Adult – £21,00 Child – £10,50 Family – £52.50 1 Adult Family – £31.50
Off peak admission
Adult – £19.00 Child – £9.50 Family – £47.50 1 Adult Family – £28.50
Parking
This is free.
Length of time spent here:
We arrived at about 10.20 AM and stayed until 2.30 PM.
My Review
We were babysitting our two grandchildren, Harry (5) and Olivia (3), so we decided to take them to Mottisfont to take a look at the Nutcracker Christmas. This particular ballet has become very familiar to us this year as Olivia’s dance show was based on it and Harry’s school Christmas play was also The Nutcracker, so Harry was fully aware of the story.
We arrived at about 10.20 AM and the first red flag was that we had to queue to park our car. I have a Blue Badge and so we were lucky enough to be able to park just at the entrance, but this was no advantage as the queue to get in snaked around the car park like the queue for a Disney ride! I must admit that when I looked at the website there was a warning that it could be busy, but I didn’t think it would be THAT busy!
So my advice would be to either go later in the day, perhaps Sunday morning wasn’t the best time to arrive or if you can, go during midweek.
Nutcracker Trail
We decided to follow the Nutcracker Trail which had miniature theatre scenes of Clara’s family home and the Land of Sweets. There was a also a chocolate boat that children could play on, a game where you had to throw bean bags at the mice and a Nutcracker puzzle.
Harry and Olivia playing on the chocolate boat.
Inside the House
After you have paid your entrance fee, then you queue again for some timed tickets into the house. They are for every half an hour and you can go in anytime during that half hour.
This is where the story of The Nutcracker comes to life. The story begins as you enter the house and you can see the German village where Clara lives.
German village
Each room as you walked into it was more magical and more enchanting than the last. There were scenes from The Nutcracker: the Sugar Plum Fairy, the Land of Sweets and a duel between the Nutcracker Prince and the Mouse King.
It was very well done and there was lots of attention to detail. Both of my grandchildren were captivated by it: there was ballerinas for Olivia and soldiers and mice for Harry!
Please take a look at the short video….
After looking around the house, which I would say took about half an hour, we went for a walk along the river. Even though there was a few people doing the same, it was still very peaceful and the kids loved seeing the ducks and playing Poo sticks on the bridge.
We did buy some hot chocolates and sausage rolls from the Coach House Café where there was a long queue but it did move quite quickly. It was a bit expensive at £35 but everything was hot and tasty!
This is the third time we’ve visited Mottisfont, it’s not very far from where we live and it’s nice to see it in the different seasons.
We all enjoyed our visit and even though there was a fair amount of queuing it was well organised. I would definitely recommend a visit to this beautiful place!
Atul Kochhar is at the forefront of fine Indian dining. He is an established restaurateur, television personality and author of cookery books.
Kanisha opened in March, 2019 and Atul appointed his protegee, Ashok Kumar as Executive Chef.
The restaurant is named after King Kanishka, an emperor of the Kushan dynasty known for his military, political and spiritual achievements.
Atul was the first Indian chef to receive a Michelin star in 2001 and won a second in 2007. He is the Chef/Patron of seven British restaurants which promote the best of Indian gastronomic fare combining modern techniques and traditional recipes and ingredients.
Ashok Kumar was featured in The Great British Menu, London and Southeast region in 2024 where the theme was celebrating the Olympics and Paralympics with a banquet hosted by the British Ambassador in France.
We were in London for a very special reason, we were going to a Garden Party at Buckingham Palace, so we decided to have a special meal to celebrate this and because we had eaten lots of times at Sindhu on P&O Cruises (Atul’s restaurant on board), we booked Kanishka.
We decided to go for the Tasting Menu which was £105 each but decided against the wine pairing as we’re not very big drinkers, so we ordered a bottle of wine instead.
As it happened, both Phil and I had different menu choices for each course, most probably because he loves fish and I am definitely not a fan!
