Libby Purves

  • October 19, 2015

Reading these columns, a few of you may have the impression of some leathery old salt, rarely ashore, twinkling across the foredeck with brine in her hair, her mind constantly…

  • August 20, 2015

A fine idea this month, for YM to warn about The Shock Of The Big (p34). It is easy to to think that a roomier, faster, grander boat is always…

  • June 26, 2015

I wrote a novel years ago, Casting Off, in which a furious wife, at the end of a scratchy weekend a deux, watches her husband carrying his bag up the…

  • June 4, 2015

“First of all, fear helps. One hand for yourself, one for the ship” I’m glad to see, among this month’s topics, the rather vital one of how not to fall…

  • May 1, 2015

“Some of the very best ‘looks’ in high fashion have travelled directly from ships and boats” Crewmates! We are iconic fashionistas. This status may not be immediately apparent to every…

  • April 8, 2015

“The commodore, presumably, would take on the role of Prime Minister” Voting time! With the new fixed-term rule, General Election day approaches with all the fearful inevitability of Low Water…

  • March 5, 2015

“Not all boat smells are pleasant, or even, frankly, bearable” Spring! The first warm days, primroses, zephyrs, dew burning off the warmed grass! So down to the boat, climb on…

  • February 2, 2015

“With my MP3 player I can pursue my taste for playing air-guitar on night watch” I have always fancied getting a radio station to make a programme of Car Singalong…

  • January 19, 2015

“We can create hot meals out of leftover food, even when it has been sat on” Oh dear. A report finds that people who play organised, competitive team games earn…

  • January 12, 2015

‘In this boat-free season of family gatherings, here’s a fine new holiday game…’ In Swallows and Amazons, the children endearingly name creeks and inlets, islands and bays: Wild Cat Island,…