
The classic impression of pre-war life in big houses like Highclere is of drifts of long days where gilded people dwell on idle dinners, make desultory conversations perched on deep red sofas or lob the occasional tennis ball across a grass court, facing few troubles except those they created for themselves. It was a world described brilliantly by the novelist Evelyn Waugh, particularly in his novel “Brideshead Revisited”. Curiously, Waugh married into the Carnarvon family – first (briefly) to “She-Evelyn” the daughter of the 5th Earl’s elder sister, Winifred and secondly, to Laura, Carnarvon’s brother Aubrey’s daughter.

Grass lawns outside the Library
Reading biographies of Evelyn Waugh, you get the feeling he was searching for a sense of family in real life as well as in fiction. He knew Highclere well and, in letters to Nancy Mitford, would use the phrase “very Highclere” when describing a particularly good weekend or piece of entertaining. Living in the 21st century, entertaining is still a part of our private life but also part of the business that is the modern Highclere.
Our recent filming with the delightful Mary Berry was just such “entertaining”. We had an enormous amount of fun, hosted a fabulous dinner party with good food, good company and old friends but also got to look at the more “business” side of Highclere. Sheep and lambs have grazed the park and land here for centuries and are one of the principle mainstays of our farming, so lamb was an entirely appropriate choice of Mary’s for the main course. In turn, I have always loved gooseberry fool, grow the fruit in our kitchen garden and included the recipe in my own cook book. My mother used to make it and I wish I had paid more attention to her! Mary added elderflower cordial (mine – very flattering!). At the end of the dinner in the Dining Room, Kit Hesketh Harvey stood up sang a song about how much we all love Mary Berry, it was most amusing although viewers did not get to hear it. I thought I might ask him for a reprise here that I could video.
As usual, quite a lot of the filming remained on the cutting room floor. One item that didn’t make it to the screen was Mary and me cooking together in my kitchen amongst my spaniels. There is not enough time in filming to worry about much, as you are just following directions and aware that each day has a deadline.

Annie and her dogs picking up
However, in retrospect I feel both honoured and more than a little nervous to think I was trying to cook with Mary. Amusingly, one of the first cook books I ever owned was one of Mary’s, given to me by a girlfriend Smiles, who was an excellent cook herself. I learnt a huge amount from cooking with her when we shared a flat at university although I did sometimes abandon her to change for supper to be ready to greet our guests. Even then it was all about entertaining… she usually needed a large glass of something to stop being so cross with me as I relaxed whilst she was performing a miracle with pears in red wine, for example.
The weather during filming of the plane hunt and picnic (which did appear on screen) was very cold. Mary had made some yummy warm tomato tarts and I had made potted shrimps (also rather yummy even if I do say so myself) but Steve, Paul and Robert were freezing on the picnic rug without Mary’s plentiful supply of hot water bottles, but I still think they appreciated them. I do genuinely take hot soup and sandwiches when we go on our plane hunts as it takes ages to find the crash sites and sitting and talking over lunch is so constructive, but we usually sit in the cars where it is warmer.

A cross to mark the grave of the P-38 pilot, Steve by a bombing tower, Paul and I plane hunting
Food is a great leveller and I think the TV show gave a sense of us all sitting down to eat together at different times. I gather John G our Castle manager has had several emails offering him fish and chips and this evening my husband asked me when we had it and why he knew nothing about it. I think the answer there is because he would try and eat my chips.
Another fantastic Blog Lady Carnarvon it was wonderful to have our Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress on Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets. The Television was very good at hiding how cold it was up at Heavens Gate that day of our picnic. Sadly we never got to drink the ginger beer mind you nice hot cup of tea would have been heavenly & we never got to eat your wonderful potted shrimps you made. But apart from all that it was dream come true to have a picnic with yourself & Mary Berry at Heavens Gate – Oh and with Steve & Robert too 🙂 all being filmed for the BBC. I look forward to our next Aircraft hunt that is in a few months time, please can I put a food request in for some of Mary’s yummy Beater’s Stew and more of her yummy tomato tarts she made that we all saw & loved on TV 🙂 🙂
I think we might look for more planes in the early New Year – with less undergrowth… and I will definitely sort hot soup and may be hot coffee..
