Please can you tell me what this plant is?

Its some sort of air plant I think, but I have no experience of them. I think they just need spraying with water occasionally but have no idea about feeding

Definately an air plant and you do just spray them with a mist of water. I don't know about feeding either. Those red and purple things are flowers I think.

Thanks for the info, Christine has only ever sprayed it with a mist of water so she must have got it right. Gilli they are flowers as we had them come out two years ago they look lovely when open.

It's 20 years since I did my A level biology so please take the following comments with a pinch of salt! As far as I can remember air plants don't need to be fed, they 'fix' nitrogen and the like by the symbiotic use of bacteria at their base. Spraying doesn't actually water the plant in the normal sense as such but provides a constant climate around the plant which also aids gas transfer by diffusion.....I think!

Thanks for that Chris a very interesting reply to my question and very informative.

googled air plant images and not sure but could it be tillandsia ionantha? anyway you should be able to find it that way now although most just say "air plant"

Thanks for that I never gave Google a thought.

It looks like a type of Bromeliad which can also be a plant that will use a host to grow

Update after doing a Google search I now believe the plant is an Air Plant, Tillandsia Caput-Medusae. Thanks for your replys.