NASHTA Atul Kochhar Blanc de Blanc
The first course was Nashta, which is the one in the background – the outer casing was very crispy and crunchy and the filling was smooth and moreish, almost like a humous texture and taste. The front two were complimentary and everyone received those, the one on the right was VERY spicy and they were both mouthfuls of tastiness.
Then it was onto the next course:
NADRU KI CHAAT Lotus stem kebabs and crisp with tamarind, cherry chutney, yoghurt
DEVON CRAB BONDA Devon crab fritter with chickpea sundal, tomato chutney with Isle of Wight tomatoes
I had the kebabs, which didn’t look like the kebabs we normally get from our local van in the layby and Phil had the crab. The kebab had lots of different textures which all blended together extremely well and the pomegranate seeds really made it pop! Phil said his crab was delicious, he wished he could have ate more!
So, I ordered the DHUYEN KI BATAK – home smoked Margret Duck breast, orange and spring onion chaat but forgot to take a picture of it! I have to say, this dish was superb, probably my favourite one of the night. The duck was cooked to perfection and together with the refreshing orange segments and spring onions, it tasted wonderful. Phil loves scallops and this was one of the best ones he’s had and together with the chicken jus, was incredible. He did wish though that he had a slice of bread to mop up that delicious sauce.
CHICKEN TIKKA PIE Speciality of the house served with spring berry chutney
JOHN DORY Cornish John Dory with Isle of Wight tomatoes
I had the chicken tikka pie which definitely didn’t taste like any other pie I’ve had! It was absolutely delicious. Phil enjoyed the John Dory and was impressed with the tomatoes which came from the Isle of Wight!
Time for a break – a toilet break – which I just had to take a picture of, it was a very nice restroom!
DO TARIKE KA GOSHT Lamp chop, lamb loin, Swiss chard and jus
PURANI DILLI KA BUTTER CHICKEN A classic of old Delhi – chicken tikka in rich tomato sauce
Phil’s lamb chop was ‘melt in the mouth’ and the spices were just about the right amount, not too spicy so that the taste gets overwhelmed. My butter chicken was amazing, there were side dishes that came with it and there was quite a bit of it, especially after eating all the previous courses! This has made me change my order when I go to an Indian now, I always order the butter chicken rather than the Chicken Korma!
Indian desserts are usually not very good but these were on another level! Refreshing and light after such a lot of food!
We met the Executive Chef, Ashok Kumar, who was in the TV programme The Great British Menu and we had a chat with him, but unfortunately forgot to take a picture!
Thoughts
This was an amazing meal and we felt it was good value at £105 each. The staff were very attentive and friendly. There was a smell of varnish as they were in the process of redecorating, but as we were sat downstairs we couldn’t smell it whilst we were eating.
This was it, the building they were investigating. Why this building? Well, it was rumoured to be the most haunted building in America, it had been featured on an episode of Ghost Adventures, where they had experienced lots of phenomena. Now it was their turn…
“Are you ready?” she asked her fellow ghost hunter, “It’s giving me the chills just looking at this place.” “Yes, as ready as I’ll ever be,” he replied, trying not to show the fear he felt, in his voice, “Come on, let’s go for it.”
“Wait a minute, I haven’t set my camera up,” he said, “Well, do hurry,” she replied, feeling sure that he was playing for time, “We need to get in before dark.” “Okay, all set,” he answered, placing the camera on his shoulder, “You go first.”
She tentatively opened the door and the hinges let out a huge squeal as if in indignation at being opened, she gazed into the gloominess and heard a door bang in one of the corridors, she screamed and turn around, running out into the daylight, swiftly followed by her fellow ghost hunter.
They reached the safety of the grounds and looked at each other, “Well, we got further than the last time,” she said, “We even managed to open the door this time.”
Please be aware that this blog will include spoilers… you have been warned!
A parody of Barbie, with arguments over who is the best Barbie between Noel and Alison and Ken (Paul Hollywood) picking Weird Barbie (Prue) with a bad American accent, kicked off the new series of Bake Off.
