Swindon in the Past Lane

Read all the latest news about events at Lydiard House and Park in the January edition of the Link magazine  available online now. Here is a taster ...

I wrote this article during the Christmas 2012 celebrations at Lydiard House and Park. Lydiard House was beautifully dressed for Christmas, busy and full of visitors.  This year I visited the day before Christmas Eve. With no Christmas programme the House was quiet and during my visit an electrician suddenly appeared unannounced and plunged the State Rooms into darkness. Now if I were a glass half empty type of person I could view this as prophetic, b ut I think the fortunes of Lydiard House and Park could easily be turned around without leasing it to a private partner. If, like me, you want to see Lydiard House busy again, its future and that of the park safe, secure and accessible to the people of Swindon, please sign the Friends of Lydiard Park petition and attend the public meeting on January 12. Meanwhile why not come to one of the talks and tours in the Behind Closed Doors event? For further details about the petition, meeting and events please visit the Friends of ...

Lydiard House will be closed during January, February and March 2016. Intensive cleaning and care of the collections will take place during this period and the house will re-open with a new exhibition in time for the Easter holidays. During the winter months the Friends of Lydiard Park , in partnership with Lydiard House, will be holding a series of free talks and tours called Behind Closed Doors. Lydiard House has a fantastic collection of portraits and paintings, and I will be introducing you to some of the fascinating Ladies of Lydiard during a guided portrait tour on Saturday January 23 at 2.30 pm and again on Wednesday February 24 at 7 pm. The remodelled Palladian mansion dates from the middle of the 18th century and incorporates features from a much older Tudor building, but a dwelling has existed in the parkland for much, much longer than this. So who was the first lady to live at Lydiard Park? Well it wasn't Edith Stourton, born in around 1375 who became the second ...

An update on the Friends of Lydiard Park petition - Lydiard House and Park at Risk . The number of signatures now stand at 3,599 and over the weekend Mike Bowden posted some interesting facts and figures.

Well, things have been pretty busy this week with the launch of The Friends of Lydiard Park petition - Swindon Borough Council: Lydiard House and Park at Risk. Lydiard House and Park is a unique and hugely valued heritage asset used by thousands of Swindon people and visitors to the town. Swindon Borough Council is proposing to hand over the day to day management and control of Lydiard House and Park to an external commercial organisation which will seek to take profit from the site. Swindon Borough Council say they are doing this to eliminate Lydiard's annual running cost. The Friends of Lydiard Park believe this can be done without handing over the town's 'crown jewels'. We the undersigned oppose Swindon Borough Council's plans to hand over Lydiard House and Park to the commercial sector. The first step was to reach 1,500 signatures, which would see the issue of Lydiard House and Park qualify for debate at a full Council Meeting. Then there was a snag...