Behind the scenes days in 2008

Wednesday 2 July
Inside the farm shop
The Dowager Duchess of Devonshire founded the farm shop in 1977 since which it has been turned into an award winning and flourishing business, which received its latest refit and expansion in the early part of 2008. This demonstration begins with the story of the farm shop - how it has developed since its foundations; following this you will see the butchers and bakers at work and be given an insight into the farm shop's processes of selecting the best of Estate, Derbyshire and British food. Morning or afternoon sessions, including lunch.

£38 per person, to include coffee on arrival and lunch (morning session) or lunch and tea voucher (afternoon session) and free admittance to the house and/or garden on the day.

Saturday 20 September
A celebration of sculpture
Chatsworth has long been an important collection and landscape for sculpture, with work ranging from ancient Egyptian steel, dated to 2000 BC and the gallery of neo-classical sculptures, to new, site specific sculpture being commissioned for the garden by the present Duke and Duchess. Subject to planning (at the time of going to press) Chatsworth may also be hosting an outdoor selling exhibition of contemporary sculpture in the Autumn. In celebration of two new commissions being installed in the garden this year, by Allen Jones and David Nash, we present our first sculpture day, with talks and tours that take in the full range and depth of the sculptures on show at Chatsworth.

£55 per person, to include coffee on arrival, a 2 course lunch with wine, a tea voucher, and free admittance to the house and/or garden on the day.

Saturday 11 October
A half day of special in-depth behind the scenes tours, and also including an introduction to the Chatsworth Masterplan
Our current long term project to upgrade all the services in the house, improve the route through the house for visitors, and ensure the building is fit to face the next 100 years. Morning or afternoon session.

You will see the house through the eyes of a member of the Chatsworth house team. This is an opportunity to explore those sections of the house that are not publicly on show - the working parts that are integral to the maintenance and preservation of the House The tour also introduces the current house masterplan to upgrade and improve the house. The tour includes the cellars, the joiner's shop (formerly the Victorian kitchen) and the roof of the House (weather permitting).

£25 per person, to include free entry to the house and/or garden during the other part of the day.

Wednesday 22 October
20 years of textile conservation and renewal
In her last full year before retirement, our head house seamstress, Christine Thompson, explains and brings to life the textiles work that she and her department have undertaken both in the house and for specific projects for other estate properties, including estate holiday cottages, pubs and hotels. Her team's recent projects have included work on the state bed and new curtains for the state bedchamber and closet. Morning and afternoon sessions.

£25 per person, to include free entry to the house and/or garden during the other part of the day.

Saturday 1 November
The First Noel - preparing for Christmas at Chatsworth
Get a sneak preview, a week before our decorated rooms are officially unveiled, of our 2008 Christmas season, which is based on the story of The First Noel and the exquisite silhouette scenes created by Jan Pienkowski. Learn about the amazing year of work that goes into preparing the house and estate for our Christmas season.

£50 per person, to include coffee on arrival, a 2 course lunch with wine, a tea voucher, and free admittance to the house and/or garden on the day.