The red vote

I felt a bit overwhelmed on the day after our General Election, when the results were coming through. On the one hand there was much to celebrate, with young people coming out in droves to vote (and having a big impact) and a very positive result for Labour's anti-austerity manifesto: 'For the many, not the few'. On the other hand, to my dismay, my own constituency has kept its hard-right Conservative MP, albeit with a much-reduced majority - and in the end the numbers just didn't add up overall for a real change. It all looks rather confusing at the moment; time will tell how things bed down.

I suppose it didn't help that I'd stayed up until 3.30 am watching the TV coverage! I was tired but I needed escape, so I drove over to Harrogate for a soothing walk around the RHS gardens at Harlow Carr. Whatever time of year you visit, there is always something new to see. They are particularly good at providing little 'set-pieces' in and among the grand vistas. This was one of a series of three small gardens all designed to provide habitat for hedgehogs, which are apparently as under threat in our ecosystem as tigers are in their territories. Vote for hedgehogs!