Zeals, Zeals House c1955

Home Sweet Home

The house on the right of the photo was my childhood home. My family lived there until 1991.

Sixties Longleat

Many fond memories of Longleat over the last 46 years: the freedom we all enjoyed as villagers to roam across the estate - the sixth Marquess was always very generous in this respect. The remains of the American hospital were still much in evidence then; dad would drive the car to one of the old stone ramps so that he could work underneath it! We'd walk across the park from Corsley before the reserve was built, and when it was finished and the lions introduced, we all worried that one might escape, but to our knowledge, they never did! Mum worked part time for the catering company J.G. Boyes who originally set up a cafe marquee near the house; this later moved to the new cafe/restaurant building that stands today. Dad also got a p/t job driving a Boyes ice cream van based in the park. Other memories include the pop concerts mounted on the front steps of the house including the Rolling Stones I seem to remember, but sadly the Beatles never played at Longleat - something we hoped for. Various TV shows were broadcast from Longleat including the children's show Tinker and Tucker. I remember seeing Viscount Weymouth, as the current Marquess was then, driving up to the house in his open top sports car and looking very cool. In the Rushpool area of the park where the Giraffe house now stands, llamas actually ran free in the park constrained only by deer fences, cattle grids and gates, and I can honestly claim to be one of very few Wiltshire schoolboys to be regularly chased on my Molton Mini bicycle by furious llamas who would chase bikes and probably cars too! In the seventies, baboons were an early addition to the menagerie and they did escape on many an occasion and run up into the parkland but to my knowledge never caused any harm or damage. The estate and surrounding farmland was very well maintained in those years with gamekeepers, carpenters and various trades employed to keep everything in order. As kids we were welcome to wander - with the exception of pheasant pens there were no boundaries and we appreciated it. Also during the sixties, motorcycle scrambles were held in the parkland and there were hillclimbs up to Heaven's Gate. In the 70s and early 80s the Lombard Rally included Longleat as a stage. From Park Hill a small aeroplane operated giving people an aerial tour of the estate, for £5 I seem to remember - I believe Park Hill had been a small airfield used by the USAF during WW2 for bringing in casualties to the hospital. Finally, I must mention Carpet Walk that linked Heaven's Gate with the car park on the Horningsham road. In those days it really was like walking on a carpet of green. Maybe one day the grass will be allowed to recover and once more it will be known as "Carpet Walk". We also used to walk regularly through Cannimore and Redway Plain, which is where Centre Parcs is now situated. There wasn't a part of the estate we didn't know in those days. These have been just some of my memories, but I hope somebody will contribute with memories from the 50s and 40s including recollections of the Royal School, RAF Crabtree and the USAF Hospital. Longleat has such a fascinating history.

Race you to the water

I am ordering a copy of this picture to send to my dear childhood friend, Peta Fenner. Peta celebrates her 50th birthday soon and it is quite possible that both her and I are in the photo. We would spend many days of our summer holidays playing in the paddling pool. The big pool was always cold and swamped with older children and we would have to build up courage to venture there. Our childhood was filled with laughter. We would giggle at anything and everything. From peering through the holes in the wood partitions separating the cubicles at the end of the pool. To laughing at how courting teenagers behaved. I remember us nearly wetting ourselves laughing at dog ends and kinky boots. We once dared each other to wear our swimming hats through the town on our homeward journey from the park. Not a good idea as we both had long hair and removing the rubber hats later was very painful but oh so hilarious. Even now all these years later I think of Peta when I walk down Weymouth Street and I can still hear the noise coming through the hedge where the pool used to be. The pool has been turned into a sunken garden and is a delightful place to have a picnic surrounded by plants and waterfalls and so peaceful until you let your memories reappear. The paddling pool has been revamped and is surrounded by rubber matting and there is a huge blue dolphin that fills the pool. Children of my generation would queue up to sit astride the water jet that use to trickle into the pool. The bottom of the pool was concrete and worn in places so slipping over was a doddle and many bottoms got bruised sliding on the slabs surrounding the pool. We even had one of our friends fall from the top of the slide onto concrete. Thankfully she survived unharmed apart from a broken arm. The park had a resident park keeper with many full time staff back then. Flower borders were planted up twice or three time a year. On either side of the lake there were borders all beautifully kept. Not any more. Most have been grassed over which is a great shame.