The Royal Oak Foundation

Zoom Rental | Restoring Fabric History: Humphries Weavings, UK
2025-02-06 - 2025-06-30 | Zoom Recording, Virtual, New York, NY, 10036, United States
State bed and bedroom at Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire ©National Trust Images James Dobson
Humphries Weaving is a distinguished British fabric manufacturer specializing in the recreation of important historical textiles, seamlessly blending traditional techniques with contemporary design innovations. With over 50 years of experience, the company has restored and refashioned period fabrics for Britain’s royal residences, prestigious historic houses, and National Trust properties both at home and abroad. From the 18th-century blue silk damask adorning the walls and furniture in Kedleston Hall’s State Rooms to the crimson bed drapes and coverlets on the state beds at Buscot Park and Sudbury Hall, Humphries Weaving’s recreations meticulously captures the essence of these historical periods. Honoring their rich legacy that once symbolized the wealth and status of homeowners during the 17th and 18th centuries. This exclusive Royal Oak presentation spotlights the designer’s creative process, from initial concept to the production of exquisite fabrics for interiors and ceremonial use, such as those for Orders of Chivalry. The designers will demonstrate how hundreds of hours can be invested into analyzing source samples and reconstructing designs using historical techniques, measurements, and tools. These intricate recreations, often requiring more than 14 distinct steps, result in fabrics that are both historically accurate and visually stunning. If you are passionate about the history of interiors or an aficionado of textile history, this presentation is not to be missed. Join Royal Oak as we look behind-the-scenes how this iconic British company preserves England’s heritage by honoring the past while innovating for the future.

Zoom Rental | Treason & Tragedy: Death on Tower Hill
2025-04-02 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00 (America/New_York)
Paul Delaroche, The Execution of Lady Jane Grey, 1834. The National Gallery, London. The 9-day Queen was executed inside the Tower on Tower Green.
While the Tower of London may be infamous for its executions, the majority of beheadings actually took place just beyond its walls, on Tower Hill—a site steeped in political turmoil, betrayal, and bloody justice. In this gripping tour, Rob Smith will unravel the dramatic stories of those who met their fate on this notorious execution ground. Tower Hill became the final stage for some of the most high-profile figures in British history, many of whom had once wielded great power, who found themselves condemned as traitors. We will explore the fate of Simon of Sudbury, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who was dragged from the Tower and beheaded by enraged Poll Tax rebels in 1381. Another infamous figure to fall on Tower Hill was Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s once-trusted advisor and architect of the English Reformation. The site also witnessed the beheading of Lord Lovat (Simon Fraser) in 1747—the last man to be publicly executed on Tower Hill. His execution, witnessed by a large crowd, marked the end of an era. This virtual tour will bring to life the gripping stories of those who faced the executioner’s axe—tales of ambition, treachery, courage, and vengeance—while also exploring the historical significance of Tower Hill. Hear about the shadowy events that shaped British history.
Tickets: $30 members*; $40 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | The Quest for Queen Mary
2025-04-11 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00
Mary of Teck was Queen of the United Kingdom, the Dominions, and Empress of India from 1910-1936. The daughter of a German nobleman and granddaughter of George III, she was always destined to become Queen. But what do we know about Queen Mary? First betrothed to the eldest son of the Prince of Wales, and after his unexpected death, married to his younger brother, the future King-Emperor George V. While some biographies, films, and television portray her as a rigid and cold figure in pearls, she was also a mother and grandmother—whose grandchildren said she loved the moments when they could be “a small family and do small things”. When the late Queen Elizabeth II invited author James Pope-Hennessy to write the official biography of her grandmother, he set off between 1955 and 1958 to interview Queen Mary’s surviving relatives, traveling all over Europe as well as to Sandringham and Balmoral. In this lecture, royal historian Mr. Hugo Vickers will regale us with funny stories from Pope-Hennessy’s notes and other stories shared by members of the British Royal Family. Mr. Vickers will also discuss his own research and bring to life the Queen-Empress who was witness to two world wars, a bystander to a scandal that rocked the monarchy, and a monarch who experienced the changes of British society from the beginning of the 20th century until the 1950s.

