Well it's New Years Eve, 2011... It's time to take a moment to reflect upon the past 12 months. It has been a mixed year, with some high moments, some low moments and some sad moments. There have been plenty of developments Guy's Cliffe House wise, with changes to the websites and busy events at the old house.

One development that has proven very popular early this year has been the publishing by our very own Terry Roberts of his book, Recollections of a Country Mansion. This has sold far beyond our expectations, proving there is a very wide audience of both Guy's Cliffe enthusiasts and those intrigued by local history. We have sent books literally all over the globe so far and plans are in place to take this book even further with future editions to be published.

Following on from the success of Terry's book, we were very proud to bring the 'old Guys Cliffe House website' back to life (guyscliffehouse.co.uk). This website has been redeveloped to promote the various events which are available to take place at Guys Cliffe House, such as wedding receptions, paranormal investigations and private or corporate events. Not of course to forget the Friends of Guy's Cliffe Garden Party in the summer and the Heritage Open Days in September. The historical image archive and historical elements of the property are all now contained within the GuysCliffeHouse.org.uk website. This site itself has undergone some dramatic changes too, with a much improved gallery display system and more adaptable site structure. All in all the websites for Guys Cliffe House go from strength to strength, including the publishing of even more photos, illustrations and paintings of this wonderful property.

The 2011 Garden Party proved as popular as ever with over 1200 visitors recorded and the Heritage Open Days in September 2011 attracted several hundred visitors each day with a grand total of 745 visitors, making Guy's Cliffe one of the most popular Heritage Open Day destinations in Warwickshire!

The year wasn't completely filled with happy events or good news, for in August we were very sad to announce the lost of a good friend of Guy's Cliffe and a dear friend and inspiration to many. Roy Robinson, the 'Last Resident' of Guy's Cliffe during it's time as a Boys Home throughout WW2. Roy sadly died in August after a long term illness. He will be missed and our memories of him cherished. Roy's ashes were scattered in November within the grounds at Guy's Cliffe by some of his many friends. The book authored by Roy, documenting his very diverse life is due to be published very soon. The book titled C'est La Vie, will soon be made available to purchase online from ourselves.

Guy's Cliffe has seen no less than 15 centuries of developments and so one year seems so little compared but Guy's Cliffe House means so much to so many people right up to the present day. We look forward to sharing the interest of this magical and often mysterious location with the wider audience and we hope to be able to bring news of more great Guy's Cliffe related stuff over the following year!

We wish all our visitors, past, present and future a very Happy New Year!!

Dave Taylor - www.guyscliffehouse.org.uk & www.guyscliffehouse.co.uk

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