Howsham Hall is a Grade I listed Jacobean house of warm limestone, built around 1610 for Sir William Bamburgh on the site of an older manor and added to by more or less every generation that could afford it — an east front in 1709, a Georgian remodelling in the 1770s. It stands in its own secluded valley beside the River Derwent, in parkland laid out by Capability Brown, with 3 giant sequoias planted in a triangle on the lawn. The cellars underneath are older than any of it.
For half a century this was a boys’ preparatory school, which closed in 2007, and the house waited the best part of a decade before the Yorkshire events company Dine took it on in 2017 and restored it as an exclusive-use wedding venue. They have been clever about it. The historic bones are intact — the Great Hall where most couples marry, the Drawing Room for dinner, the panelled billiard room — but the interiors have been done with a modern, faintly glamorous confidence rather than reverently, and the house is a good deal more fun for it. There is a riverside bar and terrace, and a room downstairs fitted out for the late part of the night.
Howsham only does exclusive use, so the whole house and its 80 or so acres are yours. Up to 150 can sit down across the principal rooms, and a marquee on the lawn takes larger evening numbers. There are 12 individually designed bedrooms sleeping around 28 between them, including a honeymoon suite spread across the south front that the house cheerfully claims is among the largest in Europe. Catering is Dine’s own and is the reason a good many couples choose the place at all. Malton and York are both an easy drive.
Where the band plays
The Great Hall is the obvious room for a band, and a wonderful one to play in — stone, height and the sort of natural resonance that flatters live music. Bands and DJs are both welcome, and the house prefers to work with musicians on levels rather than impose a hard limiter, which is a rare and welcome thing in a listed building with neighbours. Do expect a conversation about volume; the request is a reasonable one and any decent band will take it in their stride. If your evening numbers push you out into the marquee, check the power supply and the covered route between the two well before the day.
How the evening runs
Evenings at Howsham typically run to midnight, with a later finish possible if you ask, so the usual shape is dinner in the Drawing Room, the band through the middle of the evening in the Great Hall, and the bar downstairs to catch whoever is not ready to stop. Having the bedrooms in the house changes the mood of the last hour considerably, because nobody is watching the clock for a taxi. Load-in is along a country drive rather than into a service yard, so give the band a little extra time and be clear about where they should park.
Bands available in North Yorkshire and perfectly at home in a venue like this.
More live music in North Yorkshire.
- North Yorkshire Wedding Bands
- North Yorkshire Events Bands
- Tribute Acts in North Yorkshire
- Wedding DJs in North Yorkshire
- Corporate Entertainment in North Yorkshire
Worth reading before you book: Sound Limiters Explained. More questions answered on our England & Wales FAQs.