
From its inception in 1957 until 2012, “The Sky at Night” was the world’s longest running TV programme to be presented by the same person, namely Patrick Moore. A distinguished astronomer with a wild mop of white hair and an eye glass, he made astronomy fun. He was self-taught – “just an amateur” he always explained, as well as being an amateur pianist, chess player, cricketer and golfer. He flew in bomber command in World War Two and said he lost the love of his life to a bomb dropped on the ambulance she was driving. I always adored watching his programmes as a child because he had such a great sense of humour.
This last year has involved a lot of both looking down at my feet to put one foot in front of another and, first thing in the morning or last thing at night, looking up at the skies as I walk the dogs. Winter skies in particular have such clarity, the Bear or the Dipper arcing down towards the north whilst pointing to it the North Star suspended over the hills towards Oxford. Orion to the south of the Castle has never looked so clear, Mars resolutely marking the sky whilst Arcturus, one of my earlier lockdown stars, has entirely left my evening walks and is now below the horizon. I can only see the stars because it is so dark to match the deeper darkness we have had this year and, as I walk, looking back in time and hoping for the future, I am reminded of a few lines from Henry Vaughan:
“I saw Eternity the other night,
Like a great ring of pure and endless light,
All calm, as it was bright.”
In fact, I also saw a shooting star, a moment which is so exciting although I rather need Sir Patrick Moore to tell me what they are exactly. Equally we have an apparent conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn which may have showed the three kings, the Magi, the road to Bethlehem, portents to use wisely.
It is, I suppose, such good clear evenings which, today, allow Father Christmas (or Santa Claus) deftly to steer his way across the roof tops, calling the reindeer by name:
“Now, Dasher! Now, Dancer! Now, Prancer, and Vixen!
On, Comet! On, Cupid! On, Donner and Blixen!”
Without forgetting Rudolf of course.
Last Friday we shared our Christmas Virtual Cocktail Party with Santa Claus as our very special guest. I did check the chimney beforehand to make sure it was swept but then forgot and, later that evening, thought we should light a fire for a little warmth on a winter evening. Geordie thought that was very funny and illogical as Santa would definitely have got slightly toasted which would not have been a good idea. In the end we were sure the front door was a better option, not to mention a more encouraging place to leave carrots for the reindeer. Santa Claus duly arrived bearing Highclere Castle Gin just in time to make the cocktails.
Christmas brings together celebrations at the darkest time of the year. It is just past the Winter Solstice of December 21s and, although it was superimposed on a much older tradition, it was the Roman Emperor Aurelian who named it “dies Natalis Solis invicti” (the birth of the invincible sun) which eventually became our Christmas day of December 25th. Marked by celebration and ritual, it was a festival of light (and gin cocktails had they known) and therefore perfect for the Christian story.
However, it is also a time to find resolution as we travel through these winter days hoping for gifts from Santa Claus -Happy Christmas.
Lady Carnarvon, Happiness, Peace and Hope for everyone in the New Year. With Kind Regards, Cheryl
Thank you Cheryl – and to you!
Dear Lady Carnarvon, may you and your family have the most blessed and safe and happy Christmas you can have this year. You have brought us so much joy and happiness each monday morning with your delighful blogs, that it has taken away from all of the bad news that we have been receiving we all look forward to receiving it. A safe and healthy New year. Sincerely. Desiree Creary.
Happy New Year to you too!
Wishing you a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New year
Good Morning EVERYONE!!
I am just stopping in to wish ALL of you people, guest, Landlords, a very warm and Merry Xmas, and most exciting New Year!!1
Regards,
John L. Roberts
Amherst, N.Y….U.S.A.
Happy Christmas and a New Year which helps us go forward rather than in reverse…
Have a happy and healthy Christmas and New Year.