It was lovely to watch such happy memories for me, I used to love helping Johnny with the cows
How amazing – I learnt to milk cows as a child – it is completely magical although perhaps I would not be keen to do so everyday!!!
Watched the program. Food looked excellent, must have been fun filming.
Liked the bit about fish and chips. When I visit my son, it’s always on the top of list with of course some excellent local beer.
Things I miss living in Malta.
It was good food – every so often fish and chips hits the spot..
Excellent show! Really enjoyed it and was lovely to see more of your beautiful home and grounds – loved my visit a few years back.
Thank you!
Just tuned in from Canada. Not up to speed with everything going on but what I have seen and heard is delightfully thrilling. I shall endeavor to find out more. God Bless from a little lake Kennebec in Ontario. Gordon and Rita ( The Duchess ) Wright. ps. Most Pleasant.
Please do enjoy the Canadian blogs ! (a Constitutional walk is one)
DEAR LADY CARNARVON
LOVELY BLOG.
MILADY DEVE VISITAR O MEU PAIS ,O BRASIL.VENHA LOGO.VENHA MESMO.
I would love to!
Fantastic look behind the scenes at the real Highclere and not the scripted version as Downton.
What a fantastic house and you seem to be a lot of fun to be around. Really enjoyed it.
We do laugh and I appreciate ho hard everyone works..
I hope this BBC special will be aired here in the states! We all love Mary Berry, and have so enjoyed the competitions that air on PBS. Lady Carnarvon, I do have a request! That Shrimp and Egg bake made my mouth water, and occasionally I get my hands on some fine roe shrimp from Charleston, and the bake looked like an ideal way to serve them. Roe shrimp are only in season about 3 weeks a year, so your recipe would be an ideal way to celebrate the roe season! Thanks again for making time in your busy schedule for your thoughtful and entertaining blogs, dearest Fiona!
Sound delicious!
Such a delightful programme Lady Carnarvon. You and your team must work so hard to maintain Highclere. Thank you for your blog which I have just subscribed to. Again thoroughly entertaining and enjoyable.
Thank you – on all fronts!
I very much enjoyed meeting you on the TV program, I was totally blown away by your enthusiasm, commitment & beauty, thank you for sharing with us all! I will try to visit Highclere next Spring.
Thank you!
We recently moved from Wiltshire to SW France and I have been missing my English Autumnal treats so it was with great pleasure that I watched the show – how I envied cooking in your gorgeous kitchen with both yourself and Mary Berry. You radiate so much energy and enthusiasm that it is easy to imagine how happy your team are, both working for you and simply being at Highclere. I have signed up to follow your blog but if you could let me know where I would find details of your colour choices since I was blown away with your kitchen colour scheme let alone the parts of the house that were on show… it is so tastefully decorated, nothing over the top – genius.
You are very kind – the Castle kitchen is just an off white but the turquoise colour used is Farrow and Ball I think the colour was Sugar Bag – the minute it was the one I wanted they discontinued it but did make it up for us. I find colours fascinating… the kitchen is a place I am trying to make health and safety and heritage happy as well as chef Paul!
I am not much of a cook, although I love good food cooked by others. I have to confess I never seen Mary’s show, although I am sure it must be broadcast in America. What caught my eye was your mention of Gooseberrys. I live in Iowa and just to our north, far far up north in Minnesota is a lovely state park named Gooseberry Falls. The falls are many leveled and the Park has picturesque hiking trails which end at the spot where the Gooseberry River flows into Lake Superior. The River is named for the abundance of, what else, Gooseberrys, although, not being much of a cook or botanist (even though I do hike a lot) I have never actually spotted any that I know of. Thanks as always for your lovely blog. We really enjoyed visiting last year.
Gooseberries are tough plants and I guess in the wild the birds and small animals get to them before you do!
I caught the programme with Mary Berry quite by chance and really enjoyed it. Lovely to see you looking so happy and doing so well with your businesses, helping to preserve the castle for future generations. I particularly admired how you were able to bring the history of Highclere to life in the programme – how fascinating! Keep up the good work Best wishes from an old friend.
