Debo Mitford, Duchess of Devonshire and Housewife 1920-2014

Deborah Devonshire, the youngest of the Mitford sisters and wife of the 11th Duke of Devonshire, was hefted by marriage to one of Europe’s greatest treasure houses, Chatsworth. In the second half of the 20th century, in partnership with her husband, she imbued it with a spirit, elegance and sense of welcome that transformed it from being the worn-out survivor of decades of taxation, war and  social change into one of the best-loved, most-emulated and popular historic houses, gardens and estates in the country.

Simon Seligman

Having grown up wanting to be an architect, Simon studied art and architectural history at Warwick University, which included a compulsory term living in Venice, an experience of cultural immersion from which he is still recovering! For 19 years until 2010, he worked at the great treasure house of Chatsworth, in Derbyshire, in a variety of roles, starting with a summer job cleaning lavatories and car parking, and ending as Head of Communications. During that time, he lectured extensively about Chatsworth, its collections and associated topics, throughout the UK and USA, and he continues to lecture on a range of cultural topics. Since then he has also trained as a Life Coach, working with people one-to-one to support their life and career choices, and he works part time for John Ruskin’s educational and arts charity, the Guild of St George. For more than 30 years he has lived with his family in the heart of Derbyshire's beautiful Peak District.