0:00:02 > 0:00:06'What do you have to do when a queen decides to pop in to see you?
0:00:06 > 0:00:10'And not just any old queen - Victoria.
0:00:10 > 0:00:15'Like a pair of obsessed Victoria groupies, we're pursuing her around the country
0:00:15 > 0:00:21'to the posh pads she visited. We'll delve into her personal diaries
0:00:21 > 0:00:24'to reveal what went on behind closed doors.'
0:00:24 > 0:00:30Today Hughenden Manor, home to Benjamin Disraeli, British Prime Minister,
0:00:30 > 0:00:35when Victoria came and visited just before Christmas in 1877.
0:00:35 > 0:00:42But it was no ordinary social call. Oh, no. The Queen had urgent political business in mind.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46'As someone who's spent a lifetime getting excited by antiques,
0:00:46 > 0:00:52'I'll be upstairs exploring the wonderful gifts that Victoria showered on her host.'
0:00:52 > 0:00:56He would have felt completely chuffed.
0:00:56 > 0:01:01'And as a chef who is passionate about the best British food,
0:01:01 > 0:01:09'I'll be making a 19th-century cake with a boozy finish in honour of Victoria's favourite PM.'
0:01:09 > 0:01:11That looks wonderful.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14'And it packs a real punch for Tim!'
0:01:14 > 0:01:17It's really alcopop!
0:01:21 > 0:01:27The year is 1877. Queen Victoria is a 58-year-old widow
0:01:27 > 0:01:31and has been on the throne for a hefty 40 years.
0:01:31 > 0:01:35This was her first ever trip to the home of Benjamin Disraeli,
0:01:35 > 0:01:38in his third year as Prime Minister.
0:01:38 > 0:01:43Victoria travelled from Windsor to High Wycombe on the Royal train,
0:01:43 > 0:01:45a journey that took just 35 minutes.
0:01:48 > 0:01:53The Queen arrived at Hughenden accompanied by her youngest daughter, Beatrice.
0:01:53 > 0:01:59They got out of the train at High Wycombe station to transfer to a horse and carriage
0:01:59 > 0:02:04which swept them through this gateway up to the house.
0:02:04 > 0:02:06Benjamin Disraeli's country seat.
0:02:06 > 0:02:12And this is on a much lesser scale than the grand estates Victoria was used to
0:02:12 > 0:02:17but the grounds were cleverly designed to hide the house from view.
0:02:17 > 0:02:23'Just as well because both Victoria and the Prime Minister required a bit of privacy.
0:02:23 > 0:02:29'You see, this trip was all a bit serious. At the time, there was an international crisis.
0:02:29 > 0:02:35'Russia was at war with Turkey, putting at risk vital trade routes to India
0:02:35 > 0:02:40'and Victoria was having none of it. She wanted the Prime Minister to declare war on Russia
0:02:40 > 0:02:44'in order to quash the threat. Even with all this going on,
0:02:44 > 0:02:48'Disraeli still wanted to put on a good show for the Queen.'
0:02:48 > 0:02:54Victoria's visit here to Hughenden would have been seen by Disraeli as an absolute triumph
0:02:54 > 0:02:59because he was, after all, the ultimate social climber.
0:02:59 > 0:03:05The fact that his sovereign was going to call would have driven him into a complete ecstasy,
0:03:05 > 0:03:08even though she only came for lunch.
0:03:08 > 0:03:14Now the house may not be as imposing as some, but they did try their very best to make sure
0:03:14 > 0:03:17that it would impress the Queen.
0:03:17 > 0:03:21I'll find out if they were working as hard to impress below stairs.
0:03:21 > 0:03:26And I'm going to find out some more about this intriguing house.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30This visit was strictly business,
0:03:30 > 0:03:36but in later years Victoria grew incredibly fond of the man nicknamed Dizzy,
0:03:36 > 0:03:38a bond that can still be seen today.
0:03:40 > 0:03:47As we pass into the inner entrance hall, your eye is drawn by this maquette.
0:03:47 > 0:03:53A plaster sculpture which shows some of Queen Victoria's favourites.
0:03:53 > 0:03:58- We've got her favourite pony, Flora. - PONY NEIGHS
0:03:58 > 0:04:01We've got her favourite Collie, Sharp.