Signature Bake: Loaf Cake
Prue says that to really impress her, the bakers need something that surprises her, “They could put two kinds of sponge together, so it looks marbled or they could bury something interesting inside.”
Paul Hollywood advises us that, “Time management is critical, you don’t want to put decoration on top of a warm cake, it will literally just melt and slide off. It’s gonna be tricky.”
They have been warned!
Illiyin’s “Cinnamon Roll” Loaf Cake – The judges loved this loaf cake praising the flavours. This earned Illiyin the first handshake of the series.
Gill’s “It’s all V’s Fault” Loaf Cake – The marbling was good inside the cake and it tasted nice and orangey, but it was let down by the overall look as the icing had melted.
John’s Cherry & Chocolate Marble Loaf Cake – A proper loaf with enough height, the inside was more of a splodge than a swirl, but the overall flavour was good.
Andy’s “My First Bake” Loaf Cake – Lovely flavour but the texture was very heavy.
Mike’s Lemon & Linseed Loaf Cake – Paul noticed it had a big crack inside. The lemon flavouring was spot on, but Paul couldn’t taste the linseed and Mike obviously had an issue with timing as the icing was melting.
Georgie’s Vanilla & Chocolate Marble Loaf Cake – Nice flavour, but was criticised for not having enough height. Paul said, “I don’t dislike it, I just think it could be better.”
Sumayah’s “Halwa Surprise” Loaf Cake – A good strong bake that hadn’t been overmixed with the perfect coconut level in the flavour.
Jeff’s “Guiding Star” Loaf Cake – Prue was impressed with the star running through the cake. The flavours were good, but the overall look was compared to “lava flow.”
Nelly’s Coconut Loaf Cake – Prue commented that it was basically pudding and was delicious. Not the best decorated but flavour-wise was lovely.
Dylan’s “Sticky Rice” Loaf Cake – Neat with a good height. The flavour was there but the bake itself was doughy and dense,
Christiaan’s “Umami Apple” Loaf Cake – Clever decoration, but the judges weren’t impressed with the miso/apple combination.
Hazel’s “Raspberry Surprise” Loaf Cake – The shards were too thick and it was slightly overbaked.
So we already have the first handshake of the competition, was it too early or do you think that doesn’t matter, if Paul thinks it’s worthy then that’s fine?
Technical Challenge
We were told the news that Jeff wasn’t feeling well, so he won’t be participating in the rest of the programme.
The technical challenge was to bake 8 symmetrical mini-Battenburg cakes but there was a twist – it’s a Taste and Bake Challenge. There was an example of a Battenburg under the gingham cloth and they had five minutes to inspect that before starting on their own ones.
There was a certain amount of trepidation from the bakers, apart from Georgie who admitted she’d looked at a Battenburg recipe last night! (That’s my girl! – if you look at my previous blog, she’s one of two I have chosen to win this year!)
11. Mike 10. Hazel 9. Sumayah 8. Andy 7. Illiyin 6. Gill 5. Nelly 4. Dylan 3. John 2. Christiaan And the winner was…. GEORGIE!
Showstopper Challenge
Paul highlights Christiaan, Mike and Hazel, who may be in trouble and have to leave the show today.
This week’s Challenge is a hyper realistic illusion cake with flavours and types of sponges up to the bakers in just four hours.
Georgie’s “Fanny the Chicken” Illusion Cake – Prue commented it was an odd shape, but that the chicken had a real personality. Alison asks the judges, “How does Fanny taste, guys?” The judge’s managed to keep a straight face and replied, “Absolutely lovely!” Bake Off with its best innuendos. Two of the sponges were overbaked but it had a lovely lemon flavour.
Sumayah’s “Pato the Duck” Illusion Cake – An exceptional illusion cake, probably one of the most realistic looking cakes in the tent. Beautifully baked. But no handshake!
Wow!
Dylan’s “Canopic Jar” Illusion Cake – Impressive illusion cake. An unusual flavour, but delicious.
