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Rags to Riches #14

Before we moved to <span class='highlight'>hoarspan> <span class='highlight'>crossspan> <span class='highlight'>hallspan> in Staffordshire we lived in Derbyshire.  My family originated from Derby and my parents were married there in July 1952. Mum was 19 and dad was 36 so quite a bit older. They both lived in Derby and were very arty; my dad went to the Derby Sketching Club in his free time and my mum attended art college. I’m not sure where they met but it was either at something art related or at a dance, as was usual in those days. My dad was a sculptor by trade; I think his interest was sparked by seeing all the beautiful alabaster in Italian churches during the war. After the war he set up his own business making alabaster lamps, bowls and...

Get me to the church on time! #30

My dad was having to move out of <span class='highlight'>hoarspan> <span class='highlight'>crossspan> <span class='highlight'>hallspan> and we had decided to bring our wedding forward so we that we could get married in the church in the grounds and then have the reception afterwards in the <span class='highlight'>hallspan>, which was after all our family home. The wedding preparations were going quite well and as we knew lots of musicians it wasn’t hard to find a local band and a DJ to do the disco. A friend of my dad’s offered to do the catering and the bar was set up with plenty of kegs from the local brewery in Burton on Trent. I had two bridesmaids and we all went to Birmingham one day to choose our dresses and shoes – it was all kept very simple really as I had no...

A Bit Of Background #1

A BIT OF BACKGROUND: 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. <span class='highlight'>hoarspan> <span class='highlight'>crossspan> <span class='highlight'>hallspan> was the home of the Meynell Ingram family who originated from Leicestershire.�...

Mediaeval Mayhem!

MEDIAEVAL MAYHEM!     It was the end of the summer season at <span class='highlight'>hoarspan> <span class='highlight'>crossspan> <span class='highlight'>hallspan> in 1973 and rehearsals had started for the new venture of Mediaeval Banquets.  All the cast would come around to the house each week for rehearsals and my mum and one or two other ladies were busy making the skirts and blouses for the wenches.   My mum also made about 200 bibs which the guests were going to be wearing as eating five courses with a dagger can be quite messy!   We had a King, a Jester, a Fire-eater, a Halberdier, an organist and various wenches and serving ladies.  To launch the banquets my parents decided to hold a Press Reception about a month before and so we...

Gardeners World at <span class='highlight'>hoarspan> <span class='highlight'>crossspan> #36

GARDENERS’ WORLD AT <span class='highlight'>hoarspan> <span class='highlight'>crossspan>:      In it’s heyday <span class='highlight'>hoarspan> <span class='highlight'>crossspan> <span class='highlight'>hallspan> 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 <span class='highlight'>hoarspan> <span class='highlight'>crossspan> 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 was a walled kitchen garden. This supplied the house with all its fruit, vegetables and herbs. The palm h...

Temple Newsam and the Meynells #42

TEMPLE NEWSAM AND THE MEYNELLS:     Following on from last week's blog about Emily Meynell Ingram's family background, this week I am delving into the family background of Emily's husband Hugo which explains how Emily came to own the Temple Newsam estate after his death.   In 1782, Hugo's grandfather, Hugo Meynell of Quorndon, the 'father of fox hunting', married the Hon. Elizabeth Ingram Shepheard.  She was the daughter of Charles Ingram, 9th Viscount Irwin and Lord Ingram.  The family seat was Temple Newsam in Yorkshire and this was how the Meynell family became associated with this great house.  Through this marriage of Hugo and Elizabeth, the Meynel...