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You’ll recognise the hallmarks. Banners with renders of utopian urban dwellings – a marriage of contemporary lines, streamlined surfaces, open-plan living spaces and floor-to-ceiling glass, alongside manicured green spaces and lifestyle imagery of young professionals and families. Not necessarily the vision of a quarter-acre block with a white picket fence but in urban centres the … Read more

It is twilight on a desirable street in Chiswick, or it could be Hampstead, Wilmslow or Hove. A spectacular sunset has left a vivid stripe of orange fading into a violet sky. Against this saturated backdrop, a large Victorian house is clearly outlined despite the darkening atmosphere, perhaps thanks to the lights blazing from every … Read more

Name: The Berlin Wall. Age: Sixty-five years old. Location: South London. Now I’m no geography professor, but I think you might be about 600 miles out. Yes, yes, I know, the clue’s in the name. But I didn’t mean all of the Berlin Wall, just some of it. How much of it? Approximately 2.75 tonnes … Read more

The problemThe fungus gnat is the pest that just keeps coming. You dry out the soil, set up sticky traps, maybe even reach for the hydrogen peroxide, and just when you think you’ve have won, they’re back. The adults are harmless but maddening, drifting around your face and laying the next generation in any damp … Read more

In improv, actors are taught to say yes and figure out the details as they go. I felt a similar way about reviewing pizza ovens. Say yes! And work out the logistics later. The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. Never mind that … Read more

I’ve spent much of the last week picking, then sorting through berries, making, straining and freezing various compotes and conserves, washing and batch-cooking chard and spinach, podding and shelling broad beans. I’m not having a granny summer, a Sydney Sweeney summer or a nun girl summer (all of which I’ve seen suggested as themes for … Read more

Whether you like yours thin-crust, deep-dish, simply margherita or loaded with extras, for pizza-lovers everywhere, there’s nothing more satisfying than making your own. And while a compact or mid-size pizza oven will more than suffice for a weekly family pizza night or casual entertaining, if you’re serious about pizza – and I mean super-serious about … Read more