Hidden Treasures of the National Trust

Work is carried out to conserve a child's samurai suit from the collection at Snowshill Manor, Gloucestershire | © National Trust Images/Peter Huggins

Follow our staff, volunteers and conservators at work and get closer to the objects they care for in BBC Two's series Hidden Treasures of the National Trust.

From the incredible remoteness of the Farne Islands, a place of pilgrimage and home to thousands of puffins, to Quarry Bank Mill in Cheshire where an apprentice indenture from 1785 is painstakingly repaired – each episode explores a different theme, linking the properties, their histories and collections as they undergo conservation.

The series also introduces some of the wildlife that helps look after the places in our care – from the sheep grazing the Cerne Abbas Giant in Dorset to the heritage cattle at Kinver Edge, as well as the cutting edge techniques being used to save some of the rarest plants at Munstead Wood.

Join us behind the scenes for the fourth series, due to air from Friday 15 May at 9pm.

Find out more about the places featured in the new series below. 

Episode 1

The series opens with visits to Greenway and Max Gate, two houses with links to celebrated British authors, and follows expert teams as they bring back to life some of the objects personally connected to Agatha Christie and Thomas Hardy.

Greenway, Devon: Holiday home of the world’s most famous crime writer, Agatha Christie, Greenway inspired one of her best-loved novels, Dead Man’s Folly. Here, a beautiful Chinese silk robe that once belonged to Christie's mother needs specialist care. In the library a unique WW2 frieze is blistering and peeling. Conservators face the daunting task of trying to save it.Visit Greenway
Max Gate, Dorset: At Thomas Hardy's Max Gate, there's a curious wall-mounted sundial designed by the author himself. Rusty, flaking – and telling the wrong time – the dial's complex mechanism must be dismantled and rebuilt by conservators. In nearby ‘Hardy country’ a flock of sheep and team of volunteers battle to bring the chalk outline of the Cerne Abbas Giant back into focus.Visit Max Gate

A conservator works on a royal Sardinian chest from Attingham Park, Shropshire | © National Trust Images/Chris Davies

Episode 2

Grand Tours and royal luxury: two great country houses, Ickworth and Attingham Park, tell all about their owners' extravagant lifestyles – and a Georgian scandal.

Ickworth, Suffolk: An extraordinary circular country house built by Frederick Hervey, the 4th Earl of Bristol, Ickworth is home to a mysterious pastel and watercolour portrait of his daughter, Elizabeth Foster, and her friend, Georgiana Cavendish, who scandalised Georgian society. Paper conservators try to stabilise the image and search for clues about its origins.Visit Ickworth
Attingham Park, Shropshire: Neoclassical mansion Attingham Park is home to an important – and now fragile – collection of richly decorated furniture from the royal court of Sardinia. Several pieces are taken to our Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio for intricate restoration work. Meanwhile contractors and wildlife specialists are working to restore its historic ponds.Visit Attingham Park

Episode 3

The Farne Islands and Tŷ Mawr Wybrnant, two of our most remote locations, carry huge cultural significance but now need protecting against the elements.

Farne Islands, Northumberland: The Farne Islands are a sanctuary for hundreds of thousands of visiting seabirds every summer - watch as rangers carry out the annual puffin census. At the island's small medieval chapel, St Cuthbert's, a stained-glass window is in urgent need of attention after more than a century of exposure to the elements. But conservators discover there's more at stake.Visit the Farne Islands
Tŷ Mawr Wybrnant, Conwy: Scholar William Morgan was born in Tŷ Mawr Wybrnant in the 16th century. In 1588, he produced the first complete translation of the Bible into the Welsh language – widely regarded as an important step in saving the Welsh language. We care for one of 60 remaining copies, which needs specialist repairs before it can go on display.Visit Tŷ Mawr Wybrnant

Puffins at Farne Islands, Northumberland | © National Trust Images/Steve Sayers

Episode 4

From taxidermy specimens to samurai armour, this episode explores eccentric collectors and what inspired their passion for collecting. We also meet the team ensuring the survival of the Portland Sheep at Calke Abbey.

Snowshill Manor, Gloucestershire: Snowshill Manor in the Cotswolds is home to one of our most eclectic collections. Charles Paget Wade rescued more than 22,000 everyday objects – from bicycles and buckets, to model ships and mechanical curiosities. A child's samurai suit is to go on display at the British Museum, but must undergo conservation work first.Visit Snowshill Manor
Calke Abbey, Derbyshire: At Calke Abbey, generations of the Harpur-Crewe family amassed a huge collection of natural history specimens: shells, rocks, fossils, bird eggs and taxidermy animals. Specialist taxidermist Sarah is working to clean and stabilise several fragile birds. In the parkland, rangers are caring for a rare breed of Portland sheep whose survival was once at risk.Visit Calke Abbey

The front room inside Fletcher's Cottage at Kinver Edge and the Rock Houses, Staffordshire. A welcoming fire burns in the lead range. The interior has been recreated in the Victorian style. — The recreated front room at Fletcher's Cottage, Kinver Rock Houses, Staffordshire | © National Trust Images/Annapurna Mellor

Episode 5

Featuring Quarry Bank Mill and Kinver Edge, this episode uncovers the hidden lives of ordinary working people, and follows the teams making sure their stories are never forgotten.

Quarry Bank Mill, Cheshire: Built by Samuel Greg in 1784, Quarry Bank Mill is home to one of the last working examples of a spinning mule. The team must strip the mule into pieces and service each one to keep the great machine working. In addition, conservator Sharon carefully repairs and stabilises an apprentice indenture from 1785 belonging to 13-year-old Thomas Payne, ensuring the story of child workers is not lost.Visit Quarry Bank Mill
Kinver Edge, Staffordshire: In Staffordshire, another working-class story is being protected at Kinver Edge. Here, a row of remarkable houses carved into the sandstone hillside were family homes until the 1960s. This episode follows the installation of a salvaged historic range, while along the sandstone ridge, a team is also working to conserve its rare heathland habitat.Visit Kinver Edge

Episode 6

The final episode in the series celebrates the legacies of two great designers and their passions, theatre and gardens, as we head to Nymans and Munstead Wood.

Nymans, West Sussex: Once home to the Messel family, this half-ruined manor house is planning an exhibition to celebrate one of its most famous residents, legendary designer Oliver Messel, whose magical stage sets transformed British theatre, opera and film in the 20th century. At the centre of this will be a portrait of Oliver’s glamorous sister Anne, which must be delicately restored.Visit Nymans
Munstead Wood, Surrey: Munstead Wood was once home to Gertrude Jekyll, one of Britain's most influential garden designers. We have taken on the huge challenge of restoring the gardens using Jekyll's original plans. Our plant conservation centre uses the latest techniques to save Jekyll’s azaleas, while a very overgrown yew cat is given a trim.Visit Munstead Wood

Caring for collections

Many of the items featured in Hidden Treasures of the National Trust are conserved and restored in The Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio at Knole, Kent and the Textile Conservation Studio at Blickling, North Norfolk. The multidisciplinary teams across both studios specialise in the conservation treatment of decorative arts, including paintings, frames, furniture, ceramics and textiles.