action to address the water pollution crisis.” 

The March for Clean Water promises to be a vibrant, family-friendly demonstration that sends a clear message: the public will no longer tolerate politicians who talk tough on water pollution but fail to take meaningful action against human sewage and agricultural runoff in our rivers, seas, and lakes.

Visit March for Clean Water

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Omid Djalili lets it all out

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As he takes to the road with his new show Namaste, which visits Chesham, Bracknell, Farnham, Newbury & more, Omid Djalili talks to Mark Wareham about putting a funny spin on the state of the world and how being cancelled post-9/11 makes him the perfect comedy ambassador for these tumultuous times

Q. How long is it since your last tour?
“Well, you can’t really call it a tour. It was during Covid and very few came out but I did it anyway. I threw out all my material and made it all about Covid. We finished at the Hammersmith Apollo, it was one of the first gigs back there, and it was full of anti-vaxxers. December 18, 2021 and 2,600 people showed up. It wasn’t socially distanced, it was a big superspreader event. There was a march that day so they all piled in.”

Q. Can you explain a bit about the new show Namaste.
“Well, I’ve always tried to be nice about people but this time I can’t. The world is in such a terrible state. At the end of the day the whole purpose of comedy is not just making people laugh. That’s not the end game. When you talk about the means to an end, the means is comedy but the end is to actually make sense of what’s going on. And because I’m from the Middle East, I feel I do have some answers. People come to me as some kind of bridge, like a cultural stopgap, as someone to spread light on things. People don’t get what’s going on. They don’t get the connection between Iran and what’s going on in Gaza, they don’t get what’s going on with Joe Biden attacking Syria and Iraq. It’s me trying to use comedy to make it more palatable for a British audience to understand what’s going on. So I’ve put my hat in the ring.”

Q. So it’s a more considered, rational response, rather than a Mr Angry approach?
“Yeah, the tour poster of me with steam coming out of my ears. I’m angry but it’s a controlled anger and it’s considered. Audiences are really appreciative of that. So many people want to hang around afterwards. They say ‘thank you’, not ‘Oh mate, that was hilarious.’ It’s making sense of things. You give them a glimmer so people have some sort of handle on the situation.”

Cancel Culture

Q. Do the cancel culture warriors need to be on high alert for this tour?
“Cancel culture is a real thing. We’re always on the edge of being cancelled. We’re one joke away from having a TV series taken away or being kicked off a film. But I feel I’m old enough not to care anymore. I’ve been watching people like Seann Walsh and Louis CK and I kind of wish that I was cancelled cos they reach a level in their comedy where they just don’t care. Seann Walsh was this wide-eyed young guy doing Strictly and didn’t realise he was going to be pilloried in the press. It’s given him a kind of ‘I don’t care any more’ attitude. It’s a release. Nothing can get worse and you’ve got nothing to lose. And that’s when people are at their funniest. So you either do that by getting cancelled or just by getting old. In my case, I’m just too old to care.”

Q. It’s almost 30 years since your debut. Do you feel your material has changed a lot in that time?
“I was terrible back then. I look back at myself and it was appalling. I didn’t really want to do it. All my friends used to say, you’re funny you should get up there and do it. So I thought I’d give it a shot, but I didn’t really care much about it. It was only when 9/11 happened and I thought this is something serious I could have a voice about. I worked with Whoopi Goldberg 20 years ago when we did a sitcom together in America. I did some shows in New York and people were saying he’s good but he’s not quite top level. And Whoopi said, ‘Yeah, that’s what they said about Richard Pryor,’ And she made this connection between me and Pryor, and I said I’m not having that. But she said, ‘No. For your people,’ – and we’re talking about a whole gamut of countries and cultures from the Arab States, Iran, Pakistan, India – ‘for brown people, you are the first.’ So, like Richard Pryor, you do stuff that is geared towards white, middle America or middle England, and they will love you for it, but you won’t get really good until you become authentic. That’s what she was saying. As you get older that authentic voice will emerge.

