Hunting Henry
Henry VIII’s love of hunting is legendary. He spent many hours in the saddle chasing stags, deer, and wild boar through the Royal parks and forests. This tour takes in Penshurst Place, one of his hunting lodges, as well as nearby Hever Castle, where his second wife, Anne Boleyn grew up.
Churchill’s Sanctuary
Chartwell was home to the Churchill family from 1922 until the death of Sir Winston in 1965. It has been lovingly preserved by the National Trust and is presented as it would have been when Winston, Clementine and their four children lived there in the 1930s.
Winnie the Pooh at Hundred Acre Wood
Ashdown Forest in the Weald of Kent is the setting for the world famous and beloved Winnie the Pooh stories. A.A. Milne and his family lived at Cotchford Farm from 1925, where the author used recognizable parts of the forest as the setting for the Hundred Acre Wood.
Blooms & the Bloomsbury Group
Visit Knole House near Sevenoaks, birthplace of Vita Sackville West, then onwards to her world-famous garden at Sissinghurst. Alternatively, experience the bohemian lifestyle of the rest of the Bloomsbury set at Monk's House and Charleston in East Sussex.
Arts & Gardens
Kent often features in films and TV and a few of those locations are all close to each other in the Tunbridge Wells area. Hever Castle is historically famous for being the family home of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII and mother of Elizabeth I, and has parts of it dating back to 1270. You may recognise it from HE Bates’ ‘The Darling Buds of May’.
Authors & Film Locations
Rudyard Kipling lived at Bateman's from 1902 to his death in 1936, and wrote many of his finest works in its book-lined study. The house reflects Kipling’s links with his childhood in India, and is presented as if the family are still in residence. Jane Austen’s father, George Austen was once a pupil and headmaster of Tonbridge School.