Saving Country Houses with Penelope Keith Season 1 Episode 8 explores the mysteries of Chillingham, often described as Britain’s most haunted castle, as hidden secrets come to light. The owners of Iford Manor expand their ventures by purchasing a local pub, while at Whitmore Hall, historic paintings receive a long-overdue spring clean, preserving priceless artwork for future generations. Discover heritage, intrigue, and restoration in Saving Country Houses with Penelope Keith.
#SavingCountryHousesWithPenelopeKeith #ChillinghamCastle #WhitmoreHall #HistoricHomes #PenelopeKeith
#SavingCountryHousesWithPenelopeKeith #ChillinghamCastle #WhitmoreHall #HistoricHomes #PenelopeKeith
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:02The green, rolling landscapes of Great Britain are home to the jewels in the country's rich heritage.
00:13Our country houses.
00:19Celebrated across the world for their design and decoration.
00:27Their crowns and gardens.
00:33And their centuries of history.
00:40There was a time when owning a grand country house meant a great deal.
00:45These estates were the keys to fortune and power.
00:50But today's country house owners live in a very different world.
00:54The sound of petrol!
00:56No, no, no, wrong way!
00:58These houses are still the grandest in the land.
01:02This is Oliver Cromwell's room.
01:03But the challenge of keeping them in one piece has never been greater.
01:07Spiral of decay, I don't like the sound of that.
01:10Ballpark figures, 350,000.
01:12Gulp.
01:13Gotta get these lights fixed.
01:14Today's owners are becoming ever more imaginative.
01:18Bon appetit.
01:19We're finding ways...
01:21I'm literally ankle deep right now.
01:23To keep the money coming in.
01:25These estates aren't designed to make money, they're designed to eat money.
01:29To keep the ceiling from falling down.
01:31And I turn the corner into here.
01:34Oh my goodness.
01:35We are collecting leaks, as you can see.
01:37And stop their fears becoming a reality.
01:40I think of all the ancestors going back 900 years.
01:44If we fail, it's on our watch.
01:47Of course, being to the manor born has always been a privilege.
01:51But today's owners face challenges as never before.
01:55So, they're rolling up their sleeves and putting their heart and soul into brave new ventures.
02:01The question is, how do you save a country house and see it prosper in the modern world?
02:08The story of the modern world is changing.
02:08The world is changing.
02:10It's changing.
02:10The world is changing.
02:13The world is changing.
02:26The world is changing.
02:29From manners mentioned in the doomsday book to Victorian halls,
02:34the country houses we've been following have a great mix of histories.
02:39But there's only one we visited that started life as a place of industry.
02:44That industry was Britain's biggest for centuries – wool.
02:49The wool may have long gone, but at our first house today
02:53the unmistakable buzz of industry is back once more.
02:59We're returning to the picturesque Wiltshire Somerset border
03:03where we find Eifert Manor.
03:09This idyllic spot on the banks of the River Froome
03:14is the home of William and Marianne Cartwright-Hignett.
03:18Even though we've had such a dry summer, it still looks really pretty green out there.
03:23It does, and you get the weir.
03:26It's so soothing.
03:30But make no mistake, running a grand country house and garden like Eifert is far from relaxing.
03:39I'm going to check the loos because that's part of my daily routine.
03:46Nothing like a clean loo, is there?
03:48Right.
03:49Since 2021, Eifert's new cafe and high-end restaurant
03:54has helped push visitor numbers close to 20,000 a year.
04:00And William works hard to ensure that this new business venture makes the most of the estate's plentiful natural resources.
04:10Much of which is to be found in Eifert's glorious gardens.
04:17On the pastries in the morning, we try just to use as much that we can get hold of from
04:22our own production.
04:24Nature's bounty, isn't it? Look at those. Aren't they fabulous?
04:27I mean, the only thing I bear in mind with Marlboroughs is if you're wearing a nice clean shirt,
04:31this is a really high-risk operation.
04:38Wherever possible, the cafe and restaurant are supplied with home-grown produce.
04:44Gardener Zoe has a crop that's ready to be picked.
04:48What makes a ripe fig?
04:50We're looking for this, which is a lovely maroon colour.
04:55It's very squishy.
04:56And when you lift it, it comes away from the branch really easily.
05:01There's one.
05:04In the walled garden, there's plenty of rhubarb.
05:08Using home-grown produce like this keeps food quality up and, significantly, the costs down.
05:15This one's looking pretty good at the moment.
