Story Search Results

Suits you Sir! #22

...entrance hall which could also be accessed through the back from the spiral staircase. We sneaked into it from the staircase when no-one was looking and kept switching the power on and off, giggling like a couple of school-kids. We didn’t hang around though as my mum soon came charging down the Long Gallery to the cupboard to see what was going on! Another problem at the hall was rats! We had them coming into the house during the winter and I would often walk into the kitchen and see one eating out of the cat’s food bowl. They would squeeze themselves up through the holes where the water pipes were, even though the rats were huge. This gave my dad another...

Whodunit in the Library #24

...orrendous hallucinations. My dad was already visiting a psychiatrist each week and my mum took me to see one too! Our family really was falling apart at the seams! However, the feud went on and my dad was still selling items from the house unbeknown to my mum. He had a beautiful wooden musical box which played pretty tunes when wound up. My mum had hidden it away in her old bedroom under lock and key so my dad asked up to break into the room so he could get it back. We managed to unlock the door using a credit card on the Yale lock (sliding the card between the door and the lock would push the lock inwards) and when we got inside we found the musical box under...

Moving Out #32

...ur of the hall as it is today, click here to see all the rooms, the gardens, and the church in the grounds that are featured in my blogs!If you've enjoyed reading my stories why not get a copy of my book, 'My Dad Bought a Mansion' as it goes into a lot more detail of my life at the hall and also includes over 100 original photographs!And, with Christmas just around the corner, it might also be the perfect present for any book lovers you know! Go check it out here and let me know what you think!   ...

The Origins of the Stately Home #39

...Why are stately homes so called? Stately home actually means 'a large impressive old house with interesting history and usually visited by the public.' Well, I suppose they do look very 'stately' for a start but these houses were also a status symbol for the great families of England, who competed with each other to provide hospitality for the royal household who would travel around England meeting their subjects. Stately homes were huge mansions which were always beautiful and the epitome of perfect architecture, often designed by famous architects of the day. The gardens too would be perfectly landscaped to show balance, variety, sequence and colour. One of t...

"He's behind you!" #66

...During the 1970s Hoar Cross hall was used from time to time for local community activities and one such event was the production in 1978 of a traditional pantomime, ‘Midnight and a Journey back to Happiness’.   It was written by local people, Robert Leighton from Yoxall and the Hon. Alexandra Meynell, daughter-in-law of Mrs Jean Meynell whom we had purchased the hall from.  The words and music were written by local songwriter, David Matthews, who had written songs for quite a few pop artists during the 1960s, his most famous being Matt Munro’s ‘We’re gonna change the world’.  So off to a good start there! For those of you who don’t reside in t...

Skools out for Summer #98

...When Hugo and Emily Meynell built Hoar Cross hall it included a whole estate with it, namely kitchen gardens, greenhouses, stables, a farm and cottages.  This was quite common in those days as the estate supported the house with food etc and also gave employment to local people. Old hall (their original home) was also on the estate and was accessed via a private road, which ran from the main road.  By the time the 1970s came along the stable block and Old hall were private houses and another part of Old hall had been made into a children’s home.  Emily Meynell had started this home in the Victorian days, calling it ‘The Home of the Good Shepherd’ but it...