Front runner TINY TOWN THAT INSPIRED THE OLYMPICS WIN a luxury trip to Jersey
approved Regency stays worthy of the Ton
Brit Edit
Your curated guide to Britain this season
EXHIBITION
Not-so-merry wives
A new exhibition at London’s National Portrait Gallery brings together an extraordinary collection of paintings and items relating to the six wives of Henry VIII to tell the stories of the women so often overshadowed by their husband and their portrayals in popular culture.
In Six Lives: The Stories of Henry VIII’s Queens, running until 8 September 2024, visitors can see iconic portraits by Hans Holbein the Younger alongside contemporary photographs of waxworks of the queens, which look eerily life-like, and other rarer pieces, many of which haven’t been seen together in hundreds of years.
Key items include a 16th-century painting of Katherine Parr (pictured) long believed lost; a portrait of Anne of Cleves by Edgar Degas; and an inscribed book of hours with Anne Boleyn’s signature deliberately removed. One of the smallest exhibits, a portrait miniature thought to be of Katherine Howard by Hans Holbein the Younger and containing an inscription by Henry, is perhaps one of the most interesting as it shows the queen that history tried to erase.
npg.org.uk
ROYALS
Peeking behind the camera
A collection of original images taken of members of the Royal Family over the past century reveal fascinating insights into the lives behind the lens.
Royal Portraits: A Century of Photography, at the King’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace until 6 October 2024, includes a never-before-seen photograph marking the birth of four royal babies with their proud mothers; a copy of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation portrait photograph cherished by her mother; and wartime photos of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, which demonstrates how they used photography to project a stable image to the nation in unsettling times. There are also intimate photos of royal children, such as the cheeky shot of a young King Charles and Princess Anne (below) by the Earl of Snowdon.
Many of the photos that can be seen were taken by some of Britain’s most celebrated portrait photographers – from Dorothy Wilding and Cecil Beaton to Annie Leibovitz, David Bailey, and Rankin.
Alessandro Nasini, curator of the exhibition, said: “Alongside these beautiful vintage prints, which cannot be on permanent display for conservation reasons, we are excited to share archival correspondence and never-before-seen proofs that will give visitors a behind-the-scenes insight into the process of creating such unforgettable royal portraits.” rct.uk/visit/the-kings-gallery-buckingham-palace
CHANNEL-HOPPING MADE EASY
Channel Islands expert Antonia Windsor takes us on a summer sea adventure around the islands of Guernsey, Sark, Herm, Alderney, and Jersey
Romantic refuge
A visit to Victor Hugo’s Guernsey home of Hauteville House is like a tour through the literary giant’s imagination, writes Antonia Windsor
With swathes of red silk damask spread across the walls and ceiling of a first-floor salon, metres of intricate Aubusson tapestry on sofas, walls and the ceiling of a downstairs sitting room, and an imposing oak room with secret inscriptions carved in bespoke furniture, the inside of Hauteville house is like a poem rendered in interior design.
It’s no surprise to learn that the elaborate interiors of this otherwise unassuming Georgian townhouse in Guernsey’s capital St Peter Port, were conjured by one of the 19th-century’s most creative minds: the French author Victor Hugo.
Here, at his sea-view desk, he completed his famous ➤
© CHRIS GEORGE
Sausmarez Manor, Guernsey
Far more than just a manor house, this home, which has its origins in the 12th century but which boasts one of the finest Queen Anne-style facades in all the British Isles, is one of the islands’ best-kept secrets.
Inside, visitors can learn about the history of the house and some of its former inhabitants, including Philip de Sausmarez, an 18th-century British naval officer who circumnavigated the globe 20 years before Captain Cook, on one of the excellent tours.
Elsewhere, the grounds include subtropical gardens, a sculpture park, and a miniature-train, while in the Tudor Barn you can visit the last Guernsey Can artisan still making the copper milk jugs the traditional way. The jugs are so iconic that Guernsey gifted a set to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip on their wedding day. sausmarezmanor.co.uk
Heritage DAYS OUT
From wartime reminders to quintessential attractions, Sally Coffey picks some of the more intriguing places that connect to the islands’ past
Jersey War Tunnels, Jersey
It’s hard to imagine what life must have been like in the Channel Islands during the German Occupation in the Second World War, but it is such a huge part of the islands’ story that visitors should at least try.
This network of tunnels, dug deep into the hillside by enslaved workers from across Europe, is evidence of some of the cruel practices of the Nazi regime.
With a network of over 1,000 metres of tunnels, it’s extraordinary and heartbreaking to picture the backbreaking labour endured by the prisoners who built them as air-raid shelters for the Occupied forces in the event of an Allied invasion.
Today the tunnels house an excellent exhibition telling the story of life on the islands, which can be harrowing at times, and the eventual liberation.
jerseywartunnels.com