05:17Am I right? You have to snap it out?
05:19Yes. Grab hold of the stem as low down as you can
05:22and then just give it a pull and a twist.
05:25And it comes away really nicely.
05:28For William, saving money in the kitchens frees up funds to maintain the rest of the 1,000-acre estate.
05:37Such as the ongoing restoration of Iford's Edwardian greenhouse by father and son building team Matt and Will Andrews.
05:46We sort of cleaned off all the screws and nails that were holding the old greenhouse down and now we're
05:52repairing the stonework.
05:54For instance, this coin stone here is broken and we're going to repair that by adding a stainless steel dowel
06:02and some stone glue.
06:04So, hopefully, that joint will close up as good as that.
06:08The new bespoke greenhouse will closely match his predecessor, which was installed by Iford's former owner, garden designer Harold Pitot.
06:21As many materials as possible are being reused.
06:26These are reclaimed stones from the estate and we're going to use these to repair the broken ones.
06:31So, we've scribed some lines in, which is our cut lines.
06:34And, yeah, we're going to cut those up.
06:36So, hopefully, when they're done, they'll slot into the holes and fill it all in.
06:44In Harold Pitot's day, he didn't have the luxury of the equipment that we have.
06:48So, they would have been cutting all this stone by hand.
06:58Yep, down there.
07:06Okay.
07:08Just to be able to work on this older type of stuff, yeah, is really satisfying, you know.
07:14If you wind back, there's going to be masons, builders that have worked here over the years and we're sort
07:18of part of the story now.
07:21And today is a milestone moment for this bespoke build.
07:26Some of the original metalwork from the greenhouse is returned after being sandblasted and painted.
07:35Marianne and the team can't wait to see the results.
07:39So, it's come back.
07:41They look good, don't they?
07:42I'm really impressed with this.
07:43Yeah, absolutely.
07:45I think it's just nice to see all the original detailing in here.
07:48Yeah.
07:48Where you can sort of see, you know.
07:49Manufacturers really picked out, isn't it?
07:51Yeah, very much so.
07:53For Iford's head gardener, Steve Lannin, preserving the estate's rich heritage has been at the forefront of this project.
08:01I think that Harold Peto would really appreciate the fact that we are rebuilding in the same style again.
08:07It's something that's really important to us, actually.
08:10And it seems daft, it's just a piece of metal.
08:12But actually, it's keeping, you know, a little bit of Harold Peto's glass house alive.
08:17And that sort of feels important.
08:20It's so lovely being in here now, because it was, you know, subsiding down here, walls falling down, Matt, and
08:26you've done a cracking job.
08:27Don't say cracking.
08:32Back near the main house, William's garden produce is now going straight to the restaurant.
08:38The garden itself is always going to be limited in the number of people that can get here.
08:44Therefore, you need to create a bit more of a dwell time, as it's called in the business, of people
08:48being here a bit longer.
08:49The restaurant does exactly that.
08:51It's busy.
08:54I've got you some figs.
08:57Oh, amazing.
08:58Rhubarb.
08:59And some mulberries in there.
09:01Oh, amazing.
09:02So hopefully that'll do for some pastries.
09:05Absolutely, yeah.
09:07William's first venture after leaving university was running his own tea shop in Cambridge.
09:13So perhaps it's not surprising that hospitality is now a core part of Eiford's business planning.
09:21I've totally enjoyed the buzz of this thing.
09:23This is the most fantastic two hours of my days running a lunch service.
09:28I enjoy it enormously.
09:30But Eiford's hospitality ambitions have just expanded and now reach beyond the 1,000 acre estate.
09:39So we bought a pub.
09:41Yes, the opportunity arose in February to buy two pubs that are within a mile and a half of Eiford.
09:47Marianne and I decided it was a goer.
09:52And so here we are, newly publicans.
09:57One of those pubs is in need of fresh supplies, which requires William to pay a quick visit to yet
10:04another of the estate's enterprises.
10:07We are heading up to the Cider Barn, which is the headquarters of Eiford Cider.
10:15And this is where it all happens.
10:20Cool.
10:22Well, I've come up to the Cider Barn to pick up a keg for the pub, who are doing a
10:30bit better trade than I had anticipated.
10:34So, well, just, um, they've left it out for me.
10:39A chance encounter a few years ago led William to combine forces with near neighbour and now business partner Joe
10:48Abbott.
10:49Over the past ten years, the two have built a substantial Cider business.
10:55But it started with very humble beginnings.
