Vintage Pinboard – Period Drama & Documentaries – Be Inspired in 2013

1930s society glamour.

Here are my recommendations for the best documentaries and period dramas currently on or soon to air on British television.

One other treat, that I am thrilled to tell you about, (credit and thanks for this must go to my husband for its discovery), is the recently digitised Radio Times Archive.  The first edition of The Radio Times was printed on 28th September, 1923, a joint venture between the BBC and publisher George Newnes Ltd. The BBC edited the publication from 1925 until 1937 and it was published in-house until 2011. The digitisation of four thousand five hundred copies of the magazine was completed in 2012. However, access to the full archive is currently restricted to BBC staff but it is hoped that by the end of 2013 the entire archive will be available on-line to the general public. Public access is currently limited to a small collection of, downloadable, pre-war television supplements. For the main website, CLICK HERE.

My favourite supplement is one published at the time of King George VI’s (1895-1952) coronation, which took place on Wednesday 12th May, 1937. To download this issue, CLICK HERE. If you want to listen to an original recording of the King’s coronation speech, then it is available on British Pathé’s website. It might be a good idea to turn-up the sound on your computer before you begin, as it is very faint. The whole speech lasts just over eight minutes.  For the speech, CLICK HERE.

Ripper Street – BBC One

• Victorian Era
• Drama Series 8 x 60 minute episodes. Sundays 9pm

Set in April 1889, six months after the last Jack the Ripper killing, East London. For H Division, the police department charged with keeping order in the seedy back streets of Whitechapel, life goes on. This fictionalised account of the aftermath of the Ripper murders and impact upon the police responsible for solving the crimes, is particularly violent and gory. But nonetheless, a well-acted ensemble piece that contains plenty to hold the interest of Ripper enthusiasts and social historians alike.  Cast includes: Matthew Macfadyen (Detective Inspector Edmund Reid); Jerome Flynn (Detective Sergeant Bennett Drake) and Adam Rothenberg (US Army surgeon and one-time Pinkerton detective, Captain Homer Jackson).

Hat from 1909.

Mr Selfridge – ITV 1

• Edwardian Era
• Drama Series 10 x 60 minute episodes. Sundays 9pm

I have been waiting ages to see Mr Selfridge, ever since ITV teased us with trailers during season three of Downton Abbey last year. It was worth the wait, I know reviews have been mixed but the production values are high and Edwardian London never looked so good. This sumptuous slice of nostalgia helps fill the gap left on Sunday evenings by Downton.

Mr Selfridge is based upon Lindy Woodhead’s book Shopping, Seduction & Mr Selfridge and created by multi-award winning writer Andrew Davies. It tells the story of Harry Gordon Selfridge (1858–1947), the American gentleman who established the iconic British department store, Selfridges, in 1909.  Cast includes Jeremy Piven (Mr Selfridge) and Katherine Kelly (Lady Mae).

Harry Selfridge was born on the 11th January 1858 at Ripon, Wisconsin, USA. Aged twenty-one, he went to work at department store and mail-order firm Field, Leiter & Co (later Marshall, Field & Co). In 1886, he became manager of their retail department. Selfridge left the firm in 1904, after having spent the previous fourteen years as a junior partner there. He used his fortune to buy Chicago firm Schlesinger & Mayer which he proceeded to sell quickly, turning him a profit of £50,000 to go with the return of his £300,000 initial investment.  Selfridge arrived in London in 1906 and lived in fashionable Arlington Street. He set about realising his grand plan to open a large department store in the heart of London and spared no expense in gathering around him the best team possible, employing one thousand two hundred staff at his Oxford Street store and even hiring Goldsman, the chief window-dresser at Marshall, Field & Co.

According to writer and historian, Claire Masset: ‘Perhaps the greatest advertising campaign of the early twentieth century was that of Selfridges, announcing its much-awaited opening in March 1909.  During the entire week of its opening, Harry Gordon Selfridge commissioned thirty-eight advertisements designed by well-known graphic artists, appearing on over a hundred pages of eighteen national newspapers. The campaign, which cost £36,000 (equivalent to £2.35 million today), caused a sensation, with 90,000 people visiting the store on its opening day and over a million in the first week.’ (Masset. C., Department Stores, 2011, p. 26, published by Shire Publications.)

I have had a look through a selection of contemporary newspapers from 1909 and found some simply fascinating examples of Selfridges’ advertising campaign. I hope you enjoy reading them as much I did.

The dedication of a Great House.  A day well spent is passed at Selfridge’s. This house is dedicated to woman’s service first of all.  And for this there are many excellent and satisfying reasons.  To begin with, everything at Selfridge’s is obviously and charmingly NEW – the great building itself and its equipment – the vast stocks of varied merchandise in their entirety – the methods of displaying them to best advantage – and the unaccustomed and luxurious appointments instituted to provide every possible comfort for daily visitors.

  This House is dedicated to woman’s service first of all, and our purpose is to make her shopping more attractive than it has ever been before; so to satisfy her with value, stocks, and prices that she will discover a wider and more pleasurable opening in the word ‘shopping’ than she has hitherto read in it;  and learn regard for Selfridge’s as the best equipped place of merchandise in London for every shopping purpose in which she takes an interest.  There is a home-like lounge for smoking and gentleman are invited to use it as they would their club.

(Daily Express, London, Tuesday March 16th 1909)

Enamelled hat pins, tie-pin and buttons. 1912. On display at the Museum of the Jewellery Quarter, Birmingham.

The new hat pins  – we believe that we have gathered the largest show of hat pin novelties ever seen together on a counter. Some are metal filigree, some in enamel, others set with big coloured stones, and others again representing dragon flies, bees, etc. with semi-transparent born wings. This price for a ‘scarab’ pin is 6d. Filigree pins from 9d, and Louis Seize designs set with imitation amethysts, topazes, etc. are 1/- each.

(Daily Express, London, Wednesday 19th May 1909)

Woven underwear – for the chilly season.  Ladies’ white Scotch all wool combinations, guaranteed unshrinkable, with spliced seats, high neck and short or long sleeve or low neck and short sleeves – all sizes, price 8/3.