Thank you!
What a delicious blog post. Now I am hungry for one of Mary Berry’s tomato tarts and your gooseberry fool!
I hope to see the Mary Berry Country House Secrets special here in America. I discovered Mrs. Berry on the Great British Baking show – my all-time favorite baking show – and I just adore her.
I have also enjoyed watching your cooking videos (On a side note, your beautiful entertaining book is on my Christmas list this year!). It would be great to see both you and Mary Berry cooking a dish together!
Your Highclere stories, genuine enthusiasm and lovely writing style are wonderful. My friends and I are thrilled about the upcoming Downton Abbey exhibition in New York, and we hope it makes a stop in Texas.
Thank you -I rather hope the “At Home” book is on lots of Christmas lists!!!! I thought I could email some extra archive scans to those who have bought the book – given you are American I could email a scan of an invitation to the White House from the Victorian period as a memento and thank you.
I would be thrilled and delighted to receive a White House invitation from the Victorian era. What a special memento! Wow!!! How thoughtful.
I look forward to reading “At Home” soon. I’d be happy to post a link to your stunning book on my Facebook page too!
Lady Carnarvon,
I was fascinated by the few staff that are employed to maintain Highclere in such a wonderful state, was it always so? My late Mother-in-Law , Gladys May TURNER, always claimed to have worked at Highclere as an assistant to the Nanny and told stories of swimming with one of the children, young Lord Porchester I think she said, on her back. She boasted that she visited Scotland and we found a photo of her taken in a studio in Carnarvon. Do you maintain any staff records from the early 1930s? We have a photo of her that we were told was taken on the steps of Highclere.
I have just subscribed to your blogs and am sorry we didn’t find it before Mother-in-Law died.
Sincerely yours.
How fascinating – we do have some staff record. Do you have any other photos? Could you email me on [email protected] then I and our archivist can see what we can find ..
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
I loved this behind the scenes account of Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets. It sounds as though you had a wonderful time and learned a lot from each other. My mouth is watering thinking about your Gooseberry Fool recipe. I think I would also like it with blackberries (or would there be too many seeds?) I think the Potted Shrimp sounds divine as well! I hope your next book (please let there be one) contains more lovely recipes. I am so in love with your first entertaining book “At Home.”
I don’t honestly think it can be topped! I saw the base of the Highclere Christmas tree on Twitter so I think holiday celebrations are about to begin!! Enjoy the festivities and know I’ll have that gorgeous tree in my dreams. I’m going to have to rewatch my Downton Christmas specials now as that always brings a smile and joyous tears too. Enjoy this special time and Thank you sincerely for your blog posts.
Kind Regards,
Ann Catherine Flood
Will we be able to watch in the US? Does Mary Berry have a show on PBS?
We are hoping that perhaps PBS or BBC America might decide to show the programme – watch this space!
Mm! Tomato tarts sound incredibly delicious. I love fried tomatoes and sometimes put them in a crust and cook with a slice of farmer’s cheese on top. Scrumptious! Thank you for sharing.
Dear Lady Carnarvon, I blog for work and read them for pleasure but very rarely post a comment, yet I feel compelled to this time! What a lovely piece to read more ‘behind the scenes’ of the recent BBC programme. I caught it by accident and throughly enjoyed watching, even watching again on iPlayer! You are entirely correct, Mary Berry is delightful (as always!) – but may I also say how wonderfully you and the stunning story of Highclere and the family came across on-screen… Your passion and laughter are infectious and inspiring in equal measure to take as much pride in our own homes and their history (we own a far more modest Edwardian home, but try to be entirely faithful to maintain or restore the original features of the house everywhere we can and know as much as possible about those who have lived here before us, including religious and military figures in the past 110+ years). Congratulations on such a lovely programme and all of the wonderful work you, your family and your fabulous team do at Highclere! With very best wishes, Charlotte.
Thank you !
Another excellent blog post Lady Carnarvon. I’ve been reading for while now. Country House Secrets made such wonderful viewing. Thank you for giving people like myself, a chance to see more of your beautiful house. I’ve recently posted yourself a letter and card – keep an eye out for it!
Best wishes
David Hunter.