0:00:02 > 0:00:06'Just what do you have to do when a queen decides to pop in?
0:00:06 > 0:00:10'And not just any old queen - Victoria.
0:00:10 > 0:00:17'Like obsessed Victoria groupies, we're pursuing her around the country to posh pads she visited.
0:00:17 > 0:00:24'We'll be delving into her personal diaries and first-hand accounts for what happened behind closed doors.'
0:00:24 > 0:00:29Today we're in picturesque Yorkshire as we continue to follow
0:00:29 > 0:00:33the early progress of the young Victoria.
0:00:33 > 0:00:36We're at Harewood House,
0:00:36 > 0:00:42where we'll find out what happened to the young princess when she came to visit in 1835.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46'As someone who's spent a lifetime getting excited by antiques,
0:00:46 > 0:00:51'I'll be upstairs exploring what would have excited Victoria.'
0:00:51 > 0:00:57Maybe Victoria used this very writing set when inscribing her diary.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00'As a chef who's passionate about great food,
0:01:00 > 0:01:05'I'll be creating a spectacular Victorian asparagus dish...'
0:01:05 > 0:01:10This is beautiful! It's going to be absolutely magical.
0:01:10 > 0:01:12'..which needs a delicate touch.'
0:01:12 > 0:01:16I just don't feel I can disturb the arrangement.
0:01:19 > 0:01:24Victoria stayed at splendid Harewood House for three days
0:01:24 > 0:01:27when she was just 16 years of age.
0:01:27 > 0:01:34It was all part of her mother's master plan to secure her position in the monarchy
0:01:34 > 0:01:38and also make sure that she was viewed by the people favourably.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42This trip was made two years before she became Queen,
0:01:42 > 0:01:46although she knew she was to inherit the throne four years earlier.
0:01:46 > 0:01:54I can't wait to find out how this family greeted the Royal party so I'm heading off upstairs.
0:01:54 > 0:01:58- I'm heading downstairs to find out more.- Good for you.
0:01:58 > 0:02:04The Queen travelled to Harewood by carriage. The Times reported she left Bishopthorpe on Saturday
0:02:04 > 0:02:10a little after 10 o'clock and arrived three hours later with her mother, the Duchess of Kent.
0:02:10 > 0:02:16Victoria had been at the Yorkshire Music Festival before coming to this beautiful house
0:02:16 > 0:02:20and she had had an extraordinary reception.
0:02:20 > 0:02:25When she got here, she was greeted and escorted by the Yorkshire Hussars
0:02:25 > 0:02:32who then would have formed up on this front lawn, and she then ascended these gracious steps.
0:02:32 > 0:02:36And was ushered into the baronial hall,
0:02:36 > 0:02:44where she didn't see this risque statue. It didn't arrive until the 20th century, thank goodness.
0:02:44 > 0:02:51While Victoria was marvelling at the grand hallway, her servants made a more low-key arrival.
0:02:51 > 0:02:57The staff of Harewood House would never be allowed through the main entrance.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01They would have come to the bowels, along here, of the house.
0:03:01 > 0:03:08These storage rooms, they're huge. They'd have kept coal in one, wood in another. It's enormous.
0:03:09 > 0:03:16'But nothing compared to the size of the kitchen, where I meet our food historian Ivan Day.'
0:03:16 > 0:03:19I absolutely love this kitchen!
0:03:19 > 0:03:23And the vaulted ceiling, which looks just like a church.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27The comparison with a church ceiling is really appropriate.
0:03:27 > 0:03:34The architect who designed it, John Carr of York, actually modelled it on the Sistine Chapel.
0:03:34 > 0:03:42There aren't any frescos, but the basic idea is that you have a stone vault to act as a fire break.
0:03:42 > 0:03:47If ever a fire broke out, the rooms upstairs are protected to a degree.
0:03:47 > 0:03:55That's the purpose of the stone vaulting. What's extraordinary is that it's an 18th-century kitchen
0:03:55 > 0:04:01and that is the kitchen that would have cooked the food when Princess Victoria came here.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05There's one unique feature, which is wonderful. Up there,
0:04:05 > 0:04:10- it's a window...- Yes.- And behind that is the chef's bedroom.
