We were a little too optimistic in our forecast that the terraced area in front of Holland House was about to be landscaped. Perhaps inevitably on this first occasion, the process has taken longer than we would have wished, and recent weather conditions have not helped, but we can now see a provisional formal landscaping scheme in place. Of course it will not now be long before it is hidden again under the staging for the new opera season! However, let us be positive about this welcome development. It is the first time that an attempt has been made to beautify what has always been left as an unsightly, muddy mess after the opera has been dismantled. In future years the makeover should be a much more rapid and finished process as it becomes second nature and we shall be able to enjoy seeing the House in an appropriate setting from October to April.