The Real castle behind Downton Abbey: Highclere and the Earls of Carnarvon

As savvy TV and movie viewers have come to realize, most locations that they see on screen are created through a combination of extravagant budgets and talented set designers. Even when luxe exteriors are genuine (such as on “Gossip Girl” or “Revenge”), the interiors are created on sound stages. The PBS hit “Downton Abbey," now in its second season, is the lush exception to this rule.


The real home of TV’s grand Grantham clan is Highclere Castle, an estate by Charles Barry, who also built the Houses of Parliament. He completed Highclere Castle in 1842 on 1,000 acres of English countryside near Newbury, on land inhabited since 1672 by the Carnarvons.

The current Lord and Lady Carnarvon (Geordie and Fiona to their friends) have discovered that allowing the cast and crew to infiltrate their home and grounds provides gains that are not merely financial.

“The best part has been sharing this romantic castle and home with so many people from around the world,” Lady Carnarvon said. “And ‘Downton’ has helped revitalize an interest in history.”

The author of the new book “Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey: The Lost Legacy of Highclere Castle” (Broadway Books), Lady Carnarvon admitted to a downside of having attractive actors and actresses traipsing through her house clad in sumptuous Victorian fashions.

It's an invasion, she said. “The thick wires and cables snaking everywhere, the cameras, the trollies, the white vans obscuring the drives and the dust that collects as a result.” Her advice to anyone who’s thinking of letting their own home become an onscreen one? “Have a good sense of humor!”

Right now, as the third season of the show has just started filming, Lady Carnarvon is keeping a close eye on the family heirlooms, not to mention her dogs, which love scarfing food from the catering tables. But she did find time to talk with us about Highclere’s richly appointed rooms, which are nearly as big a lure as the show’s romantic plots and family intrigue. The result is the following list of 10 things you may not know about the real “Downton Abbey”:

1.  In a real-life incident that mirrors the show this season, Lady Almina, the fifth countess (and the illegitimate daughter of Alfred de Rothschild), turned Highclere Castle into a hospital for World War I soldiers in 1914. “She became a skilled nurse and healer of men’s spirits as well as bodies,” Lady Carnarvon said. “There are hundreds of letters here at Highclere from parents who wrote to give thanks to her. They were so grateful for her telegrams letting them know how their sons were getting on. There are stories about the nights Almina sat up with the men, some of whom had seen so much they weren’t sure they wanted to go on.”

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http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/home_blog/2012/01/downton-abbey-location.html

New Jubilee Photos

Enjoy!

A Royal Milestone – Queen Elizabeth II

LONDON — Queen Elizabeth II marked her Diamond Jubilee on Monday with a message thanking all those who had supported her over her 60-year reign and reaffirming her dedication to serving the British people.

The 85-year-old monarch ascended the throne when her father, George VI, died on Feb. 6, 1952. She is the longest-serving monarch after Queen Victoria, who reigned for more than 63 years.

Before a year's worth of festivities to celebrate her milestone, the queen said she and her husband have been "deeply moved" to receive so many kind messages about her Diamond Jubilee.

"I am writing to thank you for the wonderful support and encouragement that you have given to me and Prince Phillip over these years," she wrote in a message to the nation. "In this special year, as I dedicate myself anew to your service, I hope that we will all be reminded of the power of togetherness and the convening strength of family, friendship and good neighborliness, examples of which I have been fortunate to see throughout my reign."

The queen's Diamond Jubilee will be feted with a series of regional, national and international events throughout 2012.

Over the course of 2012, members of the royal family – including Prince William and his wife, the Duchess of Cambridge – will fan out across the globe and travel to Commonwealth countries including Canada, Jamaica and Belize in honor of the queen's Diamond Jubilee.

©Getty

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/05/queen-elizabeth-ii-60th-anniversary_n_1256293.html 

The King is Dead – Long Live the Queen!

February 1952, was, like February 2012, a cold one. On the morning of the 6th, Sandringham was bleak and wintry, as George VI’s valet desperately tried to wake him. A front-page piece in this newspaper – reprinted in our pullout today – painted a touching picture of a frozen rural Britain that had just lost its king. “The village doctor,” we reported, “drove along the road that winds through the Royal estate, flanked on either side by the brown withered ferns through which, less than 24 hours earlier, the King had himself walked. No blinds were drawn over the windows of this favourite home of the King. The smoke from the first fires hung limp in the still morning air.”