Christiaan’s “Sweet Seams are Made with This” Illusion Cake – Prue loved this sewing machine illusion cake comparing it to her own one at home. Paul didn’t hold back on his critique saying it was massively overbaked and bone dry and the flavour was quite sour.
John’s “The Perfect Brunch” Illusion Cake- The judges were impressed with the illusion cake and they loved the flavours.
Gill’s “Crown Green Bowling” Illusion Cake – Good illusion, although Prue wished the bowls were more rounded, The judges loved the taste of it.
Mike’s “My Favourite Cake & Books” Illusion Cake – Each book could be picked up separately, the judges loved them. A beautiful cake, executed very well from Paul and Prue just said, “Ditto.”
Amazing!
Andy’s “It’s an Overnight Job” Illusion Cake – Exceptional illusion cake, Paul could tell straight away that it was overbaked. Lovely flavour with the sharpness of the raspberries.
Hazel’s “Handbag” Illusion Cake – For a first for Bake Off, Hazel carried her handbag illusion cake by its handles. But Paul commented it wasn’t very neat, overbaked but a beautiful lemon flavour.
Nelly’s “Retro 90’s Shoes” Illusion Cake- Good chocolate flavour, but lacking the flavour of the raspberries.
Illiyam’s “Flowers in a Vase” Illusion Cake – Paul and Prue loved the flowers but weren’t keen on the vase. A well baked cake with amazing flavours, but the design was slightly flawed.
Who went home?
Actually nobody went home because Jeff was ill, but they were warned that two people could go home next week.
Star Baker
Thoughts….
A great start to the series, cake week is always a good one as we do get some great bakes. Not to brag but my two choices, John and Georgie won both the Technical and Star Baker! I think Christiaan and Hazel may be gone next week, but let’s hope they do better with biscuits.
Maybe not sending anyone home in the first programme could be established in future series, I know that I would probably need at least a week to settle in and get my nerves under control, they do this in Strictly and it gives everyone a chance for a little bit more practice.
Next Week:
Biscuit Week and it looks like carnage as we see two people fall to the ground…
Shane is visiting Rick at the hospital, by his bed, The army are outside, they're shooting the dead, Shane tries to wake Rick, so they can get out, He calls for help, no-one is hearing him shout.
The power goes out and Rick's monitors close down, Shane is nearly caught, he leaves Rick dressed in his gown. He makes his escape, he thinks Rick may be dead, He barricades the door with a hospital bed.
Shane visiting Rick in hospital
Rick and the survivors enter the CDC and stand by the wall, Dr Jenner demands they do a blood test, "It's protocol." They all have a good meal with lots of drink and food, Glen is drunk, they toast Dr Jenner, it's a feel good mood.
After dinner, the group have the luxury of a hot shower, Except for Shane, who drinks alcohol which he devours. He confronts Lori, he is angry, she says he lied about Rick, He said that Rick was dead, she feels like she was tricked.
Shane tries to force himself on her, she scratches him, He runs off and she returns to her room, feeling grim. The next morning most of the group is feeling sick, They take some aspirins and hope they feel better quick.
Dr Jenner shows them a video of somebody dying, Their brain goes black, then restarts and is trying To get up and walk, a bullet flies through TS-19's head, "The person is forever gone," he sighs, "They are dead."
Dr Jenner
Dale notices a clock which is counting down from an hour, Jenner says it's how much fuel they have left and how much power. Rick wants to know what happens when the clock gets to zero? Jenner explains the lab will blow up, there will be no heroes.
Jenner locks the doors, the group is trapped, they can't run. They try to break through the doors with axes and guns. Rick asks why Jenner stayed if he believed there was no hope, He informs Rick that TS-19 was his wife, he wouldn't cope.
Jenner agrees to open the door, but he warns them all, They won't be able to get past the lockdown at all. Rick asks Jenner to leave with them, he shouldn't fear, But Jenner refuses and whispers something in Rick's ear.
