All Change at Longleat - First Season

Ah. - Is it OK to walk on the grass?

Um, some yes, some no.

This one hasn't got any signs on it at the moment, so...

- It is your lawn, though. - I know. I guess I'm allowed.

Change is coming to Longleat, the aristocratic house

with lions in the back yard.

This national treasure belongs to a lord like no other.

Monogamy wasn't ever going to work for me.

But he has handed control to his son and heir, Ceawlin...

Sliding down these was a favourite as a kid.

.. who has moved back in with his new wife.

Sort of a tingling feeling because it doesn't really feel real.

They're our nobility -- they own this joint.

They are of a standing and a breeding in society.

Grand houses like this aren't easy to manage.

Steady, steady, steady.

Hundreds of people now depend on them.

Many of you will notice a lot of changes this year.

I wouldn't have said Ceawlin got off to the best start ever.

And having two lords under one roof creates its own tensions.

They live in separate parts of the house --

they do like to live reasonably separate lives.

I try not to do anything to irritate him.

Now they must try to make a home in this most extraordinary of houses.

He's inherited a massive responsibility

and a huge amount of history.

We have to just not be scared to use it.

There's no point having anything if you don't enjoy it.

We haven't done this before.

It's an early morning in peak summer season.

On the first floor of Longleat House, it is breakfast time.

DOG BARKS

Lady Weymouth, or Emma, as she prefers to be called,

is now six months pregnant.

Ssh.

Morning. Hi.

Morning. How are you? Hi, there.

Her husband is Lord Weymouth, or Ceawlin.

Their housekeepers are due in late this morning,

so it is a self-service breakfast.

Ceawlin's days are now filled with estate business,

but Emma's time is her own.

So, what is your normal routine in the morning?

Um, I wake up quite early.

Well, it depends what you call early.

Sort of seven-ish, eight-ish.

And then, erm...

What do we do?

Put the TV on, have a bath and then...

.. potter around, sorting things out.

It just depends, really.

- Thanks. - Ta-da! - Thank you very much.

I'll take that one away.

Ceawlin and Emma have become responsible for a house

that costs over £3 million a year to maintain.

To pay for it, the estate needs visitors,

so it has a safari park with over 1,000 wild animals.

There are pubs, hotels and shops,

family rides

and its own miniature railway.

And in the centre of it all, the 16th century house itself,

manned by over 40 guides.

The head guide is Ruth. She has worked here for 13 years.

Off we go.

Aren't you going to be late for work?

As long as I'm there as the door opens.

See, this is where you change from being at home, grubbing about.

Soon as you see the building, you think, "Wow,"

and then you are in work mode.

What else can we think of to get that

more interesting to our visitors?

Good morning. There we are.

We are open when you are ready, if you'd like to come on through.

Having an aristocratic family still living in the house

is one of the fascinations for visitors.

I mean, a lot of overseas visitors are astounded that a person

lives in the house, and they think, "Is he royalty?"

They don't grasp... "Is it a palace?"

You then have to explain about peerage and no, it's a house

and why it was built in the first place and they are absolutely agog.

Ceawlin's father, Lord Bath,

has lived on the top floor for the last 61 years.

Ceawlin and Emma moved into the floor below a year ago.

The very obvious difference --

now, this is me speaking very personally --

is that he and Emma are very much in love and they have got

a new baby coming and I don't think this house

has seen this for a long, long time.

That is going to be the biggest difference in the house.

Emma is very glamorous, she is very beautiful, she's very young,

so she really just brings a freshness to the whole place.

I've got to get used to steering it without crashing. Whoa!

Emma has ordered herself a pram. It has just been delivered.

I honestly don't think I could have it anywhere else. It's so big!

It is a Silver Cross, the model favoured by the Royal family.

How do you make it change direction?

Whoops!

I need to get good at not banging into things before the baby comes.

Whoops!

Her housekeepers have arrived to help road test it.

It does need practice.

