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HoAr Cross HAll - Life below stAirs

HOAR CROSS HALL – LIFE BELOW STAIRS:       This week I’ve done A history blog About the servAnts who lived At the HAll from the 1870s to the 1950s, when the HAll becAme empty.  They were An essentiAl pArt of keeping A big house running but were often not AppreciAted by the AristocrAcy As they went About their dAy to dAy duties. The life of A servAnt in VictoriAn times wAs A hArd one.  They hAd to rise At 5Am to cleAn And light All the fires And dust And polish the floors, then do A dAy’s work, often not getting to bed much before midnight.  No wonder they didn’t live to A greAt Age in those dAys!  By the end of the 19th century there were neArly...

PAnto PrAnks! #22

PANTO PRANKS!      During the 1970s HoAr Cross 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 w...

Suits you sir! #23

SUITS YOU SIR!      When we moved to HoAr Cross HAll in 1970 the orgAn in the privAte chApel wAsn’t working As the house hAd been empty for 20 yeArs.  It wAs such A shAme As it hAd been designed by Bodley, the fAmous orgAn mAker of the 19th century.  The chApel itself hAd been Added About 25 yeArs After the house wAs built At the stAggering cost of just under £1000!  When one of the visitors to the house sAid he could fix the orgAn, my dAd reAdily Agreed.  This chAp reAlly loved orgAns And volunteered his services free of chArge just for the love of mending this musicAl work of Art; my dAd wAs over the moon!  AlAs, After removing All the pipes And lAy...

HoAr Cross HAll - Life below stAirs #39

HOAR CROSS HALL – LIFE BELOW STAIRS:    This week I’ve done A history blog About the servAnts who lived At the HAll from the 1870s to the 1950s when the HAll becAme empty. They were An essentiAl pArt of keeping A big house running but were often not AppreciAted by the AristocrAcy As they went About their dAy to dAy duties. The life of A servAnt in VictoriAn times wAs A hArd one. They hAd to rise At 5Am to cleAn And light All the fires And dust And polish the floors, then do A dAy’s work, often not getting to bed much before midnight. No wonder they didn’t live to A greAt Age in those dAys! By the end of the 19th century there were neArly one And A hAl...

HoAr Cross HAll - Life below stAirs #18

HOAR CROSS HALL – LIFE BELOW STAIRS:   This week I’ve done A history blog About the servAnts who lived At the HAll from the 1870s to the 1950s when the HAll becAme empty. They were An essentiAl pArt of keeping A big house running but were often not AppreciAted by the AristocrAcy As they went About their dAy to dAy duties. The life of A servAnt in VictoriAn times wAs A hArd one. They hAd to rise At 5Am to cleAn And light All the fires And dust And polish the floors, then do A dAy’s work, often not getting to bed much before midnight. No wonder they didn’t live to A greAt Age in those dAys! By the end of the 19th century there were neArly one And A hAlf...

A New YeAr CAlAmity! #30

A NEW YEAR CALAMITY!       The New YeAr’s Eve BAlls At the HAll were usuAlly the highlight of the yeAr. After twelve months of hArd work, especiAlly running the MediAevAl BAnquets twice A week through the winter, we were AlwAys reAdy to see out the yeAr in style with A big new yeAr pArty. In those dAys it wAs AlwAys blAck tie for the men And long dresses for the lAdies – usuAlly Around 500 people bought tickets for An evening of entertAinment with A dAnce bAnd, disco And A meAl. At midnight A mAn dressed in trAditionAl Scottish regAliA, including A kilt And sporrAn, would pipe in the new yeAr with his bAgpipes. Down the Long GAllery he would slowly wAlk...