“So she made me promise not to stop doing stand-up. And she said soon you’ll see others being inspired by you. And I thought, really? But I have seen people come through like Guz Khan, Romesh Ranganathan, who’ve told me I gave them the confidence to do it. So if I have inspired people that’s great. But Omid Djalili in the 1990s is definitely not my cup of tea. I looked a mess. I didn’t know how to dress, wore the wrong colour boots with the suit, I just looked like a fat, mentally ill person but I was at least trying to write recognisably good stand-up. So I try and forgive myself, but I’m much happier with what I’m doing now.”

Q. Do you feel, intrinsically, because of who you are, it’s impossible for your act not to be political?
“Yeah, it’s impossible. People would just be disappointed. I love Tim Vine. I went to see his show and he made me laugh from beginning to end. But if I did that to my fans I’d be hanged from a lamppost. They’d say, ‘What are you doing? There’s all this stuff going on. Are you seriously not going to mention the Woman, Life, Freedom movement? Are you seriously not going to make fun of this regime?’ So I do feel obligated, yes. For someone in my position and from my background, it would be remiss not to.”

Q. But the trick is you’ve still got to make it funny…
“Well, I was talking to Sean Lock about this before he died and he said if I do have a political thing to say, I’ll make it funny. But I’m not going to stand there and do slogans. And there’s a bunch of us who’ve always felt that. Unless it’s funny, I’m not even going to bother. I’ve got reams and reams of notes of things that have outraged me, but if there’s no joke there then I won’t inflict it on the audience.”

About the show

Q. What else can audiences expect from you? Obviously the usual swagger, a bit of dancing, any singing?
“There’s always going to be a little bit of singing and dancing, but it’s mostly a systematic look at the state of the world and a systematic look at myself. The first third of the show is about me. And the journey I’m going to take you on, I could get cancelled for. So I talk about the times I have been cancelled, and the whole Israel-Palestine thing is in the context of me having been through this before because after 9/11 I was cancelled. Before the days of cancel culture, I was cancelled. I called my manager on September 12 and I said, ‘There’s a gig with Jack Dee tomorrow, I presume that’s not going ahead.’ And he said, ‘Yes it is, but not with you. All your gigs are gone until Christmas, nobody wants to have you on. They don’t trust you.’ And I said, ‘So they think I’m a terrorist?’ And he said. ‘Well, there’s an association.’ And I said, ‘So they think I’m a sleeper cell.’ And he said, ‘Yeah.’ And then I asked him ‘You don’t think I’m a sleeper cell?’, and he paused… So I knew I had to do something. A lot of people think my career was made by 9/11 but no, I saved my career with comedy, cos I really believe that comedy is stronger than politics. Someone who is cancelled can joke their way out of it. I was never really cancelled for my jokes, I was cancelled for who I was. So it’s the journey of how I resurrected my career after 9/11. And because I’ve been through this before, I can look at what’s happening in Israel and Palestine, and this terrible global situation where we’re on the verge of Third World War… and the idea is, what can I do to avert it? I have no say, but I can certainly put out some thoughts and ideas that will have a little influence.”  

Q. You had to cancel a show in Shropshire last year, just after the October 7 attacks, are you worried about any repeats of that?
“Who would have thought that calling for a ceasefire and calling for peace would get you cancelled. Some people had written to the venue saying we’d like to speak to Mr Djalili about his stance on Israel. And they cancelled it, I didn’t ask them to cancel it. I could have handled it but if you feel there’s a security risk then that’s not good. But it doesn’t stop me, it was the venue’s decision. I would never cancel a show.

Q. Are you taking your great mate Boothby Graffoe on the road with you?
“Yes I am. I’m very lucky to have someone of his standard as a support act. If he does his A material he’ll blow me off the stage! He’s very kind, he’ll listen to my show in the dressing room and tell me, I only winced six times. He’s like my comedy police. He’s got a few new songs and he creates a very nice atmosphere.”

For dates & ticket info please visit Omid Djalili Official Website (omidnoagenda.com)

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Author In Me (AIM) literary festival

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A celebration of “life, experiences, and stories in-between’, The Author In Me Literary Festival is all set for 14th-19th October in London, culminating in a young voices event at Roald Dahl Museum

The festival will feature a dynamic range of events across London celebrating diversity in the world of publishing.