0:04:10 > 0:04:15So he could always keep his eye on what was going on in here.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19Absolutely fascinating. So what are we going to make today?
0:04:19 > 0:04:25We do not have a menu for Princess Victoria's dinner that she had here at all,
0:04:25 > 0:04:31but at that time, in the 1830s, there are lots of references to putting asparagus on the table
0:04:31 > 0:04:34in the form of a pyramid.
0:04:34 > 0:04:40I've hunted through Victorian cookery literature and, amazingly, I found a recipe that was probably written
0:04:40 > 0:04:46by a chef who worked here. A man called Louis Lecomte - the man who stared from that window.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50'We start by making an unusual pastry for the crust.'
0:04:50 > 0:04:55We're going to make a dish called asparagus in a crust.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58- We've got eight ounces of plain flour.- Right.
0:04:58 > 0:05:03- And in here I've got eight yolks - one yolk for each ounce of flour.- Oh.
0:05:03 > 0:05:07OK, that's going to be a very hard pastry.
0:05:07 > 0:05:15- It has to be. It was made very much more for decorative purposes than edibility, but you can eat it.- OK.
0:05:15 > 0:05:21We're going to put most of the eggs in and I want you to massage those into the flour.
0:05:21 > 0:05:26- As you said, it will make quite a tough pastry.- It will.
0:05:26 > 0:05:31But it will make something we can get to stand up in the oven without collapsing.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35'While we fold in the eggs and flour to our pastry dough,
0:05:35 > 0:05:38'Tim's upstairs in search of some valuable artwork.'
0:05:38 > 0:05:46This room today is known as the library and it's exactly as it was when Victoria visited in 1835.
0:05:46 > 0:05:51At least, in terms of the magnificent semi-barrelled ceiling
0:05:51 > 0:05:55with its plasterwork by Robert Adam.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59And the fireplaces opposing at either end.
0:05:59 > 0:06:05The only major difference is, of course, all this magnificent mahogany case furniture
0:06:05 > 0:06:08for the storage of books.
0:06:08 > 0:06:13Victoria certainly would have seen these paintings by JWM Turner.
0:06:13 > 0:06:19Turner, when he was 20 years of age, visited Harewood in 1797
0:06:19 > 0:06:23and created this masterpiece in watercolour.
0:06:23 > 0:06:29Can you believe a 22-year-old being able to produce quite such a beautiful image?
0:06:29 > 0:06:32And it's topographically correct.
0:06:32 > 0:06:37It shows the house sitting in Capability Brown's landscaped park,
0:06:37 > 0:06:41with the artificially-created lake down below.
0:06:41 > 0:06:48But if you look closely, here on the south side, the park, the Jardin Anglais,
0:06:48 > 0:06:53literally approaches practically the wall of the house
0:06:53 > 0:06:57with sheep that could almost have walked in.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01Just look how very different it is today.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05Cor. Look at that.
0:07:05 > 0:07:09This is the park as Victoria would have seen it
0:07:09 > 0:07:14and as completed by Capability Brown in 1772.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18But the changes have happened down below.
0:07:20 > 0:07:27Entirely along this south front, there's been constructed a most complicated and beautiful parterre.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30This was commissioned in the 1840s,
0:07:30 > 0:07:34just a few years after Victoria's visit.
0:07:34 > 0:07:42What I think is so extraordinary is the sheep are still there on the other side of the parterre,
0:07:42 > 0:07:49while they would have been, in her time, right up to this wall itself. Beautiful, though, isn't it?
0:07:52 > 0:07:57'Downstairs, we're working on our Victorian asparagus crust.
0:07:57 > 0:08:04'The pastry dough's been made, rolled and cut into a long, narrow strip, then dusted with flour.'
0:08:04 > 0:08:11We're going to form that into a little pie crust. We need this - a cylinder mould.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15If I just pick that up and I wrap it round that,
0:08:15 > 0:08:17- a tiny bit of water...- Yes.
0:08:17 > 0:08:24Just a little on that cheek there. We're going to stick the two pieces of pastry together.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28- You're keeping it quite loose. - I have to get this off.
