Highclere Castle

Highclere Castle is the home of the Earls of Carnarvon, set in parkland laid out by Capability Brown in 1771 on the north Hampshire downs near Newbury. The estate was granted to the Bishops of Winchester in 749 AD, bought in 1679 by Sir Robert Sawyer, the direct ancestor of the present Earl, and remodelled from 1842 by Sir Charles Barry, the architect of the Houses of Parliament. The 5th Earl financed the excavation that found Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922, and the house has since become known worldwide as the setting of Downton Abbey.

Private hire runs through the castle's own events team and in-house kitchen. Up to 150 guests can take drinks and canapés through the State Rooms, with the house guides on hand to talk through the paintings and furniture, and on a fine evening the party moves out of the Library onto the South Lawn and its view across the park. The State Dining Room, hung with Van Dyck's equestrian portrait of Charles I, seats 24 for a private lunch or dinner. The Saloon, the Gothic-styled hall at the heart of the castle beneath the first-floor Gallery, is licensed for civil ceremonies and takes conferences of up to 60 theatre-style.

Larger numbers dine in a marquee in the castle grounds, and the house can be taken exclusively with private tours of the State Rooms, the bedrooms and the Egyptian Exhibition in the cellars. Dates are limited by the castle's own event calendar, so weddings in particular are few, small and best planned for spring or autumn.