22/05/2009

Issued by: Carlton Towers

Lord and Lady Gerald Fitzalan Howard personally welcomed more than 200 business visitors to Carlton Towers on Thursday evening to celebrate the official opening of the eleven new bedrooms designed by the Lady herself!

WOW! was the word repeatedly used throughout the evening when, after Lady Gerald cut the ribbon and declared the new rooms open, guests were guided by her through the Venetian Drawing Room and Picture Gallery before heading upstairs to the first eight rooms in the Bachelor wing, so called because these rooms were used by any unmarried men staying in the house in Victorian times.

All eight have been named after the brothers and sisters of Lord Gerald's father, the late 17th Duke of Norfolk, the Duke and his brothers and sisters spent much of their childhood at Carlton Towers and were known as the eight M's.  The Duke was named Miles and his brothers and sisters were Michael, Martin, Mark, Mariegold, Miriam, Miranda and Mirabel.

Lady Gerald proudly led the tour describing how she has put together family pieces of furniture and china with bargains from Ebay and high street stores to create the stunning result.

Further up the spiral staircase to the clock tower where the exquisite Norfolk and Glossop rooms boasted large fretted windows, framed by luscious curtains, which overlook the estate.  Beautiful four poster beds set the scene and freestanding roll top bath tubs dominated the luxurious bathrooms.

The pièce de résistance was surely the Baroness's Tower, a suite of rooms atop yet another fairytale spiral staircase. A private lobby led at first to a supremely luxurious bathroom. An enormous copper bath, double basins and walk-in shower are complemented by large picture windows with views across the private gardens and beyond. An internal staircase led to the second floor of the suite where a richly adorned four posted bed sits in a wonderfully lavish bedroom with beautifully cascading curtains.

One guest commented, "I don't think Lady Gerald realises quite how clever she really is, her choice in wallpapers and fabrics is bold and her taste impeccable, I'm bowled over by it".

Lord Gerald said, "Until now guests using Carlton Towers as a wedding or conference venue have been limited to just five bedrooms which meant we were missing out on a significant amount of business. Having increased these to sixteen we can now seriously aim at the larger corporate market offering an excellent venue for meetings, conferences and events".

The Staterooms at Carlton Towers provide a perfect setting for both formal and informal events for up to 250 people.  There are two smaller rooms, the Beaumont and Tempest for up to 24.

For information call 01405 861 662 or visit http://www.carltontowers.co.uk/

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