Wentworth: May 2015
Contents
Please note that this article contains information for a past event.
Keep an eye out for future Wentworth events.
Wentworth Castle, South Yorkshire
29th, 30th and 31st May 2015
What better surroundings could we have for a relaxed literary weekend with bright and friendly writers from various parts of the country?
A workshop at Wentworth – May 2014
Information
- Dates: 29th–31st May 2015.
- Venue: Wentworth Castle, South Yorkshire.
- Cost: £95 for two days, £125 for three days.
There were workshops on the Saturday and Sunday mornings.
We arrived at lunchtime, or after, on Friday. There is a café in the public area, and on Friday evening we all went for a pleasant meal at a nearby Toby restaurant.
Prices ↑
The weekend is not intended to be a money making event and we charge as close as we can to our costs.
| Days | Description | Year / Cost | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2026 | ||
| Friday, Saturday, Sunday: | We feed ourselves on Friday with an evening pub meal. | 125 | 150 | 150 | 158 | 255 |
| Saturday & Sunday: | All in. B&B, evening meal, tea and coffee throughout the day. | 95 | 120 | 120 | 125 | |
The Venue ↑
Wentworth Buildings
Address
Northern College Wentworth Castle Stainborough Barnsley S75 3ET
About Wentworth Castle
Wentworth Castle is a palladian stately home built in the 1720s for Thomas Wentworth. It is out in the country about 4 miles from Barnsley in South Yorkshire and around 10 miles from Sheffield.
The first Earl of Strafford, Thomas Wentworth, made himself so unpopular with parliament that they passed a bill and had him beheaded, even though Charles I initially refused to sign the death warrant. He only signed it after Strafford wrote and asked him to sign it. In sacrificing himself Strafford hoped to prevent a civil war. He was executed on 12th May 1641. The English Civil War began when Charles left London in January 1642. It was the same parliament he fought against that had condemned Strafford.
Wentworth Gardens
Strafford's great nephew, Thomas Wentworth, also became the first Earl of Strafford, the title having died out in the C 17th. The earldom was revived for him by Queen Anne in 1711. He had inherited titles but not the Strafford estate, so he bought Stainborough Castle nearby and fashioned a very grand house out of it which he renamed Wentworth Castle. He put up an obelisk to Anne and put a proud Roman statue of himself in the castle he built at the top of the hill. The statue is now at the rear of the house and the house has become Northern College. It is located three miles from Barnsley in South Yorkshire.
NAWG holds its writers' retreat at Northern College.
The house has had much of its grandeur restored, the most recent restoration being the beautiful conservatory which was reopened last year. The gardens are lovely. There are 60 acres of garden set in idealised countryside designed in the manner of Capability Brown. The landscape is literally idyllic, being romantic, pastoral and incorporating a large deer park with beautiful fallow deer.
The grounds are fantastic . . . just the place to stroll between writing for inspiration.
There are more photographs from previous events.