0:04:01 > 0:04:04And her favourite Highlander,
0:04:05 > 0:04:09Billy Connolly. No - John Brown!
0:04:09 > 0:04:14So in this single object we have something that's very special for Victoria
0:04:14 > 0:04:20and it's most appropriate and charming that it's this that she selected
0:04:20 > 0:04:25to prevent to Disraeli when he resigned as Prime Minister in 1880.
0:04:25 > 0:04:29It kind of encapsulates this special relationship.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36Victoria recorded her arrival at Hughenden in her diary,
0:04:36 > 0:04:40but she actually gave very, very little away.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44She wrote, "He met me at the door and led me into the library,
0:04:44 > 0:04:48"which looked onto a pretty little Italian garden.
0:04:48 > 0:04:53"We went out at once and Beatrice and I each planted a tree."
0:04:53 > 0:04:55How green.
0:04:55 > 0:04:59Despite appearances, Disraeli wasn't actually that wealthy.
0:04:59 > 0:05:05He didn't have many staff, so he had to take on additional personnel to make sure
0:05:05 > 0:05:10the Queen was properly catered for. Victoria was here for lunch.
0:05:10 > 0:05:16With Ivan Day I'll be recreating a boozy dessert we know would have tickled the Prime Minister
0:05:16 > 0:05:22and his Queen's taste buds. The kitchen's no longer here, so we're in the converted stables.
0:05:22 > 0:05:27Well, here we are at Hughenden. What will we be doing today?
0:05:27 > 0:05:31I've got a remarkable object to show you. It's a cake mould.
0:05:31 > 0:05:38But it's specifically to make a Savoy cake, a giant sponge cake, in this extraordinary form.
0:05:38 > 0:05:45We're going to do something with it. After we've baked it, we're going to turn in into a tipsy cake
0:05:45 > 0:05:49because we know that Disraeli was very fond of a tipple.
0:05:49 > 0:05:54What I've already done is I've greased the mould,
0:05:54 > 0:06:01- drained it...- How interesting. - And while it's still warm, I've dusted it with sugar and flour.
0:06:01 > 0:06:03That stops the cake from sticking.
0:06:03 > 0:06:08'To protect the cake from the heat of the oven,
0:06:08 > 0:06:15'we wrap some paper around the mould and tie it in place. Now it's time to make the mixture.'
0:06:15 > 0:06:21- The most essential ingredient are the eggs. We've separated out ten eggs. We need another two.- Yes.
0:06:21 > 0:06:28Rosemary, could you put the whites in there and the yolks in here? The other ingredients are very basic.
0:06:28 > 0:06:36Sugar and flour. If you could start whipping those up. There's a wonderful Victorian whisk there.
0:06:36 > 0:06:42- This is amazing! Look at that. - It's fantastic. Wait 'til you see it perform. It's really good.
0:06:42 > 0:06:49'We're whipping up our own cake mixture, but in Victorian times they often used a stale Savoy cake.'
0:06:49 > 0:06:53- So this is done. - We'd better get some into here.
0:06:53 > 0:06:54That's brilliant.
0:06:54 > 0:06:59We want to keep the air, so we just fold it in a little bit at a time.
0:06:59 > 0:07:04I want to introduce you to this wonderful piece of equipment.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07- This is a Victorian flour sieve.- Oh!
0:07:07 > 0:07:13- If you put about half of the flour in.- I'll pour it over... - That's perfect.
0:07:13 > 0:07:17Now if you turn it round, you can sieve it into...
0:07:17 > 0:07:21- This is amazing!- Isn't that great? Wonderful.- I want one!
0:07:21 > 0:07:25- I knew you'd like that.- I love it. - Let's get all of that flour in.
0:07:25 > 0:07:31- We've got to get that in the mould. Would you be my guest? - Oh, you're living dangerously!
0:07:31 > 0:07:37- There we go.- Fantastic. I'll put the spoon over here. - Aim right for the middle.
0:07:37 > 0:07:41- No problems. You know me. - Not too much at a time... Perfect.
0:07:41 > 0:07:48Just keep pouring it, Rosemary. We mustn't fill it right up. Just take it to three-quarter level.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52Which is about there. OK?
0:07:52 > 0:07:56Great, perfect. That is absolutely perfect.
0:07:56 > 0:08:02- There's only one thing to do with that.- Eat it! - No, we've got to bake it first!
