Story Search Results

Huntin', Shootin' and Fishin' #6

...hing! One summer there were over 30 bats whizzing around the house trying to find nests for their young. We had just had a burglar alarm installed with infra-red beams which kept going off in the night. I think our cat set it off once or twice but the bats caused most of the upset and my poor dad had to keep getting up to see who had broken in – fortunately the only thing broken was his night’s sleep! The bats eventually settled in a large light fitting bowl which hung over the main staircase and were left in peace to rear their young. Don’t miss next week’s instalment: Calendar Girls and Front Covers If you want to follow my story from the beginning,...

Ventures New #9

...ring that summer my parents auditioned for a King, a jester, entertainers and singers and by August they had a team of ‘am-dram’ actors ready to start rehearsals. They also advertised for wenches and serving girls of which I became one – at 14 years old this became my new weekend job! But the banquets were about to change all our lives - for better and for worse. Don’t miss next week’s instalment:   Eat, Drink and be Merry! If you want to follow my story from the beginning, click here and please feel free to share with your friends  ...

Eat, drink and be merry! #10

...EAT, DRINK AND BE MERRY!       It was the end of the summer season at Hoar Cross Hall in 1973 and rehearsals had started for the new venture of Mediaeval Banquets when the cast would come round to the house each week to practice their routines. My mum and one or two other ladies were busy making the skirts and blouses for the wenches; my mum also made about 200 bibs which the guests were going to be wearing as eating five courses with a dagger can be quite messy! We had a King, a Jester, a Fire-eater, a Halberdier, an organist and various wenches and serving ladies. To launch the banquets my parents decided to hold a Press Reception about a month before and...

Becoming a rock chick #16

...y. In the summer we left the back door open and visitors would wander outside and look at our pets – I imagine an over enthusiastic child had opened the hutch and not shut it properly because they escaped into the house and got into the library, it being the nearest room to the back door. I happened to be coming into the house on this particular day when I heard a woman scream “Rats, rats – on the bookshelves!” I rushed into the Library through the secret door (which made the visitors jump even more) to find them looking at our guinea pigs! How could they think our lovely pets were rats? However, we did get rats in the house but that’s for another blog...

The Graveyard Shift #23

...uring the summer months Kev and I would open the house to the public. As well as a bad atmosphere between my parents there was also a bad atmosphere between me and my mum and mum and Kev, so we were all trying to avoid each other! My mum had taken over the West Wing apartment when the tenants left, leaving my dad with one less rental income. She was also putting Yale locks on all the rooms that she used in the house as well as any storage rooms used for the banquets. This infuriated my dad who obviously didn’t have access to them once the locks went on. One of these rooms was the cupboard off the Entrance Hall which held the meter boxes, so we now had no acces...

The Tax Man Cometh! #26

...uring the summer months there were always a few barn dances to go to and we even put a few on ourselves. These were usually in a local farmer’s barn with a disco and lots of real ales – they were good fun and always went on until the early hours. All the neighbouring land around Hoar Cross was owned by the Duchy of Cornwall estate (Prince Charles’ land) and after one of these barn dances someone set off for home down a dark lane and crashed into a garage next to someone’s house. The car went straight through the wooden doors at the front and hit the back wall. As the car came to a halt the whole garage collapsed on top of it. The owner of the garage came...