17 November 2016

Best UK Wedding Venues: My Top 20

Finding a wedding venue can be a huge task. There are so many great options to choose from. Do you want a barn wedding? A hotel wedding? A beach wedding? It can perhaps feela little overwhelming so to help with your search, i’ve compiled a list of some of the best UK wedding venues.

Two Woods Estate, Sussex

Two Woods Estate is situated in a 42 acre wood in Sussex. If you’re looking for an intimate feel to your ceremony and want to be surrounded by really beautiful trees while you exchange vows, then this is the place for you. This venue has a really peaceful atmosphere with the wind blowing through the trees and the birds having a sing song. It is perfect for nature lovers.

Owen House Wedding Barn, Cheshire

If I had to choose a barn venue for my wedding, Owen House Wedding Barn would be the one I would choose. I had worked in a lot of barn wedding venues over the last 10 years, but this one takes providing a creative space to the next level. Indoors, there is a beautiful, atmospheric ceremony space with dark wood and fairy lights. The reception space is large and bright with beautiful wood panelling and cool windows. There is also a really cool corridor linking the bridal prep suit to the ceremony room that has huge hay bales and really cool wooden features. Outside there is a lovely garden space and plenty of cool spots for photography as well as accommodation for your guests.

Dunwood Hall, Stoke on Trent

Dunwood Hall is one of my absolute favourites. It’s nestled in the Staffordshire countryside and acts as both a wedding venue and a family home. It’s a beautiful, gothic mansion with tons of original features, beautiful light and gorgeous gardens. This venue is ideal for smaller, more intimate weddings. It has such a family feel to it with big open fire places and even a very cool 1920’s style outdoor swimming pool.

Three Greyhounds Inn, Allostock

The Greyhounds Inn can found found near to Knutsford and is home to The Doghouse Barn. This rustic, beautifully lit room is great for intimate weddings. It has informal style dining, beautiful wooden beams and metal accents. If you’re planning to invite lots of guests, then this venue also has outdoor space where you could set up a tipi or marquee.

Sugnall Walled Gardens, Staffordshire

As someone who loves nature, gardening and anything botanical, this venue ticked all of my boxes. The venue is a restored, 18th Century walled garden. Its beautiful and relaxed with so many quirky spots for photos. The ceremony room has huge windows and a gorgeous, tiled floor. The reception will take place in a large marquee on in the grounds of the gardens. The space is packed full of beautiful flowers and rows of lavender. It’s very dreamy.

The Cove, Robin Hoods Bay

Situated on the coast of Robin Hoods Bay, the Cove is the perfect location for couples who want to get married near the beach. This bohemian venue is super cool and surrounded by the prettiest views. The venue itself is relaxed and intimate, with a beautiful chapel to gather your friends and family for your ceremony before dining in an informal manner in the restaurant downstairs. The venue is a short walk away from the beach and is nestled amongst lots of interesting shops and cafes.

Stratton Court Barn, Oxfordshire

Stratton Court Barn is more of a modern take on a wedding barn venue. It has beautiful stone walls and wooden beams, big windows and some really beautiful outside space. I loved the outside space because there were so many beautiful spots for photos from a garden filled with beautiful flowers, to fields with wide open spaces. This venue also has the option to get married both indoors and outdoors.

Hallsannery House, Devon

Oh I do like to be beside the seaside….if this is you then this venue, situated in the beautiful Devonshire countryside could be the one for you. This exclusive use manor house is both grand and has a family feel to it. Your ceremony will have both indoor and outdoor options, the beautiful white wash building and huge lawns provide a gorgeous backdrop to your day. The reception space is a large marquee space with open sides which is perfect during the summer months to keep your guests cool. The manor house itself has buckets of character and room for your guests to stay over. It’s a fabulous venue.

Bodnant Gardens, Wales

Bodnant Gardens is a huge, National Trust garden near to Snowdonia in Wales. Bodnant Gardens is floral heaven. If nature is your thing, then this is the place for you. It has the sweetest chapel for your ceremony, surrounded by carefully manicured gardens and a great lawn space with a pond for mingling with your guests after you’re married. If you take a little wander further into the gardens, you’ll find bridges over waterfalls, magnificent trees, the sing song of birds and an overwhelming sense of peace. It’s absolutely wonderful.

Newton Park Farm, Milton Keynes

Newton Park Farm is another great barn venue in the south of the country. I loved their outdoor ceremony space because the horse shoe eating really gave a feeling of community during the vows. Everyone was gathered in the shape of a hug as they watched the couple marry. The reception area is a beautifully lit barn, with gorgeous wooden walls and twinkly fairy lights.

