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Midnight Pool Parties # 59

...g running divorce battle.   It was a bit like a local soap opera!   We had also become engaged and I stayed at Kev’s house in the week so I could get to work easily having failed my driving test a couple of times; weekends were spent at the Hall.   Hoar Cross and the surrounding villages were a bit of a Birmingham commuter belt area and a lot of the families were quite well-to-do.  We met up with a crowd of young people in the Meynell every weekend whose fathers were stockbrokers, barristers and local gentry; most of their houses had swimming pools and we would often go back to one or another of their homes for a midnight swim during the summer months.�...

Moving On #33

...uring the divorce, which is why I decided to write this blog.  I would like to dedicate it to the memory of my parents, without whom this story would not have been possible.  Against all the odds, they went out on a limb to buy this amazing old house and try to do something with it.  Thank goodness for people like them who make the world an interesting place to live in! Many people have asked about putting the blog into an eBook and I would appreciate some feedback on this.  If you would be interested in this – Please message me at this link and let me know!   Don’t  miss next weeks’ instalment:   The Servant Girl’s Story And if you want to...

The tax man cometh! #29

...getting a divorce so when they spoke to my dad he quickly informed them of that fact and told them that this was why he was selling his car.  He also told them that she was making loads of money from the banquets; money which he had no access to.     This then led to a few meetings between the tax man and my dad.  Of course, my dad was in his element thinking of more ways to get his revenge on my mum!  What better way than to shop her to the tax people.  He knew that she didn’t tell them exactly how many guests came to the banquets each week.  It was usually around 200-240 but I think the tax office were told slightly less than that!   My dad was ha...

Panto Pranks! #76

...y parents divorce!  Yes, my parents had split up three years before and were living at each end of the house while their solicitors tried to come to some sort of an agreement.  My father was still trying to keep the house open to the public during the summer and my mother was running the Mediaeval Banquets during the winter.  Neither of them were on speaking terms other than by rude notes pushed under each others doors, and this is how our friend's car got trashed one night! My boyfriend Kev (now my husband) had agreed to sell a friend's car which he had collected and driven up to the Hall and parked on the drive.  The day after this my mum pushed a note un...

Whodunit in the Library? #25

...WHODUNIT IN THE LIBRARY?       When we first moved to Hoar Cross Hall, growing up in a stately home seemed an idyllic way to live – and lots of fun if you’re a child.  This rambling old house full of empty rooms and secret doors, wild gardens and woods to explore, was in some ways a dream come true for our family, certainly for my dad.  But as we turned from children to teenagers the isolation and lack of public transport was frustrating.  Coupled with this was my parents fighting and subsequent split, living at each end of the house and battling for the house and business through their solicitors. The effect this had on me, as the eldest child who p...

The Tax Man Cometh! #28

...getting a divorce so when they spoke to my dad he quickly informed them of that fact and told them that this was why he was selling his car. He also told them that she was making loads of money from the banquets; money which he had no access to. This then led to a few meetings between the tax man and my dad. Of course, my dad was in his element thinking of more ways to get his revenge on my mum! What better way than to shop her to the tax people. He knew that she didn’t tell them exactly how many guests came to the banquets each week. It was usually around 200-240 but I think the tax office were told slightly less than that! My dad was happy to tell them that...