10:59I needed apples, so I knocked on Will's door to see if he had any orchards.
11:05We took a trip around the estate and then, I mean, picked them that year.
11:09Yeah.
11:10Marianne and I would get married and we needed something for our wedding and you said,
11:12well, I'll make you some cider.
11:14And it turned out to be really good.
11:15And then our guests were taking boxes home, like 20 litres with them.
11:20So we thought, okay, this is quite good.
11:25We had, what, three quarters of an acre of orchard here, which is nothing.
11:29But the perfect start.
11:30But it was a perfect start.
11:32To keep up with demand, the business now processes over 200 tonnes of apples each year.
11:38With much of the fruit being sourced from farms and orchards in this cider-making heart of the country.
11:46How many outlets?
11:47We've three, four hundred?
11:48Uh, yeah.
11:48Crazy.
11:49Four, five hundred pounds.
11:50Yeah.
11:52And William is proud to have diversified Iford's business model, in tune with the traditions of a country estate.
12:01I mean, if you look back at the farms in the day and you've got farms making their own cider
12:07in a barn,
12:08and selling it to the local community.
12:10I mean, in a way, this is a scaled operation of that.
12:14Taking the opportunities that the land here provides and enabling a flourishing business.
12:19I think that's what estates should be doing.
12:22We'll take an end.
12:23It's already heavy.
12:24Oh, here we go.
12:29Good old 50-litre.
12:34Secure the load, shall we?
12:37Right.
12:37Let's get it down to the pub.
12:40Next stop for the cider keg is over the hill in the adjacent valley, at William and Marianne's New Country
12:46Pub.
12:59On the sub-asset and Wiltshire border, William Cartwright Hignett is shipping a keg of cider from his cider barn
13:07to the pub that he and his wife Marianne have recently acquired.
13:13Oh, that would be the keg and the boot falling over.
13:16So much for strapping that down.
13:18The steep-sided banks of the River Avon and the tiny village of Avoncliff is home to the Cross Guns
13:25Pub.
13:26And so this is the primary access route, Dave, which is why we rely on people walking, cycling, paddle boarding,
13:36trains.
13:37It is surely the most sustainable transport pub in the country.
13:43I mean, you can't get here otherwise.
13:47Hello, Ryan.
13:48Right.
13:49How are you doing?
13:49I've got you some cider in the back.
13:54Here we go.
13:54Here we go.
13:55Bright.
13:57And William couldn't be more thrilled to have expanded his business empire and, with it, his potential clientele.
14:06It's such an opportunity.
14:08I love this whole eccentricity of this place.
14:12And then this outside terrace.
14:13It's just such a phenomenal outside space.
14:17I'm absolutely in love with the Cross Guns Pub.
14:19Not because of what we're doing today, but because of what we could be doing.
14:23And of the new community that we're now engaging with.
14:26People who visit a canal side, riverside pub, are in large part very different people to the ones who come
14:33to a reasonably smart cafe,
14:35stuck in the middle of nowhere, next to a historic house and garden.
14:40With the cider keg safely delivered, William now has to deal with a stray parasol that seems to have got
14:47rather too close to the river.
14:51In fact, actually in the river.
14:56An errant brolly which has gone for a swim.
15:00Not afraid to get his hands, or indeed his legs, dirty.
15:06William has decided to perform his own rescue mission.
15:09I mean, I don't know about you, but I feel like maybe commandeering a paddleboard might be a more effective
15:14solution.
15:17The plan is to don the unnecessarily oversized waders owned by a person who's six foot two and has size
15:2412 feet.
15:26Not me.
15:27And, erm, go and get this blasted brolly.
15:33Roll the old sleeves up shall we.
15:42Amazing, fish everywhere, it's fabulous.
15:45Right, come here you.
15:52There we are.
15:55Freshly laundered, good as new.
15:57Marvellous.
15:58It seems that saving country houses sometimes involves saving country pub parasols.
16:06Shall we go and have a pint?
16:09You've earned it.
16:20Remarkably, William is only the second generation of his family to own Eiford, and he's already adding more property to
16:27the estate.
16:28It's going to be fascinating to see what his and Marianne's boundless energy can achieve in the years to come.
16:36We're moving to a house now, though, that's been in the hands of one family for over 900 years.
16:42And they have a vast collection of something you tend to find in all country houses, family portraits.
16:50These portraits, like everything else, need rather a lot of looking after.
16:58At the northern edge of the West Midlands in Staffordshire, we're returning to Whitmore Hall.
