Sizewell Hall houses a Christian conference centre in

Sizewell Sizewell is an English fishing hamlet in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. It belongs to the civil parish of Leiston and lies on the North Sea coast just north of the larger holiday village of Thorpeness, between the coastal tow ...

on the

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

coast,

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. The estate is owned by the Ogilvie family. Back in the 1950s it housed a progressive school for 7–13s. It has historical connections with a classic

taxidermy Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body by mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proces ...

collection. The present Christian conference centre is run by Sizewell Hall Ltd, a registered charity. In 2007, 6,500 visitors stayed there, mainly local church groups from

East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...

, national bodies and a local youth organisation CYM from

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Suffolk, England. It is the county town, and largest in Suffolk, followed by Lowestoft and Bury St Edmunds, and the third-largest population centre in East Anglia, ...

. CYM has developed an activity holiday for schoolchildren in the African Village in the Hall grounds.

History

The Ogilvie family bought the estate in 1859, increased it to over and enlarged the house. Mrs Margaret Ogilvie as a benefactress set up a research award (readership in ophthalmology) at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

From this house not far from

RSPB Minsmere RSPB Minsmere is a nature reserve owned and managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) at Minsmere, Suffolk. The site has been managed by the RSPB since 1947 and covers areas of reed bed, lowland heath, acid grassland, we ...

, the ophthalmic surgeon Fergus Menteith Ogilvie (1861–1918) formed a large collection of British birds, which in partnership with the taxidermist Thomas Gunn of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

was mounted in cases with simulated habitats. The collection, now in

Ipswich Museum Ipswich Museum is a registered museum of culture, history and natural heritage, located in a Grade II* listed building on High Street in Ipswich, the county town of Suffolk. It was historically the leading regional museum in Suffolk, housing ...

, is seen as the best of its kind in Britain. Sizewell Hall was rebuilt after a fire in 1920. Glencairn Stuart Ogilvie developed nearby

Thorpeness Thorpeness is a seaside village in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England, which developed in the early 20th century into an exclusive resort. It belongs to the parish of Aldringham cum Thorpe and lies within the Suffolk Coast and Heat ...

as a resort. The Ogilvie family moved out when the army commandeered the Hall during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After the war, Sizewell Hall housed a boarding school run by a Dutch Quaker, Harry Tuyn. One of its pupils was

Sheridan Morley Sheridan Morley (5 December 1941 − 16 February 2007) was an English author, biographer, critic and broadcaster. He was the official biographer of Sir John Gielgud and wrote biographies of many other theatrical figures he had known, including ...

. The school closed in 1955. It was a progressive, co-educational establishment (though not to be confused with the progressive

Summerhill School Summerhill School is an independent (i.e. fee-charging) day and boarding school in Leiston, Suffolk, England. It was founded in 1921 by Alexander Sutherland Neill with the belief that the school should be made to fit the child, rather than ...

Leiston Leiston ( ) is a town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. It is close to Saxmundham and Aldeburgh, north-east of Ipswich and north-east of London. The town had a population of 5,508 at th ...

nearby). It has been claimed that pupils could study what they liked, if they liked, and that subjects such as Geography, Maths and Latin were not taught on the grounds that they were too boring. However, this has not been confirmed by other pupils or staff. Indeed, a copy of ''

Kennedy Kennedy may refer to: People * Kennedy (surname), including any of several people with that surname ** Kennedy family, a prominent American political family that includes: *** Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. (1888–1969), American businessman, investor, ...

's Latin Primer'' from Sizewell Hall School gave to

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...

and

Myfanwy Piper Mary Myfanwy Piper (; Welsh: ; 28 March 1911 – 18 January 1997) was a British art critic and opera librettist. She was the founder of the periodical ''Axis'', which was devoted to abstract art. She collaborated with the composer Benjamin Britt ...

the words for Miles's Latin ''Benedicite'' in Britten's opera ''

The Turn of the Screw ''The Turn of the Screw'' is an 1898 gothic horror novella by Henry James which first appeared in serial format in '' Collier's Weekly'' from January 27 to April 16, 1898. On October 7, 1898, it was collected in ''The Two Magics'', publis ...

''. In the 1960s the Hall served as quarters for

Taylor Woodrow Taylor Woodrow was one of the largest housebuilding and general construction companies in Britain. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index until its merger with rival housebuilder George Wimpey ...

as the firm built Sizewell A nuclear power station. Sizewell Hall was used as a location for television adaptations of ''

The Lost Prince ''The Lost Prince'' is a 2003 British television drama about the life of Prince John – youngest child of Britain's King George V and Queen Mary – who died at the age of 13 in 1919. John had epileptic seizures and an autism-like developme ...

''Masterpiece Theatre , The Lost Prince , Production Notes , Locations
/ref> and ''

Lovejoy ''Lovejoy'' is a British television comedy-drama mystery fiction, mystery series, based on the Lovejoy (novel series), novels by John Grant (Lovejoy), John Grant under the pen name Jonathan Gash. The show, which ran to 71 episodes over six ser ...

''. The grounds today include a camp site, a children's park, tennis courts, a sports hall, a squash court and an activity course.

External links

Sizewell HallPhotographs of Sizewell Hall

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sizewell Hall Country houses in Suffolk Suffolk Coastal