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Enjoy videos created especially for you exploring a range of topics, from historic fashion to exploring our beautiful gardens.

Fashion Through History

Join Dr Serena Dyer, fashion historian, as she explores how fashion has changed through the ages. Discover how clothes from the past have influenced our styles of today, and see historic costumes at some of our sites. 

In the latest episode (episode 6), Serena joins Eleanor Matthews (curator) at Brodsworth Hall and Gardens in South Yorkshire to explore the impact of the Second World War on fashion.

  • Episode 5: The Stuarts

    Serena joins Cameron Moffett at Boscobel House and the Royal Oak in Shropshire to explore the impact of the Civil Wars and the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660 on fashion.

  • Episode 4: Elizabethans

    Explore why fashion was so important to Elizabethan society as Serena travels to Kenilworth Castle and Elizabethan Garden to meet Head Historic Properties Curator, Dr Jeremy Ashbee.

  • Episode 3: 1930s

    Serena travels to Eltham Palace in London to meet English Heritage Senior Properties Historian, Amy Boyington, to recreate the iconic looks of Stephen and Virginia Courtauld.

  • Episode 2: Georgians

    Serena travels to Kenwood in London to meet curator Louise Cooling where they unveil historic looks that were popular in Georgian society including those potentially worn by Dido Belle. 

  • Episode 1: Victorians

    Join Serena as she travels to Osborne to meet English Heritage Curator Sam Stones. The pair unveil three historic looks that were popular during Queen Victoria’s reigns.

Gardens Through History

  • Episode 1: Mount Grace

    Join florist, gardener, and designer Hazel Gardiner, as she explores Mount Grace Priory in Northallerton. Visit this Carthusian Priory’s cell gardens which boast a rich and impressive variety of medicinal plants. 

  • Episode 2: Kenilworth Castle

    Hazel Gardiner explores Kenilworth Castle and Elizabethan Garden. Join her as she walks in the footsteps of Elizabeth I through the garden and discovers the opulence and splendour. 

  • Episode 3: Eltham Palace and Gardens

    Hazel Gardiner explores the history of Eltham Palace and Gardens in London, and finds out how the gardeners maintain the appearance and carefully balance historical accuracy and horticultural skill. 

Songs of England

In this video series in collaboration with The Nest Collective, we explore the stories behind traditional English folk songs that have connections to historic places.

Join Matt Thompson and Sam Lee for the eleventh episode as they discuss 'The Lady of Carlisle' which tells the tale of a woman – courted by two men – who tests her suitors with a dangerous trial of courage in a den of beasts. The song has been paired with England's most beseiged castle: Carlisle Castle in Cumbria.

  • Salisbury Plain

    Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they discuss the song 'Salisbury Plain' set on the vast landscape of the same name.

  • A Ship To Old England Came

    Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they discuss a song whose lyrics speak of the long naval history of Dover Castle.

  • The Bedfordshire May Carol

    Sam Lee and Matt Thompson talk about this traditional May carol, performed in days gone by on the doorsteps of homes such as Wrest Park. 

  • High Germany

    Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they discuss a song that evokes the many partings that have taken place at Pendennis Castle over the centuries.

  • John Barleycorn

    Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they discuss a song about a fictional man's murder and burial, with Stonehenge a fitting match for this dark tale.

  • The Four Loom Weaver

    Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they discuss 'The Four Loom Weaver', a traditional song that reflects the Industrial Revolution and the Iron Bridge.

  • The Old Garden Gate

    Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they discuss 'The Old Garden Gate', a mournful tale inspired by Audley End House and Gardens.

  • When Fortune Turns the Wheel

    Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they discuss 'When Fortune Turns the Wheel', a traditional parting song inspired by Hadrian's Wall.

  • Sweet Nightingale, Tintagel Castle

    Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they discuss 'Sweet Nightingale', thought to have been imported from Germany by Cornish tin miners in the 1800s.

  • The Whitby Lad, Whitby Abbey

     Join Sam Lee and Matt Thompson as they examine the musical tale of the 'Whitby Lad', a wayward boy sentenced to life in a penal colony in Australia.