Taking it Outside...

On 15 March the Government has announced that outdoors weddings at licensed venues in England and Wales will be legalised. This change was introduced as a temporary measure during the pandemic; the fact that it has now been made permanent has received overwhelming support from the public and the wedding industry. Gone are the days when weddings were only allowed outdoors if they took place in an outdoor structure, such as a bandstand, or even a boat. Now any approved premises can hold the entire ceremony outdoors.

For anyone who is planning an outdoors ceremony this summer, there will be a number of pros and cons.

Al Fresco Advantages

•You can choose a beautiful and picturesque venue, which will provide a memorable backdrop for your wedding pictures, and will be a talking point for your guests.

•If you’re on a tight budget, you can allow Mother Nature to carry the brunt of the costs. A stunning setting, well-stocked flowerbeds, stately trees, or views of open countryside or coastline will all mean that you need minimal decoration.

•Numbers will be much more flexible – the great outdoors will mean that you are not subjected to irksome restrictions, except on the grounds of costs.

•Outdoors weddings are excellent for children and families. Kids can play freely without interfering too much with the adult proceedings (even avoiding the ceremony itself, as long as they’re supervised), meaning that your guests will be much more relaxed. Guests might even be able to bring their dogs.

•Logistics are minimised by holding the ceremony and reception in the same place. Once guests have arrived for the ceremony they’ll be there for the long haul, and you won’t have to organise complex transport arrangements.

Al Fresco Disadvantages

•Weather is obviously the primary consideration. The main risk is rain, and you will have to make provision for this in all your planning (see below). You should also be aware that your wedding day might be unseasonably cool, and guests might not have come fully provisioned with coats, wraps etc.

•Wind can be a real pest, especially during the ceremony. No bride wants her carefully styled hair or wedding outfit to be blown into disarray by a sudden gust of wind, and the celebrant will be irritated if the wedding register goes flying. You will need to think about windbreaks and protective shelters for the wedding party.

•At a large outdoors venue you will run the risk of the wedding party becoming dispersed and non-focused. You will need to work hard to create dedicated spaces (for sitting, chatting, eating, listening to music or speeches), otherwise you will spend most of your day marshalling the disorientated crowds.

•If your dream wedding is a super sophisticated occasion, where everyone looks sleek and well-groomed and the table settings are impeccable, think carefully about an outdoors venue. You will have to accept that the weather is completely outside your control, and can easily wreak havoc, and therefore outdoors weddings are better suited to couples who prefer a more relaxed, bucolic and improvisational mood.

Considerations

•You will need to investigate the world of marquees, pagodas, pavilions and gazebos to ensure that there is always shelter provided for guests and the wedding party. When planning an outdoors wedding, flexibility is key. If it is a beautiful sunny day your guests won’t want to be cooped up in a marquee for the wedding ceremony, although they might appreciate it during a sit-down lunch, or in the late afternoon and evening, when the weather cools down. It is best to plan two or three different scenarios, which you can review and adapt 48 hours before the wedding, when weather forecasts are accurate and you know what to expect.

•Even if the weather is clement, consider some sort of open-sided structure for the wedding party and the celebrant during the actual ceremony. You might be lucky enough to find a venue that offers a permanent structure, such as a bandstand or pergola. If not, investigate open-sided gazebos, which will protect the main players from the rain, wind and sun, and can be decorated with draped fabrics to make a stunning visual focus.

•With the wedding taking place outside, you will need to create an eye-catching ceremonial space for the main event. Try and choose a sheltered spot with a beautiful backdrop. Use a decorated gazebo as the main focal point, arrange the guests’ chairs accordingly, ensuring all eyes are drawn to centre-stage. You might want to create an ‘aisle’ for the bride’s entrance; you can use a carpet, or you can demarcate the walkway with plant stands or light fixtures. Try and choose a complementary theme for your gazebo and chairs – drape them in matching fabric, or use coordinated flower arrangements. The main aim is to create a special space, which is an appropriate stage for the ritual that will take place there.

•It might be wise to consider dotting temporary gazebos around your venue. They will serve as useful spots where guests can retreat to escape boiling sun or driving rain, or just provide a quiet space where they can sit down away from the social maelstrom – this is particularly useful for older guests.

•Use a profusion of inexpensive fairy lights and solar lights to transform your daytime outdoors venue into a magical night-time venue. Ensure that paths leading to the main facilities (bars, toilets, the marquee) are well-lit.

•Think about providing cosy sheepskins or woollen blankets to guests who are shivering as the night draws in. Being able to wrap up warm will ensure that the reception does not falter because of the drop in temperature.

•Tell guests what to expect. You should send out an information sheet with your wedding invitations. As well as the usual advice – directions, parking facilities, local hotels and so on – try and give your guests as much guidance about your open air venue as possible. Explain exactly where/what it is (you don’t want people turning up expecting a secluded and sheltered garden and finding themselves on a windblown cliff top). If you think that your venue requires them to wear special clothes or footwear, just say – stiletto-wearing guests, for example, would be understandably annoyed if they found they had to navigate a rocky and precipitous path to get to the ceremony venue. Explain that you will have facilities in case of inclement weather. You can even tell them to bring warm clothing so that they’re comfortable when night falls. Forewarned is forearmed and guests will appreciate the lowdown.

