Tutbury Castle is to appear on TV tomorrow evening on the show Salvage Hunters - and it is hoped viewers will get a unique insight into the 11th century landmark.
Curator Lesley Smith, famed for the role she plays at the castle as Mary Queen of Scots, will also star in the show as she treats viewers to a look inside the castle AND her own home.
Lesley, who regularly performs as women ranging from Boudicca and Anne Boleyn, to Elizabeth I, Nell Gwyn and Margaret Thatcher, said she was delighted to receive the call from the producers of Salvage Hunters, which looks at the "eccentric people and places" in Britain.
She said: "I have made 120 programmes over the last 12 years but when I got a phone call saying they would like to feature us on the programme I was over the moon.
"It was a great chance for people to see where historians live and when it was filmed two months ago I greeted the host Drew Pritchard as Elizabeth I which was quite a shock to him!
"The study in my house is spectacular and I sold two very special rugs during the process."
Although Lesley admits she was "very cautious" about filming in her home, she said the experience was "great fun" and she hoped the show "would put Burton and Tutbury on the map.”
She said: "I was very cautious about letting them in my home at first but although it was strange, it was lovely and great fun. It was great to show off the great hall in all its glory and it was a really joyful thing to communicate.
"I hope it will give the area a bit of a boost and be good for Tutbury and Burton in terms of tourism.
"The programme is repeated a lot and there will be huge numbers watching so I really want it to put us on the map.
"However, I won’t be watching. I have never watched myself even all those years I was on Most Haunted. I find it really embarrassing and cringey!"
The show will appear on Quest TV, channel 38, at 9pm on Wednesday, November 29.
