Return to the court

That is to say, Hampton Court Palace, not the place in Sloane Square, not visited now for many years, possibly 13 if blog search (in which royal cabbages figure larger than royal courts) and reference 1 is to be believed. And reference 1 notwithstanding, all I can remember is a great area of wall stripped back to bare brick. Some passing fad of theatre decoration. Nothing about seagulls at all.

One of the four fig trees marking the corners of the Royal Cabbage Patch. Who gets the figs, if any ever get to ripen?

Some access to the Royal Cabbage Patch, where volunteers have now returned after their enforced absence and are working hard to recover the vegetable garden from the weeds. No cabbages to be seen but there was some beet spinach, a vegetable which used to be of the few things which one could rely on on poor soil of my allotment back here in Epsom.

In the absence of many gardeners, the echiums seemed to be taking over the perimeter of the rose garden, to the extent of encroaching on the pomegranate. We wondered if the pomegranates were ever edible. Did we get enough sun for them to ripen? On the subject of which, see reference 2.

The box plants used to created the small edging hedges mostly looked very healthy. Either they are using some mutant strain of box or they spray. Much more healthy than most of those on and around our own Chase Estate.

We also came across some of the lilies, last noticed in the rather different context of Ruxley Lane, on the Ewell by-pass, for which see reference 3. It also turned out that a next door neighbour had some, not previously noticed.

The metasequoia outside the Tilt Yard cafeteria, the place at which we were once pleased to buy Maids of Honour tarts, relatives of the Wellingtonias presently under count, were not looking very well. Presumably the long drought had got to them.

Retraced our steps to the front door, so to gain access to the other parts of the gardens, to find that the talking barrels of the great court had been replaced by vintage cars. Of which more in due course. The vintage cars had also taken over the East Front gardens, but we were allowed to get at the privy gardens via a rather handsome, dark wood panelled gallery, the one featuring the dining room with the fake silver previously noticed. Sculpture not up to much either. We masked up, although the staff had mainly not bothered. Enough people about on this occasion for us to think it worthwhile.

First sunken garden in pretty good shape, if not as florid as some years. The subject of the jigsaw are reference 5. Only slightly marred by garden art, fortunately easy enough to miss. As I recall, off snap to the left.

The second sunken garden. Traditionally a more subdued design than the other one.

Dahlias in good form

Red and black spots in good form

Mind your own business

I remember being told on a tour of the gardens that had been made out of the rather grand house provided for the manager of what was the Norwich Gas Works, that spots on leaves were evidence of improving air quality. Maybe that is something I should take up with the RHS help line.

While BH took no notice when I drew her attention to the 'Mind your own business' smoothing over the transition from grass to wall in the margins of the sunken garden. A plant which plenty of people - including me - rather like, but which she would like to exterminate from our garden. Unlikely that she will succeed as it is persistent and hardy stuff.

Over the wall of the privy garden we had teams of people readying the east terrace for the display of classic cars, auction of same and so on and so forth. We got to talking to the one who was guarding the gate and it turned out he was commuting in from Sutton, which took him a while. Casually dressed, but he explained that he would be fully top-hatted for the show proper. And when he wasn't doing events, his event company employer hired him out for Covid testing duties. Lots of travelling involved, but at least it was work and at least one got about a bit. And from him, back into the great court to inspect the cars there, as it turned out the cars to be sold rather than the cars to be shown off, with estimates ranging up to £10,000,000 for a 1934 Bugatti Type 59 Sports, whatever one of those is. Or if you couldn't manage that there was a slightly older Bugatti something else, a snip at £3,000,000.

Older Bugatti

Battered interior

Even more battered exterior

One advantage of the older car was that one could see a lot of the workings. For me, the same sort of appeal as that held by traction engines, steam locomotives and medieval clocks. Lots of workings, inner and outer, to puzzle out. So owning such things a perfectly respectable hobby for the rich: perhaps footballers and pop-stars go in for it.

Not altogether the case that the more battering, the more you paid. Some of the smart looking cars were quite expensive too. And you can read all about it at reference 6.

One of the smarter cars

With this Lamborghini - a snip at half a million or so - being nothing like the one that parks near us, noticed, for example, at reference 7. Which, as it happens, I have not seen recently. Bet it didn't cost half a million though. Perhaps I ought to ask the Italian car dealer in Ruxley Lane.

Decided against eating at the Palace and after much palaver settled on fish and chips from the chipper at Horton Retail, otherwise Seafare of No.2 Chantilly Way. Or pie and chips in my case. A proper Pukka steak and kidney pie, not quite hot enough, and a huge portion of chips, rather good. Our first take-out meal for as long as I can remember.

And despite being rather full, we managed a record breaking score at Scrabble later in the afternoon. 274 for her and 316 for him, very close to the 600 barrier. My bonus for going out first not affecting the total of 590. If the plague goes on for much longer we might even break it.

Back to Tudor!

Interested to read, after the event, of the 19th century campaign to put back all the Tudor features and so forth which had been improved or replaced by Georgian activity. Nostalgia for things past was not invented by the National Trust, or even Historic Royal Palaces.

The Royal Potty

I was also reminded of that very important Palace functionary known as the Groom of the Stole. A job which earls were known to compete for on vacancy. Does our large leader keep such a person on the books at Downing Street? Reporting to Mr. Cummings, of course.

Reference 1: https://pumpkinstrokemarrow.blogspot.com/search?q=royal+seagull.

Reference 2: https://psmv4.blogspot.com/2020/09/punica-granatum.html.

Reference 3: https://psmv4.blogspot.com/2020/05/ruxley-lane-anti-clockwise.html.

Reference 4: https://psmv4.blogspot.com/2019/03/hampton.html. For Maids of Honour tarts.

Reference 5: https://pumpkinstrokemarrow.blogspot.com/2012/07/hunt-for-green-all-over.html. Not completely clear, but probably the right sunken garden.

Reference 6: https://www.goodingco.com/.

Reference 7: https://psmv3.blogspot.com/2017/10/big-car.html.

Group search key: hce.