This is the weekend for... Staying at home

Foreign climes just aren't what they used to be.

The number of Britons heading abroad has seen its sharpest drop since the 1970s and, with the annual tide of hassled parents and hyperactive offspring about to flood the nation's ferry ports and airport terminals, maybe it's time to dust off memories of last year's "staycation".

Just in case the slight revival of sterling against the euro tempts you anew to the Mediterranean's sunspots, a Foreign Office report published yesterday found that 5,930 UK citizens died abroad last year, 27,272 had their passports lost or stolen and one man ended up with a £3,800 bill for being rescued after a skiing accident.

Instead, stay put and revel in the first weekend of the 2010 Proms or Suffolk's Latitude Festival. Even sport addicts stricken by the end of the World Cup can console themselves with the British Open golf.