Story Search Results

To the Manor Born #77

...ning free across the fields at the back of our house and making dens in the nearby woods.  The house had a lovely big garden at the back with an orchard to one side and a walled garden to the other side, which would have been the kitchen garden in days gone by. In the summer months we always had garden parties, courtesy of the local church or Women’s Institute and in November we remembered, remembered the 5th of November and Guy Fawkes’ Night with a huge bonfire and jacket potatoes, which the whole village seemed to come to!  Quite handy having a large garden! My brother Gavin and I in the garden   The house itself consisted of three main reception...

Ghouls Galore! #85

...them and across the landing to the bedroom corridor.  And then, walking along the bedroom corridor knowing there were all those dark empty rooms nearby, well, your imagination runs wild I can tell you!  And of course, the other thing I hated about going near the staircase and Long Gallery at night, was the sight of 20 suits of armour staring back at me through their visors, which was quite intimidating.  Oh by the way, if you’re wondering what a visor is, it's the front piece on the helmet of a suit of armour and has slits for the eyes to see out of.  To me it looked like they still had men inside them, looking at me!! My brother, Gavin and I had turned...

A Christmas Celebration #89

...he looked across at Molly and winked.  Jenny had been working at the Hall for a few years now and was used to Cook’s temper.  It was only because there was a lot to do and she got easily stressed; also, she was getting on in years and her feet hurt a lot from long hours of standing so it was no wonder she got irritable! The party was the highlight of the year for most members of staff.  The Meynell family treated their servants and workers quite well compared to some families and always hosted a party just before Christmas for the indoor and outdoor staff as well as the estate workers who lived in the cottages nearby.  The party was held in the Long Galle...

The Chinese Room #71

...rcase and across the Entrance Hall.  More extra work for the poor servants! Christmas Day dining for the Meynells in the 1950s    During Mediaeval times the nobility dined in a Great Hall which was a large communal area in the centre of the house or castle.  The family sat on a raised dais at the head of the table and the rest of the household sat in order of diminishing rank away from them.  Over time the nobility preferred smaller rooms where they could entertain guests away from the servants and others members of the household – this was due in part to political and social changes and also comfort. As time went on Dining Rooms became smaller an...

Meet the Neighbours - Blithfield Hall #78

...causeway across it. It is now classed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to the over-wintering wildfowl that reside there. A year later, in 1946, the Baron died having sold off most of his possessions and the contents of the house.  However, his successor, the 6th Baron, repurchased the property and 30 acres of land from the water company thus bringing the house back into the family and he began renovating it back to its former glory.  A lot of stately homes around this time were falling into neglect, especially after the 2nd World War, when Inheritance Tax was introduced as a way of clawing back money for the Government that had gone to pay for th...

Meet the Neighbours - Trentham Gardens #83

...lake and across a deer lawn flanked by a series of Ha Ha walls – very similar to the one at Hoar Cross Hall.  It seems that deer parks, lakes and walks were a ‘standard’ in most stately homes of that era. Moving on to 1833 and George Granville, 2nd Duke of Sutherland decided to redesign the hall and gardens but this time the Italian Renaissance was all the rage so Brown’s sweeping lawns were transformed back into formal terraced garden rooms.  Fountains, balustrading, clipped topiary and sculptures were the new look now – all this change must have kept the gardeners busy!  The lakes were given an ‘Italian Lakes’ makeover with four islands bein...