Secret London: Why you should go to Strawberry Hill House this weekend

Gothic grandeur: Strawberry Hill House was the birthplace of the gothic novel
The Strawberry Hill Trust
Luke Abrahams12 March 2018

In an attempt to take you all out of your comfort zones, our Secret London series uncovers little-known locations in the city and beyond.

This week we explore Strawberry Hill House & Garden, a gorgeous neo-gothic revival villa located on the bourgeois and gorgeoius hilltops of Twickenham (Twickers to the locals).

What's all this about a fairytale villa in London, then?

Way back when in the 18th century, a rather talented art historian, man of letters, antiquarian, Whig politician, son of Britain's first Prime Minister and legendary gossiper who went by the name of Horace Walpole decided to build a fancy house on top of a hill in Twickenham. Built in four very precise stages between the years of 1749 and 1776, the result was what history folk now refer to as the 'Strawberry Hill Gothic', the precursor to the 19th century gothic revival. As the picture above makes clear, it's a multitude of towers, battlements, elaborate decorations, incredible vaulted ceilings and a mammoth collection of antiques rising from a Disney princess-style grande maison.

Sounds fab. Tell us more.

Eccentric and unique, it's the the first recorded example of the gothic revival in the entire city. Everywhere you look you'll see bristling spires and gargoyles, giant stairs and bookcases copied from the tombs of celebrated mediaeval kings, ceilings embellished with imagined ancestors and windows that glitter with stained glass sourced from across the shores of the continent.

From chamber to boudoir, kitchen to folly, Walpole's house is just one big fat masterpiece of a trick. Explore a royal bedchamber that was never slept in and get lost in hallways that were deliberately kept dark to imitate an atmosphere of mediaeval doom and gloom. A house as influential as it's owner, it's essentially a giant country shack stuffed with paper maiche, wood and plaster waiting to be cracked open like some kind of magical pinata.

It's not all prettycitylondon, though. On one summer morning Walpole had a dream so vivid he changed the course of literary history forever - and no, we're not exaggerating. Heralded as the first Gothic novel in the literary canon, the Castle of Otranto, with all its knights, wronged maidens, bewitched corridors and creaking floorboards, was written in Walpole's fantabulous study. Often dubbed the 'spiritual godfather' of the genre, you've got Walpole and his house to thank for icons Dracula and Frankenstein, the dark ravens and sordid tales of Edgar Allen Poe, the horror films, comic books and graphic novels of the 20th century, and even the shifting stairs and talking portraits of the Harry Potter universe. Yes, the place really is that cool.

Closed for yonks, it luckily reopened in 2010 and is now recognised as one of the finest examples of Georgian Gothic revival in the entire country - another fine reason you should visit.

OK, but is it Insta-friendly?

Two words: the garden. After year's of restorative work, it's one of the prettiest gardens in London's sprawling suburbia. In fact, they are so important, they are grade II-listed and even have a spot on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.

A rare example of ornate Victorian shrubbery, the stunning green outdoor palace is nothing short of theatrical with all its willow grottos and woodland trails. Heck, there's even a marvellous recreation of Richard Bentley's Shell Bench out in the back, too. The what? The Shell bench, a mammoth large Rococo-style sea shell crammed with all sorts of inventions and contrivances.

A folly of sorts, the original was a seat in the form of a huge bivalve of a species of shell not easily recognised by the average Joe. In a nutshell, it's basically a self-homage to Walpole's elaborate eccentricity.

No wonder it's featured on the covers of so many mag glossies.

Strawberry Hill House is at 268 Waldegrave Rd, Twickenham TW1 4ST. For more information on opening times and to book tickets, visit their website.

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