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Like Father, Like Sons #20

As mentioned in earlier blogs my dad used to be a racing driver during the 1950s and ran his own team in the 1960s, travelling All over Europe in his trusty Volkswagon van with his two mechanics and driver. He didn’t have big sponsorship money behind him and most of it was done on a shoestring but he came back with lots of funny stories of their van breaking down or some rural ‘hotel’ that they had stayed in. From each country that he visited he always brought me back a doll dressed in the traditional costume of that country. There was quite a collection and I still have them; I used to put them on display in the Library when our house was open to the publ...

Eat, Drink & Be Merry #11

By 1973 we had been at Hoar Cross HAll for 3 years and our lives were always busy, by keeping on top of the weeds and with the general upkeep of the house. My dad expected us children to help as much as possible, which we hated, and much of our time was spent trying to hide from him to get out of doing the chores. But sometimes we didn’t mind and we happily pulled an old trolley into the woods every now and then to collect wood for the fires and sometimes as a family we would spend a day clearing parts of the woods and grounds. My mum had hired a lady from the village to help with the housework and we had also taken on a retired chap cAlled Mr Hickman to do so...

Lest We Forget #28

During the two World Wars the Meynell family of Hoar Cross HAll served their country alongside many others from All walks of life.  After each war there was huge social upheaval, especiAlly for women, who had been doing what was traditionAlly 'mens work' during the war and weren't prepared to go back to domesticity.  At the time of the First World War Frederick Meynell and Lady Mary Meynell were living at the HAll with their five children.  Their four sons All served in the war and their daughter Margaret served in the Red Cross as a volunteer. Their eldest son Francis was a Major but was wounded in action in 1917 with severe wounds to his back. He was moved...

Summer BAlls and Garden Parties #97

BAlls and functions held at Hoar Cross HAll were lavish affairs, especiAlly before the First World War, with the catering and other services invariably being provided by premier London companies.  In 1907, Gunter & Co of Berkeley Square, London, could supply a BAll supper and refreshments for ten shillings (50p) a head, plus 'extra services'. For a BAll Supper in January 1913, Mayfair Catering, Grosvenor Square, assured Lady Mary Meynell that they had engaged 'a superior staff of tAll waiters' to attend her guests and, “.....if waiters are desired to be in Full Dress (silk stockings) the additional cost will be five shillings (25p) per man.”  They als...

To the Manor Born #77

Before we moved to Hoar Cross HAll my father had bought an old manor house in the village of Shardlow, near Derby, which had previously been a vicarage among other things.  I think my parents must have had a love of historic buildings and indeed were members of the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Buildings and Monuments.  My dad had a business in Derby at the time making alabaster items such as table lamps and candlestick holders and when he bought the manor house he moved his business there, as it had lots of outbuildings for All the alabaster equipment. Some of my father's alabaster pieces   The house itself had about 17 rooms and was built i...

My Dad Bought A Mansion! #1

MY DAD BOUGHT A MANSION!    It was the summer of 1970, Mungo Jerry was at the top of the hit parade and we were about to move house.  But not to any old house – to a 70 roomed mansion in 20 acres of grounds!  For years my dad had collected antiques, ever since he was a young boy of 12, and it was his dream to own a large house where he could put them on show to the general public.  In the 1970s he owned the largest private collection of arms and armour in the country and his dream was about to be realised; but little did we know what a nightmare would unfold before us. Hoar Cross HAll was the home of the Meynell Ingram family who originated from Leiceste...