Harewood House say their Christmas extravaganza is Bridgerton inspired.
There are certainly strong nods towards a formal Regency ball. As you enter the house, through advent door number 24, you are handed an invitation, marked ‘carriages at dawn.’ If invited to a party here, I am sure you would not want to leave until dawn, but in truth Regency Christmas decoration was minimal and did not go up until Christmas Eve. The real inspiration here is the mind of Siobhan Murphy.
At Harewood, she has worked on a massive scale. The title of her book, More is More Décor: a handbook for maximalists, sums up Murphy’s approach to design. She has clearly had great fun here, but also worked incredibly hard. The decorated rooms took over two weeks to assemble, but volunteers have been making decorations with Murphy since last June. Over 10,000 decorations have been created, from simple paper chains to human-sized shoes. The raw materials for these handcrafted pleasures have come from car boot sales and second-hand shops, a massive up-cycling effort.
In every room, the decorations are big, bold and beautiful, but each is completely different. Colour palettes and themes are in harmony with the rooms and a narrative around the hosting of a ball. Inspiration taken from house and history. The dining room décor is inspired by a feast thrown by Marie Antoinette. There are jewelled swans, flamboyant flamingoes and rotating macaron trees. The luxurious iced cakes were created with Leeds based Great British Bake Off contestant Helena Garcia.
Christmas trees abound, but each is completely different, often layered with relevant items such as books in the library, or playing cards in the games room. Over 200 second books were used in the construction of the library tree. I presume they will make their way to the second book shop in the courtyard once the display ends.
Trees as Christmas decorations were not common until the Victorian era; regency decorations were natural materials. There is a sense of wanting to bring the surrounding parkland inside. Squirrels, rabbits and birds are scampering on the floor or perched on trees and furniture. I just happened to be visiting at the same time as a member of library staff from Mexborough who told me that Murphy has redesigned their children’s library, filling it with trees, creatures and toadstools.
There is a lot for the eye to take in, but it was still possible to appreciate Harewood House and its contents. In one blue and white themed room the Harewood porcelain collection becomes part of the decoration. In the Cinnamon Drawing Room the portraits of Arthur France, founder of Leeds Carnival, and actor David Harewood, sit on either side of the fireplace. These are ‘Missing Portraits’ commissioned to highlight the absence of black faces, despite the estate’s fortune being made from plantation slave labour. I was pleased to see them lit whilst most other portraits faded into the background.
Murphy has also worked with nine miniaturist specialists to recreate a mini version of Christmas at Harewood. Among the artists are Michael Robbins, a Yorkshire-based miniaturist whose work has been exhibited internationally and featured on Channel 4’s Great Big Tiny Design Challenge, and Arabella Duffy, who is just thirteen years old. A free trail is available for children to follow, encouraging them to spot and tick off the miniatures. These tableaux invite families to slow down and observe details.
In some ways, Harewood seems more alive than when you usually visit it. The rooms are staged, interaction is not part of the visit, but Murphy has given them a sense of something happening. The dresses strewn across the bedroom are a lovely touch and provide another form of decoration. Props borrowed from Ilkley Toy Museum, ball gowns from Leeds Playhouse and the House’s own collections give a sense of inhabited space.
Digital installations specialist Tom Le Bon and BOSUN Studio have used cutting-edge projections to bring life to some of the exhibition. Watching diary entries appear in an open book in the library is particularly satisfying. In the Music Room, notes dance across the walls. Music features in several rooms with a string quartet recorded performing modern classics. The trail ends below stairs with the most sumptuous scene of all, the stripped back kitchen allowing the decorations to take centre stage. The feast on the table tempted us to make our way through the Christmas Shop and outside to the Courtyard Café. An afternoon special offer, available after 3pm, gave us Christmas spiced scones with clotted cream and tea or coffee for two for only £10. If you really want to treat yourself, you can buy a combined afternoon tea and entry ticket, which gives you access to savoury and sweet treats in the Billiard Room.
A Glittering Invitation: Harewood’s Grand Christmas Ball, runs from Saturday 8 November 2025 to Sunday 4 January 2026. It is advisable to book in advance. Whilst stand alone tickets start at £22.95 for adults and £9.95 for children, Harewood Members can visit for free and people receiving Universal Credit, Pension Credit, DLA, PIP or holding refugee status can buy tickets for £2 as part of a scheme to make Harewood House more accessible.
Tickets are available at harewood.org/christmas.
Images by Tom Arber with Harewood House Trust.
