Butler Support
There is always a butler in the Manor
About Butler Support
Butler support is the attendance of a Queen's Butler butler throughout your use of the Studio: reception, serving, assisting the shoot, keeping to schedule and opening doors. The Manor is never let unattended; a male or female butler adjusts their distance to suit your purpose.
Even on a first visit, the butler guides you from the moment you reach the door
A welcome means receiving you at the door and dissolving, one by one, any worries about your time at the Manor. The butler bows, takes your coats and belongings, and explains the rooms you will use and how the furnishings are handled. Whether for a shoot, a meeting, a dressing room or a recording, we first confirm the day's purpose and schedule.
For a party of up to six, the butler arranges where you wait and where belongings are set down until everyone has arrived. On rainy days, wet items are kept away from the furnishings, and we point out the easiest route for those carrying costumes or equipment. First-time guests in particular need not work out what to do on arrival; simply tell the butler what you need.
We have both male and female butlers. Preferences are noted when you reserve, and the butler on the day is confirmed according to availability. Beyond gender and age, tell us the mood of the work, the nature of the meeting and how your visitors should be received, and we can prepare more fittingly.
See the rooms where a butler attends
How does the butler's role change with each use?
| Occasion | What the butler does | What we ask in advance |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome | Bows at the door, takes coats and belongings, and shows you the Manor | Arrival time and numbers |
| Photography | Arranges chairs and small objects, opens doors, and supports the frame with white-gloved hands or a figure seen from behind | Composition, rooms in use, and how far the butler appears |
| Meetings | Arranges seating, serves tea, and assists with projection and doors | Seating plan, start time, and moments when the butler should withdraw |
| Dressing room | Tidies the area around the costume rail and mirror, confirms departure time, and gathers belongings | Time of departure for the venue, and number of costumes |
| Location and recording | Attends the load-in, indicates positions that protect the furnishings, and assists scene changes | Equipment, running order, and the furnishings to be filmed |
| Farewell | Checks for anything left behind and escorts you to the door or the Alphard | Departure time and belongings |
| Chauffeured pick-up | Return journeys to five locations only, included with a plan, availability confirmed at reservation. The butler drives, opens doors and handles luggage | Destination and numbers. Only a limited number of butlers can drive |
Please consult us in advance about the release and commercial use of any work in which the butler appears.
What can the butler prepare if you tell us before reserving?
Purpose and finished picture
We ask the mood of the photographs, the purpose of the meeting, or where you go from the dressing room. Even without a fixed picture, the butler can set out what to confirm from the furnishings you wish to use and anything to keep out of frame.
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Arrival and running times
Tell us the order of arrival, changing, start of the shoot, breaks and departure. The butler plans when to open doors, when to bring tea and where to stand for scene changes.
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Costumes, equipment and items brought in
Tell us about costume cases, lighting, papers, food and drink. We settle where they go and the order in which they are carried, and prepare a route that keeps clear of the floor, doors and antique furnishings.
Read moreHow does the butler move from arrival to farewell?
Receiving you on arrival
The butler bows at the door and confirms your numbers and purpose. Coats, belongings and rainwear are taken, and you are shown inside.
Aligning purpose and schedule
The butler confirms the day's order with your lead. If anything changes, we suggest arrangements that avoid moving the furnishings.
Preparing the rooms and belongings
The butler checks the positions of chairs, small objects, costumes and equipment, and settles at the outset what the butler handles and what we ask you to handle.
Supporting the shoot or meeting
Doors, serving, projection, white-gloved hands: the butler quietly carries out the roles agreed in advance.
Adjusting the distance
For confidential meetings or scenes recording sound, the butler withdraws beyond the door, staying within easy reach should you call.
