Osterley House

Osterley Park is a Georgian country estate in west London, straddling the boroughs of Ealing and Hounslow. The main house was remodelled by Robert Adam between 1761 and 1765 for the Child family. The estate includes Grade I and II listed buildings and a Grade II* park. Sir Thomas Gresham built the first manor here in the 1570s. Elizabeth I visited the original house, and its stable block remains. The National Trust has cared for Osterley since 1991. The house’s interiors by Robert Adam are among his most admired works. Horace Walpole praised the drawing room as ‘worthy of Eve before the fall’. Adam designed furniture including an opulent domed state bed still in the house. The Etruscan dressing room reflects Adam’s interest in classical vases from Sir William Hamilton’s collection. The entrance hall features large semi-circular alcoves at each end. Sarah Fane, the heiress, married John Fane, 10th Earl of Westmorland, in 1782. Visitors find the red-brick house with white stone details and corner turrets. The Ionic pedimented screen leads to a central courtyard at piano nobile level. The small formal gardens and surrounding woodland attract many walkers. A weekly 5k Parkrun takes place in the park. The house’s latest restoration repaired brickwork deterioration and discolouring. Portraits of the Child family, including Allan Ramsay’s and George Romney’s works, hang upstairs on loan.