Interview with Emily Astor

With an illustrious and decadent past, Cliveden is renowned as one of England’s most special stately homes. Now a luxurious and beautiful hotel, Cliveden is the backdrop for Dream Escape's exclusive photoshoot and interview with Emily Astor (granddaughter of Nancy Astor, the first lady of British politics), where we discuss the inimitable Astor family who called Cliveden home for over 70 years...

Like a veritable doyenne of houses, Cliveden has been home to two dukes, an earl, a Prince of Wales and, latterly, a viscount. A Grade-I-listed mansion built in 1851, Cliveden means ‘valley between the cliffs’ and refers to the valley which runs through part of the vast 375-acre estate, and includes gardens, woodlands and expansive lawns. “There was always a wonderful feeling of endless outdoor space,” says Emily Astor, who grew up at Cliveden, as we walk around the house and grounds together.

“I will never forget how lucky we were to have beautiful gardens and woods to play in.” She stops in the dining room and draws our attention to the window. “I absolutely love this view, overlooking the garden down towards the Thames. It is nice to know that the hotel guests are able to enjoy this beautiful view too,” she adds. Today, even though they no longer live at Cliveden, the Astor family continue to keep the family archival flame burning by sharing memories of their unique and extraordinary upbringing, ensuring it remains an essential part of the English historical landscape.

“One of my earliest memories of life at Cliveden was after breakfast, when I would go and play under the desk in my father’s study with a large bag of wooden bricks,” Emily tells Dream Escape. “My father attended to his morning correspondence for an hour, and then we would all go riding,” she recalls.

Emily admires the view across the parterre from the South Terrace

There has been a house at Cliveden since 1666, though it burnt down in 1795 and again in 1824. The 1851 house is the most impressive and striking. A three-storey Victorian mansion, it sits on a vast terrace flanked by woodland and a sweeping formal garden, best viewed from the roof of the house (which is specially designed to be safe enough to walk on). A clock tower was added in 1861 and still functions as a water tower for the house today.

Inside, the house resembles an Italian palazzo. Visitors enter the Great Hall first, panelled in English oak, with Corinthian columns, a large 16th-century fireplace, a painted ceiling and swags of carved flowers. From here, guests of Cliveden – which became a five-star hotel in the 1980s – can enjoy the French Dining Room with its gilded panelling, the river views from the original drawing room, the cedarwood library and, next door, Nancy Astor’s boudoir.

“It’s lovely to come back here,” says Emily. “The hall and the dining room are both the most similar to when we lived there, bringing back happy memories. There were so many delicious meals, and parties filled with lots of laughter in the dining room. And the hall always takes me back to childhood – the joy of running in and out of the house, the games we played there, large teas in front of the fire with family and friends. And, of course, the huge Christmas tree we had in December.”

There have been Astors at Cliveden since 1893. American millionaire William Waldorf Astor who bought the house in 1893, became the 1st Viscount Astor, before giving Cliveden to his son Waldorf (2nd Viscount Astor) when he married Nancy Langhorne in 1906. With the second Viscount, and his wife Nancy Astor, (American-born British politician who was the first woman seated as a Member of Parliament), Cliveden ushered in a lavish and starstudded era of entertaining a steady stream of film stars, politicians, writers and artists, who filled their days boating on the Thames, playing tennis and croquet, horse riding, swimming and fishing.

For Emily it is the family parties that bring back the most magical memories. “Birthday parties were always a favourite,” she says. “My brother’s birthday is two days after Christmas, so that week seemed to be filled with endless fun. And then there was a wonderful party to celebrate my grandmother’s (Nancy Astor) 80th birthday. The guest list included a vast variety of people who had all been a part of her life at various times – friends, work colleagues and, of course, lots of family. It was an incredible event.”

Emily also relates some of the Cliveden celebratory traditions, which she still remembers now. “At Easter, we would hard-boil lots of eggs, then paint them all with a variety of decorations – depending on our artistic skill!

Then we’d have a wonderful Easter egg hunt on Easter Day, usually outside if the weather was good, or inside if not – either way the egg hunts went on for hours." Emily and her siblings were gifted the joy of a home that had ample space for rainy day games, many of which included racing across the landings from the east to the west wing. But it was outside that Emily recalls with special fondness. “One of my favourite places was the water garden – when we were little we would try to fish for goldfish, though we never caught any. I find it now a very tranquil spot,” she says.

In 1942, the Astors gave Cliveden to the National Trust with the proviso that the family could continue to live in the house for as long as they wished. The 3rd Viscount, Emily’s father William Astor, and his family stayed in the house until he died in 1966.

