The Prime Minister’s puppet mistress Carrie Johnson’s latest PR spin campaign yet again illustrates her deviancy suggests Matthew Steeples
Let’s be frank: Carrie Symonds (AKA ‘Princess Nut Nuts,’ ‘Carrie Antoinette’ and ‘Costly Carrie’) is famous simply for being Boris Johnson’s latest baby mama, but now she’s well and truly upping her antics and most definitely wants a hell of a lot more.
This weekend, this wine chucking wench and one half of ‘The Convenient Catholic Couple’ used the G7 summit to implant not only herself but also her child firmly into a convention where no other politician foisted their brats into the photo ops. Here was a woman with one agenda: Making herself the centre of attention.
In addition, the new Mrs Boris Johnson plainly made a point of getting Downing Street spin doctors to share that she hadn’t actually bought costly clothes, but instead hired them. Was this something the public actually needed to know at an event that was meant to be about discussing global issues? I think not, but Carrie, desperate to rid herself of the ‘Antoinette’ moniker she so deserves after bingeing on expensive Daylesford delicacies, will PR on regardless.
What’s “in” for Carrie Symonds…
“Chatty rat” Henry Newman singing ABBA and dancing the tango with this particularly bonkers bestie.
Dining dashes to Daylesford (courtesy of ‘Lady Doors To Manual’ Carole Bamford’s credit card).
“Borrowed clothing” to suggest she’s “ordinary.”
Pushing her child into any photo opportunity possible so as to make a point that her kid is more important than her hubby’s other legitimate and illegitimate brats.
What’s “out” for Carrie Symonds…
Anything from “nightmarish” John Lewis. Too “Theresa Maybe Not” for our Carrie, of course.
Anything connected with her number one hater, Dominic Cummings, can take a trip to Barnard Castle via a visit to SpecSavers.
Anybody who dares to criticise the antics of her out of control dog, Dilyn will make her “go crackers” … Don’t dare make Carrie “furious” with even a single remark – even if the dastardly dog pisses all over a visitor’s handbag.
Any talk of her associations with Ghislaine Maxwell and far right ex-boyfriends involved in the Traditional Britain Group.
In December 2020, ‘The Steeple Times’ highlighted: “Whilst Denis Thatcher happily took a back seat and parked himself in a corner with a stiff G&T and Norma Major steered clear of anything to do with curried eggs, Symonds is increasingly showing herself as the Lynda Snell of Downing Street.”Aside from her obsession with attention, the former Carrie Symonds counts working for a charity that was funded by the mucky madam Ghislaine Maxwell on her somewhat dodgy CV.The then Carrie Symonds with her then boyfriend Oliver Haiste (sometimes spelt ‘Haste’), an alleged hoaxer of fake news about Russia according to the BBC. Of his then “public relations specialist” on-off lover, the ‘Mail on Sunday’ declared: “his own three-year relationship with the young woman at the centre of Britain’s latest political storm involved an electrifying dose of dramatic and often fiery conflict… ‘We had quite a tumultuous relationship,’ he admits today. ‘I found when times were good with Carrie they were great – they were fantastic. When times were bad they were awful. It was a highly passionate relationship. And I don’t mean that in a salacious, physical sense. I mean in terms of emotional context – very emotionally charged. It’s the most up and down relationship I have had,’ Haiste continues, choosing his words carefully. Today, describing their relationship for the first time, he paints an intriguing portrait of a ‘high-octane’ partnership with a woman as passionate as she is intelligent.”The Prime Minister’s spouse previously dated a man associated with spreading fake news whom was also involved in the Traditional Britain Group – a sick, far right organisation that has expressed a desire to hang Baroness Lawrence, the mother of a murder victim, from a tree. ‘Britain’s 3rd Loose Woman’ also partook in a play where she dressed as a crack whore whilst at university. Is this someone the nation really wants representing it on the world stage?
Will wine chucking Boris Johnson baby mama Carrie Symonds go the same way as the ‘Carrie’ of creepy crooner Sir Cliff Richard’s 1980s song?
Described on his ‘official’ YouTube channel in the comments section by some as “magical” and “one of his greatest hits” in spite of being frankly weird, a seriously strange video of Cliff Richard singing ‘Carrie’ on The Kenny Everett Video Show is something that could sum up what could soon happen to Carrie Symonds next.
