A gilded cage: country houses as prisons: superb blog thecountryseat.org.uk/2025/12/21/a... Thanks @thecountryseat.bsky.social !

Today @histenvforum.bsky.social publishes the Historic Environment Overview 2024-25, celebrating the impact of England’s heritage sector in the last financial year. Produced with support from Historic England. Read the new report: historicengland.org.uk/research/her... #Heritage #Resilience

Scenes from the amazing Copped Hall, near Epping in Essex. It suffered a catastrophic fire in 1917, but for the last 30 years volunteers have been bringing it back to life. It now has a new roof, new floors, and hosts countless community and cultural events. A true inspiration of what can be done.

A landmark report on #heritage was published #OTD 75 years ago - 23 June 1950. Sir Ernest Gowers investigated how significant houses should be protected for future generations. 75 years on, his (plain) words still ring true. Read more about it here: www.historichouses.org/unfinished-b...

A blog from me about... Digging Clavering Castle benspalimpsest.blogspot.com/2025/06/digg... @castlestudies.bsky.social

Thoughts from @historic-houses.bsky.social on why "Imposing planning fees on listed buildings would be a huge mistake" - including a call for use of the listed building consent order mechanism for certain routine, reversible changes. www.thetimes.com/article/f8f2...

Today @histenvforum.bsky.social launches the new Heritage Sector Resilience Plan 2025-35 (HSRP2) providing a clear roadmap for partnership working to deliver a robust & resilient heritage sector. Read the plan on HEF’s website: historicenvironmentforum.org.uk/hef-activiti... #HeritageResiliencePlan

The enormous cost of repairs and maintenance borne by independent owners, rocketing insurance premiums, and delays in the planning system: just some of the topics I raised today at the DCMS select committee. Catch the session here: www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/...

Brilliant episode by John and Clive, showcasing Castle Howard’s recent transformation but also discussing how this could only be done by private owners. Comparisons are thereby drawn with Clandon etc. It makes for a fascinating discussion, well worth a listen. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/y...

A joy to see Dan Cruickshank (metaphorically) don his kipper tie and corduroy flares to take us back to the heady days of 1975. Dan's own contribution to the Year of Architectural Heritage was to occupy threatened Georgian buildings in Spitalfields, as part of the burgeoning heritage movement.

Thanks to @museumsassociation.org for featuring our new @historic-houses.bsky.social report on Gen Z's relationship with heritage. It's a great read - well worth a look. www.museumsassociation.org/museums-jour...

I love this bit. Extra tech doesn't always mean better

Thanks Lizzie - a fun thread of a fun day!

A wrap up of today’s excellent conference celebrating 50 years from 1975 European Year of Architectural Heritage with @historictownsvf.bsky.social @bencowell.bsky.social SAVE @archhfund.org.uk Europa Nostra Uk @heritagealliance.bsky.social & Kings Foundation threadreaderapp.com/thread/19305...

Superb new report from @historic-houses.bsky.social about how Gen Z connect with heritage - well worth a read. www.historichouses.org/gen-z-sees-h...

Not a bad day to see this place

A treat to hear the great Ken Worpole speak last night about his new book, Brightening from the East. Landscape, memory, and nonconformity on the Essex coast.

Preserving English eccentricity at Dalemain in Cumbria: celebrating 20 years of the World Marmalade Awards www.theguardian.com/food/2025/ap...

The Renaissance of Castle Howard - a true British country house revival

Many congratulations to Baroness Twycross for taking over the heritage brief at @dcmsgovuk.bsky.social . We look forward to working with you in this important role. www.gov.uk/government/p...

I just came across this while looking for something else (as you do) and my life is now complete.

Well worth reading Peter Mandler on the Fall and Rise of the Stately Home, 25 years on academic.oup.com/tcbh/article...

It's #EnglishTourismWeek this week. Vote for the tourism Superstars who make such a difference to this fantastic industry! The amazing Muncaster Castle is on the list, thanks to their very own Hannah Clapp. Vote Hannah! (by 23 March) visitenglandawards.secure-platform.com/tourismsuper...

