The Country House Revealed - BBC 2

Not to bore you with too much history at this time however, the weather is so bad that I find that I am watching a little more TV than usual.

A brilliant series has been on BBC2 over recent weeks - The Country House Revealed.

Tonight Tuesday 7th June 2011 Clandeboye - There are few other houses in Britain like Clandeboye - a monument to a man whose life was like a Victorian fairy tale of adventure, and a monument to the golden age of the largest and most far flung empire the world has ever seen.

Clandeboye House and estate was, like the empire itself, an epic creation - but unlike the empire, it still endures, a vignette of a now almost forgotten age and surprisingly little altered since Lord Dufferin died in 1902.

The house is overflowing with relics from the empire and Dufferin's aristocratic adventures - stuffed baby bears, Egyptian monuments, tiger skins and weaponry from India, Canada and Burma to mention just a few, with extraordinary photographic albums that document the collecting of these unique 'souvenirs'. Clandeboye is a genuine treasure trove.

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A few weeks ago it featured Kinross - a Country House in Scotland, well it was a great story told around the 17th Century, involving as usual, money, power, politics, the Church and of course the Monarchy! It is well worth a watch - click on the link below the introduction.

Series visiting houses never before open to public view. Historian Dan Cruickshank explores the stunning late 17th century property, Kinross House. Dan is granted privileged access into the world of architect Sir William Bruce, who changed the Scottish landscape by building the first fully classical house in the country.

Kinross House tells a unique story about a man imperative to the restoration of King Charles II - Sir William Bruce. A one time merchant who became one of the richest men in Scotland. With insight from Sir William's descendants, journalists and Scottish aristocracy, secrets long since forgotten are revealed, and offer an explanation into his ultimate downfall.

The programme follows the story of Kinross house from its early beginnings through to its current owners and poignant sale in 2010.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b011d88n

HMA