Focused on the lyrics “Carrie doesn’t live here anymore” as the contemptible Christian crackpot ‘Cliffy’ croons in the mist outside a café-bar, the continuation with “Carrie used to live on the second floor… Sorry that she left no forwarding address… That was known to me, Carrie” could soon apply to Boris Johnson’s latest baby mama.
Quite deservedly under fire as to failing to explain who really funded payment of the vast £200,000 bill caused by Peter Jones loathing Miss Symonds’ demands for a quite unnecessary makeover of their perfectly habitable Downing Street flat, Boris Johnson – who still faces an ongoing inquiry also into who paid for the December 2019 Mustique holiday nearly 16 months later also – is on the ropes. Like Teflon, he may bat these investigations away, but with his “psychopath” nemesis – as some have branded him – Cummings having “gone rogue,” this time things are beginning to stick.
Of the imaginary ‘Carrie’ in the 1980 song – written by ‘Devil Woman’ songwriter Terry Britten – all-round oddity Sir Cliff told the Mail on Sunday in November 2008:
“It’s a mysterious song because you never really know what it’s about. A guy turns up in the neighborhood asking where Carrie is. The very last line goes: ‘Carrie doesn’t live, doesn’t live…’ You’re left thinking: ‘Is she dead? Has she been murdered?’”
Now, with public outrage turning up the heat in ‘Costly Carrie’s’ Westminster lair, will this ‘Modern Day Lady Macbeth’ puppet mistress ‘survive’ her “date with her own kind of fate”? Some might think that, but we couldn’t possibly comment.
Creepy Cliff & Costly Carrie 2021 – The March 1980 screening of Cliff Richard singing ‘Carrie’ on The Kenny Everett Video Show. Of the song, one fan, Tim Roxborough, cringeworthily declared: “Late 70s/early 80s songs like ‘Dreamin,’ ‘Carrie’ and ‘We Don’t Talk Anymore’ aren’t just hits, nor are they just catchy pop tunes. Vocally, Cliff is singing much higher and with far greater emotion and elasticity than what he did in the 50s and 60s. If you’re prejudiced, pretend ‘Carrie’ isn’t a Cliff Richard song and its hook, its groove, its paranoid lyrics and its clean production make it a worthy music cousin of Marvin Gaye’s ‘I Heard It Through The Grapevine.’” We’d argue to the contrary: It’s frankly just creepy.Creepy Cliff & Costly Carrie – Sir Cliff Richard and Carrie Symonds share a penchant for hooch and holidays. Equally, they both share a liking for making things up and being the centre of attention. Examples of such behaviour includes Miss Symonds’ temper tantrum over being called ‘Princess Nut Nut’ by Dominic Cummings and Sir Cliff’s “young man, go f**k yourself” rant after supposedly being “duped” into describing his own wine as “tainted and insipid” by Gordon Ramsay in June 2006.Creepy Cliff & Costly Carrie – The similarities between Boris Johnson’s latest baby mama and the creepy Christian crooner continue in the design department. Whilst Miss Symonds likes curious colour concoctions that wouldn’t look out of place in the home of Edina Monsoon in the comedy ‘Absolutely Fabulous’ (left), Sir Cliff favours décor decisions that would most definitely appeal to dictators and despots such as Saddam Hussein and Nicolae Ceaușescu (right).
Creepy Cliff & Costly Carrie – Both Sir Cliff Richard and Carrie Symonds take the attitude of the late, great Ian Richardson in the original (and better) television adaptation of Michael Dobbs’ ‘House of Cards’ and respond to any criticism with his infamous: “You might very well think that, but I couldn’t possibly comment.” Perhaps, if Tory sleaze does indeed engulf his administration, puppet mistress Miss Symonds and her hapless hubby-to-be may find themselves forced into taking a very ‘Long Summer Holiday’ soon too.
2015 Rolls-Royce Wraith converted to a ‘Spectre’ shooting brake by automotive genius Niels van Roij for sale for 157% more than it originally cost
A modern day ‘shooting brake’ is effectively just a “sexier” ‘estate car’ if you’d believe Car Wow, but an adapted one-off Rolls-Royce Wraith version that is to be auctioned later this month with an upper estimate of nearly £500,000 is definitely more than appealing.
