Longford Castle - Only open to the public a few days of the year

Situated within beautiful gardens on the banks of the River Avon, near Salisbury, Longford Castle has been home to the Earls of Radnor for generations.

The Elizabethan castle houses an exceptional art collection, including paintings by Van Dyck, Claude, Teniers, Hals, Reynolds, and Gainsborough, as well as oriental porcelain, Brussels tapestries and 18th-century English and continental furniture.

SELF DRIVE ( OR CAR SHARE) VISIT TO UPTON GREY GARDENS.

Upton Grey is near Basingstoke-  about 1hour 15 minutes. 

Aiming to arrive at 10.30 - Entrance fee is now £10 which includes a plant list.

Possible stops on the way back would be:

The Avenue Nurseries at Lasham ( plants, resturant, farm shop, gifts etc ect)

The ship Inn at Bishops Sutton 

Hampshire is world-renowned for its gardens, but Upton Grey Garden would certainly appear in any top ten list. Just over 30 years ago this garden had fallen into a state of disrepair. But underneath the jungle were the foundations of a very special garden - one that Gertrude Jekyll had designed in 1908 for a house belonging to Charles Holme, a leading figure in the Arts and Crafts movement. 

A completely restored Gertrude Jekyll designed garden completely rebuilt to the original 1908 design. Step back in time to a Edwardian masterpiece. Authentic in every detail.

OPEN May, June and July, Monday to Friday 9am until 4pm. 

HISTORY

In 1902, the Manor House at Upton Grey was bought by Charles Holme, founder of The Studio magazine, an influential Arts & Crafts movement publication. The Old Manor House, which dated back to the fifteenth century was in a fragile state, so he commissioned local architect, Ernest Newton, to make ‘alterations and additions’ to the property. Holme subsequently rented the property to a Mr Best who, in 1908, asked Gertrude Jekyll to redesign the four and a half acre sloping garden into something which complimented the property. Although the site was smaller than some Jekyll had worked with, she designed one of her most beautiful garden creations.

However, 76 years after the gardens were first planted, new owners John and Rosamund Wallinger, who bought The Manor House in 1984, found what had once been a magnificent, well-tended garden, overgrown and sadly neglected. The house, too, was in a sorry state of disrepair.

Both the house and garden were very neglected when we moved in the property,” Rosamund explains. “As new owners of a garden and house about which we knew very little, it was thanks to the input of the Hampshire Gardens Trust that we were inspired to start a serious restoration of the gardens. With the Trust informing us of the garden’s interesting past, and by introducing us to many of today’s fine garden historians, we began to delve into the garden’s history. The Trust also funded some small yews for replacing the yew hedging and gave me ten hours of invaluable advice from Penelope Hobhouse. It was she who advised that the Reef Point Collection at the University of California holds most of the surviving Jekylliana. Consequently, we were fortunate to be able to obtain copies of Jekyll’s original plans for the gardens.

Although the garden was over-run with weeds and brambles, no constructive damage had been done. Whilst the drystone walls had collapsed, their Purbeck stones were still here, as were the gentle shallow steps – all so typical of Jekyll’s eye for proportion. From 1984, for almost two years, I had help from a local gardener for two days each week. Although neither of us were very experienced, we were both young and energetic and together we cleared incorrect trees, removed weeds, and dug out trenches to replace yew hedges. Slowly, the soil was cleared and sterilised, the moss and grass were stripped off the surfaces in the formal garden and we began to double dig and feed the area with well-rotted compost. With limited funds, we hired almost all the equipment before deciding which items were essential to buy. Each section of the garden needed restoration and over the years, we have gradually returned it to the glory it once achieved when Jekyll first had the garden built.

To the north-west of the house stands the Wild Garden. Here the grass paths wind from semi-circular grass steps through swathes of wildflowers, rambling and species roses, to a small copse of walnut trees and beyond is a pond which is surrounded by rocks and planted with indigenous and water-loving plants. Here, we had to stake the area into three-metre grids, enabling us to pinpoint exactly where we needed to replant. Fortunately, during the process, we found some survivors of Jekyll’s original garden including three species of daffodils.

To the south-east of the house, we restored the Formal Garden where Miss Jekyll had once created a geometric, structured outline. Using her signature natural frame of yew hedging, this part of the garden includes a pergola, festooned with climbing plants. On the ten stout posts of the pergola, she planted Roses, Artisolochia, Jasmine and Virginia Creeper, creating interest for many months of the year. From the Formal Garden, the layers descend towards the Rose Garden, Bowling and Tennis Lawns.

