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The Tax Man Cometh! #26

...��   The Meynell Ingram Arms which nearly set on fire!   As I said before There were always a few high jinks at The Meynell too. After one late night The landlord went home and left The locals to lock up The pub (this was quite common in those days). As The night went on we got hungry and The chef decided to cook some chips for us all. He went into The kitchen and saw that The chimney was on fire! We all ran out of The pub and sure enough, There were flames pouring out of The top of The chimney.   As The landlord only lived in The village The chef phoned him up and told him about The fire but he wouldn’t believe him! He thought we were playing a jo...

The Schoolroom Maid's Story #36

...For The first 75 years of Hoar Cross Hall’s history about 50 servants were employed by The Meynell family in The house and grounds. Among These was a young girl of fifteen who started work in 1920 as a Schoolroom Maid. Her name was Miss Inez Sophia Large and she had connections to Hoar Cross through her grand-parents, William and Mary Tooth, who lived in The village where William was The blacksmith; his smithy was just along from The Meynell public house. He had worked on The ironwork of The Hall during its construction in The 1860s. Inez’s aunt, Constance Madeley, was The wife of The landlord at The Buffalo Inn, in nearby Newborough, and it was through her...

Gardeners World at Hoar Cross #43

...In this week's blog I am focusing again on The servants who spent Their lives looking after The Meynell family along with Their home and gardens. In it’s heyday Hoar Cross Hall had around 28 people employed to keep The 20 acres of grounds tidy and weed free. In Victorian England The most common of all male servants was The gardener. At Hoar Cross The head gardener had numerous under-gardeners known affectionately as ‘digging slaves’! They were responsible for producing fruit, vegetables and growing luxury items in and out of season, much of it under glass. Adjacent to The house was The carp pool and greenhouse area along with a palm house; next to These wa...

Summer Balls and Garden Parties #57

...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.  Tea dances became popular in The 1880s but Balls with a supper included were also very popular amongst The aristocracy, especially if it was a 'coming out' Ball.  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'...

"He's Behind You" #22

...“HE’S BEHIND YOU!” During The 1970s The 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 d...

The haunting of Hoar Cross Hall #15

...The HAUNTING OF HOAR CROSS HALL:       (Based on a true story)   The typewriter keys clattered away as Viv wrote her story.  It was coming along nicely and she was feeling pleased with herself.  The attic room that she and her broThers had made into Their ‘den’ was ideal for getting away from everybody and having some peace and quiet and she quite forgot about The time as she lost herself in The plot.  Suddenly she looked up and realised how dark it was getting; The December nights were pulling in and it was already quite dusky by 3.30pm.  Quickly she packed her books and folders away and prepared to go downstairs.  How she hated being up in The a...