Autumn knickers – Ladies’ satin, cloth and serge sports knickers suitable for Autumn and Winter wear. These are particularly well made as regards shape and finish, and have buttons for fastening in detachable linings. Jap silk accordion pleated knickers in black and white (with linings) for dancing and evening wear. Price 35/

(Daily Express, London, 20th September 1909)

From 1916 to 1922, Harry Selfridge leased Highcliffe Castle, Highcliffe, Dorset from the Stuart Wortleys and this became his country residence, away from the hustle and bustle of London life. His wife, Rosalie and mother, Lois, lived at Highcliffe. Highcliffe Castle is a Grade 1 Listed Georgian Mansion, built in the Gothic Revival style between 1831 and 1835, originally for Lord Stuart de Rothesay. During his tenancy, Selfridge added a number of modern flourishes to the Mansion, including fitted bathrooms, steam central heating and a fully equipped modern kitchen.

After the death of his wife, in 1918, and his mother, in 1924, he lost his direction somewhat and embarked upon a number of romances with younger women. Then came the Great Depression and World War Two when retail therapy was the last thing on everyone’s mind. In his twilight years, Selfridge frittered away his money in French casino resorts and eventually died, virtually penniless, at 2 Ross Court, Putney Heath, London on 8th May 1947. He is buried in St. Marks Churchyard at Highcliffe, next to his wife and mother.

Meridian (ITV) have produced a short film (3 mins. 47) ‘Meeting Mr Selfridge’, about the new series and Harry Selfridge’s life here in England. There is also a segment about his time at Highcliffe Castle. CLICK HERE.

1930s Burberry shooting coat. Perfect for those country house parties.

Dancing on the Edge – BBC 2 

• 1930s
• Drama Series 5 x 60 minute episodes – Mondays 9pm (Starts Monday 4th February 2013)

This new drama series by acclaimed writer/director Stephen Poliakoff is set in England in between 1931 and 1933.  Dancing on the Edge follows black jazz musicians, the Louis Lester Band, as they find fame at the parties and performances of London’s upper class society. Cast includes Chiwetel Ejiofor, Matthew Goode, Jacqueline Bisset, Janet Montgomery, Joanna Vanderham, Tom Hughes, Angel Coulby, Wunmi Mosaku, Mel Smith, Anthony Head, Caroline Quentin and Jane Asher.

For further background on this production, see David Gritten’s excellent article, ‘Poliakoff’s Dancing on the Edge: Behind the Scenes’, published on The Telegraph’s website, Monday 21st January 2013. For the article, CLICK HERE. For behind the scenes photographs of the production, CLICK HERE.

One of the locations for this lavish BBC production was  Upton House and Gardens, Nr Banbury, Warwickshire (The National Trust). Before the Second World War, this fifteenth century manor house was owned by Lord and Lady Bearsted. Lord Bearsted (Colonel Walter Horace Samuel, 2nd Viscount Bearsted, MC – 1882-1948) brought Upton in 1927 and until 1929 made many changes to the property and gardens. Notable additions to the interior include a stunning red and silver aluminium leaf art deco bathroom for Lady Bearsted (Dorothy Montefiore Micholls – d.1949) and in the grounds a swimming pool. Lord Bearsted was an astute businessman, he was Director of Lloyds Bank Ltd, Alliance & Assurance Co and also founded the Shell Transport and Trading Company. During the 1930s, the multi-millionaire and his wife hosted lavish house parties at Upton.   The house is full of priceless art treasures and Lord Bearsted was once a Trustee of the National Gallery.

On the weekend of 9th and 10th March, 2013 (Mothering Sunday Weekend),  Upton have a 1930s Beauty Parlour event. There will be demonstrations of 1930s fashion, make-up, hair and beauty techniques. There will also be an opportunity for you to make a gift for your mum. There is no need to pre-book as this event is free, although you will have to pay normal admission charges to Upton.  The house and gardens open again to the public from Saturday 16th February (11-5).  For 2013 opening times. CLICK HERE.

Riding sweater by Hawico, London, 1930s advertisement. ‘Makes an irresistible appeal to all smart riding women. Made in sky, yellow, beige, white and guaranteed to withstand countless washings.’

London store Marshall & Snelgrove’s 1935 advertisement for silk stockings.

Spies of Warsaw- BBC 4

• 1933 to 1943
• Drama Series 2 x 90 minute episodes. Wednesdays 9pm

Directed by Coky Giedroyc, Spies Of Warsaw is a thrilling spy story set in Poland, Paris, London and Berlin between 1933 and 1943. French and German intelligence operatives are locked in a life-and-death struggle on the espionage battlefield. Based on a 2008 novel by American bestseller Alan Furst with the screenplay written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. The main protagonist is jaded French agent and former hero of the Great War, Colonel Jean-François Mercier.  Cast includes: David Tennant (Colonel Jean-Francois Mercier); Janet Montgomery (Anna Skarbek); Marcin Dorocinski (Antoni Pakulski) and Ludger Pistor (Edvard Uhl). This is a superb, classy and intelligent thriller. Tennant is brilliant as Colonel Mercier.

Commissioned by Richard Klein, Controller, BBC Four and Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning. Executive produced by Richard Fell for Fresh Pictures and Chris Aird for the BBC, co-produced by Apple Film for TV Poland in association with ARTE FRANCE and BBC Worldwide.

If you would like to read more about the background to this production, Olly Grant has written an excellent, detailed article in Broadcast Now. CLICK HERE.

Call The Midwife (Series 2) – BBC 1

• 1950s – London’s East End
• Drama Series 8 x 60 minute episodes. Sundays 8pm (Starts on 20th January)

Set in London’s East End in the 1950s and based on the memoirs of former midwife Jennifer Worth. For a short history of midwifery in the Britain then please see my popular article, Call The Midwife: An Historical Perspective  (well it did get picked-up and recommended by
http://www.studentmidwife.net
, which I was thrilled about). I will be writing about the tie-in book for series one and two in a future posting, so keep an eye out for that.

