New book on The Hoste hotel in North Norfolk unveiled

Delighted to see my new book on The Hoste hotel at Burnham Market unveiled. It looks at the long and varied history of the hotel in North Norfolk, the marHostebookcovervellous landscape in which it sits at the heart of the county’s Royal Coast and also its association with maritime figures, particularly Lord Nelson who was a regular visitor and Captain Sir William Hoste who gave the hotel – previously known as The Pitt Arms – its present name way back in 1811. The book is now available from The Hoste (www.thehoste.com) at £15.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Travel Mail: Ghoulish London

Want a blood-curdling tour of London? There’s plenty of attractions to visit that will give you a scare, ranging from the London Dungeons to Jack the Ripper tours and tales of executions, torture and treachery in a guided walk around the Tower of London with a Beefeater. Find out more in my Travel Mail feature…

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-2439335/Weekends-London-Tales-treachery-torture-treason-ghoulish-tour-capital.html

Travel Mail: Pilgrim’s Progress to Santiago de Compostela

Santiago de Compostela in the north west of Spain, one of the world’s great pilgrimage sites as the final resting place of St James, is also a fabulous city break destination with history, culture and mouth-watering cuisine (particularly if you like octopus). While the area hit global headlines with the tragic rail crash of July 24, take a look at my feature on the Travel Mail website – it is a city break destination I can recommend and with idyllic coastline, great beaches and historic towns across the region, you may wish to stay longer.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-2402231/City-break-Santiago-You-dont-walk-Way-discover-lure-Santiago-Compostela.html

Cruising to the midnight sun aboard P&O’s Oriana

orianaJust back from a cruise from Southampton to the very top of Norway aboard P&O’s Oriana. It’s a fantastic way to see the country, particularly at this time of year when it is virtually daylight 24/7. Cruise took in Stavanger, Flam, Alesund and Trondheim en route to the Nordkapp at the very top of the country. I can highly-recommend the P&O Land of the Midnight Sun cruise

My piece on Cuba features on Travel Mail website

Article from a great trip to Cuba with Journeys of Distinction is featured on the Daily Mail’s Travel Mail website. Cuba is a real eye-opener with fascinating cities – particularly the capital Havana – and small towns, stunning beaches and great food and drink. But now is a perfect time to visit as it feels like a country on the cusp of change.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-2358982/First-time-guide-Cuba-Havana-Old-cars-classic-cocktails-throwing-chains-Communism.html

Excellent trip to Cuba

Just spent eight days in Cuba. Havana is a fascinating city of flaking architecture and old American cars – Buicks, Chevrolets and Plymouths from the late 1950s cruise the streets. IMG_0331 (2)But it is a city trapped in an economic and social time warp, though one that is also on the cusp of change. Away from the capital, the pace of life is laid back and truly timeless in Trinidad, a colonial town that still reflects the Spanish architectural influence with pastel buildings lining cobbled streets where the only traffic in the old part of the town are cycle rickshaws or horse-drawn carts. For refreshment, Cristal beer is really good, or go for a Mojito cocktail with Havana Club rum. Cuba also has some great coastline and white sandy beaches – enjoy resorts such as Varadero. I travelled to Cuba with Journeys of Distinction on assignment for Travel Mail.

Sunday Telegraph Life: Edmund Hillary’s secret hideaway

After conquering the summit of Mount Everest in 1953, climber Sir Edmund Hillary sought peace, quiet and seclusion to relax and recover from the epic adventure. He found in a quiet suburban garden in Norwich. Find out where with this feature I wrote for Sunday Telegraph Life magazine

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/periodproperty/9978545/The-house-where-Sir-Edmund-Hillary-recovered-from-Everest.html

My ‘return to Koh Samui’ trip featured on TravelMail website

From a great trip to the Baan Taling Ngam Intercontinental Resort on the Thai island of Koh Samui earlier in the year, my feature is now published on the TravelMail website. It was a great opportunity to re-visit the island after a 15-year gap and compare and contrast the luxury resort with my last visit…as a backpacker staying in a beach hut and clutching a copy of Alex Garland’s book The Beach under my arm!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-2297105/Luxury-Thailand-Turning-hands-time-memories-backpacking-Koh-Samui.html

New journalism textbook features war reporting chapter

A new journalism textbook entitled Specialist Journalism looks at how to be a correspondent and a specialist reporter. It brings together chapters from reporters and correspondents across the spectrum and covers specialisms such as sport, business, politics, crime, environment, fashion, food, music, health, travel and war/defence reporting.

My chapter focuses on being a war/defence correspondent and looks at the challenges of reporting from the frontline drawing on my experiences in the Iraq War of 2003 and assignments in Kabul and the Helmand province of Afghanistan in recent years. It also discusses the issue of embedded war correspondents.

Published by Routledge (£21.99 paperback), the 220-page book is edited by Barry Turner and Richard Orange and combines practical ‘how to’ skills with reflection on the place of each specialism in the industry.

The guide features the skills needed to cover specialist areas, including writing match reports for sport, reviewing the arts, and dealing with complex information for science, and also discusses how specialist journalists have contributed to the mainstream news agenda, as well as analysing how different issues have been covered in each specialism.