This Christmas was supposed to be spent at a beautiful villa overlooking the  Caribbean Sea, spending our days sailing around the British Virgin Islands, drinking rum cocktails with my parents. It was to be the holiday of a lifetime, my Dad has been waiting to go to the Soggy Dollar bar on Jost Van Dyke his whole life.

Then the hurricanes hit in quick succession, first Irma then Maria. So many people were affected not only in the BVI, but Puerto Rico and many other islands. We may have lost a holiday, but so many people lost their livelihoods, homes and much, much more. We donated to those helping in the region as it depends so heavily on tourists like us who could no longer visit. Very reluctantly, we changed our plans.

When we decided to come to the UK for Christmas, it’s fair to say that we weren’t super excited. It’s not that Christmas in England isn’t great, but when you’re expecting tropical paradise, it’s an “adjustment” shall we say. We tried to find a Christmas experience that would blow Mum and Dad’s socks off and make them forget about the cold, wet weather. Cliveden House stood out as the best of the best. There are very few estates in the country, if not the world, with such a rich, intriguing, not to mention scandalous history. Also their Christmas “House Party” sounded like a feast of epic proportions. Winner!

Before I get to our Christmas, let me tell me a little more about this amazing mansion house and estate. It’s a ripper of a story. 

Cliveden was established in 1666 by George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, and apparently he built the house for his mistress Anna Maria, Countess of Shrewbury. He was a bit of a man about town was ol’ Bucky, he liked hunting and women, and was described by one commentator of the day as a “fiddler, statesman and buffoon.” He sounds like a riot! He had a lot of ups and downs leading such a raucous life, quite few revolved around his Mistress Anna Maria. Indeed, her husband the Earl of Shrewsbury and another of her lovers fought a duel over her honour and the Earl was killed. The east lawn at Cliveden has a permanent memorial, a sword and the date of 1668, etched into the grass, commemorating the duel.

When he died, the Duke was a little down on his luck after such a scandalous and expensive life of affairs and special interests. A little pocket book was found on him with a sad poem that seemed to sum up his thoughts on his life:

“In those mighty volumes of the stars, There’s writ no sadder story than my fate.”

Poor fellow. But to be fair, he did get to live in a corker of a house and made it the place to be. It became a sort of Soho House before it was cool, where everyone who wanted to be seen tried to score an invite. So it wasn’t all bad.

After the Duke, Fredrick Prince of Wales moved in. To say he didn’t get on with his family would quite the understatement - his mother the Queen once told him "Your Royal Highness deserves to be hanged." Ouch! He had a rough go of it for the most part, being dubbed "the Hated Prince," but he has a few things to his credit that have a place in history. In addition to popularizing cricket which was played here at Cliveden, he was quite a fan of music. Probably the most famous performance at Cliveden was down to him, it was the very first  performance of “Rule Britannia” in 1740. Everyone from Gandhi, Churchill, Charlie Chaplin, George Bernard Shaw, and J.M. Barrie, creator of Peter Pan, have graced the halls and enjoyed the hospitality. That there’s so many facts and interesting tidbits about Cliveden makes it one of the most fascinating places I've ever stayed.

One of the most outstanding stories about Cliveden is about the Duke and Duchess of Sutherland. Right after they moved in around 1849, the house burned down (Cliveden has burned down and been rebuilt three times over the years). But the amazing part is that The Queen of England herself saw the smoke from Windsor Castle and dispatched fire engines to help. If that’s not the most epic Neighborhood Watch story in history, I don’t know what is. You can imagine it now: “I say, one doesn’t mean to be nosy but one noticed the house was rather on fire.” Brilliant. In fact, Queen Victoria came to stay in 1866, I hope it will be making an appearance in the Netflix show any day now.

Of course, everyone knows about the last owners of Cliveden, Lord and Lady Astor. Nancy Astor was a well known fire cracker, American by birth she was the very first female MP in England to take her seat in 1919. I can just imagine her charging around the house, kicking ass and taking names. That really would have been a sight to see. 

One last tidbit is that Stanford University. From the 1960s to 1980s Stanford leased Cliveden as their overseas campus. Now, I don’t know about you, but where I went to University, the food was inedible, there was fungus in the shower, and our idea of entertainment revolved around 50p shots dropped into 50p pints, consumed as quickly as possible. Can you imagine coming back to your halls of residence, and it just happens to be the most splendid mansion where the great thinkers of the day hang out? I want to meet someone who was a student back then, and if they say they didn’t like it, I’m going to kick no small amount of ass.

Anyway, on to Christmas. Cliveden House puts on a “House Party” which begins on Christmas Eve and goes through to December 27th. We are just rounding the end of our stay, and I feel like the Christmas turkey - well and truly stuffed. Over the course of three days, we’ve enjoyed 3 champagne receptions, 2 black tie dinners, 1 Christmas lunch, 1 Boxing Day brunch, incredible Carols around the tree, a buffet supper, an afternoon tea, presents and stockings, and I’m expecting the partridge in a pear tree any minute now. 

The setting for every cocktail reception and meal has been spectacular, the grand hall and restaurant rooms have been beautifully renovated and are so charming you could sit there all day. But we haven’t. We had to get moving so we can fit the next meal in! So we’ve walked all of that food off in the nearly 400 acres of woodland that lies around the Cliveden Estate. It is dog paradise. We have never seen Shadow happier. If you’re not staying at the house (and you really should, but if you don’t) you can come to the Cliveden Estate any time as it’s run by the National Trust. So for a small fee, or free if you’re a National Trust member, you can stroll around the grounds, you and your hound, and enjoy everything it has to offer.

If you do stay at the hotel and you have a four legged friend, you should know that Cliveden takes such good care of dogs in everything they do. Most “pet friendly” hotels that I’ve come across barely tolerate dogs no matter what they say on the website, but at Cliveden you get the feeling that the place wouldn’t be the same without a few dogs wandering around. They can sit with you in the Great Hall and enjoy tea, their own comfy dog beds are supplied in the room, the staff are genuinely thrilled to see a wagging tail, and Shadow even got a present on Christmas Day.

But Shadow isn’t the only one in heaven. The rooms are so beautifully decorated and cozy that all four of us are in heaven. We’re in the Leoni and Winde rooms, both have lovely fireplaces and views of the English countryside. And it’s close to the spa which they’ve just renovated, ooh what a treat. It has both indoor and outdoor pools and I enjoyed both (one more than the other but I still did it all!) In fact, the outdoor pool is the only grade listed pool in the country. It also happens to be the location of a meeting between a young model and the British Secretary for War back in the 60s that created the infamous Profumo Affair, which was the catalyst for the ousting of the Tory Party in the next election. Aside from it’s place in history, the pool and surroundings are absolutely stunning. 

I’m sure it’s just as wonderful at Cliveden during a “normal” stay, but Christmas has been the very best. That said, I’m sure there’s never a normal stay here, because this has never been a normal home. As Prime Minister Harold McMillan replied when he was informed Cliveden was to become a hotel, “My dear boy, it always has been.” This old house has truly seen it all. 

Thank you Cliveden for a truly magical Christmas. It has surpassed even my most festive Christmas dreams. I have a feeling we will be back.