MURDER AT THE MANOR: WROTHAM PARK AND SYON HOUSE/GOSFORD PARK

A classic whodunnit in the style of Agatha Christie, Gosford Park sees a group of wealthy guests plus their servants gathering for a shooting weekend at Gosford Park, owned by Sir William McCordle (Michael Gambon).  During the course of the weekend, Sir William’s body is discovered slumped in his chair.  The rest is a familiar round of police questioning, with plenty of likely suspects.  

The gruesome event is offset by the sumptuous interiors of Sir William’s home, with most of the scenes filmed at Wrotham Park, Hertfordshire, for the downstairs and Syon House, West London, for the upstairs and bedrooms.  Near the start of the film we are shown the outside of the home of Lady Trentham, one of the guests.  This was filmed at Hall Barn, Buckinghamshire.

Wrotham Park 1820, courtesy of the British Library, via Wikimedia Commons.

Wrotham Park is to the south of Potters Bar in Hertfordshire.  The house dates from 1754 when it was designed for Admiral John Byng, and it is surrounded by a vast estate of 2,500 acres.  The house remains in the hands of the family to this day, and is not open to the public.  However, it is made available to film crews for filming, most recently being used for the ITV series Code of Silence.

Interior - Syon House - London, UK - DSC07437.  Photo by Daderot, via Wikimedia Commons.

Syon House, the London Home of the Duke of Northumberland, is near Hounslow in West London and is surrounded by Syon Park.  The house was built in the 16th century on a site originally occupied by Syon Abbey.  The house and park are open to visitors, who as well as the magnificent interior can marvel at the beauty of the Great Conservatory. Hall Barn is not normally open to the public, except for open-air theatre productions in the grounds.