Innehållsförteckning för 10-2021 från Best

As news crews gathered outside King Edward VII’s Hospital for a glimpse of a reluctant patient last week, Prince Edward made a phone call. ‘The Duke of Edinburgh,’ he reported was ‘a lot better’, adding with laughter that his father told him he was looking forward to going home as ‘walls are only so interesting’. Let’s hope this happens soon. The Queen could do with his support (see page 10). Prince Harry’s been stripped of his Royal patronages, he and his wife have made a TV show with Oprah and William’s done little to squash reports of tension with his brother. Fall-outs happen in every family. Unfortunately for the Queen, this one is playing out in the public spotlight. Thank goodness for Kate. Our Duchess exudes calm and a radiant…

The BBC Radio 2 DJ recently revealed that her sister, Frances, 53, was ‘fighting for her life’ in hospital, after testing positive for Covid-19 following an outbreak at her Northamptonshire care home. She added that it had been ‘the worst week of our lives’. At one point, she said medical staff were discussing palliative care for her sister, before she ‘rallied round’ 24 hours later – and is now gladly recovering at home. Her sister’s Covid fight came not long after mum-of-four Jo spoke of the ‘nightmare’ of being offered a jab before her sister. She explained that Frances was in the sixth priority group for vaccination – but Jo believed due to her diabetes and ‘an underlying health condition’, she should have been offered it much earlier – as…

WHAT ARE ACID TONERS AND WHAT DO THEY DO? They are not as scary as they sound. Also known as ‘exfoliants’, ‘resurfacers’ and ‘peel pads’, these toners use acids to dissolve dead skin cells and dirt, which settle in fine lines and block pores, to leave skin more radiant and glowing. They also help the skin maintain moisture, even out skin tone and speed up cell turnover, tackling excess oil and breakouts. Which acid you use depends on your skin type and needs. As we age, and our skin cell turnover slows, they help rev things up, keeping our complexion bright. With regular use you should also see pigmentation from sun damage start to fade. Plus, if you don’t have a layer of dead skin cells, any other products you…

Waving to my parents through the conservatory window, they were both crying, but I fought back tears until I was in my car. It was March 2020 and the Covid-19 pandemic had hit the UK. My mum, Ann, 80, and dad, Peter, 81, were high risk and needed to shield, but as a key worker, I still had to work. It was too risky to go home to them, so I packed my bags, waved goodbye and booked two nights in a hotel. Beyond that, I had no idea where I’d go or what the future held. I cried in my car and I cried when I arrived at the eerily empty hotel. I’ve dedicated my career to other people’s wellbeing. But when the pandemic began, it’s fair to say…

Rebekah Vardy turned 39 recently and took the opportunity to pen an explosive and heart-wrenching letter to her teenage self – including advice like ‘don’t take those pills’ and ‘don’t let that man terrify you, or break you’. The mum-of-five, currently appearing on skating show Dancing on Ice with pro partner Andy Buchanan, opened up about her tough childhood – and the abuse she suffered – in the ‘therapeutic’ letter. Sharing a snap of herself aged 15, the Norwich-born star – who is married to professional footballer Jamie Vardy, 34 – revealed it was taken ‘just a few weeks before I was thrown out of home with a few of my belongings in a bin bag’, and had to live alone in a B&B while working in a pub. Rebekah…

HAS HE GONE OFF ME? It was my 50th last week and my hubby bought me, amongst a few other things, a membership pass for our local gym – to use post-lockdown. I’m so upset. All I can think is that he must think I am fat and flabby, and doesn’t fancy me any more. He saw my face fall and said it was just so, after lockdown, I could have some time to myself away from the family – but every time I see the pass I feel like bursting into tears. Am I being silly? Hannah, Gateshead You have a choice. You can look at his gift as negative and be critical, or you can decide it’s the kindest and most loving gesture he could possibly make. Your…

