Elvis’s Cadillac Is In The Building! - Beaulieu National Motor Museum

Elvis's Cadillac

Lady Montagu with Cadillac Seville

The latest exhibit to go on display in the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu is the 1977 Cadillac Seville purchased and driven by the King of Rock & Roll, Elvis Presley. The Cadillac was purchased by Elvis in October 1976 for his own use and he chose the burgundy and silver colour scheme himself. The car is in original condition and still has the CB radio installed that Elvis used to communicate with the kitchen at Graceland and to the guard house outside Graceland, to open the gates.

One of the first people to see the car at Beaulieu was Lady Fiona Montagu, wife of the museum’s founder, Lord Montagu. Lady Montagu has been a life-long fan of the King and posed for a picture beside the car in her own version of Elvis’s famous Las Vegas white jumpsuit. Lady Montagu said: “I am a huge fan and had the costume made to wear at an Elvis themed fund raising evening we held in the museum last year in support of our Beaulieu education charity, the Countryside Education Trust.”

The Cadillac Seville V8 Automatic was manufactured by General Motors and the body custom built by Fisher for Cadillac. Its features include electronic windows and mirrors and a grey interior with wood grain accents on the dashboard, doors and steering wheel.

Previously auctioned in Las Vegas in 1994 and sold for $101,500 to a private collector, it again came up for sale in August when Graceland held its first ever auction. The auction coincided with Elvis Week at Graceland, which commemorates the legend's death on August 16th, 1977. All the items in the auction were offered from third-party collectors. Among the items were rare and unique artefacts from the collection of Greg Page, founding member of Australian children’s music group, The Wiggles, and one of the world’s biggest and most well-known Elvis Presley collectors. Page’s items included Elvis’s 1977 Cadillac Seville.

The car was purchased at the auction for $81,250 by Steve Horn as a present for his wife Suzannah. Steve and Suzannah who are great Elvis fans, run Europe’s Tribute to Elvis, an annual Europe tribute artist contest held in Blackpool with the winner taking part in the contest finals in Memphis. Explaining their decision to offer the car for display at Beaulieu, Steve said: “We wanted to give all of Elvis’s UK fans an opportunity to see his car and Beaulieu is the perfect location. We are delighted they could find a space for it.”

Other highlights of the Graceland auction included Presley's first-known signature – on a Tupelo, Mississippi, school library card – a handwritten set list from 1969 and jewellery, like the beloved lion's head pendant he wore while meeting President Richard Nixon.

The Cadillac was the last car Elvis purchased for his personal use and it was driven by him on the day prior to his death. It is believed that Elvis purchased more than 200 Cadillacs in his life; for himself, friends, family and even strangers. After his death it was gifted by his father, Vernon, to Elvis’s girlfriend, Ginger Alden.

The car is now on display in the National Motor Museum and can be seen as part of a visit to the whole Beaulieu attraction, www.beaulieu.co.uk.

Discover ‘Life at Chatsworth’ This Winter with Behind the Scenes Talks and Artisans Showcase

The curious can discover what it takes to run one of the UK’s most prestigious country estates this winter as staff at Chatsworth deliver a series of entertaining talks throughout January, February and March - including two special opportunities to hear about what happens behind the scenes by the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire themselves.

The two exclusive talks, entitled ‘Life at Chatsworth’, will see the 12th Duke and Duchess give an inside account on a decade spent occupying the magnificent estate, which has been passed down through 16 generations of Cavendish family and encompasses 30,000 acres of garden, farmland and parkland. Taking place in the Hartington Room at Chatsworth Stables on 5 and 10 March 2015, early booking is advised.

Chatsworth staff will be delivering a number of regular talks throughout the season, including Head Housekeeper Christine Robinson, who recently published her memoires in ‘Chatsworth: The Housekeepers Tale’. Christine, whose family have worked at Chatsworth for over 200 years, will reveal the motivation behind her book with an opportunity to have copies signed. 

The talks also feature Head of Gardens and Landscape Steve Porter on designers and fashion and their influence on the Chatsworth Garden; Textiles Department Supervisor Susie Stokoe revealing the secrets behind the Mortlake Tapestries; and Archeologist Oliver Jessop talking about glimpses of the Tudor House revealed by the Masterplan.

The talks will run most Fridays from 23 January 2015 to 6 March 2015 in the Hartington Room. Places need to be booked in advance and start at £12 per person. For more information visit http://www.chatsworth.org/attractions-and-events/events/event/winter-talks

Winter visitors will also be able to enjoy a collection of fine artwork as the ‘Peak District Artisans’ return to Chatsworth, showcasing an eclectic line-up of artists, artisans and designer-makers from across the region.