Named in honour of the 2015 James Bond film Spectre, the big-booted two-seater to be offered by Bonhams is the creation of the Niels van Roij Design studio – whose £256,000 coachbuilt 2018 Range Rover ‘Adventum Coupé’ we featured in March 2020.
Based on a Rolls-Royce Wraith produced in mid-2015 and first registered in the UK in January 2016, the original car – which had around 11,100 miles on the clock – was last serviced in 2018 and then subjected to an 18-month £260,000 conversion that makes it “one of the costliest cars ever made.”
Driven just 125 miles in the time since, the vehicle is described as being “in excellent condition throughout” and because of the coronavirus pandemic has not been exhibited publicly until now.
Of it, its creator, who worked with Belgian firm Carat Duchatelet to build it, remarked: “The elongated lines signal masterful craftsmanship and exquisite style. A manifestation of Grand Touring in its purest form.”
In a series of videos shared on YouTube in October 2020, Niels van Roij remarked:
“The car has been named after the image of a shadow, a ghost, a spirit if you’d like and has been styled by Niels van Roij Design… As you can see, the car has been styled with a certain sense of drama that harks back to the heydays of shooting brakes in the 1930s.”
“We’ve also overseen the construction process, as we do with all our coachbuilt cars… The outcome is an original design and also historically relevant… The new bodywork allows for very different proportions [that are]… very sculptural.”
“The Silver Spectre shooting brake is strictly limited to only seven examples [since changed to just one] worldwide and it is available with the largest starlight headliner boasting a world’s first celestial infinity nightscape.”
“The Silver Spectre has also been equipped with an increased power output giving a total of 700 horsepower.”
‘The Spectre Shooting Brake’ will be auctioned by Bonhams at their ‘Les Grandes Marques à Monaco’ sale in Monte Carlo on 23rd April.
The Numbers – The Spectre Shooting Brake
23rd April 2021 – Offered at auction by Bonhams in Monaco with an estimate of £320,000 to £480,000 ($440,000 to $660,000, €370,000 to €550,000 or درهم1.6 million to درهم2.4 million).
2018 – 2020 – Cost of conversion estimated to be £260,000 ($360,000, €300,000 or درهم1.3 million) giving a total cost for the creation of circa £448,000 ($618,000, €515,750 or درهم2.3 million).
Base price in 2013 for the original mid-2015 car – £187,000 ($258,000, €215,750 or درهم949,000).
Aside from having ‘suicide doors,’ the shooting brake has a lavishly appointed interior that features highly polished woods and colour matched leather.The boot is large enough to accommodate shotguns, golf clubs or simply a picnic even.A unique picnic hamper trunk comes with the vehicle.The car also features plates from Niels van Roij Design’s studio.Here is a one of one shooting brake that nobody else will ever own. It has been subjected to an increase in power and torque output of the 6.6 liter twin-turbo V12 engine. The standard 632 hp and 800 Nm (or max 870 Nm of torque for Black Badge) has been increased to 700 hp and 900 Nm.
In this video, shared on YouTube, Niels van Roij explains what inspired him to create the car. Going further, on his own website, he added: “We envisioned a daring, three-box rather than two-box shooting brake aesthetic and with that a convention-challenging design. The car features very English proportions inside and out, and uncompromised levels of luxury.”
The tedious twerp formerly known as Meghan Markle has had her maiden name turned into both a verb and a noun – go get ‘Meghan Markled’
Last week, both the Guardian and The Sun revealed a note of amusement in the context of the otherwise tedious familial feud between the devious Duchess of Sussex and her fobbed-off father in sharing that the walk-away royal has had her maiden name turned into a verb.
Whilst The Sun predictably mocked this trivial story at a time of a lack of news other than coronavirus, the Guardian’s “social justice” focused columnist Poppy Noor unsurprisingly lauded “to Meghan Markle” – or as she somewhat soppily put it, “to get the hell out [when] love is not returned.”
