Q: What makes a visit to a castle a memorable experience?
A: It might be one of several different reasons - the architecture, history, the grounds just to name a few.

Would you be surprised to imagine that one reason might be ice cream? Well, at Eastnor Castle that is indeed well possible. During the spring/summer months we have many visitors to the castle and its grounds, particularly when the Special Events programme is in full swing.

One of the little indulgences our visitors can enjoy is a trip to the Eastnor Castle Ice Cream Parlour. Children and adults alike all swarm to the parlour on a warm, sunny day to enjoy the delicious ice cream on offer, made and supplied by a local company Brooke’s Dairy. The ice cream flavours on offer are wonderfully varied and delicious as the family in the photograph will testify!

Although you can’t see them displayed in the photograph, here are some of the ice creams we usually serve in the Eastnor Castle Ice Cream Parlour:

• Welsh Gold
• Toffee Crunch
• Peppermint Chocolate Chip
• Rum and Raisin

The ice cream served is indeed special - and we are not the only ones to think so. According to the Brooke’s website, HRH The Prince of Wales tried some and after sampling their “Welsh Gold” ice cream, he said

“One taste is never enough” .

Read more about the Brooke’s ice cream flavours or simply make sure you stop by our Castle Ice Cream Parlour some time (please check in advance for opening times as it is seasonal).

This week, Herefordshire’s best wizard, Wizard Wonky, has been entertaining our younger visitors when we have been open to the public. Wonky has a range of activities and here he is showing how to make animal shapes from balloons, assisted by his daughter. 

He used to be the leader of our children’s group activities when we had a special week for children, but now we spread our entertainments over the whole holiday period so we are less affected by bad weather. His programme includes Fun & Games and Magic Tricks. His sense of humour is fantastic, although many of the jokes pass over the heads of his young audience and more are enjoyed by the parents and grandparents.

In real life, as John Norris, he is a Maths teacher, and I wish he had been mine as he has no problem keeping order, explaining clearly and holding attention. His success reminds us that there is nothing better than good live entertainment and a bit of competition. Computer games stand no chance when the Wizard is around!

Tomorrow is his last day at Eastnor this year, so come along if you can, even if it is raining as the Wizard has shelter for himself and his audience…   JH-B�

This year’s Big Chill attracted record numbers to our Park and they are booked to return next year, which is good news. In the meantime, the clear up has been going on for the last week or so, with litter picking being an important part of the job.

Everyone knows that litter is a feature of modern life, like queues at airports, speed cameras and unreliable weather. Put over 35,000 people in a relatively confined space with plenty of food and drink, and, luckily, warm and dry weather, and you have a formula for a litter problem. But it is a predictable one, and the organisers of the Big Chill believe their own “Leave no trace” motto, so picking up the litter, both during and after the event, is an absolute priority.

Here is an image of the team at work, sweeping up and down the main event field and doing an excellent job. I would like to have heard their comments, but am not fluent in eastern European languages, which also means I could not thank them eloquently enough for their work. After the Big Chill has left, our Park is litter free, which cannot always be said for the rest of the year. Then we will start restoring the areas of damaged grassland which could not be protected by Trackway, so that absolutely all trace will have disappeared…  JH-B    19/8/09