0:08:28 > 0:08:33- Now look at this. This is a border mould. - Lots of flowers and leaves.
0:08:33 > 0:08:35It's beautiful.
0:08:35 > 0:08:41What we're going to do is push some of the same pastry into that.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44You have to get it into the deep part
0:08:44 > 0:08:48by pushing it down into there with your finger, you see.
0:08:48 > 0:08:53- You can finish it off.- All right. - If I swing it round for you,
0:08:53 > 0:08:58if you could do that, I'll follow up behind you. Start at this end.
0:08:58 > 0:09:03- It's getting that deep bit filled. - That's exactly what I'm thinking.
0:09:03 > 0:09:10- This is the tricky bit. We start off by trimming off the excess with the knife.- Can I try?
0:09:10 > 0:09:15Keep it flat against the wood. We're going to go all the way down to the end.
0:09:15 > 0:09:20What we have now is the mould filled with the pastry.
0:09:21 > 0:09:27It's best to push it to get this little gap. This is really difficult.
0:09:27 > 0:09:32The trick was to tap the mould on the board.
0:09:34 > 0:09:38And that releases it - we hope.
0:09:39 > 0:09:44We have to make a start. It is a bit wet, this pastry.
0:09:44 > 0:09:46Now very, very gently...
0:09:46 > 0:09:49- Very gently...- It's beautiful!
0:09:49 > 0:09:53I just gently pull it out and...
0:09:53 > 0:09:56That is stunning!
0:09:56 > 0:10:02Swap round with me, Rosemary. I'm just going to wet it with some water.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06Then, with a little bit of care, we're going to...
0:10:06 > 0:10:10apply that to our base.
0:10:10 > 0:10:16Just gently tapping it in. If you push it too hard, you'll spoil the definition of the flowers.
0:10:16 > 0:10:22- I think that is stunningly beautiful.- There is one final thing we're going to do with it.
0:10:22 > 0:10:28- Have you ever seen one of these? - No, but it looks a bit like a stamp and a ravioli cutter.
0:10:28 > 0:10:33- The English name is a jagger. Can you see these little stamps on it?- Yes.
0:10:33 > 0:10:38We're going to use this one, which is like the flower on there,
0:10:38 > 0:10:40to finish the top of our crust.
0:10:40 > 0:10:44So what we do is we push it in, like that.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47And twist the mould
0:10:47 > 0:10:50so it doesn't stick. Push it.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53- Can I try?- Line it up with that one
0:10:53 > 0:10:56and twist the mould.
0:10:58 > 0:11:00That is absolutely beautiful.
0:11:00 > 0:11:08'We're now going to put our mould into a cool oven for two hours before we add the asparagus.
0:11:08 > 0:11:13'This cosy room is the Spanish Library. It used to be part of the state apartments,
0:11:13 > 0:11:17'but when 16-year-old Victoria was here, it was her bedroom.
0:11:17 > 0:11:22'It meant she could stay close to her mother in the room next door.'
0:11:22 > 0:11:24- Gosh, this is lovely.- Yes, indeed.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28'Some of the fascinating objects in the room relate to Queen Victoria,
0:11:28 > 0:11:34'having been passed to Victoria's great-granddaughter, Princess Mary, who married into the family here.
0:11:34 > 0:11:39'And there's one particularly wonderful personal object
0:11:39 > 0:11:42'as Anna Robinson explains.'
0:11:42 > 0:11:47This is actually a travelling writing set that belonged to Queen Victoria.
0:11:47 > 0:11:52It actually dates from 1816, although it was given to her in about 1861.
0:11:52 > 0:11:57You'll see here it actually fits rather nicely together.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00It has an inkwell in the top here.
0:12:00 > 0:12:05- Yes.- And all of the implements and here an inkstand.
0:12:05 > 0:12:08If you just screw it -
0:12:08 > 0:12:15it's all very neat - you see the rest of the implements. A very beautiful piece.
0:12:15 > 0:12:20Incredibly practical. Is that Queen Victoria's cipher that we see there?
