Owlpen Manor – A beautiful, alternative style venue for a magical Cotswold wedding: It’s difficult to think of a prettier place to choose to celebrate your wedding than Owlpen Manor. So no surprise then that it has been used as the backdrop for a number of TV series as well as more recently for the Oscar-nominated film, Phantom Thread. So when I talk about alternative style venues, I’m really alluding to those places that break the mould a little, you know mess with the usual formula, and Owlpen, with its own little church, lake and breath-taking views is definitely not your run of the mill wedding-by-numbers venue. There’s also a cracking little pub minutes up the road for the groom to have a loosener or two with the lads.
With the estate having a recorded history of close to a thousand years, Owlpen Manor’s past makes for a fascinating read although it is only relatively recently that couples have been lucky enough to share in its beauty. So what makes it special? Well, apart from the brilliant personal service from ‘Team Owlpen’ – shout out to Hugo, Beth, Mel, Raoul – the photographic opportunities there are limitless and most are within a stone’s throw so no long waits for the group shots to finish. And if you’re the type of bride and groom that isn’t too keen on being in front of the camera ‘posing’ then Owlpen is perfect because you can just be yourselves in amongst drop-dead gorgeous surroundings and before you know it, job done. I’ve shot many weddings here now and each time I manage to stumble upon yet another ‘wow shot’ location to add to the list.
Finally…there’s one more thing that’s really exciting to tell you about and that’s the new Pole Barn: Gone will be the small marquee at the top and in its place a new state of the art extension to the original Cyder Barn which will be absolutely transformational and make Owlpen Manor not only a perfect summer wedding choice but also a fabulous winter wedding venue too.
It’s hard to put in to words just how unique Owlpen Manor is so it’s perhaps just as well I’m a photographer and able to show you a few pictures so you can see for yourselves…
The Views
- The Grist Mill for that ‘Constable’ look
- The panoramic ‘wow’ shot of the house
- The tree-lined walk towards the house
- One of my fave garden locations
- I love to use trees to frame the shot
- Another gorgeous Grist Mill moment
- The view looking down from the gardens
- The marquee view from the top of the hill
- Love this shot with the house and gardens providing the perfect backdrop
The Church
- The short walk to the church
- Plenty of natural light inside
- Gorgeous colours in the knave
- The “We did it!” walk from the church
The Fun!
- Love those traditional wedding games!
- Keeping it low key…
- D & K in lights
- Cyder Barn confetti fun!
- Nervous smiles from the lads
- The bride smashing it!
- ‘Peaky Blinders’ comes to Owlpen
- All smiles in the gardens
- Now there’s a shot…
- Dad’s first glance…
- Aren’t kids wonderful…
- Beautiful light across the meadow
- Great weddings call for great cakes
- Love that ‘first look’