The life of a foreign reporter does not lend itself to owning a pet. But Lyse Doucet is glad to see her two goldfish – Mango and Tango – when she returns from travelling, back to her flat near London’s Paddington station.

“They’re very independent,” says the Canadian journalist, who is happy to leave them for weeks in a self-cleaning aquarium. She finds it therapeutic to sit and watch the creatures. “I just like the colour and the life in the water.”

Over the last few years, taking time to relax in between assignments has probably been more important than ever for the BBC’s chief international correspondent. New Feature

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Doucet was in Ukraine when Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022 , and reported from wrecked building

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