17:08This estate, which now stretches to almost 1,500 acres, has been handed down through 34 generations.
17:17It's now the responsibility of Edward Kavanagh Mannering.
17:22Every family member has a portrait going back to about 1600.
17:26And I've had a portrait done of myself, which sounds very grand, but I thought,
17:31if I don't do it now, I'm going to look really old.
17:32And I told that to my wife.
17:35So we went for it.
17:37Edward and wife Heather are now displayed inside the hall alongside dozens of other mannerings.
17:46And it's these much older paintings that are firmly in the sights of Edward's sister, Fleur.
17:54To us, the paintings are priceless.
17:58You know, they are absolute treasures.
18:00And they are the only thing, really, other than the fabric of the building that we care about.
18:04Because they're the only thing that actually links us to our own history.
18:11Whilst Edward looks after the wider estate, Fleur is spending 12 months giving the family's ancestral home a thorough health
18:20check.
18:20From the soundness of the hall's structure to the well-being of its treasured contents,
18:26the aim is to ensure the family's legacy continues for years to come.
18:34So I've sort of had various things that I wanted to achieve.
18:38One is the paintings.
18:39So one is looking at the paintings, making certain that they're not being damaged by heat or anything else.
18:46And one or two we would love to be restored.
18:56Today, Fleur has invited paintings conservator Julia Dalzell to assess for restoration one of the most cherished of all the
19:06family's 54 paintings.
19:10He's called Fat Thomas and he's not looking well.
19:15I don't actually know who Fat Thomas is, other than the fact that he's a brother of one of, I
19:21think, one of the Edwards who owned the house.
19:24Um, and basically I'm worried about him.
19:29Given the number of Edward and Thomas mannerings over the years, identifying precise family members can be quite a challenge.
19:38But one thing that is certain is that this painting is more than two centuries old.
19:45I can see the cobwebs.
19:46So not only can you see the cobwebs.
19:48Yeah.
19:49But you can see a lot of flaking paint up here.
19:54Yeah.
19:54And in fact, areas of lost paint as well.
19:57What do you think's caused that?
19:59An oil paint layer is like thin porcelain.
20:01It's a hard, rigid surface, but it's lying on a canvas.
20:05It's moving.
20:06Which is moving.
20:07And if you don't keep that canvas tensioned out,
20:12that canvas shrinks.
20:14So where's the paint go?
20:15Oh, it crackles.
20:16It pops up.
20:17And it tents and flakes like that.
20:20So you can see the canvas.
20:23Do you know what?
20:24I'm absolutely amazed that not all our paintings are like this.
20:28So if we restored Thomas, what would you do?
20:34I would remove the varnishes and any old restorations.
20:38Yeah.
20:38And then I'd probably go back and do some more consolidation.
20:43Julia will need time to consider,
20:45but a full restoration job on this one painting
20:48could easily cost many thousands of pounds.
20:53It's one of those jobs that seems a huge financial cost and time as well,
21:00but actually it will really help protect the collections.
21:03Fat Thomas' story may still be a mystery to Fleur,
21:07but there are some ancestors whose life stories are legendary in the family.
21:12Such as Rear Admiral Roland Mannering,
21:16who Fleur and Edward's mother Christine has known about since she was a child.
21:20Admiral Mannering, we know an awful lot about him because he kept diaries.
21:25We've got all the diaries upstairs, which are beautifully written.
21:29He wrote a diary every day, including the day that he died.
21:34So the day that he died, it says, called for a doctor.
21:37And that was it.
21:40He was in the Battle of the Nile, which is that picture there.
21:44As I mentioned, at age 14, that was quite something.
21:49Very good picture, actually.
21:53The scenes describing fighting the French hand-to-hand combat.
21:57This is the real deal.
22:00But then he came home and then he had to learn how to look after this house
22:06without the modern kit that we've got.
22:08Yeah.
22:09And I'd just love to be able to go back and see how he did it.
22:13How did you get on?
22:15Yeah.
22:16You know, the fear, I think, for a family is the fact that
22:20everyone else has managed to sort it out over 34 generations.
22:24It's on your watch now.
22:26Yeah.
22:27Right, Julia, let's go and have a look.
22:29But Whitmore's portrait history goes back even further
22:33than Admiral Mannering.
22:35Two centuries earlier, portraits were already being painted
22:39for family members.
22:41So, these in a way are the most interesting paintings to us
22:45because they're the oldest.
22:48And from what I understand, they are painted on timber.
