Out and About Shopping in Warwick!

Once again I’m in something of a dash tonight to get everything ready for the weekend and my performances at The Black Country Living Museum’s 1940s event, 9th & 10th July. For those of you who haven’t caught my previous blogs I’ve been booked to perform 3 shows daily and for those of you who like to dance do pop along to my Saturday night 8.15pm show where I will be performing all those wonderful Lindy Hop classics from “Cho Cho Ch’ Boogie” to “There Ain’t Nobody Here but us Chickens”.

Over the weekend I will be performing a mixture

Dressed for the 4th July at Wroxall Abbey!

of sing along songs in uniform from the 1940s and the very best of Hollywood. So if dancing is your thing please  make a point of popping along to my 3.30pm “GI Jive” and 8.15pm “In the Mood” shows on Saturday and my 1.30pm “Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree” show on Sunday. So I hope I have scheduled in something for every-one. Please see my full show list below :-

Saturday 9th July – 11.30am ATS “We’ll Meet Again” 1.30pm 40s Hollywood Glamour “Stage and Screen” 3.30pm US WAC “GI Jive” 8.15pm Evening Dance “In the Mood”.

Paul & I Having Lunch in Warwick!

Sunday 10th July – 11.30am Wrens “The Fleets in Port Again”, 1.30pm Hollywood Glamour “Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree” 3.30pm WAAF “Straighten Up and Fly Right”

These last few days I’ve been busy performing “Stars and Stripes” shows to tie in with the 4th July. It’s all change from a few weeks ago when I was busy performing Prom “Happy and Glorious” concerts to tie in with the Jubilee and now it’s a vocal trip across the pond to America with everything that is razzmatazz!

Meeting Up with Miss Fanny De Light!

Last Sunday Paul, Poppy and I were in Warwick attending the Warwick Vintage Carnival. It was a great event where I was able to do a little shopping and meet up with fellow vintage singer Miss Fanny De Light. Fanny performed a wonderful mix of vintage classics which I really enjoyed and afterwards we stayed over at the Wroxall Abbey Hotel in Warwick.

A wonderful Gothic mansion with an interesting history I was keen to find out more. The early origins of the estate dates back as far as 1146 A.D, when a group of Benedictine nuns were founded by Hugh Fitz Richard of Hatton (Lord of Hatton). Hatton had provided over 3,000 acres of land to the church, to form a monastery known as the Priory of St. Leonard. It’s original remains, still sit directly opposite the Abbey.

All Set to Head off to The Vintage Carnival!

In 1544, following the dissolution of monasteries by King Henry VIII, the estate was awarded to Robert Burgoyne, a commissioner of the dissolution.  Following the death of Robert Burgoyne, the estate remained in the Burgoyne name, passing down from generation to generation. His son, (also Robert Burgoyne) and the High Sheriff of Warwickshire, demolished part of the church, however, built the Elizabethan style Mansion House.

In 1713, the Burgoyne family finally sold the estate to the renowned architect Sir Christopher Wren. Wren used Wroxall Abbey as his own

One Man and His Dog at Wroxall!

personal retreat with members of his family often staying at the house. Once again, the estate passed down through many generations of the Wren family. Records of the estate show that the Theodisa Wren was the final member of the Wren family to be in possession of Wroxall Abbey.

Following Theodisa Wren’s marriage to Chandos Hoskyns of Harewood in 1837, Wroxall Abbey Estate was sold to James Dugdale in 1861. During his tenure, James Dugdale built a new Mansion House in the Gothic style as well as new formal grounds and gardens. The estate was inherited by James Broughton Dugdale who subsequently died 1932.

The estate was leased to The Laurels School and eventually purchased in 1963, when the school ultimately became known as The Wroxall Abbey School for girls. It remained a school until 1995, when the estate was purchased by the Quinn

Wroxall Abbey Hotel!

family ahead of planning permission for commercial use as a hotel. From 2000, the estate has been operating as a hotel with Trinity Hotel Ltd, taking over the estate in late 2020.

The grounds at Wroxall Abbey are beautiful which is ideal for Poppy as she enjoyed her walks there immensely. I shall leave you with a few photos from the weekend and I look forward to seeing you all at The Black Country Living Museum.

Toodle Pip and Bye for Now!