The inaugural event will be at The French Library, the festival will inspire literary lovers of all ages with an exciting line-up that includes author panels, masterclasses, live critiquing sessions, writing workshops, and more. The line-up includes a keynote speech by Lady Kishwar Desai and Q&A with Noel Murphy (commercial director of Granta Publishing) which will be moderated by award-winning TV presenter Anila Dhami who is also a member of the festival’s advisory board.

Debut authors will also launch their latest works, including life coach Bhavya Arora, presenting her bold non-fiction title Where the F**k Do I Go From Here, and Stephen C. Lawley with his book The Catalyst. Both authors will attend, along with several other remarkable writers, to share their unique perspectives and celebrate their contributions to the literary world.

In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the festival will launch a new book by debut author Priyanka Pandya, a breast cancer survivor and mother of two young girls. Her picture book, When Mummy Had Cancer, stems from her personal experiences and is designed to help families navigate difficult conversations with their children, offering support as they cope with illness and adversity.

Attendees are also invited to join an exciting conversation between film journalist Ashanti Omkar and author Sonia Bahl, as they delve into the growing trend of adapting books into films and series.

Co-founder Ekta Bajaj says: “At the heart of the AIM Literary Festival is a deep passion for storytelling – stories that reflect the lives we live, the experiences we share, and the moments that often go unnoticed.” Fellow co-founder Monica Sood, adds: “I am deeply passionate about creating a platform that amplifies diverse voices and stories from all walks of life. This year, I’m particularly excited to dedicate a day to young voices in collaboration with the Roald Dahl Museum. Alongside established authors, we’ll have young authors showcasing their books, along with fun workshops and reading sessions to inspire young minds to read and write for pleasure. Our goal is to nurture the next generation of storytellers and instil a lifelong love of literature.”

The AIM Young Voices event, 11am-3pm on 19th October at the Roald Dahl Museum in Great Missenden will feature a host of workshops and book reading sessions including The Quill Soup Adventure with Alan Durant, creating graphic stories with Debasmita Dasgupta, Celebrating You: Beyond the Colour of My Skin with Divya Thomas plus the chance to craft your own personalised book, enjoy live music and inspiring talks.

For further information please visit Literary Festival for storytellers of all ages and cultures (aimlitfestival.com)

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Get cosy with seasonal interior ideas!

Liz Nicholls

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Liz Nicholls

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As summer draws to a close, the world of interior design embraces a shift toward spaces that are not only stylish but also profoundly reflective of personal taste. This season’s trends are about creating environments that stand out while providing comfort and a sense of individuality.

From luxurious textures to nature-inspired tones, here are the top trends to make your home a sanctuary of style and personality.

Luxurious textures: deep jewel tones

Deep jewel tones are the hallmark of the next season’s decor, brining a rich and sophisticated colour palette into your home. These bold hues – ruby red, sapphire blue, and emerald green – are not confined to small accents but are embraced in larger, more impactful ways.

Whether it’s a plush sofa, an upholstered chair, or even a statement rug, these vibrant colours add a touch of elegance and warmth to any space. The intensity of jewel tones creates a striking contrast that elevates your decor, making it both inviting and opulent.

Natural materials: wood beyond the basics

Wood is making a solid statement in Fall 2024 decor with its timeless appeal. This season focuses on high-quality, beautifully crafted wooden pieces that add warmth and a sense of wellbeing to your home.

Whether a handcrafted dining table that becomes the heart of your home or a sleek wooden side table, these elements bring enduring elegance and character to your space. Far from being mundane, these wooden pieces are designed to stand out, offering both style and durability.

They’re not just furniture but investments in your home’s aesthetic and comfort.

Warm embrace: earthy tones

Earthy tones are taking centre stage this season, bringing the warmth and tranquillity of nature into your home. Inspired by the rich palette of the outdoors, shades like deep terracotta, rich browns, muted greens and warm ochres create a cozy, grounding atmosphere perfect for the fall season.

