Harlaxton Manor, Lincolnshire: An American evolution
A landmark of Victorian England that was restored to splendour thanks to an American university.
Marston House, Somerset: A magnificent example of Victorian enrichment of a great Georgian country house
John Robinson on the remarkable history of this building and its return to private occupation after being saved from the wrecking ball.
Ockwells Manor, Berkshire: An insight into the splendours of grand living in 15th-century England
John Goodall on how a delightful timber-frame house offers insights into the realities of luxurious 15th-century living and the brutal complexities of Lancastrian politics.
Ince Castle, Cornwall: A country house risen from the flames
A serious fire can be the end of a country house, but, on occasion, it can also offer the opportunity for a sensitive and thoughtful reworking of a building. Ince Castle demonstrates this to perfection.
The demolition of Halnaby Hall is a warning from history, but destruction needn’t always be a disaster
The loss of our great country houses is lamentable, but need not always spell doom. Lucy Denton of Bidwells – who has family connections to the infamously-demolished Halnaby Hall – explains.
Stockton House, Wiltshire: An Elizabethan house packed with 21st century surprises
It takes a practised eye to spot what has happened to Stockton House over the past four years. At first sight, the house, set in Wiltshire’s lovely Wylye Valley, looks much as it did when Country Life last visited in 1984 or even when we first wrote about it in 1905. Read more at https://www.countrylife.co.uk/architecture/stockton-house-wiltshire-subtly-improving-on-the-elizabethans-172661#pgmTW8WhcvYHBuzW.99
Woodhall Park, Hertfordshire: An exemplary example of restoration that highlights the importance of colour in Georgian interiors
Woodhall Park was the creation of two notorious Indian nabobs, Sir Thomas Rumbold and Paul Benfield. Both men grew exceedingly and rapidly rich in the 1760s. Both returned to England to invest their new fortunes in a country estate.
Capheaton Hall, Northumberland: The revival of a country house that narrowly avoided demolition
The Swinburnes, to whose descendants this house still belongs, came into possession of Capheaton in 1270. Against all the odds they're still there and going strong.
Ashby St Legers: A spectacular house where the Gunpowder Plot was hatched
This house associated with the Gunpowder Plot was splendidly enlarged by Lutyens and is now enjoying a new lease of life as a modern family home.
Chenies Manor: The Tudor estate that encompasses an ancient oak tree beneath which Elizabeth I lost a piece of jewellery
This Tudor house was the unlikely venue for the first meeting of the founding group of The Arts Society. John Goodall tells its remarkable story.
The Country House Library: Why these rooms and their collections need to be taken much more seriously
A new account of the country-house library will compel us all to reassess these rooms and their collections, says John
Broomhall, Fife: A stupendous country house restored by the Earl of Elgin after 40 years of thought
The Earl of Elgin, celebrated for securing the sculpture from the Parthenon, spent 40 years toying with the reconstruction of
Alston Court, Suffolk: A vivid insight into Tudor living on the grand scale
One of the most important late-medieval merchant’s houses in the country offers a vivid insight into Tudor living on the
Stanford Hall, Leicestershire: A vibrant estate playing an active role in the world around it
An ambitious round of restoration work is reviving an estate and country house after a challenging 20th century. John Goodall
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How to disconnect from reality and feel like a new person in under 72 hoursOur round-up of the best British retreats that work wellness wonders in under 72 hours.
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Evenley Wood Garden: 'I didn't know a daffodil from a daisy! But being middle-aged, ignorant and obstinate, I persisted'When Nicola Taylor took on her plantsman father’s flower-filled woodland, she knew more about horses than trees, but, as Tiffany Daneff discovers, that hasn’t stopped her from making a great success of the garden. Photographs by Clive Nichols.
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Cath Harries — The photographer on a 15-year quest to find the most incredible doors in London -
The extraordinary Egyptian-style Leeds landmark hoping to become a second British Library — and they used to let sheep graze on the roofThe project has been awarded £10million from the Government, but will cost £70million in total.
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Art, architecture and plastic bricks at Lego House: 'It's as if the National Gallery set up easels and paints next to the masterpieces and invited you try your hand at creating a Van Gogh'The rural Danish town where Lego was created is dominated by the iconic toy — and at Lego House, it has a fittingly joyful site of pilgrimage. Toby Keel paid a visit.
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Restoration House: The house in the heart of historic Rochester that housed Charles II and inspired Charles DickensJohn Goodall looks at Restoration House in Rochester, Kent — home of Robert Tucker and Jonathan Wilmot — and tells the tale of its remarkable salvation.
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'A glimpse of the sublime': Inside the drawing room of the 'grandest Palladian house in Ireland'The redecoration of the drawing room at Russborough House in Co Wicklow, Ireland, offers a fascinating insight into the aesthetic preoccupations of Grand Tourism in the mid 18th century. John Goodall explains; photography by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
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The ideal of the Scottish castle: Aldourie's joyful fantasy of turrets, invention and recreationThe process of stitching together the architectural fabric of the Aldourie estate in Inverness-shire has created an outstanding group of new and restored buildings. John Goodall explains more; photography by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
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Brutalism and the Bauhaus in BritainAdrien Brody won the Best Actor award for his turn in ‘The Brutalist’, playing the role of Lazslo Toth, one of the key movers in the architectural movement. Will Hosie takes a look at the legacy of Brutalism in Britain, looking at the best buildings both of Brutalism and the Bauhaus Movement which preceded it.
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Nature and nurture in the gardens of Bramham ParkTim Richardson looks at the innovative and superbly maintained 18th-century landscape garden of Bramham Park in West Yorkshire, home of Nick and Rachel Lane Fox. Photographs by Paul Highnam.