What are life peers?

There are currently over 650 life peers eligible to vote in the House of Lords, the majority of which are Conservative; the current Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has the record for the creation of the highest number, which is averaging 41 life peerages per year.

Life peers are members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, unlike hereditary peerages. Life peerages are available to both males and females, unlike hereditary peerages, which are predominantly male. Life peers are always created at the rank of baron or baroness. Although their children cannot inherit the title, they are allowed to use the honorific ‘Hon’.

The History of Life Peerages

The creation of life peerages is not simply a 20th-century phenomenon. The source of peerages is the Crown, as the fount of honour. A number of life peerages were granted in the Middle Ages and later in the 17th and 18th centuries, generally as an expression of familial loyalty, affection or romantic attachment on the part of the monarch – Henry V, for example, was well known for giving life peerages to some of his relations. Following the Restoration, a number of life peerage were granted by various monarchs to their mistresses and illegitimate children, for example Catherine Sedley was created Countess of Dorchester by James II in 1686, and Madame Wallmoden was created Countess of Yarmouth by George II in 1740. As the recipients of these titles were all women, none of the grants of peerages involved taking a seat in Parliament, and in some circles doubt as to the validity of these peerages was voiced.

This question came to a head in 1856, when Sir James Parke (1782–1868) was created Baron Wensleydale, of Wensleydale, in the North Riding of Yorkshire, for life, as he was a barrister and judge and it was felt that his skills were required in order to help the House fulfil its duties. His appointment was by Letters Patent issued by Queen Victoria. However, another peer raised the question of his validity, as a life peer, to sit in the House as no such person had done so for over 400 years. There followed a long debate as to whether the Monarch’s power to create life peers in this way had lapsed or was legal, given the changes put in place, both to Parliament and the monarchy, during and after the Interregnum (the period between the execution of Charles I in 1649 and the Restoration of his son Charles II in 1660, when England was under republican government). Eventually, it was decided that the monarch could not change the “constitutional character of Parliament alone”. So that his appointment could go ahead, Baron Wensleydale was recreated a hereditary peer later that same year as Baron Wensleydale, of Walton, in the county Palatine of Lancaster.

In 1869 Earl Russell introduced a life peerages bill. It made provision for 28 life peerages to be in existence at any one time, with no more than four being created in a single year. The idea was that life peers would be drawn from the professional ranks of the civil service, the armed forces and academia. The House of Lords rejected the bill on its third reading. In 1887 the Appellate Jurisdiction Act allowed senior judges to sit in the House of Lords, as Lords of Appeal in Ordinary. They were allowed to retain their seats for life, even after their retirement. This pragmatic solution, which addressed the issues raised in the Wensleydale case, ensured that individuals with legal expertise played a full part in the deliberations of the House of Lords.

The Modernisation of the House of Lords

The Life Peerages Act of 1958 (or “An Act to make provision for the creation of life peerages carrying the right to sit and vote in the House of Lords”) established the standards for the creation of life peers. For the first time, the Act enabled life peerages, which entitled the holders to a seat and vote in the House of Lords, to be granted for other than judicial purposes, and to both men and women. On 24 July 1958, the first 14 life peers were announced in the London Gazette. The list included ten men and four women. Hugh Gaitskell, the Leader of the Opposition, nominated six people for a life peerage, six of the ten men nominated were former MPs, and one of the four women was a hereditary peeress in her own right. The first female peer to receive her letters patent was Baroness Wootton of Abinger, created on 8 August 1958, who was also the first woman to chair proceedings in the House of Lords, as Deputy Speaker. The Act gave the Prime Minister power to change the political composition of the House of Lords, gradually diminishing the power of hereditary titleholders.

Lords Reform 1999

The House of Lords Act of 1999 radically reformed the upper chamber by removing the right of hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords, stating that “no-one shall be member of the House of Lords by virtue of a hereditary peerage”. However, the act did create a temporary compromise, whereby 92 hereditary peers were allowed to remain in the House of Lords for an interim period, while another ten were created life peers in order to allow them to remain. The 1999 Act decreased membership of the House of Lords from 1,330 to 669 by March 2000.

For the first time the Act gave hereditary peers the right to stand for election to the House of Commons, from which they had previously been disqualified. The first hereditary peer to gain a seat in the House of Commons was the Liberal Democrat John Thurso, a viscount.

Life peers are created by Letters Patent on the advice of the Prime Minister. Anyone is eligible to be selected providing they are aged at least 21, have no convictions and are a UK citizen or a member of the Commonwealth; they must also be resident in the UK for tax purposes. They receive no salary but can claim an allowance for travel and accommodation for each day they sign into the House, even if they do not take part in business; the allowance is currently £305 per day.

New life peerages are usually announced in the following lists: New Year’s Honours, Queen's Birthday Honours, Dissolution Honours and Resignation Honours.

Cash for Honours

Image: Sir Brooke Boothby, 6^th Baronet, by Joseph Wright of Derby, 1781

The monarch is known as the ‘fount of honour’ and the creation of hereditary titles is a royal prerogative. Historically, the peerage was formed of a tightly knit group of powerful nobles, whose titles, lands and rights had been bestowed upon them by the monarch in exchange for an oath of loyalty. In time, the ranks of the aristocracy were swollen by lesser branches of old families, and from the gentry and knightly classes.

