Christmas in Narnia! Bridgerton’s Castle Howard takes inspiration from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe as custodians try to entice visitors after revealing they face a £50million conservation deficit
- The Baroque masterpiece Castle Howard doubled as Kensington Palace in the ITV blockbuster Victoria
- Mansion, on the North Yorkshire Moors, was also the home of the Duke of Hastings, in Netflix’s Bridgerton
- Now, its current custodians have revealed they are facing a £50million conservation deficit on the house
It is one of Britain’s greatest stately homes and has been a favourite location for film producers since it was catapulted into the public eye as the home of the aristocratic Roman Catholic Marchmain family in the 1981 TV series Brideshead Revisited.
The Baroque masterpiece Castle Howard doubled as Kensington Palace in the ITV blockbuster Victoria, starring Jenna Coleman as the monarch, and was the country seat of the Duke of Hastings, in Netflix’s period drama Bridgerton.
Now, its current custodians The Honourable Nicholas Howard, 69, a photographer, and his wife Victoria, have revealed that they are facing a £50million conservation deficit on the 18th mansion, which has 145 rooms spread across two wings.
Over the past four months, they have opened the doors twice to film companies, in order to fund vital repairs on the 300-year-old ancestral seat, on the North Yorkshire Moors, which has been ravaged by fire, wind and rain. They’ve also transformed the home into a Christmas in Narnia themed event.
The Baroque masterpiece Castle Howard (pictured, decked out ready for Christmas) doubled as Kensington Palace in the ITV blockbuster Victoria, starring Jenna Coleman as the monarch, and was the country seat of the Duke of Hastings, in Netflix’s period drama Bridgerton
Now, its current custodians The Honourable Nicholas Howard, 69, a photographer, and his wife Victoria, have revealed that they are facing a £50million conservation deficit on the 18th mansion, which has 145 rooms spread across two wings. Pictured, They’ve transformed the home into a Christmas in Narnia themed event
Over the past four months, the couple (pictured outside their home) have opened the doors twice to film companies, in order to fund vital repairs on the 300-year-old ancestral seat, on the North Yorkshire Moors, which has been ravaged by fire, wind and rain
The revelations come after the castle received a £5million ‘lifeline’ from the Government to maintain the 13,000-acre estate, which costs £10 million-a-year to run and retains more than 100 staff.
During lockdown Castle Howard, which is crammed full of treasures including historic sculptures and Old Masters by Joshua Reynolds and Thomas Gainsborough, was forced to close its doors to its 250,000-a-year visitors and find other ways to raise money.
Firstly, they invited TV host Nick Knowles to film their £1million project to replace the entire East Wing roof, restore the Arts & Crafts mural inside the dome and repair the pediment and carvings on the portico, for his Quest series Heritage Rescue.
Afterwards, Channel 4’s Christmas at Castle Howard followed designer Charlotte Lloyd Webber, a member of the theatrical clan, as she transformed 12 staterooms and quarter of a mile of corridors into scenes from the CS Lewis fantasy novel the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
The revelations come after the castle (pictured recently) received a £5million ‘lifeline’ from the Government to maintain the 13,000-acre estate, which costs £10 million-a-year to run and retains more than 100 staff
During lockdown Castle Howard (pictured during its Narnia themed event), which is crammed full of treasures including historic sculptures and Old Masters by Joshua Reynolds and Thomas Gainsborough, was forced to close its doors to its 250,000-a-year visitors and find other ways to raise money
Firstly, they invited TV host Nick Knowles to film their £1million project to replace the entire East Wing roof, restore the Arts & Crafts mural inside the dome and repair the pediment and carvings on the portico, for his Quest series Heritage Rescue. Pictured, their Christmas event in the mansion
Afterwards, Channel 4’s Christmas at Castle Howard followed designer Charlotte Lloyd Webber, a member of the theatrical clan, as she transformed 12 staterooms and quarter of a mile of corridors into scenes from the CS Lewis fantasy novel the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (pictured)
She recreated the bedrooms of Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie, who were evacuated to the countryside from London after outbreak of WWII, and the wardrobe door leading to the fictional land Narnia (pictured at the mansion)
She recreated the bedrooms of Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie, who were evacuated to the countryside from London after outbreak of WWII, and the wardrobe door leading to the fictional land Narnia.
‘Obviously we’ve had a difficult 18 months,’ Victoria, 67, a former CEO of publishing giant Harper Collins, told Channel 4.
‘We’ve been closed a lot so we’re really hoping that a bumper Christmas will seriously help. We thought about just doing an outside Christmas but we thought we would go back and do the full-on inside Christmas because the house just screams for something big.
‘You’ve just got to milk it as much as possible really. There’s a £50million conservation deficit on the place. It’s incredibly expensive to keep up.
‘Obviously we’ve had a difficult 18 months,’ Victoria, 67, a former CEO of publishing giant Harper Collins, told Channel 4. Pictured, one of the dining rooms at the home
Victoria added: ‘We’ve been closed a lot so we’re really hoping that a bumper Christmas will seriously help. We thought about just doing an outside Christmas but we thought we would go back and do the full-on inside Christmas because the house (pictured) just screams for something big’
‘The only way we can do all that is by trying to turn it into a business. It’s a worry as to how we’re going to get these buildings restored and prevent further damage.
‘I used to sometimes feel it took up an inordinate amount of Nick’s time worrying about it. It’s weighed heavily on him all his life. He doesn’t know any different, put it that way.’
Castle Howard was designed by Sir John Vanbrugh between 1699 and 1811 for the 3rd Earl of Carlisle and the Howards are the ninth generation of his family to live at the castle.
The house was virtually destroyed in 1940 and his father George inherited a burnt-out shell on the death of his brothers during World War II, opening up the house to visitors to restore it to its former glory.
Castle Howard was designed by Sir John Vanbrugh between 1699 and 1811 for the 3rd Earl of Carlisle and the Howards (pictured) are the ninth generation of his family to live at the castle
The house (pictured decorated for Christmas) was virtually destroyed in 1940 and his father George inherited a burnt-out shell on the death of his brothers during World War II, opening up the house to visitors to restore it to its former glory
Nick said: ‘We’re very lucky. To live in a house (pictured) like this is just amazing…We always feel is important that it is a family house and it’s lived in by us still. There is beauty all around you. Every day probably I notice something or see something that I had forgotten about.’
In a real-life drama, the Howards, who have been married since 1992, took over the running of the estate in 2014 from Nick’s younger brother Simon, 65, and his second wife, Marks & Spencer heiress Rebecca.
Simon was found guilty of historical child sex offences last month and was given an absolute discharge because brain damage he recently suffered in a fall at home meant he was unfit to stand trial.
Nick said: ‘We’re very lucky. To live in a house like this is just amazing…We always feel is important that it is a family house and it’s lived in by us still. There is beauty all around you. Every day probably I notice something or see something that I had forgotten about.’
Christmas At Castle Howard is screened at 9pm today (December 15) on Channel 4. Nick Knowles Heritage Rescue is at 9pm on December 22 on Quest.
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