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Wrotham Park, Hertfordshire
Wrotham Park (pronounced , ) is a neo-Palladian English country house in the parish of South Mimms, Hertfordshire. It lies south of the town of Potters Bar, from Hyde Park Corner in central London. The house was designed by Isaac Ware in 1754 for Admiral John Byng, the fourth son of Admiral George Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington, and remains in the family at the heart of a estate. It is one of the largest private houses near London inside the M25 motorway. Its distinctive exterior has been used over 60 times as a filming location. The house is listed as a Grade II* building on the National Heritage List for England, and its landscaped park and gardens are Grade II listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. History Originally part of an estate known as ''Pinchbank'' (also ''Birchbank''), first recorded in Middlesex in 1310 and owned in the 17th and early 18th centuries by the Howkins family, the property passed to Thomas Reynolds, a director of the South Sea Company ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
English Country House
image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhouse (Great Britain), town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these people, the term distinguished between town and country. However, the term also encompasses houses that were, and often still are, the full-time residence for the landed gentry who dominated rural Britain until the Reform Act 1832. Frequently, the formal business of the Historic counties of England, counties was transacted in these country houses, having functional antecedents in manor houses. With large numbers of indoor and outdoor staff, country houses were important as places of employment for many rural communities. In turn, until the Great Depression of British Agriculture, agricultural depressions of the 1870s, the est ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brownsover
Brownsover is a residential and commercial area of Rugby, Warwickshire in England, about miles north of the town centre. The area is named after the original hamlet of Brownsover. Since 1960, the area has been subsumed by the expansion of Rugby, with the construction of a number of housing estates, industrial estates and retail parks. 'Old' Brownsover The original hamlet of Brownsover still exists, to the west of A426 "Leicester Road". It was originally a hamlet within the parish of Clifton-upon-Dunsmore, and was mentioned in the Domesday Book as "Gaura". In 1932 it was incorporated into the borough of Rugby. In 1931 the parish had a population of 391. Brownsover Hall is situated here, this country house was rebuilt in the Victorian era by the Ward-Boughton-Leigh family who were the principal landowners in the area. The hall has now become a large hotel and conference centre. Brownsover Hall is also where Frank Whittle developed the jet engine in the 1930s. The hamlet als ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King Ralph
''King Ralph'' is a 1991 American comedy film written and directed by David S. Ward and starring John Goodman, Peter O'Toole, and John Hurt. The film is about a fired American lounge singer who becomes the unlikely King of the United Kingdom after an electrical accident wipes out the British Royal Family. The story is loosely based on the 1980 novel '' Headlong'' by Emlyn Williams. Very little of the story survived the transition to the screen; characters were changed and the story made into a comedy. The film was a minor box office hit but was received negatively by critics. Plot The entire British Royal Family who are the house of Wyndham is electrocuted and killed in a freak accident outside Buckingham Palace while having a royal portrait taken following a rainstorm. Sir Cedric Willingham leads a search for any surviving heirs to whom to pass the crown. After days of searching, a living heir is found: American Ralph Jones. Shortly after being fired from his job as a lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jeeves And Wooster
''Jeeves and Wooster'' is a British comedy television series adapted by Clive Exton from P. G. Wodehouse's "Jeeves" stories. It aired on the ITV network from 22 April 1990 to 20 June 1993, with the last series nominated for a British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series. Set in the UK and the US in an unspecified period between the late 1920s and the 1930s, the series starred Hugh Laurie as Bertie Wooster, an affable young gentleman and member of the idle rich, and Stephen Fry as Jeeves, his highly intelligent and competent valet. Bertie and his friends, who are mainly members of the Drones Club, are extricated from all manner of societal misadventures by the indispensable Jeeves. When Fry and Laurie began the series, they were already a popular comedic double act for their regular appearances on Channel 4's '' Saturday Live'' and their own show ''A Bit of Fry & Laurie'' (BBC, 1987–95). In the television documentary ''Fry and Laurie Reunited'' (2010), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inspector Morse (TV Series)
Endeavour Morse, George Medal, GM, is the namesake character of the series of "Morse" detective novels by British author Colin Dexter, a Detective Chief Inspector in the Thames Valley Police in Oxford, England, Oxford, England. On television he was portrayed by John Thaw in a 33-episode drama series, ''Inspector Morse (TV series), Inspector Morse'' (1987–2000), and by Shaun Evans in the (2012–2023) prequel series ''Endeavour (TV series), Endeavour''. The older Morse is a senior Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officer, while the younger is a detective constable rising through the ranks with the Oxford City Police and, in later seasons, the Thames Valley Police. Morse presents, to some, a reasonably sympathetic personality, despite his sullen and snobbish temperament. He is known for his classic Jaguar Mark 2 (a Lancia in the early novels), thirst for English real ale, and love of classical music (especially opera and Richard Wagner, Wagner), poetry, art and cryptic c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White Mischief (film)