The second exhibition to take place at Chatsworth, artists will include a variety of big names such as the award-winning Sue Prince and Ingrid Karlsson-Kemp. Earlier this year, Sue’s work was chosen for London Stories, an exhibition for the Serco Prize for Illustration at the London Transport Museum, whilst Ingrid’s display will include pieces created for her exhibition as part of Umea, Sweden’s Capital of Culture celebrations.

The spring exhibition will run daily between 10.30am and 3.30pm, from 7 January 2015 to 22 March 2015, where works from 36 ‘Peak District Artisan’ members will be on display in the Carriage House at Chatsworth Stables. Admission is free.

Chatsworth House, Garden, Farmyard, Shops and Restaurants all will remain open until 4 January 2015 (closed on 24, 25, 26 December and 1 January 2015). The house, garden, farmyard and Cavendish restaurant will re-open for the new season on 28 March 2015. The Carriage House restaurant and the gift shops at the stables remain open every day.

For more information on what’s on during winter, visit www.chatsworth.org

Cheeky team of mischievous elves join Father Christmas present giving at Holkham this Christmas

Children will have the chance to enjoy a very special appointment just days before Christmas when Holkham Hall presents an audience with the great man himself. 

Father Christmas will be joined by his cheeky team of mischievous elves. Under the watchful eye of Mother Christmas, he will entertain the young audience with tales of wonderment and magic in the magnificently decorated and grand state room, the Saloon at Holkham Hall.  The ukulele- playing elves will have a colourful and musical repertoire to add to the entertainment.  Each child’s visit will reach an exciting finale with their very own personalised gift from Father Christmas. 

The event takes place on Saturday and Sunday, December 20 and 21 and is recommended for children aged 12 years and under who will receive a personalised present. A special Christmas pop-up shop in the hall will give visitors the opportunity to browse for last-minute presents and festive treats after the performance.

The seasonal visit by Father Christmas is a highlight of a magical month of entertainment at Holkham, from the moment the doors open in early December. In the days leading up to his visit, there will be a magnificent line-up of festive activities and events, guaranteed to give everyone the very best Christmas experience before the big day. 

Visitors will be spoilt for choice with Holkham’s exciting festive programme that sees the hall traditionally decorated for Christmas for two weekends on December 6/7 and 13/14, when the fun-loving ukulele elves will join in the merriment, along with costumed characters, music and carol singing, story-telling and art activities, face painting and carriage rides, as well as festive food and drink and an opportunity to browse the Holkham gift shop for that perfect Christmas present.

The Marble Hall is the perfect backdrop for two evening musical concerts on December 5 and 13 and a weekend of Christmas theatre with Charles Dickens’ classic novel, ‘Great Expectations’ on December 20 and 21.

The return of Holkham’s popular mid-week candlelight tours of the hall will ensure there is something for all tastes.

Full details of Holkham’s Christmas programme in December and opportunities to book tickets online can be found by visiting www.holkham.co.uk

Christmas at England's greatest Elizabethan house - Burghley

Christmas at Burghley

Christmas will be even more sparkling this year at England’s greatest Elizabethan house – with a free craft fair, extra seasonal shopping and a feast of festive food.

Dressed for the occasion, Burghley House, on the edge of Stamford, will have more Christmas decorations than ever before, while this year the annual Craft Fair will move to the House, adding to the festive feel around the cobbled courtyards.

For 2014, the Burghley Christmas Fair, run by the Rural Crafts Association, has been brought up the House and will nestle within the Brewhouse and courtyard, close to Burghley’s Orangery restaurant and shops. Entry this year is free of charge and stalls will feature unique textiles, unusual sculptures, artisan chocolates, jewellery and cashmere and silk pashminas (27-30 November, 9am until 5pm and 4pm on Sunday).

Also over that weekend, the free-to-enter Christmas Fine Food Market returns to offer visitors even more tasty treats. A celebration of local produce, stall holders will be selling local cheese, meats, cupcakes, cider and much more in the festively decorated courtyards, Saturday 29th November - Sunday 30th November.

Or how about Christmas carols in the intimate surroundings of the family Chapel within the House? What more traditional way to begin festive celebrations than at the Chapel Carol Concert with music spanning the House’s five centuries of history. Mulled wine and mince pies will be served in the candlelit Old Kitchen during the interval. (Sunday 14th December). 

For a chance to warm up with some seasonal food and drink, Burghley’s ever-popular Orangery Restaurant - housed in a building that provided space for the family’s love of horticulture and designed by Capability Brown – is now open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am until 4pm, until 21 December.

