Ask anyone on the second Abertawe National Trust Centre’s day out this year, what was the best thing about the trip and they would say finding shade. 

It was extremely hot and the best shade was to be found inside the glorious Berrington Hall. This Georgian house by Henry Holland with gardens by Lancelot “Capability” Brown was a delight.  It felt homely and there was classical elegance reflected in its ceilings (which could easily be viewed by hand mirrors), and the simplicity of its artefacts like the beautifully set dining room table. Best of all was the display of costumes around the house with examples from upstairs and downstairs. There were also the papers just lying on desks that you could pick up and read.  A favourite was Lady Anne Cawley’s hand written note to the kitchen telling them to change the menu that evening from rabbit to duck because Lord Drummond cannot abide rabbit.

The guides were knowledgeable and kind from the buggy driver (an essential for our members), to the guide who, after very little persuasion, took five of our group upstairs when the upper floor was officially closed, and the guide who led the garden tour. As with many of these houses, it is the places where the staff worked that are often the most relatable, several of us remembering winding the handle of our grandmother’s mangle and recognising kitchen equipment that we still have today.

There was also the gardener’s tool shed, hidden away but a cool stopover in the garden. It named every head gardener and some the staff from the mid-18^th century on plaques on the beams and had many old garden tools including the fig spraying machine used up until the 1980s. The orchard had the trees named and dated (the earliest 1707) with mulberry and quince amongst the more familiar trees.  The views down to the pond designed to look like a river from the house and the beautiful countryside surrounding the hall were magnificent.