Launch of New Book Keeps Downton Abbey Alive

(Newswire.net — September 8, 2015) Franklin, TN –On January 3, 2016, Downton Abbey returns to MASTERPIECE on PBS with its 6th and final season! As we shudder at the thoughts of a world without our friends at Downton Abbey, Dr. David Woodfine’s new book Join Me for Afternoon Tea will help keep our favorite memories alive.

A former butler throughout Europe, including personal butler the Duke of Marlborough at Blenheim Palace (where Winston Churchill was born), and host to countless royals, dignitaries, and celebrities including some of his favorites, Princess Margaret, Princess Diana, Prince Charles, Joan Collins, and the Beatles, Dr. Woodbine has authored three books related to his years of service in a British industry that is quickly passing away.

Dr. Woodfine’s cookbook, From Kitchen to High Table: The British-American Edition, is a wonderful guide for an American host or hostess to create an authentic, formal English dinner party, offering everything you need to know to prepare for the event, including the British cocktail, the menu, and the social time afterward. His first children’s book, The ABCs of Etiquette for Young People, shares helpful pointers, all with artful illustrations to remind adults and to educate children on dining etiquette. Dr. Woodfine shares that: “Children and adults seldom dine with proper etiquette; it is a lost art that needs to be re-shared with the world. When done appropriately, etiquette is both a scholastic activity, and fun.” His second children’s book, Join Me for Afternoon Tea, delightfully explains and illustrates how to properly host the perfect afternoon tea. 

Woodfine explains that: “Afternoon Tea is the perfect way to make a meaningful occasion, extra special. Whether you are celebrating a birthday, Christmas, or even Halloween, the list is endless.” To make any gathering a success, the host must create the right atmosphere and an afternoon tea party is no exception. With tips and facts about this quintessentially British tradition, Join Me for Afternoon Tea is a must-have for tea lovers of all ages. 

All of Dr. Woodfine’s books are extra special, because they are published by The Hilliard Institution for Educational Wellness and Global Competency, a non-profit academic and philanthropic organization in Franklin, Tennessee. Dr. Mark Hilliard, the Vice Chancellor, President, and Professor of Education for The Hilliard Institute is the former President of O’More College of Design in Franklin, and the former Medical Director for the Tennessee Division of the American Cancer Society in Nashville. 

Dr. Hilliard met Dr. Woodfine when he began his visiting fellowship at Harris Manchester College, the University of Oxford, almost eight years ago and the two hit it off as friends immediately. Hilliard offered to publish an American edition of Woodfine’s British cookbook, and the rest is history. Dr. Woodfine is now the Chancellor for The Hilliard Institute and though his home is still in the Cotswold part of England, he visits Franklin and Nashville several times each year, offering sessions he calls “A Tea and a Chat,” which are informative talks about his adventures as a butler, British teas, and etiquette. In 2016 he will offer an intensive one-week Butler Academy training program in Franklin.

Professor Hilliard is also a published author, having written five books on the topics of wellness, spirituality, and sensory education and experience. Hilliard is simultaneously working on his sixth and seventh books, Sacred Places—Sacred Spaces, which includes extensive travel research in Ireland and in-house research with the Bodleian Library, University of Oxford. And, he is also completing a book on Global Competency, one he is co-authoring with an international student from Moldova. These newest books will be published by The Hilliard Press, a division of The Hilliard Institute, founded by Dr. Hilliard and Professor Jessa Sexton, the Executive Editor for the Press. Hilliard is also a retired professor of education, and wellness, and currently serves as the Director-General of the Oxford Centre for the Study of Law and Public Policy, in Oxford, England.

If you have an interest in workshops on: Multi-Sensory Education, Sacred Space, Spirituality, Global Competency, British Teas, or Etiquette and Fine Dining;  in being a part of the Butler Academy in 2016;  or in purchasing any of Dr. Hilliard or Dr. Woodfine’s books, you may contact Dr. Hilliard at mark.hilliardinstitute@gmail.com or visit our website at www.hilliardinstitute.com