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The Grand Opening #5
Posted by Viv Wilson on 21st September 2019 in Growing Up In a Stately Home | hoar cross hall,Meynell,Burmese,Chinese,racing,Butler,Victorian
THE GRAND OPENING: And so we move into 1971 and the preparation of Hoar Cross Hall so we could open it to the public by Easter. During the run up to buying the house my dad had been buying furniture, carpets and paintings like crazy and I remember our previous home being jam packed with chaise longues, sideboards and carved chests as well as all the suits of armour that he already had. This furniture was now set out in all the rooms. My mum’s collection of Victorian costumes were on display in the Ballroom as well as my dad’s collection of silver plated ‘display’ armour, which hung around the panelled walls; the suits of armour and the ma...
Calendar Girls and Front Covers #7
Posted by Viv Wilson on 7th October 2019 in Growing Up In a Stately Home | hoar cross hall,the staffordshire magazine,Christmas,military,robert bakewell
CALENDAR GIRLS AND FRONT COVERS: During our time at Hoar Cross Hall people would occasionally hire the house for a day’s filming or whatever. During the summer of 1973 a photographer from London hired the place for a day and 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 my younger brother Gavin especially was very keen to watch – so much so that he found a pair of binoculars to follow all the proceedings! We m...
A Christmas Celebration #74
Posted by Viv Wilson on 20th December 2023 in Growing Up In a Stately Home | hoar cross hall,hoar cross hall spa hotel,barons eden,meynell ingram,servants,Butler,ghost,bells,christmas,party,Tour of the Hall,Downton Abbey,the Crown,Drawing Room
The final festive story is here based on true events and people that lived at Hoar Cross Hall.
“Come on, look sharp!” shouted Cook to her assistants in the kitchen. “We’ve got a load of cooking to do for the Christmas party at the weekend and if you don’t get a move on there’ll be nothing to eat!”
The kitchen maids looked at each other, stopped their gossiping and started to move a bit quicker. Cook could be quite intimidating when she was in one of her moods. The table was laden with pastries, jellies and fruit and the girls were just putting the finishing touches to the gingerbread biscuits before starting on the blancmange.
“I love...
Ghosts of Christmas Past #88
Posted by Viv Wilson on 13th December 2024 in Growing Up In a Stately Home | hoar cross hall spa hotel,barons eden,Haunted,ghost,christmas,attics,December,history,historic houses,stately home,Alice,Mince pies,Library,victorian,Downton abbey,The Aristocrats,The Royal Family,my dad bought a mansion
Welcome to another story based on true facts and things that went bump in the night at Hoar Cross Hall, to get you in the mood for all those Christmas ghost stories you'll be watching this season! Hope you don't get too scared!
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 realized how dark it was getting; the December nights were pulli...A Christmas Celebration #89
Posted by Viv Wilson on 20th December 2024 in Growing Up In a Stately Home | hoar cross hall spa hotel,barons eden,my dad bought a mansion,party,Christmas,Meynell,first world war,second world war,palm house,Downton Abbey,history,butler,cook
The final Christmas blog this year is a story of how the servants celebrated Christmas at Hoar Cross Hall, based around true events. The Meynells always gave a party for their servants and local tradesmen in the Long Gallery, and I imagine it went a bit like this!
“Come on, look sharp!” shouted Cook to her assistants in the kitchen. “We’ve got a load of cooking to do for the Christmas party at the weekend and if you don’t get a move on there’ll be nothing to eat!”
The kitchen maids looked at each other, stopped their gossiping and started to move a bit quicker. Cook could be quite intimidating when she was in one of her moods. The...
Hoar Cross Hall meets Downton Abbey #99
Posted by Viv Wilson on 24th September 2025 in Growing Up In a Stately Home | hoar cross hall spa hotel,barons eden,downton abbey,Highclere Castle,Bishop of Winchester,first world war,Great War,meynell ingram,Shropshire,Leicestershire,Derbyshire,History,period drama,Servants,Suffragettes,my dad bought a mansion,Earl of Carnarvon,Tomb of Tutankhamun,Eqyptologist,Lord Grantham
With the new Downton Abbey film out this month I thought I would do a comparison of the two family homes, Downton and Hoar Cross Hall, the latter being my old family home for those of you who are new to these blogs. Although Downton Abbey is fictional, the house on which it is based is not, it being Highclere Castle in Hampshire which was built in 1679 and is owned by the Earl of Carnarvon. Hoar Cross Hall was the original home of the Meynell Ingram family who first came from Leicestershire and was built in 1863. Hugo Meynell of Quorndon was the High Sheriff of Staffordshire and Member of Parliament for Lichfield and the family owned considerable property in...