From The Sunday Times Travel Magazine January, 2008, issue

Do you plan your travels or just head off?

The past couple of years have been incredibly hectic and everything has been fairly last-minute. I had a great holiday in France with my boyfriend after typing ‘luxury Dordogne’ into Google. It came up with this 17th-century windmill, just outside Villeneuve-sur-Lot. It was like a hobbit dwelling, with arched doorways and wood carvings, set in beautiful countryside.

So the perfect rural idyll?

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• My hols: Omid Djalili

BACKGROUND

• My hols: Roger Lloyd Pack

• My hols: KT Tunstall

• My hols: Jessica Hynes

• My hols: Marina Lewycka

• My hols: Bruce Parry

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• My hols: Alex James

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• My hols: Matt Dawson

• My hols: Natasha Bedingfield

• My hols: Joaquin Cortes

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• My hols: Tony Bennett

Yes, but not very peaceful. The first few nights, I was kept awake by a munching sound, which was coming from inside the banister of a spiral staircase leading up to the tower. It was driving me mad, so I attacked the banister with a fork, wrenched the end off and found a mass of grubs. The staircase was riddled with them.

Are you a country girl or a city slicker?

I’m an islander. One of the best holidays I’ve ever had was to the Isle of Skye a few years ago. I find crossing a bridge makes you feel as if you’re leaving all your troubles on the mainland. The neighbouring island of Mull is like Fife, where I’m from, whereas Skye is a total contrast, and the landscape and weather are much more stark. A lot of climbers go there to train – the hills are pretty formidable.

Do you join them?

My mum and dad met as climbers, and I’ve done a little myself, including a course in Snowdonia. I love the mountains but I’m also aware of the dangers. What worries me most is damaging my fingers – at the moment, I can’t risk losing them to frostbite.

Where has most influenced you musically?

When I was 18, I studied music at Kent School in Connecticut and travelled around Vermont, Oregon, Texas and Chicago during vacations. I saw music gods like Van Morrison and the Grateful Dead, and discovered that great music attracts huge audiences. It really opened my mind.

And the highlight of your travels to date?

An awe-inspiring orca and whale-watching trip from Port Townsend, Washington. Every time they came to the surface, the entire boat let out this shout of excitement, and I imagined the whales underwater, with tape recorders, catching a bit of this strange human song.

KT Tunstall’s latest album, Drastic Fantastic (on Virgin), is out now

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