Some years ago our Christmas arrangements fell through at the last minute. Before we had the chance to revel in self-pity, the spirit of Christmas goodwill prompted a bigger family, living in a bigger house 60 miles away, to invite us to join them for two nights and three days in their comparative palace, complete with Henry VIII-type banqueting room.
It was a ‘Big Ask’ so to speak. Even my more negative-thinking husband Giles saw our reversal of fortune as a positive.
However, being