Winner Marks & Spencer, £22 (marksandspencer.com) The ordering process is straightforward and there’s an app too. There’s an option of a one-hour time slot, with updates and confirmation of safe delivery. All flowers arrived wrapped in brown paper to prevent damage and finished with ribbon. Flower food and care instructions included. Bouquets lasted two to three weeks. Price range: All £22 Delivery options: Free next-day delivery if ordered by 7pm Mon-Fri. You can choose the specific day. 91/100 BEST SELECTION Bloom & Wild, £23 (bloomandwild.com) A good selection, plus helpful advice on their website and with the delivery. The ordering process is straightforward, or you can use their app. On delivery day, we received confirmation of safe arrival. All bouquets arrived packaged well to prevent damage in brown paper and…

NOISE POLLUTION RUTH: ‘She loved him, but when she heard him chew, she fantasised about his death.’ Now, how many of you can identify with that?! Eamonn came across a range of greeting cards called Jeffrey and Janice’s funniest moments, on which that phrase was captioned – and posted it on his Instagram account. He thought it was a very apt description of me. You see, noise irritates me and Eamonn making noise irritates me even more! Eamonn eating, slurping, rustling, sneezing, yawning and even breathing, dare I say. He thinks I’m really odd. Well, it turns out that I’m not as odd as he thinks and if I am, I am certainly not alone – as we found out when we made this into an item on This Morning.…

Going home for my birthday had been a mistake, neighbours stopping me in the street to ask, ‘Adrian not with you, Emily?’ As if they didn’t know he’d left me for another woman. Here’s the thing about childhood sweethearts in a smallish town; you’re both considered public property by people who saw you hanging out in bus shelters together, wearing matching rings made out of dandelion stems – sending the grapevine into juddering overload with your eventual schism. Although my younger brother Kyle has kindly pointed out, ‘you’re not that fascinating, Em, there’s global warming and stuff going on as well’, I still felt like hanging a bulletin outside the town hall: ‘Emily Harris & Adrian Naylor have split! Should you bump into her out and about, kindly avert your…

ICED BISCUITS Prep time: 25 mins, plus an hour to decorate Baking time: 12 mins 325g plain flour200g butter125g caster sugarZest of 1 lemon2 egg yolks TO DECORATE 250g ready to roll icingPaste food colourings of your choice1 tbsp warmed, sieved, apricot jam250g royal icing sugar YOU WILL NEED Assorted shaped biscuit cutters of your choice;baking trays; piping bag with fine writing nozzle 1. Preheat oven to gas mark 4, 180oC (160oC in a fan oven). 2. Place flour in a bowl and add butter, rub together until mixture looks like breadcrumbs then stir in the sugar, lemon zest and egg yolks, and bring the dough together with your hands to make a ball. Roll out on a work surface lightly dusted with flour to a thickness of about 5mm.…

Jenny Eclair is host of brand-new art show Drawers Off, which involves five amateur artists each week, taking turns to pose for each other, with no clothes on. The 60-year-old mum-of-one, who married long-term partner, Geof, in 2017, tells us more… Hi Jenny, how have you been? Oh, OK. Doing a massive botanical jigsaw. Jigsaws are the biggest thieves of time. Somebody on Twitter asked me if I was going to frame it. I live with an art dealer, I’m not going to put a bloody jigsaw on the wall! Your show, Drawers Off, looks like such fun. Was it? I had a ball. After seven months of lockdown it was the most cheering thing. Everyone was glad to be out of their house, although we were still not allowed…

When my mum, Joan, passed away in August 2019, I was devastated but I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t a feeling of relief, too. For the last 20 years, I’d devoted all of my free time to looking after both her and my stepdad, Steve, and it had really taken its toll on me. Mum had got together with Steve Cornwell when I was just eight years old after my dad left us, and he became my rock. An ex-accountant and then a police officer, he was my mentor, the one who helped me with my homework, listened to my problems and always joked he was glad he’d become a father to a child already out of nappies. He was the reason I became a police cadet at…

