Wrotham Park
Encyclopedia
Wrotham Park, Hertsmere
, Hertfordshire
is a neo-Palladian English country house
, designed by Isaac Ware
in 1754 for Admiral John Byng
, the fourth son of Admiral Sir George Byng
, which remains in the family at the heart of a 2500 acres (10.1 km²) estate seventeen miles (27 km) from Hyde Park Corner
. It is one of the largest private houses inside the M25 motorway
.
Originally part of an estate known as Pinchbank (also Birchbank), first recorded in Middlesex
in 1310 and owned in the 17th and early 18th centuries by the Howkins family
, the property passed to Thomas Reynolds, a director of the South Sea Company, who renamed the estate Strangeways. His son, Francis, sold the property to Admiral Byng, who changed the name to Wrotham Park in honour of the original family home in Wrotham, Kent
.
Admiral Byng never had an opportunity to live in retirement at Wrotham. Following his inadequately equipped expedition to relieve Minorca
from the French during the Seven Years' War
, he was court martialled and executed in 1757. This event was satirized by Voltaire
in his novel Candide
. In Portsmouth, Candide witnesses the execution of an officer by firing squad; and is told that "in this country, it is wise to kill an admiral from time to time to encourage the others" (pour encourager les autres).
A disastrous fire in 1887 burned slowly enough to permit retrieval of the contents of the house, but gutted it. It was rebuilt precisely as it had been.
Location scenes for Robert Altman
's Gosford Park
(2001) were shot at Wrotham Park, including exterior scenes and the staircase, dining room, library and living room. It was also used for the filming of Peter's Friends
.
Location scenes for the ITV
Jeeves and Wooster Television Series
were shot at Wrotham Park. Both the interior of Brinkley Court and the interior and exterior of Chuffnell Hall (Episodes 4 & 5, Series 2) were filmed there.
Location scenes for the BBC
TV production of Alan Hollinghurst
's The Line of Beauty
(2006) were also shot at Wrotham Park, including the exterior, lawns, dining room, library, drawing room and living room.
Location scenes for the BBC
TV miniseries "Sense and Sensibility
" (2008) were also shot at Wrotham Park. The exterior of Norland Park was filmed there.
Location scenes for the idents of Dave (TV channel) were shot at Wrotham Park.
Chelsea and England
footballer Ashley Cole
and Girls Aloud
singer Cheryl Tweedy had their wedding blessed at Wrotham Park on July 15, 2006 - they weren't allowed to have their wedding there because Wrotham Park does not have a licence to hold civil weddings.
Music mogul Simon Cowell
held his 50th birthday party at Wrotham Park on October 3, 2009. The party, estimated to have cost £1 million, was attended by an estimated 400 guests, and the house itself was bathed in blue light specially for the occasion, with a picture of the host beamed onto the wall of the property.
Hertsmere
Hertsmere is a local government district and borough in Hertfordshire, England. Its council is based in Borehamwood. Other towns in the borough include Bushey, Elstree, Radlett and Potters Bar.-History:...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
is a neo-Palladian English country house
English country house
The English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a London house. This allowed to them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these people, the term distinguished between town and country...
, designed by Isaac Ware
Isaac Ware
Isaac Ware was an English architect and translator of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio.He was apprenticed to Thomas Ripley, 1 August 1721, and followed him in positions in the Office of Works, but his mentor in design was Lord Burlington.Ware was a member of the St...
in 1754 for Admiral John Byng
John Byng
Admiral John Byng was a Royal Navy officer. After joining the navy at the age of thirteen he participated at the Battle of Cape Passaro in 1718. Over the next thirty years he built up a reputation as a solid naval officer and received promotion to Vice-Admiral in 1747...
, the fourth son of Admiral Sir George Byng
George Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington
Admiral of the Fleet George Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington, KB PC was a British naval officer and statesman of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. His career included service as First Lord of the Admiralty during the reign of King George II.-Naval career:Byng was born at Wrotham, Kent, England...
, which remains in the family at the heart of a 2500 acres (10.1 km²) estate seventeen miles (27 km) from Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner is a place in London, at the south-east corner of Hyde Park. It is a major intersection where Park Lane, Knightsbridge, Piccadilly, Grosvenor Place and Constitution Hill converge...
. It is one of the largest private houses inside the M25 motorway
M25 motorway
The M25 motorway, or London Orbital, is a orbital motorway that almost encircles Greater London, England, in the United Kingdom. The motorway was first mooted early in the 20th century. A few sections, based on the now abandoned London Ringways plan, were constructed in the early 1970s and it ...
.
Originally part of an estate known as Pinchbank (also Birchbank), first recorded in Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
in 1310 and owned in the 17th and early 18th centuries by the Howkins family
Brownsover
Brownsover is a small village about 1½ miles north of Rugby, Warwickshire in England. Since 1960, it has been further absorbed by the suburban expansion of Rugby.-'Old' Brownsover:...