Good to see @heritagealliance.bsky.social #HeritageCreates report, highlighting the power of heritage in driving innovation & creativity. Inspiring case studies including from Wentworth Woodhouse and Chawton House. www.theheritagealliance.org.uk/our-work/pub... #HeritageCreates

HEF members Historic Houses have launched a new report on VAT ahead of their submission to the CMS inquiry on Protecting Built Heritage. Read below ⬇️

Deadline today for applying to Attingham Trust's New Perspectives in Country House Studies course www.attinghamtrust.org/courses/new-...

A joy to speak at West Horsley Place this afternoon on The British Country House Revival.

"The best way to conserve historic buildings is to adapt them and keep them in use...the answer lies in seeing the historic built environment as a starting point for modernisation." Hear hear! @snfschlee.bsky.social www.ft.com/content/80b2...

www.historichouses.org/rebate-in-uk... New Historic Houses report, on what a smarter approach to VAT could do for the repair of historic buildings open to public access.

www.telegraph.co.uk/money/proper... Interesting article on heat pumps in listed buildings

Wonderful to see The British Country House Revival featured in the architectural book shortlist in this week's Country Life! Pay £35 / $52 with code BB280 > boydellandbrewer.com/978183765058...

Lovely to see The British Country House Revival feature in such excellent company (from the current Country Life)

Some terrific books featured here!

This is a shout out to the teams working at Historic Houses places that open at this time of the year for Christmas events. Thank you for all your hard work, often in cold and dark conditions, and for all you do to create magical visitor experiences. You are all complete stars!

Historic Houses features as a signatory to this important research - highlighting the impact that the Budget changes to inheritance tax will have on heritage and on businesses located in historic settings. www.familybusinessuk.org/more-than-16...

Good to see plenty of Historic Houses places featuring here. Where was Wolf Hall filmed? 10 locations to visit (and rent) www.thetimes.com/article/73a6...

Today I travelled from Newport in Essex to Newport in Wales. Station to Station. Like some weird mash-up of Gavin & Stacey and David Bowie. (My soundtrack should have been a Rob Brydon cover of ‘Word on a Wing’.) Trains all on time - and top marks for the new rolling stock Cardiff to Merthyr.

🌟 2024 blogs you may have missed 🌟 Ben Cowell, Director General of Historic Houses, explores the continued relevance of country houses, for tourism, for jobs, and for local history research. Read the blog > https://buff.ly/3ZAKxtU @bencowell.bsky.social

My destination yesterday was a house in Essex (G.O.C.).

Lovely interview with Caroline Magnus by @brushingboots.bsky.social . “The Chatsworths and the Blenheims are fantastic treasure houses, but when you’ve got something that isn’t quite so frontline, you have to find a way to of keeping them going.” www.telegraph.co.uk/money/proper...

The AGM of the friends of our local church this evening. Someone brought along the old (18th cent?) wooden sundial that used to hang on the entrance porch but was blown off in a gale a few years back. It was good to see it again. Apparently, we need to contact the British Sundial Society.(Who knew?)

Somerset House earlier today - always a pleasure to visit

Nice place for the first meeting of the day

Pale winter sun

‘What price Heritage?’ asks Peter Moore, curator of Audley End, in a kind review of my book The British Country House Revival (published by Boydell). The review is in the latest edition of Newport News, my village’s superb local magazine. Read it in full here: drive.google.com/file/d/1gbV6...

Great to hear from Sir Chris Bryant, new Tourism Minister, at the Tourism Alliance policy conference. 'Less aspic, more spice' is his recipe for tourism. Ambitions for 50m inbound tourists by 2030. 90 per cent of this growth will be delivered by the private sector.

Ooh - sounds interesting t.co/ikBtIcBHmZ

These notes from the CLA are super useful in explaining how Agricultural Property Relief really works www.cla.org.uk/news/changes...

‘I heard the anguish of the countryside on the streets this week’. Steve Reed addresses CLA conference.

‘APR and BPR are not loopholes’. Growth is needed for rural economies. Powerful opening speech from Victoria Vyvyan of the CLA