The cool couples’ choice: 10 awesome wedding venues outside London
What’s your fave wedding venue style? Barn or farm? Festival or field? Stately home or grand hotel? Or none of the above? Are you looking for something different – and not just ‘different’ to mean quirky, but different to mean actually unique, tailored to you? Perhaps your dream venue is a little ‘preloved’ around the edges, or an eclectic and creative space? Or maybe your vision is city chic with a slice of urban cool? Whatever your tastes, there WILL be a brilliant wedding venue just waiting for you to discover its charms… and we’ve spent the morning discovering ten of England’s coolest wedding venues for you to fall right in love with.
Inspired by – and with fabulous images from – our lovely friend and amazing documentary wedding photographer Jordanna Marston Photography. Jordanna is based in Northamptonshire and has the heart of an adventurer, travelling around the UK to capture the coolest weddings for awesome couples like YOU!
1. Walcot Hall
Where:
Shropshire
We love it for:
- The turquoise ballroom
- eclectic furnishings and curiosities
Having Jordanna Marston Photography as a recommended supplier!
Walcot Hall is high on our list of the coolest wedding venues in England. Its ballroom is a one-off in the very best way, and the eclectic furnishings make the place so characterful and fun!
Couples looking to have the picture perfect, palest dusty pink theme with everything tonally matched to a T won’t fit in here; but couples with a sense of fun and their own playful style are going to LOVE Walcot Hall!
Check out Hannah & Alex’s fabulous Walcot Hall wedding day over on Jordanna’s wedding photography blog! (With classic DMs for a walk in the grounds; amazing rainbow confetti; gloriously messy winter florals and the groom riding a lion…)
See more of Walcot Hall at Soph & Jack’s wedding – from the mad Merc overrun with action figures to the rocking horse, flamingo and hidden treasures in the gardens. This wedding is a treat!
Walcot Hall website: https://walcothall.com
2. Axnoller Estate
Where: Dorset
We love it for:
- Being the best of both worlds – hotel and creative space
- Amazing accommodation for your closest guests
Axnoller is an epic venue – a glance at the website shows the huge space you’ll have available. You can marry indoors or outside, and your reception will take place in Axnoller’s huge wedding barn – a fabulous space in itself.
The approach makes Axnoller different and unique: it’s not a hotel, but neither is it a DIY venue. You get the best of both worlds with all the creative input you’d like – and it’s a blank canvas for you to colour as you wish! – and the help of Axnoller’s wedding team to bring to life your perfect weekend wedding.
Stay all weekend with 24 guests in Axnoller’s two houses, each sleeping 12 and with swimming pools and hot tubs – a wonderful luxury for your favourite humans to enjoy.
See Axnoller through one of our cool couples’ real weddings! Aysha and Neil are gorgeous and glam, the venue looks amazing… and it’s ok, the groomsman was fine! (you’ll know what I mean when you’ve scrolled down!)
Jordanna describes Axnolller beautifully: “With 360 degree jaw-dropping views, and no neighbours it is a must for a weekend wedding full of chilling, partying and fun!”
Axnoller website: https://www.axnollerevents.co.uk
3. Chilli Barn
Where: Otley Chevin. No? Yorkshire then. It’s rural 🙂
We love it for:
- Veggie and vegan dining – even the drinks!
- Yorkshire farmhouse charm
A proper forward-thinking wedding venue, the Chilli Barn’s plant-based dining sets it ahead of the pack as one of our favourite venues. With food at the forefront of everything, this is a foodie couple’s dream wedding venue!
The vibe is relaxed, farmhouse courtyard styley, with English country garden flowers growing around the courtyard, and magical lighting and bunting pretty much all you need to decorate the place for a fabulous summer wedding.
The venue is in a converted family farmhouse, set out over a collection of rooms. If you’re lucky with the weather this is a dreamy space for outdoor dining too!
Check out Daisy & Dan’s joyful alternative wedding at the Chilli Barn here!
Becky & Andy married here and had the loveliest walk to a local beauty spot for some of the coolest wedding photos I’ve seen. Take a look at their Chilli Barn wedding! (and can you spot the flying pigs?!)
Chilli Barn website: http://thecheerfulchilli.co.uk
4. Clevedon Hall
Where: Somerset
We love it for:
- Grandeur and glamour
- The fabulous orangery
- Talking toilets with heated seats
Clevedon has an air of characterful grandeur – an exclusive, posh, welcoming and charming wedding venue for cool couples. The food is the star, with Clevedon’s Michelin trained chef creating a wedding breakfast to delight your guests!
Clevedon has been recently refurbished, with bedrooms getting a loving revamp and all being individually styled – each with, we understand, talking toilets and heated seats. As wedding venues go, that’s as cool as it is unique – and definitely a talking point for your guests the morning after!
The gazebo in the garden at Clevedon is a lovely spot to say your ‘i do’s’ – a handcrafted structure with terraced seating for 150 ceremony guests. There are glorious gardens and even (I quote) “room to land your helicopter”. (Did I mention it was posh?)
Clevedon Hall website: https://clevedonhall.co.uk
5. Patricks Barn at Chiddinglye
Where: Sussex
We love it for:
- Awe inspiring redwood trees
- Woodland boho vibes
It’s the redwoods which make Patricks Barn really special. A fabulous outdoor wedding location in Sussex, with that incredible redwood-lined path to take your guests’ breath away – for nature lovers or outdoorsy types, this is as cool as wedding venues get.
Say your vows under Chiddinglye’s 400 year old oak tree, mingle on the terrace and enjoy the beautiful rhododendrons as you head to the 17th century timber-framed barn for your rustic wedding reception.
