Monday nights are good nights. . .

There used to be a time when Monday nights were pretty dull and boring, well no more! There are three really good , interesting things that for us are not to be missed on TV.

Michael Portillo - Great Train Journey's

Michael Portillo's great train journey into Britain's nooks and crannies - with a timetable from 1839 as my companion. Riding that line was a detour in a series of long railway journeys across Britain I took in the footsteps of the brilliant Victorian George Bradshaw. He created the world’s first book of railway timetables in 1839, making sense of the services offered by Britain’s 150 competing rail companies.

His yellow bound guides were so common that to Victorians and Edwardians any timetable was known as ‘a Bradshaw’. Later he produced guidebooks, and I used one to discover a country I thought long lost: a Britain of knitted guernseys, liquorice and saddleries, Eccles cakes and hat-makers, of oyster farms and long-john factories. Link to further information here.

The Lakes, Presented by Rory McGrath

This new series The Lakes, presented by Rory McGrath, looks at life in one of Britain's favourite and most fascinating holiday destinations, the Lake District, and the people who inhabit it. This show attracted 5 million viewers. Among characters to feature in the series include Patrick Gordon Duff Pennington, who hosts lunches for foreign visitors at his ancestral family castle, Muncaster, and Lakeland farmer, George Taylor, who’s won so many rosettes with his prize-winning eggs that he has made it into the Guinness book of records. Link to further information here

Billy Connolly Journey to the Edge of the World

Motivated by a desire to live out his boyhood dreams before he gets too old – and to have a laugh – Billy spends 10 weeks making the 10,000 mile trip from Nova Scotia to the Pacific by, by sea, road and air, acting as a tour guide for viewers in his own unique way. A wonderful series which brought back memories of my 5 years in Canada. Link to further information here.

And now closer to home, last Tuesday I had a picnic by Falmer pond. The sun was shining after what seemed weeks of snow, cloud and bitter cold. It only goes to show that we just need some sun every once in a while to keep us cheerful. Plus a bag of tasty goodies! Good company always helps as well.

And yet even closer to home, we have been offered a chicken coop and a couple of chickens to keep. So here it is , decision time. I think I am going to give it a go. One less thing to have to go to Tesco for. Certainly no Food Miles, just Food Feet.

That’s all Folks

Simple of Sussex.