Julian Fellowes’s Historical Houses – ITV 1

• Goodwood House and Burghley House
• Documentary – 2 x 60 minute episodes. Tuesdays 9pm (Starts 22nd January)

Who better to present a documentary about two of England’s greatest stately homes, than Downton Abbey‘s creator Julian Fellowes. The two houses in question are Goodwood House, in West Sussex and Burghley House, Stamford, Lincolnshire. Fans of vintage may already be familiar with the annual Goodwood Revival event, which this year takes place on the 13th, 14th and 15th of  September. Fellowes goes in search of fascinating stories behind these two houses and the characters who helped shape their history. Both houses were selected on the basis that they are still in ownership of the families who built them.

Goodwood House is the seat of the Duke of Richmond and Lennox. Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond (1672-1723) was the illegitimate son of Charles II (1630-1685) and Louise de Keroualle, Duchess of Portsmouth (1649-1734). The 1st Duke’s love of hunting led him to Goodwood where he purchased a small Jacobean house on the estate in 1697 for use as a hunting lodge. This house is now referred to as the ‘old house’ and is located at the back of the main house. Goodwood House was developed throughout the eighteenth century. The classical Main Hall was built in 1730, a Palladian style South Wing between 1747-1750 and a North Wing added in 1771. The Regency State apartments were added to the South Wing in 1800. The House now resembles three sides of an octagon. Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond (1701-1750) was a keen cricketer and arranged matches at Goodwood in the mid 1720s. The 2nd Duke is credited with setting-up the first formal rules of the game, the original document is now kept in Goodwood’s archives.

Burghley House was created by William Cecil, 1st Lord Burghley (1521-1598), Lord High Treasurer to Elizabeth I (1533-1603). The house is thought to be one of the largest Elizabethan mansions ever built. Building began in the 1550s. One of the most notable owners of Burghley was William Cecil’s great-great-great-grandson, John Cecil, 5th Earl of Exeter (1648-1700) who, together with his wife Lady Anne Cavendish (1645-1703), crammed Burghley full of priceless treasures, paintings, furniture and tapestries.  The 5th Earl embarked upon the fashionable Grand Tour and with his wife travelled extensively overseas during a twenty year period. One particular treasure is the Florentine cabinet, enriched with pietra dura panels, which was given to the 5th Earl by the Grand Duke of Tuscany. The 5th Earl died in 1700 at Issy near Paris, apparently after consuming a surfeit of fruit!

The world’s first solid bar of chocolate was produced by Bristol company, J S Fry & Sons in 1847. It was called Chocolat Délicieux à Manger (delicious to eat). The bar was bitter, heavy and a challenge for even the strongest of teeth and jaws. After a slow start, popularity gradually followed. The Victorians often took this portable confectionary with them on long railway journeys whereby it served as a handy snack. The three brothers who were running the company when the bar was invented were: Francis Fry (1803-1886); Richard Fry (1807-1878) and Joseph Fry (1795-1879). By 1910, Fry’s employed 6,000 staff.  Invention No. 5 in the BBC’s booklet 50 Great British Inventions. The exhibit shown are examples of Fry’s chocolate labels, on display at MShed Museum, Bristol.

The Genius of Invention – BBC 2

• History of Inventions and Technology
• Documentary 4 x 60 minute episodes. Thursdays – 9pm. (Starts 24th January)

This four-part series will explore the background behind some of the inventions found in everyday life. Michael Mosley, Prof. Mark Miodownik and Dr Cassie Newland explore the very nature of invention and how and why things are invented. Some of the inventions discussed in the series will include the steam engine, jet propulsion, electrical generator, telephony and television. There is a fascinating and well put together booklet to accompany the series, 50 Great British Inventions. It is free to download and packed full of useful background information and images. CLICK HERE.

1935 advertisement for Schweppe’s drinks. The advert reads: ‘For lively people, let there be lively drinks to match - drinks with sparkling, bubbling freshness to revive tired palates.  Schweppes Soda mixes with anything: it improves everything…that’s why it’s so famous.’ Soda water was invented, in 1772, by Joseph Priestley FRS (1733-1804) a clergyman and scientist. He published instructions on how to make carbonated water, using sulphuric acid and chalk. In 1774, the Swiss fizzy drinks pioneer, Johann Jacob Schweppe (1740-1821) set-up his Schweppes drinks company in London so that he could manufacture carbonated mineral water using Priestley’s method. The brand is still going strong today. No. 14 in the BBC’s booklet 50 Great British Inventions.

This series is part of the BBC’s year-long schedule of programmes focussing on all aspects of British inventiveness.  To browse the full catalogue of programmes due for transmission this year, CLICK HERE. Some of my personal favourites are documentaries on the Romantic landscape painter J.M.W. Turner RA (1775-1851);  Sir Isaac Newton (1643-1727); Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) – see my article on The Wedgwood Museum for further information on the Wedgwood dynasty; Why the Industrial Revolution Happened here; Locomotion: Dan Snow’s History of Railways and Stephen Fry’s Planet Invention exploring the background to the ‘stuff’ that fills our homes from putting knives, jeans, bras, flip-flops and fridges to handbags, fast cars and Swiss watches.

Do also check-out the many Genius of Invention related activities that are taking place at museums and heritage sites throughout the UK. CLICK HERE.

The modern hypodermic syringe was invented, in 1853, by Scottish physician Alexander Wood (1817-1884). He was not the only gentleman important to the development of this type of syringe. Francis Rynd (1811-1861) invented hollow needles and Charles Gabriel Pravaz (1791-1853) invented a metal-bodied syringe with a fine hollow point needle for treating aneurysms. No. 15 in the BBC’s booklet, 50 Great British Inventions. Objects shown are from a display at The Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret, London.

Petworth House, West Sussex (the National Trust) currently have an important exhibition of Turner’s paintings on view, many for the first time. Turner’s Sussex  includes forty exhibits, plus a rare opportunity to view the Old Library, used by Turner as his studio when he visited Petworth, which he frequently did in the 1820s and 30s.  One of Turner’s patrons was the 3rd Earl of Egremont (George O’Brien Wyndham, 1751-1837) for which Petworth was his country seat. The exhibition continues at Petworth until 13th March 2013.  Booking is essential for Turner’s Sussex. Gates open: 10am; Last admission time: 2.15pm; Timed tickets every 45 minutes; Adult £10, child £5; Two-course lunch and high tea available to pre-book on 01798 342207.  To book tickets, call 0844 249 1895 or book online.