Noor went further and, in a decidedly ‘woke’ fashion, added of the Duchess of Sussex’s decision to head off to the land of profit in LA: “You could understand why Meghan Markle, who opted out of royalty this month after a year of being hounded and vilified by a racist, rightwing press could be referred to in some circles as the patron saint of good mental health” and shared a definition
“Meghan Markle, a verb, past tense – Meghan Markled: to value yourself and your mental health enough to up and leave a room/ situation/ environment in which your authentic self is not welcomed or wanted.”
Elsewhere previously, in January 2018, the Urban Dictionary took another view on what being ‘Meghan Markle’ and being ‘Meghan Markled’ means. They suggested it to be a “noun for coming up nicely despite your family’s socio-economic status.”
Putting it in context, they gave an example:
“A: I wonder how Lisa is doing. I haven’t spoken to her since her family drama situation. Poor thing.”
“B: Girl, she’s engaged to a Russian billionaire now. She Meghan Markle’d her way to the top!”
We’ll leave it to you, good readers, to decide which you prefer, but one thing’s for sure the saga of the attention obsessed ‘Modern Day Mrs Simpson’ and her row with the media: It isn’t going to end any time soon.
Word of the Week 2021 – ‘Meghan Markled’ – The Duchess of Sussex has most definitely ‘Meghan Markled’ her way to the top and, along with her drip of a husband, is cashing in with huge payments from projects with Apple, Disney, Netflix and Spotify amongst other things.
1987 Volkswagen Golf cabriolet – nicknamed ‘Rodney’ – previously owned by ‘Only Fools and Horses’ actor Sir David Jason to be auctioned; sadly, of it, even Del Boy couldn’t claim: “Just one lady owner from new”
Del Boy’s Golf cabriolet – An alpine white 1987 Volkswagen Golf GTI Karmann convertible purchased for Sir David Jason’s late partner, Myfanwy Talog, is to be auctioned later this month, It was subsequently owned by his manager, Sidney Law, and then by his children’s godfather, John Williams.
Unlike the vehicle most associated with the character most famously played by Sir David, the custard yellow Reliant Regal van driven by Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses, the Golf cabriolet that will be hammered down is described as “in sparkling condition, patently cherished and almost certainly a best of breed.”
Sir David Jason and his late partner Myfanwy Talog (1944 – 1995).Del Boy was himself best known for driving a Reliant Regal three wheeler van in the series. There are many replicas, but the original vehicle used by the BBC was sold for £42,000 ($55,000, €47,000 or درهم203,000) in November 2017.Prior to becoming famous Sir David Jason used to joke: “One day, one day I’m going to have a Rolls-Royce.” In Only Fools and Horses, he eventually got one complete with the plate ‘1 DEL.’Boycie, played by John Challis in the series, bought a Jaguar E-Type in the second ever episode of Only Fools and Horses in 1981. Of this birthday gift for his “bit on the side,” he stated: “It’s only E-Type Jaguars and Adam Peaty that makes me proud to be British these days.” In May 2013, interviewed in ‘The Steeple Times,’ Challis stated his personal preference for Aston Martin DB4s.When sold in December 2017, the Golf cabriolet offered this month came with various documentation including a file that stated its nickname as ‘Rodney’ alongside a quote that read: “This car has a longstanding association with David Jason and his family – naturally we call him ‘Rodney.’”
Sold for £17,820 ($23,439, €19,739 or درهم86,080) in December 2017 by Classic Car Auctions Everyman Classics and by Cotswold Classic Car Restorations on another occasion, the car – which was one of just 138 examples produced as part of Volkswagen’s limited edition all-white series – has just under 22,000 miles on the clock.
Silverstone Auctions will offer the car with an estimate of £18,000 to £22,000 ($23,700 to $28,900, €19,900 to €24,400 or درهم86,900 to درهم106,300) at their NEC Classic Live online auction on Saturday 14th November 2020.
In ‘Only Fools and Horses,’ Del Boy was prepared to trade anything – dodgy cars included. “Only one previous owner, a vicar” and “only left his bible in the glove compartment” were amongst the lines in this classic clip.
Images of a red squirrel fighting a pheasant for hazelnuts and bird seed are proof that both creatures can be quite feisty
Red squirrels are sadly rare in Britain today, but proof that they’re anything but timid was shown in photographs shared in the MailOnline this morning.