Brilliant post….there is a lot happening on this day in the upcoming night sky…..21/12/2020
The 2020 winter solstice sees the peak of a meteor shower coincide with an extremely rare conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn. Jupiter and Saturn will appear just 0.1 degree apart – roughly equivalent to one fifth of the moon’s diameter.
The convergence of the two gas giants, known as the Great Conjunction, will be the closest the two planets have appeared together since 1623. Both planets will appear to the naked eye as a single bright entity, leading some to refer to it as a ‘Christmas Star’ due to its timing.
I am looking forward to this evening!
Wishing you and yours and Highclere a Merry Christmas and a healthy and Happy New Year! Thank you for your posts through the year.
Thank you – Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
Love your posts, I find them so uplifting in these difficult times. Thank you. Wishing you and your family a safe and Happy Christmas. Hopefully I’ll be able to return to Highclere at some stage in 2021.
Best wishes to you all
This is the darkest part of the year in all ways
Happy Christmas to you and yours. I love getting your weekly missive. Thank you.
Enjoy the festivities and especially the gin!
Thank you for you inspiring blog and fabulous photographs…..very magical skies and Santa is looking good. Merry Christmas and happy New Year to you and your team..
Yes and a Happy New Year to you
Good morning,
Finally found your gin in Texas. Can’t have a drink until Christmas Eve due to a current medication I am taking. Where can I find your cocktail recipes? Happy Solstice to all!
Holly
Wonderful – they are on http://www.highclerecastlespirits.com
Have a Happy, Merry and Blessed Christmas and New Year !!!!
Merry Christmas All!
Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas!
Wishing you all a very merry Christmas and a happy new year.
I have just re read your beautiful Christmas at Highclere ,which I purchased after our visit to Highclere in August 2019 and we watched the new documentary last night…..it was like putting sound to the book ! I love Christmas and to help decorate the castle would be a dream. I go rather overboard with traditional victorian decorations, but in mid summer here in NZ in a average house it’s not the cold,frosty or snowy Xmas I grew up loving in England. ! I will come and visit at Xmas one day, if we can ever travel freely and safely again. Sally.
We are passed the darkest hour – we will all travel again… perhaps more thoughtfully!
Ce site est vraiment magnifiquement administré.
Bonnes fêtes de fin d’année.
Étienne Delvaux.M.M.G
Merci – Bonnes fêtes de fin d’année!!
Dear Lady Carnarvon
I wish you the best Christmas day you can have despite the restrictions we must respect.
I wish you also that you have been recovering your business your visitors are coming again.
To be honest you you I regret not have received a photo of you next your portrait. I would be very honourable.
My best regards
Eduardo Santisso
You are the kindest – thank you. Happy Christmas!
Merry Christmas, dear lady Carnarvon! You truly are an amazing renaissance woman in the most magnificent sense of the word. Here’s to you, and to all your beloved!
Elizabeth
Happy Christmas to you and your family
Lovely Christmas journal! Always enjoy your inscribed history which you weave so gently into your writings. Emperor Aurelian’s name for the Winter Solstice could also be “(the birth of the invincible SON.) I KNOW! He certainly did not mean “son,” but it seemed to fit. Just brought a Christmas chuckle. They didn’t know about gin and they didn’t know about The Son. Your Highclere gin sits under my Christmas tree as a very special gift. Only just now able to have it shipped to Louisiana.
Certainly a light shining in the darkness.
Thank you – I hope the gin is a spiritual help!!!
Lady Carnarvon,
Thank you so much for your travel commentary through the evening and early morning skies! It is always so amazing and glorious to wonder as we wander through the skies – especially tonight – which will be in the English skies before we in North Carolina will view the planets align.
We wish you, your family and staff, and all in our troubles world a wonderful Christmas and a more hopeful 2021!
Martha G
Hope – faith hope and charity
May this Christmas be special and I’ll join you spying those planets tonight.!
The winter sky pictures are absolutely gorgeous!! Thank you for sharing! I wish you and your family a Very Merry Christmas Very Happy New Year!!
