Why royals and the social set have a long-established love of hens tatler.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from tatler.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The Sussexes show Oprah Winfrey their chicken coop
Credit: CBS
Prince Harry and Meghan are by no means the first members of the Royal family to show an interest in our feathered friends. Archie’s Chick Inn, in which Oprah Winfrey communed with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their brood of rescue fowl, is just the latest in a long line of illustrious hen coops.
Perhaps it’s a nod to the fresh Prince of California’s own past: Prince Charles is the Royal family’s most avid chicken keeper. Indeed, Highgrove is sometimes known as Cluckingham Palace. He is known to feed the hens and collect his own eggs for his breakfast at home each morning. He also hosts hen-husbandry courses there for the Poultry Club of Great Britain and oversees their content - with an emphasis, naturally, on organic farming and the welfare of animals.
Clodagh McKenna with the table setting featuring items from her lifestyle range. Photograph by Chris Terry
Of course, Broadspear itself is idyllic. The house is set in a corner of 5,000-acre Highclere Park in Hampshire, on which sits Highclere Castle, the country seat of the Earl of Carnarvon - better known as Downton Abbey. Some weeks before we speak, Clodagh has become engaged to (The Honourable) Harry Herbert, chairman and managing director of Highclere Thoroughbred Racing and brother of the Earl.
The 45-year-old also just released her now-bestselling seventh book, Clodagh s Weeknight Kitchen, and launched an online shop stocked with everything gorgeous, from seasonal wreaths to table napkins to gift boxes.