Stately homes may be two a penny in England, but you’ll have to try pretty damn hard to find one as breathtakingly stately as Castle Howard, a work of theatrical grandeur and audacity set in the rolling Howardian Hills. This is one of the world’s most beautiful buildings, instantly recognisable from its starring role in Brideshead Revisited – which has done its popularity no end of good since the TV series first aired in the early 1980s. It took three earls’ lifetimes to build; these days, it’s still inhabited by the Howard family, but you can take tours of the house and grounds (eighteenth century walled garden, roses, delphiniums, temples, fountains and all). Castle Howard is 15 miles northeast of York, off the A64. There are several organised tours from York – check with the tourist office for up-to-date schedules.