Using the original stone, we recreated the drystone walls introduced by Jekyll as she had a distaste for grassy banks (hard to manage, particularly in a small garden). Once we had rebuilt the walls, the planting areas were replanted to once again give an overall effect of vertical beds which are filled with colour from late February onwards. With the onset of summer, colour spreads to the restored Rose Garden where peonies, roses and lilies fill the air with scent and together create a tapestry of colour as Jekyll’s artistic eye intended. The two main herbaceous borders are particularly spectacular towards the end of summer. Here she used simple cottage garden flowers such as hollyhocks, delphiniums, phlox, poppies and campanulas, to name but a few. Recreating her planting schemes with cool colours of blues and whites at either end, and hot reds and oranges in the centre was a major achievement.

She selected her plants with care; ensuring that as one flowering plant went over, others would grow up to take its place. We have followed this style and these borders give a glorious display until late autumn. Other borders are planted with shrubs and structural plants, and these look good during the colder months of winter.

The Nuttery has rows of hazel which we coppice each January to use for stakes and fences in the garden. Creating hazel hurdles is a skill which takes some mastering. Our Kitchen Garden, lying to the south-west of the Formal Garden, is where we propagate mainly Jekyll plants for replanting in areas of the garden when necessary. We also use a small area of this part of the garden, as the name suggests, to grow herbs, vegetables and fruit.

Over the years since we discovered the foundations of this very special garden, we have worked tirelessly to ensure that we have remained faithful to Gertrude Jekyll’s original ideas and plans for the garden. The restoration project has been exciting and very rewarding, and we look forward to welcoming visitors to the garden.

A Tour of the Houses of Parliament  and 'The New Dawn' Light Sculpture 
 

A unique chance to have a private group visit on 16th April 2025

Stratfield Saye House & Grounds

Stratfield Saye House has been the elegant, but intimate home to the Dukes of Wellington since 1817. The house and gardens offer an intriguing and informative insight into the life of the Great Duke of Wellington.

We will have a guided tour of the inside of the house, time to view the  fascinating collection of paintings and furniture and see the wonderful Wellington Exhibition featuring his magnificent funeral carriage and charting his military and political life.

Also the grounds, cafe, shop and then transfer to the Wellington Farm Shop.

SAVE THE DATE! Further details, including cost, to follow.

Watts Gallery – Artists' Village is an art gallery near Guildford dedicated to the work of the Victorian painter & sculptor George Frederick Watts

The  complex consists of the main gallery featuring Watt’s work, the artist’s home Limnerslease which was designed in the arts & crafts style, the unique  chapel designed by Mary Watts, a delightful garden, a contemporary gallery featuring modern lock artists and a cafe & shop.

We’ll travel by coach from Titchfield and lunch will be included.

Further information and tickets will be available at the  July meetings

Please look at NEWS for details

Day Visit to Royal Holloway College, Egham
18 April 2024

Royal Holloway College’s Egham campus is dominated by the founder’s building; described by Pevsner as “the most ebullient Victorian building in the Home Counties". Our included guided tour of the site will visit the Chapel, the Founder’s dining room, the Quads, the Victorian Corridor and the large & small Board Rooms.

After an included sandwich lunch we will have an introductory talk on Holloway’s impressive art collection followed by free time to browse the gallery. 

The College’s art collection includes world-class paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings and watercolours including works by William Powell Frith, John Everett Millais, Edward Burne-Jones, Augustus John and Graham Sutherland. 

Visit to Salisbury

• Wednesday 1st November 2023

• Including guided tours of Salisbury Cathedral and Arundells (home of former PM Sir Edward Heath)  

• Also included - Coach to/from Titchfield, refreshments on arrival & lunch

• Cost £60pp

• A few Tickets are still available and will be on sale at the September meeting

• PLEASE NOTE Coach drop off point is approximately 500m walk from Cathedral/Arundells entrance

Compton Acres Gardens & Poole Harbour Cruise

Thursday 18th May 2023

Compton Acres in Poole is acknowledged as one of the finest privately owned gardens in England. Explore the five different gardens set within the 10 acre site.

In the afternoon, take a 90-minute scenic cruise around Poole Harbour aboard the ‘Dorset Queen’, a 1938 vintage motor yacht . A truly special vessel, it boasts an enclosed lounge, a fully licensed bar, and a covered deck at the rear of the ship. Enjoy included Dorset cream tea which will be served onboard during the cruise.

