Hellens is a ‘sleeping’, fortified manor house, which has existed for nearly 1,000 years and during all that time, it has been in private ownership, as it still is, by the Munthe Family.  Little has changed since the Black Prince stood in the Great Hall all those years ago.  Mary Tudor was imprisoned there with her tutor Featherstone.  Yet the house has many other stories, from fleeing priests who were butchered there and an owner who was murdered by the Roundheads.  But the story of Hettie Walwyn will always be in our memories, as we saw the diamond made names on either side of a bedroom window, depicting Hettie on one side and her lover on the other.  In this room, Hettie was imprisoned by her mother for 30 years until she died, for having eloped with the unsuitable suitor.

The guides, Ruth and Donna, were superb and Nick Stephenson prepared the most delicious lunch in the tythe barn after.  It was a marvellous visit.

We then drove on to the magnificent privately owned Birtsmorton Court, near Malvern.  This is one of only ten privately owned moated manor houses and is said to be one of the most beautiful homes in England.  Rosalie Dawes, the delightful and effervescent owner, greeted us with warmth and told us about the history of the house.  She took us on a guided tour of the interior, which is beautiful, but very much still a private home.  She told us of how she  and her husband brought up their four children there during the last 40 years, but how a flood had damaged the property during the cold Winter of this year.  She then showed us her White Garden, which she had created to commemorate the Millennium.  The gardeners amongst us were very impressed, as they were with the rest of the garden.  

Roger Gillard, former Churchwarden gave us a conducted tour of the adjacent church and we all enjoyed a delicious tea, the cakes prepared specially for us by Peter, who has been with the Dawes since their marriage.  

Finally, the men and some of the ladies enjoyed meeting Nigel Dawes, who creates superb scaled models of racing cars.   These are held in glass cases and his craftsmanship was universally admired.