Gardens open Tues to Sun no pre-booking required, except during half-term, week beginning 26th – 30th October
We were pleased to welcome the Trust’s clock expert, Duncan Greig, back to the house to continue servicing the clocks. During Duncan’s last visit he dismantled the James McCabe Bracket clock in the Dining Room to allow Eveliina Peltola, the Trust’s furniture restorer, to repair the case of the clock, including stabilising loose veneers and … Find out more
Important information for visitors from Tuesday 15th September I am glad so many of you have been enjoying the gardens in the late summer sunshine, as well as the homemade cakes from our takeaway tearoom. As you may already have heard, the Government has imposed restrictions on the number of people who can gather in a … Find out more
My adventures don’t seem to cease at the moment – last week, Rob and I went up to the hayloft above the Stables to have an explore. The wooden flooring is well over a hundred years old and somewhat rickety, but it houses an array of treasures. Highlights included markings on the wall from 1871, … Find out more
One of the quirks of one particular office is the fact that it houses a large Victorian cast-iron “Belle Portable” range, which was used right up into the 1990s. Ranges were first used around 1780: they made a welcome improvement from cooking on an open fire. Shortly after their inception, boilers were added to some, … Find out more
Hidden away in a locked box at Godinton is a rather impressive Luger pistol. Officially known as a ‘Pistole Parabellum’, these semi-automatic pistols were used extensively by the German army in the first half of the 20th century, and they’re strongly associated with Nazi Germany today. If you look closely in WWII films, many of … Find out more
Following the Government’s announcement on Monday 25th May, I am pleased to confirm that we are planning to re-open the gardens to the public the week commencing 29th June – exact date and times to be finalised. This is on the understanding that there are no further changes to Government guidelines in the meantime. Prior to this … Find out more
Following the recent announcement of the Government’s road map for exiting lockdown, we start to see light at the end of the tunnel and tentatively make plans for re-opening the gardens later in the summer. We cannot confirm exact dates yet, as work needs to be carried out to ensure our visitors can safely follow … Find out more
In the Great Chamber, there’s a small framed reproduction of the picture ‘Last Days in the Old Home’, by Robert Braithwaite Martineau. This is Martineau’s most famous painting, and hangs in the Tate today. So why do we have a copy? Well for those who look closely, you might recognise the panelling in the picture … Find out more
Godinton possesses some spectacular fireplaces, mantelpieces and overmantels, and one of the mysteries that has been haunting me since the start of the year has been that of a ‘missing’ set. One of our volunteer guides, Karina, and her daughter Claire came in to share some of Claire’s research with me, including the fact she’d … Find out more
The last blog about the house was on spring cleaning prior to what should have been the house opening on Friday – how things have changed! We had returned the majority of the showrooms to their full glory when new measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 were announced, and it was decided that the … Find out more
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