Bilston Brook Wedding Barn, Lichfield

This venue is one of my absolute favourites. It oozes style and isn’t short of great spots for wedding photos. I first shot at Bilston Brook Wedding Barn in the summer of last year and immediately felt at home there. The staff were fabulous and the day ran like a dream. As a wedding photographer who loves the edgier style photo, the venue is full of really inspiring locations. The venue itself has a mixture of great wooden and metal backdrops, but if you venture a little further, there is a great wooded area on the grounds with a little river running through it. one of the things that I love most about photographing barn weddings is that they are often really neutral and so tend to suit any type of wedding decor.

Pendrell Hall, West Midlands

Pendrell Hall is a beautiful, stately home in Codsall, near Wolverhampton. The venue oozes class and sophistication with its wood panelled walls and beautiful lighting. The venue has a ton of inside and outside space and can accommodate indoor and outdoor weddings. The venue has great spaces for bridal prep in the morning and gorgeous bedrooms for staying over after the wedding. There are so many really lovely spots both inside and outside for photos and its definitely one of my favourite places to shoot. As well as being lovely during the day, there are some outside lights that are great for portraits in the evening too.

The West Mill, Derby

I love the West Mill. It is super cool and has a ton of character. I’m a huge fan of industrial style decor and so this venue was a real treat for me. The building is a former mill, dating back to the 1800s and has been restored tastefully and beautifully. Not only is the venue great, but it has some lovely outdoor space as it sits next to the River Derwent.

Buddileigh Farm, Cheshire

If you’re looking for great wedding venue in Cheshire, with lots of space and a lovely family feel then you should definitely take a look at Buddileigh Farm. It has lots of space, both indoor and outdoor ceremony options and stone baked pizza ovens for relaxed catering. What could be better? Buddileigh Farm is a family run business and that really reflects in the care and attention provided for their couples.

Wilderness Wood, Surrey

I visited Wilderness Wood in May this year for Jonathan and Nina’s wedding. They planned an outdoor cermony, surrounded by theit friends and family and then held their reception in the lovely wooden outdoors seating area. The location was absolutely incredible and I would say that it is quite possibly my favourite of all of the wedding venues that I have visited. It combines the importance of embracing nature and weather, with a wonderfully intimate atmosphere. If you are in the south of the country and are looking for an outside with indoor options sort of venue, definitely check these guys out.

Blackdown Events, Taunton

I love venues that allow couples to express their own personality and this was certainly the case for Woody and Vicky’s wedding. The venue consists of a large marquee in the beautiful countryside, in taunton. Not only was there lots of space for wedding fun, there was also space for camping if your friends and family wanted some cheap accommodation for the night. The way the venue was dressed was spectacular and the sky was the limit in terms of the decor. Sometimes I think that if you are planning to use a lot of colour in your wedding, then having a blank canvas for a venue can be a great way to make it stand out.

Brighton Music Hall, Brighton

In November 2014, I shot Dan and Kayleigh’s wedding at Brighton Music Hall, in Brighton. The venue is right on the sea front and the reception was laid out inside the huge tipi in front of the hall. The tipi was really lovely and the couple had been able to add their own stamp to it easily. There was a huge amount of space for sitting, eating, chatting and most importantly – dancing! Despite the time of year and that we were on the coast, the tipi was really cosy. The location was really great for photos too. In addition to the tipi, there is a large open fire outside for warming your cockles if the evening gets chilly.

The Royal Pavilion, Brighton

I was back in Brighton in September for a wedding at the Royal Pavilion. It was the first time that I had shot there and I was pretty blown away. Both the design of the building, and the decor inside was unlike anything that id ever seen at a wedding venue before and started life as King George IV. The colours and patterns reminded me of India, which I believe is where the inspiration came from. After the ceremony, we were given some time in the music room, which was a private part of the museum, reserved for a short time for the couple. The room was just incredible with beautifully printed wallpaper and huge chandeliers. I loved shooting in there!

Electric Cinema, Birmingham

If you are looking for an alternative style venue in Birmingham, then I would definitely take a look at Electric Cinema. This 1920s cinema has maintained a huge amount of character and is perfect for any couples who are looking for something a little different. The couple stood on the stage to exchange their vows, in full view of their loved ones. They also made use of a cinema screen by projecting their wedding artwork onto it and to play a short film that they had made. After the ceremony, we took some photographs in the projection room with all of the old film reels. That was pretty special!

Lyde Court, Hereford

Lyde Court is in Herefordshire, surrounded by farms. I really love barn weddings at the moment but this barn was a little more rustic than usual which I really enjoyed. The couple were able to get married outside but were able to step into the open barn for the legal parts. Currently, in England, open air weddings are not legal and so this venue offered the best of both worlds.The venue has a huge amount of space, both inside and outside and is decorated minimally which allows the building to show its character. There is a lovely little surprise bowling alley in one of the rooms in the barn, which is great if you have children attending your wedding.