The owner of the stately home used in Downton Abbey has hit out at the Government’s ‘catastrophic’ road map for easing coronavirus restrictions.
The Countess of Carnarvon questioned why Highclere Castle in Berkshire would not be able to open its doors to visitors until May 17 at the earliest under the timetable set out by Boris Johnson.
She claimed there is ‘inconsistency’ in the approach because indoor shopping could be allowed from April 12.
While shops, outdoor hospitality and personal care services can resume in April, indoor entertainment venues, including castles, stately homes and cinemas, will have to wait another five weeks.
Lady Carnarvon told BBC Radio 4’s Today: ‘Why is it more dangerous to walk round Highclere Castle, with 400 metres of one-way tour with people spaced, than it is to go round a department store, I don’t understand it.
Lady Carnarvon with her husband Geordie, the 8th Earl of Carnarvon. She has hit out at Boris Johnson’s roadmap out of lockdown
She questioned why Highclere Castle in Berkshire would not be able to open its doors to visitors until May 17 at the earliest
‘We have all got sensible protections, we are all part of the economy, we all buy fish, food, we all support the supply chains, which is what some of the British farming and fishing industry is struggling with.
‘It’s the same with pubs – is it more dangerous to go and have a massage or is it more dangerous to go into a pub?
‘Of course we are proud of the NHS, we all are, everybody in this country, that’s not in question.
‘But you can see how the infections are going down and the deaths, thank goodness, are going down.’
The road map includes a five-week gap between its four steps to allow the impact of relaxations to be measured to see whether there is an increase in infections which could put unsustainable pressure on the health service.
Lady Carnarvon added: ‘It’s pretty catastrophic. Last year we were only able to operate for perhaps three out of the 12 months, like many other hospitality and heritage businesses, and that’s what we are one of, employing as an industry millions of people.
The owner of Highclere Castle had questioned whether how non-essential shopping can be deemed safer than visiting tourist attractions
‘We would have hoped to have some small events in February for Valentine’s, more in March and we were hoping to open in April. It’s the inconsistency. You know, I’m not quite sure where the evidence is that it’s easy to go around a department store but it’s very dangerous to walk around the rooms at Highclere.
‘You can go to a gym but you can’t walk up our stairs or you can go and have a massage and a backrub but you just can’t come to Highclere and enjoy the rooms.
‘When we’ve all spent like many other businesses so much money on COVID safety and making sure people feel secure and have a really lovely day out.
‘We’re a hospitality business. We were a visitor attraction and there are millions of visitors attraction like a theme park.
‘We all have outgoings and the outgoings far exceed any money coming in, which obviously at the moment is zero and if you think 80% of visitors to this country want to come and see a castle or a stately home. You know it’s a bit sad, no more stately homes.’
In April, Lady Carnarvon was met with criticism from unsympathetic viewers after she revealed her home of Highclere Castle has ‘zero income’ during the coronavirus crisis.
The countess, whose husband, Geordie, is the 8th Earl of Carnarvon, admitted the estate, best known as the location for Downton Abbey, is in a ‘catastrophic’ financial position without money coming in from visitors who pay for tours.
‘We rely on baking scones for visitors,’ she explained on This Morning, adding that there is ‘no pot of gold’ to help maintain the 300-room property, which is set on a 6,000-acre estate in Hampshire.
However, viewers were not sympathetic, with several joking that they had the ‘world’s smallest violin’ for the couple, while another said their 300-room property could have been used to home critically ill coronavirus patients.
Lady Carnarvon went on to explain that they’ve had no choice but to furlough some members of their staff, as well as expressing her sadness that their new line of gin is now struggling to take off amid the pandemic.