0:12:20 > 0:12:24Yes, indeed. It says VR for Queen Victoria,
0:12:24 > 0:12:29- which is a really lovely addition to it.- I'll tell you what's gorgeous.
0:12:29 > 0:12:35You've got the original leather outer case. On the top of the outer case we've got the cipher,
0:12:35 > 0:12:42- impressed into the leather. It's all complete with these silver fittings. It's so practical, isn't it?- Yes.
0:12:42 > 0:12:49Here we have poor Victoria being carted around the nation, carrying all her possessions with her.
0:12:49 > 0:12:55I know she didn't have this with her here, but all her other visits around the country
0:12:55 > 0:13:01for the rest of her reign, and abroad, she'd have needed to take things like this with her.
0:13:01 > 0:13:09Yes, indeed. Travelling implements, travelling cases were often used by people like Queen Victoria.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13But rarely of this quality, which is lovely. And who knows?
0:13:13 > 0:13:20After 1860, maybe Victoria used this very writing set when inscribing her diary.
0:13:20 > 0:13:23She could have used that pen.
0:13:23 > 0:13:29'One fascinating room that was important during Victoria's visit is still here today,
0:13:29 > 0:13:33'thought you certainly wouldn't have found the Queen down here.'
0:13:33 > 0:13:37- What is this room, Ivan? - This is the still room
0:13:37 > 0:13:39and the scullery.
0:13:39 > 0:13:44These rooms started back in the 17th century and their prime purpose
0:13:44 > 0:13:49was to distil alcoholic waters, perfumes and medicines
0:13:49 > 0:13:54from products of the kitchen garden, flower garden and the orchards.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57Using a piece of equipment like this.
0:13:57 > 0:14:01This is the head of a still. There's a bit missing.
0:14:01 > 0:14:05This was used for steeping things like herbs and wine
0:14:05 > 0:14:11and leaving them to just get all of the essential oils and flavours into the alcohol,
0:14:11 > 0:14:15then putting it into the base of this, the little furnace underneath.
0:14:15 > 0:14:21It slowly heated the alcohol, which evaporated, taking the oils and flavours with it.
0:14:21 > 0:14:25And it drips out at the end and you get concentrated alcoholic water,
0:14:25 > 0:14:30originally used as medicine. Later on, they became social drinks.
0:14:30 > 0:14:37Gin, which is juniper water, started as a medicine for epilepsy. Then it becomes a social drink.
0:14:37 > 0:14:43This wasn't just used for distilling waters. There were other products like the fruit
0:14:43 > 0:14:49and the vegetables that were often preserved here. This little stove is a wonderful thing.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51These are very, very rare.
0:14:51 > 0:14:56This is a drying stove, used for making fruit candies.
0:14:56 > 0:15:00- Things like lemon peel, orange peel, were soaked in syrups...- Yes.
0:15:00 > 0:15:05..and then put in here and slowly you'd dry them out as candied peels.
0:15:05 > 0:15:09'Around the time Victoria visited, the role of the still room changed
0:15:09 > 0:15:13'as they started to make preserves and pickles as well.'
0:15:13 > 0:15:19Pickling, preserving, did two things. They saved money because they did it when it was cheap
0:15:19 > 0:15:26and it was in abundance, and they had food available all through the year, which was really important.
0:15:26 > 0:15:31You can just take things off the shelf and enjoy your peaches, mid-winter.
0:15:31 > 0:15:37On a large estate like this, you've got orchards, kitchen gardens, herb garden.
0:15:37 > 0:15:43And they're set up, basically, to produce enough material to feed what is a sizeable community.
0:15:43 > 0:15:47- It's not just the family, the Earl and his family.- It's everyone.
0:15:47 > 0:15:54All the servants, the estate workers. These are little factories, producing food from the raw products
0:15:54 > 0:16:01for storing over winter. Everything from pickled onions to pickled eggs to gooseberry jam and marmalade.
0:16:01 > 0:16:03All those things.
0:16:03 > 0:16:09One thing that's very interesting is the 19th century had a huge expansion of trade with the Empire.
0:16:09 > 0:16:14Things like chutneys start to become very fashionable because of India.