In the images, a red squirrel is pictured in a “dramatic fight” with a pheasant over some nuts and of it speaking to the paper’s Isabella Nikolic, photographer Louise Phillips remarked:
“I rented the hide [at Blairgowrie, Perthshire] for the day to try and see the red squirrels. The pheasant just sauntered in to get in on the food. There were some hazelnuts but the pheasant was eating some bird seed that had also been left out.”
“The squirrel wasn’t happy with the pheasant in his face. It was the squirrel that attacked first and the pheasant jumped and clawed back in reaction. It lasted just seconds then the squirrel backed off.”
“I think it realised it had bit off more than it could chew. I didn’t quite believe what I saw – I was quite surprised.”
In December 2015, we featured an equally wonderfully wacky image of a great tit posing for a camera manned by a red squirrel and today remind readers of the sporting spirit of these fine creatures.
The squirrel put up a good fight, but eventually was forced to back off.Our December 2015 ‘Picture of the Week’ showed a great tit posing with a red squirrel with a camera.
Matthew Steeples questions why Alan Dershowitz is getting so enthusiastic in his defence of the vile paedo procurer Ghislaine Maxwell
Those of us that knew the late Claus von Bülow (1926 – 1929) and those that watched Reversal of Fortune – the superb film portrayal of his two trials in connection to his alleged attempted murder of his heiress wife Sunny in 1980 (she eventually died after having been in a coma for over 27 years in 2008) – will of course recall his association with the rookie lawyer Alan Dershowitz.
In that film, Dershowitz is portrayed as a man who fights for the underdog; he’s a hero (in spite of whom he is defending), in fact. Now, years after morphing into a fully-fledged member of the establishment, it seems, this civil libertarian has sadly moved to the ‘dark side.’
In an article for the Spectator USA, published on Thursday, titled: “The Ghislaine I Know,” Dershowitz enthusiastically droned on about how he and his wife were “introduced to Ghislaine Maxwell by Sir Evelyn and Lady Lynne de Rothschild.” He continued: “We subsequently met her… generally in the presence of prominent people such as Bill and Hillary Clinton, Nobel Prize-winning scientists, presidents of universities, and prominent academic and business people” (thus hinting that this made the paedophile procurer actually ‘respectable’).
Dershowitz – himself a man accused, but not convicted, of offences linked to Epstein and Maxwell – demanded ‘Bouncing Bob’s’ daughter be “like every other arrested person, she must be presumed innocent” (which is fair enough), but then proceeded to trash victims the monster Epstein had already been convicted of abusing.
Continuing with his “everyone should keep an open mind about Maxwell” angle, the lawyer illustrated himself to be utterly out of touch. As the financier Euan Rellie, described as “a British investment banker who knew Maxwell in both London and New York” in a Vanity Fair article about Thursday’s arrest, tweeted Friday: “This guy @AlanDersh is protesting way too much.”
Pictured top: Ghislaine Maxwell with Prince Andrew at Royal Ascot in 2000; Alan Dershowitz with Jeffrey Epstein at Harvard in 2004.
Another friend coming to the ‘Murky Mucky Madam Maxwell’s’ defence – Ghislaine Maxwell’s “friend” Christopher Mason told the ‘New York Post’ on Saturday: “Do I think she’s in danger. Yes. In a way, I can’t imagine her ever giving up Prince Andrew, but if it’s life imprisonment with no hope of parole, it might be tempting. She of all of those people knew who slept with whom and [which young girl] was assigned to whom.” Mr Mason – who has performed songs in honour of Donald Trump and Kim Kardashian’s arse – continued: “I’m sure she has access to the videos. A lot of powerful people will be more than a little worried. I hope [Maxwell won’t] end up like Epstein. I’m a little worried about that. I think she’s in danger. There is too much power involved if she really talks.”Fresh from being interviewed by ‘Vanity Fair’s’ Mark Seal about Ghislaine Maxwell on Thursday, Eton and Cambridge educated financier Euan Rellie took to Twitter on Friday in the wake of Alan Dershowitz’s ‘Spectator’ article. He quite correctly observed: “This guy @AlanDersh is protesting way too much.”A Rolodex like no other – Ghislaine Maxwell’s tentacles reached everywhere. This octopus like woman is pictured here at a dinner in Miami Beach, Florida hosted by the controversial New York real-estate tycoon Aby Rosen (centre) with the fashion designer Calvin Klein (left) amongst fellow guests.
