The House Party

A delightfuljourney through the glamorous story of the English country house party by the bestselling historian.

Croquet. Parlour games. Cocktails. Welcome to a glorious journey through the

golden age of the country house party – and

you are invited.

Our host,

celebrated historianAdrian Tinniswood, traces the evolution of this quintessentially British pastime from debauched

royal tours to the flamboyant excess of the

Bright Young Things. With cameos by the

Jazz Age industrialist, the bibulous earl and the off-duty politician – whether in moated manor houses or ornate Palladian villas – Tinniswood gives a vivid insight into

weekending etiquette and reveals the hidden lives of

celebrity guests, from

Nancy Astor to Winston Churchill, in all their drinking, feasting, gambling and fornicating.

The result is a deliciously entertaining,

star-studded, yet surprisingly moving portrait of a time when social conventions were being radically overhauled through the escapism of a generation haunted by

war – and a uniquely fast-living period of

English history.

Praise for

The Long Weekend: 'Delicious, occasionally fantastical, revealing in ways that

DowntonAbbey never was. It is as if Tinniswood is at the biggest, wildest, most luxuriantly decadent party ever thrown, and he knows

everyone.' Observer

'A deliciously jaunty and wonderfully knowledgeable book. Tinniswood displays a terrific insider's grasp of gossip . A meticulous, irresistible story.' Spectator 'Elegant, encyclopedic and entertaining . A confident and skilled historian who understands the mores of his era and wears his learning lightly . Deserves to be on every costume drama producer's bookshelf.' Times