 Carved With Love: The Genius of British Woodwork – BBC4

• History of British Woodwork
• Documentary 3 x 60 minute episodes. Thursdays 9pm

As part of the year-long partnership between the BBC and V&A, this three-part documentary explores some of the most important individuals responsible for shaping the history of British woodwork. Episode one explores the extraordinary life and work of fashionable furniture-maker, Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779). Episode two looks at the output of wood-carver Grinling Gibbons (1648-1721) and Episode three provides a close study of carpentry during the Middle Ages, including a detailed look at the roof of Westminster Hall and the seven hundred year old Coronation Chairs.

1930s cocktail party.

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The Wriothesleys of Titchfield

Titchfield Abbey, Titchfield, Hampshire.

Titchfield Abbey, Titchfield, Hampshire was founded in 1231 by Peter des Roches, Bishop of Winchester.  The abbey was home to Premonstratensian canons, known as ‘White Canons’ due to the colour of their habits. St Norbet founded the Premonstratensian Order in 1121 and the Order follow rules ascribed to St Augustine.  The canons would have attended eight services each day as well as Mass in the monastic church. The abbey continued to exist, relatively peacefully, until Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monastries (1536-1541) which resulted in a dramatic change of use and ownership. The Abbey was transformed into a grand mansion called Place House and became the country seat of the powerful Tudor and Jacobean family, The Wriothesleys.  Below are short biographies for some of the key Wriothesleys.

Titchfield Abbey – View from the back.

John Wriothesley (formerly Writhe) – Died 1504

Son of William Writhe.  John was an English officer of arms and Garter King of Arms. John thought the name of Writhe not grand enough for a family on the rise, he settled on Wriothesley instead. Other members of his family adopted the name change.

Sir Thomas Wriothesley (formerly Writhe) – Died 1534

Son of John Wriothesley. Sir Thomas was a Wiltshire herald. His wife Jane had ten children during their decade long marriage. Jane died in 1510. Sir Thomas organised the funeral of Henry VII, the coronation of Henry VIII, the Westminster tournament of 1511 and attended Anne Boleyn‘s coronation in 1533. In 1529 he gave evidence at the divorce proceedings of Katherine of Aragon. Sir Thomas also appears in the Hampton Court painting, ‘The Field of the Cloth of Gold’ (c.1545).  He was a talented artist and an aggressive self-promoter.

William Wriothesley (formerly Writhe) – Died in 1513

Son of John Wriothesley and a York herald, an officer of arms at the College of Arms. He married Agnes Drayton.

Charles Wriothesley (1508-62)

Son of Sir Thomas Wriothesley. A Windsor Herald. He lived at Garter House, a mansion built by Sir Thomas in Barbican St, Cripplegate Ward, London.  At sixteen he was appointed Rouge Croix Pursuivant with an annual salary of £10.  He studied law at Cambridge. In 1529 he became a gentleman of Gray’s Inn.

Thomas Wriothesley (1505-1550) – 1st Earl of Southampton

Eldest son of William Wriothesley. Thomas had two sisters, Elizabeth (b. 1507) and Anne (b. 1508). Anne married Thomas Knight of Hook in Hampshire. He had a younger brother, Edward (b. 1509) whose godfathers included 3rd Duke of Buckingham and 5th Earl of Northumberland. Thomas studied at Trinity Hall, Cambridge but didn’t finish his degree.  He was a handsome gentleman and a courtier of Henry VIII (1491-1547). His ambition knew no limits, in the 1530′s he became Cromwell‘s private secretary, Chief Clerk of the Signet and a top-ranking civil servant. He was a great patron of arts and literature. His wife was Jane Cheney of Chesham Bois, Buckinghamshire. They had three sons and five daughters. As a reward for his support to the King during the Reformation and turbulent break from Rome, Thomas was granted: Quarr Abbey – Isle of Wight (1537); eleven manors and 5,000 acres at Titchfield Abbey (1537) and Beaulieu Abbey (1538).  He also brought Micheldever Manor from the King in 1544. Between 1544 and 1546 he acquired thirty-five ex-monastic manors and five southern counties.  On 1st January 1544, Thomas became Baron Titchfield and Lord Chancellor.  When his son Henry was baptized on 24th April 1545, Henry VIII was appointed one of the godparents.  Thomas retained a large retinue and in 1545 he had one hundred and forty in his livery including Yeoman dressed in velvet and wearing gold chains. Thomas had now become probably one of the greatest noblemen in Hampshire.

However, following the King’s death, Thomas found himself in a vulnerable position.  He was outspoken, arrogant, ruthless and faced criticism for his occasional abuses of authority which led to a brief spell in prison and a hefty fine. When young Edward VI was crowned in 1547 Thomas held the Sword of State, then had it taken away from him for misconduct. Although, Thomas was later reinstated onto the Royal Council.  Whilst serving as a member of the Royal Council, he became 1st Earl of Southampton. Thomas suffered from consumption and died at Lincoln House on 30th July, 1550.  He was buried at St. Andrew’s Church, Holburnand his body later returned to Titchfield.

The ruins of the former Titchfield Abbey, showing Chapter House and Library.

Henry Wriothesley (1545-1581) – 2nd Earl of Southampton

Henry was the son of the 1st Earl, Thomas.  Henry inherited an annual land income from his father of £1,466 13s 4d, making him an extremely wealthy man and attractive marriage prospect.  He was only five when his father died and he spent the rest of his formative years living with his mother being privately educated at home.  He was brought-up a Catholic and married Mary Browne on 19th February, 1566. The marriage meant that Henry had now become part of one of the leading Catholic families in Sussex. Henry and Mary had one son, Henry and two daughters, Jane (d.1573) and Mary (1567-1607).  His family entertained both Edward VI and Elizabeth I at Titchfield, the estate by this time had developed into an extremely large and lavish household.  Henry’s annual income from lands in the 1560′s had risen to nearly £3,000.

