The Lady Magazine

11 March 2016

Dear Readers, Alison Steadman, our cover star this week, is that rare thing, a hugely gifted actor who really doesn’t mind that she often ends up playing someone’s mum. From Mrs Bennet to Gavin and Stacey’s doting matriarch, there isn’t a kitchen table where she hasn’t looked comfortable. She will soon be appearing in the second series of BBC sitcom Boomers, with lines aimed squarely at those born between 1946 and 1964 – the Baby Boomer generation. Our time has come, apparently. Alison’s is one of the very few ‘To Do’ lists that artist Alice Instone doesn’t have in her new exhibition, but the offerings from prominent women everywhere make for gripping reading. My own invariably includes a note to ‘book a holiday’, and after reading our Channel Islands guide, I know where I am going next. Why bother travelling great distances in search of that white sand beach? And why bother talking to your plants, when, as we now discover, your rhubarb could be talking to you. Yes, seriously. Until next week, best wishes,