King of the castle STEVE HOWARTH
AN Englishman’s home is his castle, as the saying goes, but in the case of Simon Bennett and his wife Wendy it really is.
For the couple gave up successful careers in London to buy a near derelict stately pile ‘almost on a whim’ in Cumbria 20 years ago and are now the proud owners of Augill Castle, near Kirkby Stephen in the beautiful Eden Valley.
And there is another saying, ‘living the dream’ and that is what the couple and their two children are doing now… but not without the odd nightmare along the way.
Buying and renovating an almost ruined, rambling neo-gothic Victorian folly became such a roller-coaster, white knuckle ride that former journalist Simon turned the story into an award winning, and quite hilarious, book – Undressed For Dinner.
It tells the tale of their first ten years of triumphs and disasters with ghosts, bizarre, sometimes even naked, guests and not always helpful neighbours.
Now beautifully restored to the original dream of the Victorian eccentric who built it, Augill boasts 15 spacious bedrooms which have four poster beds and vintage furniture, along with all the mod-cons of en-suite living.
It is resplendent with tower, turrets, castellations and mullions – Augill was built to impress and certainly does so today sitting in 20 acres of north Cumbrian countryside without another home in sight.
Like Simon’s first book the castle has won numerous awards and staying there is, according to the couple, ‘unstuffy, occasionally chaotic but above all relaxed’ and they claim it is a place where you can ‘kick off your wellies by the front door without causing a scandal’.
Assisted by a handful of local staff Simon and Wendy run the castle, welcoming customers and making them feel more like guests at an eclectic country house than paying hotel customers.
We spent a weekend at Augill and thoroughly enjoyed its quirky charm, good food and welcoming company. It boasts a huge dining room, cosy entrance hall and a private parlour - all with roaring log fires or big log burners - plus a large lounge, conservatory bar and even a 12-seat cinema.
Outside there are 20 acres of family friendly gardens to explore, which include a treehouse and playground.
The castle it is also a great base for exploring two of England’s most beautiful regions, the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales.
We set off into the latter, first stopping off at nearby Barnard Castle to browse its many antique shops before touring the town’s Bowes Museum - which is stuffed with paintings, porcelain, musical instruments and all manner of objects of art, including the world famous Silver Swan. This is a mechanical masterpiece from the 18th century which performs at set times and is not to be missed.
During our visit there was also a special exhibition about shoes... which was of far more interest to my better half than me.
From there we decided to explore the North Yorkshire Dales, setting off for Whitby, an hour and a half away, to sample its famous fish and chips before moving on to nearby Robin Hood’s Bay – a charming, quirky village built into an almost impossibly steep seawardfacing hillside. Another must see.
Other nearby attractions include Ripon, Harrogate and Skipton as well as White Scar Cave, Fountains Abbey and Bolton Abbey - which also boasts a steam railway.
Heading back to Augill we were warmly welcomed by Wendy and Simon, just in time for a set menu (with vegetarian option) dinner for the day of delicious roast pork with potatoes and veg.
Staying at the castle is a bit like living in a real-life Agatha Christie Mousetrap set with the decor and atmosphere very 1930s English country house. In fact the couple do hold ‘murder mystery’ events which are very popular.
Their drive to offer something different also recently ran to a Fawlty Towers weekend, but Wendy is very quick to point out they hired actors to play main characters Basil, Sybil and Manuel.
As well as being open all year round for guests you can also hire the whole castle for a group event or special occasion and it has already hosted several weddings.
Simon’s book also tells of other unusual events at the castle, sometimes unplanned, like the time a group of naturists hired the place for a weekend - but Wendy had misheard the phone conversation and they were expecting a group of naturalists!
Needless to say, when the group came down for dinner and were sitting there wearing only napkins it caused a little concern amongst the owners and staff but, with their typical British stiff upper lip approach, things carried on as normal and a great time was had by all. Simon has researched the history of the castle - which the couple bought complete with leaking roof, dry rot and mouldy walls in 1997 after seeing an advertisement in Country Living magazine – and has discovered it is believed to have had a royal visitor, with Queen Victoria said to have once stayed overnight on her way to Balmoral.
Many visitors are from overseas (there was a large American family staying when we were there) so the royal connection plus tales of ghosts - including, it appears, Simon’s late mother-in-law – all help to give the place a striking atmosphere.
Simon’s latest book, Stop for Breakfast, with more tales of quirky guests and hilarious happenings, is out now and he is rumoured to be working on another... so why not stay and, as well as having a great time, you could also find yourself immortalised in print.