Past your salad days? Indulge in the bitter pleasures of endive (for adults only). Photograph by Jason Lowe

The Unforgiving Minute: A Life of Rudyard Kipling

'We haven't played as a team. It's as if we haven't realised that the role of every single member is vital'

Time was when girls would rather die than party with Mum. Not now, though. As Ann Treneman told her daughter as she dragged her kicking and screaming into the night

BEDSER v BRADMAN

Sir: Clare Garner reports ( 21 September) that "Treasury research" shows that we are being ripped off. It is sad that politicians always seem to be the last to know these things. I have known for years that Britain is the rip-off capital of the world, and have found my own solution. Unlike Clare Garner, I do not go to America to do my shopping, I just go 25 miles south of Dover and do my shopping in France, where I am less likely to be mugged or shot than in the States.

PUBS CHAIN Slug & Lettuce yesterday reported that a year of transition was to blame for its slight fall in annual profits. The group, which changed its name from Grosvenor Inns during the early part of year, said the disposals had changed its business from a multi-branded group into one "quality brand".

News Analysis: Stock exchange may investigate fall in price

You are invited to dinner by a colleague. Feel out of your social depth? Don't panic, help is at hand. By Meg Carter

Spinach, rocket, lettuce and other leaves not only provide a crisp crop, they're also perfect for pattern-making in the garden.

THE ART OF VEGETABLE-GROWING; THE LAST OF OUR FOUR-PART GUIDE BY MICHAEL LEAPMAN AND MARY KEEN

THE ART OF VEGETABLE-GROWING; PART THREE OF OUR FOUR-PART GUIDE BY MICHAEL LEAPMAN AND MARY KEEN

THE ART OF VEGETABLE-GROWING: PART TWO OF OUR FOUR-PART GUIDE TO GROWING YOUR OWN

PART ONE OF A FOUR-PART GUIDE TO GROWING YOUR OWN