Saint Valery sur Somme. I discovered the existence of this pretty northern French village a year ago and now I want to visit.

Statue of Godfrey of Bouillon, Brussels

The Empress Eugene- her dressing table and bed- palace of Compiegne.

The promenade, Van Rysslberghe; Belgian post-impressionist

Does anyone know why there is a memorial to King Charles X’s murdered son in a church in Lille?

The birds in my garden seem to be getting more diverse by the day- I had a pigeon which was killed by a sparrowhawk . Now I have a magpie and a huge crow who appeared this afternoon and put the sparrows in a flap. Plus the Robins and blackbirds that have been here for years

People will tell you that 1984 or Brave New World are prophetic books- but perhaps they should read P.D James novel ‘The children of men’

Mischievous cat with a ball of wool- a detail of a painting by the naive painter Henri Rousseau. Musee d’Orsay

Delightful photograph of the French writer Georges Bernanos as a child watching two priests playing chess

Brussels Cathedral- a surprisingly little known building. A fine example of the Brabant Gothic from the 14th-. The style is with little sculptural details and a reliance on vertical line. A noble conception

Jesus Christ as the good shepherd- Henri Bouchard d.1960

A reconstruction of the studio of the sculptor Henri Bouchard (1875-1960) at ‘Musee d’art, La Piscine, Roubaix’ Bouchard made the mistake of accepting an invitation to view German art schools during the war; for this he was never completely forgiven

A monument in Brussels to King Baudouin of the Belgians. A devout man who against the advice of Cardinal Danneels refused to sign the law’s legalising abortion causing a crisis that only his abdication for a day solved. After his death,Danneels denied the the kings sanctity

A page of the hand illuminated book of remembrance, Lichfield cathedral.

‘No 13th century work in Italy is comparable for majesty of conception or wealth of imaginative detail to the cathedrals of Chartres, Rheims, Rouen, Amiens, Lincoln, Peterborough, Wells or Lichfield’ John Ruskin. The nave Lichfield cathedral 13thc

A collection of carved capitals at the junction of the crossing, transept and quire aisle- Lichfield cathedral

‘This Cathedral is an adorable woman, a Virgin… this is the absolute empire of supreme elegance’
The sculptor Rodin on Amiens cathedral

The art nouveau clock in Amiens- love or hate it the Nouveau style is the last true celebration of the female form in western art. The Deco that followed is obsessed by angular strength and stick thin boyish girls

The royal chapel in the chateau at Vincennes- Clearly a descendant of the saint Chapelle in Paris, this building wasn’t finished until the 16thc

Side chapel Mechelen cathedral circa 16thc