Great Expectations
Great Expectations
The audience was silent, the lights turned down and the music began to fill the moment – and the Saloon. Gerald Dickens walked slowly down the Oak Staircase in his long dark frock coat and top hat, walking stick in hand. The audience turned a little in their chairs but he was already walking amongst them on his way to the stage at the front. Thus opened “A Christmas Carol’: a one man show performed by the great great grandson of Charles Dickens. Sitting in the heart of a deeply Victorian Gothic Castle. It is a wonderful way to mark the progress towards Christmas and the actual day was 19thDecember, the very day when the novel was published in 1843. This particular event also marks the end of our Christmas event programme each year. 
During the four weeks leading up to Christmas, Highclere’s Christmas decorations have interpreted the theme of the journey of the Three Kings or Magi to visit the baby Jesus in his stable. This has been reflected through all the State Rooms, along with the traditions and entertainments which define Christmas. We have really enjoyed it - it has been colourful and contemplative, given a little wisdom as well as a beacon of light to follow are always welcome. One strong Christmas tradition is that of singing, both listening to others and singing together. For the four days of public opening, throughout each day we had a ‘smorgasbord’ of choirs singing in the courtyard and the castle – although there was repositioning to shelter form rain and wind! The following weekend, the two evenings were devoted to evening receptions of champagne, canapes and carols led by the Military Wives Choir. 
Each evening celebration began with trays of champagne offered as guests stepped through the glass doors into the Saloon. These are always happily received and the first sips of golden bubbles make every evening begin well. Canapes always evolve but every year fish and chips are very popular. The chefs has made some new arancini canapes - easy to eat as they need neither little cocktail sticks nor little bowls - one a ruby colour due to the beetroot and another with lemon and tarragon. I failed to taste either but that is probably a good thing! Some new songs marked this year’s entertainment and all the assembled party joined in with great enthusiasm - it was really rather magical. Above all, it was the atmosphere which said 'Happy Christmas' long before the end of the evening when I was standing by the front door shaking hands and wishing people all the best as they left. For once both the evenings were rain free, clear but cool, as I watched people wander down the drive lit by the twinkling lights of the Christmas trees. Many were catching taxis back to various local pubs and were clearly going to continue the party. We needed to restock the champagne. 
Christmas tours and afternoon teas remain convivial events for friends to meet up or family members to celebrate milestones whilst Friends of Highclere enjoyed tours with me and Father Christmas plus photographs by our magnificent tree in the Saloon. There are also two further event days where I talk about Christmas at the Castle followed by more delicious Christmas food and drink: more scones and Christmas Cake as well as soup and delicious quiches... Part of the fun each Christmas is the collection of random data – how many baubles used and so on. To date, our guests have now enjoyed over 8,000 scones and 6,500 slices of Christmas cake and the chefs have used over one quarter of a tonne of flour amongst other very useful festive facts. 
Of course, there have also been the expected number of challenges, although we are never quite sure what form they are going to take each year. This time, we all had a terrible winter storm to contend with, which in our case was exacerbated by the water company cutting off our entire water supply the following day. That need not have happened. We survived on reserves for the first half of the day whilst we worked out what had happened, our abilities to be further resilient diminishing along with our energy levels. All I can say is that my knowledge of waterpipes, why things happen and who to ring has improved immensely. Looking back, Christmas at Highclere has been golden, cheerful, and twinkled for visitors, we have sung and stood together, we have eaten and listened and followed various stars. And we have weathered some storms. T S Eliot’s poem “The Three Magi” opens: “A cold coming we had of it, Just the worst time of the year For a journey, and such a long journey: The ways deep and the weather sharp, The very dead of winter.” Actually, the weather has been reasonably warm for the most part but I
suspect that we all think that this December has not been without its issues. By the end of the poem: The Magi “returned to our places, these Kingdoms But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation..” I suspect the Magi would see in our world today many of the dissensions that they found in their time, but thank goodness for the great expectations in the hope and light of the Christmas story. A very Happy Christmas from us all at Highclere!
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94 Comments
My husband and I really enjoyed your virtual cocktail party last Friday. Hope you do more of those.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Glen Ellyn, Illinois
Sending you all very Merry Christmas greetings from Colorado
Thank you so much for sharing your Beautiful Christmas with us.