0:08:06 > 0:08:11While below stairs the staff were throwing together a spot of lunch,
0:08:11 > 0:08:15upstairs Disraeli and Victoria engaged in some pretty heavy issues.
0:08:15 > 0:08:20That December day in 1877, Victoria was here on a mission.
0:08:20 > 0:08:25She was determined to stiffen Disraeli's political resolve
0:08:25 > 0:08:33and provide Royal support at a time of international tension that was about to engulf Asia.
0:08:33 > 0:08:39She wrote in her diary, "I went back into the library where he gave me an account of yesterday's Cabinet,
0:08:39 > 0:08:42"which had been very stormy."
0:08:42 > 0:08:46'And it's in this very room that the discussion took place.
0:08:46 > 0:08:51'You know, Her Maj had a history of meddling in policy issues
0:08:51 > 0:08:57'that should have been the preserve of Parliament. I have a copy of the telegram Disraeli sent to Victoria
0:08:57 > 0:09:04'the day before she arrived here that reveals just how involved she was.'
0:09:04 > 0:09:10You can see here, it says, "Foreign Office, 5.50, on December the 14th."
0:09:10 > 0:09:16And it says, "Cabinet, two hours. Carnarvon, Salisbury and Derby against.
0:09:16 > 0:09:21"But the first two will, I think, assent. Decided on Monday.
0:09:21 > 0:09:27"Chancellor of the Exchequer, Secretary for War and Lord Chancellor excellent.
0:09:27 > 0:09:32"And all the rest, on the whole, much pleased." So this just proves
0:09:32 > 0:09:40that Disraeli is keeping Victoria involved, literally minute by minute with developments.
0:09:40 > 0:09:43All pretty unconstitutional.
0:09:44 > 0:09:51Before we find out more about this political fuss, we first need to know more about Dizzy the man
0:09:51 > 0:09:55because, by all accounts, he was a bit of a rascal.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58I've enlisted Professor Jane Ridley.
0:09:58 > 0:10:04There's a huge difference between the young Disraeli, a philanderer and a flatterer and a dandy,
0:10:04 > 0:10:10and deeply in debt, and the old Disraeli who is a dedicated statesman, incredibly hard-worked,
0:10:10 > 0:10:16a widower, but brilliantly manipulative and very good, particularly, with women,
0:10:16 > 0:10:21which is, I think, where we come to Queen Victoria.
0:10:21 > 0:10:26Disraeli treated her like not just a queen and a woman,
0:10:26 > 0:10:28but he called her the Fairy Queen...
0:10:29 > 0:10:34He was extravagant in his gestures. He'd kiss her hand with a flourish,
0:10:34 > 0:10:38bow very deeply, significantly deeply,
0:10:38 > 0:10:46- which would excite her.- All this is quite true. She gave him privilege that no other Prime Minister had.
0:10:46 > 0:10:50She allowed him to sit down in her presence. Usually, you had to stand.
0:10:50 > 0:10:56'So there's a unique bond, possibly partly because Disraeli and Victoria had both been widowed
0:10:56 > 0:11:02'by the time of this visit. And that special relationship had a major impact on Victoria.'
0:11:02 > 0:11:05He did one terribly important thing.
0:11:05 > 0:11:10Queen Victoria, after Albert died, retired into seclusion.
0:11:10 > 0:11:16She was hardly seen, always dressed in black and after 10 years of this there was a great deal of criticism.
0:11:16 > 0:11:21The monarchy's supposed to be a public institution.
0:11:21 > 0:11:28And the person who really managed to charm Victoria out of this was Disraeli.
0:11:28 > 0:11:33He was able to sort of persuade her to appear in public, to open Parliament.
0:11:33 > 0:11:39He flattered her and told her she was wonderful. In a way, he saved the monarchy.
0:11:39 > 0:11:43What he also did was to tell her much more than other Prime Ministers.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47He really let her in to the secrets of politics and she was fascinated.
0:11:47 > 0:11:51She became more powerful. He used her as a political ally.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55- Yes.- And, you know, she used him to get what she wanted.
0:11:55 > 0:12:00She badly wanted to be Empress of India. Disraeli did it for her.
0:12:00 > 0:12:05- And she, in return, made him Lord Beaconsfield.- Absolutely.
