- Eastnor Castle
Eastnor Castle is a 19th century mock castle, two miles from the town of
Ledbury inHerefordshire , by the village of Eastnor. It was founded by John Somers Cocks, 1stEarl Somers and is now inhabited by the family of James Hervey-Bathurst, the grandson ofArthur Somers-Cocks, 6th Baron Somers .History
It was constructed in 1810 at a cost of £85,000 or equivalent to approximately between £6 to £28 million in present day (2007).
The estate was started in the late 16th century when the Cocks family purchased local land. Subsequent marriages into the Somers and Nash families helped provide the wealth and substance necessary to build this imposing
castle which was designed to look like a medieval castle guarding the Welsh borders. The architect was Robert Smirke andAugustus Pugin designed the Gothic drawing room.In 1984, both the band
Slade and theBBC made use of the castle. Slade used it to film their video for "Run Runaway " and the BBC to film the exterior shots of Abner Brown's theological college in their adaptation ofThe Box of Delights .The grounds are used by Land Rover to test their vehicles. Also home of the Land Rover Experience.
Events
* The deer park at Eastnor is the venue for The Big Chill
music festival .
*Mountain Mayhem - mountain bike festivalExternal links
* [http://www.eastnorcastle.com Eastnor Castle] - Wedding venue and corporate entertainment centre.
* [http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=Eastnor+castle&m=text Photos of Eastnor at Flickr]
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