I first came across Preston Manor back in the earlier noughties. It actually featured in my 'Haunted Britain' book. Every time I opened the book at the page on Preston Manor I could smell lavender.
The book became a little bit of a cause for concern because I started picking things up from the photos that were not in the book. I think I was tuning in to it, to be honest so it was put away. I was particularly drawn to the photo of the Stanfords of Preston Manor - above - and their animals - particularly the little dog.
I can't remember all I found out about them - but the gist of it was that this was Mrs Stanford's second husband and both her husbands had to take her name (Stanford) in order to marry her. Lots of people visited the house including some of Queen Victoria's daughters and the author Rudyard Kipling. Mr Thomas Stanford eventually became a Baronet and he donated a castle he owned elsewhere in the country - to the local council. He wrote a book about plants in the couple's Madeira garden, where they used to spend winters.
Mr Thomas-Stanford (later Lord Thomas-Stanford) was very fond of dogs and he taught them to do tricks. He had a dog grave yard near to Preston Manor which can be visited to this day, for his pets. Mrs Stanford was incredibly wealthy and did not want her son by her first marriage to get the house as he wanted to turn it in to a school so she arranged to sell it to the corporation (local council).
Preston Manor did feature in a Most Haunted TV show episode, on the 6th of June 2006, which I did see many years later when it was a very old episode, long after I had seen this picture featured above. Preston Manor is supposed to be a haunted house and part of it is very old.
What I liked about the picture is the very homeliness of the scene. Tea in the garden. The little dog begging for a biscuit, another animal near Mrs Stanford, which at first I thought was a cat but may be another dog and a lady who I believe is her half-sister, pouring the tea. A biscuit barrel can be seen on the tray in the old picture.
Pippin and Pippin both posed with my old biscuit barrel which once belonged to my grandparents. It reminded me a bit of the one in the old photo. I really like this particular photo of the Stanfords having afternoon tea at Preston Manor for some reason. It is one of my favourites.
