【PChouse】We learned from press that you like to travel. What do you think travel can bring you? Among all the places that you have visited, which one do you like the best?

　　【Humphry Wakefield】I love travel because of the excitement of new ideas and new sights: the vastly different experiences between, for instance, the glories of the ice and snow bound Antarctic and the elegant perfection of classic sights of Peking. They are both totally extraordinary and most definitely all to be experienced to add to the glory and diversity of life. MY FAVOURITE PLACE you ask? That is like asking which girlfriend, child or even horse you like best! Each is so different and each brings something totally different and fresh to life. Besides one child might be sgreat to go to the opera with and the other to climb a mountain with? Wth places as with humanity, one can scan out the unacceptable or try to, if the glories are really worthwhile? I have seen such great beauty in China, both natural and manmade. There is such great beauty in so many countries throughout the world and in such profuse variety/ it is also there in the Museums in the homes and in nature.

　　【PChouse】It is said that you have participated in the explorations of Mount Qomolangma and the Antarctic, and these activities are very adventurous, so how do you like adventures? Do you think the fact that you love to take on adventures is due to the fact that you inherited the spirit of knighthood from your family? After all, your father-in-law is one of her Majesty the Queen's personal Knight. Can you briefly introduce the notion of chivalry to our Chinese readers? It is very exotic and mysterious to us.

　　【Humphry Wakefield】Yes, and my Father was Treasurer and Comptroller of Her Majesty The Queen’s Household though he was a Classical scholar, mountaineer and Member of Parliament as well as a Minister to Winston Churchill. But, to answer your question, from 600 years ago (and from before and since) Chivalry has been a “culture” of honour amongst leading families throughout the entire world, with ancient China (up till today, I am sure), of course, included. There is a universally understood ‘pact’ of ‘how one behaves’ in the fierceness of war and in the calm of home. This universal acceptance of chivalaric behaviour is an all-important bond for nations, especially in wartimes, just as is Music, Art, Sport, Learning and Science. This culture of Chivalry demands that you: A) Live life to the full, taking all honourable risks you dare to take; B) You must try to Win, but you must only win at games and war by fair methods and give honour and protection to others most especially if they obey that code. C) Disregard personal safety so far as you dare; D) Always Care for women and children. E) Love and protect beauty in nature or manmade works and have reverence for tradition and honour. (ALL OF THAT, OF COURSE, RELATES TO STATELY HOMES and their families, the protection of those Homes and their survival.) . The culture really says to live life to the full. Don’t worry about safety, but love glorious things, protect women qand children, protect the best in humanity and rise above or destroy evil. Back in the AD 900s we had a King Arthur: He had his “Knights of the Round Table.” The table was round because all people were equal (but there must have been a ‘pecking order’ all the same) These Knights were all men of total Honour and chieftains at warfare. I truly think that is why the present Stately Homes Lords are famous bird shots and polo players (as is Prince Charles and his sons), as they had to be brilliant athletes and fighters to survive those wars and battles. Those Stately Homes families are also strong in politics and industry today from many generations of practice. Those Stately Homes families do also support beauty and Craftsmanship in their Castles and Palaces and, of course, they support the great traditional STATELY HOMES themselves. I think that Chivalry has related to horsemanship, down the centuries, at least. That is partly because the survival of warfare, in old times, depended on skilled horsemanship, and also because horsemanship does not call for brute strength but for a personal relationship of calm and trust between horse and man, a trust with relates to a dimension beyond reason and certainly beyond force.

　　【PChouse】You have once rebuilt the Terra castle and have also repaired the Northumberland castle Chillingham, why are you so interested in these castle projects?

　　【Humphry Wakefield】 I love Castles as they somehow manage to carry the romance of their dramatic past history of armed action with them, along with the spirits of their powerful past owners and the beauty of these Castles’s contents and natural surrounds. These Castles have seen wars and kings, brave acts and clever feats of arms, with involvement in highest politics, power and front-line action. And these Castles have also housed music and the greatest musicians of their days, and they have furnishings and paintings of the greatest beauty in the country. Even when the Castles are partly fallen and ruined, they still have the memories and they have the potential to revive that spirit with restoration. The Castles I have revived have always been connected with my own family, so I feel the family Ghosts are enjoying recognition and life again and I feel these Spirits are working with me to help me. Certainly it looks that way if you read our Chillingham Castle Ghost stories of ‘helping hands’ in difficult or unlikely situations. With restoration it is also always wonderful to bring a ‘Sleeping Beauty’back to full life and laughter.’

　　【PChouse】I heard that you have designed the The Square Hotel suite (It was the 13 topmost suites at the PLAZA HOTEL in NEW YORK) for Mrs. Trump, how do you like interior design? What are your favourite design styles?

　　【Humphry Wakefield】I designed and furnished the 13 topmost suites for the NEW YORK PLAZA HOTEL, then owned by Mrs Trump and her family. We won many awards for these “Stately Homes” Suites of Rooms. But, it was easy for me! I designed the Suites with BAKER Stately Homes Furniture, with TIFFANY Stately Homes Crystal and silver, with MIRROR FAIR Stately Homes mirrors and Stately Homes Ceramics and even our lamps. We named each of the 13 Hotel Suites with the name of one of the great Stately Homes in the Baker Collection. When the Suites were completed, I arrange for all the Lords who owned these Stately Homes’ Castles and Palaces to have dinner at CLARIDGES HOTEL in London with, to meet Mrs. Trump to celebrate the grand opening of the PLAZA Stately Home suites.

　　【PChouse】You are an esteemed consultant of Baker’s Stately Homes Collection, could you give us a brief intro on the products? What characteristics do you think these product possess, and what values do you think these products can bring?