There was nothing the doctor could do; over on the other side of the world, the 25-year-old Princess Elizabeth had become a queen. The balmy Kenyan weather could hardly have been further removed from sub-zero Norfolk, but the mood was just as sad, as the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh rushed to the airport.

“When the car, travelling at speed, passed near Nyeri,” wrote another Daily Telegraph correspondent (they had no byline in those days), “the Queen and the Duke, despite the sadness of their journey, smiled and waved to small groups of people who, sighting the Queen’s standard gleaming in the evening sun, had stopped to watch them pass.”

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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/the_queens_diamond_jubilee/9063122/Diamond-Jubilee-The-King-is-dead-long-live-the-Queen.html 

The Queen's Message to Her People

n a message of thanks to the public, the 85-year-old monarch says she has been “deeply moved” by the messages of support she and the Duke of Edinburgh have received over her Diamond Jubilee.
 

She says she looks to the future with a “clear head and warm heart” and highlights the importance of “family, friendship and good neighbourliness”.

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 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/the_queens_diamond_jubilee/9062961/Queen-renews-her-dedication-to-the-nation-in-Jubilee-message.html

The Queen's Diamond Jubilee

Sixty years ago today young Princess Elizabeth, who was visiting Africa, was told by her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, that her father had passed away and she had become Queen!

Much is being planned for the Diamond Jubilee this next June. But today is the today.

Her Majesty can rest assured that her life's work on behalf of her people will leave a lasting legacy...a job well done, no doubt!

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/queen-elizabeth-ii-celebrates-60-anniversary-142020762--abc-news.html

Off to Serve He Goes – The Duke of Cambridge in the Falklands

As Prince William began a six-week tour of duty with his RAF Search & Rescue Squadron, Argentina’s vice-president made a proclamation in which he claimed that his presence was an act of“bravado” to detract attention from Scotland’s bid for independence.

In the past week tensions between Britain and Argentina have risen significantly following the deployment of one of the Royal Navy’s most powerful warships to the area.

Argentina’s foreign ministry has suggested the Duke has arrived as a “conqueror”, while Navy sources have warned Buenos Aires that its entire air force would be wiped out if it tried to attack.

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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/prince-william/9058077/Tensions-increase-as-Duke-arrives-in-Falklands.html

+ Hereditary Grand Duchess Karin of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1920-2012)

Hereditary Grand Duchess Karin of Mecklenburg-Schwerinpassed away on 26 January 2012 at the age of ninety-one.

She had married Hereditary Grand Duke Friedrich Franz of Mecklenburg-Schwerin at Wiligrad on 11 June 1941. The Hereditary Grand Duchess was born Karin von Schaper, her birth taking place at Breslau on 31 January 1920. Her marriage to Friedrich Franz was considered morganatic. The couple's inability to procreate contributed to the demise of the dynasty. As of today only three Mecklenburg-Schwerins remain alive: Duchess Donata (Mrs. von Solodkoff), Duchess Edwina (Mrs. von Posern) and Duchess Woizlawa (Princess Reuss).

In 1967 the Hereditary Grand Ducal couple divorced after twenty-six years of marriage. A decade later Friedrich Franz and Karin reconciled and remarried. He died in 2001. The couple was childless.

The Cambridges… "Its a boy ... the new royal pooch!"

Nope...they have no son, but the next thing close to one...a new puppy!

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are the proud parents of a months-old pooch, and rumors they adopted a chocolate Labrador retriever are false, the palace confirmed to TODAY.com: It's a cocker spaniel.

Featurepics stock

Nah, this isn't their actual pooch. But Will and Kate's dog looks a lot like this English cocker spaniel puppy
.

Though they won't release the name (or discuss why the couple chose a cocker, though the U.K.'s Express reports the breed is a Middleton family favorite), the royals' spokeswoman said the male pup came from a litter through a "family connection."

http://animaltracks.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/31/10278893-will-and-kates-new-puppy-breed-revealed

The "Truth" About The Queen and Diana

Interesting program on a new book examining that decay and final destruction of the Wales marriage!

http://xfinity.comcast.net/video/the-truth-about-queen-elizabeth-and-princess-diana/2191212407/Comcast/2191422593/?cid=hero_sf_TIV