Tickets at £60pp

Payment by BACS or cheque

Tickets available before March & April Meetings

Visit to Blenheim Palace

Tuesday, 8th November 2022

Book your place! Tickets are available in person at the September and October meetings!

Join members of Solent for a visit to the magnificent seat of the Dukes of Marlborough and learn more about its most famous incumbent, Sir Winston Churchill. Built between 1705 and 1722 in the English Baroque style, it is one of England`s largest houses and is the only non-royal residence to hold the title of `palace`.

An expert palace guide will take us on a tour of the gilded State Rooms with their priceless collections of portraits, tapestries and furniture. There will be free time to explore a new Churchill exhibition featuring a mix of historic artefacts and new technology, documenting key aspects of his adventurous life as wartime leader and writer. The historic stable block showcases a display on the importance of horses at Blenheim through the centuries, complete with a life size model of Churchill`s childhood pony Rob Roy.

Wrap up warmly to enjoy some of the 2000 acres of beautiful `Capability` Brown`s landscaped parkland with inspiring views or explore the formal gardens and the Temple of Diana.

Currently there are also two art exhibitions: `Paul Maze and Winston Churchill: Companions of the Brush`. A shared love of painting led to a life-long friendship and artistic mentorship between the two men, after meeting in the trenches on the Western Front in 1915. Work by both artists is on display. `Vibrant Journeys in Paint` brings together two contemporary artists, Arabella Ross and Carrie Stanley. Both artists` work is full of energy, colour and expression and is informed by personal narrative and memories.

The cost of the visit is £55 which includes coach travel, entry to the palace, all exhibitions, a group tour of the state rooms by an expert palace guide followed by tea/coffee and biscuits, and the opportunity to further explore the palace, park and formal gardens at your own pace. Lunch can be purchased at one of the cafes or restaurants serving a range of fresh, homemade food and is not included in the ticket price.

Tickets will be on sale at the September and October meetings.
 

Actual visits are back at last!

Tour of Sandhurst Military Academy 31st May, 2022

This is an historical walking tour, lasting approximately 3 hours, covering all the prestige rooms in Old College as well as a visit to the Royal Memorial Chapel.

Tea/coffee and biscuits will be served during the morning.

In the afternoon, we will be visiting Squires Garden Centre at Badshot Lea where you will be able to enjoy the huge range of plants and products on sale and purchase refreshments.

Further information about how to reserve a place will be in the next Mailchimp.

Tickets will be for sale at the March and April meetings.

A special date for your diaries!

Monday, 22nd November 2021 at 11.00 a.m.

Siân Walters (director of Art History in Focus, art historian and lecturer for the National Gallery, The Arts Society and The Wallace Collection) and The Arts Society Solent are inviting you to a live, virtual tour (via Zoom) from Moscow’s Red Square in the company of one of the city’s most authoritative and delightful guides. We will learn more about the iconic buildings there and the tour includes a Q & A session which Siân and our guide will manage throughout the visit.

Why did Ivan the Terrible build the iconic St Basil`s cathedral in Moscow? Who designed the famous GUM department store in Red Square in the nineteenth century? How did the `cradle of Moscow` - the Kremlin - rise from its simple wooden fortifications in the twelfth century, to become the working residence of the Russian President today?

Now there is an opportunity to find out these answers and many more during our second livestream tour - from the comfort of your own home on a chilly November morning!

The invitation: The Arts Society Solent is pleased to announce that Siân Walters, Art Historian, will host a live, virtual walking tour (via Zoom) of Moscow`s Red Square in the company of Anna, who is one of its most authoritative and delightful guides.

We will learn more about St Basil`s Cathedral, The Kremlin Walls and Towers, Lenin`s Mausoleum, The Kremlin Necropolis and Senate, the State Historic Museum, Kazan Cathedral and GUM Department store.

The host: Siân Walters is Director of Art History in Focus and is a highly qualified and experienced Art Historian. After graduating from Cambridge she spent several years in France and Italy where she worked for the Peggy Guggenheim museum. She was the first lecturer to provide online Zoom lectures for The Arts Society, The National Gallery and The Wallace Collection.

The livestream guide: Anna graduated from Moscow State University and Moscow City Government University specialising in international relations and tourism. She is a highly experienced tour guide, a speaker at the Department of Cultural Heritage of Moscow and a lecturer at the Russian Federal Agency of Tourism.