Alan Dershowitz was played by Ron Silver in the 1990 American drama film ‘Reversal of Fortune’ with Jeremy Irons as Claus von Bülow and Glenn Close as Sunny von Bülow. The 111-minute film grossed £12.3 million at the box office and was lauded for its “exceptional performances” and “cunning script.”
Crumbling Northamptonshire estate Lilford Hall – where the little owl was introduced to Britain – for sale for £10 million, a sum £35 million lower than in 2014
Grade I listed Jacobean mansion with 13 chimney stacks for sale for £10 million; it was for sale last for £44.9 million in 2014 in spite of being listed on English Heritage’s ‘At Risk Register.’
Lilford Hall – parts of which have not been occupied since 1947 –is currently owned by a businessman who tried to sell burial plots in the grounds for £1,250 a pop and shares in a yacht loosely associated with Frank Sinatra for £23 each.
The 321-acre estate includes not only overgrown parkland, but also a zoo with cages that formerly housed bears and a lake for flamingos.
From 1711 until 1990, Lilford House was the seat of the Powys family – the 4th baron is credited with introducing the little owl to the UK.
More recently, in 1969, the “sexual mystic” artist Penny Slinger used the at-the-time derelict mansion in one of her best-known works.
A 32,406 square foot Grade I listed Jacobean mansion 82 miles from Central London has gone on sale for £10 million – or the equivalent of just £308 per square foot.
On this basis, Lilford Hall – set in 321 acres near Oundle – seems a comparative bargain when considered against the £4,786 per square foot sought for a Lennox Gardens, Knightsbridge triplex flatThe Steeple Times featured in May, but buyers need to remember this – parts of this crumbling building, most notably the major state rooms, have not been used since 1947.
Marketed last in 2014 for the even more punchy sum of £45 million, the “exceptional residential and amenity estate located on the River Nene,” is now offered by agents Savills. The “wonderfully proportioned” U-shaped mansion itself is constructed of grey limestone and includes over 100 rooms and amongst them are 7 “impressive” reception rooms, a ballroom, a ‘great chamber’ and 9 bedrooms. In addition, there are two Georgian pavilions that were formerly coach houses and stabling, three cottages, a former zoo, the oldest private softball court in the world, a former flamingo enclosure and a deer park.
“Impressiveness in the chief attribute of Lilford Hall as a specimen of architecture” claimed County Life in 1990 and as the seat of the Powys family from 1711 until 1990, it became not only a Downton Abbey-esque entertaining pad, but also housed nurses in the Second World War. Here, indeed, is an English country house that has seen lavishness and decline and thankfully here is an example that thankfully escaped the wrecking ball wrought so disgracefully on such houses in the 1950s and 1960s.
Fascinatingly in the 1880s, Thomas Powys, 4th Baron Lilford filled his aviaries on the estate with rheas, kiwis, pink-headed ducks, free-flying lammergeiers and it was from here that he also introduced the little owl into the UK. There are said to be around 5,700 breeding pairs today, but sadly, according to the RSPB, their numbers are now in decline.
More recently, in 1969, “sexually erotic” performance artist Penny Slinger took over the by then “derelict” mansion in conjunction with the filmmaker Peter Whitehead. Their resulting work, titled An Exorcism, was exhibited internationally and in 2004, after the current owners, Charles and Aziza Micklewright, acquired the house, they did something equally avant-garde; they attempted to sell burial plots in the grounds to Americans by citing the estate’s connections to the founder of the Brownists, Robert Browne – a man better known as ‘The Father of the Pilgrims’ and ‘The Grandfather of the Nation’ (of the United States of America).
Whilst Mr and Mrs Micklewright were lauded for their considerable efforts towards the “huge task” of restoring Lilford Hall, they came to the attention of Historic England in May 2019 when the building was listed on the At Risk Register. At that time, the Oundle Chronicle reported: “The roof covering is in poor condition leading to water ingress and distress to the upper storeys. The front bays require structural attention. A schedule of urgent repairs has been identified but not implemented, and no long-term solution has been agreed.”
