The urban guide to the countryside -

Leics & Rutland

Well, hello!

I'm Keya, editor of Muddy Leics & Rutland, here to bring you the quirky, cool and downright unmissable in the area.

Gotta Have It

Bonjour, sexy new knitwear! These chic slogan jumpers are guaranteed to add a little je ne sais quoi to any ensemble - we adore.

Our curated A-Z of the grooviest local businesses

Where’s the best place to live in Leicestershire and Rutland?
Online workouts for you and creative fun for the kidsStaying indoors means we're changing the way we socialise, workout and even entertain the kids. Here's our round up of fun things to do online from crafts to cookery lessons and more - all from local businesses.
Lockdown literary listFrom F. Scott Fitzgerald’s decadent parties in the Roaring 20s to Hilary Mantel’s Tudor-set Wolf Hall trilogy, here’s our choice of books to add to your literary list during lockdown.
Worried about CV Lockdown?We've chatted to experts at Age Space to get some practical advice if your parents are over 70 and facing imminent isolation.
Staying in? Meet your new boxset addictionsWe're not going to mention the C-word but if you're staying in more right now, isolate yourself with the television remote and watch these boxset corkers pronto.

What's On

This Weekend

Mon 30 Mar - Sun 5 Apr

This Week

Mon 30 Mar - Sun 5 Apr

This Month

Mon 30 Mar – Sun 5 Apr

Little Black Book

The latest handpicked businesses we think you’ll love

The Stag and Hounds

Simon Cawthorne

The Dog House, Leicester

Nada, Zero Waste Leicester

Restore Therapies

Manor Farm Cookery School

Just Jules

LolaWood

Brentingby Gin

Made Gallery, Uppingham

Goldmark Gallery

Don Paddy's

Eat Out View more
NineB Leicester reviewed

This new indie restaurant offers modern British food in seriously glam surrounds. Muddy nails three courses but was it worth it?
- The Great Bowden Stores
  
  Heading to Market Harborough and need a steer on a cool laid-back, family-friendly café? Well you can't beat The Bowden Stores and here's why.
- Freshly prepared French pastries? Yes please
  
  Pssst, a new pastry shop is opening up in the city today which is sure to add a couple of inches to my waistline!
- Best January cheap eats
  
  Caned the credit card at Christmas? Then swanky dinner dates are probably off the menu this month. Cue the Muddy-approved cheap, chic dining spots.
- Sneak peek inside new indie restaurant NineB
  
  The trendy new restaurant/bar is opening this week. Want to know who is heading up the kitchen and what's on the menu? Read on.

School Reviews

Our honest reviews of the UK’s best schools

Read the reviews

Fun Finder

Making plans? Find your perfect Pub, Inn, Hotel, Café, Restaurant or Bar across the Muddy counties.

Travel View more
Restaurants with rooms

Dreaming of a foodie getaway? We’ve scoured the Muddy counties for hotel stays with serious culinary credentials for when lock-down lifts. Tuck in.
- A boutique masterpiece
  
  The Artist Residence in the hamlet of South Leigh, Oxfordshire with its slick styling and cleverly chosen art, is a welcome antidote to traditional Cotswolds inns. Muddy loves.
- Holiday planning? 10 European-style staycations
  
  Love a continental jaunt but staying in Blighty this year? These 10 UK holiday spots have a distinctly European feel.

Fashion View more
4 new season trends to try (and one to avoid)

The high street is awash with new spring/summer goodies. Overwhelmed? Here’s our pick of the new trends worth exploring – and how to wear them.
- Dotty about polka dots!
  
  We're going dotty over the return of an old favourite print - welcome back, polka dot!
- FESTIVE FASHION SORTED
  
  Need some advice on how to put together some festive fashion-savvy looks? Stand out from the crowd with our pick of the best outfits from Muddy's fave indie designer.