Is the butler still in the Manor when I would rather not be attended?
| Ordinary photography | Waits outside the frame, approaching only when doors or objects need attention |
|---|---|
| Scenes recording sound | Withdraws to a position free of footsteps and clinking tableware, and waits for your signal |
| Confidential meetings | Waits beyond the door. The timing of tea can be settled in advance |
| Changing | After any help needed, withdraws to a position that preserves your privacy |
| Breaks | After setting out tea, glasses and plates, waits at whatever distance you prefer |
| Safety of the Manor | The butler never leaves the Manor, watching over the furnishings and doors |
What you may ask of the butler
- Reception, guidance, taking coats and belongings, opening doors
- Brewing tea, and setting out glasses and plates to suit the food and drink you bring
- Helping you into costume, and checking how the collar, hem and white gloves sit
- Arranging chairs and small objects, and assisting the shoot with white-gloved hands or a figure seen from behind
- Preparing projection, confirming the schedule, and calling breaks and departure
What we cannot accept
- Cooking or providing meals. You are welcome to bring your own food and drink
- Working as a professional photographer, hair and make-up artist, interpreter or security
- Release of the butler's face or voice without consent, or appearances beyond the agreed scope
- Moving antique furnishings in ways that risk damage, or staging with naked flames or hazardous items
- Involvement in the content of meetings, such as minutes, transcription or contractual decisions
Even the moment tea is brought is judged so as not to disturb the work or the conversation
Serving is more than setting down a drink; it is reading the flow of the room and delivering at the quietest moment. During a shoot the butler waits between shutter releases; in a meeting, for a lull in the discussion, so that the tray and white gloves never draw the eye.
We do not provide meals. You are welcome to bring your own food and drink. If you tell us in advance what you bring, we confirm what the Manor's glasses and plates can accommodate and prepare a place for it away from the furnishings. For items that spill easily or carry strong scents, we may discuss their handling in order to protect the Manor.
A Queen's Butler butler is present not to take the lead but so that your purpose proceeds naturally. Withdrawing when no word is needed; anticipating when a hand is. That distance, too, is part of the support.
The same butler supports you differently in each setting
For photography, from outside the frame
The butler adjusts the angle of chairs, the hem of a costume and the way a door opens. Compositions that call for white-gloved hands or a figure seen from behind are assisted once the release scope is confirmed.
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For meetings, keeping the door and the time
The butler shows visitors to their seats, brings tea and withdraws beyond the door if needed. Start and departure times are watched over; the discussion itself is never entered.
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On location, linking the Manor and the schedule
The butler attends from load-in to final inspection, and explains how furnishings are handled before they are touched. When moving between rooms, the butler prepares so the next scene can begin.
Read moreQCan I request a particular butler?
We note preferences such as male or female and age. Please tell us when you reserve. If availability does not allow, we propose another butler suited to your purpose.
QDoes the butler stay in the room during meetings?
We keep whatever distance you prefer. For confidential matters the butler withdraws beyond the door, returning only when tea or the door is needed. The butler always remains in the Manor.
QCan the butler appear in photographs or film?
Within the scope agreed in advance, such as white-gloved hands or a figure seen from behind, yes. Work that reveals the butler's face or voice, and commercial use, require prior consent.
QCan I hand the butler my camera?
The butler will take a keepsake photograph. We do not act as a professional photographer shooting continuously, so please engage a photographer for portfolio work.
QMay I bring drinks or light refreshments?
You are welcome to bring your own food and drink. We do not provide meals. Please tell us in advance what you bring, so we can confirm what our glasses and plates can accommodate.
QCan the butler take minutes or interpret?
We do not offer minutes, transcription or interpreting. The butler handles reception, serving, projection and timekeeping, and does not become involved in the content of the meeting.
About using The Studio
- The manor is never let unattended. A butler is present for every booking, and keys are not handed over
- You are welcome to bring your own food and drink. We do not provide meals
- Please use the antique furnishings under the butler's guidance. The armour, hall clock, porcelain and silver are handled by the butler
- Please consult us in advance about loud sound or the use of naked flames
- Prices shown include tax
You may also wish to read
Capacity and Layout
The arrangements the butler prepares for shoots, meetings and dressing rooms of up to six.
Read more
Costume Hire
The full butler's attire, and how far the butler can help you dress.
Read more
The Work of a Butler
Doors, serving, attire and the guarding of the house: the roles a butler carries.
Read more
Tell the butler what you would like done
We ask your purpose, numbers, schedule and what you bring, and settle in advance what the butler can do and the distance kept on the day.