Hugo Vickers, is well known as a biographer, lecturer and broadcaster, and acknowledged expert on the Royal Family. He has covered events from royal weddings, including the first wedding of the Prince of Wales; the funerals of Diana, the Queen Mother, Prince Philip, the State Funeral and Committal of The Queen; and the Coronation of Charles III. The Financial Times recently described him as: ‘the most knowledgeable royal biographer on the planet.’ He has written many biographies of 20th-century figures, including Cecil Beaton, Vivien Leigh, the Duchess of Windsor, Princess Andrew of Greece, and the Queen Mother. His first biography, about Gladys Deacon, Duchess of Marlborough (1881-1977) was based on his interviews with her before her death. In 2022, he published a book with HRH The Duke of Kent, entitled A Royal Life. In 2024, Mr. Vickers published a novel Pining in Paradise and his biography of Clarissa, Countess of Avon (widow of PM Anthony Eden). When not writing, he travels through the Commonwealth and Overseas Territories, establishing Commonwealth Walkways. Mr. Vickers is a Deputy Lieutenant for the Royal County of Berkshire and Captain of the Lay Stewards of St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.
Tickets: $20 members*; $30 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | George Frideric Handel at Home
2025-04-18 12:00 - 2025-06-30 23:30
In 1723, the composer George Frideric Handel moved into a new built house on Brook Street in Mayfair, London. He would live there for 36 years, dying in his own bed at the age of 74. From 1723, all of his music, beginning with the opera Giulio Cesare and including Messiah and all his great oratorios, was composed in this house. Handel rehearsed his singers in his upstairs music room, attracting friends and neighbors who listened. The maestro even sold his music from his front parlor. Besides being a nexus for his compositions, Handel also hosted dinners at Brook Street and musicales—reciprocating evenings in the homes of his friends—and displayed his art collection in his home. Professor Emeritus (MIT) Ellen Harris will trace George Frideric Handel’s footsteps and activities during his life on Brook Street in London.
Ellen T. Harris is Class of 1949 Professor Emeritus at MIT and Visiting Professor at The Juilliard School. Her work includes the award-winning books George Frideric Handel: A Life with Friends (Norton, 2014) and Handel as Orpheus: Voice and Desire in the Chamber Cantatas (Harvard, 2001). Her research on Handel’s finances won the Westrup Prize in 2004. She has performed with John Williams and the Boston Pops and sung the National Anthem at Fenway Park. She is currently preparing a book on performing Handel’s operas.

Tickets: $20 members*; $30 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | The Country Houses of James Wyatt (1746 –1813)
2025-04-30 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00
Plas Newydd House and Garden, Anglesey ©National Trust Images/Annapurna Mellor
Talented, urbane, and highly influential, James Wyatt, RA, was one of the great designers of his age. Architect to King George III, his designs shaped some of Britain’s most remarkable country houses and royal residences. Wyatt trained in Italy (1762–68) and was a master of Neoclassicism, making him a formidable rival to Robert Adam in the 1770s. He designed works for the royal family at Kew and Frogmore, further cementing his reputation as favored architect of the monarchy. His Neoclassical country houses—such as Heaton Hall in Manchester, Dodington Park in Gloucestershire, and Castle Coole County Fermanagh—are among the finest of their kind. He also transformed existing estates, reimagining Plas Newydd in Anglesey and Goodwood House in Sussex, while designing exquisite interiors for properties such as Burton Constable Hall in Yorkshire. Beyond his classical style, Wyatt was a pioneer of the Gothic Revival, designing romantic, medieval-inspired masterpieces such as Fonthill Abbey in Wiltshire and Ashridge in Hertfordshire. He also worked on several cathedrals and redesigned the Bishop of Durham’s grand residence, Auckland Castle. Wyatt’s contributions also include work on Christ Church, Magdalen, Oriel, and Worcester Colleges, Oxford. In this lecture, historian and British country house expert Jeremy Musson explores the life and principal works of James Wyatt, shedding light on one of the most versatile and accomplished architects of the Georgian age.
