Holiday Season Trip 1 - Baddesley Clinton

We made a lovely trip in south-central England about a week before Christmas! Our first destination was Baddesley Clinton. The house was originally built in the 15th century on the site of a 13th century farmstead with the moat. Much of the current house was built by Henry Ferrers, a lawyer, diarist and antiquarian, in the late 16th century. It was the home of the Ferrers family for 500 years. 

I have been interested in visiting the house because it was a filming location of Sherlock Holmes (Granada TV), "The Musgrave Ritual," one of my favorite episodes. The house was the Musgrave's in the show, and matched very well with the treasure hunting story. I was so happy to be here in person!

To wait the house to be opening at 11am, we had breakfast at the National Trust's cafe. We both had tea. I had a fruit scone and J had a plain scone and a kind of breakfast sandwich. By the way, gingerbread men at the cafe looked so relaxed, which made me smile. : )

The estate has the walled garden, the vegetable garden, orchard, the great pool in woodland, and picnic area. We enjoyed a nice short walk while we waited for the house self-tour.

11am! It's time to enter the house!

Christmas decorations we saw here and there brightened up the dull winter sky.

There was a lovely courtyard garden, which I didn't see in the TV show.

Ah! I remember the fireplace in the living room from the TV show.

Based on four portraits in the room below, a staff kindly told us a peculiar story about lives and relationships of two couples who lived together in the house, known as the Quartet, in the Victorian era.

This was another room seen in the TV show!

Another fascinating thing in the house was a priest hole beneath the kitchen. Ferrers family remained loyal to their Catholic faith, and the hole was used to shelter Jesuit priests in the mid-16th century. One of such priests was Father John Gerard who blessed the original group of the Gunpowder conspirators of 1605 at a house he rented in London.

It was fun to learn about the house as well as find places and objects that were seen with Jeremy Brett. 

To be continued...