Bagborough House (Somerset)

“Bagborough House was built in 1739 by the Popham family… The saloon has decoration in the style of William Kent which dates from the original construction. The south front which has five Ionic columns, overlooks a landscaped park.” Online reports state that the House “is still lived in by ancestors of the Pophams, Diana and Philip Brooke-Popham” who eke out the family fortune with a small number of exclusive wedding receptions. Bagborough has a long history of supporting stag hunting. Guests to those weddings get to use a building that has been “the venue for various social events including the Hunt Ball of the Devon and Somerset Staghounds”. A quick search of the internet will turn up images from 1997 of the Quantock Staghounds (QSH) meeting at Bagborough House and images from 2011 of Philip P-B serving up booze to the QSH (the QSH kennels are just down the road). Forward to the present and Bagborough House is still a meet venue for various violent stag killers. In an April 2025 HIT report, North Dorset Hunt Saboteurs wrote “The QSH embarked on another terrorising, blood spilling day on the Quantock Hills. All involved in this display of arrogance and cruelty should hang their head in shame. Also on the ‘shame list’ is Forestry England who ‘talk the talk’ but do little..Other guilty organisations are the National Trust whose policy is well, ‘nothing’ and Avon & Somerset Police who are content to allow illegal hunting to continue.” Also hanging their heads in shame should be any bride and groom who celebrate love in such a blood-soaked venue…