22:54Displayed together are Mayor of Newcastle, Edward,
22:57and his wife, Sarah,
23:00who lived through the age of Shakespeare and the English Civil War.
23:05There are things happening up in the top corners
23:08and on the edges.
23:10Losses of paint happening here or retouchings happening here.
23:15You can see the white bits.
23:16And that will be filler showing through.
23:19Yeah. Because the overpaint is dropping off.
23:21So, that's an indication that it might be moving.
23:26These optivisors here magnify everything,
23:29brings everything closer by 15, 20 magnification.
23:34That's fantastic. So, it's super.
23:35You can see all sorts on them.
23:37I think what you're looking at is some paint loss,
23:40and you can see the wooden panel behind it.
23:44But just generally some damage.
23:46And then the yellow bits,
23:48yellow, orangey, browny bits, will be old varnish.
23:51Yes, minute losses of paint.
23:54And, oh, look, we've got some fly dirt just here.
23:57Yeah.
23:58That's on the painting.
24:04Having carried out a thorough assessment of these oldest of Whitmore portraits,
24:09Julia's ready to give her verdict.
24:12My initial reaction is that they don't need to be done now,
24:16whereas that other portrait that we were looking at with flaking paint is more of a priority.
24:21So, look to doing something with that one, stabilising that.
24:27So, whilst there is work to be done,
24:29it's undoubtedly good news that some of Whitmore's most prized portraits
24:33are standing up well to the centuries of hanging in the hall.
24:39To me, it's just so exciting. I love paintings.
24:42And also, it's the fact that you're handing it on to the next generation of people.
24:47It's like it's, you know, it's the ultimate gift, in a way,
24:51is to give something beautiful on to the next hundred years of enjoyment for people.
25:13From plumbing to portraits, all the country houses we've been visiting need a good deal of love and attention.
25:21But what happens when that care simply hasn't been given?
25:26We're visiting a new home now, which less than half a century ago was completely uninhabitable.
25:32Since then, though, it has benefited from the dedicated and somewhat eccentric ownership of one extraordinary man.
25:43We're travelling north of Newcastle, to Northumberland,
25:47where less than 11 miles from Scotland we find Chillingham Castle.
25:54For 800 years, Chillingham has kept watch over this border region.
25:59Originally the site of a monastery, the building was fortified to defend England from the Scots
26:06and once played host to Edward I, on his way to confront Braveheart himself, William Wallace.
26:15But its more recent history is no less intriguing.
26:20He's marvellous. OK, he's very shattered, but he still has itself shaped and poised.
26:25He's still a proud animal. And I love him, really.
26:30Now, in his 90th year, Sir Humphrey Wakefield has called Chillingham home since 1982.
26:36And even now, he is still fascinated by the castle's many mysteries.
26:53Sir Humphrey's latest passion is repairing Chillingham's vast stretch of stone ramparts.
27:01A week ago, the ground looked like that, just like a bundle of stones.
27:06There, all the way down the edge. And then suddenly it transforms into that.
27:13You get things absolutely precise every time.
27:17With the help of a top team of expert craftsmen and women, Chillingham today is a Northumberland success story.
27:24An intriguing mix of private home and bustling visitor attraction.
27:29Have you been around the castle? Yes, we do.
27:32Have you been around the lake? The lake? Yes. Why not?
27:35We're thinking to pop up as your cattle.
27:37But with voices like yours, we don't welcome you here.
27:40I suspected that.
27:43But back in 1932, Chillingham's future was far less certain, and certainly not open to visitors.
27:50The family who'd been here for centuries could no longer afford its upkeep.
27:55They auctioned off Chillingham's contents and left the castle deserted.
28:02Fifty years later, they were delighted, therefore, when a former army officer, antiques expert and lifelong adventurer, offered to take
28:12it off their hands.
28:23When Sir Humphrey arrived in the early 80s, Chillingham was in a sorry state.
28:30Outside, nature was taking over.
28:34The windows were largely broken.
28:39Whilst inside, ceilings were caving in as decades of leaks took their toll.
28:50More than 20 years before Sir Humphrey arrived, Chillingham had already been effectively written off.
28:59This place had been written off by the government in 1960.
29:03In 1960, they said it would have to be gutted, and the stone had rotten it, and therefore pretty well
29:09had to be pulled down.
29:11Luckily, I hadn't read that report.
29:14Instead, Sir Humphrey saw an opportunity to save the castle and reveal its medieval qualities for the first time in
29:21centuries.
