PHOTOGRAPHY,^VIVIANVASSOS(VIVIANATDOORAND^ AFTERNOONTEA);COURTESYHIGHCLERE^ CASTLE^ (FIONA,^ BOOK^ ANDDININGROOM)HE FIRST TIME I toured Highclere Castle,
the television show Downton Abbey was at its ze-
nith. It had become a pop-cultural/historical fiction
phenomenon, and there was no stopping it. I
was in England for the 100th anniversary of the
beginning of the First World War, and the house,
which was the film location for the fictional Downton
Abbey, had been a centre of lifesaving and sanctuary for
many soldiers, including Canadians during the war. Just
as had been depicted in the second season, Downton (or
Highclere, rather) had been transformed into a hospi-
tal for convalescing war wounded. The family that lives
there wanted to make sure this memory was kept alive,
so it was a bit of an emotional visit, with stories of the era
told as we walked the grounds.
The lady of the house, Fiona, Countess of Carnarvon,
or Lady C to those who work with her – and wife of
George Herbert, the eighth Earl of Carnarvon – is a
keeper of history and had published a book about that
time, Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey, and
she’s gone on to pen two cookbooks featuring family re-
cipes from Highclere, as well. And if the family’s prov-
enance isn’t already a mouthful, the Earl is also the son
of Lord Porchester. If you’re a fan of The Crown, you may
recognize him as Porchey, Queen Elizabeth’s racing sta-
bles manager and dear friend until his death in 2001. On
this, my most recent visit to Highclere, I was invited to
afternoon tea with Lady C and had the chance to ask her
about the Queen and Porchey. “They were great friends,”
she told me, skirting the whispers that there may have
been a frisson between the two. “But that’s where fic-
tion has little relation to fact. My mother-in-law found
it quite tough because it wasn’t by any means anywhere
near the truth.”
So history at Highclere, like so many noble houses and
families of Great Britain, runs deep, and it has served
as fodder for the storylines of the series’ writer, Julian
Fellowes. “Julian and Emma Fellowes are friends. I
asked them down,” she tells me. “He’d written Gosford
Park with Highclere in mind, then as he came to write
Downton Abbey, I was getting that feeling of a home
and laughter. So that’s where it came from. Then Julian
said he wrote it, too, with Highclere in mind. Because
he knows how it works. [Highclere staff] Matthew and
Freddie come in from the same place that Carson comes
in. So it gives it that authenticity, which I think has root-
ed it deeply in people’s romance and subconscious.”
Does she have a favourite room in the house? “They’re
each a wee bit different,” she says. “I feel as if you are
walking through a bit of a set. So it’s rather special like
that.” A special feeling, indeed, as Highclere has, in es-
sence, become a set – and not just for Downton but a
stage from which Fiona can ensure that the history of the
Carnarvons and the castle be told. It’s a living, breathing
place and continues to serve as a place for philanthropy.
It’s also a working farm and tourist attraction where you
can attend lectures, such as those on art and architec-
ture, as well as visit the Egyptian collection in the
castle’s gallery. In terms of how nobility can stay rel-
evant now, the Carnarvons of Highclere are a stead-
fast example, with a future assured.If You Go http://www.highclerecastle.co.uk; the Real
Lives & Film Sets guided tour runs from Sept. 14
to Oct. 27 on select dates. http://www.visitbritain.comGOING DOWNTON
Channelling her inner lady, Vivian Vassos visits Highclere Castle
and the real housewife of Downton AbbeyFor recipes from Highclere, go to
http://www.everythingzoomer.com/downton-abbey-recipes.