Eltham Palace: Art Deco Adventure

Art Deco at Eltham Palace (6)

Yesterday I hopped on the train to Eltham and instead of being taken through a painful commute to my place of office (as is my usual trip on a train!), I was transported back to what must have been the closest thing to the British version of the Great Gatsby, with a touch of A Knight’s Tale, at Eltham Palace & Gardens.

Art Deco at Eltham Palace (1)

Way way back in the 14th century the Palace was the place to be if you weren’t a starving, smelly and poor peasant, and if you could get past its moat and drawbridge you’d find an impressive royal residence, even with its own jousting courtyard. Sadly the English Civil War put a stop to all the fun (yep, England had a civil war – who knew!?) and it fell into disrepair and ruins until it was kinda saved via a 1930s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition – but instead of Ty Pennington it was all looked over by the new owners Stephen and Virginia Courtauld who put a definite Art Deco spin on their new digs. The couple were the ‘talk of the town’ at the time, the celebs you wanted to get to know, and if you were lucky enough be invited to one of their famed extravagant parties. Though it opened to the public in 1999, the most complete renovation was finished in April this year, allowing you to pretty much explore every room in the palace.

Before I spill all, I just wanted to say how nice the staff all were – I arrived a bit early so was a bit lost at one of the wrong entrance gates when a member of the staff came through unlocked the entrance and took me through to the right entrance and who showed me where to buy my tickets (all before it was officially meant to open).

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When you enter the palace proper you’re handed your own invitation – giving you a ‘persona’ or character to experience the trip through – so you can be that famous actress, or fighter pilot attending one of their famed parties – each character with their own personalised interactive guide. Every tour has been offering up ‘digital guides’ for ages now – but the iPhone/iPad + headphones kit with the many different perspectives to try from the various characters at the palace which was a bit more enjoyable. The main entrance hall is something else, just beautiful to look at and I don’t usually get too excited by architecture, and beyond that there’s a surprising amount to see, and all the rooms have books, diaries and personal touches to feel like you’re looking at a living, breathing house, rather than a stuffy, cold exhibit.

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If you’ve had a bit too much Art Deco for one day – the Great Hall with the hammer-beam roof (English Gothic architecture fans will know) is the one of the highlights and a Medieval gem where you can imagine a roaring 100 course feast, hopefully where you’re the king, queen, lord or lady, not that poor servant who has to sleep on the stone floor, live off scraps from the meals and bow or curtsy a ridiculous amount of times a day.

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One of the most adorable things I stumbled upon was the dark room on the basement. While not the most photogenic of rooms (pretty grimy and dark – duh) it was here that the couple developed their travels on film – Ginnie was the video grapher and Stephen was the photographer. A full multi media package that any tourism board would be happy to invite on a press trip.

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When planning a holiday we get wrapped up in using Google, other blogs, travel magazines and maybe travel guides, but these guys had it all sorted with their own walk in map room where they planned their winter travels to exotic places like Machu Picchu. I love the idea of being able to sit on a sofa, stare up at the walls and let my imagination run wild … Picturing my little plane (Indiana Jones style) transporting me to undiscovered adventures. It’s still under renovation, so there is the excuse to go back once they’ve finished it. 

Who else wants a map room?

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5 Comments

  1. A dark room AND a map room? My gosh forget about visiting the place, I want to live there!

  2. I have just been to Eltham myself and was very impressed. Astonishing that the Courtaulds lived there for such a short time after putting in so much effort. My pictures – hard to take through people milling about lost in the audio-guide’s 1930s talk – are at https://www.flickr.com/photos/frmark/albums/72157629896092053/page7 if anyone’s interested. I went by car this time but would recommend train.