0:12:05 > 0:12:08It was a mutually reciprocal relationship.
0:12:08 > 0:12:15'As a widower, Lord Beaconsfield had to organise all the details of this Royal visit himself.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18'Janet Hilderley, who has written about Disraeli and his wife,
0:12:18 > 0:12:25'is showing me around the cellar to give me an insight of what went on behind the scenes downstairs.'
0:12:25 > 0:12:28Janet, what can you tell me about the visit?
0:12:28 > 0:12:33He would have been amazed that she came here. They weren't old money.
0:12:33 > 0:12:37They were new, almost nouveau riche.
0:12:37 > 0:12:43- They had no background and they lived by their wits. - But this is what Disraeli enjoyed.
0:12:43 > 0:12:49- He enjoyed the high life. - Indeed he did. And this is partly why he was a million pounds in debt.
0:12:49 > 0:12:54- A million pounds in debt?! - Really. In our money today.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57What staff would they have had for the visit?
0:12:57 > 0:13:00Altogether, the house had about 30 people.
0:13:00 > 0:13:04You'd have had the butler, the housekeeper.
0:13:04 > 0:13:08He probably had to hire in a footman, second footman,
0:13:08 > 0:13:14various maids, a decent cook. So we're talking about probably 20 people.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19- What about the silver? Was it kept in here?- There wasn't very much.
0:13:19 > 0:13:24He probably had to hire the silver when the Queen came.
0:13:25 > 0:13:32And this was really important to him because he wanted to impress Victoria so badly!
0:13:32 > 0:13:35I can imagine all the things he was thinking of.
0:13:36 > 0:13:41What a nightmare! The poor bloke had to sort out the staff and silver
0:13:41 > 0:13:45and also the small matter of sorting out the war in Turkey!
0:13:45 > 0:13:51Dizzy faced a difficult political dilemma as Professor Ridley explains.
0:13:51 > 0:13:57Turkey had been invaded by Russia and it was an axiom of British foreign policy
0:13:57 > 0:14:03that you had to protect the route to India and to do that you had to prop up Turkey
0:14:03 > 0:14:05and keep the Russians behaving.
0:14:05 > 0:14:10What Disraeli wanted to do is to threaten war against Russia
0:14:10 > 0:14:15because he thinks the Russians will back down and come to terms.
0:14:15 > 0:14:19But there's always the risk that having threatened the war,
0:14:19 > 0:14:23the Russians don't back down and you're in it up to your neck.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27That was indeed the risk. A lot of the Cabinet thought precisely that,
0:14:27 > 0:14:33so Disraeli's other problem is that his Cabinet is split. It's on a knife edge, really,
0:14:33 > 0:14:39whether we'll go to war with Russia or whether Disraeli will have to back down with egg on his face.
0:14:39 > 0:14:45And the Queen wants to stiffen him. She's determined that these monstrous Russians be taught a lesson.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47"Get out of Turkey."
0:14:47 > 0:14:51This was a sticky situation for Disraeli.
0:14:51 > 0:14:56He had the Queen barking in one ear, his Cabinet howling in the other
0:14:56 > 0:15:00and the last thing he wanted was to seem the lapdog of the monarch.
0:15:00 > 0:15:08Jane has this revealing copy of Disraeli's memo to the Queen of the dramatic Cabinet meeting.
0:15:08 > 0:15:15"Lord Beaconsfield proposed that Your Majesty should be advised to summon Parliament immediately,
0:15:15 > 0:15:19"that a considerable increase of Your Majesty's forces be proposed
0:15:19 > 0:15:26"and that Your Majesty should commence negotiations as mediator between the belligerents."
0:15:26 > 0:15:31This is really hot stuff. He's saying the Queen, meaning the government,
0:15:31 > 0:15:36should summon Parliament, send forces into Turkey
0:15:36 > 0:15:38and hopefully begin negotiations.
0:15:38 > 0:15:44Then Lord Derby spoke at length. "Any active interference in eastern affairs by England
0:15:44 > 0:15:50"was to be deprecated." This is a really divided Cabinet. Lord Derby is Foreign Secretary...
0:15:50 > 0:15:53- A big gun.- Indeed, yeah.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57'The Cabinet was adjourned after Victoria's visit
0:15:57 > 0:16:03'when the matter was to be decided and, not surprisingly, Victoria's backing paid off.'