They are uplifting I think – taken by Sam and Maggie who help with the horses
Loved Patrick Moore’s sky at night when I was a kid .. he was also very good on the xylophone if I remember rightly. May I wash all at Highclere a very happy Christmas and a prosperous 2021 xxx.
Thank you – Happy Christmas
Thank you Lady Carnarvon for a year of Pleasant and Thought Provoking Blogs and Pictures. A most Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
May the New Year bring Happiness to All.
I think a sense of relief we are still here and a little time to reflect. Happy Christmas
Dear lady carnarvon,yes Patrick Moore made you enjoy the programme as he made everything interesting and clear sky’s are great for Santa to bring gifts for the children and this next year to get back to normal Christmas wishes to you all alice
I think it wise to spend more time looking up at the night sky, than looking down at our feet, as Hawking once said, and we shall enjoy the wonders of the universe and not mind so much the difficulties of this Covid Era. May the New Year, 2021, bring much happiness and good health to all, and may you and all the staff at Highclere have a most Merry Christmas!
Thank you -Happy Christmas
Merry Christmas to you and your family Carnarvon.
How beautiful. (I could go for husband in a big way), Happy Christmas the you and your family
Happy Christmas
This evening !
Dickens BBC 4 8pm
6 sprouts a day. keeps the virus away.
Thank you Lady Carnarvon for your marvelous Monday morning correspondence. In a year that has been challenging and difficult for all, I find myself eagerly awaiting to read your words as a way of making sure that all is well in your home.
We so enjoyed visiting Highclere, and hope to return as soon as travel once again becomes realistic and safe. Meantime, I am reading Christmas at Highclere, and thoroughly enjoying “The Steinway Piano” story. What a fun evening that must have been!
Looking forward to a happier 2021. Merry Christmas!
Welcome to the Monday club! Happy Christmas
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
I wish I was as knowledgeable as you regarding the stars and planets in the night sky. It seems I can make any star configuration the big or little dipper. ☺️ I do love looking up and seeing all the twinkling stars and shining planets, as well as the moon. It is just so peaceful. I hope your holiday is spent peacefully with your family. Here’s to a better more sociable 2021.
Merry Christmas,
Pam
Merry Christmas Pam
A Happy Holiday to all at Highclere, and I will toast to a much happier 2021 for all. I was planning to come from the States to Highclere with some others in Spring of 2021, but unfortunately the Covid vaccine news isn’t as good as one would hope. And some in the group are uncomfortable with a commitment. But still want to enjoy springtime at Highclere! Can you tell me yet if your openings/event schedule might be the same in Spring of 2022?
Merry Christmas to you and your family Lady Carnarvon.I apologize for the errors in my message. Was trying to correct my first mistake and I ended up not getting right a 2nd time. Happy New Year also.
Wishing you a Happy Christmas!
Dear Lady Carnarvon, Thank you so much for this and for all your weekly blogs during 2020. They have been so varied and always a delight.
My old Dad, sadly no longer with us, was also an amateur astronomer and rarely missed Patrick Moore’s Sky at Night programmes. He made his own fairly large telescope, stand as well, and as children my brother and I were shown views of the moon and planets throughout each year. We had to stand on a box to reach the eyepiece until we grew! In later life when my Dad didn’t have stamina for the garden on cold nights, he turned his attention to sun spots which have to be reflected on to card because of course it’s dangerous to look directly at the sun. He used to make his own graphs and send his findings to a university professor in Southern Ireland each month. I’m sure he would have loved looking at today’s computer images.
Nowadays I still treasure those stargazing memories and retain a fascination for the heavens.
May I wish you all a very Merry Christmas despite our COVID tiers. I shall be wishing on a star for a better time for us all in the New Year.
I will wish on a star too for a better 2021
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
I look forward to Mondays to take your mini trip to the land of my great grandparents. Many of us in America are particularly looking forward to a new year for the vaccine and…new beginnings.
