the BRIT LIST WHAT TO DO WHERE TO GO WHAT TO BUY
at a manor house 5
Attend a music festival
Ellys Manor House, a Tudor wool merchant’s house in Lincolnshire, is hosting a Schubert festival 23-25 April with the award-winning Finzi Quartet and other artists. The manor, with its distinctive Flemish-infl uenced crow-stepped gables, is well worth a visit in its own right; concerts start at 4pm each day. Tel: Stamford Arts Centre (01780) 763203;
www.ellysmanorhouse.com.
2 Spend a night at the museum
There’s an after-hours celebration of British arts and culture taking place 14-16 May right across the country, with more than 200 events scheduled, plus extended opening hours. From historical houses to art exhibits, museums to festival-style culture crawls, there’s something for everyone. For details:
www.culture24.org.uk/museumsatnight.
3 See a pig in a play
A new musical opens 19 March at the Novello Theatre in London, about planning a royal wedding in a time of austerity – in this case 1947, when Britain has won the war, but is burdened with acute rationing, unemployment, and the coldest winter in decades. The story, based on the film A Private Function by Alan Bennett, revolves around the little pig Betty, illegally reared so the local dignitaries can celebrate Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip’s wedding with a banquet, while the plebs make do with Spam. Starring Sarah Lancashire and Reece Shearsmith (below) – and Betty the pig – Betty Blue Eyes should be a real British delight. Tel: 0844 482 5138;
www.bettyblueeyesthemusical.com. – Bruna Zanelli
4 GO GIFT SHOPPING
The National Trust is launching its Spring 2011 range of gifts with a bigger focus on gear for the great outdoors, designerware for the kitchen, and handcrafted works by British artists. Worth having a look if you want to get kitted out to explore the countryside, play boules in the garden, or find the perfect present for a friend. On sale online and at National Trust properties.
www.national
trust.org.uk/ shop.
6 Fall for spring flowers
Springtime in Britain brings some stunning sights. One of the dreamiest is that of the carpets of bluebells that transform woodland areas from mid-April through May. Hole Park in Kent (right) is a particularly spectacular example, with a dedicated bluebell wood that turns into a sea of gently nodding violet-blue flowers in the spring. Burncoose Gardens in Cornwall is another excellent place to visit, as is Rydal Mount in Cumbria, where William Wordsworth lived for much of his life, and saw his famous “host of golden daffodils,” in a similar season. Coton Manor Garden in Northamptonshire and the National Trust-managed Ashridge Estate in the Chiltern Hills are equally beautiful bluebell destinations in the heart of the country.
www.holepark.com;
www.burncoose.co.uk;
www.rydalmount.co.uk;
www.cotonmanor.co.uk;
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-ashridge.
www.britain-magazine.com
PHOTO: HENRY LAMBOURNE, ISABEL LAMBOURNE, “A SPOOKTACULAR NIGHT”/ELLYS MANOR HOUSE/LEIGH CLAPP
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100