0:16:03 > 0:16:10Disraeli got his way and the Queen was delighted. 7,000 troops were ordered from India to Malta.
0:16:10 > 0:16:16And the fleet appeared outside the Dardanelles, the Russians were terrified, they backed down
0:16:16 > 0:16:22and agreed to a conference, the Congress of Berlin. Disraeli went off as the British delegate
0:16:22 > 0:16:29and he was triumphant. He came back saying, "I have achieved peace with honour." The origin of that phrase.
0:16:31 > 0:16:36You've got to hand it to Victoria. What she wants, she gets.
0:16:36 > 0:16:41And this visit was worth every minute of her time.
0:16:41 > 0:16:47'Let's hope our tipsy cake does the business. It's baked at a moderate heat for 50 minutes,
0:16:47 > 0:16:52'and left to stand so it's not too fragile to get out of the mould.'
0:16:55 > 0:16:58- It's coming out nicely.- Perfect. - OK?- Yes, I can see.
0:16:58 > 0:17:02The best way is to turn it out onto your hand.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04It is hot. How's that?
0:17:04 > 0:17:07That looks wonderful.
0:17:07 > 0:17:13Well, to make this tipsy cake really look good, the tradition was to cover it completely
0:17:13 > 0:17:18with an array of sliced almonds, so it looks like a porcupine.
0:17:18 > 0:17:23So, very simply, we've just got to make some little knife wounds.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27And then select a really good almond. Make sure it's a whole one.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30And then just push it in like that.
0:17:30 > 0:17:35And I think we'll probably need a few hundred to finish that off.
0:17:35 > 0:17:40'We know Victoria liked a slice of cake with her afternoon tea.
0:17:40 > 0:17:46'The Victoria sponge was named after her! So the pressure's on to get this just right.
0:17:46 > 0:17:51'Victoria was only here at Hughenden for a few hours on that December day
0:17:51 > 0:17:57'but her friendship with Disraeli lasted for years, mementoes of which are everywhere.'
0:17:57 > 0:18:03Of all the books in the library, there's one we're certain Disraeli had prominently on display
0:18:03 > 0:18:07and that's this - what's so special about this book?
0:18:07 > 0:18:13Look at the title. Leaves From The Journal Of Our Life In The Highlands.
0:18:13 > 0:18:18Which is a book Victoria actually wrote and had published.
0:18:18 > 0:18:22And what's special about this one is the inscription on the flyleaf.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Look at that. It says,
0:18:25 > 0:18:28"To the Right Honourable B Disraeli
0:18:28 > 0:18:32"in recollection of Balmoral, September, 1868."
0:18:32 > 0:18:38Disraeli was Prime Minister. He would have gone to the Highlands to visit the Queen
0:18:38 > 0:18:43and she presented him with this book and actually signed it, Victoria R.
0:18:43 > 0:18:45Ahh.
0:18:46 > 0:18:50It seems Disraeli could do no wrong in Victoria's eyes.
0:18:50 > 0:18:57When you see some of these presents, you might be forgiven for thinking they were more than good friends.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01Most extraordinary of all as a gift, I think, is this wash set.
0:19:01 > 0:19:06A Renaissance style jug and basin set. But look at the handle!
0:19:06 > 0:19:11- A positively pornographic-looking woman reclining on the top. - WOLF WHISTLE
0:19:11 > 0:19:16It's easy to imagine that with every gift that she gave him,
0:19:16 > 0:19:21he felt more and more secure in the heart of the British establishment,
0:19:21 > 0:19:25a position he'd craved all his life.
0:19:25 > 0:19:30No greater gift, perhaps, than when she made him a peer.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35And here, in his peer's robes, he would have felt,
0:19:35 > 0:19:40oh, I don't know - completely chuffed. Who wouldn't?
0:19:41 > 0:19:45'Well, I have to say I'm pretty chuffed as well.
0:19:45 > 0:19:52'Our Victorian dessert is starting to take shape, ready for Lord Wonnacott of Eatalot.
0:19:52 > 0:19:58'And now for the bit I've been looking forward to all day - adding the booze.'
0:19:58 > 0:20:04I've got some pins here. We're instructed to make lots of holes in the cake
0:20:04 > 0:20:10so that the sherry we're going to pour onto it can work its way down to the bottom.