Beauty View more
- 5 of the best…face masks
  
  We love the enforced relaxation that comes with using a face mask - you have no choice but to lie back and take things easy for a while. Plus you emerge with skin peachier than a baby's bottom. Result!
- BEST BEAUTY ADVENT CALENDARS
  
  Counting the days until Christmas? We can help with that. Voila, five of the best luxe beauty advent calendars available to buy right now.

Arts & Culture View more
Lockdown literary list

From F. Scott Fitzgerald’s decadent parties in the Roaring 20s to Hilary Mantel’s Tudor-set Wolf Hall trilogy, here’s our choice of books to add to your literary list during lockdown.
- March books: read me this month
  
  Reasons to be cheerful: spring has sprung and a brilliant new batch of March books has arrived. Gather around, and let us tell you a story.
- Muddy meets David Walliams
  
  The stage version of David Walliam's Billionaire Boy comes to Leicester this month - we meet the man behind the book.
- Comfy, cosy, and creative places to curl up and read a book
  
  ...
- Unmissable culture to book now
  
  Here are some of the hottest cultural tickets for Leicestershire and Rutland coming in spring...

Instamuddy

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Home View more
Where’s the best place to live in Leicestershire and Rutland?

The Sunday Times has revealed its top spots to live in 2020 – but did your hometown make the cut?
- Cook THIS for dinner tonight
  
  We can’t go out – time to get creative in the kitchen. Take inspiration from the hottest new cookbook on the block. Yum!
- Speedy supper
  
  Anything this colourful has got my vote for dinner. Rustle up this super delicious teriyaki bowl in minutes (seriously there's only 5 steps involved) and let the flavour combo explode in your mouth! Plus, your chance to WIN one of three copies of this fab, new cookbook.
Wellbeing
- Worried about CV Lockdown?
  
  We've chatted to experts at Age Space to get some practical advice if your parents are over 70 and facing imminent isolation.
- Working (out) from home: 5 on-demand exercise classes
  
  Tear your eyes away from Netflix and get moving with these streaming fitness classes. No excuses now!

Work View more
Win £2000 to kickstart your business dreams

Have a brilliant business that needs a helping hand? We’ve teamed up with business banking alternative, Tide, to offer a whopping two grand (yes, you read it right) to give you the boost you need. Competition now closed.
- We’re hiring!
  
  Based in Leicestershire, proud to be a local and want to work for fantabulous lifestyle platform Muddy Stilettos? You’re in the right place if you're a cool, confident and experienced sales bod.
- 5 killer tips for better work/life balance
  
  The juggle is real - and not going anywhere - so how the hell can we get it right?! Let's ask...
Kids
- Online workouts for you and creative fun for the kids
  
  Staying indoors means we're changing the way we socialise, workout and even entertain the kids. Here's our round up of fun things to do online from crafts to cookery lessons and more - all from local businesses.
- 12 Top Tips to Home Schooling
  
  Where to start? Here are our top tips from creating the right environment to useful resources for home schooling. Good luck!

People View more
Muddy meets… Melissa Hemsley

It turns out the healthy cooking queen has culinary disasters too! Melissa spills the beans (then whips them up into a tasty frittata) on burnt pans, how to waste less food and keeping an endless supply of cookie dough in the freezer.
- WONDER WOMEN
  
  To celebrate International Women's Day on Sun 8 March, Muddy is shining the spotlight on some of our favourite trail-blazing, commotion-causing women from the creative industries.
- Muddy has a laugh with comedian Sarah Johnson
  
  Muddy chats to the funny lady about why she turned down the chance to act, how she gets her kids involved in comedy and her new show.
- GBBO contestant, Priya O’Shea
  
  We're chuffed that she's repping Leicester on this year's series of The Great British Bake Off. Here's everything you need to know about the amateur baker.
- Creative and talented
  
  Full-time sign writer and hand lettering enthusiast, Lorna Dunn has worked with tonnes of fab indie businesses which means she knows some of the best places locally so it was a no-brainer to ask her all about them...