Today I visited Witley Court for the first time in over 20 years. Owned by English Heritage, this evocative ruin is a relic of a long gone era. The house, when owned by the Earl of Dudley, was a rake’s paradise, home to lavish parties that lasted for days, a favourite haunt of the Prince of Wales, Edward VII. Partly ravaged by fire in the 1950′s and ransacked by bounty hunters the house is now a magnificent ruin.
The gardens have been lovingly restored and the 9 acre lake reinstated, a must see is the Perseus and Andromeda Fountain, firing a jet of water over 70ft into the air, it is only working between 1st April and end of October – today there were men in high viz jackets cleaning it out! I will certainly be returning soon to see the fountain in action.
