The 21st Century Downton Abbey

The 21st Century Downton Abbey

The Modern Country House is a peculiar world. The Local "big house" causes a lot of gossip in every village. Alex Louden is the Country Cricketer turned banker whose relationship with Pippa Middleton has hit the Tabloids recently. The Louden's Country seat is Olangtigh Towers near the Town of Wye. I am sure that the Wye locals comment and wonder about their fellow residents Relationship. I heard of a story recently about when the owner of a house in East Kent, remarried, suddenly local people started to pop in on the pretence of some trivial fictional matter when their real aim was to check out the new Lady of the Manor.

In most villages one of the Highlights of the year is when the Village folk descend on the local "Big House" for the annual Christmas Carols get-together. This is when the Village folk can drift on from the festivities and sneak around the House, to see what it is like. In deed in once case I know of the Owners of the House's son was most disturbed to find a rather drunk local wandering around the Corridors and checking out all the Bedrooms.

Although most Country Houses do not exactly employ as many staff as Robert, Earl of Grantham does in the much treasured drama Downton Abbey. Most don't get by without help from one or two hands. Often the staff will lead to collision with the owner. I heard of one case where a disgruntled Gardener after they had been fired went to great extents to get back at their Former Employer. This man put a large bully of a Pike into a large pond which was inhabited by several nice Goldfish and Tadpoles etc, However this Pike continued to eat and disturb the Inhabitants of the pond. Eventually an expert pest remover had to be called in to extract the beast. I heard a tale the other day about two Staff Members, at a Large Victorian house, the owner having got home from the City one day received a call from a distressed Gardner who said she had to leave and she couldn't come into work any longer. The owner was anxious about what could have happened to this person when it was eventually revealed after a little digging that she had been having an affair with Her boss the Head Gardner who was 20 years her Junior, They had been liaising to much hilarity in the Stable.

The Country House often causes much friction beginning to be hated by the Locals. They were hated because the Cash Stricken owners had had to open a Hotel to keep them in their Family Home and to carry on the Line. This Hotel although causing local work was irritating the locals as the Urban Hotel Customers were not welcome because of their loud and brash Sports Cars and the loud voice's and music coming from Weddings and so forth.

Owning a Country House is sometimes a far worse thing than it is good. Many familys have to sell up after they