The advantages: Restrictions due to Covid 19 have severely affected our freedom to travel. This is a unique opportunity to redress the balance (albeit on our computer screens) and to enjoy a livestream event from a far away and fascinating destination.

Members can ask questions throughout the session by typing them in the question box and these will be answered in a live Q & A session at the end of the talk.

The details: The tour will take place on Monday 22nd November at 11.00 a.m. The cost of the experience is £10 per device, so you can watch with a partner or friend.

To enjoy the virtual tour with Siân and Anna, please email Liz or Sally - PLEASE NOTE NEW EMAIL ADDRESS (Titchfield2021@gmail.com) to register your interest. You will be sent details of how to pay and a few days beforehand, you will receive a link from your device to the tour on 22nd November. Non-members are welcome to participate too, so please pass on the email contact as appropriate.

We very much look forward to welcoming you on board for our virtual `flight` to Moscow!

Have you wondered what happened at the Olympic Park after the extraordinary games in 2012?

Now there is an opportunity for you to find out – and from the comfort of your own sofa with a cup of coffee in your hand!

The invitation: The Arts Society Solent is pleased to announce that Pepe Martinez – Blue Badge guide of many years standing, will escort us on a virtual tour of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Whilst touring the venue, he will explain the transformation of this area from one of the most industrially poisoned regions of Europe into the largest new urban park in Britain for 150 years.

As well as visiting the world class sporting venues with Pepe - including Zaha Hadid`s Aquatic Centre and the Olympic Velodrome, you will hear first-hand about the planning, clean up, build and post games story of the Olympic Park. The tour lasts for about an hour and Pepe will be pleased to answer any questions at the end.

The guide: Pepe is a Londoner, born and bred and has lived there all his life. He firmly believes that it is one of the greatest cities in the world. He has previously worked as a Stage Manager and has also led numerous tours throughout Europe, USA, Canada and the Far East.

The advantages: This is an exciting opportunity to experience the Olympic Park as if you were there – but with the extensive knowledge and enthusiasm of one of London`s most experienced guides by your side. There will be no crowds to dodge…..or busy coffee shops……no aching feet…….. or rain showers! Instead you can sit back and find out something new about the legacy of the park – after all `every day is a learning day`!

The details: The tour will take place on Monday 22nd March at 10.30 a.m. The cost of the experience is £10 per device, so you can watch with a partner or friend.

To enjoy the virtual tour with Pepe, please email either Sally (sallyrobinson282@gmail.com) or Liz (lizcumming@hotmail.co.uk) to register your interest. You will be sent details of how to pay and receive a link from your device to the tour on 22nd March. Non-members are welcome to participate too, so please pass on the email contacts as appropriate.

As our current programme of actual visits is on hold for the foreseeable future, we very much look forward to welcoming you on board our `virtual` coach for this event!

Visit the palatial holiday home of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert on the Isle of Wight.  Ticket price of £65.75 includes all coach travel, ferry crossing, entry fee, 90 minute guided tour and souvenir booklet – and free time to explore to catch a glimpse of royal family life.

Tickets on sale at the January and February meetings only.

Walking tour of Oxford by

Blue Badge Guide and Arts Society lecturer

Barbara Askew

Highlights tour of the Ashmolean

Visit to Sandham Memorial Chapel and Whitchurch Silk Mill Tuesday 12th November 2019

Sandham Memorial Chapel is in the village of Burghclere, Hampshire, England. It is a grade I listed 1920s decorated chapel, designed by Lionel Godfrey Pearson. The chapel was built to accommodate a series of paintings by the English artist Stanley Spencer.

Sandham is home to what is arguably the most important series of paintings by the modern British artist, Sir Stanley Spencer (1891-1959). The chapel is a temple to the genius of Spencer, who wanted to express in paint his military experience during the Great War.

The nineteen canvases, which took six years to complete, are unique in that they depict everyday routine rather than the horror of combat. His initial posting as a medical orderly at Beaufort Hospital in Bristol instilled in him a sense that the everyday and the menial could bring him closer to God.  His wartime service took him to Macedonia where he continued service as a medical orderly and later as an infantryman. 

 The gardens at Sandham have provided a place for calm and reflection for over ninety years.  They continue to evolve; providing a tranquil space for wildlife, comfort and contemplation. At the front is the original orchard garden, planted with apple trees and wildflowers when the chapel was constructed. To the rear is the Garden of Reflection, planted in 2014 to commemorate the centenary of the First World War.