　　【Humphry Wakefield】 I am the consultant to the Baker Stately Homes Collections, and I select and supervise the manufacture of each piece to ensure the detail is superb. I also initiated the idea of the Stately Homes Collections and made the original arrangements with each of the the Lords, now more than 30 years ago, with Baker making the Furniture, Tiffany the crystal and silver, Mirror Fair making the mirrors as they still do, and other firms making replicas off their special areas.. I truly do believe that pieces copied from the great Stately Homes carry with them the Good Luck, the Power and Force of Achievement and Life that these great Stately Homes’ Castles and Palaces have given to their most fortunate Lords for so many centuries. That spiritual power is why those Lords survive as warriors and National Leaders century after century, the same families, right up to to this day. It is important to remember FIVE things, with BAKER Stately Homes Furniture and with any other Stately Homes product. FIRST OF ALL. ….Each piece HAS to be BEAUTIFUL or it would have been REPLACED over the last two or three hundred years by a more useful/comfortable/beautiful example. Rival pieces come on the market the whole time, and if a more suitable piece arrives on the market, then the LORDS will prefer it and replace it. BUT, this has not happened with the pieces in Baker’s great Stately Homes Furniture Collection. So all the Stately Homes pieces HAVE to be BEAUTIFUL? SECOND OF ALL….. These pieces simply HAVE to be STRONG and PRACTICAL, because if they broke down, or were impractical they would have been thrown away. These Lords are not prepared to waste time on things that do not work for them, they can afford to acquire what suits them best and so they do…….. THIRD OF ALL ,…. Stately Homes pieces HAVE to be COMFORTABLE, if they were not comfortable then a better item would have been replaced. FOURTH OF ALL: Remember that when these pieces were ordered for these famous homes, the Craftsmen made the superb best they could! Why? Because it was a wonderful chance to advertise their skill in a great and famous home, as well as a chance of earning future commissions from those who could afford to pay for the best. . Like making a piece for the President of China today? Get it right! Make it beautiful! Make it comfortable! FIFTH OF ALL … Baker Stately Home furniture lasts through the changing fashions. Stately Homes furniture is never ‘dated’ as other items which are only fashionable ‘right now.’ So, when the designer of the next decade draws up his decorations, he will reject all the previous ‘dated’ pieces from ten-year-old-designs…but he will KEEP the Stately Home product…just as they have survived those hundreds of years of changing fashions, so they survive today and through tomorrow.

　　【PChouse】Why did you choose to cooperate with Baker on this project? The Stately Homes Collection is regarded as Baker’s Collection of Treasures, what do you thinks this means to you?

　　【Humphry Wakefield】 Like the idea of recording the music of a great singer or musician, or photographing a great painting. Just like that I always wanted to replica pieces of structural or sculptural beauty, such as Furniture, Silver and Ceramics. Like a CD or a Video can spread happiness and beauty with music or paintings, so I wanted to do that with magnificent furniture. It is wonderful to hear a great singer in a great Stately Home, whether it is a Palace or a Castle. But, to have that music RECORDED? What a way to spread world happiness. So, I have RECORDED BEAUTIFUL Furniture. But, BAKER, were and are the only firm in the world to understand this concept of replica at this topmost level. And Baker had and have the multi-generational crafts force able for this task. I am given the huge privilege of supervising these craftsmen as they work to make each of the pieces I have selected to be perfect.

　　【PChouse】We noticed that the design of Stately Homes Collection has a few Chinese elements blended in, why and how did you choose these Chinese elements?

　　【Humphry Wakefield】I included Chinese elements because the Chinese have given brilliant influence to the greatest designers of Europe for many, many centuries. It was thrilling for designers, two and three hundered years back, to examine inspirational designs, lacquers and rare woods brought back by our great trading boats from distant China (my own family had five trading ships for two hundred years, just as an exciting extra to our life!) So, it is thrilling to reproduce this Chinese inspiration and re-introduce it, full circle, back to the Motherland. I would also love to replica great Chinese originals from a great Chinese palace. But, Museums are not the place to find pieces. Museums often have beautiful pieces, but they are usually the impractical cast-offs from a great home: pieces which were broken when sat on, pieces which fell apart and were replaced, or just that better pieces were found to replace it.

　　【PChouse】As an expert in antique furniture, do you have any insight about the antique furniture of the royal family of ancient China? In your opinion, what is the biggest difference between the Stately Homes Collection and the royal Chinese antique furniture? And do you possess any royal Chinese antique furniture?

　　【Humphry Wakefield】I would love to find Chinese pieces to replica. The wonderment of our British Stately Homes is that, as I have said above, however frail the piece of furniture may look, those pieces have proven themselves strong and practical (or they would have been sent off to a Museum to be ‘looked at’ rather than ‘used’). Rather than wonder what might have been, it is easier to go to the still-living Stately Homes of England and see pieces, in daily use, in the glory of their living and natural surroundings.

　　【PChouse】Besides the Stately Homes Collection, have you launched any new products for Baker? How would you continue your cooperation with Baker in the future?

　　【Humphry Wakefield】We are constantly on the lookout for ideal new product. Baker have had a change of management recently but the new management have assured me of renewed support as Stately Homes has proved that it can survive the changing fashions. But Stately Homes furnishings have survived the changing fashions for so many centuries, so it is no surprise that Stately Homes continues to survive through the changing fashions today. Many people enjoy having Baker Stately Homes furniture simply because it does NOT go out of fashion. So, when a room décor is changed for the modern look, the Stately Homes pieces can stay put, maybe in a different room. The designers of each new era love a touch of romance and also, of course, that sense of beauty combined with practicality and so the new designers include the Stately Homes pieces in their new room settings along with their latest pieces. Maybe the latest designers also sense that they, themselves, also touch the Good Luck and spiritual power that Baker Stately Homes furniture carries to its lucky new owners!