A couple of weeks ago Bob and I took a trip up North for a week, to spend time with his family and friends and celebrate his 30th birthday. We packed a heck of a lot in to that week away, and one of the highlights was the visit we made to Castle Howard for their “Christmas at Castle Howard” event. The main reason for our visit was to show Bob’s mum some support for her first stint playing piano in the Great Hall, something she’ll be doing on various dates throughout the festive period. Not that she needed us there, she nailed it, and we were blown away by the grandeur of the house and it’s stunning grounds.

The theme for this year’s event was ‘A Christmas Masquerade’ and was created by Charlotte Lloyd Webber and Bretta Gereke. It’s hard to explain how decadent the house looked, so I’ll let the photos do the talking, it was great to learn some of the history of the castle and imagine how incredible their Christmas parties must have been!

If you find yourself near York with a yearning to do something festive then I 100% recommend visiting Castle Howard, the grounds are breathtaking too, and with coffee and good food on offer you can easily spend a whole day there (and of course, the pianist is amazing!)