Friday 23^rd November 2018.

We were very fortunate today to have a preview of ‘Christmas at Harewood 2018’ before the house opened to the public.

It was a typical cold and dull morning as we drove past the house and parked in the carpark before our guided tour around the inside of the house. This is only the second year the house has been open to the public at Christmas and after visiting last year we were keen to have a look round again this year. We met our excellent and well informed tour guide at noon in the main hall for the forty five minute tour of the west wing and below stairs.

This year the Creative art director Simon Costin had transformed Harewood House into a Christmas dreamscape entitled ‘Dreams of the 1920’s. Our tour guide was telling us that Simon had spent several days at Harewood, walking around the house filming the rooms but at a height of only a couple of feet above the floor, as he wanted to see the house through the eyes of the children, namely George and Gerald Lascelles. They were the sons of the 6^th Earl and Princess Mary, Mary being the only daughter of King George V. Son George (the future 7^th Earl) was just seven years old and Gerald six years. As with any young family the boys were eagerly awaiting the big night. It was Christmas Eve 1929 and they had gone to bed wondering what gifts Father Christmas would bring them. It was their first Christmas at Harewood as they had spent their earlier years at Goldsborough Hall near Knaresborough. Simon wanted to create a Christmas through the childrens eyes.

Our tour started in the main Entrance Hall where we met out tour guide. A beautifully decorated Christmas tree stood proudly alongside the fireplace. I enjoy tours of Harewood, Robert Adams influence is seen throughout the house and I especially like the ceilings. From the entrance hall we popped our head around the corner to the grand staircase which had been beautifully decorated and a Christmas tree at the top of the stairs. Climbing the stairs with their bed clothes on were two young children, George & Gerald, hand in hand as they made their way up the stairs to their bedroom in anticipation of a visit from Father Christmas, a quite magical Christmas scene. Our next room was the music room, a beautiful Steinway piano stood in the corner, Princess Mary was quite an accomplished pianist. The floor was covered in a mass of black and white balls interspaced with figurines of men and ladies dressed ready to go to the ball. The next room was the State dining room, the dining table lavishly dressed for the evening banquet with some fine cakes and pastries adorning the huge table. On the dining room walls are family portraits dating from the 18^th century. The ceiling is worth a look too. After passing through the dining room we entered the Gallery, a huge room that extends over the whole west end of the house. It is just over 76 feet in length by 24 feet wide and 21 feet high, standing at around four metres in height  and surrounded by Christmas trees is a  giant willow of ‘Pan’ which was inspired by Chippendale’s child height carvings on the furniture legs throughput the house.  Walking out of the gallery we entered another room where Princess Mary’s wedding dress has been transformed into a huge Christmas tree surrounded by candelabras around the base of the tree, the wedding dress veil flows along the floor. AS we left this room we followed the winding road through a room full of yellow sunflowers, the blooms reflecting the memories of the yellow brick road and the Wizard of Oz movie from 1926.

The next room we entered was the beautiful main library, here the room had been transformed into a winter scape, the outside window had been left opened on a bad winter’s night and when the children awoke the following morning and entered the room the snow had blown through the opened window, across the floor and buried lots of their toys under the drifts of snow.

From the library we made our way back into the entrance hall and down to the below stairs and the kitchen. For several weeks before the house opened for the Christmas period, a lot of the house volunteers as well as decorating the house had also been busy making gingerbread men and women and decorating them accordingly. The aroma coming out of the kitchen was amazing, the gingerbread men and women were all over, on the kitchen shelves, on the work tops, on the cooker, windowsills, between the pan racks, everywhere.

 After a walk around the kitchen and servants rooms we reluctantly left the house and headed into the courtyard for a late brunch of homemade soup and a pot of tea, which was most enjoyable and a fitting end to a lovely visit around the house.

Harewood House is open for Christmas from November 24^th to January 6^th, 10.00am to 6.00pm, closing early on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve and closed completely on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.