0:20:10 > 0:20:14I think it's time to turn it into a tipsy cake,
0:20:14 > 0:20:17so a little bit at a time...
0:20:17 > 0:20:20- Are you going to trust me?- Always!
0:20:20 > 0:20:26'Today we're using sherry, but in Victorian times, whisky, port, wine or brandy
0:20:26 > 0:20:31- 'was just as popular.' - Just keep pouring it. Wonderful.
0:20:31 > 0:20:38- Around the sides. - Perfect. Never mind tipsy. This cake is completely blotto!
0:20:38 > 0:20:43- I wouldn't put any more sherry on. - Right.- All right, you finish off the tipsy cake
0:20:43 > 0:20:48with a very, very simple milk and egg yolk custard.
0:20:48 > 0:20:54- Lovely! And you just pour it over? - I personally feel it's much nicer just around the base.
0:20:54 > 0:20:58Just pour it to that level there. Nice and neatly.
0:20:58 > 0:21:05- Make a little pool of custard all the way round it. - Oh, look at the alcohol as well!
0:21:05 > 0:21:10You get a little bit more custard in the sauceboat as well.
0:21:10 > 0:21:16- I think it looks much nicer. - There we are.- Perfect. - That looks wonderful!
0:21:16 > 0:21:21- Some tipsy cake.- Some tipsy cake. - Do you think Tim will enjoy that?
0:21:21 > 0:21:25I think Tim is going to absolutely love it!
0:21:25 > 0:21:31'Well, you know what they say about the proof and the pudding.
0:21:33 > 0:21:39'Before our lunch date, I'm heading to the local church, St Michael's and All Angels.
0:21:39 > 0:21:44'This is the final resting place of Benjamin Disraeli, who died in 1881,
0:21:44 > 0:21:46'four years after this visit.
0:21:46 > 0:21:53'Victoria was so devastated that she insisted on creating a memorial inside the church.
0:21:53 > 0:21:58'It's another insight into the depth of feeling she had for her PM.'
0:21:58 > 0:22:04And this is the stall that Disraeli occupied when he came to church, but, interestingly,
0:22:04 > 0:22:11hanging on the wall above him is the regalia relating to his Order of the Garter.
0:22:11 > 0:22:18And way up above that, the associated banner. These things were brought and placed here
0:22:18 > 0:22:21expressly at the wish of Victoria.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25Next door to the regalia is his memorial tablet,
0:22:25 > 0:22:30exquisitely carved in Carrara marble and erected
0:22:30 > 0:22:37by Victoria in remembrance of him. It's the only memorial tablet erected
0:22:37 > 0:22:43by a reigning sovereign in a parish church for a subject anywhere in Britain.
0:22:43 > 0:22:45That's quite something.
0:22:45 > 0:22:52'Disraeli left instructions in his will for a private, not state funeral, here in his local parish.
0:22:52 > 0:22:58'Convention dictates that the monarch can't go to the funeral of a commoner
0:22:58 > 0:23:04'and although he'd been made a lord, Disraeli was still a commoner so Victoria couldn't attend.
0:23:04 > 0:23:11'But a rumour persists that she came and sat in her carriage in the valley below while he was buried.'
0:23:11 > 0:23:16What we do know is that Victoria returned to Hughenden in person
0:23:16 > 0:23:19four days after the funeral.
0:23:19 > 0:23:24She writes in her diary, "The flowers still remained as at the funeral.
0:23:24 > 0:23:31"Then we walked around to the tomb, which had been opened purposefully for me to see it.
0:23:32 > 0:23:37"There in a small place is dear Lord Beaconsfield's coffin,
0:23:37 > 0:23:40"covered with wreaths and flowers,
0:23:40 > 0:23:43"next to his wife's.
0:23:43 > 0:23:47"And there are others also of his family buried there.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50"Could hardly realise it at all.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53"It seemed so sad and cheerless.
0:23:53 > 0:23:58"I placed a wreath of China flowers, but now the vault is to be closed
0:23:58 > 0:24:01"and not used again."
0:24:03 > 0:24:08'Interestingly, Victoria omits to mention another lady buried alongside Disraeli.
0:24:08 > 0:24:14'The burial plot thickens.' It says, "In memory of Sarah Bridges Williams."