0:16:14 > 0:16:21- A lot of the cookery books are full of recipes for chutneys and things called catsups and ketchups.- Yes.
0:16:21 > 0:16:26And those bottled sauces and things were first of all made here
0:16:26 > 0:16:31and then with the expansion of industrialised food
0:16:31 > 0:16:33they start making them in factories.
0:16:33 > 0:16:40Often what happened here is a lot of these things start to be bought in as factories make them more cheaply.
0:16:40 > 0:16:47And the role of the still room maid and the housekeeper starts to dwindle by the end of the 19th century.
0:16:47 > 0:16:50After WWI, these places are extinct.
0:16:52 > 0:16:58'Not far from the still room is the servants' hall, where all the staff would have gathered
0:16:58 > 0:17:05'for meals. These hooks would have been used for footmen's uniforms and as with many stately homes
0:17:05 > 0:17:11'there was also an elaborate bell system to make sure they were permanently at the beck and call
0:17:11 > 0:17:15'of the guests upstairs, including Victoria.
0:17:15 > 0:17:20'We know that the Queen brought many of her own staff from London,
0:17:20 > 0:17:24'judging by the report in the London Morning Post,
0:17:24 > 0:17:31'which said, "Harewood Hall - magnificent doings are expected in the course of a few days.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35'"Cooks and confectioners and upholsterers left town yesterday."
0:17:38 > 0:17:43'Despite the Upstairs, Downstairs system of the day,
0:17:43 > 0:17:47'there was one place where everyone came together.
0:17:48 > 0:17:55'The local community, toffs, servants and village folk all attended the local church.'
0:17:56 > 0:18:01Victoria walked to church that sunny September Sunday in 1835
0:18:01 > 0:18:06observed by literally thousands of people.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10On her arm was her mother, the Duchess, and the Earl.
0:18:10 > 0:18:15And on her other side was her friend, Lady Georgiana Harcourt.
0:18:15 > 0:18:20It wasn't altogether a pleasant experience, though, for Victoria.
0:18:20 > 0:18:26She writes in her diary, "It was immensely hot in church and I felt uncomfortable.
0:18:26 > 0:18:31"I could not go to luncheon, but had some broth in my own room."
0:18:31 > 0:18:38What she didn't realise at the time was that there had been a right royal row brewing
0:18:38 > 0:18:40about this whole service
0:18:40 > 0:18:43long before she arrived at Harewood.
0:18:47 > 0:18:52She should have been listening to a sermon from the local vicar, Reverend Hale,
0:18:52 > 0:18:57but instead she got words of wisdom from the Archbishop himself
0:18:57 > 0:18:59who had been invited by her host
0:18:59 > 0:19:03because it was felt that a sermon preached by the local vicar
0:19:03 > 0:19:08might have been offensive to her young and tender ears.
0:19:08 > 0:19:14Not surprisingly, the local vicar was furious and wrote to the press.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16Oh, lordy!
0:19:16 > 0:19:22It would seem that the Earl and the Archbishop went to extraordinary lengths
0:19:22 > 0:19:29to prevent Reverend Hale giving his sermon. Goodness only knows what they thought he might have said!
0:19:29 > 0:19:35As it happens, Princess Victoria was well aware of how to conduct herself on the Sabbath
0:19:35 > 0:19:42because in her journal she records that that afternoon she, "wrote a letter to my sister,
0:19:42 > 0:19:46"saw the children again, wrote some things in my journal,
0:19:46 > 0:19:51"read a lecture in the exposition of St Matthew's Gospel."
0:19:51 > 0:19:53Good girl.
0:19:55 > 0:20:01'After church, the servants would have been straight back on duty, just like us today.
0:20:01 > 0:20:05'The pastry for our Victorian asparagus in a crust is ready.
0:20:05 > 0:20:10'This Victorian recipe calls for a copper pan to boil the asparagus.
0:20:10 > 0:20:15'The copper causes a chemical reaction to make them even greener.
0:20:15 > 0:20:21'It's completely harmless, but shows how much thought they put into the perfect-looking dish.