I'm scared it won't fit in the lift.

It's so big!

Come on in, please.

Right, let's have a go. Do you want to try?

Literally only just.

Like, not even a centimetre.

Get used to it.

Before moving to Longleat,

Emma grew up in an affluent part of Kensington, in London.

Her father was a Nigerian oil tycoon.

She was raised by her mother, Suzanna.

You must have been so delighted when Emma and Ceawlin got together.

It is a fairytale. It is extraordinary, yeah.

Who could have believed it?

I'm so happy for them. They love each other so much. Isn't it great?

Emma was 27 when she first left home.

- You were living together right until she got married. - Yeah.

Because I'm a very old-fashioned mum.

Obsessed with, you know, "Where are you? When are you coming home?"

Always looking after her.

I drove Emma to school every single day of her school life,

even to university, and back again.

- You're proud of her. - I adore her.

I'm obsessed with her.

My doctor says I'm suffering from grief, since she married Ceawlin.

Emma's new home sprawls across 9,000 acres...

.. and contains a whole village, Horningsham.

Residents include many retired Longleat staff and farmers.

It's Sunday and the morning service is about to begin.

ORGAN MUSIC PLAYS

Today, a newcomer is joining the congregation.

Oh, wow, I thought we would be first in.

They're all busy already.

Hello, I'm Bob.

Bob is Longleat's new chief executive.

- Are you Mr Montgomery? - Yes, I'm Bob. Nice to meet you.

He is a devout Christian who now lives in the village.

God, hear our prayer.

We pray for an end to vicious rivalry within

the European community.

We pray for support groups -- Rural Stress Information Network,

Farm Crisis Network and Rural Minds.

We pray for foresters, balancing long-term investment

and short-term economic return.

So we will sing hymn 106.

Bob wants to change Longleat for the better,

using Christian principles to do it.

I think I was telling you about John Maxwell, wasn't I?

John Maxwell is a priest who became a management guru.

I actually like to read it, especially when I'm at work.

And do the staff know about this book?

I'm sure they know about the Bible. Erm...

No, I don't think they know too much about the book

but I do think much of what we are doing here is, I think,

based on some aspects of Biblical leadership.

What is Ceawlin's take on your approach?

HE CHUCKLES

Well, we don't have the same life view,

but I do think we can agree on the principles.

I don't think I've got the book here.

Bob has lent Ceawlin another book, written by a monk.

So this is... Um...

This is effectively a management manual, which is something

that Bob believes very strongly in.

I must confess I haven't read it yet but I only got it the other day

so I will be reading this over the coming days and weeks. Um...

Servant leadership means those at the top try to help their staff

instead of just ordering them around.

I mean, Ceawlin is a lord. I mean, he's the lord of the manor.

Can he be a servant...

- HE LAUGHS - .. and a leader?

Yeah, he can. I can tell you a silly little thing. Um...

You know, when we walk around the grounds here,

if I walk by a piece of garbage I'll pick it up and why wouldn't I?

It's there, I should do it. I'm not above doing it.

He does that too now.

He didn't do that when I first came, but to me that's a nod to, um...

And when someone from the staff sees that, that is a big thing, right?

It says what we're trying to say.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

Bob's new ethos also applies to his staff.

- Hello! - Hello!

He wants them to help each other more instead of just

focusing on their own area.

Lee has been a mechanic

and driver on the Longleat miniature trains for two and a half years.

Bob wants him to start helping on other rides too,

when they need a mechanic.

- It's extra to your responsibilities? - Yeah, extra responsibility, yeah.

- Um... - How do you feel about that?

I didn't mind to start with,

but that was when I was under the impression I'd be getting

something back in return through my salary, obviously.

But unfortunately, that hasn't come to fruition.

From how I see things, it's been a bit of a downward slope.

Hello, there! Are you ready for a train ride?

Lee has made it clear to Bob he does not want to change his role.

I've given 100% to this job ever since I started.

But when they're not going to support me,