All Revved Up

Despite the best attempts of the English weather to soak everyone to the skin, All Revved Up turned out to be a huge success !
The event was an expansion of our perennial Harley Fathers Day, we added in vintage and classic cars on saturday and some extremely special vintage cars on Sunday.
The George Regis Jazz Band entertained everyone between showers and local caterers Forest Hogs kept everyone supplied with delicious homemade burgers and sausages.
On Sunday the throaty roar of Harley's could be heard across the pleasure grounds as the gleaming chrome shone in the sun.
Willie Austen soon had the crowds smiling as he opened his repertoire with some foot tapping favorites.
All in all, a great weekend for exhibitor and visitor alike !

and they call it, tractor love .....

This is my favourite image from our All Revved Up event this weekend. Tim Cook our Buildings Surveyor is putting this 1930s Allis Chalmers Tractor through its paces !
Could there be a happier face ?

is it a Brontosauraus ?

No, its Petworth's very own fire ladder !
Having been in storage for a number of years, this magnificent piece of engineering is returning to its rightful place in the fire engine shed.
Visitors will be able to follow the progress of its restoration as conservitors work to ensure it continues to tell the story of early fire fighting.

Strawberry Season

What could be more British than fresh strawberries in season ?
This months What's Cooking? was a celebration of the strawberry, tartlets, scones and an 18th century blancmange graced the table.

Masquerade

This months Mini Masterpieces focused on wildlife that can be found in the park and pleasure grounds.

Children produced fantastic masks such as the ones below. 

Butterflies, bugs, bats and rabbits seemed to be the most popular ! 

Bench Mate

This week has seen the launch of our new "talking bench".

Pictured above is John Sergeant who's voice and commentary are recorded on the bench for visitors to enjoy.

Our first visitor to use the bench was Rachel Milner-Smith from Worthing, who pronounced the experience delightful !

The Trust has installed 8 other benches at various properties with matching celebrity voices.

The benches certainly seem to have attracted plenty of attention from the media, we gave interviews to 3 radio stations in one day !

Below: two more visitors giving the bench a test run.

Why not come and experience the bench for yourself ?