Glamis Christmas Concert

I like to do something special for Christmas each year - if I can find it and afford it. This year I found just the right opportunity. A Carol Concert at Glamis Castle (pronounced glams). The castle has connections to Shakespeare's MacBeth and is the birthplace of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyons, the adored Queen Mother. Needless to say, if you are going to sit through a concert of the same old tired carols you hear every year then doing it in a 500 year old castle has to make it hurt less. NOTE: The carols and the choir were fresher than the cold air in the stone stairwells! The night was a huge success in every possible aspect.

These photographs aren't really in any kind of order so...

We arrived kind of early and were the first people in the 'living room' where the concert was going to be held. I snuck off behind an open door toward the back and found the castle's dish room - every castle seems to have one. The porcelain was behind glass but this gem of decoration above the fireplace was too beautiful to not take a picture. The dishes had been in the family for years, given to Elizabeth and Philip on their marriage. The queen had returned them to complete the set for display not so long ago.

Me in front of one of the two Christmas trees in the Victorian Dining Room where refreshments of mince pies and mulled wine and juice were served during the intermission. Little fuzzy because it was taken without a flash.

Me again, leaning on the conductors podium before the concert began. But to appreciate where I am you need to see what we saw from our seats...

YEAH! This is the view forward from our seats. The concert was set up in the Living Room of the castle. The choir stood under these portraits. The pianist was on the left and a Christmas Tree tucked way off on the right. Most of the portraits are from the 1700 or earlier. The little picture at the top is a portrait of one of the Earls with his three sons. The frame had 1683 (I think) carved into it! Just a little family history there, nothing much.

Standing at the podium this was the view to the other end of the Living Room. Kathleen was keeping me company while others went down to the Victorian Dining room for refreshments. More portraits staring down at us. I wonder if they enjoyed the music as much as we did?

This is the Living Room fireplace. From the size of the chairs you can see that an adult could practically stand in the thing without bending over. I think they had it blocked for the evening to make sure Santa didn't interrupt the proceedings.

Just a wee bit of detailing above the fireplace. See the thistle climbing up the left and the tutor rose on the right?

THEN THERE WAS....

I'm not sure what they called this room. It felt a little like a vaulted dungeon with all the suits of armor and animal heads on the wall. We came down the stone stairs from the Living room, through this vault and then emerged in the Victorian Dining room - years of history in less than 100 steps.
The Victorian Dining Room. The three portraits in the center of the most current Earl and his family and they seem to fit right in with the ancestors. Not that they were dusty or cracked. It was just... I don't know, tradition, and everything, even eons later seemed to just be at home - even if the home is a castle.

This is the other end of the Victorian Dining Room. I loved the full portraits of the Victorian Earl and his wife - especially her wedding dress. WOW! If I could only make that!

Elder and Sister Clarke (our current missionary couple) are in this picture. Left of center, he is in a beige trench coat facing the large man with white hair. Sister Clark is just to his left with out back to the camera. The slightly shorter bald man farther to the left is a member of the choir who 'chatted me up' during the intermission. ;-)

We lucky few - St Andrews contingency: Me, Kathleen Burt, Denis Dragovich, Jacqueline Broen, Denis's wife Adriane, and Ames Broen.

Another group portrait standing on the front steps of the castle after the concert - Yes! it was freezing! Night all and Happy Christmas to us, one and all!