We planned to go to Burghley on Friday. For years Burghley has been open daily throughout the summer. I decided to have a look at the website, and discovered that it is now closed on a Friday. This was Thursday evening: the children and the picnic were prepared, so a hasty change of destination was in order. Belvoir, Grimsthorpe, Sledmere, Burton Constable and several others within reasonable distance are also closed on Fridays - choice between Burton Agnes and Brodsworth, or something other than an historic house. Burton Constable was chosen.
This is one of my favourites: a lived in family home with a beautiful garden. It also has the largest privately owned collection of post-impressionist paintings in the north of England, although I have to say that the post impressionist genre is not actually a favourite of mine. I know that both Jess and Joel have been here before, but what seems quite recent to me is a lifetime away when you are only 12 and 13, and I did spot dawning memories as we went round the garden (possibly last time they came they were so small that we went round the house in batches leaving the babies with whoever was staying outside). This time they played in the games garden after going round the house. Giant Snakes and Ladders was the favourite . . .
Here they are at the entrance
and looking at the old manor house, and Joel (practising for his role as the Artful Dodger in November) explaining the treadmill.
These are my two favourite sculptures (one indoors and one out).
The boy with the dog used to sit outside the main entrance, but some philistine stubbed out his cigarette on the dog's head, so he was brought in for safety (he is resin, not bronze). Joel especially likes him as he reminds him of Big Dog, their Rhodesian Ridgeback who died earlier this year, and his younger brother Callum. The girl in the fountain in profile is the spitting image of Joe as a little boy of 4 or 5.
Lastly, a perfect end to a lovely afternoon - children doing what children do best . . .
They waited until the area was free of genuinely little kids before playing on the fire-engine only slightly tongue in cheek.
