From George Stubbs’s golden vision of the labourer’s place in society to Ford Madox Brown’s heroically monumental celebration of manual labour, artists gave individual interpretations of work, as Michael Hall reveals

Train Landscape , 1940, watercolour on paper, 17¼in ...

Musicians, astronomers and artists all played a part in the story of this historic Surrey Hills home, which has begun a new chapter with the help of design studio Gunter & Co

From rich floral motifs to graceful trailing stems, reworkings of enchanting Arts and Crafts patterns continue to captivate us

Heather Nash’s Norfolk home is filled with warmth, ...

Catherine Clarke A History of England in 25 Poems400pp. Allen Lane. £25. Mark Forsyth Rhyme and ReasonA short history of poetry and people (forpeople who don’t usually read poetry)368pp. Allen & Unwin