Sports

This year, Podge went racing. And I, somehow, was waved through onto the grid — a clerical error I have no intention of reporting.

For me, Formula One likes to present itself as the pinnacle of global sport - and, to be fair, it makes a rather convincing case. Beneath the polished bravado lies not merely a championship contested across 24 race weekends, but a travelling circus of power, precision and very well-dressed ambition. Think theatre at 300 kilometres per hour, wrapped in carbon fibre and champagne mist, where innovation doubles as both weapon and currency, and reputations can be rebuilt - or very publicly unravelled - in the space of a single season.

The Royal Hospital Chelsea is no stranger to spectacle. Each year it welcomes the Chelsea Flower Show, but in August the lawns turn into something quite different: the London leg of the Longines Global Champions Tour. For three days, showjumping’s elite gathered in this historic corner of the capital, transforming the South Grounds into a sporting and social occasion that feels distinctly British.

As I approached ‘Hotel Berlin, Berlin’ in the early evening, a neon blue strip cut across its angular façade, hinting at its mid-20th century roots while embracing the city’s constant evolution. Inside, an LED banner wrapped itself above the self-service reception, flashing contemporary art, just one example of the hotel’s blend of design, innovation and sustainability.

There are few things that mark the height of the British summer season quite like the Royal Charity Polo Cup at Guards Polo Club – particularly when HRH The Prince of Wales is playing a few lively chukkas and Audi is co-sponsoring the affair. And as someone whose heart (and garage) has long belonged to Audi, it was rather a full-circle moment.

From Walnut Veneer to Climate Control: My Audi Love Story

Diving with TGI: Beneath the Surface with the Best in the Business

I recently braved the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust's 'Last Supper', hosted by Michel Roux, with a great friend, Becky. The food, predictably, was divine – a fact my expanding waistline will be reminding me of for weeks. The company was equally splendid, a collection of individuals who clearly know their way around grouse and canapés. We parted company at an hour that could charitably be described as 'lounge suits at dawn', a testament to the evening's… spirited conversation.

Those amazing men in their flying machines. They go up, Tiddley up, up. They go down, Tiddley down, down. Now the female embodiment of that might well apply to Cornish-born Corinne Dennis, who gave an engaging talk down in the South West the other day, about her journey from learning to fly and building a plane virtually from scratch.

My son Ben and I are self-proclaimed water adventurers, happiest when zipping across the waves on powerful motorised watercraft – better known as WaveRunners. Nothing beats the adrenaline rush of carving through water at high speed, and we’re always looking for new thrills.

When I arrived at my Airbnb at 2 AM, I had no idea what the next few days had in store for me. From the distance, the mountains looked like modest foothills, giving little hint of the sheer length and volume of the trails. Even from the chairlift in the morning, I thought to myself, "This mountain looks pretty small—I imagine these runs will be short." I couldn't have been more wrong.