From peace summits to Oasis breakups - 50 years at Weston Park

Brothers Roy and Richard Kirby have seen just about everything during five decades working at Weston Park in Staffordshire.

In that time they have witnessed a G8 summit, the final pre-split Oasis concert and dozens of other big events.

The estate was gifted to the nation in 1986 by the 7th Earl of Bradford and it is now owned and cared for by the Weston Park Foundation, an independent charitable trust.

The pair have been sharing their memories as the Weston Park Foundation as the charity celebrates its own 40th anniversary.

The pair grew up in the nearby village of Weston-under-Lizard and played on the estate as children because their grandfather worked with horses locally.

Roy Kirby, 70, started work there in 1970 and now serves as a gardener.

He recalled six days of talks which took place there in July 2001 to try to save the Northern Ireland agreement.

They were attended by the then Prime Minister Tony Blair, Irish premier Bertie Ahern, Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid, the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party David Trimble and Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams.

Former US President Bill Clinton was also reportedly on standby to intervene if it was felt it would help the proceedings.

Roy said: "The security for that was insane. There were snipers everywhere, up at the temple, in the grounds, on the roads and on the roofs.

"They had line of sight across the whole estate, it was amazing."

Richard, who is 66 and works as Park Operations Supervisor, said another memorable moment was the G8 summit in May 1998.

Some of the world's most powerful men arrived at Weston Park including Blair, Clinton, Russia President Boris Yeltsin, the German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and French President Jacque Chirac, among others.

Richard said: "I was living in a lodge on the estate at the time, and there were security everywhere including in my garden, and SAS on the rooftops. It was unbelievable."

After the talks had finished he said: "We were ready to clear up, but Bill Clinton decided he wanted to watch the football – it was the FA cup final between Arsenal and Newcastle. So we all had to wait until the football had finished."

The estate is perhaps best known for hosting big music events such as the V Festival, which ran from 1999 to 2017.

Roy said one memory which stood out was the last stage performance of Liam and Noel Gallagher at the festival in 2009, just before Oasis split up.

He said: "They played here on the Saturday, stayed overnight in the house, and were due to leave for Essex in the morning. But what we didn't know at the time was that it was their very last gig.

"They were good guests though, they didn't trash their rooms."

Officially Liam pulled out next day with laryngitis, but a few days later, Noel said he'd quit the band because he couldn't "go on working with Liam a day longer".

Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.