Clandon Park

The word tragedy is one bandied about way too often these days and anyway there is a real tragedy going on in Nepal so I won't fall into that trap.

I was looking at Twitter when I saw something about a fire at Clandon Park. For those who don't know Clandon is a Palladian mansion built for the Lord Onslow in 1720 it contains a fine collection of 18th-century furniture, porcelain and textiles.

I quickly hit the links and saw an amazing building a blaze. For those who haven't seen them you can see this link from the BBC. As I say this can't compare to a tragedy like Nepal but for those of us who love our countries Heritage it was so painful to watch.

The National Trust has reported that thankfully no one has been hurt and currently they are seeing what has been rescued and what structural state the building is in.

I've been to Clandon a few times over the years and I can attest it is a beautiful building so I really hope it can be restored. If you see the photos on the link you will wonder if this is possible but there is hope.....?

On August 30th 1989 the National Trust property Uppark was devastated by fire and as you can see the devastation was pretty complete but the Trust managed to re-open in 1995 so lets hope that Clandon can be restored. Although as I read the news it sounds really unlikely.

So sad.