This film is part of Free

Hever Castle

Hever Castle is the destination for Beryl Armstrong and her roving camera in this delightful film about the restored house and its ornamental gardens

Amateur film 1970 5 mins

From the collection of:

Logo for Screen Archive South East

Overview

We begin outside Hever Castle where large numbers of visitors are seen passing under the portcullis gates into the castle's interior. A ‘village’ of Tudor-style cottages are also seen. After several shots of flowers and a topiary garden we then move to an Italian Garden, populated with classical buildings and sculptures. As craftsmen repair a marble fountain, visitors walk about the ornamental garden. We end at the River Eden just in time for afternoon tea.

New Zealand born Beryl Armstrong began making films while living in India in the early 1960s. For the next thirty years her output was prolific and Beryl’s films, which often captured aspects of rural life in Sussex and Hampshire, appeared at local amateur film making festivals and competitions, where they won trophies and certificates of merit. She also wrote articles for film magazines and taught her sons Richard and Anthony, who often appeared in her productions, the art of filmmaking. Both went on to create their own collections of short documentaries, comedies and animations. Beryl is also a successful author, publishing twelve novels as well as a book about designing and building doll's houses.