Membership.

Membership is by proposal. A member puts a name forward, the committee considers it, and in time a letter arrives.

The house is small and intends to stay that way. Numbers are limited to what the rooms can hold on an ordinary Thursday.

There is a joining fee and an annual subscription. Both are set out in the letter.

Members may bring two guests. The guests are the member’s responsibility, which is usually enough.

The staircase seen from above, winding down past its mahogany handrail to the chequered floor of the hall below.