Dr Jenner whispers something to Rick
Jacqui stops, she has decided she doesn't want to go, And Andrea states that she wants to stay also. Dale sits down beside her, he's not going anywhere, Andrea is angry, he really shouldn't care.
The others are in the lobby, the doors are shut, There's no way out, they can't escape, but, Carol has a grenade, they can escape at last, They blow the doors off with a huge blast.
The group make their escape and are relieved to see, Andrea and Dale emerge, who get in the RV, The building blows up and leaves lots of rubble, They head off, fingers crossed they have no more trouble!!
So here we go again, the new series of The Great British Bake Off when we all feel inspired to bake whilst sat on the sofa watching, but know in our heart-of-hearts that it won’t happen as we’re already thinking, “I can get that for £1 in Tescos!”
Bake Off Contestants 2024
I will be reviewing episodes each week (I will be on holiday for a couple of weeks but will try to catch up!) – so let’s start with a meet and greet of the bakers!
44 years old and a car mechanic from Essex.
33 years old and a menswear designer from London.
Aged 20, a retail assistant from Buckinghamshire.
34 years, a Paediatric Nurse from Carmarthenshire.
A 53 year old senior category manager from Lancashire.
Aged 71, a former nail technician from Kent.
31 years old, a birth trauma specialist midwife from Norfolk.
Aged 67 and from West Yorkshire, a former university lecturer.
A directorate support manager, aged 37 and from the West Midlands.
Aged 29 and a farm manager from Wiltshire.
A palliative care assistant, aged 44 and from Dorset.
Aged 19, dentistry student from Lancashire.
I’m going to make a bold move and choose my top two just from reading the descriptions of each baker!!
Number Two Choice:
Georgie – she is a self proclaimed cannoli connoisseur and lives in a Welsh farmhouse with her husband, three children, ten chickens, two ducks, two dogs and a cat!
Number One Choice:
John – John learned to bake with his nan and now bakes to honour his nan’s memory, he loves classic bakes with a twist! His favourite bake is a classic lemon tart.
It’s great to see them all back again – I was a bit sceptical when Alison Hammond joined the team, but I was soon loving her comments and of course her infectious laugh!
I’m very excited for this new series and I can’t wait to see if there will be any cooking disasters, messy workstations and of course, soggy bottoms!
Obviously I have my favourite Abba hits, but what about the songs that weren’t released on their own merit? These are album tracks and B-sides to their singles, I choose my top ten favourite non-hit tracks!
10. That’s Me
This was the B-side to one of Abba’s biggest hits, Dancing Queen, but plenty of people received a nice surprise when they flipped the single over and heard That’s Me for the first time!
It was released in Japan as a single, with Money Money Money as its B-side but only made it to number 75 in the official Japanese charts.
This is an upbeat number about a woman simply saying, “This is me, like it or lump it!” The video was filmed during the making of the TV special, ABBA-dabba-doo and includes original footage and some outtakes from previous ABBA videos.
Agnetha has said that this is one of her favourite songs.
9. Kisses of Fire
Another B-side, this time to Bjorn’s lead vocal on Does Your Mother Know, which reached number 3 in the UK charts. It was released as a single in Venezuela with DYMK as the B-side!
Agnetha sings the lead vocals and it’s about a woman whose found true love for the first time and is not used to the insecurities of holding onto that relationship.
This song was performed by Panos Mouzourakis in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
8. Cassandra
This was the B-side to the wonderful Winner Takes It All, it wasn’t included on the original album, The Visitors, but was on the special edition bonus track versions.
This was a song about a mythical Greek figure named Cassandra who could make accurate prophecies, but unfortunately nobody believed her. Bringing it back to modern day, it is about feeling unheard or misunderstood which resonates with so many people.
The lyrics, melody and arrangement is perfect and together with Frida’s wonderful vocals makes this a must in this list!
7. I Let The Music Speak
An album track from The Visitors featuring Frida as main vocalist. It is the fifth longest Abba track after Eagle, The Day Before You Came, The Visitors and Chiquita.