In case all of this doesn’t sound cool enough for you, Chiddinglye is also available for film shoots. Their website tells us “Previous shoots include ‘O Fat White Woman, 1971, ‘The Alan Clark Diaries’ 2004, and a fashion shoot for the French singer Nolwenn Leroy in 2010”. Not quite your mainstream Downton Abbey film set… but ultimately cooler, n’est-ce pas?
Chiddinglye Farm & Patrick’s Barn website: http://www.chiddinglye.co.uk/weddings_parties.html
6. Sparkford Hall
Where: Somerset
We love it for:
- the underground nightclub
- embracing the daring, different and decadent!
Time was, all wedding venues were halls of one kind or another. And you knew what you were getting. But now… some of them have underground nightclubs so you can squirrel away your coolest wedding guests for an all-nighter and the party of a lifetime!
Obviously – ALL of your wedding guests will be cool – so grannies and uncles can join you down there too!
Let’s back up a second: Sparkford Hall is amazing in daytime too. They’re not your typical wedding venue – although they’ll happily welcome your picture perfect wedding if that’s your thing – their website tells us “if you’re looking for something daring, different and decadent, well, that’s right up our alley!”
The house and grounds are yours on an exclusive use basis for the weekend, for your wedding day – or even for the week! You’ll share parkland, gardens and paddocks with Shetland ponies, chickens, sheep and wildlife, with the grade II listed house becoming your perfect wedding venue. Choose from the library, main hall or barn for your ceremony – they’re roomy enough for 25 – 300 guests!
The underground nightclub – a versatile subterranean party space (as officially described online) sounds aaaaaamazing! It’s one of Sparkford Hall’s major attractions and secures a place in our list of the coolest wedding venues! Jordanna Marston photographed this festival wedding at Sparkford Hall in the summertime, which is blissfully full of colour and fun – and shows what an all-rounder of a wedding venue this really is!
Sparkford Hall website: https://www.sparkfordhall.co.uk
7. Oxleaze Barn
Where: Gloucestershire / Oxfordshire border
We love it for:
- Being an organic farm
- Having a genuine focus on sustainability
Oxleaze is a working farm with a wedding venue at its heart. It’s perfectly placed in the Cotswolds and has a romantic, modern and airy vibe to it. You get exclusive use of the barn and courtyard gardens, which are landscaped and beautifully lit for a magical vibe as evening falls.
Oxleaze’s heating and hot water is generated by their biomass boiler. The Mann family have owned Oxleaze since 1949 and are committed to sustainable and ethical farming. And we do love an eco friendly wedding venue.
See Oxleaze at its absolute best decked out with fabulously colourful pom poms, tassels and florals for Georgie & Lewis’s vibrant, quirky and unique summer wedding
Oxleaze Barn website: http://www.oxleazebarn.co.uk
8. Hestercombe Gardens
Where: Devon
We love it for:
- Oozing with history!
- The orangery is a breathtaking ceremony space
- The Bampfylde Hall with its whitewashed walls and high wooden beams
- Its sustainability – Hestercombe is heated by its own biomass boiler
Hestercombe combines history with a dash of formality and a whole world of beautiful escapes – from the landscaped gardens to the fabulous orangery, Hestercombe will wow you and win your hearts!
The showcase space at Hestercombe is the orangery: a wonderful setting for an elegant wedding ceremony, with beautiful light and stunning garden views. For a timeless and beautiful reception, the Bampfylde Hall dates from 1680 and is an exceptional space – light, huge, and atmospheric all wrapped up in a bundle of ‘wow’.
Come the evening, Hestercombe comes to life with its covered courtyard space – think fairy lights and festoons, twinkling the night away to the sounds of a sultry saxophonist or awesome wedding band and this is wedding venue heaven!
A note for the eco conscious: Hestercombe House, the barn, office and even the Victorian greenhouses are heated by their biomass boiler. They’re sustainably using their own woodland to help heat the whole site… which gets them a few bonus wedding venue points in our books!
Hestercombe website: https://www.hestercombe.com
9. Hope Mill Theatre
Where: Manchester
We love it for:
- Being gritty and northern and proud!
- The dark walls and huge space
- Being a charity
Perhaps your definition of cool is a little more edgy than barns and fairy lights… and that’s just fine, because we have an awesome city venue to share with you. I mean – wow. The atmosphere in this place is electric.
Hope Mill is a working theatre and a charity supporting performance arts in the local community. It’s a unique wedding venue in the north west, and in high demand (currently fully booked for the next two years of weddings!). The building itself has history: it’s a stunning Grade II listed industrial mill, a complete blank canvas and with space for up to 200 guests.
This is one of our fave northern wedding venues and definitely one of the coolest around. Mel and Nick made Hope Mill Theatre amazing, focusing 100% on their guests and using the space as the subtlest, most incredible backdrop for their unique wedding in Manchester. LOVE it.
Hope Mill website: https://hopemilltheatre.co.uk
10. Ash Barton Estate
Where: Devon
We love it for:
- The huge Oak Tree ceremony space
- The super laid back vibe
- No corkage… and no curfew!
Ash Barton is an amazing venue for creative couples. The vibe is rustic and cool, with the most romantic spot to get married under an enormous oak tree in the gardens. Jordanna’s couple Léonie and Leo were the first couple to be married in the gazebo by the oak tree.
Ash Barton is well known in Devon for its laid back vibe and relaxed wedding receptions. It’s a blank canvas for you to style and colour as much as you wish – perfect for vibrant styling but also wonderful if you’re planning on simple foliage and candlelight, or a softer and more modern colour palette.
Ash Barton is one of Devon’s exclusive use wedding venues – meaning it can be yours for the whole weekend. It’s a wedding bloggers’ favourite, with Léonie and Leo’s rainbow bright Ash Barton wedding featuring on Whimsical Wonderland Weddings!
Ash Barton website: https://www.ashbarton.com
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