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Royal Visitors at Hoar Cross Hall #49

With the King's Coronation looming on 6th May in the UK, I thought I'd do some royal family related articles this month starting with royal visitors at the Hall in the 1920s. I also have a book called Queen Alexandra's Christmas Gift Book which was left in the Library and shows personal photos from her own camera which she took of the royal family between 1900-1910 -  a rare insight indeed into what the royals did in their leisure time!  I will be sharing these photos over the next month leading up to the Coronation and hope you find them as fascinating as I do. Royal Visitors From earliest times the king's court has travelled around the kingdom so the king...

Rags to Riches #63

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. My parents on their wedding day - 1952   After the Second World War he set up his own business making alabaster lamps, bowls and candles...

Hysterical Productions #16

HYSTERICAL PRODUCTIONS: By the end of 1974 we had done about 40 banquets and they were still going strong.  Most of the original cast were still with us but we were on our second king now and also doing our own catering and bar, whereas when we first started, we had got a catering firm in to do it all.  Every weekend over 200 people came to sample our Noble Brose, Roast Lambe and Saracen’s Delight and sing along to ‘I’m Henry VIII I am’ whilst drinking beer, wine and mead.  But it was a very adult environment for 15 year old girls to work in; a few of my school friends also worked at the banquets as wenches and we were constantly being chatted up by...

Mediaeval Mayhem! #12

MEDIAEVAL MAYHEM!         It was the end of the summer season at the Hall in 1973 and rehearsals had started for the new venture of Mediaeval Banquets.  All the cast would come round 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 al...

Rags to Riches #16

RAGS TO RICHES:        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 candlesticks among other things (see hea...

Rags to Riches #12

RAGS TO RICHES:     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 candlesticks among other things (see header...