Also to see my grandchildren again for the holidays in Boston. This year we will Face time, but it’s not the same.
Hope you will be able to see your “bubble” and shower them with joy and love. “If the fates allow” has taken on an even more uncertain meaning this year. But, we shall keep the faith and not despair. Merry Christmas to you from Houston. Stay safe!
Holly Rigby
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Happy Christmas and New Year to you all.
Cheryl Lewis
Happy Christmas Cheryl
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Merry Christmas to you, your family, and to all you hold dear. May peace, joy, and hope fill your heart as we celebrate Christmas and welcome the new year!
A very Merry Christmas to you and Lord Carnarvon–May 2021 find everyone happy and healthy and hopefully what is “Back to Normal”. Your wonderful Blog has kept lots of us going onward every Monday. Hopefully we will be back to England in the near future and come visit Highclere again. We so love that part of the country and miss our trips there. Please stay safe and keep us uplifted for 2021.
Stay safe and Have a Happy New Year
Ginger Winger
Happy New Year!
Monday morning with a cup of tea and reading your blog is my new “start the week” ritual, here in chilly but sunny Arizona. I so enjoyed our visit to your beautiful home last year, hosted by Julia who took such good care of us, meeting us for tea and a chat. We have celebrated many Downton inspired events at my tea room, and will hope for more in the future!
Thank you for bringing a cheery “bit of brit” to my home in the Southwest…time to walk my own 4 dogs now! Happy Christmas. Jo Gemmill & the English Rose Tea Room. Xxx
My dear Lady,
I love to read your blog, here in a very silent Bruges. Hope to come next year to visit your magnificent house and gardens. But first we have to struggle with aunt Corona and mister Boris’brexit. Meanwhile stay close in your bubble.
Hugo MOEYAERT, Bruges (Belgium).
The rich reds and jewel tones in the Highclere interiors make for the most jolly setting for Christmas decorations, and are a joy to see.
I thank you for these writings and for the wonderful Highclere Gin ‘cocktail parties’ which helped a dear friend and me feel we were escaping to a most elegant social event during the early days of the pandemic. And the Gin is on order!
I do hope your wonderful blogs are being duly archived for the days, perhaps one hundred years hence, when someone decides to write a biography of the most lovely and hard working 8th Countess of Carnarvon.
Much love to you and the Earl from an admirer in New York, NY, USA. ❤️
Merry Christmas and a more pleasant New Year for us all! May God crown us with good health and Spiritual wealth!
Wishing all a blessed Christmas together with health and happiness in the New Year!
Amy, Jim Merritt (pianist) and I “joined you” for the cocktail party on Friday evening. Delightful and such fun to enjoy the beautiful Highclere salon again, even virtually.. Merry Christmas!
Cocktail Evenings are always fun!
Wishing you and your family and especially your beautiful dogs a very Happy Christmas and a more prosperous New Year!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
I loved watching the Sky at Night with Sir Patrick Moore, I am also looking forward to tonight, hopefully the sky up here in Yorkshire will clear for us to see, it’s being very miserable and foggy.
Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New year, hopefully 2021 can only get better.
Enjoy the Sky tonight.
Best wishes
Lorraine.xx
Happy Christmas to you also. Hoping for clear skies this evening in the middle US.
We sure do orient ourselves to the stars. I am from the US and on my first trip to the Southern Hemisphere (Australia) I’ll never forget my shock and delight at seeing the constellation Orion upside-down! I suddenly understood how far away from home I was.
The holidays bring us together, even though we can’t travel right now. Merry Christmas from across the Pond!
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
May I confess that, inspired by your letter and “Monday Family” comments from two weeks ago, I cleared out more than one area ABC store of every Highclere Castle bottle on their shelves and have been giving them as holiday gifts to special people and business clients? May these, along with suggestions to check your website for cocktails ideas, including joining the Highclere virtual cocktail party, spread Highclere Castle joy in ever enlarging circles!
