Art of Life

SHOW #24

In the Country

This month Art of Life explores rural residences and thriving country businesses in the UK and Ireland. We look specifically at how many private homes and estates have had to adapt in order to survive. Many estates face the challenges of inheritance tax, aging properties and the ravages of war, forcing many families to sell their estates.

We go to three historical homes to see how they have been preserved in light of these financial demands.

We start of at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire to talk to the Devonshire family and look at their pioneering approach to creating a profitable business by opening their estate up. Next, we move on to Scotland to Inverlochy Castle set in the foothills of Ben Nevis the highest point in the British Isles. Built in 1863 and once visited by Queen Victoria, it's now become one of Europe's finest hotels.

And, finally we finish the show in Ireland where the Leslie Clan has managed to preserve their castle and keep it in the family for over three hundred years.