It’s easy to forget the things on your doorstep. To overlook them because they’re always there and you no longer see them. Familiarity breeding contempt and all that. Until something happens to make you remember.

A few years ago, M and I became National Trust members because we lived in Cheshire and there were quite a few places within easy reach. Good days out, especially Little Moreton Hall and Biddulph Grange Gardens. Then, of course, the pandemic happened, and we didn’t get quite as much use out of the membership for a few years.

But a recent trip back to the Shire reminded us (me) of a place I’d enjoyed as a child, because it was the nearest to us and my parents have life membership so it was a cheap day out for the family: Knightshayes Court.

I didn’t remember much of the house, other than it belonging to the owners of Heathcoat’s, the local fabric factory and home of a wonderful Aladdin’s cave of a fabric shop, but we did always love the ha-ha. And the fish pond with all the goldfish in it.

And because of how we’d arranged our visits to various family members, we had a day to ourselves, so we decided to take Tiny on a tour. It’s the returning as visitors, especially with a little one in tow, which makes it easier to see all the things and places I’ve otherwise forgotten through long familiarity.

Knightshayes is a Victorian building (built 1867-1874), designed by architect William Burges, of Cardiff Castle fame. It wasn’t the first house on the site: the first Heathcoat-Amory knocked the existing place down to make way for Burges’ design. And then fell out with Burges because of expense, as so often seems to happen with these properties. Although Heathcoat-Amory had made his fortune from lace, apparently there wasn’t *that much* money in it…And all he wanted was a fancy house overlooking the factory in the town. So he could be reminded of where the money came from. A noble goal, one might say, if it weren’t for the grandiose ideas of the architect…

The original gardens were designed by Edward Kemp, but they have been much simplified since then. To be honest, like I said, the only things I really remember of the gardens are the ha-ha on the front lawn and the fish pond with its lilies. If you don’t know what a ha-ha is, I recommend a roly-poly race down it.

All right, it’s a large (hopefully invisible) ditch at the end of a garden, designed to keep livestock out without spoiling the view. For the unwary, it’s a heffalump-trap, and you’ll hear the sound of laughter when you fall in it. Hence, a ha-ha.

The walled kitchen garden near the stables is also worth a visit, if only to see what veg might make it into the stable restaurant. Or to pick up some of the excess produce.

It was a lovely sunny day out, and naturally Tiny slept around the house, so we’ll have to return another time. But then we had ice cream in the stables and a rummage through the book shop and then the main shop. Always fun to look through National Trust shop.