Malvern

We depart Sussex and having made a suitable comfort stop we break our journey in the delightful Cotswold town of Burford with its picturesque high street, many traditional independent traders and of course a good choice of establishments for lunch. Later we continue to our hotel in Great Malvern where we arrive late afternoon.

The Morgan Car Factory is our destination this morning for one of the most fascinating and interesting tours you will ever do. For over 100 years the Morgan Motor Company have been making exciting sports cars in the beautiful spa town of Malvern. Morgan cars are famous the world over for their unique blend of charisma, quality materials, craftsmanship and performance. We last did this tour about six years ago and it was a real eye opener. Our guide will take us on a very close up and personal tour of this historic car maker. You will see every stage of production, you will see the great skill and craftsmanship still being employed today and you will be able to talk to the craftsman as they go about their work. There is a museum, café and gift shop on site.  This afternoon is free for you to explore Malvern. You may like to visit The Priory which was built on land owned by Westminster Abbey or the Malvern Museum of Local History which is often likened to the Tardis, a lot of fascinating information is packed into a small space. There is so much to do and see and many visitors regret not making more time for their visit

This morning we make our way in to Worcester where we enjoy some free time. You may like to visit the Cathedral or The Commandery and there is The Worcester Museum and Art Gallery. Time for lunch in the city, before we visit The Museum of Royal Worcester. The Museum nestles amidst the old Victorian buildings that used to be home to the Royal Worcester factory and is proud to hold the largest collection of Worcester porcelain in the world. The Georgian, Victorian and 20th century galleries will take you on a journey through time and our informative audio tour features the factory’s history and its remarkable workforce. After our visit we have arranged a very special cream tea with former museum curator and BBC Antiques Roadshow expert Henry Sandon MBE. He is one of televisions’ most charismatic personalities and loves nothing better than to share his knowledge and memories. Henry will give us a short talk on Royal Worcester and will possibly have a few pieces from his own collection with him to show you and will be delighted to answer any questions.

After a leisurely start we drive to Hampton Court Castle and Gardens where we enjoy a guided tour of this interesting castellated mansion which has rich and intriguing history dating back to the 15C. In the early 19th Century the estate was purchased by Richard Arkwright, the son of the famous inventor.The gardens cover around 20 acres including long double herbaceous borders leading to two Victorian Walled gardens with glasshouses an extensive water garden a boxed edged vegetable garden and much more.  Early afternoon we drive to Picton Gardens and Old Court Nursery the home of the Plant Heritage National Collection of autumn flowering Asters and related genera. The garden produces glorious firework explosions of pinks, mauves, violets, cerise and white in dedicated borders that should be at their best as we visit. The nursery has a wonderful collection of plants for sale.

We depart Malvern after breakfast and make our way back to the Cotswolds where we break our journey with a visit to Sezincote House and Gardens. Sezincote is unique. At the heart of a traditional, family-run estate covering 4,500 acres of rolling Cotswold countryside stands a 200-year-old Mogul Indian palace, set in a romantic landscape of temples, grottoes, waterfalls and canals reminiscent of the Taj Mahal.  The House, however, is far from traditional - it was built in the “Indian Style”, a unique combination of Hindu and Muslim architecture. The gardens were designed with the help of Humphrey Repton. Sezincote is credited with influencing the design of the Brighton pavilion after a visit by The Prince Regent in 1807. After our visit we stop for lunch in Moreton in Marsh before continuing our homeward journey.