It is the busiest time of year for the house staff and everyone has a role to play including the duke and duchess as they join the annual litter pick around the estate.

Chatsworth's award-winning farm shop is presided over by manager Andre Birkett who has worked for the family, starting in the kitchens of the house.

The 2011 season sees the third annual Chatsworth flower festival, Florabundance, and the problem of unseasonably warm spring weather making the tulips flower ahead of schedule and attacks by the estates Pheasants, Rabbits, and mice leaving floral designer Jonathan Moseley 5,000 blooms short just days ahead of the grand opening.

Another problem is the tablecloth in the grand dining room that had been over starched and was impossible to iron with the public only noticing the creases and not the magnificent table settings.

[3] Summer and Chatsworth has been undergoing a £14 million pound renovation to clean the stonework and gild the window frames and finials with gold leaf.