Collared Doves

 Collared Doves are much neater birds than fat pigeons and very shy so these are awful photos through the window. They nearly always visit the garden in pairs.

My bird book says they are widespread and common in suburban gardens and farming areas. But have only been a British bird since arriving from south-east Europe in the 1950s. The thing to spot to know it's a collared dove is the black half collar around the neck. These are young birds as they lack the dark collar.

Turtle Doves are completely different and only summer visitors and white doves released at weddings are really variants of homing pigeons. 

In my book "The Poetry of Birds" there is a poem dating from 1986 titled 'Listening to Collared Doves' by E.J. Scovell  (1907 - 1999) but it's not very interesting and not about the doves at all!

Ghosts on TV and in a Book

 Have you watched the new series of a TV programme called Winter?

Winter is a police procedural television series set to broadcast on ITV and ITVX and PBS Masterpiece. It is starring Richard Armitage and Annabel Scholey and is based on the long-running French series Balthazar. It premiered on ITV on 30 September 2026.

In Bristol, forensic pathologist Dr Ethan Winter and policewoman DI Lauren Bell work together to solve complex crimes.

One of the themes of this TV series is that his wife was murdered in odd circumstances, yet she appears  to him and they talk and she seems a very real ghost!

There are 6 programmes in the first series and  a second series has been commissioned. 

Balthazar is on ITVX too for comparing French and English versions

 Then I read a book by a new to me author, the first in a series.

17 years ago the inhabitants of Edenscar, a small town in the Peak District, was hit by tragedy when a school bus veered off the road and plunged into the reservoir. Everyone on board drowned except for young Joseph Ashe. His miraculous survival has haunted him and the town ever since. 

Joseph still 'sees' his best friend who died in the crash. Yet is amazingly real and has also grown up as Joseph has. Also when Joseph sees the parent of one of the drowned children that parent is able to 'see' their dead child beside Joseph.

Joseph is now a Detective Sergeant in the local police and is called to the scene of a brutal and apparently inexplicable crime. The whole town is spooked but Joe's new boss DI Laurie Bower, who is more used to inner-city police work, has no time for superstition. She just wants to find the real killer who has left no trace and seems to have no motive. 

Then just to add in another TV series on 4 called Anna Pigeon, taken from books by Nevada Barr. Which is about an Enforcement Park Ranger in Montana, but filmed in Calgary, who gets herself in to all sorts of trouble but often sees her dead husband whenever she is in danger. (Surprising that we have this series over here so quickly as it's brand new in the USA and Canada).

Having very real ghosts in fiction isn't a new thing of course  and I watched something on Walter Presents channel a couple of years ago where a police person had his dead wife often visit him. Can't remember what it was - something from Europe with subtitles but not Balthazar which is mentioned above.

 It seemed an odd coincidence to read  a book and watch two TV series with 'real' ghosts in the same month. 

A Different Cheese To Try

 I came home from a visit to YD and EGD via the Co-op in Debenham for the locally made  Lane Farm  sausages and while I was there looked at their range of 'artisan' (that just means expensive!) cheeses, to try something different.

Choose this smoked cheese from a producer I'd not heard of .

After googling I found they'd been around for 25 years...

I love cheese, any cheese, and there hasn't been a cheese I've tried in the 19 cheese tasting posts that I've not liked at all, but I'm afraid this one really wasn't good. Has to be eaten rather than thrown out but it's hard with an odd after taste.

Aldi don't have their multi grain crackers/biscuits that I used to get so I got these Salt and Pepper ones and goodness they really are peppery which is good as it overpowers the cheese!