and great-great-grandson of the house’s 19th-century chatelain tasked themselves with reviving and opening up much of the estate and its 3,500 acres of Flintshire parkland to the public visitors can clamber up Hawarden’s Norman tower whose mullion windows give out onto a bulrush-lined swimming pond and brush up on their botanical knowledge in the Victorian walled garden which hosts everything from flower arranging to dyeing workshops known as the Temple of Peace and open to West End guests by appointment Preserved almost exactly as it stood when the four-term Liberal statesman occupied Number 10 visitors will spot his gilt-spined copy of Robinson Crusoe imposing Downing Street stationery and whimsical hedgehog paperweight along with rotating displays of contemporary art (the Gladstones’ collection features works by Ai Weiwei A bedroom in Hawarden Castle’s West End wing “We want people’s reaction to be, ‘This is friendly, this is fun,’” says Charlie, who’s been known to host parties in the main house that rival Beaton’s gatherings of Bright Young Things at Ashcombe That sense of play extends to the décor in both the family’s quarters and the West End’s rambling guest accommodations: if Knights of the Garter banners and Van Dyck oils remain in situ the rooms have been brightened with Schiaparelli-pink velvet technicolour David Shrigley prints and spearmint-green paint (Caroline Now, as part of a joint venture with Welsh designer Sarah Hellen and their six children, Charlie and Caroline are funnelling their taste into Gladstone/Hellen a clothing and homeware collection that puts “provenance and beauty on equal footing” Charlie says: think willow baskets handwoven by Scottish makers on the Isle of Eigg fitted chore jackets stitched from Huddersfield flannel and staghorn-handled penknives crafted by Sheffield artisans the line is a chance to showcase the diversity of heritage crafts in Wales It’s buzzing with creativity – we just don’t always shout about it.” Gladstone/Hellen’s wares put “provenance and beauty on equal footing” a lighthouse that gives out onto Snowdonia’s peaks Llyn Tegid in Gwynedd is home to a vast glacial lake fed by the River Dee Read More On British VogueMet Gala 2025 Red Carpet Looks: See Every Celebrity Outfit and Dress Everything You Need To Know About The Met Gala 2025 Join The Vogue Newsletter For The Latest Fashion, Beauty And Street Style Trends Straight To Your Inbox The Key Spring/Summer 2025 Trends To Know Now Join British Vogue’s Met Gala Community Ahead Of Fashion’s Biggest Night. 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Kate Finnigan Simply sign up to the Style myFT Digest -- delivered directly to your inbox the stone staircase leading from the Gothic front door into the heart of Hawarden Castle – the former seat of William Ewart Gladstone four-time British prime minister – is a hubbub of excitable hounds a tremendous number of walking boots and a collection of Liverpool FC scarves knotted around a couple of serious-looking busts “Every time I go to the football I buy a new scarf,” says Charlie Gladstone “I bought an unlucky one on Saturday: Luis Díaz a new line of luxury clothing and homewares all made exclusively in Britain Flintshire © Julian BroadThe big sitting room The wall lamps are by Artimedes © Julian Broad“It’s about being relevant These estates are anachronistic,” says Charlie where a Van Dyck portrait of an ancestor presides over a mix of old family pieces and tables by the contemporary British furniture makers Pinch The estate’s panoply of interests gives Hawarden a very contrasting purpose and atmosphere to how it was when Charlie grew up there Check your internet connection or browser settings While preserving the historically important spaces including the prime minister’s world-famous private library lowering ceilings and abandoning the top floor altogether It’s very hard if you’re not both into the project as a couple.” “He used to come here a lot and we went to stay with him,” says Charlie and although he was only semi-interested in young people Living with the legacy of William Gladstone he legitimised my desire to be creative.” Caroline a diplomat’s daughter who had grown up all over the world was at that time a designer for Laura Ashley where they channelled their creativity into a mammoth renovation “A totally derelict estate in a singularly beautiful location,” says Charlie and the other was to use it as a blank canvas and look at it positively It was brutal because we were very much in debt as an estate and as a family.” Tara and Charlie Gladstone take self-portraits in the big sitting room © Julian BroadGirl by Frippy Jameson in the park © Julian BroadWhile bringing Glen Dye back to life they also produced five more baby Gladstones and founded and operated their first retail business It morphed from clothing into a successful homewares brand selling a vibrant mix of vintage and new furniture eventually with nine stores (one in Japan) including concessions in Selfridges While Charlie has had regrets about the over-expansion which eventually led to what he calls the “inauspicious end” of the 23-year-old business (it was partly sold in 2016 and now no longer operates) “Pedlars taught us a great deal about the value of our own design our own eye; just trusting our instinct about what was great product.” The balls were originally used for circus elephants © Julian BroadIt’s a talent inherited by the children who have all gone on to work in creative industries and are now bringing their experience and skills back to Hawarden and its enterprises “I think the biggest thing that we share is a fascination and obsession with art and other tactile “And while our tastes may sometimes differ the enthusiasm for discovering these things is always there.” Tara Richards-Gladstone, who previously worked for a creative agency, is currently the most heavily involved in the family business. Based part-time in Hawarden, she is the director of The Good Life Society There are 10 rental properties at Glen Dye and at Hawarden you can stay in the Beekeeper’s Hut the Gardener’s House or the recently opened West End a separate wing of the castle decorated in high Gladstone style with an eclectic abundance of art a successful chef and supper-club host with almost 70,000 followers on Instagram set up the estate’s bakery and continues to work part-time for the estate are throwing their collective branding expertise into Gladstone/Hellen you could tell this wasn’t just an impulse Everything had already been meticulously thought out There’s a genuine belief that we could make this work and you can’t ignore that sort of passion and optimism.” including an authentic Fair Isle pattern – “the oldest who is the colourist (there isn’t a colour across Hawarden or any Gladstone enterprise that she hasn’t created or chosen) Hand-blocked and hemmed silk scarves are from a maker in Kent Colourful printed scarves have “Let’s go country” emblazoned across them (£280) “You can’t get more British than that,” says Charlie The headquarters is a studio on the ground floor of the castle that will be open by appointment Its entrance is marked in flamboyant style by a pair of giant gold painted wooden scissors originally from a shop in 1920s Paris (it was found by Charlie who has a vast network of vintage and salvage dealers) the space is packed with Gladstone inspirations such as baskets of apples crates of vinyl records and axes – a family motif a Liberal who considered himself a man of the people was an avid tree-chopper; his collection of axes can be seen in the library “Thousands of people used to come out to watch him,” says Caroline “Before he took his shirt off the ladies were told to turn their heads.” The former prime minister’s reputation has suffered in recent years following the exposure of his father John’s connection to slavery in Guyana the family went to Guyana to formally apologise “We felt that William Gladstone was so famous and his father got the highest compensation for abolition,” says Charlie Portraits of Charlie and Caroline Gladstone by Florence Reekie The drawing is by David Shrigley © Julian BroadHawarden village: the Estate has recently renovated this row of stone terrace houses © Julian BroadTime now to address the future “Everything at Gladstone/Hellen is so thoughtful and I understand how rare that is,” says India trained psychologist and now in-house copywriter who has recently moved back to live on the estate with her husband and young family “It’s about embracing British tradition through incredible pieces and products We want to shout from the rooftops about how incredible the world of British manufacturing is.” The Gladstones’ next chapter begins gladstonehellen.co.uk