A FEAST of a boar's head, peacock complete with flaming beak and a salad in the design of the family coat of arms may not sound like a typical family Christmas lunch but back in Tudor days it was all part of the traditional festive atmosphere for the lords and ladies of the time, all eaten in full costume whilst musicians provided in-house entertainment.
This scene was recreated in the stately setting of Haddon Hall to bring the magic of a Tudor banqueting hall to life for a BBC2 documentary to be shown over Christmas.
A Tudor Feast at Christmas was filmed earlier this year as a follow up to the
Tales from the Green Valley and will be shown at 9pm on Friday December 22.
The original series followed three on-screen experts Ruth Goodman, Alex Langlands and Peter Ginn who spent a year working on a farm restored to how it would have been in the year 1620.
The experts were re-united for the Tudor feast and were joined by food historian Marc Meltonville from the historic kitchens of Hampton Court Palace.
Their challenge during this programme was to use their knowledge and skills to prepare a feast in the style of our ancestors during the reign of Elizabeth I.
Haddon Hall was chosen as the location for this reconstruction as one of the last remaining 12th century fortified manor houses still in a fully preserved and unspoiled condition.
The kitchen has been described as among the best in the UK.
Janet O'Sullivan, the administrator at the hall who also doubled up as one of the extras on set during filming said: "It was magical so see the house so realistically brought to life with everyone in period costume.
"The food was presented with great ceremony and the top table was presented with the boar's head and peacock with flaming beak to represent the Vernons and Manners families who used to live here.
"I'm not sure if Jamie Oliver would approve though - unlike today's healthy diet there were no vegetables, only the odd piece of carrot and lettuce to garnish, and we ate all our food with our fingers."
Alex Langlands of the BBC2 production 'Tales from the Banqueting Hall' brings some of the finished dishes to the kitchen before the feast is served at Haddon Hall.
