Holkham Hall & Estate

About the venue

Palladian hall on a 25,000-acre estate on the north Norfolk coast, home of the Coke family. Ceremonies of up to 170 take place under the 50ft dome of the Marble Hall, receptions seat 250 in the Lady Elizabeth Wing, and guests stay at The Victoria.

Thomas Coke was sent on a six-year Grand Tour at the age of 15, partly because of a fondness for cockfighting and gambling. In Italy he met the architect William Kent, and the classical art and buildings he saw shaped the house he started in 1734. Coke died in 1759 before it was finished. His widow, Lady Margaret, completed Holkham Hall in 1764.

The Coke family has owned the land since Sir Edward Coke bought it in 1609. The estate now covers 25,000 acres of the north Norfolk coast, with a 20-acre lake, a deer park and an ice house first filled in 1742. A six-acre Walled Garden, designed by Samuel Wyatt in the late 1700s, has been restored and includes a vineyard.

Weddings centre on the Marble Hall, which rises 50ft to its dome and holds 170 for a ceremony. Smaller weddings can use the Temple portico, the Courtyard Room in an old pottery with six arched windows, or St Withburga's Church in the park. Receptions take place in the Lady Elizabeth Wing for 250, or in a marquee by the lake, at the Temple or in the Walled Garden.

Wedding guests can stay at The Victoria, the estate's four-star inn at Holkham beach, which has 20 rooms. The Ancient House next door adds 10 more, and there are four shepherd huts. Bikes can be hired to explore the park.

Palladian hall begun in 1734

Coke family land since 1609

25,000-acre coastal estate

Marble Hall ceremonies for 170

Receptions for 250

Restored Walled Garden and vineyard

Rooms at The Victoria inn

Christmas parties from £34pp