Imagine a living room bathed in a soft clay tone, enhanced by a warm nude velvet bench and a deep red marble coffee table – together, they craft a serene and sophisticated space.

Sculptural pieces: art meets functionality

Sculptural furniture and decor are all about bold, artistic shapes that double as functional pieces. This trend brings in items like totem sculptures and furniture with striking, unconventional forms, turning everyday objects into statement pieces that define the room’s character.

These sculptural elements add a layer of sophistication and intrigue to your space, blending art with utility. Whether it’s a bold dining table with sweeping curves or a dramatic lamp, these pieces transform your home into a gallery of modern design.

Made for you: personalised & unique pieces

Personalisation is mandatory this fall, with a strong trend toward unique, one-of-a-kind pieces that reflect your style. Whether it’s an antique mirror, a handwoven rug, or a bespoke piece of art, incorporating these items into your decor adds a layer of personal storytelling to your home.

Custom-built furniture tailored to your space is the perfect way to embrace this trend. A bespoke piece doesn’t just fit perfectly. It also is a testament to your taste, making your home truly yours. These personalised touches create a space as unique as you are, filled with items that carry meaning and tell your story.

Textured designs

Textured rugs add depth and visual interest to any interior space. The interplay of materials, shapes, and colours creates a visually dynamic surface and a tactile experience that enhances comfort.

Geometric shapes and varied pile heights, such as high-low designs, bring a sculptural quality to the rug, while cut and loop pile combinations add intricate patterns and subtle dimensions. Embossed or carved patterns elevate the aesthetic appeal by giving the rug a captivating three-dimensional effect.

These elements work together to create a harmonious blend of style and warmth, making textured rugs perfect for creating cosy, inviting spaces rich in character and design.

HOUSE OF HOMMÉS is the home of three bold and unique design brands that share the same vision – to deliver essential designer furniture, bold decor objects, luxe pet accessories, and stylish rugs for ultra-modern interiors, paying particular attention to how they fit in the same space. Shop at hommes.studio

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Six great Lugana wines

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Round & About Magazine’s resident wine columnist Giles Luckett rediscovers with white wines of Lugana, and finds beauty and value

When it comes to naming your favourite Italian white wine, you’d be forgiven for not saying Lugana. Other Northern Italian wines such as Soave are far better known even though the quality of Lugana is often superior and significantly better value for money. I must confess, that until my recent attendance at a Lugana tasting, I’d pretty much forgotten about the region’s wines. The first wine shop I ran had a couple of Lugana’s, and whenever someone came in looking for a good value, easy drinking white, they were my default recommendations. They were fruity, uncomplicated and fun. They weren’t fine wines in the serious sense of the word, but they were, well, fine.

At the tasting it quickly became clear that the wines of Lugana have come a long way in the past 30 years. There are now Riserva level wines and wines that have been aged in oak. Across the board they seem to have become more serious and complex yet have retained the joyous citrus, pear and peach fruitiness that so impressed me all those years ago.

To celebrate my reacquaintance with this pearl of a wine, here are six Lugana wines that any lover of great value, elegant white wines should seek out.

About the Lugana wine region

OK, notebooks open, please, I may be asking question later. To give you a little context, the Lugana region lies in Northern Italy and straddles the provinces of Brescia in Lombardy and Verona in Veneto. It’s unusual to see a wine region across over into another province, but Lugana is an unusual wine. It’s made from the Turbiana grape, which was formerly known Trebbiano di Lugana even though genetically it has much to do with the Trebbiano family as I do the Royal Family. The name was changed to distinguish it from Trebbiano wines which tend to be about as engaging as a health and safety video. 

Turbiana gives fresh whites with fruit notes of pears and peaches, a lemon acidity and a distinctive mineral edge that comes from the glacial soils on which they are grown. This profile lends itself well to the production of sparkling wines, many of which, such as the excellent Ca Maiol (Svinando £19.90) are serious and stylish. Recently, however, there’s been a push for higher quality, age worthy wines. Many critics and producers have long suspected that this wonderfully sited region could produce world class whites, and as the following shows, their suspicions were well-founded.