The lyrics are incredible in this song, really highlighting how far Benny and Bjorn have come since the early days –
I’m hearing images, I’m seeing songs No poet has ever painted Voices call out to me, straight to my heart So strange yet we’re so well acquainted
The underlying message in this track is that you can have good times and bad times, but music will never let you down!
6. As Good As New
The opening track on Voulez-Vous album. It was released as a double A-side in Mexico with I Have A Dream, where it was number one.
Featuring Agnetha on lead vocal, it is an upbeat and vibrant track which tells the story of somebody who has been heartbroken in the past, but has now found somebody with whom there is a bright future.
5. When All Is Said And Done
A track featured on The Visitors with lead vocal by Frida. It was released in the USA with Should I Laugh Or Cry as the B-side and reached number 27 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was also released in Australia and Canada.
The Winner Takes It All is synonymous with the divorce of Bjorn and Agnetha and When All Is Said And Done is about the divorce between Frida and Benny. Frida sings about her emotion and sorrow, not only personally, but for everyone who has gone through a divorce. Frida said, “All my sadness was captured in that song.”
4. Slipping Through My Fingers
A track from the album, The Visitors and which was only released as a single in Japan where it was a red vinyl promo single for Coca-Cola and there was no B-side, just a picture of the group.
The inspiration for this song was Bjorn and Agnetha’s daughter, Linda who was seven at the time of recording. It is about a mother’s regret as her daughter is growing up and going to school and she feels as though she is losing her. Agnetha’s vocals are superb, you can feel the sadness through her voice and the lyrics.
3. If It Wasn’t For The Nights
An album track on Voulez-Vous which was intended to be the lead single from the album until they recorded Chiquita which took that honour instead.
The harmonies of Agnetha and Frida are outstanding on this song. It is an up-tempo song which deals with the pain of somebody who has recently ended a relationship and having to face the night alone with their own thoughts. I often think this comes as a pair with Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight), it would make an interesting mash-up.
2. Lovelight
B-side to Chiquita, not originally released on the Voulez-Vous album, but was included as a bonus track on later releases.
This song opens with an amazing guitar solo, which would have been a fantastic opening to a concert (just my thoughts!). An upbeat song about how much brighter and better life is when your partner is around. A belief that their partner had a special ‘lovelight.’
And my favourite track is….
1. Should I Laugh Or Cry
This was the B-side to One Of Us, it wasn’t included on The Visitors album, which I think it should have been instead of Two For The Price Of One, (sorry Benny and Bjorn), but it was on the compilation album, Thank You For The Music.
The narrative from this song, comes across as a rather bitter end to a relationship. There is personal emotion from Frida, exploring how she feels about the relationship, together with Agnetha’s soft echo vocal which adds a sense of sadness to the relationship.
So there you have it, my top ten non-hit Abba songs – there are some I haven’t included which deserve a mention….
Me and I – My Love, My Life – Soldiers – to name a few…
Please check out the video to accompany this blog which I have uploaded to YouTube….
One day a few months ago I received a phone call from a very excited husband, “I’ve just received an email nominating me to go to a Royal Garden Party.” That was exciting and the wait between receiving the nomination to the invitation landing on our doormat was unbearable.
We told a few people about it, (well, a lot of people!) and we were relieved when we finally received the invitation.
After the initial excitement the reality then struck, what are we going to wear? Phil loves dressing up and he decided at once that he was going to wear a morning suit and because it would probably be the only time he would wear one, we hired it from Moss Bros.
For me though, it was a different matter as I had to be careful about what type of dress I bought. I have a stoma bag fitted and I can’t wear close fitting clothes, so I prefer dresses that flow down from the waist, disguising the bag and nothing will be pressed down on it.
My dress is a long story, so I’ll cut it short (not the dress!)- I bought a dress from Phase Eight, which I was happy with and I borrowed a fascinator from a good friend which matched it. Then, on the morning of the Garden Party we went to the O2 shopping mall and I fell in love with another dress from Hobbs London, so I ended up wearing that one instead, luckily my fascinator still matched!
