The Property

Iconic in its first impressions, the tower of the Grade II* listed Great Hall rises temptingly up like a setting from a Byron poem beyond the sweeping gravel driveway, The Hall itself accessed via intercom.

Rising from the ashes of a devastating 1858 fire, the family seat of the Watkins Wynn family in Ruabon was reimagined by architect Benjamin Ferrey in flamboyant French Gothic style, its turrets and porte cochere set against three private acres of Capability Brown’s wider sweeping parkland.

Over the decades Wynnstay Hall, of which the Great Hall is the central property, has been a grand family seat, wartime base, and school, eventually falling into disrepair. The Great Hall was restored as a family home with flair, where Victorian drama meets modern functionality – from its grand piano to its Yoga space to its vintage cinema seats.

Entered by stone steps, the stone portico (porte cochere) provides a comfortable seating area, where oversized, ornately carved double doors open into a large entrance porch, lined in original bespoke, Victorian encaustic tiles.

Beyond, the spectacular Hall reveals itself, with wooden flooring, oak panelled walls and an utterly unique flow.

Open-plan living unfolds beneath soaring 30-foot ceilings, framed by a unique carved wooden roof (based by Ferrey on the Palais de Justice in Rouen), fringed by a Welsh-language frieze where it meets the walls. Open yet warm and homely, zoned spaces form around focal points, with a cwtch-like snug nestled around a spectacular 20-foot fireplace with log-burning stove.

Modern living has been slotted in over three cruise-ship-inspired levels. A towering bookcase with secret door on a former minstrels’ gallery completes this extraordinary space.

Remaining on the ground floor, encaustic tiles feature once more in the utility – a handy room for canine companions, alongside a neat downstairs WC, while a glass-brick wall curves to the side of the dining area, delightfully furnished by the current owners with pew-like church bench seating, and leading on to a games ‘room’, where a large pool table is situated.

Free to adapt and mould to create playrooms, office rooms and sitting rooms, the flexibility of this ground floor flow is phenomenal.

Exposed brickwork and checkered tiling lend an individuality to the kitchen, laid out in galley fashion and with ample space for a breakfast table. Beyond, a door leads to an outer hall, from where there is access down to The Great Hall’s labyrinthine cellars.

Up on the first floor, the gallery offers sweeping views across the Great Hall, with a striking perspective onto the 20-foot bookcase, once the setting for a grand organ which is now preserved in Cardiff Museum.

The fourth bedroom, now a calm office, links to a luxurious bathroom and a decked balcony for coffee breaks in the sunshine.

An indulgent triple-room sanctuary, the principal suite is privately tucked away, featuring a stormy blue-grey tiled bathroom with bath and separate walk-in shower, a storage-laden dressing room and a spacious bedroom with balcony access.

Stairs and passageways provide a gothic experience, accessing the lofty gallery office and bookshelf, which opens to reveal a hidden room providing storage space, with shelving and also housing the CCTV monitor.

On the uppermost floor, a home cinema evokes a turn-of-the-century theatre, complete with red velvet seating, private bar and a remote screen that ascends towards the carved oak ceiling. There is even access to a separate outdoor balcony.

Two additional double bedrooms, both served by en suites, provide privacy for loved ones on this level.

Externally

A storybook setting for young and old, communal gardens stretch out to the distance, while The Great Hall also sits within its own, private, three-acre field with sweeping views to Chirk Castle and beyond.

Established trees, including a rare liriodendron, offer shelter and shade, while the vast porte cochere portico provides a vantage point across the valleys.

Lavender borders hum with bees while wildlife abounds as hares, herons, squirrels and owls share the grounds, alongside wild orchids and fungi, enabling children to hunt for conkers and acorns safely away from roads.