It was the first Stuart monarch, James I, who made the connection between title and payment explicit. He instituted the hereditary order of baronets in England by letters patent on 22 May 1611. The primary reason for raising funds by selling baronetcies was for financing the settlement of Ireland. He offered the dignity to 200 gentlemen of good birth, with a clear estate of £1,000 a year, on condition that each should pay into the king's exchequer in three equal instalments a sum equivalent to three years' pay to thirty soldiers at 8d per day per man.

Sir Thomas Gerard (1560–1621), for example, was created Baronet in 1611. He had paid the expected £1,000 for the dignity, but it was returned to him in consideration of the sufferings of his father in the cause of Mary Queen of Scots. In the words of James I: ‘I am particularly bound to love your blood on account of the persecution you have borne for me’. As well as a baronetcy, the king also gave his loyal subject an interest in the tobacco pipe monopoly.

Subsequent monarchs also continued to sell baronetcies, and it was considered an acceptable way of raising revenue. It was not until the 20th century and the scandal surrounding Lloyd George’s brazen exploitation of the honours system that this practice became newsworthy.

The Liberal politician David Lloyd George was well known for his searing criticisms of the House of Lords and its members. He famously remarked that “A fully-equipped duke costs as much to keep up as two dreadnoughts. They are just as great a terror and they last longer.” He became prime minister in 1916, when he headed a coalition that relied heavily on the support of the Conservative Party.

The Liberal Party was in need of money, and Lloyd George found the perfect solution. In six short years, a staggering 1,500 knighthoods were created, and 91 peerage titles were bestowed, twice the figure for the previous 20 years. Lloyd George was unapologetic about the practice of selling titles: a published tariff listed 10,000 for a knighthood, 30,000 for a baronetcy and 50,000 plus for a peerage.

The Order of the British Empire (OBE) was instituted and was targeted at ambitious individuals who could not afford a full title. The honour was awarded to 25,000 people over a four-year period, and became so devalued that it was known as the ‘Order of the Bad Egg’.

Lloyd George’s masterstroke was to award an array of peerage titles to Fleet Street’s press barons – unusually, these were freely bestowed and no cash exchanged hands. In this way it was ensured that the press, with its self-interested and newly ennobled owners, would not hold the Government to account.

Many of the new title-holders were industrialists and self-made businessmen, moving the peerage away from old money and the landowning classes. The cash grab mentality inevitably meant that, since money was the main criterion for the award of titles and honours, an egregious array of criminals, tax evaders and fraudsters were also able to buy status and respectability. King George V was appalled, remarking that the award of an honour to John Robinson, a convicted fraudster, “must be regarded as little less than an insult to the Crown and to the House of Lords.” Even Fleet Street turned on its erstwhile benefactor.

Lloyd George was forced to agree to a parliamentary debate on the cash for honours scandal on 17 July 1922. He somewhat disingenuously described the selling of honours as a “discreditable system. It ought never to have existed. If it does exist, it ought to be terminated”. In time-honoured fashion, he pleaded the financial exigencies of the Great War.

A Royal Commission was announced, which published its report in November 1922. As a result the Political Honours Scrutiny Committee was established to vet potential candidates for honours, and the Honours (Preventions of Abuses) Act 1925 made it an offence to accept a monetary award in exchange for an honour.

Yet scandals continue to beset the British Honours system and it is widely accepted that ‘donations’ to a political party may, entirely coincidentally of course, be accompanied down the line by the granting of a title or honour. As recent events have highlighted, these benefits are also granted to non-British citizens with deep pockets.

Surname Pronunciation

We have long been transfixed by the peculiarities of pronunciation of British surnames. If you have been puzzled by names such as Cholmondeley (‘Chum-ley’) or Londesborough (‘Londs-bro’) or Manwairing (‘Manner-ing’), you will find our list of surname pronunciations (below) fascinating.

The simplest explanation is that the pronunciation of words shortens over time – it is simply easier to downgrade the vowels in unstressed syllables and elide them rather than clearly enunciating every syllable in the word. In fact, English-speakers are quite prone to skipping syllables altogether in words like ‘family’ or ‘corporate’, which are frequently pronounced with two syllables, rather than three.

Many English surname spellings have been fixed at a certain point in their history; their spelling is etymological, rather than phonetic. Pronunciation is dynamic, changing radically over time, while spelling preserves forms of words that are no longer reflected in current speech. The word (and surname) ‘knight’, for example, would have originally been pronounced ‘k-nicht’.

Other names have preserved idiosyncratic pronunciation of vowels, which reflects historic speech patterns rather than contemporary speech. We hear the ghostly voices of our ancestors in the following: Raleigh (‘Raw-li’), Ponsonby (‘Punsunby’), Malpas (‘Mawl-pas’), Hotham ‘(Huth-am’).

Whatever the reasons, English surname pronunciation is a maze of unexpected, and surprising, anomalies. It goes without saying that it is good manners, and a mark of respect, to attempt to get names right. Confidently fixing on an incorrect pronunciation looks careless; if you are in any doubt about a name, it is always a good idea to be explicit about your uncertainty, and ask the person if you are pronouncing it correctly. This shows a laudable, and respectful, desire to get it right.