We booked a hotel for two nights in London, a Travelodge just by Waterloo Station. This hotel was a great choice and judging by the amount of women in fascinators and men in morning suits milling around the reception, lots of other garden party goers thought so as well.
In the hotel reception
We all gazed outside the reception doors and sighed as the rain fell, some had waterproofs on, others had umbrellas clasped in their hands, hoping against hope that they wouldn’t need to use them. We were in the latter category after Phil had hurriedly ran to a shop a couple of doors down to buy two umbrellas and had nearly had a heart attack when the guy asked for £18 for both!
We shared a taxi with two sisters, one of whom had worked for the NHS for 30 years and that’s why she was nominated. By the way, Phil was nominated for his work with Hampshire Constabulary, he is the Catering Manager for all the Hampshire Police restaurant sites and has worked there for over 30 years!
We had a lovely conversation with the two sisters on the way to Buckingham Palace and when we were dropped off, the rain had become a drizzle, but we weren’t prepared for the queue to get in. It was very long, but once it started moving, it went very quickly.
After going through security, we were in the Palace grounds and the rain was still just a drizzle.
We decided to go to the Tent and have our afternoon tea. It was very busy, but very well organised and we were ushered to a line by one of the assistants. The choice of food was great with both sandwiches, wraps, cakes and of course, scones with jam and cream! There was a choice of a cup of tea or an iced coffee – I had the iced coffee which was delicious.
The rain then began to steadily fall heavier and heavier, but we wanted to see the Royals and so we stood along the route that they would be taking.
Waiting for the Royals
At this point it really was raining cats and dogs and so we decided to take shelter in the tent and see if we could see the Royals later on. We did get glimpses of them and I could see that Prince William was there and also Mike Tindall.
We then decided to brave it and took a walk towards the Royal Tent, where again we caught glimpses of Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice.
We were told by a member of the staff that they would be leaving the tent at 5.30 and then we had a stroke of luck. Phil remembered somebody telling him who had been to a Garden Party before that they left via a gravel path to a door on the side of Buckingham Palace. We walked up towards the exit and found that exact spot. We took our place at the front and waited hopefully for a sighting of the Royal Party.
Boy, were we rewarded, the Royals all came up the path, stopping and speaking to lots of people and I managed to get some video of Zara Tindall, who looked absolutely stunning, Mike Tindall and of Prince William posing for a photograph with some attendees.
I uploaded the video on my personal account on X, formerly Twitter, and I was gobsmacked by the amount of likes, reposts and comments (not all favourable towards the Royal family, I might add) that these videos received! The video of Prince William was also used by prolific Royal watchers – According2Taz, Harry’s Gray Suit and Rebecca English!
Then it was time to go back to the hotel. We walked through the park with lots of other damp Garden Partyers, the women with soaked shoes and soggy fascinators and the men with saturated suits and drops of rain falling from their top hats, but everyone was smiling and that’s what we British do best – we don’t let the weather defeat us!
Going down the escalator in the Underground, I heard a lady say, “Is there a posh wedding somewhere? Everyone is dressed very fancy.” Little did she know that we’d just had afternoon tea with the Royal Family.
The Agar-Robartes children – picture taken in 1896
Following the dissolution of the monasteries, Lanhydrock was first owned by the Glynn, Littleton and Trenance families and then Richard Robartes acquired it in 1621.
When Richard died in 1634, the estate was inherited by his son, John, who after marrying twice fathered in total 19 children. He had a successful career in politics before dying in London on 1685.
He outlived his heir, so was succeeded by his grandson, Charles Bodville Robartes who spent very little time at Lanhydrock, preferring to live in London.
Charles was succeeded by his nephew, Henry who ventured on a ‘Grand Tour’ settling in Venice with his mistress. During this period of time, Lanhydrock suffered huge neglect and the house fell into disrepair and was “destitute of furniture.”
