Chatsworth House reopens to public

The second phase of a £14 million restoration project at Chatsworth House, near Bakewell, Derbyshire, finished last weekend and it reopened to the public 14 March.  

 Part of the renovations include a new gallery devoted to Georgiana, wife of the 5th duke, the voluptuous superstar of 18th-century high society, complete with several hundred parts of her enormous mineral collection. Another is devoted to Lord Burlington (of Arcade fame), whose estates and art collections were absorbed into the Cavendish family through his daughter’s marriage to the 4th duke.

The present duke’s mother, the 90-year-old Dowager Duchess of Devonshire, has her own exhibition, with a Renoir on show, early works of Lucian Freud — and an Elvis phone. There is also a special edition of one of Evelyn Waugh’s books given to her by the author, with blank pages to avoid the bother of actually having to read it.

The exhibition runs until October 31.