Six great Lugana wines

First up, a surprise wine. I was surprised to see a Lugana in ASDA and was surprised that they were selling a wine of this quality for just £11. The imaginatively named Lugana Italian Wine is classic example of Lugana. White gold with a hint of emerald green, the nose is a lovely mix of pears and peaches with a shot of lemon freshness. Medium bodied and nimble, mouthwatering flavours of citrus

Next up is the Nunzio Ghiraldi (Majestic £14.99). Crafted using organic methods on vines that are a stone’s throw from Lake Garda, this balances freshness and depth to give a more serious style of Lugana. Produced from ancient vines, the nose is somewhat more complex, conveying notes of white blossoms and wet clay alongside the green and white fruits. The palate is generous and fruity, with peaches and pears joined by apricot, minerals and a clean lemon acidity. Try this with game birds or a creamy risotto.

Showing Lugana’s stylistic diversity we have the Lugana Bertagna 2023 (£9.67 Vivino). This is a fresher, more intense wine which is evident from the bouquet which has lemon and grapefruit mingling with zesty apricots, honeydew melon, and just-ripe kiwi fruit. These notes are mirrored on the palate where they are joined by limes, white pepper, yellow plums and a peach stone bitterness to the end. Try this with fresh pasta with mushrooms, seafood, and vegetarian dishes such as couscous with roasted artichokes.

My favourite wine of the tasting was probably the Alberto e Mauro Zenegaglia Luna del Lago Lugana Riserva (Vivino £14.72). Riserva level wines are relatively rare and must be aged for at least two years before being released. This spent 18 months in large old oak barrels and this has had a dramatic effect on it. More golden in colour, the effects of oxidation are present on the nose which is rounder and fuller, with scents of honey and lemon, apricots and jasmine coming the fore. In the mouth it has a creaminess to it, and the fruit profile is more autumnal – plums, green figs, and pears – but it is still fresh and tangy. A lot of wine for the money, this was delicious on its own, but I could see it going wonderfully well with gammon, roast chicken, or smoked fish.

If you’re looking for a white wine that combines richness, weight and delicacy, then the El Citera Lugana L’Artigianale (Vivino £23.64) is for you. I tasted the 2018 which was fantastic and goes to show how Lugana can improve with age. Having been macerated for 24 hours on its skins, this wine had notably more texture to it. It’s also given two years to mature in vats before release. All this adds up a richer, yeastier wine, one that has plenty of lemon and lime freshness, but has notes of baked apple, toasted almonds, green herbs and chalky minerals too. I loved this on its own, but I plan to try this with roast pork or meaty fish such as sea bass in a cream and herb sauce – not that I’m menu planning or anything.

I’ll finish with a step up in quality (and price) with the Ca’ Lojera Lugana Riserva del Lupo 2018 (Vinissimus £33.50). Once-upon-a-time a Lugana at over £30 a bottle would have been virtually unheard of, but the quality of this wine more than justifies the price. Straw gold in colour, the bouquet offers notes of herbs and honey alongside the usual citrus and green skinned fruits. On the palate there’s an extra degree of richness too. Honey, almonds, plums, and red apples sit alongside baked lemon and spicy vanilla. The finish is long and firm making this the ideal wine for river fish, salt cod, pheasant or turkey.

Well, I hope this has whetted your appetite for the wines of Lugana. There are many brilliant wines to be had and they’re still (for now) cracking value.

Next time out, I’ll be looking at some rather fine Champagne – yes, it is a tough life!