TOP TIP! Apply concealer on lids so your shadow lasts longer.…

RAISING THE BAR Wow, dark horse Sonny Jay really raised the bar in that high-energy routine from Billy Elliot on Sunday! Such speed. He’s looking more like a champion each week that passes, don’t you think? I adore his lack of ego too – he’s just a friendly, humble guy trying to soak up as much as he possibly can. Sonny’s still a bit like, ‘What am I doing here?!’ He’s great! FEISTY FAYE! I’m having lots of fun with Faye, I can’t believe our TikTok twerking went viral! I love Manchester, too – strangely it reminds me of California, for its vibe and friendliness. Hope you enjoyed our Pretty Woman routine – it showed a sassy side to Faye. That assisted backflip was the first by a female celeb…

I was 42 when I made my bucket list. To be honest, it was a long time coming. I’d begun mulling it over when I turned 40. Something clicked – I started questioning who I was, apart from a mum and a wife. My girls were still young, seven and five, but we’d finished the days of nappies, sleepless nights and the general fog that comes with those first years of parenting. I looked at myself in the mirror and I had no idea who I was any more. The girl I used to be in my 20s and 30s, the bubbly, adventure-loving, world-traveller, had vanished. All that was left was a tired, slightly dishevelled mum in granny pants. Then I had a health scare. A little something on my…

PARTNER HAS ‘BULGING’ DISCS My partner was recently diagnosed with degenerative discs – one was ‘bulging’, and he was in absolute agony and laid up for several weeks, on medication. He is back on his feet now – just about – but I am terrified it is going to ‘go’ again and he’ll be back to square one. Is there any type of exercise or treatment you would recommend, to try to stop this from happening again? Lydia, Birmingham DR HILARY SAYS: Many people have degenerative changes in their spine which are observed on X-rays – but the clinical symptoms do not always correspond with the radiological findings. Bulging discs are not uncommon, but it certainly sounds as if your partner had an acute prolapsed (slipped) disc, which can definitely…

Nicky Campbell has been the voice of reason with his BBC Radio 5 Live phone-in since 2003, and is best known for hosting ITV’s Long Lost Family, alongside Davina McCall. In his new book, Nicky, 59, – who with his wife Tina has four daughters, Breagha, 22, Lilla, 19, Kirsty, 17 and Isla, 15 – opens up on how adoption made him feel like an outsider; the guilt he carried towards his mum and dad for needing to trace his birth mother, and the crushing disappointment he felt when he finally met her. Did hosting Long Lost Family help to change your outlook on adoption? It did help to bring my feelings to the surface, after being on the programme for 11 years. I felt disloyal to my Irish birth…

1 HYPERJAR If you are a traditional saver then the HyperJar app is for you. The free app lets you put money into digital ‘jam jars’ – so you dedicate a weekly or monthly amount to spend on groceries, holidays, entertainment and so on. You can also create dedicated jars to spend at some retailers such as Shell and earn around 4.8 per cent interest (the interest can only be used at the store and can’t be withdrawn). You can also share the jars with friends and family – great for saving goals. The app is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, uses bank-level security and is also part of Open Banking, giving you extra protection. 2 SNOOP Snoop lets you see all your bank accounts and credit cards in…

KILLER THRILLERS The Appeal Janice Hallett Viper Books, £12.99 Now here’s a murder mystery with a difference. Told through emails, letters and WhatsApp messages, a portrait is drawn of a community in which at least one member is a killer. With a wide cast of expertly drawn characters, this oh-so-original debut will keep you guessing. The Castaways Lucy Clarke Harper Collins, £12.99 (18 March) Sisters Lori and Erin have a bust-up before a holiday and Lori boards the plane alone, which crashes, leaving her on an uninhabited island. Meanwhile, Erin desperately searches for her. Escapism with a powerful emotional punch. NERVE-SHR EDDERS Trust Me TM Logan Zaffre, £12.99 A train journey leads Ellen into a maelstrom when a young woman asks her to hold her child – then disappears. Left…