0:20:21 > 0:20:28'Once boiled, our extra-green greens are drained and laid out, ready for the assembly job,
0:20:28 > 0:20:30'which, as ever, is very fiddly.'
0:20:30 > 0:20:35- We'll start with the very short ones. - Right.- Rest them against the side.
0:20:35 > 0:20:40They have a tendency to fall over, so lean it against the side.
0:20:40 > 0:20:43We've got four layers, four tiers if you like.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47You've got to be very careful with a delicate touch.
0:20:47 > 0:20:52- It's very tricky.- It's much easier with the bigger ones in the middle.
0:20:52 > 0:20:59- This is difficult, and the next one. - I love doing this. They must have had a lot of people in the kitchen.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08So when would this have been served?
0:21:08 > 0:21:13This was served in a course towards the end of the meal, the entremet.
0:21:13 > 0:21:20- Although it's a vegetable dish, it was served at the same time as jellies, ices...- Really?!- Yes.
0:21:20 > 0:21:24- Get them nice and upright. - Right.- That's it.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28This is beautiful! This is going to be absolutely magical.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32- But you need a lot of asparagus. - And even more patience.
0:21:33 > 0:21:39To finish off, it's a different technique. The tall ones - not all, because I've got a few spare -
0:21:39 > 0:21:44- we make sure that they are absolutely...- Perfect.- ..like that.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48And then I drop them in. Then we finish off
0:21:48 > 0:21:52- by gently pushing the others in. - Just pushing them in.
0:21:52 > 0:21:58A few more on this side and then we can fluff the whole thing up.
0:21:58 > 0:22:02And there we have it. Asparagus in a crust.
0:22:02 > 0:22:09I think that is fabulous. I just love it, love it, love it. I can't wait to take it to Tim.
0:22:09 > 0:22:15'And I can't wait to try it. Now we know Victoria became quite an arts lover in later years,
0:22:15 > 0:22:21'but she also liked to tinkle the ivories and was taking piano lessons around the time of this visit,
0:22:21 > 0:22:25'although it appears she wasn't very keen on taking instructions.
0:22:25 > 0:22:31'Here in the Music Room, I'm meeting Irene Truman, House Steward at Harewood
0:22:31 > 0:22:37'and also a classical pianist. She has a revealing story that shows our Princess Victoria
0:22:37 > 0:22:41'could be quite a diva with her piano teacher, one Mr Sale.'
0:22:41 > 0:22:48Apparently he didn't get on with her terribly well. He was obviously not very inspirational for her.
0:22:48 > 0:22:53It is known that Mr Sale became quite impatient with her at one point
0:22:53 > 0:22:57and said, "You must practise more, like everybody else."
0:22:57 > 0:23:04At this point she lost her temper, slammed the piano lid down and said, "There's no 'must' in it."
0:23:06 > 0:23:12- And that was the end of the lesson. - Making it clear who's the boss. - Absolutely.
0:23:12 > 0:23:16'Victoria's passion for music continued throughout her life.
0:23:16 > 0:23:19'She also had another love - food.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23'And that love most probably began around the time of this visit
0:23:23 > 0:23:29'in magnificent rooms like this where she became accustomed to incredibly grand dinners.'
0:23:29 > 0:23:34And this is the gallery where Princess Victoria dined.
0:23:34 > 0:23:40It's no surprise that they're able to cram in quite so many guests into this space
0:23:40 > 0:23:44because it's 76 feet long, 24 feet wide
0:23:44 > 0:23:46and 21 foot high.
0:23:46 > 0:23:50As royal dinners go, this was right up there.
0:23:50 > 0:23:56Victoria ate with 130 distinguished guests. Cor, imagine that!
0:23:56 > 0:24:01She said she thought the room was beautiful and recorded that she had her dinner
0:24:01 > 0:24:06just after 6pm and, like any teenager might,
0:24:06 > 0:24:11rather sweetly she was allowed to stay up until nearly 20 past 9!
0:24:11 > 0:24:16'Well, luckily for me, I'm not catering for 130 guests.
0:24:16 > 0:24:21'Instead, I've set up a table for two for our own private banquet.'
