Muncaster Regency Talk

Muncaster is a beautiful Castle near Ravenglass in Cumbria.  It is a historic haunted building set in 70 acres of stunning wild gardens set against the Lake District fells – it is also home to the Hawk & Owl Centre.

Muncaster Castle

We were booked to present our Regency Talk with Costume Display ‘Enter the World of Jane Austen’ on Thursday 27 August and Friday 28 August 2015 as part of the ‘Living History Week’.

The wonderful hall

We presented our talks in the wonderful grand hall – a fabulous setting for a period costume display with beautiful portraits lining the walls. During my talk I used a portrait of a lady in a beautiful silver gown to show the type of garment which was worn prior to the regency era and to illustrate how the change in style was so dramatic.

Portrait of a lady in a silver gown on display in the Great Hall

Throughout the week Muncaster have had a range of history events to keep the whole family entertained – the line-up for 2015 includes the Herlid Vikings, the Iron Shepherds (Norman-era re-enactment), the 19th Foot Green Howards Crimean War and of course Renaissance Costumes with our Regency-era dresses. 

The 19th Foot Green Howards

Also included were the Red Wyverns Re-enactment Society and the Tudor Alchemist.

We stayed in the Coachman’s Quarters – a lovely period building overnight and also met members of the 19th Foot Howards Crimean War Group who were camped in the grounds.

19th Foot Green Howards

Ladies from the Crimean War group attended my talk on the Thursday and said they really enjoyed it.  The next day the ladies invited me to their camp and I had a great time chatting to them about their lovely costumes. they also kindly lent me a Victorian jacket for the photograph!

Sitting with the lovely ladies of the 19th Foot Green Howards

Apparently they were having rabbit stew on the Thursday and boiled gammon the next day- all cooked on an authentic open fire.  Sadly the tents were a bit too authentic for me I preferred the Coachman’s quartets and staying in an en-suite room!

My Regency Gentleman

My thanks to Jo and Bronwen at Muncaster Castle for all their help and support in presenting the our events – not forgetting Rachel a super girl who worked in the accommodation office.

My Jane Austen Costume

We had a really great couple of days  – Muncaster is a fabulous Castle and the staff are great.

I would love to return to Muncaster in the future to present more events and also really hope to meet the lovely  ladies of the Green Howards again.

Tom Skelton

I am really pleased to announce that we will be presenting two Tudor Fashions Shows at Muncaster Castle in Cumbria on Friday 23rd August . We will be presenting them as part of the ‘Summer of Fun’ at 1pm and 3pm.   http://www.muncaster.co.uk/special-events/summer-fun

We visited Muncaster Castle  for the first time earlier this week  – it is a beautiful castle in lovely grounds an excellent setting for my period fashions.

The historic haunted castle, still a lived in family home is the jewel in the crown of this majestic setting on the Western Lake District – this idyllic setting is simply awe inspiring.

We saw the Castle in all its glory and heard from the Pennington family who have resided in the Castle since 1208, about Muncaster’s colourful history and residents.

There is a fool (Tom Fooley) aka Tom Skelton, court jester at Muncaster in the 16th Century we heard about his links to Shakespeare and the ghost stories about him causing trouble today!

Muncaster Castle

I visited the most haunted room in the castle recently subject for a paranormal investigation screened on TV! for more information see   http://www.muncaster.co.uk/haunted-castle

Hear about the glass bowl, known as ‘The Luck of Muncaster’, has been preserved by the Pennington family since the 15th Century.

The story starts in 1464 and involves King Henry VI. He was the only son of Henry of Agincourt and Catherine of France and had been crowned King of England at the age of eight.

Muncaster Great Hall

By the time he had reached his early forties he had lost his throne to Edward IV. He’d also been taken prisoner during the Battle of Hexham. He managed to escape, and fled to the hills of the Lake District where he lived rough for about a year.

Sir John Pennington, whose home Muncaster Castle was, gave Henry food and shelter for as long as he requested it. In gratitude, Henry gave Sir John a glass drinking bowl and said it was given to the family with a prayer that they might prosper for as long as the glass remained unbroken. The glass remains unbroken to this day and the family has prospered.

Our fashion show is to be staged in the Magnificent Great Hall.

My exciting show includes a number of superb costumes I have designed worn by four models. They are accompanied by beautiful period music, a brief history of each historical figure and a talk about the design and construction of each costume. Our show includes magnificent costumes for King Henry VIII, Queen Elizabeth I, Anne Boleyn, Katherine Howard and Jane Seymour. The show concludes with Mary Queen of Scots taking off her velvet robes to reveal her elegant execution gown.

The Magnificent Great Hall will be a fantastic period setting for my costumes – I can’t wait!!