, the property passed to Thomas Reynolds, a director of the South Sea Company, who renamed the estate Strangeways. His son, Francis, sold the property to Admiral Byng, who changed the name to Wrotham Park in honour of the original family home in Wrotham, Kent
Wrotham
Wrotham is a village situated on the Pilgrims' Way in Kent, at the foot of the North Downs. It is located one mile north of Borough Green and approximately five miles east of Sevenoaks. It is within the junction of the M20 and M26 motorways....
.
Admiral Byng never had an opportunity to live in retirement at Wrotham. Following his inadequately equipped expedition to relieve Minorca
Minorca
Min Orca or Menorca is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. It takes its name from being smaller than the nearby island of Majorca....
from the French during the Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
, he was court martialled and executed in 1757. This event was satirized by Voltaire
Voltaire
François-Marie Arouet , better known by the pen name Voltaire , was a French Enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher famous for his wit and for his advocacy of civil liberties, including freedom of religion, free trade and separation of church and state...
in his novel Candide
Candide
Candide, ou l'Optimisme is a French satire first published in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled Candide: or, All for the Best ; Candide: or, The Optimist ; and Candide: or, Optimism...
. In Portsmouth, Candide witnesses the execution of an officer by firing squad; and is told that "in this country, it is wise to kill an admiral from time to time to encourage the others" (pour encourager les autres).
A disastrous fire in 1887 burned slowly enough to permit retrieval of the contents of the house, but gutted it. It was rebuilt precisely as it had been.
Location scenes for Robert Altman
Robert Altman
Robert Bernard Altman was an American film director and screenwriter known for making films that are highly naturalistic, but with a stylized perspective. In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized his body of work with an Academy Honorary Award.His films MASH , McCabe and...
's Gosford Park
Gosford Park
Gosford Park is a 2001 British-American mystery comedy-drama film directed by Robert Altman and written by Julian Fellowes. The film stars an ensemble cast, which includes Helen Mirren, Maggie Smith, Eileen Atkins, Alan Bates, and Michael Gambon...
(2001) were shot at Wrotham Park, including exterior scenes and the staircase, dining room, library and living room. It was also used for the filming of Peter's Friends
Peter's Friends
Peter's Friends is a 1992 British comedy-drama film written by Rita Rudner and her husband Martin Bergman, and directed and produced by Kenneth Branagh....
.
Location scenes for the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
Jeeves and Wooster Television Series
Jeeves and Wooster
-External links:*—An episode guide to the series, including information about which episodes were adapted from which Wodehouse stories.*—Episode guides, screenshots and quotes from the four series....
were shot at Wrotham Park. Both the interior of Brinkley Court and the interior and exterior of Chuffnell Hall (Episodes 4 & 5, Series 2) were filmed there.
Location scenes for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
TV production of Alan Hollinghurst
Alan Hollinghurst
Alan Hollinghurst is a British novelist, and winner of the 2004 Man Booker Prize for The Line of Beauty.-Biography:Hollinghurst was born on 26 May 1954 in Stroud, Gloucestershire, the only child of James Hollinghurst, a bank manager, and his wife, Elizabeth...
's The Line of Beauty
The Line of Beauty
The Line of Beauty is a 2004 Booker Prize-winning novel by Alan Hollinghurst.-Plot introduction:Set in Britain in the early to mid-1980s, the story surrounds the post-Oxford life of the young gay protagonist, Nick Guest....
(2006) were also shot at Wrotham Park, including the exterior, lawns, dining room, library, drawing room and living room.
Location scenes for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
TV miniseries "Sense and Sensibility
Sense and Sensibility
Sense and Sensibility, published in 1811, is a British romance novel by Jane Austen, her first published work under the pseudonym, "A Lady." Jane Austen is considered a pioneer of the romance genre of novels, and for the realism portrayed in her novels, is one the most widely read writers in...
" (2008) were also shot at Wrotham Park. The exterior of Norland Park was filmed there.
Location scenes for the idents of Dave (TV channel) were shot at Wrotham Park.
Chelsea and England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
footballer Ashley Cole
Ashley Cole
Ashley Cole is an Barbadian-English professional footballer who plays for Chelsea and the England national team. He plays as a left-back and has been named one of the best in the world....
and Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud are a British and Irish pop girl group based in London. They were created through the ITV1 talent show Popstars The Rivals in 2002. The group consists of Cheryl Cole , Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. They are signed to Fascination Records, a Polydor...
singer Cheryl Tweedy had their wedding blessed at Wrotham Park on July 15, 2006 - they weren't allowed to have their wedding there because Wrotham Park does not have a licence to hold civil weddings.
Music mogul Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell
Simon Phillip Cowell is an English A&R executive, television producer, entrepreneur, and television personality. He is known in the United Kingdom and United States for his role as a talent judge on TV shows such as Pop Idol, The X Factor, Britain's Got Talent and American Idol...
held his 50th birthday party at Wrotham Park on October 3, 2009. The party, estimated to have cost £1 million, was attended by an estimated 400 guests, and the house itself was bathed in blue light specially for the occasion, with a picture of the host beamed onto the wall of the property.