I visited your home this past October from US North Carolina and it was a "Joy"
for the Ages. Most Grateful for the opportunity. Dotty Alexander.
Lady Carnarvon,
Thank you for sharing such a lovely Christmas story with us all.
A very Merry Christmas to you and all your families & staff at Highclere.
"it was always said of him that he kept Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge"
I think that has perhaps been the way of Highclere, this place in all its transformations over generations.
Merry Christmas!
Happy Christmas, Lady C!
Happy Christmas!
You are very kind Merry Christmas!
Thank you for visiting
Happy Christmas!
Thank you for joining !!!
Merry Christmas!
Happy Christmas!
Happy Christmas to all!
What impressive historic traditions to promote via the Magi's & Charles Dickens and then to decorate accordingly. Lucky to all visitors who experienced your Christmas Events, decors, food & drinks in person as that is how they all have had a very Merry Christmas!
Given all the planning and work you and your staff does to prep for all the December events assuming you all will have a relaxing month of January but planning your New Year Events.
Merry Christmas, Boxing Day and Happy & Healthy New Year to you and Lord Carnarvon and your families.
Happy Christmas Lady Carnarvon!
Thank you for sharing Christmas at Highclere with those of us who could not visit in person. As always your rich descriptions and vivid photographs transport me to you.
Lady Carnarvon,
Thank you for sharing these beautiful pictures of your home’s Magi theme decorations. I hope you and your family enjoy loving get-togethers, and may you have many blessings of this time of year and next. Thank you for the lovely Christmas card! Happy Christmas and a joyful New Year! ✨
Martha G
A warm, cheerful, hopeful message, excepting the near disaster of having the water shut off! Afterwards, there's even something to enjoy in meeting those challenges.
A very Happy Christmas to you and yours!
Mary J
Sending you Christmas greetings from Kentucky!
Happy Christmas to you and lord Carnarvon
Happy Christmas to your staff at highcrlere castle
Thank you for your Christmas story, and wishing you a Merry Christmas - and maybe a short rest?!
Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful Christmas with the world. God bless you and yours.
Merry Christmas from Canada! My husband and I were in London, celebrating our 50th Wedding Anniversary, when Storm Darragh swept through, and what a storm it was! We were in Bath visiting the Roman Baths when the storm approached England, and it was a memorable drive back to London that evening. In spite of the weather, we had a lovely week and are now looking forward to many more years together. Thank you for a glimpse of Christmas at Highclere. Best wishes for a Happy New Year.
Jeanne Kaye Speight
I have enjoyed becoming more immersed in English traditions from afar. I have found myself greeting my friends with "Happy Christmas" without any hesitation. Blessings to you and your family from Arizona USA.
I enjoy your podcasts and always look forward to the next one. I wish you, your family and staff a Merry Christmas and a great New Year.
Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful new year.
Thank you for the amazing pictures and maybeyou might consider doing a live stream or a video for us that live a few thousand miles away. I would so have loved to have seen Mr Dickens performance.
Have a great Christmas and please relax you all work so hard for your visitors benefit
Many blessings to you all
Thank you for this lovely Christmas story and for all your interesting blogs throughout the year.
Happy Christmas and all good wishes to everyone at Highclere and to all your many followers in the UK and around the world.
Thankyou Lady Cardarvon for publishing every Monday. I much look foward to your message with my morning coffee. A very Merry Christmas and wonderful 2025 to you and your family.
Happy Christmas to everyone at Highclere Castle!!! Enjoy the family time!!!
Dear Lady Carnarvon
I thank you for this lovely story and wish you and your family all the very best for Christmas and New Year
We had the lovely opportunity to visit you a few years ago.
Thank you for allowing us to continue to visit you virtually through your events and adventures.
Merry Christmas from Texas to all of your staff, family and dogs!
Beautiful! Love the pic of you and the dogs!
Merry Christmas from Calgary, Alberta, Canada! Wishing you and your family a blessed holiday!
Thank you for sharing!
Karen Ross
A very Happy Christmas
Thank you for all your wonderful stories, they have made my Monday a lovely day to look forward to.
