I was told, not so long ago, that for ’she who must be obeyed’ (SWMBO)’s birthday I would be treating her to a ’surprise’ weekend away…I was also provided with the precise details as to what the ’surprise’ would entail. I soon realised that what might have been mistaken for a romantic weekend away was, in fact, more of a pilgrimage. Sarah Raven was having an open weekend at her garden at Perch Hill…we would also be visiting somewhere called Great Dixter, the home of (SWMBO informs me) a late Cristopher Lloyd or ‘Christo’ to his friends (more on that later). Now, I knew there was a danger that being subjected to repeats of Gardeners World that I would, even if only by osmosis, take in some horticultural knowledge…something I have long resisted out of principle. However, the entire weekend was to prove something of a revalation…SWMBO had provded me with details of a B&B close to both sites which turned out to be extremely pleasant, but populated by other SR devotees. Great Dixter was one of the best gardens I have ever been dragged round. The ladies who conducted the house tours were both interesting and informative, they even let small children climb on the furniture…a certain hanging offense in a NT property…it was all so, well, casual. We were informed in the parlour, where the music was played, that Mr Lloyd was also a concert standard pianist…the air was suddenly full of comments such as ‘oh, what it must be like to be blessed with two gifts etc etc. Now, never having met the chap, I am sure he was a lovely bloke but really, come on, he didn’t exactly inhabit the normal world of being pre-occupied by the need to earn a living, for example, or
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