0:24:15 > 0:24:23What is Sarah Bridges Williams doing buried next door to Disraeli and his wife?
0:24:24 > 0:24:28Well, she was an extraordinary Jewess from the West Country
0:24:28 > 0:24:34who befriended Disraeli and insisted that if he would become her executor
0:24:34 > 0:24:38and allow her to be buried next door to him,
0:24:38 > 0:24:42then she would give him her entire estate,
0:24:42 > 0:24:48which is exactly what came about because when she died in 1863,
0:24:48 > 0:24:51she was indeed interred here
0:24:51 > 0:24:54and Disraeli, the cunning old fox,
0:24:54 > 0:24:57picked up £30,000
0:24:57 > 0:25:00from her estate.
0:25:03 > 0:25:09'What's even more astonishing is that Disraeli's wife, who was alive at the time, went along with it.
0:25:09 > 0:25:12'Who says money can't buy love, eh?
0:25:12 > 0:25:17'Foxy or not, Disraeli left a huge hole in Victoria's heart.
0:25:17 > 0:25:22'It would seem the most important men in her life were those she sadly lost.
0:25:22 > 0:25:27'First, her beloved Albert, 20 years earlier, and now Disraeli.
0:25:27 > 0:25:33'After a visit to the church, she came back to the house to pay her final respects.'
0:25:33 > 0:25:39The epilogue to Victoria's relationship with Disraeli is really rather sad.
0:25:39 > 0:25:45She came in to this, his room, alone to contemplate his life.
0:25:45 > 0:25:49This room is one of the least changed at Hughenden,
0:25:49 > 0:25:54as evidenced by photographs taken in 1880.
0:25:54 > 0:26:00On the desk we've got the dried remains of two posies of primroses,
0:26:00 > 0:26:06Disraeli's favourite flower, which the Queen had especially sent from Osborne
0:26:06 > 0:26:11on the day of the funeral, together with an affectionate note.
0:26:11 > 0:26:16When she was in this room, perhaps Victoria sat in this very chair,
0:26:16 > 0:26:20contemplating the desk that Disraeli had used as a schoolboy,
0:26:20 > 0:26:24maybe looking at the red despatch box.
0:26:24 > 0:26:29So very many memories and so very, very sad.
0:26:29 > 0:26:36'Well, I think it's only fitting that we pay homage to this beautiful friendship
0:26:36 > 0:26:41'with a treat we know both the Fairy Princess and Dizzy would have loved.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46'Time to present our own premiere with our magnificent tipsy cake.'
0:26:46 > 0:26:52Well, Rosemary, all this doom and gloom has made me rather peckish. What have you got here?
0:26:52 > 0:26:57I'm very glad. I want you to enjoy this. This is called a tipsy cake.
0:26:57 > 0:27:02- Ah.- Now it is a Savoy cake, but with something poured over it.
0:27:02 > 0:27:06So what I'd like to do first of all is just give you a taste.
0:27:06 > 0:27:11- Oh, yes, please.- Give me your plate and I'll do it from this side.
0:27:11 > 0:27:19- It is very soft.- Yes.- Moist. And I'm going to pour a little bit of custard over the top.
0:27:19 > 0:27:22- Let's dig in.- Lovely. - And see if you like it.
0:27:22 > 0:27:28I think it's just as well I'm not driving my car today. It's alcopop, this!
0:27:28 > 0:27:31This is SO alcoholic.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35- You've got about a pint of sherry in there.- Have we?
0:27:35 > 0:27:40And, I must tell you, it is just amazing. It soaks it up.
0:27:40 > 0:27:45- Well, that's marvellous. - Why don't we toast Benjamin Disraeli and Queen Victoria?
0:27:45 > 0:27:48I'm with you. Cheerio.
0:27:50 > 0:27:57'Next time on Royal Upstairs Downstairs, we're another 13 years on in Victoria's Royal roadshow.
0:27:58 > 0:28:05'The year is 1890 and the Queen has a lunch date at Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire.
0:28:05 > 0:28:11'But it was no ordinary date. This was an extremely rare public appearance
0:28:11 > 0:28:17'for a now elderly and reclusive Queen who was about to celebrate her 71st birthday.'
0:28:33 > 0:28:37Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd - 2011
0:28:38 > 0:28:40Email subtitling@bbc.co.uk