Boughton House to open up for visits again

Visits to the iconic home of the Duke of Buccleuch are back on next month.

Stately home Boughton House, a couple of miles north-east of Kettering kept its doors closed throughout the Covid pandemic but will open up again on selected dates in August.

The house and gardens will be open from Friday to Monday from August 1, with visitors having a rare opportunity to take part in self-guided tours.

Timed slots are available for limited numbers of visitors throughout afternoons to ensure social distancing and safety measures are met.

Property manager Charles Lister said: “We are delighted to be able to welcome visitors again to explore the wonderfully preserved house and its world class collection of fine art including stunning paintings, furniture, tapestries, porcelain, carpets and weapons.

“There are two different routes to view the house available on different weekends - the ground floor culminating in the magnificent Great Hall and the staterooms and armoury - giving visitors two very different reasons to visit the house."

The gardens will also be open with the house, giving guests the opportunity to see the gardens at the height of summer after sell-out openings in May.

The house is open for self-guided tours only and must be pre-booked. Entry times begin at 1.15pm with last entry at 3.30pm. Self-guided tours will take approximately 45 minutes.

On the first and last weekend of the month the house will be open for the staterooms and armoury tour. On the middle weekends the ground floor and armoury tour will be open.

Tickets cost £11 for adults and £8 for children. All visitors must wear a mask whilst within buildings and maintain social distance.

The gardens are open from 1pm 5pm with tickets costing £6 for adults, £3 children and £14 for families.

For dates and times and to book visit the Boughton House website at www.boughtonhouse.co.uk.

The house displays a significant portion of one of the world’s most important privately-held art collections, including celebrated paintings by Carracci, El Greco, Reynolds, Gainsborough, Murrillo, Le Sueur and Van Dyck.

The 17th century-designed landscape at Boughton has been carefully restored over a ten-year period and includes the canalised river, long stretches of open water courses and formalised ponds.

Previously the house ‘slept’ for nearly two centuries after the death of the 2nd Duke when the house passed through the female line to noble families whose main residences were elsewhere.

The Dukedom of Montagu became extinct and for two centuries, the house was well looked after but slumbered.

In the 20th century it became the dower house of Mary, Duchess of Buccleuch, the widow of the 8th Duke, who brought it back to life.

When she died in 1993 the 9th Duke opened it up and it is now open for a few weeks each year.