Jeremy Musson, LLB Hons, M.Phil, FSA, is an architectural historian and heritage consultant. Born in London, he was educated at UCL and the Warburg Institute, and worked for the Victorian Society and the National Trust, before joining Country Life, in 1995, where he was Architectural Editor in 1998-2007. He continues to contribute to Country Life; and he is the author of several books, and co-wrote and presented BBC 2’s The Curious House Guest series. A Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and an affiliate lecturer of Cambridge University’s department of architecture, he is also Chairman of the Historic Houses Foundation. As a heritage consultant since 2007, he has worked on major historic sites including St Paul’s Cathedral, Ickworth Park, Suffolk, and Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire.

Tickets: $15 members*; $25 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | Discovering Devon: National Trust Treasures
2025-05-01 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00
The Stables at Knightshayes, Devon ©NT Images Mel Peters
Journey through some of Devon’s most captivating National Trust properties, each with its own unique story. From grand estates to hidden collections, history comes to life at every turn. Stephen Benton leads this virtual tour where we start with Lydford Gorge, where dramatic waterfalls and ancient woodlands create a truly magical landscape. And we will soak in the Jazz Age elegance of Coleton Fishacre, the dreamy 1920s retreat of the D’Oyly Carte family, containing Art Deco interiors with windows emphasizing sea views. Nearby is Greenway, Agatha Christie’s beloved holiday home perched on the river, filled with her literary history (and rentable as an NT cottage!). We will hear tales of seafarers at Buckland Abbey, once home to Sir Francis Drake, and explore Killerton, a stunning Georgian home with lush gardens and the Trust’s fashion collection—once gifted away for the sake of political beliefs. We will marvel at the rare Gothic Revival splendor by Victorian visionary, William Burges, at Knightshayes—a complete country gentleman’s dream—surrounded by gardens containing one of the most varied plant collections in England. Finally, we will step inside the granite walls of Castle Drogo, a unique early 20th-century house designed by renowned architect Sir Edwin Lutyens. We will end our tour with a look at a world of feathers and shells featured at A la Ronde, a 16-sided 1790s house.

Tickets: $30 members*; $40 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | Under the Caribbean Sun: British Painting from the Museo de Arte de Ponce
2025-05-07 08:00 - 2025-06-30 23:30
Frederic, Lord Leighton Flaming June. Photo Museo de Arte de Ponce, Puerto Rico
The Museo de Arte de Ponce holds the most important and, perhaps, the most unexpected collection of Victorian art outside the UK. Their Pre-Raphaelite collection contains icons of British painting, such as Frederic, Lord Leighton’s Flaming June and Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones’s masterpiece, The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon. It also includes works by Dante Gabriel Rosetti and John Everett Millais among others. Featuring biblical scenes, subjects drawn from Shakespeare, or tableaux based on written works by Tennyson and Keats, Pre-Raphaelite paintings were characterized by vibrant colors and unconventional compositions. These paintings revolutionized the Victorian art scene during the latter half of the 19th century and today represent the ideal of classicized female beauty. Vanity Fair and Country Life contributor Patrick Monahan will tell the extraordinary story of how such important works of Victorian art crossed the Atlantic to Puerto Rico. He will highlight the stories behind some of these treasures and will also show how some of these images have been transformed into ubiquitous icons—reproduced on T-shirts, coffee mugs, phone covers, jigsaw puzzles, and more.
