The British PM who loved China

From left: Heath's music room; Jade birds Heath bought from Friendship Store in Beijing; Journey to the West wallpaper.

It raised millions of pounds, with the purpose of building a new center for blind people in Beijing, Batey says.

He recalls that Deng told Heath the next day that he watched the performance on television and thought it was very well done.

Deng then said jokingly that the concert went on too long, because it had forced China's Central Television to delay its news broadcast, Batey recalls.

As an accomplished musician, Heath was also fascinated by Chinese musical instruments, and wanted to learn as much as he could about them during his Chinese visits, Batey says.

Although no one knew exactly why Heath was fascinated by China, one possibility could have been the influence of another of his former political private secretaries, Douglas Hurd, who would later have spells as both the UK's foreign secretary and home secretary.

Hurd, who accompanied Heath on his first China visit in 1974, had previously worked at the British charge d'affaires office in Beijing.

Due to Heath's long-standing friendship with China, there are now many traces of this relationship left in Arundells for visitors to see.

On his grand piano in the drawing room, for instance, is a collection of photographs, including ones showing him with Deng and Zhou.

In the same room on a shelf are two porcelain vases from the Qianlong Emperor period (1711-1799), which Mao gave to him as gifts in 1974.

Beside the shelf on a mantelpiece are also two jade birds, which Heath bought from the famous Friendship Store in Beijing in the 1980s.

Founded in the 1950s, the state-run store was initially designed to sell exclusively to tourists, foreigners, diplomats and government officials.

It still exists nowadays but has no restrictions on customers.

The wall next to the house's staircase is decorated with wallpaper illustrating the famous story Journey to the West, a Chinese novel published in the 16th century, documenting the legendary pilgrimage of the Tang Dynasty Buddhist monk Xuanzang who traveled to India to obtain sacred texts.

The wallpaper was given to Heath as a gift from Batey and Richard Burn, the former head of Heath's private office.

The scenes specifically focused on a monkey, who is a charismatic and troublesome follower of Xuanzang, but arguably the story's protagonist and most likable character.

In Heath's dining room, which he used to entertain many Chinese ambassadors to the UK, is a Tang Dynasty bull, which Batey also gave to the former premier as a present.

In the library, meanwhile, is a drinks table featuring many of his favorites, and Batey says Heath always had a bottle of Maotai - the famous, high-strength brand of Chinese spirit baijiu - available when the room was in use.

Also in Heath's study is a Ming Dynasty bowl which he bought in 1969 after he won the Sydney-Hobart race, one of the world's greatest ocean races.

The bowl was actually bought in Vietnam, but was cracked on the way home, and subsequently restored.

Beyond the numerous Chinese references, the fascinating world of Arundells gives visitors a full and insightful glimpse into both the life of Heath, as well as that of the British countryside.

The beautiful Georgian House, next door to the famous Salisbury Cathedral, in Wiltshire, Southwest England, takes its name from its previous owners.

Heath moved there in 1985, and stayed for the last 20 years of his life.

Today the museum is managed by Stuart Craven, who arrived at Arundells in 1985 to help redesign its two-acre gardens.

After the garden were finished, Heath asked Craven to stay and help him manage the house, which Craven agreed and he has stayed ever since.

Craven describes Heath as a unique person, and adds how unusual it was for a British prime minister to have so many interests and hobbies.

"It was very rare and I don't think it would happen now," Craven says, adding that Heath's interests and talents certainly helped him in his job.

"To function as a prime minister, you need another side of you to make you interested in the outside world," adds Craven, "and for Sir Edward this came from music and sailing."

cecily.liu@chinadaily.com.cn