After years hidden away, Oldham’s memorial to six local volunteers who died fighting fascism in the Spanish civil war has been restored to public view, marking both a victory for campaigners and a renewed tribute to the town’s proud International Brigade heritage, says ROB HARGREAVES
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Taste of the wild
MAT COWARD recommends growing Alpine strawberries, which have a stronger flavour than their larger cousins, but which are happily unappealing to slugs and birds
(Left to right) Alpine strawberries; and a strawberry depicted by Hieronymus Bosch (1450–1516) in a section of The Garden of Earthly Delights
[(Left to right) Arvind/CC - Museo Nacional del Prado/CC]
While pretending to seek peace, Europe is heading toward a collision course with Russia – using security guarantees, troop deployments, expropriation and censorship as tools, writes SEVIM DAGDELEN
Alba party leader KENNY MacASKILL makes some suggestions on how to save our pubs and reduce irresponsible drinking
The catastrophe unfolding in Gaza – where Palestinians are freezing to death in tents – is not a natural disaster but a calculated outcome of Israel’s ongoing blockade, aid restrictions and continued violence, argues CLAUDIA WEBBE
Opinion polls point to electoral collapse, parliamentary rebellion and a looming leadership challenge as Starmer’s Labour haemorrhages working-class support and the far right exploits the vacuum left by a hollowed-out party, says NICK WRIGHT
The long-term effects of chemical weapons such as Agent Orange mean that the impact of war lasts well beyond a ceasefire
MY ALPINE strawberries are cropping well this month. Admittedly, if I was trying to gather a pound of them to make some jam I would have a long job, but these mini-fruits are prized for their intense flavour, not for their weight.
They’re a different species (Fragaria vesca) from the more familiar strawberries-and-cream strawb, and have been bred over the years from the wild or woodland strawberry.
Alpines have a number of advantages over their big red cousins, quite apart from the much stronger taste.
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