Bringing History to Life at Audley End

185-year-old cook Mrs Crocombe is a hit at Audley End House in Essex - and a global culinary icon!

- CLAIRE SAUL

Kathy Hipperson leads a team of costumed interpreters at Audley End House and Gardens in Essex, portraying characters who worked at the property in the 1880s. One of them, Mrs Avis Crocombe, was the cook for the resident aristocratic Braybrooke family there.

"Not much is written about the real Mrs Crocombe, so bringing her to life has been challenging," explains Kathy, a historical interpreter and educator who regularly works in costume at different historic sites, schools and museums. "Four or five of us have played her over the years and we each have our own way of portraying her, although for all of us, she was and confident in comfortable her position." Kathy has inhabited many different characters through her work, covering all centuries and all walks of life, from famous queens to women whose names would otherwise be forgotten.