Now, someone with very, very deep pockets is required to restore this gem. It would be helpful if they liked erotic art, bears, squash and owls also.
The Names & Numbers – The Lilford Hall Estate, Lilford, Oundle, Peterborough, Northamptonshire, PE8 5SG, United Kingdom
June 2020 – The estate is listed sale for £10 million ($12.5 million, €11.1 million or درهم46 million) through Savills. It includes 321.31 acres, of which 148.17 acres are pasture land whilst 157.48 acres are woodland. The majority of the estate is held on a freehold title, whilst the remaining 127.6 acres – known as ‘The Linches’ and ‘Lilford Woods’ – are held on a lease with 91 years remaining.
2015 – Promoted as ‘The National Memorial Gardens,’ burial plots in the gardens of the hall were offered “available to any UK resident or national for an outstanding price of only £1,250 ($1,568, €1,393 or درهم5,758)” by Mark Bailey of Harley Investments. Around the same time, a website dedicated to Lilford Hall marketed “a piece of the formal gardens” for sale for £299 ($375, €333 or درهم1,377) to include “an officially certified ‘Squire of Lilford’ [title] … with this little piece of history.”
March 2014 – The Irish Times reported that the asking price for the estate had been increased to £44.9 million ($56.3 million, €50 million or 206.8درهم million). They claimed the agents Coldwell Banker blamed “confusion over currency conversion rates and new instructions from the owner.”
April 2014 – The Lilford Hall Estate is listed for sale through Coldwell Banker on MyHome.ie for £33.7 million ($44.2 million, €37.5 million or درهم155 million) on behalf of “an English gentleman.”
2004 – The estate is acquired by the Micklewright family. Little information is available online about the Old Framlingham Charles Micklewright (born July 1958), but he is described as a “patent attorney” on Companies Houses pages. The businessman is mentioned also as a publisher and trustee of the Marsh Christian Trust elsewhere, whilst his Singaporean born wife, Aziza (born 1964), was a director of Lilford Properties Limited from 2013 to 2018.
A website operated by Sign of the Times Limited, a Hong Kong company of Lilford Hall, Lilford, Oundle, Northamptonshire, PE8 5SG, currently offers shares in a yacht named ‘Sinatra the Voice’ for £23.91 ($29.99, €26.64 or درهم110.14) per share. The boat was built in 1956 and is tenuously linked to Frank Sinatra by the fact that a one-time owner, Beale Poste, loaned it occasionally to the crooner between 1968 and 1974 in West Palm Beach, Florida.
1990 – The estate is closed to the public.
1980s – The house is used as a location in the BBC English Civil War inspired historical drama series By the Sword Divided.
1970s – Aviaries on the estate restocked by George Powys, 7th Baron Lilford (1931 – 2005). He “opened [the estate] to the public as a leisure park” and housed more than 350 birds of 110 species there. It remained thus for around 20 years and included a restaurant and shop. The aviaries and the 1,896 square foot restaurant building remain present still today.
1969 – 1970 – American British “sexual mystic” artist Penny Slinger (born 1947) and Liverpudlian filmmaker Peter Whitehead used the “derelict mansion” as the setting for their works An Exorcism and Lilford Hall. They are lauded as a “photo romance” and exhibited at the Blum and Poe Gallery in Los Angeles in 2014, at the Haywood Gallery in London in 2015 and at the Fortnight Institute in New York in 2019.
1949 – Stephen Powys, 6th Baron Lilford (1869 – 1949) died without having married or having had children. His properties aside from Lilford – a house in Mayfair, Bank Hall in Lancashire and the Bewsey Estate in Cheshire – passed to his second cousin twice removed.
1947 – The estate is sold to a company named Merchant Ventures by the Powys family (though they remain present on the estate until 1990).
1939 – 1945 – During the Second World War, the parkland of the estate was used as a military hospital for nearby airfields. From 1949 to 1954, some of the buildings constructed during this period were then used as a Polish school.
1923 – First-class Northamptonshire cricketer Major John Powys, 5th Baron Lilford (1863 – 1945) built the first private softball court in the world in the grounds of the hall. It is now in disrepair and the roof has fallen into the inner court.