29:24This room was covered with Victorian plasterwork, and I took it all off.
29:31That great fireplace at the end, which is the heart and the soul of this room, that was stoned in,
29:38and now has come back to be the heart and soul.
29:42Throughout the rest of the 1980s, Chillingham remained a building site, as room by room, ceiling by ceiling, a country
29:52house and its fortress origins were reborn.
29:58Here is the dungeon.
30:02A very proper dungeon for keeping, putting prisoners in.
30:07Come through and have a look.
30:10In here, you see two-inch long grooves in the wall.
30:16You see several of them.
30:18People have scored the wall with the days, I suppose, the days they're staying here.
30:24And after about 40 days, they get paler and paler and paler.
30:29Here is a latrine drop.
30:32There's a perfect good stone channel down there, and I opened up the stone channel, but I find bones there,
30:39and so I didn't dig any more.
30:41There are so many things from here that I've still got to discover.
30:45But now I'm pushing 90, I'd rather, I graduate PDQ.
30:51Sir Humphrey's 43-year project may be ongoing, but Chillingham has completed a journey from condemned building to tourist hotspot.
31:01Despite its remote location, it welcomes 25,000 visitors each year.
31:10As soon as I walked through the courtyard, wow, straight away, absolutely brilliant.
31:15It's the fact that you're wandering where someone has wandered centuries before, living their lives.
31:22I like history.
31:24Once inside, visitors are in the hands of Richard Craig, Chillingham's front-of-house steward, who never tires of delighting
31:33people with the castle's finer details.
31:36The ceiling in here is absolutely magnificent.
31:40It's a wonderful, restored, Jacobean ceiling.
31:43It was in a pretty poor state, and sadly we've lost one of the finials, which is down here, but
31:52doubtless that will be repaired in time.
31:56First time I saw this place was maybe 2001.
32:00Pulled up in the car.
32:04What a spectacle.
32:06You know, sunset looked absolutely magnificent.
32:09So that's my introduction to the castle.
32:13Richard is Chillingham's storyteller-in-chief.
32:18But as the sun goes down, he's often preparing for his second, very different role at the castle.
32:26I'm getting ready for a ghost hunt tonight, which begins at ten o'clock and goes through to two o
32:33'clock in the morning.
32:34It's a role that's become more and more important to Sir Humphrey's approach to the castle's finances, as Chillingham is
32:40now known as Britain's most haunted country house.
32:44Ghosts feature very highly here in Chillingham.
32:47And it's a serious, serious business.
32:51It's really part of the beating heart of this place.
32:54We do ghost tours, do the occasional ghost workshop, but the ghost hunt.
32:59This is, no holds barred, paranormal investigation.
33:09Country houses are full of connections to the past.
33:12Over time, though, those connections can easily be interrupted.
33:17A change of owner, perhaps, or, as we've seen at Chillingham Castle, the abandonment of the building for half a
33:24century.
33:25We are going from ghosts to greenhouses, and it's back to Eiford Manor, where an immense effort is being made
33:32to preserve the connection to a very fine Edwardian greenhouse.
33:36Its new replacement is almost complete.
33:42On the banks of the River Froome, the long summer drought is finally breaking.
33:50It's rained for the first time in ages, which is fantastic.
33:54But the return of a familiar, damp English summer has arrived.
34:01Just as William leads a tour of Eiford's very Mediterranean garden,
34:07This is this idea of the tumble-down terraced hillside of Tuscany.
34:12The corsican pine, you've got the juniper, you've got, you know, cypresses.
34:16This would have been an amazing Italianate-style terrace with a view, right?
34:22But Peto wasn't into big views, so he plants all of this up to close it down.
34:28And over on the far side of the gardens, one of the greenhouses installed by Eiford's earlier illustrious owner, Harold
34:36Peto, is getting a facelift.
34:39From specialist joiners Craig Hodgkinson and Joe Shenton, who are reconstructing it to Peto's exacting dimensions.
34:48The challenge is to try and keep it looking as it was, really.
34:52Using the old metalwork means we have to tweak our designs a little bit.
34:57Head gardener Steve is not going to miss the moment, and is on hand to see much of the original
35:02tuckers of Tottenham metalwork take its place once more.
35:07We're sort of making a hybrid system between Harold Peto's original and sort of a more modern one, which will
35:15give us more adjustment.
35:18Nice to think that you're putting something at the back that's been there for however many years, if you see
35:22what I mean, or as close to as you can.
35:31One nice new hole in there for you.
