AMELIA arrives home from her half-day at work. She has the week’s shopping and quickly squirrels everything away, leaving just her children’s magazines on the kitchen table. Seeing she only has three-

CHARLIE the guinea pig was the love of my life – cute, full of character, demanding but easily pleased, and utterly adorable. This cute furry creature lived in our hallway in winter, and in the garden

Think you know hen weekends? Think again. Kat Shovlin’s hen hotels are redefining luxury mini-breaks for Britain’s most pampered chickens

Red kites, great spotted woodpeckers and pink-footed geese are only a few of the birds doing brilliantly in the British Isles right now. Mark Cocker celebrates their success stories and looks at what might be learnt from them

Animal magic and a camera changed everything for my girl Paula McDonald, 39, Ardrossan, North Ayrshire

It’s 2013 and my best friend Clare and I are midway through one of our regular, booze-soaked weekends. We’re celebrating my 33rd birthday – the perfect excuse to really go for it. The fact that it’s S