WIN 1 X £200, 2 X £100 OR 3 X £50 PRIZES Use the anagrams, straight, cryptic, quiz and picture clues to solve the crossword. When completed correctly, the pink squares, reading top to bottom, left to right, will reveal the answer to the following question: What is PICTURE A’s middle name? (7) This is your prize answer. See below for details on how to enter. Enter by using the numbers at the top of the grid or at hearstmagazines.co.uk/bestcross1021 ACROSS 6 Go off (like a volcano) (5) 8 What Asian capital city is set to host the postponed 2020 Summer Olympic Games later this year? (5) 10 ___ dog has its day, saying (5) 11 With friends like these, who needs ___, saying (7) 12 ILE have another look…

Following her shock split from TV chef Phil Vickery last year after 20 years of marriage, Fern Britton is showing signs that she could be ready to move on. Sounding rather flirty, she replied to a male admirer on Twitter after he offered to ‘tuck her into bed’. Talking to her 79K followers, Fern, 63, posted a snap showing a bowl of tortilla chips, a martini and a beautiful bouquet of daffodils, the mum-of-four wrote alongside the picture from her home: ‘Just finished writing for the day. ‘Daffs, dry gin martini (olives, dirty) bowl of tortillas. I think this’ll sort me right out. Going to watch #TheDig #netflix xxxx.’ Fans took to the comments section of Fern’s post to share their thoughts on her cosy Saturday evening. One wrote: ‘We…

She’s everywhere you look right now, and in her latest incarnation, Keeley Hawes takes on the role of Patricia Neal, wife of children’s author Roald Dahl (Downton Abbey’s Hugh Bonneville) in the film, To Olivia. It’s 1962, and Hollywood movie star Patricia and her husband have moved to the English countryside to raise their young family – but their lives are turned upside-down, not only by a series of strokes Patricia suffers, but by the devastating loss of their daughter, Olivia, aged just seven [of encephalitis, due to measles]. Keeley, a mum-of-three herself (to Maggie, 16, Myles, 20, and Ralph, 14), married to fellow actor Matthew Macfadyen, talks about the wonderful time she had filming and the joys of regularly going make-up free for it… Keeley, are you a fan…

‘She let out this terrific scream and then just sort of collapsed in on herself. It was just terrible to hear.’ Denise Fergus had just been told that her missing two-yearold, James Bulger, had been found dead. The young mum, who’d pleaded in press conferences, tears coursing down cheeks, for her baby to be returned to her, was stricken with her loss. At that moment, in February 1993, there was no clue as to how the toddler had died or whether anyone had been involved. Those horrors were yet to come. All Denise knew was that her worst nightmares had come true: ‘I was a mum without her baby.’ It is a case that is impossible to forget, not just for the family, but for the world. The day James…

From organic and vegan to sustainably sourced products, the green world of beauty can be a confusing one. Give your routine an eco upgrade with these tips… Beauty jargon decoded Natural: Plant-based ingredients, but the detail is in the label. Look out for the Ecocert stamp to start. Some brands, such as Garnier, are producing easy-to-read labels with percentages of naturals used. Organic: Grown without the use of synthetic chemicals and pesticides. Look for the Cosmetic Organic Standard (COSMOS) accreditation. It guarantees that 95 per cent of the ingredients in a product are organic, not tested on animals and sustainably sourced. Vegan: Free from animal-derived ingredients such as honey and beeswax. The Vegan Society’s sunflower symbol has become a reliable trademark to help identify veganfriendly products. 1 YOU WANT CRUELTY-FREE…

HOW IT WORKS Did you know successful slimmers often have one thing in common? They’ve all followed a diet that’s increased their fibre intake. Sure enough, it seems that foods containing fibre such as wholegrains, beans, fruit and vegetables have helped countless people slim. So how exactly does it work? We’ve long thought that fibre was diet-friendly because it often contains less energy but it’s big in bulk – so it helps fill us up on less calories, leading to weight loss. But now studies show fibre also helps control appetite-regulating peptides associated with increased satiety and reduced food intake. So say hello to your new best friend – fibre! HOW IT WORKS 1 Our seven-day meal plan (opposite) includes breakfast, lunch, dinner and one snack a day. You can…