Patrick Monahan is a writer and independent art advisor, specializing in British paintings, drawings, and sculpture from the eighteenth century to the present. A native New Yorker, he is consulted by collectors and museums on both sides of the Atlantic, including the Museo de Arte de Ponce, Puerto Rico. His written work appears in Country Life and Vanity Fair, as well as in the exhibition catalogue “Flaming June: the making of an icon,” Leighton House, London, 2016. He holds an M.Phil. from the University of Cambridge as well as a BA from the University of Chicago, both in art history. He lives and works in New York City, with regular visits to London.
Tickets: FREE to members*; $15 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | Fred Astaire in London
2025-05-16 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00
Fred Astaire, 1940s, Original publicity still from former Marilyn Blaisdell Collection
Though born in Omaha, Nebraska, and raised in New York City, dancer Fred Astaire spent a significant portion of his early career in the United Kingdom. From 1922 to 1932, he and his sister Adele captivated London audiences in three wildly popular West End musicals, sparking a sensation so intense that critics dubbed it “Astairia.” During his time in London, Astaire immersed himself in British culture; he studied music theory at London’s Guildhall School of Music alongside Noël Coward and socialized with the aristocracy. With his new dance partner, Claire Luce, Astaire expanded his repertoire, incorporating sweeping, romantic movements as well as an English sense of style. His impeccable fashion sense, effortless charm, and refined elegance—central to his dance films of the 1930s through the 1950s—were deeply influenced by the customs and style he observed while mingling with British high society and even the royal family. Victoria Kastner will explore the profound impact of Astaire’s years in the UK, revealing how his time on the London stage helped shape the dancer, actor, and icon the world came to adore.
Victoria Kastner is the leading scholar and author about the architect Julia Morgan as well as about Hearst Castle, where she worked for 30 yrs as historian. She is the author of Hearst Castle: The Biography of a Country House, published by Harry N. Abrams in 2000; Hearst’s San Simeon: The Gardens and the Land, May 2009; and Hearst Ranch: Family, Land and Legacy. She co-authored The Beverly Hills Hotel: The First 100 years with Robert Anderson. In 2022, Victoria published; Julia Morgan: An Intimate Biography of the trailblazing architect. Ms. Kastner has lectured extensively on Julia Morgan, Hearst’s art collection, and the history of collecting for many museums and groups: including at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; the American Museum in Britain in Bath; and the Palace of the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. She has also written for The London Telegraph, the American Institute of Architects, Oxford University’s Journal of the History of Collections, and The Magazine Antiques.

Tickets: $15 members*; $25 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | J.M.W. Turner at Petworth
2025-05-20 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00
Recording available on Tuesday, May 20 12:00 pm ET
The Carved Room, with the four paintings by Turner at Petworth House and Park, West Sussex. The carvings are by Grinling Gibbons.
The year 2025 marks the 250th anniversary of the birth of Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775– 1851), one of the most admired and influential British artists. J.M.W. Turner had a unique relationship with George O’Brien Wyndham, the 3rd Earl of Egremont, who inherited Petworth House and Park, West Sussex, in 1763—now an NT property. The artist was a frequent house guest and was free to explore the house and estate, drawing great inspiration from the beauty of Petworth’s interiors, collections, and landscape. As a collector of British art, the 3rd Earl was a great patron and host to many contemporary artists such as Turner, John Constable, and C.R. Leslie. Turner’s extraordinary talent, combined with the unique opportunity to work at Petworth, allowed him to produce detailed pictorial descriptions of the great house and estate. These masterpieces can be seen at Petworth in the original devised for them after being reinstated in the early 2000s. Join Dr. John Chu, NT Senior Curator of Pictures and Sculpture, as he examines Turner’s works which illustrate what life was like at Petworth almost 200 years ago. He will also discuss the upcoming NT exhibition Turner’s Vision at Petworth (June 21–November 16, 2025), and the artist’s relationship with the Earl and demonstrate the impact this extraordinary house and landscape had on one of Britain’s celebrated artists.