35:36So we're incorporating some of a more modern design that we use to make everything work with the old metalwork.
35:44Because it's got to be structurally sound as well, you see, it's not just a case of it looking pretty.
35:48So it incorporates this tie bar and it stops the building sagging and stops the sides spragging out.
36:04This place is absolutely stunning, isn't it? It's absolutely beautiful, beautiful place.
36:09We haven't had a chance to have a walk around the gardens yet, but we've been told it's a must,
36:15so might nip round there later.
36:17And back in those public parts of the garden, you sense that William is revelling in his role as host
36:23to a visiting party.
36:26This was originally paved. If anyone wants to pay for it to be repaved, I'd be grateful, but the last
36:31quote was sort of 150 grand, so that's not happening for a while.
36:35I love taking tours around. It's an opportunity to have a time in the garden without being interrupted, I suppose.
36:42With the tour over, though, it's the moment of truth for William and his wife Marianne, who've been planning this
36:49important greenhouse project for many months.
36:52I'm seriously excited to see this. Good heavens!
36:56There it is!
36:59You can move in immediately!
37:03I think what's amazing is you can already feel the warmth in here.
37:06You really can.
37:08I'm so pleased that you kept the original breakfast, though.
37:11So am I. I hope that tuckers of Tottenham would be proud.
37:15Absolutely.
37:17With restored metalwork and resilient cedarwood, the greenhouse should serve Eifert for decades to come.
37:24You can imagine it with all the plants in there, and everybody doing amazing things, and Alison propagating, and Steve
37:30getting overexcited about there being too many plants.
37:32It's just, it's fantastic.
37:46I should perhaps warn you, we're ending today with another trip north to Chillingham Castle, and a taste of something
37:55you may find unsettling.
37:56In 1925, Lady Leonora Grey wrote a short book about her experiences at her Northumbrian home.
38:07It was simply called The Ghosts of Chillingham.
38:11Little could she have known what she was setting in motion, because almost a hundred years later, Chillingham takes its
38:18ghosts very seriously.
38:21By day, this border's castle can feel as pleasant and welcoming as any country house.
38:29Sir Humphrey Wakefield has spent half his life ensuring that it does.
38:34I love looking across at the castle.
38:38But he's also been canny enough to embrace Chillingham's fearsome history.
38:44There are many ghosts here.
38:46I mean, after our eight executions and so forth, there are bound to be lots around here, and lots of
38:51very colorful ones.
38:52And I used to be frightened of them, as it were.
38:56But also, when I first came here, the priest said, I can't exorcise ghosts, get rid of them. Do you
39:01want me to?
39:02And I said, yes, I do. Thank you.
39:05Next morning, he said, I'm afraid there are too many I can't.
39:07But also, he said, they're all rooting for you. You're a lucky guy.
39:13Whether the ghosts are friendly or not, their presence at Chillingham seems to have acted as a magnet for paying
39:19visitors.
39:21People want to come to see Britain's most haunted country house for themselves.
39:26It also means steward Richard Craig can step into a role he was clearly made for.
39:33Ghosts have been my thing ever since I was a child.
39:37And this, to me, this is just the holy grail, really.
39:41It's a wonderful place to go ghost hunting.
39:45Tonight, four game souls are set to join Richard on one of Chillingham's celebrated ghost hunts.
39:53So, my name's Tommy Scott. I'm here to visit the castle today. It's actually my partner's birthday.
40:01Joining Tommy are friends Emily and Kieran, plus his fiancée, Max.
40:08All are hoping to cross paths with the supernatural this evening.
40:14What would be a better way to celebrate my birthday than doing a midnight ghost hunt?
40:19I am a little bit nervous, but I think I'm covering that with the excitement a bit.
40:24The castle's beautiful, it's been really nice to look around, but as it's getting dark, it seems to be getting
40:29a little bit creepier.
40:31Starting to hear our little noises.
40:38Good evening, ghost hunters.
40:40Good evening.
40:41Welcome to Chillingham.
40:43First rule of ghost hunting.
40:44Your mind is very much like a parachute.
40:48It is no good to you closed.
40:52So, if you're ready, please follow me.
41:02Easing his guests in gently, Richard starts the hunt in the well-lit confines of the castle cafe.
41:10Make yourselves comfortable wherever.
41:13But he knows how to build anticipation.
41:17On a tour last night, there were 15 spirits, so we were outnumbered.
41:23This is also where he can introduce his ghost hunting equipment.
