Fiona McGowan

Manor magazine •

Martin Clunes

Martin Clunes has been acting since he left school – becoming a household name in the 90s sitcom Men Behaving Badly. His hit show for ITV, Doc Martin, is set in North Cornwall’s Port Isaac; now in its eighth season, it has been running for 14 years. He and his wife Philippa live on a large farm outside Beaminster in Dorset, sharing a passion for their horses, dogs and the natural environment. He is a patron of numerous equine therapy charities including Changing Lives by Horses, the Fortune Centre for Riding Therapy and TheHorseCourse. Interview by Fiona McGowan.
Manor magazine •

Fay Weldon

Fay Weldon, CBE, has been producing fiction for 50 years. Her works include 34 novels, numerous dramas for TV and radio, and five stage plays. One of her early books, The Life and Loves of a She Devil, about a woman’s revenge on her philandering husband, instantly became a feminist classic. She has been a judge for the Booker Prize, and is a Professor of Creative Writing at Bath Spa University. She lives in Dorset with her husband, Nick Fox. Interview by Fiona McGowan.
Manor magazine •

Ranulph Fiennes

Hailed as the greatest living explorer, Sir Ranulph Fiennes has pushed his mind and body to its utmost limits in some of the most inhospitable environments on Earth. Born in Berkshire, his father was a commander in the British Army – a war hero who died just months before he was born. He was brought up in South Africa before being sent to Eton College. Now aged 72, he lives on the edge of Exmoor with his wife and daughter, and continues to take on extraordinary challenges and expeditions – such as the gruelling Marathon des Sables – raising money for Marie Curie and the British Heart Foundation. Interview by Fiona McGowan.
Manor magazine •

Alex Polizzi

Alex Polizzi, hotelier and TV presenter, comes from a long line of hoteliers. Her mother is Olga Polizzi of Hotel Endsleigh, Devon and Hotel Tresanton, Cornwall, her uncle Sir Rocco Forte and her grandfather, the late Lord Charles Forte. Alex has run and opened restaurants and hotels across the globe. She is known for her ‘fix-it’ TV programmes The Fixer and The Hotel Inspector, where she taps into her immense hospitality experience to help small businesses reach their full potential.