Best wishes to you and all those whom you love for a joyous Christmas and holiday season, and a wonderfully abundantly happy and prosperous New Year, successful in every way!
Just ordered four bottles of your wonderful gin for friends. We’ll have a great time enjoying the holidays and think of Highclere castle!
Your home is a place where dreams reside. I so enjoyed my visit there in
2018.
Happy Christmas and joyful New Year.
I have been watching the solstice at Stonehenge online and also enjoying the conjunction photos sent to me from my friend in Thailand. Tonight I will take my telescope out after sunset to watch the conjunction here in Nevada. I took an astronomy classes in college but didn’t realize it was in the physics department. My first homework assignment dealt with two mountains 1 mile apart, the second with a mirror on it. Using a very bright flashlight and the return of the light from the mirror, the assignment was to prove the speed of light. Of course this was a hypothetical question because an experiment like this was impossible under regular circumstances but still a interesting way to prove a most important concept. People have always enjoyed looking at the stars and planets. I like to think when I look at them here that other people I know and love in other parts of the world are sharing those same stars and planets with me. Here’s to brighter days and nights ahead in 2021.
Gayle Kludt,
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
thank you for bringing Patrick Moore back to us. I spent a few happy evenings in my youth at the Star Gazer pub in Selsey, named after Selsey’s most famous resident. I am hoping the clouds will clear so I can see the stars tonight, but I don’t think they will. Stars are so fascinating, and I often wonder if there are other beings like us out there, looking up at their night sky and seeing our sun just one tiny star amongst thousands. Quite humbling.
Wishing you and your family and everyone in the Monday club, a very happy Christmas! It may be quieter than normal, but just as special and full of comfort and joy! I hope 2021 brings us all some relief from the virus and we can all get back to normal. Good health everyone!
Jane
Heartfelt thanks for these beautiful posts Lady C! Always such a treat to read and the photos are always just stunning. You bring joy to so many people.
A happy, healthy Christmas to you and your family.
Warmest Wishes from Switzerland
Wishing you and yours the most joyful of Christmases! This post, as are all of them, was a delight to read. Our village did a Light Up event on Saturday–200 blocks lined their sidewalks with luminaries (sand filled paper bags with tealights)-it was beautiful. Tonight, I’m looking forward to look for the juxtaposition of planets (aka, the Christmas Star) and hoping the sky is clear to see it. And Thursday night–Christmas Eve. How could so much joy be held in one week?
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
I love this post! It is one of your best. Thank you so much for bringing some light into our lives. It rather makes the dreariness of the world news a little less dreary. The pictures are simply gorgeous and up lifting.
I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a much better New Year!
Many thanks for bringing me out of the doldrums.
Diana Squibb
South Florida
Thank you for being a member of the Monday Club!
Wishing you a Happy Christmas
Lady Carnarvon-
Thank you for another beautiful blog. You are a role model for “Never give up!”
Merry Christmas wishes from two loyal members of The Monday Club,
Robin and Steve Schroffel
Williamsburg, Virginia
How incredibly kind Robin and Steve – with all best wishes to your family in Williamsburg and I often think back with much fondness of when I visited
MY DEAR LADY CARNARVON,
GOOD EVENING,
WISHING ÝOU AND YOUR FAMILY AND STAFF OF THE CASTLE A HAPPY CHRISTMAS.
COCKTAIL, EVENING FRIDAY ARE ABSOLUTELY STUNNING
THE BUTLER LUIS COELHO IS A MANWEARING, A DIVINELY ATTRATIVE MAN, IN HIS COCKTAILS. BRAVO!!!
VILA ALEMÃ
RIO CLARO – SP 36°CELSIUS THE SUMMER IS THE BEST OF THIS YEAR
BRAZIL .
