A full-blown production of the Nativity takes place every year in the Surrey Hills. Rupert Uloth witnessed last year’s delightful telling of the Christmas story.
THERE were titters as the lamb began to bleat—it was drowning out Joseph’s pleas for a place at the inn. The diminutive bundle of ovine wool continued its insistent interventions for most of the evening. If the organisers had adhered to the thespian maxim of never work with animals or children, the annual Wintershall performance of the Nativity would be a much duller affair.
The youngest of the 100-strong cast, playing baby Jesus, is necessarily barely a few months old and, as well as multiple sheep, there are donkeys and cows and the three wise men arrive on horseback.
The Wintershall Nativity, which was started in 1989 by estate owner Peter Hutley with a few family and friends using a torch to act as the star, has evolved into a professional affair (there is now proper stage lighting and more than 5,500 people come to watch 10 performances) while retaining its homespun atmosphere.
Denne historien er fra December 07 2016-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra December 07 2016-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