Weekend Brunch Bake Easy to throw together on a weekend morning – this hearty start to the day is sure to be a hit with all the family. Hands-on time: 15 mins Cooking time: About 35 mins Serves 6 Per serving: kcals 351; fat 19g; sat fat 7g; carbs 27g (sugars 8g); fibre 1g; protein 20g Butter, to grease6 English muffins11/2-2tbsp wholegrain mustard6 streaky bacon rashers12 raw cocktail sausages600ml semi-skimmed milk4 large eggs2tbsp freshly chopped chives, plus extra to garnish (optional)40g mature Cheddar cheese, gratedLarge handful of cherry tomatoes 1 Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan)/mark 6. Grease an ovenproof rectangular dish measuring roughly 22cm x 33cm and set aside. 2 Halve the muffins horizontally and spread the cut halves with mustard. Next cut the bacon rashers in half…

Coronavirus has put so many restrictions on our lives. Many of us can’t see parents, sisters, friends and… lovers. With the vaccine roll-out being hailed a success, most hope that immunisation will bring some reassurance and a return to everyday normality – seeing people back in the shops or the office, but others have slightly different reasons for wanting the vaccination… A survey of 1,500 of its users was carried out by the UK’s leading extra-marital affairs site, Illicit Encounters. When asked, other than for protection, what the respondents’ main reason for wanting the vaccine was, a shocking 65 per cent of them said it was so they could have an affair. One such person is 50-year-old Katherine, from Lancashire. After going through a divorce, she tried conventional dating but…

It’s a topic that’s caused international concern and now, the United Nations have been asked to try to determine… where is Princess Latifa? She is the 35-year-old daughter of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum – one of the richest heads of state in the world, the ruler of Dubai and vice-president of the United Arab Emirates (UEA). Concern for her began back in 2018, after the Princess fled her home, before being captured and claiming she was being held hostage by the Dubai ruling royal family. They recently declared she is ‘being cared for at home’ and hope she will be able to ‘return to public life at the appropriate time’. Yet no pictures or videos were released with the statement. So, where is the Princess…? Latifa, it has…

PISCES 20 February – 20 March Instead of worrying about what they might be taking on, Pisceans like basketball player Shaquille O’Neal, and About a Boy and The Favourite actress Rachel Weisz, will find it easier to give new projects a try then make decisions as they go along. Try not to overthink things too much. GEMINI 22 May – 21 June Even if things don’t go entirely as planned it would help if you adopted a positive outlook. Allowing negative energies to intrude on your thinking might only fend off any luck that could be coming your way. The outcome of some plans will have a lot to do with how much faith you have in yourself. You can succeed. VIRGO 24 August – 23 September A money or…

FULL OF FIZZ… If you can push the boat out, Gusbourne’s Rose 2016 (£49) is the perfect gift for Mother’s Day, if she likes a glass, or three! This delectable wine (practically Champagne) is delicate pink with soft Summer berries and floral notes. See gusbourne.com MUMMY MUGS! Make Mother’s Day every day with a special mug in sweet pink, so Mum can think of you every time she has a warming cuppa! All of these half-pint mum mugs come boxed as perfect presents. £19.95 each at emmabridgewater.co.uk GO ALL OUT… It’s not until 14 March, but for the very organised among you, order your mum a classy Mother’s Day treat, like this Hampton and Astley’s Woodland Blossom & Fig candle. They may be pricey at £49.99, but as the up-and-coming…

Do you have a story you’d like to share with our amazing army of best readers? We’re looking for real-life stories from women just like you and your friends – and will pay up to £200 for all those that make it into these pages. Stories can be funny, sad, emotional, inspirational – just like some of the examples on this page. The only rule: they must be true. Have you been on a diet that changed your life? Have you battled against tough times and come out fighting? Have you found love or happiness against the odds? If you – or a friend – have a story to share, whatever the subject, do drop us a line, with your contact details, a photo and a brief outline of your…