You won’t believe me, but these idyllic Italian-style gardens were once home to an amusement park and motor rally races. Going back to the 1800s, Trentham Estate boasted the most beautiful grounds, but by...
I don’t know about you, but I spent Easter weekend down the garden centre admiring flowers and picking out vegetable seeds. It’s officially gardening season. Looking for more inspiration, I found a quiete...
Just over a hundred Barbary macaques roam free at Trentham Monkey Forest (about an hour’s drive from Birmingham), while only 8,000 of these endangered animals currently survive in the wild. But in a world...
Is it Mickey Mouse or a dinosaur on the Bullring? Or is all you see a stratocumulus and an altostratus? However you see the sky above, cloud gazing can be a calming break from the world beyond (anyone else...
The sun is shining. The sky is bluing. The cherry blossoms are blossoming. Spring is here. Pastel-pink flowers of Japanese cherry blossom trees, also known as sakura, are sweeping Birmingham once more. W...
The Library of Birmingham is a must-visit for all new and old to the city (easily among the best things to do in Birmingham). It’s the largest public library in the United Kingdom, if not Europe. Across t...
To honour one of Birmingham’s greatest writers, BCU launched the Benjamin Zephaniah Future Writers competition—asking adults and children to submit their poems around a theme, this year centred on the environment (inspi...
Let’s face it, nothing gets the heart racing quite like a bargain hunt. And where better to trawl for treasures than a car boot sale? But while you’re busy snapping up second-hand finds, don’t forget that it’s best not...
Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens may date back to the Elizabethan era, but they wouldn’t reach their beautiful peak until over a century later. For generations, the Grade II* listed, formal gardens were maintained and devel...
We are truly living in the Age of Health. From blood transfusions to strength training, high-fibre diets and AI-powered wearables, everyone’s always after the next trend to help us live longer and better lives. But mayb...