John Chu was appointed Senior Curator of Pictures and Sculpture for Midlands at the National Trust, UK in 2021. He joined the NT in 2015 as Assistant Curator of Pictures and Sculpture and worked on exhibitions at Osterley, Powis Castle, and Basildon Park among other properties. He also worked on permanent re-displays of state rooms at The Vyne, Hampshire and Knole, Kent. He graduated from Cambridge University and received a Master of Arts and Ph.D. from Courtauld Institute of Art, London University. He was a visiting lecturer from University of Reading and an Associate Lecturer at Courtauld Institute of Art. He was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at The Paul Mellon Center for Studies in British Art.

Tickets: $15 members*; $25 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | The Lost World of Bletchley Park
2025-05-21 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00
Wrens billeted at Wavedon Manor near Bletchley Park ©Bletchley Park Trust
At a casual glance, Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire resembles any other sprawling country Victorian house that might have been owned by a wealthy businessman: in this case stockbroker Sir Herbert Leon. When Bletchley was purchased in 1938 by the Head of Secret Intelligence Service, the estate quickly went from outdoor country pursuits, to become the nerve centre of Britain’s war: the top-secret headquarters for Britain’s Government Code and Cypher School. Bletchley quickly developed into a place where the nation’s most brilliant mathematical minds toiled alongside cryptographers, debutantes, dons, and factory workers on complex problems with world-wide resonance. Historian Sinclair McKay will reveal the day-to-day life at Bletchley, and the activities of the extraordinary men and women who toiled in secret on the estate—secrets they kept for the following decades. Winston Churchill told them proudly, on a visit to the Park in 1941, that they were “the geese that laid the golden eggs and never cackled.” Based on first-hand interviews of surviving code-breakers, Mr. McKay will also describe the entertainments and furtive Bletchley romances that helped ease the pressures faced by operatives as they worked to decipher German coded messages. Finally, he will chronicle how the estate was abandoned, nearly demolished, and almost became a supermarket, before being heroically saved as a museum.
Sinclair McKay writes for the Daily Telegraph, the Mail on Sunday and The Spectator. He is a literary critic for the Telegraph and the Spectator. He has published extensively on Bletchley Park and codebreakers in his books, The Secret Life of Bletchley Park, The Secret Listeners, and Bletchley Park Brainteasers. Among his other books include Dresden: The Fire and the Darkness (2020) and Meeting Churchill: A Life in 90 Encounters (2023). His upcoming book St. Petersburg: Sacrifice and Redemption in the City That Defied Hitler, is due to be released in October 2025. He lives in London’s East End and can – in theory – walk along the Grand Union canal towpath without interruption to Bletchley Park some 48 miles north.
Tickets: $15 members*; $25 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | Behind the Scenes: Georgian Buildings in TV and Film
2025-05-23 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00
Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire ©National Trust/Paul Barker
Britain’s grand Georgian buildings have not only stood as architectural masterpieces for centuries, but they have also played a starring role in some of the most beloved English period dramas. Among the finest NT examples, Lyme Park, Cheshire, exemplifies the Georgian country house’s Palladian style; its grand façade and formal gardens make it the perfect choice for Mr. Darcy’s Pemberley in BBC’s Pride & Prejudice (1995). Kedleston Hall, designed by Robert Adam, showcases the height of Neoclassical design—the Kedleston state rooms provide a magnificent setting for the film The Duchess (2008). The Temple of Apollo at Stourhead set the scene for Mr. Darcy’s dramatic first proposal to Elizabeth Bennet in the later Pride & Prejudice (2005) film, while Stourhead’s Palladian bridge and gardens are highlighted in the background. Meanwhile, Saltram, an elegant Georgian mansion in Devon, lent its interiors to Sense and Sensibility (1995), offering an authentic glimpse into 18th-century refinement and taste. Social and architectural historian, Dr. Amy Boyington will explore the histories of these treasures as she traces the development of Georgian architecture and its relationship to 18th-century aristocratic life. She will illustrate gorgeous examples used in period film and television. She will also explore how these houses, as portrayed in film, impacts how we visualize the Georgian period. Identifying these locations in period dramas is not only a delight for viewers (and Royal Oak Foundation members), but their on-screen presence also shapes how we understand and envision the past, influencing our connection to the hallmarks of Georgian architectural style.