Alternatively, you could do your research beforehand, by referring to our comprehensive list (below):

Surname	Pronunciation
Abercrombie	Aber-crum-by
Abergavenny	Aber-genny (title - town pronounced as spelt)
Abinger	Abin-jer
Acheson	Atchesson
Adye	Aydi
Aldous	All-dus
Alleyne	Alleen (sometimes pronounced as spelt)
Alnwick	Annick
Althorp	All-thorp (since 2000, previously All-trup)
Altrincham	Altringham
Alvingham	All-ving-am
Alman	Amman
Ampthill	Ampt-hill
Annesley	Anns-li
Apethorpe	App-thorp
Arbuthnot, Arbuthnott	A-buth-not
Ardee	A-dee
Arundel	Arun-del
Ashburnham	Ash-burn-am
Assheton	Ash-ton
Atholl	Uh-thol or Ah-thol
Auchinleck	Affleck or Ock-inleck
Audley	Awd-li
Ava	Ah-va
Ayscough	Askew
Babington	Babb-ington
Baden-Powell	Bayden-Poell
Bagot	Bag-ot
Balcarres	Bal-carris
Balogh	Balog (‘Bal’ as in ‘Hal’)
Bampfylde	Bam-fielda
Baring	Bear-ing
Barnardiston	Bar-nar-dis-ton
Barttelot	Bartlot
Basing	Bayzing
Bathurst	Bath-urst (‘a’ as in ‘cat’)
Bazalgette	Bazl-jet
Beauchamp	Beecham
Beauclerk	Bo-clare
Beaudesert	Bodezair
Beaufort	Bo-foot
Beaulieu	Bew-ley
Beaumont	Bo-mont
Becher	Beacher
Bechervaise	Besh-er-vayse
Bedingfeld	Beddingfield
Behrens	Barens
Belfast	Bel-fast
Bellew	Bell-ew
Bellingham	Bellingjam or Bellingum
Belvoir	Beevor
Bengough	Ben-goff
Beresford	Berris-fud
Berkeley	Barkli
Bertie	Barti
Betham	Bee-tham
Bethune	Beaton
Bicester	Bister
Blakiston	Blackiston
Bledisloe	Bledslow
Blenheim	Blen-im
Bligh	Bly
Blithfield	Bliffield
Blois	Bloyss
Blomefield	Bloomfield
Blount	Blunt
Blyth	Bly
Boevey	Boovey or Buvey (short ‘u’)
Boleyn	Bull-in
Bolingbroke	Bulling-brook
Boord	Board
Boreel	Borale
Borrowes	Burrows
Borwick	Borrick
Bosham	Bos-am
Bosanquet	Bozen-ket
Boscawen	Bos-cowen
Botetourt	Botti-tort
Boughey	Boey
Boughton	Bought-on (village pronounced ‘Bough-ton’)
Bourchier	Bough-cher
Bourke	Burke
Bourne	Boorn
Bowden	Bowden (as in ‘no’)
Bowes	Bose (to rhyme with ‘rose’)
Bowman	Boman
Bowyer	Bo-yer (as in ‘no’)
Brabazon	Brab-azon
Brabourne	Bray-burn
Breadalbane	Bread-auburn
Breitmeyer	Bright-mire
Brereton	Breer-ton
Brise	Brize
Brocas	Brockas
Broke	Brook (HMS Broke as spelt)
Bromhead	Brumhead
Brougham	Broom or Brooham
Broughton	Brawton
Broun	Brune
Bruntisfield	Bruntsfield
Brynkir	Brinkeer
Buccleuch	Bu-cloo
Bulkeley	Buckley
Burgh	Borough
Burghersh	Burg-ish
Burghley	Ber-li
Bury	Berry (England), Bure-y (Ireland)
Caccia	Catch-a
Cadogan	Ka-dugan
Caius	Keys (Cambridge college)
Caldecote	Call-di-cot
Calderon	Call-dron
Callaghan	Calla-han
Calver	Carver
Calverley	Car-verly or Calf-ley
Camoys	Cam-oyz
Capell	Cayple
Carew	As spelt (Cary has become archaic)
Calthorpe	Call-thorpe (Cal-trop has become archaic)
Carnegie	Car-neggie
Carteret	Carter-et
Cassilis	Cassels
Castlereagh	Castle-ray
Carthcart	Cath-cart
Cathie	Cay-thie
Cato	Kate-o
Cator	Cay-tor
Caulfield	Caw-field
Cavan	Cav-en (‘a’ as in ‘cat’)
Cavanagh	Cava-na
Cecil	Cicil
Chandos	Shandos
Charlemont	Shar-le-mont
Charteris	As spelt (Charters is archaic)
Chattan	Hattan
Chenevix	Sheenivix or Shennevy
Chernocke	Char-nock
Chetwode	Chetwood
Chetwynd	Chetwind
Cheylesmore	Chyles-more
Cheyne	Chain, Chainy or Cheen
Chichele	Chich-ley
Chisholm	Chis-um
Cholmeley, Cholmondeley	Chum-li
Cilcennin	Kil-kennin
