Latest news with #SusanHampshire
Telegraph
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
My First London Home: The Countess of Carnarvon
I was born in London and grew up in a large rambling mansion flat in Ashley Gardens with five younger sisters. It had lovely high ceilings and was filled with noise and lots of books. I was a real bookworm. We all went to Young England kindergarten and then to the Hampshire School by Hyde Park. It was a lovely school run by the actress Susan Hampshire's sister Jane Box-Grainger, who founded Downe House School. London was a quieter place then and I remember bicycling around madly with my friends. In the holidays, we were always in Cornwall rock climbing or in Kent riding or playing tennis or croquet. My childhood was like the Darling Buds of May or Five go on a Treasure Hunt. In London, our grandparents would take us to the theatre for Christmas shows or march us off to Peter Jones and Harrods to buy those wonderful coats with little velvet collars. And it was always a great thrill to go to Miss Valentine's to get gold stars put on our dancing shoes. I love the excitement of Theatreland at 7 o'clock when everyone is gathering getting ready to go in, the crowds in Trafalgar Square, going round Hyde Park and the Serpentine, where we used to sail our boats. I even have a little boat at Highclere to sail in the puddles we get after the winter rains. I then went to St Paul's in Brook Green when I was 11 and stayed there when I was 18. There wasn't a uniform but there was a wonderful library – it was an amazing school with extraordinary teachers. I played a lot of games, and ran and played lacrosse for the county. I used to love working in London – I was an auditor for Coopers Lybrand (now PWC). My husband continues to be entirely surprised and amazed that I did actually train as a chartered accountant. It causes him constant amusement. A few years ago we bought a tiny flat by Sloane Square. It's the size of our bedroom at Highclere, so there's no dusting. It's a fantastic pied-à-terre and a great place to meet my sisters and my son, who works in London. It's also very nice to go for a walk early in the morning around the square or to the Physic Garden. It's just 40 minutes by train to London from Newbury, so not far. At Highclere I'm trying to declutter, having decided less is more. I spend so much time looking for things! And then when I think I have found it – I find something in a brown box that I've been looking for, for two years! It's exhausting. There are always renovation projects too. My book was a big project to finish. I'm publishing it in September, which coincides with the launch of the next Downton Abbey film. I wanted to write about life at Highclere today about the ghosts, and curses; the gardens, what it's like living with a film crew; and what it's like to work here. So I've written A Year at Highclere picking up a different theme in each chapter. One chapter is about what it has been like living with a film crew for 15 years. There are stories about accidents, such as when one crew member used a valuable table as an ironing board and a scaffolding pole nearly hit a Van Dyck on the first day. There are also tales about my dogs, which are so precious to me. There's a chapter about when the late Queen and Prince Philip first came to stay. And another about how I thought I'd married Mr Darcy and found that I'd married a list of liabilities! I'm godmother to a Viking Cruises' riverboat called Skadi and will be going on my first cruise up the Rhine next April. My husband is godfather to the Viking Ra which sails the River Nile, while our son christened the Viking Hathor and spoke in Arabic and English at the ship's naming ceremony in Egypt. It's lovely working with a family-run business focused on travel and exploration. Viking sponsored Downton Abbey on PBS and is usually involved with the Downton films. Tutankhamun was the first global media event. The first earl was an extraordinary man and an essential driver in finding the tomb. Highclere received a location fee for Downton Abbey but we weren't part of its financial success. But it gave me a chance to write books, which is a great way of marketing and sharing Highclere. Book writing isn't particularly profitable, but I love it and it's something I do for myself. Costs have gone up and we're always looking for ways to cut our cloth at Highclere. It'll be a tough summer. When we might have once taken on two people we've taken on just one because of the increase we have to pay in national insurance. Also since Brexit, people aren't coming here to work. We've not gone back into hosting large weddings. I don't know if things will change. To quote Carson – 'you have to travel with optimism'. I feel very fortunate having a foothold in both London and the countryside. If you're considering moving from London to the country, I would say, don't take your London expectations with you – just enjoy where you are. Try to hold back and observe those around you. A Year at Highclere: Secrets and Stories from the Real Downton Abbey by the Countess of Carnarvon, published by Penguin, is out on 4 September. Downton Abbey: the Grand Finale is set to be released on 12 September.
The Independent
25-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
British actor Susan Hampshire, 87, has phone and purse stolen in tube mugging incident
Actor Susan Hampshire has revealed that she had her mobile phone and purse stolen on the London Underground in a shocking mugging incident. The 87-year-old Forsyte Saga and Monarch Of The Glen actor recalled the incident at a Talking Pictures event earlier this week. She said, via The Mail: 'I was mugged on the underground the other day. I wish I'd put my money in my bra because I lost my phone and my purse.' The actor, who has won three Emmy Awards for her roles in Forsyte Saga (1970), The First Churchills (1971) and Vanity Fair (1973), did not give further details of the incident – but it comes as the capital's transport system faces a rise in crime. According to the recent TFL report, crimes committed on the Tube went up 13 per cent last year, with 17 per cent of crimes committed on the Central Line and Northern Line. King's Cross was the most crime-ridden stop, followed by Oxford Circus, Tottenham Court Road, Stratford and Finsbury Park. Theft is the most common crime across the city's transport network, making up for 60 per cent of recorded offences on trains and 40 per cent at stations. The Independent revealed this month that mobile phone thefts reported to UK police have almost doubled over the past five years, with more than three quarters of offences happening in London. Home secretary Yvette Cooper said the increase in thefts was being driven by organised crime as she pledged more powers for police to tackle the wave, while also calling on tech companies to improve device security. She said: 'Over the last few years, mobile phone thefts have shot up – often driven by organised crime – leaving our streets feeling less safe. That has to change.' The Met Police said earlier this month it had seized 1,000 stolen mobiles and arrested 230 people in one week, cracking down on the '£50m-a-year trade in stolen phones'. The City of London police force has also been deploying teams of plain-clothed officers to catch offenders. Hampshire made her acting debut as a child in the 1947 drama The Woman of the Hall, directed by Jack Lee. She rose to prominence in the Sixties and Seventies for her work across film and TV, including the BBC miniseries The Pallisers.