Dr. Amy Boyington is a social and architectural historian who attained her PhD in architectural history from the University of Cambridge. Dr. Boyington has worked in a curatorial capacity at Holkham Hall, Goodwood House and Woburn Abbey. She has worked as a research consultant for the National Trust at Stowe Landscape Gardens and for Historic Royal Palaces at Kensington Palace. She was recently a Senior Properties Historian for English Heritage. Her debut book is Hidden Patrons: Women and Architectural Patronage in Georgian Britain (Bloomsbury, 2023). She is now working on her second book Decadence & Display (Yale University Press) which focuses on the 18thc country house dining room. Dr. Boyington is a popular historian on social media (@history_with_amy) with over 1.4 million followers.
Tickets: $15 members*; $25 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | Essex: England’s Quiet Corner
2025-05-29 12:00 - 2025-06-30 12:00
Bourne Mill, Essex ©National Trust Images/Megan Taylor
Join Royal Oak for a captivating digital tour of Essex, a county rich in history, natural beauty, and architectural treasures. Led by tour guide Rob Smith, we will explore this southern, low-lying region, home to one of England’s longest coastlines, ancient forests, and charming villages. We will explore Colchester, Britain’s oldest recorded town, where significant Roman ruins—including a Roman wall—offer a glimpse into the past. Nearby, picturesque Bourne Mill, originally built as a fishing lodge, was later transformed into a 72-bucket watermill that produced the high-quality woolen cloth for which 17th-century Essex was famous. Just a short walk away, visitors will find some of the area’s most celebrated inns and pubs. We will venture to Paycocke’s House, a stunning Tudor merchant’s home adorned with intricate woodcarvings and paneling—an enduring testament to the wealth generated by Essex’s prosperous cloth trade. However, no area highlights the outstanding natural beauty of Essex as Blackwater Estuary. This important coastal area is the oldest recorded battlefield in England. Copt Hall Marshes are a remote producing farm along the estuary with an incredible breeding area for birds and waterfowl. Northey Island, a remote tidal island—the single largest block of saltmarsh in Blackwater—is the closest you will get to true Essex wilderness and home to many protected bird species. Travel with us digitally as we explore this quiet county, highlighting incredible areas of natural beauty.
Tickets: $30 members*; $40 non-members
*Membership discount applied automatically when logged into your Royal-Oak.org account

Zoom Rental | Revealing Forgotten Stories through Conservation
2025-06-04 12:00 - 2025-06-30 23:30
The National Trust cares for over 500 historic places, many of which have been central to defining moments in history. Yet, beyond the famous places and historical figures that remain touchstones of our cultural legacy, the Trust also cares for a vast collection of over one million objects. As the Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio has become a pioneering hub for the preservation of the NT’s collection, it is no surprise that conservators have made new discoveries about NT objects through close observation and technical study. Conservation projects span a remarkable range—from some of the Trust’s smallest yet most iconic treasures, like the plate of ham featured in Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Two Bad Mice, to large-scale, multi-disciplinary undertakings such as the restoration of the upholstered Dolphin Chairs from Ham House. These efforts have not only preserved but also identified and revealed original surfaces and colours once thought lost. Our conservators’ work continues to deepen understanding of art history, revealing everything from previously unnoticed alterations in Jacob Tintoretto’s The Wise and Foolish Virgins, c.1546, at Upton House to fresh evidence of Claude Monet’s working methods in Charing Cross Bridge (1902) at Chartwell. In her lecture, Emma S. will update ROF members and friends and speak about new and upcoming conservation projects at the ROF Studio. She will also describe some of the hidden stories uncovered by conservators that have added new layers of significance and interest to objects in the NT’s collection.