Claverhouse	Clayvers
Clerk	Clark
Cloete	Clootie
Clough	Cluff
Clowes	Clues
Clwyd	Cloo-id
Cochrane	Coch-ran
Cockburn	Co-burn
Coghlan	Co-lan
Coke	Cook (sometimes as spelt)
Coleraine	Cole-rain
Colquhoun	Ca-hoon
Colville	Col-ville or Col-ville
Combe	Coom
Combermere	Cumber-mere
Compton	Cumpton
Conesford	Connis-ford
Conolly	Con-olly
Constable	Cunstable
Conyngham, Conynghame	Cunningham
Cosham	As spelt
Cottenham	Cot-nam
Cottesloe	Cots-low
Couchman	Cowchman
Courthope	Cort-hope
Cowper	Cooper
Cozens	Cuzzens
Cracroft	Cray-croft
Craigavon	Craig-avv-on
Craster	Crarster
Creagh	Cray
Creighton	Cryton
Crespigny	Crepp-ni
Crichton	Cryton
Cromartie	Crum-aty
Crombie	Crumbie
Culme	Cullum (Sometimes as spelt)
Cuming	Cumming
Cunynghame	Cunningham
D’Abrell	Dab-roo
Dacre	Dayker
Dalbiac	Dawl-biac
Dalhousie	Dal-howsi
Dalmeny	Dul-menny
Dalyell	Dee-el or Dayli-el
Dalzell	Dee-el or Dayli-el
Darcy de Knayth	Darcy de Nayth
Daresbury	Darsbury
Daubeney	Daub-ny
Daventry	As spelt (‘Daintry’ is archaic)
Davies	Davis
De Blacquiere	De Black-yer
De Burgh	De Burg
Decies	Deeshies
De Courcy	De Koursey
De Crespigny	De Crepp-ni
De Freyne	De Frain
De Hoghton	De Hawton
De la Warr	Della-ware
Delamere	Della-mare
De la Poer	De la Poor
De la Rue	Della-rue
De L’Isle	De Lyle
De Lotbiniere	De Lobin-yare
De Moleyns	Demo-lins
Dering	Deer-ing
De Ros	De Roos
Derwent	Darwent
De Salis	De Saals or De Sal-is
Devereux	Dev-rooks or Dever-oo
De Vesci	De Vessy
De Villiers	De Villers
Diomede	Di-o-meed
Dilhorne	Dill’n
Dominguez	Dum-ing-ez
Doneraile	Dunnaral
Donoughmore	Duno-more
Doune	Doun
Douro	Dur-o
Drogheda	Droyi-da
Drumalbyn	Drum-albin
Duchesnes	Du Karn(s) (sometimes French ‘Du-shayn’)
Ducie	Dew-si
Du Cros	Du Crow
Dukinfield	Duckin-field
Dumaresq	Du-merrick
Dunally	Dun-alley
Dundas	Dun-das
Dungarvan	Dun-gar-van
Dunglass	Dun-glass
Dunsany	Dun-saney
Duntze	Dunts
Du Plat	Du-Pla
Dupplin	Dupp-lin
Durand	Du-rand or Dur-rand
Dymoke	Dimmock
Dynevor	Dinny-yer
Dysart	Dy-z’t
Ebury	Ee-bri
Echlin	Eck-lin
Edwardes	Edwards
Egan	Ee-gan
Egerton	Edger-ton
Elcho	Elco
Elgin	El-gin (hard ‘g’)
Elibank	Elli-bank
Elphinstone	Elfin-ston
Elveden	Elve-den (Place ‘Elden’)
Elwes	El-wes
Erle	Earl
Ernle	Earnley
Erskine	Ers-kin
Eveleigh	Eve-ley
Eyre	Air
Every	As spelt
Eyton	I-tun
Falconer	Fawkner
Falkiner	Fawkner
Faringdon	Farringdon
Farquhar	Farkwar (Farker in Scotland)
Farquharson	Farkwerson (Farkerson in Scotland)
Fayrer	Fair-er
Featherstonhaugh	Fetherston-haugh or Fetherston
Feilding	Field-ing
Fenwick	Fenn-ick
Fergussen	Ferguson
Fermor	Farmer
Feversham	Fevver-sham (Place ‘Favversham’)
ffolliott	Foll-y-ot
ffolkes	Foaks
Fiennes	Fines
Fingall	Fin-gawl
Fitzhardinge	Fitzharding
Foljambe	Full-jum
Forestier	Forest-tier
Fortuin	Fortayne
Foulis	Fowls
Fowke	Foke
Fremantle	Free-mantle
Freyburg	Fry-burg
Froude	Frood
Furneaux	Fur-no
Gairdner	Gardner
Galston	Gaul-ston
Galway	Gaulway
Garioch	Gary (to rhyme with ‘Mary’ or Geary)
Garvagh	Gar-va
Gathorne	Gaythorn
Geoghegan	Gay-gan
Gerrard	Jerrard
Gervis	Jervis
Giffard	Jiffard
Gill	As spelt (hard ‘g’)
Gillespie	Gill-es-py (hard ‘g’)
Gilmour	Gillmoor (hard ‘g’)
Glamis	Glahms
Glasgow	Glass-go
Glenavy	Glen-avy (as in ‘day’)
Glerawly	Gler-awly
Gorges	Gorjes
Gormanstown	Gor-mans-ton