0:24:21 > 0:24:25- Hello!- Rosemary! This IS good timing, isn't it?
0:24:25 > 0:24:32It certainly is. I had to bring this in before as I was worried about this dish.
0:24:32 > 0:24:37It's very valuable. This is called asparagus in a pastry crust.
0:24:37 > 0:24:43- Look how ornate it is. This was served at the end of the meal with jellies and desserts.- Really?
0:24:43 > 0:24:49Some people wanted savoury. Do tuck in. Have a little mayonnaise.
0:24:49 > 0:24:55- This mayonnaise has been specially prepared, has it?- Yes, it has. - It's a good colour.
0:24:55 > 0:25:00I just don't feel I can disturb the arrangement. You go first.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04- I'll take one from there. - Just one?- One or two. There we go.
0:25:04 > 0:25:09That's got it. Lovely. And then we mix it in there...
0:25:10 > 0:25:15- Delicious. - They are not overcooked, are they? - But I love them like that.
0:25:15 > 0:25:20'So Victorian - hours to create, but a lot quicker to consume.'
0:25:20 > 0:25:25- Mm, delicious.- I want to show you a little something really special.
0:25:25 > 0:25:31- This little box... What does that say?- "HRH The Princess Victoria's watch."
0:25:31 > 0:25:35- And what's it got inside? - Was that her watch?- It was.
0:25:35 > 0:25:40- No!- I'm going to open it up very, very carefully. Look at that.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44Deep, deep royal blue enamelling on the back.
0:25:44 > 0:25:50And then you've got this lovely scrolly type stuff, an arabesque.
0:25:50 > 0:25:57But if you look very carefully, in the middle of that fine gold work is her initial V.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00- I can see that, yes. Can I just hold it?- You can.
0:26:00 > 0:26:05They're called open-faced cylinder key-wound watches.
0:26:05 > 0:26:12That's the sort of watch you'd expect to find in a top-quality jeweller's in the 1820s or 1830s.
0:26:12 > 0:26:16But if I press that on the end, it springs open
0:26:16 > 0:26:21and inside you can see the hallmark for 18-carat gold.
0:26:21 > 0:26:25And then a very fine little inscription which says,
0:26:25 > 0:26:30"To my dearest child on the 24th of May, 1830.
0:26:30 > 0:26:35"From her affectionate and devoted mother, Victoria."
0:26:35 > 0:26:41So the Duchess of Kent was called Victoria and on the child's 11th birthday
0:26:41 > 0:26:46- she presented her with this little gold watch.- How did it get here?
0:26:46 > 0:26:53As a result of the royal connections between the Harewood family and the Royal Family.
0:26:53 > 0:27:00It would have come to the Princess Royal and that's why this is a treasured possession here.
0:27:00 > 0:27:06'I was very taken by the story of how the Archbishop usurped the poor local vicar
0:27:06 > 0:27:09'to give the sermon to Victoria.
0:27:09 > 0:27:16'To add insult to injury, Victoria mentions the Archbishop in glowing terms in her diary.'
0:27:16 > 0:27:23She'd actually sat next to the Archbishop of York the night before in this room for dinner.
0:27:23 > 0:27:28She clearly got on with him as they'd spent a few days together beforehand.
0:27:28 > 0:27:33She wrote in her diary, "The Archbishop is an extraordinary person of his age.
0:27:33 > 0:27:38"He is nearly 78 years old, has all his teeth,
0:27:38 > 0:27:42"has a powerful voice and is extremely active
0:27:42 > 0:27:47"and his mind is as perfect as any young man's."
0:27:47 > 0:27:50- Gosh.- Just like you, Tim.- Hey!
0:27:53 > 0:27:58Next time we catch up with Victoria, she's still a teenager
0:27:58 > 0:28:03and on a trip to Holkham Hall in Norfolk to visit England's greatest commoner.
0:28:03 > 0:28:10And her music education continued as our royal teenager was introduced to karaoke,
0:28:10 > 0:28:12Victorian-style!
0:28:20 > 0:28:24Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd - 2011
0:28:25 > 0:28:27Email subtitling@bbc.co.uk