Food & Drink Festival at Althorp
Yesterday, my boyfriend and I ventured over to Northampton from our home city of Nottingham to attend the food and drink festival at Althorp house. A Grade I listed building in the heart of the English countryside, Althorp is a stately home set on roughly 13,000 acres of land. Originally sheep farmers, the beautiful estate has been owned by the aristocratic Spencer family for generations.
Famously, it became known as the home of Diana, Princess of Wales, who in 1997, was buried on the estate, specifically on an island in the middle of a small lake. To this day, nearly 22 years later, people have been visiting the house to pay their respects to the late Diana Spencer. Up until very recently, her grave remained unmarked, hidden from the prying eyes of the public to give her the utmost privacy, something she lacked in life.
Her brother, Charles Spencer, still resides on the estate and for 60 days a year, will open it up to the public. Even if you missed the food and drink festival this summer, you can still visit the house between the months of July and August. But for now, I'm going to talk you through the delightfully delicious food and drink festival that was held there.
Hotdogs, Prosecco & an American Bad Eagle?
Everyone loves food and a cool beverage on a warm day, so we took the opportunity to do something entirely food and drink orientated, while still making the most of the sun. The day tickets were roughly a tenner, but if you wanted a house tour included, you pay an extra £9. We pre-booked our tickets, so the prices were only slightly less expensive than if you bought them on the door. The parking was free, and it was all very well organised. From the moment we drove onto the grounds, we were already quite impressed.
We walked up to the ticket collection tent, and they handed us an envelope with an invoice, a programme and two tickets inside. The service was polite and friendly and very efficient. We got there relatively early in the day, so we weren't parked miles away and we missed all the queues. The first thing we saw was the house, a beautiful building that looks like it should be in a James Bond movie.
I've visited Althorp before, around 17/18 years ago, and not a lot has changed from what I remember. They had a classic/super car display, with several of them parked outside the house. Just to the right of that was a number of birds of prey, all perched under a small canopy, among the Red Kites and Hooded Vultures was an American Bald Eagle. Sat at roughly 2 foot high and a wing span of 2.3 metres, it's an incredibly impressive bird, it's almost intimidating! The photo below certainly doesn't do this creature justice.
Having had a good look around the festival, we decided we'd have an artisan hotdog, it was a very naughty lunch, a thick, spiced sausage with grated Red Leicester cheese and chipotle sauce, stuffed inside a soft, white bread roll. It was absolutely delicious, and filled us up for the rest of the day. I then clocked the portable prosecco bar, and ended up having a Bellini, made with a simple peach syrup rather than the more traditional juice or purée. It was still tasty though, and I enjoyed every drop :)
Skinny Lattes, Live Music & a Smores Cake Slice
Having scouted more of the area, and enjoyed some live music, we decided to have a coffee and sweet treat. My boyfriend opted for a Smores cake slice and I went for a Kinder Bueno cupcake...which I still haven't eaten. But I took a sneaky pic so you could see what it looked like at its best. I had a couple of bites of boyfies Smores slice and it was mouth-wateringly delectable. I have a constant weakness for melted marshmallows, so this was a real treat!
The Resting Place of Diana, Princess of Wales
We then took a walk around the lake, in the middle of which is a small island where Diana, Princess of Wales is buried. It was a quiet, tranquil place, incredibly peaceful and undeniably beautiful. We got chatting to one of the Althorp volunteers who claimed to have met Diana in the 1980s, he said she was a wonderful person, and I don't doubt that.
Gift Shops & Book Signings
Charles Spencer, Diana's brother, was around on the day, in fact, we saw him walking through the festival with his two daughters. He was doing three book signings throughout the day just outside the gift shop. We didn't get a book, or queue to meet him, but it was cool knowing he was around and getting involved with the event.
Althorp is a gorgeous place set in beautiful surroundings. Go if you ever get a chance to go, do. You won't be disappointed!
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I hope you enjoyed this post. Let me know if you've been to the food festival this weekend, what did you think? I'll see you soon with another post for you :)
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