Goschen	Go-shen
Gough	Goff
Goulding	Goolding
Gower	Gore (place names as spelt)
Graeme	Grame (to rhyme with ‘frame’)
Grantham	Gran-tham
Greaves	Graves
Greig	Gregg
Grosvenor	Grove-nor
Guise	Gyze
Gwynedd	Gwinn-eth
Haden-Guest	Hayden-Gest (hard ‘g’)
Haldane	Hall-dane
Halsey	Hall-sey
Halsbury	Halls-bry
Hamond	Hammond
Harcourt	Har-cut
Hardinge	Harding
Harewood	Har-wood (village pronounced Hare-wood)
Harington	Harrington
Harwich	Harrich
Hawarden	Hay-warden
Haworth	Hay-worth (Harden for title is archaic)
Heathcoat	Heth-cut
Heathcote	Heth-cut
Heneage	Hennidge
Hepburn	Heb-b’n
Herschell	Her-shell
Hertford	Har-ford
Hervey	Harvey
Hever	Heaver
Heytesbury	Hetts-b’ry
Heywood	Haywood
Hindlip	Hynd-lip
Hippesley	Hips-ley
Hobart	Hubbard (city as spelt)
Hogan	Ho-gan
Holbech	Hole-beech
Home	Hume
Honywood	Honeywood
Hopetoun	Hopetown
Horsbrugh	Horsbro
Hotham	Huth-am
Housman	House-man
Howick	Hoyk
Hugessen	Hu-ges-son (hard ‘g’)
Huth	Hooth
Hylton	Hilton
Iddesleigh	Idd-sli
Ikerrin	I-kerrin
Iliffe	I-liffe
Inchiquin	Inch-quin
Inchrye	Inch-rye
Inchyra	Inch-eye-ra
Inge	Ing
Ingestre	Ingustry (like ‘industry’)
Inglis	Ingles or as spelt
Inigo	Inni-go
Innes	Inniss
Inveraray	Inver-air-a
Ionides	Ion-ee-diz
Isham	I-sham
Iveagh	I-va
Jervis	As spelt or Jarvis
Jervoise	Jervis
Jocelyn	Josslin
Jolliffe	Joll-iff
Kaberry	Kay-berry
Kavenagh	Kavan-a
Kekewich	Keck-which
Keighley	Keith-li
Kemeys	Kemmis
Kennard	Ken-ard
Kenyon	Ken-yon
Ker, Kerr	Car or Cur
Keynes	Kaynes
Killanin	Kil-lah-nin
Kilmorey	Kil-murray
Kingsale	King-sale
Kinnoull	Kin-ool
Kirkcudbright	Cuck-coo-bri
Knollys	Nowles
Kylsant	Kill-sant
Knyvett	Nivett
Lacon	Lay-kon
Laffan	Laf-fan
Lamplugh	Lamp-loo
Lascelles	Lass-ells
Lathom	Lay-thom
LaTouche	La Toosh
Latymer	Latimer
Laurie	Lorry
Layard	Laird
Leacock	Laycock or Leccock
Lechmere	Letchmere
Le Fanu	Leff-new
Lefevre	Le-fever
Legard	Le-jard
Legh	Lee
Leighton	Layton
Leinster	Linster
Leitrim	Leetrim
Le Mesurier	Le Mezz-erer
Leominster	Lemster
Leven	Lee-ven
Leverhulme	Leaver-hume
Leveson-Gower	Loosun-Gore
Levinge	As spelt (hard ‘g’)
Levy	Levvy or Levi
Ley	Lay or Lee
Leycester	Lester
Liardet	Lee-ardet
Liddell	Lid-el
Lisle	Lyle
Listowel	Lis-toe-ell
Lombe	Loam (sometimes Lumb)
Londesborough	Londs-bro’
Londonderry	Londond’ry (city pronounced London-Derry)
Loudon	Loud-on
Loughborough	Luff-bro
Louth	‘th’ as in ‘mouth’ (Ireland ‘th’ as in ‘breathe’)
Lovat	Luv-at
Lowson	Lo-son (‘lo’ as in ‘go’)
Lowther	Low-thr (‘low’ as in ‘now’)
Lycett	Lisset
Lygon	Liggon
Lyon	Lion
Lysaght	Ly-set
Lyveden	Live-den (as in ‘give’)
Macara	Mac-ara
Macbean	Mac-bain
McCorquodale	M’cork-o-dale
McCulloch	M’cull-och
McDonagh	Mac-Donna
McEvoy	Mac-evoy
McEwan	Mac-ewen
McFadzean	Mac-fadd-yen
McGillycuddy	Mac-li-cuddy
Machell	May-chell
McIvor	Mac-Ivor
McKay	M’Kye (as in ‘eye’)
McKie	Mack-ie (occasionally pronounced M’Kye)
Maclean	Mac-layne
Macleay	Mac-lay
Macleod	Mac-loud
McLachlan	Mac-lochlan
Macnaghten	Mac-nawton
Macmahon	Mac-mahn
Maelor	Myla
Magdala	Mag-dahla
Magdalen, Magdalene	Maudlin
Magrath	Ma-grah
Mahon	Mahn or Ma-han
Mahony	Mah-ni
Mainwaring	Manner-ing
Mais	Mayz
Majendic	Ma-jendy
Makgill	Mc-gill (hard ‘g’)
Malpas	Mawl-pas
Malet	Mallet
Malmsbury	Marms-bri
