Close House stands on the north bank of the River Tyne at Heddon-on-the-Wall, about seven miles west of Newcastle and close enough to Hadrian’s Wall that guests tend to make a weekend of it. The estate is around 250 years old, which puts the house firmly in the Georgian tradition, and it sits in roughly 400 acres of Northumberland countryside with long views out over the Tyne valley. It is a short drive from the city and feels nothing like it.
The estate has been carefully developed without losing its setting. No.19 is the restaurant and the main room for celebrations, with a kitchen that leans on locally sourced produce and serves breakfast to guests staying over. There are bedrooms on the estate — described, fairly, as sumptuous — so the wedding party need not go anywhere at the end of the night. Parties of up to 140 can be accommodated, using both indoor and outdoor space, with catering that ranges from a buffet to full table service and decoration arranged to suit.
Two locations on the estate are licensed for ceremonies: the Clubhouse, which has panoramic views across the countryside and out over the valley, and the Tyne Valley Hotel, which offers something more intimate and rustic. Between them, and with the grounds and terraces outside, the estate handles everything from a small ceremony to a full-scale celebration, and the wedding team will take it from the first viewing through to the final toast.
Where the band plays
With numbers up to around 140, this is a comfortable, sociable scale for live music — big enough for a proper dancefloor, small enough that a four or five-piece fills the room without anybody straining. Rooms with a lot of glass and panoramic glazing, which is the case here, carry sound in a bright, reflective way, so a band with a decent engineer and a sensible approach to volume will sound considerably better than one that simply pushes. Agree the stage position and the power supply when the layout is drawn, and make sure the dancefloor ends up between the band and the bar.
Ceremony, the terrace and the valley
Both licensed spaces are intimate enough that an unamplified acoustic act is plenty for the ceremony — a guitarist, a harpist or a string duo needs no help from a PA indoors. If you are using the terraces or the grounds, whether for vows or for drinks, remember that 400 acres of open valley will thin an acoustic instrument to almost nothing, so a small amplifier makes all the difference. With guests spreading outside for the views, a roaming acoustic player is the most reliable way to keep the afternoon feeling like one occasion.
How the evening runs
Confirm your finish time and any conditions on amplified music when you book, since these can vary between the spaces on the estate. Whatever the answer, the shape that works is the familiar one: a prompt first dance after dinner, two full band sets while everybody is still in the room, and the bar carrying on afterwards. Load-in is easy by rural standards, with good access and parking on the estate, but it is worth agreeing an arrival window so a van is not crossing the grounds mid-photographs.
Bands available in Newcastle upon Tyne and perfectly at home in a venue like this.
More live music in Newcastle upon Tyne.
- Newcastle upon Tyne Wedding Bands
- Newcastle upon Tyne Events Bands
- Tribute Acts in Newcastle upon Tyne
- Wedding DJs in Newcastle upon Tyne
- Corporate Entertainment in Newcastle upon Tyne
Worth reading before you book: Sound Limiters Explained. More questions answered on our England & Wales FAQs.