41:29Spirit boxes.
41:30Spirit boxes are effectively, for want of a better expression, a broken radio.
41:36Game changer in ghost hunting.
41:38You listen through the white noise, and we'll see what we get.
41:45Spirits of the minstrel's hall.
41:48Who would be with us at the moment, please?
41:54Oh.
41:56How many of you are in the room with us right now, please?
42:00Used across the ghost hunting community, these devices are set to scan rapidly across radio frequencies to try and catch
42:08communications from the spirit world.
42:11Oh.
42:14Yeah.
42:15Do you remember anybody's name in this room, if you've been listening?
42:25I can hear Max.
42:26Max.
42:26I can hear your name.
42:28Max.
42:28I think that was, yeah.
42:32A less high-tech tool is a simple pair of dowsing rods.
42:37They glue in the dark, they need no batteries.
42:40We are going to use these for interrogation purposes.
42:45Say, spirit closest to me, what are you, please?
42:49Spirit closest to me, what are you, please?
42:54Female.
42:55It's gone to your left.
43:01Is there anybody here with me?
43:07Yes.
43:09I didn't move them rods. Them rods just moved.
43:14Also on the move are Richard's four ghost hunters who are heading to Chillingham's most terrifying attraction.
43:22Torture chamber.
43:23Playground of John Sage.
43:26A legendary character, the castle torturer.
43:32It's said that his common-law wife died at his hand, which led to his own demise.
43:41Now, we've had various encounters with this spirit.
43:45He has been known to move people by the shoulders.
43:48He has been known to push people over, by self included.
43:53Okay.
43:54Right.
43:55I only put the lights out there.
44:00I'm calling to the chamber, John Sage.
44:06When he comes in, the temperature of this place can drop like a stone.
44:11This is your playground, Sage.
44:13There's something behind me.
44:14It's like someone's punching me in his stomach.
44:16Really?
44:16Yeah.
44:17Okay.
44:20My whole body's like tensed up.
44:22Is it?
44:24Yeah.
44:25I feel like I'm like stone-might at my body.
44:27I can't move my body.
44:28If we are in the presence of Sage, if you are doing this to this gentleman,
44:31I'll move one single rod at the center of his chest.
44:34If it is another spirit moving up his rods.
44:39Look at the rods opening up.
44:41Yeah, they are.
44:42Oh.
44:43Whatever it is, it's right here.
44:45My right hand side.
44:47I feel like I can see a big figure behind you.
44:49Yeah, I can't.
44:50Okay.
44:51I think we might know who this is.
44:54If we are in the presence of the one known as William Rayne,
44:59please give us some major sign that you are with us.
45:05Rods.
45:05The rods are rocking and rolling.
45:09William Rayne.
45:10Don't know much about William Rayne.
45:13Very strong spirit.
45:15Could have been a Border Reaver type.
45:17Came in after a bell, boot, and candle session one time.
45:23And he's stayed ever since.
45:25We see him in form, in shadow, his dark form.
45:30Never shy to put in an appearance.
45:34Chillingham's ghosts have given the customers their money's worth this evening.
45:38And Sir Humphrey couldn't be happier with his booming, ghoulish business.
45:43I really think the ghosts helped me.
45:46The ghosts have always been incredibly kind to me.
45:48And now we've got the tours round and we have overnight stays and seances.
45:54And I think we're booked up until October or something like that.
45:57So, thank you.
45:59Thank you, Grace.
46:04Next time on Saving Country Houses, we're at Maperton House in search of a 17th century tapestry.
46:12What I want to get out is, of course, the one that's really difficult.
46:16So, just, it's the gift everybody that keeps on giving.
46:20Big change is on the horizon at Ashby Manor.
46:28It's like an army tanker, isn't it?
46:31Looks like it's from another town.
46:33I could do with that vehicle here all the time.
46:37And we join the unending task of cleaning the unique displays at Chillingham Castle.
46:43This was my first project.
46:45I had to clean all this, had to brasso these bits because they were very, very rusty.
46:50My old friend.
46:54Who was bitten to his triangle?
47:08And maybe she Нет breadined.
47:08I know you'd have to call me.
47:09But when I see the technique right there.
47:10However, this isn't three descub basementers on their own.
47:10But those three wands have picked up.
47:10You know they all start on their own day.
47:11You know where it comes from at Zurich on Poth We понимate.
47:21And you learn the same house again.
47:21This was about Kibby Manor嫌 3 Vi міiyim.
47:22You
Comments