This Side of the Pond

I’m sure there are many nice things I could say about a blanket made from banana bark but, as I have no intention of investing in one, I shall be forced to remain ignorant of its merits. The same will no doubt soon be said of a village down the road from my home town.

Let’s set the scene for this tale, which I am confident will soon attract your empathy. Imagine the most English village it would be possible to build, replete with thatched cottages, duck ponds, a humpbacked stone bridge that has stood for hundreds of years, winding paths, a gentle river through the middle and churches that have...