The orchard contains a wealth of historic apple trees, flanking the brick path to the chapel, with many rare and unusual varieties.  As well as providing food and shelter to local wildlife, the orchard rewards us with an abundance of apples each autumn - with a mixture of eaters and cookers, varieties include Bramley, Lane’s Prince Albert, Charles Ross, American Beauty, Newton Wonder, Ellison’s Orange and the elusive Winter Banana.

Whitchurch Silk Mill

Whitchurch Silk Mill is the oldest silk mill in the UK still in its original building. A gem of industrial heritage in beautiful, rural Hampshire, Whitchurch Silk Mill is a Georgian water mill that weaves silk using 19th century machinery.

Victorian Machinery & Exhibition. Our weaving shed’s historic layout was designed to fit a large number of looms in a small space, to increase productivity and reduce running costs. The power looms were manufactured between the 1890s and 1960s. It can take at least three weeks to thread up a loom before weaving can begin. The weaving itself is a relatively quick process; it is possible to weave five metres of plain silk taffeta a day.

Riverside Café

Original Mill Wheel

The Mill Shop

The gardens

£45 including coffee and buffet lunch

(£9 extra for non-NT)

The plans for our 2 night/3 day visit to Glyndebourne and West Sussex in the Autumn have now been finalised . 

There has been a change in the dates due to the hotel in Eastbourne not having enough spare rooms available on our initially chosen weekday dates, so we are now leaving on Friday 1st November and returning on Sunday 3rd November. 

The itinerary is almost the same: Day 1 we visit Folkington Manor, arrive Best Western York House Hotel which is located on Eastbourne's seafront close to Eastbourne pier; dinner included at the hotel. 

Day 2 Blue Badge guide with us all day, guided tour of Charleston House; visit to Berwick Church; Verdi's opera Rigoletto at Glyndebourne followed by dinner at one of the restaurants within the opera complex. 

Day 3 morning at leisure/visit to Towner Art Gallery which is within walking distance of the hotel, then guided tour and wine-tasting at Bolney Wine Estate, which is located on the edge of the South Downs, and inclusive afternoon tea before setting off for home.  The cost is £564 including everything except insurance, gratuities, extra drinks and lunches (single supplement £49).

This visit is now fully booked.

OVERNIGHT VISIT TO CORNWALL
7TH – 11TH OCTOBER 2019

Staying at Carlyon Bay Hotel
Award winning hotel with spa & golf.

Visiting:-

POWDERHAM CASTLE

THE EDEN PROJECT

THE BARBARA HEPWORTH MUSEUM AND SCULPTURE GARDEN

TATE ST IVES

BERNARD LEACH POTTERY

LANHYDROCK

The cost of this trip will be £775 per person to include all travel, trips, hotel accommodation with dinner, bed and breakfast, all lunches and wine with your evening meal for 4 nights sharing a twin or double room.

There will be a single supplement charge of £20 for an inland facing room or £100 for a sea facing room.

There will be one ‘free day’ which will have several options for how you spend that day. Transport will be provided.

This is now fully booked.

Visit to Kew Gardens – Wednesday 10th April 2019

£43 including coach, entry to Kew and

either a one hour Garden tour talk

OR day long Kew Explorer Hop-on Hop-Off bus

After a guided tour of the college and access to the new  Treasury Museum Galleries we will have time for lunch in the city and to explore.

Winchester College was founded in 1382 and is believed to be the oldest continuously running school in the country.

      Our guided tour concentrates on the medieval heart of the College, including Chamber Court, the 14th century Gothic Chapel, College Hall, School, and the original medieval cloister.

Recently opened - the Treasury Museum housed in the converted Wardens Stables.

Four galleries are filled with collections from around the world. A jewel box of medieval treasures, the Duberly collection of Chinese ceramics, ancient artefacts from Egypt, Greece and Rome.

Longford Castle  is only open to the public for pre-booked tours on 28 days of each year which are managed by the National Gallery.

The Family

Longford Castle has been the residence of one family for almost 300 years.
The Huguenot, Laurens Des Bouverie, having fled from religious persecution during the Reformation, settled in London and became a prosperous silk merchant. His enterprising descendants became wealthy landowners in England. The family was ennobled in 1747 with Sir Jacob Des Bouverie becoming First Viscount Folkestone while his son, William, was created an Earl in 1765.

Longford has continued to be home to the Earls of Radnor ever since.

