A group of 16 Questers visited Bowood House and Gardens, near Calne, on Monday 18 May 2026.

This was a self-drive outing and many Questers did car-sharing to reduce the number of vehicles used. For those who observed and followed the temporary road signs erected because of localised roadworks, there were some challenges finding the correct route to get there. For those who ignore the temporary signs there were no problems!

Despite all this we all arrived before or round about the planned time of 10:30. There was therefore plenty of time for a comfort break and then a hot drink in the Treehouse Café at the Admissions building. We then had a 10 minute walk to the front of the House in order to meet our guide and start our guided tour.

We were given a 1 hour tour by Phil who, because of the many questions and his added in anecdotes, kept us engaged for over 90 minutes. Phil was very knowledgeable and informative as well as being entertaining. A very good, guided tour. What was particularly unusual was that the original House itself was demolished in the mid-1950s after the National Trust declined an invitation to accept the property as a donation.

The remaining buildings, originally the “Little House” and the stables, were then converted into the impressive single building complex that one admires today. The east wing of the House, overlooking the Capability Brown designed lake and parklands, is the home of Simon Petty-Fitzmaurice, the son of the 9^th Marquess of Lansdowne, and his family. The rest of the very large complex is what is open to the public and used for administrative and management purposes for the Estate.

After completion of the tour Questers were free to proceed to explore and enjoy the displays in the House, the formal gardens, the walled garden, the lake and parkland or the café for lunch. Various small groups did all this in differing sequences as best suited their preferences.

Lunch at the Treehouse Café was disappointing for many as even those who opted for a reasonably early lunch found the available menu rather depleted because they had runout of some items. That was even worse for those who chose to come for lunch later in the visit. Their options were even more limited, if they had any at all.

The weather during the visit was unfortunately not quite what was hoped for and it was cold and windy but dry. This made some members uncomfortably cold and so dampened their enjoyment of the day.

Being a self-drive outing, Questers could choose when to depart. Some left early afternoon while many others were there until late afternoon.

The general reaction from the members of the group was that it was an interesting and enjoyable day out, spoilt only by unfavourable weather and limited lunch options.

Cecil Rose

VISIT to FLEET AIR ARM MUSEUM, YOEVILTON

After a short delay caused by late arrivals due to an accident on the A303, all 13 Questers were gathered and greeted by our guide Nigel.

Our guided tour began with the history of the earliest commitment of the Royal Navy to aviation, both airships and planes in 1911. It was a great advantage to have improved reconnaissance. Landing gear now included floats, and in the early days the planes were catapulted from a warship and recovered after landing in the sea. The world’s first reconnaissance by a fixed wing aircraft was at the battle of Jutland.

Progress was made when merchant ships were fitted with landing decks, and then the Aircraft Carrier evolved before, during and after the WWII, to include steam catapults, armoured and angled decks.

There are 4 display areas covering early planes, those from the WWII including US Corsair  and Hellcats, a Swordfish the type used to disable the German battleship Bismarck, and our Sea Fury.

Later planes with jet engines included the Buccaneer and the Sea Harrier.

Whilst not a plane flown by the Navy, a pre-production Concorde with test instruments is an attraction and was available to visit and observe how very narrow it was. The demise of the Air France plane flying out of Charles de Gaulle was explained, and the RR Olympus 593 engine was on display.

We  could not to forget the part helicopters play in reconnaissance, air-sea rescue and troop support.

Altogether this was a very interesting visit.

Colin Ramsden