Thank you – Luis is such fun and very skilled!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Your comment about spending time this year looking at your feet to concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other is ever so profound. Indeed, this year has confronted us with so many things we can’t do but, for me, the unexpected result is that it has made me even more grateful for the things that we can do and focus on the real blessings. Therefore, I am now looking forward to this being a very meaningful Christmas season. Thank you for your continued dedication to recognizing the contributions and sacrifices of previous generations. Having had the privilege of meeting you, I know how genuine these efforts are on your part. May the events of this year have made us more aware of what we have now because of those previous generations.
Keep up the good work,
Deidre Vick
It is a marvellous world and it is easy to take every day details for granted when they are far from ordinary
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
As I am writing this, (10:00 am Pacific Time), you have probably already seen the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction! How wonderful! Today is my son’s birthday, and we will be using our telescope to watch this beautiful sight. As we end this year of 2020, we have become stronger and more aware of our blessings. One of those blessings is your weekly blog, reminding us to live in the now and to be thankful for what we do have. I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas!
We do need resolution – we have so many challenges here and seem to have compounded them!
Just because I’m usually one of the last to respond (being in Montana) doesn’t mean my wishes are less heartfelt! I enjoy being able to read all the other Monday Club responses, too, so that works out. All the very best sent your way this holiday season. We have our fingers crossed that this Covid thing clears up in time for our scheduled visit this Summer. Our skies have not cooperated here and we have a low overcast – not conducive to sky watching so we missed the Aurora Borealis show a few weeks ago and now the Christmas Star! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Margaret
Thank you – I enjoy reading them all and others read them all and do not post!
Thank you, Lady Carnarvon, for this lovely piece. Christmas has been, and will always be, my most favourite time of year. Though it’s a tad lonelier than usual, it still brings me joy and hope for a brighter future to come.
Merry Christmas to all, and to all a lovely good night!
Jeffery S.K.
Happy Christmas and a New Year…..!
Thank you so much! A Happy New Year to you and yours as well!
With very best Christmas wishes to you and your family for a wonderful holiday. Looking to a healthier 2021, with hope and anticipation. Thank you for the wonderful newsletters that brighten every Monday. Merry Christmas.
Margo Letourneau
New Hampshire
Thank you – Happy Christmas!
Two major events in my world today: the Christmas star and Lady Carnarvon’s blog! Thank you for this bright star on a Monday morning. Happiest of Christmases to you and yours! My wish on the star is for a safe and healthy world for us all!
That should be from Patricia Hoffman. Spellcheck ♀️
I agree – a healthier world in every way
Living in the US, I have never heard of The Sky At Night, until now. I will search and try to see if I can get it on some platform here in the US. What a sad and tragic story about Patrick Moore losing the love of his life, and at such a young age too. Lady Carnarvon, you are so very fortunate to live in such a magical place. I’ve always had this fantasy about living somewhere in England – a house in the country or someplace wonderful in London – either one, I wouldn’t complain. Wishing you, Lord Carnarvon, and your entire family a very merry Christmas and a very happy 2021!
Thank you – Happy Christmas!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Wishing you and Lord Carnarvon a Happy Christmas! I just finished reading your wonderful book, “Christmas at Highclere” and am recommending this to all readers hear. It’s is a wonderful book, full of the histories of all our Christmas traditions, recipes I long to try, and of course, sumptuous and beautiful photos. I truly did not want it to end! Thank you for your careful research and delightful writing. You have such a talent.
Roberta Fox
Chicago
How very kind you are – I hope it is a book for every year, I loved writing it
Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year to your family….and hug the dogs for me.
