Downton Abbey for Felines, Highclere Castle, Castle Howard - Anglophile Friday

For those of you who can't get enough Downton Abbey, ever, this book is a must-have. A friend gave it to me a few days ago, and while my husband was watching the Olympics on TV that evening, I was reading Downton Tabby and giggling a little too loudly. Now and then I would share a short passage with him, and although he would smile, the response wasn't quite the same as mine, of course. This book was definitely written for people like me, who know all the characters of Downton Abbey personally, (okay, maybe not personally, but you know...) and who have a ridiculous sense of humor.

I must give you a few snippets from the foreward:

'Downton Tabby, the stately Yorkshire home of the Earl and Catness of Grimalkin, their three kittens - the pretty one, the prettier one, and the other one...

'Their evil footcat; their handsome chau-fur; the blind cook; the dopey maid; and Boots, the saintly, long-suffereing valet who keeps getting framed for gnawing on things. I mean, over and over.

'Their lives, loves, births, deaths, marriages, affairs, prides, prejudices, senses, sensibilities, mills, flosses, cakes, ales, high teas...'

Anyway, see what I mean?

 Her Catness, wondering when the lazy maid is going to clean these filthy window sills!

 Castle Howard, North Yorkshire Moors

And why a photo of Castle Howard? Because of its location. In the TV episodes, Thirsk, Ripon, and Malton are named as nearby towns (or villages). So according to that, Castle Howard, if you were to look at a map of Yorkshire, sits exactly where Downton Abbey should be.  And by the way, if you ever have the opportunity, Castle Howard is a fantastic place to visit. Like many of these surviving houses, part of the house is occupied by the family and part is open to the public - for a fee, of course, to help with maintenance. It is quite spectacular and worth the visit. You could stay nearby and be close to York as well. And who wouldn't want to be close to York!

These are my favorite maps of Britain. They seem to be absent from the bookstores here, but occasionally I'll find them online and most of the ones I have I purchased at Tourist Information spots in Britain. They're really helpful, including all the B roads and little obscure places as well as sites of interest. I've pretty much worn mine out.

 The 'real' Downton Abbey
(or at least where it's filmed)

Highclere Castle in Hampshire,

nowhere nearYorkshire.

Blue Dot - Castle Howard

Red Dot - Highclere Castle

I'm still trying to decide whether or not it would be worth it to visit Highclere Castle. After all, it might be disappointing that the Crawley clan wouldn't be lined up in front of the great house, waiting to greet me. Of course, if I could be assured that O'Brien would be there to kick the crutch out from under Bates...(that was put in here because my daughter *loves* Bates and I think he's a total LOSER.)  :-))

Okay okay! I'm just kidding! Sheesh!  :-) 

This post is linked to Sweet Sharing Monday

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