The Bravo series Ladies of London shows the combination of Americans and Brits in social scenarios that cover the comparison/contrast of both cultures. One of the stories that has run through the series is American girl Julie Montagu who moved to England from her home in Chicago, and her business enterprises that are all in efforts to support her husband Luke Montagu’s ancestral family home, Mapperton, which is the home of Lord and Lady Sandwich, Montagu’s parents. He estimates that the cost just to maintain the estate is over $200,000.
The interesting part is that an American is using her ingenuity to find new and different ways to market the property to make it profitable going into the next century. As the Inquisitr reported, Julie Montagu has been teaching yoga classes, creating JUB (Julie’s Unbelievable Balls), an energizing healthy snack, and researching other ways to add some funds to Mapperton’s coffers. Fans see her on the show bicycling around London and making deliveries of JUB, and seeking business backers. Combining that with being a busy mom, it must be some yoga giving her all that energy.
@juliemontagu Thank you. I would love to visit Mapperton Home. The Gardens are also exquisite! pic.twitter.com/TsrazVwSQ9
— AVA SKARSGARD (@ava_skarsgard) October 7, 2015
Reality Tea recapped last night’s episode where Julie Montagu took fellow Ladies of London stars Annabelle Neilson and Caroline Fleming out to Beaulieu , the estate of Montagu cousin Ralph Montagu in Hampshire (where according to the ladies, it’s really cold), to see how he has made his inheritance profitable.
“Ralph greets the ladies, then gives them his short list of tips before anyone’s even gotten their coats off! He says making money off of an estate can involve more than your average touring gig. Wedding hosting and conference venues come to mind. He advises Julie to drag out pieces of historical interest from the vault, which she’s already got her wheels turning about.”
Caroline Fleming suggested serving tea in the orangerie, which to the American brain, would have something to do with oranges (growing oranges in England? Hmmm), which is partially correct. It is a room, not unlike a greenhouse, conservatory or sunroom where back in time, one would grow citrus trees indoors perhaps just to show how posh they really were. The suggestion was to use that room at Mapperton as a lavish, lush tea room.
“As the ladies head out, they chat about Mapperton’s gardens, which are its main draw. Caroline F’s brainchild is to make Mapperton the premiere place in the whole of Great Britain that people come to have the best afternoon tea – and sandwiches!”
Sandwiches, Lady Sandwich, get it? We are not sure what Julie took from the meeting with cousin Ralph, but fans are betting that she has some great ideas going forward.
Fashion & Style has revealed that next week’s Ladies of London episode will be back at Mapperton at a hunting party. Slightly conflicted because she is a vegetarian, Julie still thinks such events should continue.
“Shooting is a conflict of interest for me, because I’m vegetarian. Shooting has been in my husband’s family for hundreds of years, and I want to be supportive,” Julie explained. Julie then said that she does not want to end the shooting tradition just because she is vegetarian.”
As fans have seen in the past, Annabelle Neilson is a killer (pun intended) shot, and clearly loves a good shooting party.
Far from the madding crowd – so wonderful to be back at Mapperton House… pic.twitter.com/0bhdjDqYL7
— Steven Isserlis (@StevenIsserlis) October 2, 2015
Do you think Ladies of London Julie Montagu can come up with an American-style, outside of the box plan that puts Mapperton over the top?
[Photo courtesy of Mapperton Estate]
