Eastnor Castle News

A Giant Peach at Eastnor!
Family Open-Air Theatre

For the first time Eastnor Castle will be welcoming touring theatre company ‘Illyria’ who are bringing James and the Giant Peach to life on Sunday 15th August at 3pm.  Illyria are currently in their 19th season and are going down a storm! They have played to sell-out audiences and widespread acclaim.

A tale told by its hero James with the help of the “very large inspects” he meets along his adventurous way, not to mention the songs and the rocking and rolling music, it rattles along taking you from the Land of Opportunity to the Land of the Free, and across the Atlantic, aided and abetted by the skipper and crew of the good ship Queen Mary to the Big Apple, it’s a fruity production in every sense, at breakneck speed.

Families are welcome to bring their own picnic, rugs and low backed seating for the performance within the beautiful grounds and refreshments will be available from the castle tearoom and ice cream parlour. 

David Littlewood General Manager says “We are looking forward to Illyria performing this family classic with a big piece of fruit and audience participation!  It should be exciting and fun for all ages”.

“Storytelling at its very best”   The Cornishman 2009
“Children. .. were completely absorbed”      Henley Standard 2009

Stop Press……
                          Tickets still available

Performance at 3.00pm – Tickets call 01531 633160
Gates open at 2.00pm
Performance approx 1hr 45mins (inc 20 min interval)

Tickets:
Adult               £12.00
Child (5-15yrs) £8.00
Family (2+2)   £32.00

The Tempest

Shakespeare's Tempestuous Tale of Love and Magic!

The Lord Chamberlain’s Men return by popular demand to Eastnor Castle, with Shakespeare’s magical last play The Tempest, combining love, comedy and magic in equal measure. 

Mark Puddle, the company’s founder and creative director, says the show will prove more than popular with audiences.  ‘After the success of last year’s Twelfth Night, we decided to do another comedy with a shipwreck in it, so The Tempest was the natural choice.  We’ve assembled a terrific cast, and there are so many memorable characters and some of the most famous speeches Shakespeare ever wrote, so it should be a fantastic summer evening.’

The terrace at Eastnor Castle provides the perfect setting overlooking the lake and is an excellent opportunity for a picnic with friends and family.  This timeless tale of magic and comedy in beautiful surroundings, and performed in the unique style offers a theatrical experience not to be missed.

‘Open air theatre as it should be and at it’s very, very best!’     BBC

A brief synopsis….King Alonso of Naples, his son Ferdinand and their entourage encounter a violent storm and are washed ashore on a strange island inhabited by the magician Prospero, his beautiful daughter Miranda, Ariel, a sprite who carries out the bidding of Prospero, and the ugly, half human Caliban.  Miranda has never set her eyes upon any human being other than her father and when she is immediately struck with the beauty of Ferdinand, her life on the island is turned upside down.  The story follows this affair, but not without first taking the audience on a truly magical journey of love, comedy, revenge and forgiveness.

Stop Press……  Tickets still available

Performance at 7.30pm – Tickets call 01531 633160
Gates open at 6.30pm

Editors Notes:
Founded in 2004, The Lord Chamberlain’s Men Theatre Company is the modern incarnation of Shakespeare’s original troop of the same name.  Performing with an all-male cast, they aim to revive the traditions of Elizabethan theatre and to bring to life the greatest works of drama as they would first have been performed.

SOS! at Eastnor

Sunday 27th June 2010

There will be no need to call ‘999’ at Eastnor Castle on Sunday 27th June, we will be playing host to a new family event ‘Eastnor SOS!’  There will be fantastic displays and talks by our local rescue and emergency services.

Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service will have specialist vehicles on show including several new ones to the service.  During the day there will be demonstrations from the Water and Line Rescue teams and an Aerial Ladder Platform rescue from the North Turret.    Representatives will be on hand to answer questions with regard to these vehicles or any other fire safety matters.  Come along and see the Fire Service in action.

Land Rover Experience is delighted to be a part of the SOS family day and will be presenting ‘Big Foot’ the Defender that has been tested in Iceland.  They have trained Severn Area Rescue Association and West Midlands Ambulance Service to name but a few.  Land Rover has been resident on the estate and steeped in its history for almost 50 years and has been used as a secret test facility to refine the off-road capability of every new Land Rover.
 
David Littlewood Assistant General Manager says “This will be a great family day out with opportunities for children to explore various rescue vehicles and have a real hands on experience of the county’s emergency services and what they have to offer – every child’s dream!”