A few years later Stanford University, California took over the lease for use as one of its overseas campuses, with over 2,000 students living and studying at Cliveden for the next14 years. The National Trust then re-advertised the lease (in 1984), and Cliveden Hotel took it over, opening as a hotel in 1985 with the aim to continue the spirit of joie de vivre made so synonymous with Cliveden by the Nancy Astor era. The hotel's motto is ‘Nothing ordinary ever happened here, nor could it.’

Emily finds a book in The Tote Room, Lord Astor’s study

There are a lot of magical memories for all of the Astors at Cliveden, and it is Emily who works hard to ensure that legacy and memory remain, now that they no longer live at the house. “Obviously it was very sad to leave a home which we had grown up in and loved,” says Emily. “But the reason we left was because our father had died, which was of course the most tremendous sadness and loss.

“Visiting Cliveden now as a hotel helps me remember what it was like to grow up here and how lucky we were,” she says, as she walks us around some of her favourite parts of her childhood home. “Cliveden is filled with hidden corners,” she recalls. “As children, the front hall was perfect for hide and seek, we loved the huge sofa and large windows with billowing curtains, and of course the suits of armour!”

Emily’s memories of Cliveden really bring the house alive in a way no-one else can, and it’s a privilege to walk its halls and gardens with her. She is passionate about her own family history and loves sharing snippets of her extraordinary life with others. Dream Escape can arrange an exclusive tour and tea with Emily Astor at Cliveden, where visitors can hear first-hand about her extraordinary upbringing and family life. “I am always so happy to meet Dream Escape guests and talk about this wonderful place – plus I am equally delighted to learn about their family history too,” she says.

We stop for a while to take some shots in the Canadian Cemetery, a beautifully calm space that speaks to the deep connection the Astors have had – and continue to have – with America and Canada. “It is a wonderful place of remembrance of all the brave people who sadly died so very young during the war, while far away from their homes,” says Emily.

Emily takes a moment to read some epitaphs in the Canadian Cemetery

While the war brought fear and hardship and, for a time, saw Cliveden stand in as a hospital and convalescence home, in the eras between the wars Cliveden took on the role of raising spirits and was an entertaining destination bar none. Nancy and the family threw elegant and lavish parties every weekend; the kitchen full of delicious smells, the grand hall filled with dancing feet and the sounds of a jazz band tinkling into the night.

The ability to welcome people into a home and to host at a pitch perfect level of luxury, comfort and elegance was passed down to Emily who says that, for her, interesting conversation, good food, pretty napkins and fresh flowers are the essential ingredients for a good party.

“It’s really important if you can mix people both intellectually and age-wise too,” she adds. “It is important to make your guests feel as comfortable as possible, so comfortable beds, sofas and chairs are always a good addition – and fresh flowers, from the garden, wherever possible.”

Taking this knowledge Emily Astor and Jane Churchill (her interior designer) along with Emily's aunt Nancy Lancaster have recently come together to write Entertaining Lives, a privately bound cookbook containing many of the recipes from Nancy Astor’s family house, Mirador in West Virginia. Mixing classic French and English cuisine with the flavours of the South, the cookbook features dishes that both conjure up family mealtimes and extravagant parties imbued with wit and laughter, tears and tantrums, arguments and reconciliations.

“Mealtimes and entertaining were the thread that held the family together,” says Emily. “So it’s a pleasure to be able to share Nancy Astor and Nancy Lancaster’s recipes as a reminder of food they enjoyed while growing up at Mirador in Virginia and the recipes they then brought over with them to Britain.”

Emily admires the view from The Long Garden

Recipes such as parsley soup, marmalade souffle and chicken gumbo, sit alongside instructions for making Lady Cranbourne’s Chocolate Mousse and, Astor’s favourite, Mrs Gibson’s eggs. “Those eggs are named after my great aunt Irene, and I remember them well from my childhood. We found it amusing that an egg dish would be named after a family member.”

Aside from recipes, the book is also filled with a treasure trove of imagery from Cliveden: decadent tablescapes, banquets laid on the lawns, and canapes on the terrace. While little snippets and insights from the two Nancys are also dotted throughout the book, conjuring up a sense of devilish wit and a playful approach to life. It’s a beautiful tribute from a granddaughter to the colourful ancestry that she still holds very dear, and a delightful look back at the heyday of one of the most glorious stately homes in England. ⬥

Emily takes a moment to rest on the South Terrace

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“I have spent many wonderful days exploring the spectacular grounds of Cliveden over the years. Each season offers an equally impressive vision. The Lady Astor Suite in the house is a particular favourite of mine to stay in and will leave any guest staying there feeling very special and most privileged.” ⬥ → sue@dreamescape.co.uk

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WORDS | Emma Johnson PHOTOGRAPHY | Karolina Wiercigroch