Country House Secrets

Mary visits the cream of Devon’s crop at Powderham Castle…

Mary visits the cream of Devon’s crop at Powderham Castle…

This week, our national treasure arrives in wet and misty Devon to visit one of the oldest aristocratic houses in the country, Powderham (pronounced with a silent ‘h’) Castle near Exeter.

Here, she meets Charlie Courtenay, the Earl of Devon, who lives in the house with his American wife and two children.

The Earl takes Mary on a grand tour of the property, ending in the original Victorian kitchen, where she bakes plain and fruit scones for a traditional Devon cream tea – cream on first when in this county, unlike next-door neighbour Cornwall’s jam-first tendencies.

The trip wraps up with a meal for the family and estate workers, with Charlie rustling up his signature cockle curry – a first for Mary!