As well as the autumn and festive menus, a Christmas Afternoon Tea (available 19 November - 21 December) features turkey and cranberry or Stilton and red onion marmalade sandwiches, cranberry and white chocolate blondie and dark chocolate yule log.

For a spot of retail therapy, Burghley's Courtyard Shop is also open while extra seasonal shopping will again be available at the special Christmas Shop in the Brewhouse offering a selection of decorations, festive lighting, winter fragrances, chocolates and cosy winter accessories. Both shops open Wednesday through Sunday, 10am to 4pm, until 21 December.

While the house may be closed for winter, Burghley's parkland, with its resident herd of deer, remains open with free entry right through the year - perfect for winter walks or a chance to blow away the Christmas cobwebs.

For full details, opening times and to book tickets, see www.burghley.co.uk

Kirstie Allsopp starts the festive season in style at Living Crafts for Christmas, Blenheim Palace

Kirstie Allsopp to film at Living Crafts

Queen of all things handmade Kirstie Allsopp will be spoilt for choice when she films at Living Crafts for Christmas on 21 November. This event is a unique Christmas shopping experience with so many contemporary crafters, jewellers, ceramicists, milliners, artists and toymakers who travel from across the UK to Blenheim Palace. Over 150 specially selected designer-makers will be showcasing British handmade art and craft in floored and heated pavilions and the Orangery, and the Campaign Rooms will feature a Jewellery Quarter.

Kirstie Allsopp to film at Living Crafts

This four day craft extravaganza is the perfect place to find presents for all the family from special commissions and original gifts to quirky stocking fillers.  The pavilions will be brimming with high quality art, craft and Christmas cheer and remember to enjoy the Christmas entertainment, roasting hot chestnuts, mulled cider or steaming hot chocolate. Be inspired by the handcrafted decorations, wreaths, candles and garlands, perfect for decorating your festive home. Specialist food and drink producers in ‘Tastes of Christmas’ will tempt you with traditional treats and perfect foodie gifts: everything from handmade chocolates, wines, connoisseur preserves, oils and marinades to Christmas cakes and puddings. Blenheim Palace will be dressed for the season with sumptuous gold and glitter. The Great Court will be adorned with twinkling Christmas trees, creating a magical ambience, while the beautiful parkland, lakeside walks and formal gardens are majestic in the winter light, just waiting to be explored. A feast of winter warming food is available in the Water Terrace Café and the Oxfordshire Pantry, featuring local produce, and don’t forget to drop into the Champagne Bar!

This is a perfect pre-Christmas day out for all the family.

Visit www.livingcrafts.co.uk
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Down the Rabbit Hole with Alice at Chatsworth this Christmas 8 November 2014 - 4 January 2015

Visitors to Chatsworth this Christmas should prepare to head down the rabbit hole and through the looking glass as this year’s Christmas theme takes inspiration from the vivid and fantastical world created by author Lewis Carroll in his classic ‘Alice's Adventures in Wonderland’, from 8 November to 4 January. 

Chatsworth Christmas

Chatsworth Christmas

Chatsworth Christmas

Fifty-two Christmas trees and 900,000 fairy lights will ensure Chatsworth dazzles with lots of traditional Christmas sparkle. Inside the house, 18 fir trees will be adorned with 6,000 tree ornaments. Preparations for this year's Christmas started almost a year ago, with the staff at Chatsworth creating most of the wonderful displays and costumes in-house. 

Head housekeeper Christine Robinson said: "Teams from the textiles department, carpenters, painters and housekeepers have been working all year to create the individual displays to bring the theme to life. This year, we have a giant rabbit's burrow for the White Rabbit, costumes for visitors to try on and a magical hall of mirrors as visitors journey with Alice through her dream of a Chatsworth wonderland."

Chatsworth is extending its Christmas opening period this year and re-opening the house, garden and farmyard after Christmas for visitors to enjoy over the remaining school holiday period. The house will be closed on Dec 24, 25 and 26, and re-open on Dec 27 until 31 December, and from 2 to 4 January 2015. 

Chatsworth will be expecting grins as wide as a Cheshire Cat as visitors are taken on a magical journey through the lower floors of the house.  The interiors are transformed to recreate classic scenes from the enduringly popular story of a girl named Alice, who falls down a rabbit hole into a fantasy world populated by peculiar creatures such as the White Rabbit, the Mad Hatter, a sleepy Dormouse and the Queen of Hearts.

On arrival, the North Entrance Hall will be dressed to create the illusion of tumbling down the rabbit hole into Wonderland, where visitors will encounter the Mad Hatter's Tea Party; the Game of Croquet, and the table with the infamous ‘Drink Me’ bottle and ‘Eat Me’ cake. 

