THE LADY established 1885 • No 6,456

ContentsDECEMBER Features 12 Ladies of the Year

8 Her Indoors

We celebrate the

women who most impressed us in 2024 21 Competition Win theatre tickets,

a stay in London and af ternoon tea on a bus! 28 Horse Power Ali Stearn’s Shetland

pony is bringing joy to care home residents 32 The Photo Booth A bittersweet Christmas

tale by the novelist Kate Glanville 38 Sparkling Stories

We meet the author of a fascinating new histor y of jeweller y 42 Fit for Queens

The gardens at Sudeley Castle reflect its historic royal connections 50 Ready for Everything

Recipes for delicious Christmas meals that can be prepared in advance 54 Amazing Graze

Impress your friends and loved ones with these par ty platters 60 Happy Renew Year!

Our pick of the best spas and wellness retreats at home and abroad 72 Calming the Storm

Avoiding stress during the festive frenzy 76 Don’t Break the Bank

How to avoid top-up fees and reduce the overall cost of residential care 81 The Gift of Giving Help worthy causes by

leaving a gif t to charity in your will 97 Competition

Win free tickets for a selection of fabulous musicals in London

Regulars 6 The Lady Loves...

Gifts for yourself

Mary Killen 10 Letters 20 The Lady Remembers The Christmas truce on

the Western Front 22 Modern Manners

Thomas Blaikie 25 The Debate

Should the state fund weight-loss injections? 26 Liz Hodgkinson I ’ve found the ideal way

to make Christmas easy 46 Gardener’s Diary

Ciar Byrne 58 Ivo Uncorked Festive tipples 66 Fashion Go for glamour like the

ladies from Rivals 68 Fashion Extra Christmas sparkles 70 The Stylist

Armand Beasley 74 Case Notes Dr Sue Hyde 91 Weight of the World

Ivo Dawnay 114 Horoscopes

Victor Olliver 130 First Impressions John Wilson

Reviews 86 Bookshelf The best new novels

and non-fiction to buy for Christmas 92 Art

Roderick Conway Morris 96 TV

Emily Ross 98 Films Larushka Ivan-Zadeh 99 Radio

Louis Barfe

Puzzles 115 Word Fill and Codebreaker 116 The Ladygram

Challenge 118 Archive Ladygrams 120 Bonus Christmas

Puzzles, Sudoku

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50

122 Cryptic Crosswords,

Wordsearch 124 Big Crosswords 126 Spot the Difference 127 Bridge 128 Solutions Classifieds 102 Holiday lets, positions

vacant and much more

Subscriptions 48 Subscribe and receive

a delicious Fig gy’s Christmas pudding

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DECEMBER 2024 TH E L A DY 3