1909 – 1910 – The hall was extended in the Edwardian manner including the provision of a new master bedroom with dressing room and bathroom by William Dunn and Robert Watson of Dunn & Watson.
1901 – The estate surrounding the hall reaches its largest size and totals a vast 8,000 acres of land. Around this time, Queen Mary, wife of King George V, is said to have visited the gardens.
1880s – Ornithologist and expert on the fauna of the Balearics Thomas Littleton Powys, 4th Baron Lilford (1833 – 1896) introduces the little owl into England on the estate. His aviaries were said to “feature exotic birds from all around the world” and a species of European lizard, the Lilford’s wall lizard (Podarcis lilfordi), is named in his honour. The 4th baron is repeatedly mentioned in the works of Charles Darwin for his contribution to the study of the science of evolution.
1840s – Further changes to the building are orchestrated by the architect William Gilbee Habershon (circa 1818 – 1891). The Campaign to Protect Rural England described these Victorian extensions as “sensitive” in 2006 – a rare accolade given most additions to English country houses during this period were simply brash and vulgar.
1740s – The Palladian architect Henry Flitcroft (1697 – 1769) adds “outstanding” Georgian interiors whilst “respecting the hall’s Jacobean exterior.” He “softened and brightened” the building as a result and also “constructed the Georgian pavilions and additional storeys to the east end of the two wings.” Other works by Flitcroft can be seen at Bower House in Essex, Wentworth Woodhouse in Yorkshire and Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire.
1711 – Lilford Hall is sold to the judge and Tory politician Sir Thomas Powys (1649 – 1719), Attorney General to King James II. Powys is best remembered for conducting the prosecution of the Seven Bishops in 1699. He is buried at Lilford.
1630s – Construction of the main exterior of what to this day remains Lilford Hall as a “Jacobean-style gentry house” by William Elmes (the younger).
1473 – The land that forms the estate is acquired by William Browne (1410 – 1489), a wealthy wool merchant and landowner from Stamford, from the estate of Baron Welles (who was beheaded by King Edward IV for treason). In 1495, “in a Tudor style,” he built a hall on the site and it passed to Robert Browne (1550 – 1633), the founder of the Brownists, ‘The Father of the Pilgrims’ and ‘The Grandfather of the Nation’ (of the United States of America).
In spite of a judge rejecting evidence disclosure, Jeremy Bamber’s case now looks more likely to be reviewed by the Criminal Cases Review Commission; new podcast about the case begins Sunday
“If ever there was a case where the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) should be approached to make a decision on what is said to be new evidence, it is this one. This is a massively complex case which has been investigated and re-investigated by more than one police force over some 35 years.”
“The body of material is vast. After so many years, and so much litigation, the CCRC is the body undoubtedly best placed to consider the claimant’s arguments.”
We today urge readers to watch the YouTube video that follows. It examines the sequence of events on the night of 6th to the 7th August 1985 and for those interested in learning more, we also recommend listening to The White House Farm Murders: Is Jeremy Bamber Guilty? podcast by Kaiesha Page. It begins this evening and is available here.
Matthew Steeples suggests BBC Radio 4 has truly let itself down in having run out of episodes of ‘The Archers’ during the COVID-19 lockdown
Closet fans won’t admit it, but The Archers is an essential part of life for many in Britain and beyond. Be it tuning in for 15 minutes with a G&T before guests arrive for supper on a week night or splurging with the omnibus edition on a Sunday whilst preparing a hearty roast, this is a radio show that in April even had one of its many fan clubs “invaded by Nazis and pornography.”
Whilst it is understandable for the makers of television soaps – programmes that, after all, require all manner of social interaction in their creation – to have run out of episodes, one would have thought that the producers of The Archers would have had a plan to see themselves through a crisis.
Sadly, they didn’t and from the 3rd to 24th May no new episodes of the world’s longest running drama are being broadcast. Whilst the BBC think it perfectly acceptable to play reruns, many ‘Archers Addicts’ (myself included) have been left despondent and feeling like ‘Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells.’ After all, where’s Peggy Woolley and her wartime spirit when we most require this soapland matriarch?
