Why I choose to take medication for my mental illness
I’ve made the artwork opposite to show how my brain might look when I’m unwell with psychosis. I call these collages the ‘brain surgery series’ as to make them I take a scalpel to pictures of people in magazines! Since 1999 I’ve taken different measures of antipsychotic medication to treat psychosis or the brain explosions […]
A delightfully accessible day in York
As one of the UK’s biggest tourist destinations, Paul and I fiddled with chocolate buttons and ate like Fat Dan from Rate My Takeaway recently in York. For our stay we drove 20 miles North East of the city centre to Sandburn Hall Hotel which had the most sophisticated wetroom we’ve yet to encounter on […]
Sent to a newly chic Coventry
With its recent reign of City of Culture, Coventry has had a revamp. Think flat streets: the silver lining to a a rebuild after the World War II bombings. There’s chic retro restaurants and the viral sensation that is Binley Mega Chippy, too. We went along to see what it was all about. Our first […]
Abbotsford Estate the Home of Sir Walter Scott
As the crocuses and daffodils begin to show, Erica Crompton says there’s no better time to take a day trip to the Estate of the Scottish poet. Having recently toured the eclectic home of Scottish poet Sir Walter Scott, I can recommend a visit. It’s wheelchair friendly, too! I went with my boyfriend Paul who […]
Balmoral chicken
For a taste of Scotland try this Balmoral chicken recipe complete with haggis, courtesy of Delicious Magazine. And for the best Balmoral chicken head to Kingsknowes Hotel in Galashiels, an imposing Scottish baronial mansion, built in 1869 for the local textile mill owner, Adam Lees Cochrane. Ingredients: Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6. Cut […]
The Great Tapestry of Scotland
Gallery finds its forever home in Scottish Border, writes Erica Crompton Beginning with large, fabric squares depicting the glacial formation of mountains and glens more than 420m years ago, up to Andy Murray’s Wimbledon victory of 2013. It’s said to be one of the longest tapestries in the world at 143 metres – that’s 70 […]
Scottish seaglass by author Graham Morgan
Ardmore, the sea and me By Graham Morgan I must sound like a stamp collector! Nothing wrong with that! I say to myself; remembering a very distant childhood. I collect seaglass or sometimes I do. It is not good for my mental health like medication might be, or my CPN or doctor but it is […]
Fly me to the Moon
Our Editor, Erica Crompton, explores a new moon installation at Durham Cathedral This winter a trip to the ecclesiastical Durham Cathedral saw an art installation that is currently touring the UK. Luke Jerram’s artwork, Museum of the Moon, illuminated the high vaulted ceiling and colossal carved pillars of the Cathedral based in the North East. […]
Happy New Year?
Emily Blain, Fintel’s HR Director, speaks of speaking up if you’re struggling I’m sure that, just like me, by the second week of January you’re sick to the back teeth of saying, and hearing, ‘Happy New Year’ in every single interaction! In addition to getting tedious quickly, the traditional new greeting is also not entirely […]
With love from Ireland
Experiencing difficulty can positively impact you, says writer Caoimhe Clements It was January 2021; the weather was cold and unkind identical to my emotions. I was a university student, in my final year studying Photography with Video. With the pandemic creating a public health scare, the degree teaching of my final year took place completely […]