He was the 13th Duke of Bedford. His father was estranged from the rest of the family and John hadn’t even known he was related to the Bedfords. His grandmother was often in the papers as “The Flying Duchess” because she took up piloting a small plane in her 70s. When he saw a news story about this a maid said to him “Didn’t you know that’s your grandmother?”

His childhood was pretty awful - his father was uninterested in much besides his hobbies and was abusive when he did notice the young John. Then when he was a young-ish man, his grandfather and father died and he took possession of the family seat, Woburn Abbey. It had been neglected for years and required major work to even be fit to be livable for his family.

To make the estate pay for itself he and his wife opened it to the public in 1955. This was outrageous at the time - other owners of stately homes judged him for this, but he was successful. Later he added attractions like a safari park. It's still an attraction, though at the moment is closed for a big refurbishment project.

He’s an amusing writer and describes his family and others in a hilarious way. Just the sort of thing I like, and I recommended it to the cartoonist Mimi Pond, a Facebook friend, who’s doing a graphic novel about the Mitfords. ( )

A very interesting account not just of one's life but of one' family. Enjoyable book for those who love to read autobiographies & interested in stately homes, history & English way of life told as it is by The Duke of Bedford who managed to save his family home - Woburn Abbey despite much hardship. Very honest story.