Mandeville	Mande-ville (first ‘e’ slightly inflected)
Mander	Mahnder
Mansergh	Manser
Margesson	Mar-jesson
Marjoribanks	Marchbanks
Marlborough	Maul-bro
Marquand	Mark-wand
Martineau	Martinowe
Masham	Mass-ham
Masserene	Mazereen
Mathias	Math-ias
Maughan	Mawm
Mauchline	Mauch (as in ‘loch’)-lynn
Maunsell	Man-sel
Maxse	Maxie
Meath	Meeth (‘th’ as in ‘breathe’)
Meiklejohn	Mickel-john
Melhuish	Mell-ish
Menteth	Men-teeth
Menzies	Ming-iz
Merioneth	Merry-on-eth
Mereworth	Merry-worth
Metcalfe	Met-calf
Methuen	Meth-wen
Meux	Mews
Meynell	Men-el
Meyrick	Merr-ick
Mitchelham	Mitch-lam
Michie	Micky
Midleton	Middle-ton
Millais	Mill-ay
Mocatta	Mow-catta
Molyneux	Mully-neux or Mully-nu
Monaco	Mon-aco
Monck	Munk
Monckton	Munkton
Monro	Mun-roe
Monson	Mun-sun
Montagu	Mon-tagu
Montgomery, Montgomerie	Mun-gum-eri
Monzie	M’nee
Moran	Moor-an
Moray	Murray
Mordaunt	Mor-dant
Mosicy	Mozeley
Mostyn	Moss-tin
Mottistone	Mottiston
Moulton	Mole-ton
Mountmorres	Mount-morris
Mowbray	Mo-bray
Mowll	Mole
Moynihan	Moy-ni-han
Munro	Mun-roe
Myddelton	Middle-ton
Mytton	Mitton
Naas	Nace
Naesmyth	Nay-smith
Nall	Nawl
Napier	Nay-pier
Nathan	Naythan
Nepean	Ne-peen
Newburgh	New-bro’
Niven	Nivven
Northcote	North-cut
Nunburnholme	Nun-burnham
Ochterlony	Ochter-lony
Offaly	Off-aly
Ogilvie, Ogilvy	Ogle-vi
O’Hagan	O’Hay-gan
Olivier	O-livier
O’Loghlen	O’Loch-len
Ormonde	Or-mund
O’Rourke	O’Rork
Outram	Oot-ram
Pakington	Packington
Paget	Paj-it
Pakenham	Pack-en’um
Pasley	Pais-li
Paton	Payton
Paulet	Paul-et
Paunceforte, Pauncefote	Pawns-fort
Pechell	Peach-ell
Pennefather	Penn-ifither or Penny-feather
Pennycuick	Penny-cook
Pepys	Peppis (Peeps has become archaic, except for the diarist and the Pepys Cockerell family)
Perceval	Percival
Pery	Pairy
Peto	Peet-o
Petre	Peter
Petrie	Peet-rie
Peyton	Payton
Phayre	Fair
Pierpoint	Pierpont
Pleydell	Pleddel
Plowden	Ploughden
Plumtre	Plum-tri
Pole	Pole or Pool (see also Carew)
Poltimore	Pole-ti-more
Polwarth	Pol-worth
Pomeroy	Pom-roy
Pomfret	Pum-fret
Ponsonby	Punsunby
Poulett	Paul-et
Powell	Powell or Poell
Powerscourt	Poers-caut
Powis	Po-iss
Powlett	Paul-et
Powys	Po-iss (name) (place pronounced ‘Powiss’)
Praed	Praid
Prevost	Prev-o
Prideaux	Priddo
Puleston	Pill-ston
Purefuy	Pure-foy
Pytchley	Pietch-li
Quibell	Quy-bel (as in ‘high’)
Raleigh	Raw-li
Ranfurly	Ran-fully
Rankeillour	Rank-illour
Ratendone	Ratten-dun
Rathdonnell	Rath-donnell
Rea	Ree
Rearsby	Rears-bi
Reay	Ray
Redesdale	Reads-dale
Renwick	Renn-ick
Reresby	Rears-bi
Reuter	Roy-ter
Rhyl	Rill
Rhys	Rees or Rice
Riddell	Riddle
Rideau	Reed-owe
Roborough	Roe-bra’
Roche	Roach or Rosh
Roden	Roe-den
Rolfe	Roaf (as in ‘loaf’)
Rolleston	Roll-ston
Romilly	Rum-illy
Romney	Rumney
Ronaldshay	Ron-alld-shay
Rotherwick	As spelt
Rothes	Roth-is
Rous, Rouse	Rowse (as in ‘grouse’)
Rowley	Roe-li
Roxburghe	Rox-bro
Ruabon	Ru-a-bon
Ruthin	Ruth-in
Ruthven	Rivven
Sacheverall	Sash-ever-al
Sacheverell	Sash-ev-rell
St Aubyn	S’nt Aw-bin
St Clair	Sinclair or as spelt
St Cyres	S’nt Sires (to rhyme with ‘fires’)
St John	Sin-jun
St Leger	Sill-inger or St Leger
St Levan	S’nt Leaven (as in ‘leaven’ for bread)
St Maur	S’nt More
Salisbury	Sawls-bri
Salkeld	Saul-keld
Saltoun	Salt-on
Salisbury	Sawls-bri
Sandbach	Sandbatch
Sandeman	Sandy-man
