CHOOSING a wedding venue is difficult. It has to be just right – impressive enough to wow the guests and to look good on the photos. So if you opted to host a reception from your own home, the chances are that it just wouldn’t do.
Ghyllheugh Lodge, in Longhorsley, Northumberland, is, however, suitably imposing. It must be, as not only did current owners Louise and John Gray choose to hold their wedding reception there, so too did Louise’s sister Kathryn Colclough and her hubby Barry. Just a 30-minute commute from Newcastle, the spacious stone-built country home is set in mature gardens and grounds. Accommodation includes a lounge, dining room, family room, breakfast room and a galley-style kitchen with pantry. There is also a boiler room, study/fifth bedroom, ground-floor shower room, four first-floor bedrooms and a family bathroom. An annexe at the back houses a double garage, billiards room, workshop and four stores. But the home’s pièce de résistance is a covered 30ft outdoor swimming pool. Louise, 54, a monitoring officer in social care, has called the lodge home for 18 years. Her grown-up daughters, Debbie and Dawn, were both brought up there, and her six grandchildren now enjoy all it has to offer. Louise said: "I was first attracted because the house just looks so lovely from the road. We haven’t had to do an awful lot to it, although recently we have put in two new bathrooms, refitted the kitchen and done lots of work in the garden. "The property is just over 100 years old. It was originally two houses that have been made into one." The property was also originally the gatehouse for the Ghyllheugh Estate, but now it enjoys a much more private status. Louise said: "It has been lovely to live here, especially while the children have been growing up. They always loved the swimming pool as in the summer it is really nice. "But Christmases are also lovely here with the children. We get the mulled wine out and enjoy our celebrations." Louise explained why she decided to hold a wedding reception to celebrate her marriage to John, a retired headteacher, at the lodge. She said: "We got married here on October 1 nearly three years ago. The sun shone all day – we had an outside party and then went into the house afterwards." The property was big enough to make around 100 guests comfortable. Her sister also hosted her reception from the property in 1992, this time opting for a pool party. The property, it seems, is the perfect party base – thanks in particular to the billiards room, pool and huge dining room. Many memories are tied up in the property for Louise after living there for many years with her first husband James Lakebrough, who died five years ago. But despite a home filled with family history, Louise and John have decided that now their children have flown the nest, it’s time to downsize. Louise added: "We are moving because our family are now all grown up and we want to be a bit closer to them. "I will be sad closing the door on so many memories but we are also quite excited about choosing a new home together." Ghyllheugh Lodge, Longhorsley, Northumberland, is for sale through Halifax Estate Agents at £685,000, tel: (01670) 516231. | 
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