There will be various vehicles and displays from the Police, St Johns Ambulance, MARS – Mercia Accident Rescue Service, Royal National Lifeboat Institution, County Air Ambulance, Army, SARA – Severn Area Rescue Association

The BIG Bank Holiday Challenge

Exciting outdoor challenges are being set up at Eastnor Castle, near Ledbury for families to enjoy on the Bank Holiday weekend - Sunday 30th and Monday 31st May.  This new event called ‘The BIG Eastnor Challenge’ will be offering a variety of challenges from Mountain Boarding, Orienteering, Horse Riding and Mountain Biking.  One of the main challenges is the castle ZIP wire which is one of the longest in the country travelling from the top turret across the lake (an extra charge applies).  Eastnor Castle has donated the first zip wire slots of the day to Noah’s Ark Trust Worcester and Hereford, helping them to raise funds for their charity. 

There will also be an opportunity to scale the specially constructed Castle Siege Ladders from the Lower Terrace to the Upper Terrace and try out Bush craft and Archery.  There will be family prizes awarded on each day for the family who complete the orienteering challenge in the fastest time and certificates will be awarded to each child who takes part.

David Littlewood Assistant General Manager says “This will be a great family day out for the Bank Holiday weekend with lots of exciting new activities for everyone to try – let’s hope the sun shines!

Animal Encounters

Animal lovers will be heading to Eastnor Castle, near Ledbury for the Bank Holiday Weekend on Sunday 2^nd and Monday 3^rd May.  This brand new event called ‘Animal Encounters’ will be showcasing a number of local attractions, such as Newbridge Farm Park, and bringing a selection of animals including donkeys, goats, chickens and miniature ponies.

KC Horse rescue from Hereford will be offering pony rides and there will be arena displays of gun dogs, ferret racing, sheep dog trials and duck herding on the Valley Lawn.  Back by popular demand will be the happy train offering rides around the grounds and face painters creating animal faces for the children.  Tropical Inc will also be bringing their hugely popular exotic animal show of snakes, skunks and creepy crawlies!

The International Centre for Birds of Prey, Newent, will be putting on various spectacular flying displays throughout the day from the Lower Terrace overlooking the lake with a selection of their falcons and hawks.

Wayne and Julie Gardner from Newbridge Farm Park say “We have had a long association with Eastnor Castle and we are delighted to be bringing back a selection of our animals for the Bank Holiday Weekend event 'Animal Encounters' - we are looking forward to it”.

British Red Cross Great Spring Gardening Event

Wednesday 28th April 2010

Gardeners and lovers of the great outdoors are expected to flock to Eastnor Castle to visit quality gardening stalls and tour the castle and gardens.

The annual event, which last year attracted more than 3,000 visitors and raised more than £31,000 for the Red Cross on Wednsday, April 28.  It features more than 80 quality stalls selling a wide range of plants, gifts and accessories from the traditional to the highly unusual.

Visitors can buy plants for the garden, the terrace, the conservatory, the pond, the woodland garden and the wildflower meadow and gain inspiration from the magnificent grounds of Eastnor Castle itself.  The opportunity to tour the castle, dgardens and historic arboretum, is included in the entry price. 

Quality gifts and accessories for home and garden will include painted china, picnic sets, bird-boxes, plant support systems, gardening equipment, furniture, garden pots and ornaments.

Garden designers will be on hand to offer handy hints on layout, planting and upkeep, and no-one will go hungry with purveyors of fine food selling a wide range of goodies from olives, cheeses and preserves to handmade cakes and pastries.  Meanwhile in the Red Cross marquee, pork baps, soup and ploughman's lunches will be served at lunchtime with tea, coffee, open rolls and cakes throughout the day.  The Castle Café and ice cream parlour will also be open and a limited number of pre-booked lunches will be served in the Castle State Dining room. 

more details

EASTNOR'S EASTER BUNNIES AND CHICKENS

HAVE GONE 'EGGSTREME'!

Our Popular family treasure hunt will be taking place over the Easter weekend every day between Good Friday 2nd April and Bank Holiday Monday 5th April.  This year the event will have an 'extreme' twist and families can take part in a clue trail around the castle and grounds, where they will have to find the Eastnor chickens and bunnies disguised as 'adrenaline junkies' taking part in various extreme sports.  Will you see a bunny on the zip wire or a chicken abseiling? 

Every child taking part in the EGGstreme Treasure Hunt will win a chocolate bunny, and there will be a draw at the end of each day, one lucky family will win a gian chocolate egg in a basket!  In addition Wizard Wonky will be entertaining children with his much-loved mixture of humour and magic and there will be a fabulous local pig roast available in the castle courtyard.