I will hug the dogs – we had a lovely rainy walk this morning
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Wishing you and Lord Carnarvon a most Merry Christmas! and a most Prosperous, Happy, and Healthy New Year in 2021. I am so sorry I missed the virtual cocktail evening on Friday. I hope our sky clears enough here in Montana so we can see the special alignment of Jupiter and Saturn this week. May it light all of us to a better time in the New Year. Stay safe,
Iris Butler
Happy Christmas
Your post reminds me of the wonderful opportunity we had recenty in Chile to have a TOTAL ECLIPSE in the South of this beautiful country. In between lakes, volcanoes and dark green forests and rivers, people gathered with masks and all the sanitary measures to watch this unique event. The rest, the one that did not live there, were able to see on TV with such clarity and beauty. My cats that were happy in the sun (it is Summer here) went running to sleep in their beds when sudden night came in and then, when the light returned, they went back to enjoy the sun. Amazing!
It sounds extraordinary
Thought that you where in Wales with the name but I see south of Newbury.probably quite dark around there as I did a nocturnal hike once from Hungerford to Great Bedwyn along the canal and it had some beautiful views of the stars.also a tad further west at Avebury I’ve been stargazing a few times.Speaking of Carnarvon, Wales they are just next door to the Snowdonia National Park which is a Dark Skies Park.the Isle of Anglesey was trying for dark skies status too but when I last went through there on the train for the Holyhead Dublin ferry I aspied a lot of blazing horrible floodlights a various points.
I love the dark skies too a line from Yeats – And a softness came from the starlight and filled me full to the bone.
Dear Lady Carnarvon:
Thank you for your Monday blog.
I appreciated learning about Mr. Patrick Moore, and looking at the beautiful nighttime sky pictures around the Castle.
Today, it is too cloudy here in Dearborn, Michigan, so we won’t be able to see the Bethlehem Star. Local weather forecasters are stating that a viewing will be possible later this week.
I did attend last week Friday’s cocktail party. Cute story about Santa Claus, the fire, and fireplace. You were wearing a beautiful shawl over your cocktail dress. I am curious, it is Pashmina? If so, from where?
Also, I did watch the Dreams drawing on Sunday. I hope the four contestants who won will be able to travel for the events acquired.
Until next week, I wish you, Lord Carnarvon, your family, and everyone at the Castle a Happy Christmas.
Perpetua Crawford
P.S. I did send you an email last week. Perhaps someone could respond to my inquiries.
How kind you are – I have quite few shawls or pashminas as the Saloon just has the fire..I did not see an email [email protected]
Dear Lady Carnarvon:
Email was sent to noted address on December 13, 2020, at 05:23 p.m. EST.
Please check the Inbox Junk, and Spam.
I will re-send now.
Thank you.
Perpetua Crawford
I will check too!
Thank you dear Lady Carnarvon – and of course your wonderful “crew”, for lightening the load this year. We too were hoping to see the “Bethlehem Star” last night, but we’ve had heavy rain & cloud cover all week. We did see saturn & venus close together, hanging in our western sky a week ago, just before the rains came. Stunningly beautiful. My husband took a photo, and we could see the tiny moons. No doubt someone will have a wonderful photo for us all.
Anyway, may the good Lord continue to bless and keep you all. Happy Christmas from Tamborine Mountain Australia, with love, Anne.
Stay safe and well – “May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the palm of His hand.”
Merry Christmas to all! Speaking of the sky at night…tonight down here in Georgia USA I plan to catch a glimpse of the Great Conjugation as Jupiter and Saturn nearly overlap. And to all a Good Night!
A Happy Christmas and sleep well! We are all under the same heavens..
I love your blogs and look forward to reading them every Monday. Merry Christmas to you and your family and may you have a Happy New Year too!
Thank you and A Happy Christmas!
Slightly off-topic I guess, but that temple in the park is so lovely and dramatic. Is there a reason it never appeared in a scene of Downton Abbey? (at least, I don’t think it did!)
A Happy Christmas and a RENEWING New Year to all!
Dan, Iowa
It did !!! A hunt scene..
We enjoy your beautiful, informative posts so much. Yes, tonight is going to be a special viewing of our wonderous sky here in Oklahoma USA. It will make this Christmas season most pleasant.
Have a Very Merry Christmas and a much needed Happy New Year to all!!