Henry was not without his critics and had inherited his family trait for arrogance and playing dangerous power games at Court.  He was arrested on 18th June, 1570 for consorting with the Spanish ambassador, Guerau de Espés del Valle (1524–1572). Henry remained in the Tower of London until 1st May, 1573. However, he was soon back in favour again and on 12th July, 1574 he became JP for Hampshire.

He died on 4th October 1581 in Itchel in the parish of Crondall, Hampshire, he was thirty-six.  He was later buried on 30th November, 1581 at his beloved Titchfield.  Henry ensured that his funeral was a lavish affair which cost him £138.  He also left monies enough for a £1,000 alabaster monument of himself and his parents.  This monument is known as ‘The Titchfield Monument’.

Henry Wriothesley (1573-1624) – 3rd Earl of Southampton

Born at Cowdray House, nr Midhurst, Sussex on 6th October, 1573. His parents had a very stormy marriage and at the age of eight his father, the 2nd Earl died.  Henry harboured a lifelong distrust of women, not helped by having to spend most of his childhood estranged from his mother.  He did turn to men for affection and generally enjoyed their company more than that of women.

Henry was sent to one of the top schools for noblemen at Cecil House, Strand, London. The school was Lord Burghley’s educational jewel and turned out some of the country’s brightest young aristocrats. At the age of twelve Henry went to St. John’s College, Cambridge and at sixteen he graduated with his MA and was immediately admitted to Gray’s Inn to study law.  Henry became a courtier and passionate patron of the arts.  His distrust of women and marriage in general, came to a head when he refused to marry Lady Elizabeth Vere, Lord Burghley’s granddaughter.  Tudor law dictated that a refusal to marry a lady of his ward’s choosing would result in having to pay a huge fine to the ward.  His determination not to marry Lady Elizabeth was so strong that he opted to pay the fine which he did so on 21st October 1594. He paid Lord Burghley the sum of £5,000.  This made a large hole in Henry’s income.

Henry was charismatic, attractive albeit with a feminine manner, he had auburn hair, blue eyes and his voice had a soft tone.  His dress style was flamboyant and his favourite fabric was white silk which he would teamed with a doublet, purple garters and large feathers in his hat.

Eventually, Henry knew that he would not be able to avoid marriage forever if the Wriothesley line was to continue.  He took a huge risk and married Elizabeth Vernon, one of Elizabeth I’s (1533-1603) Maids of Honour.  He did not seek the Queen’s permission first and as a result fell spectacularly out of favour with her.  This was a dangerous position for any Tudor nobleman to find himself in, particularly one who had already lost a large chunk of their fortune. The consequences of failing to curry favour with the Queen meant that he was never accepted back at court.

Henry’s bad luck continued when he found himself caught-up in the Earl of Essex’s rebellion in 1601, causing him to lose his estates and very nearly his own head.  For a general overview on this important Tudor event, CLICK HERE.  For his part in the Earl of Essex’s rebellion, Henry was arrested, sent to the Tower, accused of Treason and sentenced to death.  His earldom was taken away and the 2nd Earl of Essex beheaded on 25th February, 1601.  When James I came to the throne on 24th March, 1603, he set Henry free the following month.

3rd Earl of Southampton and The Virginia Company

Henry was an active member of the Virginia Company’s governing council.  The Mayflower sailed to the Northern Colony to find religious freedom in 1620.  On 3rd November, in the same year, a patent was granted for the Incorporation of a Council to manage the affairs of the Plantation of the Second Colony of New England and Henry was one of the original Council members. In Charlotte Carmichael Stopes’ The Life of Henry, Third Earl of Southampton, Shakespeare’s Patron (1922) she discusses, in detail, Henry’s involved with the Virginia Council and Company in the chapter, ‘Virginia Britannica’.  Stopes lists the provisions provided by Henry for the Colony’s survival:

A note of the shipping, men and provisions sent and provided for Virginia by the Earl of Southampton and the Company and other private adventurers in 1621 included 24 ships with 500 mariners; experts to teach men how to utilise the produce of the Plantations; French vine-dressers to cultivate vines and mulberries, to make wine; others to teach them how to make glass for themselves and beads for the savages; fur-traders, metallurgists, builders; with plans for a church, a college, and a house of entertainment for newcomers. (Stopes, 1928, p.440-1)

The Virginia Company was dissolved on 15th June, 1624. It was not financially successful but social projects associated with it where.

View from the Porter’s Lodge window, showing the Tudor brick fireplaces and square windows from both storeys. The timber floors have long since gone.

Tudor brickwork in the gatehouse.

3rd Earl of Southampton and William Shakespeare

The life of the 3rd Earl of Southampton has been well-documented, this is partly due to his brief patronage of William Shakespeare (1564-1616).  There is a great deal of scholastic debate about the extent of the relationship both Shakespeare and Wriothesley. Some have argued it was purely a creative partnership and others that there was a physical relationship between the two of them as well.  There have been suggestions that several of Shakespeare’s plays were first performed at Titchfield in a playhouse created on the second storey of the gatehouse complex.

View toward Porter’s Lodge from ground floor of gatehouse building.

One particular performance that is often cited is the one that may have taken place at Titchfield on the afternoon of 2nd September, 1591, an early staging of Love’s Labour’s Lost. The 3rd Earl is supposed to have played the role of Berowne.  However, G. P. V. Akrigg points-out, in Shakespeare and the Earl of Southampton (1968) that:

..there is no evidence of a play or actors at Titchfield……If the present writer must add his own guess as to where and when Shakespeare and Southampton first met, he would suggest a backstage meeting in a London playhouse sometime in 1591-92.  The person who first presented Shakespeare to the Earl may have been Sir George Carew, whose marriage in 1580 to a Clopton heiress had made him a great man around Stratford. (p. 193)

Suggestions have also been made that some of Shakespeare’s sonnets contain hidden references to Wriothesley, particularly in relation to his reluctance to marry. Although we do know that following the Earl’s release from the Tower on 10th April, 1603, James I’s encouraged Shakespeare to write a sonnet (no. 107), especially for the Earl, to congratulate him on his release:

Not mine own fears, nor the prophetic soul

Of the wide world dreaming on things to come,

Can yet the lease of my true love control,

Supposed as forfeit to a confined doom.

