britain meets
The National Trust House Manager
I
magine this: a woman sits in a huge draughty room with a pile of cocktail sticks and cotton wool, carefully cleaning miniature porcelain ornaments. This is Liz Cooper’s idea of
bliss. As resident House Manager of the National Trust property Oxburgh Hall, Liz is responsible for the upkeep of the property as well as for managing a team of 220, including conservationists and volunteers. Built in 1482, Oxburgh is a romantic,
moated manor house near Kings Lynn, Norfolk. It is a beautiful example of a late-medieval Catholic house, complete with a private chapel and a secret priest’s hole. The entrance, reached by a three-arched bridge over the moat and a fortified gatehouse, is a not-so-subtle reminder of the owner’s status. Oxburgh Hall became
“In summer we do the bare minimum.
We clean each day after the visitors have left; we dust, vacuum and generally keep the house clean. But in winter when the house is closed we clean everything.” And everything really means everything:
every ornament, book and piece of furniture has to be dusted or polished. “I wear gloves when cleaning brass to avoid fingerprints,” Liz says, “but not when handling books. They make you clumsy and you could tear pages.” Her previous career in retail and window dressing makes her a particularly demanding task master when it comes to positioning pictures and ornaments: everything must be aligned precisely. Moreover, Liz is expected
Liz’s heart has
Liz’s home three years ago, after six years at Melford Hall in Suffolk, where she cared for the historic collections. Was she looking for such a role? “I fell into it. My boss at Melford suggested I applied. And if I didn’t, he threatened to drive me to the interview. He was certain I was the right person for the position!” I ask whether Liz ever has what could be
called a typical day. She laughs and quickly answers, “No! No two days are the same.”
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been stolen: by the sound of the library door’s ornate lock
to act as a handyman whenever an emergency occurs. If she can’t fix the plumbing herself, she needs to be able to find someone quickly who can. Living in such an antique
property is an unusual experience. Although she
does have the usual mod cons in her flat, there is no central heating, so it gets chilly in the winter. I ask if she’s restricted in the way she lives. “I live in a three-bedroom flat above the tea rooms with my two teenage children, so the only constraint is not to have wild parties that could disturb the visitors.”
The National Trust looks after more than 350 historic properties around Britain, in many cases by employing live-in house managers. Glynis Kozma talks to Liz Cooper, who takes care of Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk
Isn’t it lonely living in such a huge house?
“The House Steward lives here too, as do one or two other people who have connections with the property, so I am never here alone – which is handy if the alarms go off in the middle of the night and we wander about trying to discover why.” The Hall has 52 acres of grounds, including
the most wonderful herbaceous borders. Liz says she regrets not having a garden she can call her own, but adds “I love to walk through the archway and see the herbaceous border on the left, which looks wonderful throughout every season.” Does she use the garden as her own? “I can – but even when I am off duty I tend to be spotted by a volunteer who needs to ask me something.” With so many treasures surrounding her, I
imagine she must have a favourite. Perhaps the magnificent Antwerp Cabinet, inlaid with ivory and red tortoiseshell, which is currently undergoing restoration after the Trust raised the necessary £10,000? In fact, Liz reveals that her heart has been stolen not by an artefact but by a sound: the sound of the library door’s ornate lock as it is closed. As she puts the house to bed, Liz acknowledges that Oxburgh is a truly special home.
Oxburgh Hall (The National Trust), near King’s Lynn, Norfolk; tel: (01366) 328258;
www.nationaltrust.org.uk. Open: end Feb-Oct (garden, shop and tea rooms extended times).
www.britain-magazine.com
PHOTO: NTPL, NICK DALY
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