I am a big fan of Marvel characters like Thor, Iron Man and Hulk, but I have never really been bitten by the X-Men bug, writes Craig Nicholson.

This has been a curious spring, with generally warm temperatures but also very cold outbreaks and it made me even more cautious about planting tomatoes, writes Gareth Winter.

The right styling can do wonders for your figure, writes Lisa Lyford.

Barbecues fired us up in the 70s, then, in the 80s and 90s innovation on the grill cooled - but now barbecuing is hot again, writes Jan Bilton.

You would have thought that Tom Cruise had rid the world of enough aliens in his time, writes Craig Nicholson.

It's the Beatles, Jim, but not as we know it, writes Kim Gillespie.

Rich fruit cakes improve with age. They're best baked at least one month before enjoying so the flavours mellow and the texture compacts, making the cake easier to cut.

Recent research from international scan data company Aztec indicates households have an average of 2.9 types of oil. How many different oils do you have stored in your pantry?

Portraits of the future don't always paint the most wonderful of pictures of where we are heading and Brick Mansions is one such example.

Knowing what colours work for you and which don't is one of the most important aspects of good styling, writes Lisa Lyford.

Lucinda Williams walks a fine line vocally between swagger and vulnerability, an approach that is clearly evident on this, her 14th studio album.