The mortal moon hath her eclipse endured,

And the sad augurs mock their own presage.

Incertainties now crown themselves assured,

And peace proclaims olives of endless age.

Now with the drops of this most balmy time

My love looks fresh, and Death to me subscribes,

Since, spite of him, I’ll live in this poor rhyme

While he insults o’er dull and speechless tribes.

And thou in this o’er dull and speechless tribes.

And though in this shalt find thy monument,

When tyrants’ crests and tombs of brass are spent.

Akrigg also suggests (pp. 255-6) that character of the young Count of Rousillon, in All’s Well that Ends Well (1603-4), may well have been based on the Earl’s in his earlier years.  Shakespeare’s two narrative poems, Venus and Adonis (1593) and The Rape of Lucrece (1594) are dedicated to the 3rd Earl.

Thomas Wriothesley (1608-1667) – 4th Earl of Southampton

Thomas was the only surviving son of the 3rd Earl.  Thomas liked to gamble and found himself in debt after losing a bet at Newmarket racecourse.  In order to pay back the debt, he went into the timber business and traded from his Titchfield estate. Thomas was a royalist and supporter of Charles I.  He entertained Charles and Queen Henrietta Maria at Titchfield in 1625.

When Charles I fled for his life in 1647 he stayed at Titchfield en-route to the Isle of Wight. After Charles I’s execution, Thomas retired to Titchfield and in 1655 found himself imprisoned in the Tower of London but was released later on that year. With the Restoration of Charles II, on 27th Mary 1660, Thomas was appointed to the privy council and became a Knight of the Garter.  Thomas died in London at Southampton House and was buried at Titchfield on 18th June, 1667.

Thomas married three times.  His first wife was a French Huguenot, Rachel de Massue (1603-1640). They had two daughters, Elizabeth and Rachel.  Elizabeth married Edward Noel and Rachel married William Russell.  Upon the Earl’s death all of his property passed to both his daughters. Following their deaths all property passed to Rachel and William’s son, the 2nd Duke of Bedford. Titchfield was sold in 1779 to the family of Delme and in 1781 it was largely demolished.  During the First World War the estate was brought by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and the ruins transferred to the HM Office of Works.  The site is now managed by English Heritage.  There is no admission charge to visit the site but do check the opening hours before setting off.  For more information about the property, including a really good audio tour that you can download for free, CLICK HERE.

The Transformation of Titchfield Abbey into Place House –

The Wriothesleys’ Family Seat

Titchfield Abbey was transformed into a mansion, called Place House/Titchfield Palace, by the 1st Earl of Southampton, Thomas Wriothesley. The 1st Earl wasted no time in transforming the Abbey into a grand, Tudor mansion befitting a gentleman of his position.  The cost of the extensive renovations was approximately £200 and the work carried-out at lightening speed. The master-mason on the project was Thomas Bartewe who resided in Winchester.  Thomas had an impressive CV that included Calshot and Hurst Castles.  The west end Nave of the church was transformed into a large gatehouse, the Cloisters became a courtyard, the Refectory a Great Hall and the Chapter House turned into a private chapel.

It is still possible today to see some of the original Tudor fireplaces, chimneys, brickwork and square windows particularly in the gatehouse buildings. The gatehouse was constructed by demolishing the central (fourth) bay of the nave and a second storey added, all in the fashionable mock-Medieval architectural style.  In the ground floor chambers of the gatehouse it is still possible to see windows which have small slits, single and crossed.  These would have been used by archers or hand-gunners should the need have arisen to defend the mansion from attack.

During a survey carried out at Titchfield in 1737, the second storey of the gatehouse buildings to the right of the main porter’s lodge (the Tudor windows of which still exist) was described as a ‘Playhouse Room’.  It is possible that in this space theatrical masques and performances may have taken place. However, as already stated no concrete evidence has emerged to confirm that some of these performances were of plays written by William Shakespeare.

In G. P. V Akrigg’s Shakespeare and the Earl of Southampton (1968) a description is given of the mansion at Titchfield. The description is based on a report written by Sir Thomas Fleming, the Queen’s Solicitor-General, following a visit made to by to Titchfield while the 3rd Earl was imprisoned in the Tower for his part in the Earl of Essex’s rebellion:

[Sir Thomas Fleming] with his clerks he trooped about the great mansion, through the entrance gate flanked by its four lofty towers and into the Fountain Court that lay beyond, up the handsome stairs that on the opposite side led up to the hall beyond, and so on to all the other parts of the great mansion: the gallery, the great dining-room, the little dining-room, the ladies’ gallery, the music gallery, the earl’s apartments, and those of his countess.  On they went into the Kitchen Court and all the multiple offices that lay around it, the servants’ hall, the still room, the kitchen, the wet larder and the dry larder, the small beer cellar and the strong beer cellar, and the arched wine cellar, everywhere from the Jericho Porch to the Audit Room.  As they went, they took inventory:

In the great chamber:

One large Turkey carpett

One large foote Turkey carpett

Twoe chaires of crimson velvet

vi high stools of crimson

In the Longe Gallery:

old mappes.

(Arkrigg, 1968, p. 131)

The Medieval Tiles

At Titchfield today, it is possible to see one of the finest collections of medieval floor tiles in Southern England. One of the reasons why these splendid tiles, originally laid in the Cloisters, have survived is due to their having been covered over to create the floor of the Courtyard, during the Tudor renovations.  The tiles were discovered in excavations undertaken in 1923. Nowadays, in order to protect them from frost, they are covered over in the winter months with sand.

The tiles date from the late thirteenth and early fourteenth century and were likely to have been manufactured locally. The tiles were made by pressing a wooden stamp into wet clay and then white, liquid, clay was poured into the indent.  The excess liquid would have been scraped off to form the design. The tiles were then coated with a lead glaze and fired in a kiln. The design range is varied from floral, geometric, birds, beast to heraldic motifs.