The Castle

Longford was originally built in the late 16th century to an unusual triangular plan. Then, in the 18th century, the second Earl of Radnor, employed the architect James Wyatt to transform it into a hexagonal palace. Abandoned part way through this project, it was left to the fourth Earl of Radnor and Victorian architect Anthony Salvin to complete Longford.

The Collection

The Longford Castle collection, formed by successive generations of the family, is one of the finest in the United Kingdom. It includes paintings by van Dyck, Claude, Teniers and Hals, together with British pictures by Reynolds and Gainsborough, as well as oriental porcelain, Brussels tapestries, and exceptional 18th century English and continental furniture.

"The building is stunning, situated by the river Avon and contains a truly impressive art collection. Two very knowledgeable and enthusiastic guides take a small party on the tour which lasts about 2 hours, you are then free to wander in the grounds where there is a beautiful formal garden."

"So much art, so many stunning things to see. Guides were excellent, gardens lovely."

2 hour tour, gardens then free time in Salisbury

Booking now full.

Great Chalfield Manor and garden and Lacock Abbey and Village in Wiltshire.   (Both are National Trust properties).

Great Chalfield is a charming 15th-century manor house with an Arts and Crafts garden.

Set in the tranquil Wiltshire countryside and with seven acres of gardens, this ancient house has survived the five centuries since its building and appears much as it did in the 1470's, when it was commissioned for the Wiltshire landowner Thomas Tropenell.

At the heart of the house lies the Hall, flanked by unusually symmetrical gable cross wings and oriel windows.

Changes over time - and restoring its former glory

Over the years the different owners adapted and changed the manor, with the Great Hall turned into a farm house. In 1905 Major Robert Fuller restored and refurnished the house to its former glory. In 1943 he gave Great Chalfield Manor and Garden to the National Trust to care for it and to this day his grandson Robert Floyd and his family life in the manor.

Hollywood is calling

Over the years several famous films and TV shows have been filmed at Great Chalfield, including 'The Other Boleyn Girl', 'Tess of the d'Urbervilles' and most recently it starred in 'Wolf Hall' as Austin Friars, Thomas Cromwell's house.

Cross the upper moat, passing barns, gatehouse and delightful parish church to enjoy fine oriole windows and the soldiers, griffons and monkey adorning the rooftops.

Romantic gardens offer terraces, topiary houses, gazebo, lily pond, roses and views across the spring-fed fishpond.

We will have a special tour by arrangement and then go on to Lacock Abbey which is packed with history. It started as an abbey and nunnery, then became a Tudor family home. The last owners were the Talbots, a caring close-knit family that loved their home in Lacock. You might know it as the birthplace of photography.

Coach, Special entrance and guided tour of Great Chalfield  

    and entrance to Lacock  Village   

National Trust members                      £ 28.00

Non NT                                                    £ 36.00

 Lacock abbey Non NT Entrance  £12.50,     NT free.

TUESDAY 10TH APRIL

BOOKING IN FEBRUARY AND MARCH

Russell-Cotes House, Art Gallery & Museum

Bournemouth

In 1901 Merton Russell-Cotes gave his wife Annie a dream house on a cliff-top, overlooking the sea. It was an extraordinary, extravagant birthday present – lavish, splendid, and with a touch of fantasy. Built in the Art Nouveau style with interiors by John Thomas and his son Oliver and later extended. They filled this exotic seaside villa with beautiful objects from their travels across the world, especially to Japan, and lined the walls with a remarkable collection of British art, including the painting ‘Venus Verticordia’ by Dante Gabriel Rossetti creating a unique atmosphere in a most dramatic setting.

TOUR : The Victorian Villa - Discovering the history of the Russell-Cotes family and their collections.

Coffee Shop and Licensed Restaurant in the Castle Servants’ Hall.

FOUR PURPOSE BUILT GALLERIES

Galleries I – III
From 1916 to 1919, Annie paid for the building of three additional art galleries to East Cliff Hall. Galleries I, II and III, which are accessed through the Main Hall.
In 1926,  an additional, and unique-shaped art gallery – Gallery IV was built.

EXHIBITION:  A Question of Guilt: A Crime Writer’s Collection

The private collection of crime writer Frances Fyfield who  has written 24 novels and  has been an assiduous collector of oil paintings, portraits and drawings by British artists, from 1890 to 1950. The exhibition offers a rare opportunity to see work by well-known artists including Walter Sickert, Frank Dobson, Duncan Grant, Evelyn Dunbar and Gwen John alongside less well-known and many unknown artists.