Giles

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Comedian Bill Bailey spills the beans… 

Liz Nicholls

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Liz Nicholls chats to comedian, author & dad Bill Bailey about the release of his new book My Animals & Other Animals, his upcoming Thoughtifier comedy show tour & more 

Q. Hello Bill! Your Thoughtifier show sounds a bit like a celebration of flawed humanity… so are we doomed?
“Well, yeah, obviously, at some point, because we’re gradually drifting towards the sun. But we don’t have to worry about that! That’s a long way off. But I think there’s been this general worry, this panic about AI and that robots will take over and we’ll be rendered helpless husks. All our jobs will be replaced and there’ll be no more films or art or music or books or literature: all of that will be replaced and we’re essentially redundant. This show is very much a rebuttal of that! Because we are capable of extraordinary things. The Olympics, for example, makes you think, wow, humans are amazing, we’re capable of incredible feats. And this show is very much about that. Not maybe sporting feats, but in terms of artistic, intellectual thoughts, you know, consciousness, music, that, you know, the way that we able to create music is something I just find amazing. And in the show, I invite the audience to create something on the spur of the moment. We create harmony, rhythm, the building blocks of music right there. And then I compare that to how AI might do it. And so it’s really, as you say, a celebration of us as a species. Rather than panic about AI and worry about how much it’s going to take over, I just think we ought to celebrate ourselves a bit more, revel in human achievement and creativity.”

Q. Absolutely! You mentioned music there, Bill… What’s your first memory of music?
“At home, listening to my mum singing along to the radio, because she had the radio on all the time. She’d sing along to hits of the day; one that sticks in my mind is a song by Perry Como called Magic Moments. It’s got a jaunty whistling solo in it and a clarinet solo… I mean, how many songs can you say that about!? None. No, there aren’t any. And I have thought about it! Despite not being able to play, I picked out tunes on the piano as a result of hearing them on the radio. So I think just hearing music around all the time was an influence.”

Q. You’ve been called ‘one of comedy’s most twinkle-toed talents’. Do you still dance about a fair bit now after that Strictly win?
“Yeah. I do incorporate dance into my live shows. There’s a bit of Paso Doble in there and, actually, I recreate the UN Charter in dance form and I put a bit of Charleston in there as well. But the thing is about when you’re on that show [Strictly] is that you get to dance to all these things that I would hitherto never have in my wildest dreams thought would be appearing on a ballroom dancing show… Like Metallica’s Enter Sandman or, you know, Rapper’s Delight or Blondie. It’s not really about the rhythm itself. It’s about the upper section of those songs. It’s sort of thinking, well, those are rock songs, metal songs, rap songs, whatever, but dance is very specific. It’s very precise. It’s about numbers of beats. If you look at it in its basic form, it’s rhythm. It’s about, you know, tempo. When you realise that, it’s like a huge door opening, a big light bulb going off thinking, wow, there’s all this music out there which can be attributed to all these different dances. So after I did Strictly, I’d be walking in the supermarket listening to a bit of music thinking, oh, this could be a tango. Music is amazingly adaptable.” 

Q. You played at Sonisphere: you like a bit of metal, don’t you? Who’s your favourite band?
“Yeah, I like metal. It’s difficult to choose my all-time favourite band but probably Talking Heads. I was a huge fan of them when I first heard their album Remain in Light. That’s a long time ago now. I mean, that’s when I was 15. But I mean, I like a lot of metal bands purely for their musical ambition. They’re technically incredibly proficient, they’re brilliant players, musically really ambitious. Lots of time signature changes, tempo changes. I love bands like Opeth; they’re a Swedish metal band, they’re more like a melodic metal band now, they have an enormous range of music, from growly metal to incredibly lyrical, melodic metal. The lead singer Mikael [Åkerfeldt], who I know, now writes music for Netflix series and so on so he’s a composer. There’s a lot of bands I love: a current favourite is a band called Heilung – they’re a German/Danish/Norwegian pagan metal outfit and they do amazing shows, very theatrical. They’re wearing robes and antlers and a shaman comes out and brings incense on the stage and they bang tribal drums and they play traditional instruments and combine that with music and electronics and sampling. They’re just like nothing else I’ve seen: they don’t even call them shows, they call them rituals. The music is monumental and delicate and powerful and ancient and contemporary all at the same time, they defy description.”