Double-headed eagle tile.

The double-headed eagle is possibly the coat of arms of Richard, Earl of Cornwall (1209-72), Henry III’s brother.

Twin towers tile.

The twin towers tile, could possibly represent Eleanor of Castile (1241-90), the first wife of Edward I.

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Restoration Drama with Gwyn, Pepys & Collier

Actress Nell Gwyn standing outside her lodgings’ door.

Having thoroughly enjoyed the ubiquitous Dr Lucy Worsley’s recent BBC Four series, ‘Harlots, Housewives and Heroines: A 17th Century History for Girls’, I decided to revisit my collection of playtexts and theatre source books for some restoration inspiration.  The BBC series is in three parts, ‘Act One: At Court’ (Ep.1); ‘Act Two: At Home’ (Ep. 2); ‘Act Three: At Work’ (Ep. 3) and focusses upon that flamboyant period in English history, The Restoration.  The Restoration began when Charles II (1630-1685) was invited to take-up the throne of England following the death of Oliver Cromwell, “Lord Protector“, in 1658.  Charles accepted the role and eventually returned to London on the 29th May 1660, his 30th birthday, receiving a warm welcome in the Capital. The young Charles was crowned at Westminster Abbey on 23rd April, 1661.

With the restoration of the monarchy, the English aristocracy could start living life to the full once again, after ten years of puritanical oppression under Cromwell. The wealthy wasted no time in embracing their new-found social, sexual and political freedom and the arts flourished. Dr Worsely’s series features some of the females that enjoyed extraordinary success in the Restoration, including: playwright Aphra Behn (1640-1689) and actress Eleanor “Nell” Gwyn (1650-1687).  Also featured is the celebrated writer and social commentator Samuel Pepys (1633-1703), who left an enduring chronicle of the period with his infamous Diary.

Nell Gwyn was born on 2nd February 1650 in Hereford, Herefordshire.  Her father, Captain Thomas Gwyn, had been a soldier in the English Civil War. Her mother drowned in a pond (supposedly as the result of drunkenness) in Chelsea, July 1679.  As a teenage Nell had been an orange seller outside The Theatre in Bridge Street, this theatre was later rebuilt and renamed as the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, which still survives today.  She was a member of the Drury Lane Company of actors from 1665 until 1669. In 1670 Nell became Charles II’s mistress and remained so until his death in 1685.  She had two illegitimate children with the King, Charles and James Beauclerk, sadly James died in Paris, aged 9.  At her Pall Mall house on the 14th November 1687, Nell died of syphilis related apoplexy.

Nell worked as an actress for seven years and her last professional appearance was as Almahide in the two-part heroic drama by John Dryden, The Conquest of Granada. performed in 1670 and part two in 1671.  It was unusual for a professional actress to return to work following the birth of a child. Her son Charles was born on 8th May 1670 and by December Nell was in full flow in the demanding lead role of Dryden’s opus.

This tragedy is based upon the Spanish conquest of Granada in 1492. It is written in closed couplets of iambic pentameter.  Nell opens the first play by speaking the Prologue.  She must have been a picture, in the copy of the playtext from my own collection it states: ‘Spoken by Mrs Ellen Gwyn, in a broad-rimmed hat, and waist-belt.’  The footnotes elaborate on her costume: ‘Nell Gwyn’s costume borrowed its idea from the comedian Nokes at the rival Patent Theatre.  Nokes is said to have taken the visit of the Duchess of Orleans to England, in May 1670, as occasion for caricaturing, on the English stage, French fashions.’  Below are the opening lines from the Prologue:

This jest was first of t’other house’s making,

And, five times tried, has never failed of taking.

For ‘twere a shame a poet should be killed

Under the shelter of so broad a shield.

This is that hat whose very sight did win ye

To laugh and clap as though the devil were in ye.

As then, for Nokes, so now, I hope, you’ll be

So dull, to laugh, once more, for love of me.

‘I’ll write a play,’ says one, ‘for I have got

A broad-brimmed hat, and waist-belt, towards a plot.’

Says t’other, ‘I have one more large than that.’

Thus they out-write each other with a hat.

The brims still grew with every play they write;

And grew so large, they covered all the wit.

Nell’s character Almahide is the Queen of Granada.  Almahide enters, for the first time, just over a third of way into Act III scene 1.  The action accompanying the entrance of the King, Almahide, Abenamar and Esperanza is quite spectacular. A lengthy song followed by an exotic Zambra dance and ‘tumultuous noise of drums and trumpets’. Almahide’s first speech is very short:

What dismal planet did my triumphs light!

Discord the day, and death does rule the night:

The noise my soul does through my senses wound.

(Act III scene 1, lines 249-251)

Her final speech of the play is in Act V, Scene 3, lines 299-310:

Adieu, then, O my soul’s far better part!

Your image sticks so close,

That the blood follows from my rending heart.

A last farewell!

For, since a last must come, the rest are vain,

Like gasps in death, which but prolong our pain.

But, since the king is now a part of me,

Cease from henceforth to be his enemy.

Go now, for pity go! for, if you stay,

I fear I shall have something still to say.

Thus – I for ever shut you from my sight. [veils].

Pepys began writing his Diary in 1660, stopping in 1669.  Pepys was certainly a fruity old devil with an eye for the ladies, particularly if they had a pretty, well-turned ankle. Some of his entries are eye-wateringly naughty, which explains why he wrote it using a shorthand form called Tachygraphy.  Pepys wrote predominantly for his own private pleasure.  It wasn’t until 1825 that the diaries were finally transcribed and subsequently published in two volumes.  This important primary source has enabled generations of scholars to develop a greater understanding of life in the first decade of the English Restoration. Pepys was captivated by Nell Gwyn and his diary entries from this period support his fascination with her:

3rd April – 1665: ‘With Creed, my wife, and Mercer to a play at the Duke’s of my Lord Orrery’s, called Mustapha, which being not good made Betterton’s part and Ianthe’s but ordinary too, so that we were not contented with it at all…..All the pleasure of the play was, the King and my Lady Castlemayne were there; and pretty witty Nell, at the King’s House, sat next us, which pleased me mightily.’