THE GARDEN of East Cliff Hall was conceived as a private space for Merton, Annie and their family.

The Victorian stone grotto and fountain still survive, as does the Japanese garden with gold-fish ponds, bridges and fountain.

OPTIONS FOR LUNCH / TEA

          The Russell Cotes Cafe

          Marsham Court Hotel

          Hotel Miramar

Visit to Arundel Castle and Gardens.

Ancient Castle, Stately Home & Gardens

Founded at the end of the 11th Century and set high on a hill in West Sussex, this great Castle commands the landscape with magnificent views across the South Downs and the River Arun.

Enjoy the grandeur of the finely preserved interior with its fascinating furniture, tapestries and rare collection of paintings by renowned artists including Van Dyck, Gainsborough and Canaletto.

And see the Collector Earl's Garden, an amazing award-winning  garden, opened by HRH The Prince of Wales, conceived as a lighthearted tribute to Thomas Howard, 14th Earl of Arundel. Plus the Stumpery, Herbaceous Borders, Cut Flower Garden, Organic Kitchen Garden, Glass Houses,  White Garden, Rose Garden.
 

Athelhampton is a fine Jacobean Manor House with enchanting formally laid out and natural gardens leading down to the River Piddle. There is a small gallery displaying work by the artist Marevna who stayed at the house.

An annual flower show is being held in the house and gardens during our visit.

Then we intend to stop at the 12th century Wimborne Minster.

We will have a special live headset  tour of the new Mary Rose exhibition led by one of our members and  time to either have an additional interactive hands on lecture or view all the other free areas in the dockyard .

These include :

The Port Arena,

The Mary Rose Shop,

Nauticalia,

Antiques in Storehouse 9,

and Boathouse 4 - Traditional boatbuilding skills in action.

Harbour Tour ( if the weather is fine!)

On the 45 minute Harbour Tour you will see many of the fortifications that were built to protect Portsmouth over the centuries, in particular the Round Tower at the harbour entrance and the Solent forts which formed the centre of a string of fortifications along the coast during the Napoleonic Wars.

Boathouse 4 was built in 1939 in response to the need for a rapid rearmament programme prior to the start of World War II. This vast building, incorporating its own dock and locks, is typical of 1930s military industrial architecture.

Built within this magnificent historic building, overlooking the Boatbuilding Skills Training Centre is a new exciting exhibition “The Forgotten Craft” which tells the heroic stories of the small boats which were the backbone of the Royal Navy. From the wooden cutters that ferried Lord Nelson to and from his flagship, to the Cockleshell Heroes in their canoes and the powerful motorboats that helped to win the Second World War. Access to Boathouse 4 is free.

WINDSOR CASTLE AND

FASHIONING A REIGN

THE QUEENS WARDROBE EXHIBITION

We will have a tour of the Exhibition and a chance to see other rooms in the Castle. Including a chance to see the Changing of the Guard and

St Georges Chapel, lunch in the town (or take your own) and the Castle with guided tours or audio guides.

In total, over 150 outfits worn by The Queen will be presented across the three Palaces, with each special exhibition displaying a selection of outfits chosen because of their close association with the location.

The Queen's support of British couture and millinery will be highlighted through important pieces created for a world stage by renowned designers, including Sir Norman Hartnell, Sir Hardy Amies and Ian Thomas.

 COST £36 - NON REFUNDABLE

 PICK UP POINTS     Green road Alverstoke         8.00 am

                            West Point Lee on Solent      8.10 am

                            Southampton Hill Titchfield    8.20 am

Please note that these are the LATEST TIMES that the coach leaves.

 10.30 am - arrive at Windsor Castle - in time to See the Changing of the Guard if you wish, 11.00 for 11.30 am on the Parade Ground

which is near St Georges Chapel. Then maybe a walk into the nearby town for lunch followed by joining a guided tour or using an audio guide for the Castle rooms and exhibition.

You can visit the State Apartments, the Drawings Gallery, Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House and St George’s Chapel at your leisure using the complimentary multimedia tour, which lasts 1½ hours. Guided tours of the Precincts, which are included in the admission price, depart at half-hourly intervals from the Courtyard and last 30 minutes. There is a courtyard shop on site selling ice creams and water - but no cafe.

If the weather is fine it might be possible to picnic. You would be asked to place drinks and food in closed bags before being admitted to the Castle

 Alternatively you may prefer to tour the Castle first , followed by lunch and St Georges Chapel.

