GAME FAIR
Surrey’s Premier Lifestyle Magazine
A meeting of country enthusiasts
Each year The Game Fair attracts over 120,000 visitors to its three-day show, set at some of the UK’s best countryside estates. The show is the event for people passionate about countryside pursuits and the great British countryside. Claire Zambuni finds out more.
This year The Game Fair is being held at the end of July at the historic Hatfield House, a fine Jacobean property with over 42 acres of garden, home of Lord and Lady Salisbury, and a popular choice of location for film productions such as The Favourite, Trust, Harry Potter and Batman.
The Game Fair has announced an ambitious plan of new attractions that will delight recurring visitors and attract new people to the three-day event, celebrating all that is great about our countryside.
The Game Fair Gardens
The Game Fair organisers are creating several new areas, including the Adventure Sporting Destination and Travel and a huge new garden project championed by Lady Salisbury. This project includes the installation of the largest show garden ever attempted, spanning over one-acre, and will be brought to life by leading educational institution Capel Manor College, of which Lady Salisbury is a Patron.
The College is a leading education provider for those interested in plants, animals, flowers, trees and the environment, offering apprenticeships in London for those looking to work and contribute to the rural economy and urban regeneration. It is uniquely placed to help Mayor Sadiq Khan’s latest plans for London to have more than 50% green space. The College can facilitate how people can take care of and maintain these green spaces in London.
The Game Fair Gardens, designed by Capel Manor’s Royal Horticultural Society Gold Medallists and Gold winners at last year’s Chelsea Flower Show, will create an immersive and interactive experience, telling the story of the countryside, estates, country gardens, traditional practices and innovations through a number of themed gardens. Visitors can expect kitchen gardens, traditional crafts, art, sculpture, Q&As, demos and superb design at Hatfield House, which already has an international reputation among gardening enthusiasts.
The Game Fair has announced an ambitious plan of new attractions that will delight recurring visitors and attract new people to the three-day event, celebrating all that is great about our countryside.
The Game Fair Gardens
The Game Fair organisers are creating several new areas, including the Adventure Sporting Destination and Travel and a huge new garden project championed by Lady Salisbury. This project includes the installation of the largest show garden ever attempted, spanning over one-acre, and will be brought to life by leading educational institution Capel Manor College, of which Lady Salisbury is a Patron.
The College is a leading education provider for those interested in plants, animals, flowers, trees and the environment, offering apprenticeships in London for those looking to work and contribute to the rural economy and urban regeneration. It is uniquely placed to help Mayor Sadiq Khan’s latest plans for London to have more than 50% green space. The College can facilitate how people can take care of and maintain these green spaces in London.
The Game Fair Gardens, designed by Capel Manor’s Royal Horticultural Society Gold Medallists and Gold winners at last year’s Chelsea Flower Show, will create an immersive and interactive experience, telling the story of the countryside, estates, country gardens, traditional practices and innovations through a number of themed gardens. Visitors can expect kitchen gardens, traditional crafts, art, sculpture, Q&As, demos and superb design at Hatfield House, which already has an international reputation among gardening enthusiasts.
A summer of gardens
Entrance to The Game Fair Gardens is included in the standard Game Fair entry ticket and VIP packages. However, The Game Fair has also teamed up with show partners Capel Manor College and Hatfield House to offer an unrivalled opportunity to visit some of the grandest gardens in the country on one ticket – for the entire season.
The Gardens Experience ticket includes entrance to The Game Fair, the award-winning gardens at Capel Manor College and to the stunning gardens, park and woodland walks at Hatfield House. With The Game Fair as your first stop, the other gardens can be visited at leisure right up until late September.
Nestled in Enfield, north London, Capel Manor is a beautiful Georgian house set amongst 30 acres of picturesque gardens. Boasting a rich history that dates back to the 13th century, the estate is home to 60 colourful gardens, a zoo, restaurant and Capel Manor College’s Enfield campus. An unmissable treat of tranquillity for any green-fingered enthusiast, the garden dates from the early 17th century.
At historic Hatfield House, the trees, bulbs, plants and fruit trees, which had never before been grown in England, have crafted the inspiring and fragrant gardens which can be explored and enjoyed today. Enjoy the pleached lime walk, the beautiful blue and silver border and a relaxing stroll down through the mature beech and oak trees of the Woodland Garden. The dazzling rhododendrons survive from the 19th century and there are many late-flowering shrubs like styrax, eucryphia hoheria and halesia, as well as magnificent varieties of hydrangea paniculata lining the grass paths to the fledgling Yew House.
Entrance to The Game Fair Gardens is included in the standard Game Fair entry ticket and VIP packages. However, The Game Fair has also teamed up with show partners Capel Manor College and Hatfield House to offer an unrivalled opportunity to visit some of the grandest gardens in the country on one ticket – for the entire season.
The Gardens Experience ticket includes entrance to The Game Fair, the award-winning gardens at Capel Manor College and to the stunning gardens, park and woodland walks at Hatfield House. With The Game Fair as your first stop, the other gardens can be visited at leisure right up until late September.
Nestled in Enfield, north London, Capel Manor is a beautiful Georgian house set amongst 30 acres of picturesque gardens. Boasting a rich history that dates back to the 13th century, the estate is home to 60 colourful gardens, a zoo, restaurant and Capel Manor College’s Enfield campus. An unmissable treat of tranquillity for any green-fingered enthusiast, the garden dates from the early 17th century.
At historic Hatfield House, the trees, bulbs, plants and fruit trees, which had never before been grown in England, have crafted the inspiring and fragrant gardens which can be explored and enjoyed today. Enjoy the pleached lime walk, the beautiful blue and silver border and a relaxing stroll down through the mature beech and oak trees of the Woodland Garden. The dazzling rhododendrons survive from the 19th century and there are many late-flowering shrubs like styrax, eucryphia hoheria and halesia, as well as magnificent varieties of hydrangea paniculata lining the grass paths to the fledgling Yew House.
essence info
To book Game Fair Gardens’ combined tickets, visit thegamefair.seetickets.com and quote GARDEN TICKET in the code boxWebsite: www.thegamefair.org
“It’s wonderful that this year The Game Fair is encouraging our apprentices and students to use their skills and knowledge to create a spectacular garden at Hatfield. I know this RHS award-winning team will provide inspiration to gardeners. Seeing what people can do is always a pleasure as well as providing a vital contribution to our green open spaces.”
Lady Salisbury, Patron of Capel Manor College