A Duchess with a Difference
ALNWICK, England, Feb. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Duchess and Her Magical Kingdom will be available exclusively on Prime Video in the US on February 15, 2025, at no additional cost with a Prime membership. With unrivalled access, the series follows The Duchess of Northumberland as she embarks on a huge project to create a unique whimsical wonderland at The Alnwick Garden near her family seat of Alnwick Castle, England's second largest inhabited castle and home to The Duke and Duchess of Northumberland and their family.
Created by the Duchess over 25 years ago, The Alnwick Garden is a multi-award-winning attraction in its own right featuring one of the biggest treehouses in the world; the largest cherry orchard of its kind in the world and an extraordinary and unique Poison Garden filled with hundreds of toxic and narcotic plants, each one capable of killing.
This is a Duchess who does things differently! She only likes to build if it's the biggest, the best or different to anything else. She cares passionately about her local community; has built a successful drop-in centre for lonely older people and being Patron of the British Association of Mixed Martial Arts she encouraged cage-fighting events in the garden.
In 2020, after years of jotting down ideas and sketches, the Duchess embarked on a huge project, the development of a multi-million pound magical village of make believe named Lilidorei. Lilidorei is home to Fairies, Pixies, Goblins, Trolls, Elves, Sprites and a Hobgoblin. The King of Lilidorei lives at the top of Elfwin Drin - the biggest play structure in the world. The Duchess's aim was to get children to keep their phones in their pockets; to run around and to use their imagination through play, immersive sound and exploration. To achieve this the visitors had to enter into a totally believable magic world shared with the clans of Lilidorei.
Originally commissioned for UK broadcaster Channel 4 and produced by MGM Alternative, the six-part show aired in 2023. It was granted exclusive access to the remarkable building of Lilidorei and also a behind the scenes view into life in Alnwick Castle, the Duchess, her family, staff and the local community.
The Duchess of Northumberland comments: "I didn't think that another build could ever be as challenging as The Alnwick Garden but Lilidorei proved to be much more complex. Trying to explain to a construction team, who specialised in building schools and hotels, how a fairy or a goblin might behave was almost impossible. The team struggled to find a medieval sewer under the site which had huge knock-on ramifications. There were times when I genuinely wasn't sure if I could deliver what I had set out to achieve. This documentary shows the challenges we faced and it also highlights the beauty of Northumberland; its wealth of history, incredible castles, stunning beaches and coastline and its vast expanses of wild moorland."
Dom Bird, SVP of International Alternative at MGM Television, comments: "With rare and unique access to The Duchess of Northumberland, this series promises to be a real treat for Prime Video members, as we see behind the velvet rope at her home, Alnwick Castle. We are by her side as she balances Royal and personal commitments, alongside her biggest ever challenge, the creation of a multi-million pound make-believe wonderland."
Since airing in the UK, the Duchess and her team have continued to develop the Lilidorei brand and discussions are ongoing to build additional Lilidorei attractions both in the UK and internationally.
Share this article