23rd January – 1667: ‘After dinner to the New Exchange, there to take up my wife and Mercer, and thence to the King’ house, and there saw The Humerous Lieutenant: a silly play, I think.  Here in a box above we spied Mrs Pierce; and going out they called us, and so we staid for them; and Knipp took us all in and brought to us Nelly, a most pretty woman, who acted the great part of Coelia today very fine, and did it pretty well: I kissed her, and so did my wife, and a mighty pretty soul she is.  Knipp made us stay in a box and see the dancing preparatory to tomorrow for The Goblins, a play of Suckling’s not acted these twenty-five years, which was pretty; and so away thence, pleased with this sight also, and specially kissing of Nell.’

2nd March – 1667: ‘After dinner with my wife to the King’s house to see The Mayden Queene, a new play of Dryden’s, mightily commended for the regularity of it, and the strain and wit; and the truth is there is a comical part done by Nell, which is Florimell, that I never can hope ever to see the like done again, by man or women.  The King and Duke of York were at the play.  But so great performance of a comical part was never I believe in the world before as Nell do this, both as a mad girle, then most and best of all when she comes in like a young gallant; and hath the motions and carriage of a spark the most that ever I saw any man have.  It makes me, I confess, admire her.’

5th October – 1667: ’At noon home, and by coach to Temple Bar to a India shop, and there brought a gown and sash, which cost me 26s.; and so to my Lord Crew and there dined, and after dinner I to my tailor’s, and there took up my wife and Willet, and so to the King’s house: and there going in met with Knipp, and she took us up into the tireing-rooms, and to the women’s shift, where Nell was dressing herself and was all unready, and is very pretty, prettier than I thought.  And so walked all up and down the house above, and then below into the scene-room and there sat down, and she gave us fruit: and here I read the questions to Knipp, while she answered me, through all her part of Flora’s Figary’s which was acted today. But, Lord! to see how they were both painted would make a man mad, and did make me loath them; and what base company of men comes among them, and how lewdly they talk! and how poor the men are in clothes, and yet what a shew they make on the stage by candle-light, is very observable.’

11th November – 1667: ‘After dinner my wife and I and Willett to the King’s play-house, and there say The Indian Emperour, [by Dryden], a good play, but not so good as people cry it up, I think, though above all things Nell’s ill speaking of a great part made me mad.’

28th December – 1667: ‘..I rose soon from dinner, and with my wife and girle to the King’s house, and there saw The Mad Couple [by James Howard], which is but an ordinary play; but only Nell’s and Harts mad parts are most excellently done, but especially her’s; which makes it a miracle to me to think how ill she do any serious part, as the other day, just like a fool or changeling, and in a mad part do beyond all imitation almost.’

7th May – 1668: ‘At noon home to dinner, and thither I sent for Mercer to dine with me; and after dinner she and I called Mrs Turner, and I carried them to the Duke of York’s house, and there saw The Man’s The Master, which proves a very good play.  Thence called Knipp from the King’s house, where going in for her, the play being done, I did see Beck Marshall come dressed off of the stage, and looks mighty fine and pretty and noble: and also Nell in her boy’s clothes, mighty pretty.’

7th January – 1669: ‘Up, and to the office, where busy all the morning, and then at noon home to dinner, and thence my wife and I to the King’s playhouse, and there saw The Island Princesse, the first time I ever saw it; and it is a pretty good play, many good things being in it, and a good scene of a town on fire. We sate in an upper box, and the jade Nell come and sat in the next box; a bold merry slut, who lay laughing there upon people; and with a comrade of hers of the Duke’s house, that come in to see the play.’

In 1642 Elizabethan and Jacobean drama came to an abrupt end with the formal closing of the theatres by Parliament who decreed that: ‘public stage-plays shall cease, and be forbane.’ When the theatres re-opened in 1660 a new creative era began and the genre of Restoration drama born. Important playwrights synonymous with this period include: Aphra Behn; John Dryden; George Villiers; Thomas Otway; Sir George Etherege; William Wycherley; William Congreve; Sir John Vanbrugh; George Farquhar; Sir Charles Sedley; Thomas Shadwell; Thomas Southerne; Nicholas Rowe and Joseph Addison. Restoration drama begins in 1660 and ends at the turn of the eighteenth century.  There were three main types of play written during this period: heroic drama; blank-verse tragedy and comedy of manners.

As the seventeenth century drew to a close, Restoration drama was not without its criticism, the most famous being Non-conformist parson and critic Jeremy Collier (1650-1726).  He was frustrated at the lack of morality shown in comedies being written in the 1690s, particularly in the plays of William Congreve and Sir John Vanbrugh. Collier wrote A Short View of the Immorality and Profaneness of the English Stage, published in March, 1698.  Here are few extracts:

Chapter 1 – The Immodesty of the Stage

‘Now among the curiosities of this kind we may reckon Mrs Pinchwife, Horner, and Lady Fidget in the Country Wife; Widow Blackacre and Olivia in the Plain Dealer.  These, though not all the exceptionable characters, are the most remarkable.  I’m sorry the author should stoop his wit thus low; and use his understanding so unkindly.  Some people appear coarse and slovenly out of poverty: they can’t well go to the charge of sense.  They are offensive, like beggars, for want of necessaries….In other instances vice is often too fashionable; but here a man can’t be a sinner, without being a clown.

In this respect the stage is faulty to a scandalous degree of nauseousness and aggravation. The poets make women speak smuttily….Women are sometimes represented silly, and sometimes mad, to enlarge their liberty, and screen their impudence from censure: this politic contrivance we have in Marcella, Hoyden, and Miss Prue….Jacinta and Belinda are farther proof.  And the Double Dealer is particularly remarkable.  There are but four ladies in this play, and three of the biggest of them are whores….And which is still more extraordinary: the Prologues, and Epilogues are sometimes scandalous to the last degree.  I shall discover them for once, and let them stand like rocks in the margin.’

For more information on the BBC 4 series, Harlots, Housewives and Heroines: A 17th Century History for Girls, including clips and episode information -              CLICK HERE.

Actress Mrs Knipp.

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