 Depart at 3.30 pm

TICKETS WILL BE SOLD AT THE SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER MEETINGS

300th anniversary of the birth of  Lancelot 'Capability' Brown

Extra Visit on 7th July

Petworth House

The 2nd Earl of Egremont commissioned Capability Brown to design and landscape the deer park. The park, one of Brown’s first commissions as an independent designer, consists of 700 acres of grassland and trees. Brown removed the formal garden and fishponds of the 1690’s and relocated 64,000 tons of soil, creating a serpentine lake. He bordered the lake with poplars, birches and willows to make the ‘natural’ view pleasing. The 1987 hurricane devastated the park, and 35,000 trees were planted to replace the losses. Gracing the 30 acres of gardens and pleasure grounds around the home are seasonal shrubs and bulbs that include lilies, primroses, and azaleas. A Doric temple and Ionic rotunda add interest in the grounds.

Woolbeding Gardens - 20th Century Paradise

Whilst some of the features seen at Woolbeding today trace their plans back to earlier periods in the garden's history, the garden itself came into its prime during the mid to late twentieth century. Designers Lanning Roper, and later Julian and Isabel Bannerman, were the creative minds responsible for helping Simon Sainsbury and Stewart Grimshaw shape the gardens into their present structure. The garden consists of two distinct sections: the area closest to the house being arranged in a series of formal garden rooms and the second section designed as a less formal Pleasure Ground.

Woolbeding Gardens are under the management of National Trust gardeners (the house remains a private residence).

There is the Orchard Café with a selection of light lunches, barista style coffee or a reviving pot of tea.

• We recommend you give yourself 2-3 hours to enjoy Woolbeding Gardens.
• Groups are allowed to browse the garden at their own pace.
• Enjoy viewing key landmarks such as the manicured garden rooms, vegetable and herb gardens as well as other key landmarks such as the orangery, greenhouse garden, the William Pye water feature, the orchid house, Chinese bridge and gothic summer house with waterfall.
• The small shop sells souvenirs, gardening books and plants.

There will be guided tours of both the house and garden.

Chiswick House is a magnificent neo-Palladian villa which has recently undergone a huge restoration project in its gardens.

Built by the Earl of Burlington in 1729 to showcase his magnificent art collection.

As part of the restoration project in the garden 8 landscape views by the Dutch artist Andreas Rysbrack have been reunited.

Leaving on Tuesday 10th May

Staying at the Falstaff Hotel

8-10 St Dunstan's St Canterbury Kent CT2 8AF

2 nights Dinner, Bed & Breakfast

Day 1   - Tuesday 10th May

06.45   Alverstoke – Green Road

07.00   Lee on the Solent – Central Car Park opposite Bluebird Cafe

07.20   Titchfield – bottom of Southampton Hill

            We make our way towards Chartwell, stopping on route for toilets as necessary

10.00   Arrival at Chartwell. Time for coffee and toilets

11.00   Guided tour of Chartwell (approx. 1 hour)                

Free time after the tour for a wander around and for lunch at your own expense

14.00   Depart for hotel

15.30   Guided tour of Canterbury Cathedral 9approx 1 hour and 30 minutes)

17.00   Arrive at Falstaff Hotel and check in

19.00   Dinner followed by evening at leisure

Day 2   - Wednesday 11th May

            Breakfast at leisure

10.00   Leave Falstaff by foot to walk into the city.

10.30   Guided walking tour of Canterbury. (Meet by the War Memorial)

            Lunch at your own expense

14.00   Canterbury River Cruise (approx 1 hour and 30 minutes). This trip is weather dependant

            Free afternoon to do some sightseeing

18.15   Early dinner for those going to Marlowe Theatre

19.00   Dinner followed by evening at leisure

19.30   Optional trip to Marlowe Theatre

Day 3   - Thursday 12th May

            Breakfast at leisure

08.30   Depart Falstaff Hotel

10.00   Arrival at Hever Castle and time for coffee

10.30   Guided tour of Hever Castle

            Lunch at your own expense

14.00   Departure for home

17.00   Approximate arrival back in Titchfield

Please note: All timings are approximate and may be subject to change due to traffic or weather conditions. Timings underlined are confirmed entrance times with venues.

Tickets to be sold at the December and January meetings

(LUTYENS/JEKYLL HOUSE AND GARDEN)

Tickets to be sold at the September and October meetings