Restored stately home the perfect window on all things Georgian
The restored Kenwood House in London is the perfect window on Georgian design and home to a collection of Old Masters, writes Kate Whitehead

London is going crazy for all things Georgian, the period from 1714 to 1830 when a succession of King Georges reigned over Britain. It was a time of fashion, culture, art and architecture, and some of Britain's finest buildings were created during this era.
This year marks the 300th anniversary of the start of the Georgian period and London celebrates with the recent renovation of Kenwood House, an impressive property on the edge of Hampstead Heath with sweeping views over the capital. A £6 million (HK$76 million) makeover has restored the building to its former glory and it is now the home of one of the country's finest art collections according to Simon Thurley, chief executive of English Heritage.
For all its grandeur, inside the property it feels homely, an 18th-century gentleman's residence
The property was a small, unpretentious brick villa when the first Earl of Mansfield bought it in the 1750s; he commissioned the star architect of the day, Robert Adam, to transform the building inside and out. Adam didn't hold back, adding an ionic portico, fluted columns and Grecian columns.
The house was further expanded in the 1790s when the second Earl of Mansfield added two large wings - and the result was a neoclassical masterpiece, both ornate and sophisticated.

A member of the Guinness brewery family and an art collector, he bought the freehold on the house and the land.