Reception Rooms: August 2026

We have been working most recently on the Drawing Room on the south elevation of the castle, and have now finished plastering and painting the room. This completely changes the character of the space into something  uncannily close to the domestic. Well over 50% of this room was derelict when I bought the castle and significantly there was no floor. The remaining work is to install oak strip flooring on top of the plywood subfloor and wooden fittings such as shutters and skirting boards.

This Drawing Room will be the second large reception room to be restored, following the Great Hall, which was completed last year. The Great Hall still has to have an opening ceremony. The one which I organised last August was cancelled at the very last moment by Angus Council, even though I had informed then well in advance. 550 tickets had to be cancelled, and I felt awful that people has travelled from different countries especially to attend the event.

With the Drawing Room looking less ruinous, I opened the door connecting it to the Great Hall, and the castle gave me the biggest and the most unexpected surprise! Even after 19 years of ownership, she still has secrets to reveal.

The Great Hall is noteworthy for not having any views of the surrounding countryside. All the windows are extremely high up, so all you can see is sky. In one sense this is disappointing given the magnificent location of the castle, but in another sense it creates a "womb like" atmosphere that cradles you. Guests have indicated that despite the enormous scale of the room, it still feels intimate and on a human scale.

the newly discovered line of sight to the south through the door 

The surprise is that the Great Hall does actually have the very best view of the surrounding countryside when the connecting door is open. The door you enter through to get into the Great Hall; the connecting door to the Dining Room; and the central panel of the large bay window on the south elevation align perfectly. So there is a wonderful line of sight through the building to the outside, that had been hidden for decades and has only just, to my great delight, reappeared.

Here is a photo of the dining room taken a few weeks ago. You can see that where coving is missing we have just painted a white band to give an impression of what once was.

the Drawing Room before final scaffold removal 

My builders came back today, after a 3 week break, and removed the remaining scaffolding to reveal the Drawing Room as a simple complete and vast space. I am so looking forward to guests enjoying it. Gregor said it is his favourite room today. and many visitors have said the same thing. 

Personally, my favourite room is the Great Hall which somehow channels the soirée, but the Drawing Room undeniably has the best views and is a space for daytime events.

the Drawing Room after today's scaffold removal