''White Mischief'' is a 1987 British period crime drama film directed and co-written by Michael Radford. It dramatises the events of the Happy Valley murder case in Kenya in 1941, wherein Sir Henry “Jock” Delves Broughton was tried for the murder of Josslyn Hay, 22nd Earl of Erroll. The film stars Greta Scacchi, Charles Dance, Joss Ackland, Sarah Miles, Geraldine Chaplin, Ray McAnally, Murray Head, John Hurt, and Trevor Howard. The screenplay is based on the non-fiction book '' White Mischief: The Murder of Lord Erroll'' (1982), by James Fox, which originated from a newspaper article published in 1969.''White Mischief: The Murder of Lord Erroll'', by James Fox, Vintage Books, 1998, Shooting took place on-location in Kenya and at Shepperton Studios. At the 42nd British Academy Film Awards, the film was nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (for Joss Ackland) and Best Costume Design. Plot Throughout the Second World War, aristocrats in the Kenya Colony' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Top C's And Tiaras
''Top C's and Tiaras'' is a television program, featuring operetta and musical comedy, that was broadcast on Channel 4 television in the United Kingdom between April 10, 1983, and June 3, 1984. It featured performers such as Julia Migenes, Marilyn Hill Smith, Peter Morrison and Benjamin Luxon. It was devised and produced by Neil Anthony, and made by The Bright Thoughts Company. Production Most of the programme was recorded on location at Wrotham Park, in Hertfordshire. Both the house and grounds were used for performances, and singing was accompanied by a live orchestra, under the musical direction of Harry Rabinowitz and Burt Rhodes. All performances were sung live, without the use of dubbing, and without an audience. The director for the series was the television entertainment veteran, Bryan Izzard. Other performers involved in the series included Laurence Dale, Della Jones, Harry Nicoll, Jill Washington, Jean Bailey, Hugh Hetherington, Neil Jenkins, Eirian James, David ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Byng, 2nd Earl Of Strafford
George Stevens Byng, 2nd Earl of Strafford, PC (8 June 1806 – 29 October 1886), styled Viscount Enfield between 1847 and 1860, of Wrotham Park in Middlesex (now Hertfordshire) and of 5 St James's Square, London, was a British peer and Whig politician. Origins Byng was the eldest son of Field Marshal John Byng, 1st Earl of Strafford (1772–1860) by his first wife, Mary Mackenzie. Military career In 1822, after graduating from the Royal Military College, Byng joined the 29th Regiment of Foot as an ensign by purchase. In 1825 he transferred to the 85th Regiment of Foot as a lieutenant and was promoted to captain in 1826, in which rank he served in the 60th Rifles. In 1837, after he had begun his political career, he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the part-time Royal West Middlesex Militia. On the death of the regiment's colonel in 1844 Byng succeeded to the command. His eldest son, the Hon George Byng, was commissioned as his lt-col on 30 October 1853. He retired from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Byng, 1st Earl Of Strafford
Field Marshal John Byng, 1st Earl of Strafford (1772 – 3 June 1860) was a British Army officer and politician. After serving as a junior officer during the French Revolutionary Wars and Irish Rebellion of 1798, he became Commanding Officer of the Grenadier Battalion of the 3rd Regiment of Foot Guards during the disastrous Walcheren Campaign. He served as a brigade commander at the Battle of Vitoria and then at the Battle of Roncesvalles on 25 July 1813 when his brigade took the brunt of the French assault and held its position for three hours in the early morning before finally being forced back. During the Hundred Days, he commanded the 2nd Guards Brigade at the Battle of Quatre Bras in June 1815 and again at the Battle of Waterloo later that month when light companies from his brigade played an important role in the defence of Château d'Hougoumont. He went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Ireland and, after leaving Ireland in 1831, he was elected as Whig Member of Parli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Candide
( , ) is a French satire written by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment, first published in 1759. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled ''Candide: or, All for the Best'' (1759); ''Candide: or, The Optimist'' (1762); and ''Candide: Optimism'' (1947). A young man, Candide, lives a sheltered life in an Garden of Eden, Edenic paradise, being indoctrinated with Gottfried Leibniz#Theodicy and optimism, Leibnizian optimism by his mentor, Professor Pangloss. This lifestyle is abruptly ended, followed by Candide's slow and painful disillusionment as he witnesses and experiences great hardships in the world. Voltaire concludes ''Candide'' with, if not rejecting Leibnizian optimism outright, advocating a deeply practical precept, "we must cultivate our garden", in lieu of the Leibnizian mantra of Pangloss, "all is for the best" in the "best of all possible worlds". ''Candide'' is characterized by its tone as well as its erratic, fantastical, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Voltaire
François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778), known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' Voltaire (, ; ), was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, philosopher (''philosophe''), satirist, and historian. Famous for his wit and his criticism of Christianity (especially Criticism of the Catholic Church, of the Roman Catholic Church) and of slavery, Voltaire was an advocate of freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and separation of church and state. Voltaire was a versatile and prolific writer, producing works in almost every literary form, including Stageplay, plays, poems, novels, essays, histories, and even scientific Exposition (narrative), expositions. He wrote more than 20,000 letters and 2,000 books and pamphlets. Voltaire was one of the first authors to become renowned and commercially successful internationally. He was an outspoken advocate of civil liberties and was at constant risk from the strict censorship laws of the Catholic French monarchy. H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia versus Kingdom of France, France and Habsburg monarchy, Austria, the respective coalitions receiving by countries including Portuguese Empire, Portugal, Spanish Empire, Spain, Electorate of Saxony, Saxony, Age of Liberty, Sweden, and Russian Empire, Russia. Related conflicts include the Third Silesian War, French and Indian War, Carnatic wars, Third Carnatic War, Anglo-Spanish War (1762–1763), Anglo-Spanish War (1762–1763), and Spanish–Portuguese War (1762–1763), Spanish–Portuguese War. Although the War of the Austrian Succession ended with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), none of the signatories were happy with the terms, and it was generally viewed as a temporary armistice. It led to a strategic realignment kn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