Sandys	Sands
Sanquhar	Sanker (Sanwer is historically correct)
Saumarez	Summer-ez or Saumer-ez
Sausmarez	Summer-ez or Saumer-ez
Savernake	Savver-nack
Savile	Saville
Saye and Sele	Say and Seal
Schilizzi	Skil-it-zy
Schuster	Shoo-ster
Sclater	Slater
Scone	Scoon
Scudamore	Scooda-more
Scrymgeour	Scrim-jer
Sedburgh	Sed-ber
Segal	Seagal
Segrave	Sea-grave
Sele	Seal
Sempill	Semple
Seton	Seaton
Seymour	Seamer or as spelt
Shakerley	Shackerley
Shaughnessy	Shawnessy
Sherborne	Shirb’n
Shrewsbury	Shrows-b’ry (town has alternative pronunciation of Shrewsb’ry)
Shuckburgh	Shuck-bro’
Sieff	Seef
Simey	Symey
Skene	Skeen
Skrine	Screen
Smijth	Smyth
Smyth	Smith or Smythe
Smythe	Smythe
Sneyd	Sneed
Somers	Summers
Somerset	Summerset
Sotheby	Sutha-by
Soulbury	Sool-bri
Southwark	Suth-erk
Southwell	Suth-ell
Sowerby	Sour-by
Spottiswoode	Spotswood
Stanhope	Stannup
Staordale	Stav-erdale
Stonor	Stone-er
Stourton	Sturton
Strabane	Stra-bann
Strabolgi	Stra-bogie (hard ‘g’)
Strachan	Strawn
Straghan	Strawn
Strahan	Strawn
Strachi	Stray-chie
Stratheden	Strath-eden
Strathspey	Strath-spay
Stratfield	Stret-field
Stucley	Stewk-li
Suirdale	Sure-dale
Sysonby	Size-on-by
Synge	Sing
Talbot	Tall-bot
Tangye	Tang-y
Taverne	Tav-erne
Taylour	Taylor
Teignmouth	Tin-muth
Terregles	Terry-glaze
Teynham	Ten-’am
Thame	Tame
Thellusson	Tellus-son
Theobald	Tibbald or as spelt
Thesiger	Thesi-jer
Thorold	Thurrald
Thynne	Thin
Tichbourne	Titch-bourne
Tighe	Tie
Tollemache	Tol-mash (Tall-mash is archaic)
Torphichen	Tor-kken
Touchet	Touch-et
Tovey	Tuvvy
Trafalgar	Traffle-gar (title only)
Traquair	Tra-quare
Tredegar	Tre-deegar
Trefusis	Tre-fusis
Trevelyan	Tre-villian
Trimlestown	Trimmels-ton
Trowbridge	Troobridge
Tuchet	Touch-et
Tuite	Tute
Tullibardine	Tulli-bard-in
Turnour	Turner
Tuvey	Tuvvy
Twohy	Too-y
Twysden	Twis-den
Tynte	Tint
Tyrrell	Tirrell
Tyrwhitt	Tirrit
Tyzack	Tie-sack
Urquhart	Urk-ut
Uvedale	Youv-dale
Vachell	Vay-chell
Valentia	Val-en-shia
Valletort	Valley-tort
Van Straubenzee	Van Straw-ben-zie
Vaughan	Vawn
Vaux	Vokes
Vavasour	Vav-assur
Verschoyle	Ver-skoil
Vesey	Veezy
Vigor	Vygor
Villiers	Villers
Vyvyan	Vivian
Waechter	Vechter (guttural ‘ch’)
Wagner	As spelt
Waldegrave	Waldgrave or Wargrave
Waleran	Wall-ran
Walmer	Wall-mer
Walrond	Wall-rond
Walsingham	Wall-sing’m
Walwyn	Wall-wyn
Wathen	Wothen
Wauchope	Walk-up (‘ch’ as in ‘loch’)
Waugh	As spelt, to rhyme with ‘flaw’
Wavell	Way-vell
Weighall	Wy-gall
Weighill	Wey-hill
Wellesley	Wells-li
Wemyss	Weems
Wernher	Werner
Westenra	Westen-ra
Westmeath	West-meath (‘th’ as in ‘breathe’)
Westmorland	West-morland
Wharton	Whor-ton
Wigoder	Wigg-oder
Wigram	Wigg-ram
Wilbraham	Will-bram
Willoughby de Eresby	Willow-bi deersby
Willoughby de Broke	Willow-bi de Brook
Winder	Winn-der
Woburn	Woo-burn
Wodehouse	Wood-house
Wollaston	Wool-aston
Wolley	Wooly
Wolmer	Wool-mer
Wolrige	Wool-ridge
Wolseley	Wool-sli
Wombwell	Woom-well
Wontner	Wantner
Worsley	Wers-li or Werz-li
Wortley	Wert-li
Wriothesley	Rottisli
Wrottesley	Rotts-li
Wykeham	Wick-am
Wyllie	Wy-lie
Wyndham	Wind-’am
Wynford	Win-fud
Wynyard	Win-yard
Wythenshaw	With-in-shaw
Yeatman	Yaytman
Yerburgh	Yar-bra’
Yonge	Young
Zouch	Zooch

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