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Hysterical Productions! #13

HYSTERICAL PRODUCTIONS:     By the end of 1974 we had done about 40 banquets at Hoar Cross Hall and they were still going strong.  Most of the original cast were still with us but we were on our second King now and also doing our own catering and bar, whereas when we first started, we had a catering firm in to do it all.  Every weekend over 200 people came to sample our Noble Brose, Roast Lambe and Saracen’s Delight and sing along to ‘I’m Henry VIII’ whilst drinking beer, wine and mead.  But it was a very adult environment for 15 year old girls to work in; a few of my school friends also worked at the banquets as wenches and we were constantly bein...

Ventures New #9

...wearing a dinner jacket with black tie! He didn’t take too kindly to that but they were more impressed when they found out that he was the owner! And they tipped well too. I was allowed to come to these events and loved telling a few stories about ‘the servants’ we had and the haunted attic! The Americans would hang on my every word!   The JCB tankard specially made for the banquet JCB tankard with date During 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...

Hysterical Productions #15

...HYSTERICAL PRODUCTIONS:    By the end of 1974 we had done about 40 banquets at Hoar Cross Hall and they were still going strong. Most of the original cast were still with us but we were on our second King now and also doing our own catering and bar, whereas when we first started, we had a catering firm in to do it all. Every weekend over 200 people came to sample our Noble Brose, Roast Lambe and Saracen’s Delight and sing along to ‘I’m Henry VIII’ whilst drinking beer, wine and mead. But it was a very adult environment for 15 year old girls to work in; a few of my school friends also worked at the banquets as wenches and we were constantly being chatte...

Eat, Drink & Be Merry #11

...wearing a dinner jacket with black tie! He didn’t take too kindly to that but they were more impressed when they found out that he was the owner! And they tipped well too. I was allowed to come to these events and loved telling a few stories about ‘the servants’ we had and the haunted attic! The Americans would hang on my every word! The front of the tankard The JCB tankard   During 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 becam...

Calendar Girls and Front Covers #7

...CALENDAR GIRLS AND FRONT COVERS: Occasionally people would hire the Hall and during the summer of 1973 a photographer from London hired the place for a day.  He brought two models with him, one English and one German and they were taking photos for a glamour calendar.  We were told to keep right out of the way as they were taking photos in the gardens as well as the house.  Naturally we wanted to see everything that was going on and Gavin especially was very keen to watch – so much so that he found a pair of binoculars to follow all the proceedings!  We managed to find all sorts of hiding places eventually settling in our attic room to keep tabs on everyt...

Race Day Parties! #25

...My dad used to be a racing driver so he was often invited to parties and open days at various racing circuits. He naturally knew lots of racing people and on this particular occasion he was invited to an Open Day at Donington Park. Tom Wheatcroft, a local entrepreneur, had bought Donington Park in the 1970s as he owned the largest collection of Grand Prix cars in the world at that time. In 1973 he opened a museum there to house them all and called it the Donington Grand Prix Exhibition.  This sadly closed in 2018. Donington became the favoured home of the British round of the MotoGP motorcycling championships but he was really hoping to bring Formula 1 racing b...