St Mary's House & Gardens set to launch new season

The historical St Mary's House & Gardens in Bramber is set to launch its new season.
St Marys at BramberSt Marys at Bramber
St Marys at Bramber

St Mary’s, which is an historic 15th century timber-framed house with garden, will open its doors to the public on Sunday.

On Monday, there will be a traditional May Day Fair with a May Queen, and a range of stalls selling plants, cakes, preserves, jewellery, books, and more.

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Visitors to St. Mary’s are warmly welcomed to this lived-in home by owners Peter Thorogood and Roger Linton.

Fruit wall and pineapple pitsFruit wall and pineapple pits
Fruit wall and pineapple pits

The two men have laboured away for more 30 years to restore this place to its original splendour.

They have been helped in this endeavour by a small army of more than 40 dedicated volunteers.

Their achievement was recognised when St Mary’s won the coveted national Hudson’s Heritage Award for Best Restoration in 2011.

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It was also awarded ‘highly commended’ in the Beautiful South Tourism Awards 2015-16.

The garden at St MarysThe garden at St Marys
The garden at St Marys

Visitors can enjoy afternoon teas in the country-style tearoom, and the Victorian Music Room makes an ideal venue for concerts, weddings and other events.

The opening concert of the season will take place on Saturday, May 6.

It will be a Spring Piano Recital by the talented young concert pianist Craig Greene, who will be playing music by Mussorgsky and Dvorak.

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There are five acres of grounds which include formal gardens with topiary and an example of the prehistoric tree Ginkgo biloba.

Fruit wall and pineapple pitsFruit wall and pineapple pits
Fruit wall and pineapple pits

There is also a Victorian ‘Secret’ Garden, with its original fruit-wall and pineapple pits.

Visitors can enjoy the Jubilee Rose Garden, the Terracotta Garden, the unusual circular Poetry Garden, the new Landscape Water Garden with island and waterfall, the fully restored Victorian Glasshouse and the Rural Museum.

St Mary’s House & Gardens has a five star rating on Trip Advisor, where a recent visitor wrote: “Words cannot describe this small gem.

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“This ancient Tudor house will reveal something unforgettable.

The garden at St MarysThe garden at St Marys
The garden at St Marys

“A lovely garden from fairy tales.

“Inside it is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited in England, indeed. I highly recommend a visit: as soon as you will cross the gate, you will forget the world outside.”

St Mary’s House and Gardens is open to the public on Sundays, Thursdays and Bank Holiday Mondays, from 2 to 6pm.

For more information, or to book tickets for the Spring Piano Recital on May 6, visit the website at www.stmarysbramber.co.uk or telephone 01903 816205.

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