Have a wonderful Christmas and a wonderful new year.
Best wishes Diane
Very kind Merry Christmas
A very Merry Christmas to you !
Thank you so much !
Merry Christmas, Lady Carnarvon.
I have a book to finish!!!!
Happy Christmas
Merry Christmas
Challenges then lead to a nice glass of bubbles....that is when it is most needed
Sadly not..
Wonderful - Happy Christmas
I am thinking about that!
Happy Christmas
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Thank you for sharing this wonderful magic esperience. I came in September to your sioer lovely castle and it was amazing. I also had the pleasure to speak to you and I appreciated your kindness and brilliance.
I will come next year with my husband to join you for the Christmas party.
I wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Best wishes,
Gloria from Rome
Merry Christmas.
To Lord and Lady Carnarvon,
Our very best wishes for a wonderful Christmas to you and your family.
From here in the south of the south Island of New Zealand.
I much appreciate all your blogs and photos.
A glimpse into your world.
Thank you.
Happy Christmas from across the world in NZ. Enjoying your blogs as we once enjoyed the Battle Proms at Highclere.
Having watched the Downton Abbey series, it's lovely to read the real life stories & this is such a special one. What a wonderful treat for all involved. A summer Christmas in New Zealand is so different as are our New Zealand Carols.
A blessed Christmas to all.
Adrienne, Southland New Zealand
Merry Christmas to you all from Texas. Blessings in the New Year.
Merry Christmas! Thank you for allowing us to share a moment of your lives, make ourselves comfortable in your home so warmly and festively decorated for Christmas.
Peace be with you!
Wishing you, your husband, family and all who make Highclere wonderful a very happy Christmas! Thank you for opening Highclere to us and sharing this amazing treasure. I look forward to visiting in person and perhaps meeting you.
A very happy Christmas to you.
Jayson & Bob Lambert-Roszak
Thank you Happy Christmas
The Proms is such fun!
Peace is always the most welcome guest!
Merry Christmas from sunny California. We have a slew of holiday parties for the next few days and visits with friends. Yesterday, I watched the YouTube video of Christmas at Downton Abbey. I also watched the 1938 version of "A Christmas Carol," one I had not seen before. The film was a little scratchy with the occasional white streak but the message was still the same, Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Men, as Scrooge promises hold the spirit of Christmas in his heart all year long. All my best wishes to all my fellow Downton fans and we look forward a a new year and a new movie too. Lucky us!
Dear Lady Carnarvon
I love reading your emails and look forward to your interesting comments.
Wishing you and your family a very happy and safe Christmas from Brisbane Australia
And Happy Christmas to you from the wilds of Chicago!
Merry to both of you and your families from Australia ❤️❤️
Merry Christmas, Lady Carnarvon!
Merry Christmas and a Happy & Blessed New Year in 2025.
Best wishes to all the Highclere family and thanks Lady Fiona for another year of wonderful thoughtful and often stirring stories. Your continuous generosity of spirit is beautifully captured in your Christmas gestures. Happy Christmas to all.
Toasting you with a lovely shiraz from the warmth (literally and spiritually) of the Barossa Valley.
A wonderful story of Christmas life at Highclere. I so wish to be able to visit from Australia but hesitate to go in your winter! However, your descriptions are excellent along with the pictures. You obviously have a new chef and I wonder if we will see him in the kitchen as we did see Paul creating wonderful recipes. Enjoy your family time now and hopefully a deserved rest!
Sorry I am late but to wish you all a very happy Christmas and good new year and another great year at Highclere
Thank you for all the interesting blogs I look forward to Mondays to read all your interesting subjects
Thank you x
Thank you !
It is a good story
Happy christmas
Sounds wonderful - Happy Christmas
I am grateful you are there to read them!
Wishing you a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year - from Vancouver, BC
And thank you for my weekly infusion of all things proper!!!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful Christmas with us!
Merry Christmas to you, your family and your staff at Highclere from France .
It is always such a pleasure to perform at Highclere Castle, and to be a part of your spectacular Christmas celebrations. A very Happy Christmas to the whole family and staff at Highclere.
Merry Christmas to you and your family and blessings for the new year. Thank you for sharing your beautiful home and your beautiful words every week. So enjoyable.