Playing Card Soldiers, White Rabbits, and Tweedledum and Tweedledee costumed guides will be on hand to direct visitors through to majestic woodland scene. There, a giant Caterpillar will be smoking his pipe on top of an oversized mushroom as psychedelic sitar music plays. 

Classic lines from the book are on show en route while sounds include the White Rabbit muttering 'I'm late, I'm late' or Alice crying out 'Curiouser and Curiouser' add to the feeling of entering the disorientating story. 

Always popular with children - and grown-ups too - is the opportunity to get into character themselves by dressing up in some of the Alice in Wonderland themed costumes, made by the Chatsworth Textiles team, in the Inner Court Marquee.

The Painted Hall is the perfect setting for the extravagant Mad Hatter’s Tea Party. The huge dining room table will be adorned with dozens of tea cups, saucers, cake stands, and even an over-sized steaming teapot. 

The displays will also feature traditional Christmas elements, with numerous fir trees and Christmas garlands adorned with baubles and fairy lights. 

This year’s theme extends to farmyard and adventure playground with Alice in Wonderland themed craft activities in the Christmas marquee where little ones can make a mad hat, white rabbit ears, teapot card or a traditional reindeer headband. Magician Professor Shell will be making rabbits disappear while the popular nativities featuring the farmyard animals and young visitors take place on weekends in December. This is offered on a first come first served basis and will incur an additional £2.50. 

Other Christmas at Chatsworth events to look out for include C.W.Sellors* Christmas Wishes on 8-9 November, register online at www.cwsellors.com, the popular Christmas Markets from November 13 to 23, and Wreath Making on December 3-4 2014.For information on opening times, advance tickets, prices and other events, please visit www.chatsworth.org 

Wallace And Gromit Anti-Pesto Van Is The Latest Star To Join Beaulieu’s On Screen Cars Exhibition

Wallace & Gromit Anti-Pesto Van,
Beaulieu's On Screen Cars

The Wallace and Gromit Anti-Pesto Van is the latest exhibit to arrive in Beaulieu’s On Screen Cars display. A plasticine version of this Austin A35 van was created for the film Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.

Nick Park, creator of the Wallace and Gromit animations, used to own an A35 and thought it was the ideal model to use in the film because “the van needed to be big enough to transport Wallace’s invention, the Bunvac 2000, while slick enough to go on high-speed chases.”

In the film, Tottington Hall’s Giant Vegetable Competition is fast approaching and Wallace and Gromit are running a vegetable security and humane pest control business, Anti-Pesto. In order to cope with the increasing amount of captured rabbits Wallace invents a brainwashing machine, but a mistake during the operation creates a ‘Were-Rabbit’, a giant rabbit which eats vegetables of any size. It’s down to Wallace and Gromit to capture the rampaging beast before the competition!

The Anti-Pesto Van, which has been loaned to Beaulieu following a call-out for new vehicles for the exhibition, joins a host of other star vehicles.

The ‘flying’ Ford Anglia on display was used during the making of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. In the film, the enchanted flying car is stolen a number of times by Ron Weasley, on one occasion to rescue his friend Harry Potter from the Dursleys’ house, and on another to return to Hogwarts after the gate to Platform 9¾ is sealed by house elf Dobby.

Sharing the spotlight with the Anglia is TV favourite, Mr Bean’s lime green mini. This particular car was used in the character's third series and made its first television appearance on 1st January 1991.

Another TV favourite on display is Del Boy’s beloved Trotter Van. Possibly the nation's most famous three-wheel vehicle, this Regal van featured in the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the sole transport for the Trotter family of Del, Rodney, Grandad and Uncle Albert, until Del Boy later went ‘upmarket’ and purchased a Capri Ghia.

On Screen Cars can be seen as part of a visit to the whole Beaulieu attraction, which also includes the National Motor Museum, World of Top Gear, Beaulieu Abbey, and Palace House and gardens. Visit www.beaulieu.co.uk for further information.

Exclusive Dining at Burghley House – Feel like Royalty as you dine in the exclusive surroundgs of Burghley House

Burghley House Great Hall

Burghley has been entertaining guests throughout its history and today provides a wonderful backdrop for a variety of events.

The Great Hall, with its stunning Tudor fireplace was once used by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert who dined here during their stay in 1844.

This beautiful room can accommodate up to 100 people seated on rounds or the Victorian banquet table (the very same table used by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert) which seats up to 42 people which provides an unparalleled historic grandeur for those looking to hold a quintessentially English dining experience within one of the country’s finest Elizabethan homes.

For Private or Corporate Dining Enquiries please contact Event Manager Kara Lockyer to discuss your event requirements on 01780 761 992 or kara.lockyer@burghley.co.uk