When Henry died, Mary Vere Robartes, the great-granddaughter of John Robartes inherited Lanhydrock though she was less impressed with the state of the building and she considered demolishing the house and auctioning its contents – she valued the whole estate at around £110,000.
But Mary died before she could do this and her eldest son, George, inherited the estate in 1758. Even though he rarely visited Lanhydrock, he did modernise the house and even better, he hired an estate warden, William Jenkin, who did much to improve the house.
George suffered from ill health and was always looking for cures, but he died in 1798 and the estate was passed to his niece, Anna Maria Hunt.
Anna married Charles Bagenal Agar and she improved Lanhydrock House, installing blinds to protect the pictures from sunlight and stoves to combat the damp.
Her husband, Charles, died of typhoid in 1811 and her youngest son, Edward, died in 1818. So Anna Maria devoted her life to providing an income for her surviving son, Thomas James and she died in 1861.
Thomas James Agar
Thomas James took responsibility for the estate when he came of age in 1829. He married Juliana Pole-Carew and they had a child, Thomas Charles Agar-Robartes. He was the Liberal MP for Bodmin and was considered to be “the poor man’s friend.”
He employed the architect George Gilbert Scott to repair Lanhydrock House. But unfortunately tragedy struck in 1881 when a fire destroyed the interiors of the south and west wings. Juliana died a few days later from smoke inhalation and shock and Charles died the following year, reputedly from a broken heart.
After his death, their son, Thomas Charles inherited the estate and he installed the latest Victorian fire-fighting system, as well as modern conveniences.
He married Mary Dickinson and they had 10 children and all except for one, lived to reach adulthood. Sadly their third son, John, died of bronchitis on Christmas Eve, 1884. He was six months old.
They lived during a time of late-Victorian and Edwardian opulence and had many visitors including the Prince and Princess of Wales in 1903, Lord Roseberry and Winston Churchill.
Their eldest son, Thomas Charles Reginald was elected as an MP for South East Cornwall in 1906 but was implicated in a scandal and was charged with 108 counts of bribery and excessive expenses.
He joined the Coldstream Guards and left for France in February, 1915. He was shot at the Battle of the Loos in September and later died of his wounds and the family fell into a decline from which they never recovered.
Noël Rothes is known as the heroine of the 1912 Titanic tragedy; she helped to command the lifeboat she was in and she also steered the lifeboat away from the sinking Titanic.
Noël was decisive and optimistic and this encouraged the other survivors in the lifeboat to remain calm under this extremely difficult situation. She even took to the oars and helped get the lifeboat to RMS Carpathia where they could be rescued.
Noël, The Countess of Rothes
Noël joined The Titanic in Southampton with her parents, her husband’s cousin, Gladys Cherry and her maid, Roberta Maioni. Her parents left the ship at Cherbourg and the others continued their journey to New York , where she was to meet up with her husband, the Earl of Rothes.
The women were in their beds when The Titanic hit the iceberg and they went up on deck to investigate and were told by Captain E. J. Smith to return to their cabins and put on their lifejackets.
Noël, Gladys and her maid were rescued in Lifeboat 8 which was lowered into the sea at approximately 1:00 AM, over an hour after the collision. Tom Jones was the Able Seaman who was placed in charge of the boat said that he recognised the leadership qualities in Noël saying, “she had a lot to say, so I put her to steering the boat.”
During the night she rowed the lifeboat and helping to boost the morale of the other women until their lifeboat was picked up by RMS Carpathia early the next morning.
Once aboard the rescue vessel, she devoted her time to the welfare of the women and children. A stewardess told Noël, “You have made yourself famous by rowing in the boat,” to which Noël replied, “I hope not, I have done nothing.”
She was not comfortable with the publicity she received once in New York insisting that it was the cool-headed leadership of Seaman Jones and help from her cousin-in-law and the other women that deserved the praise.
Seaman Thomas Jones
She gifted Jones with an inscribed silver pocket watch and he gave her a brass number plate from their lifeboat, number 8. They wrote to each other regularly until Noël’s death in 1956.
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