Magic evenings Gerald - thank you
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all xx
Merry Christmas to you and all your family
A very Happy Christmas to you and all at Highclere. Thank you for sharing all the beautiful and exciting events of the castle.
Merry Christmas
Thank you, Lady Carnarvon for sharing.
Christmas is not Christmas without Dickens' "Christmas Carol," and of course for us the film with Alistair Sims is the best ......still a little scary!
Wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday.
Thank you again.
Angela
Happy Christmas
I love all the creative ways you and your husband have done to support the costs of this beautiful historic property while having fun and maintaining the elegance of the past in all you do. I look forward to your blog every week. One of the few I subscribe to.
I'm from Winnipeg Canada and my friend Tressa, won a trip to stay at your castle some years back. So fun!
Our plan is to visit the castle on our next trip to England, ...
Merry Christmas to you all, and thanks for being a bright spot in this ever-changing world of ours.
Best Regards
Wendy
Blessings and Mele Kalikimaka from Hawaii!
How lovely to celebrate in this way! Hope you had a lovely Christmas.
My daughter and I have visited your castle twice. Our last visit was in early December and we absolutely loved the Christmas decor and the carolers singing. Wishing you and your loved ones a very Happy Christmas. Best wishes from Canada.
Dear Lord and Lady Carnarvon
I hope you all had a blessed Christmas and you had time to rest and enjoy the festive holiday, particularly after the wonderful work you have been doing leading up to Christmas.
I hope you have an amazing time celebrating the New Year.
Sending best wishes from Yorkshire.
Dear Lady Canarvon,
My husband and I were among your first guests to see Highclere decorated for Christmas and we enjoyed our first "High Tea" in the lovely tent set up in the back. This was our second trip to Highclere Castle and we enjoyed it thoroughly! My husband has made "friends" and really enjoys talking with your butler, Louis. We loved every minute of our time spent in your lovely Castle but I must mention something extraordinary. We planned our trip close to a year out and had placed our menu orders well in advance. About a week before we were supposed to leave, I was put on a gluten free diet and I texted in hopes of changing my menu selection to gluten-free. I really felt like it was too late to make such changes and fully expected to be served my original selection which I would have fully enjoyed ! When we arrived to the tent and gave our names the attended said OH! Mrs. Simmons! You had the change to the gluten-free? We have it ready for you! What a surprise and certainly shows the care and attention you give to your guests. We were impressed! Thank you for a lovely tea!
Sincerely,
Jerri Simmons
Pensacola,Florida
Dear Lord and Lady Carnarvon -
We were thrilled to visit Highclere as part of the morning tour on December 19. How exciting to see the photo of us (my daughter, my son, and I) listening to your presentation before our tour!
You shared a wealth of historical information about the castle, and the Magi, and such fun stories about the preparation of Highclere for the Christmas season.
My daughter and I had visited Highclere in 2018, and had always wanted to return to see it in its holiday splendor! What luck that Highclere was open on one of our days in London!
We were grateful that we were able to thank you for opening your lovely home to visitors from near and far.
Luis had us laughing while we had our delicious refreshements after the tour.
One of the additional highlights occured while we were waiting for our cab. One of the carpark volunteers made sure to point us in the direction of the Canadian Maple tree, which commemorates the role of the 4th Earl of Carnarvon, and Highclere, in the formation of Canada. He also showed us various trees planted by the Lord's ancestors. What a beautiful history.
On the flight home, I enjoyed my new copy of "Christmas at Highclere," and will continue to relive the memories of that day.
Happy New Year from Canada,
Marcy Namespetra
Dear Lady Carnarvon:
Thank you for this Monday's blog, for sharing your home and Castle during the Christmas season, and for the statistical information on the foods prepared and eaten during this time.
I enjoyed looking at the very nice holiday pictures, particularly of you and Lord Carnarvon.
Happy Christmas.
Perpetua Crawford
Lovely
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
wishing you and Lord Carnarvon and all your staff, a very happy Christmas, and bountiful hope and light for the New Year! Thank you for your Christmas card!
Happy Christmas and good wishes for the new year, to everyone here!
With warmest wishes from Somerset,
Jane Bentley