AGA_Stories
 

Owner: Lord and Lady Brunner
Model: White 5-oven
Vintage: c1980s
Location: Oxfordshire
Snapshot: Greys Court was the family home of Sir Felix and Lady Brunner until they gave it to the National Trust in 1969, but continued to live there as tenants. The Tudor manor, dating from the 14th century, has ornamental gardens, a maze, a 200ft well with a giant donkey wheel and a beautiful courtyard. The AGA is seated in an original Tudor fireplace, which was uncovered during renovation of the kitchen in the 1980s.
A former actress, chair of the Women’s Institute and founder of Keep Britain Tidy, Lady Brunner enjoyed cooking jam on the AGA while the house was open to the public. “She had a theatrical and liberal approach and loved to share,” says Laura, the House Steward. In Lady Brunner’s speech ‘Owner – Donor – Tenant,’ she talked about how she would avoid cooking fish or cauliflower on public open days and how she managed the day-to-day effects on her domestic life. “One thing the theatrical background gave me has been a real help. My family were trained for three generations to be 'servants of the public'.  Trained for and dedicated to the part. When I am frenziedly tidying up, doing the flowers against time, giving the AGA a last minute grooming, I am thankful to have belonged to a profession in which serving the public comes naturally.” Lady Brunner enjoyed cooking all sorts of exotic recipes and ensured that Greys Court was a home, not a museum.
Finest Hour: Playing centre stage with the charming Lady Brunner making jam in view of visitors who, on arriving in the kitchen, often commented on how nice it would be to live at Greys. 
 
 Picture by NTPL/Watson