Over a year has passed since the world as we knew it changed forever. So used to hopping on a flight to Firenze or a train to Paris, suddenly we were confined to not just our island, but our postcodes, and the concept of a quick, last-minute city break became a distant memory. Summer on a Spanish beach or winter in a Bavarian market were whipped off our collective list of options in a way we could never have imagined.
Thankfully, 2021 is finally turning into the year of rebirth we so hoped it would be. Vaccines are being dished out, hugs are once again legal (cautious ones, mind – whatever that means) and holidays are creeping back into the national psyche as something we may actually get away with this year. After nigh on 18 months of cabin fever, we may finally get that change of scenery we all crave.
Thomas Heatherwick: The city will be a new kind of space | Thomas Heatherwick theguardian.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theguardian.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
2. HAIR TO THE THRONE
The UK has always been very close to my heart. It s where my book and television career first took off, and Prince Charles epitomises the British sense of humour that I love.
I first met him in the 1980s, then again in 2018 when I said, We both had hair when we last met and you still have yours. He laughed and laughed.
A year later I saw him at an awards event where this picture was taken. He greeted me by tapping his head, grinning mischievously and saying, I still have my hair.
Other treasured items include a snap of himself meeting Prince Charles (above)
He became a household name in his 20s as Princess Diana s favourite designer, and later created the wedding dress for Princess Margaret s daughter, Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones.
Now aficionados of Jasper Conran son of late Habitat founder Sir Terence Conran and Superwoman author Shirley Conran are about to have a unique chance to own some of his own personal treasures.
For I can disclose that Conran junior is auctioning the entire contents of his exquisite 23,000 sq ft, six-bedroom apartment at New Wardour Castle, Wiltshire.
The three-day auction, which will be conducted both in the sale room and online in September, promises to be one of the highlights in Christie s calendar.