It’s been a few weeks since I sent a “traditional” savourites: with gift guide, anti-Black Friday and autumn books specials taking up much of November I’m feeling a little rusty in gathering together my favourite morsels of the week and wobbling in confidence as to whether it still stands up. The past few weeks have seen a lovely little flurry of you subscribe and vouch for savour, which has meant a great deal but brings with it a certain pressure. I’ve spent my career paying my bills by convincing editors to pay for my words for distant readers. It’s more intimate this way - writing directly to you - but it also lacks the protective cushioning of the established media. I guess I just really want you to like it!

So, from the metaphorical hard pew of Substack, then: for newcomers, these Friday editions are round-ups of things I’ve read, eaten, discovered, listened to or encountered that I’d like to share with you, often with small stories on why they’ve resonated. For old hands, thank you for sticking with me. We’re into December now, a year on from when I sat down on the sofa and started to summon up the idea of savour. I’ll be reflecting more on that in coming weeks, I expect, but the fact it’s still going and we’re all still here is quietly miraculous to me.

Right, onwards! Good things this week:...