Q. I will check them out! Your memoir My Animals and Other Animals sounds like a right treat. So who’s in your menagerie at the moment? I can see you in your conservatory there. Do you have pets at home with you now?
“Yeah, we’ve got three dogs and we’ve got four parrots and that’s our core, that’s the main game. And then we’ve got various others which are not really pets, they’re animals that we’re looking after, rescue animals. So we’ve got a few frogs, sort-of tree frogs, and we’ve got some lizards, pheasants, armadillos. Armadillos are great: when you put them down, they just sort of, they scuttle around, but you can’t see their feet. So it just looks like they’re weird remote control lawn mowers.”

Q. No one seems to have a bad word to say about you, Bill. You definitely cheer people up, but I’m wondering: do you ever get grumpy? Does anything get your goat? Go on…
“Oooh [ponders awhile], I don’t like it when you’re in the supermarket and you put some fresh herbs, coriander, say, in your basket and then you put your basket down and you go and get something, come back and somebody’s… TAKEN THE CORIANDER!”

Q. Where does this happen!? And what do you do: properly kick off?
“I just go, WHAT THE S&*^! and smash all the food off the shelves. No, not really. But maybe I should start smashing jars of pickles, shouting ‘GIVE ME BACK MY CORIANDER, YOU BASTARD!’ But no, I just go and get some more. It’s rude, but it’s not technically theft as you haven’t actually bought it so it’s not even technically yours. Ummm, what else? I don’t like rudeness, poor manners. Litter, GRRR! I actually risk life and limb, sometimes, chasing after people because I see somebody dropping something, and I pick it up and go after them, going ‘Excuse me, oh sorry, excuse me but you dropped something’. People are so shocked that they usually take it and bin it. But it might go wrong one day and someone will tell me where I can stick their Nando’s wrapper. It’s a very British approach, a little bit passive aggressive…”

Q. I grew to love you on [the iconic TV show] Spaced which I’m still obsessed with… I mean the cast on that! Do you keep in touch with any of them? I’d like to think you’re all pals…
“Spaced is brilliant, yeah! Do you know what? It’s very bad, but we haven’t really kept in touch. And although I did bump into Jess [Hynes] at Chelsea Flower Show, which was a joyous, unexpected Spaced reunion!”

Q. You performed for the King, haven’t you, and you’ve met him several times. Are you mates, maybe WhatsApp buddies?
“Yeah, yeah, there’s like a big crown symbol in my phone and I just press that… No! I haven’t got his number! He watched my show which had a section with cowbells in it and he loved that. Afterwards he said to me [adopts Charles voice]: ‘Um, so how do you get the cows to nod their heads in the right order?’ There I was thinking, ‘am I getting trolled by the by the monarch!?’ And then he started asking me about my six-neck electric guitar. He was going: ‘how do you play a six-neck guitar? Do you to have a false arm or something?’ And I was like [patiently]: ‘Er no, you don’t need a false arm.’ But then afterwards I thought, that’s actually not a bad idea! I should just get a false arm.”

Q. Maybe he’s got one?
“Maybe! I think, if anyone in the land is going to have a false arm, it’s the royals, isn’t it? All that waving. Maybe that was just a false arm in the carriage when we thought the Queen was waving. She was probably on her Game Boy or something. Maybe doing a bit of knitting out of sight.”

Q. You’re off on another tour. What’s your favourite venue & do you mingle with the fans?
“Do you know what? I’ve been around the world and I… hang on, that sounds like a song, doesn’t it!? But yeah my favourite is the Hammersmith Apollo at the end of my road. Honestly, it’s one of the best. It’s a brilliant venue for comedy. And being able to cycle round there in five minutes is a massive plus! Yes, when I come out the theatre there are crowds of people and I’m like: ‘Get away from me!’ No: I always say hi to people. Some people have this ludicrous tiered system: you know, there’s the bronze meet-and-greet and then there’s the silver VIP and then the gold one where you can touch his sleeve for four seconds. But I just think it’s all bollocks. I just come out and say hello and take a picture. I’m talking about after the show, you understand, not inviting them on stage to be in a skit with Bill Bailey. I always try and make time for people if I can. I hang around, you know, behind the theatre, at the stage door. Even if there’s no one there…. Hello, anyone? Selfie, anyone?!”

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