Richmond Park: Charles I’s Great Legacy

Isabella Plantation: Kurume Azaleas

Many would consider Charles I’s great legacy was his fabulous art collection of over 1500 pictures and 500 sculptures, sold off by Oliver Cromwell, and after the Restoration only partially reassembled by Charles II; but for me and many other … Continue reading

Hampton Court Palace: The Privy Garden ‘The Little Gentleman in the Black Velvet Waistcoat’

View from Queen Mary’s Bower Looking Towards the Palace

It was ‘the little gentleman in the black velvet waistcoat’ that led to the demise of William III and as a consequence the rapid decline of Hampton Court Palace’s great formal gardens. The little gentleman in question had pushed up … Continue reading

Me and my friend ‘Capability’……

Hammersmith’s Statue to Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown

Through much of my life, Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown has been just a few steps away from me……….I wonder how true this is for other people? Whilst a boy, I would pull my father’s golf trolley around Belton Park in Lincolnshire, … Continue reading