Happy Christmas and here is to the new year!
Lovely post ! Thanks for sharing your hospitality and home with us.
Wishing you and your loved ones a Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas and see what 2021 brings!!
Happy Christmas! May 2021 make up for this year’s losses. Cheers!
Wishing all at Highclere a wonderful Christmas,and may 2021 bring peace,good heath,and a speedy return to a “normal” world.Thank you for all the podcasts and interesting newsletters.
Cheers Terry and Jenni
Thank you so much – Happy Christmas
Lady Carnarvon,
I just finished reading all the posts as I was intrigued by the comments of so many being entranced by the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction. I went out at 6:20 pm (EST) and they were “brightly shining.”
Thank you again for sharing your prose and poetry with your readers. You start my week off just right.
Again, many wishes for a happy and holy season, and a new year that will hopefully bring the world better health and calmer times.
Martha G
Thank you – may we all find calmer and safe waters
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Thank you for another ‘illuminating’ message which was perfect for tonight! I saw Jupiter and Saturn as they approached their alignment through binoculars. Though it was still very small, the special occasion was not lost on us. It gave us a renewed appreciation for all that we have, the heavens, and the earth and how we should take care of the planet we live on and the atmosphere above us.
Merry Christmas to you, your family, and the Highclere family! And praying for a much brighter and happier 2021. God bless us all!
Ada
I enjoy your blog stories and beautiful photos on Monday mornings. Thank you for them. Wishing you all well, and to be able to be with family for Christmas, depending on your tier!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Alas, it was cloudy here in the Northeastern USA, so the meeting of the planets was obscured. Several weathermen/women have hinted that it might be visible for a couple of days. We shall see.
The words of Henry Vaughn capture the peace and reassurance we so need right now. We will prevail and the world will come right again.
I wish you and your family a healthy and peaceful Christmas. Thank you for all the insight, beauty, and humor, you bring to us each and every week. Love the words, love the photos, and I also love your Highclere Gin! It has been a wonderful discovery that is shared with family and friends.
Cheers, and God Bless!
Best regards,
Charlotte Merriam Cole
Happy Christmas
Dear Lady Carnarvon
I love this Monday Club, the writings from you and the comments from those who post. I hope you all have a lovely Christmas despite the restrictons Covid has forced upon us.
On Christmas Eve in Australia I shall look towards the sky in wonderment of the universe, watching carefully for Santa and his sleigh and thinking of you all wherever in the world you are…………and how much Gin you are imbibing!!!!!
Stay safe, reach out to your friends and neighbors in phone calls and I wish you one and all the Blessings this season brings
Joy Roebig
Thank you so much Joy – you too, stay safe and well
Lady Carnarvon,
This truly has been a year many would say they would like to forget.
We try to keep busy being quarantined, and having such wonderful informative blogs from you, truly makes our weeks go so much more smoothly. We have looked forward to each and every one, and will only hope that even though we are fast approaching the New Year- you will have new and even more wonderful stories, pictures and even recipes to share very soon!
Thank you ever so much! We pray you will both have a Healthy and Happy 2021! Seasons Regards, Jane Hrabak
PS. Geordie, I was always led to believe Father Christmas came in through the windows!
Thank you so much Jane – you too, stay safe and well
Down here by Los Angeles the sky was clear and the conjunction was lovely. I could watch the two planets as they approached. With a telephoto lens, the camera saw it even better – Saturn’s rings show up so beautifully. The dogs (a poodle and a terrier, on the other hand, were so bored by the whole thing – couldn’t understand why I wanted to walk further up the hill.)
Up here in the hills, it looks like Christmas is going to be chilly and quiet and clear, so I can at least see Orion (my “winter” stars). I wish you the same.
Permission to paint your sky of night sunset above? I’m always looking for great photos to paint in order to hone my craft of painting.
I would be absolutely thrilled – I look forward to seeing the result